Chapter 1 - Blind Justice

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Chapter 1
Blind Justice
"Dear Princess Celestia, I wanted to share my thoughts with you... I didn't learn anything! I was right all along!"

There comes a time in every stallion's life when he has to just buck up and do his duty. Because everyone, me included, has a duty that has to be fulfilled. It has to take priority over everything else, even if it hurts. And if it hurts too much, then you have to let go of what's holding you back, even if that hurts too. It's called growing numb, so I've been told by someone I know. Someone whom... I'm not sure if I hate or appreciate beyond compare.

HOWEVER, what annoyed me was that my 'duty' -- and that's a massive overstatement -- was flying up to the ceiling of my Stable to replace the damned light bulbs. Light bulbs, who gives a damn about light bulbs...

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

It was a fine morning in Stable Fifty. The bed was soft, the sheets were wrinkled just right, and the aircon was just at the right temperature. It felt like a little piece of soft, cool heaven amidst all the terrible and crappy hours -- pun intended -- of working as a fucking maintenance pony.

I was so engrossed feeling the cool air and soft mattress that I didn't even hear the door open.

"Goldwreath!" Yelled Lighthouse, a green earth pony buck with a messy gray mane and a coach's mustache, and also our Stable's chief mechanic and my mentor. And also a professional pain in the ass -- the highlight of his skill set, actually.

"Goldwreath! Get up, use those wings of yours, replace the light bulbs, or I'm going to have to get the taser gun I fixed yesterday!" He yelled. Say, did I mention professional pain in the ass? Well, that's because he's a particularly good shot with those taser things, especially at getting people in the flanks. Oooh, that sentence brings back some bad memories...

"Alright, alright. Just stop shouting," I murmured as I covered my face with my pillow. "I'll get up in a minute," I muttered, and pulled the pillow over my head, nearly dosing off again.

Then he pulled the pillow away and smothered me with it, yanking me away from the blissful paradise of miniature hills of bed sheet wrinkles and the veritable winter of aircon. "Ah! Allright! I'm getting up, see?" I grumbled through a face full of pillow, and lots of drool. Sweet Celestia, did I drool that much? Oh, of course I do, who was I kidding? It was like the one thing I could say for certain about my mouth.

"It's about time. Look, if you finish replacing those light bulbs early, we can continue on your gladius training. Shouldn't be hard. Only a few levels have light bulbs that need replacing," He said with minimal interest. I, though, had my eyes snap open at the word 'gladius'.

I immediately got up as quickly as possible, freshened up, and raced down the halls past the steely grey doors and hard metal floor to those damned light bulbs. Five years; I spent five years replacing those things every few days, only occasionally getting a different job. Such horrible and tedious experiences stay with people for their entire lives. How dare those light bulbs get in the way of gladius training?

Oh, wait... you're probably wondering just what is with gladius training, or what a gladius even is. The answer to the latter is simple: a gladius is short stabbing sword used by the ancient Roaman legionnaires. It was NOT primarily a slashing weapon, remember that.

Now, thing is, gladius training suits me. It's not like replacing light bulbs, it's something I enjoy and it feels like a part of me. It's one of the few things I get to do in this place, being a 'technician' (even though I wasn't, and admittedly still not, very good at it), that didn't involved getting shot in the ass with a taser because I accidentally turned on a welder. How was I supposed to know it was on? He told me it wasn't powered! Long story short, I was shot thrice, one on both cheeks, with a taser. The last shot... well, it's not important.

Anyway, back to the topic.

I was gliding down the stairs to the basement, hurriedly and with no attention to making little noise. The basement was also our museum for ancient Roaman stuff. Things like pilums, more gladiuses, scutums, caligae, lorica chest plates, and squatamatas -- the standard equipment of Roaman soldiers.

Amidst all the things that I could think about, the exasperation of the moment made me spare a look at my flanks. My cutie mark was a pair of golden wreaths on each side of a golden Roaman numeral 'III', shaped like the columns of a Roaman pavillion.

Now, what did that even mean? I got it the first time I played the role of a praetorian in one of our class plays, but I still didn't get what it meant, or for that matter why I even got it for a cutie mark. But if there was one thing I was sure about, it was that my cutie mark -- the symbol of post Flavian emeperor praetorians, who held a high rank in the army and represented their power with the triple numeral -- did NOT mean that I was supposed to be in fucking Maintenance.

I sighed and looked up at the ceiling, exasperated and sleep-deprived, and asked aloud, "Why in Celestia's name am I a mechanic?" I looked specifically at one of the light bulbs above me, pretending it was Celestia's sun. Suddenly, it flickered and went dark for several moments before coming back to life, still flickering. Ah, light bulbs, why does it seem like you things don't only function this crapily in this one particular fallout shelter. Granted, I had never even been in other fallout shelters (as of that time in my life), but I was pretty sure that good lighting was a priority, it just had to be!

I looked at it's number with no enthusiasm. "B-20. Hmmm...let's see...B-20... You aren't on the list, but I might as well replace you anyway." I flew up to it and started unscrewing the bulb with my hooves.

That was, of course, when a mare's voice from below called out, "Probably because you can reach the ceiling. It's not like any of the zebras or earth ponies, or unicorns in here have the ability to maintain that place. Well the unicorns could, if they weren't lazy as hell."

I knew that voice. That was the voice of one aqua blue earth pony mare with a silver mane and a cutie mark of a bottle of wonderglue next to a broken vase, and one of our Stable's REAL mechanics, and also my good friend, Wonderglue. You know, it's kind of strange how when a pony is named something, say... me, Goldwreath, that their cutie mark often times becomes something really similar to their name. It's like a conspiracy about names...

I looked down at her, just a little bit cheerier than before, and said, "Yeah well, if they weren't lazy asses then I could focus on gladius training. This has got to be the worst job in the Stable." Seriously, what other job could be as boring? Or, generally, pointless.

"Oh don't be so sure about that. Rainydays' job is worse. I don't think any pony or zebra would want to a be toilet cleaner," She said as I finished screwing in the new bulb and tossed the old one into a bin marked 'light bulbs'.

"Yeah, well, at least her job has some challenge to it. Mine is so simple it bores me to hell. If I were a mechanic -- a GOOD, ACTUAL, CUTIE MARK APPROVED mechanic, which I am not -- then at least I could take some joy in the ridiculous task of changing light bulbs." I replied, which earned me a quick laugh from her.

"Yeah, I never understood why they threw you into Maintenance. Your cutie mark definitely doesn't show it." She paused, scratching her chin as if in thought. "Maybe... maybe it's because they don't know what your cutie mark means? It doesn't exactly fit into any criteria of any of the departments."

Huh. I never thought of it like that. Was... was that true? Was I stuck in this crappy job because no one knew what my cutie mark said I was good at? Great. Now even my cutie mark was screwing with me.

"Yeah..." I drawled, shaking my head. "Hmph. Maybe. Anyway, I got to get the rest of these bulbs screwed in. I have gladius training later, and it's one of the few things on this place that I enjoy." And by 'one of the few things I enjoy', I meant 'basically the only thing I enjoy'... that I could perform on my own and without needing other people.

"Oh? And what are the others?" She asked with a mildly curious, mildly sympathetic look.

"Well, there's Close Combat training, reading my magazines and comics, and mare fl-..." OKAY! I was not going to finish that last word! Come on, Goldwreath! At least change it to something less embarrassing! "...friends! Yes, friends of mine who are mares! Most of the stallions here are boring!" I said with a nervous smile. A smile which, if she weren't looking away from me in thought, I'm sure she would have known was not sincere.

Now, I know what you're thinking. 'Goldwreath, you dog!' 'Goldwreath, pervert!' Well, here's the thing: from where I am now, I look back upon my life on occasion. And, sometimes, I just want to share the stuff that I remember. One such thing is that I had barely ever gotten any social contact in the Stable, especially from mares. I guess that lack of contact over the years slowly made me... curious is all I'll say. And NOT just in the sexual way, mind you. I wasn't THAT kind of pony.

"Not really. For example, Harddrive is really..." She started to say.

That was when I bolted down the hall, saying, "Nope! Boring!" Of course it was quite the opposite; it wasn't boring, rather a nice change from the tedium of day-to-day life, if only it wasn't about... well, stuff that made me uncomfortable.

She disappeared from my line of sight, but I could swear that I heard the phrase 'is really good in bed'. Definitely not something a stallion like me should know! With great disturbance brewing in my head, I raced down the halls as quick as I could and left her behind.

Ugh, why does the one social interaction I get that's different from most have to end up in flames?

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Well, at least I was done replacing all the light bulbs and was finally slicing through hardened hay dummies. It got my mind off of how 'good' Harddrive was, according to Wonderglue, at... yeah, nevermind. As of now, I'm getting nauseous just from the mere thought of it.

But I digress. What mattered at that particular moment time was that I was at least beating my time record. That meant I was getting good, and that meant I might get into the security department. Which meant -- come on, say it with me -- a MORE EXCITING JOB!

When the last dummy fell to the ground and I stood victorious on their corpses, proudly looking at the ceiling, Lighthouse metaphorically shot me down. "Yeah, yeah, I get it. You're good with a gladius. What do you want, a promotion?"

"Well, I could definitely use the additional coupons..." Maybe coupons for extra time in the movie theater...

"Ahh, shut it! Ok, look, you maimed those dummies three seconds quicker than last time. You made a mistake when you accidentally hit the hilt against the wooden support. If you hadn't done that... I'd say you could have gotten five seconds instead of three."

I sat down hard and said, "I could have? Well, then I need to go again!" Okay, I might have sucked at that maintenance crap, but I took my weapons and training (not to mention muscle mass, for the mares -- curiosity, if it is to be piqued, I learned, had to be aroused in both parties, apparently.) more seriously than I had my schooling.

He just gave me a flat look, and finally said, "Yeah, listen, 'hero', those were my last dummies. We'll have to wait 'till the recyclers can cough up enough material to make more. Should take about a week." WHAT?! A WEEK?!

"What?! I can't wait that long! What will I do while waiting?!" I screamed like a foal who'd been told they could have their dessert after they ate their veggies.

"Don't know, don't care. Try seeing if Harddrive or Wonderglue have a job for you. Those light bulbs should last a while, anyway," He said with minimal interest in my plight, and started trotting out of the room.

"Dad... please?" I called out weakly, then shoved a hoof in my mouth. Had I just said that word?

He stopped where he was, slowly averting his gaze to the floor. Then he sighed as he looked over his shoulder at me. "Kiddo..." he started, trotting over to me. "I'm sorry kid. I know it ain't easy being the only orphan in the Stable's history... and I can't sympathize with that, no matter what I'll try." He sat down next to me and patted my back. "And I'm sorry that I can't make you feel like you still have parents. I ain't one." With that last word he patted me on the back again, then opened his mouth to say something. Nothing came out but a cracked little whine, and he looked away from me.

"I gotta go," he said at last, then hastily trotted out of the room. I didn't try to call after him this time. I always did freeze up when... stuff I didn't like popped up. Events that shocked me, words that got to me, suggestions that concerned me; you name it, and if it's something that I'm not gonna like, chances are I'll freeze up.

A few minutes passed and I had finally gotten over the immensely uncomfortable interaction I had just had. "Well, fuck. What can I do...." I looked up at the light bulb on the ceiling. It was taunting me...

'...come replace some more light bulbs, Goldwreath. Come replace some more...'

Okay, I was just told the news less than thirty seconds ago, and I was already going insane! I had to find something to do! Hell, even something along the lines of 'clean some toilets' would... be, ugh, welcome.

And so, with the intent of finding something to keep my sanity in check until new dummies were made, I got up and started trotting out of the room and into the hallway, where the many light bulbs and not a single pony or zebra made me cringe. Everything seemed so... creepy...

'Oh, Celestia, please not the light bulbs! Please, anything but the light bulbs!' I thought to myself, terrified at the sight of the dozens of light bulbs.

After a few moments of trotting in the hall to find Wonderglue (I had completely ruled out Harddrive, because I just didn't feel comfortable around him), I finally came upon her room; it was only a few dozen feet from mine. I knocked on it twice, and their were the sounds of hoofsteps immediately after.

The door opened, and Wonderglue peeked out, looking me over with slight tiredness in her eyes, signified by her eye bags. "Oh. Goldwreath. What do you need?" She asked with a tired, sleepy tone. Well, not everyone in Maintenance finished as early as me, I guess. Or for that matter, got as much sleep as me; one of the perks of having a job where I do almost nothing time-consuming.

"Hey, Glue. Due to the sad, sad truth of not being able to practice for another week, I need you to give me a job that doesn't involve..." I looked away from her at the light bulbs around me, and shivered. "... light bulbs." It may have been a little dramatic for something as benign as a bulb, I know, but trust me when I say that, if you've done nothing but replace them your entire working life, that you would also become paranoid.

She considered me for a moment, eyeing me up and down curiously. For just a second, there was this suspicious look on her face that suggested she was trying to discern possible ulterior motives for my appearance. That confused me; what could she suspect a stallion like me would be doing in her room?

Then she smiled good-naturedly, sweeping aside my own anxiety, and finally let me into her room.

"You know weapons, right? 'Cause the Security department needs me to maintain their weapons. Guns and melee included. I would, but since you offered to help, and because you know weapons better than me, you do it," She said as she climbed back onto her bed. I just watched her as she lay down, feeling a curiosity in me stir. She noticed me, and I turned my head away and watched her floor like it was the most interesting thing in existence, but I just know my burning cheeks betrayed me.

"That's, uh... nice. So, is that it? Nothing else?" I asked awkwardly, feeling myself stupid and sluggish. If there WAS something else, she would have told me, right?

"Hmmm..." She replied, looking up at the ceiling. "Nope. Just that. Not much going on with the Stable right now, actually. Good for us Maintenance ponies and zebras, though. We get a break!" She said with a delighted little chuckle.

"Yeah, I know. Though, uh, you and the other REAL maintenance guys might appreciate it more than I do. All I do is replace light bulbs," I replied, to which she shrugged in indifference.

I stood there for a few more moments, catching her attention. She looked at me strangely for one moment, then said, "Well, you can go now, if you want to, you know. Not much else to talk about right now." There was this tone in her voice suggesting she was wondering just what I was still doing in there. Even I was wondering just WHAT I was still doing there.

I probably sounded like a broken audio recorder, but I managed to say, "I can? Oh, great! I usually wait for people to dismiss me before I go. Hehe..." Wow, the stammering wasn't in my mental visualization either.

My response was already lame in my mind, but even more so in real life -- probably because most of my head was flooded with a nagging curiosity that just screamed for me to get on the bed. I wondered why it was tempting me to do that.

"Anyyyyway... seeya!" I said as I backed out of the room and darted around the corner in the least rushed manner possible.

But I was stunned mid-flight when I heard her giggling. And that wasn't exactly a giggle a mare gets when tickled. I looked back behind me at the doorway to see her peeking at me, just locking my gaze at me with those eyes... those beautiful, green eyes.

Then she closed the door on me. Of course she did. Mares did that when you stay in their rooms too long. And when you were sporting burning cheeks. And when you wanted to get on their beds. Yeah... I didn't exactly know what that meant back then.

Sweeping away all thoughts of that rather strange event, I started making my way down the halls, just smiling back at any pony or zebra I just so happened to come across. Only some of them returned it, much to my confusion.

'I really need to make more friends,' I thought. Or at least I thought it was me... basically that feeling you get when you think something even if you didn't actually think it. Still, I shook my head and cleared my thoughts, just to be safe. You never know when insanity takes you in the type of world I live in.

"No, you're not crazy yet," I reassured myself, though I got the strangest little nag of a feeling that I was going to be very wrong very soon.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Well, at least I actually knew how to maintain and repair these guns. Honestly though, when I caught sight of all these weapons of organized destruction, I could have sworn that a part of me that I never knew existed took over. How did I even know that the shotgun I was cleaning was an IF-90 Striker? Probably from that magazine on weapons I read a few weeks back, but I just skimmed. I didn't actually really read that magazine, just looked at the pictures which were MUCH more interesting than three pages of text all about a loading mechanism. I read, sure, but I happened to want the subject to change after each paragraph.

At least someone was appreciating what I was doing, and I knew that because the Security pony watching me, Kevlar Vest, actually decided to compensate me for my work with a coupon to a 'Free CALIBER Magazine, issue #12'. Well, it would give me something to read later on, when I finished a book series about magic hoof rings.

I wiped and I wiped, and did just that for about an hour. Boredom was not a problem, as I had long sought a different job aside from replacing you-know-whats. Even this job, which I'm sure some people would find tedious, was welcome.

Upon turning to the next weapon, I think my body orgasmed. Such magnificent weapons of war and calculated slaughter were just appealing to me, I don't quite know why.

That was a HEV Anti Armor, 50.cal, high velocity, 'Lightningbolt' sniper rifle, modified with a barrel for extra large explosive rounds. It didn't even look like a regular sniper rifle! It was practically a tank gun that was somehow capable of being fired by a pony or zebra on the ground. I turned to Kevlar Vest, questions flaring up in my head.

"How the hell do you fire this thing? And why do we even need a sniper rifle of such power in the Stable?" I asked, and he chuckled in my direction, raising an eyebrow knowingly.

"Well, the Overmare thinks that in the long, narrow hallways of the Stable, that, if we were under threat, whatever hostiles were inside would probably line up single file, then BLAM! Thing could punch through ten bodies, maybe more. Of course, since we haven't been attacked or anything, it's just gathering dust. Shame really, that thing could do some serious damage. It can only be handled by unicorns, or a really strong battle saddle with a sure-legged pony or zebra" He said, taking in the sight of the immensely powerful weapon and whistled.

I marveled at the gun, and handled it with the utmost respect and care as I cleaned it and wiped away the dust. Then I applied some grease on the parts where the mechanism made raspy noises when shifted.

The next weapons weren't of nearly as much power as the HEV rifle, but each was still capable of killing me in one shot, if it hit me in the right place, and for that I gave them all due respect. My eyes noticed a unicorn mare with a bright red mane, a yellow coat, and crosshair cutie mark enter the room, and I saw her eyes scan the room with this look of deranged paranoia.

Bloodshot was her name. I wouldn't have known if it weren't for her name tag, though. Even if I HAD seen her before. Like I said, I didn't get much formal contact with many other members of the Stable.

She galloped to Kevlar crazily, and for just a moment he seemed like he would have pulled out his weapon and shot her. She reached him, skidding to a stop, and started ranting unintelligibly. From their talk, I discerned she was in Security too. Apparently, she had lost her shotgun and was hoping beyond hope that it was here.

"Try checking the table," The stallion said, causing her to snap her eyes to my direction. She trotted over briskly and looked over the collection for a long moment, eyeing each gun with eyes like magnifying glasses.

Then, finally, her eyes lit up and she declared in triumph, "AHA, there you are you little SoB!" She picked up one of the IF-90 strikers in her hooves and raised it up in the air proudly, grinning like a maniac.She looked at the polished metal, then turned to me with a gracious little nod, and said, "Thanks for cleaning my shotty, pal! Thing gets dustier than a hundred year old table when I leave it for ten minutes, I swear..." Her voice trailed off.

"No problem," I replied with a little nod. "Just... doing my job," I said with a grin of my own. Hey, I might actually get this job if I was good enough at it!

She then left, leaving me to my duties. Well, I just had to clean thirty three more guns. That wasn't so much, right? I looked at the number of guns I had cleaned. Six. Oh well, thirty three wasn't so much. It had only taken an hour to clean those six. It wouldn't take that long, and definitely the fact that I liked this job would help me out.

Right?

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I was exhausted. I really didn't think that cleaning guns would take a lot out of my energy. There were only thirty nine! Was I really letting myself go that bad? Clearly there was some kind of conspiracy here; I just knew that I was still fit as I ever was.

I looked at myself in my mirror, and I saw my crimson coat glistening from grease and sweat, as well as being darkened by dirt. My golden eyes were red and puffy -- I had teared a bit from the dust. My body trembled from fatigue, and I just wanted to sleep. Still, I did spend a minute admiring those glorious leg muscles I spent weeks building up. It's a shame that they were shaking under the weight of my numb upper body.

I went to my bed, curled up under the sheet, locked my door (in your face, Lighthouse) and fell asleep almost immediately.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I was trotting down the hallway to the Atrium. I barely ever got to go to the Atrium, as I spent most of my time on the lower maintenance levels. At most I got to go, what, once a week? Proper social interaction was extremely rare for me, as I said.

As I continued down the hall, there was a loud, metallic 'JING' behind me. I turned around and saw that one of the pipes had exploded, and that foul-smelling brown water was flowing out in great rivulets. Wonderglue came from around a corner and nearly puked at the reek of the stench coming from it. As she started diagnosing it, she gestured at me with her hooves in a way that said 'go, I got this'. Leaving her, I continued on my way to the main hub of social activity in the Stable. Then I heard another loud, mechanical 'JING'. Then another, and another and another...

'She's got a lot of work on her hooves,' I thought, and grimaced at the disgusting thought.

I was about to turn the corner to the wide open and circular space of the Atrium, when she screamed. And not just a regular 'Celestia, this stinks like shit!' scream, it was a scream someone gave when something real bad happened. I turned and galloped towards her, and from the sounds of hooves behind me, I wasn't the only one. My heart started thundering in my ears as my adrenaline shot through my veins like electricity on power cables. If she was in distress, I would do everything in my power to get her out of it; I was not letting one of my few friends get hurt.

When I got to her, closing her eyes and shaking in a corner, I saw it.

Bloody gore.

Dried drops of crimson liquid and shredded guts and flesh stuck to the steel walls of the room like moss to a rock. Limb bits and muscle strings lay littered about the floor like unswept confetti at a party. All of this was coming from a corpse so split open and horribly disfigured that I puked, along with several others. And what hit me next was that I knew who it was : it was Lighthouse.

I approached her cautiously and with no intent but to get her out of this horrible place, but then everyone simply started screaming at me, "YOU KILLED HIM! YOU KILLED HIM!" Their accusations thundered throughout the halls and echoed off the steel, rumbling through the floor and up my legs.

I rounded on them in utter bafflement. "What? What the hell do you mean? I didn't do anything! You people are mad!" My confusion spiked as I saw them approach, seeming angry and disgusted. I tried to escape, flying above the crowd, but some of the zebras in the crowd jumped up and pulled me down. They pounded and stomped me to near unconsciousness, and I felt my bones starting to flex under the pressure of their blows. At last they stopped and lifted me over their heads, and started carrying me away.

I struggled against their grip, grunting and yelling for help. Through the blurriness of it all I saw Wonderglue and the Overmare -- who had always been fair and wise in judgments -- glaring at me from the edge of the crowd. I kicked away my attackers and galloped for them, only to have myself tripped as they gripped my hindlegs. I reached out to them, yelling, "You! Help me! This -- AGH! -- this is madness!"

But no. They would not help. Only glare and shake their heads. There was to be no justice for the actions against me or Lighthouse. Only betrayal, and the thought of it all left me furious and my mind focused on nothing but killing them all.

But before those thoughts could continue, I felt several pairs of hooves reach up to grab my wings.

I wailed in pure agony and thrashed for all I was worth as the burning sting of my skin tearing surged through my nerves like lava. The crackling of cartilage and tendon rippled through the air in sickening snaps, and with each twist it felt as though my very uniqueness as a pegasus was falling further and further away from me. And then at last, with a resounding crack of cartilage and bone, my wings were gone. The agony receded to a pulsating throb, and I ceased my futile struggle. I only cried to myself quietly, furious and humiliated.

We reached our destination: the door. It groaned and rumbled through the ground as it slowly swung to the side, revealing my first ever glimpse of the outside: it was absolutely nothing -- a pure, unbreakable darkness that was so thick I could almost feel it flooding into the Stable like shadowy tentacles from the depths of zebra culture Tartarus. And then, all at once, they threw me into the abyss.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I woke up, and I found myself still in my room, my heart palpitating in my chest like an overworked... well, heart. The sight of a bloodless room was an immense relief. That dream... it felt so real. I didn't actually kill anyone, did I? Surely, someone like me would never do that. Then again, I was in Maintenance, and that meant that maybe something might have broken... welll, that was probably ridiculous, but still.

I got off my bed and checked the time. Six AM. Well, my alarm was just a few minutes from now, anyway. I checked the door; still locked. I fixed my bed, got in my maintenance barding and turned off the alarm clock, then went outside. I greeted my earth pony neighbor in front of me as he yawned and rubbed his eyes while he stood underneath his doorway. He peeked at me and gave me a sleepy smile, and waved back at me.

Well, it was nice to know that the day started on a good note.

Everything was normal, the occasional zebra or pony trotting about doing whatever their job was. Well, no light bulbs needed replacing, no weapons needed cleaning, Rainyday was in charge of toilets, Wonderglue for general maintenance, Screwdriver was maintaining the wiring. Could that mean...

I stopped in front of Lighthouse's office, and found a note. Strange. He never left me notes, not even when he went missing for two days because he was in medical for his colon... yeah, I probably shouldn't say.

Still, change could come whenever it wanted, I guess. This is what the note said:

"Goldwreath,

No maintenance needed today, all the light bulbs are still fine. Just get some more shuteye or something. If you need me, I'll be in the Atrium in case some maintenance job pops up. Don't bother me unless you have to, got it?

Lighthouse"

"Well, weird dream aside, today's looking good. Now... what should I do?" I trotted over to the staircase leading down and into the museum, finding that the ancient armor and weapons were still in good condition, not to mention the well preserved ancient Roaman robes and sashes. Probably from the magical enchantment on the glass, no metal or cloth could avoid rust and decay for two centuries without some kind of magic.

For quite a while, I just stood down there and admired how the ancient Zebras crafted their equipment. All the armor pieces were of uniform thickness, and were made of steel. Of course, these were probably modern remakes, but the general design was still the same. All the weapons were built to follow a specific purpose, with the gladius being an excellent stabbing weapon. When I was still a colt, I once actually broke into the glass casings with a lockpick and a screwdriver. Of course, I got punished afterwards. Still, I felt pretty awesome wearing that stuff, even if it was much bigger than me.

And then there was this magnificent suit of ancient Roaman praetorian armor, standing gleaming upon it's pedestal at the center of the room. I had always liked that piece the most; the plumes were an excellent touch on the Roaman's part. Oh, how I many times dreamt of having it for my own after visiting the museum.

But that was ridiculous. The very first Overmare of the Stable had been given specific orders from... well, someone, that the Stable's directive was to safeguard the cultural greatness of Roam and her empire, and that no one, not even the Overmare, was allowed to handle the pieces.

Which is probably why the Overmare back when I was young cut down my family's rations for two days...

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

When I finally got bored two hours later, I at last decided to head back up to get some more shuteye. After all, while I DID feel better than I did last night, I was still pretty fatigued. Some more sleep would do me good, anyway.

It was when I turned a corner on the seventh basement of the Stable that I ran into a sizable crowd right outside a utility office. There were worried murmurs and more than a few 'what happened?' inquiries. My arrival got me a few strange and even worried looks, though why I couldn't tell. What bothered me, though, was that there was security tape right outside the door, with a Security pony guarding the entrance.

I went over to him, shoving my way as respectfully as possible past the others, and asked the million bit question: "What the hell happened here?" He just looked at me for a moment, examining me with this hard look in his eye. It would have intimidated me if I wasn't bigger than him.

At last he answered, "There was an incident here. Something that's never happened before in the history of the Stable." He grimaced, and looked at the ground with brewing disgust. "There's... there's blood all over the place. What kind of sick bastard did this? Everything was fine in the Stable, why the hell would anyone want to ruin two-hundred years of peace? Why, when I find out who did this, I'm gonna shove my baton so far up their ass-..."

"Yeah, okay, no need to get in the details there," The zebra mare next to me said, stopping him short of revealing the... details of his threat.

I had to agree with that. Nobody really needed to know what he was going to do with his baton, much less if he was going to use it for penetrating something instead of whacking. But now my head was clouded with worry, my heart heavy with rage and disbelief at this event. Who was dead, and WHY would that imbecile ruin the Stable's peaceful history? I really hoped it wasn't Lighthouse or someone else; I had read more than one book where the dream the character had was some kind of foreshadowing for some kind of similar event. In fact, I hoped this was just some sick prank or something. There was more than one time where I thought that the ketchup from the cafeteria was blood, not least of all because I once thought I cut off my hoof when I sliced open a packet of tomato sauce.

So, I asked the other million bit question, "Who was killed? Was it... was it Lighthouse? Please don't tell me it was him!" I was shaking now. I never really liked the guy, but he was kind of a father figure to me. Really, he was one of the few in the Stable who at least seemed interested, or at least concerned, with what I did. He was one of the few who cared and was there for me when my parents both died in a sub-basement fire. He took me in when I was just a colt. I never really appreciated him much, but if he was dead... well, then I would have a lot of stuff to say to his corpse

The guard just looked at me with a grave and sad expression, then finally, "No."

My heart let out a joyous whoop of relief. Oh, this was such good news! I could only imagine what I would have done if he died...

I was about to let out a breath I hadn't realized I had been holding when he spoke up again, "Not just him."

I froze right there, and slowly turned to face him.

"He's... dead?" But... but... n-no! NO!

I couldn't bear it, not at that time. Anger and pure disbelief flooded into my mind, causing me to fall hard on my haunches and look at the ground, seething. I could already feel my eyes starting to produce tears, even if I had more anger than sadness inside me.

One earth pony mare had the kindness to comfort me, placing her hoof on my shoulder. I didn't care; I was much to emotionally overcome to care.

Finally, after about a minute and more worried statements, I looked back at the guard, tears on my cheeks and rage burning in my chest. "Who else was killed?" I asked. He looked particularly saddened at that, eyes looking down to the floor. I could sense a similar fury in him; I could see the strain on his face, past his own tears.

I was almost convinced he wouldn't answer, when he said with a voice so strained it thrummed, "All the head of departments, and... my father."

Oh, fuck. So, whoever this bastard was decided to kill MORE than just one person huh? Still, I could at least give him some sympathy. I was about to get up to give him some kind of comforting gesture, when the door slid open. Immediately, he wiped his face with his hoof, and put on a sterner expression.

"We have the security cam footage, we can find out who did this as soon as this mess is cleaned up," Said Kevlar Vest, eyes hard as steel and face grim. He looked over at me and the guard, and his expression softened a bit. "I'm sorry, Goldwreath. You too, Muzzleflash. I know what some of the people inside meant to you," He said in a tone far more gentle that I would have thought to come from him. "Don't worry, we're gonna put this fucker to the electric chair." He glanced back inside and called, "You done yet, Bloodshot? We have to let Maintenance in to clean up the mess so we can start processing the footage."

A reply came from the workshop inside, slightly muffled by the walls. "Almost, this bastard rigged the power tools to overload next time they were used. Probably in an effort to get us to waste our time. The damage is pretty severe, though. We might need to get new tools entirely."

At that, Kevlar just sighed. "Again, I'm sorry... but you and the rest of Maintenance are going to have to clean up this mess."

My heart sank at that. Not only was I suffering the loss of a dear friend, but I was going to have to shove his corpse into cremator? This... this just stank of all forms of injustice! Well... at least I wasn't alone, and that I could take a little comfort in. I don't think I could have bore it if I were alone. This... all this... it was too sudden.

The crowd was beginning to disperse, even the security team. Muzzleflash had expressed desire to stay, though, and Kevlar decided to give him at least that. Wonderglue and the whatever maintenance personnel there were stayed behind, and she trotted towards me along with the others. I just looked at them, tears streaking down my face.

"Come on. We have to do this," She said in such a soft and kind tone that I almost cried again. But I couldn't. I had to be strong right now. Lighthouse wouldn't want me to break down -- he'd trained me hard, it would be a shame to bawl right now. And so, hard as it was, I got up and got in with them.

The stench wasn't that bad, actually. It was just a really strong, coppery, slightly rancid stench. Nonetheless, I was forced to find a corner where there was a minimal amount of gore and let it loose there. Cards and a few bottles of plant juice were scattered about the floor, making the place look like it had been the sight of a party of some sort. My eyes took in the trails of coppery fluid on the ground.

Then I saw all the bodies.

Whoever this person was, he or she had killed all the head of departments in a brutal and unnecessary manner, though from the looks of it, he or she had probably taken the time to mutilate the corpses after they were already dead.

There was Syringe from medical, stomach split open from gunshots and hooves cut off, on the workshop table. There was Recoil from Security, head blown off, sitting in a corner. And there, in the training area, was a green corpse with a messy gray mane. At the sight of his many, many blade wounds and severed limbs, I almost collapsed and my stomach decided to void itself again. Luckily, there was nothing left inside.

As I stood there in a fit of coughing and attempted puking, Wonderglue trotted up to me and helped me steady myself. "If you want, I can take care of him," she offered, looking me in the eye. She really would, I could tell.

I managed to find my voice. "Thanks... but no. I have to do this myself. He would want me to get my own shit done," I replied, and to my comfort she smiled and pulled me closer, and told me something I really needed to hear.

"You are strong," She whispered, and then she went away to help the others remove Syringe from the table. They were having a hard time of it not because of anything like his skin being plastered to the surface, but simply because they too looked like they could barely stand the sight of it. I slowly approached Lighthouse's corpse.

"Hey, Lighthouse," I said to his lifeless body. It was ridiculous; he was dead, he couldn't respond. But I didn't care right now. The last thing I said to him was just a bunch of whining, so I guess I wanted to make up for that a bit. "Damn, you look like crap." I was about to lay my hoof on his sides, but then I took a few steps closer to his head and whispered, "Don't worry. We're gonna get justice for this. Just wait." And it was true. No matter what would happen later on, I would. Justice was absolute; it could NOT be avoided forever.

I began shifting his body slowly, careful to not seem like I was desecrating his corpse, but then froze. This... this was already a personal attack that I wanted justice for. Now it was even more personal, and I wanted to rip this guy's chest open at this point! I would tear out his or her heart and shove it down their fucking throat!

This monster not only killed a person I cared for and people loved by my friends, but this bastard also used Lighthouse's own gladius to kill him! I slowly removed the blade from the body, looked at it, and said as sincerely as I could, "Whoever you are, you're gonna die by this blade."

I looked to the body in front of me, still seething in rage. I grimaced, knowing what had to be done. The others were doing their jobs, even if they didn't want to. It was their duty, even if they didn't like it.

Right now, this was my duty.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I was lying down in my room, cleaning the blade that had taken the life of my friend. It was still sharp; Lighthouse must have loved this blade and took care of it. And he must have cared for me to let me use it in the first place. You know, as he and the others were being cremated, surrounded by more than half of the Stable's population, I silently asked him for permission to have the blade. I would take good care of it, just like he did. I would never part with it, no matter what. It was ridiculous, I know, but... well, at times even I did things that didn't really have a profound affect on things.

Suddenly, there was Kevlar's voice over the intercoms. His voice was tired and shaky as he said, "All citizens, please report to the Atrium. The footage is done processing and we will exact justice on the murderer. Security ponies and zebras will make sure the rest of the Stable is empty. We're gonna get this bastard."

At that, I sheathed the blade, put on my barding, and started trotting to the Atrium.

"Yes. Exact justice," I murmured darkly, and opened my door and started trotting out. I ignored the others joining me in the halls, and continued on in silence.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I was within the spherical chamber of the Atrium, among all the hundreds of the the Stable's population. The heat of all their presences and all their breathing was slightly suffocating. Thank goodness for the Stable's usage of aircon. They were all whispering to one another, worried expressions on most of their faces.

Wonderglue came from somewhere within the crowd and got up beside me and asked just loud enough to be heard over the crowd, "Who do you think it is?"

"I don't know, but I'm gonna' make sure he doesn't get away with this." was all I replied. She gave me a troubled look, then looked away at the platform above. I looked around as well, and I spotted at least two guards at each entrance, each armed with a non-lethal crowd control shotgun. Good, I didn't want this murderer getting away.

Then Kevlar, Bloodshot, The Overmare, a unicorn mare I recognized from past interactions as Torchlight, and two other security ponies I didn't know got onto the platform on the second floor of the circular Atrium. The platform extended forward, bringing them near the center of the chamber, right below the oculus-like hole at the Stable's roof that provided most of the illumination for the Atrium. After that, a large screen extended from behind them. Pointed down so that all we had to do was look up.

"Settle down!" Kevlar yelled into a microphone, silencing the crowd in his aftermath. "This madness has to stop. This INJUSTICE will be addressed."

The Overmare then took her turn, declaring, "Whoever this murderer is will be revealed in this footage. All the entrances are guarded, so if the murderer would like to just give up now, do so." No one stepped forward, much to my anger and disgust. What a fucking coward.

"Very well," She said, sounding just a touch disappointed, and slid the tape into the Atrium projector. Immediately, the black and white footage began to play. Why the cameras were limited to crappy black and white, I don't know; our movies and television were HD, why not the security cams?

For the first few moments, nothing happened, although we could hear the sounds of cards being shuffled and laughter from inside the office. Bottles clinked on their surfaces, and the thumping of hoofsteps on the metal floor came time and time again.

"Hey Lighthouse, got an ace?" Asked a mare which I assumed was Syringe.

"Nope," Lighthouse replied simply, and someone snickered from within the room. More bottles clinked against each other, followed by some suppressed laughter.

After a few more moments, it turned out the victor was Recoil. And, apparently, the reward was all their plant juice bottles. That bit of info got strange looks from the great majority of us within the Atrium.

As the third bottle was popped open with a soft 'hiss', there was movement in the hall. The form of a pony began to appear out of the shadows, with a silenced SMG on one side of a battle saddle and and a silenced assault rifle on the other.

My eyes widened and I tensed, staring at the screen like it was the last thing I would ever see. My anxiety and anger blended together in my head to make me feel like I needed to punch the very image of that murdering bastard just to fell better. Wonderglue noticed my tension, and put a hoof on my shoulder. I relaxed a bit, a bit... but enough to not attack a mere object.

As the murderer approached the light coming from the door, we got our first good look at the killer. The Overmare immediately paused the footage, and we all stepped forward to observe the screen. What I saw nearly stopped my heart right then and there.

The murderer was a pegasus stallion with a slightly long, messy mane. The color of his coat and mane could only be seen in black and white. But what made everyone gasp and look at me was the stallion's cutie mark. It was a pair of wreaths, each on one side of a Roaman numeral 'III'. We knew who the killer was now.

It was me.

Everyone I looked at looked back at me with a look of horror, and even Wonderglue was stunned by the footage. I just looked back at each of them, their faces mirroring my own shock and surprise. "It wasn't me!" I hissed at them. They just continued looking at me, staring at me like I was a monster, a piece of filth. This... this wasn't right! IT COULDN'T BE!

I tried to take a step back, still overcome with confusion and a rage screaming for the truth, when the overmare yelled out over the crowd, "ARREST HIM! Don't let him get away!"

I turned to look up at her glaring daggers down at me. She seemed to be promising all kinds of hell in store for me, which was a shocking sight to see from someone who had seemed so kind for the length of her term. I disregarded that and galloped through the crowd, gaining enough momentum to take off. None of them tried to stop me; I think that they were too surprised to believe it themselves.

An agonizing sting shot through my spine like an icicle had stabbed my flesh, making me yelp in suppressed pain. One of the guards shot at me! The non-lethal pellets didn't penetrate my skin, but it really hurt! But it wasn't enough to bring me down, though. I could still get away! Find someway to prove my innocence. I could...

But that train of though was broken as each one of the guards were starting to take shots at me. Blast after blast shot out at me, hitting my wings. They were going to bring me down to the ground! I tried to take cover on a platform of the second floor, but just as I reached the guard rail, Muzzleflash popped out of the corner and blasted me once in the face, and twice in the chest. I fell off the guard rail, trying to flap my wings.

Then everything went black as I hit the ground.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I woke up to find myself in the Security station. My limbs were bound tightly to the wall and my wings were wrapped in thick cloth, suppressing all but the barest of movements. I panicked and started tugging with futility against my restraints, creating quite a hassle as I did.

"This isn't happening," I murmured, and my breath quickened its pace as I began to panic and struggle to break free. "This isn't happening this isn't happening this isn't happening..."

A guard who had been sitting down in the corner of the room noticed all the noise I was making and promptly checked up on me. "He's awake," He said, and a zebra mare entered from the doorway. They started making their way towards me, only fanning the flames of my panic.

"Look, this is all a misunderstanding, I'm not the-..." I started, hoping to still be able to escape undue persecution. I was framed, dammit! Did NONE of them trust me enough to know that? None at all?

Then he knocked the wind out of me with a very painful buck to my chest. I choked on my words, and ended up in a fit of coughing.

As I fought to gather some air, he turned back to me and said, "Shut it. There's no point. We checked the footage over and over again, and we confirmed that it wasn't tampered with in anyway. I don't care what you have to say in your defense, you're going to brought to justice."

After gathering up enough breath, I finally managed to ask, "Yeah? And what punishment is that?" He just looked at me with a disturbing grin, the zebra mare looking a bit worried at his expression. She seemed almost as disturbed about his grin as I was.

Eventually, he answered, "Oh, nothing. Just execution." Well, that wasn't SO ba-... wait, WHAT?!

"What? You're going to execute me? But... but I didn't do anything! I'm serious! I don't know how they changed the footage, but it wasn't me!" I protested, only to get an even more disturbing grin from him. The zebra, on the other hoof, was just staring at me. She was looking right into my eyes... almost as if she were trying to mind control me or something. After a while, he just snorted and faced the zebra.

"Come on, Zeina. Let's leave this guy to take in the fact that he's going to die." He looked at me with that grin again. The zebra stared at me for one more moment before turning back to him.

"Very well," Was all she responded, and they turned and started trotting out, leaving me with a great many protests still un-said. As they were trotting out the door, she looked at me one more time before shutting it closed.

Now that they were gone, I did my best to try and break free of my bonds, to no avail. I tried to free my wings from the cloth, but they were tied. "YOU IDIOTS!" I screamed, "I'm fucking innocent! This is madness, injustice! You CAN'T DO THIS!"

Was I really going to die? It certainly felt that way at the time, even if I knew that the Stable hadn't EVER executed anyone. And I didn't do anything! I prayed to Celestia and Luna with whatever piety I had to not let this mistake happen, yet I didn't feel in the least bit better. They were just wasting time while the real murderer was out there, trotting around like an innocent! I had done nothing!

'Or did you?' Asked a voice in my head, impish in voice and sarcastic in tone. I had assumed it was just a part of my head questioning me after what I had been shown, and I have to admit that question really got to me. Did I really kill those people? Of course not, that was ridiculous. But... what else could explain it? No disguise could be so good as to trick magical analysis; no disguise could be so well-crafted as to elude my Stable's security measures. Sleep-walking was out of the question, I had locked my door. And surely SOMEONE would have noticed if I had left, right? There had to be someone at the Security station, there just had to be!

But what if it was me? What if I had indeed somehow broke through my Stable to kill my mentor? My stomach lurched at the malicious and unlikely thought, but I couldn't help but dwell on it. How else could it have happened? No matter what I told myself, the thought didn't leave. It just stayed in my head, tormenting me... and despite all my assurances, the thought just grew and grew, until I nearly choked from the speed it was making my heart beat and how dry it was making my mouth.

At last my thoughts moved elsewhere, and I glanced up at my bindings with desperation. I jerked and spasmed and yanked, but for all my training I could not in even the slightest loosen the knots at all. My heart broke and fell to the ground like shards of glass, and in one final demanding cry, shouted at the ceiling until my lungs gave out. Then I relaxed and gave in. In my mind, I was thinking of an apology to Lighthouse. An apology saying sorry for how I couldn't exact justice, as I had promised him. How I had failed to live up to what he and I had both expected from me: a stallion who could hold his own, and not take bullshit from anyone. The ultimate slap to my face was that not only was I now in captivity because of what someone else had done, but also because my dignity, my image as a person, was now in ruins in the eyes of the people. For that... their was no atonement for the monster who had done this.

Then I saw that my gladius was on the security table, just a few feet away from me. A small spark of hope lit up in my heart. I tried to reach for it, but my jaw couldn't even touch the table, no matter how much I strained my neck. Finally, I just hung my head and surrendered.

'I'm doomed,' Was the last thought that crept into my mind before I hung my head from exhaustion and depression.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I woke up to the sound of metal being placed on the table. My eyes were still having trouble opening, but when they did, I saw that the zebra mare I saw earlier was placing a cloth sack filled with metal on the table. When she noticed me, she trotted over. Literally just inches from my face, she stared at me again.

'Ok... this is getting kind of creepy,' I thought as I tried to do all sorts of things to stop her staring. I moved my head, blew at her eyes, even yelling. Hell, I even tried to stare back at her! That just ended up with sore eyes for me. So, for another minute after my failed attempts, she just stared at me. She didn't blink, didn't move. She just stared.

Finally, she spoke up in that strange, exotic accent that zebras have. "Did you kill them?" She asked. There was no accusation in her voice, no scorn. Just an honest question.

This was a question I expected people to ask right now, so my answer didn't take too long to come out.

"No, I didn't. But while you people are wasting time on me, the real killer is out there." I sighed deeply, then asked her, "What do you think? Do you think I'm guilty?" She just stared at me again. Great, the last thing I needed was to waste my last hours talking to this mare. Couldn't I at least get a few hours to myself?

Finally, though, she responded. "You promised him you would find the killer, didn't you? You promised him you would seek out justice? That whoever did this would pay for what they did?" She asked. It caught me off guard.

"Well, yeah... but how did you know?" She considered me for a moment, looking me over.

Finally, she said, "It shows. You just aren't the type that does things like this. You seem honorable, honest, self-sacrificing even. Those are what I see in you, not a murderer." She breathed in deep through her nostrils without closing her eyes and said, "And, for what it's worth, I believe you are innocent." Well, that was comforting, but I was still going to die. I needed to NOT die.

"Well, thanks, I guess. But you're probably the only one here who thinks that. Hell, even my friends think I'm guilty." At that she gave a soft chuckle, and stepped aside. There was a mare standing in the doorway.

"Wonderglue?" I asked, pleasantly surprised despite my situation. But what could she possibly be doing here? "What are you doing here?"

She looked at me for a short moment, before smiling at me softly. "Helping you escape," Was her response.

"Oh, okay... wait, what? How? It's not like the Stable door can be opened. Even if it could, how? Doesn't it need a code or something?" I asked, but she just smiled as Zeina picked up the gladius on the table and started cutting my bonds. She didn't cut it cleanly, making it look rough and forced. When I was free, I was shocked as she proceeded to cut herself in the cheek, arms, and even took off her barding, stabbed into it, stabbed herself in the stomach (though, not deep enough to reach the organs), and put it back on.

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked in pure disbelief. Her response was level and calm, and showed no pain from her wounds.

"Making your escape look forced," Was all she said. Oh, right. That made sense. They didn't want the others to think that they helped me. Smart.

"Goldwreath, put this on," Wonderglue said from behind me. I turned around to face her, and my jaw dropped.

What stood before me was a glimmering suit of steel, segmented, metal armor plates modified with a kevlar vest on the outside. The helmet had straps, and a bright red plume arched from the front to the back. The armor stopped at the flanks, but the flanks themselves were protected by chainmail with leather strips hanging down. The kevlar itself was reinforced with a steel plate inserted into the fabric. There were also some healing potions and a few apples on the table.

And most of all, it was the praetorian armor I had always admired and desired to possess.

I just looked at it for a moment, then at her. Zeina was already lying down on the ground, smearing blood around her. She looked up at us one more time, then dropped her head.

I stared at the armor for a moment, until I got a gentle nudge from Wonderglue. She looked between me and the doorway worriedly, and nodded at the suit. I nodded back, and proceeded to put it on.

After I finished putting on the zebra praetorian armor, I turned to face her. "Why are you helping me escape? I... thought you believed I was a murderer," I said sullenly, yet not without a hint of joy at what she was doing.

She looked at me with a soft smile and then said, "You're my friend, Goldwreath. I know you; you're a good pony." Then she snickered, "Not to mention, our rooms are just a few dozen feet away. If you had left, I would have known. You aren't exactly the quietest pony around." Well, that was true. Oh, Godessess, that meant she heard me whenever I... well, it's not really important. I also wondered just how she would have heard me if I left; she would need to be awake, which wasn't likely, given how hard she worked on her job.

"But what about the video? They confirmed it wasn't tampered with." At that, her smile disappeared.

"I don't know. But I do know that you're innocent. I know you. You aren't a killer. And I know you want justice. But if you stay here, you'll die." She looked at Zeina, who was already staying still on the floor, and said, "Alright, here's the plan. Kevlar Vest is currently in possession of the door code. Zeina couldn't get it from him, but you can. Just don't kill him." I nodded and grabbed the gladius, then turned around to face her, and saw that she was just standing there.

"Thanks so much for helping me, Glue. But, uh, aren't you going to get caught if you just stay here?" I asked, to which her eyes widened in sudden revelation.

"Wow. I Actually didn't think of that." She shook her head a bit, then began galloping past me briskly. She turned to face me, and said with finality, "Goodbye, Goldwreath. Stay safe out there." Then she sped up the stairs, and disappeared from sight.

"Goodbye," I found myself murmuring into the air. Well, I was leaving huh? I was going to be leaving all of my friends (or what few I had) and all of my stuff (also what little I had), huh? I was leaving all that behind? Well... better than being dead, I guess.

Still, I couldn't help but fight a choke and some tears as I sped out of the room like a madpony.

Thank goodness everyone seemed to be asleep.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Kevlar Vest was just around the corner. He was reading security reports on his desk, his back turned to me. The door code was on a gold card next to him, but I couldn't get close without him seeing me. I thought of my options.

Kill him? No, I wasn't a killer, and I wasn't going to start now -- only if it was necessary. Just run in and take it? No, he would put up a fight, and he had a gun. Distract him? That seemed feasible.

There was only one entrance, though, so I would have to knock him the moment he got out.

'Alright, let's do this,' I thought.

I tapped my steel-coated hoof on the wall, and flew up to the ceiling. I heard him getting up and trotting towards the door. He poked his head out, but he went back in too quick. I tried tapping again, and this time he came out. Immediately, I swooped down at him.

But he was fast. He probably heard the metal sliding against the kevlar, but whatever it was, he immediately went prone, and I slammed against the wall. As I struggled to get up, he turned and tried to connect his hindlegs to my face in what would have been a jaw-breaking buck. I went prone as well, and he hit nothing, sending him off balance. Immediately, I sprung up at his unbalanced body and tackled him, my superior weight pinning him to the ground on his belly.

He glared up at me with disappointment and hate. "Why'd you do this?" He asked in a hiss. "What madness drove you to become a fucking murderer?"

I looked back down at, him just shaking my head. "I didn't do this, Kevlar Vest. And as much as I'd like to not have to do this, I don't want to die. So... I'm sorry," I said, and raised up a hoof to knock him out with.

But he was in Security, and he knew tricks I didn't. He shifted on to his side, then onto his back, pushed me away with strong punches from his hooves, and sent a buck into my side. I wasn't sent flying, but he took the opportunity to try to get his gun and try to reach the intercom. Before he could do either, I got up again and tackled him, slamming his face against the metal floor. As he screamed desperately for help, I brought both my forelimbs down on his head. There was a wet crunch, and he stopped struggling. Well, at least I didn't kill him. I grabbed the golden card and looked at the code.

"CMC3BFF, huh? Well then, I have to go." Sparing Kevlar a glance, I said, "Sorry about that." Leaving him behind, I flew up to the first floor: The Stable door.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"It's a good thing it's evening. If not, most of these people would be awake, and I don't know how I would have gotten here," I said as I stood in front of the controls for the door. I was already typing in the code. "I really hope this works. If not, I'm fucked. Alright, let's see. CMC3B..."

Then there was a loud crackle on the intercom. "All Security personnel, Goldwreath has escaped! He's at the Stable door, don't let him get away!" Shit. Damn you, Kevlar. I hurriedly finished typing the code in, and waited for a few moments in terrible anxiety.

Nothing.

'I'm fucked,' I thought. Maybe the code was wrong? Maybe it was a trap? Or... maybe the door was broken? Could that even happen?

Then, suddenly, the door gave a great metallic groan as it started to shift to the side. It was rotating achingly slow. But then a thought hit me: What's the outside like? Is it just some great, dark void, like in my dream? Was it even habitable? What would I do once there?

As these thoughts were occurring to me, a bullet whizzed past my head. I looked behind me: guns. Lots of guns. The door to the rest of the Stable was open, and dozens of guards were flooding into the door chamber, shooting real rounds at me.

"Celestia dammit!" I yelled as I dove for cover. The door was open now. Revealing, to my immense relief, that it was not a great dark void. Rather, the outside was full of rotten wood and cracking walls. There was dust floating around everywhere outside, and the smell of it was this really strange, musty, old stench. It actually wasn't as bad as I thought, though.

Then one bullet struck the floor right in front of me, the bullet breaking and sending a few pieces of shrapnel at my face. No time to care how the outside looked now! I dove out off my cover, and flew out the Stable door. One bullet struck me in the back, but luckily it was stopped by the kevlar. I took cover behind a concrete pillar as the guards continued to fire after me.

"Get that piece of shit! Don't let him get away!" Shouted Muzzleflash. They continued firing down range, seemingly driven by a collective hatred of me.

But finally Kevlar Vest ordered them to stop, "That's enough! Change the code and close the door if you have to. He wants to die outside? Fine. Just close the damned door." At the sound of his voice, all the firing stopped, if seemingly unwillingly. With the sudden silence, I even thought I heard Muzzleflash grinding his teeth in frustration.

As I sat there, listening to the guards retreating back into the Stable, the door gave another metallic groan. Finally, with a hiss of pressurized air and the clang of metal on metal, the door was sealed.

Forever.

Now it was at this point that I just crashed for a moment. My legs became wobbly and my heart beats deepened, pumping the queerest feeling of weakness into my body. I staggered to and slumped against the stable door, so cold and unwelcoming to a pony who'd just lost everything.

'How had it all happened?' I wondered. I mean... I was just a freaking maintenance pony. I didn't have that many friends, that many connections... never made much enemies, too; though that last part may have been caused by the fact that I didn't get much interaction. Who would have framed ME, and why? All kinds of confused and lost feelings warped themselves into a staggering tempest in my head, threatening imminent breakdown into either a pitiful crying session or hours and hours of hyperventilating.

But I was better than that. I had to be. Lighthouse had always trained me to try to receive things with some optimism, I couldn't do this to him... or to myself. But what was the point? Life in there was boring, but it was the only life I had. What was out here for a pony like me? A vast field of radiated soil? A never-ending toxic terrain of black earth? Just... what was the point of it all? Why do anything else aside from curling up and starving?

'The point is that we must keep living until we have fulfilled our obligations,' a voice seemed to say in my head. I didn't recognize it, but it... felt familiar, like it'd always been there, just waiting to say that line.

I spent a moment musing over the thought and sighed. Obligations, huh? Well, there was nothing for it. There was no point in dying, not like that. If I was going to die... I was going to die remembered fondly, not just as a murderer. It was hard, harder than most other things I did in my life, but I managed to tear myself away from the door that sealed my home away and turned around.

"Well... what the heck? No way am I going to kill myself." I saw a ladder in the corner of the chamber. I trotted over to it, crunching wood and pebbles beneath my hooves, and then flew up and opened the door to the outside.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained : Combat Mechanic -- Your knowledge of weapons and armor and your experiences as a mechanic have taught you well. You get an additional 5 points to the 'Repair' and 'Small Guns' skills.

Chapter 2 - Ambitions

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Chapter 2
Ambitions
"Don't you use your fancy mathematics to muddle the issue! I said I can handle this harvest and I'm gonna prove it to you. I'm gonna get every last apple out of those trees this applebuck season all by myself."

I opened the door and looked around, letting a strange breeze of cool, yet odd smelling air strike my face, my Pipbuck immediately started clicking. I looked at it. '0.001 rad per second' it said. Okay, the outside was irradiated, just my luck. Well, I guess I would just have to look for shelt-...

I immediately fell hard on my haunches. I was shown what the sky looked like in books, drawings, and paintings, but this... this was... Goddesses, what was this...

The sky was dark and dreary, and resembled a great barrier of dirtied cotton; massive and -- at the time -- incomprehensible. Little droplets of water fell from the dark clouds overhead like liquid pearls -- rain. I had never seen rain before. And frankly it was... just... overwhelming. So I just sat there, heart racing as I slowly averted my eyes away to look at the dirty mud beneath my hooves, it's dirty brown a stark contrast to the sterilized white of my table.

This was too much, way, WAY too much! I would have done the smart thing and gotten out of the rain, but I was practically paralyzed at that moment, which was pathetic, as even when I had once fallen hard on my back, I had not even had a small part of me frozen for the slightest amount of time. I should have been excited, right? Seeing things you've never seen before should be exciting, or at the least interesting.

Not for me, though. I was too busy trying to stop myself from hyperventilating. The sky... it was so high up. I never imagined it was so high. I thought it was just several dozen feet above you, like in those drawings and pictures I saw when I was still a colt -- pretty idiotic of me, thinking back at it. The sense of me somehow being up pulled to those dark, threatening clouds made me cringe on the mud like some lost foal. I couldn't look up, and while looking at the ground I just kept wondering how I could possibly get used to this. This would render my wings useless!

I just lay there for several minutes, before finally calming down. My heart kept pounding in my chest, though. At least nothing bad had happened; there was barely any shelter or source of psychological security nearby. I didn't really think I could take it if something bad suddenly happened...

And that's when the sky exploded.

I don't know what happened. All I heard was an earsplitting, fearsome 'KRA-BOOM!'

Before the rumbling even ended, I was already galloping along the hills to look for anything that I could hide under. My eyes wide enough to roll out their sockets if they weren't connected to my skull. I ruled out going back to the underground chamber where my Stable was because at that time I thought the explosion was caused by some sort of explosive ordnance and that I might have been sealed underneath the rubble. Ridiculous, I know, but I was new to the outside at that time. Besides, I was already several dozen meters from the entrance, not to mention the rain was beginning to pick up. Besides, finding shelter at the time was my primary objective; unless I found some cover soon, I wouldn't be able to see more than a few meters ahead of me.

As I was galloping for the hills, however, something even more heart-stopping and mind-boggling occurred:

The sky lit up.

Not like a light bulb coming to life, or even like the sun I saw in those coloring books. This was like the sky stabbing the earth with righteous, white fury in the form of a dazzling bolt of bright light. Even a single moment of seeing that white, jagged blade of illumination left an imprint in my vision when I closed my eyes in reflex. The flash really hurt my poor adjusting-to-the-gloom-of-surface-lighting eyeballs, and I had to stop where I was, nearly skidding and slipping into the mud, before I ran into something. I guess after being so long underground in a fairly well-lit Stable and coming out to a gloomy world didn't prepare my eyes for that. Well, at least there wasn't any more explosions...

'KRA-BOOM!'

Okay, I have might have been a brave and logical pony -- and I still am now -- and it probably wasn't logical or brave to run, whimpering and screaming, to the side of the hill, but right now, fuck logic. I could screw logic as much as I want if it meant I didn't wet myself. Oh, wait... I did... eh, uh. nevermind. Don't say anything! This was a pretty embarrassing moment. Well, at least nobody saw me... I hope.

"It's almost like the sky fucking hates me!" I yelled to myself as I galloped.

As I continued streaking to the side of the hill, I concluded that, due to the rain's angle of fall, the east side of the hill would be significantly drier than the rest of this place. I checked my my E.F.S, and saw no bars. That was good -- I didn't want to encounter weird mutated life forms already.

As I finally arrived at the side of the hill, I saw the rain-blurred form of a little shack at the bottom, with a small, muddy, path leading down the steep and rocky cliff to it from where I was. The water falling on this side of the hill formed a veritable torrent of raging brown water that lead down the path. I carefully stepped onto the little dirt road, but it turns out that I was wrong; this whole place was just as wet and slippery as everywhere else. My left forehoof slipped, sending my crashing forward down the slope, hitting rocks and debris along the way. It was kind of sad that the first thing my well-made and well-maintained praetorian armor protected me from was a bunch of sharp-edged rocks.

When I hit the bottom, splashing into a pool of mud and feeling quite a number of sore eruptions emanating from my back and exposed wings, I managed to sit up and check my E.F.S, before gathering my breath and looking around. Still no bars.
I trotted inside, shaking myself as dry as I could as I went.

'Damn you, brain,' I thought, feeling a little disappointed that all those nights spent studying angles of fall did NOT prove my hypothesis of that side of the hill being less slippery and wet true.

"Well, at least the roof is intact," I said, feeling just a touch comforted by that fact. At the time, I thought that that meant my luck was turning around for once that day. Well, I was in even more luck; there was a bed in here. I got onto it, despite the filth and the tiny little inhabitants, and nodded off almost immediately.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

When I awoke from my dreamless sleep -- and I needed to really PEEL my eyes open due to the crust on my lids; disgusting, I know -- I immediately lifted my hoof to turn off the alarm before it turned on. Of course there was no alarm there, as I was already out of my Stable (I just completely forgot for a while) so I just stressed my hoof trying to feel for the clock, but then I lost my balance on the bed, causing myself to fall into the muddy soil onto the severely wrecked wooden floor of the shanty structure.

"Ugggghhh..." I groaned, pushing myself out of the soil. I groggily lifted my hoof and checked the time on my Pipbuck. "Six AM. Why do I always wake up at six AM?" It was true; I always woke up at six AM, except on really special occasions. Feeling annoyed (though somewhat proud that my tradition of waking up early was unbroken as of yet), I looked around at the muddy sludge at my hooves, and just imagined the stuff being all around the entire outside, and the thought of all that disgusting dirt very much disturbed me. Then, in an action suggestive of boredom beyond measure, I started actually PLAYING with the mud.

Then that's when it hit me. "I'm outside," I said to no one in particular. I hadn't really thought much of the whole 'outside' thing aside from whether it was a void or not; you know, being accused of murder and being forced to leave everything behind tended to not allow people, like me, to think. But now that I was outside... everything was so... strange: more alien, dirtier, and most of all... warmer.

I picked up some mud between my hooves. 'This is 'soil', huh?' I thought. Now, I never got access to the advance science books that medical had, so I wouldn't know the more complicated processes of analysis, but I knew the basics of finding out what something was like: listen to it, smell it, look at it, and taste it. I followed the procedure in that order, though the mere thought of examining dirt kind of disgruntled me.

Okay, so, weird sludgy noises when it moved. It smelled... strange; not bad, in fact it was sort of refreshing. It had a sort of earthy smell that was a pleasant opposite of the metal floor my Stable used. It looked like... well, shit -- and I say that with the knowledge of having SEEN more shit than just my own -- and it tasted like...

"Sweet Celestia, that's disgusting!" I said as I threw the sludge away. Really, I would have puked right then and there; my stomach was already lurching violently. Of course, my stomach had nothing in it.

It was just then that my stomach growled and my throat felt dry and raspy.

"Well, I guess I should eat one of these..." I said as I picked out an apple and chewed on it. Meh, it was okay, I suppose. Apples produced in my Stable didn't look like the bright red, tasty looking fruit they were in books. The apples made there were fairly bland, but had a slightly sweet aftertaste. That aftertaste, really, was what most of the people in my Stable looked forward to when eating apples. I finished it up, and reached into my saddlebags to get some water, when suddenly...

"I'm an idiot. Why the hell didn't I bring water?!" This was probably not a good decision on my part. Then again, neither was leaving the Stable, even if it was the only real option. Surely there had to be SOMETHING that lived out here, right? That meant that even the outside had water, even if that water would be muddy. Or... 'dirty' in other senses. Oh crap, why'd I say that...

I decided to trot outside, making sure to keep my eyes away from the sky. I may be a pegasus, but that just made my fear of the sky more ridiculous. Okay, if I just kept my eyes level with the ground, I would be fine. Using what I knew of the law of gravity, I discerned that whatever water there was must have sought out the lowest point accessible. I just hoped that the concentration of radiation wasn't too high.

Despite my laughable fear of the sky, I spared the occasional glance at the distance. There were several hills whose sides had completely slid off; landslides, probably caused by the rain or previous weather phenomena. I looked for any depression in the ground, but this whole place -- this... hilly area -- had no miniature depression, save the barest of crevices. It only had a deep funnel-like formation in the middle of a series of hills, but that was probably where the water had gathered. I made my way to the rim of the depression, cautious not to fall down; flying in this armor was difficult, even just gliding.

Carefully, I glided down to the water at the bottom and landed upon a wide flat rock protruding from the water's edge and further into the pool. It turns out that as long as I saw as little of the sky as possible, I could fly well enough. I brought out a healing potion, then looked at the status of my limbs.

"Huh, that's weird. My head doesn't feel crippled. I didn't even do anything that hurt my head! Well, aside from slipping down the path... Ah, whatever. This should fix that, at least." I opened the vial and drank down on the potion. It didn't taste like anything I could describe, really. Well, maybe if you added a little salt and sugar to water, that could get close enough. With the bottle empty, I dipped my Pipbuck into the water. It started clicking immediately.

"Two rads, huh? Well, It's the only water around." After I filled the vial with the pool water, I looked at the murky liquid inside. It was really dirty. It even had a sickening yellow-green coloration to it, and I did NOT want to think that that may have been because of urine. But my Pipbuck told me the only significant danger was the radiation, so, without any more hesitation, I drank. My Pipbuck kept clicking as the water slid down my throat.

Okay, I thought the mud was disgusting, but this... 'water'... was just downright horrible! It tasted like what you would get if everyone in the Stable spat in this pool, then took a leak, then probably more than a few times puked. My eyes widened so severely and my stomach lurched so violently at the disgusting taste that I very nearly just threw the vial away, and wouldn't have cared for my need of water.

Yet somehow I was already more than halfway through. I drank down the last few drops with a soft grunt of disgust, and very reluctantly filled the vial again and stuffed it into my saddlebags. "This water will be the death of me," I mumbled, and very much believed it to be true. I turned around and prepared to fly, keeping my eyes away from the sky.

Then something bit my ass.

I can't say it enough: feeling those little sharp fangs struggle to find little openings in my chainmail was very disturbing, and was NOT something I had ever prepared myself to feel. Still, it wasn't particularly painful, though the occasional puncture through my chain did sting quite a bit. I took a moment just feeling it on my flanks, then slowly turned to my side, drew my gladius, and looked back at it.

Okay, what in Celestia's blazing clit was that?!

It was a rather large creature, bigger than my head. It had a puke-inducing mottled, rotten, wrinkled, tumor-dotted, scaly, gray skin. It's body resembled some kind of large amphibian, with the head having two, large, bulging eyes. It's back side ended in a small stub of a tail, angling slightly towards the sky. And most of all? It was salivating all over my nice polished (though slightly muddy) chainmail.

Right now, though, it's sharp little teeth were starting to find openings in the chain, and that yanked my attention away from the disgusting little monstrosity so eagerly suckling on my chain like a foal on it's mother's nipples. So I did what anyone with a gray heap of mutated frog biting on their flanks would do: I shook my flanks hard and flung it away -- causing it to smack hard against the side of a rock -- and, as it was struggling to get up, I galloped over to it and stabbed it in the neck. It gave a rough, slightly non-traditional 'hiss' as it lowered it's head and died.

"What the hell is this thing?" I asked, feeling both curiosity and disgust bloom in my head. So, this is what frogs became in the outside, huh? That made me think for almost a minute of begging to be let back into the Stable -- a futile and ridiculous train of thought, I know, but I was just that freaked out.

Then I remembered that my Pipbuck had a function that no one in the Stable I knew used: a kill tracker.
I brought the technological marvel on my hoof up and tapped the screen. "Okay, let's see... stats... general... creatures killed... sub-menu... ah, so I just killed a rad-frog. Wait... how did you even name this thing? Uh...ah, it doesn't really matter." I closed the interface and set my hoof back onto the ground.

Now with some water and enough food to last another day at least -- in the form of my apples, not the frog -- I began exploring. I couldn't glide going up, because I would see the sky. So instead, I just trotted up the slope slowly, going east. Using rocks to get up a hill was new to me, so more than once I nearly tripped and fell down the slope again.

The light of the rising sun flowed out from over the crown of the hill like a glorious flood of golden light pouring out over the landscape. The illumination made clear to me the details of the visible landscape, and for a while I stopped to, get this, admire the strangely beautiful landscape of this new world.

'And to think, two thousand or so years ago, the Equestrians saw this place as a lush land; how did it look back then?' I wondered, then turned my attention back to climbing the hill.

Finally, after reaching the top of the hill, which was actually the largest one in sight, I saw it.

The most majestic sight I ever saw was right there in front of me, like a... like a bastion of perfection and opulence among the dusty bones of the ruined nation around me, shining bright in the sunlight as a reminder of past greatness. The mere sight of it took my breath away from me, leaving my mouth hanging open. My eyes went wide in taking in it's grandeur. The early morning sun's filtered, golden light shone down on it, illuminating it to a degree that, in all honesty, trumped whatever I would ever see later on; person or otherwise. The sky out of the sun's way was still a dull grey and I saw more than a little of it in my vision, but even that wasn't enough to trump the majesty of the sight before me.

It was the most grand and beautiful place I had ever seen in my life, make no mistake.

It was a city! An actual city! With buildings and roads and bridges! From my perch on the hill, I couldn't really get into the details of the architecture, much as my awe-struck eyes strained themselves to see. There was what looked like a forest around the city, obscuring my view of the closer structures. A river ran from the south to the north across a plain of wasteland, towards a larger body of water that was mostly concealed by mist. It was divided into an east and west side by said river, and apparently it was the west side that got leveled by the war --there was a huge, black crater dominating the landscape on the west side, and the few buildings that were still standing along the river were mostly crumbling and collapsed. That sight saddened me greatly; oh, the horror of having such greatness lost to en masse slaughter!

But still, it was a city! If this is what ponies from Equestria were capable of two centuries ago, then why the hell did they destroy it with some stupid war with the equally glorious and equally precious culture and philosophies of the Imperial Roaman Zebras? Weren't such feats of engineering and glory -- made of the labor of sweat and maintained by the blood of soldiers -- worth more than a damned war?

Finally pulling my jaw off the ground and letting in a great gasp, as well as blinking for the first time in two minutes, I gathered my head together enough to pay attention to the land currently around me. My mind screamed like a tortured soul when I tore my sight away from the augustness of the wonder far from me, but I stayed true to my objective: I had to find shelter, perhaps somewhere I could get the layout of the place; prepare myself to survive.

There was a road to the northwest that seemed to lead down to the east side of the city. It was still early morning and the sky was still grey, but the black smoke I saw in the distance stood out well enough against the sky. With my body feeling a surge of power from taking in the sight of the city, I had enough courage at the moment to use my wings. Jumping off the hill and flying towards the smoke, I noticed there were at least a eight red bars and two blue bars in my E.F.S. I never really used my E.F.S, so I wondered what that meant; the red bars, I mean. Really, all I knew of the E.F.S was that it told me where people were, but I had never seen red bars before.

Ah, how I would often think back at the following experience, and wonder whether I was a true idiot or a classical hero.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Getting close to the smoke, I landed behind a large rock on the north side of a small hill. From here, I could get a good look at the scene below me.

There were a total of ten bars on my E.F.S., eight red and two blue. Six of the red bars were zebras, the other two were ponies. The two blue bars were each a zebra, who were both tied down near a rock formation. As I crouched and slowly approached, I heard one of the ponies below let out this insane, throaty laugh.

"HA-HAHAHAH! These little bastards thought they could get away from ya', Cuffs?" Said a yellow-ish earth pony mare with a dirty white mane and a whip cutie mark. Her partner, Cuffs, responded in an unnervingly calm voice.

"Yup. Little bastards tried to escape last night. Said that they were 'never going to bow down to Redeye.' Pfft. Zebra trash." He approached the two blue bars and said, "Redeye is the future! Here, your lives are worthless! But in service to him, your lives will mean something! You will serve the most powerful and most influential pony in the world! He has plans to rebuild Equestria, and you will help him! Is that not worth a little sacrifice? Hmm?" He asked.

The zebra mare captive responded in a grunt, "Sure we would, if he wasn't going to enslave us!"

He snorted as he trotted away, "Fucking zebras. Don't know why Redeye wants these things as workers; so far, Xenith's the only one worth a damn. Ah, I remember that time when we cut off that uni's head... good times."

Disgust erupted within me. 'So, these guys are slavers, then? Well, I can't let them continue like this. But... but what can I even do? I'm not supposed to fight these people, am I?' But of course I was. Maniacs and psychos had excuses, they were fucked up in the head. But slavery was a complicated task -- so I had read -- and the people partaking in it had to be straight of mind. These people were sane, and for that they deserved to be corrected, forcefully if necessary.

An idea struck me. I looked over at Cuffs, who left the captives with a snort of disgust and slowly approached my position. He was wielding an assault rifle, apparently. If I could get my hooves on that, I could strafe them from the sky, even if... well, I would need to get close to the sky. Oh, how I did not like this idea at that point.

He came closer, and so I swept aside whatever feelings of doubt was brewing inside of me and dove to the cover of another rock just as he reached the one I was taking cover behind. I readied myself, entering a combat stance and waited. My heart started pounding and my breath became heavy as I waited, anxious.

As he turned the corner, he spotted me and his eyes went wide. He sucked in a breath to yell, but I reared and sent one of my hindlegs into his throat. His scream died in his mouth as he fell over, coughing. I stood over him, and sent both my front legs into his face, bloodying his muzzle. He stopped coughing, rough and uneven breaths taking place instead. I grabbed his assault rifle, and looked over the weapon with curiosity. It was a strange design, not at all like the ones my Stable had. This one almost seemed like it was supposed to be held with both forelimbs! Well, at least there was a mouth grip.

Then I looked at it with contempt and disgust, because... because I knew what I had to do if they didn't surrender, and I didn't like it. Killing was never quite high on my list of things to do, and even though I still wanted to tear out the spine of the piece of shit who killed my friend... it was just... it took away all chances of change. People could change, but killing them robbed them of that chance.

I sighed my feelings away and prepared to take flight, when the thought of what I was about to do hit me. Was I really about to kill these people? Sure they were slaver bastards, but they were still people.

'But they're damned slavers!' I yelled in my head. I felt angry, and I still wanted justice for the death of Lighthouse and the others. Those people deserved to be avenged, and who better to vent my wrath upon than those who were supposed to be punished? Besides, who knows how many slaves they had already brought to this 'Redeye'. This act of terror had to be stopped, and I did not want it to be upon my conscience to know that I had done nothing. These slavers had to die.

'But... maybe the slavers could still be negotiated with? Maybe I could give them something in exchange for...'

But those thoughts were interrupted as I heard the sounds of a scuffle and the zebra mare's scream. I peeked out of my cover, and what I saw infuriated me.

These weren't just slaver bastards, these...'people'... were rapists, too! The zebra stallion, whom I assumed was the mare's companion, was being forced to watch the events in front of him by the slavers. The mare was being pinned down by two other zebras and the earth pony mare. "Cuffs! Where are ya'? You're missing out on the fun! HA-HAHAH!" Okay, that's it! These people didn't deserve to live! They deserved to have their extremities cut off and their stomachs split so open they could offer no resistance to the maggots who'd come for them!

I took off, my heart blazing with anger and disgust. And as I soared into the sky, I don't think anyone below saw me. Good, because I didn't want these filth escaping justice. This time... well, this time justice would be delivered, and I was very eager to be the one who dished it out.

After flying straight up for several moments, and by then reaching what must have been three hundred feet -- and I was no longer scared of the sky, at least for the moment -- I dove straight back down, firing bursts of rifle fire at the zebras holding the stallion down. Two of them fell from shots in the head -- and luckily I did not hit the captive himself -- while the others staggered back and stared in shock at their comrades' bleeding skulls.

I landed with my steel plated hooves stomping into the soil, and turned around and put a good three rounds into each of the zebras pinning the mare down, and four rounds into the earth pony mare. One of them fell, while the earth pony and the other zebra staggered as only a few of my rounds punched through their barding. That infuriated me; they deserved to DIE then and there for this atrocity!

I turned again and shot the remaining rounds at the zebras, who were now hurrying up to lift their weapons. Another two fell, but then the rifle clicked on an empty chamber. Disbelief swelled my mind, but I reasserted my iron will over my brain once more and focused all efforts on destroying these barbarians.

I dropped the rifle and pulled out the gladius just as they finally got their weapons up. I charged at the remaining two, and crashed into one as the other struggled to get a clear shot. As he fought to get out from under me, I plunged the blade deep into his chest, and he stopped struggling. A small part of me celebrated the destruction of such a barbarian, and I LOVED knowing that he was dead.

Just then, though, I felt a stinging, painful blast of concussive force as buckshot slammed against my kevlar.

The zebra mare fired again, this time a little closer to my flanks. The metal would have been good against melee weapons, but not as effective against guns. I collapsed as three new holes appeared in my hide, the blood dripping down off my crimson coat. Luckily for me, the shotgun she was using was double-barreled, so now she was struggling to reload.

Taking the opportunity and doing my best to ignore the pain, I lunged past her, slicing the gladius into her neck and pulling it across her side. Something vital, like an artery, must have snapped because immediately a huge spray of blood poured down from her side as she collapsed and died.

Okay, only two more. The earth pony and the last zebra slaver were both pointing their guns at me, one with a low caliber pistol and the other with another double-barreled shotgun. I jumped to the side, hearing the shotgun blast behind me, and jumped forward again. The next blast opened new holes on my forelimbs, but that could be taken care of later. The earth pony's pistol rounds were completely deflected by my armor. I crashed into the zebra and plunged the blade into her side, and pulled it out before turning and facing the earth pony mare.

Damn it.

The mare slaver had the zebra at gunpoint, pushing the barrel against her head. I narrowed my eyes like an arrow at her, pouring all of my controlled rage and hate into a concentrated stare. This act of cowardice deserved all of my loathing.
"Sta-stay back!" She yelled shakily. As much as I wanted to cut her head off, I had to oblige. I didn't want an innocent dying right now. "Okay, here's what you're going to do! I'm gonna' trot outta' here, and if you move, I'll kill her!" I looked at her prisoner, the fear evident in her eyes. Then I looked over at the zebra stallion, his eyes pleading me to rescue her. I hated to appear like I was letting him down, but I had to reluctantly take a few steps back, and just glared at her as she trotted away.

But my luck wasn't out just yet.

As she trotted away, her attention was so focused on me that the zebra had enough opportunity to plant a solid forehoof punch on her jaw, sending the pistol flying. Immediately I flew forward and knocked her down, while the zebra ran back to help her male counterpart. I pinned her down, and saw the fear in her eyes; oh, how I SO wanted to end her then and there.

"Please, please don't kill me! I just had to do it, I need the caps!" She protested pathetically, and my mind screamed for me to slit her throat before she could say anything else. But instead I considered that statement for a moment. Caps, huh? Judging from the way it was used, it was probably the currency around here -- strange, I had thought, as surely there was no more bottle industry.

But then I just looked back down at her, narrowing my eyes threateningly. "Really. And the raping?" I asked as I pressed the blade closer to her throat. At that, she seemed at a loss for words, stammering whatever protest she could.

"Ah... well, you see... ah. Ahh shit," She stammered. I just looked at her with disgust. She was filth, she didn't deserve to live. She would just do this again. She had to die, my very blood screamed for it.

But then the most surprising thought struck me: could I judge her? Did I really have the right to judge her for circumstances she couldn't control? What if she really was forced to do this? Maybe she was just forced into it by her fellows? She was out here longer than me. She knew how hard it was to live on the surface. And let's face it, in the wasteland, you take whatever time you can to have some fun if you want to stay sane. Even if that fun was forced sex... well, I suppose in a world like this, everyone was desperate in one way or another. And besides, she hadn't actually done it yet...

Fuck me and my reasoning, I was actually going to let her live.

"Get out of here. If I catch you doing this again..." I pressed the blade closer to her throat, drawing a little blood for emphasis. She nodded so hard her neck might have snapped if she wasn't on the ground. She got up and started galloping away, disappearing into a cluster of dead trees in a depression near a gorge near a small river. Looking back, I saw the zebra stallion snap Cuff's neck. Ah well, not like I could have done anything about that; I wouldn't stopped them, even if I could have , that was for damned sure.

I turned back towards the pair. "You alright?" I asked. I just hoped that they hadn't been hurt in that fight.

The zebra mare looked at me with a thankful smile and responded, "Sumus bene. Gratias." For just a moment, I was confused. I knew that that was Imperial zebra talk, I learned quite a bit of it back in the Stable, and in fact I would have probably gotten the meaning of that immediately if my head wasn't swimming from the battle. But … maybe she knew Equestrian, too. This was Equestria, after all.

"I'm sorry? What was that?" I asked in the most polite manner I could muster. She looked at me, looking confused, before she seemed to understand my situation.

"Ah. Sorry, I assumed you knew Imperial zebra. I said that we are okay, and that we have you to thank for that. You, on the other hoof..." She said, pointing at my wounds, "... need a healing remedy." Well, yeah, I guess I did.

But I had one nagging question in mind. I looked at her, then asked, "What are so many zebras doing in Equestria, anyway? Or... what, was this just a group of SPECIFICALLY mostly zebra members, or... or what?" She looked at me, looking even more confused, then at her partner, who was looting the bodies.

"Excuse me?" She asked, her question dripping with confusion. "You do know where we are, do you not?" Okay, now I was getting confused.

"We're in Equestria, right? Country of ponies? Canterlot? Manehattan?… Trottingham -- ring any bells? I'm just wondering what so many zebras are doing here and why I've seen so many already," I elaborated.

Now she seemed to understand, laughing as her partner chuckled somewhere behind me, "Oh, no! You are confused. We are not in Equestria, that is a land far north of here. Rather, you are in the Zebra Nation capital of Roam." Ah, okay, made perfect sense...

WAIT, WHAT??!!

I fell down on my flank, caught absolutely off-guard.

I… wasn't in Equestria? I spent my whole life in the Stable, being told the zebras were the descendants of Equestrian zebra citizens, believing I was in my home country. Most of the things I did -- putting up with my shitty job, encouraging my fellow Stable dwellers to be dutiful and do their jobs well, even bettering myself -- was all an act of duty to my country. Even the times when there was a conflict in the Stable, I felt somehow safe because I knew that out there was my home land. That somewhere out there was something good -- or had been good -- and that it was our duty as Equestrian citizens to live up to our heritage.

But now… all that effort was a total waste. I was a stranger in a foreign land. An alien in the place I thought was home. I looked down at the soil beneath my hooves. Now even the terrain seemed hostile and alien, not just unfamiliar. The sky was once again a threatening presence, even more so this time.

I just sat there, pondering, when the zebra mare tried to comfort me, "I am sorry if this news is not welcome to you. But perhaps what you need is a healing brew." She pushed forward a vial with a strange greenish liquid that bubbled like… like soda plant juice. I took it from the ground and gulped it down. Well, it definitely tasted better than the healing potions. It almost tasted like plant soda, actually. As I watched, my wounds began closing quickly. Well, I did feel a bit better, at least.

I looked over at the two and asked weakly, "Do you know where Equestria is, then? I'd like to go there… even if, well..."

She just looked at me with a worried expression on her face, before answering, "It is far north, past the ocean. I am sorry, but there is no way to get there without exhausting yourself and falling into the water. The land bridge that connects these lands to your home is heavily irradiated. There is a city to the northeast, Hoofington, that is habitable. However, that place is cursed; haunted by things other than just radiation. That is why we zebras stay out of the Black City, cursed by the stars."

My heart sank further into the depths of depression at that. Great, the one way of crossing over to my home was plagued by things other than just radiation and, according to her, there was a good reason to stay away from that city. I wonder what it was... bah, no point in thinking about that now, I suppose.

"Okay, well, thanks. But is there anyway to know what's going on there? That place is my home, after all." She looked me over quickly, then pointed at my Pipbuck.

"That thing of yours can be a radio, yes? I have seen it on others like yourself. If you are within the signal's range, you could listen to one 'DJ PON3'. He is a pony who lives somewhere in your land. He gives out news and helpful advice. However, I am afraid I do not know where his signal ends or starts."

Her companion finished looting, and approached. "Stranger, I am sorry. But we have to go. Please, though, take this as a thanks for saving us." He put the assault rifle from earlier on the ground, with three full magazines. I just looked at it, before finally looking up at them, and nodded once.

I couldn't really do anything else, anyway. I was much too depressed.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

The rain had picked up again as I sat upon a hill just a bit east of the battle ground. The zebra pair were kind enough to give me some water, as well as one of their canteens, before heading off into the city. But I didn't care much for that right now.
I was lost. All my life, I had studied about Equestria. In fact, at least a quarter of what I knew was about Equestrian history and politics and geography. I had spent the last few hours, sitting there forlornly, thinking about what to do next. My sense of hopelessness was only aggravated by my renewed fear of the sky.

I knew next to nothing about the zebras. Sure, I knew there was a war, and that their leader was someone called 'Caesar', and that they had a senate council comprised of 'legates', with the head chancellor being the Caesar, but that was about it. Okay, maybe I knew about their military and civilian culture too, but that was all, promise. Okay, maybe their military tactics, architectural designs, history, imperial extent... okay, come to think of it, I know a LOT about them, but that's not the point.
And I had killed. Goddessess damn me, I had... and I had barely thought about it. In the wake of my anger over Lighthouse's death and my disgust over their actions, I had gone on a slaughter. Barely a thought, hardly feeling anything but rage as I slaughtered them all. It had to be done -- and what use were my gladius skills if they weren't tested? -- but... now I was different. Now... now I didn't know what to do. I was no murderer, that I knew, but I was a killer. And there was no turning back from that.

I hiccuped and felt tears run to my eyes.

I was fucking lost. I knew not where to go, what to do, who to seek... My emotions, which I had done well enough in most of my life to keep in check, were pouring out, and there was nothing I could do to stop them. All this change in so short a time was too much to bare without giving in to some emotion. And so I let lose my tears, no longer lulling myself into the illusion of confidence. The truth was that I was very, very fucked, and I knew it. I... shit, I wanted to just let myself be executed. It was at least better than living in this blasted outside world, this zebra capital, Roam...

Roam. Such a strange name. Not at all like Canterlot or Manehattan or Hoofington. As I looked over at the city, I saw a flash in the distance. Looking at the area where the flash was, I saw small trails of smoke following small, glowing orbs. Then it struck a building and flashed again.

Rockets. My Stable might not have had any rocket launcher in our arsenal, but I knew those were rockets. And if those rockets were being aimed at innocents… So much death. What could one pony do against such reckless hate?
A lot, actually.

I suddenly stood up, just as the thought materialized into what probably resembled a plan. "This place needs to get better. Maybe… maybe I can help it get better. Rebuild." It was a pretty ambitious plan, and it had a lot of holes in it. How -- why help these people? Where do I even start?

These questions passed through my mind as the rain stopped, but suddenly everything around me became brighter, warmer…

The sun.

It wasn't at all like in the books I saw. This was a great, radiant, warm, and comforting orb of light that shone high in the sky. It's heat bore down on me, banishing the cold, hopeless, lost feeling cracking down at my heart. It was just above the city at this point, casting a shadow across the buildings while a yellow glow emanated from the mostly brightly colored structures.
This might not be my home, this Roam, but there were people hear that needed help. There was no point trying to return to my homeland if there was no feasible way. Why not make this place better? The rain had lightened up a bit, becoming a slight drizzle. It was just enough to see the city in all it's ruined opulence.

I looked to the north, at Equestria. My homeland was a dark, formless mist hundreds of miles away. I could make out the form of black, threatening clouds above it, seeming to conspire to engulf my home within a web of intrigue and shadow. I wondered if my home ever got to see the sun, that glowing orb of radiant light and hope. That orb, which had gotten me and so many others out of the pits of our hearts and out into the world.

But that didn't matter right now. What mattered was that I helped this land -- this city -- get better. Less fighting, less slavery, less raping, less explosions, less gunshots -- all of them could be accomplished, even if they were difficult. There were probably already some people out there trying to accomplish those objectives, and I wouldn't be surprised if my fellow Equestrians were already planning out something, but it wouldn't hurt to join them.

The idea forming in my head was damned ambitious, and It was probably the stupidest decision I ever made. It was a choice I would later regret many, many times, (not all of the times will be narrated to you by me in the telling of this story, of course; my friends probably wouldn't want to read all my bitching when they read a copy) but with Celestia's sun above me, I knew what I had to do. I knew what had to be done.

"I'm going to fight for Roam," I muttered and took to the air, letting the sun radiate in all it's glory.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained : Solar Powered -- When it is day, and you are not in dark interiors, you gain +1 to your intelligence and strength SPECIAL points.

Chapter 3 - Out of the Sky

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Chapter 3
Out of the Sky
"My life is ruined!"

I didn't know quite what to expect. I had just decided to take on a probably impossible task; I didn't even have a plan on how to start, and already I was flying full speed to the walls of the city where the greatest civilization on Earth started. So it didn't come as much of a surprise that my brain was now bombarding me with a whole arsenal of questions, much to my annoyance. After the first few minutes of letting my thoughts settle, though, it all started irritating me less.

Several questions by the automatic question-asker that was my head stood out, though.

'Are you seriously going to do this?' A seemingly pissed off part of my head asked.

'How do you start?' A more reasonable one wondered; how or why I even differentiated the two by their questions, I don't know.

'Do you even know where you're going?' The latter asked, and that question actually snapped me out of my thought-filled flight to the city's edge. I decided to glide back down to the ground before my lack of focus caused me to hit a tree or something. Well, not likely at that height, but still; lots of bad shit can happen to someone, no matter where they are, if they aren't aware. So, where exactly was I going?

'To Roam, wise ass,' Was what that inexplicably cranky part of my brain thought at me.

'Yeah, go fuck yourself,' I mentally thought back at it... at myself...

I grunted as I face-hoofed, only to find out how Cuffs and Kevlar Vest would have felt when I slammed a hoof-full of steel at them. Well, luckily I didn't face hoof that hard, otherwise my muzzle would have bled.

'Ugh, get back to the original question, dumbass,' That part of my brain said again. And this time, I resisted the urge to swear back at it. Well, let's see...

The forty foot high walls of Roam were about another mile due south. From what I saw from the hill, the capital had had what looked like a bridge that hung over a deep chasm as an entrance, and the drawbridges were destroyed. How anyone else got into there, I didn't know.

"But that's what these are for," I said with a smug little smile as I looked back at my wings, stretching them out wide in preparation for flight. So, once I got into the city, first I would look for someplace I could get some food and more water, after which I would try to get knowledge of the surrounding area. I would see what I could find out about the locals, any gangs or tribes, and perhaps sate my own personal curiosity about the zebras from long ago in the process -- that was the plan brewing in my head, at least. It seemed sensible enough, and it was better than just sitting on my flanks, staring north towards my home, wallowing in my emotions and lost-ness like some foal.

Right now, though, I was trotting down a dirt path to the side of an asphalt road. The path seemed to lead towards a structure in a clearing in the dead forest that looked like an old convenience store -- an simple wooden and concrete two-story building, with little in the way of aesthetics in it's boxy form; it was for pure functionality.

I got closer, and saw red bars on my E.F.S. Almost a dozen of them inside.

Of course there were red bars. The wasteland just loved sending me against hostiles, outnumbered, so it could watch me get blasted in the chest and flanks with buckshot. Oh fuck, more killing... just my luck. Well... I might as well; not unless it wasn't necessary. Who knows, maybe they were just some animals or something?

As I glided quietly to the door of the store, which had been pried open long ago, I readied the assault rifle and took a deep breath. There were at least a dozen of them in there. My heart started to pound as I began to worry about my odds, but I just took another breath.

'Okay, let's do this.'

I snapped around around the corner and immediately shouted, "Surrender!" It was an unlikely move to be followed, I know -- what sane person would surrender just because someone told them to? They WOULD surrender if, say, said person had beaten the crap out of them.

But nothing. There was no reaction. Even the bars on my E.F.S didn't show any response. "Ooookay..." I drawled as I landed on the floor of the store, crunching old wrappers underneath my hooves. This place wasn't as thoroughly looted as I had thought; some boxes, and even a safe behind the counter, being untouched. I would look into those later. I kept my guard up; right now, looting this place wasn't my objective. I had to find these bastards before...

Something crunched beneath my hoof and it gave a wet little high pitched crunch as it was flattened by under weight of my metal-clad hoof. I lifted my limb and looked.

Okay, this may not have been the most disturbing thing I had seen yet, but a giant cockroach flattened underneath me was still really disgusting. I swear, if Daisy Fresh back from my stable had looked at it, she'd crawl away and hide under a table somewhere until she was sure they were all dead. I looked at my E.F.S., and saw that one of the red bars had disappeared.

"Hmm, I wonder..." I thought out loud, some relief brewing in my head "Hey! Come out before I come in there and put a bullet in your head!" This time, though, one of the bars shifted. Then the others... All of the red bars were coming to me now.

Oh shit. Okay, maybe I shouldn't have done that, I was not prepared for this! All relief left me as I dove for cover in front of the counter, pulled out the rifle and waited.

'Fuck fuck fuck, they're almost at the corner. Oh, Celestia, they're getting closer!' My heart started to pound again, and this time I found it hard to calm down. But I just sucked in several deep breaths, and that managed to calm me down just in time. 'Okay, here they come!'

More cockroaches. All the red bars were cockroaches. I relaxed and felt a great weight lift off me as I saw that. One them approached the dead cockroach, and then... and then I then felt disgust as it started cannibalizing on the corpse. "Well, that was anticlimactic." I trotted over to them, and said out loud, "Oh no! These horrible cannibals are feasting on the corpse of one of their own! Whatever shall I do?" I waved my hoof dramatically over them, then I just looked at the roaches with a flat look, before stomping on each one with a metal-clad hoof.

Finishing my grisly work of exacting justice on cannibal cockroaches (my Pipbuck was -- and still is -- adamantly deciding to call them 'radroaches', but I just went with the regular 'cockroach'), I finally looked over at the boxes. Most of the wrappers inside them were breached and had foul-smelling, rotten contents spilled around. A few, though, were still wrapped and looked edible enough. I looked over at the name on the wrappers. "'Dulcis Dente tortulas', huh? Let's see, what does that mean? Hmmm... swee-sweet! ... dente... dentist... tooth! Tortulas? Tortulas... bis-biscuit! Sweet Tooth biscuits!" Well, it was a bit of a joy to know some of those zebra speech classes I was forced to attend were paying off.

Packing any food items I could, I opened the cash register. Caps. At least a dozen of them. Remembering how the earth pony mare had used it in her sentence, I slid them all into the pockets of my vest. Finally, I trotted over to the safe. I sighed as I looked at it. Several inches of reinforced steel couldn't be penetrated by my rifle. And it didn't look like something that would open from falling a hundred feet.

As I was just about to leave the building and the safe, I stopped short. That safe was locked, and most locks could be picked! I just needed... "Yes! A screwdriver and three bobby pins! Thanks, Wonderglue," I said as I approached the safe again and knelt before it. Okay, how did I do this again? The last time I did it was so long ago... I placed the pin into the slot of the safe's lock, then the screwdriver, and slowly turned it... careful...

But then the pin snapped. "Damn," I muttered to myself before putting another pin in. "Okay, feel for any stress... Oh! Okay, try shifting it just a tiny bit... almost... just a little more..." I licked my lips as I decided to apply more pressure; pressure which could decide whether the safe opened or not. Oh, how I hoped I made the right choice...

This time the safe opened, and I looked inside in glee. Pride swelled up in me over my accomplishment, and I looked over the contents with a look of augustness.

Well, this wasn't something you usually find in a convenience store -- not unless it was convenient for people to kill their neighbors, that is.

The heavy shotgun within was a semi-auto, ten shells-in-the-mag, iron-sights only, EJ-100 model; the 'EJ' stood for 'Equestrian Juggernaut'. It was a great find for me not only because it came with ammo, but also because it was an Equestrian design and could be handled comfortably (even if I would later on use my hooves for fighting; strange, I never even trained for that kind of combat). The gun nut in me whooped at the sight of the weapon, and my hooves instinctively reached out to grab it.

But, great and joyous as the find was, now I had to make a choice. I didn't have a battle saddle, and the rifle I had gotten earlier -- fairly small and light as it was -- couldn't fit in my saddlebags. Well... it wasn't even comfortable to handle, and it had quite a kick, even considering the fact that I was SURE I was strong enough to handle recoil.

In the end, I decided to take the shotgun and leave the rifle; the shotgun suited me far better, and felt more comfortable to the grip. I did, however, keep the rifle ammo, just in case I needed to sell it to whatever merchant exited out here that didn't try to slit my throat.

Just then I noticed a small name scratched into the barrel. 'Tankbuster' it read. Well... it was a strange name. I wondered how it had obtained such a title. I didn't think anything less than a missile or an artillery shell could bust a tank... meh, probably just for show or something. Then I saw the note inside the safe, which had been covered by the shotgun shells. Picking it up, I unfolded it and looked inside. This is what it read:

"Tekasho,

The Equestrian military is getting close to Roam, and I fear for the fate of our home. I know you think I am a traitor for leaving the empire and you, but I did what I had to do. Take this, it is an Equestrian Juggernaut shotgun. Use it to defend our family. Please, I do not wish to see the fall of our nation, but the Caesar was wrong in his provocation. I pray we may meet again, in better circumstances.

May the stars be kind to our souls.

Zecora"

So, this shop owner, Tekasho, was married to a traitor zebra named Zecora who was fighting for the Equestrian military? Well, wanting to protect him was a good gesture, but I wonder what happened to him. This shotgun didn't look used at all.

Still, doing one last sweep of the store, I trotted back outside and towards the city. Even from this distance, the city still looked immensely large... too large to tame...

Oh, how I spent the next few minutes wondering whether I was making a huge mistake or not.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

As I finally approached the city walls, I saw that this particular segment of Roam's massive walls was smashed down and that there was a makeshift drawbridge leading from my end into the city. There were a few zebra guards, each wearing a segmented leather barding with a brown coloration, at the other end -- one mounting a machinegun and the rest idling around. Not wanting to feel like an intruder by flying over them, or a potential hostile by drawing my weapon, I approached the barricade instead. The guards immediately looked at me and pulled out their guns.

"Halt! Who are you and what is your business here?" A zebra mare asked, stern and cold. While the rest of the guards were looking at me with serious and stern glares, the youngest -- a colt who looked just old enough to have been out of school in my Stable -- was shaking and eyeing me in fear. He looked me up and down, his eyes lingering on my gladius and on my helmet. Clearly I looked intimidating; somehow that amused me and took a little bit of my anxiety away.

Finally, though, I answered. "My name is Goldwreath, and I am looking to enter the city," I replied as calmly as I could, even though a part of me was quivering in anxiety at their potential to kill me. The colt looked at me fearfully, eyeing my armament and clothing, which once again made me feel a little more at ease. I don't know why I felt that way towards that colt; I was and never will be someone who truly takes pleasure from the discomfort of others. I also wondered who exactly these people were. Where they a gang of some sort? Bandits? Raiders?

I decided to put these concerns into question, even though a part of me hung back in hesitation, "And who, might I ask, are you people? You haven't shot me yet, so I assume you don't want to loot my belongings off my body." Several of the guards glared at me, making me temporarily want to take back my words. But I stood my ground, returning their glares with a blank stare.

Then one of them, the leader I assumed, answered for the group, "We are the Legion. We operate within the city to remove harmful groups, maintain the city however we can, and do our best to bring the people within much needed resources. Just like the ancient legions." At that, her eyes popped wide as she suddenly got a better look at me. "In fact... you are wearing a suit of ancient zebra praetorian armor on you right now! How did you get such a suit?" Her voice carried with it an almost reverent and impressed demeanor, like the mere fact I looked like a praetorian was like seeing a sign from a deity for these people. Which, given how the tribal zebras were, was actually possible. Then again, these people didn't seem tribal... Yeah, nevermind, it isn't important.

I was actually about to tell her 'from my Stable', but that didn't seem wise. Who knew what these people were capable of -- what they would do if they found out about a working fallout shelter? Instead, I just told her what I deemed was believable enough; tell the truth, but no the whole truth, as Lighthouse had once told me.

"I got it from a dead Stable pony. Which is where I got this as well." I showed her my Pipbuck. "Luckily, he was a mechanic. So he brought tools with him, and those tools were able to remove the Pipbuck." I remembered what my class clown, Whoopee Cushion, had once told me about lying: 'The key to a good lie is in the details. Just don't over-think, or you'll find yourself stammering.' I mentally thanked him, then I looked back at them. They considered me carefully. Finally, they lowered their guns and the leader approached.

"Very well. You may enter," She said, and I smiled and started trotting past them.

"BUT there is a toll. One hundred caps," She demanded, shoving her hoof forward and stopping me before I could go any further.

Annoyance sprang up in my head; mostly because I thought she should have told me BEFORE I got all happy. I was tired of having good emotions turn to bad. "A hundred caps? Ah, well... wait! Do I really have to pay this? I don't see it in writing," I protested, much to her visible agitation. Clearly, she wasn't used to being questioned or otherwise hampered like this.

Just then, the youngest zebra nervously brought out a stone tablet with chalk scratched over it and gave me a sheepish smile. It had different rules and regulations about entering the city, but one caught my eye: "Admittance into Roam: 100 hundred caps..." I raised my head up and murmured through grit teeth, "Well, son of a bitch." I turned back to her and gave my own sheepish smile. "Yeah... sorry, I don't have a hundred caps."

She just looked at me hard for a moment, giving me a glare that almost, on it's own, threatened to shoot me. Then she stomped her hoof down and said imperiously, "Then I cannot allow you to enter. Turn back." The guards all pointed their guns at me again, except for the youngest, who just looked at the ground as he slowly backed up. Figuring out that I wouldn't be able to get far without them putting me down -- even if I SO wanted to try my luck -- I reluctantly turned and started walking away. Honestly, what else could I do? They seemed like a government; would I go rebel already? Sure, antagonize an armed and supposedly large organized group; seems like a wonderful idea!

But then there was this... odd, static-y noise that emanated from within the hollowed out wall. I knew that sound, that was the sound of a radio! So there were some working electronic devices out here, huh? Good to know.

While I continued trotting away, thinking of a plan to get in, one of the guards blankly approached it and banged it once with the butt of his rifle. Immediately, a loud, charismatic voice of a stallion burst through from the radio and into the surrounding area. "Good afternoon, children! I got some news I know you are going to loooove!"

Okay, who the hell was this guy? Out of curiosity, I turned back around and just listened. The zebras seemed to be listening intently; apparently this was something they did often.

"Okay, ya'll know about the Stable Dweller, right? That crazy mare that popped outta a Stable somewhere, and has since taken down the slaver operation out of New Appleoosa? And then you know Security, that OTHER mare who appeared around Hoofington and has cleared a part of a major trade route of those NASTY raiders? And all those other heroes poppin' up all over the place?"

Well, I wanted to know what was going on in Equestria, and at least the news so far was good. Now if only I could GO there... bah, but that desire is not likely to come true.

"Weeeell, ol' DJ PON3 has just learned of ANOTHER knight in shining armor -- and I mean that quite literally in this case -- that just popped up! And it isn't in Equestria this time. That's right, for all my zebra listeners down south, there's finally some hope for ya'! Now, my reports are vague, and only two witnesses reported in."

"Okay, I'm just putting this out there right now: I know for a fact that there ARE other people helping out down there -- those Specter guys, some vigilantes now and again, and hell, sometimes even someone in the Legion gone rogue. So some of you may be asking: 'why does this Praetorian guy get mention and they don't'? The answer is simple: this guy fought with Redeye's slavers, who just SOMEHOW managed to get all the way down to the Zebra capital! The Specters skirmish with the Legion, the Molten Tides fight EVERYONE, the tribes fight one another, but there's barely been ANY fight against everyone's 'favorite' slaver. And THAT is why this guy deserves some mention; but don't worry all those other guys, you ain't forgotten!

"Now, I don't have too much of a physical description, but what I DO know is that he's a crimson pegasus stallion wearing... uh, what's this... 'ancient zebra praetorian armor'... and a blue kevlar vest. (according to the witnesses, at least) That's pretty much the reason why they called him 'the Praetorian', and is also going to be the reason why I'll call him that too.

So for all you listeners down south, take heart. You finally got someone down there who seems willing to help, so try to welcome him. And that means you too, Legion. I know you're supposedly working to rebuild that place, but you can be notoriously dis-trustful. Don't even make me bring up that whole 'refugees as terrorists' incident again."

Anyway... that's it. Stay safe children, DJ PON3 toaster's been on the fritz. I guess I really should get on that... Now, where can I find a toaster repairpony?"

The signal died, static taking it's place once more. The zebras talked quietly to each other, seeming to discuss the recently heard broadcast.

My thoughts were far less organized.

I just stood there, frozen in place. I... was the subject of media now? Wh-what madness was this? Don't get me wrong, I was flattered by the mere thought of it, but already? Was my little act of helping people really THAT important? And again with Redeye, the apparently very important slaver I knew next to nothing about. Were those zebras I saved earlier the witnesses? And if the DJ lived in Equestria, news must have traveled REALLY fast.

'Talked about on the radio... oh, it's the end of the world,' Muttered a familiar part of my brain.

'Not now, you dysfunctional heap of tissue,' I thought back at it. The occurrence of what just happened was still just starting to hit me. This 'DJ PON3' knew about me? But... how? Did the witnesses go all the way to Equestria just to report it in? No, that was ridiculous.

'Still... everyone who heard that might know who I am now. I guess I should ditch the suit before It brings me trouble...'

But the zebras were already approaching, all of them this time. They had their guns lowered, but that didn't really make me feel any better. They were examining me critically as they approached, their glares making them look like they wanted to tear out my insides with their gaze alone. I did my best to look... calm -- and for that I can say I succeeded -- but I could not stomp down the panic swelling up in my head.

Finally, they stopped right in front of me. Before they did, though, I loosened the gladius from the sheath a little, just in case. As they stood there, the leader zebra took a few slow steps forward, stopping about a foot from me

Finally, lifting the uneasy silence that was broken only by the static, she spoke. "You are him?" Her voice was calm, almost unnervingly so. I wanted to lie, of course; just a minute ago they'd threatened -- even if not to a personal degree -- to kill me, that alone unnerved me. Still, I guess I couldn't really lie to them at this point.

"Yeah..." I drawled. I really hoped they weren't going to jump me and shoot me in the head or something, whether because they viewed me as a threat or because they, I don't know, thought my head was valuable or something. I really didn't want to fight right now, especially not with that machinegun nearby. And the fact that I had actually killed earlier today... and the fact that I was forced into the outside like an animal... okay, come to think of it, I was NOT in full control of myself; sure, I seemed calm enough, but I remembered how badly I wanted to kill those slavers earlier. I was no delusional fool, I was NOT stable at that moment.

One of the zebras shifted and looked back at his gun, and I tensed. But then he just coughed once and looked back like nothing happened. I was glad that was it, because I was feeling really jumpy right now. The zebra just stared at me for several moments.

Eventually, she looked back at the others, and they just nodded in response. Clearly, it was in zebra culture to talk little, ask questions flatly, and stare a lot -- yeah, pretty inviting culture they had. After all, who needed to talk to others, right? It only kept you from going insane. Well... then again, I may have been talking about the quieter zebra cultures; Roaman culture was QUITE based upon image and position, which needed a lot of talking and a good way with words.

She looked back at me, then said just as flatly as everything else most zebras said, "You may enter Roam. just do not interfere with the Legion, we are already struggling as it is." All the zebras stepped to the side, showing the path into the city.

"Uhh, thanks. I guess," I said as I started stepping past them.

'Maybe shouldn't drop the suit just yet. If it gets people to help me, I guess I should keep it,' I thought, and put on a sinister little smile as thoughts of me stomping around in the suit flashed through my mind.

As I stepped past the wall and into the city, the zebra called back out to me, "And if you really want to help, you should go to our leader, the Legate, in the Forum. That is in the center of the city." Ah, so they really were organized. Honestly, I hadn't expected to find much civilization out here, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear that they were more than just some highwaymen of a sort.

I looked back at her and said as politely as possible, "I'll keep that in mind."

There was a soft beep from my Pipbuck, and I lifted my hoof and looked at the screen. "New quest; 'The Glory of Roam', started. Current objective: find a way to the Forum."

It didn't seem very important at that time, but that notification may have sent me on the most ridiculous quest of my life.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

As much as meeting this 'Legate' seemed important, I REALLY wanted to know more about this place first. Why save a city you know nothing about, right? Made no sense... okay, fine, I'll admit I did just want to compare what I learned in the Stable about the Zebra Empire and what I ACTUALLY saw out here.

Anyway, as I trotted on the crumbled streets, looking around at all the classical-esque structures around me, I decided I might as well admire their architecture while I still wasn't being shot at or something. After all, not a lot of time for admiring beauty in the wasteland, might as well take what you can and when you can.

Really, despite two centuries of decay and disregard, Roam was still a surprisingly majestic city. Everything about it -- from the bridges that crossed over dried rivers to the structures that stood high above the street, from the many statues on pedestals of dirty marble to the pillars upholding massive roofs of classical structures, and from the more modern looking buildings of glass and concrete to the ancient waterways covered in dead moss -- was constructed with such detail and craftsmanship that it created a beauty that even the apocalypse couldn't seem to stamp out completely.

Of course, there weren't that many structures that looked even remotely 'serviceable' in pre-war terms or for carrying out their initial purpose, but I guess the people living here had found ways to use it to their advantage; homes, communication outposts, firing positions, sniper perches...

'Ah, there we go. Just bring up some depressing realities to make my day better. Good job, brain!'

'No problem.' Okay, what, was my brain secretly planning a revolution in my head or something?

Then suddenly there were the sounds distant explosions, booming and thudding, the pauses between them occupied by rapid gun fire. In the distance, flying up from the top floors of a nearby modern skyscraper, I saw what looked like a flying tank! It hovered next to the tall structure, and fired a salvo of rockets against the windows. Immediately, two missiles returned fire. One of them hit the tank, the other was dodged. The vehicle wobbled as it flew away, and several small black dots emerged from it and fired green bolts of energy at the building as the tank slowly flew to the ground.

I stared at that for a moment. What was going on here? Was Roam a warzone or something? Okay, granted that Roam was indeed constantly at war with the tribes and the barbarians, but that's not my point. And who were the combatants? I could guess who was within the building; slavers or raiders or even the Legion. But who the hell was commandeering the flying tank?

'Nevermind that. Right now you need to find some place to take cover in,' Thought the, thankfully, different and more logical part of my brain as I continued trotting around on the broken and cracked marble and asphalt. The sun was setting now, and my Pipbuck said it was 5:30 PM. Oh well, I could see more of Roam the next day (though, I'll admit, the Roaman fan in me was screaming to keep exploring). But that still left me needing a place to stay, and it wasn't like I could just go into one of these buildings at random. I would have to look for a suitable one.

I approached a small, ramshackle, apartment like building beside a large, columned, yet walled-off structure that towered over the surrounding buildings. It was the apartment that got my attention; the really big building had an eery look about it, like some generic haunted house mansion, except this time with a perimeter that could actually keep people out.

I looked to my E.F.S, and it said there were no bars within. Carefully, I pushed open the door and stepped inside. There were the signs of recent activity in here: lots of hoof marks on the dusty plank-wood floor and several tin cans, empty and otherwise, lying around. Well, the building had a second floor, at least. I went upstairs and found a narrow corridor, with window pointing outwards and facing the the way I came on one end and another pointing into the city on the other. Both windows had sandbags, concealed from outside view, going at least halfway to the top of the windowsill. There were several boxes of ammo near each window, and even a few shotgun shells in a cabinet. The rest were sniper cartridges; I left those alone, as sniper rifles were NOT my preferred weapons, nor were their articles in gun magazines.

After I had finished my looting, deciding not to begin looting food until my apples were all gone (the metal armor was heavy enough without stuffing my saddlebags with more stuff), I decided to close the door and prop up a chair against it. I settled on the mattress and just looked at the radio station. The signal was dead; either it couldn't reach this far or it was temporarily disabled. Next I looked at the status of my body. Well, according to my Pipbuck, I was still healthy. Lastly, I looked at the quest log.

'The Glory of Roam,' I thought. 'How did my Pipbuck think of that name? And does the name mean anything aside from just an optimistic text against the grim reality around it?' Well, that didn't matter at the moment. It was already 7:00 PM, and although I usually slept at around 10:00 PM in my Stable, I was exhausted right now. After all, trotting and flying around in forty pounds of steel wasn't exactly good for your fatigue. So, after a few last thoughts about how the hell my Pipbuck named my quest, pinned the location of 'the Forum' on my map, and how it knew I had to meet the Legate in the first place, I drifted to sleep.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I was on the edge of a river, the concrete banks that would have formed a steep fall into the water now broken and forming a stony ramp up onto the road above. The river had clean, fresh, and non-irradiated water, and I could say that for sure because I was drinking it without my Pipbuck clicking.

On the other side, I saw zebras and ponies come out of an eery mist and bending their heads down to drink from the river. I felt proud of myself, watching these people drinking fresh water. I had done something significant, something that for some reason I couldn't remember. Whatever it was, it had gotten people what they desperately needed in the harsh wasteland, something that everyone should have access to: clean water.

As I stood proud on my side of the river, more of them gathered along the banks of the river to drink. They were coming from everywhere: from the upper and lower floors of buildings -- tall and short alike -- from the sewers' ponyholes, and even from the craters formed in the ground from when the city had been attacked. There was no fighting, no quarreling; there was enough for everyone. I smiled as I looked down at the clear, cool water at my hooves. Then I joined them again, and dipped my muzzle into life-giving liquid.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I woke up groggily, but immediately felt the cold, hard metal of a muzzle pressing against my forehead, right beneath my helmet's brow plate. I blinked twice, clearing my vision, before seeing the long, segmented barrel of a sniper rifle against my head, while the moon's light shone in through the window and reflected off the scope. The obscured form of a hoof wearing black hoof-gloves appeared on the rifle's trigger, destroying any hope I had that the rifle had not simply, say, appeared out of nowhere and landed on my head -- a foolish hope, I know, but I just didn't want to think that I might actually have gotten shot.

'Sorry, Luna. I'll appreciate your beautiful moon AFTER I've dealt with whoever this is,' I thought before turning my eyes to the wielder.

Mare, earth pony. She was wearing a camouflage jacket with a hoodie, and as stated before some black gloves. She had a gray coat and a black and short mane, but her cutie mark and face were obscured by black cloth. Her eyes, staring down at me with a hard yet not hateful gaze, were a deep blue, like an oil pastel-colored ocean on paper.

She just kept the barrel down on my head, and I tried to carefully bring out my gladius. That hope was stomped when she performed said action against my left forehoof.

"Please, don't even try it," She said in a surprisingly soft, middle-pitched, yet authoritative voice. With the barrel of such a powerful weapon pointed against my skull, I decided to comply. She backed up, taking two steps before gesturing for me to stand. I did so, and she immediately said, without any hesitation or anxiety, "Get out the door. I will be right behind you. Just follow where my gun pushes you to go, and you won't get hurt. Got it?" Then her voice showed some annoyance as she continued, "Did you even know this was my outpost?"

Outpost? Outposts were outer defensive and operational points, right? So... where exactly was the the place being defended? Well, I guess I would find out soon enough. I trotted outside, feeling the gun being pushed against the back of my metal helmet. As of now, she was pushing me southwest. Trying to maintain a steady pace, despite all the rubble, was proving more difficult than I thought.

After climbing our way through a few narrow alleys in-between equally ruined and toppled structures, we emerged into a wide and long marble and concrete street, and started heading west. With less buildings blocking my vision, I finally got to look up at the moon. It wasn't quite the experience I had hoped, as having a gun pointed at you tended to take some joy out of things, but I took what I could get.

Needless to say, the moon reflected the city perfectly -- at first glance, it was a rough, cratered, broken, and cracked ball of luminous white rock. Physically, it was a stark contrast to the radiant, smooth orb of the sun. But it had beauty, too. Like I said, it reflected the city perfectly: it may have been physically ugly when viewed with typical mentalities of grandeur and opulence, but there was a strange comfort provided by it's subtle, soft glow -- something that seemed to say, 'Even when things are dark, I am with you.' It's bright white coloration stood out well against the dark night, and the stars complimented it softly and brought out it's beauty to the fullest...

Wait, stars?

Okay, at that moment I had some mixed feelings about stars. They were beautiful as well, no doubt about that. They were soft, numerous points of light that seemed like torches far apart from each other upon the black sheet of the night sky, or multicolored glitter spread out over a black canvas or illustration board and illuminated with soft light. They came in different colors -- some were red, others blue, some yellow, most white. In fact, their beauty was such that had I not seen Zecora's letter and the last statement of 'may the stars be kind to our souls' -- and I didn't have a barrel against my head -- I would have enjoyed their sight completely. Such as it was, I really didn't want to die in order to find out what that superstitious sentence meant.

After trotting down the street a few minutes, we finally reached a four-way intersection with high barbed wire fences covering the sides of each entrance, except one. The fence barriers of that side seemed much further down the street to make room for dark silhouettes of the structures on the road. The large fence doors that could close off all four entrances completely had, above them, raised platforms attached to the windows of the nearby structures from which the shadows of guards loomed and patrolled.

Approaching the closest entrance, I saw what looked like a zebra stallion with a bolt-action rifle on the metal platform above me. I entered into the perimeter fences and saw about... sixteen or so makeshift structures of sheet metal built into the fissures and craters of the road. Some of the fissures and craters were so deep down that the roofs of their structures were lined up perfectly with the road. Passing by one of the structures -- a bar, from the look and smell of it -- I saw that a split-open pipe was placed at the entrance. It probably acted as a moat against any rainwater that might have flowed in, as it lead into a deep pit right next to the doorway.

My Pipbuck gave off a noise that resembled a cash register being opened, and I saw the notice 'Via Oppidum discovered' in the corner. 'Via Oppidum' meant 'Road Town', if I remembered my linguistics classes correctly. There were still a few flickering lights that were on -- mostly hanging upon wires that snaked above the town, but there were a few in the buildings themselves -- and several guard ponies and zebras were patrolling. There were probably about fifty bars in this place, all of them blue. That was good; I didn't want to fight any of these people.

The earth pony mare lead me into a small structure on one corner of the settlement, before she pushed me in with a rough shove of her gun. I turned around to face her, but then she slammed the heavy, metal butt of the rifle against my face. She gasped as she saw me falling down, saying in a rushed, soft tone, "Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to hit you so hard!"

As I fell down, I had one more moment of consciousness, and, with that moment, I mentally thanked Luna that the gun she was wielding was NOT an HEV Lightningbolt.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Waking up, I found the light of the sun creeping into my dirty, dingy little prison. It turns out the place wasn't as cramped or otherwise as filthy as I had suspected when first brought here, which relieved me a bit. There was the sound of working outside: hooves trotting about, water pouring into buckets, talking, and the sounds of metal on metal. I also heard voices, most of them asking something along the lines of, 'Did you see who they brought in?'

I got up shakily, the weight of my armor making it hard to balance myself. I opened my saddlebags and picked out an app-...

But they had taken my saddlebags, as well as my shotgun, gladius, and kevlar vest. They had probably tried to take my praetorian outfit off as well, but the metal armor wasn't exactly easy to remove with all the leather straps and knots and the chainmail underneath inter-lacing into the leather undercoat. If that was the case, maybe they didn't have intent to kill me; I think that any determined bandit group with a captive would thoroughly loot their prisoners.

Well, they already took what they wanted from me, so I guessed they wouldn't mind that I banged at the wooden door and yelled, "HEY! Let me out of here! Come on, I didn't do anything!"

There was the sound of movement directly outside, and a shadow appeared from the light seeping in from under the door. The door was pushed open with a long creak, and the mare who introduced my face to several pounds of metal the night before stood before me. For the longest moment, she just watched me, occasionally looking in another direction. Considering she knocked me out last night, I just glared at her -- I didn't particularly dislike her, mind you; glaring was kind of the typical response in situations like these. She looked back with this strangely shy, uncertain look; if she was a bandit, then she honestly didn't seem like she had the expected sternness for her job.

Finally though, she said slowly and shakily, yet with barely hidden restraint, "Are you sure? So breaking and entering into my outpost is 'nothing'?" She gulped and let out a shaky breath, looking around nervously. Then she looked back at me for a moment, before looking away and saying softly, "You're lucky though; Conductor said he wanted to talk to you when you woke up." Then she fell silent, and the awkwardness mounted.

Deciding to brake my silence and end this suddenly awkward situation, I drawled, " Yeeeaaah, well, you didn't exactly tell me I couldn't go in." If she had, then for certain I would have respected her wishes; unless she was using her position to terrorize people, or unless I was that desperate for shelter.

She replied slowly, "Good thing too. Otherwise, you wouldn't have gone in and you would have gotten killed. Just don't ask how." I actually really wanted to ask her despite her insistence to not ask, but just bit it in. Well, I didn't see any bodies of any intruders. Maybe she had set traps that, I don't know, people had been smart enough to suspect? That seemed possible, given that she was a sniper; they had to protect there positions, so said a military magazine I had read.

I sighed, "Alright, uh, well, thanks for not killing me then. Now, who exactly are you and these people? Also, where am I?" This place didn't really seem like a slaver town -- I saw no signs of mistreatment or people sleeping outside in the cold -- nor was it a bandit settlement -- I personally thought bandit settlements would be a bit more... barbaric; you know, filled with blood and littered with booze bottles and stuff. These people certainly weren't barbaric. In fact, if what I was hearing was any indication, they all seemed to be working together well enough; there was no fighting, at least, and that was a good indicator.

She didn't respond for a moment, but then said in her rather meek voice, "I don't really tell people I don't know my name. Sorry." She looked up at me with an apologetic and nervous smile. "As for where you are, you are in Road Town -- Via Oppidum in Imperial Zebra. This place is one of the few genuinely friendly places you might encounter in the outer Roaman ruins; don't expect to find any place that won't rat you out unless you pay them if you go into the city. That's what people who've been there tell me, anyway." She pointed her hoof at a one of the buildings on the northern side, across the street, which was the main space where the town's craters and fissures had the structures built into them. The building itself three story building with fortifications around the windows and a barricade at the door.

She clicked her tongue and looked around, her eyes meeting the roof. "Anyway, enough about me. You can learn more about the town from Conductor, and you really should go talk to him. He's quite concerned as to who exactly I brought in."

I nodded and started trotting out, deciding to reserve my questions for later. I passed by her in the doorway, making her cringe to the side. I was starting to get the impression she only appeared stern last night because... well, I don't know, maybe she took the security of the place where she stayed really seriously.

Just then, I remembered I was still missing all my stuff. "Hey, where exactly is my stuff? Did you take it from me last night?" It was either her or someone else; probably someone else, this mare didn't look like she could even stay near me comfortably.

At that, she cringed quite a bit, almost looking ashamed and embarrassed. Her reply came in a strangely shy voice that shook and stammered, not at all like the calm and collected demeanor she showed the previous night. "Yes, well... um... I, uh... you had quite some dangerous weapons. So, uh, I had to... take it from you. I-I hope you don't mind." Oh. Well, maybe she was the one who took my stuff from me.

After a while she gave a sheepish smile, and trotted away quickly while keeping her head low. As she moved away, I got a good look at her cutie mark, as well as some other... areas -- and for goodness' sake I am not, nor am I, a pervert; so don't even think about it. It was just the angle of view and the direction her flank was facing, okay? Oh, damn, now I'm thinking about it...

Anyway, it was a strange cutie mark, not an object or a group of objects. Rather, it was more of a situation; it was a silver, typical medieval shield with mist coming from within, crawling outwards. And, within the mist, there was the silhouette of a pony -- or maybe a zebra, I couldn't tell -- in the background. I put that detail into mind -- who knew, maybe it had an interesting background -- and trotted across the town's main area to the building.

The town didn't have much in the way of an established and solid perimeter. They seemed to have only chain fences for blocking the different entrances, garrisoning the structures near them with some guards, as well as the platforms above the fences. Still, it had some of the things that I supposed pre-war society would have had: they had a few small merchant stalls and reasonable security, even a bar. Lining the side of one of the buildings was a set of wooden animal pens, closed off by wooden gates, and topped with sheet metal.

With curiosity of this strange new world taking over me, I trotted over and took a peek inside one of the pens, despite the stench.

What in Luna's frosty strap-on was that?

Pardon my language, younger or otherwise offended-by-strangely sexual-oriented-audiences -- although where I got the tendency to swear with sexual terms eludes me -- but... what I saw inside was just... was a disgusting and foul-smelling two-headed cow! It's skin was somewhere between pink and orange and had quite a lot of infections and marks that marred it's skin and whatever remained of it's coat. My eyes widened as I stared at the... thing, and my stomach churned violently. It was good that I had not eaten anything.

A zebra mare approached, wearing what appeared to be tattered classical Roaman citizen robes -- strange choice of post-apocalyptic clothing, I know -- and looked at me. Her eyes widened in wonder as a small smile crept onto her face. "Morning. I see you've met our brahmin -- strange things, aren't they?" Then she face-hoofed, and said with rushed politeness, "Oh, sorry. My name's Meryl, and welcome to Via Oppidum. What's your name?"

I replied in a stutter, "Eh, uh... morning. I'm Goldwreath." It may have been a bit unwise, just saying my name casually like this; that's not really the sort of thing you'd expect to do freely in the wasteland. "Might I ask, what's a... 'brahmin'?"

She snickered good-naturedly, "Probably a Stable-pony..." She looked at me, then the brahmin. "Brahmin's are, well, basically mutated cows. They could speak before and during the war, the cows I mean, not the brahmin -- they don't talk, or so I've come to observe. They provided us with food as long as we took care of them back during the war -- don't know if you knew that." Then her eyes widened a bit and she said with a tone as if she was trying to correct me for something, "They were sentient, mind you; some of them were Roaman citizens, so I was told." She looked over at the brahmin, and said with a wistful, sad look, "And they still provide for us. Even if we can't always protect them any more. Poor guys. I wonder what it's like for them."

I wondered too, and the thought of it saddened me. Sure, I may have been disgusted, but looking at the creature... person, I mean, I just had to ask myself if they knew what I was saying and what we were talking about. If they did, well... best not to offend.

"What do you feed them?" I asked, concerned.

She replied with a sigh, "What we can. Mostly what plant matter the traders bring around -- mostly dried grass, per our request. Occasionally we give them some live grass, and boy do they get excited when we do. But... mostly just what we can." She shook her head, "I wonder how these guys'll survive out here. They did survive before, but... I don't know. How are they gonna live?"

Well, this was getting more and more depressing. I excused myself -- even giving the brahmin a polite nod, and trotted off. The last thing I saw was the zebra giving the brahmin several pats on the head, and somehow that made me sniff.

Thankfully I soon arrived at the building, and my arrival there swept away the feelings from earlier. A zebra guard standing at the doorway gestured to come inside and sit on on one of the old, moldy couches on the floor. Taking that as my cue to sit down, I got onto the sofa while the guard went upstairs. While he was away, I looked around at my surroundings.

The walls were a very dark, dirty red, with most of the paint peeling off in large flakes. The cement beneath was cracked and scorched, but not enough to fatally weaken the structure's integrity. Most of wooden furniture in the room was on the verge of collapsing on themselves; decay and bacteria having eaten it's way through most of their wooden legs and the rest of their surface. There was a pile of paper on one of the rotting tables that didn't look quite as rotten as everything else around me. Curious, I went over and took a look. They were security reports, the one on top being written in clean print. I separated it from the pile and started reading it.

" Security report "

A pegasus stallion wearing an intricate suit of metal armor and a blue kevlar vest, as well as a shotgun and a dagger, was spotted in my outpost this night. He is now in the jail building. All belongings save the metal armor have been confiscated and placed in the security crater."

I placed it back on top of the pile. So whoever that mare was, her name probably started with 'M'. 'What could it be', I wondered. All sorts of names came to mind: Mira? Maya?... Matilda? Maybe her LAST name started with 'M'? Or did she even have a last name?

But before I could I think of more names, the zebra stallion came back and called me to follow him up the stairs. I followed him up, and he led me through a nearly broken-down door that opened into an office, which was actually little more than a rectangular space with a bookshelf at the back, a desk at the front, a few windows on the side from which light came in, and a few chairs. There, behind the desk, was a unicorn stallion with a brown coat and butter colored mane. His cutie mark was obscured by the desk, though I didn't really care for that at the time.

"Ah, the visitor. Please, sit down," He said in a calm -- almost forcefully so -- tone, and he had the strangest look of intelligence you could see on a lanky buck like him. He gestured to an unstable looking seat in front of the desk. I was about to turn around and ask the guard if they had something more... substantial, when I saw that the guard had already left and closed the door behind him.

'Oh well. I just hope that chair can take my weight,' I thought, and with a sigh made my way to the chair. As I sat down, the chair gave a soft groan and a long creak, but thankfully didn't break. I then turned to the stallion with the intent of asking some questions, but he beat me to that intent, much to my annoyance.

"So, you are the one my guards brought in last night. Might I ask, who exactly are you, stranger? You don't look like a bandit, but your armor very much resembles Legion heavy troopers. Could you explain that, please?" He asked with a hint of suspicion and quite a lot of caution. Clearly, I looked intimidating in my segmented steel armor and red plumed helmet. Well, to be honest, I DID look intimidating in it. I would try to use that to my advantage later on in my experiences, actually.

"My name is Goldwreath. And no, I am not affiliated with the Legion. Although, they did let me in after the DJ spoke about me on the radio. I don't really know how the DJ even knows about me, though -- something about me being the only one fighting some 'Redeye' character," I replied honestly; who knew, maybe he could detect lies? Unicorns were unpredictable like that, always using magic and whatnot.

His eyes suddenly popped wide, lingering on any exposed patch of coat and then on my wings. Realization seemed to dawn on his expression. "You-you're that pegasus DJ PON3 was talking about yesterday? The one who freed those zebras?" I nodded, and he seemed to relax, letting out a deep breath. "Oh, good. You have no idea how relieved I am to know that someone capable as you is within the vicinity."

He looked up at me with a strangely pleading look, and elaborated, "We've been getting hit a lot by bandits lately, and some of the people we sent out to look for supplies outside the city's walls have already been taken by that Redeye. We also get attacked by raiders on occasion." He clicked his tongue and looked at me nervously and stammered,"I know I don't quite have the right to ask, but... uh, maybe you could, well, maybe, you know... uh, ...help out with that?"

Now came one of the first major decisions I had to make. Now, I know what you're thinking: 'Goldwreath, you need to survive! Don't throw away your life for people who barely know you and whom you barely know!' Yes, that thought ran through my mind, quite a bit in fact. However, the mere fact was, to put it lightly, was that I had little to no plan on how to start with my ridiculously large ambition of helping the city. So really, what I had been presented just now was an opportunity to start with it. I couldn't just throw it away. Besides, in all honesty, I needed something to do. Just trotting around the city aimlessly did NOT sound like a good idea.

Still, I was not without concern. "Well, I would help. And... I will. But... all by myself? I got those slavers by surprise and by catching them unprepared. I doubt I can do that against larger groups, especially now that they know who to look out for." At the last statement, he gave me an incredulous look, as if baffled I would even suggest such a thing. He got up off his chair, taking a step back (standing on his hindlegs as as he leaned against the wall behind him), and rather dramatically touched his chest with his right forehoof.

"What? Oh, no no no no no no no no. No. Of course not ALONE. I wouldn't want such an important and capable individual such as yourself going ALONE." He got down on all fours again, and continued calmly, "No, you will be accompanied by Myst. She knows where these people are." Oh, okay. Well, at least I wasn't going alone...

Wait, who was Myst?

As he sat back down, I decided to ask, "Uh, who's Mys-..."

But I was cut off as four explosions shook the building in rapid succession, causing Conductor to hit the ground as he fell forward from the shaking. Outside, the ponies and zebras were running around, screaming as two more missiles slammed against the ground. The guards were firing back with whatever automatic weapons they had, and I could even hear the blasts of shotguns. Conductor raced past me, bucking the door open and galloping downstairs. Me? I just flew out the window and slammed my metal-plated hooves on the cracking road beneath me, feeling like a boss. Of course, that feeling of epicness abandoned me when I saw the flying tank falling out of the sky crashing towards me.

'Nice job, dumbass,' A very unwelcome part of my brain said. I didn't care enough to respond at the moment as I rolled out of the tank's way JUST as it crashed several feet from me and started dragging itself across the street to where I was a moment ago.

Stopping on the roof of the bar, I turned around to look at the fallen tank. There were several pegasi wearing a strange, segmented black armor sticking out of the door leading into the compartment of the tank. As I watched, one of them; a mare with broken goggles (showing her eyes to be a deep orange) with a mane that had a had a lighter orange coloration on the outside and a darker orange underneath, began crawling out of the tank but collapsed as she reached the street.

I looked at where the missiles were coming from: a wave of Legionnaires were approaching from the west, at least three of them carrying some form of some form of rocket launcher, and they seemed to be willing to destroy the town to get at whatever survivors were in the wreckage. That thought was confirmed when the guards called out to each other, shouting for a rally against the Legionnaires, who promptly opened fire.

"Aw, hell no..." I said as I saw them breaking past the fence gates and spill into the street. The guards took cover in the debris and craters created by the impact of the missiles, while firing down the street at the gathering mob of angry Legionnaires. Well, I had not time to waste! And so I grabbed my shotgun and...

Oh, surprise surprise, they didn't give it back. Great, I was screwed.

I looked around to try and find the mare -- Myst -- who had surely taken my stuff the night before, but I couldn't see her among the guards. And so I thought, 'She's a sniper. And where do they stay most of the time? In buildings.'

With that thought in mind I dove for the cover of a fallen pillar, which brought me next to a zebra mare guard. I looked around at the buildings while watching out for a muzzleflash near the windows. There was nothing there. Well, there was nothing I could do about it at the time. So I did the only thing I could do: try to get these guards into a retaliatory strike.

This was no skirmish like the day before. This was a battle.

I couldn't help it, I started panicking. This enemy was organized and well armed, not at all like the slavers from yesterday. I could already envision them overwhelming the defenses, slaughtering everybody in sight, me included. My mouth became dry, and my heart thundered in my chest like an overworked pump. My eyes darted around in panic, and all thoughts were reduced to an indecipherable haze of scattered words and blurry mental images. I cowered where I was, and shut my eyes close.

But at last the panic subsided, and to my own surprise I found myself lying down on the asphalt, right against a fallen concrete column, and shaking. I shook my head, drew myself up, took a deep breath, and swiped the receding shame of my cowardice away. No, no time for panic now. That was detrimental, and I needed to be at full capacity right now.

I was still in the same cover as the zebra mare from earlier. My chest plate scraped on the ground as I crawled towards her, feeling the bullets whizzing through my plumes and scratching the metal of my helmet. I screamed over the battle, "Where are they coming in from?!"

Delaying a second, she yelled in reply over the roar of the battle, "They are storming in from the western entrance, as well as from the western buildings! They must have broken away the barricades to have gotten in!" After that, she popped her head out of cover and fired a shot of her rifle at an approaching zebra stallion, hitting him in the neck as he attempted to gallop to cover.

Okay, so I had to think of how to deal with this...

They were encroaching in on the town from the western direction. They at least didn't have the advantage of cover, but the guards couldn't pop out of cover often enough to put a serious toll on their numbers. The Legionnaires were sporting automatic assault rifles and submachine guns, so they would try to get closer to use them effectively. The ones with the launchers seemed intent on nothing else but trying to finish off the tank, and for that one of them was already lying dead in one of the craters. Now, if I could draw their fire long enough, I could give the guards the opportunity to shoot while the assault was reloading. But where would I fly off to? If I knew where my equipment was, I could perhaps help in the battle. But where was the security crater? And where was Myst, as well? The only thing I could think of now was try to lead the guards in a counter-attack, but I would need my weapons to defend myself.

Then suddenly, over the chaos of the battle, echoing semi-auto gunshots rang through the air with threatening clarity. 'CHUG!' 'CHUG!' 'CHUG!' 'CHUG!'. I saw four Legionnaires fall from shots in the head, the rifle rounds ripping half their heads off. Relief and adrenaline shot through my veins as I thought of the most likely wielder of that rifle: Myst.

I looked at the buildings, my eyes scanning the windows. There, right out of the second floor, was the muzzle of the rifle I had seen the night before pointing at the amassing crowd. I shouted as loud as I could, draining my lungs, "MYST! WHERE THE HELL IS MY STUFF?!"

I waited for an intense moment, heedless of the battle going on about me. Screams and yells and shots were ignored as I focused all attention to whatever reaction came from the sniper. Several times did a bullet nearly hit me, and the zebra mare almost pulled me back down; for sure, exposing myself like that was NOT a good decision, and I was lucky I wasn't hit at all.

Then the barrel nodded twice in in the direction of a sheet of metal, the roof of a structure, on the other side of the street. It must have been the security crater. I looked at the zebra mare and told her, "They're trying to keep you down with suppressing fire! Take EVERY opportunity to take a shot at them, otherwise they'll overwhelm us! Keep your head down, and aim! Most of their shots are unguided!" She just looked at me, fear and uncertainty etched in her facial features, and gave two small nods.

I looked at the distance from my position to the other side of the street: it was around twenty feet. Bullets shot across the gap again and again, making it look like a storm of lead. Sparks and concrete shot into the air as both sides opened up on each other with non-stop lead. Well, I would have to go through that. There was nothing for it.

Let's do this.

I jumped into the street before using my wings to propel me quickly to the other side of the street. For just a moment, I felt the heat of dozens of projectiles on the exposed parts of my hindlegs and flanks. Bullets from both sides scraped underneath and above me, and I could have sworn I felt an impact against my helmet. My armor similarly took several hits, but thankfully I sustained no injury.

But just as I reached the cover of the other side, a powerful burst of automatic fire ripped through my right wing, tearing some very large holes in the flesh and hitting at least two of my bones. I crashed into a concrete slab on the other side of the street, denting my armor in the process. Sharp, stabbing pain pulsated from my torn wing, and I winced and bit my tongue from the agony of it. It was just the first time I injured my wing like that. Gradually, though, as I lived out in the wasteland more and my wings took more beating, I got more used to it. At that time, though, it hurt like hell.

I forced myself to focus through the pain and picked myself up off of the ground. My eyes glanced over three guard ponies taking cover against another concrete slab a little further from me. They were cowering and flinching at every impact on their cover; it was pathetic. Turning to them, I yelled at their fearful, oblivious, naive-looking faces, "Take shots whenever you can! Don't let them pin you down!" I pointed at a blue earth pony stallion with an assault carbine, "Especially you, with the assault rifle!" They seemed to understand, and leaned less pathetically against their cover as they waited for a break in enemy fire.

The blue earth pony, however, started to take several slow steps back, hyperventilating as he began to lose focus on his grip on the rifle. His breath smelled of alcohol, as did everyone else's -- I may never have drunk, but I knew the smell: wine and beer, lots of it.

Of course he was drunk! But of all the times be drunk, he had to pick today? As he began to shake, I stomped over to him and smacked him across the face, saying in as stern and authoritative voice as I could, "Get back in formation, you drunken fool!"

He stared at me for a moment, eyes widening in apparent revelation. Finally he shook his head. He seemed to regain some of his senses, and scampered over to join the others to form a less laughable defense.

I stayed close to the cover of the walls as I slowly made my way to the crater. My wing started bleeding heavily, and I felt more than a little lightheaded, but I forced myself to focus. Finally, I reached the crater the station was in and crawled through the entrance. I found myself in a surprisingly spacious and cozy circular crater with around thirteen beds formed in a ring around a stack of smoking coal in the middle. I stared at all of it for a moment, contemplating how the guards would have lived down here.

Then my eyes fell upon a table near the exit ramp. And there, on that table, was my stuff. I galloped over and picked up my gladius from the floor, grabbed my shotgun and put on my vest. Looking through my saddlebags, I dug out a healing potion and downed it. Immediately, the bleeding from my wing stopped, though some ugly scars remained. Checking Tankbuster's ammo, I jumped out of the exit and out into the street.

Well, this wasn't good.

The attackers had pushed more than halfway into the town, nearing Conductor's office. The zebra and the three ponies, accompanied by perhaps five other guards and a few of the settlers, were still holding their ground though, but they wouldn't last unless I did something drastic. Flying to the nearest cover I could find -- a concrete column support for one of the buildings -- I waited for the approaching mob of... twenty-two zebras to approach. My heart thundered in my chest as my panic spiked, but I maintained a level of calmness.

One of them ran past me, and I reflexively blasted her in the back with the shotgun. The shotgun gave a monstrous roar, launching the pellets with such force that the zebra mare was actually ripped in half. It was at that point that I learned why the shotgun was called 'Tankbuster'.

Dashing around the corner of the column, I flew up and into a circular formation around the approaching group, drawing a significant amount of their fire to me. I felt several bullets strike my barding and armor, but they were either shotgun pellets or some low-caliber ammunition. I rose into the sky, performing an aerial back flip as I fired three shots into the crowd. The blasts were so strong they actually killed four of the tightly-packed group. That left me with eighteen more.

As I approached the ground for a landing, the remaining guards popped out of cover, and peppered the street with a short but deadly burst of fire. Another four fell, leaving fourteen more. As I approached the last missile-packing Legionnaire, I dove down and slammed into him, sending him flying against the same concrete column I had taken cover behind and smashed his face against it. The others were still trying to catch up from when I had strafed them, then from when the guards had shot at them, then from when I had landed in their midst.

Tankbuster roared as I turned and sent the remaining six shells into the crowd, downing three while the rest took cover.

As I was about to dive for cover to reload, a zebra stallion wearing heavy, metal armor studded with kevlar around the chest and shoulder slammed into my side, sending me crashing against a pile of rubble that had fallen from one of the building in the initial missile strikes. I grunted as I pulled myself out of the rubble, looking at one very angry looking zebra stallion in a similar version of my segmented metal armor. His metal helmet also had plumes, going left to right instead of front to back. The Roaman numeral 'II' was etched on his browplate, signifying officer status.

"What, you want a piece of this?" I said, taunting, as I drew the gladius, the blade giving off a deadly ringing noise as it moved in front of me. The other attackers were now the ones pinned down, being scattered and confused, by the guards as they moved forward.

The gladius seemed to give the centurion Legionnaire pause for a moment before he put on his original fierce expression. He glared at me as we circled each other, and pulled out his own gladius. Our eyes were kept on the other's movements like the smallest twitch would be the last thing we ever saw, and given the situation it was very much the case.

Finally, I lunged forward, aiming for a gap in his shoulder plates. Just then, though, he shook his left side roughly and a thick metal plate on his shoulder slid down to reveal a red, circular, segmented metal shield. My blade deflected harmlessly off his shield, and he took the opportunity to bash the shield against my face before turning and slashing me across the chest. Luckily, I shifted my head to the side, the helmet taking most of the bash's force and my armor scraping the blade away.

I staggered back a bit, before regaining enough composure to rear up and slam both forehooves against his shield, this time sending him staggering a few feet back. I jumped up and flew above him, then dropped myself on him with a metallic stomp. He managed to move just enough to avoid two of my hooves, but the other two caught him in the flanks. His hindlegs collapsed out from under him, and I came in behind him as I stabbed the blade into his neck. The helmet's neck plate, which would have prevented this stab, had been completely torn off by what looked like a shotgun blast. His body slumped to the ground in a metallic thud, and I turned to face the others.

The remaining Legionnares were formed up in a circular formation, retreating out the way they came. There were only five left now, but they were almost at the exit. A loud metallic 'CHUG!' emanated from what looked like an old coffee shop, and the bullet splashed a zebra mare's brains all over the ground behind her. From behind his own cover, the same drunk stallion fired a missile launcher at them, the rocket exploding in the middle of the survivors. All their limbs rained from the sky, and an eyeball landed next to me. I just looked at with barely hidden disgust before finally turning to go back to the town with the others.

The battle was won, and I was alive. Now it was time to investigate who the hell the people in that sky tank were, and why the Legion seemed so determined to kill the survivors, even if it meant attacking a town. It must have been a pretty important topic if they went against their goal of protecting the city to pursue the pegasi.

'Well, now I've got some questions of my own,' I thought as I neared the sky tank, the survivors of the attack already gathering around it. 'Time to find out.'

Footnote: Level Up

New perk gained: Praetorian, Level One -- Nice, you're leadership skills are remarkable. All followers and friendlies gain fifteen percent more health, as well as deal additional damage, if they are close to you.

Chapter 4 - Skyfire

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Chapter 4
Skyfire
"Out of all the worst things that could happen, this is the! Worst! Possible! Thing!"

Everyone was gathered around the fallen sky tank, worried murmurs and grave expressions being the norm of the crowd. The need to ask the pegasus mare (if she was still alive) or Conductor what the hell just happened was making its way to the very top of my mental priority list. The guards were regrouping from where they were during the battle; Myst appeared out of nowhere while the drunken blue pony was being carried to the security crater by his fellows.

Conductor himself stood several feet from the wreckage, eyeing the worried crowd. He stood tall and confident; things I did not expect to see in him after what had just occurred. Upon seeing my approach he called for every one to settle down and listen.

"Alright," He said aloud, standing on a piece of road that had broken off. "I want security to compile a casualty list and do a sweep of the area. Make sure no Legionnaires are still snooping around." He faced the crowd and began addressing their worries and concerns in a tone both certain and confident, "Do not worry, cives Via Oppidum. The Legion will not take this town while I am still your appointed representative. Rest assured, I will do everything to strengthen our security and make sure our supplies are equally distributed to each and every one of you." He looked over at me and smiled, then looked back at the crowd. "It is fortunate that the Praetorian was here to help organize the guards, otherwise we may have been overwhelmed."

He looked behind him at the wreckage. "Now regarding this... strange occurrence... what do you think we should do? I am not aware that such things even existed, but I am sure they can be quite... dangerous." He tapped one of the multi-missile launchers on the side of the tank as if to prove his point. "Of course, afterwards there is also the matter of the survivor..." He gestured for one of the guards to take the pegasus mare to the medical station. The guard complied and began dragging her over to the fissure.

The crowd's response was immediate, and they started yelling out for the immediate investigation as to the identity of the pegasi and who they were affiliated with. Conductor simply agreed to all their demands, and the crowd began to disperse, returning to their abodes or helping the guards clean up the mess. After that he approached me, only now letting his shock and uncertainty show through his expression.

"Well that was... intense, wasn't it?" He asked slowly, shaking his head and blinking. Then he sighed, "Expect to see more of this if you go into the city. And don't believe the Legion; they may preach all that crap about helping the inhabitants of Roam and bringing us supplies and stuff -- though, to be fair, they HAVE -- but the truth is they are quite simply the largest and most organized group of bandits to trot these ruins. Be careful around them."

Then he looked to the ground and dug a hoof into it, looking nervous. "Now, uh... regarding our previous conversation..." He gestured his hoof at the destruction around him. "As you can see, we really need some help. Via Oppidum is one of the few independent towns here in the outskirts of Roam, and serves as one of the few safe, secure, and relatively friendly access points into the city through this side. The Legion's been cleaning up small settlements all over the place; they just can't stand that we exist in 'their city'." His breath quickened to a tense, continuous rhythm; clearly, he had remembered something that angered him. But then he relaxed, and continued calmly, "And as for your last question, Myst is our town's sniper. Damned good shot, that one. You probably saw it for yourself. She knows the layout of the surrounding area and has info regarding the attacks, so you should ask her about it. She's shy, though. As in REALLY shy; stays away from us as much as possible."

"Thank you for the context, Conductor," I replied. "Now, may I ask a few things?" The dam holding back the growing flood of inquiries was breaking, and I seriously needed to have some more... specific details about more specific topics.

He nodded, "Alright. Shoot."

Okay, NOW I could ask my questions. Took long enough.

I let out in one quick, breathless barrage, "First off: who exactly are those pegasi? I saw them yesterday afternoon, but I couldn't make out who they were fighting. Legion? Bandits? Random wastelanders? Any hostiles in particular? What will you do with the pegasus mare?" I breathed in deep, and continued, "And as for Myst accompanying me... well, she doesn't seem like the type that likes company. I've spent a little time with her, and I don't really thing I'm the type of person who'll get along well with people who won't even talk to me without cringing or looking away at the ceiling."

He thought for a moment, scratching his chin and looking away, before turning back and answering, "As I said, I don't know who the pegasi are. I've never seen them around her before, though I have heard on the radio from DJPON3 of some group called the -- what was it? -- ah yes, the 'Grand Pegasus Enclave' or somesuch. Never really cared for it, but if they're here... well, Legion might have competition." He shuddered, "Oh great, the one thing this city needed was another group with a lot of muscle." He shook his head, as if disapproving of the mere thought of it. I knew I was. "And yes, Myst is rather... shy. But she can get over it if the reason is important, and in this case it is, don't worry. She'll take to you as long as you're... not too... prodding; just don't ask too much, that makes her uncomfortable. And regarding the pegasus, since no one made a comment regarding her, I can assume that they are fine with me patching her up so she can answer some questions. They were before with some other individuals, some of which were far more... questionable in motive."

His reply seemed reasonable enough, and I just nodded and replied, "Well, I guess I should find Myst." I needed to process all of that new information. An Enclave, huh? That sounded rather... well, rather strange, to put it lightly. Why were the pegasi the ones with a government in Equestria? What of unicorns and earth ponies? What, was political structure there organized enough that, perhaps, the pegasi could have usurped all of Equestria? Oh, how that thought churned my stomach.

I blocked those thoughts out for a moment enough to give a respectful little bow, and turned, letting my unease onto my expression.

He stopped me with a hoof. "Already? You don't have to go now, you know. You just saved my town, the least I can do is give you some supplies and some time to rest. You should take some time to relax before you go." He seemed to think for a moment. "You could talk to people, like Bane. He may be drunk almost all the time, but he likes to talk."

Who the heck was Bane? "I'm sorry, but who's that?"

He elaborated, "Bane. The drunken blue earth pony you slapped across the face and somehow got to fight? Yeah, that's him."

Oh. Him."Oh yes, I see. I must say, he seemed very... incapable of fighting when I first saw him. You just allow him to drink all the time? Isn't that, well... dangerous? What about his health?" I may not have known much about alcohol, but I was pretty sure that too much of it could kill someone...

He just shook his head in disapproval, and then answered, "No, I don't approve of his drinking habits. But we each have our own ways of drowning out our hardships. Bane drinks, I write derivative stories of other stories, Kashi walks, Myst..." He paused, and seemed to be having a revelation. "Huh. I don't know, actually. She spends most of her time alone in her outpost. Huh..." He scrunched up his face in thought, then asked, "What do you think she does to deal with the stress?"

I actually didn't know. But just then, a little... 'thought' entered my head, and never, EVER did I regret having watched that sensual scene in that movie weeks ago. Now I had... quite a few ideas as to what she did when alone, and I didn't know how to feel about them.

'D'OHOHOH! What are you thinking, Goldwreath? Those are some REALLY interesting thoughts...' Thought a very familiar part of my brain. At this point, I already decided to name this part of my brain. That way, I would have a name to tell to shut the fuck up. I shall call him... Tod. Ah, Tod, how he played SUCH an absurdly large role in my life...

'Shut it, Tod. I have my own interests,' I thought at him, then looked back at Conductor's questioning facial expression. "Oh, I don't know. Talking to imaginary friends? Who knows?" At that, he just gave me a look that almost screamed 'Oookaaay' before trotting off for his office, seeming unconvinced with my answer.

Well, that was an awkward interaction. Still, it WAS social interaction, and I had gotten so little of that in the Stable. So, while I stood there for a moment, I took a moment to just let that thought settle in, and somehow I smiled; the outside sucked, but I was interacting with people more.

Then, when my thoughts drifted back to reality, I found myself with nothing to do and no one to talk to, and started wandering idly. I saw a structure on the other side of the street, with a concrete ramp leading down into it, two lamps on the side of the entrance. I made my way to it, with no particular thought in mind.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I was in the bar, which is where most of the male, and some female, members of the town were gathering at that moment. Either this town had a large stock of healing potions or most of the people simply weren't shot, because the few I could see who were bleeding seemed only to have minor wounds. Now, you're probably wondering, 'Goldwreath, at a bar? Well I must have fallen down a rabbit hole and into the land of madness ' or something along those lines. Truth be told, the bar wasn't my first choice, but I decided to stay here because most of the people were here. Ah, the Roamans sure loved their alcohol; though, I would have thought they would have more wine, as most of the alcoholic drinks being served here was beer.

At my appearance most of the townsfolk decided to stand up and thank me. I replied to each of them, doing my best to ignore the strong scent in their breaths. That aside though, the people of Road Town were quite civil. Eventually, this one VERY familiar zebra mare went over to me...

"Thank you for saving our town, Praetorian. We would have been killed had you not been here," She said in a voice I had heard before; now it was EXTREMELY familiar, yet I couldn't place my head on it. Most zebras looked shockingly and at times comically similar -- and I mean no offense to any zebras out there. Still, for all I knew, she could have been a Legion spy or something! Still, no one seemed to mind her, so I supposed she really was a resident.

"Yeah, sure. It was, uh... no problem," I said tediously, gathering a strange look from the mare. She looked at an approaching zebra stallion, who was balancing two glass mugs on his back. When he reached us, he gave the mare one of the mugs and sat down next to her on one of the bar stools. Both of them looked at me, smiling...

'I know these zebras!' I thought as I took two steps away from them, pointing a hoof at the stallion.

"Y-you two live here? In Road Town? But... but how did you get in? I thought the Legion blocked off the entrance!" I yelled as they both just stared at me with an easy smile.

The stallion just took a heavy gulp from his mug before wiping his muzzle with his hoof and answered, "Yes, well, the Legion isn't in control of the whole city. Mostly just the Forum, the dam, the inner city, and the River District. They made a foolish decision to expand to the outer city too quickly, and some friendly groups still controlled that bridge before you arrived. Unfortunately, now the whole city is a warzone, with the Legion forcibly trying to take over the towns and remaining districts. However, they do not yet know of the secret entrances. And, so long as our allies are loyal, they never will."

The mare just nodded in approval, before adding, "Not to mention, the Legion are too few to occupy the whole city -- or their even more ridiculous goal of occupying all the other ones. They are dangerously thinning their numbers with this little show of theirs. In fact, most of the remaining groups in the city have allied against them. I didn't know a pegasi faction was involved in this conflict, though."

Yeah, where was that pegasus anyway? "I'd like to know who those pegasi are, too. Maybe when the mare wakes up, she can answer some questions. Where exactly is the aid station?" I asked as I began making my way back out. They opened their mouths to answer as I reached the doorway.

That was when a blue blur of a hoof grabbed me and yanked me away, much to my shock and surprise.

Bane said through drunken hiccuping, "Hey, look! It's HIC Praee-, Praeter-... uh... ah whatever. YOU my friend deserve a HIC a drink!" He turned to the bartender. "Hey! Get this guy, MY FRIEND, a Wild Pegasus!" He continued as he wobbled unsteadily on his hindlegs, leaning against me. His breath smelled of an even greater concentration of alcohol than before -- of course; if he's drunk while fighting, he's DEFINITELY drunk while he isn't.

The bartender just looked at him with an astonished look, then at me, before he trotted over to a shelf and pulled out a bottle. He placed it on the table, right in front of me.

"Bane, could you, uh... I don't know... GET OFF ME?" I said as I shook him off of me, which wasn't difficult at all. He fell flat on his face onto the floor like a sack of potatoes, and as he scrambled back onto his hooves, he wobbled over to a table in the corner which had what looked like a dozen empty bottles of beer. As he slumped onto the chair, mumbling something about what a good friend I was, the bartender slid a glass of the drink over the table at me. I looked down at it, and took in the scent. Well, it didn't smell that bad. Ah, what the heck?

I grabbed the bottle between my hooves and poured the whole drink down at once. Bane hurried over to me and watched me intently, a drunken smile on his face. I gulped, and immediately, the strong taste of the drink caused me a fit of coughing and hacking as I fell down on the floor. Bane laughed maniacally as he stood over my feeble form, while I was took weak to push him off as I continued choking on the alcohol. Everyone in the bar stared at me as my coughing finally subsided. I slowly got myself off of the floor, but Bane jumped over to me, pushing me down again as he leaned on me.

"Hahaha! Stallion can't handle his liquor!" He laughed, though due to his drunkenness it actually sounded more like 'huhhuhu, star-on cank handle his lick-or'. I got out from under him and shot a glare at his face. His eyes began looking in separate directions as drool dripped off his muzzle. My irritation was immediately replaced by concern, and I poked him on the forehead. He didn't move.

"Uhh... Bane?" I said as I gave him a little shove, causing him to fall over and lay on the ground. I stared at that for a moment, wide-eyed and shocked. "Ummm..." I looked to every one else in the room, and saw all their looks of unease. An unbearable silence filled the whole bar.

The tension was finally broken as I heard several of the patrons try to conceal their snickering, then eventually they failed altogether and burst out laughing. Soon, everyone joined in; even the two zebras that I had saved from the slavers. Two of the guards who were with us dragged him over to their table as I approached the pair again.

"Well, where is it?" I asked the two, whose laughs began receding as the stallion fought to get himself under control.

"Next to the, Hehe, th-the," He said shakily around his laughs. Then his efforts failed altogether and he blurted out, "Th-the... THE SECURITY CRATER!" After that he fell off the chair and rolled on the floor, laughing like a maniac. I rolled my eyes in disbelief at how one pony's drunkenness could possible be so hilarious, and started for the door again. Still, I couldn't help but smile. These people had just been attacked, and yet they found the time to laugh together. That was probably the most uplifting thing I've seen people do since I got out of the Stable, and I welcomed it completely.

Only Roamans could find the time to drink and laugh even after a battle, after all.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I was making my way over to the aid station, when I saw Myst pacing back and forth outside of the security crater. I trotted over to ask her why, when my eyes caught several young zebras grab some shovels, sheet metal and a few planks of wood and went over into a crater. They muttered something about 'their own personal card-game crater' as they started digging the dirt out with more eagerness than I could ever summon for my work back in the Stable.

I reached Myst and stepped in front of her, breaking her pace route. "Uh, why are you pacing? Something wrong?" She stopped in front of me, eyes darting to the sides.

"Umm, nothing's wrong. I...um, I just can't believe Conductor took that mare in! Nobody even knows where she's from! What if she's a spy or something for some super-secret pegasi civilization above the clouds?!"

Despite her tone, she was obviously not disconcerted ONLY by the pegasus mare. There was clearly something else going on, but for the sake of not forcing an answer I just gave her a bewildered look, then said in as sensible a tone as I could, "Ookay, let's not go off into fantasy here. If Conductor thinks she should be left alive, then that's what we should do. Would you have preferred we just kill her? Or to let her bleed out?"

She seemed a little ashamed at that, hanging her head and taking a tedious step back. "Well... no," She said softly, though her tone wasn't convincing. I sighed as I approached her.

"Look, Myst, what's wrong? And try not to lie to me." She looked back up at me, eyes still darting away in different directions.

Her reply came slowly but steadily. "I don't like new people, or crowds, or groups, or anything that includes me being in the company of others. Why do you think my outpost is so far away where no one will want to get to me?" She scraped her hoof on the cracked asphalt, hanging her head again.

"I see. So let me get this... you don't like new people, you try to keep away from others in general, and you want to be alone." Come to think of it... that was actually a lot like me, though I DID try to make some friends; I couldn't say the same for her. "I understand the anxiety, but you can't go through life without making contact with others."

She just kept her head hung as she responded, "I know. And I don't like being lectured, too. It's another reason I don't like being with others." I just took that in for a moment and sighed, and turned to face the direction of the aid station.

"Alright, have it your way then. But I have to go now; I need to see if that pegasus is awake yet."

I started trotting off, but a thought came up. "Oh, wait," I called back, and turned to see that she was already attempting to move away from me. She squeaked in fright, but I just looked at her blankly for a moment. At last I said, "Did Conductor tell you that we're partnering together in taking out those bandits that keep hitting the town?"

At that she looked up at me with a look of utter bewilderment and her mouth hung open. "We are?" She asked, disbelieving. "Oh no, no, no!" She repeated the last word over and over again as she ran off to Conductor's office. I just watched as she reached his building before I turned back and continued trotting.

"I guess not."

I finally reached the large fissure within which the medical station was constructed, and was surprised to see only about six wounded. My relieved heart was about to bring this matter up with a cheery 'well, at least only a few were hurt' when a zebra mare looked up from a table -- on which was a bleeding unicorn -- with sad eyes. She glanced to the side, just long enough for me to notice, and I saw the dozen or so cloth blankets with blood stains that took vaguely equine forms. I frowned at that, and the relief died away.

'Still better than the entire town,' I thought to myself, hoping it would make me feel a little better. It didn't really work. My sadness was replaced by concern, however, when saw the pegasus mare in the corner, unconscious and with her wings cast in plaster. There was a zebra stallion with a white doctor's coat and glasses was taking down notes on a piece of paper. I approached him.

"I need to speak to her, and Conductor does as well. When will she wake up?" I asked, and he stopped taking notes and faced me.

"Shouldn't be too long. She suffered minor physical trauma to her head and lost some blood, but nothing a blood pack and a few days of rest can't fix. She'll probably be awake tomorrow, at least."

Well, good. That did mean that I would need to stay until the next day, though, which meant that I could get to familiarize myself with the town better. Who knew, maybe there was something that would interest me here.

"Okay, thanks. When she wakes up, could you notify me? I'll be... uh... somewhere," I said, and a quizzical look crossed my face as I wondered just WHERE exactly I would be for easy location.

"Eh, sure, I guess," He replied uncertainly, and resumed writing his notes. As he did so he glanced back up at me, a look of discomfort in his eyes. Clearly he didn't like having me around, and I could understand and respect that. I had, after all, been a sort of a recluse back in my Stable. Besides, there was nothing here that was actually obligating my presence. The sight of all the dead was beginning to depress me, too.

"I'll take my leave, then," I said, and made my way back outside.

Once on the streets again, I came to the conclusion that I didn't have anything to do at the moment, and I was actually rather bored, despite everything. I didn't know anyone here well enough to talk to them comfortably, and while the people were hospitable enough to see me walking around without casting me suspicious glances, it simply didn't feel right to go around just talking to them.

It did occur to me, though, that I needed some fresh gear and perhaps another weapon. Tankbuster was good, but it would probably suck at longer ranges. What poultry caps I had were in my saddlebags, and so I went over to the security station to pick them up. After that my mind decided to take me to Conductor's office. Surely he knew where the town's store was. Myst had gone there too, and if I was doing this little assignment with her then I would need to see to familiarize myself with her.

I did, however, have to question just where in the world this throbbing minor headache had come from.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I pushed the door open and saw Myst sitting on a chair, looking at the floor with a small frown. Conductor saw me, and he invited me to sit down as well. I complied, even though I felt a little out of place; Myst sure as hell didn't seem like she was comfortable around me, and I didn't want to increase her anxiety.

"Myst is just nervous about the mission you two will undertake. I guess I should have broken it to her sooner. Still, she has agreed to accompany you," He said as he looked over at her with mild contemplation.

I nodded. "That's good. For a moment there, I thought I was going to have to go alone," I said with a sigh of relief. Myst looked especially uncomfortable in the presence of more than one person, cringing on the chair as she tried to avert her gaze from both me or Conductor. We both just watched her, waiting for her word on the matter; surely she had something to say. She didn't say anything, and I found myself grow increasingly bored at the lack of anything that could be called 'conversation'. Conductor tapping his hooves on the table only served to accent the uncomfortable quiet.

I was actually about to excuse myself, when Myst finally said with in a soft voice, trembling with anxiety, "This... um, mission is important. I... I think I can, uh, be less shy when we leave." Her eyes swept over the floor, and she lifted her head up to the same level as Conductor. He nodded thankfully, and she slowly turned her head to look me in the eye. I did my best to give a friendly smile, but she gulped and looked away again.

I looked over at Conductor questioningly, but he simply shrugged, "I Told you she could put being shy aside aside if the goal was important."

"Yeah, you did," I replied blankly, my thoughts dwelling on how exactly I was supposed to work with a mare that couldn't even look me in the eye for more than a few seconds. My thoughts did drift to more practical matters eventually, and I found myself thinking about what I might need for the mission. "Well, Conductor, do you have a place around here where I can get some supplies? I need to get stocked before I leave tomorrow." If I was going to do this, I would need a fair bit of new supplied; what I came out of the Stable with and what I had scavenged wasn't exactly good enough for a battle, if it ever came to that. I hoped it wouldn't go to that, but I knew what needed to be done. If those bandits didn't stop, their existence served only to hamper. That could not be tolerated, definitely not in Roam.

He perked up at my inquiry, then ducked under his desk. He made some noise as he bumped his head against the table time and time again, and at last he pulled out a small box filled with a few healing potions and some shotgun shells. "This was all the spare healing potions and shotgun shells I could get from a collection. If you want more, you could buy some at our local vendor. Her store is in the building across from here." He pointed his hoof out a window, at a small, two story building with a pre-war sign above it that read, 'Yosho Gravius' Spare Electronic Parts. WE SELL APPLIANCES NOW, TOO!' "Watch out though; she's a little shy as well," He said with a quick glance at Myst, who seemed to be almost hyperventilating from anxiety.

My attention remained on the box, though. "You collected these for me?" I asked, flattered. "Thanks for the thought, and I hope that this didn't inconvenience anyone." I looked down at the free supplied, when a thought came up. "Who'd you get these from, anyway?"

He shrugged, "A combination of some of the dead Legionnaires outside, and some guards and citizens who decided to help you out, considering what you volunteered to do."

"Ah," I nodded, thankful for the help. I also felt pretty good with having myself appreciated enough to warrant this kind of generosity.

"I... put some stuff in there, too..." Myst said quietly, almost in a whisper. That got both of our attention, and she immediately seemed to regret having said it at all.

"Well, um... thanks," I replied evenly. "Anyway, I guess I should see what the vendor has to trade. Thanks, Conductor," I said as I dumped the box's contents into my saddlebags. Afterwards I excused myself and began making my way downstairs. As I got out the door, Myst got off her chair, head hung low as she walked after me.

"You're coming with me?" I asked, a little surprised. "I thought you didn't like being around others."

She lifted her head, and spoke in a soft, barely audible voice, "I don't have anything to do yet." She hung her head back down, looking anywhere but at me.

"Eh... right," I murmured awkwardly. Well... at least she and I were getting to know each other, right?

I trotted down the stairs with her behind me. The zebra guard down here nodded at me with a smile, which faded and morphed into a confused grimace as he saw Myst behind me. Clearly, he was wondering why she was with me. I wondered that too, but said nothing nor showed any signs of discomfort. She just tried to be inconspicuous and continued following me across the street to the shop.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

The shop's door was closed, and I couldn't see anyone inside through the screened window. A few calls for attention yielded no result, and it was beginning to annoy me. This place was a store after all; stores had clerks, and clerks were supposed to be sociable people.

At last I tried knocking at the door, and that at least go me a nervous and soft whine from inside, "Who is it?" It was another zebra mare, from the sound of her voice. She seemed like she wanted to be left alone, and her tone just dripped of discomfort and anxiety.

Myst approached the door and said, "Kira, it's me. Our... um, guest just needs to buy some supplies." After a moment's delay, I heard the sounds of the door's many, many, MANY locks unlocking.

When the door opened, a young zebra mare slowly poked her head out, looking at me with wide, curious eyes. As I stood there, Myst went over to her and they had a whisper of a conversation. As they talked I just waited, sitting down on the carpet outside the door. It was taking a while, and soon I grew bored and started tossing pebbles around. I guess it wasn't in the town's doctrine of hospitality to NOT keep visitors waiting.

After about five minutes, they finished whatever it was they were talking about and approached me. "Please, eh... come inside," The zebra said as she gave a wide, nervous grin while sweat dripped off the sides of her head. Myst took one look at her, then gave her a gentle shove.

I quickly turned my annoyed expression into a gentle smile as I turned around. "May I? Well, thank you." I was never a gentlestallion, but considering how nervous she was to keep me waiting for such a long time, I guess I could at least try. How the hell did people even buy from this mare? As I said, didn't shop owners and clerks need to have a bit more... sociability?

The inside of the store was rather dusty, though not particularly broken compared to the majority of the buildings I saw. In the corner, there was a staircase leading up to the second floor. I assumed that Kira slept up there, seeing as there was nothing on this floor that resembled a sleeping area. There was a backdoor, though it was broken and rubble flooded in through it. The walls and wooden ceiling were heavily cracked, though, and it seemed as though Kira had attempted to use a ludicrous amount of duct tape to fix them. Still, barring the damage and the nervous clerk, the place did resemble a shop well enough, mostly because of the considerable amount of merchandise she had on display on some shelves and small tables near the back, close to the broken backdoor.

As I entered the store, Myst took a seat near the door while Kira trotted over to the counter. I looked over at her merchandise. All the weapons were laid out on a table covered with a brown cloth -- some of the guns were of... ridiculous power, origin, design, or otherwise just plain weird and unexpected. The weapons themselves looked well maintained, and looked of considerable firepower, especially the really unexpected ones. Honestly, I was surprised to find some of these weapons at all. I had assumed that something like a minigun would be found in much larger or more prestigious markets.

Still, I had a possible selection, and I wasn't going to let the opportunity to get something better slip. And so I started thinking...

'Bolt action rifle? No thanks. Sniper rifle? Not my style.' The first two had power, sure, but they were too slow in fire rate. The ponies in the First Global War may have been attuned to such weapons, but I sure as hell wasn't.

'Submachinegun? Too much ammo use.' Submachineguns were good, sure, but they were too focused on close combat. I needed something more... general in usage.

'Assault rifle? Yes, much better! Oh, what's this? A shotgun? Hmm... nah, I doubt any shotgun I can find is better than mine. Revolver? Packs power, but too little ammo.' Of course, revolvers were awesome too. The only problem was the damned reload speed and the scarcity of bullets.

One particular weapon really caught my bewilderment, though. 'Is that a missile launcher? No!' I may have loved powerful weapons, but short of having power armor, I doubted even I could muster up the strength to use that'

And at last the minigun from earlier. I actually put some more thought on this one before rejecting it outright, just because it was a weapon of beautifully destructive power. At last though I decided to just get the assault rifle and stop ogling the massive weapon. I grabbed it and took it over to the counter for purchase.

I trotted over to the counter, bringing the rifle with me, and asked for the price. She tapped her hooves nervously on the table, eyes looking from side to side and said in a nervous stammer, "Th-three hundred caps."

"Three HUNDRED?" I asked in disbelief.

'THIS IS MADNESS!' Thought Tod.

'Madness? Look, it's her store, and she can charge whatever price she wants, alright?!' I thought back at him angrily. Of course, that didn't change the fact that I had nowhere near the amount she charged. I had exactly twelve caps on me at that time, and I was pretty sure that wouldn't even get me a single magazine of rifle ammo.

"Oh, uh is that too much? I'm sorry! I'll bring it down!" She started stammering frantically, but then I stopped her. People were reducing prices for me now? Acknowledging my potential threat was fine, but I wasn't comfortable with indirectly robbing people.

"No, three hundred is fine," I said with a sigh. "But I'm a little broke right now. I don't suppose you handle trade?" She perked up at that, looking a lot less nervous.

"Oh, yes!" She said enthusiastically. "In fact, I highly encourage trade. I have all these caps and I don't even need them. So instead I just share it with every one else in the town so they can buy things from the travelling merchants. Direct trade is so much more convenient." Maybe it was. Looking over the general lack of things to spend on in Road Town, I just HAD to wonder what these people could even spend their money on aside from drinks and food. Surely even in the wasteland there had to be SOME leisure, right?

"What weapon could I get if I give you three mags of assault rifle ammo?" I asked. She pondered that for a moment, then went over to the table and got a pistol and two clips of ammo.

"This is the only thing I can get?" I asked, a little bit disappointed. Pistols were fine, but they didn't pack enough power (except for revolvers) to suit my tastes. Still, I suspected she was already giving me a discount, and for that I should have been grateful. Not to mention I didn't even HAVE an assault rifle, so the mags were just dead weight in my bags.

"Y-yes..." She stammered nervously once more.

"Look it's fine," I assured her, but then frowned skeptically at the magazines. Then I said slowly, "But I don't suppose you know anyway I can get some more caps in this town? I'm terribly short on that stuff." Where did all these people get caps, anyway? They were BOTTLE CAPS, and yet I barely saw any bottles ever since I was out here. I highly doubted there was some kind of magical entity shoving random caps everywhere. Considering the wasteland, it would have made more sense if people used shaped, polished rock as a currency; MUCH more abundant.

Back to the thought of caps for a moment... I think I remember that the thought of bottles and caps shoved a mental image of a fat pony drinking hundreds of soda bottles just to get the caps came up into my mind.

'Ugh, damn you Tod!' I thought in disgust.

She seemed to think about that for a while, closing her eyes. I suppose she did have an inner haggler in her after all. Good, there was some hope for her not getting robbed blind. I can only imagine what would have happened if I DID rob her when she offered...

Finally, she opened them and gave me her offer, "There are these bandits that have recently hit one of the few supply caravans that pass this fairly desolate part of the city outskirts. Conductor talked to you about them already, I think. Take care of them, and I'll give you one hundred-fifty caps, plus another weapon." Her eyes went wide from surprise at her surprisingly stern and cold tone, and she added in her much more shy demeanor, "That is, if you're fine with that."

I thought of that for a moment. One hundred-fifty caps was already a lot, and she was giving me another weapon... and I supposed that, if I was going to live out here and further my little ambition of saving Roam (it WASN'T a 'little ambition'), I would need to hone my combat skills. The thought of killing again brought some guilt and disgust to my mind, but I supposed it wasn't possible to evade that. Not in the flawed society of the wasteland, at least.

"Well, what are the choices for the weapon?" I asked, not wanting to risk being able to pick only between a few more pistols, even if one was a revolver. Sure I wanted to help, but not if there was absolutely nothing in it for me; my LIFE was on the line, after all.

Thankfully, she seemed to have thought of this already, as her answer came out immediately, "I can let you choose between an assault rifle, a sniper rifle, a submachinegun, or a shotgun." That was actually a nice set of choices, considering the weapon of choice was free. Of course, they also could have been old and broken, but surely she wouldn't have tricked me like that. Especially because I could have confronted her, and she already seemed so nervous at my mere presence that she would probably have melted at a confrontation.

"Alright, I'll do it," I said as I grabbed the pistol, which came with a holster, and strapped it on. Then I loaded one mag inside and placed the other into one of my vest pockets. "Thank you, Kira. And you as well, Myst." Myst was looking flatly at the wall opposite of her when she cocked her head to face me, a questioning and slightly baffled look on her face. I shrugged, took my leave and left the store. Myst got up and started following me.

It was at that point that I had run out of things to do in Via Oppidum. I wasn't going to visit the bar again; Bane would probably give an impassioned speech on 'how much of a good friend I was'. The aid station was just depressing, Conductor's office was boring, and the shop's owner couldn't talk without a five-minute chat with Myst. That left me with the option of either talking to the town's residents or just trotting aimlessly.

And the choice was obvious, as portrayed by the thought: 'Oh well, I'll just settle for walking around.' Remember, I was NOT a very socially capable pony and was sort of a recluse when it came to talking to people I didn't know.

As I passed by the card game crater that the zebras from earlier had made, I saw several of the guards scavenging the sky tank for any supplies. From what I saw, they had gotten a hell of a lot of missiles, several suits of the black carapace armor, four very strange guns with an evil looking green glow coming out from some fragile-looking glass components, and some other miscellaneous materials -- mostly notes or little items that were worth probably a cap each (that is if anyone actually bought such things; I later found out there WERE.).

Myst nearly froze in place like a statue when I heard a familiar pony's voice call out.

"Myst! I wanna tell ya HIC something!" Bane's voice called out. He was stumbling over to us from the bar, beer bottles taped to his side as he wobbled over us to us. When he finally got close, he collapsed.

Approaching him very slowly, Myst poked his muzzle with a hoof. "Yes, Bane?" She asked in a rather friendly, if shy, tone.

He looked up from the ground and said as he tried to get up again, "I just wanted to tell ya HIC that your aim during the fight was HIC impecabble! HIC And that you..." He pointed at me. "... were quite formidable as well! In fact, I even got HIC a song for you, just to lighten up the mood!" He cleared his throat, and let out in a drunken -- yet strangely catchy -- jingle:

'When I was a little colt and the sun was going doo-oown!'

'Aw, hell no...'

'The Legion and the bandits they would always make froo-oown!'

'I'd hide under my beer can, from what I thought I shot'

'But grandpa Beer said that wasn't the way'

'to deal with fears at all!

'He said "Bane-y you gotta go to the bar!'

'Learn to drink away your fears!'

'You'll see they can't hurt you at all!'

'Just drink to make them disappear!

'Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!'

I approached Myst as she cowered in embarrassment on the asphalt. Some of the residents were coming out to see what all the fuss was about, and Bane didn't show any signs of stopping anytime soon. I pitied her, and so wanted to get her out of there as soon as possible.

I nudged her and said, "We should probably go before he sings something about Luna's icy nub or something." She blushed as she looked at me from the floor, her forehooves in between her hindlegs. Then just nodded like she was trying to create shockwaves with her neck. We moved away from Bane as he continued to sing.

Good thing too, as a small crowd was already gathered around the drunken stallion. Myst would have been tortured.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I spent most of the rest of the day just wandering around, getting myself familiar with the immediate vicinity. For lunch I settled for one of the apples in my saddlebags. Boredom had reached its peak around that time, and so I spent the next hours actually trying to talk to the people. Strangely enough, it wasn't as hard as I thought. Probably because they actually seemed like they were glad I decided to speak to them; I guess they were still thankful to me for saving their town. I got about two hours of the late afternoon for talking to them, and it was a great symbol to me because that time represented, what I believed, was an ACTUAL growth in social ability. Myst had, predictably, not joined in the conversations save if I had a question regarding the town.

Still, early evening came and I had to excuse myself from their company. I still needed a place to stay where I could think thoroughly, after all. I decided to trot outside of the town, just for a change of view. I considered asking Conductor where I could stay, but I decided it may be an invitation to more legionnaires if I stayed in the town for too long. They could have had some spies out, I couldn't disregard that possibility.

'So where exactly can I stay that I could be found by the doctor in case the pegasus wakes up?' was the question I kept asking myself. Well, Myst knew the layout of the surrounding area well. I decided to ask her.

"Hey, uh, Myst? You know where I can take the load off for the night? I don't want to risk the town with my presence in case Legion survivors saw me kill their comrades. Know a place?" She actually didn't seem shy or cringed at my question; she just pondered at my inquiry. I had to wonder if Bane's song or his compliments banish her shyness to the moon.

"Weeell..." She drawled, putting her hoof to her mouth as she looked up. At one point, her eyes widened and her ears folded back, not to mention her blush. She had obviously thought of her answer already, but was just pretending to ponder. After a moment, she put her hoof back down and said, this time in her familiar shy and nervous voice, "Well, um... only place I know that's close and every one knows is, well... my outpost."

WELL, alright then. She... uh, well this WAS a little awkward at the time, especially considering how I had thought of her for an instance or two. At the moment I simply hoped that there would be a place to discharge in case my urges... wait, why am I even talking about this? Oh boy... wings, please, not now, not while I'm recording this.

I turned to face her, and she looked even more embarrassed and nervous than when Bane had gathered a crowd directly behind her. I was a little nervous too, but there was no point in arguing or rejecting her offer.

"Well, only if you don't mind. If need be, I can ask Conductor if he has a place for me," I offered, and she gave a little nervous smile. I glanced behind me at the town, but apparently it was time to close the gates (although, the entrance from where the Legionnaires had broken in was blocked off with rubble instead). I frowned disappointedly. As the fence gates closed, I decided it was probably better to just take up Myst's offer. The seclusion would give me some time to think, anyway.

"Well, I guess I'll have to take you up on that offer." She deflated at that; apparently it was an offer made out of courtesy instead of desire. Of course, that left me to question the blush she had earlier.

As I trotted through the familiar street, Myst still taking the lead, I took advantage of what little daylight remained to examine my surroundings more closely. I could have died any day, so I decided to take in as much of the sights as I could before I did.

Most of the structures here seemed like they were once small business offices or service shops. Their paint was peeled and faded and flew lazily in the air as extra large specks of dust, which only served to make the area drearier than it already was. Many different signs, all of which were so faded that they were almost illegible, seemed to proclaim that they had another product or that they were on sale. Collapsed as some of them may have been, many of them could probably have been put into service with some cleanup. The particular building that Myst's outpost was next to dominated the physical landscape; it was several dozen feet taller than the tallest five-floor building in sight. It was walled off by two collapsed structures, though. I remembered it: I had passed by it yesterday, after all.

I was growing more curious about that building the closer we got. 'Why was it so tall?' I asked over and over again. Questions kept popping up into my head until I just couldn't take it anymore. I just had to know what this place was.

"Hey Myst, what is that place? What, was it some government official's home or something?"

She just took in a breath before turning to me, a forced smile on her face, and answered, "Well, er... yes. It was the home of a legion Legate during the war, so said some of the zebras back in town. I forgot his name, though; something that started with 'D'." She gulped and continued slowly, "I... well, I tried going into that place once, but the security gate required a code. And I don't have any equipment for scaling the walls."

I nodded thoughtfully, my curiosity piqued all the more. A security gate that needed a code... high walls... At that point, I really wanted to investigate, but it just didn't seem right to leave Myst alone or to go off exploring so late in the day.

"Why'd you try going in there?" I asked curiously.

Her response came tediously, as expected. "Well... I was interested. You know, places like that usually have something interesting. It can get boring in town, sometimes." A small smile of anticipation crossed her face as she murmured, "Maybe we'll find out more when we go there tomorrow."

“Wait, why would we go in there? What about the job?” Well, I wasn't disappointed, that was for sure. Now I had something to look forward to, and I wasn't going to be exploring it alone. But for the sake of caution and prudence, I just had to ask.

She didn't answer immediately. We were only a little way off from her outpost, and it was right before we reached her porch that she responded simply, "That's where the bandits are, actually."

Well, that was--wait, what?

I galloped hastily in front of her, stopping our advance. I looked her in the eye as I asked, “What? Are you telling me that these bandits -- or raiders, or whatever you call them -- live right next door and that they haven’t even noticed you -- the sniper with a VERY loud rifle -- who lives right next door? And even more importantly, whydidn’t you tell me about this sooner? Is it even safe to be in this outpost; what if they attack?”

She nearly galloped off in surprise at my interruption, but she tripped on a concrete black and fell on her belly. I slowly approached her as she rolled onto her back. She looked frightened, and yet mildly annoyed. I guess I shouldn't have reacted with such rash annoyance, but I wasn't able to hold it back. I sighed as I helped her up.

“Sorry about that," I apologized. "It’s just that I would have liked to know, BEFORE taking up your offer, that we were less than a hundred yards from a raider base. And I would also like to know how they got to the town without running into you.”

She relaxed a little as a few seconds passed by, before answering timidly, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but I thought that you would have found it convenient to be right next to the place you wanted to be." She scraped a forehoof nervously on the ground." Oh, and they didn’t notice me because of all the rubble..." Then she smiled sheepishly and continued,"... and because I shot any of them that bothered to climb up.”

“Alright. Well, thanks for considering where I wanted to be," I replied as I shook my head. "Still, you should have told me so I could have prepared a little more. I don’t exactly have a great plan in my head, and I’ll probably have to think of one in a rush.” She just looked ashamed as she slowly nodded twice, before pushing open the door and trotted in. I went in after her, trying to formulate what little bit of the plan I could before the next day.

I honestly believed that we were so screwed. Truth be told, we nearly were.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I stood next to the mattress from the night before after having taken off my helmet and the Kevlar vest. I found out just how difficult removing the armor was, as I had to untie more than six knots and remove the mesh beneath in order to take it off. Still, having all of the weight off felt pretty damned good.

My skin was riddled with marks where the chain had rubbed and pressed against my coat roughly, and some of the marks even had cuts while most had some of the fur ripped off. “I should really wear some cloth under this…” I muttered as I observed the patches of my skin that were now exposed. I noticed several small scars where the shotgun pellets had pierced into my flesh. Apparently healing potions didn’t remove the scars you get from wounds like these. Ugly things, really.

I lay down on the mattress and let out a long, deep sigh. I had had no idea how exhausted I was until now. My legs were sore from walking around In the weight of the armor. I also found the lack of noise, save Myst’s occasional movement downstairs, rather disturbing. What can I say? I’m used to the constant, distant humming of my Stable’s generators and hearing the voices of my friends. Even having been the social enigma who didn't get much social contact, I thought best when there was some noise.

And right now, this was an appropriate time to think.

First, I thought about my Stable. Questions swarmed into my head just at the mere thought of it. 'What's going on down there?' 'Were they able to find new department heads, or is that still going on?' 'Is Wonderglue okay or was she arrested for helping me escape?' 'And who exactly IS the killer?'

Oh, the killer. The mere thought of who he was sparked anger in my head. I still wanted to cut the fucker's head off and throw the body in the incinerator for killing one of the few people I cared about. I grit my teeth in frustration, knowing that whoever he was still prancing around like nothing happened. And how the hell had the killer impersonated me? Was it a tailored outfit or something? Because I knew that Silkthread was a damned good tailor. Or maybe it was one of the security staff? Only they had access to the Stable’s weaponry, and anyone else would have been punished for even trying to get a weapon. And I still had a lot of unfinished business to take care of in that place.

But I wouldn’t ever get to go back to that place... so I thought.

‘Well, then you’ll just have to think of what to do next,’ Thought the not-Tod part of my brain.

'I should probably think of a name for this guy, too...'

Next I thought about what I was going to with this quest I had, this ‘Glory of Roam’. 'What the hell did that mean?', I wondered. Would the Legion be the saviors of Roam and bring to it an era of peace or something? Pffft, yeah right. From what I saw of them so far, they were nothing but bloodthirsty, aggressive, organized and well equipped raiders. They even had most of the city allied against them! Still… they were the only ones with plans to rebuild. I would have to meet the Legate before I came upon my conclusion.

The next thought caught me by surprise, with the not-Tod part of my brain asking, ‘And what about you, Goldwreath? How are you coping?’

Well, I didn’t really know how to answer. How exactly was I coping? Sure the whole ‘sky’ thing had gotten me grounded for most of a day, but I was mostly over it now. I had to get used to the air around here too; it smelled like shit. The non-Roam terrain was... barren, drearily so. But just what was the highlight of my experiences outside so far? Was it seeing Roam? Certainly, yes. This place was giving my life out here a purpose. But that was the GOOD highlight. What was the BAD highlight?

I had killed people.

‘Oh boy, I knew this was coming,’ I thought just before my scumbag brain decided to turn against me.

‘Did you really have to kill those zebras, Goldwreath? Did you try hard enough to try to find a bloodless solution?’ Thought not-Tod.

To that I mentally screamed in reply, ‘They didn’t deserve to live! They were Goddesses-damned rapists and slavers! The only reason I let that one mare live is because of… of…’

‘What? Because of her whole ‘I needed to' speech? Perhaps. Maybe she did, maybe she didn’t. You may be a killer, but not a butcher. That much is clear, at least so far.’

‘Shut up! Just… just let me sort this out on my own, dammit! I just had to kill them! If I didn’t they’d have taken those slaves to who knows where and stripped their freedom from them! If I let them live, they would have just gotten more slaves! Jus- just let me handle this, alright?’

My mind went blank for a while, but not-Tod showed up again.

‘Okay, so what about tomorrow?’ Well... I'll admit I was a little suspicious about the sudden change of topic, but it was a valid point.

Well, so far the only significant plan I had was to scope out the place before I attacked, leaving Myst behind as sniper support. I would take them out, scavenge the place, then return to town before leaving for the Forum. For certain complications would arise, but I just to find a way around them.

‘Are you really going to the Forum alone? That’s pretty dangerous, don’t you think?’

'Yeah, well, I can't force anyone to join me. I’ll just have to find a way.' It was tue; I HAD thought I was going alone. And it made me feel... well, alone. No companions, no friendship, no one to care for me... it was all enough to make me feel very, very screwed.

Before I could continue lamenting over how very screwed I was if I went alone, one particular thought came into my mind:

'What the heck's that outside?'

There was a strange, low, menacing growl, something I could liken to the faint rumble of a crashing building if it sounded more animalistic. It wasn’t really loud, but I could hear it clearly from up here. I got up and grabbed the pistol. My gladius was still strapped to me; I wouldn’t want to part with it again. I left Tankbuster behind, which, now that I think about it, was a bad choice. What can I say, the thing weighed like five pounds.

After making my way downstairs, I saw Myst leaning against the door, sniper rifle in her forehooves (well... I did it too, but she just seemed so practiced in the tecnique). As the growling approached, she gestured for me to come closer. I quietly made my way over to her, and the growling became suddenly more menacing and louder. Myst glared at me, as if I had done something wrong.

“What?” I whispered, and a rough, long, sniff came from right outside the door. Myst’s glare hardened before she put on an expression that I was SURE said ‘idiot’. Yeah... she was shy and all, but I guess everyone had a dark side. In her case, a prick side.

There was a pause; absolutely no noise came from the outside. Myst listened for a moment, ears on the door, before her body stiffened. I tried approaching the door, but she just darted to the other side of the room like a mare hours late for her job.

“Run!” Was all she said.

Of course, her warning didn’t help in the slightest as the door immediately shattered in my face, a piece of it flying past me and cutting a gash right below my eye. I staggered away from the blast of wooden splinters.

Before I could try to recover, a huge, furry, feline form pounced on me and pinned me to the ground. It’s claws were digging into my shoulders as I tried to kick it off of me. I winced from the pain, but managed to open my eyes long enough to look upon it.

It was a large creature, perhaps twice my size. It had large feline eyes, with and a snout that protruded out of its head, with whiskers on both sides right beside its pinkish nose. Its fur was similar to that of a zebra's -- it had black stripes extending all the way to its tail -- however its fur was instead a dark grey instead of a white. Its tail, however, lost its fur halfway to the end and from then on was a sleek, black tentacle-like appendage that ended in a sharp tip. Its claws were clawed, and with each passing second they dug deeper into my shoulders.

Before the creature could bite my head off, a resounding shot rang through the lower floor, and the creature's shoulder erupted with its blood. It howled and rolled its monstrous eyes over to Myst, who then galloped like a maniac up the stairs. It pulled its claws out of me, eliciting a a pained grunt from my mouth, and ran like the predator it was after Myst. I got up despite the pain and ran after it, hoping it hadn't reached her already.

As I reached the stairs, an explosion shook the building as the creature fell back down the steps from the blast. As it fell, it tried to bury it’s claws into the walls, but that only left large scratch marks tearing their way down all the way to the foot of the stairs. It growled fiercely as it rolled into its belly, and I had just enough wits to draw my gladius and go for its neck.

However, before I could, it rolled on the ground and I struck the wooden floor, and the very force I put into my strike stuck the blade where it was. I yanked like a madpony at the hilt of my blade, my heart pumping thunderously in my ears. It gave a fierce growl as it lunged at me, pinning me again.

It was damned lucky that I had managed to dislodge my sword right before it did.

I slashed at it’s paws as it tried to rip my flesh, which caused it to start using it’s mouth. I threw the blade into my mouth as it started tearing at me with its claws, which I only barely deflected. I was forced to use my forelimbs to stave off its mouth. Of course it didn’t really work, and I screamed in pain as it’s fangs sunk deep into my forelegs, literally pulling my flesh from the bone.

It lifted a paw and tried to rip out my throat, but I managed to block it with my blade. After a few moments, in which I was sure my forelegs would have been ripped off and eaten, Myst came back down and put two shots against into it’s skull. The creature finally slumped against me, blood trickling off of it’s head as it’s bite on my forelegs froze in place.

Myst approached and pushed the corpse off me and helped me pry open it’s jaws wide enough to pull my hooves out. Drool dripped of its fangs and onto my wounds as I pulled my mangled limbs out.

“Oh, that’s so not good,” I hissed as I looked at the eviscerated, ripped flesh of my forelimbs. The blood dripping off of them was covering up the exposed bone, and quite a lot of my flesh was still within the creatures mouth. I really hoped that healing potions could handle this level of injury, because I did NOT want to be trotting about like a lame person.

I just stared at my ruined leg for a moment and, as I watched, a portion of flesh connected to me by a thin strand of skin fell off and hit the ground.

“Oh my…” Myst gasped as she took one look at me with all my injuries. Then she hurried over to the corner of the room and opened a trap door hidden beneath a carpet and jumped in. I didn’t really care what she did at the moment; I just stared at the ruined mess of my limbs until she came back up, carrying a small box in her mouth. Her hood was down for the first time, revealing her mane to be slightly messy but beautifully well taken care of.

She put the box down in front of me, then said in a gentle, concerned voice, “Please take these. I keep them stocked in case of bestial attack.” She pulled out a syringe filled with a thick clear fluid and a healing potion. I tried to get up, but she just stopped me with a hoof. “Let me do it,” she said, and then jammed the syringe into my shoulder and brought the healing potion to my mouth.

As I drank, I felt the numbing sensation of the fluid in my shoulder easing the pain. It was delightful. Soon after that I finished the potion, and then she pulled out another syringe, this time filled with water-like fluid, and jammed that into my other shoulder. Soon all of my wounds began healing and closing (though I suspected that there would be quite a lot of new scars) and I managed to get up on my hooves.

“What the hell was that?” I asked.

“That was a bestial; one of the predatory animals that prowl through the ruins of Roam. Mostly just the outer portions, like here. Don't expect to see them often. However, they aren't the largest nor most dangerous. Still, the creature’s saliva contains a poison which, if left unattended, can be deadly. The second needle I injected you with was the anti-venom.”

Well, at least I wasn’t going to die from poison. I took a look at her shattered door, and the explosion wounds on the creature’s body. “Well, thanks Myst. So what now? The door’s gone, and they’ll likely have heard that explosion.”

She smiled a confident little smile I hadn't seen on her before before trotting out the door. “Leave that to me. I know more than one way to distract and lose pursuers. Just block the door with that table or something.”

After watching her disappear in the darkness, I went over to a rotten wooden table and pushed it to the open doorway. Lifting it up was a bit more difficult, what with my still-healing limbs and all. Still, I finally got the doorway blocked with the table. As I went back upstairs, I heard a two distant explosions, and a few muffled yells.

For just a moment I was frozen with panic. Was Myst in danger? I hoped that she wasn’t captured or dead, because she happened to be an important part of my plan for the next day. Well... she had said she could take care of herself.

I made my way back to my bed and put on my armor (I didn’t want to be unprepared in case another one of those things came), then put on my helmet and readied my weapons. Then I sat on the mattress and faced the doorway. Slowly, fatigue overcame my senses and I fell asleep.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I was on the side of a hill, hurrying up the slope. Loud, thunderous explosions shook the earth as I continued to gallop up the hill. A massive metal casing tumbled down the rocks on the hills beside me, hurtling into the rocks and taking them with it as it slammed into the dirt path behind me.

I continued until I reached the cannons: The biggest damn cannons I’ve ever seen, dozens and dozens of them lined up on flat-topped mountain range. They continued to fire as I tried to get to a slope that lead to them, but about six automatic turrets popped up and began shooting at me. I dove for cover as they continued for another minute, their ammo reserves seeming endless. I heard a great metallic groan, unnervingly like that of my Stable’s door, as two of the cannons turned to face deeper into the city. They fired one after the other as the massive shells created huge columns of fire in the distance. I don’t know why, but I screamed.

“NOOOO! You fucker! I’m gonna open a hole so wide in your ass, shove those barrels in, and set those cannons off!”

As I watched, an army of Legionnaires ran up to the cannons in a plain below me, but the cannons simply turned to them and fired. After a few moments, there was nothing left. And nothing to do but charge the turrets and get shredded by the gunfire. I checked the ammo in Tankbuster. It had a full chamber. “Okay, let’s do this…” I thought aloud as I turned to face the turrets.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I woke up to Myst and the zebra mare I saved shaking me and yelling for me to get up.

“Huh? Ugh, what is it?” I grumbled as I turned away from them, still wanting to sleep. Myst grabbed my pistol and shot it at the roof, making my eyes snap open and nearly made me jump up.

She threw the weapon back at me, saying in a rushed and worried tone, “Goldwreath! Wake up! The pegasus mare is awake!”

I grumbled as I got up onto my hooves, placing the pistol back in it’s holster. “She is? Well, what’s the problem then?” I asked as the zebra paced back and forth near the doorway.

“She’s threatening the town, that’s the problem!” She snapped at me in a very un-Myst like tone. I hurried up gathering my gear and we bolted back to the town together.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

As we arrived at the town's gates, the guards watching the roads asked us to hurry over to the medical station. Approaching the station, I saw seven guards and Conductor surrounding the fissure. The orange pegasus mare was visible through the doorway, holding a knife to the doctor's throat.

"Please, calm down! We don't want to hurt you!" Conductor said to her, but she didn't buy it.

"Yeah? You'll just throw me outside and let those bastards who shot us out of the sky get me, then? Or maybe you'll sell me to Redeye? We saw his outpost as we got here, so I am not risking it!" she replied in a rough, semi high-pitched voice.

"Please listen to us! We don't even know who Redeye is! Just let the doctor go and I'll guarantee you will be left unharmed." Conductor pleaded.

"What just happened here?" I asked as I got right next to him, Myst and the zebra following close behind.

"She woke up about an hour ago. She knocked out the nurse and got hold of the doctor since. We've tried negotiating, but she's completely paranoid. Every time we tell her she's going to be fine, she just thinks of some way she thinks we'll betray her. I'm not quite sure how to get to her." He sighed, hitting the ground with a hoof in frustration. "Her disruption is causing me quite a lot of time. If we don't get this resolved soon, I'll be forced to put her down so that my guards can get back to their jobs and the doctor can continue treating the injured. Can you think of anything?"

I shifted to face him, but the mare just let out a loud "AHA! This is proof right here! You've got a Dashite with you!"

"What the hell is a 'Dashite'?" I asked as I instead turned to face her. She was injured more than she let on; I could see the signs of concealed limping in her left hindleg. She was also bleeding from an only partially closed wound on her side. Still, she wasn't letting that get to her.

"What do you mean 'what's a Dashite?' YOU are a Dashite! This just proves this town is some kind of anti-Enclave operations post of some sort!" She yelled, accidentally drawing a little blood from the doctor's neck. Several of the guards switched off the safeties on their guns.

"Wait." I told them, and I came closer to the pegasus. At my approach, she pulled the doctor closer and pressed the knife closer to his neck.

"Stay back." She didn't yell, but her tone was serious and I had no doubt she would kill him if I forced it. Myst circled around to the other side, aiming her rifle. I just shook my head at her, and she pointed her rifle away.

"Look, you have to believe me when I say I am NOT a Dashite, whatever that is. And it was the Legion who shot you down, not us!"

"Yeah, and they killed my whole squad while they were at it! I can't trust any of you!"

"Oh yeah? Well we lost a dozen people to save your ass! Several more are dying in there right now while you're pulling off this little stunt of yours. You owe this town for saving you and sacrificing for you instead of just letting the Legion have what they want! Now this place is likely on the list of towns the Legion considers it's enemy! So don't bring up what you lost, cause I'm pretty sure it's less than what they did." She stared back at me in shock, then glanced off to the sides.

After about a minute of tense silence, there was a gunshot. The bullet pinged off the metal table and the pegasus jumped back in surprise, thankfully not slicing the doctor's throat in the process. As she staggered, Myst fired off another shot next to the pegasus' legs, making her stagger in another direction as she dropped the knife from her mouth.

I took the opportunity and charged her, slamming her against the ground as she fell. As she lay there, she tried to pull off the same trick Kevlar Vest had done to get me off him. But I knew that trick this time, and as she reached the 'punch me away' stage of the move, I blocked them both and smacked her across the face.

The guards entered, pointing their guns at her. At the sight of them, she stopped struggling and just lay there. I got off and the guards pulled her away to her bed and started to strap her down; something the doctor had not done. As they finished, they went over to the doctor and helped him to clean his wounds, while some of them dragged the unconscious nurse to another bed in the fissure. He just shooed them away, taking a sip of a healing potion as Myst entered the fissure through the other entrance. Conductor entered as well, huge relief clearly visible in his expression, and he approached me.

"Another instance where having you with us has saved us a lot of trouble. I really should try keeping you around, we could sure use someone like you."

"Thank you, Conductor. But we should really get to the matter at hoof." I pointed at the pegasus glaring at me from the bed, she was tugging against the straps with no success. She tried harder as I approached; she looked almost as uncomfortable around me as Myst was around... well, anyone.

"What's your name?" I asked her cautiously. She didn't answer, and Myst was beginning to look uncomfortable again as she backed out of the station.

"Look, if we planned to harm you, then last night while you were out was the best time to do it. Now, what's your name?" I asked again, and this time she answered.

"Skyfire. Service number 35628505. Sergeant and second-in-command of the scouting party sent here by the Enclave. Is that good enough, Dashite?" She spat in my face. I wiped it off, feeling mildly pissed off at this mare right now.

"Alright. Look Skyfire, these people are NOT your enemy. The Legion, the guys who shot you down, are your enemies. I am not your enemy. And not even the one who shot at you. She is not your enemy, either." I saw Myst poke her head in, then quickly pull it back. "In fact, I highly suggest you get used to these people. You aren't exactly fully healed yet, so you'll have to stay here for a few days. Just don't cause a commotion and you'll be fine." The doctor approached her again, but stopped several feet from her. He watched her with worry, as if wondering whether she would hold him hostage again. I just nodded my head, and despite his expression he approached her again.

At that, Skyfire seemed personally uncomfortable. Not at the doctor wrapping her wing in a cast, nor at me standing in front of her. No, this was different. In fact I couldn't tell what was causing her discomfort, until finally she said, "I don't like being in a single place for too long." There was no anger in her voice, just anxiety and... pleading?

"Soooo? I can't actually take you anywhere, not that you'd want me to or that anyone else would, so I'm afraid you'll just have to deal with it for now." Seriously? She just held the doctor hostage and she was already asking to be let go? Wow, talk about expectant.

She deflated completely, slumping on the bed and offering no more resistance whatsoever. She closed her eyes and sighed, burying her head in the pillow underneath.

"Why? Why would you want to start walking around already? You're wing's busted, you're bleeding from at least one area I can see, and I'm pretty sure you've got at least one broken bone in you. Wouldn't moving around in that state, in the wasteland, be suicidal?" I asked reasonably, hoping to dissuade her from trying to get out there.

Of course, it didn't work. She looked up at me from her pillow, "Yeah, it would. But I got a team to avenge, and those... eh, 'Legion' bastards are gonna pay. The sooner I make them pay, the sooner I can feel better. The medicine's good, but aside from my wings, I ain't hurt that bad."

"It's true." The doctor said. "She may look banged up, but aside from her wings, the only injuries she has are two cracked bones in her right hindleg and that wound she has on her side. Honestly, one or two healing potions and she's good. Aside from the wing, that'll take time."

She continued, "And I don't want to wait around, strapped down, while I'm being told what to do. If I could, I'd bust myself out of here and kill as many of those fuckers as I can." I could relate, I still wanted the piece of shit who killed Lighthouse to be incinerated. But I wasn't going to let that cloud my judgement now.

I looked at the doctor. "Are you sure? I'm no medic, but that was a serious crash. Hasn't she 'lost a lot of blood' or 'has major internal injuries' or anything of the like?" I thought doctor's were supposed to keep their patients until they recovered! What, was he doing this out of spite or something?

"Nope. As I said, wings aside, two healing potions and she's good to go." Skyfire beamed up at that, a huge grin forming on her face at the news.

I still had one more trick up on my hoof. "And what would Conductor think? He wouldn't want her to be killed, now would he?" I looked over at Conductor with a slightly smug smile. He was sitting on a chair next to the entrance.

"No I wouldn't. But it's her life; if she wants to go out there and take out some Legionnaires for us, then why not?"

'What? I need to hear that again...'

"Seriously? You're okay with her leaving? In this state?" I asked, both surprised and disbelieving, as I pointed a hoof at her.

"Well, not 'okay.' Really, 'forced to' is more like it. You may not know it, but everyday we get hit by raiders, slavers, bandits, and the Legion." He approached me and said, "There's also been talk of fire raining down from the mountains. We don't know how or why, but the Legion seems to. They've been trying to get to them, but all their efforts have ended in failure. Couple that with the sudden wave of wildlife coming out of their homes and the gangs getting bolder, and you've got a recipe for disaster. So, as you can see, if it weren't for people such as yourself giving us help from time to time, we'd all be dead."

Fire raining from the mountains? That seemed familiar... very familiar... but why?

I ground my teeth in frustration. I couldn't believe both Conductor and the doctor were fine with this! What next? Was Bane going to come in and start singing another song? Oh, and maybe he could include a dance number while he was at it!

Then Myst entered, eyes on the ground as she averted her gaze from every one in the room. As she got close enough to me, she lifted her head and gave a little half smile.

"Oh, please don't tell me you're fine with her going too!" I said loudly out of exasperation.

'Celestia, please don't let her agree with this!'

"Well, um, no. I don't really like it." Oh, thank you! This pegasus was going to get herself killed...

"Oh, good. At least SOMEONE agrees with me." At that, her pupils became small as peas, before she put on another nervous smile.

"Myst? Is there something you're not telling me?" I asked suspiciously.

"Yes, well, I don't WANT to. I really don't, promise! But... we may have to."

'Of course. Celestia, wherever you are, I just want to tell you how much of a let-down that was.'

"What could you POSSIBLY mean?" I just couldn't get my way with these people, could I?

Her response came slowly, maybe from her being in the presence of... four people. Goddesses, how shy was this mare?

"Well, I just got a report from the guards that about another seven bandits arrived at the base. So, we're outnumbered at least ten-to-one. We'll need all the help we can get."

"Well, can't we ask the guards to come with us then?" Yeah, why couldn't the guards come with us? Wasn't it their job to protect this place?

"Well... we're kind of low on them right now. Plus, if they leave with us, then some gang is probably going to come along and try to raid the town." She said with slight sympathy with my plight.

I looked around at the four gathered around me. Each one of them either wanted the pegasus to go or was forced to let her go. Skyfire would probably have been jumping around in joy, except she was tied down. Was I really going to let this happen? This mare could get killed doing this!

'You said last night that you couldn't force anyone to join you, and that's true. However, you also can't force anyone to NOT join you as well.' Thought not-Tod.

'You know, you're becoming almost as annoying as Tod.' Great, even my own head was against me. Stupid scumbag brain.

Finally, I just let out a sigh of defeat and said, "Dammit, peer pressure. Fine."

The doctor untied her straps, and Skyfire immediately got off the bed. Well, at least she wasn't making this more difficult by trying to escape.

"Awesome! I still can't believe I'm working with a Dashite, but... meh. I don't really care about that anymore, I just wanna kick some tail! Now, where are my guns?"

"Your guns?" Conductor asked, cocking his head in confusion.

"Yeah, my guns. My twin mark II Plasmabolt rifles? I had them on me last time I remembered. And I was wearing my armor, too."

"Ooooh, yeeeaaah..." He drawled. "...about that..."

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Immunity, Level One -- You're immune system is now 20% cooler. You are resistant to natural diseases and toxins, as you take 20% less damage from them. They also don't last as long.

Chapter 5 - Pieces of the Past

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Chapter 5
Pieces of the Past
"Who are you? I mean, you're me, but I'm me too. How can there be two 'me's? It's not scientifically possible. You are not scientifically possible!"

"NOOOO!" Skyfire yelled as she raced over to the workbench where her rifles were being taken apart by the town's mechanic, a tan earth pony buck with a scraggly black mane. On the ground a little further into the room, seven suits of the carapace armor were placed on the floor with intervals of several feet. Pushing him off his chair, she grabbed her guns with a huge pout on her face and a few tears on her cheeks.

"No, no, no, no! First I lose my squad, then my weapons! And the Enclave will probably tell my family I'm dead too!" She looked behind her to face us, just standing at the doorway. "Out of all the things that could happen this is the WORST! POSSIBLE! THING!" She dropped her head on the table and started crying, still holding her rifles close.

Conductor and I just waited for her to calm down while Myst kept her distance, looking at random things just to keep her distracted from what was happening. If this is what she would be like during this mission, it was going to be absolute disaster.

Finally, after several minutes of sobbing and more 'fucks' than I was comfortable with, Skyfire wiped her face and turned to face the mechanic, who had stayed in place ever since he got knocked away.

"Wha-what did you d-do to them?" She asked in between sobs and sniffs. The mechanic spoke slowly, not wanting to further upset her.

"I, uh, you know, tried taking them apart. I only tampered with the triggers and loading mechanisms, I swear!" He stammered as he tried backing up slowly. Skyfire just looked at the rifles, then back at him.

"Do they still work?" She asked as she rubbed her hooves over the sleek metal surfaces. At this point, Conductor and I entered and stood next to her, just in case she tried anything. She clenched her jaw at our approach, but didn't try anything.

"The-they should. The grip might be a bit less comfortable and I may need to fix the loading mechanism again, but they should still work." He said as he continued to try backing away.

Still pouting, she pulled the strange guns off the table and strapped them on using the built in straps which the mechanic hadn't removed yet. We backed away as she pointed it at the wall, mouth on the trigger.

"Comf on Mershedes, comf on Shally, makef me froud!" She said around the mouth grip as she slowly depressed the trigger, before finally chomping down on it.

Immediately, two bright bolts of a brilliant green coloration shot out with a loud 'P-TEW!' One of them was bigger than the other, but significantly slower. The bolts struck the wall and turned a section about the size of my head into a green goo that started oozing down.

Everyone just watched with mouths touching the ground, even Myst (who mumbled something about such bolts not having any bullet drop), as Skyfire beamed once more while she turned to face us with a satisfied and relieved smile on her face. Spitting the mouth grip out, she spoke again, this time with a very excited tone.

"Hell yes! It'll take more than that to keep Mercedes and Sally down!" She took in a deep breath, "I can almost smell the charred Legionnaire corpses..." Okay, that's just... wrong.

"Who?" Conductor asked. At that, she faced him with a smug look on her face. She tapped the rifle on the left.

"THIS is Mercedes. I modified him to shoot more intense plasma bolts, although it means he's slower. And this..." she tapped the rifle on the right. "...is Sally. She shoots a lot faster and the bolts move quicker than Mercedes' bolts. Of course, she's less powerful too." She stood in a pose as she showed off her rifles with pride, the smug smile still on her face. "Impressive, aren't they? They're the most versatile energy rifles in the Enclave's arsenal. They use heavy duty miniature spark batteries which..." Her smile disappeared as she stopped, looking at Mercedes with an expression that showed worry.

"What is it?" I asked, still quite impressed at the weapon's power. I wondered how they would compare to an HEV rifle.

She didn't seem to hear me, but she looked up after a moment.

"Does this place have any spark batteries? These guys don't really last forever."

The mechanic spoke up, slowly and cautiously. "Well, no. But I think I saw some on the rifles of those other pegasi. Maybe we could salvage the..." He was stopped short as Skyfire whirled around to face him, an expression of rage and disgust on her face.

"No! I will not take their belongings off of them! I'd rather run out of ammo, die, and join them than insult them is such a way!" Her voice seethed with anger, and it took another minute before she calmed down again. She slowly hung her head, the anger disappearing and replaced with another frown as she started to tear up again. I approached her slowly, even more cautiously than the mechanic did. She seemed so fragile right now, at least emotionally. Disturbing her some more would probably make her shoot me or something, and I doubted that a kevlar vest and a some steel plates would protect me from those things.

"Skyfire? Are you okay?" I asked lamely as I put a hoof on her shoulder, but she just jerked away from me.

"Y-yeah. I'm fine. Just... I just want to see them before we go. Those Legion bastards are gonna pay several times over for this. Gah, fuck. I was hoping on dealing with this later, but I guess that it's gonna start now." She obviously wasn't fine, but I decided not to push the matter further. For now, at least.

"I'm sorry for your loss. And don't worry; when I meet the Legate, he's gonna answer for what he's done." It was all I could say to try and comfort her. I just hoped that I didn't make the situation worse somehow.

She turned to me, a small smile on her face as several more tears fell onto her cheeks. "Thanks, Dashite. I look forward to placing both these barrels to that fucker's head and turning him to goo." Okay, that was a mental image almost as disturbing as the fat pony drinking hundreds of soda bottles. I really hoped I wouldn't ever have to see that.

She looked away again, trying to muffle her little sobs without much success. We just stood where we were for the next few moments, hoping the situation would calm down enough.

"Alright." Conductor said at last, breaking the silence in the room. We all turned to face him, Skyfire's face dripping with tears while her eyes were red and puffy as she blinked again and again to clear them up.

"Alright what?" I asked him as he approached Skyfire, her eyes following his as he got closer. He helped the mechanic get up before saying what got her to calm down enough that we could all move again.

"I'll take you to them." Was all he said, but at least it got her to collect herself and stop crying.

All of us, except the mechanic, went out of the building as we started making for the aid station.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Skyfire was standing beside the cloth-covered forms of her six squad mates, who were separated from the other corpses from the battle. The reek of the place was beginning to bring tears my eyes, but I just looked away and took several deep breaths. Looking back, I saw Skyfire lift the cloth off of one, a sad expression on her face. The corpse beneath was a white pegasus stallion with blue mane, but the cutie mark was obscured by the rest of the cloth. He had burn marks across the right side of his face, with several large slashes across the chest.

"Hey, Breezetail." she said softly. "I guess this really was our last mission together, huh? And to think I had hoped we could go after that piece of shit Redeye. Well, we'll just have to leave that to the Council and colonel Autumnleaf." She let out an uneven, on-the-verge-of-crying-again sigh. "I... I hope the Enclave grants that last wish of yours. It'd be unfair if they didn't. And if I make it out of here, I'll make sure they do." She closed her eyes and lowered the cloth again, taking in a shaky breath.

She trotted over to the next corpse, and lifted the cloth up as well. This one was a yellow pegasus mare with a black mane. Skyfire's eyes opened wide, and she lifted the cloth away further. Everyone averted their eyes at the sight of the mare's wounds, although I managed to spare a glance at her cutie mark; it was a pair of two meteors, one smaller than the other, with blazing orange flame dancing off of them.

"Cometcaller?" She asked in shocked disbelief. I spared another glance, and managed to view great portions of scraped off flesh, revealing bone, along her left foreleg and left side. I was forced to look away again, otherwise I would have puked (although, come to think of it, I didn't eat anything since more than a day ago. Damn, I was starving!). This time though, Conductor ran off, eyes wide in search, as he spotted a small, unoccupied fissure. He ran over to it as fast as he could and let out whatever it was he had eaten. It was at that point that I did puke, although nothing came out. And that only made it hurt more.

"I am SO going to kill those fuckers. Don't worry, Comet, they'll pay for this." She lowered the cloth again, looking both angry and sad at the same time.

After she had said her final words to her remaining squad mates (and more than one promise to 'fucking kill that fucker'), who were, in order: Thunderclap, an electric blue stallion with aqua blue mane and bolt of lightning for a cutie mark. Divebomb, a brown mare with a dark brown mane and explosion for a cutie mark. Strafe, another mare with grey coat, silver mane, and three bullets, one on top of the other, for a cutie mark. Whirlwind, a stallion with a mint green coloration and white mane, along with a tornado cutie mark. And Stratofighter, a mare with a deep violet coat, black mane, and the sun setting (or maybe it was rising?) over the earth for a cutie mark.

Finally, she covered the last body with the cloth, and trotted back to the exit, where we were standing. At the last moment, she turned back to them, and let and said with a tone of finality and determination, “You guys will be remembered, and that ‘Legate’ and his puppets are gonna atone for this, one way or another.”

This mare was starting to sound a lot like me. And that worried me; she seemed so determined… A little too determined. Almost hell-bent.

‘What? Am I going to have to babysit her to make sure she doesn’t do anything stupid?’ I grunted as that cheery little thought settled in my brain. As Skyfire trotted past me, I saw her expression to be grave, determined, and definitely angry.

‘Oh yes, yes you will.’ Thought Tod.

‘Gee, thanks, pal. You sure know how to pique my interest in things, don’t you? Well, at least so far she seemed to be able to control herself. But what will happen when she meets the Legion?’ Those thoughts occurred to me, but I just swept them aside for now.

‘Focus on the task at hand, then concern yourself with that.’ Yeah, let’s go with that. Maybe, if I was lucky (and Celestia didn’t decide to let me down again) it would work.

As I stood there mentally arguing with myself, Myst tapped my back with the butt of her rifle. She was trying to say something, so I looked over at her, and I saw both Conductor and Skyfire standing at the doorway. Skyfire looked off distantly, as if deep in thought as well. Myst tapped me again, and this time I paid attention to what she was trying to say.

“Umm, Goldwreath? Are you okay? We’re going soon.” She said. I shook my head, and I got myself out of thinking and managed to focus on her.

“Yeah, I’m just thinking. About the plan and, well… her.” I whispered the last word, but I’m pretty sure everyone heard it. Still, Skyfire still looked off distantly, not paying attention to us.

“What about her?” Myst prodded.

“Well, you know. She just lost her squad, apparently her family, and well… everything else, according to her. I’m worried about how she’s going to act and what she might do. That’s all.” I said in response, but I just got a skeptical look from Myst. “What?” I asked defensively.

“Oh, nothing. Nothing at all.” She said with a growing smile as she looked away, concealing the smile at it’s peak. After a few seconds, she looked back. “So, what’s the plan?” She finally asked, much to my relief. All this thinking and talking and the drama surrounding that pegasus was starting to make me uncomfortable, and this was my chance to change the subject.

“Oh, yes. Well, first off, I’m going to scope out the area; get the layout of the place. Unless of course, you have done that already?” I asked her, but she shook her head.

“Sorry. They’ve got too many guards around the place for me to have gotten an idea of the place’s layout.”

“Alright. I guess I’ll have to find that out myself then. While I’m scoping the place out, you and Skyfire take cover. When I come back, you should get to a sniping position and cover me while I’m on assault. That was my plan. But…” I was about to say something, but Myst cut me off.

“But?” She asked.

“…Well, I don’t know how to involve her in this. She supposedly wants to help, but how? Her weapons are good, but she shouldn’t even be standing, let alone fighting! What do you think? How can she help in this?” This was the only part of my plan that I hadn’t quite thought through yet, so I needed Myst’s input.

“Well, if she’s a good shot, she can hang back and provide covering fire, too.” She suggested.

“That might work. But she doesn’t like staying in one place, remember? What if she does something… stupid?” I looked over at Skyfire, still looking off blankly. Conductor was talking to the doctor about who they had lost during the fight, and though I didn’t know any of the names, each one the doctor named made Conductor look more and more sad.

“Hopefully she won’t. No plan is perfect, I guess.” Myst said softly. I sighed. That was true, no plan was perfect. I just hoped that Skyfire would at least try to be careful. What I saw of that mare so far showed she was fairly reckless, stubborn, and a little too emotional. I mean, I hadn’t cried that much when Lighthouse died!

‘Yeah, you only promised to kill the murderer, spoke to Lighthouse’s corpse, and spent a whole night stabbing a pillow to shreds while mumbling around in Zebra tongue.’ Thought Tod. I swear, this guy was talking more and more in my head. Was I going insane?

‘Yeah, well Skyfire spoke to six corpses, threatened the doctor who saved her life, and had an emotional breakdown.’ Thought not-Tod. I really should think of a name for this OTHER entity in my head…

“Yeah. Okay, is everyone ready? Myst?” I asked her, and she nodded once as she pushed in another mag on her sniper rifle.

“Okay, good. Skyfire?” I looked behind me at the mare, finding her still staring off blankly. I approached her and gave a gentle shove. She stirred, blinking thrice as she finally got out of her thought-induced trance.

“Hmm? Ah, yeah. Sure. Let’s go kick some tail! But first, I need a secondary.”

“Umm, why?” I asked. What, the super awesome plasma rifles weren’t enough?

“Because these things don’t last forever, and when they finally run out I’m gonna need a secondary. Duh.” Sheesh, and she was a prick, too.

“Umm, I thought you said you’d rather die and join your friends.” Myst spoke softly, barely more than a whisper, as she dug at the ground with one hoof. Skyfire grit her teeth as she closed her eyes.

“Easy, Skyfire. She meant no offense. Right, Myst?” I gave her a look that said ‘say yes, or else.’ She cringed , almost touching the ground, as she amended quickly.

“Ahh, yes! I’m sorry, Skyfire. I didn’t mean to offend you.” Skyfire opened her eyes and stopped gritting, but still looked a little angry.

“Alright, look. If I’m gonna be here with you two, then at least don’t bring up my squad in your little conversations. You got that, Dashite? And you, you got that?” She spoke angrily. I opened my eyes wide in surprise, but I just nodded. Myst gave the tiniest nod I ever saw as she looked at the ground, and Skyfire relaxed a little bit. “I’m glad we understand one another.” She snorted as she walked out, in the direction of Myst’s outpost. Myst and I hurried to catch up with her, Myst taking the lead while I got up next to Skyfire.

“So, where do I find a gun in this place?” She asked.

“Well, there’s a shop over there, right next to that fissure. Although, I might need to talk to the shop owner.”

As we got closer to Kira’s store, I knocked on the door again. This time a little more softly, hoping Kira’s anxiety would be lessened. After a few moments, the locks started clicking and snapping and the door opened. Kira poked her head out, eyes wide and pupils the size of a grain of sand as she looked at the three of us.

“Ah, Kira? We just need to get this pegasus another weapon. We won’t be long.” Hopefully the promise of not taking too long would get rid of some of her social discomfort. Her eyes returned to a more normal size as she opened the door wide enough for us to enter, biting her lower lip in any remaining anxiety.

The three of us stepped in, Myst sitting down next to the door like last time, as Skyfire looked around in both a cautious and curious manner. Her eyes spotted the weapons on the table, and trotted over to it. I approached Kira as she began basically crawling back to the counter. I guess that when someone’s nervous around one person, uncomfortable around two, they’re crawling on the floor at three. I wonder what was at four?

“Uh, Kira? I’d like to speak with you a moment.” I said as I intercepted her at the counter. She was keeping a low profile, leaning against the table and pressing her head as low as possible.

“Yes?” she asked quickly and softly, and almost as quietly as a whisper. Seriously, how did these people even buy from this mare?

“Ah, yeeaah. Well, remember that reward you offered? The 150 caps and the weapon?” Her pupils shrunk again, but this time to a less ludicrously small size. About the size of a pea.

“Is it too little?” She asked shakily, and I almost didn’t hear her. She glanced at Skyfire, who was comparing the weight of an assault rifle to a sub-machinegun.

“What? No, no, no! It’s fine. But, ah, here’s the thing; those rifles of hers don’t exactly have a lot of ammo, so she needs another gun and some bullets. You can cancel my reward, just give her a weapon and some ammo. That’s all I’m asking.” She looked off to the side in thought, tapping her hooves against the table.

“Okay, but I can only give a few types. Hopefully the type she wants is one of them.” She said after about a minute. Skyfire finally approached, a sub-machinegun in her mouth. Kira let out a sigh of relief and gave me a little half smile; apparently Skyfire picking a weapon she could give on the first approach had saved her a lot of uncomfortable conversation. Skyfire placed the gun on the table, taking one last look at it before looking at Kira. The zebra, unbelievably, shrank even more than before. Was she made of rubber or something?

“Alright, so how much do I owe ya’?” Skyfire asked in a, thankfully, not mad and not overly-emotional tone.

“Uhhh… you… don’t owe me anything.” Kira said, and again I almost didn’t hear her. Unfortunately for her, Skyfire really didn’t hear it.

“Come again?”

“You… don’t owe me anything.” She said, a little louder this time.

“Wow, really? Awesome, thanks!” She patted the zebra on the back, and Kira jerked away at the touch. She just gave an extremely uncomfortable and sheepish smile as she walked, backwards, to a stack of boxes a little further behind the counter. She pulled out three SMG magazines and laid them out on the table. Skyfire looked at them skeptically for a moment, grabbing a magazine and trying to load it into the gun.

‘She doesn’t know how to use surface guns? Well, I guess where she comes from they don’t have these sorts of weapons.’ I concluded in my head.

As she fumbled around with the weapons for a few more moments, she finally gave up and turned back to Kira, making the zebra cringe just a little more.

"Um, could anyone teach me how to use this thing?" She asked as she dropped the gun on the table in frustration. "I mean, where are the heat sinks? The projectile production chamber? The heat absorbing synthetic lining inside the barrel?" For a moment, we all just stared at her, before Myst finally went up to the counter.

"Here, let me show you." She proceeded to explain just how surface guns work. Whenever Skyfire would bring anything such as a 'liquid cooling system' or a 'hydrogen intake valve' Myst would just shush her and continue to explain and demonstrate how the gun worked.

Finally, after several minutes of trial and error, Skyfire finally got the magazine in and cocked the gun. When she wanted to test fire it, Myst told her to do it later. A thought seemed to occur to her as she turned back to Kira, who looked so uncomfortable at our prolonged stay that she would have hid under the table if there was space.

"So, how come I don't owe you anything?" She asked, leaning over the counter to spot the zebra mare leaning against the table.

"H-he called in a favor with me. I was supposed to give him a reward, but he decided to ask me for a weapon I could give you." She responded tentatively, getting a skeptical look from Skyfire as she turned to me.

"Really? And just why would you do that?" She asked, giving me a calculating look. Wow, I thought people were supposed to be grateful when you do something for them.

'Just remember she can be a prick.' thought Tod.

'You know, you never fail to tell me stuff I don't already know.'

Focusing my attention back to her, I answered in as sensible and even tone as her calculating and scrutinizing look allowed, "Because I need your help on this mission, and plasma rifles without ammo are about as useless as a sword without a blade."

"Yeah, point taken. But won't you need another weapon in case that thing runs out?" She pointed at Tankbuster, the scrutinizing look still on her face.

"Well, yes. But I figured I don't really need the extra weight. My stuff is heavy enough as it is." I lied. Of course I would need the extra gun in case my shotgun ran out, even if it did add more weight. But I really didn't want to get into a conversation about my equipment unless I really had to.

For a long moment she just looked at me, as if trying to evaluate my intentions for doing this for her. Seriously, it was just a simple favor. Were all... eh, 'Enclave' pegasi this uptight?

"Alright, then. Thanks, I guess. Well, now that that's done, let's go get those Legion assholes!" I rolled my eyes at her. I hoped she could display a little more combat discipline when we actually faced them. Hadn't this mare received military training? Because I wasn't seeing any discipline whatsoever. How the hell did she even become sergeant in that squad?

"Very well. Myst, you know the way, right? Could you lead us there?" She nodded and started trotting out the door, and we followed; first Skyfire, then me. I wouldn't want her trying anything stupid behind my back.

'Not to mention it provides a great view, right?' Oh, there we go. Tod just never ceases to screw around with me.

'Yeah, yeah. What, can't I get a break around here? Besides, I don't really need anything right now...' My stomach growled. Oh, yes. I almost forgot how much I was starving, and this morning's drama had distracted me. I peeked into my saddlebags, and I found that the town had, in fact, NOT looted my belongings. I dug out an apple and ate the whole thing in one bite, drawing me a strange look from Kira. "What? I haven't eaten in almost two days." I said as I stepped out, hurrying to catch up with the other two.

Because I had this... particularly pleasing viewpoint of Skyfire, I decided to check out her cutie mark. It was an odd cutie mark; It consisted of a metal sword pointing down in between two wings, each flaming with a brilliant orange-yellow fire. Odd as it was, at least she probably knew what they meant. I spared a look at my flanks, looking at the chain concealing my golden wreaths and the zebra Roaman numeral. I still wasn't quite sure what that meant, and I wondered if I would ever find out.

As we made for the town's exit, whatever citizens and guards spotted us had the courtesy to wish us luck. Thankfully, they seemed to be receiving Skyfire's presence with feelings ranging from neutral to curious. Although, quite a few were giving her suspicious looks.

As we reached the exit, the guards opened up the fence gates to let us through. The gate opened to reveal a long, wide road leading off to the east, and I could make out the outline of a large building through all the dust and rubble. Old and rusted vehicles dotted the landscape, while rubble from the buildings nearby covered up several side roads that lead further into the city.

As we stepped out, the zebra mare guard warned us to be careful, "Watch out, you three. Lots of activity going on down this road. Lots of it Legion or raider, but there's been the occasional beast. And don't be surprised if you hear fighting, it's either the Legion against any other faction, raiders against raiders, bandits, scavengers, or maybe even the Specters."

"Wait, who? " I asked. From the look on her face, Skyfire wanted to know as well.

"The Specters. Mercenary company slash militant group based out of Canterium, a city somewhere to the west. Really though, they're more of assassins than a conventional merc group. From what I know, they consist of independent sub-groups that operate under whoever is in charge of that particular cell. This has actually lead to instances where they were supposed to fight each other, but some code of conduct of theirs prevents them from fighting one another. They don't really engage in firefights like the Legion does, so they excel at taking out targets quietly. Several of the groups were even hired to assassinate the Legate, which is why the Legion is hostile to all Specters that aren't directly working for them. Next to the Legion, I'd watch out for them the most."

Great. So, dictatorial and brutal governing power in Roam was the Legion. Then the scavengers and bandits and raiders are all over the place. Then there's some weird assassin merc group that is or isn't my enemy. And then there were Redeye's slavers. And I'd probably find more factions the deeper I go into the city.

I sighed as I looked at the guard, and I put on a thankful smile. "Thanks. Anything else we should know before we go? I'd hate to come across surprises."

The guard thought for a moment, tapping her hoof against her chin, before coming up with her conclusion.

"Nope, sorry. The wasteland is a wild place, so anything can happen. Just be on your guard. That's the best piece of advice I can give you. Oh, wait. One last thing: don't go near the mountains. The Legion doesn't tell us anything, but word is that they're extremely dangerous these days. Aside from all these, though, there's really nothing more I can tell you."

"Well, then I guess we'd better be going. The sooner those bandits are gone, the better." The guard and I nodded at each other and I turned back to the other two. "Well, let's go."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

As we trotted around the ring of buildings that surrounded the bandit base, I had decided to try and break the uncomfortable silence that had ensued. Because when you've got a shy mare who doesn't talk much, another mare that just lost everything and only talks about revenge, and a stallion who apparently has nothing better to do with his life but trot around trying to do shit that matters, then you've got a recipe for classic, unadulterated silence.

"Sooo, Myst. Could you tell me why we didn't just start off at your outpost and instead have to go around a huge ring of buildings?" I asked. It wasn't the biggest question in my head, but it seemed appropriate as a conversation starter.

"Oh, yes. Well, there's a lot of rubble blocking the road that leads to the base from my outpost. You could fly over it, but then we'd get left behind."

"Oh, right. But what about the buildings themselves? Can't we just break open a back door and come out the front door or something?"

She shook her head, and her response surprised me. "They would have if I didn't blow up the insides of the buildings. The only way for non-pegasi to get to Road Town from the east is this road, unless they dig under the buildings."

"Wait, you... blew them up?" I asked in disbelief. Who knew Myst, a shy and quiet mare, knew how to use explosives? Weren't the loud, bombastic, cocky people supposed to know explosives? That's what my Stable's comic books said, at least.

She gave a tiny smile of pride, the first I've ever seen on her face, and nodded. "Oh yes. If you place the explosive charge in the right place, a single one can bring a whole structure down. The only explosives I don't really use are grenades. They scare me. Once you pull the pin, you have no more control over it except where to throw. But what if you drop it?" She shivered and sighed.

"Had bad experience with explosives?" I asked, wanting to know more. This was the most I'd gotten Myst talk, and I wasn't going to let her stop now. She shivered again, but looked back at me.

"Not really, but I've seen accidents with grenades. They were... so... so gruesome. I don't really want to talk about it." Ah well, nothing lasts forever.

Next, I turned to Skyfire. I had quite a lot of questions for her, and I just HAD to try to get her mind off killing the Legate. I'll admit, I wanted to deal with him, too. However, she was starting to get a little overboard. Whenever I heard her voice, it would be muttering something about how 'she was going to shove a pipe down his throat and pour acid down the tube.'

"So, Skyfire, mind filling me in? Where'd you come from?" My question knocked her out of another 'killing-the-Legate-thinking-spree' and she looked at me like I was crazy.

"What do you mean 'where am I from'? Don't you know? I understand Dashites hate the Enclave, but I think even they should remember where they came from."

"Ugh, look. I'll say this one more time: I am not a Dashite. I don't even know what that is. So could you just fill me in?" She didn't answer my question, instead asking me to do something else.

"Really? Show me your cutie mark." She said simply. I froze in my steps, and Myst walked forward a little more before she noticed we had stopped. When she did, she just sat down on the sidewalk a little further from us, then took a look at the building behind her.

"Excuuuse me? What does my cutie mark have to do with this?" I asked, slightly surprised and mildly annoyed. I was supposed to be looking at mare's flanks, not the other way around!

She just looked at me with a flat look, and said again, calmly, "You said you aren't a Dashite. Well, your cutie mark will prove whether you are or aren't."

Of course it did. Because my cutie mark, whose meaning I didn't even know, obviously tells whether I am a 'Dashite' or not. Still, if I could prove that I wasn't, maybe she'd stop calling me that. It was starting to get annoying.

With a grunt, I reached over at the chain and leather covering my flanks and drew them back, revealing my cutie mark. At the sight of it, Skyfire's calm and slightly smug smile disappeared, replaced by a look of utter confusion and surprise.

"W-what? But... but... how? How could you be a pegasus, but not a Dashite?" She looked at me with large, curious eyes. "The chances of you being a surface pegasus were too slim. Tell me, were your parents pegasi?" She asked, not believing that I wasn't a 'Dashite', whatever that was. I didn't really feel comfortable talking about my parents. They had died in a sub-basement fire, all those years ago... But the sooner I got this over with, the better.

"Well, my Dad's dad was. And my Mom's great grandfather, too. There are a fair number of pegasi where I come from, so I guess the original inhabitants consisted of some pegasi." She was still confused, muttering and mumbling things I couldn't understand. After a while, she asked me a few more questions, all in the theme of finding out just how I wasn't a Dashite.

"So, you don't know of the Enclave? Of anything? Do you even know about pre-war and post-war pegasi politics? And where in Celestia's name did you come from?" She asked the last question like the only place pegasi should come from was the 'Enclave'.

"No, I don't know anything about the Enclave. I don't know what's happening in Equestria. And I only know what my history books told me: that there was a war between the zebras and the ponies, the ponies had some ministries to lead the war effort while the zebras had a legate council, and how the war started. And how it ended, of course. And as for the last question, I came from a Stable."

Myst came out of the building, stuffing some caps in her jacket's pocket and chewing on some Sweet Tooth Biscuits with such relish that she seemed like the most satisfied mare in the world. (If they were that good, I should have been eating them first instead of my remaining apples.)

"A STABLE?" Skyfire asked with yet another wave of shocked disbelief. "That's impossible. Stable-tec never made any stables for the zebras. If they did, they would have been brought down for treason! What's more likely is that your Stable was some sort of zebra knock-off."

"Well, it seemed pretty legit to me. And if you don't mind, I have a few questions that I'd really like answers for. Who exactly is the Enclave and what the hell is a Dashite?" She sighed and looked at me with an expression of mixed feelings, but answered.

"Okay, look. The Grand Pegasus Enclave is basically the pegasi government above the clouds. They're basically the pre-war pegasi, as the bombs only struck one pegasus city: Cloudsdayle. When that place was hit, we sealed up the sky. Generated enough clouds to keep the radiation on the surface and out of the skies. Since then, we've clung on to our lives up there; growing crops on the clouds and using raptors and thunderheads for surface operations. And as for Dashites, well, do you know Rainbow Dash?"

Myst had started out not caring about the conversation, but perked up at 'pegasi government above the clouds'. She looked at me with wide eyes, a small smile, and an 'I told you so' etched on her face.

'Well, I guess it wasn't so much fantasy after all, then.' I turned my attention back to the topic.

"I think so. She was one of those Ministry Mares, right? Of... what was it... Ministry of Awesome, I think."

"Correct. Now, thing is, several years after the surface got blown to hell, she demanded the pegasus council return to the surface to help. Said it was our responsibility to help out our surface bound brothers and sisters."

"Well, did they? That sounds like a good idea. Is that what's happening in Equestria right now?" I asked, intrigued at this new information. A pegasus civilization above the clouds? Damn. But was them sealing the sky the reason why Equestria looked so... forlorn? Concealed by mist and marked by dark grey, threatening, always present clouds; that sounded like a pretty gloomy existence.

She shook her head, and spoke again. "Unfortunately, no. The pegasus coucil wasn't willing to risk it. Said they lacked the resources and that opening the sky would let in diseases and radiation and who knows what else from the surface. So, in rage, Rainbow Dash called her people cowards and flew down to the surface, but she was never seen again. The council took it pretty personally, and thus any pegasus that leaves the Enclave for the surface with similar ideologies gets called a 'Dashite', a traitor. There have been plenty of Dashites since she left. One in particular, a former captain named Deadshot Calamity, has even been recently found in a small shack near a town. We've been keeping tabs on him, but he hasn't tried anything. Yet."

Well, that was depressing. So, a pegasus civilization that refused to help out us poor non-Enclave ponies. Add that to the list of factions that I needed to beat some sense into.

“Sounds a little harsh. I mean, doesn’t the Enclave have a place for pegasi who want to help?” Myst asked, in a non-shy and non-anxious tone, as she approached us from where she had finished her biscuits. I guess she loved those biscuits so much they banished her anxiety.

She took one look at us staring at her, and quickly amended. “If you don’t mind me asking, I mean.” She started to look uncomfortable again, but then she lightened up a bit as she started to dig through her saddlebags. Most likely to get more biscuits.

“Well, yeah. It’s called the Volunteer Corps. Started by those prancy, spoiled pegasi over at Thunderhead. Although, I think the only good they’ve achieved is getting berries.” I gave her a bewildered look, and she replied in a defensive manner. “Hey, you have no idea how good those things are. The Enclave has had to label them a controlled substance and limited purchase to prevent riots for the stuff. I myself have never tasted one, but I heard they were damned good.” Okay, so super-powerful pegasi civilization preventing riots over berries. Sounds… intimidating.

Still, that had sated my curiosity for now. I still had questions for her, but I decided to just ask her those later. Maybe when I could say ‘her squad’ without the shit hitting the fan.

“Alright. Well, we really should get going. Myst, how long do you think it’ll be until we get there? This road is a lot longer than it looked back from Via Oppidum.”

“Well, it should be at least another hour, three at most. It depends on if we get distracted along the way.” Well, at least that would give me some time to think. Or maybe talk with the others a bit.

“Via Oppidum?” Skyfire asked.

“It’s zebra tongue for ‘Road Town’. My Stable had classes, so I know at least some of the language.” That seemed to satisfy her enough, and we continued walking along the road.

After several more minutes, I once again found the silence a little unnerving. Luckily, I had, in fact, managed to think of important things. Like more conversation starters.

“So, Myst, I just have to ask; how and why do you hold your rifle like that?” She looked back at me, a confused look on her face.

“Like what?”

“You know, when you stand up on your hindlegs and hold the rifle with your forehooves. It’s… strange.”

“Oh, yes. I learned it from some friendly zebras, mostly some of the town guards. It was tiring at first, but I found it has advantages. Of course, it has disadvantages too, so I don’t use it all the time.”

Skyfire interjected with a snort. “Oh yeah, the zebra style of holding their firearms. I don’t really know how the zebras managed to do that during the war, but the Enclave’s biological analysis has rendered it inefficient.” She looked away for a moment, before turning back to us. Slowly and cautiously, almost as much as Myst, she asked a question that I hadn’t quite prepared for.

“Soooo, what does your cutie mark mean?” She pointed a hoof at me, a curious look on her face.

“Actually, I don’t know. I spent at least some time every day thinking about that. I never could find the answer.” I admitted. Out of all the things for me to not know with my Stable’s well developed educational system, it just had to be my cutie mark. A pony who doesn’t even know what their cutie mark was, how lame was that?

“Well, how’d you get it?” She actually looked interested in the matter. Maybe it was some kind of coping mechanism or something. Still, I was a little uncomfortable at the sudden change of subject. But this was the most discussion I had about myself here on the surface (excluding the DJ’s words about me), and a subconscious part of me wanted a little attention.

“I got it during one of my class plays, during history class. My role was a praetorian, some position a Roaman soldier held, apparently. They were supposedly the elite guards of Roam. Kind of coincidental that I’m wearing a metal remake of the cardboard version I wore all those years ago…” I paused. Wow, was I actually talking about my personal life with these ponies? I barely even knew them! But, it was a little too late to turn back now, so I just continued, “ Anyway, when my part came up during the play to defend Roam from some barbarians, all of my classmates just watched with their mouths hung wide. Even those role playing as barbarians stopped. I was so confused until my teacher showed me a mirror. And there it was, obscured slightly by the rope I had used to replicate the chain: the Roaman numeral ‘III’ in between two gold wreaths. It was the happiest day of my life for the next few days." I thought back at it and couldn't help but smile. "I remember my cutie mark celebration party! The crazy shit we did… I almost got in trouble. Luckily, the overmare back then was pretty relaxed, so she let it slide.”

Apparently, Myst was a very good listener and could pick up on details quickly. Her next question caught me even more off guard than the one Skyfire had asked.

“It ‘was’ the happiest moment of your life for a few days? What happened?”

‘Oh great, THIS question.’

“Look Myst, I… I don’t really want to talk about. Let’s just say I lost some important people just a few days after.” Maybe I gave a little too much there…

“Who?” She prodded.

‘Oh yes, definitely too much.’ I sighed. Was I really going to talk about this? The only other person I had ever talked to about this was Lighthouse… and… and…

‘Oh boy, here we go.’ Thought Tod. I didn’t really care enough about him right now as I just fell down on my hindlegs, trying to muffle my sobs as I turned away from them.

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I…I … oh, what do I do?” She started panicking as she turned to Skyfire in desperation. “What do I do?” Skyfire answered, almost like she knew how it hurt. She probably did, considering she had lost a lot in just two days.

“We let him get through it. He isn’t going to get over it until he can put it all behind him.” She responded evenly, much to Myst’s dismay. She approached me and fumbled and mumbled and choked on her own words as she tried to comfort me. She even dug through her saddlebags and held out a wrapper of biscuits as she put on the most forced smile I’ve seen on her yet to try to make me feel better. I felt a little better at that. It was a good gesture, and the adorableness and simplicity of it actually made it a little more effective. I gave a little smile as I wiped the tears away and got up. I declined her offer of the biscuits; I had some of my own in my saddlebags.

“I’m so sorry, I- I don’t know what say. I just wanted to, umm…” she started to stammer again, but I stopped her.

“It’s okay Myst. I’ll get over it, eventually. It’s just that I lost someone recently…” Oh great, not again!

Thankfully, Myst didn’t ask this time. I looked at Skyfire. She was giving me strange looks; the nature of which I couldn’t determine. I sighed, and I tried to think of something to change the subject. Luckily, Myst seemed to want to do the same as she asked the question I was about to.

“So, eh, Skyfire… what does your cutie mark mean?” She asked, and the Pegasus mare actually smiled. Not a smug smile, an actual, legitimate, ‘I’m glad you asked’ smile.

“Oh, you mean this?” She showed them off to the both of us, a familiar over-confident smile forming on her face, and turned to her side and lifted her wings proudly, even if it did make a few sickening cracking noises. I had to admit, her cocky confidence was speeding the process of making me feel better quite nicely.

“I got this when I proved myself to be the best overall flyer in grade-school. Flight instructors were so damned impressed they said I was ‘almost like an adult pegasus’. That’s what the wings mean, at least. I don’t really know what the sword means, though.” She looked specifically at the sword in the middle, that same scrutinizing look on her face.

“So, what do you think my cutie mark means?” I said out of nowhere. She seemed a little surprised at the sudden inquiry, but she just shook her head.

“Sorry, unless it means you’re good at defending these… ruins, which I don’t really see much point in, I don’t really know what it could mean.” Oh well, at least she gave me something to think about.

We continued trotting down the road again, and that’s when I heard my Pipbuck give a little static noise, and I saw the notification on the side of the screen.

‘DJPON3 found’ What, had the DJ decided to reactivate the signal down here, or had I stumbled across a place where the signal managed to reach? My Pipbuck also gave a little cash register sound, and I saw ‘Hill District Suburbs found’ on the other corner.

Hill district? This place wasn’t built on hills. At least, I couldn’t feel us going up or down. I took a look around me at the ruined and scorched buildings. Nope, the ground was mostly flat. So why would they call it the ‘Hill District’? Putting those aside, I tapped the signal.

“… which is why you should never, EVER, try to outrun a Hellhound. It’s better to just look for a high point and climb up; it offers a better chance of survival."

"Now, it’s time for the news!"

"Alright children, it turns out that the Stable Dweller is, get this, still alive! I don’t know how, but she survived the train falling off the side of the mountain. Don’t ask me, I don’t know how. My latest reports say she’s making her way to lovely Manehattan."

"Unfortunately, I’ve got nothing yet on Security over at the Hoof. My latest report on her said she was somewhere near Megamart, but I don’t really know where. Let’s hope that place hasn’t gotten her already."

"The numerous other heroes and heroines popping up seem to be doing well enough, but it looks like some assholes are giving them a hard time. C’mon now, give ‘em a break! They’re working to help you guys out, and some of you still have the audacity to take shots at them? That’s just sad. Very, very sad. Please, people, try to receive our fellow brothers and sisters with a little more love, it ain’t that hard!

"Now, for you listeners all the way down south, in Roam, Canterium, and the other northern coast cities. Remember that knight in shining armor, and again I mean that literally, that appeared out of nowhere less than a week ago? Well, I am glad to say that stallion is still alive! My reports say he made it to Road Town, which is where Roam’s Praetorian faced off with the Legion."

"Seriously, Legion, what the buck? You attack a town just because you want to 'finish off the survivors?' I’ve been getting a lot of reports recently about you guys, and a ridiculous percentage of that is negative. I mean, raiding towns? Demolishing bridges people use to get around? Dumping chemicals in the river? I thought you were supposed to be rebuilding that place! And now I’m hearing that the mountains are ‘raining fire’ just a few months after I first heard of you guys. That you’re doing too? Let’s hope not, or else Praetorian’s gonna’ be all over your sorry flanks."

"And you might be wondering 'Survivors? Who are they?' Well, children, it turns out the grand and mighty Enclave is all the way down in Roam. For what reason, I don't know. But it can't be good, whatever it is. But apparently, the Legion decided to antagonize them when they shot down a scouting party, the one which landed in the town Praetorian was in. Let's just hope things calm down over there, Equestria alone is already in deep shit."

"Well, children, that’s all I’ve got for you. Oh, and one last word of advice for you listeners down south: the roads to Canterium from Roam has been especially quiet lately. I probably wouldn’t go down that road just to find out."

That’s it children. Stay safe out there.”

The signal died again. Apparently, the DJ disabled the signal down here and reactivated it from time to time. Maybe it saved power on his broadcaster?

Well, it was good to know that things over at Equestria weren't that bad. At least they had a whole army of heroes over there. But I was all alone all the way down here.

"I heard of that guy. He's been doing good so far. I don't really agree with him; what's worth saving over here anyway? It's not like this place has got anything valuable. Still, I got some respect for him." Skyfire said as she tried extending one of her broken wings. She let out a grunt of pain as she slowly relaxed the wing.

"Uhh... Skyfire?" Myst whispered, just loud enough to get the pegasus' attention. She turned away from her wing to face Myst.

"Yeah?" Oh, wow. Oblivious much? I'm right here!

"He's... um..." she said as she pointed a hoof at me, trotting along beside Skyfire. Skyfire looked at me skeptically, looking me up and down.

"Yeah? What about him?" Seriously? Maybe the crash had damaged her brain or something.

She stopped short while we continued for a few more moments. Her eyes were wide; the type when you get a revelation.

"Wait... pegasus, crimson, stallion... weird outfit..." Hey, it may be unconventional, but that metal armor happened to save my life... uh, never? Why was I still wearing this? It was pretty heavy. Maybe because people recognized me while I was in it? But, if Skyfire was any indication, they would probably look at me for hours before they realized who I was.

Skyfire finally blurted out the long awaited revelation. "You're him! I can't believe I didn't recognize you. Ugh, maybe the crash broke my brain." Exactly what I was thinking, Skyfire. Which is why you should have stayed at the town. "Look, I got respect for you. You go around saving people, that's great. I just don't really see what's worth saving down here. Everyone down here is going to die sooner or later, anyway." She tried to amend, but I wasn't going to have it.

"There are people here, Skyfire. They may not all be ponies, but they deserve to live. Just like you, like Myst, like everyone else in that town. Maybe the Enclave values pegasi above others, but I think everyone deserves to live, at least unless they do something that takes away that right. It's the right thing to do, whatever you think." That got me a look from Skyfire and Myst. Skyfire had a slightly disapproving but respectful look, while Myst gave a smile from behind her hood.

"Well, that's what you think. Personally, I'd just leave this place. I don't really care for some energy spike down here; probably just a ridiculous lightning storm or something. Lots of un-deployed megaspells were down here when Equestria retaliated, who knows what it could have done to the atmosphere?" Skyfire replied. Which brought me to another question...

"So why were you sent here, anyway? The Enclave doesn't have the resources to help out a local population but they have resources to send you hundreds of miles south? That requires a few answers." And an energy spike? What could that mean?

"Okay, look; a few years after Rainbow Dash left, the Enclave decided to monitor the surface for any potential threats, and so we could tell if it was actually safe to go down here. So, for several decades we've been watching Roam. Nothing fancy, just a few cameras and an energy detector. None of us really believed that a city hundreds of miles down could pose a threat, but we decided to monitor this place anyway.

"However, a few weeks back, a massive energy spike surged through the mountain ranges. It was gigantic: enough energy to power pre-war Manehattan for almost a millennia. It reached over 80 miles in length, and all in the mountains bordering these lands from the ocean. And then we've been getting smaller spikes all across the mountains, and then the local populace started talking about 'fire erupting from the mountains' or some shit. The Enclave council spent quite a lot of time deciding what to do, and eventually they sent us here.

"Unfortunately, if we don't report back, the Enclave is going to assume this place is a threat and either leave it, or neutralize it. Which is why, when my wings get better, I've got to tell them what I saw here. It could be the difference between an invasion or them just leaving the place altogether." Well, I definitely didn't want to find out what a pegasi civilization with sky tanks and plasma weapons were capable of.

'Remember: they're trying to stop riots over berries.' Thought Tod. Well, when he put it that way...

Myst was completely avoiding conversation now, looking for things to distract her from our talking. She spotted another building further down the road, and started trotting over to it.

"Myst? What are you doing?" I asked, wondering if she thought there were more biscuits in there. She looked at us, and started whispering.

"This road is dangerous, and any buildings that are open likely have... inhabitants. It's probably safer to clear them out than walk past and get shot in the back." Okay, that made sense. Before she entered she dug out a small, gray slab with a single flickering light from her saddlebags and laid it next to some bricks near the door. Immediately, the slab became clear as glass; blending in with the environment. "It's a zebra explosive. Meant for people, but can do significant damage to unarmored vehicles." Myst whispered as she began pushing the door open slowly.

Skyfire whistled. "That's some impressive stuff. Maybe the Enclave could find some potential in this place after all." Oh sure, give the invisible explosives to the pegasi with tanks and plasma weaponry. As if they weren't overpowered enough. Still, weren't we supposed to be AVOIDING danger instead of looking for it?

"Are you sure?" I asked in concern. What if there were occupants, and they were prepared? Would I let her take that risk?

'Remember, she's been out here longer than you. And she can take care of herself.' Thought not-Tod. I really should think of a name for this guy...

"Oh yes. I do this a lot. Plus, bandits and raiders also tend to have firearms, so maybe we can find something better than your pistol." True. My pistol was a 10mm model; had lots of ammo but sucked at power.

Myst slowly crept in through the open doorway, and gestured for us to stay outside. As she moved quietly upstairs and disappeared from view around a corner, Skyfire took cover behind a nearby car. We waited for about a minute, when we heard an explosion shake the building behind us.

'You have an E.F.S, use it!' Screamed my non-Tod mentality.

I looked at the screen of my Pipbuck and there they were: five red bars in total, two in the building behind us and three in the another building in front of us. There was the sound of more explosions behind us, but one of the red bars disappeared while Myst's blue bar remained.

The door of the building in front of us was kicked open, and two raiders came out; one with an automatic rifle and the other with a submachine gun. The third was nowhere to be seen.

"Get them! Madran wants this guy's head on a fucking plate!" Yelled a zebra mare as she fired her sub-machinegun wildly in our general direction. Skyfire popped out of her cover and fired a single bolt from Mercedes, and the zebra was near-instantly turned to a green, glowing goo.

However, the other, a zebra stallion, had the sense to dive for cover of a low brick wall. Skyfire had tried hitting him with a few fast shots from Sally, but the stallion had already gotten in cover. Two more explosions shook the building Myst was in, and both her blue bar and the red bar flew in directions opposite of each other.

I glided right next to the wall the stallion was taking cover behind. His red bar indicated he was literally less than a foot from me. I readied Tankbuster, but turned to Skyfire. "Skyfire! Make sure Myst is okay! I got this one." The building she was in was quiet now, and both of their bars were moving; Myst's slower than the other.

Skyfire nodded and jumped to the door as the zebra poked out his rifle and fired after her just as she reached the doorway. I took the opportunity to grab his rifle and pull him over the wall, and fired Tankbuster against his head. He was surprisingly heavy; maybe he had a large supply of biscuits.

But this guy was fast, and he even managed to dodge the shot just as I fired. The concrete next to his head was blasted apart as he rolled away, and to my amazement he started glowing a soft, electronic blue. His coat started peeling away in large flakes that disappeared in the air around him as his hide became a metallic gray.

"Oh, what the-" I started to say, before the Legion juggernaut sent a buck against my chest that bent my armor’s metal torso plates as I flew several feet. The kick slammed me against one of the cars, and I heard a sickening crack as my wing was crushed from the force of the impact. Pain erupted from my broken wing as tried to get up, while the Legionnaire approached me slowly.

This guy wasn't a Legion heavy trooper in that he wasn't just wearing metal armor; he was wearing POWER armor. I had only seen a few articles on the stuff in the magazines back in the Stable, but apparently the Equestrians had made power armor in response to zebra advancements, and the zebras then developed their own power armor.

It had an armored faceplate with a gas mask, and the armor itself consisted of large, segmented steel plates that clung together on the same under-mesh. The mesh glowed a faint red, almost a crimson, as bright red wires snaked from the back of the helmet to the limbs of the armor.

As he approached, another juggernaut appeared in a blue glow as his stealth software deactivated, his red bar only now appearing on my E.F.S. Thankfully, the red bar Myst and Skyfire were facing winked out, and both of their bars then started moving through the building to get to me. Myst's bar stopped at a window on the second floor as she poked out her rifle's muzzle and pointed it at a juggernaut. Skyfire emerged from the doorway and tried to fire when a sound, similar to Myst's rifle, sounded over the road and a bullet struck the doorway behind her and she dove for cover. It was probably the remaining red bar in the other building. Myst shifted from the Legionnaires to the building, but didn't shoot.

One of the Legionnaires turned to face the other. The volume on the helmet's vocal enhancers was just a little too loud, and the voice itself was deep, booming, and slightly evil-sounding. "TAKE CARE OF THE OTHER TWO. NEUTRALIZE THE SNIPER AND THE PEGASUS, BUT KEEP THEM ALIVE IF POSSIBLE." He said to the other, who then immediately galloped with surprising speed, hooves cracking the road, as he ran after Skyfire.

At the sight of the doorway, however, he started to try to slow down. Unfortunately for him, his momentum was causing him to skid on the road as he tried to stop. The explosion from the camouflaged explosive sent him flying several feet, and Skyfire took the opportunity to jump back out and start firing her rifles.

The other juggernaut had reached me already, but he looked away from me at the commotion near the building. He shifted his body to face the building and a light machinegun popped out from his armor and he started firing. However, he only got a few shots off, none of which hit Skyfire, before Myst fired a round into his helmet. The metal formed a huge, sharp dent around where his forehead would have been, and his black visor cracked. He started thrashing around as he reached a hoof onto his head. He wasn't dead, but I could imagine how painful having a dent like that pressing against your head was.

But this was my chance, and despite being severely outmatched in weight, I charged him with all the strength I could muster. As I slammed against him, the only thing I really managed to do was knock both of us down to the ground. I crawled to him as I drew my blade, intent on stabbing it into his open visor. However, the sniper from earlier decided to take the chance to fire off a shot that punched a hole clean through my left shoulder and out my back. Just after that, Myst's rifle sounded as well. The red bar in the building winked away.

That just left the three of us and the two juggernauts. Sally was melting the other one's armor onto the ground as he tried but failed to evade the rapid firing plasma bolts. The one I had tackled was beginning to get up as well, a faint glow around the dent on his helmet as it slowly reshaped itself. I wasn't going to let that happen, so I drew Tankbuster and fired shell after shell against his helmet and chest plate. At last, the juggernaut's head exploded as Tankbuster's shells tore his helmet into dozens of pieces. His head turned to strawberry jam as his brains were sent out the other side of his helmet and he fell to the floor with a myriad of strange noises coming from his head, ranging from oozing noises to little squirty noises.

"Ugh. Piece of shit." I grunted as my left foreleg collapsed from under me, bleeding heavily from the wound. The other juggernaut was pretty much a part of the road now as the only thing that remained distinguishable from his armor was the only partially-melted helmet. Skyfire breathed heavily as she watched him try to get up, only to be brought down by the weight of the melted metal as it started hardening again, fusing with the road.

Myst came down from the second floor, a few bleeding scratches on her coat. There was nothing substantial I could see, except perhaps ripped off skin on her hindlegs. Still, a healing potion or two later and she'd be fine. I just hoped our supply of healing potions wouldn't run out before we got to the base.

But that wasn't what concerned me most right now...

"You fucking piece of shit!" Yelled Skyfire at the stuck Legionnaire. She began picking up random objects and threw them at the barely visible helmet of the juggernaut. He grunted as she threw a large piece of cement at him, heavily denting his helmet inwards. The melted metal moved and rose where he was trying to get his limbs up, but he couldn't force his limbs through the already hardening metal.

"Skyfire, what the hell are you doing? He's neutralized, so just quit that the fuck out." I said as I continued trying to get up, but my shoulder gave off a sharp pain every time I tried. I couldn't reach over to my saddle bags to lift out a healing potion, and Myst just watched her blankly as Skyfire picked up a pistol and started shooting the bullets uselessly against his helmet. Still, I could tell it hurt because of the numerous grunts he gave off. Probably not just from the bullets; surely the melted metal was burning his flesh beneath through any openings in the under-mesh.

Once the pistol was out, she turned to face me; a crazed and angry look on her face. "Are you fucking crazy?! He's with the Legion! I'm going to blow this guy's head open and use his eyeballs for fucking target practice!" She looked around, searching for something as I tried once more to get up. Her searching eyes stopped on Tankbuster, and she trotted over to me.

"What are you doing?" I asked as she picked up the shotgun and looked at it curiously, the crazed look still in her eyes.

"Stratofighter had part of her head blasted away by an exploding oxygen tank..." Oh no, I knew where this was going.

"Skyfire, don't do this. This isn't justice. This is... this is murder! Come back here!" I yelled after her as she turned back to the Legionnaire, who offered no more resistance as the metal hardened completely. Myst's blank expression started to shift to one of horror as Skyfire climbed up onto the small mound the melted metal had made.

"Yeah? Are you suggesting I let this guy live? He doesn't deserve to live! He's a fucking murderer and he should be put down before he does anything else." She snapped back at me as I finally got onto my legs long enough to open my saddlebags.

'Where the hell is that healing potion?!' I yelled mentally as I fumbled through my belongings. I was NOT going to let Skyfire kill this zebra simply because she had a lust for vengeance, even if he did try to kill me.

"And this piece of shit nearly killed me and Myst! He would have killed you, had he gotten the chance. He would have blasted all our heads off without a second thought, so he doesn't deserve one either. And I'm going to make sure he doesn't do anything anymore." She placed the barrel against his head as he started struggling again, but his head was locked in place by the solid metal, just like the rest of his body. I managed to grab a healing potion just as I fell back down. Luckily, I managed to open the vial while lying down and started drinking the healing fluid.

"Skyfire, don't pull that Godesses-damned trigger. This is NOT justice; this is you looking for vengeance." I said to her as my wounds began healing just enough that I could stand up. The wing would probably need time, though.

"This IS justice! Every last one of these bastards are the same filth! They’re no different from any raider or slaver, and have to put down!" She yelled back at me as her grip on the trigger tightened. I could almost see the zebra's wide eyes as he stared down the barrel of the shotgun. "My team deserves to be avenged. The whole Legion will pay. They'll never get to take more undeserving lives. Never again." She took in a deep breath. "And it starts with this one..."

"DON'T PULL THE FUCKING TRIGGER!" I screamed as I ran to intercept her.

'Don't let it happen! Don't let it happe-...'

'VUJ-JING!' 'VUJ-JING!'

I stopped short, watching as the metal casings fell from my gun's chamber and bounce on the ground. The Legionnaire's head was reduced to a red stain; yet another addition to the countless marks on the streets of Roam. Myst watched in horror as Skyfire simply got off the mound and looked at the body.

"Good fucking riddance." She spat at the corpse while I just stood there, frozen.

I had failed. Failed to stop an unnecessary death, failed to stop Skyfire from pursuing her dirty vengeance; to knock some sense into her. That death wasn't necessary; it should have been avoided. And anyone doing this had to have their mistake crammed down their throat so they won't do it again.

I approached Skyfire slowly, anger building up inside me. She looked at me, a filthy and malicious smile of satisfaction on her face. Myst's eyes followed me, both wide as she waited for my reaction. Skyfire even had the audacity to speak, no hint of regret in her voice whatsoever.

"Alright, now let's get the hell out of here before..."

"Silence!" I yelled as I smacked her across face, not caring that my hooves were plated with steel. I heard a small crack from her head as I punched her again. Good, she deserved every bit of pain she was going to get.

"Fuck y-" She started to say as she brought up her weapons. I punched her again, dislodging the mouth triggers for both rifles from her jaw in the process. As she staggered backwards, I whirled around and sent the hardest buck I could muster into her chest. I heard the cracking of bones as she flew back, and she smashed through a few rotten wooden planks and slammed against the wall behind them.

She lay there on her belly on the rubble, mouth bleeding, breathing erratic and one eye closed as she looked up at me looking down at her.

"You insolent, idiotic, delusional fool. Are you really proud of yourself? Killing an opponent that had no chance of defending himself. You make me sick." I stopped for a moment to let out a breath I didn't know I was holding, and continued, "Do you even know what justice is? It isn't about doing to another what was done to you. It isn't about making someone pay for what they did. It's about making someone learn from their mistake, and using that knowledge to do better. Everyone deserves a second chance, and only if they continue to make the same mistake again and again do we have to put them in their place. What good is your brand of justice in a world where people already kill and do wrong for mere fun? Justice is supposed to help, not add to the problems! I'm surprised that there still living people in the world!" She looked up at me with hard yet slightly glossy eyes.

"Following your type of justice, I should probably put you down right now for doing that." I said, looking down at her.

She finally spoke up again, voice rough as she took in a deep breath. "Are you saying that he deserved to live? That we shouldn't kill anyone so they can get the opportunity to 'do better'?" She asked, and I sighed.

"Unfortunately, killing is inevitable. We'll probably have to do it everyday for our whole lives. We'll be in situations where we are forced to kill; for our lives, for our friends lives, and maybe even less important things. But we don't always have to. In fact, the great abundance of death should be making us try to kill as little as possible, not the other way around. And no, that Legionnaire probably didn't deserve to live. He'd probably killed dozens before you blew his brains apart. But what if he had gotten another chance? Wouldn't it have been better if he had seen his mistakes and turned away? Wouldn't it be more great, more grand, if he did? A greater victory than simply stopping him in his tracks? Of course, he could have turned back to his old life; back to killing and murdering. He could have killed us the next day, if we ran across him again. But we couldn't have known for sure, and with his death goes any chance of redeeming himself, no matter how small." I sighed again as I dug out another potion, placed it on the ground, and extended a hoof to her.

"Get up." I told her, and she hooked her hoof around mine as I pulled her up. "Drink this." I handed her the healing potion. As she took it, I dug out another. I probably cracked her jaw and ribs in that little spectacle, but I still needed her for when we got to the base. Myst had finally gathered up enough courage to move again, moving to the bodies and looting them. I was glad Myst decided to take the time to scavenge the area, as in my current state I couldn't think of anything else aside from what had just happened.

When Skyfire had downed both potions and her breathing had returned to normal, she spoke again, this time without the malicious smile on her face. "You really mean all that? About the 'doing better' stuff and whatnot?" She asked, voice still rough.

"Of course I mean it. Everyone deserves a chance to do better, because no one can go through life without making mistakes. I've made mine, you've made yours. So what good is all that learning from your mistakes if we just kill all the time? It's a waste, and we should only kill if forced to." I responded, trotting over to where she had dropped Tankbuster. The gun was still in good condition, as opposed to the other guns around us, despite the use it saw the past few days.

"Oh, ok..." She choked out, and I turned to face her. She immediately turned away from me, wiping her face with her hoof as she tried to hide her tears.

'Ugh, not again.' I thought as I approached her slowly, placing a hoof on her shoulder. This time, she didn't jerk away. Instead, she turned back to me and slowly placed her hooves around my neck and drew me in, muffling her sobs with my mane. Myst watched us from the other side of the road, that same wide-eyed expression on her face.

"It's... um... ok." I said lamely, still shocked at the sudden turn of events. I had never had anyone turn to me for comfort before. After all, I wasn't exactly the most sociable person back in the Stable, and not even after my experiences outside. Still, I knew the basics: say things were going to be okay and tell them it wasn't their fault. Still, it kind of sucked that all I knew on comforting people came from reading comic books...

"You're just fucking saying that." She managed to get out in between her choking and sobbing.

'Well, that's true.' Thought Tod.

'Gah! Where the fuck did you come from all of a sudden? Get the hell out of here.' Of all the times for him to show up, now was a really bad time.

"No, I am not. You made a mistake, Skyfire. We all make mistakes. And you should learn from this so you don't do it again." I replied, patting her on the back as she continued to let out all of her tears.

'This is really unexpected.' I thought to myself as she continued to pour all her tears out, all the while muttering things about how her team deserved to be avenged. Most of it was just gibberish, but one line caught my attention.

"So-so sorry Breezetail... shou-should have, should have..." Should have what? Despite being vague and offered nothing useful, that one line got my attention more than any of the others. But why?

Finally she stopped crying, just as Myst had finished gathering anything of value from the area. Her wounds were gone, faint scars where they once were. Myst was obviously trying to busy herself despite the fact that there was nothing left to do.

Skyfire removed her hooves from around my neck as she pushed herself away, vigorously wiping her face with a hoof. She sniffed, “Eck, sorry about that. I just, ah, took in what you said and… well, you’re probably right.” She moved away a bit, but turned back to me with a little frown on her face and slightly angry eyes. “But I don’t think I can give any of those people a second chance. Not after what they did. I’ll remember what you said, just… I just can’t give them a second chance. Sorry.” I sighed at that. At least I had gotten my point to her, but she still wasn’t going to implement it. Still, perhaps I could salvage something from this…

“Fine, have it your way. Just control yourself the next time we face off with the Legion; I’d hate to have to haul your sorry flank through a battlefield while my own ass is getting blasted just because you went into rage mode.” She smirked, partially breaking some of the tension.

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll try, but I won’t promise anything.” She trotted to Myst, who had decided to just sit down rather than attempting to find useless tasks to do while waiting for us.

As she got a few more meters away from me, she muttered something under her breath that she probably hadn’t intended for me to hear. “He’s just like Thunderclap…”

I picked up my pace as I hurried after the two. They started making their way down the road again, Myst still in the lead.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Myst hadn’t said a word since we left the site of the battle. Skyfire and I had just had an argument, both of us now had wing injuries that would compromise our effectiveness during the upcoming battle, and we were down to our last five healing potions. I probably should have been thinking of ways to improve my plan, and to include my wing injury into the factors to be considered. A few more questions popped into my mind as well. Who was Madran? Was he or she with the Legion? A bandit leader? Or maybe a mercenary?

But Instead I was thinking of yet another conversation starter.

“Sooo, Myst…” I started, not quite sure what to say. That was when I remembered one of the reasons we sought out danger in the first place. “Did you find any good weapons? Maybe something better than my pistol?” I asked, now genuinely interested in her findings. If we were going to face more Legion juggernauts, then I wouldn't want to have to rely on Tankbuster alone to take care of them.

“Um, well, yes…” She said as she stopped and opened her saddlebags. After a few seconds, she brought out a heavy pistol. It was significantly larger than my 10mm, but it could still fit in one holster (although I had to really stretch the fabric to get it to fit). I took out the weaker pistol and threw it into my saddlebags as I struggled to place the wider pistol in.

“Thanks, but does this thing come with ammo?” If she said no, I was going to have to go through that process again…

“Well, yes. The only clip with ammo is already loaded into the gun. Unfortunately, you only have seven shots with it before you run out.” Came her soft reply, just barely audible. If it had been anyone else, they would probably have asked her to repeat. Fortunately for me, my ears had grown used to the quiet mare’s barely audible speech.

“Um, if you don’t mind, I’d really like to just think for now.” She told me, looking away as soon as her sentence was finished. Was she scared of me or something? Was it the outfit? Come on, I wasn't that scary... was I? Or maybe all the new scars I had gotten in recent days? Whatever it was, I decided to just drop it and continue in silence, just as Skyfire was doing.

Not wanting to talk to Skyfire right now, I decided to just take a look at our surroundings. There were old and faded posters everywhere, only a few even barely legible after two centuries of decay. One caught my eye, as it sported what would have been a bright red coloration, which was now a dark crimson color. I couldn’t make out the details from my distance, so I temporarily left them and got closer.

The poster showed a zebra stallion wearing a brightly colored outfit (or at least it would have been brightly colored) and a helmet similar to mine, except it’s plumes were going side to side; similar to the Legion heavy troopers. The stallion was pointing at me with a hoof, his mouth open in speech. Above him, in the red background, was a text in a deep black:

“ROAMAN LEGIO VOLO VOS!”

I understood it immediately. After all, I had taken my zebra speech lessons seriously.

“The Roaman legion wants you.” I murmured to myself as I turned away from the poster and hurried to catch up with them again. As I got closer, I heard them having a little conversation. Not wanting to intrude, I kept a little distance from them and listened.

"Are you okay, Skyfire?" Myst asked carefully, probably not wanting to agitate her further. Fortunately, it seemed that she was in a calm enough mood to answer questions, even if her answers were extremely blunt and straight to the point.

"No, I'm not. But I'll find a way to get better. Even if I have to kill every Legionnaire I come across." That worried Myst a bit, based on her head lowering even more. After a while, she brought her head up and spoke again.

"Goldwreath doesn't really approve of that, you know." She said shakily, as if the memory of that 'incident' scared her.

"Yeah, he made that abundantly clear to me. I'm still having trouble breathing..." She brought a hoof up to her chest before she coughed, then gasped.

'Yeah, I did get a little carried away with that kick. Hopefully she'll recover soon.' I thought.

Skyfire seemed to take that in for a moment, looking at the ground in thought, before she continued. The question she asked next both surprised and shocked me in equal measure.

"What's he like?" She asked.

'What?' Okay, just…what?

"What?" Myst asked with quite a lot of confusion in her voice. I wanted to know just what Skyfire meant by that, too.

"I mean, what's he like? I've seen the serious protector of Roam, as he's spoken of on the radio. At least I think I did when he gave that little speech about people being here and whatnot. But, what's he like? You've spent more time with him than I have, I think you'd know."

'So, I'm the subject of conversation now? This should be interesting.' And strange. Very, very strange.

"Well, um..." Of course. Myst can't start a conversation without a 'well, um' at the beginning. "He's... okay, I guess. I mean, he did save the town when the Legion attacked. And he was more considerate of Kira's social discomfort than most people were. He's pretty calm, and doesn't really care about the bad things people had to say about him."

Wait, what? Some of the people in Road Town said things about me? I guess my hearing wasn't quite as good as I thought.

"He's also quite good at helping people get rid of their worries, like he did with my when I was nervous about you. And of course, he saved you from the Legion."

"Nervous about me?" Skyfire asked, now the one who was confused.

"Ah, you see, I don't really like new people. Not that there's anything wrong with you, I mean. I just…um, I just don't really like to talk, that's all."

"Oh. Okay, then. Anyway, you were saying?" Skyfire was obviously still confused, but decided to just drop it in favor of the previous topic.

"Oh. Right." Myst cleared her throat before continuing.

"But then sometimes he gets angry easily. Well, maybe not angry. Frustrated is more like it. He doesn't like it when people do stupid things that endanger others, and he gets annoyed if you don't tell him something he might have needed to know. And he especially doesn't like it when someone does something unnecessary. Maybe he thinks it's a waste of time, or maybe it's something else. I don't really know. At least, that’s what I’ve seen from him so far." She ended, and that gave both me and Skyfire something to think about. As I was about to start considering all that, though, Myst spoke again.

"Um, please don't tell him I said any of that." Myst turned to her, and Skyfire smirked.

"Yeah, sure. I won't tell him. 'Cause I'm pretty sure he heard all of that." Myst stopped in her tracks, looking back at Skyfire with a look of utter terror before she looked behind her at me. "Right, Goldwreath?" Skyfire looked back at me, a devious little smile on her face. I just noticed that this was the first time she ever said my name since we first met earlier this morning.

“Oh yeah. I heard ALL of that.” I said as I got closer. Myst cringed at my approach, trying to quicken her pace to get away from me. Unfortunately for her, my fairly large size allowed me to catch up pretty quickly. As I stood right next to Skyfire, who was directly behind Myst, I gave the most flat and serious look I could bring up.

“Please don’t be mad. I-I didn’t mean any of it. Really!” I felt a little guilty. Maybe I was teasing a bit too much. Well, no one in my Stable ever thought of my serious expression as too much, but then again none of them had a serious case of social discomfort.

I just looked at her for several more moments, making her bite her lower lip in anxiety, before I smiled at her. “Aw, really? That’s too bad. I was really hoping you meant what you said about me being considerate and calm. And I really thought you appreciated me helping you out back at the town. But I guess you didn’t mean any of that...” I continued to tease, and despite my easy-going smile, her eyes burst wide in embarrassment. I didn't even know a mare's cheeks could turn to that shade of red.

“Oh, yes… well, I did mean what I said! At least, um, the part where… uh…” She stammered, but I just laughed as I put a hoof on her back. Seriously, this mare needed to understand the concept of ‘joking’.

“Relax, Myst. I’m just joking. I know that you really meant the things you said, and I’m glad someone has given their honest opinion of me. It gives me something to think about when I’m bored as hell.” I said and she relaxed a bit, letting out a sigh of relief as I slowed down enough for Skyfire to be right next to me.

“So, you mind telling me what that was about?” I asked, keeping the relaxed smile on as we continued trotting down the road. We had been walking for a little more than an hour now, and we were at most half an hour away from the base.

“Uh… I just... just wanted to know what you were like. You know, so I can tell if I can trust you the next time we enter combat.” She stammered in a very uncharacteristic manner. Why were all the mares stammering around me?

“Oh, really? That’s exactly what I’m wondering about you.” I responded, causing her to blush just a bit as she turned her face away, scratching the back of her head.

“Yeah, well, it’s just a coincidence. You ever had coincidences happen to you? Well, they can happen, alright?” She tried to put in a fierce tone in her voice, but I could hear right through that at her desperation to change the subject. Not wanting to force the situation, I decided to just go along with it.

“Right. Anyway, we’re almost at the base, so I need some time to think about the plan. Let’s just go the rest of the way without talking, alright?” I asked her, and she let out a great sigh of relief as she nodded in agreement.

Leaving the other two to their own thoughts, I continued thinking…

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

“What kind of IDIOT builds a fucking suburb on the edge of a cliff?!” I asked aloud in annoyance as we climbed down the cliff slowly after we found out the road leading directly to the base was blocked by a collapsed building. I remembered the name of our location: Hill District Suburbs.

‘This isn’t a hill! This is a Goddesses damned cliff!’ I thought to myself. As if sensing my thoughts, Myst spoke up over our many grunts of annoyance.

“Well, this used to be a hill. With slopes and whatnot. That is, until the Legion blew the slope away to get at whatever metals were here. Directly beneath us was where a military bunker once was.” Myst said as she climbed down a narrow dirt path down the cliff. She was having a much easier time of it than we were; she had probably been here before. Still, I couldn’t care less for that right now as I tripped and smacked my face against a rock, the helmet saving me from a black eye as I got back up.

“I don’t give a damn! When I see another Legionnaire, I’m gonna’ drag their sorry flank through these rocks and beat their nuts with a boulder!” I yelled in exasperation as we continued downwards and to the southeast, to the other side of the hill that wasn’t blown up and still had it’s slope. If my wings weren't broken, maybe I could have carried them, one by one, to the other side.

“You wanna kill them now too? Great! I have a few ideas of how to pour acid dow-” Skyire started, but I silenced her mid-sentence.

“Shut it, Skyfire. I am NOT in a talking mood.” I snapped at her, causing her to glare at me and shut up.

We spent the next few minutes blurting out profanities at almost every crevice and rock that caused us any trouble, despite Myst’s implorations that we be quiet. We continued until we eventually reached the smoother side of the hill, which had a road coming from the west that wasn't blocked by any obstruction. As we reached the road and set our hooves on smoother ground, I noticed a sign that was placed several feet from the left side of the road.

"CANTERIUM : 76 miles <---------"

The arrow was pointing to the west, into a huge, flat plain that was broken only by distant structures. I remembered the DJ's warning that the roads to Canterium were 'quiet'. Although, looking down the street, I couldn't see anything that could possibly have been watching the road. And though I really wanted to, the DJ had made it clear to not go down the road just to find out. After all, I still had a job to do.

"Okay, the bandit base is just a few hundred meters from here. So, what's the plan?" Myst turned to face us as she asked her question.

I wasn't quite prepared to answer, as I hadn't pieced the plan together very well in my head. After a while, though, I got it out. "Unfortunately, my incapability of flight renders getting a layout of the area impossible. We'll just have to continue from after that; is there anywhere around here that looks like a good sniping spot?" She looked around, and her eyes lingered on a three-storey building about a hundred feet from the base.

"Well, that place looks good. I'll probably have to clear it out, though."

"I'll see if there's anything inside with me E.F.S first." I responded, which got me an oblivious look from her. Oh, right. She didn't know what an E.F.S was. Time to explain then...

"Look, an E.F.S is a feature on my Pipbuck that shows the positions of entities and whether or not they're hostile. It's what I used to monitor the fight we were in earlier." I explained, and she seemed to understand as she raised her head slightly.

"Oooh! Ok, I get it. Well, it sounds really useful. Hopefully it will help us with the upcoming fight," Was her response.

“Alright. When you’ve cleared the building, let us know. How? Well, that’s up to you.”

As we got closer to the base, we could hear the faint noises of the bandits over all the rubble. The clanging of metal and the rising of voices, apparently in argument, were getting louder and louder. We were close to the building now, and we took cover behind a large, armored husk of a vehicle. As we leaned against it, I noticed the triple machine guns of a secondary turret on the top of an even larger turret. The larger turret had a single, massive cannon that looked like it could bring down a whole building with one shot.

I whistled. “That’s a tank. A… a really big tank. What kind of tank is it? It’s definitely not one from the Inferno series; there’s too much armor. So which serie-” I started, but in a surprising display of un-Myst like behavior, she stopped me mid-sentence.

“Umm, Goldwreath? Now really isn’t the time for this. Shouldn’t we, you know…” She tapped my Pipbuck twice with her hoof. I felt a little embarrassed of myself, but that embarrassment was later replaced by shame as Skyfire got into the conversation as well.

“Yeah, Goldwreath. We should really get on with this, or are you losing your serious desire to save this place?” Skyfire taunted, and I couldn’t help but feel a part of me wanting to prove her wrong as I spoke up.

“What are you saying, Skyfire? That I’m losing my edge? My focus?”

‘If she says yes, you’re going to force her to think otherwise, aren’t you?’ Thought Tod. I found his sudden appearance after about an hour without interruption quite alarming.

‘How can such a dysfunctional heap of tissue be part of my brain? How did you even come to be? Was it the time that toilet exploded with shit while my mouth was open?’ I asked myself. Seriously, how had Tod even happened? Was he just a part of my brain that was bent on pissing me off?

“Mmmmaybe…” She teased. Okay, now my shame had turned to a desire see that smug smile of hers removed. “I would say ‘no’, but only if I saw you still had some focus left.” She continued, making me want to personally wipe that smile off.

‘Oh you ARE ON.’ I thought to myself, but I didn’t let that slip out. I didn’t want to let her have the satisfaction of getting to me, so I simply re-prioritized my thoughts.

“Fine.” I muttered begrudgingly as I checked my Pipbuck for any marks within the building. There was one red bar inside, although on what floor I couldn’t tell. Myst gave a little smile of confidence as she started quietly trotting to the door.

“I got it covered.” She said as she looked back at me and Skyfire with a smile before continuing to the door. As she entered the doorway and into the building, I turned back to Skyfire.

"Okay, you're with me on assault. We'll wait outside the base, wait for the signal, then charge. Take cover as much as poss-" She stopped me mid-sentence, something that I quite expected to come from her. Still, the fact that Myst had done so just a while ago made this second instance slightly annoying.

"Yeah, yeah. I know the basics. I got military training." Skyfire said as she started making her way to the base, not bothering to try to muffle her steps whatsoever.

"Yeah, but none of the discipline..." I muttered as I went after her, attempting to make as little noise as possible. Although, due to the fact that my hooves were plated with steel, my efforts were rendered useless.

We reached the entrance to the massive structure, and we took cover behind some broken trucks right outside. The sounds of activity were quite loud now, and we could make out the voices of arguing zebras. Pony voices were speaking up too, but not in an arguing matter. There were at least seven bars on the E.F.S, but I was sure there were more.

"Wait, how do we get in?" Skyfire suddenly asked after more than five minutes of keeping quiet. I had my answer, but I myself wasn't quite sure if it would work.

“We wait for Myst’s signal, whatever it is, and we blow the door down.”

“With what?” She asked with a skeptical pout as she narrowed her eyes, almost as if testing me.

“Tankbuster, of course. This thing can punch through power armor, I’m pretty sure it can blow away the door’s supports.” I responded, and she went silent for a while as she kept up her skeptical look, but not facing me. She finally shrugged, and we kept quiet as the arguing heated up. There were the voices of two mares; one zebra one pony.

“… Seriously, all you had to do was watch the supplies! Now we have to wait for the next shipment before we move in on the town tonight.”

“Look, I told you; I brought the ammo back from the field and I placed it in the lobby. I don’t know where the hell it went since.”

“Really? And did anyone ask to get some before you left it?”

“Yes, that pony Shortfuse asked for some before returning to his post in that building.”

“Ugh, fine. I’ll see if he has it. We’re going to need all of it when we attack. You think the Praetorian’s still there?”

“Most likely. The legion sent two juggernauts along with some of our guys to watch the road.”

“And have they reported in?”

“Not yet, they’re scheduled to do that in about an hour.”

“Alright, I’ll go check on Shortfuse. But if he doesn’t have it, we’ll have just an hour to prepare our stuff before we move out. And don’t fall asleep this time!”

There was the sound of a metal bar being removed and the door swung open, the zebra mare trotting up to Myst’s position. Skyfire and I just kept quiet; we still had to wait for her signal.

“Shortfuse! You got any of the ammo Curtains left in the lobby?” She asked as she reached the building, looking up at a third floor window. I could see Myst’s blue bar moving around, the red bar already gone. As such, there was no response. “Damn it, Shortfuse, I don’t have time for this shit. If you have it just give it back.” She demanded with clear annoyance in her voice. Again, there was no response. “Alright, that’s it. I’m going up there and I’m gonna’ beat your nuts with a rock until you tell me.” She let out an annoyed growl as she started stomping to the door.

And that’s when the whole doorway exploded, sending large pieces of rock and concrete at her as she was blasted back and struck our truck with a meaty thud.

“AGH! Damn it, someone get me a healing potion before this leg falls off!” She yelled, and a moment later several zebras and a single pony came charging out. All of them were sporting some form of automatic firearm. As they galloped to their fallen comrade, Myst’s rifle sounded over the whole area.

‘CHUG!’ ‘CHUG!’ ‘CHUG!’ ‘CHUG!’

Three of them fell, but one managed to dodge the bullet as he dove to the side into the cover of one of the trucks; the bullet meant for him instead struck the bleeding zebra mare. Unfortunately for him, the truck he dove behind was our truck. As he tried to get back up, I got up and stood over him. His eyes shot wide as he saw me, and he took in a deep breath before he screamed. That scream wasn’t necessary, as I was sure the heavy pistol was loud enough to get his companions attention. Skyfire and I bolted around the corner and engaged the remaining three, who were still taking cover from Myst.

I pulled out Tankbuster and put a single shot into a zebra stallion’s head as he tried to pull out his SMG. Another one turned her attention to Skyfire as she shot off a bolt from both Mercedes and Sally, but none of them hit. The other managed to pull out his assault rifle and fired, putting two rounds deep into my stomach. The kevlar just wasn’t strong enough to stop the rounds, and the metal armor was only able to weaken them slightly.

I ran for cover as I staggered from the wounds opened up in my chest, and Myst fired off another shot clean through the head of Skyfire’s target, which allowed her to turn her attention to the one still firing at me. Most of his shots pinged off the metal surface of a car, but another two found their marks in my shoulders. But they were no sniper rounds, and the three layers of steel plates weakened them enough that the vest was able stop them. Skyfire fired a single bolt from Mercedes, and he was instantly turned to green goo. I dug out a healing potion and downed it, feeling my wounds slowly close before I got up next to Skyfire, who was watching the entrance.

“They’re all aware of our presence now, but they’re keeping their heads down. We’ll need Myst to cover us as we get in, or they’ll slaughter us.” She said, and I put in another shell into the shotgun.

“Alright, get ready! If I were you, I’d keep the SMG ready in case those things run out.” I turned to face the building and yelled, “Cover us!” And I tapped Skyfire on the shoulder before we both dashed through the gate. Immediately, the remaining bandits opened up, sending sparks in all directions as their shots bounced off the barrels we used for cover. These things were probably filled with something, otherwise we would both be dead. Two of them fell, and I used the reduced suppression to take a peek at the battlefield.

Okay, there was a wide courtyard, about twenty square meters in area. On each side was a wooden platform with cover, which is where most of our opponents were. On the far side of the courtyard was a large, columned lobby with another security door. There, about three Legionnaires and two bandits were spraying down range. If we could clear at least one side, we could have better cover and not get shot at from all directions.

“Keep firing! And get that sniper! You, get that rocket launcher!” Shouted one of the Legionnaires at one of the bandits, and he immediately bolted for a crate on which was the launcher. I tried to get him, but Tankbuster just wasn’t good at the range they were forcing me to engage them. I pulled out the heavy pistol as Skyfire fired off three quick shots from Sally, downing two of them.

Unfortunately, the one with the rocket launcher popped out and fired a rocket, and it left behind a trail of smoke as it struck the third floor window. For just a moment, my heart stopped. I snapped my Pipbuck up and stared at the E.F.S. Her blue bar was gone.

“Myst!” I screamed, watching as the entire third floor caved in from the blast. I guess two centuries of decay and neglect was just too much for it. I just stared at it for several more moments, ignoring the bullets shaking my cover with each shot.

“Goldwreath! Worry about her later. Right now, we have to take these guys out!” I shook my head, getting myself together enough to pay attention to the battle. We were ridiculously outnumbered, but if we could clear the right side, which had just five hostiles, we might have a chance.

“Uh, right. We have to clear the right side! I’ll take point, keep them off me!” She nodded, and I dove to the ground next to the ramp that lead onto the platform. As everyone shifted to face me, Skyfire took advantage of it and fired both Sally and Mercedes as quickly as she could. Six of them died before the rest took cover, while I got onto the platform and pulled out Tankbuster. Skyfire fired against the metal and wooden barricades in a monstrously bright and intense light-show, causing all of my would-be Legionnaire opponents to keep to their cover. Only three of them managed to get their weapons ready as I started blasting all ten rounds, killing three of them.

Unfortunately for me, they seemed to be trying to take care of each other. Not in the 'giving a healing potion' way, not in the 'I'll give you covering fire' way, but in the 'I'll use my dying body to shield you from the crazy shotgun wielding pony' way. And despite the fact that their bodies were literally shredded to pieces, they managed to block off any more fatal shots. Really, I had expected to get all of them in that torrent of gunfire, but two remained. As they brought their weapons to bear, I found myself diving back down the ramp as they unloaded their magazines.

Skyfire had suffered several wounds in her prolonged exposure, but thankfully only one looked substantial. She was dripping with blood all along her legs and a few marks on her chest, but she was going to be alright. Turning my attention back to the battle, I pulled out the gladius and peeked over the top of the ramp again. Immediately, both of them fired whatever rounds they had left in their magazines, one slower than the other. In perfect unison, they stopped, both reaching for a new mag. I took the chance to rush them, feeling wooden chips strike against me as the barrier was being peppered with shots from the others.

To my immense horror, the one that fired slower had not, in fact, exhausted his magazine. He smiled deviously as he pointed the gun back at me. My confidence turned to terror as my plan of attack disintegrated in my mind. He pulled the trigger, sending a shot that punched through my armor and into my stomach. The second pierced into my stomach as well, while the third sank dangerously close to my lungs. Amid all my staggering, I managed to crash myself into him, sending us both sprawling on the ground as his partner hurried to load his rifle. I managed to think just clearly enough to plunge my blade into his neck, stopping whatever struggle he had been putting up. With a great grunt of pain, I got myself up, the immense pain surging from my torso area causing heavy bleeding. I turned to face the other one with half closed eyes, seeing him push in the mag and reached over to cock the mechanism.

In desperation, I charged him. I didn't care much for the single round that found it's mark in my flanks through my cover as I bolted at him like a mad-pony. Unfortunately, I wasn't thinking quite straight and he managed to dodge me entirely. I crashed into the concrete wall, falling onto my back as he stood over me, looking quite prepared to end my life.

But I wasn't going to let that happen, obviously.

As much as I found it kind of a cheap move, I managed to shift enough to get my helmet under his nuts and gave him as hard a head-butt as I could muster. The scream of pain he let out later actually got me a second of ceasefire before they continued, most of them blasting the wooden barricade to shreds. As he stumbled away, clutching his stallionhood, I got up again and stabbed him twice in the chest. His leather barding might have worked against slashes, but it was little more than for show against stabs and bullets. I dove for cover again as he fell down.

"Skyfire! Over here!" I yelled out over the sounds of gunfire as I gestured her to hurry over to my position. She probably didn't hear me, but she must have caught my signal because she started dashing across the short but terribly exposed gap between the barrels and the platform. Reaching me without picking up any wounds, she slumped against me as we just sat in our cover. I hurriedly dug for a healing potion as my vision began to get blurry from blood loss.

“How many more are there?” I asked, not wanting to use up any energy bringing up the Pipbuck. This battle was really looking bad for us, and we didn’t even have Myst to help us out.

“At least fifteen more! Sally’s out, and Mercedes is running low. We can’t get around to flank ‘em, and there’s barely any cover out in the courtyard. What do we do?” I could see the fear in her eyes; she was scared. I’ll admit, I was scared too. I mean, we were hopelessly outnumbered, and we couldn’t even pop out to thin their numbers down. But, we did have one thing on our side…

“Stay in cover. They said they were low on ammo, so they’ll have to slow down eventually. And when they do, we give them everything we’ve got. Right now, though, we’ll just have take shots only if we’re sure we’ll hit. We can’t expose ourselves and dive back down without having taken one of them out.” It was all I had. I just hoped that they didn’t move in on us while we were staying down. We would need to suppress them if they tried, but the only weapon capable of the fire rate needed was…

“Where’s that SMG of yours? Now would probably be a good time to use it!” Why wasn’t she using it, anyway? What, she didn’t take Myst’s lessons seriously?

“Oh, right!” She reached over and pulled it out, before looking down at it with a small frown.

“What is it?” If she said she didn’t know how to use it…

“Well, I didn’t really take Myst’s lessons seriously.” Of course. When you rant about plasma particle production chambers and liquid cooling systems, all of which are SO simple, you tend to forget the extremely complicated process of pointing and shooting. With an annoyed grunt, I snatched the weapon from her.

“Oh, give me!” I checked that she had at least loaded the magazine in properly, which thankfully she did. Fishing out a healing potion and downing it, I waited for the pain in my torso to ease. When it finally did, I popped out and emptied the whole magazine into a group of around four zebras who were inching their way slowly towards us. One got downed, while the others dove for cover as I sprayed the whole area with low-caliber rounds.

I dove back down before I picked up any new wounds. At least my armor had stopped most of the low caliber SMG rounds they were using. Good thing only a third of them were utilizing assault rifles.

“Damn it! We can’t continue like this. We’ll have to either fall back, or stay here and die.” She yelled as a whole section of our cover finally came apart. She was right, we couldn’t stay here. There were too many of them. We had to move.

“You’re right.” At that, she seemed slightly relieved. I even felt kind of bad when I broke that relief a few seconds later.

“We have to keep moving, follow me!” I jumped over the cover, drawing most of the incoming fire towards me. Luckily, despite the scarcity of cover in the courtyard, the cover was at least substantial. I pulled out Tankbuster as I made my way to the remains of a fountain in the middle, and I dove over the concrete and into the filthy still water within. Skyfire arrived several seconds later, with many scratches where the bullets had scraped over or under her. She glared at me as she jumped in, clutching her side.

“What the hell is wrong with you? We were supposed to either fall back, or die! You just chose ‘die’. I nearly got killed running after you!”

“Ah, but you did not, and that’s what counts.” I replied evenly as I loaded Tankbuster. We were significantly closer to them now, and our cover was under fire from every single one of them. At least it was made of thick concrete and not sheet metal and wooden planks. And they were even starting to slow down. Hopefully that was because they were running out of ammo.

“Grab that rocket launcher! Let’s blow them out of there!” Yelled one of them, and I immediately froze. If they fired that rocket, our cover would be blown, along with us. But if we escaped, we would be staggering and falling over and they would get us. So, that left me with one option…

“CHARGE!” And with that I jumped over my cover, again, and rushed them. Most of them, especially the bandits, looked absolutely stunned at my bold (and some would say stupid) move.

I fired Tankbuster’s rounds in a wide arc before me, causing most to take cover as the shotgun’s monstrous firepower sent the pellets at speeds capable of busting through most cover. When that was out, I pulled out the heavy pistol and fired off a shot at the leader: a Legionnaire wearing that same segmented armor as the heavy trooper. The only major difference was an engraving in his helmet: a Roaman numeral ‘II’.

He wasn’t like his subordinates, taking cover despite my unguided, un-aimed shots. He simply jumped to the side as the bullet smashed into the column behind him. He looked at me with hard, calculating eyes.

“All teams, focus fire on the Praetorian! Those on the right, circle around and block the exit.”

‘Fuck.’

They all opened fire, one group moving around us to the exit. I tried running back for the fountain, where Skyfire only fired off the occasional shot of plasma (I had, after all, taken her SMG). But as I neared it, the force of at least a dozen bullets struck me in all areas ranging from my flank to my back. I didn’t stop moving yet, but I did collapse when one of them pulled out a shotgun and blasted me square in the chest. Had the armor not been thickest there, I was sure I would have died.

As I lay there on the ground, time seemed to slow down. Everything was going so slow I could even see bullets as they left their chambers. I even laughed at some of the facial expressions my opponents were giving as their faces moved slower than snails. Even the blood flowing out of me slowed down, causing me to experience my pain in a significantly slower fashion. Still, I didn’t mind. I could use the time to think.

I thought of the many different people in my Stable. Silkthread, Kevlar Vest, Bloodshot, Muzzleflash, Drapes, Couch Potato, Airtight, Wonderglue, the Overmare, Lighthouse… they were all good people. All of them. Except maybe that scumbag murderer. But considering I was about to die, I decided not to spoil my mind with thoughts of him.

Next I thought of Road Town, the first and the friendliest settlement I had met on the outside in my first few weeks. A settlement much like my Stable, really. There were zebras and ponies, and they were all working together despite what happened two hundred years ago. And I never would have met them had it not been for Myst…

I sighed as I placed my head back down. Myst. I had lead her to her death. Her pieces were probably scattered all over the place outside, waiting to decay and add another imperfection to the strange beauty of Roam. Roam…

It was a beautiful place, despite it’s obvious disrepair. I never told anyone, but I was actually honored to have tried to protect Roam. It was a place of history, of great good and evil. It deserved to be preserved and restored, despite it’s imperfections. It’s people deserved a second chance, just like that damned slaver. Just like that Legionnaire Skyfire killed. Just like Skyfire herself.

I blinked my eyes slowly, contemplating on the things I would never get to do. The people that wouldn’t answer for their crimes. The people that wouldn’t get the second chance they deserved. The people that I had lead to their deaths.

You know, they say that when you’re about to die, your life flashes before your eyes. I decided to put that theory to the test, and I closed my eyes.

Nothing.

‘Okay, what the hell is going on?’ The not-Tod part of my brain finally asked.

‘Yeah, why is time all… slow?’ Asked Tod, and it was actually a sensible question. One that I had disregarded. Why was time slowing down?

I looked around me, and my eyes caught my hoof on my Pipbuck. I had, without knowing it, pressed a button on the touch screen interface. Curious, I removed my hoof and looked at what I had pressed.

‘S.A.T.S ACTIVATED’ Said the little notification on the button.

“What the…” I started to say, before my vision was dominated by blue text. My eyes struggled to focus on the letters.

“Dear user,

Welcome to S.A.T.S! That is the Stable-Tec Assisted Targeting Spell. It is a new and revolutionary spell created by Stable-Tec to help preserve the life of our dear users.

Now, while in S.A.T.S, time will slow down to a crawl. Based on how much clearance you have been given by your Stable’s Overmare, you will get a minimum of one minute in S.A.T.S. The spell itself is meant to be utilized mostly by security, and it is used for quickly neutralizing a number of hostiles in a very short duration.

To use S.A.T.S, simply activate the spell and neutralize the hostile in any conventional sense. Watch out though, as the spell requires time to recharge after being used.

Stable-Tec”

“What? You’re telling me that all this time I had an awesome time-slowing spell that could have saved me and others from a hell of a lot of pain? Oh, you stupid…” I muttered as I got up, wiping the dirt from my face. I felt a little foolish, moving around like that on the ground and thinking while time was slowed down. And I was determined to get rid of that feeling.

“Alright, enough drama.” I said as I pulled out Skyfire’s SMG and pointed it at the leader, who had moved little more than a foot since time slowed down. To my surprise, the interface in my vision immediately gave off percentages next to each of his major body parts. Not knowing what to do, I targeted his head, which had a ‘70%’ chance, and fired three rounds.

The bullets blew out the back of his brains as he slowly slumped down to the floor.

“Alright, time to get the others before…” Time resumed it’s natural pace. Several of the bandits were eyeing me weirdly, while most just continued firing. Apparently, they saw me moving around at lightning speed while I was on the ground.

“Oh, shit. Uh… hey fellas.” Tankbuster was out, The SMG was out, the heavy pistol was in my saddlebags, and my gladius was on the ground. Taking advantage of my obvious unpreparedness, they continued shooting.

As I fell back down, I found myself in a very similar situation. Except this time around, I didn’t have my super-cool time spell to bail me out. Well, I always wondered what seeing my life before me was like anyway…

Wait, where the hell was my gladius?

The zebra’s neck started bleeding from a large cut. The others fired for a few more seconds before one mysteriously floated up, bleeding from a deep stab in her gut. The other watched the strange occurrence in confusion before he had his head cut off. Everyone else was either watching or didn’t notice and continued firing at Skyfire’s cover.

“What the fuck is going on?” I yelled out loud. Okay, first S.A.T.S, then nearly dying again, then weird ghosts with blades? Shit just got a lot stranger…

“Get up!” Said a voice, from who I could not see, as I was shoved into cover. I just sat there while the fire slowly died down, the enemy getting slain one at a time. Some of them tried running for the exit, but Skyfire had had enough of staying in cover.

“Die, motherfuckers!” She fired Mercedes into their flanks, and they instantly turned to goo. One of them did manage to get outside, but an explosion blasted her to pieces.

‘Hidden explosives, huh? I think I know who that is…’ A large grin started to form on my face. The last few enemies fell silent, and Skyfire approached me. An electric blue glow lit up behind her, and a familiar sniper pony appeared. She threw the stealth cloak onto her own saddlebags, and trotted to us.

“Um… I… hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long.” Myst stammered. She took a look at at me, and her eyes went wide at the sight of my quickly-becoming-fatal wounds.

“Where the hell were you?” Skyfire asked in clear annoyance. “We almost died! We… we thought you were dead!” She started heaving, but then visibly relaxed a bit later.

“Um, well…” She started, obviously not knowing how to explain herself. But I didn’t need an explanation right now.

“Um, fillies? I’d love to talk, but, um, I’m a bit… out of shape?” I gasped; maybe my lungs had been punctured in that battle. They both looked at me, Myst giving a sheepish smile while Skyfire looked a little shocked. For what I don’t know.

“Oh, right…” Skyfire, turned quickly to my saddlebags, which had fallen off.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Three healing potions later and I was feeling significantly better. My lungs still struggled for air a bit and my ass hurt more than I was comfortable with, but I would live. We had managed to breach the building itself. The air inside blasted out like wind as Myst’s explosives blew the thick doors inwards. The place had only two more bandits inside. Disposing of them quickly, we were now exploring the inside.

The whole place was in pristine condition. Probably not free of dirt, but it was a significant improvement over everywhere else I had been. The polished marble tiles gleamed from the afternoon sun’s orange light. The windows above the stairs which led to the second floor were only partially cracked. There was even a non-broken and still functional version of the fountain outside within the middle of the chamber. Now without the dirt and the decay, I could make out the shape of the statue.

It was a zebra stallion sitting on a throne, wearing robes that hung down over the seat. He was wearing wreaths on the sides of his head. The throne itself wasn’t very large, but it was carved with so much detail and figures of little zebras and battles and other scenes which more than made up for the general simplicity of the throne’s shape.

Still, this place wasn’t untouched. It was obvious that these bandits and Legionnaires were the only ones able to break in, though. Aside from the dirt coming in from the crack on the windows, the only other sign of former inhabitat and activity were the wires running along the ground and the empty bottles lying around near the stairs. The wires led to strange, box-shaped devices with screens that showed a spinning logo of a gladius with a golden ring around it. I had tried using it, but I was never good with computers.

Skyfire had stayed downstairs, while Myst and I went up. All of the rooms were thoroughly looted and had only the barest of living necessities: food and water. Deciding to pick those up later, we continued along a hallway that lead to a door at the end.

“So, Myst, mind telling me what happened back there?” I finally asked, wanting to both break the silence and get some answers.

“Oh, well, there was a pony in there. He had a lot of ammo with him.”

‘So that’s where the ammo went.’

“He also had this stealth cloak, which made him really hard to spot. How you found him with that thing of yours, I don’t know. Maybe he only put it on after he noticed me? Anyway, when they fired the rocket, I had already left the building and was coming over to you. When I got in, I decided not to shoot. If I did, I would have exposed myself. When I saw that you weren’t using your blade any more, I took the opportunity to help out. Good thing you dropped it, or else we would all have died.”

Wait, how?

“What do you mean? You could have just gotten out, right? I don’t see how you would have gotten killed.”

“Oh, you see, this cloak is solar powered. That is, it gets energy from sunlight. It was almost out, I think, when you dropped your blade.” Oh, ok. It turns out making mistakes is helpful.

“Well, we were really worried about you. When I saw that building collapse, I was so sure you were dead. Glad to know I’m wrong.” She didn’t say anything, but she smiled. For what, I couldn’t say.

When we had finally reached the door, we found it locked as well. Myst had told me she couldn’t blast them open, and when I asked why she just started talking about explosive force disruption and other complicated concepts. I didn’t learn explosives in the Stable, okay?

Even more, the door required a voice sample. Considering that this was the house of ‘Legate Decarius’, I assumed I would need his voice. But the guy was dead for at least two hundred years. So, with a disappointed sigh, we went back to meet up with Skyfire.

We found her on one of the computers, looking through files and images of Roam. Her being on the computer wasn’t actually what caught my attention though. It was the pictures. They were pre-war images. They were showing off massive domed structures, robotic mechs walking in the streets with zebras pointing at them, and there was even one image that showed a massive reptilian creature flying in the sky.

“Goldwreath, check these out! These zebras still have access to the zebra Databanks! Lucky bastards. If the Enclave had this…” She stopped, seeing the stunned expression on my face. “What? Did I do something?” She asked, looking around her as if to see if she had stepped on something.

“No, it’s not you. It’s… those pictures.” I couldn’t believe the beauty of Roam before the war. It was my very picture of paradise: Streets filled with people yet not over-crowded. Massive pillars that held up great monuments and other stunning feats of engineering. Mechanical marvels sharing the streets and skies with the citizens in perfect harmony. Zebras trotting around in kevlar vests and cloth styled in a way that made them look like me, minus the plumes on the helmets. The buildings were painted bright colors that brought such life and radiance to the city that I was sure no other place in the whole world could possibly have. As much as I loved Equestria… this… this was the greatest and most grand thing I had ever seen.

“Oh, yeah, well, you know. The zebras were masters of architecture and math, so such feats were to be expected. Now, let’s see what else we got here…” She continued browsing, typing in things such as ‘how to create home-made spark batteries’ in one section and ‘Equestrian history’ in another. How she got the computer to work in the first place still baffled me.

We checked the rest of the building, Myst sweeping upstairs again while I looked for rooms we hadn’t checked yet. I found a locked door which, thankfully, was only secured with a weak padlock. Two bobby pins later I was in a dark room with only a little light coming from a few cracks illuminating the area.

“Well, it’s a good thing I have this.” I activated my Pipbuck’s lamp mode and started looking around. There were lots of tools here, mostly wrenches and hammers. Nails littered the floor as I trotted through the long, dark hall, breaking old and rusted nails beneath my hooves.

It was then that I bumped into something metallic. Feeling a little foolish at hitting something so large, I lifted my leg to see the obstacle.

“No way…” I muttered. There just had to be a light switch around here somewhere. I fumbled around near the walls in search of a light switch. I must have been making a lot of noise, because I heard Skyfire and Myst galloping towards me. “Come on…light switch…. Ah, there we go.” I flicked the switch, and turned to face the metallic machine. Skyfire got in just a second later, while Myst hadn’t arrived yet.

“Goldwreath, what’s with all the noise? I’m trying to watch a video over-WOAH, what is that?” She asked in disbelief. I couldn’t quite believe it myself. Why in the world would the Legion just leave something like this here? A few more moments later, Myst came in as well.

“I heard noise, what’s wr- Oh, oh my.”

“Is that what I think it is?” Skyfire asked, clearly not quite convinced.

“Well, there’s only one way to find out,” I said as I got onto the roof of the armored personnel carrier.

I had seen this type in a magazine before; it was an S3 Harpy: a part of a new wave of zebra armored vehicles that were on the verge of being sent to the front lines in large numbers. A thruster engine lay underneath it's armored front cabin, which extended all the way to half the vehicle's length going back, where from then on the armored chassis angled upwards, and sported two more thruster engines jutting out from the sides. Orange and black vertical stripes ran along the top and sides of it's silvery, armored form. Thick and bulletproof narrow and sloped windows at the front allowed vision of the inside, though the area within was obscured by shadow. The vehicle's only true armament consisted of a large, 25mm cannon jutting from the top, pointing forward, but that alone seemed like it could tear down a wall.

Needless to say -- and I do not intend, at all, to imply that I have a machine fetish -- it looked damned sexy for a vehicle.

As I got in, landing on the surprisingly soft seats of the cockpit, I reached a dead end. I had no idea how to operate vehicles whatsoever, and I especially didn’t know how to turn it on.

“Um, anyone know how to use this thing?” Myst and Skyfire got in, both looking slightly perplexed. Myst was less so, however, in that she immediately got over next to me took a look at the controls. She placed her hoof on a smooth, glossy, black surface in the middle for about five seconds. When nothing happened, she removed her hoof from the glossy surface. Immediately, the vehicle gave off an electronic hum as the engine fired up. We felt the vehicle lift up into the air, staying still.

“Awesome…” Skyfire said as she walked around the only slightly wobbly cockpit. Myst, on the other hoof, looked slightly surprised that what she did actually worked.

“Alright, now, how does this thing work…” I touched the black surface and moved it up slightly, and immediately the vehicle rose and slammed into the ceiling and the we fell back down.

“Nice one, genius. I hope you didn’t smash the turret.” Skyfire said before exiting the vehicle. Yeah, perhaps it would be better once we were actually outside.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

As me and Myst hurried up to catch up with Skyfire, we heard the sound of a trumpet erupt from the main chamber. When we found her, she was rummaging through a sack of electronic parts while a video played on the computer. I checked out the title. ‘Decarius Addresses Public Concern on Letting Military Mechs on the Streets’

“… so tell us, Legate, what makes you think that this is the correct decision? Is it to give the citizens a sense of safety as the Equestrians push deeper into zebra lands?” Asked the interviewer. The camera turned to face Decarius, a middle-aged looking stallion with several scars visible through his ceremonial armor. His face had large scars on one side that looked reminiscent of shotgun pellets scraping across his skin.

“Well, yes, there is that. But there is also the fact that we have been losing ground on the basis of our defenses being disabled from the inside.” His voice wasn’t all that iconic, really. It was just a little deep, and quite rough.

“You mean to say that there are traitors within the military?”

“Unfortunately, yes. Our power generators have been disabled right when the Equestrians approached the defensive lines. Honestly, had we been able to hold them back at the Wall of Hadrian, they would still be on the beaches.”

“I see. And are the Shadow Corps hunting down these traitors?”

“Oh yes. We’ve already caught three of them, and at the Caesar’s orders they have been executed.”

I suddenly realized that I needed his voice sample to open the doors upstairs, and that my Pipbuck had a ‘record’ feature. Quickly, I brought it up, pressed the record button, and held it closer to the speakers.

“Really? And have they been confirmed of said atrocity?”

“Oh, yes. They weren’t really good at covering their tracks. Hopefully, the presence of our mechanized infantry near crucial points will prevent any more incidents. The Equestrians are already nearing the mountains, but the network should be up and running by the time they do.” Wait, what network?

“I see. Thank you for your time Legate, and also for being able to come to our studio on such short notice.” The video reached it’s end, and the screen turned black. A list of related videos appeared on the right side, but I wasn’t interested in any of those. Skyfire, on the other hoof, peeked at the list and brought the cursor over to one. Myst trotted over to her and began helping her out with whatever it was she was doing.

With the voice sample I needed, I went back upstairs.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

“… covering their tracks. Hopefully, the presence of our mechanized infantry near crucial points will prevent any more incidents…”

With a metallic shriek, the door slid upwards and revealed a small room within.

“Welcome, Legate.” Said a rough, electronic mare’s voice through a speaker above the doorway.

A turret popped down from the ceiling aimed at me. I just barely managed to pull out Tankbuster and was about to blast it to pieces, when... it didn't shoot. It was just staring at me. I decided to not blast the thing apart, as I thought it may have been linked to a more intricate defense system or something.

The room within had a floor that was covered in a luxurious fur, and the walls were made of polished marble. In the middle of the room was a glass case with two orbs within, and above the case was a helmet. The helmet itself didn’t really look like it was made for combat, though. Really, it was actually just two golden wreaths attached together by a silver metal plate that covered the head. What made it strange, though, was the presence of delicate looking cup-like depression on the helmet. Within the depression were three lights around a ring with tiny, glassy spikes emerging from it.

I didn't know what I was thinking. Perhaps it was the subconscious part of my brain that wanted to find out more about the zebras of the past, or it was just plain curiosity. I wasn't under attack right now, and neither were my friends. And considering the battle we had fought so hard to win earlier, I guess we were each entitled to a little curiosity sating.

Still, I just had to ask myself, 'Is this really a good idea?'

'Yes,' Was the response of a part of my head. It wasn't Tod, which surprised me. 'Don't worry about it. I think it may be a good idea to obtain some context.'

Well, he wasn't Tod, and at that time that seemed good enough for me. I know it may seem stupid, but after you've been mentally plagued by a shitty part of your brain... well, the word of anyone else just seems so much more trustworthy. I also very much wanted to find out more about these things. Skyfire and Myst could take care of themselves. I just hoped that Skyfire wouldn't go into a fit of rage while I was figuring out how this thing worked.

I took off my own metal helmet and lay it down on the floor before putting on the one before me. Well, it was comfortable to say the most. The helmet was so light it made me remember just how not wearing heavy metal armor felt like. Looking at the strange orbs, I carefully lifted the case away and picked one at random. The depression within the helmet looked specifically built to accommodate the orbs. Not really knowing what else to do with it, I placed the orb in the depression.

All feeling left my body as my world fell away.

ooooOOOOoooo

I couldn’t move, or at least couldn’t control my actions. This was an even stranger feeling than when I was in my S.A.T.S induced time-crawl. I couldn’t even control my rate of breathing! I just wanted to get out of this orb before some more weird shit happened. Unfortunately, it showed no sign of stopping soon.

I decided to just go along and hope for the best. Now, let’s see what was going on…

Okay, I was a stallion; presumably a zebra. This was his memory, therefore he was my... vessel? Host? Alright, he was my 'host' -- a host in a memory orb, sounds about right. He was hurrying along the soaked streets, his strenuous effort apparently bearing the goal of making his way to a building in the distance. Crossing the street thrice and nearly getting run over twice, he finally reached his destination: Decarius’ house. As he approached the gate, dripping head to hoof, the guards wearing power armor stopped him.

“HALT! WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT IS YOUR BUSINESS WITH LORD DECARIUS?” Wow. Apparently, the speakers on those things were even louder than they were today. A small dial on the right side of the helmet, right next to the gas mask, showed his speaker’s volume.

‘SPKR Vol. % : 7’

Seriously? Seven percent speaker volume? It was loud enough to be heard over a damned storm!

“Ah, yes! Hold on!” My host had to yell over the storm as he dug something out if his pockets underneath. He grabbed what appeared to be his wallet and opened it, revealing a badge inside. He pulled out the wallet and showed the badge to the guards.

“I’m with the Zebra Scientific-AAA!” He was blown against the ground by a strong blast of wind which also blew his wallet away. “Shit. Ah, look. I really need to speak to the Legate. So if you could just, you know, let me in, that would be great!” The guards looked at him and at each other. They turned back to him, the dial on one of the guards going up from seven percent to ten percent.

“I CANNOT LET YOU SPEAK TO THE LEGATE WITHOUT PROPER CLEARANCE. PLEASE LEAVE.” Ow. Even if it wasn’t my ears being busted, that still hurt.

Recovering from the sonic assault, my host just stood his ground.

“No! I must speak to him! You can’t keep me out here!” His voice was probably overshadowed by the gust of wind that blew against him, because the guards didn’t seem to hear that last statement. They let their weapons fall out as they entered combat stances.

“I’M WARNING YOU ONE MORE TIME. LEAVE.” My host didn’t back away, but I could feel his legs begin to tremble from more than just the cold. Eventually, he started to take slow steps back. Then a speaker near the door sounded, just loud enough to be heard.

“Ah, Maladus! You’ve made it. Please, come insi-… what the hell are you doing? Let this stallion in, I invited him here!” The voice was that of Decarius, and the guards stepped to the side upon hearing it. They turned the volume on their speakers down before they spoke.

“AH, TERRIBLY SORRY, MY LORD. YOU, IT TURNS OUT THE LEGATE DOES INDEED NEED TO SPEAK WITH YOU. YOU MAY ENTER.”

My host trotted past them at a brisk pace, as if worried they were going to change their minds. The doors began closing as he stepped through, and I heard the guards ‘whisper’ to one another just before the gates closed completely.

“YOU THINK THE LEGATE WILL FIRE US?” One asked in a worried tone.

“I HOPE NOT, AFTER ALL HE NEEDS ALL THE SOLDIERS HE CAN GET FOR-” But then the gates slammed shut as my host made his way across the courtyard to the door of the mansion.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

My host stepped through the doorway and immediately a glowing sheet of blue energy erupted from a slot in the ground. While I felt the need to run away from it, my host spared it no second glance and simply walked through. A loud hissing filled the room. When he emerged on the other side, he was completely dry.

“Decarius?” He asked loudly, but in a respectful and non-impatient sounding manner. A moment later, the Legate came down from the second floor of his mansion, accompanied by two power armored guards. Upon getting closer to my host, Maladus, Decarius dismissed them.

“Ah, Maladus, it’s good to see you!” Decarius came in and gave my a host a surprisingly tight (and slightly painful, in no small part due to his ceremonial armor) bear hug.

“Ugh… it’s... good to… see you, Decarius. Could you, ugh, put me down?” Decarius released him as Maladus started panting heavily.

“Haha, sorry. It’s just that it’s been such a long time since we last spoke. It was… three years, I believe?” Decarius was in a very joyful and merry mood, showing neither exhaustion or dark thoughts as he and my host made their way to the back of the building.

“Yes, three years. And you’ll forgive me if I don’t seem quite thrilled. The war is… exhausting. Equestria’s Ministry of Arcane Science and Ministry of Wartime Technology have been pressing us hard to keep up technologically.” He really was exhausted, and not just physically. It was quite clear in the way he spoke of the war that he was sick of it.

“Aw, really? And I thought that when we made that pact all those years ago that you would remember it now.” Decarius responded with a pout, gaining both a smile and a disagreeing shake of his head from Maladus.

“No, I still remember that pact clearly. But your great enthusiasm for the war has led to some… unfortunate events. The Equestrians are already close to Hadrian’s wall, Decarius! I hope that your project succeeds in saving us.”

The two of them entered into a wide, circular chamber with a conference table in the middle. Upon the Legate’s entrance, servants entered and quickly prepared drinks and various types of foods while others removed the meeting table and brought in a circular one. The two of them sat down, opposite of each other, as the servants exited the chamber.

“Close.” Decarius said, and immediately all the doors closed before steel plates slid down behind them. An automated turret similar to the one in the room I was sure I was just lying down in popped out from the ceiling and started looking around. “Really? Well, then perhaps you remember why we started this war.”

Woah, woah, woah, woah, woah… WHAT?! I need to hear that again to believe it…

Maladus gave a sad smile before he started chanting, in a very disturbing and monotonous manner.

“Our nation is the greatest and soon will be again. From Ursalania in the west to Felinia in the east, from Canesas in the south to Equestria in the north, our glory of old will rise from the grave and reclaim its rightful place at the center of the world.”

Decarius joined in as well, their words in perfect synchronization.

“… The legions will march down the roads of the world, with no fear of danger or heed to barbarians…”

“…All lesser nations will be brought to their heels, and from their ruins shall arise a new order that will shake the very foundations of the world.

“…No defeat shall hinder, no victory shall relax, no time of war shall weaken and no time of peace shall make us complacent…

“…Not will we rest, not will we waver, until the whole world has been shown the Glory of Roam.”

They both ended, and kept quiet for a few moments. Decarius seemed authentically pleased while Maladus, judging from how I felt his facial expression, seemed both sad and lost.

"Decarius, do you really think we should have done this? The war, I mean? Should we have disobeyed the Caesar and withheld those coal shipments? And should we have provoked the attack at Littlehorn? At times it feels like we made the wrong choice all those years ago; that we were young and foolish, and let our ambitions get the better of us." Maladus queried. Decarius thought for a moment, tapping his hooves together, before he spoke.

"Yes, Maladus. I am sure we made the right decision. The network will turn this around, and once we expose them to the software... everything will go according to plan." Decarius pressed a small button on the table, and immediately an extremely faint ringing noise filled the room.

Okay, hold on, what software?

“I am sorry, Maladus. But I cannot afford that you doubt the plan now. This has to be done.” The ringing increased slightly.

"Wait, the software? Y-you said you would never use it! This is... is..." Maladus protested before the ringing became slightly more audible, but just barely. My host gave a resigned sigh, before he slumped against the chair. He closed his eyes, as if wanting it all to end. "So, you've perfected the signal," He said tiredly.

"Not yet, but with your input, I will. Don't worry, Maladus, We can still correct this. We can still bring the war back in our favor. I just need you to agree with me. Do you?" He asked the question with a tone of such hope and anticipation that very much resembled a little colt's.

My host's body twitched, and his head started to ache. He put his hooves up to touch his temples, before his eyes shot wide. His breathing became more erratic as he tried to speak, but he couldn't. He fell onto the floor and began thrashing around as the pain in his head became more forceful. After going on like this for about another minute, he finally relaxed. He got up again and sat down on the chair like nothing happened.

"I completely agree. But what is the next stage?" His voice was surprisingly... normal. No hint of struggle and no catch in his voice to suggest he was faking it. It was almost as if he truly agreed with Decarius.

Decarius smiled as he got up, flicking his cape onto his back. He approached a circular ring on the ground with a metal column next to it. On the column was a control panel with many buttons and a touch screen interface. Decarius pressed one of the buttons and touched the screen a few times.

"Message sent." The little computer said in a mare's voice.

Decarius turned back to Maladus, who was sitting quietly on the chair as he watched the Legate approach.

"The next step? Ah, yes. I'm sure Autherius will have gotten the message. He simply has to contact Stable-Tec, after all."

My host twitched a bit more, as if it was the last bit of resistance he could give to... whatever this was. Decarius fished out one of the strange orbs from his robes and set it down on the table. After, he pulled out two folded golden wreaths from somewhere beneath his clothing and set it on the table as well. Finally, he pulled one of the drawers of the table and pulled out a silver head plate.

"You know how to assemble it and extract your memories, yes?" Decarius asked with similar childish anticipation. To his immense relief, Maladus responded.

"Yes, I remember." And he started placing the wreaths on the side of the helmet, after which the ring in the cup-like depression glowed. Afterwards, Maladus placed it onto his head and strapped it on. My host placed the orb in the dent, catching Decarius' smile turn a little more... devious, before all feeling left his body and his vision blurred to black.

ooooOOOOoooo

I woke up to Myst and Skyfire shaking me vigorously. I was laying on my side on the cold tiles of the lobby, next to the computer. The helmet with the orb was still on, thankfully. I can only imagine what would have happened if they cut me out of it.

Okay, so who was Maladus? Apparently, he was some old friend of Decarius or something. But what the hell happened in there? What was that ringing? What happened to my host? And who was Autherius? Oh, I seriously hoped that second orb might give some answers...

"Okay, he's awake!" Skyfire said with great relief, slumping against the boxy form of the computer.

"Oh, thank goodness! We thought you were gone for sure!" Myst admitted, and it was the first time I saw her seem tired. Really, she had NEVER seemed tired at all. But now she did, what with the sweat pouring down her face.

"Huh? Ugh, how long was I out?" Come on, shaking me wouldn't work up that much of a sweat. Not unless it was being done for hours, of course. Although, looking out the window, it was already dark.

"A whole hour." Myst replied, exhausted. Skyfire, on the other hoof, seemed quite pissed off as she smacked me behind the head. The fact that the helmet was still on and caused her to hurt herself more than me visibly agitated her further.

"Fuck, Goldwreath! What the hell were you thinking? You couldn't have told us what you were doing before you did it? Good thing Myst told me about that place upstairs, because I don't think she could have carried you the whole way on her own." She gave a little grunt as she shook her head and kicked the computer.

"Sorry about that, but when you find two orbs in a glass case and a weird helmet next to it, your curiosity kind of takes hold." It was a lame excuse, and I knew it. I really should have told them so they wouldn't be worried. Still, it's not like any of us died because of it, so I was sticking to my decision.

Skyfire scrunched her face up and shook it hard in frustration. She turned back to me, ripped off the helmet and hit me once on the head with it. It gave a metallic, bell-like 'pong' as it connected against my skull. The helmet didn't even dent.

"Ow, what the hell?! I understand you’re pissed but that's a bit too much, don't you think? That thing's harder than it looks..." I rubbed the top of my head. Skyfire was breathing heavily, but her pissed off expression fell away.

"Well, at least now we're even." She said it without accusation or anger as she tossed the helmet to the side and sat down next to me. "Just... don't do that again, okay? Or if you are, at least tell us. We are your friends, after all." Wait, friends? When did that happen? This mare had tried to kill me today (even if her attempt really sucked)!

"We are?" Myst asked, both shocked and confused. She was probably thinking the same thing as I was regarding this whole 'friend' thing. Skyfire caught both our looks of confusion, before she tried to explain herself.

"Uh... I mean... well, we are aren't we?" She asked with Myst-like anxiety as she grabbed a sack cloth and twisted it around in her hooves while she looked down. Myst and I looked between each other, both of us shocked. However, as if in perfect synch, the both of us smiled and Myst nodded. After, I spoke.

"I... guess so. I mean, we've all fought together, right? We've trusted each other this far, and we found we could count on each other... more or less. And we may not always agree, but we can still trust each other. Right, Myst?" I looked directly at her, and she nodded with a little smile on her face.

"Right. After all, uh... you two aren't, um... as... bad as I thought." She sounded uncertain of herself, and I raised one of my eyebrows at her. She gave a sheepish smile as I shook my head, a smile of my own on my face. I turned to Skyfire, who had looked up from her cloth.

"Right, Skyfire? We can trust each other, RIGHT?" I made sure to emphasize the last word so she would understand. She nodded, before saying her own piece.

"Well, yeah. Like Myst said, you two aren't as... uh... bad as the Enclave makes the surface sound." She paused for a moment, as if thinking of what else to say. "But don't think that I'm not going to be watching you two! I've still got my eye on you..." She closed one of her eyes while the other stared at me. I laughed aloud while Myst suppressed a giggle.

Great, I had friends. The first real friends I've made out here. I just hoped that we would stay as friends, no matter what we went through. Maybe Skyfire wanted to be friends to try to take her mind off of losing her life. And maybe Myst wanted to be friends for... whatever reason she could possibly have. But they were now my friends, and I would treat them as such. Try to, anyway.

"Alright then. So, have we got everything we need? Did we leave anything behind?" I looked around the lobby at the cloth bags filled with stuff. There were a total of four, more than we could carry. Unless...

"Well, I guess we should find out how that APC works..."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Nice one, genius," Skyfire said in perfect replication of her statement earlier. Okay, friend or not, that was the fifth time she had said that same line and it was getting pretty annoying. So I had crashed the APC into the building AGAIN. Controlling it wasn't easy, alright?

"Hey, you try piloting... uh, driving... ugh, controlling this thing! The controls are even more sensitive than the mare clits back in my Stable..." Okay, maybe that wasn't the most appropriate thing to say. I looked back at the two. Skyfire initially looked shocked before a devious smile crept onto her face. Myst, however, was blushing furiously as she pulled her hood up and covered her face with a hoof. "Uh, right. Back to this thing, then!" I said, hoping to quickly change the subject. I placed my hoof in the middle, which I had learned was good for stabilizing the vehicle. As it hovered in place, I tried racking my brain to find out just how to control this thing.

Okay, so the glossy black surface was used to control the vehicles height and direction. A lever-like mechanism next to that controlled it's speed. The vehicle could hover, but that didn't help because I couldn't figure out how to move it around without crashing it.

I tried spinning my hoof on the surface, hoping it might activate some special function that would help us out. Instead, it just made us spin before smashing into the building, again. The vehicle lost all control and we landed upside down on the ground. The vehicle's engines which were being pointed towards the sky continued to push us against the ground, and the sacks had spilled most of their contents everywhere. Everyone grunted and moaned from pain as we tried to get up. Skyfire, despite her pain, punched my helmet again.

"Nice one, gen-"

"I swear, if you say that again, I will personally give you steel-hooved physical therapy until your brain recovers from that crash." I looked around, and spotted a red button near the roof of the cockpit.

'FOR EMERGENCIES ONLY' It said, but I saw a little text on the side of the button: 'OR FOR REALLY BAD OPERATORS'

"Well, this is an emergency. And I am a really sucky operator, so..." I slammed the button, and immediately the vehicle went right side up and stayed still.

"Well, that's a useful feature. Now, let's try that again..." I was about to touch the black surface again, when a monotonous, female computer's voice sounded over the cockpit.

"I would prefer you do not touch the controls. I mean no offense, but you have already damaged this vehicle's outer plating and paint work. Not to mention, you are a really bad operator." What the fuck... Okay, weird shit levels are over nine thousand...

Skyfire immediately entered a combat stance, (even though her plasma rifles were out) before asking a series of questions I very much wanted to know the answers to.

"Who the hell are you? Where are you? And how do I kill you?" Okay, I'll admit, the last question was a little... blunt, to put it lightly.

The black surface also seemed to have mini speakers beneath it. And now that I looked at it, the glossy black surface itself had turned to an electronic red with a white line dashed across the middle. The computer's response was calm, despite being threatened with death by empty plasma rifles.

"I am this vehicle's A.T.A, short for Advanced Tactical AI, which stands for Artificial Intelligence. By request by a number of zebra troops, my platform, this vehicle, has been named 'Zaita' by the 4th Legion Centurion Deltris. I myself am located within the vehicle. I suppose you could say I am the vehicle, though that is not entirely accurate as I have control only over the vehicle's movement. Everything else, such as the turret, is user controlled." Skyfire looked at the waving line on the now-red surface while the vehicle spoke. Still suspicious, she asked more questions.

"Really? AI's huh? And just what makes you think we can trust you? You could lock us in here whenever you want, and you were made by damned zebras! What if you turn us over to the Legion or something?"

"Who?" Zaita asked, somehow sounding genuinely confused.

"You know, the Legion? Bunch of crazy zebras that practically own this place now? Been holding these ruins since a few months back? Aren't you a Legion vehicle?" Skyfire asked, now the one being slightly confused.

"Um, no. Wait, ruins? Hold on..."

The vehicle gave an electronic beep and an image appeared on the red surface. It was an image of the outside, except everything was tinged green. At least we could see everything clearly. As we watched, the image shifted to the side, then the other, focusing and zooming in on a recently made sign that read, 'FUCK THE LEGION!'

After a few seconds, the image disappeared, replaced by the red surface with the white line.

"Accessing Zebra Databanks to determine current situation of Roam... done." The AI kept quiet for a moment, and we waited. Skyfire decided to just sit down with the rest of us. Myst was nervously huddled in the corner of the vehicle, while I just sat there waiting for the vehicle's reaction.

"This is... a lot to take in. I am... surprised." The vehicle sounded, strangely, lost. Almost like me when I first got out of the Stable, but with much less emotion in her voice. Still, being lost myself, I knew it. It kind of freaked me out that I was able to tell the thoughts of a computer, though.

"I... have some questions. What happened, exactly? I understand there was a war, and that both the Zebra nation and our enemy Equestria were annihilated in a balefire exchange. But... but it says here that Legate Decarius was able to complete, and I quote, 'our salvation from destruction.' I... feel so lost..." Yeah, you're not the only one.

"And who has been maintaining and updating the databanks? There are entries here that were created just a week ago." The computer gave off a little purring sound as the screen was flooded with what must have been dozens of articles of information.

"My guess is the Legion. They've got computers from which we were able to access the Databanks. How they even have working units, I don't know." I answered. Seriously, how had they gotten working computers? I really doubted they had production facilities for that stuff.

Still, as interesting as this conversation was, we really had to go back to Conductor and tell him the job was done. But I really didn't want to upset to the AI of the vehicle that could probably lock us in here without any means to get out. So, I just waited.

And waited...

Finally, after more than twenty minutes of awkward silence, Zaita spoke up.

"And what are you three doing?" She asked, and it caught all of us by surprise. Partially because of the length of time where she didn't speak and partially because we didn't quite understand her question.

"Come again?" I asked, hoping to get a better, more specific version of that question.

"What are you three doing? Your goals? My programming has me wanting to protect the Zebra Nation from all threats. But that seems... pointless now." Was it just me, or did she sound... suicidal? Could machines be suicidal?

"And why do you need to know?" Skyfire asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes at the screen/interface where Zaita spoke from.

"Because without good purpose, my programming demands honorable self-destruction. But I do not want to be destroyed. And because I still want to protect this city. I...just don't know how." She admitted. Well, at least my previous question was answered. Still, I wasn't going to let an innocent (and extremely valuable) vehicle such as this destroy itself. And I really did need all the help I could get on this little 'quest' of mine.

'But is it really safe to tell her, uh... it?' I thought to myself. Sure, it sounded good enough, but what if it was just a hoax? What if it was with the Legion and was just going to trap us in here to choke and die?

'Yeah, even I think this is fishy.' Thought Tod, in one of the few instances where he seemed to be an actual part of my brain and not an annoying second mentality.

'Well, everyone already knows your goals, remember? It's not like the DJ hesitated to tell people what you've been doing.' Thought my other mentality. I had finally thought of a name for this guy, and that name was Tom. Tod and Tom. Great, I WAS going insane...

I looked from Skyfire to Myst, the former shaking her head in disagreement and the latter looking around with wide, cautious eyes. Well, it was still my decision to make. I just hoped this wouldn't come back to bite my flank...

"Okay, look. We are trying to stop the Legion. My own personal goal is to rebuild this place, but that's just ambition. Really, stopping the Legion before they do anything else is our goal as of the moment." She kept quiet for a moment, and I saw a small circle rotating on the edge of the screen. Next to it was a small text: 'Loading Valid Response'

"Could I accompany you?" Oh, ok-hey, wait, what?

"What?!" Myst and Skyfire asked in unison as they both approached the screen.

"What makes you think we need you around? We don't need some damned, talking APC hauling our asses across the wastes while..." Skyfire started ranting, but I seriously didn't want to hear it.

"Skyfire, that's enough. We have to face facts: we need transport. And we need all the help we can get if we're going to have a chance at taking the Legion down. Not to mention, I don't really think trotting around a city ourselves and getting into all sorts of deep shit like some crazy, drunken security pony is a good idea." Skyfire scowled at me, but seemed to see reason as she looked at the floor and gave a small frown. I turned to face the screen.

"Alright, Zaita. I'll give you a chance. Just... don't do anything that might bite us in the ass, alright? And I'm still watching you. If you do anything, I'll blast you to pieces with an anti-power armor shotgun." Hopefully, the threat of a loaded and combat-ready weapon might deter any moves this thing might make.

"Very well. And don't worry, I am loyal to my operators so long as they keep Roam's interests at heart. And, speaking of operators, what are your names?"

'Must I tell her... it? Ugh, her or it? Ah, never mind. Should I? It's not like our names could be called for an arrest warrant by a police department that was probably dead, anyway. Ah, what the heck?'

"My name is Goldwreath. This is Myst, and you've already met Skyfire." I pointed at the two, to which Zaita showed no reaction whatsoever.

"Goldwreath? That is a nice name. Sounds very zebra-like." I gave the machine a quizzical look. What the heck did that mean?

"What?" I asked, wondering how my name was 'zebra-like'. Weren't zebra names like Decarius, or Tekasho, or Autherius or something along those lines?

"Ah, never mind. It is not important. Now, where are we headed?"

"What do you mean 'where are we headed'?" Skyfire asked with whatever suspicion was left in her.

"I am capable of moving this vehicle around on my own. If there is somewhere we need to be, I can take us there." She responded, much to Skyfire's surprise.

"Woah, seriously? Well, that definitely cuts a lot of time off of travel. But I'm still watching you!" She pointed a hoof at the screen.

"Alright you two, that's enough. Zaita, could you take us to Via Oppidium? Road Town?" I asked, hoping she knew where it was.

"I am afraid I do not know its location. But I am able to follow directions." Well, at least I still remembered the way back...

"Alright, then. Let's go." And with that, the hovering APC turned around and glided down the streets.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Praetorian, Level Two -- If you can't lead by example, intimidate. Such have the praetorians of old lead their fellows in battle. All allies within your immediate area take 10% less damage, as well as move slightly faster.

Chapter 6 - Departure

View Online

Chapter 6
Departure
"Let's get this party started!"

It was several hours later when we had arrived back at Road Town. Now, I know what you're thinking: 'But Goldwreath, you were in the super-fast hovering, talking APC. How would you know what I'm thinking all the way out here in the ass-end of nowhere?' Nah, you probably weren't thinking that. Thing is, I guess I just didn't know the way back as well as I thought. Anyway...

Most of the town's residents were asleep, save for the guards and Conductor, who was still awaiting our return. We got out of the APC away from the town, after which Zaita started moving around the town slowly. I guess even AI's want to sate their curiosity. But I was still annoyed that we had to haul all of our salvage to his office ourselves.

As we sat down on the chairs before Conductor, we finally started speaking to each other.

"Well, what did you find out?" He asked nervously, sweat dripping off of him.

"Relax, Conductor. We got them all. And you were right; they were working with the Legion." Instead of calming down, he seemed more nervous than ever.

"Ah, okay. That's... that's good. A-are you sure you got them all?" Okay, something was up. I could smell it... or maybe that was just his sweat? Ick.

"Yes, I'm quite sure. We did a quick sweep of the area before we left. Nothing. Well, there was a group of bestials, but they ran off. Aside from that though, nothing." Seriously, I had thought this guy would be happy we did this for him. We had all nearly died doing this!

"Ah, ok. Good, good. And, uh... the vehicle?" Oh, so that's what he was nervous about!

"The vehicle is under control. Hopefully. It promised to help us out, at least. I just hope it keeps it's promise." Hopefully Zaita wouldn't betray us or something. It was kind of hard to imagine a machine being dishonest, but anything's possible.

Still, Conductor continued sweating profusely. He cupped his head in his hooves, not minding all the sweat on it. Okay, that's it. What was going on?

"Conductor? Is there something you're not telling me?" At that, he pulled his face away and looked at me straight in the eye. He looked to my other companions, before he gave a resigned sigh. He picked up a piece of paper and wiped his face with it before speaking again.

"Look, there's... something I need to tell you. Something happened while you were away." Okay, I did not like the sound of that. But I had been near death at least twice today, I could take it!

"What happened? Were you attacked?" Myst asked in concern. Of course. She had lived here, she should be concerned too. Skyfire, though, just kept quiet. Well, it was better than giving some wise-ass remark.

Conductor turned to Myst with a sad frown before answering, "No, thankfully. It was something else." He stopped and looked at me. "Something involving you." Me? What did I do? Did I accidentally kill someone or something? Oh, no... don't tell me Bane sang something about me that made me look bad. He made it up, whatever it was!

“And just what was it?” I asked, finding myself the focus of the conversation. I really hoped it wasn’t THAT bad…

“It’s… um… well… ugh, why isn’t this easy? I spent hours trying to prepare for this…” He trailed off, grabbing his head and shaking it hard. “Ok, look, there’s no easy way to say this so… so I’ll just say it.” He took in a deep breath, and continued. “You can’t stay here anymore.”

Whaaa--?

“What do you mean ‘he can’t stay here anymore’? This guy nearly got us killed, and nearly died himself, doing this! We come back after a few hours and find out we’re getting kicked out of here, how fucking wrong is that? Why, I’m gonna grab a pipe and shove it up your-” Skyfire started screaming, but I stopped her with a hoof.

“Enough, Skyfire. Conductor, you have some explaining to do. And I hope the reason is good.” I warned him, and he looked at me with an even more nervous expression than before. Still, despite looking like what Myst would be around twenty people, he managed to continue.

“Ugh, uh… look, the Legion came by earlier. They know we helped you out. They said if they see you with us one more time, they’re gonna wipe us off the streets. If they DON’T see you with us, there’s a small chance they might pardon us. It’s a small chance, but I need to take every chance I can to protect my people. I’m sorry.”

Well, as much as I was disappointed by Conductor and severely pissed off by the Legion, I guess I did have to leave at some point. And I didn’t really establish that much connection to Road Town, anyway. Really, the only ones here that I would miss if they stayed behind were Myst and Skyfire, and perhaps Kira. And, strange as it was, maybe even Bane. No matter how crappy his songs were.

“Well, that’s… some bad news.” I said, putting it lightly. Great, so where were we going to drop off all of this salvage? Zaita might have been able to carry it all, but I needed some caps. Kira might have been kind enough to trade for favors, but I doubted that many other merchants I might find would be.

“Oh, well, you don’t have to go now. You can take the load off here for the night. And I’m not ungrateful; there will be some recompense for your actions. You simply can’t come back here after you leave.” He said matter-of-factly, and somehow that eased me a bit. But I was still very much worried about what implications this might have on our preparedness for departure.

“Uh, thank you Conductor. W-we should go. Myst? Could we stay at your outpost again?” She nodded, and we excused ourselves from Conductor’s office as we started dragging our sacks of loot over to her outpost.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

“This is bullshit!” Skyfire yelled as she paced back and forth on the second floor of the building, where I was lying down on the same mattress as the nights before. Myst was still outside, where she was laying what seemed like more camouflaged explosives.

“Calm down, Skyfire. We’re not leaving yet, and we can still stay at most until noon tomorrow. That leaves us enough time to tie up any loose ends here.” I tried to make her see reason, but she continued pacing back and forth, muttering obscenities under her breath.

“Yeah, I know. But it’s just… I can’t believe how ungrateful they are! We nearly died several times over and they kick us out? Stupid, degrading, low-lifed-” I stopped her in mid-sentence, which seemed to be becoming a habit of mine whenever she spoke.

“It isn’t their fault, Skyfire. This is the Legion’s doing. Conductor’s just doing what he thinks is best for his people, and I can respect that. And they aren’t ungrateful, to some extent. We’re getting rewarded, at least.” She thought about that for a moment, but shook her head.

“It’s not really about that. It’s…well, uh, about…” She continued stammering, but I think I knew what she was talking trying to talk about.

“Your squad?” I said, and she stopped in her tracks before hanging her head low. Clearly, this was what she was trying to say, but she didn’t like it any more because of that.

“Yeah,” She said is a small, fragile, voice with a very uncharacteristic tone. She approached me and lay down next to me on the mattress. The move caught me off-guard as I involuntarily moved away a few inches.

“How do you handle it? You left your stable, lost your loved ones, and yet you willingly help out a town you haven’t even heard of before. And then when they kick you out, you take it so well. Just… how do you do it?” She asked, and I had a sense that she wasn’t quite feeling as put-together as she tried to show in most of her interactions with us. She certainly looked confused, too. Confused and lost.

“Well, I don’t really know. I mean, I lost my parents years ago and I’ve more or less gotten over it. My recent loss weighs much more heavily than the loss of my parents, actually. But, I suppose you could say I ‘handle it well’ because… well, I actually don’t know. Most of the time I just don’t think about it. And if you ask me, considering you lost everything over the span of just a day or two, you’re handling it better than I would have.” I meant what I said. I was lucky, losing all of that over the span of years. She had lost all of her life in just a day. If anything, I should be asking her how she wasn’t trying to commit suicide or something.

She took all of that in for a moment, looking at the mattress. Eventually, though, a thought seemed to reach her head. She turned to face me, and asked yet another question I didn’t quite want to answer.

“Why did you leave the stable, anyway?”

‘Well, I knew this was coming.’ I thought to myself. I took in a deep breath, and turned to face her.

“I didn’t want to leave, actually. Everything was more or less fine. Really, it was either leave, or die.” That seemed to stir her curiosity, and she asked even more questions.

“Die? Why would you have died? Did you do something?” I really didn’t like the questions she was asking, but it’s not like I could have gotten away from it at that point. Besides, I could tell she was looking for a source to get some comfort from, or maybe even looking for a distraction (which is what I was doing) from her current situation.

“Well, heheh, it’s a long story…” I started, but with yet another display of uncharacteristic behavior, she got closer to me and watched me with filly-like curiosity.

“TELL. ME. EVERYTHING.” She said the last word with such drone-like emphasis that I thought she might break open my head and steal my brain if I didn’t. So, I told her...

When I was done, it seemed that there were more questions for her to ask than questions I had answered. And, of course, the first she asked was…

“And did you kill them?” She asked with such interest that it kind of freaked me out. But, truth be told, I was a little insulted that she even asked.

“I told, you I didn’t. Why would I kill them, especially Lighthouse? He was like a father to me, and I had no reason whatsoever to kill any of them,” I responded, annoyed. This mare really needed to work on her listening skills. Maybe she really did need my steel-hooved therapy so she wouldn’t annoy me anymore.

“Alright, alright. And who do you think was the killer? Was it Bloodshot? Or… or maybe Harddri-…” I placed a hoof in her mouth, causing her to salivate all over it as she tried to speak. I, on the other hoof, was tired and just wanted to stop talking for now. I hadn’t completely gotten over the fact that I was forced from my stable, and I really didn’t want to be used merely as a distraction.

“That’s enough, Skyfire. I don’t know about you, but I’m tired. Maybe we can talk more about this tomorrow. And I expect to hear about your past as well.” At that, her eyes popped wide and she pulled my hoof out of her mouth.

“What? But…but I never agreed to that!” She protested, and all I did was grunt in annoyance.

“Fine, but just leave me alone for now. I can already feel my eyelids trying to close shut. And if you aren’t prepared to share even a bit of your past, don’t expect me to share more of mine. I don’t just give away information for free.” She put on an over-dramatic pout and widened her eyes to such a degree I thought they might have popped out of her sockets.

“Awww, but WHYYY?!” Ooow! Sheesh, for a fully grown mare she could sound like a really whiny foal when she wanted to! “I thought we were FRIENDS? Friends don’t keep secrets from each other!” She thumped me on the chest over and over, not realizing that I could turn her own words against her. I smirked as she hit the metal chest plates in futility, and that got her attention a bit.

“Exactly. And if you’re my friend, you’ll tell me your past. After all, friends don’t keep secrets from each other, right?” My smirk turned to a cocky smile at her dumbfounded expression.

“Yeah…but, but… I… you… you know… ah… UGH!” She stormed out of the room and stomped down the stairs, but I could tell her frustration would wear off soon.

My smile remained as I lay down on the mattress and muttered under my breath, while holding my hooves out in front of me as I faced the ceiling, “Mares. Can’t tolerate them, can’t live without them.” I lowered my hooves, unstrapped the helmet and placed it next to me, and closed my eyes.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I was inside of the APC, with Myst and Skyfire looking out the front window. We were speeding down a long road, Zaita automatically dodging any obstacles in the way. We seemed to be in a fairly open area, most likely a plain. What caught my attention, though, was the direction we were headed.

"Why are we headed to the mountains?" I asked, catching both Myst and Skyfire's confused looks.

"What do you mean? This was your idea!" She thumped my head, before tapping it twice as if to see if it was hollow or something. I pushed her hooves away with an annoyed growl, before looking back out the window.

We continued like this for several minutes, when the APC suddenly stopped. It didn't 'stop' as in hovering in place. It 'stopped' in the sense of completely shutting down. As the vehicle slid across the road, making a metallic screech as the metal scraped against the asphalt, all three of us were rocked around the interior. When the vehicle finally stopped, all the lights were dim. No response from the various buttons and interfaces.

"Zaita? What's going on?" Myst asked worriedly, her eyes darting to all directions in fright.

We tried to get out of the vehicle, but when I unlocked the hatch and was about to push it open, it locked again. I tried once more, the same thing. We turned to face the vehicle's interface, and we saw that power was restored. However, the screen wasn't Zaita's electronic red with white line across the middle. Rather, it was a sickly apple green all across the screen. An extremely rough, raspy, barely understandable whispery voice emanated from the speakers.

"ASSUMING DIRECT CONTROL." The voice rasped, and immediately the vehicle hovered at breakneck speeds toward the mountains. I tried using Tankbuster against the vehicle, but it still kept going. Myst was frantically shooting the lock with her rifle while Skyfire shouted out every possible variation of 'fucker' as she slammed her hooves on the controls again and again.

After more than a mere twenty seconds or so, we heard the loudest, most powerful, yet distant sounding 'BOOM!' any of us were likely to ever hear. All three of us rushed to the front window, and we saw an orange line with an ovular tip streaking across the sky, arcing visibly near the skies directly above us. As the oval approached, we watched the biggest bullet I ever saw as it quickly became larger and larger in our field of vision.

"WHAT THE FU-" Was all Skyfire managed to yell out before the bullet smashed into our APC and engulfed us in a fiery explosion.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I woke to the sound of plasma rifles firing, and to the faint humming of an engine. My heart was still racing from the dream, and I could even feel the heat of the explosion! Oh, wait, that was just the sun, coming in from the broken window.

Groggily, I picked myself and went downstairs. Before I did, though, I decided to find out what Myst liked so much about those biscuits.

"Oh-oh damn these are good!" I may have only placed the smashed remains of one into my mouth, but damn were they good. It had this awesome caramel-y taste that blended quite well with the melting-in-your-mouth nature of the flakes.

As I got down the stairs, I saw Myst looking out a window. I approached her, pouring the remaining flakes into my mouth.

"Hey. What's going on?" I greeted her, and she looked back at me with a surprised expression. What, had I sneaked up on her? My metal hoof-plates were still on, how could I have?

Those questions left my mind as she started speaking, in typical Myst fashion. "Oh, um, I hope you weren't disturbed from your sleep. Uh, Skyfire is...well... shooting things." Oh, no. Did she go all nuts again? Well, steel-hooved therapy it is...

"What's she shooting, and with what?" Despite my thoughts being elsewhere, I suppose my body's involuntary reflexes got that out first. I sighed as I scrapped whatever thoughts of beating the living shit out of her I had.

'Relax, Goldwreath. Don't you think if Skyfire went nuts Myst would've done something about it?' Thought Tom. Well, I guess that was true.

"Oh, she got her plasma rifles working again. Did something with Zaita that powered the batteries. I don't know the specifics, though. You should ask her." And with that, she trotted off to her trap door and went underneath.

I opened the door to the outside and nearly got blinded as my eyes adjusted to the morning sun's brightness. The early rays of the sun stabbed in-between the buildings, which made clear all of the dust that was floating around. I stepped out and started making my way to Skyfire. As I crunched pebbles beneath my hooves, I could hear the two talking about the pegasus mare's energy weapons.

"Do you not think that perhaps you should lower the fire rate of that one and also lower the energy output of the other? From what you have told me, I believe that is one of the main reasons you ran out quickly last time." Zaita was hovering about a meter from the pegasus, who was facing a building with many melted holes in it's wall. I was actually kind of surprised; I didn't know Zaita could speak to us while we were outside.

"Yeah, yeah. You sound just like Cometcaller. She always said that I should 'equalize my firing rate'. Thing is, I use these two for different situations, like I use Sally for... Oh, look who's up," She said as she saw my approach. She and Zaita both turned to face me.

"Good morning, you two. Now I have a few questions. One, how can you speak to us? I thought you could only do that if we were on the inside. And two, how'd you get those things working again?" I asked Zaita and Skyfire, respectively. Zaita was the first to answer.

"The Series 3 Harpy APC came with various improvements over the previous models. One such improvement are the speakers hidden beneath the armor plates that allow the A.T.A's of the vehicles to communicate with the soldiers. It was an improvement that would have helped the zebras fight off the Equestrians, had we been deployed sooner." She responded in that computerized voice of hers. Immediately afterwards, Skyfire began speaking.

"Yeah. Uhuh. Cool story, sis. Boring stuff aside, she comes with a recharging station that was meant to be used by the energy-wielding zebra soldiers. That's how I got these things to work." She showed off her twin plasma rifles with that typical over confident smile of hers.

"Yes, but the energy supply of the recharging station is limited, and was meant to be used only in emergency situations. If you keep this up, the supply will run out and I will have to obtain more power from the vehicle itself. And that will hamper performance," Zaita warned, but Skyfire just waved it off with an un-caring look on her face.

"Yeah, I got it. I'll just be more careful. Sheesh, can't a mare be happy her favorite guns are working again?" She resumed trying to hit a small bottle near the wall, while Zaita turned to watch her performance. Myst came back out, eating a biscuit and dragging two sacks behind her.

"Um... Zaita? I need to put these inside." She said meekly, but the APC heard and it approached. Myst climbed onto the vehicle and placed the sacks inside, somewhere. When she came back down, she looked... sad.

"Something wrong, Myst?" I asked, feeling a bit worried about her. Sure she seemed like a mare made of pure anxiety, but she could feel other emotions, too.

"No... it's just... well, I'll miss this place when we leave," She said as she hung her head.

Leave? What was she talking about? "Wait, you're coming with us?!" I asked, baffled. I mean, I knew she was my 'friend' and all, but didn't she, like, live here? Didn't she have other things to stay here for? My question seemed to shock her as well, and she looked up at me with glossy eyes.

"D-don't you want me to come?" She asked, seeming on the verge of crying.

'Oh, shit. Come on, think think... what would Captain Equestria do?' I ran through my head to come up with a valid response. Ugh, I felt like Zaita with that weird 'Loading Valid Response' circle of hers. Finally, though, I managed to get my words out.

"Oh, no I didn't mean I don't want you with us. I mean, isn't this place your home? Don't you have friends here that you should stay for? Any loose end that's keeping you here?" I asked, and she shook her head as she closed her eyes, a few tears streaking down her face.

"N-no. My only friend here is Kira, and she's the only one I'll have to say goodbye to. Conductor will probably be disappointed, but I'll convince him to let me go with you. This was... a hard decision. Please, I don't really want to talk about it." She said before she climbed back onto the vehicle and entered. I could see her huddle in the corner through the front window, shutting her eyes tight. I sighed, and saw a little reflection of sunlight near the roof-plates of the APC. There was a little camera looking at me.

"She lives here?" Zaita asked.

"LIVED here is more like it. I'm kind of surprised, really. I had spent about only one day with her and suddenly she's willing to leave her home to come with me? Who am I to influence her to do that?" I asked, still disbelieving. The camera focused on me for a little while, before looking back at Skyfire.

"I will...talk to her. I do not know why, but she seems... similar. Like she had been with me before. It is strange. I will attempt to comfort her and solve this mystery at the same time. Excuse me." I didn't really think that was a good idea, and was about to tell her as much when the vehicle beeped. Immediately, I saw Myst jerk her head to face the screen. They were having a private conversation.

I sighed as I turned back to face Skyfire, who had almost hit the bottle twice before I interrupted her.

"So, what about you?" I asked, much to her dismay. She reluctantly eased her jaw from the trigger before she turned her rifles away from the bottle and faced me.

"What about me?" She asked, seeming genuinely confused as to what I meant.

"You know... are you coming with me?" Her eyes nearly popped out of her eye sockets at my question, and she tilted her head before she nearly yelled out her response.

"Of course I'm coming with you! Those Legion rats still have to pay, and it's not like I have anything else to do right now. Why do you even need to ask? Do you doubt me?" She asked the questions as if she were insulted, but I could almost feel the drama she put into it to make it SOUND authentic.

"You don't have any loose ends? Anything to... take care of?" I asked, but she just snorted before turning back to her target. Despite seeming like she wouldn't answer, she still did.

"The only thing here I have to take care of is saying goodbye to my team. Other than that, no." She remained quiet for a moment, seeming to think about something. "Wait, you said we could stay until noon, right? What time is it?" I checked my pipbuck.

"It's ten-thirty. Relax, we still have time. But, I guess we really should go now..." I started, but by 'I guess' she had already charged up onto the APC.

"Of course we should go! An hour and a half is the least my team deserves. And I highly doubt Myst talking to Kira will take just a few minutes. Those two probably won't even say a word to each other. Now, why, ugh, won't this open?" She grunted as she frantically pulled the hatch. We heard a small click, and the door swung wide open, sending Skyfire flying through the air before she landed on the rear of the APC. I smirked at her as I climbed onto the hovering, wheel-less vehicle.

"Myst, did we leave anything inside?" I asked through the open hatch, and she looked up at me before shaking her head.

"Alright, good. Skyfire, get up. Zaita, bring us to Road Town."

"Very well." Skyfire had barely gotten in when the APC started speeding down the road.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I was trotting around the town one final time, while Myst had gone off to say goodbye to Kira and Skyfire went over to the medical station. The place was bustling with activity, with the guards and the residents walking around as if nothing happened to them in the past few days. A few, though, just sat on their doorsteps and looked sadly at the ground. I reminded myself of those bodies I saw in the medical station. Finding myself not wanting to get our reward just yet, I went over to the bar. There seemed to be a little commotion going on inside. Getting close to the door, I pushed it open.

Bane was crying like a foal and drinking a bottle of beer at the same time. All around his table were probably two dozen empty bottles. Everyone in the bar was either trying to comfort him, minding their own business, or looking at me. I could feel all the eyes on me as I approached the blue pony, and judging from how wet the area was, he had probably been crying like this for at least an hour.

"What's going on here?" I asked one of the zebras who was trying to just mind her own business. She looked at me with a sad smile, and took a gulp of her drink before she answered.

"He heard that you were leaving, and he's been crying like a little colt since. He's been trying to drown it out with alcohol since early this morning, when Conductor announced you would be leaving. I'm surprised this stallion hasn't died of intoxication yet. Or dehydration, from how much he's cried." She answered.

'Yeah, I wonder that too. This guy should be dead.' I thought.

"Really? And has anyone been able to get through to him since?" I asked, worried. I was also quite disturbed, and confused, as to how a drunken pony whom I spent less than twenty minutes with in total with could be crying like this. The mare just closed her eyes, and shook her head.

"No. And he's most likely going to continue like this for the next day or so. Honestly, though, that isn't much." What?

"What do you mean? Crying for two days 'isn't much'? Then what is?" The mare replaced her sad smile with a fond smirk.

"Oh, this is nothing. You should have seen the time when he found out the day's supply of beer was out. He cried like a damned river while running across the whole town yelling for his mommy! Haha, he even disappeared for two days before the guards found him threatening suicide! It was an absolute nightmare. Luckily, we snapped him out of it when we told him the supply was restocked." She laughed a little, as if the memory was a happy moment. "Still, even if his... eh, 'cutie mark' is a beer can, I don't see how anyone can survive drinking as much as him." Wait, his cutie mark was a beer can? I looked over and saw it: an open beer can with the foam spilling out over one side.

I shook my head, refocusing on the problem, and sighed. "Well, I guess I should get him out of it, then."

I trotted the short distance to his table, and everyone moved to let me through. Bane was face-down on the table, sobbing as he held his beer can. As I watched him cry, he lifted his face up and took a gigantic gulp that I was pretty sure everyone heard. As he was about to place his face back down, he spotted me and momentarily stopped crying.

"Hey there, uh... buddy." I seriously didn't know how to deal with this situation. I just hoped that trying to appeal to him would snap him out of this sooner. He sniffed and wiped his face while everyone backed off, leaving me to deal with him alone. "So, what are you doi-..." I started, before he suddenly grabbed me and pulled me close. Despite the weight of all the stuff I was carrying and him being drunk, he was astonishingly strong. He held me close like a foal would a teddy bear.

"Please don't go, dude! Who'll drink with me if you go?" He asked aloud, much to everyone's confusion. From their expressions, they had all probably drunk with him and didn't know what the hell he was talking about.

"Uh, Bane..." I started, but he cut me off again.

"I mean, I only knew you for like two days, but you have since been a role model to me. You have taught me the true meaning of friendship, and I will never forget it!" Okay, what? Either that was him being drunk, or I had really taught him an important lesson (which I highly doubted).

"Bane..." I tried again, and yet again he cut me off.

"And no matter what anyone says, I will always revere you, my friend. When I make my pilgrimage to Mount Alcoholus, I will toast with Celestia and we will drink to your good fortune. But it won't be the same if you can't come with me!" Some people in the crowd face-hoofed, while others looked even more confused than before.

“Bane,” I tried again, a bit more forceful this time. Still, he continued.

“And despite the mistakes you have made, which I do not know what they are, you will always be a hero! A true paragon of bravery, courage, sacrif-“ Okay, this was really enough. More out of necessity than being annoyed, I smacked him across the face again.

“Bane, snap out of it!” He just stared wide eyed at the ground, before slowly turning his head to face me. He started smiling again, and he tried to continue talking.

He cleared hos throat. “Where was I? Oh, oh yes! Sacrifice, leadership-“ I smacked him again, causing him to fall off the chair and spilling his beer across the floor. Everyone stared at the scene, most seeming glad his ranting was over while a few simply didn’t quite care. Bane got up, and when he did there was a similar drunken smile on his face. His eyes started going in different directions, and drool dripped over the side of his mouth. Just like last time, he fell back down, unconscious.

“Don’t worry, he tends to forget what happened after something like this. And don’t mind all of that ranting he did. He’s a bit overdramatic when he’s drunk,” The zebra mare said as several of the guards started dragging him away again.

“Really? Well, that’s good. I don’t want him to remember me smacking him again. And is he EVER sober?” Judging from the amount of beer this guy drank, I highly doubted it. Still, to my shock, the mare nodded.

“Oh yes. He tends to be sober at most once a week. He forgets most of the stuff that happened while he was drunk, so I don’t think he’ll even remember you. If he does, we’ll just tell him it was all a dream,” She assured me, and I relaxed. Okay, good. Because I did not want him crying like this again when he woke up and I was gone.

After most of the patrons thanked and/or congratulated me, and after I had gotten a complimentary drink of the Wild Pegasus whiskey, I departed the bar. Feeling a little unsteady from the alcohol I had drunk, I made sure to grab onto anything I could as I stumbled across the street.

Amid all of my dazed vision, I could make out Skyfire in the fissure that was the town’s medical station. I don’t know if my eyes were tricking me, but she was standing on both hindlegs with one foreleg in the air and the other on her chest, almost like she was making a vow or something.

After a few minutes of slowly regaining my hoofing, I made my way to the store next. Myst had taken the liberty of bringing all of our sacks of loot with her earlier, and I wanted to see what she was doing. Despite Skyfire’s words, both mares stood there staring at each other as they spoke. Myst occasionally pulled out something from one of the sacks and Kira gave some caps in exchange. Both had tears streaking down their faces, but that was the only real sign of sadness as both had the same poker-faced and wide-eyed expression.

In a display of extreme bravery in the face of their truly ridiculous case of social discomfort, both mares tentatively approached each other and gave each other an unsure embrace. From inside, Kira saw me through the window. Just like yesterday, her eyes became as small as grains of sand.

Leaving the two to their goodbyes, and finding myself without anything else to do, I sat down on a plank of wood near the center of town. I watched as the residents trotted by, some kind enough to wish me luck. A small crowd was gathering near the sky tank, which Conductor was standing on. I couldn’t hear what he was saying, but I could see some residents placing something into a large box.

With nothing left that I could see that was interesting, I placed my back onto a fallen concrete pillar. Feeling bored, and being prematurely awoken earlier, I dozed off and fell asleep.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

“…he do this often?” A stallion’s voice asked. My hearing was a little muffled while my vision was blurry.

In reply, a mare’s voice responded, “Not ‘often’, though yesterday he did go into some weird orb thing. Had to shake him for an hour to get him up.” I felt by body being shaken softly, and I actually almost didn’t register it. In an annoyed tone, the mare spoke up again. “Myst, you aren’t going to get him up like that. You have to be a bit more forceful.” Just as my brain registered that last word, and my eyes shot open in response, Skyfire banged a rock against my helmet and my ears rang for a few more seconds from the strike. I jumped up, and took the helmet off to rub my ears.

“Gah, what the hell is wrong with you? I understand you’re upset about YOUR brain being damaged, but that doesn’t mean you have to damage mine!” I said as I rubbed my temples. Skyfire smirked, while Conductor, Myst, the doctor, and a few more residents stood around me. Somewhere behind the crowd, Zaita hovered up to look at Conductor’s office in the second floor of the building before hovering back down.

“Oh, um, I’m sorry about that, Goldwreath. But, ah, you see…” Myst started, but Skyfire took over the conversation.

“Yeah, yeah, enough talk. Just get off your flank. We’ve been organizing things around here while you slept like prince charming.” She said, and I found her choice of words… interesting.

“You think I’m charming?” I asked, my brain still waking up from my nap. At my question, Skyfire’s cheeks blushed a rosy red while she looked at me with an annoyed expression. Conductor and Myst looked at her, but she covered her face just in time as an extremely timely cough came out of her mouth.

“What?! No, of course not! I mean, sure you look OKAY, but you’re not ‘charming’.” I raised an eyebrow at her, as did Conductor. Catching both our looks, she tried to defend herself. “I…well, it’s…you know. It’s-it’s a figure of speech, okay?” She turned and trotted away, muttering something about how ‘uneducated’ surface ponies were in the Equestrian language. Conductor shook his head, and approached me.

“What she was going to say was that they have prepared for your departure. Your… 'vehicle' is soon to be loaded with our ‘thank you’ box, and I will give a small speech before you go.” He looked down at his hooves sadly, while Myst had decided to go after Skyfire.

“I am sorry we have to do this. But, as I said, I need to take every chance I can get to protect my people,” He said after a while, but I didn’t need to hear that. I had already thought about and accepted this ‘eviction’. After all, we had to leave soon anyway. And, judging from where we would be going, it’s not like we would get a chance to come back.

“No need to apologize, Conductor. I understand your intentions. I don’t blame you. I’m not devastated with leaving. On the other hoof, Myst has something she needs to tell you.” His eyes widened a bit, and he looked to the sides in thought.

“I don’t really like the sound of that. It sounds… foreboding. Well, I should go ask her about that then. I’ll meet you two over near the Sky tank.” He trotted off after Myst, looking slightly worried. I Wanted to try to catch any more expressions on his face, but he turned and I instead found myself looking at his flank. It was then that I noticed something about him…

“You’re a blank-flank?!” I asked in shock. He was a fully grown stallion! How could someone like him be a blank-flank? What, he's been like this his whole life and didn't get to do anything else? His eyes became large at my question, but they shrank back to a normal size as he turned to face me.

"Ah, I... see you finally noticed. I was kind of hoping this would slip, but..." He sighed, looking at the ground and shaking his head. "Well, it's just that, here in Road Town, you kind of become what your parents were. In my case, my dad was the town's leader, and so am I because of that. My mom was just a resident, so I didn't get a choice. I haven't really gotten to try anything else." He looked sad, as if longing to find out what his cutie mark was. Still, that didn't quite make sense...

"But where I come from, the same policy is implemented. I know ponies who've done nothing but their appointed jobs their whole lives and yet gotten their cutie mark. I mean, surely you've been able to do SOMETHING else around here. Haven't you?" His grim expression told me no, as did his head shake a few seconds later.

"I'm afraid not. I've been able to do nothing but this since I was old enough to speak. Well, I just helped my dad out until he died. Mom couldn't take it and disappeared one day, leaving it to me. I never got a chance to do anything else for more than an hour aside from sleeping or eating. And talking, of course." He responded, and I shook my head in disbelief. Really? Nothing at all? Wow, that really sucked. And I thought I had it bad with my cutie mark...

"That's... horrible," I said, hoping to comfort him in one way or another.

He smiled, an insincere and unhappy smile, before speaking again. "Well, it isn't all bad. At least I get to provide my people with the safety and freedom they need to actually LIVE and not just SURVIVE. If everyone else here could do nothing aside from what they were supposed to do, it would be boring as hell and I would've committed suicide long ago." Well, at least he had something to live for. But, I had one more question...

"Wait, you said that the descendants of someone will take up their jobs when they die. Do you have any descendants?" He seemed particularly troubled by that question, and I felt like I shouldn't have asked. Still, despite looking on the verge of tears himself, he was able to continue.

"Not yet. I'm still looking for... a suitable partner. It isn't easy here, with the Legion and the wildlife and the other threats that I have to spend all of my time thinking about. But I'll find one. Eventually." He took a deep breath, and as he exhaled his breath shuddered. It was probably a really sensitive topic for him.

"Anyway, I really should find Myst before she disappears again. She's good at that, I don't know how she does it." He trotted off, and I decided to wait for them near the sky tank.

Most of the crowd was gathered around the fallen vehicle, while Zaita hovered close to it, her camera pointing down at the busted tank. Most of the residents seemed more interested in the floating APC than the dormant tank, and from their whispers and muttering I could tell that they were either curious, afraid, or amazed by our transport. I trotted around the tank, and Zaita's camera turned to face me.

"Zaita, what are you doing?" I asked, both curious and partially annoyed by the never-ending, pulsating 'hum' that her engine gave off.

"The Harpy class APC was designed as a rival to the equestrian sky tanks. Not in firepower, not in flying capability, but maneuverability. The sky tanks were untouchable, for the most part, in the skies. But on the ground, that was a whole different story. The Series 1 and 2 did fine, but the Series 3 was never deployed properly. It is quite likely that I am the only S3 Harpy to face a sky tank. I am simply observing it. I am...curious." With that, her camera turned back to the tank. So, she could be curious too? Well, that's definitely one really well-developed AI.

Turning my attention away from her and instead to the crowd, I sat down in front of the rear-end of the tank. Somewhere off to the side, Myst was talking to Conductor while Skyfire just looked completely bored. Kira was within the crowd, and Bane was looking around drunkenly from the bench he was lying down on.

After a while, Conductor's conversation with Myst was over. He looked at me with an expression I couldn't quite tell the orientation of as he approached me. Skyfire seemed be just going with the motions as she followed up behind him. In stark contrast to the relatively calm and composed demeanor of the two, Myst was sweating like she had just taken a shower. As the three got close to me, Conductor taking his place in front of the tank while my friends stood next to me, Zaita broke away from her observation and hovered several meters above us.

"Everyone, please settle down. It is time to say goodbye to our most beloved guests." Everyone shushed, and eventually silence was all that remained. Myst seemed to be getting more nervous with each passing second, while Skyfire simply didn't care any more.

"Our guests, who have, without even hearing of us before, lent us aid in our time of need. This brave pegasus, who appeared seemingly out of nowhere just less than five days ago, who should be ever-welcome in our town, is leaving. And though it pains me to do so, I must say that it is I who is asking him, after all his efforts, to leave." He paused for a moment, closing his eyes and sighing, before he continued.

"And I am both saddened and joyful to know that he will not be going alone. Just two days ago, this other pegasus, who we initially thought was hostile, will be accompanying him. They will be going into the city within this... amazing piece of engineering." He looked up at Zaita together with the majority of the crowd. Zaita dipped her front end down, just enough to see the crowd.

"You flatter me. I am nothing special. Now, you should see the Omni series of tanks. Those were amazing pieces of engineering." She responded, placing a look of confusion onto everyone's faces, including mine.

"Uh...yes, I... see..." He cleared his throat. "Ah yes. And, thanks to all of your generous contributions, I am even more glad to say that he and his compatriots will be going in well supplied. I know that some of you may not want him to leave. Indeed, some of you have been... very loud in protest." He looked at Bane, who was finally sober enough to look back. Still, the only thing he did was look at me and sniff.

"And, unfortunately, there is... yet another we are going to lose aside from these two." Everyone paid closer attention. Myst's eyes shrank to an even more amazing size that Kira's sand grain size. They were almost invisible, even from my fairly close position near her. Once he had taken in a few deep breaths, Conductor continued.

"One of our excellent guard ponies, who has been with us for as long as I can remember, will be going with him as well. I think most of you can already guess who it is." Some people in the crowd started to think, but most looked either surprised or uncomfortable. A few looked like they already knew and had accepted it.

"For those of you who have no idea, and to confirm for those who do, I will say who it is. Truly, I never quite expected that MYST, the quiet and shy mare who has served as our town's sniper for little over three years, would be going with the Praetorian on his mission." The crowd started to respond, most seeming... okay with the decision. Some looked angry while others even voiced their protest. The rest either looked either saddened or approving. Conductor silenced them, stomping on a piece of sheet metal beneath his hooves.

"I understand that this seems... quite a lot. I myself was surprised to hear her say that she would be leaving. But it is her decision, and I personally believe she will be able to do more if she accompanies this stallion on his quest. In less than a day, these three managed to wipe out the greatest immediate threat we have faced in the whole month. I think that alone is all we need to know what these people will be capable of." Some of those assembled grumbled, but most seemed to accept that, more or less. Bane sniffed more, just loud enough to be audible from my position. Kira seemed to be trying her best to suppress her tears.

"And now, without further delay, the Praetorian and his company will now depart from Road Town. Hopefully, one day they will be able to return and under better circumstances." Upon hearing those words, Zaita lowered herself and she touched the ground. The three of us approached, one of the guards helping me bring in the supply box the town had given us. As Myst and Skyfire entered, I took one last look at the people assembled before me. In general, most looked hopeful and happy, while a few still seemed a little sour from the news. Well, there was nothing I could do to change their minds about that now.

Feeling like I was tearing myself away from the people of the town, I turned around and entered the APC. The two were both looking out the window, Skyfire looking towards the medical station while Myst looked over the whole crowd. From my view, I could see that Bane was crying again. Well, so much for forgetting about me after he became sober.

The APC started to lift, and the crowd began waving us goodbye. Conductor looked up at me, Kira right next to him. She couldn't hold in her tears anymore, and she relied on Conductor's coat to muffle her sobs. Conductor looked shocked, but slowly drew up a hoof and wrapped it around the mare's head. She looked up at him, as if she herself was surprised to be comforted like this. Next to me, Myst started to cry as well.

"So, where now, Goldwreath?" Zaita asked. Myst couldn't seem to bear being with us right now, so she made her way to the back of the cockpit and cried quietly in the corner. I felt like I should have been helping her get through this, but I didn't quite know how to deal with people like this.

'Ugh, I really should have read that issue where Captain Equestria comforted the zebra POW's...' I thought to myself.

"How long will it take to reach the Forum, Zaita?" I asked.

"Roam was, and still is, a very large city. In better times, it would take at least a whole day to get there from where we are. Now, amidst all the destruction and blocked passage ways, it will most likely take three days. My engines are not powerful enough to hover over the buildings, unfortunately. This is exactly why the legates always took their personal high speed transports." Three days? It would take that long? And that was if we weren't distracted the trip.

'Well, it'll give me a lot of time to think.' I thought.

'Exactly, and you should use that time wisely.' Thought Tom, whose opinion I completely agreed with.

'Or, you know, have some fun with these mares.' Oh, what the fuck, Tod? I may have been... 'interested' in them both at one point, but I was not going to do that!

"Well, we'd better get started then." I said, hoping to distract myself from the debate going on in my head. Seriously, how could Tod be an actual part of my brain? He seemed more like a mutated tissue that had shit smothered over it than an actual part of me.

"Very well. I will play some ambient music to make the trip less awkward." Zaita said, and immediately an extremely repetitive tune that very much resembled the type of music you would hear in waiting rooms started to play. I took a look at the screen.

'Elevator #1 Playing. 2574 more with the title 'Elevator' in playlist.' Ugh, great. And from the look of it, 'Elevator #1' was... ten minutes long. Ugh...

"Yeah, uh, cool. Can we start moving now? This place is depressing me." Skyfire said as she took one last look at the medical station, before sitting on one of the seats on the left side of the vehicle.

"Very well." And then, just like that, we had left Road Town and started our long trip to the Forum. I would realize only later how much more complicated the trip would be.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Thick-Headed - - Your bones (and especially skull) have been hardened from your experiences in the wasteland. Your limbs take 10% less damage.

Chapter 7- Crossing the Gap

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Chapter 7
Crossing the Gap
"It. Is. On."

We had spent the last three hours hovering down the road. There was absolutely no noise for that entire duration, save tracks ‘Elevator #1’ to ‘Elevator #57’ and Zaita’s ever-present humming engine. The noise was extremely similar to my stable’s ever present humming, though this was significantly more noticeable. Neither Myst nor Skyfire had spoken, the former looking forlorn and lonely in her corner and the latter snoring loudly as she lay down on the seats.

Despite the obvious fact that no one wanted to talk, the music was actually making the trip even more uncomfortable than less. It was supposed to be adding a little life to the trip, but instead it was filling the minutes with an unchanging cycle of seemingly endless electronic beeps and sounds. I needed to take myself away from the uncomfortable trope of elevator music and silent companions, so I decided to use one of my many conversation starters.

“So, Zaita, how far are we from the Forum?” It wasn’t my best conversation starter, but it seemed to be a sensible enough question. Both Skyfire and Myst were incapable, and unknowing, of the answer. And I didn’t really expect them to answer anyway, as it was Zaita who spoke up first.

“The Forum is an approximate 189 miles from our location, about a third of the distance to Equestria. Should we not be distracted, it will take, as I said, three days. However, my calculations say that we have a staggering 78% chance of being sidetracked. Further calculations have determined the local populace to be the greatest threat, next to the Legion.” She answered in that computerized, devoid of the zebra accent voice of hers.

Considering that I really didn’t want to stop talking just yet, and because I decided I needed to learn more about the place before we got there, I decided to ask more questions.

“Zaita, what is the Forum, anyway? Could you give me a description, as well as some visual aids?” I asked, causing Myst to look at me from her corner. Her eyes were still puffy from her sobbing, but she seemed at least somewhat interested in the topic. Perhaps she needed some distraction from her situation, just like Skyfire.

“Very well.” Was all she said. A few moments later, the electronic red surface was replaced by a group of images showing a wide and very tall circular structure with a tower rising from the middle. The overall color of the structure was a polished white, but the brightly colored banners and the zebra honor guards gave it a feeling of life.

“The Roaman Forum was the central seat of the Zebra Nation’s government. It was where the Caesar and the legates would meet, as well as being the Caesar’s home. It was also the cultural center of the city, being where most festivities and celebrations were held.” An image of a parade marching down the streets with a hovering vehicle above the crowd appeared, showing off the bright, warm colors of the city as the sun’s light reflected off the different surfaces.

“Before the war, it also served as the economic center of the nation, acting as a bank of sorts. However, that was changed when the war broke out and the funds were instead transferred to the accounts of trusted legates. These legates, however, could only use said money if they obtained the Caesar’s permission.” She continued. So, it was some sort of bank? I bet they had a lot of security for that much money to be held in just one location safely.

“During the war, the Forum was attacked a few times. The first was an experimental Equestrian stealth craft that we managed to spot just in time before it dropped a balefire explosive on the Forum. The second was an Equestrian special forces team that was snuck in by traitors. Both of these attempts were foiled by a combination of the security forces, the ZIB, or Zebra Intelligence Bureau, and a special operations team,” She continued.

“Equestrian stealth craft? Wasn’t it the zebras who had mastered stealth technology, and not the Equestrians?” I queried as an image of a crashed, sleek, sky blue plane popped onto the screen.

“Yes, we did. However, the Equestrians stole stealth tech from us as retaliation to our obtaining of their balefire megaspell matrix. Ever since, they’ve utilized it against us to some effect. Luckily, we still knew our own tech better than they did.” Oh, okay. But that leaves one question in my mind…

“How did the zebras get balefire megaspells, anyway? Weren’t they an Equestrian invention? What, did the zebras steal it or did the ponies just give it away or something?” I asked, and that ‘loading valid response’ circle appeared on the screen. After a while, the APC answered.

“The only files I have on that subject say that Legate Decarius obtained their megaspell matrix. I understand it brought him all the way up as the Caesar’s most beloved legate. However, the files I have access to say that he had simply obtained them, no explanation. Apparently, the Caesar and the rest of the nation were simply too relieved to care. After all, they had obtained their enemy’s one big edge over us. And, against a quickly revolutionizing Equestrian military, such a tremendous find was welcomed completely.” That’s it? He just ‘obtained’ them? My head was starting to ache from the amount of questions that was piling up...

We were passing under a massive monument, held aloft by intricate pillars at least a hundred feet high. The monument itself was a gigantic dome with a small, circular opening in the middle that allowed us to see the afternoon sky through it. The whole monument covered an area of several hundred meters; an area that was flat and, for the most part, looked like it had once been some sort of park. It was probably something else, but the stone walkways we were hovering over that went all the way to the center of the area seemed to suggest it was. The center, where the walkways intersected, was lit by an orange afternoon light coming down from a circular hole in the ceiling directly above.

“What is this place?” Myst asked as she stepped up behind me. I wanted to know as well, but even Zaita wasn’t fast enough to answer before my pipbuck did. The sound of a cash register opening played from my device, and I saw the little notification on the corner:

‘Oculus Roamae Discovered’ it said.

“We are at the Oculus of Roam; one of the great monuments constructed by Roaman engineers in the ancient days. The original was made of stone, which was beginning to crumble about two decades before the war. The Caesar ordered that the monument be reinforced and that a second layer be constructed above and below the original. I myself am surprised it has lasted this long, considering the size and weight of the structure.” Well, add this place to the list places I'll visit again if I have time. I wondered how long it took to make this thing.

Turning my attention away from Zaita to Myst, whom I now wanted to engage in conversation, I faced the still sad looking mare. In response, she cringed away from me with wide eyes, as if afraid I might attack her (or do 'other things' that Tod suggested). She seriously needed to get some more confidence.

"Myst, do you want to talk about it?" I asked, and my question caused her to shake her head vigorously. "Are you sure? You certainly seem like you need to be talked to." I added, and again she shook her head. She started back to her corner, turning her head back to face me before she responded.

"No, I'm fine. I just need some time to get over it. Thanks anyway." With that, she huddled back into the corner of the vehicle, making a little noise as she accidentally bumped the box of supplies Road Town had given us. The noise caused Skyfire to shift to face Myst, who responded with ducking even lower. Luckily, Skyfire was a pretty deep sleeper. I shook my head, and turned back to the AI.

"So, what did you two talk about?" I asked quietly, and I saw a logo of a speaker with numbers below it appear in the bottom left corner of the screen. The numbers went from one hundred to twenty, and then Zaita answered.

"I attempted to find out why I thought she was with me before, to which I was not able to form a conclusion. After, I decided to try and comfort her on leaving her home to join you," She said.

"And what did she say?" I asked, hoping that Myst's response might be able to help me start a conversation with her later.

"The same thing she said to you just now." I sighed. Well, that was Myst; sharing as little as possible and keeping quiet.

Well, I didn't know what to do at this point. Myst obviously didn't want to talk. Skyfire was deep in sleep, and would probably test how hard my head was if I woke her up. Zaita was informative, but the information she shared with me gave me more questions than answers. I did not want to listen to more 'Elevator' tracks, and I definitely didn't want to fall asleep in case anything happened, even if I felt like I didn't get enough sleep.

Then, a thought popped into my head. I looked over at one of the sack cloths in the corner opposite of Myst. Amidst the pile, I could make out one that had a shape in it. Trying to make as little noise as possible, I trotted over to it. Myst only looked up at me before looking away again. As I reached the sack, I placed a hoof inside and dug out the contents.

Just as I expected, the contents were the memory-viewing metal helmet and the strange orbs. I trotted to the row of seats to the right of the vehicle, and sat down. There were two orbs. One of them I had viewed, the other I had not. Facing the dilemma of which of the two I had not, I just chose one at random and strapped on the headwear again.

"Zaita, watch out for any dangers while I'm in this thing. This could take a while." I said, hoping this thing didn't actually take a long time to finish. The last orb took one hour, apparently.

"Ah, I see you have some memory orbs. Those were an Equestrian invention, actually. Made by the Equestrian Ministry of Morale. The ZIB's agents simply managed to obtain the secrets of how to create them." Oh, really? So, balefire megaspells, memory orbs... What else had the zebras stolen from the Equestrians? Oh, great, ANOTHER question to find answers for.

"Alright, let's hope I chose the right one." I said to myself as I placed the orb into the depression, and the last thing I felt was my body slumping onto the seats before my world faded away in a blur.

ooooOOOOoooo

Well, the good news was I that had NOT chosen the orb I had already viewed. The bad news was I still wasn't used to the strange feeling of not being able to control my movement or my breathing. Oh well. At least I could still think for myself.

My host was yet another zebra stallion, who was trotting down a spiral metal staircase. The entire area was dark, almost as if the place wasn't supposed to be open yet. Two guards wearing power armor flanked him, making quite a lot of noise as opposed to the little sound he himself was making. He had something heavy around his body; something metallic. Wearing metal armor myself, I immediately knew that this guy, whoever he was, was wearing metal armor as well.

As he reached the bottom, there was a small hall that led to a chamber. The chamber was not very large, at least compared to the wide spaces zebra architects seemed so hell-bent on constructing. The chamber was cylindrical in shape, and the ceiling was domed. The walls I could see were decorated with small statues of zebras mounted on pedestals that emerged from the walls. There were several screens hanging down from the ceiling on metal supports, and in front of them was a console of some sort. My host's guards stayed at the foot of the stairs while my host went over to the console and pressed a button.

Immediately, the middle screen lit up with a similar electronic red with a white line across the middle. The only real difference between Zaita and this computer was the voice.

"Welcome, legate. Please state the entrance phrase along with your personal entrance password." The computer said in a deep, slightly resonant electronic voice. My host took in a breath, as if knowing what was coming was going to be tiring or something.

"I am Legate Autherius; general of the western Legions, commander and founder of the Shadow Corps, and wielder of the mighty Dragon Armada. I am the terror of Hoofington, the Black City cursed by the Stars. I AM the heart of the military, on sea, land, and in the air. I am Legate Autherius, and I demand proper clearance." My host then took in another deep breath, as he did not breathe once during that speech. In stark contrast to Decarius' voice, this guy's voice was the very description of 'iconic': proud, confident, powerful, and charismatic.

"Welcome, Legate Autherius. Entrance phrase accepted. Password." Was the computer's simple response.

"Omnibus," Autherius said in reply. The screen turned from the electronic red to... well, another electronic red. However, the blank screen was soon occupied by streams of data on the sides, with the center being occupied by an 'ANNOUNCEMENTS' with only two things under it. One said that the Forum's security was to be increased by ten percent, and the other said that the S2 Harpy would be deployed in under a month.

My host took one look behind him, making sure the guards were still outside. When he saw that they were, he looked up at the ceiling, specifically at a large silver triangle.

"Close." Just like in Decarius' house, a metal plate slid down to block the doorway and the silver triangle was revealed to be the body of an auto-turret. With the added security measures in place, Autherius approached the console and once more pressed several buttons.

Three of the screens lit up; the center screen, the left most screen, and the right most screen. On each of the screens was shown a different pony. On the center screen was an earth pony mare with an amaranth mane and a pale olive coat leaning on a table with a hoof on her cheek as she looked up at the ceiling. The right most showed a pegasus mare with a fuchsia mane and a gamboge coat, with a hoof on the side of her head as she idly ran a pencil over a piece of paper, which showed a great many circles drawn on it. The last screen showed a unicorn mare with a mane of grayish mulberry and grayish rose streaks and a light grey coat looking wide-eyed at a wall while leaning on her table and placing a hoof on her chin.

While at first glance I thought that they were in different locations, the camera showing each of the three screens adjusted simultaneously to show each of the mares better in each screen. Above each mare was a name engraved on a metal plate. From left to right, they were: Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo.

“Any ideas, guys?” The pegasus mare asked, and the other two responded with blank shakes of their heads.

“Nope. Ah’m afraid Ah don’t know what to do. Luna and the rest o’ Equestria appreciate our stables, but they take a lot of resources. Unless we find a good reason to build more, we’re limited to just twenty.” The earth pony mare, Apple Bloom, answered in a cowpony accent.

“Well, maybe we could try to figure out if the zebras are doing anything dangerous that would make building more stables necessary?” The unicorn mare offered. The other two looked at each other before shaking their heads.

“It might work, Sweetie Belle. But it’s not like the zebras will just tell us what they’re up to. This war’s been on for like… seven years, and the only thing I’m sure we can know from the zebras is what the Ministry of Morale gets from traitors or POW’s.” The pegasus answered, causing the unicorn to deflate from disappointment.

“Heheheh, that’s funny. Because that’s exactly what I’m here to do,” My host interrupted casually, causing all three mares to jump from their seats in surprise. Once they had recovered a bit from their shock, the earth pony pointed a hoof at the screen.

“Who are you?!” Apple Bloom asked aloud, while the unicorn’s horn glowed and the Pegasus floated up.

My host just chuckled, before closing his eyes and shaking his head. He looked at each screen quickly, and responded to their concerns. “You three know very well that you can’t harm me through a screen, so I suggest you just save your energy and relax. As for who I am, I am Legate Autherius.” His response was calm and casual, as if they were friends. His calm demeanor caused everyone but the pegasus to relax.

“Autherius, huh? And just HOW did you get into our systems? And why are you here, anyway?” She asked, approaching the camera so closely that she occupied most of the three screens.

“As I said, I am here to inform you of what my nation is up to. And how I got in here is not important. Really, though, I’ve been planning to talk to you three for a long time.” That got a suspicious look from Scootaloo, but the other two had calmed down enough to take their seats.

“Scootaloo, he’s right. We can’t do anything to him, might as well relax.” The unicorn told her, eyeing my host suspiciously as well. With an annoyed groan, Scootaloo floated away and sat down on her chair.

“What makes you think we should talk to you? And, before we continue, what EXACTLY are you?” Apple Bloom asked, causing my host to narrow his eyes in confusion.

“Uhhhhh…what?” He asked, for the first time stepping away from his slightly disturbingly calm demeanor.

“You know, are you a traitor or something? Ah can’t imagine any zebra beein’ in yer position to not be a traitor.” She explained. My host thought about that for a moment, looking away from the screen.

“I am, and I am not. It depends on who you think I am betraying,” Was his simple response. The three mares looked at each other, before Apple Bloom finally shrugged.

“Well, why are you going to tell us, then? And what it could possibly be that’s SO important we shouldn’t just kick you out of our systems right now?” Sweetie Belle asked, and I felt a little smile form on my host’s face.

“Because I have Roam’s best interests at heart. The Caesar may be Roam’s representative, but he is an idiot. He does not know what Roam truly wants; he has lost contact with our culture, our legacy, and our ways. Me and my associates have decided to take this war into our own hooves. That, I think, should be enough to get your attention. At least enough to not kick me out just yet.” Scootaloo was looking at a red button on the table. The other two seemed to be considering it as well, but the Pegasus spoke up after a few seconds.

“And just WHAT are those interests? You people finally grown enough brains to realize this war’s stupid?” Scootaloo asked rudely, putting a small frown on my host’s face as he turned to face her. Were all pegasi rude, cocky jerks?

“Roam’s interests are none of your business, Scootaloo. And, unfortunately, only a select few have grown the common sense to see this war is childish. Really, though, all that matters is that I have information that will help both of our races, in one way or another,” Was his response.

“So, you want to end the war?” Apple Bloom asked with a hint of hope, but it placed an even sharper frown on my host’s face. But, as he turned to face her, he removed the frown and put on an easy smile.

“Yes, you could say I do. In one way or another.” His response visibly troubled the three, but Apple Bloom continued.

“Alright… so, uh, what’s the information? Is it gonna help put an end to this damned war?” She asked, and Sweetie Belle nodded in agreement. Scootaloo scowled at Autherius, but allowed them to proceed.

“Ah, yes, the information…” My host took a deep breath, even deeper than when he prepared for his little speech a while ago. All of them, Scootaloo included, leaned onto the table in anticipation. I expected him to pour out another passionate speech about either himself or Roam, but he surprised all of us with his next statement.

“We have megaspell technology, and we are willing to use them.” If I could have gasped and if my blood could freeze, I’m pretty sure I would have and my blood would be frozen solid right now. The three mare’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets at the news, and Scootaloo charged up to the camera.

“You’re lying! Megaspells are our nation’s secret weapon! We don’t call them SECRET without good reason!” She looked so angry I was so sure she would have been able to find a way through the screen to get at my host. Still, Autherius stood his ground.

“No, I am not. And, as we speak, the Caesar is finding ways to weaponize them, despite their original purpose, and is VERY willing to use them once perfected.” Despite his frown, I could feel him suppressing a smirk. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were visibly horrified, both of them slumping against their chairs.

"That's...not possible... H-how long...?" Apple Bloom asked, her voice quivering from uncertainty. Sweetie Belle could only shake her head hard in disbelief.

"Three months. And believe it. I wouldn't want you to disregard this threat; it would be such a shame if our races were wiped out by idiots on thrones, wouldn't you all agree?" Despite his calm, reasonable tone, I could almost feel the treachery and deceit he was keeping in check.

"The princesses are not idiots!" Sweetie Belle yelled at the screen, and again I could feel my host suppress a smile. He turned to the screen with an even sharper frown than before, and looked the unicorn in the eye.

"I apologize, I suppose I should have chosen my words better. And I completely agree with you; such benevolent beings such as Celestia or Luna wouldn't make the mistakes my Caesar has. But, as much of a fool he is, he is dangerous. This is why I have come to you: to seek help." My host put on a pleading frown on his face, but I could feel the tension on his features. It was just another hoax.

"Help? You want us to HELP you? Why in Equestria would we help the fuck-tards who started this war?! Why, we should probably launch all of our megaspells at you right now!" Scootaloo shouted, no longer doing anything to try to hide her anger.

"Ah, but that would just give my Caesar a reason to use our own megaspells. They may not be perfected, but they are dangerous still. Would you be willing to risk it? Think about it: needless deaths on both sides, millions burned and vaporized in an instant, becoming the very air we breathe." My host took another deep breath and closed his eyes, as if emphasizing his last statement, before continuing.

"No. I will not let that happen. The best we can do is prepare for the very likely horror of a balefire exchange. No one else in my land will even THINK about it, much less plan for it. That is why I have turned to you." I could feel the extra effort he placed into maintaining his false expression.

The three mares looked at each other, before Apple Bloom called them together. As they whispered to one another, Scootaloo seeming downright disapproving while the other two seemed more willing to accept the news, my host took the opportunity to let out his suppressed smiles. After a about a minute, they turned back to him and immediately he put on his pleading frown again.

"So, what would you have us do?" Apple Bloom asked. Sweetie Belle looked like she didn't quite know what to do, while Scootaloo still looked disapproving as she glared at my host. I didn't quite like my host as well, especially because I could feel all of the manipulation and deceit he was hiding. I didn't like this guy at all.

"Well, with this information your company will have all the reason it needs to make more stables. More stables equals more lives saved, which, I think, is the very purpose of your company. You’ll just have to find a way to leak it out into the public. However, I must ask something in return. I must ask that you build stables for us, as well."

'Wow, that's a big request.' I thought, not yet realizing what this meant. In contrast to my fairly oblivious and uncaring personal thoughts, the three mares just sat there with their mouths hanging so low that they actually touched the table.

"You're fucking kidding me." Was Scootaloo's response. She didn't sound angry or amazed, but she definitely was at a loss for words. The other two were even worse off, not having reacted at all and with their jaws still on the table. I found their complete lack of a reaction kind of disturbing, as did my host, who approached the screen closely and inspected the image as if to see if it had frozen or something.

Finally, though, the three stirred and Apple Bloom was the first to regain her composure. As she cleared her throat and put on a more business-like expression, the other two still seemed to be reeling from the weight of the request.

"So, uh, Autherius, yes? What makes ya think that we should build stables in yer lands? After all, we ain't exactly welcome; there's a war, if ya forgot." She said in a tone much more befitting of a businesspony. The other two had finally managed to get their heads together enough to get their emotions under control. Still, all three of them looked a little uncomfortable.

"I thought I had made it clear. You ponies have what you need to save your race from destruction, but we do not. I think we can both agree that the destruction of my whole race for the mistakes of one Caesar and his subordinates is a little...too much. Really, all I want is to preserve my people, just like what you are doing." My host put on a reassuring smile, easing some of the tension in his facial muscles.

"I still don't buy it." Scootaloo said, the disapproving tone once again taking it's place in her voice. Sweetie Belle seemed to be taking a more or less neutral stance in this situation.

"Well, Ah can respect yer intentions. But how do we know yer not just tryin' to trick us?" Apple Bloom asked, and my host actually smiled further at that.

"Oh, Apple Bloom, think. What could we possibly gain from getting material to build stables? More resources to build more vehicles? No, we still have plenty of that. What we REALLY lack are zebras smart enough to know that this war is going to kill us all, unless we prepare. Or perhaps you think I seek to discredit you? No, as well. Why would I try to discredit the one group of ponies who seem to be actually THINKING of ways to SAVE lives?" He asked, and all three mares seemed to take that in for a moment.

As much as I really hated this guy, he was kind of right. About the whole 'this war will kill us all unless we prepare thing', at least. Unfortunately, I could sense that all of this was just a sham. It was such a shame that the one of the few zebras that seemed to want to do something to protect his people seemed to have some devious plan is store. It was also at this point that my sluggish brain had finally caught onto the fact that THIS conversation was why there were even stables in zebra lands.

‘Well, if what he says is true, it’s the reason you’re even alive.’ Thought Tod, whose sudden appearance would have made me jump up if it weren’t for the fact that I couldn’t control myself.

‘Nyah! You? Get out of here! I don’t need you right now.’ I thought back at it, and he fell silent.

"Ah see. And, just how do you propose we even get started on making 'em? It's not like we can just walk into your lands and start.” Apple Bloom argued, to which Scootaloo smirked a little at my host. Autherius didn’t mind, and instead responded.

“Oh, I have my ways. There’s this company, Four Stars, that can get the materials over to us. I suspect you know of them, over at Manehattan. Just, uh… well, they MIGHT ask you to make them a stable, too. Whether or not you’ll oblige is up to you, though.” Sweetie Belle seemed a little distraught at that, more so than the other two, at least.

“Four Stars is with you? Guys, you think we should tip off the MoM about that?” She asked, to which Apple Bloom looked at the screen. My host just shrugged.

“Up to you. They’re your people, you decide what to do with them. All I’m asking, for the sake of all zebra kind, is that you help us.” He put in a lot more effort into that statement, trying to make it sound authentic. He certainly sounded authentic. As much as I hate to admit it, I would have believed him if it weren’t for all the pain in his jaws.

“Well, that settles it then.” Apple Bloom sighed as she got up. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle both looked at her with different expectations. Even my host held a breath and awaited her response.

“Alright, Autherius. Ya got a deal. Ah’ll talk to Four Stars and get the materials and the schematics over to ya. Just…please use them for the reasons yer talkin’ about. Saving lives and the like.” Apple Bloom looked a little uncertain, despite her own words. Scootaloo very audibly face-hoofed while Sweetie Belle let out a deep breath.

“Thank you, Stable-Tec. And don’t worry, I will use the material for that one and only reason. I swear on all my honor.” He pounded a hoof against his metal chest plate, probably as a sign of respect or something.

“Alright, alright. Now, we need to go. We still have to talk about… all this.” Sweetie Belle said, and Scootaloo perked up at that.

“Yeah, we have got a LOT to talk about.” She said in a foreboding tone, one that seemed to worry Apple Bloom as she trotted to the screen. With one final sigh, she touched a button I couldn’t see and the images on the screens disappeared, replaced by static.

My host stood there for a while, smiling deviously. I don’t know what he was thinking, but I bet it was full of personal gloating and celebrating. After a while, he closed his eyes and shook his head lightly.

“Degenerates.” He muttered under his breath, and turned back towards the door. At his approach, the metal plate slid up and the turret went back into it’s slot. The computer gave off a sound as it turned off.

As my host went back up the stairs and into a long hallway, the guards following close behind him, he kept up his disturbing smile. One that I was uncomfortable to share with him. After one final flight of stairs, he opened a door that opened out to a rocky cliffside. It was night time, and there was a moderate downpour dripping all around. He dismissed the guards, who immediately started up a stone path to a lit building on top of a mountain. The lights were just enough to show a circular structure with a tower springing up from the middle: the Forum.

As my host stood out in the rain, a small light from below started to climb up from the foot of the mountain. After a while, a hovering, jet-like vehicle with an insignia of a black gladius with two broken wings on the side in a circular field of light blue floated before him, and a metal drawbridge emerged from it’s side. A zebra with a metal foreleg and what seemed like armor plating attached to his hide stepped out. He had the same insignia on his chest plate, but there was a golden orb on the hilt of the blade. My host stepped onto the drawbridge.

“Welcome back from the field, sir.” The cyber-zebra said in a formal, middle-pitched voice. My host trotted next to him and nodded.

“Thank you, Veltrio. It is good to be back. And, seeing as you have been in Equestria for nearly three years, it is you whom I should be welcoming back.” I felt my host give an honest smile before he stepped further in. However, he stopped at the doorway and turned back to the cyber-zebra.

"And good job with Fluttershy. Even if Decarius gets all the credit, you're efforts have made our plans possible. Take pride in yourself, as you have helped the bringing in of the New World possible." Autherius turned around and continued trotting in, but managed to catch the cyber-zebra, Veltrio, watch him in surprise.

"Th-thank you, sir. I...appreciate it." Veltrio sounded...pleasantly surprised, if anything. Outright jubilation wasn't really the correct term.

“So, where too now, Sir?” Asked a young sounding stallion from some speakers over head as Autherius entered. The cyber zebra got onto one of the two passenger seats in the vehicle. As my host got onto the other seat, he turned to face a small camera on the ceiling of the hover-craft.

“Take me to Decarius’, Daizan. And make it quick, I have… an important arrangement.” He said simply, and I could both hear and feel the grinding of metal from the vehicle. My host looked out a window on his side, and saw the engines on the wings of the vehicle change their orientation from vertical to horizontal.

“Ave.” The pilot said formally. As the VTOL started speeding towards Decarius’, my host started chanting.

“Our nation is the greatest and soon will be again. From Ursalania in the west to Felinia in the east…” The sounds of the engine going hypersonic drowned out the rest of the chant.

ooooOOOOoooo

I awoke from the orb with a start, jumping to my hooves as though I had run a marathon, my heart racing in my chest. I took a look at the other two. They were both sound asleep, Myst using the sacks as a head cushion. I spent a few moments trying to catch my breath, and I started thinking.

So, that was why there were stables here? As much as I appreciated being alive, it kind of sucked that my life was the product of some legate from two hundred years ago tricking Stable-Tec. What had he made the stables for, though? At least he kept his promise, but I was SURE he had some plan. Him and Decarius seemed to be doing something, but what?

“Oh, great. MORE questions.” I groaned as I sat up, stretching my back as much as I could under my armor. I noticed the vehicle wasn’t moving, and turned to face the screen. “Zaita? Why’d we stop?” I saw the images of sky tanks on the screen, but at the sound of my voice they disappeared and were replaced by Zaita’s ‘face’.

“Ah, Goldwreath. You are awake. As for your question, I have stopped because we have reached a crossroads.” What did that mean? We had passed dozens of crossroads to get here, why would this be any different?

“Perhaps I should explain. You see, we are about to enter the city proper. The areas you were in the past few days were mostly suburbs, mining sites, agricultural lands, small business sites, or inter-city processing stations. The road we take now will determine how we enter the city,” She explained.

“Ah, okay. So, what are the different paths?” I got closer to the window, and I saw a wide road leading further into the city straight ahead, a smaller road leading off to the right, and an overpass on the left.

“The road straight ahead is the most direct path to the Forum. However, it is also, most likely, the road with the greatest number of threats, many of which are potentially very dangerous, even for me. On the other hoof, the overpass will lead over a bridge and into the open area around the city. There, we will most likely encounter less resistance. Lastly, the road to the right leads to the underground transport system. Should the rails still work, I may be able to save energy and perhaps we will get their quicker. However, I would ask that you consider the possible implications of going underground.” What, I was the only one who was going to make this decision? What about my friends? I looked back at them, but they seemed so tired that I would feel guilty for waking them up.

“Okay, because I don’t want to be the only one here with an opinion, and because you know the city better than I, what do you think?” I asked, to which the white line on the screen arced upwards.

“You are asking me for my opinion?” She sounded rather surprised. Again, I thought of just how advanced an AI she was to be able to sound surprised.

“Yeah… what, has no one ever asked for your opinion?” She didn’t answer for a while, and the little spinning circle appeared on the screen.

“No. Not even my former operators did. A fact which, now that I think back at it, slightly upset me.” Former operators? When I saw her in that garage she looked brand new. Maybe they didn’t do anything with her?

“Oh. Well, that’s…sad. Anyway, your opinion?” I didn’t really want to talk about her past right now, considering the weight of the decision to be made and that I already had two others who needed my help. At least, I thought they did.

“Ah, yes. Personally, I would go for the overpass. It may take the longest, but ‘better safe than sorry’, yes?” True enough. I had to be careful the deeper I went into the city; no telling what weird shit we might find.

“True, but what are the chances the underground rails still work? And what dangers are we likely to face?” If I was going to make this decision, I was going to be as informed as possible. I didn’t want to get us into trouble we couldn’t get out of.

“Calculating from a number of factors, there is a 23% chance the rails are functional enough to get us to our destination. As for threats, I have insufficient information to form a definite answer.” Twenty-three percent? Not really high enough to convince me… Then again, if it did work, it might save a lot of time.

‘I'm voting for underground.’ Tod said, popping out of nowhere once again. As much as I hated this guy, at least he was appearing less. I had seriously considered going underground, actually. But when this guy voted for it, those considerations were thrown out the window.

‘The fuck you are. That place is most likely a damned deathtrap. Caution should be paramount in pursuing unknowns.’ Thought Tom, whom I, again, completely agreed with. Why couldn’t this guy appear more instead? He only seemed to appear when Tod did. Still, the fact that I had two personalities in my head was pretty disturbing…

“Well, considering that that chance is too low to be convincing, I go against underground. Besides, you still seem to have a lot of energy…” Wait. That in mind, how much energy did she have left anyway?

“Uh, hold on. Your energy supply should be considered. Would you have enough energy to go the extra distance? And will we be able to replenish your supply in case you run out?” I asked, hoping the answer was ‘yes’. I really didn’t want to go underground if she said no.

“Yes, you will. You may not be able to see them, but several external armor plates have miniscule solar panels on them. They are, however, not enough to power me for a prolonged trip. Periodic stops will be necessary to avoid running out of power, as opposed to going on continuously if the rails still work.” Alright, that’s enough about that.

So, IF the rails worked we would have a quick, but not necessarily safe, trip to the Forum. On the other hoof, periodic stops would be the only real nuisance if we went the long way. The direct path into the city was out of the question; it would simply be too dangerous, even if we were in an APC.

“Alright, I’ve made my choice. Brings us to the bridge, Zaita.” I could feel my muscles beginning to shut down from exhaustion, and the metal armor wasn’t helping. Still, a question formed in my head that I wanted answered before I took a little nap.

“Zaita, who were your former operators?” I asked, and to my surprise the AI didn’t react. At least not visually. Although I could have sworn I heard the sounds of the engine increase for just a few seconds. Finally, after almost a minute she answered.

“I am sorry, Goldwreath. But I can't answer that. It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s just that the information is…personal.” Despite the monotonous tone in her voice, she sounded evasive. Could AI’s even be evasive?

“Oh, sorry. Well, if you ever want to talk about, I’ll be here. I can’t speak for those two, though…” I looked at the two of them. For yet another uncomfortable minute, the APC didn’t react. The ‘loading valid response circle’ wasn’t on the screen, which surprised me, seeing as it was on whenever she took a while to respond.

“Thank you, Goldwreath. I will remember that offer.” Wow. So, first, a shy sniper pony, then a cocky Pegasus, and now a mysterious AI of a vehicle. What next, was I going to offer therapy services to fish?

“Alright, Zaita. Let’s go. The trip to the Forum is long enough without stops. I need to rest…” I removed the metal armor and lay down on the seats, easing the tension on my back muscles.

“Very well. I will play some more ambient music.” Oh no, not again…

I spent nearly an hour trying to fall asleep as more ‘Elevator’ tracks started playing.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

When I awoke, Myst and Skyfire were talking to each other, with Zaita’s voice occasionally chiming in. They seemed to be talking about the path we had taken to get to our destination, though my hearing was still waking up from my nap, so I wasn’t completely sure.

“…is why we should have went straight into the city.” Skyfire said with a matter-of-fact tone in her voice. I turned to face them, and I saw Myst softly shake her head in disapproval.

“Skyfire, charging straight into the city to ‘kill those Legion motherfuckers’ while wasting my turret’s ammo and afterwards popping out of the hatch and firing as fast as you can and hoping for the best is a terrible idea. First off, Goldwreath would not approve. Second, chances of success on our mission following that tactic is 0.00003%. Third…” Zaita started to say, but Skyfire cut her off with a wave of her hoof.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Sheesh, I was just joking. Can’t a pony joke around for a bit?” She asked defensively, to which Myst quickly turned her head to look at her.

“Uh, but then what was that you did a while ago? You tried to take control of the vehicle, but luckily Zaita didn’t allow it.” Myst said.

“She did what?” I asked, that statement having woken me up completely, like a bucket of cold of water.

“Oh, Goldwreath. Your... um… awake.” Myst said in surprised stammering as she looked behind her at me.

“Yeah, I am. Skyfire, seriously? You tried COMMANDEERING the vehicle? Do you even know how to operate this thing?” I asked as she tapped her hooves together nervously.

“Well… uh, yeah, well, a little… uh… no. But, come on! Think about it! Along the way, with my guns, Myst’s sniping skills, Zaita’s speed, and your…um… leadership, we could have handled those guys with no problem!” She said as I got up and begun strapping on my armor. Just in case this bridge was dangerous, I didn’t want to be unprepared. The last time I went to sleep without my armor, I nearly had my forehooves chewed off.

“Ha! Well, as much of a GREAT idea that is, I highly doubt it would have achieved…anything. Your desire for vengeance is going to get us in trouble if you don’t control it, you know. And I also wouldn’t want to have haul your sorry flank while rockets are being shoved up my ass.” I said as I begun tying the leather strings of the armor plates.

“Yeah, heh, well, you know. The Legion hasn’t paid for what they did yet, okay? I haven’t really gotten over it, and I won’t until I make them pay ten times over. I didn’t make any promises, if you remember,” She pointed out. I sighed as I turned to face her, my armor not yet fully tied together.

“I know. And don’t worry, Skyfire. I hate the Legion, too. We probably haven’t seen all of them yet, but what we have seen so far shows them to be little more than more organized raiders. And, unless they give me good reason not to, I’m going to kick their asses.” She smiled at that, and we remained silent for several minutes.

‘DJ PON3’ signal found’ was all I needed to get something to break the silence that was making me uncomfortable. I selected it on the pipbuck’s interface.

“Alright, DJ, let’s see if you have anything interesting on the air.” I said to myself as the signal started to play. Skyfire and Myst both perked up at my statement, while Zaita showed no reaction. For a moment there was just static. Eventually, though, the signal cleared up.

“…ternoon, children! It’s a beautiful day here in Manehattan, if you count watching crumbling buildings collapse under their weight beautiful, that is. And as for the weather, I’VE GOT A SURPRISE FOR YOU… nothing. The sky’s still that dull grey we all know and hate, so don’t bother looking out your window.

“Now, you all know what time it is: News Time! Lots of new stories to get you up to speed, so stay tuned. Before I get to that, though, let me ask you a few things.

“What the hell is going on all over the place, children? I remember just a few years ago when the wasteland was just a horrible place. I mean, sure, it’s horrible all the time. But years back it was just NASTY! Raiders and slavers and monsters and mutants just ran all over the place, right? Redeye in Fillydelphia, alicorns from Manehattan all the way to Trottingham, Usury in Hoofington, and all the other nasty pieces of shit? No one to try and keep them in check or anything? I guess I’m lucky, being somewhere safe and all. Lots of other people ain’t lucky.

“But all that changed, children. In just a span of a few weeks, heroes and heroines have been emerging all over. In Equestria, we’ve got the Stable Dweller and Security and all the other people good enough to try to make this place better. And then, ALL the way down south, in Roam, that Praetorian dude showed up. Sure, he may be alone, but that just makes him all the more needed. I-j-just, doesn’t it amaze you, children? I mean, why is it happening now? Hopefully someone out there can find the answer, as I want to know why it seems like the wasteland might finally change, for the better this time.

“Alright, enough of that. Time for the news." Then he cleared his throat.

“Okay, so, the Stable Dweller’s been busy lately. You all heard about that commotion going on Shattered Hoof ridge? That talk about a DRAGON being killed and some gem mine getting cleared of Redeye’s slavers? Well, guess what? That’s her! And from the looks of it, it seems like she might have made a few friends after…well, whatever it was she did. I just hope she didn’t do it for the gems.

“Alright, for all of you out east, near the Hoof… I got nothing. What can I say? Security doesn’t seem to be doing anything that goes around quickly. Aside from that ridiculous bounty placed on her head by the one, and thank Celestia only, Usury, I haven’t heard much about her recently. If any of you get wind of something, you let me know, alright?

“And, finally, for the zebras down south. Before I get to the Praetorian’s doings, I need to say a few things.

“Okay, first off, the Legion is NOT your friend! When they popped out of nowhere months back, I thought ‘hey, people who seem to want to help people out!’ Well, that changed. The Legion doesn’t want to help, children. In the past few weeks, they’ve systematically attacked and raided towns, buildings, settlements, and even occupied the, uh… ‘Forum’. Ever since, they’ve been rolling around the city of Roam, crushing and destroying everything under their treads. You might have noticed I said TREADS. Well, unfortunately, the area surrounding the Forum wasn’t hit. And that was where a shit-load of vehicles were, undamaged and functional. As I speak, they’re utilizing tanks, VTOLs, hovercraft, and even an artillery battery to enforce their will on the city proper.

“So, what do you do about it? Well, there isn’t much you can do, unfortunately. I mean, what can we do against tanks with four machineguns and two cannons? Or against their aerial superiority? The Enclave might be able to help, but I doubt they will. One of the few people I know of who just MIGHT be able to stop them is the Praetorian. But can he stop them all on his own? Let’s hope so, children. And if you see him, help him out, would you?

“Aside from him, though, there’s…well, this is strange. Alright, you know about the ‘fire raining from the skies’ thing, right? Rockets and artillery pounding on Roam from somewhere in the mountains? Well, strange as it is, this phenomenon has actually been keeping the Legion in check ever since they first showed up. What do I make of this? Just…strange. Unfortunately, there’s been quite a lot of collateral, so I wouldn’t count on it saving you.

“Okay, secondly, you might also have noticed the brand new…’wild life’. I always knew the zebra lands were worse off in terms of creatures, but, seriously, I’ve hearing a LOT of weird reports about the water lately. And gigantic elephants? Swarms of 'flaming dogs'? The Legion losing aircraft over the water? Them suggesting that we light all wooden structures on the water’s edge on fire? What are they scared of? What, did that calamari you thought was spoiled and threw into the ocean mutate or something? These reports are pretty recent, actually. They started just a few days ago. Just watch out; I’m pretty sure some more weird things are gonna start popping up.

"So, how did this happen? Beats me. There was an energy spike just a few hours before their first appearance, but it was only about as strong as about a ton of explosives. And with the Legion running around, I can’t really say if that spike was responsible. In fact, if it weren’t for the sight of a ‘strange meteoric object’ that came from the energy spike, and the fact that the spike occurred dozens of miles to the south of the city, I’d say it was the Legion. I’m going to try to see what else I can get on this subject, so just hold on.

“Okay, so to summarize: The Legion are bad, the ‘fire from the sky’ thing might be helpful, and watch out for the new wildlife. Now, I bet you’re wondering what Praetorian’s been up to? Well, then. *ahem*

“Well, children, I have some bad news. It seems the Legion has recognized just how threatening Roam’s defender was after he wiped out their base near Road Town. Just as the Praetorian left, the Legion came down on the poor town and forced them to choose between their lives or the Praetorian’s. Unfortunately, they chose their own. Now, don’t get mad. I understand they had to do it; the guy was leaving soon anyway.

“So, where is he now, you might ask? My latest report says that he and some friends of his were last seen speeding down the streets of Roam in an armored vehicle. Looks like he’s going to confront the Legion head-on. I just hope he doesn’t get killed along the way. Good luck, Praetorian. You’re gonna need it.”

The signal faded off into static.

“Well, that just sucks.” I said as I took in what I had just heard. You know, when I first thought of the Legion, I thought they were just some really big raider group with a fetish for an ancient Roaman theme. But, seriously? Tanks? Hovercraft? How was I suppose to go up against THAT? And, what new wildlife?

“Tell me about it. Sally and Mercedes can’t melt through that much armor. Well, I could always find some acid and pour that into the cockpits…” Skyfire placed a hoof on her cheek and looked up at the ceiling in thought.

“Well, um…at least the artillery thing can help.” Was all Myst said. I arced a brow at her, to which her eyes widened and she quickly turned her attention to the floor.

“Interesting.” Was Zaita’s one-word comment. I turned to her, hoping to get more of out of her than just that. Come on, was I the only one with a serious opinion about this?

“So, Zaita, what are our chances of success now?” If she said ‘0%’, I would have just blasted my brains out right there; I was NOT going to go up against something I had no chance of taking down. The AI didn’t respond for a moment while several images appeared on the screen. One showed a monstrously large, over-armored tank with two main cannons, a quad MG turret, and rocket pods on the side. Another showed a picture of a group of baby octopi.

“It depends on a number of factors. First off, the tank depots surrounding the Forum housed Omni-class Tanks; the most powerful tanks of the war. The VTOLs are most likely transport and medium attack craft, which were armed with rocket pods and a minigun. The power of the guns utilized by the artillery is also a significant factor. Lastly, I have no information about the local wildlife, after exposure to radiation, to provide a sufficient answer. All-in-all, though, I’m afraid to say that our chances just dipped from 34.76% to just 8.0001%.” Eight point zero zero zero one percent? That was like… barely existent! How could I feel confident with odds like that?

“Ugh… Well, no point thinking about that right now. Zaita, how close are we to the bridge?” I asked, and both Skyfire and Myst turned to the screen as if they wanted to know as well.

“We are roughly twenty minutes from the bridge. If my images of Roam’s layout still holds true despite the apocalypse, there is most likely a few tall structures still standing near the bridge that we can use to scout the area out before going across.” She said, much to my relief. Twenty minutes would give me some time to plan. Hopefully, this plan would go better than my last one.

“Why don’t we just go in and kill everybody who tries to stop us?” Asked Skyfire, whom I gave a disapproving frown.

“Because the last time we did that we nearly got killed, Skyfire. I’m not taking that risk again if I can help it.I don’t want to go in unprepared, especially if the Legion is there. We’re going to scout out the area first, and that’s final.” I said sternly, and she frowned disappointedly

“I can go ahead and make sure the buildings are clear.” Myst offered quietly, seeming to want to take them back as soon as the words got out.

“You sure about that? Us hanging back while you clear out the place doesn’t sound like such a good idea. I don’t want you alone in case a Legion juggernaut appears out of nowhere again.” She looked at me and smiled with relief.

“I agree. After accessing recorded field reports, I’ve determined that a total of 2,198 zebra soldiers were lost due to going ahead. While it obviously holds the advantage of knowing the area more, I think the risk isn’t worth it.” Zaita said.

“Ugh, fine. I still think scouting ahead is for pussies, but whatever.” Skyfire leaned back and placed her head against the side of the APC.

“Oh, really? Well, wasn’t that what you were sent here to do?” I asked, and I smiled smugly as her expression turned from relaxed to wide-eyed. She glared at me, but I just kept up the smile.

“Fuck you.” She said as she lay down on the seats again. Myst seemed to be tinkering around with her rifle to make sure it was prepared for whatever we might face once we got to the bridge.

After a few minutes of preparation, we seemed to have run out of things to do. While Skyfire and Myst may have been fine with just chilling around, I needed something to happen. A conversation, the radio signal coming back up, some music; anything! I just couldn’t handle quiet situations like this.

“Zaita, could you play some music? And, please, not more ‘Elevator’ tracks. Something that fits the situation we’re in, if possible.” Skyfire didn’t seem to care right now as she lay down on the seats, but Myst perked up a little.

“Very well. I will play one of my former operator’s personal favorites: ‘Highway To Hell’ by ‘AC/DC’.” A logo with the letters ‘AC/DC’, with the two pairs being separated by a lightning bolt, appeared on the screen. The sound of an electric guitar started sounding over the cockpit, followed by drums. After a few seconds, the singer; a stallion, started singing.

“Living easy, loving free”
“Season ticket on a one-way ride”

“Asking nothing, leave me be”
“Takin’ everything in my stride”

“Awww, shit! This was like, my favorite song in Upper Academy!” Skyfire said as she got up from the seats. Myst seemed to be forcing her smile as she slowly backed up to her corner again. As the lyrics started again, Skyfire joined in.

“Don’t need a reason, don’t need a right”
“There ain’t nothin’ I’d rather do”

“Goin’ down, party time”
“My friends are gonna be there too”

The guitar started playing stronger, and I knew that this is where the song was really going to get good. I listened in anticipation as a huge grin formed on Skyfire’s face.

“I’m on the HIGHWAY TO HELL!”
“On the HIGHWAY TO HELL!”

“HIGHWAY TO HELL!”
“I’m on the HIGHWAY TO HELL!”

There was a moment of silence, the echo of the guitar being the only noise from the song. Skyfire sang the next few sets of lyrics, and I just joined her whenever ‘highway to hell’ came up.

“And I’m going down”
“On the highway to hell”

The song then ended, and Skyfire was grinning madly as she lay back down with a blissful look on her face. Myst was actually smiling, and not a forced one either. She closed her eyes and shook her head side to side, following after the tune of the song.

“Damn good song. Fits the situation perfectly, and it makes doing this quest of mine seem so much more exciting!” This was good, seeing my friends taking joy in something. Considering what they both had lost in recent days, I was glad they were enjoying the song. I was beaming with excitement, myself. That song just had a way of making doing this shit seem…worthwhile. And it definitely raised our spirits up as we played it again. As the song neared it’s ending once more, I sang the last set of lyrics.

“And I’m going down…” After being forced from my own stable, and later being forced from the first friendly settlement I had met, this song had banished a looming cloud of disappointment that I hadn’t known I had over me. Just like Celestia’s sun the first day out in the wasteland.

“…on the highway to hell…” Me and Skyfire sang together as the song ended.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

“See anything?” I asked Myst as she looked through her scope. We were on the roof of the tallest stable looking structure near the bridge. It was around four floors high with a wide enough roof for Zaita to join us up there, but the stairs were collapsed and unusable. We wouldn’t have been able to get up to this spot if it weren’t for Zaita’s ability to hover.

The bridge itself was divided into a left lane and the right lane. The bridge seemed to be constructed near a port, as in the distance I could make out the shapes of a shipyard. Below it was a lake, with a river pouring in from somewhere in the city. The bridge was actually more of a tunnel, though, as it had a circular structure all around it that gave it the appearance of a really long straw as it extended all the way to the other side. However, there were openings in the structure to allow viewing of the outside. The two lanes were separated by a wall, with visible gaps in it to allow both lanes access to one another.

“I see five vehicles; they look like… makeshift attack trucks. There’s movement on the bridge, around… eight. They look like Legionnaires, but some seem to be…different. I can’t say more about them. However, we might be able to sneak past all of this if we stick to the left lane.” She shifted to look at the left side of the bridge, which had mostly collapsed. Despite the large chunks of missing road, there was probably enough left of that side that Zaita could hover on. After Myst had viewed it for a few seconds, she gave the rifle to Skyfire who then looked through the scope.

“Pfftt, we can take ‘em. Their vehicles are just a bunch of pieced together sheets of metal, anyway. And those Legionnaires will probably start running once they spot us. And if not, I’m pretty sure Zaita’s turret can handle them.” Skyfire said as she peeked through Myst’s scope, looking at the small moving specks near the bridge which I assumed were the trucks.

“I will have to agree with Skyfire on that point. Considering the low quality of the armor of those vehicles, my 25mm chain gun would make quick work of them. And, further more- wait, what is that?” She hovered closer to the edge of the building, the camera turning to face a significantly larger speck which appeared from around the corner of a building. This speck, though, was much closer to us.

The three of us got closer to the edge as well, and Myst took back her rifle from Skyfire. I couldn’t make out a lot of details, but whatever it was seemed to have a large protrusion coming from near it’s top.

“Oh my…” Myst gasped as she handed the rifle to Skyfire, who eagerly took it back and looked down the scope. Immediately, her eyes went wide in shock.

“No fucking way…” Was all she said before I grabbed the rifle from her and took a look, wanting to know just what this thing was.

“Alright, what the hell are you three getting worked up about…” I wasn’t used to sniper scopes, so it took me a while to focus on whatever this thing was. Finally, I got the thing in the center of the sights. Just like Skyfire’s, my own eyes popped wide in disbelief.

“Celestia’s magmatic clit juice.” I whispered to myself, though it probably wasn’t quiet as both Skyfire and Myst looked at me with a weird expression. But, seriously, I couldn’t believe this. Wasn’t having to get past assault trucks and Legionnaires enough? And what made it worse was that there were more of these things appearing around the corner.

“Those are fucking Omni-tanks, aren’t they?” Skyfire asked, still looking at the convoy in shocked disbelief. I couldn’t believe it as well. And, judging from the expression on Myst’s face and Zaita keeping quiet, they couldn’t either. I have to say, when I saw them in those pictures, there was no doubt they were big. But seeing them now, even if they were likely more than two hundred meters away, they were fucking gigantic! They were probably big enough to fit three S3 Harpies, which could already fit in around six people.

“Yes. Four of them, to be exact. We will have to reconsider the plan, Goldwreath. Just a single hit from those cannons anywhere on my platform will most likely be enough to eliminate all of us.” She responded, much to my disappointment. Skyfire could only shake her head in disbelief. As we got away from the edge and closer to the center of the roof, she asked a question that had just recently popped into my mind.

“Why the hell weren’t those things deployed during the war? If they were, I’m pretty sure it would have been written down on history books or something.” Yes, Skyfire, I’m pretty sure they would have. Probably on books with titles like ‘Entire Equestrian Military Destroyed by One Tank’ or ‘The Apocalypse Has Arrived’.

“They were supposed to be. You see, it’s like this: all of the engineering and vehicular advancements that you have seen were made near the end of the war. When the war started, we had little more than basic laser weaponry. We didn’t have Omni-tanks or VTOLs, nor did we have holographic technology or plasma based weaponry. Really, we stuck with conventional weapons and tactics throughout half of the war. That eventually allowed the Equestrians to land on our shores. Only then did we start pouring out these advancements, which I am sure would have turned the tide of war had we been deployed en masse. Sadly, the megaspells were utilized just as the new wave of vehicles and equipment were set to be deployed.” Skyfire looked away as she processed that, still looking disbelieving.

“Ugh. This changes everything. We aren’t getting past those things anytime soon. Myst, could you check what’s going on while I think? How the hell do I fit those things in this…” I started to think as Myst went back to the edge to take a look. I, on the other hoof, was starting to get a migraine from the amount of questions and information that my brain was trying to process.

“I’ll give the Legion one thing: those tanks AREN’T a joke. You know, the more time I spend with you the more I think about what the Enclave could do if they got their hooves on this place.” Skyfire said, and that gave me ANOTHER thought to have to process. Sure, give the ridiculously over-powered tanks to the one of the most advanced civilizations out there. That would just double their over-poweredness.

“Okay, so, we’ve got four tanks, an undetermined number of infantry, and five assault trucks. Zaita, anything that you could say that would help out? It would be just wonderful if you had stealth software.” I groaned from pain just after I finished my statement.

Okay, where did this migraine come from all of a sudden? My head felt like it was being pounded with an iron hammer, and my ears were throbbing as a strange combination of an eerie, high pitched ringing mixed with a dull hum. I reached up to touch my head as I winced from the pain. What sucked almost as much was that my split personalities were acting up.

‘Just go in! Everything will turn out fine!’ Said Tod, whom I, strangely, wanted to agree with.

‘Are you kidding me? He’s going to be going up against an OMNI-TANK. You try going up to those things and see how ‘fine’ you’ll be afterwards. If by ‘fine’ you mean ‘a fine, red mist’, then yes, he will be ‘fine’.’ Tom said, and I instinctively agreed with him, too.

‘Aw, come on! They aren’t that tough! Just go in and get the job done.’ Despite the obvious consequences, I felt like a part of my brain actually agreed with him. What, another split personality to name?

‘That’s fucking wrong. Listen, Goldwreath. Just start thinking of a plan. I’ll take care of this piece of shit.’ And, just like that, they both fell silent. The pain and the noise remained, though. As did the parts of my brain that agreed with Tod, taking the form of desires to just go in and hope for the best.

As I removed my hoof from my head, I noticed that both Skyfire and Myst seemed to be having a headache as well. Zaita was looking at me, but turned to face Skyfire and Myst, in that order, before turning back to me.

“Are you three alright? You seem…troubled.” Yeah, ‘troubled’ isn’t really the best way to describe it, Zaita.

“Ugh, what the fuck was that? You two felt that?” Skyfire asked as she looked to me and Myst, and we both nodded.

“Well, perhaps that phenomenon was caused by the two signals that I recently picked up.” Zaita said.

“Signals? What signals?” I asked, hoping to get a definite answer.

“As the Omni-tanks appeared, they seemed to emit two signals. The signals coming from them were both weak, but, out of curiosity, I amplified them. I suppose that they are both emitted on harmful frequencies. I will do my best to limit the amount I give off.” I was disturbed by that, as were Skyfire and Myst. Wait, amount she gives off?

“What do you mean by that? You can’t stop emitting them?” Oh, please say ‘no, actually I can’.

“Unfortunately, the signals both seem to have an override code embedded in them that prevents full blocking. At most, I can limit them to one percent. I hope that I did not make a dire mistake by taking in those signals in the first place.” For all of our sakes, I prayed to the Goddesses that she had not made that dire mistake.

Deciding to put that matter away for now and focus on the problem at hoof, I turned to face Myst.

“So, anything, Myst? Have the tanks moved on?” She was looking down her scope, while reaching up to touch her temples with a hoof. The pain hadn’t subsided yet, after all.

“Ugh…uh, not yet. They…uh…um, could you please take a look? I can’t really tell you what’s going on while feeling like this.” She took a few steps away from her rifle as she groaned in pain.

“Zaita, could you decrease the signal’s amplification? It’s really getting to us.” Skyfire was cradling her head in the corner of the roof, all the while muttering obscenities under her breath as she teetered around from the pain. I wasn’t going to be able to think while in this state, what with my head feeling like hammered shit.

“But I will not be able to diagnose and analyze the signals unless they are of sufficient strength.” Despite her toneless voice, I could have sworn it sounded like she really wanted to know more about those signals. I, however, just wanted the damned pain to stop.

“You can do that later, when we stop to let you recharge. For now, though, we need to think. I need to find a way to get us this bridge without getting blasted to pieces.” I argued, and the pain immediately subsided. The three of us sighed in relief as Myst got back onto her rifle and Skyfire stopped moving just in time to avoid falling off the building's broken edges.

“Very well. Although I suggest you not go too far away when I do later on; no telling what other dangers there are out there.” Again, I seemed to sense emotion in that calm voice of hers. It was… disappointment?

“Thank you, Zaita. Myst, anything?” With the pain gone, I didn’t need to have to look through the scope myself. As Skyfire walked away from the edge slowly, Myst spoke up.

“Okay, there seems to be something going on at the bridge. Apparently, and I’m getting this purely from assumption and their gestures, the tanks were sent here as backup. For what, though, I can’t say.” I got over behind her and gestured her to let me see what was going on. She scooted away as I peered through the scope.

Okay, there seemed to be another one of those centurion dudes talking with the leader of the non-Legion group. The tanks were just waiting on the road in a straight line and facing the entrance to the bridge. As I watched, the centurion gestured a hoof at the sky above the bridge, and I got off the scope to see what he was pointing at.

The sky above the hills to the south were a threatening black. They didn’t look like regular clouds, though. In fact, they seemed almost… unnatural. To the surprise of everyone on the ground, including the four of us up here, a massive bolt of red lightning struck down from the clouds, making an other-worldy noise as the sound reached us.

“Okay, what the hell is this shit?” I asked in exasperation. If there was yet ANOTHER danger in this city aside from the Legion, bandits, the ‘new wildlife’, artillery coming from the mountains, and super over-powered vehicles, then I would have just put a bullet in my brain then and there.

“Um, maybe it’s volcanic lightning?” Myst offered, and I looked at her with a questioning look.

“Um, well…volcanoes tend to have weird effects on the atmosphere, according to a science book I read. I…just thought that, maybe, you know, it might be a volcano.” She continued, not sounding quite convinced about her own theory.

‘Well, that MIGHT explain it. But what was that noise? It didn’t sound like thunder at all. In fact it sounded... deadly. Like if you were really close to it might kill you. Or worse,’ I thought, much to the dismay of my brain, which was still trying to recover from earlier.

“Okay, where was I…” I peered down the scope again, not wanting to think about this yet. Seriously, red lightning with thunder that sounded like it would kill you? And I thought that an APC with a sentient AI in it was weird.

The group on the ground had resumed arguing, with the operators of the tanks having come out to help their leader. The other group was outnumbered three-to-one, but they didn’t show any signs of backing down. I had hoped that maybe they would kill each other so we could cross without having to face the tanks, but they seemed to find a compromise as the Legionnaires trotted back to their vehicles.

And that’s when we heard it.

The sound was like…a guttural roar. No, not even a roar. This was a lot more like some kind of deep, prolonged, earh-shaking…vibration. I can’t really describe it aside from it being so loud that the water beneath the bridge shook and jumped up and down for the sound’s duration. All of us, including those on the ground, covered our ears with our hooves as the sound came again, this time louder.

When the sound stopped, the Legionnaires rushed to their tanks and got in. The non-Legion group had disappeared completely, as I couldn’t see any sign of them anywhere on the ground. The tanks began moving, first swinging their turrets around as if searching for the threat. Over here at our position, Skyfire and Myst started climbing up to get into the APC.

The lead tank started across the bridge, while the assault trucks began driving around near the entrance of the bridge and along the edge of the water. I looked through the scope one more time, catching the rest of the tanks starting across the bridge. The trucks were lined up on the edge of the lake, the gunners seeming to be watching the water closely.

“Goldwreath, get in!” Skyfire shouted at me as I began concentrating on the water as well. I didn’t listen. I just kept watching the water… It seemed so… hostile. And it was moving, waving around more than it should…

The tanks were pointing their turrets at the water on both sides of the bridge, watching the water closely, as well. The sound came again, this time seeming to be coming from directly below the bridge. The water bubbled and shook wildly as the tanks stopped, the centurion getting out and trotting to the edge of the bridge to take a look.

“Goldwreath!” Skyfire yelled again. I still didn’t listen. She sounded distant, as all of my attention was focused on what was going to happen next. The centurion gestured at the tank’s turret, and a Legionnaire with what looked like a grenade came out. He gave the explosive to the centurion, who then promptly threw it in the water. It detonated, but I couldn’t hear it. The centurion shrugged, and they started trotting back to the tank.

Wrong move.

A gigantic tentacle blasted out of the water, grabbing the two of them just as they neared the tank. As the two were dragged into the water, the other tanks started to move back. More tentacles erupted from the water, three of them focusing on the lead tank as the rest felt around for the others. As I watched, the lead tank was crushed to a heap of scrap metal while the others in the convoy made their way back across the bridge. The tentacles dragged the crushed remains of the Omni-tank into the water, and it disappeared into the murky depths in a bubbly splash.

The assault trucks began driving away, the gunners shooting wildly in the general direction of the tentacles. Most disappeared from sight, but one was grabbed by one of the slimy limbs and was immediately dragged into the water. The tanks began firing all their weapons, the sounds of all their cannons being almost as loud as the sound earlier. Their quad MG turrets opened fire, sending a visible stream of deadly metal into the mass of tentacles. They even sent out a barrage of rockets that zig-zagged their way at the incoming limbs.

'BJUG! BU-BU-BU-BUM! FWOOOOSH!' In just about a minute of showing off their fire power, the Omni-tanks had caused the tentacles, bloodied and blasted, to go slithering back down into the water.

The tanks got into formation, getting right next to each other to form a wall of armor. Once they were all side by side, their fronts facing the bridge, they began slowly driving backwards with their turrets still watching the water.

I couldn’t move, couldn’t tear myself away from looking down the scope. I could just stare at the scene below me. What was that? One of the ‘new wildlife’ the DJ was talking about? What could possibly be big enough to destroy an Omni-tank? My heart pounded in my chest as I just stared, stunned and shocked. Even Skyfire and Myst seemed to stop calling after me to take in what just happened.

Just as the tanks got to the road in front of our building, an even bigger mass of even larger tentacles flew out of the water. They wrapped themselves around the different buildings, with ours being too far to grab onto. The buildings gave groans of stressed metal and concrete as the creature began pulling itself out of the water. The tanks had resumed firing, but this time the tentacles didn’t back away.

“Okay, Goldwreath! That’s it! Get the fuck in!” Skyfire yelled at me with a hint of worry, and this time I obliged. Whatever was coming out of that lake was going to be a lot larger than an Omni-tank, and we had to get as far as possible from here as we could.

The sound came again, this time almost deafening as the creature’s body slowly emerged from the water. Had we not been inside of the APC, we probably would have been become deaf.

“Zaita, get us out of here!” I shouted at the screen, and the APC immediately began racing towards the edge of the building, the electronic hum of the engine signaling the presence of it’s hover thrusters. Skyfire and Myst both looked scared to death of whatever that thing was, and they were grabbing onto any surface they thought would support them. Just as the APC neared the building’s edge, it exploded.

Well, not really an explosion. More like thirty feet of concrete and rusted metal getting blown out from under us by an explosion we couldn’t see, really. The APC stopped short, but not quickly enough to fall into the floor beneath the roof. The building groaned from the destruction, threatening collapse. As the vehicle struggled to stop itself from falling off the building, it crashed into one of the building’s corners.

The creature was completely out of the water now, and it was the most grotesque thing I ever saw. It was like a giant octopus, but with way more than just eight tentacles. It’s visible body could only be seen as a huge maw with hundreds of spiky protrusions coming from within. It’s body was being held above the water by four extremely thick and large tentacles that made the others look malnourished. It’s skin was glistening with moisture and covered with dozens of tumors and other growths I couldn’t even begin to describe. All in all, it was probably larger than the building we were in.

“Zaita, GET US OUT OF HERE!” Skyfire demanded, but Zaita couldn’t move. The engine hummed as the vehicle tried to back out of the wall in futility.

“I can’t. My platform is stuck. If someone could go out there and remove the obstructions, I will be able to remove us from this location.” Toneless or not, I was just SURE that she was really worried at this point.

“Alright, that’s me. I’ll get Tankbuster and blow the obstacles out of the way. Just be ready to let me back in when I do!” And with that, I got out of the APC to take a look at what was preventing Zaita from getting away.

As I got out of the vehicle, I was nearly choked by the amount of dust and debris the explosion (wherever it came from) had threw into the air. Jumping off the APC and going prone to get more air, I started looking around for the obstruction. Meanwhile, the creature was coming closer as the tanks slowly drove backwards.

There was a pair of metal beams stuck into an opening on the roof plating, jamming the vehicle in place. Below the APC, there was also the remains of a concrete column pressed up between the engines. I took out Tankbuster and pointed the muzzle at the metal beams first.

“Alright, Tankbuster, I need you to work right now!” I fired off a pair of shots, but perhaps only one was necessary. With the beams broken away, I turned my attention to the obstruction beneath the vehicle.

That was when one of the smaller tentacles latched itself around our building, with three of the large, oozy suction cups sticking onto our APC. The smell of the slime made me gag, and it nearly brought tears to my eyes, as well. As I watched, the creature pulled itself further into the city, chasing the tanks as they backpedalled. The creature’s body was directly in front of me, only partially visible through all the cracks and gaps in the wall. The monster’s head was probably bigger than the space between the buildings, as it’s slimy flesh pressed into any entrance in the building. I saw a massive tentacle reach up, then slam back down. I heard the groans of the crushed metal remains of a tank as the tentacle flung it into the city. I could only imagine what Zaita and the other two were thinking right now.

“Oh, shit…” I whispered to myself, taking cover behind an old wooden desk. I looked through the windows opposite of me, and I saw all the hundreds of suction cups of the tentacle as the limb slowly crushed the building. Turning to look out the windows facing the lake, I also saw that all the buildings the creature had latched onto had entire floors ripped off.

“Fuck fuck fuck…” If I couldn’t get us out of here soon, we were either going to be crushed by the building as it was torn apart by the strength of the limb, or get sucked into one of those cups and get dragged around the city until this thing decided to go back in the water.

Slowly, I approached the vehicle again and looked for the concrete. To my dismay, a smaller tentacle had wrapped itself around it, and if I shot the tentacle the monster would know we were here.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me…” Come on! Couldn’t I get a break right now? All I wanted to do was cross a bridge! Was that so much to ask, even in the wasteland? Seriously!

I paused for a moment, thinking of what exactly I should do. Okay, so, if I got us free, could we outrun this thing if it decided to give chase? Would it even notice one of it’s tinier tentacles being shot off? It was pretty small, being about just as thick as my body.

‘Okay, I’ll need to risk it…’ I thought as I reluctantly pointed the shotgun at the tentacle. I had trouble forcing myself to squeeze the trigger, as I wasn’t quite able to convince myself about this plan yet.

‘Come on…just pull the trigger twice, and get out of here. You can’t kill this thing, but you CAN get away from it.’ Thought Tom, whose voice I could hear clearly in my head despite all of the noise coming from that…thing.

‘Or just wait, it’ll pass by eventually.’ Suggested Tod. Damn it, I wanted to agree with them both. But only one of the two choices would get us out of here. Wait or pull the trigger? Damn it!

I had decided to just pull the trigger, and was about to finally force myself to do it when I heard a loud, fiery, fleshy explosion. After a great ‘FWOOSH’ of fire that washed over the creature’s head in a bright orange, which was visible from my spot in the building, a large amount of slimy blood and tentacle bits erupted from the creature, showering me and the APC in the most disgusting, foul smelling, viscous, greenish slime I ever had the misfortune to get into my mouth. The creature let out a deafening roar of pain and released it’s tentacles from our building, nearly pulling the APC out of it’s predicament, as my throat struggled to cough out all of the disgusting ooze. Finally, with the tentacle gone, I pulled the trigger twice, which blasted the concrete to bits, and got onto the APC.

Then there were more explosions, each one striking the creature itself or somewhere near it. One of the blasts shook our building hard, causing me to slip from the slime just before I got the hatch open. As I slid down the body of the APC, I managed to get a hoof into one of the other gaps in Zaita’s armor plating before I fell to my death on the streets below.

“Fuck! Of all the times for my wing to be busted, it has to be now?!” I yelled as I struggled to get another hoof somewhere I could hold onto, but the slime wasn’t making it easy. I could see my two friends through the window, and Skyfire raced towards the hatch. As she got out and tried to help me out, one of the monster’s tentacle slammed against the concrete directly below the vehicle, causing the APC to fall free.

“Shit!” Skyfire said as she tried to balance herself on the free falling APC, which managed to hover unsteadily towards the second floor of one of the buildings the creature had wrecked. I, however, was dangling around like a ragdoll as the APC shook from the explosions. After the APC landed on the second floor, I let myself fall off onto the ground and jumped back up onto the APC before Skyfire and I got in.

“Aw, fuck, you smell horrible!” Skyfire told me as I ran for the controls.

“YOU DON’T SAY?!” I shouted at her, feeling all the slime sliding around on my coat; it made me want to bathe myself in fire. I already knew I smelled like pissed on, puked on, spat on shit, so I didn’t need her to tell me! I could feel the disgusting goop slide around beneath my armor, and I really hoped that all my wounds were closed because I did not want that stuff in my bloodstream! I turned my attention towards the screen, breathing hard as I fought to get myself under control.

“Okay Zaita, go!” I yelled, and immediately the APC sped over the edge and hovered down onto the slimy, broken streets below. More fiery explosions shook the entire area, almost as if there was an earthquake.

The creature was beginning to go back towards the water, the artillery’s napalm shells pounding on it and dousing the creature in orange flame. The Omni-tanks had had enough of being pushed back and were pursuing the bloodied and weakened creature back to the lake, all weapons firing mercilessly in revenge. The streets were riddled with debris and slime while the buildings were coming down all around us from a combination of the creature’s tentacles and the napalm artillery.

“Goldwreath, we can’t stay here. After we reach street level, I will take us far from this location as quickly possible. If the bridge is clear, I will take us across. If not…” She started to say, when one of the creature’s flailing tentacles smacked our transport, sending it crashing against the side of a building.

The three of us fell to the back of the APC as it started free-falling towards the ground. The vehicle tilted in midair, sending me smashing into the controls. I turned around to see Myst and Skyfire crashing into the walls, but that wasn’t really what got my attention.

“Oh, fuck…” That was all I got out before the very heavy supply box Road Town had given us crashed into me and I got knocked out cold.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

When I woke up, Myst and Skyfire were both struggling to get up into a less painful position. The APC was upside down, and the contents of the supply box were spilled all over the cockpit. I felt like my back was broken, and I tried getting up, worried as to whether it was broken or not. I sighed with relief as I found out that I had NOT broken my back. But that was the good news. The BAD news was that I had broken my other wing.

“Aw, come on…” I said as I reached back to cradle my numb wing, but at the touch of my hoof I felt a stinging pain emanate from it. I winced before I turned to the other two, who seemed worse off than me.

“You two alright? Myst?” I turned to face her, and all she did was stretch her back. Her eyes popped wide as her spine gave off a series of cracking sounds, but she nodded. “Okay, good. Skyfire?” She was holding out one of her hooves and flopped it in front of her. As the hoof touched the ground, she hissed in pain.

“Yeah, aside from this thing, I’m fine. It’s probably just a sprain.” I got over to her and picked up her limb. I glanced at her as I extended it slowly, and she nodded in response before she bit her lip and closed her eyes. I yanked her limb hard, causing her to scream in pain and the limb to make several snapping noises.

“Ssssss…gah. Aw, yeah. Ok, ok, I’m good.” Was all she said as I let the hoof go, after which she inspected it. I turned back to the controls, which, because we were upside down, were above me. I looked up at the screen, and I saw a small notification on it:

‘System reboot : 99%’ As it reached one hundred, the screen flickered to show Zaita’s ‘face’.

“Zaita, you okay?” I asked worriedly. Her screen flickered for a few more seconds, before it became as clear as it was before.

“Data-wise, my memory of my experiences with you are unharmed. Physically, however, I will require significant repairs to deal with the blunt trauma caused by my crashes and the debris that I have collided with. On a whole, I am not alright. However, I am still capable of combat duty.” Ok, ok, that was good. At least she could still bring us around.

“Okay, good. Can you see what’s going on out there?” The three of us inside couldn’t as the window view was obstructed by concrete slabs and rocks, with the occasional green slime on them. There was a beep, and an image of the outside appeared, but it was upside down. The image rotated itself to allow us to view it correctly.

The outside was a mess. There was green goo and tentacle bits everywhere, and there were two smoking Omni-tank carcasses. The buildings all around were wrecked, with entire floors worth of concrete and other materials littering the street. The streets beneath the slime were charred and blackened, as were just about all of the buildings outside. Dozens of large craters littered the road, making it look rough and uneven. There were the remains of very large missile in the craters, some of them still oozing out the jelly-like napalm. What caught my attention, though, was the lifeless mass of burning tentacles that was the giant octopus-thing near the bridge’s entrance.

“At least that thing’s dead.” I muttered to myself.

“Um…so, how do we get of here? I don't want to be stuck in an upside down APC...” Myst asked, her eyes darting all around as if she were paranoid. Still, I knew what she meant. We were upside down, and the APC was most likely buried under a ton of rubble. If we died in here because we couldn’t get out, that would be the shittiest death ever.

“Leave that to me.” Zaita said, and immediately the engine hummed loudly as the thrusters struggled to being the vehicle upright. There was the sound of rocks tumbling to the side as the vehicles slowly rose. Finally, after more than two minutes of steadily rising, the APC had gotten itself out from under about a ton of rubble and slime.

“Alright, well, we should probably cross the bridge before MORE of these things show up.” Skyfire suggested, to which both Myst and I nodded in agreement. The APC started hovering towards the corpse of the giant monster, it’s corpse oozing with slime and blood.

After the crazy shit that we had gone through today, I had hoped that the rest of the trip would go smoothly. The tanks were busted, this thing was dead, the assault trucks were gone, the Legion and non-Legion groups were gone as well, and the bridge was still intact. All we had to take care of was our own wounds and clean up the inside of our transport, right?

Wrong.

As we neared the creature’s gigantic corpse, a pile of rubble near it began to move. The stone and concrete shook to the side as an exposed metal pipe shifted to face the creature’s carcass. As the rubble fell off of it, the remaining Omni-tank rolled over to the corpse, seeming to inspect it. As Zaita began slowly backing away, the tank’s turret turned to face us.

“Horseapples.” Skyfire muttered as my heart stopped beating for a moment. Myst had let out a quiet gasp the moment the tank had spotted us. To our immense relief, the tank didn’t open fire. Not even after ten seconds. After almost a full minute, another centurion got out of the tank and trotted over to us, a heavy pistol strapped to his side. I could feel Zaita slowly hovering backwards.

“No. They don’t know we’re hostile yet. Try getting closer to him, instead. Slowly.” I suggested, and Skyfire grinned. Myst, though, didn’t seem to like the plan as she sat nervously on one of the seats. Zaita reluctantly hovered forward at a casual pace, meeting with the centurion half-way. The tank, though, was still watching us closely; it’s turret swinging to follow us in case we tried anything.

The centurion got onto our APC and knocked twice on the hatch. Myst’s eyes snapped to me as she watched me nervously. Skyfire readied her plasma rifles, the grin still on her face.

“Okay, we’re going to solve this peacefully if possible. I don’t want unnecessary bloodshed, especially with that thing watching us.” I gestured outside at the tank, it’s two massive guns silently threatening to obliterate us before we even had a chance to react.

“Grrrr….ugh, fine.” Skyfire said, and she powered her rifles down. Myst seemed to approve, smiling at me from her seat. I took a deep breath as I trotted under the hatch, and made sure Tankbuster was ready, just in case. I also tore a piece of cloth from one of the sacks and wrapped it around my face, so it wouldn’t be too obvious I was a pony. Taking one last deep breath, I opened the hatch and popped my head out.

“Te saluto, amicus. Magnus die, huh?” I did my best to put on a casual smile, and I really hoped that my zebra speak was correct. The centurion seemed pleasantly surprised to hear me speak in zebra, putting on a friendly smile in place of his suspicious expression.

“Ah, good, another Legionnaire. And, please, there’s no need to be so formal. And as for it being a ‘good day’…well not really.” He took a look behind him at the massive corpse, then past me at the destroyed tanks. He sighed before he spoke again.

“Anyway, what are you doing out here? The Legate did not say he was sending in an S3 Harpy to help us deal with the…’situations’ near the lake and to the south. What is your cohort, soldier?” Cohort? Oh, right! That was an army unit used by the ancient Roamans. But, what were the different cohorts? I needed to get that info out of this guy…

“Come again, sir?” I asked, hoping he was one of those officers who would repeat themselves.

“You’re cohort, soldier. Felinixia, Griffinixia, Hydraxus, Ursalanix, Equestrius, or Roamanus?” He elaborated, seeming a little disappointed he had to repeat himself. But at least I had a set of choices.

“Equestrius, sir. They sent me here to check up on the…auxiliaries; the assault trucks. But, as it turns out, they have fled the area. Cowards.” I hoped I knew what I was talking about. I also hoped this guy wouldn’t question me further about this, as I didn't really take the ancient Roaman history classes seriously.

"Ah, so Thanus sent you here? Why would he...oh, I see." He made a disgusted facial expression as he scowled. Under his breath, he muttered obscenities in zebra. Despite the impracticality of it, I actually felt concerned about this. After all, I was going to be going up against the Legion, so anything that concerned them concerned me.

"What about Thanus, sir?" I asked, much to his surprise. He smiled and seemed like he was about to answer, before a pained expression got onto his face. From what, though, I couldn’t tell...

Ugh, Goddesses, the headache was back.

I tried to hide my pain, I really did. But not even the centurion was able to keep it to himself, as he soon began grunting from the sudden headache. And from the sounds of commotion coming from inside the vehicle, Skyfire and Myst felt it, too. The worst part? My split personalities.

'Put a bullet in his head, Goldwreath! The tank'll be too slow to react, and you'll be gone in no time!' The higher pitched signal was stronger than the other, and I felt an inexplicable desire to follow what Tod said. I even began to bring up my shotgun, but I stopped when I felt something metallic touch my leg. I looked down to see what it was, while the centurion was preoccupied trying to deal with his own pain.

"Skyfire! Myst! What the hell are you doing?!" I hissed at them, shocked at what was going on down there. Myst was, for no apparent reason, pointing her rifle at Skyfire, who, in turn, pointed both of her rifles at me. Skyfire looked angry at me, but for what I couldn't say. The centurion, despite his visible pain, slowly pulled out his pistol and began to point it at me.

But then the other signal became the stronger of the two, it's droning hum drowning out the piercing note of the other. Immediately, Skyfire's 'anger' subsided as she put her rifles away, a shocked expression on her face. Myst was even worse off; looking like she had just committed a terrible crime as she hid her face from me in shame. The centurion seemed confused as to why he even had his pistol out.

'Don't do it, Goldwreath. Think about it; ONE shot, anywhere on this vehicle, and you and your friends are dead. Are you willing to risk it? Chances are it won't work.' Tom argued reasonably, and I felt myself agree with him, too. Unlike with the other signal, my agreement on that thought felt... natural. Like it was really me agreeing to it and not some dysfunctional part of my brain.

"Ah, sir, I don't mean to disrespect, but I need to get across the bridge soon. I have, um... another detail to tend to. Some... rebels going against the Legate's will." This whole thing had gone on longer than expected. The Forum was THREE days away, and this whole event at this bridge was zapping our time.

The centurion shook himself out of his pain-induced daze, before refocusing his attention on me. He looked at his pistol with a questioning look before he placed it back in it's holster.

"Ah, yes, of course. Very well, soldier. You may pass. Just, uh... try not to get killed out there. Remember the Legate's announcement of needing to recruit more? There's a pretty good reason for that; we're running low on experienced soldiers, and have to supplement out forces with these trigger happy profligates." He said the last word with disgust, and looked at the tank with a look of disdain. I looked at it as well, and I saw that the turret was looking around idly. He sighed as he shook his head.

‘So, the Legion are having trouble maintaining their numbers? Interesting…’ This info would definitely help me out, one way or another.

"Uh, thank you sir. Operator, bring us across the bridge. We've tarried long enough." I tried to sound as Legion-like as possible, and my efforts were rewarded with him getting off the vehicle after he wished me good luck.

Just as I got back into the vehicle and began closing the hatch, a bullet pinged against it. The force made a dent in the armor plating, and I saw a large bullet in the indentation.

The sniper was on the second floor of one of the buildings, an electronic blue glow fading off of his vest. The centurion turned towards the sniper with a look of rage.

"You! What are you doing?! And where the hell were you when this creature attacked?!" He bellowed, catching the attention of the sniper. The sniper merely pointed his rifle at the centurion and fired a round at him, the bullet visibly piercing his armor and burying itself into the cement. Blood exploded from the centurion's side as he fell to the ground with a metallic thump.

Immediately, the five assault trucks appeared from a side road, blood smeared all around the seats, and began encircling the tank and the centurion. The tank's turrets swung to open fire, it's rockets launching from their pods to destroy the ambushers.

But then two blue-glowing cylinders were thrown from the trucks, and they detonated with a burst of electricity that zapped at the tank. The tank went dark; the humming of it's engine stopped, as did the pain caused by the two signals it emitted. The rockets went out of control and struck areas at random, one nearly hitting the centurion.

"Zaita, get us out of here!" I yelled at the screen as I closed the hatch, with the machineguns of the vehicles outside pinging against the APC's armor plating. One of the vehicles, the largest and most heavily armored, got below the window where the sniper was and the sniper jumped in.

The APC began speeding towards the bridge, with the five other vehicles pursuing us. We hovered over the grotesque mass of tentacles, getting to the other side quickly while our pursuers had to go around. Unfortunately, our lead was nullified by the fact that their vehicles were faster than ours by a fairly large margin.

"Get out of the way, I got this!" Skyfire pushed me aside and opened the hatch, exposing just enough of herself to let her rifles out. She began firing Sally at speeds I didn't think the rifle was even capable of; about as fast as an assault rifle. The vehicles weaved to dodge her shots as they got onto the right lane to avoid falling into the water below. Leaving her to that, I turned towards Myst.

"Can you get the drivers? I'm pretty sure you're aim's good enough for that!" I had to yell it over the sound of the machineguns and Skyfire's plasma rifles, both of which seemed to be firing at a similar rate. Myst nodded before she got up next to Skyfire and began to aim, her rifle swaying only slightly, despite the roughness of our hovering, as she began lining up a shot.

I got up as well, but I didn't join them at the hatch; there wasn't enough room for all three of us. Instead, I pulled out Tankbuster, got onto the roof of the vehicle and went prone as I looked for somewhere I could place my hoof in. The fact that we could hover actually wasn't making going over the remains of old vehicles on our lane that much easier, and we still had a long way to go. It seemed that our lane had more vehicles on it, as ours was going out of the city. There were also a large number of skeletons here, in contrast to the few I saw in the city. Perhaps the zebras had tried to evacuate?

One of the vehicles approached, firing it's machinegun at my friends. They got down just in time to not have their heads blown to bits, and the gunner focused on suppressing them. Thinking it the opportune time, I popped up and took a good look at the gunner before I pulled the trigger.

He was a zebra, just like the driver. They both wore a similar heavy kevlar vest with more ammo pouches on it than the standard. One thing stood out on their outfit, though: a logo of a black gladius with two broken looking wings on each side on a circular field of light blue. They both wore armored gasmasks built into a metal combat helmet, which made their heads look about as armored as a Legion juggernaut's. Their limbs were covered in leather, and their weapons were slung across their backs.

I pulled the trigger, and the shotgun's pellets tore away his forelimbs, but did nothing that I could see to his heavily armored torso. The driver took one look at me and slowed down enough for him to get out of my range. Myst and Skyfire had popped back up, the former resuming trying to take aim while the latter opened fire immediately.

One of the other vehicles had a gunner who, instead of using the machinegun, had a rocket launcher. He fired it off in our direction, and only because of Zaita's maneuverability were we able to dodge it. However, I had nearly fallen off into the water below, making me lose my breath just as I managed to grab onto one of the APC's armor plates. As I struggled to climb back onto the vehicle and into a less precarious position, which was not easy due to my metal plated hooves, the concrete wall behind me exploded from one of the rockets and the force of it got me fully onto the vehicle, though it also nearly pushed me over the other edge.

"Woah! Zaita, try not to over-dodge things! I happen to be up here!" I shouted at the camera, and it turned around to face me.

"Very well. Though, need I remind you that it is exactly for situations like this that I have a turret. If you could get on it, it would be quite helpful." Oh, right. I facehoofed; an action that just because it hurts a lot the first time doesn't really mean it will hurt less the next time around. Mentally berating myself for forgetting the turret, I jumped back in and got onto the controls.

The interface was... weird. The sub-cockpit that housed the controls only had a few levers and buttons, but that didn't make learning how to use it any easier. The screen was alight with a red targeting reticule in the middle, with an ammo count near the bottom left. Finally, after several seconds that seemed all the more crucial each time Zaita had to dodge a rocket, I managed to learn how to swing the turret. The screen had one of the vehicles in the reticule, and I actually grinned in anticipation.

"Alright, let's do this." With that said, I pressed the button on the control stick that directed the turret. Immediately, the vehicle began rocking slightly each time the turret fired.

'BUG-BUG' 'BUG-BUGBUGBUG-BUG-BUGBUG!' Next to the sound of the Omni-tank's cannons, THIS was the most glorious sound that came from a gun that I ever heard! The truck's engines began to smoke, and blood erupted from the driver's seat. It was such a shame the ammo was likely very limited...

Sparing a glance out the window, I saw that we were approaching a large mass of old vehicles. Our pursuers, apparently, had not let up, having found some way to give chase despite the extreme difficulty. Another rocket shot towards us, striking the roof of the circular structure and causing large chunks of debris to fall down.

Zaita automatically dodged the pieces as they struck the ground around us. As the smoke cleared, I continued firing the turret into the group of vehicles. I disabled another vehicle, this time getting both the driver and gunner, and the truck lost all sense of control as it rammed into another of the vehicles. Another rocket came at us, and this time we had to raise our altitude and go upside down to avoid being hit.

While upside down, I heard Myst pull off a shot that, looking at the vehicles using the turret, pierced into the driver's seat of one of the remaining trucks. Just like last time, the vehicle lost control and crashed into one of the old vehicle carcasses. But, amidst all of this, I saw something crash onto the ground behind an old car in the mass of vehicles we passed over. Something I couldn't quite make out...

"Goldwreath! Skyfire fell out!"

What?

Upon hearing those words, my heart nearly stopped completely. I could just stare at the screen, staring blankly at it as the remaining vehicle slowed down and crossed over into our lane. But I didn't care; that wasn't really important right now. I didn't even have the will to open fire. I could just stare at the screen, my mind struggling to take in what I just heard. All the while, I could hear the slow beating of my heart in my ears.

'She's...gone?' I thought to myself, feeling my heart sinking into a deep pool of depression. This was worse than when I had left the stable; at least I knew my friends would be able to take care of themselves. And I knew that whoever the new security chief was wouldn’t let that damned murderer make another kill.

'Just leave her! You're almost at the other side!' No, Tod. I won't do that. I had already lost my home, my family, my life, and my friends. And I'd be damned if I let myself lose another.

"Zaita, take us back!" I finally got myself to say, but I still didn't quite believe what had just happened.

"Goldwreath, the chances of her surviving that fall are extremely low. At most, given her angle and our speed, I calculate her chances at..."

"I. Don't. Care! Take us back! I am not leaving ANYONE behind!" I yelled as I got onto the controls. "I'll commandeer this vehicle myself if I have to!" I yanked hard at the controls, but it didn't have any effect. Out of frustration, I slammed my hooves down on the controls. "TAKE US BACK!" I demanded, and this time Zaita complied; turning around and speeding past the remaining pursuers.

I climbed out onto the roof and pulled out the heavy pistol. There were still a few shots left in it. I turned around, seeing the trucks skid to a stop before coming after us again. I lifted the pistol as one of them got closer.

"Come on," I said to myself as the vehicle came closer. The gunner opened fire, but only a few of his shots struck me. While the bullets may have penetrated my vest, the armor beneath, despite denting painfully against my chest, managed to stop them.

“Come on!” I growled as the vehicle got closer, the gunner still shooting at me. This truck had four people in it; a driver, a gunner, and two rocket-wielding zebras at the back. As the three combatants opened fire on our transport, I spotted the mass of vehicles just a few dozen feet from me. Despite having a clear shot of the driver, I managed to tear myself away from the desire to blow his head apart and instead prepared myself to jump.

To my surprise, I saw one of them, the gunner, fall out of the vehicle. Whether he fell out or was pushed out, I didn’t really know. Either way, he landed in between two trucks and disappeared from sight in a bluish glow.

“Myst, Zaita, cover me!” I yelled below me, and jumped off the APC. I touched down hard, denting my metal hoof plates before I rolled. The APC zoomed over me, still being pursued. I took cover behind one of the broken cars as the truck roared by, still shooting after out transport.

When they had passed by, I started looking around the vehicles for Skyfire. Come on, an orange Pegasus in a world of dull grey and rusted brown; she couldn’t be that hard to find. In the distance, I heard the explosion of rockets mix with the sounds of Zaita’s 25mm chaingun.

I searched for almost a minute, looking in-between the cars and even inside them, just in case. I was almost sure I wouldn’t find her when I finally spotted her orange tail from around a corner. Fishing out a healing potion, I galloped towards her.

“Skyfire, get up! We have to go before more of… of…” I stopped short, my mouth hanging open in horror. My eyes went wide, involuntarily taking in the gory seen before me. As much as I wanted to look away, I just… froze. After a moment, I managed to make myself move again, and I fished out another healing potion.

“No! Dammit, I won’t let you die!” I pulled the rusted piece of a car’s door out of her stomach, blood spurting out as the sharp metal was pulled out of her. I then proceeded to snap her legs back into their correct position, and only the fact that she was unconscious prevented her from screaming in pain. Next, I started pouring the first healing potion down her throat before she bled out.

I had gotten about half of the restorative fluid into her mouth, which I had to hold open to make sure she didn’t choke, when a heavy weight slammed into me. We rolled once, before the zebra threw me into one of the old cars. If I hadn’t been wearing metal armor, I was sure I would have been pierced by the rusted metal. I began pulling myself out of the vehicle, growling in anger, when the zebra approached Skyfire. I could hear his regulated breathing through his gas mask as he passed by me.

He was a fairly large zebra, being about my size, and perhaps just a little taller. His gear and vest were significantly more faded and used than those of his allies.

“Don’t. Touch. Her.” I said threateningly, and the armored face of the zebra’s gas mask turned to face me; it’s translucent gray visor not letting me look him properly in the eye. I also noticed he had a sniper rifle slung across his back; probably the one that tried to kill me a few minutes ago.

“Why would I do that? She’s not the one I came here for. She’s not important.” He said in a muffled, raspy voice. He circled around her to stand directly in front of me.

“YOU are the one I need to talk to,” He said, after I had gotten myself out of the vehicle’s remains.

“Yeah? And what could you possibly need from me? I’m no one special.” I had seriously hoped that I would be able to convince him of that, but I guess my uniform was pretty distinguishable at this point.

“Yeah, keep telling yourself that, Praetorian. Taking out a Legion base? Interfering in Specter business? Moving around the city in an S3 Harpy, of which only a few were made during the war? Like it or not, you’ve become a very prominent figure in Roam. The Legion wants you dead, Redeye wants you for the reputation, the people want you to save them, and just about everyone wants you on their side. You can’t side with one and expect the rest to be fine with it.” He moved away at a casual pace, trotting to the edge of the bridge.

I took the opportunity to charge at him, hoping to send him off the edge. But, despite the heavy looking outfit this guy was wearing, he was unbelievably fast. He jumped to the side just in time to not get rammed, and I nearly fell over the edge myself.

“So predictable,” He taunted me from his position on top of a car. He pulled out a heavy revolver and pointed it at Skyfire. Reflexively, I galloped to her just as he squeezed the trigger.

The bullet pierced all of my protective equipment easily, blasting out of my right side and burying itself in the ground. I staggered from the pain, nearly falling over as my blood dripped in rivulets onto the concrete. He rushed to me and knocked me down, then pointed the barrel of the revolver at my face.

“How do you expect to protect this place if you don’t know how to keep yourself from being manipulated? From being controlled? There are more ways than one to stop an individual such as yourself from accomplishing even the most meager of goals. You’ll need to learn how the wasteland works before you can even hope to go up against it.” He pointed the gun away, and I landed a solid punch against his helmet which caused him to drop the revolver. I picked it up as he regained his balance.

“You’ve disarmed me. Now, what are you going to do?” He asked, and I felt the urge to shoot him in the face. Another part of my brain, though, told me he expected that and would probably have some plan to deal with it.

“I…don’t know,” I admitted, feeling a little pathetic about it. The blood loss was beginning to make me feel dizzy. If Skyfire were awake, I could only imagine what she would have felt like.

“Exactly. Unless you learn to pull the trigger without thinking about it, you’ll be easy prey for these people. Scavenger, foal, Legionnaire, mercenary, or innocent townsfolk; you’ll need to learn to kill each one without remorse or second thought if you’re going to try to help this gods-forgotten hellhole out.”

“Are you saying I should just… kill? Kill until there’s no one left who’ll oppose me? I-I won’t do that. I want to help this place to get better; a city without killing or murder or rape or slavery.” I responded, feeling disgusted at the words coming from his mouth.

“What you want is a dream; an illusion. A perfect state of peace and security? There is no such place, and never will be, in this world. Even in better times, it was impossible. The only peace you can give these people is the peace of the gun.” He pulled out a similar revolver to the one I now possessed from one of his vest's many pockets, then calmly loaded some bullets into the empty chamber and approached Skyfire.

“You’ll have to learn to put people out of their pain.” He looked down at my friend, who was losing quite a lot of blood while I was having this conversation.

As much as I hated this guy for his words, I actually considered them. Was he right? Was my whole idea of restoring this place to a peaceful, secure city all a dream? A mirage of perfection keeping me chasing after it? I began to doubt myself, and seeing Skyfire bleed out in front of me wasn’t really helping to prove against his point. Her and the dozens of skeletons around us. Who the hell was this guy, anyway?

“But… then what about the innocent? The people who’ve done nothing wrong? Aren’t they worth fighting for? Worth saving?” I asked, the doubt chipping away at me. I felt so unfaithful, especially to myself and my friends. Lighthouse would've been disgusted at me.

He didn’t answer for a moment, seeming to think about it. “No one’s innocent. Not you, not me, not this pegasus, not a mother caring for her children, and not even a foal begging on the streets. We’ve all done wrong, and we all have to pay for it. One way or another.” Only now did I realize something about this guy; he, unlike all of his compatriots, did not have the insignia on him.

“So you’re saying we should all die, then? That none of us deserve to live because of our mistakes?” I asked, rewarded with him turning his attention to me.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. Nothing’s gonna last for forever, why fight for the future? In the end, no matter what we achieve, we’re all losers. We’re all gonna turn to dust and be forgotten. Fighting just brings us pain and raises hope only to break it down. Fighting makes you think you can do something, but you can’t. There’s no point in fighting for a better tomorrow.”

He pointed the gun at Skyfire’s head, and I could hear him pull back the hammer. Despite my great desire to, I couldn’t find it in myself to move; to go over there and buck this guy upside the head so hard he flew back to the other side of the bridge. Instead, I just stood there; thinking about what he said…

“Pain… there’s only one way to end it. And that way is to lose what we care for. Keep losing until we don’t feel the pain anymore.” His armored face turned to me, the gun barrel still on Skyfire’s head.

“Keep losing until you feel nothing. Just a mind, unhindered by the uselessness of emotion. And when you feel no emotion, you’ll be immune to lies. Immune to manipulation. Immune to irrational mistakes and ethical boundaries.” He looked back down at Skyfire’s feeble, fragile form.

“Then you can start thinking about saving people.” He slowly squeezed the trigger…

‘BUG-BUGBUGBUG-BUG-BUG!’ Zaita’s turret pounded the ground near us, one round landing a little too close to Skyfire for my comfort. The zebra turned to face the APC in surprise, pulling out one of the blue cylinders. Unfortunately for him, one of the heavy bullets struck him square in the face, causing him to drop the cylinder on the ground.

To my immense surprise, his head didn’t explode in a shower of bloody bits. And not even later on, when more rounds struck his vest. They didn’t even go through the vest! All they did was completely wreck his uniform as more struck him. He staggered away, gasmask broken and uniform obliterated, but not even bleeding. He took cover behind an old van as 25mm rounds pounded on it, but then I saw a blue glow reflect off the metal.

“Goldwreath! Are you okay?” Myst asked as she got out of the vehicle, after which Zaita circled around the van and took a look.

‘No, Myst, I am not.’ I thought, trying to hide my heavily bleeding injuries.

“Yeah, just help Skyfire out. She’s hurt pretty bad.” I clutched at my wounds, hoping that the blood seeping through the armor segments wasn’t too noticeable. Myst looked at me worriedly for a second, then took a look at Skyfire. Her eyes went wide at the sight of my pegasus friend’s pale coat, reddened by the pool of blood she was lying down in.

“Oh my. O-ok. Where are the healing potions?” She asked, and all I could do with my quickly shutting down body was shake off my saddlebags. Myst got the message, rummaging through it and fishing out the healing fluid.

My eyes were beginning to feel heavy, as they started involuntarily trying to close. I had given up on trying to suppress view of my wounds, letting my hoof fall down onto the asphalt. I felt really light-headed, and I began swaying around. The world through my eyes looked really… wavy. Like everything was melting or something. Through all this, though, I managed to make out Myst putting the side of her head onto Skyfire’s chest.

“She’s not breathing!” Yeah, that was probably what she said. I think it was, at least. My hearing just really sucked right now.

“Goldwreath?” I heard her ask, but she sounded distant. Like she was trying to talk to me through a sound-resistant barrier.

“Goldwreath?” She asked one more time, and I felt myself fall begin to fall onto my side. Right before I touched the ground, I saw what looked like several rockets and a tank shell strike the vehicles nearby, sending skeletons flying around.

“Goldwreath!” I barely heard her that time, and my vision was beginning to darken. I could see darkness creeping in on my vision from the sides, and any sounds I heard afterwards, whether or not it was supposed to be loud, were almost as quiet as whispers. Zaita came back and began descending, one of the tank shells nearly striking her square in the front window.

The last thing I saw was Skyfire's blood crawling towards me, the flashes of the explosions reflecting off of it with a red tint.

'I'm sorry, Skyfire.' I thought, 'Sorry you lost your life for nothing... sorry you lost your life following me...'

Finally, I lost all my senses, and darkness took over.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Zebra Speech, Level One – Thanks to your diligence in learning Zebra talk, you have an easier time with all zebra characters. You gain an additional ten points to your speech and barter skills when talking to zebras.

Chapter 8 - The Calm Before the Storm

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Chapter 8
The Calm Before the Storm
"If you can take this bull by the horn, you better be ready for a ride!”

I opened my eyes, hearing a recurring electronic beeping next to me. I was in a small, fairly clean room with three windows and one door. The golden rays of early morning sunlight stabbed into the room, showing only a little dust floating around. The floor tiles were only cracked a little, and seemed to actually be the cleanest part of the room.

My sides felt sore from where the bullet had passed clean through me, and my head ached from what was most likely blood loss. I felt the back of my head on something soft, at least in contrast to everything else I had felt in the wasteland. I turned my head to the side, seeing Skyfire lying down on a relatively clean bed. Next to her, there was a monitor with wavy lines on it on a metal stand. There was also a small table next to her bed, which was also beside mine. Myst and Zaita were nowhere to be seen, though.

“Skyfire…” I grunted, trying to get off the bed. My sides stung in protest while my wings felt gave a few painful cracks, and I fell back down onto my bed with a loud groan of pain.

“Woah, now. No need to rush. Take your time, I heard you’ve been through a lot.” A zebra mare with a white doctor’s coat next to me said. I turned to face her, and I saw her pull out a healing potion.

“Who are you? And where the heck am I?” If these people were yet another group of hostiles, I’d have to start formulating a plan on how to take them out. Okay, so, there was just her here…

‘What the hell are you thinking? These people aren’t trying to kill you! They could have done that while you were out, you know.’ Oh yeah. Thanks, Tom. That’s one of the reasons I’ll side with you over Tod any day; you’re sensible.

The zebra mare chuckled, apparently finding something about my facial expression funny. Was it the suspicious look I was giving her? Weren’t people supposed to take you seriously if you were suspicious of them?

“Hehehe…sorry. It’s just that, well, you...,um…” She pointed her hoof at my wings, which were standing out long and wide. My own eyes burst wide at the sight, my mind conflicted as to whether to feel happy they weren’t broken anymore or embarrassed.

“It’s just that I heard that meant pegasi were… ‘interested’.” She looked at me with a little smile, probably trying to make me feel less awkward. It didn’t help, though, as I could already feel my cheeks burning up.

“Uh, yeah, well… I can explain!” Maybe I had a really steamy dream, and I couldn’t remember it? Damn, why’d I have to forget the one good thing I might have experienced in the last day or so?

The zebra chuckled some more, but got herself under control. She cleared her throat and put on a more serious expression, even putting on some glasses to complete the look. After, she poured the contents of the vial into a glass mug, the purple fluid looking more…substantial than regular healing potions.

“There’s no need to explain, Praetorian. And, allow me to introduce myself. I am Zeneta, the doctor of this place. As for your wings, it is most likely the after-effect of the restoration brews and physical therapy we had to give you. Oh, and as for where you are, you are at Verge: the only settlement this far out of the city.” She handed me the glass, and I had to take it in between my hooves (which wasn’t easy. How did the zebras do it with almost everything, anyway? It doesn’t make sense).

“Um, eh, well…thanks.” I mumbled, not quite sure what to do. It was apparent that these people had saved us, though I didn’t see Myst and Zaita yet, but that didn’t mean they didn’t have some plan in store for us. For all I knew, they could have been some group of crazy cannibals or something.

“There’s no need to thank me. In fact, the people of the Verge should be thanking YOU; you and your friends, that is, for saving us from that tank. Those things take a LOT of rockets to take out…” She shook her head, as if trying to banish a thought from fully forming in her head. Wait, I had? I was unconscious! Who could have blown up the tank? Zaita’s gun was strong, but not enough to pierce the ridiculous amount of armor that thing had on. Who could have…

“Myst.” I smiled as I brought the mug to my mouth, drinking the… grape flavored healing potion? Oooh, tasty!

“Who?” Zeneta asked in confusion, tilting her head down and looking at me from behind her glasses.

“Oh, just one of my friends. Have you seen her around? Earth pony, mare, wears a camo jacket? She’s a sniper, and a shy one at that. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was trying to hide herself from you.” At my words, the zebra let out a laugh.

“Hahaha! Oooh, you mean HER! Yes, I know who she is. She’s gotten herself into quite a few funny situations while you were out. You should probably ask her yourself, though.” She placed a hoof over her mouth, muffling her continued laughter.

“Ah, yeah, about that…when can I get off this thing?” I asked, and the zebra took almost a full minute to calm down.

“Eh, ah, yes. Well, you were in pretty bad shape when we found you. Bleeding lungs, shattered ribcage, severe internal bleeding… it’s lucky the bullet that did all that passed through your body, because it would have been hell removing all the shards. As for your question, though, I’d say… a few hours? Right now we’re just waiting for the visible wounds to heal, which is probably why you feel pain when you move. It’s going to scar, though.” She said, tapping her hoof on the table in thought. I sighed. Well, my forelimbs already looked like a maze of scars, what was another one on my chest?

“Alright. Oh, and have you seen an APC? Big enough for around six people? It can also talk.” I said the last word with some hesitation, as talking, sentient APC’s wasn’t exactly a common topic of conversation.

“Oh, yes. It was the one that brought you here. From the bridge, or so your other friend told us. It looked pretty banged up, though. No doubt from it’s encounter with that tank.” Well, at least Zaita was still…’alive’. Okay, maybe ‘functional’ is a better term… I think.

“Ok, good. Oh, just one last thing. What about her…” I pointed at Skyfire, and immediately Zeneta’s facial expression turned grim. I was so not going to like this…

“She suffered even more severe internal bleeding than you, though less organs were damaged. Her brain suffered severe blood withdrawal, and the rusty metal we pulled out of her will likely cause tetanus. Hopefully, the physiological damage caused by the lack of blood will be minimal, if none at all. She didn’t lose MOST of her blood, after all. She’ll live…but I wouldn’t ask her to go through stuff like that again for as long as she lives.”

I let my head fall back onto the pillow, and I let out a huge sigh of relief. Well, I didn’t like it, but it wasn’t that bad.

‘Oh, Goddesses, thank you. I don’t think I would be able to live with myself if she had died.’ I thought. Honestly, if she had died on that bridge, it wouldn’t have been the Legion’s fault. It wouldn’t have been that damned zebra’s fault. It would have been MY fault. I had just stood there, watching her die, while I talked about philosophy with someone I didn’t even know! What the hell kind of friend does that? What kind of friend can’t be there for someone when they needed it? What kind of person just stands frozen while someone puts a gun to another’s head?

‘How do you expect to protect this place if you don’t know how to keep yourself from being manipulated?’ His words echoed in my mind, and I physically tried forcing it out by scrunching up my face.

‘Stop it.’ I thought at myself, not wanting the rest of his speech to play out in my head. But he was right; I couldn’t even protect my own friends, how much more for the rest of the city?

‘Unless you learn to pull the trigger without thinking about it, you’ll be easy prey for these people.’

“Stop it.” I said, getting Zeneta’s attention. She seemed confused as to who I was talking to. No, I could still do this. One failure doesn’t mean every attempt will be one. There were people that needed me, damn it! And here I was arguing with myself!

‘What you want is a dream; an illusion. A perfect state of peace and security? There is no such place, and never will be, in this world.’ Despite my mounting hate for the guy, his words were so…sensible. Was it true? When I had taken up the task of protecting this place several days ago, was I really that ignorant? I couldn’t even believe I was considering his words. I hated myself for it.

“Fucking stop.” I said, a little louder this time. Zeneta looked a little worried, taking a few slow steps back. I turned to look at Skyfire, hoping to find some form of reassurance or comfort. Some sign that I hadn’t completely failed her on that bridge. Instead, the sight of her in such a dire state made me berate myself even more. Why the hell couldn’t I have just done something? Why did I have to listen to what that motherfucker said?

I felt angry. Not just at that zebra, or the Legion, or every other piece of scum that tormented the world. I was angry at myself, too. Angry and disappointed because I wasn’t good enough. All my life, I had thought that each day I was making myself better. Stronger, faster, more alert, more awake. Lighthouse made sure I did the right thing, and I always tried to, no matter what it was. And yet, when all that I had to do was kick someone’s flank and save my friend, I couldn’t. Was I really that inadequate? Was I really that weak? Skyfire’s battered, barely moving body told me I was.

“I’m sorry, Skyfire. Sorry I couldn’t protect you. Sorry you’re in so much pain.” I meant what I said. And I didn’t mean just physical pain. Although I didn’t have much reason to, I felt really concerned about her past life. I wondered how she was handling it, under all of her cocky, idiotic outer personality. How it was weighing down on her, beyond what she had let on. How much pain it was causing her, and how I could try to help her out with it.

I got out of the bed, much to Zeneta’s disapproval, and trotted up to her. She was barely breathing, barely moving. At first glance, I actually couldn’t believe that the scarred, battered, dirty, broken form before me was my friend. She looked so in pain, even if the only movement I could see was her chest going up…then down. In fact, if it weren’t for that, I would have thought she really was dead.

Pain…

‘The only peace you can give these people is the peace of the gun.’ That did it for me. All my emotion, be it anger, disappointment, or what little joy I had in me, overcame my senses. It felt like all the feelings I had had in the past few days was shoved into a box and kept in storage. But with this, that box broke, sending all of it out flying in all directions.

“SHUT UP!” I slammed on the table so hard it cracked, despite my un-armored hooves. I glared down at the bed, feeling like I needed to rip out that fucking zebra’s spine and wear it around for a few days before my anger subsided. I even grabbed the table with both forelegs (although how I did it didn’t matter to me back then) and threw it across the room, nearly hitting Zeneta with it.

“Come out here, you motherfucker!” I yelled at the ceiling, hoping that zebra would pop out of nowhere suddenly so I could rip his limbs off and beat him to unconsciousness with them, then wait for him to wake up, then do it again, and again.

I wasn’t angry at myself anymore. I wasn’t disappointed in myself, either. Right now, all my emotions were converted to the desire to beat the living shit out of that guy so hard he’d wish I dragged him across a field of sharp rocks while beating his nuts with a boulder instead.

I heard Zeneta yell something, most like regarding my sudden violence. But I didn’t care, right now all I cared about was venting out all this anger I had in me. All I cared about was trying to feel a little better about myself by letting all this raw emotion out.

Several more zebras, and one unicorn, got into the room. They seemed to be guards here, having weapons slung across their backs. But I didn’t care about that right now, either. Instead, against all logic and common sense, I charged them. But Why? I wasn’t angry at them, in fact I owed these people my life. Well, I guess you could blame my dysfunctional head.

“Paralysis spell!” One of the zebras yelled, and the unicorn’s horn began to glow.

Wait, paralysis? Wasn’t that being in a state of being unable to move?

I lost all control of my limbs, and all of my momentum only served to make crashing into the floor and wall that much more painful. The pain of landing on my still healing wounds made me scream, and I glared at the guards with hate. Okay, NOW I was angry at them.

“Damn it, he’s in post-traumatic bloodlust! We need to put him back in the bed before he does anything else.” Zeneta told the guards, who then went over to me and picked me up. I glared at each one, my mind thinking of ways to kill them despite my immobilized state. They placed me back onto the bed, and Zeneta trotted over, carrying a needle with her hooves.

“Okay, this should take care of his aggression. The spell might last for about another hour, so be ready. And don’t let him leave here; he shouldn’t even have gotten off the bed in the first place. I’m not sure how his body’s handling it.” She injected me with the needle, and at once I started to feel…calm. And woozy; really, really woozy.

“Guh…that it?” I asked as the guards slowly approached, holding their gun’s buttstocks ready in a position to bludgeon me in case I tried anything.

“Just take it easy.” Zeneta said, pulling out another needle from the table I had thrown across the room. This one was filled with a slightly yellow fluid, as contrast to the clear, water-like fluid in the previous needle. She injected me with it, and at once I felt…

Ugh…too tired…sleep now…

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

When I woke up, it was already afternoon. Either that, or morning moved really slow in this place. The guards were gone, either having found something better to do or they weren’t convinced I was a threat any more. On the table next to me was the unfinished mug of grape-flavored healing potion.

With only the barest of pain erupting from my sides, and none at all from my wings, I got up and took the mug. The fruit-flavored liquid took away the dry feeling in my mouth, and I took in a deep breath after I had downed the whole thing. I looked outside the windows, hearing what seemed like the laughter of foals; one of the sweetest sounds I had heard since I got out of the stable.

“The Verge, huh? Well, I guess I should get to know the locals.” I said to myself before I got up, taking one look at Skyfire, before continuing towards the door. There was a chest on the left side, with a piece of dirty-white paper on it. There was also another chest, this time on the right side. I took a look at the paper on the chest closer to me.

“Praetorian,

These were the possessions brought to us by your friends; the…’vehicle’ and the earth pony, who said they belonged to you. These are:

A segmented metal chest plate, with attached chain mail
A metal helmet
Metal hoof and leg guards
A dark blue Kevlar vest
One heavy shotgun, 47 shells
A heavy pistol, 2 rounds
A heavy revolver, 6 rounds
A gladius
2 saddlebags
2 healing potions
A submachine gun, 1 mag (though this one, it seems, is the pegasus’)
Various miscellaneous items.

Zeneta

PS: I noticed that your coat and skin have many scratches and bruises on it where the metal segments meet. There is an old, red shirt inside to help out with that.”

Well, it was good to know all my stuff was accounted for. I opened the box and, sure enough, it was all there. Including the sleeved red shirt, which I felt really grateful for. I placed on the shirt, strapped on the armor and the kevlar vest, readied my weapons (just in case), and stepped outside.

There were quite a lot of people here; much more than what was shown on my E.F.S. If this place really was the ONLY settlement this far out, then it at least made up for it with size. In front of me was a road, leading off north and south. The terrain was fairly hilly, and remained so for about a kilometer in every direction. On about half of this kilometer was constructed, as much as I could tell, various smaller settlements. The distant figures of moving vehicles and the forms of equines told me that, against all odds, this was a very large, thriving settlement.

A makeshift APC passed by, the armed zebras and ponies inside looking at me with curiosity before the armored vehicle moved on. There was a lot of activity going on further down the road, with many small shops advertising their wares to the passers-by. Colts and fillies were running around on the sidewalks, making sure to stay avoid getting hit by any of the vehicles or one of the many carts being dragged along by adult ponies or zebras.

“Hey, look! It’s that guy they brought in last night!” One of the zebra fillies said, catching the attention of her playmates. Immediately, they all started galloping towards me, making my eyes go wide at the number of children charging to my position.

“Oh, shi-…” I started backing up into the building, when the swarm of little colts and fillies surrounded me and began climbing up onto me. One or two I could have handled. Maybe even five or six. But they all seemed so hell-bent on climbing onto my back that my legs gave way and I collapsed.

“Were you really nearly dead?” Asked a little unicorn filly as she played around with the plumes on my helmet.

“I heard you guys took out a tank!” Said one zebra colt as he tugged at my chain mail for attention.

“What’s the name of your other friend?” Two earth pony colts, twins, asked together.

“Where’d you come from?” Asked several zebras in the crowd, one of the inquirers pulling at my shirt’s sleeve.

“Why doesn’t the shy pony talk to us?” Wailed a little zebra filly. All their eyes went wide, and they all took in a deep breath.

“WHY DOESN’T SHE TALK TO US???” They all asked in unison, stomping on the ground with their little legs. The volume of their question made my ears hurt, which wasn’t helping my slightly achy head recover at all.

“I…need… to BREATHE!” I yelled out, trying to raise my head enough to get some air. But I couldn’t; they were all just too heavy for me to get up. They didn’t relent, continuing to ask me a whole slew of questions.

‘You should probably pull out the SMG, I’m pretty sure it shoots fast enough to take this crowd out.’ Suggested my fucked up split personality. Wow, really, Tod? Asking me to race past a tank was stupid, but asking me to kill children was just fucking wrong.

“Alright, ALRIGHT! Come on, kids, I need to breathe!” I yelled louder, and at last the crowd got off, forming a circle around me while they waited for me to catch my breath.

“Okay, one question at a time. You, what was that you asked?” I pointed at the zebra filly that had started the torrent of questions which now made my head hurt.

“Um, I asked why the pony with the jacket won’t talk to us. She seemed fine, until we came along.” She looked down at the ground with a sad look, almost as if she blamed herself for causing Myst to avoid them.

“Okay, okay. Well, she’s just shy. When I first met her, I could barely even talk to her. Even up to now, I can barely get her to talk. I’m really not surprised about any of this.” She didn’t respond, instead looking at the ground with a thoughtful pout.

“Oookay. Now, uh, what else do you want to know?” I really hoped I didn’t just give them an opportunity to make my headache worse. At once, almost all of them took in a deep breath.

“And one at a time.” They all released their breaths, looking disappointed. One of the twins, though, took the opportunity to ask his question.

“Oh! What’s her name? Maybe we can use it to start talking with her later!” He said energetically, and most of the foals looked up at either me or him with a wide eyed smile.

‘Yeah, like that’ll work.’ I thought as I smirked. Oh, these kids were going to be Myst’s nightmare here, I just knew it.

“Her name’s Myst. Maybe it’s because of her super-shyness or something. But don’t get too excited, I haven’t seen her disappear into thin air just yet.” I answered, and most of small crowd began whispering to each other as they began planning on how to approach her later. A few though, seemed a little disappointed she couldn’t disappear into thin air.

As much as talking to these kids was happily getting my mind off things, I really needed to plan our next move. Unless this place needed my help (which wasn’t likely, considering how well off this place looked), we had to get moving as soon as Skyfire was capable of moving around again.

“So, kids, listen. I need to go find my friends, so we can talk about…important stuff. Do you know where they are?” I asked, and the entire crowd smiled at me. The two twins drew themselves up, one of them pointing further into the large settlement.

“To Myst!” He shouted, and everyone cheered their approval. At once the crowd began moving away at a quick pace, in the direction of a group of non-makeshift looking structures near a larger road. Despite the fact that they were just short of galloping, all I had to do to keep up with them was walk. A detail that slightly surprised me.

‘Am I really that big?’ I wondered. Sure, back in the stable I was one of the bigger stallions. But I never really got to compare myself in terms of size to a foal, unlike with all the other adults and zebras. And, now that I was able to, I came onto the conclusion that I really was as large as I thought.

We passed through the streets and in between shop stalls, the customers and merchants seeming visibly annoyed by the children. At the sight of me, though, they removed all signs of being disturbed and the shop owners instead offered to sell me some of their stuff for a discount. I declined for two reasons: one, I didn’t want their stuff, and two, Myst had just about all of our caps. All I had on me was…a dozen caps.

As we continued on and got closer to the buildings, I saw what looked like a vehicle hovering several dozen feet up in the distance. Whether or not it was Zaita, I didn’t know. I also managed to see five feet high concrete walls surrounding the Verge, with wooden platforms near them where guards would mount machineguns. I couldn’t see the gate, though. It was probably on the road, which was hidden from me by all the makeshift structures. There was also a small river running from somewhere outside the settlement which snaked through the middle of the place, giving people quick access to water. Though, whether or not it was clean, I didn’t quite know.

At last, we reached a small, one-floored concrete structure in a depression in the terrain. The children amassed at the door, grinning at it in anticipation.

‘This is probably where Myst is.’ I thought, and slowly started for the door. Just as I reached it though, all the children yelled out.

“MYST! Please come out!” They said it with a tone of pleading , putting a small smile on my face at their little voices. It was a nice break from all the other sounds I had heard the past days, especially Zaita’s ludicrous large storage of elevator music. Myst poked her head out for a split second, before darting back inside with an ‘eep’.

“Myst, come out. The children just want to get to know you, and I need to talk to you.” I said, and she poked her head out again, looking over the small crowd with such an expression of such fear that I thought she might have dug into the ground just to avoid them. Despite her looking like she was frozen, she managed to look at me.

“Please tell them to go away. Please. There’s…so many.” Her voice shook, convincing me to have to disperse the crowd. With a sigh and a roll of my eyes, I turned back to the foals.

“Okay, um, kids. Listen, Myst and I need to talk about really important stuff. She said she can talk to you later, after we’re done.” I could hear Myst gasp even through the concrete, and it put another smirk on my face. The crowd took it with mixed feelings, some seeming okay with it while others looked disappointed. The group began moving away, resuming whatever it was they were doing before I got caught up with them. I knocked on the door. Slowly, it opened.

“W-why did you do that? I can’t talk to kids! Not even one at a time. I might have to stay in here for the rest of my life because of that!” She looked a little pissed off at me, but it was evident that most of her mind was thinking of ways to get out of here.

“Sorry, Myst. But I really need to talk to you.” I said in an urgent tone, and she frowned a little before opening the door a bit wider. I stepped in, and she closed the door behind me. I turned around to face her, and I saw her trotting to the corner of the building. As she sat down, eyes wide and darting to and fro, I sat down next to her.

“Okay, well, this was unexpected. What happened at the bridge, Myst? And how did we get here?” I asked, looking out the window and at the afternoon light stabbing in. But then I heard a little sniff, and turned to face her.

“Myst, why are you crying?” I asked, seeing the light’s reflection off her tears. What, did she have a bad dream? Maybe she needed to talk about it?

‘*cough*Which she isn’t going to do.*cough*’ Yeah, Tod? Well, you know what I’m not going to do? Listen to you, that’s what.

She didn’t answer, instead turning away from me. Did I do something? Maybe something happened while I was out? Or…maybe she was sad about leaving Road Town again? Yeah, let’s go with that.

“Listen, Myst, if this is about you feeling homesick, then I completely understand if you want to go back. I mean, I was pretty upset when I left the stable, so it’s okay with me if…” I started to say, when she turned back to me and, against all Myst-like mannerisms, held me in a tight embrace.

‘Ooookay, this is…awkward.’ I thought as I looked away at random objects, trying to distract myself from what was happening. Next to the time Skyifre did this, it was at this point that I really didn’t know what to do.

“Shut up.” She said softly, her voice quivering. She drew me in tighter, making my eyes go wide. If other people saw this, I don’t know if I could have handled the embarrassment.

“Myst… I know you’re scared. We’re getting ourselves into a whole lot of trouble. But, if you want, you can just stay here or something…” I said, as I really didn’t have anything else. I wasn’t a very social pony, okay?

“Shut up!” She yelled in a surprisingly fierce tone, slamming a hoof down on my chest plate. Okay, what was going on?

“Myst, what’s wrong? Are you hurt or something? Maybe we can get Zeneta to take a look at you.” I said, putting on a small smile. She didn’t answer immediately, holding me tighter as she continued crying.

“I…I thought you two were dead. Zaita and Zeneta said you two would be okay, but I didn’t believe them. You two looked so…so in pain on the bridge.” She sniffed, burying her face in my shoulder.

So, she was worried about ME? Why would she be worried about me? I was fine! Granted, I had lots of new scars and wounds, but I was fine! I wasn’t hurt THAT bad. Aside from a bit of pain from my wings, I felt great!

‘Okay, then. Let me just perform a little experiment…’ Said Tod, and immediately my head burst with pain for a few seconds, and I had to grit my teeth to keep myself from screaming. Okay, maybe I wasn’t COMPLETELY alright.

‘Fuck you, Tod.’ I thought back at him. Where the heck was Tom when I needed a better part of me right now?

“Look, I’m fine. I feel great! My wings aren’t broken anymore and only hurt a little, and my scars don’t hurt unless you touch them. Now, you should be worried about Skyfire. She’s in a worse state than I am. Have you even SEEN her?” This conversation was ridiculous, I was just fine!... I think. Myst just shook her head, looking down at the floor.

“You’re not fine. Skyfire's not the only one who nearly died, okay? Maybe you don't care about that, or maybe you do. All I know is that I’m going to be sticking closer to you from now on. If you two get in trouble, I want to be there.” She said sternly, a tone I never really heard much from her. Speaking of them staying with me…

“Myst… about that. I… I don’t think you two should come with me.” I said, feeling a little pained at my own words.

“What?” Myst raised her head up, looking at me with wide, confused eyes. I sighed.

“Myst, in just a few days, I have gotten you and Skyfire, and even Zaita, into near-death situations. And we aren’t even deep in the city yet, just imagine what it’ll be like when we are. I can’t bring you three to your demise because of my own personal goal.” There, I said it. Now, if she could just leave it at that and let me go on alone, this wouldn’t be weighing down on me anymore…

“B-but why?” She asked, seeming hurt by my words.

“Because I don’t want people to die because of me. I don’t want people to follow me around, and get killed for it. I want to protect these people, not bring them to an early grave. I want to protect you, protect Skyfire, and Zaita. I don’t want people to sacrifice for my sake.” I didn’t care what I might have faced in the city, as long as others got to live. I wanted them to live, to be able to do good on their own. After all, a whole population of do-gooders was better than just one me. I looked down at the ground, and closed my eyes. I had finally said it.

Myst didn’t answer for a moment, instead thinking about what I said. She got up, and looked out the window for a bit. Maybe she was taking a look at her new home? If she was, then good. She could have a good life here, instead of the horrible one she would have following me around. She trotted back to me.

“No.” She said simply.

“No? No what? No…I want to go back to my old home, instead of staying here?” I asked, feeling confused.

“No, I won’t leave you. Goldwreath, in just a few days, you’ve shown that you’re willing to throw yourself into danger to help people. You’ve shown that you’re willing to sacrifice what you have, even your life, to make sure people get a second chance. People like you are just what the wasteland needs, and it would be a crime to say otherwise.” She sat down next to me, and smiled.

‘Aw, hell no.’ I thought, already getting an idea of where this was going.

“I’m not going to leave you because you genuinely want to help people. Because you don’t care who it is, or what they’ve done. I’ve seen you want to give people second chances, even if it’s hard. And, whether you like it or not, I’m not leaving. And I don’t think Skyfire and Zaita would leave, either. We want to help you. We are your friends after all.” She took in a breath, and said the sentence that I would later on in my journeys question over and over.

“Because you’re a good pony.” Wait, what? Since when?

“If I was a good pony, then I would have been able kick that zebra’s ass and maybe Skyfire wouldn’t be in so much pain right now! If I was a good pony, I would have been able to stop her from murdering that Legionnaire! If I was a good pony, then I could have saved Lighthouse from being killed, instead of looking at museum pieces!” I shouted, much to her surprise. She jumped up at the volume of my voice, and took several slow steps away. I glared at her for a moment, but not out of hate. I took several deep breaths, before I turned my head away from her in shame.

“If I was a good pony I wouldn’t be bringing the people I care for to danger. If I was a good pony, I wouldn’t be feeling so… wrong right now.” I closed my eyes, and slumped against the wall. I felt tired again, even though I had slept for practically a whole day. Myst approached me carefully, and sat down.

“Goldwreath, good ponies don’t have to be perfect. They make mistakes, too. Mistakes that can be small, or really big. But what makes them good is that they don’t lose themselves to the pain; that they still stay the same, no matter what they go through. What makes them good is that they don’t become monsters, even if that’s what the wasteland turns everyone into. What makes them good is that they keep doing good, even after their mistakes.” She said, and this time I decided to give it some thought.

‘I’m a good pony? But… but I nearly got my friends killed! What kind of friend does that? Weren’t friends supposed to protect and care for one another, and not get each other killed?’ I asked myself.

‘Yes, that’s what friends do. And this is her showing she cares for you. This is her way of making sure you don’t throw yourself into the fire alone. After all, friends stick together.’ Oh, so now you show up? Still, thanks, Tom. I really appreciate it.

“Ugh… are you sure about this? There’s no telling what we’ll find once we go into the city.” I asked, hoping to get confirmation on this. She nodded her head once, and smiled.

“I’m sure.” Okay, fine. Despite myself, I could feel a small smile form on my face. Why was I smiling? This was horrible! She was going with me into the most dangerous place I ever knew! Nevertheless, the smile managed to fully form on my face.

“I still don’t like it, but fine. I can’t force you to stay, I guess. It’s just…I don’t want to get you three killed.” This was my last, desperate bid to make her stay. My mind was conflicted at this point, one part feeling relieved that they were coming with me and the other still wanting them to stay here where they could be safe.

“I know you don’t. But if you go alone, then you’ll die for sure. And as your friends, we can’t let that happen.” I smiled at her, feeling thankful for her words. Even if they were still going with me, at least I wouldn’t be alone.

“Alright. Well…thanks. That means a lot, really. But, enough of that. Now, if you really are coming with me, we really should get started on planning our next move. Now, where the heck is Zaita…” I started to say, when I heard the humming of an engine start on the roof of the building. The humming moved, now coming from right outside the building, in front of the door. After wards, Zaita’s camera appeared outside the window, looking at us.

“Yes. I will not leave you, as well. Also, I heard my name. Something about planning?” Was all she said. After the heart-to-heart chat with Myst, it was refreshing to hear Zaita's simple words. I looked at Myst, who’s cheeks were burning up. Apparently, she had meant only me to hear her words.

“Zaita, were you listening to all that?” I asked, and I saw Myst pull her hood over her head out of embarrassment. I had to admit, after that conversation, it was nice to see the Myst I was more familiar with. Even if she did look like she wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out.

“Yes. I was curious as to what you two were speaking about, so I listened.” I arced a brow at her skeptically.

“It is a decision I do not regret.” She said with just a hint of defensiveness. Heh, if it were anyone else who said that, I would have given them a painful lecture about respecting people’s privacy. But, as it was Zaita, who seemed to be even more worse off than me when it came to being a sociable being, I guess I could make an exception.

“Okay, then. Now, about planning; it seems we’ve got to stay here until Skyfire wakes up. So, until then, we should probably look for something useful to do.” I said, and Myst began thinking. However, it was Zaita who spoke up first.

“Well, there is one thing that might be useful. And this might be the only time we will be able to accomplish it.” Oh really, Zaita? And what could that be?

“And, just what is that?” I asked, now feeling curious as to just what this was. Myst seemed like she wanted to know, too.

“Perhaps it is best to discuss this inside the cockpit. It is not a wise decision to let people hear what we’re planning.” True enough, Zaita.

“Alright. Come on, Myst.” We both got out of the building, my eyes painfully trying to adjust to the sudden light, and we climbed onto the vehicle and got inside.

“Okay, so… um, what’s this thing we can only do while we’re here?” Myst asked, her own curiosity for once overcoming her social discomfort.

“Well…” Zaita started explaining, and we just listened.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"...so, just let me get this, what EXACTLY do the updates do again?" I asked, still feeling a little bit confused. And, from the looks of it, Myst looked like her brain had been smacked with a brick. Heh, that makes us both, I guess.

Okay, so, apparently Zaita's software had 'updates' available that could only be accessed from a certain location. And what sucked was that we had to go there during the night. Something about 'less danger percentage' or some shit. As for the updates themselves, she told us what they did, but the complex words she used hurt my screwed up brain.

Well, I didn't really have a problem with that; I had gotten the whole day to sleep, after all. Myst, though, would have to rest the whole time. Well, it wasn't dark just yet. Maybe we could explore a bit before we left.

"As I said, the updates will give me better logic thinking and more accurate percentage calculations, as well allow me a greater degree of control over the vehicle's movement. Physically, the update stations came with spare parts and ammo, which, hopefully, is still there. My software will be updated remotely, while my hardware will be updated depending on whether or not the facilities are still functional. This update is also necessary, as the vehicle is heavily damaged. And, after our encounter near the bridge, my platform needs as much repair as possible before we go into the city. Hopefully, the place is not completely destroyed." Ugh... fine. Better control sounded good, anyway. And the repairs, that was the part that caught my attention the most. Hopefully, they would also prevent another instance of getting stuck in the side of a building.

"Okay, so, that's it? Anything else you're not telling us?" I asked a little suspiciously. She may have saved our lives, but giving a machine that much control might be dangerous. Especially if that machine was our one source of transport, and armed with a 25mm cannon.

"Well... as long as it keeps us out of weird situations. Like when we were upside down..." Myst said, closing her eyes tight as if trying to banish the memory of being stuck under a ton of rubble.

“Is there really nothing else we can do while we’re here?” I asked, feeling like I didn’t want to do this. It’s not that having a smarter, faster, fully operational and optimized Zaita wasn’t going to be useful. It’s just that, well, was this really the best way to spend our time here? Didn’t these people need help or something? Sure, they seemed well off, but everyone needed help in the wasteland. Hell, even that zebra dude I hated so much said so.

“Not really. Unless you want to spend days just trotting around, there’s really not much much to do here aside from purchasing supplies and making friends.” Uhh…Zaita, I may not be a very social pony, but I’m pretty sure that making friends is important.

“Well, I’ll see if there really is nothing else to do here. It’s… 5:32 PM. I’ll go around for a bit, see if there’s anything else. If not, well… we’ll go, I guess.” Was this really the only thing to do here?

“Oh, um, where is this place, anyway?” Myst asked, much to my surprise. I wasn’t surprised because she asked a sensible question, I was glad for that. I was surprised because I wasn’t the one who asked. Maybe my brain was shutting down? Well, if it was, I knew which split personality to blame it on.

“It is the Zebra Scientific Institution’s Roam-area HQ. Calculating from a number of sources and factors, there is a fair 53% chance of the structure being intact. It is approximately 34 miles away, to the east. If we leave soon, and if we do not encounter too much trouble, we may be back by tomorrow morning.” Zebra Scientific Institution? Was that where Maladus was going to say he worked? Ugh…MORE QUESTIONS! And so much for trying to not get sidetracked. How long were we going to stay here?

“Alright, fine. Just give me a while to… I don’t know, get some ammo? A pistol and a revolver with a total of just eight shots isn’t really a comfortable number.” Speaking of the revolver, it was in my saddlebags. I pulled it out and took a look at it.

It was a very worn looking weapon, and it showed through the many scratches and all the dirt smeared all over it. It was a fairly large gun, with a metal mouthgrip and wooden hoof handle. I couldn’t shoot for shit with my hooves, but the mouthgrip was comfortable enough. As I looked down the sights, I saw the light reflecting off small, more substantial and more purposed looking scratches which seemed to be forming something. I took a closer look.

‘Vengeance’ was engraved into the metallic barrel, the letters looking crude and rough. If it weren’t for the dirt that had found its way into the engraving, I don’t think I would have been able to spot it on the gun at all.

‘Yeah, when I spot that zebra again, I’m going to give him a good shot in the face.’ I growled, feeling my anger coming up again. As with all my other emotions, I stuffed that in storage, as well. I wanted to be as angry as possible when I kicked that guy’s flank.

I began trotting back out of the vehicle, and Myst curled up onto the seats. She let out a tired sigh, and placed her head on her forehooves. Oh, wait. There was one last thing…

“Oh, Myst, I’m going to need to borrow some caps. Unlike you, I’m not really keen on looting.” I felt a little guilty at disturbing her, but she didn’t seem to mind. She dug through her saddlebags, and pulled out a few cloth pouches. The noise of the caps came from inside, surprising me at just how much money we had. Now, if I could just get better at looting, I wouldn’t have to ask her each time I needed some…

“Thanks.” I said as I took the pouches and stuffed them in my vest’s pockets. She curled up again, and this time I didn’t disturb her. The lights of the cockpit went out, leaving only Zaita’s screen lit up. I went to the back of the vehicle, and climbed out of the hatch.

Wow, that’s… a lot of lights. All of the Verge was alight, countless candles and light bulbs lit up in all directions. The shops and stalls were still in business, and there seemed no shortage of customers. The sounds of vehicles came from all around, their engines mixing with the noise of the people making the place seem almost as awake as it was during the day.

“Wow. Doesn’t this place turn in for the night or something?” I asked, but I think I already knew the answer. Next to the pictures of Roam I saw, this place seemed like the most self-sufficient place in the whole wasteland. I got off the vehicle, and counted out my caps.

‘150 caps, huh?’ I felt a grin forming on my face, and I turned towards the hub of activity around here: a group of concrete structures surrounded by several makeshift buildings with a high concentration of shops. There was a wheeled, non-hovering, more heavily armored APC in the area, it’s turret swinging around and watching the crowd.

You know, one thing that really disturbed me about Roam was the extremely common presence of vehicles. You'd think the apocalypse would've rendered all automobiles non-functional. Did Equestria have this many functional vehicles? For some reason, I highly doubted it.

“Well, this isn’t going to be so bad.” I said, and I took in a deep breath. The night air was cool, and not an artificial cool, either. I looked up at the sky, and I saw the moon surrounded by a near-perfect halo of clouds. In between the gaps in the clouds, I could see the soft twinkling of the stars.

“Well, let’s see what this place has to offer.” And with that, I trotted towards the hustle and bustle of the Verge’s night life.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Ok, maybe this WAS as bad as I thought! Everywhere I went, people and merchants would flock to me. The merchants would offer to sell me goods at a discount (though I suspect they were just saying that) and the people seemed to have an endless barrage of questions that 'needed' answering.

'All I wanted to do was buy some ammo!' I thought as looked at all the people following me everywhere. At least the salespeople would return to their stalls after a while, but the customers seemed to have nothing better to do than follow me around and 'silently' talk about me behind my back.

Also, it turns out this place wasn't quite as well off as I thought. Everywhere I looked, there were people lying down on the streets, some having large numbers of empty syringes near them. The areas around them stunk, and my 'followers' seemed to try to avoid them. A great number of those people looked like they didn't care about what was going on, and honestly I would have preferred them over the people watching my every move!

"Come, come! Shotgun shells and .44 bullets for only 5 caps each! Cheapest price you'll get in the Verge, and definitely better than what you'll get in the city!" Yelled one zebra mare merchant, and I trotted towards her. At least her deals sounded better than that of the others, but if she tried sneaking caps out of me just like the them...

"Is that so?" I asked, looking over her wares. I wasn't the only one, as a few ponies and zebras from the crowd who seemed like they were actually here for the goods trotted up and took a look as well.

"Oh, yes! Ammo like this is of great abundance in the city, but the place is a warzone! Between the Legion, the scavengers, the city's defenses, the Specters, and any other gang with guns, the city proper's alight with gunfire almost all the time!" She shooed some of the crowd away, giving me some room to breathe. They walked away with expressions that told me they were walking away because they didn't want to get hurt, but why?

Two guards in old, black combat armor trotted up, their weapons slung to the side. One was a zebra the other a pony. They both seemed to be mercenaries of a sort, as their uniforms were almost completely identical. Though, I didn't really know whom they are with.

"I mean, just look at that place!" The merchant said, pointing a hoof behind me. I turned around and looked.

The majority of the city was clearly visible, what with all the large flames that even from this distance could be seen. The fires caused an unnatural looking glow of orange over the place, which only served to make the city look even more hellish. The flashes of explosions and the small streaks of rockets whizzed all over, up and down, left and right. Grain-sized specks of light appeared and landed in different areas of the city with a small detonation. Large caliber rounds fired up into the air, causing the occasional explosion and small fire to light up and crash towards the ground. To my amazement, bolts of lightning shot out from the roof of a large structure and struck the ground near it. As I watched, a huge orange streak erupted from the mountains, the sound of the bullet audible even from this far out. The streak struck the building with a bright explosion which caused the building’s collapse, and the fiery impact made visible the surrounding structures.

The black thunder clouds to the south were even more worrying, even if the red lightning hadn't struck down since yesterday. What was worse, the clouds had an even more ominous and foreboding blood-red glow underneath them. And, worse still, it almost seemed like the red light came together to form what looked like red tendrils, which then danced around like fire underneath the shadowy forms of the clouds above. In the distance, I saw small points of light, most likely vehicles, slowly moving in on the clouds.

"What's the hell's going on with this place?" I asked, looking at the clouds, then back at the city. What the fuck was going on here? Was this place the very incarnation of hell or something? This city looked like it had seen nothing but war for the past two centuries!

"Well, that's just it; nobody knows. I mean, we've always seen fighting in the city, but never like this. Ever since the Legion showed up out of nowhere months back, the city's been hell. That 'fire from the sky thing' started, blasting away entire buildings. Then the Specters showed up, all the way from Canterium. Then Redeye showed up, then the black clouds. Roam is in a really bad place right now, and all the fighting isn't making it any better. Hell, this place is even worse off than some place called Hoofington in Equestria!" She yelled, seeming greatly distressed by all this.

"Are you sure? This place looks pretty well off." I asked, feeling a bit confused. Actually, the settlements I've seen so far were pretty well supplied. Road Town had a seemingly infinite supply of alcohol (though where they get it still baffles me), and the Verge looked like it was a small city! The zebra laughed a little; a mirthless and sad laugh.

"Heh, that's just because we're far out. The Legion doesn't come up here, they're much too busy trying to seize control of Roam. But if you go IN the city, you won't see even a single settlement that doesn't have at least half of them blown to bits, kidnapped, enslaved, starving, sick, or just plain lost. This whole place, this area Roam is built on, is a fucking death trap. Of course, it isn't so bad in the rest of the Zebra Nation. Bactanium's fine, and the Legion has absolutely no presence there whatsoever. The Gaulian plains are okay, and that's actually where most of this nation's population are trying to get to. In truth, more people have died here in Roam than almost all the rest of the nation combined." She looked wistful, like she wanted to go there. I couldn't really blame her. Looking around me at what was happening to Roam, I considered myself the dumbest pony in the world for taking on this job in the first place.

"So why don't people just leave?" I asked, and I saw the guards scattering the remaining on-lookers. The APC's turret swung to them, but turned away a bit later.

"Because they can't. More than just a few have tried, but there are more dangers plaguing this place than what you can see. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE that hasn't tried to leave via aircraft, like the Legion has, gets killed. By what, nobody knows." Oh, great! So, massive artillery batteries in the mountains, dictatorial military group with tanks, shadowy assassins with a philosophy about death and pain, a mysterious phenomenon going on to the south, two signals that screw around with our heads, and mysterious killers that stop people from leaving.

'This is a fucking nightmare.' I thought as I facehoofed, taking in the large number of things I was going up against. Honestly, if I had known about all this several days ago, I wouldn’t have signed up for this!

"Well, it isn't that bad." The merchant said with a cheery tone.

"And why is that?" I asked, removing the hoof from my face. If that wasn’t bad, I don’t know what is.

"Well, all the danger is making people buy more ammo. And that means more caps for people like me." She said with a cheeky grin. Well, even if that was a bit... exploitive, at least some good was coming from all this. Still, that just sounded wrong.

"Riiight. So, uh...can I buy some ammo now?" I asked, feeling like I had to take the conversation to a different direction. The zebra's eyes popped wide in excitement.

"Please do!" She said, and pulled out a few boxes of ammo.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

After I had finished my purchases, which amounted to a total of a hundred and five caps for twenty six .44 rounds (apparently, the heavy pistol and Vengeance used the same ammo, so I just sold the heavy pistol), I began exploring again. The merchant was generous enough to let one of her guards accompany me and keep another crowd from following me around. I could do that myself, but I accepted. Considering the number of people who seemed like they wanted to swarm me, I thought it wise to accept her offer.

I saw a small structure, mostly made of sheet metal and wooden planks. There was light coming from within, and the laughter of ponies and zebras. The smell of alcohol was present, as well. I smiled, as I couldn't really help but think of a certain drunk pony. Heh, if he were here now, he'd probably empty the place's alcohol supply.

I trotted inside, and was greeted by the sight of people talking and laughing as they drank from their mugs. There was music, mostly from a violin, playing from an old jukebox in the corner of the room. At my entrance, most of the patrons looked at me suspiciously. Some even stiffened and eyed their weapons -- like one of those generic cowboy movies where everyone looks at the new arrival suspiciously. I made sure Vengeance was ready, just in case. These people looked like the most they were capable of was pick-pocketing or drunken brawls, but I wouldn’t underestimate their potential threat.

I trotted towards the counter, and the guard decided to go and mingle with the crowd. The people didn’t seem to mind him, what with most of their attention focused on me. As I approached, the bartender looked at me with a slightly nervous expression. I reached the counter and sat down.

“So, uh, what’ll you have?” He asked, trying to suppress his stammering. Seriously, what was with people stammering around me? Did I look scary or something?

“If you have water, I’ll take some of that.” I said, only now noticing just how parched I felt.

“That’s the good stuff. It’ll cost you twenty caps.” Twenty caps? I may not have been very intelligent about wasteland economy, but I think that might have been a little over-priced…

“Fifteen caps.” I said, narrowing my eyes at him. He glared back, placing his forehooves onto the counter. After a moment, his glare wavered and he grit his teeth.

“Uh…seventeen caps.” He looked a little desperate. Almost too desperate. Almost artificial…

“Sixteen caps.” I said, not letting his facial expression cut him too much slack. Sixteen seemed the perfect balance between not feeling guilty and not letting him get away with taking too many caps from me.

“Fuck…” He muttered, closing his eyes. When he opened them again, he slowly trotted to the back of the room. While he was away, I brought out sixteen caps from one of the pouches. When he came back, a bottle of water in his hooves, I placed the caps on the table.

I took the bottle, opened it and taking a few gulps. The guard was talking with the people, taking some of their attention off of me. I spotted a zebra stallion sitting in a corner, wearing a weathered brown Kevlar vest and a gray shirt underneath. On the ground next to him was a backpack, with a rifle strapped to it. He saw me looking at him, and he gestured me to come over. I made sure vengeance was just a quick draw away, and carefully went over to him. I sat down on the chair opposite of him.

"You're that Praetorian dude, right?" He asked, looking at me with questioning eyes.

"Yeah. Why, something you need?" Maybe he'd give us something else to do aside from getting Zaita updated. I grinned in excitement, listening in on what he was going to say next.

"Well, I don't need anything. YOU, though, could use some help." He said before taking a drink from his mug.

"What do you mean? You mean physically? In that regard, I'm more or less fine." I responded, feeling some of my excitement turn to confusion.

"You're going into the city, right? Bad idea. But I heard you were going up against the Legion. That true?" He asked, leaning on the table and looking at me critically. Like he was ready to analyze my next statement for inconsistencies.

"Yeah, I am. From what I've seen of them, the Legion are a terror to this city. Instead of using their power to help out, their using it to destroy and dominate. I can't let people like that take control." I answered earnestly. The zebra leaned back onto his seat, thinking about it.

"Well, if you are, there are probably some things you should know. I've heard a lot about you; sparing slavers and Legionnaires. Conversing with Legion officers like friends. Taking people you barely know into your little group..." He said the last sentence with a bit of hesitation, as if he were worried I might get mad and punch him or something.

"Yeah, so? Just cut to the chase. What's the advice?" My hopes of him giving me an alternate task went out the window the moment he brought up entering the city, so I didn't have quite as much enthusiasm about talking to this guy as I had before.

"My advice is that you don't be so trusting. Making friends is all well and nice, but for all your achievements; clearing out a Legion base, taking out Specters, and getting across a bridge with an Omni-tank chasing you, you're soft. You're too nice, too forgiving." He leaned in close, staring me in the eye.

"You're going to have to learn to kill without regret. Cause, Praetorian or not, the city isn't going to cut you slack. It isn't going to slow down and wait for you to catch your breath. It'll chew you up unless you stay one step ahead. And the only way to do that is to do what you'll have to: kill." I stared at him with wide eyes, then a frown formed on my face. Yippee, ANOTHER guy with a philosophy about pain and death.

"I know I'll have to, I really do. But I won't kill unless it's necessary. And even then, I'll always look for an alternative." At my words, the zebra sighed shook his head in disappointment.

"That's exactly what I mean. Don't you get it? There are NO alternatives! That attitude might get you respect for a while, but then it'll come back and bite you in the flank. In the city, and even out here, it's kill or be killed. Survival of the fittest, death of the weakest. Predator or prey. Just being in there is going to be a fight where every decision you make will either get you and your 'friends' killed, or let you live another day." I didn't know what to say. These were basically the same ideas that Specter guy told me about on the bridge, except in different form and without all the stuff regarding pain. What was worse, I started to get angry at this guy. Maybe it was my anger towards that other zebra, or maybe this was yet another guy I would get pissed off at, but I knew anger when I felt. I was about to shout out my response, even though I hadn't quite formed one through the fog of my anger, when the guard trotted up to us.

"Hey, who are you? I've never seen you around here before." The guard said as he came over to us, getting the zebra's attention.

"Oh, I'm just a traveler. Have been for years. I was just talking with Roam's defender about the city, is all." The zebra said with a calm smile and casual tone. Considering the serious nature of his previous statements, the sudden change in his tone made me suspicious about him, which didn't mix well with how much I wanted to buck this guy in the nuts. People that talked about killing like it was a necessity just didn't bode well with me.

"Yeah? Well, you're attracting more attention to this guy than my employer pays me to allow. So, I suggest you leave him alone. Or else." The guard brought his weapons to bear to emphasize his point. The zebra looked at him disappointedly, yet got off the chair and picked up his backpack off the ground.

"Fine. No need for violence." He said as he turned to face me. Funny, just a few moments ago he was talking about the necessity of violence.

"Think about what I said, Praetorian. It'll save your life one day." He began trotting out of the bar, the guard and the crowd watching him as he went. Though I wasn't quite sure of it, I thought I saw something on his shirt. It looked like... a circular logo, but the majority of it was hidden by his vest.

"Who was that guy?" The guard asked after the zebra had gotten outside. With him gone, the crowd had once again turned their attention to me.

"Don't know. He didn't tell me his name." I responded, still trying to process all of what had just happened. Who exactly was that guy? Another Specter? If so, did all Specters have a philosophy about killing and death and pain? What a nice-sounding bunch.

I had decided to go back to Myst and Zaita, as it was almost seven. If what Zaita said was true, it would take a fairly long while to get there, get the job done, and get back. And I wanted to be back as soon as possible, just in case Skyfire woke up. We still had a long way to go to get to the Forum, after all.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Zaita, take us to the hospital. I need to check up on Skyfire before we leave," I told her, and immediately the vehicle's engine hummed in activation. The only illumination in here came from Zaita's screen and what light seeped in from outside. Myst had fallen asleep, curled up on the seats with her hood over her head. She seemed to have taken the time to clean up the inside, as all of the spilled contents of the supply box were now back inside.

"Very well," Was all she said, and the vehicle began hovering the distance to the hospital. Along the way, I managed to spot that zebra guy from the bar purchasing from one of the vendors. For some apparent reason, he was buying a LOT of .44 rounds and more assault rifle ammo than I thought he could possibly carry.

We reached the hospital, the glow of light coming from within. Zaita got onto the ground, and I saw a small icon appear on the screen. It looked like the rays of the sun striking a simple outline of the APC. Perhaps she was gathering energy? Before I got out, I turned to Myst.

"Zaita, you think I should wake her up? So she can see Skyfire before we leave?" I asked.

"It depends. Logically, there is no point, as Skyfire cannot hear what you two will be saying. Unless she is awake, which is unlikely. From a psychological perspective, though-..." Okay, I didn't really need a lecture.

"Come on, Zaita. Yes or no? We really should get going soon, and I really don't want to hear any complicated words."

"Yes. Considering how concerned she was about your welfare, it is probably a good idea to let her speak to Skyfire. Perhaps it will take some of the psychological stress off of her." Now, that's the answer I was looking for.

"Alright, thanks. Hopefully your updates will make you cut to the chase more." I started towards Myst, and was about to wake her up when Zaita interrupted.

"Actually, they will. You see, this article explains the inner workings of my programming and how the updates will affect my higher thinking functions and therefore-..." Okay, okay, I get it.

"That's exactly what I mean. You don't really have to throw all those extra details in. Sometimes a direct answer is more appropriate." I thought AI's were supposed to know things like this, yet here I was lecturing a computer screen!

"Ah, I see. Very well. I will divert some processing power to analyze your statement." Another icon of a brain with lightning striking it appeared. With an annoyed roll of my eyes, I shook Myst until she woke up.

"Hey, Myst. We're about to leave, and I thought you might want to say a few things to Skyfire before we go." Her eyes opened slowly, then turned to me.

"Oh, um, thanks. You're right, I really do have a few things to say to her before we go." She got up, stretched, and then yawned. After, we both got out of the vehicle.

We trotted the short distance to the door, and I pushed it open. I saw Zeneta sitting on a chair, taking down notes and watching the monitor. When she noticed us, she immediately stopped whatever she was doing and came over to us.

"Your friend is still in a bad way. The wound in her stomach is still healing, and chances of tetanus are substantial. Hopefully, the medicines we gave her earlier will localize the condition, should it occur. But, as I said, she'll live." She went back over to the chair and sat down. Myst seemed troubled by that, looking at the ground with a small frown.

"Thanks, Zeneta. When do you think she'll wake up? Because we really need to get going as soon as possible." I asked, and the doctor thought about it for a moment.

"Well, she's a healthy and strong pony. Blood production will occur quickly, and brain damage is likely to be minimal, if none at all. All-in-all, most likely some time from now until after tomorrow." Well, that was good to hear. At least we wouldn't be here that long, as I didn't quite have anything to do here. And I was sure Myst wouldn't want to spend too long being chased around by kids.

"Alright, thanks. Now, we're going to say a few things before we leave for somewhere. Could you give us a few minutes?"

"Of course." She got up and went outside, blinking her eyes rapidly and shaking her head. Well, maybe these people did get tired after all.

"Hey Skyfire." I said to her unconscious form.

"We're going somewhere first, we won't be long. You get better, okay? We need you... more than you think." I thought about the city, with it's hellish orange glow and all the fighting I saw going on.

"And I don't want you to take another doctor hostage, alright? Not like last time. I'd hate to have to take you down again." Some of my guilt was oozing out of it's storage, and I couldn't help but sigh.

"Again, I'm sorry this happened to you. I didn't mean for it to happen, it just...just did. I hope I can make it up to you, somehow." A thought occurred to me, and I let out a little chuckle.

"Heh, maybe you can buck me upside the head until you feel better, huh? That'll make us even. And maybe, in the process, you'll get rid of my split personalities. Wouldn't that be great?" I chuckled again, before I saw the massive scar where the car door had stabbed into her stomach. It was an ugly thing, like one of the disgusting growths I saw on that huge octopus.

"I'm...again I'm... sorry. Just...just sorry." I said lamely. It was pathetic. Here, the friend of mine whom I'd caused the most pain and suffering, and who might have gotten a dangerous medical condition, was lying down, and all I could say was 'sorry'? What kind of a fucking apology was that? Hell, I should be letting that wheeled APC run over my leg before I could even trot up to her and say I was sorry.

I couldn't bring myself to look at her any longer, as the guilt and self-loathing I had tried to keep in storage had gotten out. So, I turned away and let Myst take her turn. I sat down on the bed I had been in, and strained my ears to listen in on what she was saying. For several minutes, the only thing I heard was wordless whispering, like Myst was just making weird noises with her mouth. About halfway in, I heard what sounded like sobbing. Amidst her whispering and supposed crying, the only things she said that I got was something regarding 'good pony' and 'get better'.

Finally, she turned to me and wiped a few tears off her face. Her eyes were red and puffy, confirming my suspicion that she had been crying for the majority of her talking. What, did she blame herself for Skyfire being in this condition? Because if she did, then I'd have to find some way to convince her otherwise.

'What can she possibly have to blame herself for? It was my plan, and that plan nearly got us all killed! She shouldn't be blaming herself.' I thought, feeling even more guilty now than I did before. Myst blaming herself for this, or even just taking some of the fault, made about as much sense as throwing a rock at the ground and expecting the sky to explode.

"You done?" I asked carefully, not wanting to make the already fragile-looking Myst burst into tears again. If there's one thing I wanted right now, it was having to comfort her for the entire duration of the trip.

"Yup." She said softly as she nodded, and we began trotting back outside. After we had exited the building, Zeneta went back in. We climbed onto the APC and got in, and at once Zaita's engine powered up.

"So, we are ready to leave?" Zaita asked as Myst curled up again while I approached the screen.

"Yeah. Let's get on with it."

"Very well. I will pla-" She started, but already knew what she was going to say.

"And not more elevator music, please. If I have to listen to all two-thousand five-hundred seventy four tracks, I think I'll go insane." I said just as 'Elevator 71' appeared on screen. Seriously? Only seventy-one had played? It felt like I had listened to more than half of that stuff!

"Oh. Very well." She sounded a little surprised, and a little disappointed. Don't tell me she actually LIKED that music.

We hovered all the way to the nearest exit: a gated gap in the wall with guards. After we had told them we were going to be gone for less than a day, they let us through. Now, in front of us, lay the vast open plains of the wasteland. Aside from the city to the north, the road beneath us was the only sign of civilization on the wide open space.

"Alright. Let's get those updates." I said aloud, and we started hovering into the night.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Smart Shopper, Level One -- You know enough to not let yourself be manipulated, though you've still got work to do. You gain an additional five points to your barter skill.

Chapter 9 - Searching

View Online

Chapter 9
Searching
“That’s what I’m here for, to deliver unpleasant news and witty one-liners."

If there’s one thing that watching miles and miles of empty wasteland pass underneath you, with nothing to do while you’re riding a sentient APC -- except a certain something which I do not want to do want to do while in the presence of others -- it’s bored. I tried, and by that I mean I REALLY tried to find things to do. I checked my pipbuck, read the copious amount of notes I had taken down through the years, cleaned my gladius, made sure all of my weapons were prepared, and even tried hovering inside the vehicle just to pass the time. Me crashing into the back of the APC was all I needed to know I shouldn’t try it again.

“I’m. So. BORED.” I said aloud as I lay down on the seats opposite of Myst. For a few moments, I just stared up at the ceiling of the APC, staring at it blankly with wide eyes.

“Well, there is always the option of giving yourself physical pleas-“ Zaita started, but I so did not want her to finish that sentence.

“Not. In front. Of you.” I said slowly, making sure to emphasize every single word. The white line on the screen arced upwards, and the cockpit camera turned to face me. It just stared at me… watching me… “Yeah… I’ll just find something else to do, thank you very much. Something that I don’t mind doing while being watched by a camera for the entire duration of the activity.” I said as I looked up at the camera. It shifted from me to look over the rest of cockpit, then back to me.

“Like what?” She asked, and I scrambled my mind to think of something to do. At last, I had it; the one thing I could do for the entire duration of the trip.

“I… will do…” I said slowly, dramatically. Zaita’s camera zoomed in, the mini-speakers next to it waiting for the rest of my statement. “…absolutely NOTHING.” I finished, and slumped against the seats in boredom. The camera looked at the floor disappointedly, then turned back to look out the window.

‘Come on, there’s got to be something I can do. ANYTHING.’ I thought, and I looked around the cockpit again. When I turned up with nothing, I just sighed and looked out the window idly.

“Goldwreath… I would like to talk to you. About your offer.” She said slowly, and I immediately snapped my head to face her. Well, at least it was something.

“You mean the one about your former operators, right?” I asked, remembering it immediately.

“Yes. You see, there was another reason I wanted to go to the Zebra Scientific Institution’s HQ.” An image, a map, appeared on the screen. I took a look, seeing things like ‘ZSI HQ’ on the top-left, a red ‘X’ named ‘Verge’ on the bottom right, and a yellow circle marked ‘Camp Thermopylae’ somewhere near the middle.

“My former operators and I once used Camp Thermopylae as a base of operations. It is where most of our missions were given to us, and also where I was based for about two years. I wish to…return there, to see what has happened to the place. It is not far off our path, and at most would only take an hour to provide me with sufficient…closure.” The camera turned to face me, and zoomed in. The vehicle also slowed down a bit, enough so that I could see the rocks outside as rocks and not as blurry objects.

“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” I asked, mildly annoyed. Why couldn’t she have told me before? For all I knew, this could have been the only reason we were going out here in the first place! Could she actually lie?

“I am sorry. In truth, I did not want to return to that place at all, there are… many memories, and not all are good. But when I remembered that the camp was along the way… I simply must go there. I feel… like the place is dragging me back towards it. Like I have unfinished business there, despite the fact that I only associated myself with my crew.” The camera looked down again. In shame this time? Maybe.

“Ugh… you really should have told me before. Every hour we’re out here is another something might happen to Skyfire, and I can’t let anything happen to her.” I looked down at the floor sadly. "Not after what I let happen." I looked back up at the screen, and the white line broke into two segments, both of which arced downwards.

“I am sorry. Perhaps it is best to not go there, anyway.” Despite that, I could almost hear the disappointment in her voice. I could…sense it. Maybe I’m crazy, but I’ll even go so far as to say that I felt it. With an annoyed sigh, I spoke up again.

“You really need to go there? Now of all times?”

“Well, logically, I don’t ‘need’ to go. After all, the place is more than two centuries old. So, in a sense…” Oh, no. You’re backing away from this now.

“Zaita. Yes or no?” I asked with a serious tone, cutting her off mid-sentence.

“Well… I would like to go. If we have time.” The camera slowly turned to face me, zooming in with… anticipation?

I placed my hoof over my face, groaning in annoyance. She seriously couldn’t have told me this sooner? And if it took longer, if we got delayed there for any reason, what then? Then again, it was a military camp. Maybe we could find something useful there, if the place wasn’t looted completely. Lowering my limb, I sighed.

“Alright, fine. Maybe we might find something useful there. Let’s just hope the place isn’t just blasted to the ground.” The screen gave off a soft little beep, and the camera zoomed in so much I thought it would have popped out of it’s slot.

“Really? We can go? Thank you. I truly hope visiting this place will take care of some of the questions forming in my consciousness.” The camera zoomed out, then turned to look back out the window. The world outside was passing under us in a blurry haze again as the vehicle resumed it’s pace, and the hum of the engine became louder in response.

“What do you expect to find there, anyway?” I asked, hoping to find out just why we were going to this place. The vehicle stopped completely, almost sending both Myst and I flying forward. The camera once more turned, even slower than last time. The camera zoomed in even more closely than before, and my closer position to it almost allowed it to touch my muzzle.

“Nothing. Absolutely nothing.”

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I was standing on the edge of a small cliff, Zaita and Myst several dozen feet away. The vehicle had to save whatever energy it had left, waiting for the sun to rise. It was also emitting the signals again, analyzing them to see what exactly they were. I had to wake Myst up and tell her she had to sleep a little but away from the APC if she didn’t want her head to feel fucked up. Before she went back to sleep, she took the time to lay the last of her explosives around us, just in case.

I was watching the city, it’s hellish glow of orange, rather than weakening, was now even more intense than ever. The fiery orange streaks pounded on the city en masse, visibly leveling what must have been several blocks worth of concrete with every few shots. The lightning had not stopped, instead stabbing down even more than before from the roofs of buildings. The blasting of anti-aircraft fire caused much more mayhem, as well; blowing up even more aircraft out of the sky.

“What have I gotten myself into?” I asked myself, watching as another building was reduced to rubble.

‘Meh. It isn’t that bad. At least you’re all the way out here.’ Thought Tod, his voice in my head for some reason weaker than it was before the bridge.

‘Well, at least you’re going in with friends. Imagine what it’ll be like if you went alone.’ Tom came up, his voice weak as well.

‘Yeah, but look at that place! They want to go with me into there, but look at it! The place is a Goddesses-damned deathtrap. It might be better to just drop a balefire bomb on the place and end it.’ I thought, looking sullenly at the ground.

‘Well, it would save you a lot of trouble.’ Damn you, Tod. One thing I hated about myself right now… I actually wanted to. I really did. The place looked so hopelessly irreversible that it probably would have been better to just level the place. To remove the city entirely and let people move to less crazy places.

‘But what about all the people? Those that would be killed? And isn’t that basically what the ponies and zebras back then did? Well, look what it did to the world.’ Tom asked, and I immediately grabbed my head in between my hooves.

“Stop talking! I… just let me think. Come on…” They both fell silent, letting me think this through properly.

‘Damn it, what should I do? I want to help, to make the place better, but how? How can I stop a war that seems like it never really ended?’ I asked myself, and I closed my eyes and sighed.

“Maybe I can try asking Myst. I need another voice in all this aside from my screwed up brain.” I began trotting back down the small hill. As I reached the corner that I had to turn to get back to them, a bright and slow-moving streak erupted in the sky and flew over me. The streak struck something, and there was a bright explosion. It wasn’t as loud as I thought, but it was big. Really big.

Or really close…

The aircraft began plummeting towards the ground, seemingly still struggling to maintain control over itself. All that managed to do was make it spin around in the air as it raced towards the earth. It crashed, sending a pillar of fire rising into the air and pieces of itself flying off in all directions. It dragged itself several dozen meters, leaving flaming debris and an impact crater in it’s wake.

“Whoa… what the shit?!” I began gliding towards it, forgetting my earlier problem entirely. Either Myst was a damned heavy sleeper and Zaita was really busy analyzing, or they just didn’t care. Either way, I found myself racing towards it alone, approaching it’s burning and mangled remains with Vengeance ready, just in case.

I reached the fallen transport. I knew it was a transport because the back of the vehicle was slightly open, and a few bodies were scattered around the crash site. I circled to the front, seeing a dead pilot through one of the broken windows. There was another window, though. One that wasn’t broken and seemed like another cockpit. I climbed onto the front, my metal hoof-plates saving me from being burned. I was about to break open the window, when it gave off a hiss of pressurized air and swung upwards.

The pilot tumbled out, landing on the ground with a groan of pain. He was Legion, from his uniform. He began rummaging through his clothing, and pulled out a small device. He brought it to his mouth and spoke.

“Labyrinth, this is Icarus 8. We have… ugh… crashed near…” That was all he managed to get out before the device fell apart in his hooves. He looked at the pieces with a look of disbelief before he simply dropped them onto the ground. He looked around for a bit, and spotted me.

"You! I need your help. These civilians need to be brought to the Forum before..." I trotted closer, and the pilot's eyes went wide in terror. "You..." He grabbed a low-caliber pistol from his side and opened fire. In his state, he probably wasn't able to aim properly for my head. His rounds struck my vest with no effect, and finally the pistol clicked on an empty chamber. I went over to him and picked him up off the ground, then threw him against the vehicle.

"What are you doing with them? Recruiting? Enslaving? Answer me!" I pushed him against the burning metal, and I heard his coat singe from the heat. He hissed in pain, but managed to look me right in the eye.

"I won't talk... to degenerate scum...like you!" I heard the sound of a metal pin, and I looked down to see an apple-looking explosive in his hooves. I immediately threw him hard against the vehicle and ran, diving for cover behind a rock.

The explosion was barely audible among the sounds of the flames, but the flying body parts I saw overhead told me all I needed to know. I got out of cover and ran for the back of the vehicle, seeing the bloody remains of the pilot's body smeared across the ground. As I reached the slightly opened dual doors, I looked inside and saw smoke, as well as hearing the coughing and gagging of people. The smoke coming from within irritated my eyes, and I had to blink hard to get the tears out.

I looked up, seeing two fuel pipes above the metal door. They was breached, and little jets of flame erupted from them. The pipes went to the side of the vehicle, and then disappeared somewhere near the front. Fuel dripped and fell from the pipes in rivulets and fell inside the vehicle, feeding the flames inside.

"Is anybody there? Anybody?" I yelled, trying to force the hatch to open a little wider. I don't think even a foal could have squeezed through this gap! The coughing remained, but a few managed to stand out as whoever they were approached.

"Please! You have to help us! The fires are getting into the fuel!" A zebra mare managed through all her coughing. Beneath her a little pony filly put her hoof through the gap and tried to squeeze through, to no avail.

"Please, I don't want to die!" the filly wailed, reflecting all the sobbing and crying and coughing I was hearing in the back of the vehicle. The filly managed to get her hoof to touch my chest, and she scraped against my chest plate as she began to cry.

The sounds came closer, the majority of the people inside finding out that I was here. As I stood there in horror, more hoofs appeared around the metal door as more people tried to squeeze out. They must have been piling on top of each other, as there was no way they could have been trying to get out through the top of the hatch. The smoke and flames intensified, as did the struggling of the people within.

"Ah...fuck...um... j-just hold on!" I managed to get out, but the crowd most likely didn't hear it. They just continued screaming and struggling, and the filly I saw earlier was pulled away from the opening and replaced by another child, who then gasped for air.

I began to gallop away back towards the others, the crowd screaming after me as I ran. I felt horrible, turning my back on people like that. I could just hear them scream, screaming for me to help them… Screaming for their lives…

But I couldn’t help them on my own. I didn’t have the tools for the job. But maybe Zaita or Myst did. I couldn’t do this by myself. As I started across a small field that lead back to the others, the crowd suddenly screamed even louder.

“You, please help us!” Yelled a mare.

“We don’t want to die!” Shouted out several young fillies and colts in unison.

The rest screamed similar remarks, asking for me to help. But…were they actually talking to me? They sounded like they were calling someone else… I stopped; an action that made me feel the importance of each second that passed by. I listened carefully, straining my ears to hear them over the sounds of the fire.

The screaming resumed, this time even louder. The tone of the yelling also turned from pleading to one of… horror. There was the sound of a small detonation, followed by the sudden ‘fwoosh’ of an even larger and brighter flame. I looked at the fire, it’s size making it visible even from behind a pile of huge rocks. A cold chill ran down my spine as I suddenly realized what happened.

“What are you doing?! Please, don’t go! Get us out of here!” Yelled the mare again, and I bolted back towards the aircraft. I drew Tankbuster and prepared it to blast away the supports of the door to let them out.

‘Come on, come on! I have to save them! They can’t die like this!’ I told myself, and I galloped faster towards the crash site. I felt so helpless, but all I could think of now was to do something, anything, to get them out.

I reached the vehicle again, and I saw just what I had feared. The flames were even larger than before, and the fuel pipes above had blown away. The fuel poured down into the passenger cabin, and I saw a huge fire coming from within, reaching out of the hatch like the very people it was now consuming. The screams were now barely audible through the sounds of the chaos, but right now it seemed like the only noise I heard.

I ran over to it, heart racing and mind scrambling to think of…something! I just had to save these people, I couldn’t let them die. I pulled out the heavy shotgun, and aimed it at the supports locking the door in place. Damn it, why didn’t I do this earlier?!

I fired, blasting away the majority of the first support. My aim was shaky, just like my breathing. As I aimed once more for the same support, one of the fillies from within came close to the opening. She screamed; a blood curdling scream of pain and horror. Her eyes looked at me with pained pleading, and her skin was peeling off in burned chunks.

“Please…” She reached out a burned, charred hoof and tried to squeeze through in futility. That was all she had the strength to say before the flame inside grew even more and consumed her. I had to jump away from the opening to keep myself from getting caught in the fire.

As I sat there, watching the vehicle burn like a pyre in front of me, the screaming and wailing eventually receded. I looked at the ground, eyes wide in disbelief at what had just happened.

Their screams had stopped minutes ago, but I could still hear them in my head... It made me shiver, despite the heat emanating from the blackened carcass. But I didn't care. My mind was too occupied thinking about what had just happened. How those people had suffered a slow, agonizing death. How I had failed to save them, when they needed it most. It was then that I finally turned away, tearing my face from the smoldering remnants of the downed transport. I began trotting away slowly, head hung low as I thought of how I was going to tell the others about this. How I was going to tell them how I failed to save all those people.

This was exactly why I shouldn't have brought my friends with me. All I had to do was shoot away those supports, just SHOOT them away. If there was one thing I was at least decent at, it was shooting. And yet, when that was all that was needed to save dozens of people from a terrible death, I failed at that too.

The DJ was wrong about me. I wasn't the Defender of Roam, as he made me to look like. I wasn't the Praetorian, and I didn't deserve to have people call me that. I wasn't worth the trust and faith that people put into me, believing me to be some hero. I was a failure, an absolute failure. All those people, burned slowly in a flaming metal deathtrap. And it was all my fault.

"I'm not cut out for this job. I can't protect these people. I can't..." I said sullenly as I continued trotting, passing the rock that just a moment ago I had used as cover from an overzealous and suicidal Legionnaire.

That was when I felt a... presence, if that makes sense. It just felt like... like someone was watching me. Despite the great effort it took, I managed to bring my head up and look around at the rock formations and hills around me. At first, nothing. No sign of any living soul in this dreary landscape. Not even my E.F.S showed any signs of life.

Then I looked beside me, at one of the small cliff walls less than a dozen feet from me. The light coming from the still burning aircraft came as far as my position, but the light that touched that particular bunch of rocks looked... distorted. Like it was passing through a thin veil or something.

There was a flash of blue, and blue-glowing flakes drifted off the equine as if they were being blown away by a soft wind. In a moment, the zebra that I hated so much sat before me. His armored gas mask had not been replaced, but he seemed to have welded the shattered pieces together.

"Really? And here I had hoped that you'd be more determined than ever to save people." He rasped gravelly, getting up and casually trotting towards the still burning wreckage before continuing, "I have to say I'm disappointed. I had thought you'd put those people out of their suffering with a grenade or something. Would have been a lot better."

"Y-you! You did this, didn't you?!" I yelled, stomping after him at a brisk pace. "You did all this! You... you killed all those people!" Their faces were still implanted in my mind, screaming and writhing. Oh, if only I could remove those images. It was the stuff of nightmares.

"I did. And I'm disappointed. You realize how much rockets cost? And I was really expecting to see you put those people out of their misery. But it seems you haven't learned from our discussion on the bridge." He sighed disappointedly, getting close to the doors and looking at them. What, was he going to pry them apart?

"Wait... y-you did ALL THIS, just to see what I WOULD DO?!" I yelled in disbelief as the anger I had put away began flooding my mind. I gritted my teeth and continued, "What kind of sick fuck are you?"

He reached in and placed his hooves against the doors, then ripped them off their hinges with a soft grunt. "Hmmm... maybe the kind that kills people without thinking?" He responded calmly, tossing the doors aside with such ease that he was either on mega-steroids or he was wearing power armor underneath that vest of his. He looked inside, leaning his head forward as if getting a better view.

"You're... you're a fucking monster!" I yelled as I charged at him, not caring that my brain was completely against the act. He took one look at me, and as I got within hoof range he placed a quick but unbelievably strong punch against my abdomen. I fell down, clutching my stomach as I struggled to gain some breath.

"I know, I know. Honestly, when will I hear something new around here?" He picked me up and threw me away like a ragdoll, and I smacked against a rock. He shook his head once before he said, "You're not the first to tell me that." He said that sentence without any emotion whatsoever, except perhaps boredom. Then again, even boredom didn't sound as dead and lifeless as he did. He entered the slightly burning cabin, leaving me gasping as I leaned against the hard surface.

There were disgusting meaty sounds coming from inside, with the occasional sound of a wet crunch. The flickering of the flames inside told me that the last of the fuel was burning up. I had finally gotten up, and I drew the revolver and pointed it at the entrance. The moment he came out of there, I was going to place a shot right against his face.

I was really about to pull the trigger the moment he came out, when he tossed a small... lump onto the ground. "Care to take a look?" He asked, and took a few steps back. Against all my desires to end him, my curiosity somehow managed to overcome my anger.

It was the burned, charred body of a filly. Not the same one that I saw engulfed in the inferno earlier. This one, while obviously severely burned, was at least not burned to a crisp. I looked at the Specter with disgust, contemplating how he could do this to a body. "What about it?" I asked with a growl as I once more pointed the revolver at his head. He didn't even flinch.

"Hmph. I thought you wanted to save people. Well, here's your chance." He pointed a hoof down at the charred body. "She's still alive."

"WHAT?" I asked in disbelief. How could this... mass of burned, crispy flesh be alive? I kept the revolver pointed at him as I approached, looking for any signs of life. Sure enough, over the sounds of the remaining flames, I managed to make out the soft sounds of raspy breathing. "That's not... possible..." I looked over all her burned flesh. I may not have been a doctor, but I was sure that with those burns she shouldn't even have been alive.

"Well? I don't have all night. Are you going to do something about her or not?" He asked, sounding annoyed as he paced from one end of the doorway to the other. "Come on, she's the only survivor. I want to see just what you'll do."

I shot him a hateful glare, and I began rummaging through my saddlebags for a healing potion. One was definitely not going to be enough, so I pulled out all the ones I had. Come on, just save one! Forget about that sick bastard and just save one!

He threw a cheap, low caliber pistol onto the ground, then a clip. I looked at him with confusion, wondering what the hell that was about. He canted his head sideways and said, "Well? When are you going to kill her?"

WHAT?!

"What the fuck do you mean by that? I'm not going to kill her, she's still alive! Alive and..." I was about to continue, before he cut me off.

"And in pain. Not just physical, but psychological and emotional, as well. Her family was in there, her mother and father. Even if she lives, she'll be in pain for the rest of her life. As much as she may deserve to live, she deserves to be free of pain more." He said it with such a tone of certainty that I almost wanted to just punch him then and there out of sheer disgust, if I weren't holding the healing potion to her mouth.

"What the fuck do you mean? YOU did this, to her! You killed her parents! If anything, you should be HELPING to save her now!" I began pouring the restorative potion down her threat, and the zebra responded with an angered growl.

"And what will she live for? There's nothing she can do, no one who'll take care of her, and she'll have no reason to live! She should be put out of her pain now before she goes through more!" After all his dull and lifeless words, his tone of anger almost sounded... feral. Like a wild animal that somehow got the ability to speak.

"I… I can take care of her. I can help her get over her pain. And I can find her a life somewhere, away from the wasteland. And I won't let her die because some delusional idiot like you thinks everyone should be dead!" I finished pouring the healing potion down her throat, and at once her wretched breathing became significantly smoother. Her coat and hide were still burned to hell, though. She'd need medical assistance if she was going to live.

"No!" He yelled, and bucked me away from her with such force that I thought my ribs would have cracked. "You won't bring this foal to pain! I know the path you'll being her on will only result in suffering!" He pulled out a revolver, almost completely identical to Vengeance, and pointed it down at her. I pulled out my own revolver and aimed for his face.

"I won't let you take another life. And I won't fail another person who needs help. I'm going to save her, and you can't make me think otherwise." I fired all six rounds at his helmet, the bullets piercing or ricocheting off of the armored mask. He staggered away slightly, new holes in his headgear.

"And I won't let you bring her with you into the city. Not like what you're doing with those idiots you call your friends." My eyes went wide for a moment, and I looked away from him. He laughed a little, a sadistic and malicious laugh, before he said, "Oho! That's right! Little Praetorian says he wants to save people, yet brings his friends along to die with him in the city!" He laughed aloud, obviously enjoying the look of uncertainty on my face.

"Shut up! It's not like that. They want to come with me. It's their choice. And they're at least better people than you! At least they want to help make this place better!" I yelled, hoping I could convince myself as much as him.

I may have hated the guy, but I'll admit that he knew just what to say to get at me. Those words of his stabbed at me like little poisoned daggers, injecting doubt into my mind. It already sucked that I already wasn't convinced of my own words, and the low chuckle he gave afterwards told me he wasn't, either.

"Oh really? Well, keep telling yourself that. Heh, at least they can be with you right? That's what they said, wasn't it? That they'd want nothing but to be alongside you when you charge into the city like some damned hero and save the day?" I looked away, not wanting him to have the satisfaction of seeing my doubt. Still, I guess he didn't need to see it to know he was getting to me as he said, "Pffft, thought so. What a bunch of bullshit."

The filly gasped, and we both turned our attention to her. She screamed, perhaps feeling the pain of her burned hide on the ground. Her eyelids were melted together slightly, and she had to tear them open. When she did, she let out a little whimper and looked around. Her eyes landed on the zebra, and she immediately crawled away.

"Muuu! Mfay amfay frum mme!" Was the only noise that came out of her melted together lips as she crawled, eventually bumping into my legs. She turned and looked up at me with wide eyes, but didn't run away screaming. Rather, she shakily crawled behind me and held onto my hindleg, whimpering and crying. She looked up at me with wide, helpless eyes, with the flesh on her face still freshly burned. She shuddered, and she closed her eyes and held even more tightly onto my leg.

"Don't worry." I said as I glared at the zebra, the flame reflecting off his visor. "I won't let him hurt you." The little filly shook before she let go and slowly crawled away, whimpering and crying in pain as she took cover behind some rubble. I hoped she wouldn't try to run away. Not now, at least.

"You're a damned fool. If she lives, she'll be subject to horrible pain. It's better to put her down before she does." The zebra began trotting to her cover, the revolver still in his hooves. As the revolver was out, and Tankbuster was much too heavy to keep up with the speed this guy had shown, I instead drew Lighthouse's gladius.

"Not one more step." I said in the most threatening tone I could muster, and he stopped just in front of me. Even if it wasn't the same person who killed Lighthouse, this guy had murdered dozens of people in just under a few minutes. For that, I could find some satisfaction in drawing this blade against him.

"You're joking, right? What makes you think you can stop me? You're using a blade against a gun, and wearing cumbersome gear that'll get you fatigued. You may be a gods-damned idealist, but I heard that you were sensible." He gave off a snicker, and I was just sure that under that helmet of his he was smirking. "And you're alone too."

"Not alone, you motherfucker." Myst said from her perch on top of a small cliff, and the sound of her rifle echoed across the landscape. The bullet struck the zebra right in the face, but again he wasn't dead. Still, I guess even he had to see. He staggered away, muttering obscenities in zebra. A light came up from behind Myst, and Zaita came hovering down at great speeds.

The zebra had regained his balance, and he once again pulled out a blue-glowing cylinder. Just like last time, though, his attempt failed as Zaita rammed into him at full speed. He was sent crashing against the wreckage of the aircraft with a heavy thud, then slid down into one of the flames.

“The chances of completing your objective are now 3%. Surrender now or be crushed to a pulp.” Zaita said to the burning zebra as she hovered closer to the wreckage. The zebra got out of the fire, his garments either fire-proof or he just wasn’t in the flame long enough to be set ablaze.

“Of course he isn’t alone.” The zebra said, now very much agitated. He let out an animalistic growl, and his heavy breathing was audible through his respirator. He even let out a jet of hot air out through the helmet, like a bull preparing to charge. “You’re all fools. That filly will suffer because of you, and when she does you’ll blame yourselves. And when you do, you’ll be open to manipulation.” He took a quick look around, as if in search of the little foal.

“Shut up and die.” I swapped the blade out for Tankbuster, then fired all ten rounds as the zebra slowly backpedalled to the edge of the cliff this whole scene was playing out on. I finally ran out just as he reached the edge, and he took a look at me with what must have been angry eyes. Zaita hovered closer, canting forwards in preparation to ram him. Myst stayed where she was, but had her scopes on the zebra. The filly was nowhere to be seen.

“I’m not that easy to kill.” He turned around, and looked at the bottom of the cliff. Oh, what? Was he going to jump off or something?

He took one last look at me and said, “Next time we meet, Praetorian. Next time, I’ll have things my way.” He looked around at Zaita and Myst, then back to me. “And next time, your ‘friends’ won’t be there to help you out.” Then he jumped off, and I ran to the edge just in time to see a blue glow light up near the bottom.

“Zaita, we have to stop him!” Myst said, getting off her perch and galloping towards our APC. “We can’t let him get away, not after what he did.”

“No, Myst. He’s gone.” I got away from the edge, contemplating what he would do next. Nothing good, I just knew it. "We have more important matters to tend to." I looked around the area, but turned up with nothing. "Where's the filly?"

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"No, no no no! Zaita, Myst, help me out over here!" I yelled as I held the unconscious and barely breathing body of the filly in my hooves. She had tried to crawl away from what happened earlier, but she must've gotten exhausted along the way. As it was, her life was now hanging on a very thin thread as I hurried up to find whatever healing potions I could get my hooves on.

"Oh my goodness, oh my goodness!" Myst stammered as she galloped to me, a healing potion in her mouth as Zaita hovered over to us. She handed me the potion as I abandoned my own efforts, and I immediately shoved the vial into the filly's mouth.

"Come on, don't die on me! Don't die!" I shouted, pouring down the healing potion down her throat. Come on, just save one! I failed to save several dozen, so just had save one! The filly barely showed any signs of recovery, even after several potions later. She did, at least, breathe a little more. Her coat also showed the barest signs of re-growing, especially on the less burned portions. But she would need more medical attention that we were capable of giving her...

"Zaita, I need you to do something." I said, and immediately the APC approached. The engine's propulsion systems blasted the sand beneath it away, sending small clouds of dust at us. "I need you to take her back to Zeneta. She isn't going to survive on healing potions alone." The vehicle shook a little in the air, and I saw the camera turn to face me.

"Are you sure about that? I can get there and back, yes. But what will you two do while I am away? The trip back will take several hours, and I do not have enough energy to come back immediately." The camera looked to the sides, as if in thought. After a moment, Zaita said, "And... will this affect the trip to the camp, by any chance?"

What? This filly was dying here, and all Zaita could think of was going to that camp? Was the place really THAT important? Ugh, for the love of...

"No, Zaita, we're still going. Just… just get her there, okay? I couldn't save all those people from a slow painful death, but I can at least save her. And I intend to do everything I can to." I said, annoyed, as I turned to Myst, and earth pony looking like she didn't know what to do. "Myst and I can go as far as the camp, we'll meet you there. I have it's location on my pipbuck, anyway. So, what do you say?" I asked her.

Myst’s eyes shot wide, like she wasn’t expecting me to ask her for her opinion. "Well, um... I don't want her to die. So, yes, Zaita should bring her there." She replied softly as she tapped her hooves together in a nervous manner. What she could be nervous about, I didn’t really care for at the moment. She was Myst after all; being nervous about things was pretty much an irremovable trait. Right now, though, saving this foal from dying was my number one priority.

The vehicle looked around a bit more, and once even turned around and looked off into the night. "Very well. I will take her back, and I will meet you at the camp. But, as I said, I cannot come back for you immediately. I will have to spend some of the early hours of the day recharging." The vehicle hovered closer, further blasting dirt and sand at us.

Myst and I got the filly inside, and we made sure to take anything we might need for the trip to the camp. When we finished, we got out of the vehicle. "Hurry to the camp when you're done, Zaita. We'll be there, don't worry. We might even get to clean the place up a little or something." I gave a small smile, and I saw the camera zoom in on me.

"I would like that. Hopefully, the place has not been desecrated in any way. I would not like to see a gang or a group of raiders in my former home." I don’t know why, but she sounded… relieved. Relieved or thankful, maybe both. But I didn’t care much for that right now, either.

“Alright, alright. You really should get started now, and we’ve got a long way to go. The camp’s about…” I looked at it’s icon on my pipbuck’s map. “… twenty-two miles away.” I groaned quietly, taking in the distance we would have to walk on our own. Twenty-two may not seem so much when you’re in a vehicle, but on your own hooves it was VERY different.

‘Just think of the filly.’ I thought, and that eased my anxiety a bit. Just a bit.

“Very well.” Zaita said as she began turning around, facing the direction of Verge (whose lights, even from this distance, lit up a large section of the black night). The engines hummed loudly, and they glowed a soft blue from the heat they emitted. “I will see you two there.” Then, with a blast of force and heat that nearly knocked us off our hooves, Zaita thundered off into the night.

With a soft sigh, I turned to Myst. “Well, we should probably get going.” I noticed just at this point that the clouds overhead were dark and thick, and they let off the occasional distant rumble of thunder. “I really hope it doesn’t rain.”

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

If there’s one thing that really sucks about hoping, it’s that when you hope something doesn’t happen, it does. And, in this case, the hope of it not raining died the moment the clouds dropped their heavy, irradiated downpour of water on us. My pipbuck clicked ever so slightly, and I didn’t really need to look at the screen to know that the radiation was at least negligible. For a time, at least.

“Fuck you, rain.” I muttered to myself as Myst and I trotted along the open plains of the wasteland. The wasteland may have been hot and dry during the day, but right now the cold rain coupled with chilly wind were freezing my nuts off!

“You think we should look for shelter for the night?” Myst asked in between the chattering of her teeth, and I could hear the obvious tone of desire in her voice. As much as I really wanted to just keep going, the slippery mud and freezing atmosphere really wasn’t making this trip any easier.

I was hungry, too. While the food we packed may have been good, opening the cans in this rain would’ve just ruined them completely. So, I settled for chomping down on whatever dead or dying grass or vegetation we came across. All of it tasted like shit, though.

With a small sigh of exhaustion, I said, “Yeah, sure. But where can we find shelter here?” I gestured around us at the miles of flat, empty wasteland. We may have passed by the occasional ruined house or shack, but nothing substantial enough to keep the rain out.

“We could look for an old town or something. Someplace with buildings.” She looked around for a bit, then spotted the dark, forlorn figure of a hill amidst the rain. We had left most of the cliffs and hills behind us over an hour ago, so any such formations were scattered and few. “We might be able to find something from there.” She pointed at the dark form of the hill with a hoof.

‘I doubt it. I can barely see my hoof in front of my face in this rain!’ I thought as I felt all the water drip off me in rivulets. My coat and garments were soaked beyond doubt, and I really hoped that all my weapons would still work. Still, I won’t deny that we really needed to find a place to stop for the night. “Alright, let’s get to it.”

We trotted the short (but really cold) distance to the foot of the hill and then we began climbing up. The small rivers of water running down the hillside coupled with the strong and chilly wind nearly blew us off the hill many, many times. If it weren’t for the dead plants and bushes that still clung to the hill, I think that we would have been sent off the side many minutes ago.

After what felt like hours, the two of us finally reached the top. I fell down from exhaustion, leaning against a dead tree. I didn’t care how cold the rain was or how muddy I was, I just couldn’t keep moving like this for much longer. Myst though, not wearing heavy gear like I was, still had enough left in her to look around us with her scope. She moved around, peering into the night. How she could even expect to find anything was beyond me.

“I… think I see something. It looks like a light.” She said as she returned to me. “It may be a raider camp or something. Or maybe even a town. I think it’s worth checking out.”

I got up and looked around for a bit, occasionally having to wipe the water from my face to see. “Are you sure? I don’t see anything out there…” I narrowed my eyes, straining them to make out anything that resembled a light. Nothing. Nothing at all but the heavy drops of rain.

“You can’t, maybe. Then again, I’m the one with the scope.” She said with an uncharacteristic tone of smugness. I turned to her, catching her smiling smugly. Immediately, her smile disappeared. “Well, it’s worth checking out at least. It’s not like we can just stay here all night.”

“Alright, fine. As I can’t see it, you’ll have to bring us there.” She nodded, and we started back down the hill again. It wasn’t as hard as going up, but it was a lot dirtier. We had to slide down the side to get down quickly, and that got mud into just about every possible space in our clothing. Still, at least it saved energy.

We went across the open plains again, Myst in the lead. As we walked, we heard the occasional roar come from somewhere above us. But every time we looked, we saw nothing. Once, though, Myst said she saw a dark, winged form that disappeared before she could make out any more details. I wouldn’t have believed her, as I could barely see anything, if I didn’t think that those roars had to come from somewhere. Oh, I seriously hoped that they were just local wildlife trying to look for shelter. I did not want to be hunted by hungry animals when we could barely see each other, much less them if they were flying.

At last, our hooves touched down on solid road. Considering that what we had to walk through for several hours was knee-deep mud and dead vegetation, the feel of solid ground beneath me was almost orgasmic. Now, though, I could make out the lights Myst was talking about. They were lamps, hung down from inside the windows of buildings. The buildings themselves were nothing but dark silhouettes, but there was no denying that we were in some of kind town or settlement.

My E.F.S showed a ton of red bars, but none of them were moving. We walked around cautiously, relying on the rain to conceal our movements, and eventually found a building with only a few bars inside. It was about five floors high, and the windows were boarded up. Above the door, I saw the remains of a sign showing a logo of a flame burning within a circle. Unfortunately, the text was illegible after hundreds of years of decay.

I tried to open the door. It was locked, and I didn’t trust myself enough with a bobby pin to try the lock, especially not in this weather. Instead, I just used Tankbuster to blow the lock away. If it were any other situation, every single bar here would have heard that shot and swarmed on us. But I don’t think even Zaita’s chaingun could be heard over this downpour.

“Get in.” I told her as I monitored my E.F.S carefully, just to make sure. After she had gotten in, laying a hidden explosive near the entrance, I got in as well. I closed the door, and Myst gave me an old office chair to block it.

After I propped the chair up against the door, my pipbuck gave off the sound of a cash register, and I saw a small notification on the screen:

‘Roam Pyro Kinetic Inc. Office’ it said.

“Pyro Kinetic Inc., huh?” I said, wondering just what sort of things a company called ‘Pyro Kinetic Inc.' would have done during the war.

The inside of the building was only mildly ruined, with the floor still maintaining some of it’s shine and the wall’s paint only partially faded. The lobby was spacious, and a large counter with several terminals dominated the area in front of a wall. There was also the faint sounds of a high-pitched ringing noise along with a dull humming; the sounds of the two signals Zaita picked up.

There were also lots of burn marks. They varied in intensity, some looking like a huge flame had made them, while others looked like someone held a lighter too close to the wall for a few minutes. Either way, the floor was absolutely thick with ash, some of it in large piles. There were metallic stumps on the ceiling, the burn marks looking particularly intense around them. Perhaps they were turrets that exploded?

“Myst, I’ll look around for a bit; see if there’s anything in here that’s interesting.” I looked around at the terminals, some of them still glowing an electronic white even after two centuries. “Maybe I can learn something about the war in here, too.”

“Okay. I’ll go check upstairs. Maybe I can find something valuable.” She trotted away with a little grin of delight. Apparently, Myst liked to scavenge. Speaking of scavenging, that was still a skill I should develop. It’s not like I could always rely on her to provide us with caps or salvage to sell to get caps.

I trotted to one of the old terminals, and the sounds became much more distinguishable. It even started to give me a small headache, though not enough to grab my attention. The screen of the terminal was dark, but still glowed. When I moved the mouse, though, it lit up even brighter, like it had been waiting for some kind of user input. On the top left corner, I saw a name of a zebra.

‘Hello, Mrs. Raidan.’ It said, and next to it was a small logo of an envelope with a red number ‘3’ above it. I moved the cursor over to the envelope and clicked, and immediately I saw a list of old messages.

‘Customer Report #46’, ‘Transaction With Olympus Energy’, and ‘Attention All Employees’ were the titles of each message, respectively. With nothing much to do at the moment, I clicked on each one and read them.

The first message was basically a small complaint from some military personnel that a flame thrower unit wasn’t working. Nothing interesting, really. The next report just said that ‘your transaction with Olympus Energy has been approved’, and was also of no interest to me.

The last one, though, actually caught my attention. It was from the president of Pyro Kinetic Inc.

“Dear employees of Pyro Kinetic Inc.

The new ‘Inferno’ series of vehicles are now cleared for testing. Please ensure that during the hours 8:30 AM – 3:30 PM of July 5th – 15th that all fireproofing measures are in motion. This applies to all maintenance staff, as well.

Also, the Military’s 5th and 8th Legions have generously decided to purchase a large supply of surplus equipment from us, and as such all salaries are to be increased by 3%.

Lastly, and this is STRICTLY confidential, and any staff who reveal this information will have their memories erased and will be fired, the Shadow Corps of Legate Autherius will be conducting a background check on all personnel and their families. This is to ensure that each and every employee of Pyro Kinetic Inc. are still, and I quote, ‘loyal to the interests of the Nation’. Please remain within facility grounds on evenings of the 18th of July until the 20th for said background checking. Any staff who attempt to leave, for whatever reason, will be dealt with appropriately.

Pyro Kinetic Inc. HQ”

Huh. So Autherius was conducting loyalty checks, then? I wondered if any of those traitors Decarius spoke about in that video were from this company.

All the other terminals had similar messages, and none of them interested me in the slightest. Moving away from them and roaming around on the first floor, I eventually came upon stairs leading down. As I took several steps down, my pipbuck began clicking slowly. ‘3 rads per second’ it said.

“Radiation? Down there? What could that mean?” I asked as I went down further, the clicking increasing in frequency with each step. My body began to itch a little, and my headache worsened. All my suspicions of having radiation sickness were confirmed by my pipbuck, and apparently my torso was crippled. Maybe from that zebra’s buck earlier. Still, I didn’t feel that bad.

After several flights down, I began to notice all the burn marks on the walls and on the steps of the stairs. There was ash everywhere, like someone had covered the whole place in paper and set it on fire. Why, though, I couldn’t imagine.

The radiation had also reached a point where it didn’t increase further. Still, I’m guessing that ’10 rads per second’ was not a good number. Deciding to hurry up finding out wherever all this radiation was coming from before I grew a fifth limb, I went down the stairs at a speed just short of galloping. It was also at this point that I noticed that all the red bars in this building were coming from down here.

Eventually, I reached a large, armored, metal door. It had lots of scorch marks on it, too. The stairs near it were just lousy with ash, the stuff flying around the still air with every step in it I took. The door itself marked, in big bold text, ‘SHELTER’. The red bars were directly behind the door, moving around at random. There was no way to open the door, though. All it had was a sleek glass surface, similar to Zaita’s screen when I first encountered her, to the left of the door.

‘This seems really fishy.’ Thought Tod.

‘Yeah, this place feels… strange. And dangerous.’ Yes, Tom, it does. Then again, the entire wasteland was dangerous.

I sighed as I looked at the door disappointedly. "Well, that was a waste of time. They're probably just radroaches, anyway." I sighed one more time, and removed my hoofplate and placed my hoof on the screen in a futile attempt to get inside. I glanced at my pipbuck's warning notification. "And now I've got... ADVANCED radiation sickness. Great." I still didn't feel that bad, but I wouldn't doubt that I really did have rad sickness.

I removed my hoof from the screen and turned away, disappointed. I was just about to take a step back up the stairs, when the door gave off a little beep.

"ACCESS GRANTED." The door's voice said in a low, rough voice. The door slid down with a clang, and immediately the air inside burst out in a strong gush that reeked of decay and... other indescribable things.

"What the..." I said, taking a step inside. I had to cover my muzzle and breathe through my mouth to avoid the stench, but that didn't really help as the air itself seemed to have 'taste', if that makes sense. "Okay, this is some weird shit.” I said as I took a few tedious steps into the room. I also wondered why the door had let me in. Maybe decades of disrepair had screwed with it's systems? Yeah, let's go with that.

‘Yeah, I don’t really think this is a good idea…’ Tom started, when Tod suddenly cut him off.

‘Aw, come on! What could possibly happen? He can take care of a few radroaches.’ Well, I won’t deny that.

I stepped further in, stepping in pools of irradiated water that flooded in through a huge crack in the metal ceiling what led all the way up to the surface. My pipbuck clicked madly, indicating the immense amount of radiation that flooded the area. Metal pipes formed a maze overhead, and some of them dripped water through cracks on their surface, as well. Looking around, I spotted a few skeletons in one corner and trotted over to them.

They were… a mess. Not that the whole wasteland wasn’t a mess, really. But these people, whoever they were, looked like they had died in agonizing pain. They had old blood stained all around them, all over the floor and on the walls. One skeleton had all it’s limbs torn away, scattered around it. The others had ripped open ribcages, as if something had forced it’s way into their bodies. On the ground near them, I found an old pistol with several empty casings scattered around the floor. Perhaps they had committed suicide? So, what? Did they tear their limbs off and rip their stomachs open before they did? I really doubted it.

What was worse, the red bars on my E.F.S started moving, fast. “Okay, that’s it. This place is creepy, no doubt. Well, time to go back up!” I said in nervous cheer as I started to make my way towards the door again. I didn’t care that I hadn’t explored the rest of the room, I did not want to stay down here!

Then I heard a sound. A… sort of… scream. Well, not really a scream. More like growl, or a snarl of some sort. It was the sort of noise that only monsters in nightmares could make. My blood froze in my veins, and I could just stare at the doorway in front of me with wide eyes and listen as the noise was followed up by more noises. First more snarls, then slow, steady trotting. Then more trotting… then more…

I turned around slowly, heart pounding in my chest. My blood was circulating again, but it still felt cold in my veins. I pulled out Tankbuster as I stared at the darkness before me, watching, waiting. I gulped, preparing myself to face whatever was going to come out of there. The red bars were far more numerous than I thought, and now they formed a solid wall of red on my E.F.S.

“Whoa, come on… come on… You can do this. You can do this. Y-you faced down a giant octopus and tanks and a crazy zebra dude on steroids. You can take on a few radroaches.” I tried assuring myself, but it didn’t work. I just stood there, waiting as the noises came closer.

Then I saw dark forms appear. They were zebras, for the most part. A few ponies, maybe three or four. They all emerged from the darkness one at a time, as if the darkness itself was revealing them to me. They formed a wall of bodies that slowly trotted to me, and all I could do was watch.

And yet, against all logic and sense, I suddenly felt immensely relieved. They were NOT monsters from nightmares after all! They were just ponies and zebras! Maybe they were raiders of some sort, or maybe they were diseased, but they weren’t monsters! This was great! I felt so much more confident now.

I felt a small smile form on my face, and some of the fear cracking down on me fell away. “Come on, motherfuckers.” I grinned like an idiot, feeling like I had gotten all worked up for nothing. Come on, they were just regular equines, right?

Then one of them let out that same snarl, and all relief and confidence that I had in me was crushed immediately. THEY were making those sounds? But… but they were just regular ponies and zebras! They couldn’t, just couldn’t, have been doing all that! ...Right?

I activated my pipbucks’ lamp and looked at them more closely, and I saw that they were not regular equines after all. Their eyes were dead and hollow, almost literally. Their bodies were rotten and deformed, like they had their hide melted with acid, then they cut it open and let all their wounds get infected until their skin was nothing but a maze of disgusting scars and tumors and unnatural looking marks on it. Their bodies had whole sections of flesh stripped away, revealing disgusting pinkish flesh beneath.

Suddenly, I realized just what was going on. It may have been a little late, as the creatures had begun galloping towards me on unsteady legs as they snarled again and again. It took me a few seconds to realize that, though. And when I did, they were only several meters from me. But at least I finally realized what was going.

“FUCKING ZOMBIES?!” I yelled as I ran back up the stairs, speeding up the staircase as the zombies swarmed through the doorway after me. “Just when my life couldn’t get any more fucked up, I face fucking zombies?!”

‘I told you it was fucking dangerous!’ Shut up, Tom! I need to focus on not getting my flesh ripped off right now!

“MYST! WE GOT A SERIOUS PROBLEM OVER HERE!” I yelled as I bolted up the stairs, like an animal running from a predator. “And there’s a LOT of them!” I saw two blue bars, one of them moving significantly faster than the other, coming over to my position.

Wait… two?

As I cleared the staircase, the zombies only several meters behind, I turned around and readied Tankbuster to face the oncoming hoard. With a quick glance to the side, I saw Myst emerge from the stairs going up, accompanied by… a strange, floating… orb? Well, no time to think about that now!

“Oh shit…” I muttered as the zombies cleared the stairs as well and then began charging to both me and the other two. I opened fire, Tankbuster sending a storm of lead pellets that tore off limbs and blew heads off into the mob of zombies.

Myst opened fire as well, sending shots that, against all odds, always landed a fatal hit. As one of the zombies that managed to survive my initial barrage charged me, she sent it’s head blasting off in all directions with a well placed headshot.

Still, this was really bad. Not only were there far too many of these things for our guns to handle, they were also, to my complete surprise, quite nimble. They scaled over the furniture as we fell back, firing whenever we could at the crowd. When Tankbuster ran out, I quickly switched to the gladius as the creature’s closed in on me. Myst was on the far side of the room, getting much less attention from the mob than I was. As much as I envied her of not being swarmed, at least she was still pulling off shots.

One of them jumped at me, and was met with a slice that severed it’s head from it’s body. The rest continued towards me as I backpedalled towards the door. They trampled over the dead body of their fellow zombie as I stood my ground, ready to slice and stab my way through them all.

Like a wall of meaty flesh they slammed into me, biting and scratching and pummeling me until I nearly fell onto the ground. They tore at my vest and my armor, both of which, I am sure, were the only reasons I even survived this attack. I lunged every opportunity I could, stabbing deep into their torsos and cutting off whatever seemed vital, like their heads.

As I continued on like this for several seconds, fighting against an overwhelming and outnumbering force, they did eventually manage to bring me down. As I lay there, uselessly trying to block their savage attacks with my limbs, I felt all their bodies ripping off my own flesh with their teeth. They were tugging savagely at my wings, and a mental image of that dream I had in my stable conjured itself in my mind. They were going to tear my wings off! Already, I could feel the muscle and cartilage underneath ache from all their savage mishandling of my appendages.

I suddenly came upon a dreaded realization: I was going to die. And it would not be a peaceful death, as I am sure everyone wants. Instead, I was going to die resting in pieces, literally, in the stomachs of about twenty zombies.

My mind processed all that, and the response was immediate: I began to panic. I thrashed around desperately, hoping to somehow kick them off me so I could escape. My breathing became erratic as I searched around like an animal for a way to survive. I spotted an opportunity when one of them slumped to the floor, it’s head gone, and revealed a path to the stairs obstructed only by a few of the creatures. With a burst of adrenaline, I forced myself up and began slicing and stabbing my way through them towards the stairs. A few of them clung onto any exposed flesh with their teeth, then eventually let go as I broke free and bolted for the stairs.

I was just about to reach it, when three of them caught my rear legs and began dragging me back towards the rest of the swarm.

“No! Let me go, you fucking…” I freed one of my legs from their grip and kicked it again and again into their faces. As I managed to kick one of them away, the rest caught up to me and once again resumed their savage beating.

‘Well, it was nice knowing you.’ Said Tod, and I immediately felt a very strange feeling: a part of my head shut down. Well, not really. It just felt like… like parts of my brain were suddenly… sluggish.

‘Bah, coward! Don’t worry, Goldwreath, I can help you out…’ Said Tom, and at once the slow parts of my brain woke up again. And this time, they felt a lot more… mine. Almost like for the last few days Tod had owned these parts of my brain, and when he left I was able to reclaim them. What, was my own head a war zone?

Even with my brain feeling like it was mine again, and with the headache almost completely non-existent, I was still in a very bad situation.

Then suddenly an orange light lit up the back of the room, quickly spreading towards me. I began to feel heat, getting hotter and hotter with each passing second. After a while, an orange flame passed over my face so close that the bits of my mane that hung out from under my helmet were singed just by it’s mere presence. It was really hot, and I could even feel parts of my legs being exposed to the flame. Perhaps not directly, but it definitely hurt.

But there was something good about the fire, of course. The zombies began burning, running around snarling as they slammed themselves against the walls in a futile attempt to extinguish the flames. Even the ones holding onto me caught fire, and I kicked them away with as much force as I could muster before they set me on fire, too.

I struggled about halfway up the first flight of stairs, fighting for breath and clutching at my many bleeding wounds, before I collapsed from pain and looked back down at the first floor. It was a blazing inferno, with the flames flickering up to reach about halfway towards me before they dissipated. As I watched, the orb from earlier passed near the foot of the stairs, and I saw that all the flames were coming from two cylinders on it’s side. The zombies were utterly consumed by the inferno, only occasionally becoming visible through the fire.

About a minute later, the flames died down. Anything flammable, such as any furniture, was probably burned to ashes at this point. The noise and light made by this whole event would’ve been enough to wake up every red bar around us, if the rain outside had subsided in the slightest.

Myst appeared at the bottom, unharmed and unscathed save for a few scratches and only a little ash on her coat. She slowly came up the stairs, looking at me worriedly. When she reached me, she pulled out a healing potion. Just then, the orb from earlier appeared as well. It slowly bobbed it’s way up, and now being better illuminated I could see just what it was.

It was a small metallic orb, floating on four flapping wings. It had been rigged with two flamethrowers on it’s sides, and what looked like a shotgun on the bottom. The machine itself looked like it had been through hell, what with all the scratches and dirt and bullet holes and general disrepair that marred what would have otherwise been a shiny orb.

“Wha-, um… who are you?” I asked, and the look Myst gave me afterwards suggested she already knew. She just remained silent though, and after a while the machine spoke in a small, tinny, mechanical voice.

“You can call me Watcher.”

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Watcher, huh? So... could you, I don't know, explain what you are... 'watching'?" I asked, hoping to get an explanation as to just what (or who) this thing was. "And are you actually, well, a robot?"

"What? Oh, no, of course not. I use the robot to communicate with people such as yourself. As for what I am watching out for… well, I’m looking for certain people.” The machine responded in that tinny voice as I downed the potion Myst had given me. At once, the immense pain I was feeling and the copious amounts of blood I was losing both reduced, and she handed me another potion. I took it in my hooves.

“Gah… really? And, uh, who are searching for?” I asked, letting out a sigh of relief as my wounds began closing. The soreness from all their savage jerking and pulling and stomping remained, though. Well, at least I wasn’t losing blood.

“As I said, certain people. People with… values.” The machine said, floating slightly closer to me and Myst. “People that are better than the rest.”

“Yeah, well, you’ll have to search elsewhere. Roam’s a damned warzone, if you haven’t noticed. Try Equestria, I heard that someone named the ‘Stable Dweller’ is there.” I responded, downing the second healing potion. Myst herself took out a third and drank about half of it, just enough to deal with her relatively minor injuries. “Other than there, and if you’re really determined on searching here, try some place called Road Town. It has some good people, at least better than most of what I’ve seen out here.” I grimaced, thinking of the zebra who not more than several hours ago killed several dozen people.

“Um… Goldwreath…” Myst started nervously, as always, when Watcher interrupted her. His interruption, though, seemed to be to the liking of Myst, who smiled at the little bobbing robot.

“Ah, yes, about that…” There was the sound of throat clearing; a noise that sounded strange coming from a machine. “You see, this unit has been here in Roam for… I don’t know, a year? I know what’s going on, more or less, and I’ve been to most ‘friendly’ places.” The machine turned to face Myst. “And I have made a few friends here since.”

I looked to Myst questioningly, and she responded with a smile and a nod. “I’ve known Watcher ever since. He appears from time to time, usually every month or so.” She said with a fond smile and closed her eyes, as if thinking back at their first meeting.

“Wait, I thought you said the only friend you were leaving behind was Kira?” I asked, slightly offended that Myst lied to me.

“She was the only friend I left behind. You see, Watcher moves around a lot. You can probably see that.” She gestured at the machine, at it’s battered and broken external plating. “When I left with you, I knew he’d be able to find us.”

“She’s right. And if it weren’t for her and a few other kind people around the city, this unit would have died here long ago. And then I would have had to send another unit to search, and I’d have to maintain the signal…” The person voicing the machine shuddered. “You have no idea how hard it is to maintain the link with this thing from where I am. Why, in fact, this thing nearly bla-…” The machine gave off a little noise of powering down, and dropped to the floor.

“Watcher?” I asked worriedly as I poked the machine. It didn’t respond.

“Oh, that happens a lot. He’ll get back on it. Let’s just bring this thing upstairs and treat those injuries of yours.” She helped me up, keeping me steady as my sore and painful legs nearly gave out from under me. When I could stand and walk on my own again, she picked up the metallic orb in her forehooves and walked up with me on her hindlegs. Just like zebras.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I was shivering, holding tightly onto whatever blankets Myst had managed to find. My insides felt gooey, like they had melted into some sort of sludge. I felt light-headed, and I was sweating profusely all over my body. My insides churned, making a weird noise, and immediately a whole mug’s worth of bile and acid shot out from my mouth and onto the floor around me. My hide looked pale under my coat, and I saw that my wounds from earlier still had openings in them. The openings were a sickly grey, and whenever I touched them they would sting so badly that I nearly screamed.

“D-d-d-damned radiation s-s-s-sickness…” I chattered in between my teeth, and I closed my eyes in a futile effort to alleviate some of my pain.

‘Oh, so NOW I start feeling bad.’ I thought, and my head ached in protest.

“Shhh, this should help…” Myst said, and she put a rubbery tube next to my muzzle. I opened my eyes, and I saw a plastic pack filled with a strange orange fluid. Not wanting to ask what it was and deciding to just trust her, I took the tube into my mouth.

The fluid was flavored a rancid orange, the taste clinging to my mouth even after I had swallowed the liquid. As much as I wanted to gag and spit the stuff out, I managed to get in a few gulps. Any more than that, though, would have resulted in me just puking it all back out. I spat it out, a few drops of the stuff dripping down onto my blankets.

“You need to rest. You were exposed to a lot of radiation.” She looked at me with an expression of annoyance. “And I thought I told you that I was going to go with wherever you went. Damn it, after the bridge, I promised myself I’d go with you so I could help you out.” She punched my helmet softly, making my head swirl from the impact. “Next time, I’m going with you. No more splitting up.” She said sternly, then she trotted out, closing the door to the room behind her.

“Heh… she’s starting to become like Skyfire…” I let out a little chuckle, before I closed my eyes. “I wonder if she’s awake yet…”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I was floating in the air, literally. My wings weren’t flapping, I was just floating. How, I couldn’t even imagine. Clouds moved about, either above or below me. The moon’s light reflected off their puffy grey forms, making the sky look like a place of alien beauty. But that wasn’t what caught my attention.

I was high above the city of Roam, above what was obviously the Forum. The tower stabbed up from the ground like a spear, nearly reaching me at my position. I could see the signs of activity all over the ground below me; moving tanks, flying aircraft, hundreds of little specks moving around near the bottom in a surprisingly organized fashion… But again that wasn’t what caught my attention.

Everything was… colored. And not in the conventional sense, either. Sure, I could see the colors of the buildings, their faded paint and the color of the materials beneath it. The dull and depressing colors of the wasteland were everywhere, sure, but somehow what I saw before me made it look even more strange than it already was.

This… this wasn’t natural. Everywhere I looked, there was a… something I can only describe as a fog, everywhere. It was colored green, like some kind of biochemical weapon or something. It flew in all directions if it wasn’t piling up in great clouds somewhere on the ground.

And yet there was also a light blue mist floating all around, contrasting the sickly green of the other fog. Just like the green cloud, it too flew about and piled up. However, the blue fog was significantly more active, jumping and spreading around more erratically than the green one.

I descended, an action that I still wasn’t able to contemplate the possibility of without using my wings. I reached the ground and landed, looking at hundreds of Legionnaires all marching around. They were doing lots of things: training, talking, exercising, eating, and even digging. Among them, power-armored juggernauts walked around guarding the metal-clad centurions.

And all around them the fogs were there. The two different mists would surround each individual person, seeming to engage in a battle as they swirled around each other, attempting to get the majority of the pony or zebra. Around me, though, only the blue mist approached. It came around me, and though I wanted to, I didn’t run away from it. When it touched me… nothing. No pain, no sense of relief, no vision of the future or something. Just nothing.

‘What is going on here?’ I asked mentally.

I continued trotting on the ground, everyone acting like I wasn’t even there. Either I wasn’t visible, or nobody really cared. When I tried to touch them, my hoof passed straight through them. What, was I a ghost?

I ascended again, flying high above the Forum once more, and looked around more carefully. It wasn’t just the Forum that had the two fogs, it was the whole city. Everywhere, the two mists would visibly engulf entire buildings and enter into combat, making the whole city look like some kind of misty warzone between two sides who’s agendas I couldn’t even begin to understand.

I looked towards the mountains, which is where the two fogs seemed to be emanating from. The two seemed to be battling their hardest there, covering the entire mountain range in their colors. For some reason, I decided to float towards them. I could feel parts of my brain desiring to go their, but each part felt like they wanted me there for different reasons.

That was when tendrils of green fog erupted from the ground and surrounded me, and began circling around as they slowly closed in. I watched as they slowly formed a ring around me, the circle slowly tightening until my body was stuck in place. I tried wiggling out of it, but the ring only tightened further.

Unlike the blue fog, this one really did hurt. It caused my thoughts to scatter, replaced instead with ideas of destruction and killing. Thoughts of violence and power, the likes of which made me shudder from their mere presence in my mind. I was disgusted, but that was nothing compared to what I heard next. It made me mentally cower, like I wanted to find bunkers in my mind and crawl into them.

“You… you’re the one I’ve been searching for.” A sinister, evil, raspy voice said in my head. It was loud, dominating my entire mind with it’s words. Whatever thought passed into my head immediately vanished, as if this entity wanted only itself in my head. “You’re the one he’s trying to protect.” The voice laughed, making my head explode with pain. Even more frightening, I could feel… it rooting itself in my mind. Was it trying to mind control me? Oh, hell no!

When it had tightened so much that I could barely move, the ring then began flying at great speeds towards the mountains, dragging me along for the ride. I struggled to break away, but, against all logic, it’s grip was extremely tight. I couldn’t break free!

We moved so quickly that the miles of ground below us passed by in mere seconds, and already I could begin to see the details of the mountain range. We passed over a body of water, but, despite it’s obviously large size, we passed that quickly, as well.

We had barely left the body of water behind, when two massive tendrils of blue crashed down on us from above, slapping away the green fog and taking me into a much more gentle and kindly grip.

“Come, we must get out of here.” Said a deep, benevolent voice that came from within the mist. “We must escape before it attempts to wrestle you from me.” This fog, just like the one before it, then began flying off at great speeds towards the mountains.

“What… what is going on here? What's ‘it’?” I asked in a demanding tone. I looked at all the blue fog around me cautiously, and I tried to break free. Once again, I couldn’t.

“We have much to discuss.” The voice responded simply, and the tendrils then began flying at even greater speeds. Behind me, I could see an army of green and blue tendrils battling. The green tendrils seemed desperate to get at me. They tried to close in on me, but the blue ones then intercepted them, causing them to plummet towards the ground.

To the south, though, I could see an area completely untouched by the fogs: the area beneath the black clouds. The two fogs seemed to avoid that place entirely, leaving the mysterious and ominous land alone. Looking at it, I guess I couldn’t really blame them; the ground there, even from this distance, looked so… chaotic. Entire lakes of red liquid lurched up into the sky, spreading it’s red and orange glow to every corner of the black land. In the distance, I saw huge moving forms as silhouettes, lumbering around and towering over the terrain like titanic monstrosities.

‘You’re shitting me. What the fuck are THOSE?!’ I mentally asked, completely dumbfounded by the sight I was seeing.

“Bad things. Very bad things.” The voice said ominously, as if it knew my thoughts. Considering that it was a fog that could talk and physically take me off the ground, I guess it wasn’t very weird if it did know my thoughts. Still, that statement made me wonder just what exactly was going on over there. The mere images of the place that came into my mind made me shudder.

Suddenly, red lightning struck the ground beneath the black clouds, and that familiar otherworldly noise sounded over the entirety of the city. It was significantly more deathly now, making the sound I heard it make about a day ago sound warm and inviting.

“AHH!” The voice screamed, and the tendrils released me from their grip. The rest of the fog, both green and blue, began to scatter. They would abandon whatever conflict they were engaging in before and scurry around, creeping into whatever crevice or nook they thought could protect them from the noise.

I flew up, just as the fogs of both sides were beginning to come out of hiding again, once again covering the land in their colors. I flew as fast as I could, but when I looked down I saw two massive spires of green and blue form. They were forming much faster than I could fly up, and as they neared me they crashed into each other again and again.

Just as they were directly below me, each sent out a gigantic tendril to grab me. Suddenly, though, I began to feel the whole world shake.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I woke up quietly, opening my eyes wide and staring at the room around me like I had seen a ghost. When I saw no green or blue fog around, I let out a sigh of relief and let my head once more rest on the cold, moist walls of the structure.

The rain outside had softened quite a bit, now being no more than a drizzle. Lighting flashed outside; natural, non-red lighting. Through a window pointing south, I could see the ominous red glow of the land beneath the black clouds through the haze of the rain.

“What the fuck was that all about…” I asked, my head feeling even more sluggish than before. Seriously, what was that all about? If it was just a dream, then it was a damned scary dream. It just felt so real, like I was actually there. But that wasn’t possible, right? I wasn’t being chased by weird fog creatures, right?

No, no I wasn’t. And I intended to stay that way for as much as possible. My life was weird enough without being chased around by air.

Ugh… the headache was back.

‘Oh, I see you’re awake.’ Said a familiar shitty part of my head.

‘YOU’RE BACK? Aw, fuck…’ Well, that explains that, I guess. Perhaps hoping that Tod would be gone permanently was a little far-fetched. The wasteland just loved having this guy in my head, for some reason.

I shook my head, and looked around at the room I was in. It was once an office, by the looks of it. Everything inside was broken, though. The terminal and accompanying desk were dusty remains of their former selves, looking like the slightest touch would be enough to break them. The floor was dusty, and any movement I made stirred the incredibly thick layer of dust into the air. I covered my muzzle with the blanket, thinking that air wasn’t healthy to breathe.

The door to the room was open, though. A soft yellow light, like that of a candle, flowed into the room and was the only real illumination aside from the pale moonlight coming in from the windows. There were voices, obviously Myst’s and Watcher’s, coming in from the room beyond. They were talking about something, but what I couldn’t tell.

I moved closer as quietly as I could, placing my still metal-plated hooves on anything that wouldn’t make too much noise. After some time, I found myself right next to the doorway, looking outside at a small light bulb attached to a wooden plank with wires connecting it to a spark battery. I saw Myst, looking beside her at a floating shadow. I was about to go outside to see what was going on, when they continued their conversation.

“So, how’s the searching?” I heard Myst ask, sounding genuinely concerned about Watcher’s… 'searching', as he called it.

“Honestly, it’s been better. Sure, the chances are still really slim, but they’re better now. As much as it seems strange, the wasteland suddenly becoming more active has brought out more people. Some are good, some are bad. But with more people, I have better chances.”

“Like that… ‘Stable Dweller’ that I heard about?”

“Yes, exactly. I’ve talked with her and her friends, and they’re good people.” The operator sighed, then said, “It’s just kind of hard to keep track of so many events. I mean, remember half a year ago where practically nothing interesting was happening?”

“Well, there’s always something interesting happening, but yeah. The wasteland kind of went into a rut for a while.” Myst responded.

“Yeah, well, now it’s different. If you’ve been to the places I’ve been, seen the things I’ve seen, you’ll find that the wasteland is suddenly… I don’t know, ‘waking up’?”

“I... guess so. DJPON3 said something about how nothing good happened in the wasteland for a really long time. He also said something about stuff suddenly happening.”

“That’s exactly what I mean.” Watcher said, and the shadow approached Myst.

“Well, not much has happened here in Roam that you probably didn’t already know. Except maybe Goldwreath suddenly appearing. Everything else… well, you know.”

“Goldwreath, huh? So that's his name. He’s that Praetorian guy I heard about on the radio, right?” Watcher asked, and I instinctively found myself sitting against the doorway and listening. It just felt like this was the sort of conversation you have about someone when they aren’t around, and I wanted to know what they were going to say about me while they thought I was out.

“Oh, yes. Though, really, I think he’d have people call him by his name instead of that title.” Myst said, sounding a little unsure of herself. “Although, come to think about it, he has used that name to his advantage in the past, so I’m not quite sure.”

“Heh, and he’s smart for using that name to his advantage. The Stable Dweller and Security in Equestria don’t do that much, and their lives are only made harder by it.” The person voicing the robot sighed, and said, “And he’s going to need all the help and respect he can get when he goes into the city. That place is a damned deathtrap.” The person sighed again, and took longer to speak up this time. When he did, he said, “I feel sorry for him, going into the city alone. I wish I could go with him, but I’ve got more people to look out for than just him.”

“Well, actually…” Myst started nervously, and the shadow shifted. I assumed that the robot turned to face her. “I’m going in with him.”

“WHAT?” The robot asked loudly, but with a voice without emotion. Just like Zaita. “You’re going in there? But… but you haven’t even seen what it’s like. You haven’t seen what goes on in there. It’s far more dangerous than it looks, and that’s already saying a lot.”

“I know, but…” She paused, as if thinking of just what to say next. I strained my ears to pick up every last detail of the conversation. “… well, it’s just that…” She paused again, and I found myself a little annoyed that she was taking so long to just say it.

“Just that?” Watcher asked, the machine bobbing into view to float directly above Myst.

Myst sighed deeply, preparing herself to finally just say it. I swiveled my ears, getting them into a position to best pick up what she said next. The anticipation was killing me.

“I actually want to go with him.” What? That’s it? I already knew that! I thought she was going to give some long speech or something! So anticlimactic…

I began to disappointedly move back towards my spot, when Watcher spoke up again.

“What? Why? Why would you want to go in there? Chances are you’ll get killed on the first day. And if you aren’t, then everyday you spend there will depress you more and more until you commit suicide. It’s what I’ve seen far too many others do, and I don’t want you to be tempted to.” Watcher said. Despite the toneless voice of the machine, I could just imagine what the person was feeling.

“Oh, Watcher. I’m not going to commit suicide, and you know it. And you haven’t spent the last week with him, but I have. He’s a good pony, better than most, at least. It would be a crime to let him go alone.” Myst said sternly, looking up at the machine with conviction in her eyes.

Whoever was voicing watcher gave off an annoyed sound, followed by a little grunt of exasperation. After a few moments of that, he sighed and said, “Damn it… There’s no talking you out of this, is there?”

“Nope. I already promised him, myself, and our other friends that I would go with them. No matter what.”

“Wait… ‘other friends’?” Watcher asked, a tone of surprise somehow finding it’s way out of the machine.

“Oh… yes. Well, I’m not the only one going with him. There are two others, but one of them’s kind of… injured.” She said in a soft, slightly hurt tone. Maybe I wasn’t the only one kicking myself for Skyfire’s situation?

‘Bullshit. I’m the only one to blame for that. Myst had no part in it, aside from saving our lives.’ I thought.

“Oh, I see. And the other?” Watcher asked.

“The other is currently bringing a burned filly to Verge for medical treatment. She was stable the last time we saw her, but Goldwreath didn’t want to take chances. And neither did I.” I thought of how I failed to save several dozen people from a fiery death, and I mentally berated myself.

“How’d the filly get burned like that? I mean, I know Roam’s seriously screwed up, but it’s not everyday that someone survives something like that.” Watcher asked.

“Well… um… I’d rather not talk about. Let’s just say some bad person appeared.” Myst said, a hint of hatred in her voice.

“Okaaay then.” He drawled. “At least it sounds like you’re going in with good people.” The machine pointed down, a motion that seemed equal to a person hanging their head, and sighed once more. “Although, I doubt the city will allow them to stay as good people.” Watcher said, and I hung my head in depression. That was such a lovely statement, I could just think about it ALL day...

“Watcher!” Myst yelled, standing up and pointing a hoof at the machine accusingly. “They’re good people, okay? They may have had… bad times, but they’re good people. And they’ll stay that way.” She said stubbornly, standing on her hindlegs and crossing her forelegs while she looked at the machine hard.

“Well, if you think so. I’m just trying to be the voice of realism.” The machine bobbed closer to my door, and I began scurrying back to my spot as quietly as possible. As I went back to my original position, hiding my face with a hoof, the robot appeared through the small opening of the door. “Speaking of that, has he found his virtue yet?”

‘My what?’ What the heck was a 'virtue'? Oh... don't answer that, stupid question.

“Oh, no, not this again, Watcher.” Myst said, now sounding like the one who was annoyed.

The machine turned to face her. “I’m serious, Myst. If he’s going into the city to make this place better, and not get turned into a monster in the process, he’s going to have to know his virtue.” The machine turned back towards me and sighed. “I knew too many people who became monsters because they charged head on without knowing their virtue. I won’t let that happen again if I can help it.”

The machine turned and bobbed away, disappearing from my line of sight.

“The rain’s gone. I guess I should leave now, Myst. There are a few things I need to do here. I’ll try to catch up with you later if I can.” Watcher said, and there was a long pause. Through the slightly open door, I saw the machine float over to a half-opened window, open just wide enough for the machine to get through. Maybe that was how it got in here in the first place?

Myst opened it, allowing the machine to pass through easily. Just before it went through, though, it asked one more question.

“And speaking of virtues… well, you sound like you know him, what do you think it is?” At that, my ears once again strained themselves to listen.

I saw Myst frown a little, taking in a deep breath, before saying, “I don’t know yet. But I’ll find out, don’t worry.” The machine didn’t move for a moment, but then just flew out the window without saying a word.

Myst trotted back and sat against a wall. Focusing my hearing, I could make out her saying words to herself softly.

“Hmmm… honesty? Well, not really… Maybe… no… how about…Hmmmm…”

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"...Son, I need to tell you something. Something really important. You're mother and I have been talking about it, and we think it's time you know the truth. It's... not going to mean a lot to you at your age, and I wouldn't expect it to even when you get older. But it's really important. Trust me.

"We'll be in the room in the evening, so you'll have to wait a little longer than usual. The Overmare says there are problems with the exhaust vents, and your mother and I are going to fix it. You just wait a little, okay buddy?

"But before we do, could you do us a little favor? There's a cake we had Icing make, in the topmost shelf of our drawer. Could you give it to Earphone's mother, please? I would, if we weren't doing this job.

"You stay safe, okay? We won't take long, not like last time. I promise. Hehe, and don't even check the calendar. It isn't April Fool's yet, and even if it were, we wouldn't trick you like this.

"Alright, we have to go. Don't be late for class, okay? And make sure you submit that overdue project of yours; you're mother's absolutely outraged that you haven't yet.

"Bye son. We love you."

That was the last thing my dad ever said to me. The last thing I ever heard from them before they burned to a crisp in a fire. The joy of having recently gotten my cutie mark turned to bitter sadness that day.

In truth, I had always wondered just what it was they wanted to tell me. Was it related to my… ancestors? Or my relatives? Or maybe even some secret about one of my friends? They never got to tell me, so I’ve been wondering ever since.

I shook, feeling tears roll down my cheeks. I wasn't shaking from the cold; it was already early morning and the rain had stopped. And I wasn't shaking even from exhaustion; I guess all those years of physically bettering myself was paying off. Rather, I was shaking because I knew just how much of a disappointment I was.

When I woke up that morning all those years ago, I saw the recorder on their bed and listened to it. It seemed so simple back then, when my life was carefree and happy. It seemed so benign; just one of those 'talks' parents always did with their children. Just something about how it's 'natural to start liking mares' or 'it's fine to start to want to do things'. Puberty, I thought.

I had forgotten to submit that project, and I was late for class. I nearly failed in a very important quiz that day. Nearly. Even still, I suspected my parents wouldn't have liked it. I did manage to bring the cake, though. It was the only thing I did right that day.

I played the note on my pipbuck again, hoping to find some comfort or guidance from it. Instead, it just made me think of what I was becoming and whether my parents would approve of it or not. Somehow, I didn’t think so.

And now here I was, sobbing like the foal I was all those years ago, as I thought of what it was they were going to tell me. I held onto the nearest object like I had with my teddy when I felt sad or scared. If my parents saw me now, they'd be ashamed. I wasn't their little kid anymore. I wasn't innocent anymore.

I'd killed. Killed in the name of protecting others, or killed in self-defense. I hate to say it, but I scared myself. Scared myself because I barely felt anything when I killed those people. Nothing, nothing but the recoil of the weapon I was holding. Nothing but the heat of their blood on my hide. Nothing but the wounds I felt afterwards, which I quickly healed with a healing potion. I had given myself another chance to live again and again. Like when we attacked the Legion’s base near Road Town.

But I couldn't give people who were dead a second chance. I couldn't, as much as I wanted to, bring back those people I'd killed and let them have a chance to do better. I couldn't revert death, only cause it. Even if I could, I couldn't force them from their ways. I couldn't make them change.

I couldn't save people.

That thought dawned in my mind, and it made me shudder in depression. I couldn't save people, not just from death, but from pain too. I couldn't make sure just one person was free of pain, much less the entire city. Much as I would try, there was just no way to save people. Not even when I tried my best.

I thought of the zebra, whose words echoed in my mind. Was he right? Was all the fighting I was doing, and all the fighting I had yet to do, really for nothing? Were all my efforts doomed to fail, in one way or another? He was right about one thing, everything had to end eventually. I couldn't deny that.

I began to doubt myself again. Just recounting those words and associating them with an event the past week was all that was needed to make his words seem all the more true. And, as much as I tried to look for a lie or false statement in his speech, I just couldn't. All of what he said was true.

'No, there are things worth fighting for, Goldwreath.' I thought to myself, and I slapped myself out of my sulking and forcibly shoved my doubt back into storage. I had already set my course, no backing away now.

I wiped my face, promising myself to not let that damned zebra get into my head. The last thing I needed was to let the words of a killer screw around with my thoughts.

"There are things worth fighting for." I reassured myself, and I felt a little better as I got up. With my sickness as low as it could get from a night's rest, coupled with the little burst of confidence I felt, today wasn't looking so bad after all.

The rain had stopped, and the sun was already in the sky. Myst was asleep, huddled in the corner she sat in last night when she said a whole slew of words that apparently described me. I disagreed with most, but there were some that, I suppose, couldn't be denied. Call it vanity, but I slept with a smile last night after hearing those words.

My breakfast consisted of a can of old peaches, and later some more biscuits. (I was actually very tempted to just eat all the biscuits, but I decided to save some for later) The windowsills had gathered some water, and after collecting the water from all the windows of the floor I was on, I had filled my canteen. The water didn’t taste good, and it was slightly irradiated, but it was still water.

Finishing it up, I began exploring the rest of the building for anything worth caps. Myst had a sack filled with junk, and her saddlebags were visibly stuffed with various items that she, I assumed, intended to sell.

Still, she had left stuff behind that I picked up. I went back down to the first floor, past all the ashes of the zombies from last night, and went back into the shelter. The door was still open, and so I ran in and took the pistol I saw the night before. It may have been old, but it was still worth something.

The rest of the building, though, had not been looted. In the building's clinic, I found several healing potions and a few syringes of pain killer that would help replenish our pathetic stock of medical supplies. I stuffed them into my saddlebags with the rest of my stuff. The offices mostly just had old papers and folders and other office material that were far too old and frail to be of any use to anyone, except maybe for starting fires.

The manager's office, on the other hoof, had a safe that seemed within my skill of lockpicking. Although my last pin nearly snapped thrice, I managed to get it on the fourth try. Inside was a nice amount of caps (what he was doing with those caps, I couldn't even imagine) and some more papers that made no sense to me.

His desk had few interesting things on it, as well. On the center, right beside the manager's terminal, was a metal sign that read 'Mr. Minadro'.

Next was the terminal itself, which, just like the ones downstairs, was still functional. Getting onto it, I saw yet more information that didn't interest me in the slightest. One group of files, though, caught my attention because the last entry was dated at last night. Clicking on the file stack, I found out that they were security reports. The most recent ones were dated and timed for the night before.

'Security Report #2465467, July 24th, 11:23 PM
- Number of individuals: 2
-Manner of entry: Forced
-Threat estimation: High
-Suggest calling for security'

Thinking about that, I concluded that the individuals mentioned in the report were me and Myst. This was also backed up by another report that said that at 11:28, a 'metallic orb' entered through the second floor. The next report said the same orb left the building through the same window three hours later.

The rest of the reports were much more interesting. The ones right before the report about us was dated a week back. It said something about a ‘large number of wild creatures’ within the building. In fact, that same report was repeated for every day for the past several decades! However, the very last one before our intrusion said something about ‘flame-thrower armed individuals’ entering the building, which caused the number of said creatures to reduce drastically over the course of a few minutes. The last line of the report said the last of the creatures were ‘sealed away’.

"Maybe that's why the..." I shivered, the very thought of the creatures scaring me. "...'zombies' were down there? It seems so. But who were the guys with the flame throwers?" I looked at my E.F.S., at all the red bars that formed a nearly solid wall of red around us.

I suddenly realized that we were in great danger. We had come here out of desperation to get out of the rain, but the rain was over. If anything, we should have left the very moment the downpour had stopped. Worry flooded my thoughts, and I raced back down to the floor Myst was in. To my relief, she was already awake. Her blue bar was moving, after all.

Reaching the second level, I turned around the corner quickly and spotted her against the wall near the stair's railings.

"Myst! We should probably go now. I don't know if you know, but we're kind of surrounded by..." I stopped short after noticing that she was crouching quietly against the wall, ears sticking to it as if listening for sounds. She looked at me and brought a hoof to her lips, then made a quiet 'shush'.

My eyes went wide, and I immediately reached for the E.F.S. once more.

This was not good at all, not in the slightest.

Four red bars were approaching, the sounds of their gear audible even from our position up here. Through the wooden planks against the windows, I saw the four figures trot up to the door. They were talking in muffled voices, and I had to get to Myst's position to understand what they were saying.

"I'm telling you man, I saw something last night." Said one of the voices.

"You're fucking crazy. I could barely see my hoof in front of my face last night! Besides, this place has been locked up since last week, if you forgot. What, you still having nightmares about those ghouls? Pfft, what a pussy..." Another voice said with a laugh.

"Hey, man, it's not funny! The ghouls ate my brother, of course I get nightmares!" Said the former voice, now sounding both offended and scared.

I looked to Myst questioningly, and she responded with a half-annoyed, half-questioning look. I sighed. I guess I'd really need to ask her.

"What the fuck are 'ghouls'?" I asked quietly, and she looked at me with an expression that seemed to say she thought I was an idiot. "Hey, I was out here for only a week, okay?" And that goes for you too, readers. I didn't have much experience yet, alright?

"Ugh... of all the times..." She let out an exasperated breath, then turned her head to face me. "Ghouls are those things you saw last night. They're basically ponies or zebras that have been exposed to a lot of radiation, and have mutated because of it."

"Sooo... they're not zombies?" I asked, feeling a great sense of relief. Okay, so they were just mutants! Not zombies that carried some deadly virus and would spread it all over the world. Good, because I was actually really worried that I might have turned into one. How horrible that would have been...

Myst responded with the same look, coupled with her shaking her head in disbelief. "What?" She asked, now clearly both confused and annoyed.

"Uhh... nevermind. Not zombies then." I guess now really wasn't the best time to be asking. I couldn't help but smile, though, as we turned our attention back to the argument.

'Zombies... what a bunch of bullshit.' I thought.

The argument had heated up, that one person who brought up his brother being eaten (yikes) by the ghouls now shouting. Two other voices just laughed at him, calling him a coward and a weakling.

"Alright, that's enough." Said a voice that I hadn't heard before. "Janix is right. Look at the door..." There was a short pause in their conversation, and I heard something tap against the door. "Someone broke in last night. Used the rain to hide so we couldn't see them. Whoever is inside didn't even bother to hide the damage they did."

I facehoofed, berating myself for not thinking about that. Damn it, why didn't I try to conceal the blasted away lock? I knew that it would have been spotted eventually, so why didn't I? Was my brain really slowing down THAT much?

"Oh..." One of the voices that laughed at the other voice, Janix, said. "I guess we should go call the boss. He'll need to know." I heard two of them gallop away, leaving only the other two outside.

"We need to get out of here." Myst said, now worried. "You want to try going out the windows? You can fly, after all." I thought about that, and nodded. If we were quick, we could get out of here before more of them showed up.

We started backing away, when the door was kicked open loudly, sending the chair I had propped up against it last night flying into the room. We both got flat on the ground, my armor making more noise than I was comfortable with as I hit the deck. I crawled slowly towards the railings, and took a look at the two now in the building with us. I also wondered why the hidden explosive Myst had placed next to the door last night didn't go off. It was probably for the best, as we should have been getting out of there instead of fighting.

Both were armed with a flame thrower that they swung around as they swept the floor beneath us. Both wore some kind of gasmask, but only one wore, from the looks of it, a fireproof suit. The other only wore an old shirt. Both also had secondary weapons, a shotgun and a submachine gun. They had big gas tanks on their backs, the word 'FLAMMABLE' that was painted on them making it obvious that that was where the fuel was kept.

Myst had taken the time to get to the stairs, while I was still observing them. She called out to me quietly, insisting we leave immediately. I got up quietly and did my best to make as little noise as possible as I moved the short distance to her.

"Alright, let's check the top floors." Janix said.

"Yeah, just hold on a moment. I see something in the water..." My ears perked up at that, and I found myself getting up for just a moment to see what he had found.

It was a... transparent object, submerged in a pool of water near the door. It looked like glass, and it would have been completely invisible if it weren't for the distorted sunlight that came from it.

"What the shit is this..." One of them said as he picked it up, turning it in his forehooves as he shook it dry. He turned it once more, and I saw a small glow coming from within the transparent border of the object. It was flashing red, and on it there was a large black text that was probably some kind of warning. “Whoa, shit!” The zebra yelled as he threw the bomb at the door. His partner reacted reflexively, pulling up his flame thrower and blasting the object with a pillar of bright orange flame as the other zebra got clear.

With a sharp detonation, the explosive Myst had set up exploded. The blast shook the whole first floor and blew the door away, and sent all four of us staggering around from the force of the detonation. Myst hit the wall, while the zebras, being closest to the blast, were blown away and crashed against the building. I, being the third closest, staggered forward and struck the railings, making a lot of noise as my metal armor made contact with the metal railings.

The two on the floor below me recovered quickly. They looked up at me as I leaned against the railings, and brought their weapons to bear.

“Hey!” Shouted Janix, and he started running up the stairs to get at me. His partner tried to get up but slipped, having been sent into a pool of water.

For some reason, I wanted to fight them. Maybe it was just me, or maybe it was my screwed up brain, or something else. I didn’t want to run, I wanted to pull out my weapons and face them. I was confident I could face the two of them, especially with Myst nearby to help me out.

I began to pull out Vengeance, when Myst called out to me, “Goldwreath! We have to go, now! There are more coming!”

I thought of that quickly, thinking of my odds against more than just two flame thrower armed bandits. Okay, now the odds didn’t seem good.

I turned and ran, just as Janix’s flamethrower sent a blast of flame that incinerated the spot I was at just a moment ago. I felt heat behind me as I ran up the stairs, the zebra chasing me while sending a jet of flame to turn me to ashes. Myst was waiting at the top, peering down her scope. She sent out a shot, but Janix managed to dodge it as he got down on the steps just in time to avoid getting a hole in his head. He got up immediately, once more sending flames after me.

As we reached the third floor, the jets of flame erupting from the stairwell as Janix nearly cleared the steps as well, we ran into the nearest room and slammed the door behind us. A moment later, the door caught fire as the zebra’s flamethrower sent out an unrelenting blast of fire.

“Okay, come on!” I yelled at her as I broke open a window, making sure there was no glass or any other obstruction in the way. The strong wind coming from the outside suddenly blasted into the room, nearly pushing me back.

Myst approached and got in front of me. I wrapped my forelegs around her, and stretched my wings in preparation for flight. I hovered above the windowsill, and took a deep breath.

‘Let’s do this,’ I thought.

The door was kicked open, and the two zebras appeared, flame throwers blasting burning death into the room. Janix stayed behind at the doorway and flooded the whole room with fire, while his fire-proof comrade charged through the flame and towards us. As he neared the window, he sent out a jet of flame after us.

I flew out, just as the flame reached our former position. Even still, I felt my entire backside burn from the heat of the flame. My tail did actually catch fire, but the strong wind coupled with my flight put it out before it spread further. Leaving those two behind, I got my balance as I glided towards the roof of another building. I guess I should have flown us away from this whole area, and from the look I got from Myst she thought so too, but flying in heavy metal armor wasn’t easy, and it sapped my energy really quick.

“I just need to catch some breath,” I told her. “A minute and I should be good, and then we’ll get the hell out of here.” I was flying over the streets, and was nearing the roof of the building.

Then the air around me whizzed as bullets flew nearby, clearly with the intent of shooting me down. I looked at the ground, and saw that the streets below were filled with almost every single red bar in this whole area. They were shooting wildly, barely even aiming, which made dodging their shots easy enough. Still, I wasn’t going to risk Myst getting hit. I may have been able to take a hit, what with all my protective gear and all, but she couldn’t. She was just wearing a hoodie, after all (it was at that point that I thought of getting her barding of some sort).

I neared the roof, dodging more shots from automatic rifles as I prepared to touch down. The roof had another structure on it: some kind of makeshift lookout post, from the looks of it.

I realized too late that there was a red bar on the building.

Just as I was about to land, another guy with a flamethrower appeared from the cover of the roof’s ledge. I tried to dodge him as he sent out a massive arc of flame that, had I realized his presence just a moment later, would have engulfed both me and my companion in fire.

Unfortunately, dodging him involved getting away from the roof. And getting away from the roof exposed me once more to the gunners on the ground.

As I tried frantically to avoid both the large jet of flame from the building and the heavy fire coming at me from the ground, more hostiles burst onto the roof of the building, wielding all sorts of weapons.

“Oh, fuck me…” I said as I dodged a storm of lead coming from the ground. I flew upwards, hoping to not get shot down by the suddenly large number of people on the building. As I ascended, they opened fire. I had turned my back to them, so any shots that hit struck my armored body instead of Myst, who seemed very uncomfortable with what I was trying to do.

From my height, I had no fear of getting shot down anymore. I turned, flying in the direction of the camp, it’s icon on my E.F.S. guiding me to it’s location. I released a breath I didn’t know I had been holding, letting myself relax. I smiled as I looked down at Myst, and said, “See? We’re getting out of here.” She looked back up at me with a nervous smile, then looked back at the ground with a small frown. I continued flying, hearing only the occasional bullet come anywhere close to our position. I smiled again, feeling like I had left them behind.

Then I heard the sound of two rockets launching. I looked behind me, and I saw their trails of smoke trail behind the bright point where the combustion took place. The rockets shot straight up, and for a moment all my worry of getting shot with rockets disappeared. I smiled confidently, believing myself to be out of the threat zone.

That feeling of confidence left me as the rockets turned, now speeding towards our position. My eyes went wide as I suddenly realized that they had been locked onto me. Myst gasped, and looked at me with wide, worried eyes.

“Really?! Heat-seeking rockets? Aww, fuck me!” I yelled as I flapped my wings as fast as I could, hoping to somehow outrun the incoming missiles.

Of course, that was impossible. No matter how hard I flew, the rockets were catching up to us far quicker than I had thought. My heart started to pound, and I scrambled my head desperately to think of something, anything, to save us from getting blasted to pieces.

Then an idea hit me. I didn’t like it, but it was all I had. I licked my lips, and looked down at Myst.

“Myst, I have an idea!” I yelled over the roar of the wind and the sounds of the rockets, which were quickly gaining on us. She looked at me with a hopeful expression. “But you’re not going to like it!” At that, her expression turned to one of horror.

“W-what are you going to do?!” She asked. I put as much effort as possible into my flying, trying to gain as much distance as possible from the incoming rockets. As I strained my wings, I looked down at her with the most apologetic smile I could form.

She suddenly realized what I was about to do. “Oh, no. Don’t you...”

Then I dropped her.

“…DAAAAREEE!” Her last word echoed through the wind as she fell towards the ground.

“Sorry, Myst! But it’s the only way!” I yelled after her. Now, with my forehooves free, I pulled out Tankbuster. I turned to face the missiles. “Come on!”

The missiles, as I expected, were locked on to me and not onto Myst. I could tell because not a single one of the two followed after her. Good thing, too. If one of them had, this whole plan would have been a disaster. It may have been kind of stupid, but as I watched the missiles continue their flight towards me, threatening to spread my bloody bits over a very wide area, I was actually very relieved. After all, I would be the only one blown up if this failed...

'Yeah, but won't she smash to a pulp on the ground?' Asked Tod.

'Yeah, yeah, I know! That's why I have to make this quick.' I thought back at him. Worry was beginning to flood back into me (thanks in no small part to Tod) as I held my ground... metaphorically.

"Oh, I really hope this works." I drew in a deep breath, and began flying towards the missiles.

I flew forward, preparing Tankbuster to fire. As I closed in on the missiles, I dove straight down, the missiles taking a moment to orient themselves accordingly. I stopped flapping my wings, relying completely on my momentum to get me the needed speed. The wind slapping against my face was quite painful, and it also dried my mouth as I breathed.

As I continued to descend, I began closing in on Myst, who was still falling. I looked behind me at the two rockets, which were a fair enough distance from me. As one of the missiles closed in, now probably just a dozen feet from me, I pointed Tankbuster at it and fired.

'VUJ-JING!'

The first missile exploded, sending fire and shrapnel blasting off in all directions. The force of the blast had no visible effect on the second missile, which was just a little behind the first, but was enough to push me downwards with even greater speed.

Pain exploded in my chest and from my wings, removing whatever focus I had managed to get together for the second missile. A large piece of the missile canister had struck me, piercing into my chest through my armor. It had most likely cracked a rib, maybe two. As for my wings, the smaller pieces of shrapnel and the concussive force had blasted away feathers and sprained the joints.

Blood trickled down onto my neck from my chest wound and was separated from my body by the wind, letting me see the drops of red liquid fall along with me. Some of the blood got onto my face, obscuring my vision.

'Why do none of my plans ever go the way I want it?!' I thought as I struggled to focus through the pain while using a hoof to wipe the blood from my face. Seriously, in the last week, every single plan I had thought of always went wrong. Couldn't I get a break for once? In fact, why was I the only one coming up with plans?

As I removed the hoof from my face, coated and soaked with blood, I opened my eyes. Sometime during my descent I had oriented myself downwards, allowing me see that I was almost level with Myst, and that we were only about another hundred meters from the ground. Ignoring the pain from my chest, I turned to face the last missile.

'Fuck me.'

The last missile was literally less than five feet from me. Firing on it would result in what was most likely going to be a fatal explosion, even with all my protective gear. It was suicidal, and the missile was coming closer with each passing second.

But if I didn't shoot, it would impact with me just as I reached my falling companion, and that would result in both our deaths. And, judging from our distance from the ground, if I didn't gain enough speed to reach her before we smashed into the pavement, then we would both die.

Ok, so I had to choose. Don't shoot, and we would both die. Shoot, and the explosion just might kill me. But if it didn't, the blast would at least get me to Myst before we crashed and died. If I could at least get to her, which I could not achieve with my injured wings alone, then I could at least make sure she got safe.

"Aw, fuck me!" I yelled, making my decision. I drew up the shotgun and fired.

Just as I had expected, the blast did indeed push me down with the speed necessary to get to Myst with enough space between us and the ground to fly to another position. The blast knocked the wind out of me, too.

Of course, now I was very injured and had more than one large piece of shrapnel jutting out of my body. Blood soaked my gear, and flowed out in large amounts through my armor segments to the ground below. Another piece of canister struck me and pierced into my hide just between my ribs. My breathing became hard and painful, confirming that the second blast had injured my lungs. I grunted and winced, doing my best to focus on the task at hoof.

Myst looked at me with wide, worried eyes. Clearly, I did not look very good right now. Ignoring that, I once more wrapped my forelimbs around her. After I did, I spread my wings in preparation for flight. Big mistake.

The sudden force of the wind smacking my wings made me scream in pain, and I heard a sickening crack from the joints where my wings met my body. In fact, I even felt my wings tilt in an angle that wasn't possible unless they were broken. With my wings ineffective, we continued to descend at an astounding rate.

But I wasn't going to let us die, not like this. Not because of yet another one of my plans that went wrong. So, against my painfully protesting body and my slowing mind, I forced my wings to spread. The effort from that action coupled with all the pain coming from the rest of my body nearly knocked me unconscious.

Hissing and grunting from the immense pain that flooded my senses, and from the increasing sluggishness of my mind due to blood loss, I did at least manage to get us into a glide rather than a direct fall. I steered myself towards a river that surrounded the group of buildings we were in earlier, specifically beneath a bridge if I could get us there, then we might have been able to avoid the zebras for a long enough time to heal at least some of my injuries.

"D-d-don't do that again!" Myst said as she shook, still trying to recover from the shock of falling nearly a thousand feet.

I drew in a deep breath, and managed to say, "Yeah, sorry about that. But it was the only way to make sure we both didn't get blasted to hell!"

"By getting YOURSELF blasted all to hell?" She asked. I looked at her with a pained smile and gasped.

"Yeah... okay... maybe that wasn't part of the plan. But at least only one of us is shot up, right?" I replied with an exhausted smile as I panted.

"'At least'? Goldwreath, look at you! I don't even know how you're still flying!" She yelled out at me. I didn't respond, deciding to focus on my breathing. I was exhausted, and above all, in a lot of pain. She looked at me with a worried expression for a moment, my heavy panting seeming to get the message over to her, and she fell silent.

I was nearing the bridge, and began a slow, painful descent. My wings nearly gave out many times, and only my immediate response saved us from falling. My wings felt like they would have torn off at any moment. Every flap hurt, and holding up all my weight plus Myst was only serving to make every second a painful struggle.

I had gotten us directly above the bridge, maybe several dozen feet up, when the crowd of angry flame thrower armed, assault rifle wielding zebras appeared around the corner of the nearest building.

"You're kidding me," I said in disdain and exhaustion as I looked over the crowd. The moment they spotted me, they opened fire again. I struggled to dodge their shots, and now I REALLY felt like I couldn't get us any further. I tried to get us away, much to my body's protest, when the crowd swarmed onto the bridge beneath us, yelling and screaming after me. I flapped painfully, breathing so hard and so quickly that my inured lungs couldn't handle it. Every breath hurt, like I was breathing in hot sand. I hovered, tilting my body in such a way that there was less chance of Myst getting hit by any of their shots.

And that was when one of them, a sniper most likely, shot off a round that struck my back. There was a crack from my spine, just where I felt a dent in my armor pressing in between two bones on my back. I screamed, feeling the huge dent of my armor pressing painfully and stabbing into my spinal column. The pain was paralyzing, and though I tried, I just couldn't focus through the agony of it all. I stopped flapping my wings, and we both began falling through the air.

It hurt so fucking much. I couldn't move, couldn't think straight. I couldn't even align myself straight. I could only cringe, and the dark thoughts of imminent death crept into my mind.

All I could do now was watch as Myst fell into the water with a splash. I was still falling when she did, and so I noticed something about where I was falling: the water there was shallow.

'Fuck me.' That was the last thought I got out before I crashed into the shallow water and smacked my head against a rock somewhere on the bottom.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Strong Flyer -- Your wings can carry weights that other pegasi couldn't even hope to bear. You can fly 20% longer, and you can carry ten more points of weight while flying.

Chapter 10 - Reunion

View Online

Chapter 10
Reunion
"I'm not the sort of person that leaves things unfinished. I'll see this through, I promise."

I woke up, feeling lightheaded and dizzy. My wounds were still bleeding heavily, which I suspect greatly contributed to how bad I felt at that moment. My body was dripping with water as I was being slowly dragged along concrete pavement and away from where the river flowed somewhere in the middle below the bridge. I was leaving a path of blood in my wake, far too much blood than had to be healthy. I also heard gunshots, sharp and few. In front of me, the bullets struck the pavement and sent little fragments flying off in all directions.

My eyes winced and twitched, and I was barely able to keep them open. My body still felt limp, and my back stung terribly, so whatever had been done to it had not been addressed. I could turn my head slightly without pain, though, and I could place my forehooves on my chest. That allowed me to try to remove the astoundingly large pieces of metal that had pierced into me. Of course, that didn't work, and my efforts only served to bring me pain as I tried to wobble the pieces free.

Eventually, I was dragged to a corner where the wall beneath the bridge met a support column. Myst was soaked, but despite her fall didn't seem injured beyond having trouble breathing -- Lucky mare. I grunted as I slumped against the wall, feeling my broken and bloodied wings press against the wall as well as my back push against the sharp dent in my armor. Myst looked around for a moment, and dodged a shot that struck the column next to her.

"Goldwreath, get up! We have to get out of here before more of them show up!" She said in a rushed, worried tone. All I could do was look at her and grunt in agony. She seemed confused at first, looking at me weirdly. I turned with whatever strength I had, hissing loudly as I went, and showed her the huge dent that was painfully pressing into my spine. It was then that she seemed to understand.

With a look of extreme worry and an audible gulp, she trotted to me and frantically unstrapped all of my protective gear. In the process, she also removed all the large pieces of shrapnel from my body, and I yelled aloud, wanting to pulverize her for so painfully removing the pieces. Still, I was grateful that I no longer had a piece of blackened metal in me chest. When she had finished, letting the heavy metal plates and pieces slide off me, she laid me down on my stomach. My eyes looked around as I wondered just what she was going to do.

I felt her breath on ear before she spoke, "Okay... um, there's a vertebrae sticking out of your back. It looks..." She shuddered, and whispered, "This is going to hurt just a little." Wait, what would?

She wrapped a forehoof around my shoulders and pressed the other against a bone on my back, and drew me back slowly. My eyes popped wide as I suddenly realized what she was about to do. I let out whatever protest I could, but they were all just pained grunts and cries. I breathed hard, preparing myself for what was about to happen next.

With a soft grunt, she pulled me backwards so quickly and so abruptly that my spine gave off a whole slew of cracking noises that made me sick just by listening to them. Also, her reassurance of it hurting ‘just a little’ was complete bullshit; the moment I felt my mouth working again, I screamed for all I was worth, emptying my lungs of whatever air they had.

“GAH! Goddesses fuck me with a kilometer long horn! Myst, that fucking hurt!” I yelled after my initial pained scream. I looked forward, and I saw about three hostiles spot me from some railings on the road that was meant to keep people from falling into the gorge we were in. I also spotted a gate somewhere at the top that they were trying to force open to get to us. The three opened fire, and I was barely able to roll away before they peppered my former position with automatic rifle fire.

I glared at her, but she replied with a firm tone, "You're lucky that was just a set of shocked nerves and a dislocated bone; I should know, I once saw my dad hit a wild cat on the spine with a shovel. If it was any more serious..." Well, at least it wasn't something more terrible like, say, paralysis. It really would have sucked if it was...

I leaned back against the wall, still in a lot of pain despite my back no longer feeling like a piece of meat that had been put through a shredder. I was still a little pissed off at her, but I guess I did scare the crap out of her when I dropped her, so I guess we were even at that point. At least now I could move around without feeling like I was grinding my muscles to a pulp. My pelvis still felt a little painful when I tried trotting, though -- probably a nerve somewhere that wasn't fixed just right. I tried to get up and move a short distance, but then I collapsed from the unwillingness of my pelvis to work.

Myst dragged me back to the wall. “Well, um... I-I could drag you! We need to get out of here right now.” I shook my head in response while I much less frantically strapped on my armor again. That sharp dent in the back proved a nasty puzzle, but after hitting it with my plated hooves for a moment, I managed to bend it such that it did NOT feel like I was having a spike shoved into my flesh. “What are you doing?” She asked, both confused and apparently a little annoyed that I was putting on my gear.

“I’m going to need my stuff for when they break through.” I told her as I finished strapping on my gear, and pulled out a healing potion and downed it. My flesh wounds closed, but my wings still felt broken and useless, and the healing removed whatever numbness my body was utilizing to reduce my suffering.

“W-what do you mean ‘when they break through’? Come on, let’s get out of here!” She was even more worried and frantic than she was before, twitching at the increasing number of shots that were landing near us.

I sighed as I once more slumped in the corner, facing the stairs leading down from the gate. I pulled out Vengeance and made sure it was loaded. “Myst… look at me. I’m in no shape to move, or to fly, or to do... anything. The one thing I can do is shoot. If you leave now, I’ll be able to buy you enough time to escape.” I told her. Her eyes widened so much that I thought they would have popped out of their sockets.

“What? Are you trying to tell me to leave you behind? No way, u-uh. I’ll drag you away from here if I have to.” She trotted to me and tried to pull me away from my corner, but I guess I was really heavy with all my gear on.

I sighed once more, and focused on breathing for the duration of her trying to pull me away. When she finally stopped, looking desperate to find some way to get me out of here, I spoke. “I’ll just slow you down, and then we’ll both get caught. It’s better if you get out of here, maybe get to the camp and meet up with Zaita. Just leave me here.”

“B-but they’ll kill you!” She told me, a tone of sad desperation in her voice. She narrowed her tear-filled eyes at me, locking me with a stare that made me feel horrible about the decision I was making. After all, she had promised to stick with me no matter what, and here I was trying to make her break that promise.

I chuckled a little. “Ha! No they’re not.” I gave her a confident smile and continued, “I’m going to kill so many of them that they’ll want to get back at me. Killing me won’t give them the satisfaction, so they’ll torture me. Tie me to a chair to hang upside down for a day, maybe. Or maybe even cut off my hide and strangle me with it. But they won’t kill me.” I assured her. She sobbed a little, placing her face on my chest and whacking me with her hoof again and again as she muttered various obscenities that I had never expected from her.

She finally pulled away and locked me with that stare again. “If… if I do this… you’ll still be here when I get back? You’ll still be alive?” She asked me with a tone that suggested that if I lied, then she’d beat the crap out of me. I gulped, thinking about what I was about to do. Would I? Would they really keep me alive so they could torture me until they got tired of it? And would I be able to hang on long enough for Myst to get back with help? Oh, I really hope so.

“Oh, yeah, no doubt about it. This is my plan, remember? Since when have my plans ever gone wrong?” I smiled at her again. She looked at me with an expression that told me she thought I was absolutely crazy. Maybe I was, or maybe I wasn’t. Either way, if it didn’t work, then at least I was the only one who was going to suffer for it.

The gate gave a resounding ‘pong’; a sound that suggested a vital support of some kind had been broken away. I looked at the entrance worriedly, then back at Myst. She was trying to suppress her tears.

“Go, Myst. I’ll be fine. Trust me.” I told her, but all she did was look away and shake her head slowly while a few of her tears dripped onto the ground.

“Damn you, Goldwreath.” She said quietly, then pulled out her stealthcloak. She looked at me one last time before she placed it on and disappeared in a blue glow.

“Yeah. Damn me.” I snickered, smiling as I shook my head. I’m a complete idiot.

‘You’re fucking crazy!’ Yelled Tom, suddenly appearing in my mind.

‘Hey, it’s his choice. Are you going to take that away from him?’ Asked Tod, in one of the few instances where he seemed more reasonable than Tom.

I didn’t interrupt them as they started arguing in my head. I just waited for the gate to break down and for them to come flooding in. In fact, I only shook my head and thought one thing:

‘My head is so fucking screwed up.’

The gate finally gave in, crashing forward and falling into the river. The crowd swarmed in, wielding their flamethrowers and weapons. As they started running down the stairs towards me, I lifted Vengeance and aimed.

One of them was charging down the steps faster than the others, and judging from his maniacal laughter, he was eager to burn me to a crisp. Unfortunately for him, his shoving and yelling and general disregard for my potential threat, as opposed to most of his companions, made him a fairly easy target.

'BLAM!' Headshot.

His headless form slumped and fell off the side of stairs, nearly pushing off one of his comrades in the process. If any of the others had also disregarded my ability to aim and shoot, they now knew I could. They raced down the steps faster, and those that did immediately scattered. Thankfully, due to my position, I was not an easy target for any of them. Probably because they couldn't aim properly because they were too close to each other to maneuver. I aimed again.

'BLAM!' 'BLAM!' The first round tore a zebra's entire left shoulder away, and possibly hit his heart in the process. The second hit another's hoof; a painful but non-lethal shot.

They took cover behind the pillars, taking shots at me whenever they could. If I hadn't decided to put on my armor after Myst did what she did, and if their weapons were of any higher caliber, I would have been dead. As it was, each shot simply caused me a little more pain. Unless one hit me in the head, then I'd be dead.

I got up, hard as it was, and aimed once more while I slowly moved forward. Their un-aimed shots mostly struck my vest and armor, but some of them seemed to be actually aiming for me in that I felt some low caliber rounds ricochet off my helmet.

'BLAM!' 'BLAM!' BLAM!' I sent out the remaining shots, downing two and missing another. With Vengeance out, I swapped it for something much more suited to my situation: my ever handy anti power-armor shotgun.

As I pulled out the shotgun, a weapon of larger caliber fired at me and pierced my vest and armor and buried itself in my side. I staggered and jumped for cover, nearly falling down as my frozen pelvis struggled to keep me up. I breathed in deeply, gathering as much air for my damaged lungs before I threw myself into the fight again. I downed a healing potion; my last and only one. Myst had the rest of them with her, and there were still some in the supply box in Zaita.

Feeling slightly better, I threw myself back into the meat grinder. They were pushing into the area from all directions in front of me, the flamethrower armed ones trying to close the distance while those with guns stayed back and opened fire. Their rounds struck me with such force and frequency that I could feel new dents appear in my armor, and they too were pressing against me painfully.

I blasted away, downing two stupid enough to charge me head on. With them down, I turned my attention to the others, who, for some reason, weren't simply swarming me. Either they just really wanted to stay where they were, or I was such a fierce combatant that I was forcing them to stay put. Either way, I continued forward, downing two more as I slowly pushed towards them.

Then a felt a blistering heat erupt from behind me, and the flame washed over me with such intensity I nearly fainted from the pain. I turned quickly, finding that one of the flamethrower guys had somehow gotten behind me. He continued to blast me with searing flames, and I could feel every detail of my coat and hide sizzling and burning from it. I gasped, which only served to bring hot air to my failing lungs. Through the hazy orange flame, I pointed Tankbuster at him and fired.

He staggered and collapsed, as I had only blasted away one of his forelegs. I fired again, finishing him off, before I noticed that there was another gate on the other side of the gorge where more of them were coming in from.

'Why the fuck didn't I see that earlier?!' I yelled in my mind.

Okay, so I was surrounded. I staggered back to my original cover, hissing in pain as I felt the burning hot an metal of my armor sizzle and blister whatever coat was beneath it. My breathing hurt, and every step I took sent a wave of pain through my body. Whatever part of me that wasn't covered by my gear when I had been burned looked like some kind of maze of cracked flesh and burnt fur.

I thought of just how the filly felt back in that burning cabin. She was in that burning wreckage far longer, and the flames were much more intense. I shuddered, sweeping the thoughts aside before turning my attention back to the fight.

I fired off whatever shots were left in my shotgun, downing only one of them in the process. Finally, I collapsed onto the ground. I dragged myself back into my corner, and slowly reloaded Tankbuster, one shell at a time. I had only loaded three shells when another flamethrower guy appeared from around the corner. I didn't even have time to cock the mechanism before he pulled the trigger on his weapon.

So I charged him. I screamed in agony as I bolted through his blazing jet of fire, but I charged him. It was a move so unanticipated that he didn't react until I was more than halfway to him. And when he did, there really wasn’t much he could do any more. I pulled out my gladius and crashed into him. When we were both down, I stabbed deep into his neck and he stopped struggling.

After that, there was the very obvious problem of being surrounded by around thirty or so hostile bandits. They were moving in slowly and cautiously; apparently I had gotten the point over to them that I wasn’t so easy to take out. Still, even I wasn’t stupid enough to just charge the incoming crowd with nothing but a blade just for the sake of buying someone, who was probably long gone by now, more time.

Or was I?

“Fuck me!” I yelled as I got up and charged, galloping as fast as my severely injured and burned body and frozen pelvis would allow me. This move, however I thought of it, was one of the most idiotic things I had ever done. If Myst were still watching from somewhere, I could only imagine what she would have been feeling. From her point of view, it would seem like I was committing suicide.

My attackers seemed so downright baffled by this ludicrous move that those who were moving in on me only noticed I was charging them when I was already close. I jumped next to one and stabbed him in the neck, and he fell down with a dull thump. The next one I downed managed to blast me once in the forelegs with a shotgun before I slit his throat with a quick slash.

In one of the few times I ever used it, I entered S.A.T.S and targeted the heads of about four of them. I executed my killing stabs and slashes with what must have appeared to them as lightning speed. When I had finished, the spell had exhausted itself. Apparently, I could stay for S.A.T.S longer if I didn’t do anything in it. Probably why I was able to stay in the spell so long the last time.

But even with my bold move, I really didn’t expect to actually be able to escape. Already, those coming in from behind fired shots that bit into my flanks and tore at my wings, causing my already busted appendages to go numb from the sheer amount of pain coming from them. I collapsed right there, underneath the fire of more than twenty hostiles. I covered my face with my armored hooves, shielding it from their barrage of painful shots. Most didn’t penetrate all my protection, but the ones that did hurt so badly that my body was resorting to numbness to spare me the suffering.

After what must have been an eternity of savage shooting, there was a shout that boomed over the noise of their guns. They all stopped, the absence of them reloading their weapons suggesting that they didn’t relent due to ammo shortage. Hell, even the flamethrower wielding bandits that I was within range of didn’t burn me to a crisp.

Amidst my haggard breathing, I barely managed to spit out, “Th-that all you got? Heh, what a bunch of senile, inbred, cock-sucking…” I tried getting up again, but finally my body wasn’t letting me push myself any further. No matter how hard I tried, my legs just wouldn’t let me get up.

‘Well, fuck.’ I thought as I gritted my teeth.

“Come on, you dickheads. That all you got?!” I yelled at them, an action which my lungs paid for in heavy and pained breathing. If my lungs really were injured, then how was I even able to force them to keep up with me during the fight?

None of them seemed to care about what I called them, and only laughed amongst themselves as they yelled out all sorts of insults and swears at me. Those who were on the stairs shifted to the sides, as if making room in the center for something. Somehow, I thought I knew what was coming.

The appearance of a zebra clad in red-painted power armor with accompanying helmet and dual flamethrowers on the sides told me all I needed to know. Obviously, this guy was ‘the boss’ that I had heard about back in Pyro Kinetics. As he came down the stairs towards me, the heavily spread-out crowd gathered behind him, while a few walked directly beside him or even a little ahead of him.

He stopped directly in front of me, the crowd fully gathered around him. The ones behind me stood where they were, eyeing me sadistically. That was in contrast to the power armored zebra, who stared down at me with an expression I couldn’t see. He gestured to some of his subordinates, and they laughed maniacally as they trotted to me and, picked me up, then held me against a wall.

One of them moved towards me without the boss’s permission and drew a pistol. He pointed it at me as he growled, “You killed my friends and my brother, asshole. You’re lucky I’m giving you a quick fucking death.” He pressed the barrel against my helmet.

“No,” Said the boss as he kept up his blank gaze; something that worried me greatly. “I can think of many ways to make him pay for his intrusion.” He gestured at some of those standing behind him, and about ten of them came forth, laughing and giggling gleefully, and trotted towards me. The boss turned and began trotting away, but stopped for a moment to look back at me and say with a tone of disinterest and with a dismissive wave of his hoof, “Beat him senseless.” Then he went back up the stairs, while the crowd grudgingly followed him up, a few of them chuckling. Clearly, they all wanted to beat the shit out of me instead of move away.

I didn’t have time to process any of that before they grabbed me and hauled me off to to a corner, and threw me against the wall. I groaned as they laughed, insulting me and throwing profanities my way.

I turned to them and murmured under my breath, "Yeah, that's right, laugh. Laugh for a whole hour... that's just what I want." I smirked.

One of them looked at me with confusion. "Why the hell are you smiling?" He went over to me and applebucked me down, and I fell splashing into a puddle. "Guy's fucking insane..."

I forced a laugh, "Oh, I'm not insane! I'm just laughing at how so many of you guys it took to take me down. What, were you guys holding back? Pfft, wussies..."

Another of them growled menacingly and stomped over to me, and planted a kick to my face. "Shut up!" He yelled, and grabbed me and said between punches, "You. Fucking. Killed. My. Brother! I'm gonna pop your head open like a fucking pinata!" Then he started punching me in the face again and again, and soon I found it hard simply to keep my swollen eyes open.

When his flurry finally died down, one of them said, "Alright, enough screwing around. Let's just take care of this asshole and throw him over to our place; I've had enough of him." Everyone seemed to agree, nodding their heads. I guess that, whereas other raiders would want to keep beating me up for doing what I did, these guys wanted to get over some kind of emotional pain I had caused them. Except the guy beating me up; he just glared at me and threw a few more punches my way, before finally dropping me. "Fine," He murmured.

Then one of them brought out a small hammer, and the others brought out small utility knives. The one who had bean beating me up grabbed a piece of concrete from nearby, and tossed it into his hooves over and over.

My eyes widened as much as they could, being swollen. ‘This is so going to suck…’

And with that, they all came down on me, weapons savagely pounding and stabbing me from all directions. They struck me in ways that caused the most pain, but only seldom in a way that would have been fatal if I hadn't wearing armor and a vest. Still, I didn’t scream. Not at the obviousness of my bones cracking on the surface and threatening to break to their relentless attacking, and neither at their sharp stabbing. And when they noticed that I wouldn’t they only attacked more savagely, and then I really did want to scream.

‘No,’ I thought. As much as I wanted to, I wasn’t going to let them have that satisfaction. And that only infuriated them further as they continued beating me, aiming for whatever unarmored part of me they could get at. I did my best to stay on my back the whole time; I didn’t want them to get at my wings. I hated them, but I didn't try to stop them. The longer they spent beating me up was more time Myst could use to escape.

They laughed insanely, taking obvious joy in whatever sign of pain I let them see. And when I finally just lay still and let them strike me, now feeling only my rough breathing and bruised flesh, but no pain, I closed my eyes.

‘I’m a fucking idiot.’ That was all I managed to think. In fact, amidst the noise of their laughter and their continued assault, I myself wasn’t quite sure if I thought that.

And then one of them brought the sledgehammer down onto the side of my head, and the last thing I felt was my metal helmet caving in on my skull.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I woke up, feeling even worse for wear than I had under the bridge, especially my head. I was laying in a small pool of my own blood, mixed with other substances that gave the normally red colored liquid a disturbing shade of gray. All of my injuries had only the slightest of medical attention in the form of bandages or some weird looking green goo coated on them -- most likely some kind of alchemical anti-bacterial substance.

I was in a filthy and small room, just barely big enough to hold five ponies. All around me were scattered various miscellaneous items, mostly in the form of old torn papers, old scrap metal, a few empty syringes, and quite a lot of foul smelling piles of... stuff. I didn't touch those.

"Still alive, huh?" I said to myself as looked around me. At that time, I was actually rather surprised that I had survived their beating.

The door to the room opened with a metallic creak, and a zebra that I remembered as Janix stood at the doorway, flamethrower slung to his side.

"My, my," He said, shaking his head in mock disbelief. "The Praetorian, trapped in my little jail like a rat. How patheric." He snickered, "I'll give you one thing, though. You killed quite a lot of us in that little outburst of yours. If the boss would allow me, I'd beat the shit out of you right now, and I wouldn't care if you screamed or not." He scoffed, slamming his hoof against the wall of the room. "I don't even know why the hell the boss wants you alive. I suspect he wants to personally make you pay for your intrusion." He leaned against the doorway as he stood on his hindlegs, touching a hoof to his gasmask in thought.

A voice called out from somewhere outside, "Janix! If he's awake, just give him the damned potion already. Boss wants him alive for a little beat-up session."

The zebra in the doorway glanced behind him, "Yeah, yeah! I'm on it." He reached behind him and pulled out a healing potion and tossed it to me. "Just take the damned thing. You won't get anything else from us, except maybe some more broken bones."

I glared at him, then looked down at the healing potion. I wanted to take it so badly, but I didn't want to accept anything these people gave me. My body's throbbing muscles and broken bones protested, begging me to ease my suffering, while my mind told me to get up and spit in his face.

Eventually, by body won over my mind. I opened the vial and drank, all the while cursing myself in my head for participating with these people. Afterwards, my body felt significantly better. Not free of pain, there was still quite a lot of that, but better. Unfortunately, the healing must have caused my broken bones to heal in the wrong manner. While they definitely weren't broken anymore, they felt... wrong. Like they had come back together in the wrong places. Thankfully, my skull had at least healed properly, or as properly as it could get. I hoped that my brain hadn't been severely damaged by that blow.

Janix turned away, and called two other zebras to come in while he sat down on a chair somewhere. They picked me up off the ground and brought me out of the room. In the middle of the dimly lit room, there was a sort of machine. It had a platform of sorts, and next to that was a bunch of medical-looking machinery. On the platform was a wounded earth pony, one of the raiders. From the machine protruded about a dozen tubes ending in needles which pierced into the pony's body. The transparent tubes had this glowing blue energy passing within it. As I watched, the pony's wounds began to heal at a steady rate.

"That's an Auto-doc." Janix explained, putting some mock in his tone as he trotted along beside me. "Fine piece of equipment, aint' it? Heals injuries damned well, whether it's flesh or bone." I stared at the machine with longing, wishing it was I who was on that platform. The zebra noticed my look and smirked. "Heh, yeah sure, keep dreaming. Only we use the thing, and only on those who really need it. Thing takes a lot of power to use." The two dragging me along approached a door and opened it, then shoved me through.

They hauled me away and up several flights of dimly lit stairs. Along the way they shoved me hard into the walls and bucked me in the chest, and this time my body didn’t go numb to suppress the pain. Eventually, we reached a metal door that I suspected lead to the ground floor of the building (I thought that the floor we were in was some kind of basement).

We emerged onto the first floor of what seemed to have once been a hotel, within a hallway that lead to a lobby. I spotted several others wandering around the building; sitting next to barricades, talking, or just idling around. At my appearance, though, they all shot me hateful glares which I mostly ignored as the three lead me to an elevator. Once inside, they pressed the button that lead to the top floor.

We arrived at the top, and it was revealed to be a spacious room that was significantly less screwed up than the rest of the building. It showed obvious signs of stress: cracks and dirt stains, mostly. Still, it was better than almost every other place I had seen, except perhaps Decarius’ house and the hospital room in Verge.

And there, standing behind an old and worn looking desk and looking at a painting of the sky that was mounted on the wall, was the boss. He noticed us and turned, locking his visor onto me in an unfathomable stare.

“So, boss, what do you want us to do? Should we beat the crap out of him again? ‘Cause a lot of us would really LOVE to try again.” Said one of those holding onto me, and he laughed a little. The two other guards in the room, both mares, snickered. They obviously liked the idea, even more so the longer they thought about it.

“A little, yes. He has yet to pay for his intrusion.” He replied with an edge in his voice, and behind that visor of his I was just sure he was glaring at me.

The four of them, the two guards and my two escorts, all turned to me and giggled gleefully. Once again, I was the subject of getting beaten with all sorts of weapons, ranging from gun butts to bare hooves. Unlike last time, where my body had already been hurt so much that just a little more didn’t really matter, this time I really felt the pain. I kind of regretted taking the healing potion, as now my body felt each blow with brutal clarity. I still didn’t scream, and that seemed to annoy them all the more. They kicked and punched and stomped harder, but the most I gave them was pained grunts and groans.

'Ugh... do-FUCK! ...ugh, do all my plans suck this much ?!' I yelled in my head. Thinking to myself was the only distraction I could indulge in while they continued their maniacal beating.

“Alright that’s enough.” The boss said, seeming satisfied at seeing me curled up on the floor like a little foal. My attackers stopped tentatively, one of them stomping me in the face one more time before he stopped. I just groaned. “Leave us. I would like to test his endurance myself.” The boss said with a low chuckle.

‘I’m screwed.’ I thought as I looked over his power-armored hooves. As much as the zebra Specter’s bucks had hurt, at least his limbs weren’t encased in solid steel.

“Aww, you sure, boss? A lot of the guys downstairs haven't gotten a turn yet, should we call them up?” One of them complained, but shut his mouth when the power helmet’s visor locked him with the same unfathomable yet threatening gaze.

“Just. Leave.” He said slowly, threateningly. The five got the message, and immediately entered the elevator. The door closed, and I was left alone in the room with the power-armored zebra.

I sighed. “So, what now? You gonna try to beat the shit out of me, too? You can try, but you won’t find me to be an easy fight.” I told him with a tone that I hoped suggested I wasn’t afraid of him, even if I was. In truth, I really didn’t think I could take a lot more of this; the pain from recent events still wore me down, and even I couldn’t take down a power-armored zebra without my stuff.

To my surprise (and IMMENSE relief), he reached both his forelegs onto his helmet and said with an annoyed sigh, “Nope.” He tapped something on the back of the helmet, most likely some kind of switch. There was a ‘hiss’ of pressurized air, and he removed his helmet.

He wore a black balaclava over his head, but little strands of brown mane fell into the eye-space. “But I do want to know why the hell you’re interfering with my mission. And were you TRYING to blow my fucking cover? Idiot!” The earth pony said as he put the helmet down, and his armor gave off a similar pressurized ‘hiss’. The armor fell off onto the sides, revealing his legs to be wrapped in leather and him to be wearing a very familiar heavy Kevlar vest. My mouth dropped onto the floor, out of surprise, relief, and confusion.

“You’re a… Specter?”

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"So what the hell are you doing all the way out here?" I asked the grey earth pony with a scraggly brown mane, who had identified himself as 'operative Balaclava'. He returned my question with another annoyed sigh while he cracked his neck several times.

"I'm on a mission; one that you nearly ruined. Were you actually trying to get yourself killed down there? Because if you were, then I would have had to break my fucking cover to save your sorry flank, and then the plan would've gone to fucking hell..." He groaned out of irritation while he rubbed his temples furiously. "Anyway, I've been tasked with keeping these savages from using their weaponry and numbers to threaten the surrounding areas." He looked at the ground in thought for a moment, then said in a slightly disappointed tone, "Although, my original task was to eliminate them. But that's much more difficult than I had anticipated."

I glared at him suspiciously while he thought. I didn't like Specters; after all, the image I had been given of them of them so far was almost as bad as the one I had of the Legion. Both were killers, more so the Legion, of course. Though at least the Specters didn't level towns. To be fair though, most of my distrust for them stemmed from my hatred of that one bastard zebra. Balaclava noticed me, and gave me a confused expression.

"What?"

"Nothing. I just don't really like Specters. What I've seen of you guys hasn't really been the stuff of inspiration."

"How so? We spend days, sometimes weeks helping people. Hell, some of us even spend months out in the wasteland running operations that has probably kept most of these people alive," He said defensively, in a tone that suggested he thought I should have been grateful for something.

"Yeah, like setting a transport filled with dozens of people on fire." I said sourly, recalling the event.

Balaclava looked both horrified and disgusted. He shook his head, then said, "What? B-but we don't do that. We don't kill unless it's necessary. Who could have..." He paused for a moment as he seemed to realize something. He closed his eyes and sighed, "Oh... I... see you've met Predator."

'Who?' Asked both of my psychological entities at the same time.

"Who the hell's 'Predator'?" I asked.

Balaclava looked around awkwardly for a moment, scratching the back of his head with a leather-encased hoof. He finally turned back his attention to me. "Ah, ok, how do I put this delicately..." He once more thought for a bit, before he made up his mind. "He's a bastard; a fucking murderer and a coldblooded killer. He's the apocalypse incarnate: merciless, remorseless, relentless, and never, EVER stops, no matter what be's been through. He tells anyone whom he meets, and DOESN'T kill, all his fucked up philosophical beliefs, as I'm sure he's done with you. The guy's a fucking psychopath." He said all that in a tone of utter disapproval mixed with disgust.

"So why not just... get rid of him? Kill him, loose him, or send him on a suicide mission or something. If he's that bad, why not just leave him behind?" I tried to make myself sound sensible and calm. In truth, though, my mind was racing to process all of this new information.

'So, that fucker has a name after all. Predator... I'm gonna fucking kill him.' I thought, and both Tod and Tom voiced their approval. I was beginning to envision ways I would end him the next time we met, if at all, before the operative spoke.

"We... can't. Not only because we really couldn't even if we tried, but he's also an irreplaceable asset. He may be the worst damned person you'll ever meet, but you have no idea just how much he's achieved for us. He can break down walls, hunt a target for weeks in ways so elaborate he puts just about the rest of us to shame, survive things none of us could, and despite all that, he can be more quiet than a dead equine. I'm not even sure if what's beneath that suit is a pony, a zebra or... something else entirely."

I smirked. "Heh, well if he's that good, how come he hasn't killed me yet? What, am I too good for him?" I asked with a cocky smile, drawing a wide-eyed look from Balaclava.

"Oh, if he wanted you dead, he'd have placed a trap somewhere days before you visited the area. And if you didn't go to the place, then chances are that he expected you not to because he knew you thought you knew he was waiting." He shuddered, as if the very thought of his fellow Specter gave him nightmares. "And in truth, you thinking you're safe is just part of some elaborate and sadistic scheme of his to toy with your head before he puts you down. And if his agenda really is to kill you, then you're dead. No question about it." He said with finality.

I thought of that. I'd met Predator, after all. Twice, to be exact. And each time I couldn't kill him. Was that meeting of ours on the bridge planned? Had he known I would go that way? Because if he did... well, did that mean he knew I was here in this building too? And if what Balaclava said was true, then did that mean Predator wanted me alive? If so, for what? Great, a fucking all-powerful stalker with a plan for just about everything. If that doesn't make people paranoid, I don't know what will. And just when my life couldn't get any more fucked up.

Anyway, in total, I'd seen him get shot eight times in the head with large caliber weapons, many times in the chest, and he even survived a hundred foot fall off a cliff. If he were a regular pony or zebra, which I was sure at this point that he was not, then there was absolutely no way he could have survived any of that.

I turned back my attention to him, letting my brain process all of that. "So... what now?" I asked, wanting to steer the conversation away from 'Predator'. My situation was bad enough without souring my mind with thoughts of that bastard.

He sighed, almost as if he were exhausted. "Honestly, I don't know. I've spent the last month here, looking for a way to eliminate this band of savages ever since I disguised myself as their leader.

"But I'm taking too long. Already, my superiors are getting impatient, and those barbarians downstairs are starting to question me. If I don't get this done soon... I honestly don't know." He admitted, hanging his head down.

I felt a little sorry for the guy. He was obviously a person who looked like he had gone to great lengths to help people. I could see it on him; the way his body trembled and sagged from exhaustion, how he staggered slightly from the weight of his equipment, and how desperately he was trying to think of something.

"Well, thanks for not letting them kill me, by the way. I know a lot of them wanted to. Although, you couldn't have gotten me on the Auto-doc? I feel like shit right now." I said with a smile. The healing potion may have caused me to feel all of my pain with brutal vividness, but at least I wasn't bleeding out. Still, I would much rather have felt a little more pain if it meant that all my bones and injuries would be healed properly.

He perked up, looking at me with surprised eyes. "Oh, uh... you're welcome. And no, I couldn't have gotten you on the Auto-doc. That would have made them question me further, and then they might have called for a new boss or something, and that would have blown my cover. I did convince them to give you a healing potion, though. It was all I could ask them to do without sounding like I wasn't on their side. Some of them complained, though. They wanted to just put a bullet in your head and be done with you, especially after you killed like twenty of 'em." He snickered, and shook his head a little. "But I know who you are, and I wasn't going to let the Praetorian die, not while I was there."

I gave him a thankful smile, one that he returned with a little nod. Then he just resumed his sullen, lost thinking. I had thought of something else to say, when I heard the soft sounds of the elevator coming up.

Balaclava's eyes widened, and he quickly pulled out an assault rifle from... somewhere. It almost seemed like his rifle just popped onto his back. Was that possible?

"Fuck, they're coming up!" He hissed quietly to himself, and he galloped to the side of the elevator door and prepared for their opening.

I was about to reach a hoof to pull out Vengeance, when I realized I didn't have my equipment with me.

"Where's my stuff?" I asked in a rush. Balaclava responded by eyeing the table, and so I trotted to it quickly. There, right beneath it, were my saddlebags filled with my stuff. There was a cloth sack here, filled with my armor and vest, from the look of it. As I couldn't see what was inside, I just placed both hooves in my saddlebags and rummaged through them, trying to feel for anything that felt like a weapon.

The door opened with a ring, revealing two hostiles, one a flamethrower wielding zebra stallion with a mask, the other a brown unicorn mare with a messy caramel mane and a cloth over her muzzle and an assault rifle slung across her back. I felt my hooves touch something that resembled a gun handle, and I yanked it out just as the two started trotting into the room.

"Face death by re-" I pressed on the spot where the trigger was supposed to be, but there was nothing there. I wasn't even holding Vengeance, as I thought. Rather, I was holding my gladius and pointing it at them. The blank expression they gave me suggested they knew I couldn't shoot them with a blade, and so saw me as no threat. "-volver..." I finished lamely, reducing to a whisper a statement I had intended to be a shout.

The mare pulled out her rifle and trotted forward quickly, and instead had her riffle pushed back down before getting bucked in the face by Balaclava, who snapped around the corner in one quick motion. She fell down hard, and her companion rushed to her aid, handling his weapon in such a way that told me he was going to use it as a staff. I wondered why he didn't just shoot flames.

While I just stood there, pouring out all the contents of my saddlebags in search of my weapons, the three of them engaged in vicious zebra-style hoof-to-hoof combat. I saw Vengeance drop into my pile of possessions on the ground, and I scrambled to pick it up.

There was the sound of a wall cracking, and I turned back just in time to see the mare bury her hoof deeper into a wall. Balaclava stood in front of her, his head right next to her hoof, and eyed the hole in the wall with a look of disbelief. He jumped into the air using his hindlegs, kicking the mare in the face and knocking her away in the process. I looked back to the pile once more, barely catching the zebra moving in on the operative with his flamethrower held like a spear.

I picked up Vengeance, and struggled to load a few rounds inside the chamber. Behind me, I could hear the sounds of their fighting; the cracking of floor tiles, metal objects snapping in two, the wall cracking again, and the sound of a gun mechanism. There was a pained groan, then silence. But that only made my eyes go wide in worry as I loaded the last of the rounds. I felt so useless, not being able to help.

I closed the chamber and turned, ready to finally pitch in on the fight. I took in the scene, and at once all of my worry dissipated. Unfortunately, so did my hopes of being able to join in on the fight.

The area was a mess. Just as I had suspected, the floor tiles were indeed cracked, with holes wide enough for hooves to fit in them dotting the ground. The walls were cracked as well, having many marks where they had thrown each other into the concrete. Yet somehow, despite the viciousness of their fight, there was no blood to be seen.

The operative breathed heavily as he stood on his hindlegs and held out a heavy pistol with a hoof (how, I couldn't imagine; it seemed like the gun was just sticking to his hoof) and pointed it at the zebra stallion, who was lying on his back on the ground. The zebra's flamethrower was snapped in half, but so was Balaclava's rifle.

The mare brought herself up, coming out of a pile of rubble near the wall, which she had apparently been thrown so hard against she created a pony-shaped hole. With one swift motion, she brought out a revolver with a hoof and pointed it at the back of the operative's head, and the hammer made a noise as she pulled it back.

Balaclava's eyes went wide, and he slowly turned his head to look down the gun barrel of the mare's revolver. He looked at the mare with disbelief. "How are you STILL alive?" He asked, looking so dumbfounded that he focused no attention on the stallion on the ground. The zebra pulled out a pistol and pointed it at Balaclava, who was still staring at the mare with disbelief. He must have heard him pull it out, as beneath his balaclava I saw what must have been his ears twitching.

I pointed my gun on the mare, and just then the zebra stallion brought out another pistol and pointed it at me. I looked to him with bewilderment bordering on annoyance.

My action did get the mare's attention, though. She brought out yet another revolver and pointed it at me; an action that made me wonder where the hell they kept getting their weapons. In the one moment where both her and her companion focused on me, Balaclava pulled out ANOTHER revolver (Seriously? More pistols? We didn't need more pistols! We already looked like some desperado gang turning on each other!) and pointed it to the back of the mare's head, which seemed to surprise her as much as the operative had been.

The next moments were tense, each of us seeming eager to press the trigger of our weapons. Our breathing was heavy from the exertion, although their's was much more so than mine, as they actually fought while I was just trying to prepare a weapon. That made me feel slow, like a snail, when compared to how quickly they had settled the fight. The three of them glared at each other, but behind Balaclava's steely gaze I could sense his tension. I would feel scared if two guys pointed heavy pistols at my head from two different directions, too. Sweat dropped off from all their heads as they all wavered under each other's gaze. The zebra had not moved from his spot.

That tension was finally broken when the mare suddenly laughed aloud. The look Balaclava gave her suggested he thought she had gone insane. Then the stallion laughed aloud, too. I looked at them like they were retards, which they probably were, considering how heartily they laughed under threat of guns. Balaclava looked scared, like he thought he was in the presence of maniacs, but he kept his weapons on them. I did, as well.

"Haha-huh... aha..." The mare laughed, catching the operative's full attention. "Good to see your Fallen Caesar hasn't gone rusty, Bal. But you couldn't have lightened up on the spine breaker? Good thing I twisted on that last moment, otherwise I'd be dead." She said casually, placing a revolver away and using her hoof to pull away the cloth on her face. Balaclava's eyes went wide, not in horror, but in surprise.

"S-sister?! W-what are you doing here?!" He stammered, seeming so caught off-guard by the sudden revelation that he dropped both his hooves, in the process pointing his guns away from the two. "And who the heck are you?!" He said to the zebra, who got up casually and trotted to the corner of the room.

"Just a fellow operative, sir. Don't mind me." I gave him a quizzical look, but he didn't seem to have any bad intent as he sat down. Seeing as everyone else in the room did so, I too lowered my weapon. Somehow, I felt disappointed. After all, I had spent the entirety of their fight preparing a single weapon, and I didn't even get to use it.

The mare smiled, apparently enjoying the look of crazed annoyance and confusion on her brother's face, or at least what was visible of his face through his mask. Looking at him, I actually couldn't blame her; Balaclava's mane stood straight up and made him look like he was wearing a clown's wig beneath his mask, while his eyes held such a priceless look of confusion and annoyance I wished my pipbuck had a camera function.

The mare started to laugh again, but stopped before she went hysterical. "Heh, sorry about all that, Baley, but..."

"It's OPERATIVE BALACLAVA, sister." He said, frustrated. His sister rolled her eyes with a fond smile.

"Alright, BALACLAVA. I'm your sister, you know. We don't always have to go with the code names." She turned to me. "Ugh, honestly, he was like this ever since he was a foal. Always with the names..." She shook her head. "Like this one time, he dressed up in some cloth we found and called himself 'Mister Robes'..." Balaclava's eyes widened, and the coat visible on his face turned a pinkish coloration.

"Oh no... Please, Butterscotch, don't..." But his sister didn't hear him.

"And this other time, he climbed a tree that was almost as tall as a three story building. When we tried to call him down, he said he wouldn't unless we called him 'Lord Branches'..." She continued, and Balaclava covered his face with both hooves as he cringed. The zebra and I barely suppressed a laugh. Seriously? 'Lord Branches'? What kind of name was that? Despite her brothers's obvious discomfort and embarrassment, she still didn't relent.

"And then there was the time he found some old bondage gear..." The moment she said 'bondage', Balaclava thrust his head up, the coat near his eyes looking absolutely red from embarrassment. The zebra fell over laughing, seeming like he could just laugh until he died. I had somehow completely completely forgotten about the situation, and so I too collapsed with laughter, banging my hoof on the ground as I exhausted my still recovering lungs.

"Oh no! No! No! You are SO not bringing that up! J-just tell me why you're here!" He shouted, clearly wanting to steer the conversation away from his childhood. His face turned to a ridiculously deep shade of red at the laugh his sister let out, and even more so when he looked at our hysterical forms.

The mare took a while to calm down, and when she did so did we. The zebra wiped tears from his eyes, before Butterscotch said, "Alright, alright. Now that I've got everyone's attention, I'll get straight to the point." She said with a much more serious tone. She looked at her brother, who was glaring at her with brotherly hatred. Still, he had gotten himself together enough to listen.

"Let me guess; command sent you here?" He asked with a tone that suggested he both already knew the answer and still wanted to kill her for saying the things she did.

His sister nodded. "Ayep. They're getting pretty impatient about your mission here, so they sent me and operative Doomtune over here to help you out." Balaclava and I both looked to the zebra.

"Why do they call you Doomtune?" I asked, and Balaclava's head turned to face the zebra with a look of curiosity in his eyes. I also wondered what the mare's operative name was.

The zebra had removed all of his raider looking garments, and was now wearing the same heavy vest with the logo and armored gasmask that I had come to associate with Specters, although how he wore all that under his disguise without anyone noticing, I don't know. There was also a heavy backpack in the corner, partially covered by stealth cloaks. It looked like it was big enough to contain all my equipment five times over.

He looked at me, and then pulled out a headset with speakers on both the inside and on the outside from the backpack. It had an old logo, most likely the name of the company that made the headset. Unfortunately, it was so faded it was beyond reading. The only thing left of the logo was a stylized 'R'. The headset had a dial-like switch on the side, with the options for the dial being 'inner', 'outer', and 'both'. Right now, it was on 'inner'. It was also connected to a small, screened device of some sort. He placed the device in one of his vest's pockets, then placed the headset over his helmet, making sure the speakers were aligned with his headgear's listening apparatus.

"Because I bring the music of death, that's why," He said in an amused tone that suggested he was grinning madly under his helmet. Then he pressed on the device's screen once, and immediately he started bobbing his head up and down rhythmically. I looked at him strangely, as did Balaclava. What the hell did he mean by that? Even Butterscotch looked a little confused, but she kept up a little smile before she turned to face us.

"Anyway..." She started. "Command sent us here to help you take these guys down." Her expression darkened forebodingly as she looked at me, then turned back to her brother with the same expression. "Something bad's going on, brother. Something really bad. Not just war; these people have faced that their whole lives. Something's happening. And you can call me crazy, but I can almost...feel it. Something...terrible. Even the Legion seems to know it. We need all the operatives we can get, so we're pulling them back. Canterium Prime even sent us another wing of operatives to counter this threat, whatever it is. Hell, we even sent out a team to try to find Predator. And you know how desperate we'd have to be to actually WANT him with us."

Balaclava took all that in with a grim expression, seeming to have forgotten his embarrassment completely. Even Doomtune seemed to be listening in through his music. "I'm sorry, sister. I don't really have a plan on how to take them out. There's too many of them, even for the three of us..."

"Four of us." I corrected, and they looked at me. "Hey, they beat the crap out of me for fun, and I want payback. And even if I didn't, it's not like I'd let these guys live to threaten people." The mare smiled thankfully. I couldn't tell how the other two felt, though.

"Actually, Praetorian, it's five of us." Butterscotch corrected. What did she mean by that? Let's see... One... Two... Three... Plus me... That's four. Maybe her brother had busted her head?

"What?" Balaclava asked, seeming just about as confused as I. In the corner, Doomtune had pulled out several rifles and pistols and was attaching what looked like silencers to them. Even with all that out, the backpack still looked bloated beyond what I thought possible. The mare looked a little confused for a moment, before she seemed to understand something.

"Oh, right. I almost forgot." She looked over at the zebra behind her, who now had far more equipment and ammo about him than I thought possible for the bag to carry. Doomtune tossed her a helmet and a rifle from the pile, along with a LOT of ammo. "Doomtune and I ran into some mare on our way here. She looked pretty banged up, and she had a stealthcloak slung across her back as she galloped into this area. When we stopped her, she said she was some friend of yours and that she had some plan to bust you out." What? Myst was trying to bust me out? And she was here? Oh no...

"Yup. She was being chased by two hostiles. We took 'em out and put on their clothing. Then she asked us the strangest thing..." Doomtune said, and my ears perked up as I listened intently. "She asked us to cover for her while she went around these buildings for a few minutes. After that, she told us to bring her here, tied and beaten, so she could bust you out. Guys downstairs were delighted, and told us to go tell 'the boss' that the 'cunt with the sniper rifle' was here."

My head was in turmoil, conflicted as to feel either angry or thankful. On the one hoof, she was risking herself to bust me out, and I should be thankful for that. On the other hoof, she was throwing herself into a very dangerous situation. And what the heck was her plan? And what if it failed? Wait...

"You said they were 'delighted' that she was here. Would you happen to know why?" I asked, hoping that the thought forming in my mind was just my fucked up brain acting up. Balaclava looked to Doomtune while Butterscotch removed her raider clothing, revealing that she was also wearing the same vest as her fellow Specters, and put on her helmet. Doomtune thought for a moment, tapping his gasmask's breathing apparatus with a hoof.

"Meh, I don't know. It's mostly stallions down there, with a few mares. She might get raped or s-..." He stopped abruptly, looking at my horrified and worried expression with wide eyes visible through his visor. The Specters looked at one another, as if trying to confirm something. At last, Doomtune seemed to understand. "Oh, fuck no..."

I ran to the elevator worriedly, my heart racing in my chest and my breathing heavy. I slammed on the buttons, shouting, "NO! No no no!"

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I finished strapping on my vest, and so I went to loading all of my weapons. Balaclava had told me to just use one of his several silenced rifles instead of my shotgun, and he even gave me some ammo. I took it, placing Tankbuster away.

Around me, the three of them were sprawling to finish final preparations before we arrived at the first floor, pulling all sorts of equipment from Doomtune's backpack. Balaclava had left the power armor behind because, and I quote; 'It was real tight around the nuts. Makes sense, since the original leader was a mare.' Finally, the backpack started to show signs of emptying. Each of them held their weapons with their forehooves as they stood on their hindlegs. All their guns, rifle or otherwise, had silencers, optical attachments, and laser sights attached onto them. Doomtune also had his headset set on 'outer', so all three of us could hear his music. It was rather upbeat, in fact the other two danced to it a little as they stood where they were.

But I didn't care for that. I was much too worried about my friend to care. I was worried at what I would find the moment these doors opened. I was worried about what was happening to her right now. Wether she was being used or not. Because if they touched her... if they did anything to her...

'Damn it, Myst! I told you to get away from here! I was trying to protect you!' I screamed in my head, and I almost did aloud. Instead, I just winced and closed my eyes, trying to get my breathing under control. I was sweating madly, the mere thought of what might be going on driving me insane.

Doomtune touched my shoulder with a hoof as he came down onto three legs, the last reaching to the device and lowering the volume of his music. "Relax, Praetorian. Think clearly and focus. We'll get her out, don't worry. And if they've done what we think..." He tensed, and I could see his eyes narrow through his visor. "Then I'll personally chop off their dicks." He said that as if he had personal experience about rape.

He stood back up, looking at the floor indicator, and set his music back to 'inner'. The other two looked to him, then at each other, then at the floor indicator, then nodded once at one another. They reached up a hoof to touch a small button on their helmets, and at once their visors turned from transparent to opaque. Doomtune did the same, looking at me one last time before I lost sight of his eyes. As one, all three of them also touched a small dial on the base of their helmets, right beneath the breathing equipment.

I breathed in deeply. He was right. Myst had done this to help me. If I died because I wasn't thinking clearly and focusing on the task at hoof, then it'll all have been for nothing. The only thing I could do now was make sure I was prepared.

Balaclava looked up at the floor indicator once, then said, "Ten seconds. Lock n' load, people." His voice was deep, just a tiny bit rough, and definitely louder than what it would have been if he wasn't wearing his helmet. His fellows did a few last things; tightening a strap, cocking their guns, and wiping the dust from their visors before getting into a battle stance.

And me? I just waited, taking in every breath with nervous anticipation. Then Doomtune counted down in a raspy version of his own voice: "Three... Two... One..."

"Let's do this." I said quietly, and I too readied my rifle's mechanism.

The doors slid open with a ring, and the first thing I saw was the heavy rain drops falling onto the pavement on the road outside the building, making a lot of noise as the drops struck the road. The next thing I saw was the small red dots of the Specter's lasers on the far wall. I looked around at the outside, scanning the area.

Twelve hostiles; four on our floor, the rest near the railings of the second. A quick glance at my E.F.S confirmed they were all that were here. All of them but one were looking away from us, completely unaware of our sudden arrival. The one that did see us and got up from his sitting got a shot to the head from Butterscotch.

We moved forward, me clearing the first floor while the other three branched off and went up to the second floor through different stairwells. As I turned a corner, I found a pair talking about something. Unfortunately, one of the two was facing my direction. As he brought up his weapon, his partner unaware of what was going on, I shot a burst of silent rifle fire that ended them before they could shoot.

On my E.F.S, the red bars were disappearing rapidly as the Specters continued their silent killing. I turned around another corner where the stairs started for the second floor, and saw the remaining pair descending the steps, completely oblivious to what was going on.

To my dismay, both already had their weapons up and needed only to spot me before they posed a threat. When they inevitably did, I downed one from a headshot before he reacted. The other fell down onto the steps just as I opened fire on him. I recognized him; he was the piece of shit who hit me with a rock earlier. His weapon was a submachine gun, and as such the rapid stream of lead he sent at me stung painfully as each round struck my vest. Luckily, it also wasn't strong enough to pierce through two layers of protective garment, and wasn't loud enough to be heard over the heavy downpour; even more luckily, whoever had been in hearing range of that was either dead or was about to be dead.

When he ran out, I grinned darkly at him. His face turned horrified. With immense satisfaction in my head, I pulled the trigger. Three rounds to his head later and he was dead, and as I turned away, I couldn't help but smile at that fact.

I went back to the first floor, waiting for us to regroup. The last red bar disappeared, leaving only three blue bars within the spell's range. The three came down a stairwell in single file, the last one facing backwards in case any other hostiles showed up.

As they reached me, Balaclava asked, "Alright, wher'd they take her?"

"Last we saw, they hauled her to one of the lower levels. There was a machine there: a model 7000 Auto-doc." Doomtune replied with that raspy voice his helmet assigned to him. He snorted in disgust. "Probably using the damned thing to hold her down. Fuckers." Okay, that was so not a mental image I liked having in my head. Considering how empty this place was, except for a few guards that I could make out in the windows of buildings through the rain, the great majority of them were probably down there... touching...

'No, don't think about it. Focus.' I thought to myself as I gulped. Butterscotch noticed my look of anxiety, and turned to her fellows.

"Well, then let's go get her." She said in an electronic voice that I couldn't determine as male or female, and sounded as if whoever was talking was pinching their nose."If we hurry, we can stop them before they..." She turned her head to me and continued slowly, as if she was trying to not make me more uncomfortable. "um... 'take the load off'." Despite her effort, I couldn't help but feel even more worried than I already was.

Balaclava and Doomtune looked to one another, and then Balaclava gestured for us to move. Once more we moved in single file; first Balaclava, then Butterscotch, me, and finally Doomtune. We trotted quickly across the wet hotel floor, my metal plated hooves slipping and sliding much more than their leather encased ones. They had disabled their laser sights, perhaps thinking that the red dots would expose their positions.

We arrived at the door leading down, and we found it locked. When we tried to kick it down, the metal simply bent inwards. Using their awesome melee skills to break the door down would take too long or cause too much noise, according to Balaclava. Butterscotch trotted over to a broken window and pointed her weapon out. Balaclava kneeled, facing the way we had come, and pointed his rifle down range. With those two locations secured, Doomtune pulled out a pair of rods. He attached each rod to both the top and bottom corner of the door, and then pulled out a detonator.

"Alright, be ready to breach!" He yelled over the sounds of the downpour going on around us. I didn't know what to do, so I just got next to the door and as far away from the breaching charges as I thought necessary. While I was no good at all this tactical breaching stuff, Balaclava and Butterscotch got up and went rather close to the door; much closer than I thought they should have. I was about to voice my concerns of being so close to the explosives, when Doomtune suddenly shouted, "Breaching!" Then he pressed the trigger on the detonator.

The next moments were blurry. The detonation was also far less noisy than I had thought, but I still heard the ringing in my ears. The moments themselves were a mix of getting pushed into the doorway, getting shoved along down the stairwell from behind by Doomtune, accidentally running into walls, and hearing noises. The noises were either the regulated breathing of the Specters, the noise their hooves made as they moved along with me, my own hooves stomping onto the ground, the sounds of the rain coming in from the open doorway, or muffled grunts and screams from below.

I wanted to stop for a moment. Not only because all of this had happened so quickly my mind needed to catch up, but I also needed to hear what was happening. In between the sounds of our hooves, the most I could make out were screams, obscenities being shouted aloud in either pony or zebra, the occasional crunch, and the sounds of physical combat. Unfortunately, the Specters were moving at such a viciously fast pace that I would have been left behind if I were not being shoved along. I couldn't even glance at my E.F.S to take in the number of hostiles down here.

Eventually, we reached the bottom floor. The Specters suddenly stopped, almost making me crash into Butterscotch in front of me. I didn't really mind; I needed to catch some air. Behind this door was where I had been held about an hour ago, and was now where a physical confrontation was being held. Finally, I was able to look at my E.F.S, and what I saw surprised me.

There were quite a lot of red bars surrounding a single blue bar. However, there were much fewer than I had thought. There were, what... twenty of them? While that was still a horrifying number to imagine assaulting Myst, I had expected the entirety of them down here. I guess not all of them were sex crazed lunatics.

But that didn't make hearing her screams and grunts of pain any easier to bear. I was absolutely aching to turn break open the door and kill them all. I wanted to tear them apart with my bare hooves; rip out their spines and beat them to death with it. I tried to move, but Butterscotch gestured me to stay put. I could just imagine what they were doing... holding her down while they pounded her... again and again... The mere thought of it all sickened me, and already I could feel a dark rage filling my mind.

'Well, what are you waiting for?' Asked Tod. 'Go get her already!'

'He has to wait; there's too many of them in there, and he might get killed. When they move, he moves.' Tom said in my head, but I actually wanted to agree with Tod. Why the hell was I waiting? She was right behind the damned door, getting screwed over by fifteen savages, and here I was waiting!

I looked behind me at Doomtune, who was beginning to shake. From what, I couldn't tell. He seemed perfectly fine to me. I squinted, trying to see his facial expression through his visor, but turned up with nothing. His breathing was significantly more uneven than that of the other two, and about as rough as mine.

"You alright, Doomtune?" I asked quietly, temporarily turning my concern to him. The other two heard my question, as they too turned their heads towards their comrade.

"When do we take them out, sir?" He asked Balaclava. "I can't take it, and neither can he. Just listening to this is torment for us. Let's go in there already!" I wondered just what he meant by 'torment for us'. As far as I thought, I was the only one who should be truly worried about what was going on. After all, he didn't really know... did he?

Butterscotch looked to Doomtune and me, then to Balaclava. "Come on brother. Let's kick their flanks."

Balaclava looked away, and opened the door just a little before popping his head out for a second. When he pulled away, he hung his head in resignation. The sounds of what was going on were now louder than ever though the open doorway, and that only made me want to kill them all more. I almost lost it and just jumped in when I heard the sound of a crunch, but relaxed a little when I heard a stallion scream in pain. Doomtune moved closer to stand right next to Balaclava, and reached over to the device in his vest. Next, he touched a hoof to the dial on his headset.

"Alright, let's get her. Just remember that this is gonna alert them, one way or another. Once we get her out, you two get out of here." Balaclava finally said, and I let out a great sigh of relief. I prepared myself to turn the corner, as did Butterscotch and Balaclava, when we all seemed to notice something about Doomtune.

"What are you doing?" Butterscotch asked in a rush, seeing her fellow Specter turn the volume of his music to the maximum. Doomtune chuckled, and turned to us.

"He said they're going to find out about us anyway, so we might as well make it awesome. You two don't need to worry. You, though, should put this on." The final statement was addressed to me, and he pulled out what looked like earmuffs and handed them over. "The music's gonna be loud."

"This why they call you Doomtune?" Butterscotch asked in a tone that suggested she thought what he was about to do was stupid. Even though I couldn't see his expression, I could tell that Balaclava didn't think it was a good idea, either. Balaclava facehoofed while his sister shook her head disbelievingly, saying, "Command really HAS to brief me on who they send me with next time. I swear, if I get killed because of this..." I couldn't care less so long as I got Myst out of here, so I just took the earmuffs and put them on.

"Come on," He said in response, "Surely you know that EVERYTHING is better with background music." We all shook our heads idly. "Ugh, never mind, then. Alright, I'll go in first to distract them. Poor suckers are gonna have their ears stung," He said with a dismissive wave of her hoof. Then he snickered, and yanked open the door and jumped though, firing his weapon and turning the dial on the headset to 'outer'.

The music that blasted out was LOUD. Really loud; much louder than I thought possible for those speakers. In fact, it was so loud that I felt the ground and walls vibrate from every beat and note. I couldn't help but look in awe at the pebbles and debris bouncing off the ground. This was weaponized music, and the power it displayed was as terrifying as any gun. And even through my earmuffs, I could still hear it clearly.

Balaclava turned to us and shouted. At least, I thought he did. Even if he didn't, he at least gestured for us to move. We sprang around the corner, and I saw the remaining sixteen or so hostiles clutching their ears, though a few pulled out their weapons. One of them was standing on the Auto-doc's table, fluids coming off from a certain area. I saw Doomtune moving to the corner, opening fire on the crowd. We opened fire as well, the aim of the operatives proving to be far superior to my own as almost every shot they fired off struck either the head or necks of the hostiles. They tried to return fire, and nearly hit me in the face through all their mad firing, but they were either unprepared or couldn't aim properly with the pain being caused by the music. I spotted Myst's sniper rifle laid against the Auto-doc.

Doomtune had also proven himself correct; they were indeed using the machine to hold my screaming and thrashing friend down. I gasped in horror the moment I saw that they had used the needle-tubes to pierce into her sides, causing immense bleeding and I assumed was meant to discourage movement with pain. As soon as she was visible through the crowd, Doomtune turned down his music such that I no longer needed the earmuffs. With any stragglers being put down left and right, I galloped to Myst like a madpony. She was screaming in pain, tugging at her shackles in a futile attempt to cover her ears. I seriously hoped that she wouldn't go deaf because of this, because if she did... well, suffice it to say you couldn't listen to music with your head gone.

But as I ran, I smelled something in my nostrils. It was a familiar musky smell; one I was all too familiar with. It was almost overwhelming, and I had to breathe through my mouth to avoid gagging from the stench. I slipped and fell, finding myself in a huge puddle of...

"Fuck! Get off me, get off me!" I yelled as I shook the disgusting semen off, feeling completely revolted and altogether angry. I got back up and made my way to Myst, who no longer tried to cover her ears because the music had stopped completely. Rather, as she lay there, she began crying. My anger was replaced with immediate concern, and I stomped my way through the white, wet mess to get to her.

"Goldwreath..." She sobbed in between her wretched and hoarse breathing. "... I'm so sorry..."

"Shhh... lay still..." I said softly, and pulled out a healing potion. Oh, wait... damn. I was out. If I remember correctly, I had used my last one on myself underneath the bridge. I began to look around desperately, even turning to the bloody and self-lubricated corpses in search of even the most meager healing supplies.

I had rummaged through the moist body of the closest raider, when Balaclava threw me a vial of the precious healing fluid. "I figured you'd ran out, seeing how screwed up you looked under the bridge." I smiled to him thankfully, while Myst looked to me with a tired yet concerned expression. I reached over to the machine and turned it off. With the sound of hydraulics, the needles withdrew and I began cutting her free. I held the vial over her muzzle and she began drinking, all the while looking at me with half-closed eyes.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Myst. This was all my fault. I should have done... something. I should have gotten here sooner." Self loathing flooded my thoughts, and so I said, "And now those... beasts... did things to you." I couldn't help myself. As the weight of my failure became more apparent to me, I began to shake. "I failed you, Myst. I'm the one whose supposed to be sorry."

She looked at me with a look of pained apology. "No..." She rasped, throat probably sore from all her screaming. "They didn't get me. They tried, but they didn't." I got her forelegs free, and she wiped her face with them.

"What? But... but how?" I asked, feeling my mind split into either confusion or a feeling that resembled relief. She sniffed, then looked down at herself. I did, as well.

Her coat was was torn and rough, and her hide was covered in countless bruises, with some bodily fluids -- mostly semen and what I assumed was saliva -- on a few areas, especially on her tattered camouflage jacket and in between her hindlegs. Thankfully, there were no such fluids in the one area I had feared to find them the most. Seeing that alone was like having an iron slab lifted off my head, and I sighed in relief. There were marks of hooves, too. Perhaps where some of them had stomped on her to keep her from struggling.

"I fought them," She said softly. "I tried to buy you time." Her lips curled into a pained smile of pride. "And it worked. The plan worked."

"I don't understand..." I said as I shook my head.

"This was part of my plan, Goldwreath. To distract them so they could get to you." She glanced behind me, at the three Specters watching the doorway. While Butterscotch and Balaclava focused on the stairwell, Doomtune's head was facing us. "This whole thing was part of my plan."

"WHAT?!" I asked aloud, making her eyes go wide. She glanced off to the side again, perhaps seeing the three Specters turn their attention to us. "Are you saying you WANTED to get raped? That you WANTED to get beaten and attacked? That you wanted to worry the fuck out of me?!" I shouted, angered. Damn it, I had gone through all this to prevent her from being hurt, and she did the exact opposite of what I wanted her to do! I had trusted her to keep herself safe, and instead she threw herself into danger!

I finished cutting her loose, and as she got onto the ground, she looked down at the floor in shame. "No. I didn't want any of that." She admitted meekly, but I still grit my teeth in frustration. I resisted the urge to shout at her again, and allowed her to continue. "In fact, the reason I'm sorry is because I know you think I betrayed you. That you think you went through... whatever you went through for nothing." She looked up at me with tears in her eyes and the most apologetic look I ever saw from a mare and said, "I'm sorry because I scared you."

I snarled in irritation and brought up a hoof to cover my face. I lowered it, just enough so I could see her. Her expression was practically begging me to forgive her, and her eyes threatened an immense sobbing session. I groaned, putting my hoof back onto the ground.

"I'm still very pissed off that you did this. You should have looked for Zaita and then busted me out, not this." I said sternly, and once more she hung her head in shame. She shouldn't have done this. She shouldn't have put herself in harm's way for me. Still, I understood her intent and her situation, and I am not ungrateful.

"But... thanks." I said in what I hoped was friendly tone. But beneath my smile, I still harbored my anger and feelings of betrayal. Now just wasn't the time to get distracted.

She slowly raised her head and looked at me with wide eyes. Despite the effort, I kept up my smile. In return, I saw her lips curl into a smile as well.

Then she hugged me. Either she thought it necessary or she simply felt immensely relieved, but either way it was a hug. I felt my cheeks burn from the unprecedented action, and my mind went blank, causing me to lose all feelings of betrayal and anger. My embarrassment was only worsened by the fact that all three Specters each let out a long 'aww', which sounded rather scary from their altered voices.

I don't know how long it lasted, but she finally pulled away with a smile on her face. I smiled back, much more genuinely this time. She intentionally put herself in danger to bust me out. She nearly got raped in the process. And she also got herself unnecessarily injured along the way. But she did all that because she was my friend; something I could only say about a few other people. And I'd be damned if I let that friendship get damaged by my fucked up way of thinking.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

We began trotting to the three, when a gigantic number of bars appeared on my E.F.S, all of which were red. The Specters must have noticed the sudden presence of our very unwelcome guests, as they each turned their attention to the stairs. Perhaps they also had an E.F.S? Balaclava looked to me and Myst and said, "Alright, reunions time's over! Doomtune, sister, you're with me! Praetorian, watch over your friend!" He turned a knob on the side of his rifle, then turned to the other two. "Alright, let's take 'em out!" Then they charged up the stairs, while what sounded like a really loud bass drop came from Doomtune's speakers at a loud enough volume to vibrate the walls.

"Now's a really good time to tell me what that plan of yours was!" I yelled over the sounds of rapid gunfire mixing with screams as I pulled her up. On my E.F.S, the Specter's three blue bars were moving into an enormous mass of red ones.

"We have to get to the road. The signal... can't... can't reach from down here..." She panted as she clutched her side, a pained expression on her face.

"Signal? For what?" She didn't answer, instead focusing on her breathing. The most she gave me was a quick glance before she collapsed, breathing hard. I picked her up and wrapped her hoof around my neck.

Explosions shook the building, causing small pieces of rubble and dust to fall from the ceiling. From the stairwell came the nearly drowned-out sounds of multiple bodies slumping onto the ground. I looked at the stairs anxiously, then remembered the volume of Doomtune's music. I got her rifle and slung it across my back and removed the earmuffs and put them on her before beginning the trot up.

The blood that came down the stairs like a stream made my ascent slippery, while the dozen or so bodies made me watch my footing carefully. Doomtune's music coupled with the detonations of what was most likely rockets shook the building hard, and was definitely not making going up easier. For all the mess they left behind which I had to trudge through, I couldn't help but respect them for their combat prowess. If it were me in their place, wether with my friends or not, could I so easily cut through all these raiders to escape? Somehow I didn't think so.

I emerged into the lobby, leaving the two dozen dead zebras behind. I noticed that the rain had reduced to a mere drizzle. Taking that in mind, I turned my attention back to the Specters. The three of them had formed a sort of ring in front of the doorway, firing shots at anyone trying to approach with deadly precision. When they noticed that I had emerged, Balaclava gestured for us to move. I brought myself and Myst to the other side of the lobby as quickly as possible while they moved along with us, providing covering fire. Only one shot struck me despite the immense number of hostiles opening fire on us from outside, either because of blind luck or the three of them taking the shots for us.

When we hit the other side, I put Myst down and laid her against a column, which I took cover behind. While Doomtune and Butterscotch kneeled and resumed firing, letting their heavy vests do their job, Balaclava came over to me.

"So what's her plan?!" He yelled over the near deafening noise around us, mostly Doomtune's music. Before I got to answer, he turned to his comrade and gestured to his headset. Doomtune responded by lowering his music's volume. While at least now our hearing wasn't being threatened, neither was that of our attackers. Even as he turned back to me, a greater number of hostiles appeared out of their cover to open fire on us, some charging in with flamethrowers. In response, Butterscotch pulled out a little clay jar. She flung it at the doorway, and as it landed in their midst, she shot it. With an unnatural looking violet light, it detonated and coated the blast radius in violet flame and bluish dust. Those who breathed in the dust fell to the ground, apparently unconscious.

I waited for the ringing in my ears to subside a little before I responded. "Don't know! All she got to me was that we needed to get to the road. Something about a signal." His opaque visor turned to her, almost as if trying to extract more info than that with his gaze alone. He stomped a hoof on the ground in irritation.

"Damn it!" Even through his altered voice, he sounded quite annoyed. He turned back to his music-blasting ally, and tapped him twice. When Doomtune turned his head, Balalclava gestured to me, particularly my ears, and then at the headset on Myst's head. Doomtune pulled out another set from his heavy backpack and tossed it to me. After I had placed it on, my ears thankful for the relief, Balaclava gestured for his companions to move. As one, they got up and began moving slowly towards the exit, trading automatic fire with their opponents. The violet flame had subsided, so the doorway and the windows nearby were practically swarming with hostiles peppering the lobby with deadly lead. Still, the three's heavy vests did a really good job protecting them from the storm of rifle fire.

With the distracted crowd focusing on my heavily protected and well armed allies, I picked Myst up off the ground. She had fallen unconscious from exhaustion, and I worried how that would affect her plan. But I had no time to wake her up. Even the Specters couldn't hold the crowd down forever, even with the unfathomable amount of ammo and equipment in Doomtune's backpack and on their vests. Where as earlier they showed no sign of pain whenever they got hit, now with every bullet that struck them they staggered and flinched.

"Doomtune!" Yelled Butterscotch.

"Quod est?!"

"Sunt solveret in tergum ostium!" She yelled in a concerned tone, one that I barely made out through her altered voice. Let's see... something about our rear?

"Ego cura est!" He turned back, darting down a hallway behind the lobby's counter.The flashes of automatic fire the moment he went in told me all I needed to know.

"Sister, Praetorian, movere deinceps, nunc!" Shouted Balaclava as he jumped through the doorway, knocking down three hostiles in the process. He recovered quickly and opened fire. Okay, something about... moving forward? ...Oh, ok!

I hobbled along behind them, dragging Myst with me. The ground shook more intensely, signaling that Doomtune was coming back to us. I hoped he had indeed cleared the area behind us, because right now I could do nothing but use myself as a shield for Myst, and I couldn't even shoot. A rocket flew through the window, nearly blasting Doomtune to pieces as the operative hit the deck.

More missiles hit the building, blowing out chunks of the walls and the doorway Balaclava and Butterscotch were near. The building groaned, threatening collapse. I began to panic; we were still in the damned thing, after all. When the bloody red fog had cleared, revealing the area to be littered in about two dozen blasted and mutilated corpses, Balaclava pulled himself out from underneath a concrete slab with a groan while his sister crawled behind cover, leaving a trail of red behind her. For once, they looked like they couldn't exert themselves or their equipment any more, what with the smoking embers and the many bullet holes on their vests together with their battered helmets. Doomtune rushed to their aid, turning off his music as he ran, while the rocket wielding hostiles reloaded. On my E.F.S, they formed a near solid wall of red.

"We're so fucked." I muttered darkly as I hurried for cover, but I still got shot in the flank with what felt like a sniper rifle. I staggered the rest of the way, and I almost threw Myst next to Butterscotch just to get her safe. I resisted that urge, and for my slowness got shot in the leg. When I reached the cover, I laid her next to the injured operative and collapsed next to them.

They opened fire again, blasting out more sections of the wall in the process. Balaclava had gotten away and was now with the rest of us, while Doomtune helped Butterscotch get her helmet off before pulling out a healing potion. One rocket struck the segment Balaclava had just gotten behind, tearing away the flesh of his left foreleg just under his knee and sending him flying into the now exposed lobby.

"Baley!" His sister yelled, trying to get up to get to her brother. Doomtune kept her down and forced her to down the rest of the potion, and after she did he jabbed her with a needle filled with the same clear fluid Zeneta had used on me back in the hospital.

Balaclava grunted, trying to get up. Upon using the bone of his foreleg to try to stabilize himself, he collapsed, screaming in agony. Butterscotch watched with a look of utter horror as two rounds struck her brother's vest as he once more tried to get up, as did I. One round bounced off harmlessly, while the other blasted out of his stomach and buried itself into the floor, and he fell down with a thud. A pool of blood quickly formed around him as he turned his head to us, using what remaining strength he had to reach up to the button on his helmet. The visor slowly became clear, and through it his eyes locked onto his sister's before he closed them. Butterscotch choked, doing her best to not break down, now of all times.

I was exhausted. All I had the energy to do was tap Doomtune, who was currently the only one of us who was capable of combat. He turned his attention away from the cringing Butterscotch and faced me. "We... need to wake her up..." I breathed, trying to get as much air in my lungs as possible.

I could hear the laughs shared by our attackers, and it frightened me. Somehow, I knew the moment we were all down was the moment they rush in here and do horrible things to us before they killed us. The thought made me shudder. Doomtune perked up at the noise, and immediately picked up his rifle and poked his head out of cover. A moment later, he exposed himself just long enough to empty a whole magazine, and five red bars on my E.F.S disappeared. As he reloaded, he pulled out a syringe and threw it to me. "Give her this, it should get her up. At least for a while." Butterscotch lay against the wall, having lost the fight to not cry. I felt for her. She didn't even get a chance to be by him while he died. For some reason, that angered me. It felt so unjustified, like... like when I was forced to leave my stable for the crime I didn't commit.

But as much as I wanted to help her, I had to get Myst up otherwise we'd all die. Right now, my friend's plan was the only hope we had to not share Balaclava's fate. I jabbed the needle into her leg, and slowly she opened her eyes. "Myst! Your plan, now!" I yelled at the top of my lungs to get my message across. The sounds of bullets and rockets filled the air, almost as deafening as Doomtune's music at max volume.

She blinked twice, almost as if clearing her mind as much as her vision. She reached into one of the pockets on Doomtune's backpack in a casual manner, from the non-troubled look in her eyes. Doomtune looked to her and nodded, almost as if he knew what was in there. Which, since it was his backpack, was likely the case.

My eyes shot wide at what she pulled out. The zebra operative glanced over his shoulder at us. Myst herself looked around calmly for a second, then at me.

"This is your plan?!" All she did in response was nod.

Doomtune dove away from his firing position, covering the still crying Butterscotch with his body. My mind was still racing to catch up -- mostly to think of what to do, considering what was just revealed to me.

Then she pressed the detonator, a small screen indicating the number of explosives linked to it. That number was twenty-five -- specifically, twenty-five pieces of highly explosive ordinance. In the distance, I heard numerous, thunderous sounds. Those sounds were getting closer and closer with each second.

"Hit the deck!" Doomtune yelled as the sounds of the dozens of explosives came even closer. I did so, just a moment before the explosives nearest to us detonated, blasting fire and shrapnel through the gaps in the wall. As I lay there, waiting for the deafening choir of detonations to seize, I watched the majority of the red bars on my E.F.S disappear.

After the detonations, there was an eerie and uncomfortable silence in the area. The blasts had blown so much dust into the lobby that the blood on my coat was matted with the stuff. Doomtune stirred, wiping the dust from his visor. Beneath him, the shock of what had just happened had caused Butterscotch to cease her sobbing and look around her with wide eyes.

"So THAT was her plan," Doomtune said in wonder as he got up and trotted outside. He leaned forward, then got onto his hindlegs. "That a hostile?" Then he pulled out his rifle and walked out of sight into the dust. Butterscotch got up and ran to her brother's bloody and dusty corpse.

I turned to Myst with amazement bordering on relief. "You know, I have to say, even if you're plans are damned ambitious, at least they work." I laughed a little, "Hey, maybe you should become our strategist from now on! Wouldn't that be great?" She looked at me with wide eyes, then gave me a weird expression as she shook her head. My heart deflated a little. Then again, I wasn't really expecting her to agree. "Oh well. Still, at least your plans work, unlike mine." She looked back at me with a comforting expression.

"Goldwreath, this was my first time. Maybe it was just beginner's lu-..." That was all she got out, before a rocket smashed into the wall right behind me, singing my coat and nearly knocking me off my injured and tired legs.

Doomtune jumped back behind our cover to join us, a shot ricocheting off his helmet as he landed. "Yes, definitely a hostile!"

I turned to Myst with a smirk. "Well, I guess not all beginners are lucky." She smiled sheepishly in response.

"We still got about eight missile launchers, and another dozen on assault. We can take them, but..." He looked to the sobbing Butterscotch, who had dragged her brother's body behind some cover, then at me and Myst. He sighed and shook his head. "Well, it seems like I'm on my own." He began to turn the corner back to the outside.

"Hell no!" I grunted as I pulled myself up off the ground, placing a hoof on his shoulder. "You're not doing this alone. I'm going to help you out; I don't want another casualty." I told him firmly as I pulled out Tankbuster, slinging my new rifle across my back.

"Well, someone has to watch these two. And no offense, but I don't really think you can take all these guys out. Hell, even I'm not sure if I can, but I'll try anyway. No one kills a Specter and gets away with it." He replied as he touched a hoof onto his headset, which he had not taken off the whole fight.

"No." Myst interrupted, catching both of our attention.

"No what?" Doomtune sounded confused.

"No, you don't need to go out there." She elaborated, and the zebra cocked his head sidewards in confusion. I gave her a confused look, as did Butterscotch, her bloodshot and puffy eyes pulling a melancholy chord in my heart.

Doomtune laughed, "Haha! Oh boy, that mix I gave you must have messed up with your head!" He chuckled a bit, but Myst didn't show signs of joking. "Uh... okay, how do I put this..." He got up onto his hindlegs and gestured around him. "There are bad people here; people that need to die. I'm going to kill them." He explained slowly, putting emphasis on each word.

"I know." Myst responded evenly. "But you don't have to. I have some friends coming." Wait, what? Who?

Doomtune facehoofed, groaning in apparent annoyance. "I really should reduce the Mint-Al content of those mixtures..." He put his hoof down with a sigh, and turned to see me giving him a questioning look.

"Mint-Als?" I asked.

"Yeah, it's a kind of drug. Makes the subject think more clearly for a time, allowing them to concentrate even in battle. The mix I gave her..."

"You gave her drugs?" I asked menacingly, pointing a hoof at my friend, who watched us with disturbing calmness. "So what are you implying? That because of those drugs, she's going delusional?" I looked to my friend in concern, but she just leaned against the wall and watched us with minimal concern.

"Uh... no?" I narrowed my eyes at him. "Hey, look, you wanted her awake, and the only thing I had to get her up was my own personal mix of various drugs. As long as she doesn't take too much, she won't get addicted, if that's what you're worried about. I don't know why the hell she's talking about 'friends' coming here, though. " He peeked outside, then immediately pulled back as the wall got peppered with assault rifle fire. "Look, now really isn't the time to discuss this. If we survive..." A grenade landed in our midst, but he just picked it up and threw it back outside. A scream accompanied the detonation. "... then I'll personally remove the drugs from her system, if you're that paranoid about it." I relaxed a little at that. He'd better, because I was going to hold him to that.

He peeked his head out again, but this time didn't get shot at. The rifle fire had continued, but not in our direction. On my E.F.S, red bars were disappearing. "Quod in inferno..." Doomtune muttered to himself as he took a few slow steps out. The sounds of an engine emanated from around the corner, most likely from a vehicle. "Oh, shit!" Once more, he jumped back behind our cover as the ground where he had stood was pounded by heavy rounds.

'BUG-BUG-BUG!' Oh, that was a sound I recognized. And one I was very very glad to hear.

Doomtune didn't view it the same way, evidenced by him pulling out the same blue-glowing cylinders Predator had tried but failed to use in the past. "No." I said as I stopped him from flinging the cylinder. He looked to me with confusion. Or at least I think he did; I couldn't see through his visor, after all. I smiled as I said, "Friendlies." I trotted outside, and was greeted with the sight of our armored transport's gun pointing at me. "Hey, Zaita."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

All of our opponents had been decimated from a combination of Myst's explosive surprise and the sudden appearance of our APC, which, after some questioning, was revealed to also be part of Myst's plan to bust me out. Doomtune and Butterscotch (I still didn't know her operative name) had taken the time of ceasefire to prepare Balaclava's body for some kind of funeral.

"...and that is where she ran into us; about a mile away from here." Said Zaita, who was explaining just what Myst's plan was. Ok, so apparently her plan had been to distract the raiders (a part of her plan which I still felt a pang of anger over) and wait for me to bust her out together with the Specters. She had met them after she had run into Zaita, whom she told to wait for a signal before coming to our help. After Myst was free, she would signal our transport with the explosives she had set up before getting herself captured.

Doomtune looked at our APC with amazement, marveling at it. Honestly, if I hadn't been INSIDE of the vehicle when I first met Zaita, then I too would have watched the talking vehicle with amazement. Butterscotch didn't share his wonder, sitting next to her brother's corpse with a blank expression.

"Oh, and, uh... as for the explosives... well, um..." Myst started, once more uncomfortable, most likely due to the number of people around her. "...well, I had to sneak into their armory, where they kept their weapons. I almost couldn't believe how much ordinance they had down there. It was probably enough to blow several tanks to pieces." She sighed with a small smile of pride, perhaps taking joy in her accomplishment. "So I blew it all up."

"What? Why would you do that? We could have used that stuff!" Interrupted Doomtune, who had began scanning the area for any remaining hostiles after finally losing interest in our APC. "Just because we Specters got good equipment doesn't mean we don't need to scavenge. And with the fighting in the city, we need all the ammo and weapons we can get."

"And how would you have brought all of it with you, hmm?" Myst questioned with a tone of smugness. Doomtune, whose visor was no longer opaque, looked a little shocked. Perhaps he wasn't used to being questioned so.

"Well, I could have called Home Base and asked for some transports. Ordinance with the variety and quality these guys possessed could have been invaluable to us. Destroying it all was wrong." He replied with an edge in his voice, one that suggested he was ready to defend his point.

That assumption of mine was proven true when the two began debating about whether or not it was right to blow up all the equipment. I really couldn't care less, so I turned to Zaita as a source of conversation; the eerie silence accompanying the area's destruction was a very good incubator for my habit of talking when things are quiet.

"So, Zaita, when do you think we should leave? This whole trip has been one distraction after another, and we really should get back to Verge after we get you upgraded before Skyfire gets up." I thought of how simple the plan had been: go out, get the APC upgraded, go back. Yet another of my plans going so wrong so quick.

"Ah, yes, about that..." She turned around, letting me see the back of the APC. The gun tracked me for a moment, then oriented itself to face where the vehicle was facing. I suddenly realized something.

"Wait... I didn't know you could operate the gun on your own."

"I can't."

I looked at our transport with confusion. "Then who's operating the..."

The hatch was thrown open, and an orange pegasus wearing an armored tank crew vest and a hat popped out, smiling at me with an overconfident and proud smile. On her sides were twin plasma rifles, both of which looked recently polished and cleaned. I stared at her with my mouth hung low. She got up onto the vehicle, then jumped into the dust, causing the stuff to fly off in all directions as she landed.

"Sooo, you missed me?" Asked Skyfire.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"What the hell is going on here?!" I yelled aloud, sandwiching my head with my forehooves. My question coupled with Skyfire's appearance had gotten the attention of everyone, Butterscotch included. "You... you... when did... where'd you get... uh... GAH!" I fell onto my haunches, still clutching my head.

"Honestly," Skyfire started, seeming amused at my behavior despite her expression. "I would have thought you'd be glad to see me again." She sounded offended, but whether or not she was being overdramatic, I couldn't tell.

"I am! It's just that, well..." I got up, shaking my head and organizing my thoughts. "...I just thought that you'd, you know, stay in the hospital in Verge to..."

"Fuck no!" She snapped, interrupting me mid-sentence. Her friendly and confident demeanor suddenly changed to one of anger and frustration. "I thought I told you I don't like being in one place for too long. Speaking of which, you guys left me behind! What the hell?" She trotted closer, and pointed a hoof at me accusingly. "Do you realize how scared out of my mind I was? I nearly had to kill the doctor because I thought she was lying to me about you leaving!" She sounded angry, and that was reflected on her expression. All I could do was mouth the words 'nearly killed the doctor' while I thought of the time she had threatened another doctor back in Road Town.

"Oh... sorry about that Skyfire. But we had to..." Myst's voice was quiet, yet could be heard, if faintly. Skyfire turned to her with a menacing look.

"Yeah, yeah, something about getting Zaita upgraded or some shit. It doesn't really change the fact that you left me!" She sniffed and blinked her eyes hard. Myst wisely kept quiet and just allowed her to continue. Butterscotch and Doomtune had momentarily turned their attention to us. "Damn it, I don't want you guys to go anywhere without me. If... if you get in trouble, then I want to be there to help out. I don't want to lose you."

Zaita's camera turned to me. "For some reason, this conversation interests me. It's almost like the ones my former crew had, except with more shouting." I looked at her strangely. What the heck did that mean? I understand if she felt involved in the conversation, seeing as she was our transport, but... seriously, what? "And as for your original question, I believe we should leave as soon as possible."

I turned my train of thought back to my pegasus friend, who was glaring daggers at me and Myst, and the occasional glance at our APC. "I'm... sorry, Skyfire. I... we shouldn't have left you behind. That was wrong of us. If there's anyway we can make it up to you, we'll do it."

She relaxed a little, closing her eyes and sighing. When she opened them again, she looked at me with a hard stare. "Promise me that we won't split up like that again, and I'm good." She said with firmness.

I was really about to say 'I promise', when I took in just what I was about to do. The gravity of what she was asking was tremendous, after all. What if we really did need to split up? Would she hold it against me then? And what would she feel if I wouldn't be able to keep that promise?

My hesitation brought a frown to Skyfire's face, but then Myst said, "We promise." She turned to me, and locked her eyes to mine. In her gaze, I could almost feel her nudging me to make the same commitment. "Right, Goldwreath?"

"Um... yeah. I promise. No more splitting up. Bad stuff happens when we split up." I felt a little disappointed, making that promise without much thought. Then again, I wanted to keep my friends safe. And if they were so set on coming with me into the city, then the most I could do to protect them was be with them at all times. Hell, half of my brain even applauded me for the decision. The other half felt rather disappointed.

"Good." She breathed in deeply, placing yet another confident smile on before turning around and getting back up onto the APC. I found myself staring at her hindquarters, and I averted my gaze before anyone caught me. Just as she was about to jump in, she turned to face me and asked, "Well? Aren't you coming?"

"Wait, where are we going?"

She looked a little surprised, raising an eyebrow at me. "We're getting our ride pimped up, right? Well, let's go already!"

"Oh, right." I felt a little stupid, not knowing what she had meant. Well, I did get my head smacked more than once in that fight, so maybe that contributed to me feeling really sluggish. Either that or it was my fatigue. I turned to Myst, who had resumed her argument with Doomtune. In front of the hotel, Butterscotch had set her brother's body on a pile of old wood. "Come on, Myst. We've wasted enough time. After this, we go back to Verge to resupply and finally head into the city."

Myst looked disappointed, but then tore herself away from her debate. As she trotted away, Doomtune raised a hoof in the air and whooped, like he felt he had won the argument. Right before Myst got into our vehicle, she stuck her tongue out at him, rather childishly, if I do say so myself. Doomtune's head jerked backwards at the act, and he slowly lowered his hoof as he glared in our general direction.

I too was about to jump in, when I realized we were leaving the two behind. "Hey," I called back, catching his attention as he trotted away. "You two need a ride or something? Maybe we could drop you off somewhere, if it's along our way."

He shook his head before replying, "Naw, we got it from here. We'll wrap the place up, see if there's anything to salvage. Maybe there's enough stuff here to call Home Base for. Maybe that Auto-doc..." He paused for a moment, then shook his head. "Then we'll spread the word to the nearby settlements, if there are any, that this place is clear. After that, we're heading back to the city." He glanced behind him, at his fellow Specters, both dead and alive. "Besides, there's still the matter of taking care of my superior's body."

He turned away, taking off his helmet. I was about to get in once more, before he called back to me. "Oh, I almost forgot." He said in his natural voice, un-altered by his helmet. "You might need this." He pulled out a small device, not the same one he used to play his music, and flung it at me. I caught the small radio-looking device in my forehooves.

"What's this?" I asked as I turned it over, looking at it.

"A communicator. We Specters use it to signal any other operatives in our vicinity that we need help. That one's mine, but I can just use operative Balaclava's." I took that in, thinking it wrong to take the possessions of the dead. Then again, scavenging was a must in the wasteland. And Butterscotch didn't seem to care, so I assumed she was fine with it. "Besides, we do have you to thank for helping out with the mission. If Balaclava were alive, I think he would have given you his." Seriously? What did I do that whole time that was helpful? All I did was get shot at and carry Myst around, they did all the actual fighting.

With a wave of our hooves, we went our separate ways. I got into our transport, feeling my body beg me to lay down and rest after my ordeal. The cool air coupled with the lack of much else to do helped me find a feeling of safety and comfort in slumping against one of Zaita's walls. Only one last thought occurred to me: Doomtune's words.

"We Specters use it to signal any other operatives in our vicinity that we need help."

Now, I realized just how dangerous this thing could be. If I ever used this thing, I might get help. And I might bring someone else to me as well.

'Predator.' I thought in my head. I also wondered if, perhaps, Predator had expected Doomtune to give me his communicator. The thought scared me, mostly because that if he did, then he could use it to track me down.

With a tired sigh, I put that thought away. Myst had already fallen asleep in her usual spot in the corner of the vehicle, covering her nethers with her forehooves. Even if she seemed fine, I expected that she would have nightmares about what had nearly happened to her. I felt concerned for her, but that concern was drowned out by my own exhaustion.

I closed my eyes as Zaita started moving once more, to the ZSI HQ. My body felt on the verge of collapsing, and I was just about to fall asleep when Skyfire said in a cheery and energetic tone, "So, what did I miss?"

I groaned quietly, covering my face with my hooves. When I removed them, I put on a mock smile of enthusiasm. "Okay, I'll tell you." I said with a false tone of cheer. "But it'll take a while, maybe an hour or two."

"Sure. I missed a lot, and I need to get back up to speed as soon as possible." She said with a smile. My eye twitched, as she obviously did not understand that I needed to rest. I was about to tell her as much, when she asked, "Oh, and who was that filly Zaita brought in?"

And with that, I knew I needed to tell her. I knew I had to tell her about what we went through without her. I couldn't put that question off, not without some whining from Skyfire (whining which I would not be able to take).

I sighed and readied myself, thinking of just how to start. "Ok, let's start from the bridge..."

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Unwavering Endurance, Level One -- Your brutal experiences have taught you that if you can endure, you can survive. You gain an additional point to your 'endurance' attribute, as well as gain an additional 20 points of health.

Chapter 11 - The Music of Harmony

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Chapter 11
The Music of Harmony
"You'd think one would find a less perilous place to explore."

After I had explained the whole story to Skyfire, all the way up to our meeting about an hour ago, she looked at me with thoughtful and worried expression. I left out my dream, though. I just didn't feel it important enough to tell them about. I mean, it was just a dream... right?

It was already afternoon, indicated by the orange light that flowed in through our APC's windows. Zaita had kept quiet most of the time, seeming content to just listen. Although, she would occasionally add some details where I had no information, like how Myst and her had found out about the fallen transport.

Thankfully, there had been a few healing potions in the supply box. I drank the majority of those as I told my story, and now I was feeling MUCH better. My wings still felt broken, though. A little stretch confirmed that suspicion. You know, I've been getting these things injured a lot since I got out here. I really should take better care of them.

"What a motherfucking asshole!" Skyfire exclaimed, referring to Predator. "How could he just... do that? How could he just kill all those people and not care?" She seemed far more concerned about the zebra than most of my story, except perhaps the ghouls in Pyro Kinetics coupled with Watcher's appearance, and what happened in the hotel.

"Do I need to quote Balaclava again?" I asked, feeling a pang of pain in my heart over his death. Somehow, I felt responsible for it. That I had been useless and should have done more. It was ridiculous, a part of my brain felt. After all, I didn't shoot him. Yet I still couldn't shake the guilt off.

Skyfire sighed before replying, "No, I still remember his description pretty well. I just can't... comprehend his way of thinking. Well, I would try to if the fuck-tard didn't try to kill me on the bridge. And if he didn't try to murder that filly after what he did to the transport." She scowled, and I could tell that in her mind she too was envisioning ways to kill the bastard. She had begun showing signs of hating him the moment I told her what happened on the bridge, and finally openly admitted she did after the part about the aircraft.

With my story told, I finally got time to rest. Myst had spent the entire duration of the trip asleep, occasionally shifting position. I felt even more guilty every time she did, as each time she would mutter something along the lines of 'don't touch me' or 'no... please no...' I knew what she was referring to, and I felt, yet again, responsible for it.

I had been lying down on the seats for a few moments after the conversation, leaving Skyfire to process all the new info, when a thought suddenly occurred to me.

"Wait," I groaned, tearing my eyes open once more. "Zaita, where are we going?"

"The ZSI Roaman HQ, of course."

"Wait, but... don't you still want to go to the camp?" I asked, remembering only now my AI companion's request two nights ago. Once more, I felt a little disappointed in myself, this time for not remembering the apparently important request of our transport. Skyfire looked to me, and was about to say something when Zaita beat her to that intent.

"Ah, yes, that. There is no need. I have already visited the area."

"What? when?"

"Earlier today." Skyfire chimed in. "When I convinced those people to let me go with Zaita after she had recharged, I went along with her to the camp. Took us a few hours to get there, and the whole time Zaita explained why we were going there and all she could about what had happened since I got knocked out." She turned to me with a small smirk, "We waited there for hours, but when you didn't show up, we got concerned. We went to the crash site, which is where you were last seen. We searched up and down over miles of land, looking for any place that you two could have gone." She turned to look at the sleeping Myst and smiled. "Then we ran into her, and now here we are."

I felt yet another wave of guilt pass through me. I turned to face Skyfire and Zaita's camera, both of which were already looking at me. "Zaita, Skyfire... I'm so sorry. Sorry I made you two search for us. I... maybe if I hadn't went into those buildings in the first place..."

"It is alright. Do not be sorry." Zaita's voice sounded over the cockpit. "The area was nothing more than a few tents and barricades, with only the occasional skeleton. The area was completely devoid of any importance. It was a waste of time." The interior camera looked away from the outside and to the floor. "It was just as I had feared. There was nothing there worth any value."

"There was ALMOST nothing there worth anything." Skyfire corrected. "I did get this awesome tank crew uniform, and it's even armored! Not to mention the memory orb in that one tent, remember? And the ammo in what you said was once the armory?"

"Ah, yes. Those."

"Memory orb?" I asked, the guilt of not being able to completely fulfill my transport's one request fading away from her assurance that it was fine and my curiosity regarding the orb.

"Yeah, I found them in some locked chest beneath some bunk bed. Melted the padlock off and took 'em out while Zaita floated around, looking at stuff. I kept them, since you seem to like going into these things." Skyfire informed me, looking just a touch proud at her find. Then again, she was always proud, so I really couldn't tell if her pride was from her recent find or from something else.

"Can I take a look at it?" At my question, my fellow pegasus looked at me skeptically. "Look, I just want to see what's in it, okay? We're not in any imminent danger right now, so I should look at it while I have time." She continued her skeptical look, the only difference being that this time she raised an eyebrow at me. "Oh, come on. What, do I have to do something just to get a look at it?"

At that last statement, Skyfire gave me a pleading expression and wide eyes. She pouted as she said, "Aw, you really want to go in the thing? Can't we talk first? I didn't get to talk to any of you for the last two days! Can't we catch up for a bit?"

I snorted, "What do you think we've been doing for the last hour? I think we've talked enough for now." I still felt like crap, and all of my hide stung terribly at every move I made, thanks in no small part to my burns. Fortunately, most of the fire had struck my vest and armor instead. If I hadn't been wearing them... I don't even want to think about it. And there was of course my many broken bones, plus all of my pipbuck's warnings that every part of me was crippled. In all honesty, I didn't even know how I was still alive.

She made her eyes wider and pouted, the light reflecting off of her eyes coupled with my own personal desire for conversation almost winning me over. But I was too tired and exhausted for talking. And yet, somehow, the will to sleep was removed from me at the very first mention of the memory orb. I told her as much, or at least up to the exhausted part, and she stopped her pouting.

With a disappointed sigh, she fished the orb out of her own saddlebag and tossed it to me. "Fine. I needed to think a little about what you told me anyway." She lay down on her seat again and looked up at the ceiling with what I perceived as a thoughtful expression.

I rummaged through my saddlebags for that headgear I used to view the previous orbs. Skyfire really did seem like she was thinking, looking up at the ceiling with thoughtful eyes. I pulled the thing out, finding it only a little bit smashed from all I had gone through since I last used it. At most, I was sure the little dents on the side of it wouldn't affect all the memory-viewing technical crap. I took off my own helmet, which needed some serious repairs along with the rest of my gear, before I strapped on the memory viewing headgear.

"How far are we from this place, Zaita?" I asked, wanting to know how much time I could afford to be in the memory. Because I didn't want to make them wait if we got there and I was still in the memory.

"It is exactly twenty-eight point four miles from our location, and will take about another two hours to get there." I took that in with a nod, and was about about to place the orb in the cup-like depression above the headgear's brow plate before she added, "Before we arrive, however, I believe should inform you of the dangers of the area surrounding it." I perked up at that, temporarily diverting my attention from the orb to her statement.

"Such as?" If this place, or at least the area around it, was dangerous, then I needed to hear it all before we got there. I didn't want to be unprepared for what we might face. Across from me, Skyfire had ceased her thinking and was now paying close attention.

"First off," She started, turning her interior camera from looking outside the window to look at me. "There is the possibility that the compound itself is dangerous. Turrets and... 'ghouls' are the most likely dangers, though I would advise you to consider other possibilities."

"Other possibilities?" Skyfire queried, echoing my own concerns.

"Raiders and bandits are also very likely, as well as wildlife. The cliff the compound is constructed on is also very dangerous, as the weather for the past two centuries will most likely have made it unstable. Thankfully, I can hover and you two can fly." Skyfire nodded at that, seeming content with the answer.

"And... the area surrounding it is dangerous how?" I asked, and the APC immediately stopped. Well, not immediately. If it had been immediately, at those speeds, we would have been thrown against the controls at the front.

The vehicle's engine hummed loudly, and we began to ascend. The light flowing into the cockpit became almost blinding, the golden rays reflecting off of the vehicle's shiny interiors. A glance outside showed me that we were in a wide, barren land with the occasional hill and sand dune.

Then, just as quickly as it had become too bright, it suddenly became very dark. In fact, if it wasn't for the suddenly very dim light coming through the window and the little lights from around Zaita's cockpit, it would have been completely black.

"That..." She started, making the APC face a more southern direction and canting the front upward a bit so we could see the sunny sky. Or at least, what should have been a sunny sky.

Where a vast open sky of golden rays and yellow-tinted blue was supposed to be, there was instead utter darkness, broken only by horrible red waves reaching up from the ground. Even more horrible, the shadowy forms of one of the titanic monstrosities I had seen in my dream lumbered close enough to the light of the natural day to become partially visible as a dark silhouette. It was a terrifying sight; like the sky itself had been corrupted by a force of evil, and was employing giants to slowly engulf the land in darkness. "... is also an extremely concerning phenomenon."

"W-what the fuck is that?" Asked Skyfire, looking about as horrified as I was.

Zaita's answer was disturbingly reminiscent to that of one of the voices in that dream I had.

"Bad things. Very bad things. I don't know what exactly, but I am a very powerful AI, at least in terms of cyber-warfare. As such, I have been able to connect with audio, visual, and communicational equipment linked to the still-functional zebra networks. The Legion uses these networks."

"So, what are you saying? You've known what that whole phenomenon was all along?" I asked, a little concerned that Zaita didn't tell me this sooner, especially the whole 'I can connect to wireless devices' part.

As if on cue, Skyfire and I suddenly heard a strange sound, similar to the combustion taking place in engines. I hurried to the window, just in time to see the dark, pinprick sized forms of dozens of aircraft streaking across the sky close to the ground. They all flew in formation, and as they passed over us the vehicle shook roughly, nearly waking Myst up from her slumber with the thunderous noise they left in their wake.

As we watched, they flew close to the dark land and let loose what must have been hundreds of missiles into the darkness. The missiles disappeared as the aircraft flew back, and as they neared us once more there was a horrendous roar that tore through the air strong enough to send normal clouds blasting away and shaking the earth. If we weren't within the APC, we would have gone deaf. And yet, somehow, Myst was STILL asleep.

"No, I did not. I simply know what any linked device knows. One video file, however, has really given me a disturbing insight as to just what may be in that zone..."

All of Zaita's speakers were suddenly blasting the entire cockpit with the noise of bubbling lava, cracking rocks, en masse hoof-stomping, and the engines of vehicles. Myst finally woke up, looking at us wide-eyed, then slowly turned her attention to the sight outside the window. She gasped, and looked to us as if demanding an explanation.

We just gestured her to just watch the video, which was showing on Zaita's screen and to listen to the audio. She did so, squeezing in between us so she could watch.

Whoever was holding the camera was walking down a blackened concrete road, and off to his sides were entire rivers of burning hot lava. In the distance, I could make out the ruined forms of buildings. In front of him was a tank; an Omni-tank, which was rolling along beside even more Omni-tanks. In the air above him and in front of him were several VTOLs, all armed with high-caliber guns, which circled them not in suppression but in vigilance.

Through the sounds of his gas mask-regulated breathing, I could make out the noise of what must have been at least a hundred ponies or zebras marching along with him. The marching had a distinguishable tune to it, like whoever was moving intentionally placed emphasis on certain steps to create a sort of musical beat. The camera-wielder, who I now knew must have had the camera on his helmet, glanced behind him, which confirmed that he was indeed leading a group of at least a hundred Legionnaires; all armed with energy-tipped spears, various firearms, and heavy metal shields and wearing a more modern and less heavy looking version of my segmented steel armor.

Then he glanced off to his sides, across the lava rivers. Through the hellish red glow, I made out the forms of more Legionnaires and tanks and vehicles and aircraft, all moving deeper into what I now knew was what was inside of the black land.

Occasionally, there was the sound of a distant gunshot or explosion. The camera-wielder didn't react much, but behind him and in the other Legionnaire groups around him there were worried and foreboding murmurs.

The next few minutes went on, mostly just showing all the hundreds of Legionnaires moving further, accompanied by a whole regiment of armored vehicles and aircraft. Occasionally, they would slow down due to some kind of environmental obstruction, such as a narrow bridge or some other blockade.

The camera-wielder and the rest of the Legionnaires and vehicles, both of his own group or the groups of other leaders, eventually entered a wide, blackened plain. Further inspection and careful inspection revealed that the plain was once a farm field, if the dried and dead plants were any indication.

And then there was a howl.

Not a regular canine howl, nor that of any other species that I knew of. No scream caused by any emotion could have come anywhere near the magnitude and blood-curdling permanence of that howl. Even to us here in the cockpit, the fright and terror it brought caused Myst to hide and Skyfire and I to take a few steps away from the screen.

Surprisingly, the camera-wielder's only real reaction was to stop and look around for a bit. Even all the other Legionnaires and tanks and vehicles had stopped. There was an echoed shout from the very front of this whole column of troops, and it was yelled back and back again by power-armor amplified voices until it reached my host, who shouted the word 'formationem' at the very top of his lungs and at what must have been the highest volume of his suit's speakers.

Soon, the entire army of vehicles and zebras began moving. Gleaming metal and glowing spears dominated my vision, with the occasional sight of the red-tinged sky through the crowd. It was quite chaotic, but through all the noise of metal-plated hooves and shouting and engines humming, I could tell that they were moving in a rather organized fashion. If you saw it yourself, you wouldn't believe it. But I just knew, somehow, that each movement they made was with a purpose.

Eventually, they stopped. The zebra holding the camera found himself on a pile of rocks, together with other power-armored zebras, all of whom had plumes attached to their helmets. All about them were massive rings of Legionnaires that covered the majority of the visible landscape, and all of them were prepared to fight. The tanks and vehicles had taken positions behind the first ring, forming a second impenetrable wall of steel. Four more lines of Legionnaires were behind that, all holding their weapons. Overhead, the aircraft circled the rings in patrol.

One power-armored zebra, whom I identified to be the leader (due to the violet coloration of his neck guard, along with the 'X' on his power helmet's brow plate. Through my lessons, I had learned that the color violet was often associated with figures of power) then approached the edge of the small hill he was standing on and faced the ring of Legionnaires.

"Scuta!" He shouted.

At once, every Legionnaire in sight slammed their metal shields down onto the ground with enough force that, just for a moment, I thought their was an earthquake. At the same time, each let out a unified 'hawoo' that reverberated and echoed across the blasted landscape. The first line brought up their spears, mounting it over their shields to create a spiked wall. The second line, the one behind the vehicles, brought out shotguns, the third submachine guns, and the fourth and fifth assault rifles.

My jaw hit the floor out of sheer awe, as did Skyfire's. Myst just watched the video from her corner, covering half her face with both hooves while letting one eye watch. This was bravery, right here. Bravery and discipline; the core values that the ancient Roaman legions used to conquer the known world. I may have hated the Legion, but they at least knew what values to instill in their troops. If it were me in their place, facing an enemy I couldn't see or didn't even know about, I would be galloping for the hills.

The leader began giving a small speech, one that I was sure each and every Legionnaire heard, no matter their position on the landscape. I found myself translating each line for no logical reason as he said them.

"Te sunt Legionnaires de Roama,"

"You are Legionnaires of Roam,"

"Civis belli incendia,"

"Born in the fires of war and battle,"

"Tu praesidia. Illustrius defensores crastinum diem meliorem."

"You are protectors. Defenders of a brighter tomorrow, a better day."

"Tu futura cognoscere quia si moriantur, et vos invicem pro tunc tutela mortem futura! Et quamvis haberent res tristes, et non praeteribit."

I was about to translate that when the lava lakes surged up in a brilliant show of fiery orange. Dark, vaguely canine forms appeared out of the shadows and fire. They emerged from every crevice and nook, leaving a scintillating aura of hellish orange in their wake as they encircled the Legionnaires. And they were on fire, too. My mind wracked itself trying to comprehend how dogs could be on fire, yet not die.

"What does that mean, Goldwreath?" Skyfire asked, her voice quivering with anxious anticipation as she watched. Myst had torn herself away and was now a cringing ball of terror in her corner. On the screen, more of the burning hounds appeared.

For the first time since the video started, the Legionnaires began showing signs of fear. I could see it, not in their faces (those were turned away from me), but in their shield wall. It wasn't stable, it was shaking and breaking as they struggled to keep themselves from running. I couldn't really blame them; if it weren't for the fact I knew this was a video, I would have cowered underneath a table. Every few seconds, a hound would lunge to test the strength of a particular shield segment, and each time the Legionnaire was barely able to hold his ground.

I gulped and continued, "It means 'You are the future, know it! For if you die here, in defense of yourselves and each other, then you die protecting that future! And that, no matter how grim the situation, will never change'." As much as I found his words encouraging, the Legionnaires in the video didn't.

In the blazing yet shadowy sky above them, hundreds of small winged shapes emerged from the black clouds. They encircled the flying VTOLs, and some of them even crashed into the aircraft with enough force to send the vehicle off course. A massive aerial battle ensued as the aircraft opened fire, but the sheer number of the creatures were simply too many for the them to handle. All but one aircraft was brought down in the first wave, and that one aircraft still struggling for control in the skies above them brought even more instability into the ranks of the Legionnaires.

Then more creatures appeared, by the hundreds. They were all of too varied shape and size to describe them all. But they were monstrous beyond compare, save for the images conjured in the nightmares of psychopaths. Some were large and daunting, their silhouettes against the orange sky towering above the landscape. Others were small and twitchy, jumping around energetically on the smoky terrain.

Skyfire turned away for a moment, but turned back to the screen when she saw I was still watching. I found my eyes glued onto the screen, anxious to see what would happen next. Myst was shaking in fear, curled up like a fetus as she covered her ears from the sounds blasting from Zaita's speakers.

They were surrounded now, heartbreakingly outnumbered by a swarm of mutants so horrific they would have put ghouls and any other nightmarish creature to shame. The shield wall was absolutely quivering from fear, and the centurions knew. They called out to their groups, calling each Legionnaire by name in an attempt to assuage their fright.

It didn't really help.

The swarm charged, letting out a whole plethora of screams and shrieks and other unworldly noises beyond description. The flaming dogs struck first, using their legs to jump over the first line of energy spears. Most were met with machinegun fire and tank shells from the vehicles and died, but those that landed caused mass chaos until they were put down. Their corpses glowed, fire bursting from their wounds and through their eye sockets. Then they exploded, sending a wave of flame washing over the armored bodies of the Legionnaires, who were at this point beginning to attempt to move their lines back.

Then the rest of the creatures crashed into the feeble first wall of spears, bursting through it easily and trampling the Legionnaire's corpses beneath them as they slaughtered every zebra there. The only casualties suffered by the swarm were the few bodies I saw slump to the ground, the spears ensconced in their torsos. They were met with much stronger resistance on the tank line, though. The vehicles opened fire, sending dozens of missiles and tank shells and a torrent of lead that tore through the oncoming swarm.

I saw one Legionnaire get picked up by a large two-legged creature, then promptly ripped in half. The scream of pain and anguish he let out coupled with the sight of his guts spilling all over caused Skyfire to shut her eyes close and Myst to begin crying. Even though I wanted to, I couldn't stop watching. This was what was inside that land, and I needed to know. If only that knowledge came in a less horrifying package.

My host and all the other power-armored Legionnaires opened fire, sending a volley of machine gun rounds and grenades and missiles into the oncoming crowd and sending all sorts of gore flying into the air.

Smoke and fire billowed up into the air as they finally broke through the second line. And then the third. Now they were in the process of slaughtering the fourth and destroying the last Omni-tank. My host actually heard the leader laugh. It wasn't a sadistic laugh, nor a laugh of joy. Rather, it sounded more like the laugh of someone who views death without fear.

"Et maxime..." He said slowly, moving his head in such a way that I thought he was nodding. Only the fifth line remained now, but they at least were holding out longer than the other four, having the advantage of higher ground. That advantage was neutralized when several dozen of the flying creatures swooped down and broke the shield wall, carrying the zebras into the air by their rectangular metal shields and then dropping them. I was shaking at this point, my mind split into looking away or to continue watching.

"And above all else..." I found myself translating it, even if I already knew the fate of these people. My host and the last remaining survivors found themselves struggling up a small hill, having to step on the faces of their dead comrades to get up. When my host tried to back up some more, slowly ascending the slope together with five others, he bumped into something.

He turned and saw the leader, standing proud and tall at the top of the hill. He looked over my host an the last few survivors without scorn, then turned to look over the swarm only seconds away from killing him.

A tendril of spiky flesh grabbed my host's neck and dragged him back down the hill, along with all the others save the leader. As my host fought without reward to free himself, he looked up once more to see the last zebra at the top of the hill. There was a crunching noise, and the camera screen cracked. The helmet on which the camera was built on rolled and landed on the ground, revealing the headless corpse of what had been my host and the many bodies now being stomped into the earth by the horrific crowd.

"Semper... resistere terram!" There was the sound of a grenade machine gun in the background, occasionally drowned out by a horrific sound of pain from one of the creature's.

Then one of them; a large, reptilian sort of creature, landed it's scaly leg onto the camera. The screen went blank.

I choked, utterly depressed and horrified at what I had seen. All I had the energy left to do was to translate the last line, "Always... stand your ground." Then, just like Skyfire and Myst, I too collapsed and gave in to the tears.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

Fear and doubt.

Those two were the reasons all those soldiers died. They feared what they never saw before, and they doubted in their leader's capabilities to lead them and in their own capabilities to protect each other. If perhaps they had kept it to themselves, and had not let it affect their performance, they would have lived.

But they did. They feared and doubted, and they let it show. Those two vices manifested themselves in the form of a weak defense. Those... things broke through because the Legionnaires were weak, not only because they were outnumbered. If they had been more confident, let their discipline and bravery win over them, they would have survived. At the very least, some of them.

Yes, that's how I tried to rationalize it. That's how I dealt with what I had just witnessed. As I lay against the wall of the APC, silently sobbing to myself, that is how I had tried to calm my mind; by trying to rationalize things. It wasn't the best strategy, but I always found some comfort in analyzing things and coming up with conclusions. And sometimes, in my analysis, I would think that, perhaps, the failure or disaster wasn't as bad as it seemed.

Myst and Skyfire were worse off than I was; the two had cried themselves dry out of both horror and sadness and were now staring off into the air with blank expressions. Even though they weren't crying anymore, I could tell that they were still deeply troubled by the video. At least when you cried you were venting the emotion. Bottling it up never really works, unless you know how to control the inevitable emotional outbursts.

"That... that is what is in there." Zaita finally said after our sob session, which lasted about twenty minutes. I looked up, wiping the remaining tears off my face. All the other two did in response was look at Zaita's face on the console for a second before looking away.

"What... what was all that?" I asked, still a little dis-believing. Honestly, what were those things? If they were mutants of some sort, then they must have been exposed to a LOT of radiation to be turned into those... things. I just hoped that they didn't start appearing everywhere, because if the did...

"As I said, I do not know. What I do know is that it is bad, and that the Legion has been fighting it with... mixed results."

Fortunately, about halfway through the video, Zaita had gotten back down to ground level and continued to our destination. I could already see the darkness of night creeping into the sky from the horizon, and the sun was but half an orb slowly receding into the ground. If we were getting to this place, it would be in the evening. And, judging from how long it would take to get back to Verge, we would probably get back there the next morning.

"When was that video recorded, Zaita?" I asked, feeling the need to know when that disaster had happened.

"Three days ago; about three hours after the incident on the bridge."

I hung my head again. So, that's where those tanks had been heading. They were trying to assist in the assault. I still don't quite know whether to feel glad that they didn't die in there, or ashamed that I had stopped them from getting to their destination.

I shook my head hard, clearing my mind. What exactly was I thinking? Was I actually gaining some sympathy for those Legionnaires? They murdered hundreds and leveled towns! They kidnapped dozens and took them away in transports to become slaves! They were the reason the city is engulfed in so much war in the first place!

'Yeah,' Thought Tom, sounding about as shaken as the rest of us. 'They did do those things, yes. They are causing the city suffering. They are the ones killing people by the hundreds for no established reason.'

'But they are also protecting the city and it's people. Not all of them are savage, bloodthirsty killers. There are a few of them worthy of respect.'

'What?' I thought back at him. 'How can people who do those things be respectable in the slightest? They deserved everything they got!' I screamed in my head, shocked that the better part of my fucked up brain even thought this way. And I didn't even WANT to know how Tod felt on the matter.

And yet... yet I found a part of me agreeing with Tom. Maybe I was just generalizing. Perhaps not ALL Legionnaires were bad, but the great majority were. Perhaps a few of the good ones were in that slaughter, trampled and stomped into the dust and dirt beneath them.

Then I thought of the zebra leader; the one that stood his ground and fought without fear. Yes, there were a few good people in the Legion, but ONLY a few. They may have been a tyrannical and oppressive military force, but perhaps not all were bad. That thought lifted my spirits a little, but just a little.

I lifted my head again, having let out all of my emotions regarding that depressing-ass video. Myst sat forlornly in her corner, clutching her nethers as she looked around a little. Skyfire was sitting against the wall on her side, letting out a few sobs from time to time with an angry and confused expression on her face. I decided not to bother her.

Then I remembered I was still wearing the memory-orb viewing headgear. The orb sat next to me, right where I left it before I watched the video. I picked it up and rolled it around in my hooves. My curiosity had not been removed, and we still had at least another hour and a half...

Skyfire wiped her face, then snorted. "Ugh, what the hell did I cry? Those Legion fucks deserved what they got! Every last one of them!" She sounded angry, yet it seemed like a forced anger. Like she was forcing herself to have no compassion at all for any Legionnaire, no matter who it was. I personally found that a little concerning. Then again, I myself was a little confused as to why I had obtained a little respect for the Legion.

I spent the next few minutes pondering how each of my companions felt, especially Skyfire. She looked so troubled right now, and yet I felt like asking her to talk about it was a bad idea. Myst didn't show much emotion aside from sadness, with the occasional expression of thoughtful concern. I couldn't tell how Zaita felt, though.

My attention turned back to the memory orb, which I had readied a while back. Finally, I couldn't take it. "You three mind if I get into this now?" I asked, mainly because I felt that looking into an orb after an emotional moment like that was a little... indulgent. Like I was trying to distract myself and running away from my problems. That and because my curiosity to see what was within was beginning to cloud my thoughts.

Skyfire stirred, shaking her head before looking at me. "Hm?" She sounded surprised, like she had been in a trance and then suddenly I interrupted her. "Oh, yeah. Sure, go ahead. I've... got stuff to think about, anyway." After she has said that, she looked back up at the ceiling.

"Oh... um, go ahead." Myst said, having enough emotion in her voice to at least sound surprised. She looked so dead right now; so blank. It was a little comforting to know she wasn't letting it get to her too much, and still had some emotion in her voice.

"There is no alternative that I know of that is productive, except perhaps making sure your equipment is ready. Then again, you look absolutely exhausted. Perhaps another hour of rest is appropriate." Ah, Zaita. How I love your logical thinking and monotonous voice. No, seriously; I always did find some comfort in her straight to the point and practical way of thinking.

With the approval and consent of my companions, I slipped the orb into the cup-like depression of the headgear.

Oh boy, this is a feeling I'll need to get used to...

ooooOOOOoooo

My host was a stallion. He was sitting down in a vehicle, an APC, from the feel of it. It was not as spacious as Zaita's interior, but through the general darkness of the area which was just barely illuminated by small glowing blue lights, I could see the see the space within was fairly large; perhaps enough for around seven ponies or zebras. I could see others in here, but their shadows together with the bad lighting made the details of their appearance difficult to make out.

There was the occasional whisper between some of the zebras, all of which were mostly drowned out by the loud humming of the engine coupled with the sounds of the vehicle's wheels rolling on the ground. My host himself took no part in any conversation, content to just hang his head and let his body move freely in accordance with the vehicle's rocking. Occasionally, there would be the sound of someone shifting, the rattling of all their equipment making it obvious even if they couldn't be seen.

The atmosphere in here was... tense. Not tense like everyone in here wanted to kill each other, but tense. It was more like the tension brought about by the anxiety of several people all nervous about the same thing, like a school dance or championship game.

The vehicle stopped, and was met with surprised gasps from several of the zebras within. I could hear them gulping as they readied their equipment in preparation for exiting. Their was no sound of fighting, so I didn't think we were being brought into a battle. The vehicle vibrated as the door in the rear of the APC slowly opened...

Agh, too much light! I'm blind! Fuck, blink you stupid host, blink!

My host lifted a hoof to his eyes, feeling the pain caused by the light for just a moment. His eyes adjusted to the bright midday sun as he got up and stepped out of the transport's dark interior and onto the metal drawbridge-like door. From what I could feel, he had a fairly heavy backpack on his back and was wearing what felt like a kevlar vest of some sort. He had a rifle slung across his side, and wore what felt like a hat on his head. As he lowered his hoof to look out at the area before him, I managed to get a look at the place.

It was a wide area, fenced off completely by high fences with barbed wire on top. There were sandbags at the one visible entrance, with two zebras mounting a heavy machine gun on a raised platform above some barricades. Beyond the fence, I saw several raised structures with flat tops that I concluded were landing pads of some sort. There were dozens of tents, all of them either a faded red or a brilliant crimson. The place was also really dusty and sandy, like it was in a desert. Little whirlwinds of sand swept across the landscape, bringing dust and grime over a large portion of the base.

My host stepped off of the metal drawbridge-door and onto the dusty ground, sending even more dust and sand flying into the air. Behind him, I could hear the noise of more people getting out of the armored transport. My host took a few steps forward, looking over the entire area once more. Beside him, his fellows formed a single line, facing the entrance.

He glanced up, and the brightness of the sun nearly blinded me again. A moment later, when his eyes adjusted once more, I could make out the small v-shaped forms of dozens of aircraft miles high in the sky, leaving a contrail in their wake. Closer to the ground, more aircraft in the form of VTOLs hovered about, sending entire clouds of dust blasting off the ground. Everywhere, my host saw dozens of various armored vehicles either parked near large tents or rolling around. Soldiers marched by, wearing a segmented kevlar vest with what looked like a thin metal plate over the segments. They were lead by a similarly dressed soldier, whose helmet had plumes on it instead of being blank.

There was a large sign on the side of the dusty road, layered with sand and dust and other forms of grime.

'Camp Thermopylae' It read. So this is where Zaita had gone? Huh. I wondered if there was a possibility I would see her in this orb. My host stared at the sign for a few moments, when he got shoved from behind.

"Hey, dude, what are you waiting for?" Asked a stallion, who sounded a little annoyed. "Don't you see the others are already heading in? Move it, Tekasho!" Tekasho? You mean that zebra Zecora's husband? Well, this should be interesting.

Tekasho shook his head a little, before saying, "Oh, sorry Kaizius. Just taking in our new home." I felt myself grimace, as if the thought of staying at the camp brought uncomfortable thoughts with it. When he turned his attention to where his fellow soldier had been standing, he saw the zebra already hurrying to catch up with the line of soldiers already within the base.

"Oh, right." He muttered to himself before galloping after them.

When my host got right behind Kaizius, who was at the very back of an eight-zebra squad lead by another centurion, they were suddenly stopped by yet another centurion. The squad's centurion gestures us to wait while he spoke with the other.

"Place is bigger than I thought." Said one of the zebras to no one in particular.

"Tell me about it." Responded another. "Although why we got assigned this far south still confuses me. And this heat..." He exhaled deeply while he used a hoof to pull open the collar of his vest. "Where the hell's the cola machine?"

"Ha!" Tekasho barked, catching the attention of the zebra. "Forget the cola machines. This place needs a cold storage room big enough for everyone here." I could feel my host's sweat mix with all the dust and grime floating around. It made me feel... filthy, to say the least.

The zebra snickered, then looked at the bag on my host's bag. "The hell's in that thing? Just because we're legionnaires doesn't mean we have to cram our bags with a week's worth of stuff all the time." I had to agree with him on that. Looking at the fairly empty and light looking backpacks on the other soldiers, I had to wonder just what was in my host's bag.

"Oh, you know, stuff." My host replied with a dismissive wave of his hoof. The zebra looked a little confused, and opened his mouth to speak. Just then, though, the centurion trotted back.

"Good news," He said while he looked at a piece of paper in between his hooves. "The 'welcoming the new meat' event tonight is going to be attended by none other than Lord Decarius himself." At his words, there was a whole bunch of comments and whispers from the squad, all of which were about 'how much of an honor' the visit would be. The centurion just smiled.

"Also," He started once more, silencing us quickly enough that he didn't really have to pause. "The tour of the camp for all new arrivals is going to be held in another two hours. That should give you lazy sacks of shit enough time to get settled in your barrack." At 'lazy sacks of shit', rather than looking hurt by the centurion's comment, the soldiers, my host included, actually laughed a little. After that there were also more comments on how they would all 'rather sleep through the rest of the day'.

"Alright, uh... that's basically it. You guys get settled in barrack O43. I'm gonna go see if they have a cola machine around here..." The centurion began trotting away, and the soldiers each let out a respectful 'yes sir'. Though one instead said 'yessir, Plumes'. One of us hurried after him, muttering something about how he had enough spare change to buy a whole machine's worth of refreshments.

We trotted down a dusty road, talking amongst ourselves about the camp. Occasionally, we had to stop because the road was blocked by a tank or because an even larger group of legionnaires passed by. Some of us got distracted for a bit by some snide remarks of some older soldiers, but thankfully no one started a fight.

We searched for several minutes, going up and down several roads. One of us suggested we were lost, but then noticed a building marked 'Barrack O41'. We hurried over to it, and sure enough another barrack away was our new home. It was similar in appearance to all the other barracks; one story high with concrete walls, which stopped halfway to the roof and was then replaced by large sheets of grey metal, bent into an arc to meet with the other side of the building. It had a few windows, though they were all too layered with dust to see through them clearly.

We pushed the door open, revealing to us a wide space within, with dozens of bunk beds lined from one side of the building to the next. There was a small drawer-table next to each bed, and next to each was an electrical outlet. Most of the beds were occupied by exhausted-looking legionnaires, all of them either talking to each other, drinking, sleeping, or setting up equipment of some sort on the tables next to their own beds.

My squad rushed to a group of empty beds before they too were occupied, and then we all dropped our backpacks and let our weapons fell onto the bed as we jumped onto the mattresses. My host gasped, burying his into the sandy bed as he lay there out of a combination of exhaustion and thirst. When he got up a moment later, he pulled out a canteen from his bag and chugged down most of the water inside in just a few gulps. The others did the same, though one of us did instead start reading what looked like a military magazine.

When I pulled the canteen from my lips a moment later, the water within was completely gone. It was fine with me; it wasn't MY water that was out, after all. At least the feeling of sandy dryness in my host's throat was gone.

Tekasho put the canteen back in it's pouch, then looked to his backpack for a moment. Looking at it now, it really was bigger than the rest. My host looked at it a little more, then to his squad, then to the others around him. He paid particular attention to those setting up equipment on their tables; one zebra, I saw, had a laptop and was typing something into it.

As soon as my host saw that, he picked up his bag off the dirty floor and opened the largest pocket. He pulled out a laptop of his own, complete with mouse, mousepad, and charger. He began setting it up on the drawer next to his bunk, when one of his squad members noticed.

"Hey guys, look! Tekie over here brought a laptop!" At that, about five of the seven in the squad gathered around Tekasho as his laptop turned on, and they giggled as they watched the screen show the different pre log-in info. When the log-in screen came up, he placed his hooves onto the keyboard and began typing. About halfway through the password, my eyes went wide and he turned to look at my squad with a glare. Most of them had been watching me type, and my host was unwilling to continue.

"Shoo! Back! Back before I pull out the deodorant spray again!" My host warned, and for some reason that caused most of them to back away with a sour put. I wondered why any of them would be afraid of deodorant. In fact, they all smelled like they really needed a bath. As they dispersed, one of them stayed. "You too, Halek."

"Aw, come on! I just wanna see what you'll do!" Halek whined in a surprisingly annoying and shrill voice.

Wrong answer. Tekasho pulled out a small can from one of his vest's pockets and pulled off the cap. Halek's eyes went wide, and he tried to turn away. Just before he could, Tekasho put the can close to his fellow legionnaire's eyes and sprayed.

"Gods, fuck!" Halek stumbled away, falling off the bed in the process before muttering more obscenities. The others laughed a little, playfully offering to help him get to the washroom, but offered no real assistance. I felt a small smile of amusement form on my host's face, before he turned away to look at the screen and continued typing the password.

The screen faded into a blue blur, then reappeared as a desktop background image showing the eight of them in their uniforms and looking much less gritty and tired. They were smiling, leaning on each other as they saluted whoever was taking the picture. On the bottom right was a legion number, 23rd, along with eight different signatures.

My host looked at that for only a moment before averting his gaze to a series of icons at the bottom of the screen. He brought the cursor over a stylized 'S' and clicked, and at once another log-in screen appeared. He glanced behind him, making sure he wasn't being watched. By this time, the others had began unpacking their own stuff or resting. With that, my host logged in.

The screen was dominated by several sections, with the side of the screen having a list of strange names. The top portion had several different options, such as 'profile', 'settings', and others. The bottom was dominated by a number of tabs, each having a number in bright orange next to them.

My host immediately scanned through the names, and stopped at one. 'Umplsdon'tcall' was the name. It was a pretty stupid name, but my host didn't care as he double-clicked on the icon next to it. At once, an icon at the top of the screen appeared, with a series of white pulsating dots beneath it connecting to another icon represented as a green phone. The speakers of the laptop beeped over and over, until someone answered the call.

The speaker blasted out nothing but background noise at first, broken only by the sounds of cracked and fluctuating shouting. After a while, the connection stabilized itself. The sweet voice of a young zebra mare spoke, sounding dishearteningly sad.

"Papa?" The mare asked with trembling anxiety. In the background, I heard the noises of movement and murmuring. Behind me, the other legionnaires suddenly turned their attention back to my host. But he didn't care anymore. I could feel him holding back tears as he responded.

"Eiya, I've missed you so much." I felt myself gulp and bring a hoof to my nose and wipe it. I could feel the tears he was holding in slowly break free.

"Papa!" Two other voices said in unison, both of which also sounded heartbreakingly forlorn and in despair. I gulped again, then took in a shaky breath.

"You too, Eliat. And you as well, Jovit." I could feel myself struggling to keep from openly breaking down. My host wiped his eyes furiously, then turned around to see the others. They looked at him with sympathy and sadness, some of them even going so far as to shed a tear of their own. I turned back to the screen, "How are you three doing?"

The only response were the sounds of the mare crying coupled with two young colts trying to comfort her. That got sullen looks from three of the others, and one of them had even pulled out a photo and was looking at it wistfully. Perhaps it was a picture of his family. My host watched him while listening for his daughter, Eiya, to calm down.

"Don't cry, daughter. Don't cry..." My host tried to make himself sound authoritative, but that effort failed altogether from his own efforts to keep his tears in check.

Finally, she got some words out, "I missed you so much, Papa!"

"And so do we!" Chimed in the two colts, who sounded so alike they must have been twins. Even then, twins didn't always sound the same.

My host shook his head a little and hung it, almost as if he were ashamed of something. "I know." He sniffed, before looking back up at the screen with moist eyes. "Listen, Eiya, I don't have too much time to talk right now. We still have stuff to do, and we're getting toured in a bit." I bit my lower lip, and I suspected my host was hesitant about saying something. "When all that's done, I'll call you again. I promise. I'll bring the laptop with me to a battlefield if I have to."

The only response was a sudden blast of static. However, a few of the mare's words did get through. "-ad?... Wait! I need to t-t-tel... -ing. I..." There was a pause, coupled with the sounds of broken speech. "Eliat! Get off the c-c-couch!"

"Eiya?"

"...-rouble with the connection. Papa, please... -all later. They really... - ant to talk to you. And I do, too."

"Eiya!"

"-... love you, Dad."

The call ended, signaled by a beep and the call window closing. My host tried to call again, but then suddenly the entire program used for the calling crashed. Something about 'no Databank connection, please try again later'. Tekasho slammed the laptop close in frustration, before using his forehooves to support his head as he leaned forward, breathing heavily. The sounds of frustrated swearing in the background told me he wasn't the only one who had lost the Databank connection.

"It's okay, dude." One of Tekasho's squad said as he placed a hoof to my host's shoulder. "At least you know they're alright, right?"

"It's not enough!" My host snapped, causing his fellow to withdraw with a startled look. "We haven't spoken in months and haven't seen each other for two years!" He glared at his comrade with an expression so fierce the legionnaire took several more steps back. The others just looked on with sadness; even Halek was looking at my host with sympathetic, sore-looking red eyes. The little scene my host was starting was attracting the attention of a few others in the background.

The door to the building opened with a gush of wind, and the squad's centurion trotted in together with the legionnaire that left with him earlier. Both had at least a dozen soda bottles in total, which they held with one of their forehooves while they used the other to bring one of the bottles to their mouths. They looked around with satisfies and relieved smiles, which then disappeared when their eyes landed on my host.

My host turned back to the table. "All I wanted was a little time to catch up. A little time to... to ask 'how are you doing in school' or 'how was your day'." My host sniffed, "And now I'm left with the thought of my daughter needing to tell me something... but can't." Tekasho hung my head and let the tears fall freely off his cheek.

That went on for a few moments, when suddenly there was the sound of the door opening again. Through my host's sniffing and choking and coughing, I could make out concerned and surprised murmurs and whispers. One comment caught my attention: "Is that who I think it is?"

I heard slow, heavy hoofsteps approaching. My host payed it no attention as he continued to let out his tears, but the crowd within the building certainly was. Eventually, as the person trotting to me got close enough, I started hearing the sounds of numerous guns and various types of equipment clanging against a surface. When the trotting came close enough to my host to be but a few feet away, the centurion spoke up.

"Halt! My legionnaire is in a moment of emotional turmoil and must be left alone. I don't care who you are, operative or not. I must ask that you..." He stopped short for no discernible reason, and I heard him gulp. The heavy steps continued a little more and stopped right behind my host. A shadow was cast over the table, and my host turned to look.

A Specter?

He certainly looked like a Specter; same heavy vest, same helmet, same ridiculous amount of weapons and equipment all over their body, and even the same respirator. Really, the only difference was that this Specter's equipment looked far cleaner and newer compared to the ultra-worn, dusty, cut, and battered ones used by other Specters. That and his legs were covered with a synthetic mesh instead of leather.

My host looked him over, giving me a good look at him as well. One detail caught my attention: a logo of two broken wings on each side of a black gladius; the same logo I had seen on Specters and on the VTOL in the Autherius memory orb. Below it, on the rim of the logo, were the words 'Veterani Operativa'.

Then a thought hit me. Autherius' words echoed in my mind, "... commander and founder of the Shadow Corps..."

'The Specters are the Shadow Corps?' I thought about that for a moment, slightly disbelieving at the revelation. Were they? The Specters and the Shadow Corps were at least two centuries apart, and I highly doubted that they could have survived the apocalypse. Sure, they LOOKED the same, but they couldn't BE the same.

But then it made sense; if the Specters weren't really the Shadow Corps, then they were at least their descendants. Unless the logo and the similar appearance were deceiving me, I would just have to accept that they were at least related somehow. Besides, it was quite improbable that two groups who had so much in common (including the same logo) were unrelated.

The operative just looked down at my host for a moment, breathing in regulated air while everyone else in the building had either gone back to their own business or was still paying attention to what was going on here. My host stared up at the helmet's opaque visor blankly and without blinking, uncaring about the operative standing before him.

That went on for a few more moments, when the operative suddenly started laughing. Similar to Balaclava's helmet voice, this guy's voice was also deep and booming. His voice also had a sort of effect to it, like two similar voices were trying to say the same thing at the same time.

"Hahaha," The voice chuckled. "Still trying to beat me at staring contests, Tekasho?"

My host's eyes suddenly popped wide open and put on a confused look on his face. He worked his mouth in a manner that suggested he was asking questions silently. "Brother?" He asked with a small tone of hope in his hoarse and rough voice. The others suddenly looked to the operative with a look of curiosity.

The operative reached his forehooves to his helmet and took it off. The eyes of everyone in the area who had been paying attention to this spectacle suddenly burst wide open. Mine would have too, if they could. As it was, my host's eyes being open so wide I felt as if they would have rolled out of their sockets was about as close as I could get to feeling my own shock.

Whoever this... 'zebra' was was completely, utterly... wrong. Where his head was supposed to be there was instead an armored skull-looking structure with just enough space at the front to show the majority of the zebra's face, and even that looked wrong. Instead of natural eyes, this zebra instead had an artificial iris. I could tell it was artificial because I was sure no natural iris could rotate and enlarge like a camera lens could, nor was any natural iris of silver coloration. His face itself consisted of a transparent breathing apparatus, showing his mouth and facial expression beneath, attached to two glowing talismans on the back of his head. His face had stripes, but they were grey instead of black. What I could see of his neck had slender, silvery armor plate segments that probably extended onto his back. And to top it all off, the zebra's coat, while still thankfully biological, looked... cybernetically enhanced. I could see the fur and all, but if I focused enough, I could see what appeared to me as wires snaking underneath the zebra's epidermis.

The zebra smiled, and disturbingly the sounds of hydraulics came from somewhere in his head. "No, no! I'm obviously a legate that dressed up in an operative uniform!" He said in a tone of playful sarcasm. "Of course it's me! Who did you think it was?" He laughed a little and with a smile asked, "How are you, brother?" Even out of his helmet, his voice still clearly had that dual-effect to it, even through his second set of breathing hardware. But now without the deepening effect of the helmet, his voice sounded rather familiar...

My host looked for a moment with his mouth hung low, then slowly got up off the seat. The operative took that as a cue to move in, and my host just barely managed to wrap his hoof around his... brother's... neck during the embrace. The operative's grip was extremely firm, and I suspected that he could have killed my host with a sudden squeeze if he wanted to.

When they finally pulled away, my host asked just what I had been wondering. "What are you doing here? And... what happened to you?" Judging from the looks of complete shock and confusion on the faces of everyone else in the room, they wanted to know, as well.

The cyber-zebra shrugged, "Well, for the first question, I am securing this area for Lord Decarius' arrival. And of course I didn't want my little brother's first official day in the 23rd to be without a family visit." He smiled and lifted a hoof, then inspected it in the same manner a posh zebra or pony would. "As for your second question... oh, you know, upgrades." He took in my host's worried look. "Oh, come on. Last time we met I already had my torso and one of my legs replaced."

"Yes, but at least it wasn't your whole body!" Tekasho said, baffled. "And you had a good reason to replace those; that explosive nearly killed you! Brother, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're deliberately trying to turn yourself into a machine!" Veltrio put on a confused and slightly annoyed expression.

"No way..." Kaizius murmured. "Veteran operative Veltrio is your brother?" Veltrio? Ah yes, the cyber zebra! I had been wondering just who this guy was! In all honesty, I had to agree with Tekasho; Veltrio had done a LOT to himself since I last saw him in Autherius' memory. For one thing, back then he was at least still mostly zebra. Now... now I could only imagine what was underneath his uniform.

Veltrio snickered. "That's because I AM trying to turn myself into a machine." He said with a relaxed smile and an equally relaxed tone.

'What? Seriously, he WANTS to become a full robot? What the fuck!' I thought, completely revolted by the idea.

'Well, it isn't all that bad.' Said Tod. 'At least he doesn't need to eat.'

'That's just fucking wrong.' Thanks, Tom. At least you agree with me.

Kaizius' jaw dropped even lower. The others in the eight-zebra squad had decided to leave the two brothers to their business. The centurion attended to his subordinates, occasionally glancing nervously in our direction. Everyone else in the building began talking about the operative, doing their best to keep their voices to a minimum.

My host, though, just barely concealed his disgust.

"Brother... WHY?! Why would you do this to yourself? What madness is this?" My host shook his head slowly with a look of sharp disapproval. "Did you even think this through? Did you EVEN THINK about what this will do to our family?" At that, Veltrio's smile faded and was replaced by a sharp frown.

"Brother, understand that..." He started, when he was cut off by his brother.

"Yes, 'Veltrio the robotic zebra'! Oh, I can just IMAGINE the respect and prestige that will get us." My host had now fully shifted from sad to angry in less than a minute, and the operative was not happy about it in the slightest. Despite the clear disapproval he showed to his brother's manner of speaking, he spoke.

"Tekasho, let me explain..." He tried again, and was once more cut off by his brother's rambling.

"And don't even get me started on how I feel about this!" My host was fuming, angered and disgusted with his brother's actions. I wasn't angry, though. I was just completely freaked out. "Have you lost all self respect, brother?"

Veltrio's eyes narrowed to a threatening gaze and he pressed forward, bringing up a hoof to silence my host before he said anything else. "Silence, brother!" After his placid demeanor, I was quite surprised by the amount of threat he put into his expression. At this point, I really thought the operative would have punched my host. In the background, I saw the centurion stand up abruptly and reach a hoof to his gun.

"You know what else could bring dishonor to our family?" Veltrio asked with a glare so hard and focused my host had to blink hard simply to keep eye contact. Well, it was either the glare or the shrinking silver circles in the cyber zebra's eyes. "Young brothers who don't know how to respect their elder's decisions, that's what."

"And I did think about it, actually." He said with a sigh. "And I came to the conclusion that my nation, our nation, needed more from me. More than my body could give. And so I let them improve me; condition me and recreate me to fit our people's needs." He removed the hoof from my host's mouth, and Tekasho's squad relaxed. The centurion glowered, but placed away his weapon.

"Our people's needs?" Tekasho asked as he took in a few breaths.

Veltrio hung his head. "Yes, brother. Our people need to survive, and my regular body can't do the things needed to keep them alive. But with this new one, coupled with Decarius' glorious plan..." He smirked, "I can do more than just ensure our survival. I can make sure we thrive."

"Decarius' plan?" Asked my host, now sounding much more calm and less angry. Those within hearing range turned to us with a look of hope. Apparently, it was at this point during the war that the zebra's were beginning to get desperate to push the Equestrians out.

My host's brother looked back to him with a gentle smile. "I'm afraid I can't tell you. It's some top secret stuff, trust me. But I will, when the time is right. Don't worry." My host put on an expression of thought, then relaxed after a while.

The next few seconds passed by quickly. The others had turned their attention towards their own business, either having decided to leave us alone or they had simply lost interest. The centurion still watched with a hard gaze, though.

My host hung his head. Finally, my host said, "I'm sorry."

Veltrio looked confused. "For... what?"

Tekasho lifted his head and put on a confused expression as well. "For... you know, disrespecting you and whatnot? For talking to you like I did?"

Veltrio looked at my host, and his confusion quickly faded. "Ahh-hahaha. Listen, brother, you know very well I don't give a damn about apologies. If we had apologized to the people we stole from when we were young, we'd still have been sent to jail anyway." He gave me a reassuring smile, "Besides, it's not like we haven't always got something to apologize for. If we said sorry every time we did something that warrants an apology... well, then we'd be dead by the time we finished. So why apologize if you don't have the time?"

My host smiled as well. "So... we're good?"

"We've ALWAYS been good, bro. That has never changed, EVER. Not when I joined the Shadow Corps, not when you got married, not when Mom and Dad died, and not even when I got sent to Equestria a while back. Never." I could feel my host's small smile widening into a massive grin, reflecting what was also going on on Veltrio's face. Still, as heart warming as all this was, Veltrio's creepy-ass electronic head looked really scary with a smile.

Tekasho lifted one of his hooves in front of him. "Brohoof?"

Veltrio lifted his hoof and tapped it to his brother's, "Brohoof."

There was a loud sniff, and both my host and the cyber zebra turned to see Halek crying while leaning on the centurion, who looked extremely embarrassed. Around the two, the other squad members and several others in the building eyed them with a weird expression. Under the guise of wiping his face, the centurion brought a hoof up to his head to shield himself from their stares.

The two of us laughed, then turned back to each other with genuine smiles of joy on both of our faces.

"Thanks for visiting me, bro. I... really appreciate it." My host said, then turned to look at the laptop with a small frown.

"Hey, I figured the legion's ridiculous demand that you not see your family during training would have gotten to you. So the moment I heard where you were being stationed, I got here as quick as I could." Veltrio said, then put his helmet back on. Immediately, around half of those looking in our direction turned their attention elsewhere. I was personally glad he had put on his helmet; it's not that he looked monstrous or anything, he just quite simply looked weird, and that's different from monstrous.

"Thanks. I... miss them so much. It was hard getting through all the training with nothing to keep me going but letters. Truth be told, I almost quit." Tekasho sighed. "And now that I can at least talk to them, the damned Databank goes down." He looked to the opaque visor of Veltrio's helmet. "I'm worried about them. In the two years I was gone, they nearly got robbed twice. Good thing I payed that guard to do regular rounds near my place." A small smile formed on my host's face, then quickly disappeared. "I have to find a way to protect them without abandoning my duties to my nation."

"Well, I could help." Offered Veltrio in that deep, resonant voice his helmet gave him.

Tekasho leaned close enough that the regulated air coming from Veltrio's helmet touched my face. "How?"

"Heh, are you forgetting what I am, brother? I am an operative and a senior member of the Shadow Corps, and possibly the only one to accept their offer of turning me into a cyber zebra. All that coupled with my achievements out in the field warrants some respect... and power." He snickered then said, "If you really want, I could have some of the junior members under my supervision watch out for your family."

"You can do that? Really?" I could sense the hope and eagerness to accept in my host's voice.

"Of course! I could just tell them it's part of their promotional work. And I will reward them for their work, just so you know. My ability to watch over your family is not to be doubted. However..." He cleared his throat. "There is, of course, the likelihood that operatives watching over one particular family will attract the attention of our enemies." I felt my host's heart sink.

"Do you... do you trust your fellows, brother? Would you think them capable of protecting them and watching over them for me?"

"Well, they are recruits, and as such they have much to learn. But... yes, I think them capable. And their performance on their last mission was... impressive."

"Then I will trust them as well." My host said with finality. "Just... please tell them to not interfere with my children's lives unless it is necessary."

"Of course."

My host sighed loudly. "Thank you so much, brother. You have no idea what this means to me. Now I can sleep at night without getting nightmares of what might happen to them."

I heard Veltrio take in a breath to respond, when the door to the outside was opened. Sand and dust blew in with the wind, and amidst the light flowing into the barrack I saw another operative enter. He didn't carry nearly as much equipment as Veltrio was, nor was his vest of similar looking quality. He looked around for a bit, and was met with quick glances and curious stares from the majority of us, including from my host and his brother. When his eyes landed on Veltrio, he began approaching.

"Veltrio, sir." He said with formal politeness as he touched a hoof to his chest; a gesture of respect. His voice was natural. I remembered that people who wore those helmets could choose whether or not they wanted their voices changed.

"Yes, Kalvis? What is it?"

The zebra lowered his hoof from his chest. "I am here to inform everyone in this building, on behalf of Executor Cavius, that the tour has been rescheduled to now." At his words, everyone within hearing range approached. And judging from the size of the crowd, everyone within the building was in hearing range.

My host turned from the other operative to his brother, who asked, "And who is to be giving the tour?"

"The Executor's second, Praetorian Savith. He is expecting all new legionnaires to be outside of their barracks and assembled before the administration building in ten minutes."

Everyone in the building spent the next minute preparing a few things they would bring; mostly water and hats for the heat, but some brought along small notebooks. My host wasn't planning on bringing anything with him, so he just sat down on the bunk with his brother. The bed's mattress sunk quite low where Veltrio sat; perhaps all of the electronics he had made him really heavy.

When all preparations were done and all squads were lined up behind their centurion, my host's included, Tekasho turned around to see his brother on the laptop.

"What are you doing?" Tekasho whispered.

"Playing chess against the best AI this game has." Was Veltrio's simple response, then he clicked on a pawn and the figure moved forward one block. He turned to see my host's baffled and slightly annoyed expression. "Hey, even robotic brains need exercise. Otherwise, they'll slow down."

My host opened his mouth to respond, when all the centurions in the building shouted in unison, "Contubernium, forward!" Ah, yes, so that's what the Roaman eight-zebra squads were called. I had forgotten what they were called.

In uniform motion, all the legionnaires began marching out of the building, following their centurion through the nearest exit. Just before my host went through the door, he glanced behind him at his brother, who was still playing chess on the laptop.

Then he turned his attention forward, and the memory ended in synchronization with the light nearly blinding me again.

ooooOOOOoooo

I woke up from the orb, feeling the vibration of Zaita's engine through my metal armor. I also realized that when I had slumped against the seat, I had landed my side against one of the sharp dents punched into my armor. With a pained grunt, I rolled onto my back and sighed, feeling a little intrigued by what I had seen in the orb.

And then I heard someone crying.

"... and then they said th-that... that they would make me cry out until they were finished with me..." Myst sobbed, grabbing my attention just as I left the orb behind. I didn't even have time to process what I had seen. But she was crying, and I had to help her.

I got up off the seat and saw Myst huddled up opposite of me, Skyfire's wing wrapped around her as the orange pegasus nodded sympathetically. My movement got Skyfire's attention, but not Myst's.

"What's going on?" I asked, already feeling like I knew the answer. But it didn't really hurt to hope that perhaps Myst was talking about something else.

Skyfire looked at me sadly, then opened her mouth to speak. However, my question had gotten Myst's attention, and she spoke first.

She raised her head and looked at me with wide, puffy red eyes. She shivered, "Oh... Goldwreath... I'm so sorry." she shook her head and choked. "If... if I had just listened to you... did what you told me to do... then maybe I wouldn't be so... so weak right now." She hung her head again and sniffed.

"That's not true." I said, then took a deep breath. "You aren't weak, Myst. What nearly happened to you... no one should have to go through that.

"And you're talking as if what happened was your fault, your mistake. That's not how it is, Myst. I was screwed in one way or another, and I knew it." I sighed and continued, "In all honesty, it was my plan that got us into that whole situation. I should be thanking you, actually. If it weren't for you and your plan, all of us would have gotten killed."

She sniffed again and looked me right in the eyes. Then I said, "If anything, I should be sorry to you. And if anything, all this was my fault, not yours." Skyfire looked at me with an expression I couldn't quite make out, while Myst hung her head again as she sat.

"It wasn't your fault." She said after a moment. "If you think back, it was MY idea to go to the place. It was my fault we got into all that." She looked back up at me with hurt eyes. "All you did the whole time was protect me from all the dangers we faced, so don't blame yourself."

"No." I responded sternly, getting me surprised looks from them both. I was not going to let Myst blame herself for this. She had already volunteered to join me on my suicide mission, and in the process willingly left behind her home and only real friend. She had saved my life and Skyfire's life on that bridge; no easy task with having an overpowered tank rolling after you, even if she was in an APC. No matter what she said, all of the bad things that happened to us were my fault. It had to be. I was the one with the damned ambition, and if it weren't for them both I was sure I would have died already. I owed them both.

Maybe it was illogical to pin the blame on myself. I couldn't deny it really was her idea to bring us there. I could feel Tod's questionable agreement with the fact that it was her fault in my mind, tempting me to let her take the blame. But really, fuck logic. I owed her something. Actually, I owed both of them. And I would start paying them back.

"Myst, you listen to me." I said, grabbing her attention. She looked back at me uncomfortably, and next to her Skyfire looked on with an expression telling me she felt useless. "This was my fault, understand? All of it. If you want to think that way, then you can also say it was my fault because it was my plan to come out here in the first place."

"Actually, it was my idea." Said Zaita, her interior camera turned to face us. For just a moment, all three of us looked at the camera strangely. After a while, the camera looked back outside.

"Uh, okay..." I started, feeling a little confused and awkward. It was a little sad that my train of thought was broken by the extremely simple words of a computer. After a while, I got my thoughts back together. "Well, fine. Let me try again. If you want to think that way, you could also say it was my fault because I was the one who came out here and decided to go to the city. You understand?" I looked to Zaita's camera, but it was still turned outside. Good, I didn't want my thoughts interrupted again.

Myst looked at the floor solemnly, then back up at me. "I... can't... I mean..." She stammered, but got herself together. "Look, I can't let you blame yourself for what happened. It wasn't your f-"

"Myst. It was my fault, alright? Do you understand?" I asked with a tone that I hoped suggested I wouldn't have the blame be on anyone else.

"But... but you saved me! It couldn't have been your fault. And my stupid plan got that pony killed..." She protested, but I wasn't going to have any of it.

"Do you understand?" I asked with emphasis on each word and with the most firm yet not offensive tone I could muster.

She looked back at me with a confused and concerned expression, then looked to the pegasus cradling her with a more desperate look. Skyfire just looked back at her with a sympathetic yet slightly pitiful look. Myst hung her head again and sighed.

"I... understand." She said quietly, as if unsure of herself. I wasn't really convinced myself, but I had to take what I could get. Skyfire looked to me with a sad look; one that I returned with a firm gaze.

I leaned against the wall. "Good."

The next few minutes I spent thinking about the orb, while Skyfire and Myst either curled up and lay down or sat up. Zaita was still dutifully bringing us to our destination.

Eventually, though, Zaita said, "Well, now that things have settled down, I believe I should inform you of the final anticipated danger." Oh, right. The video had been part of her explanation for the cloud phenomenon (a phenomenon which, despite it's clear threat, I actually didn't think much about). She didn't exactly get to finish her list of things to watch out for. Still, I found it kind of annoying that there was another thing to look out for.

"And that would be?" Skyfire asked. I waited intently for Zaita's answer, as did Myst.

Zaita's white-line face disappeared... replaced instead by another white line on a black background. The background had little tic marks near the bottom going left to right, and more marks on the side going down to up.

"These..." She said, and at once the line on the screen stabbed up sharply. A piercing, painful note sounded over the cabin, and we all brought our hooves up to our ears in an effort to reduce the pain. It didn't help. In my head, I felt like... like a part of my mind was growing, gaining it's own conscience. It was scary.

Then the noise stopped. The line on the screen was flat again.

But then the line plunged down steeply, and an extremely monotonous, dull 'hum' filled the cabin. Contrary to the piercing note, this one didn't hurt. In fact, the pain caused by the previous one slowly receded the more we listened to the sound. Skyfire and Myst felt it too, as both made no effort to cover their ears.

"... are also to be expected. Based off of analysis I was able to perform of the two signals, I have managed to discern one thing: they are both found in almost every single electronic device that is capable of broadcasting audio-wise. Their source is unknown, as any device that comes in contact with any of the two signals become permanent broadcasters." I took that in grimly. So, that's why I've been hearing those signals from almost every single computer and electronic device I had come across. But what was the source? And so Zaita was now a permanent broadcaster, too? Great. Well, at least she said she was able to minimize them. The only question I had now was why they seemed to hurt my head.

Skyfire was a lot more vocal in her thoughts. "What?!" She asked loudly. "Are you telling me that for the five hours I spent listening to old-ass music from that crappy radio back in that town, I've been exposing myself to that shit? No wonder I had a headache the whole fucking time!"

"I am afraid so, yes."

"Oh... um, Zaita?" Myst asked quietly, but managed to get our transport's attention in the form of the camera turning to face her. "What exactly do the signals... do?" She shivered, then looked at me and Skyfire. "Remember near the bridge? When the signals came up... I... I nearly shot Skyfire, but I don't know why. It just felt like I had no control over myself." She sounded ashamed of herself.

I had to admit, I had found that particular incident disturbing. Why did they look like they wanted to kill each other? Were they angry? Not likely, they hadn't done anything to each other that would have warranted lethal revenge.

"I do not quite know." Zaita admitted. "That is why I will perform diagnostics again, when you three are not within the signal's range. Perhaps later, when I am being upgraded at the station."

"Speaking of that, when do we get there, anyway?" I asked. The orb must have been at least another hour, and it had been almost fifteen minutes since I had woken up.

The camera turned from Myst to me, "We are almost there, about half an hour. In fact, I suggest you begin preparations. And you may need to take the supply box out of me later; this cabin is likely to be replaced."

I looked to my two companions, "Well, then, let's get to it. We don't want to be unprepared."

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

"... so you all have the Stable Dweller to thank for the new music! I'll make sure my assistant, Homage, gets my thanks across to that heroic little mare." The DJ said, now in the 'addressing the zebras of the south' part of his broadcast again. We had found the DJ's signal after we had equally distributed the remaining contents of the supply box to each other. Myst took any remaining explosives and healing supplies, Skyfire took all the ammo, and I took anything else that remained inside; mostly some scrap metal and electronics (though why Road Town had given us that stuff, I didn't know. Perhaps they thought Zaita would have gotten damaged and would need repairs?), along with a few interesting books. Sadly, I would have to read 'Fallen Caesar Style Illustrated' later, when we had more time. I remembered that Fallen Caesar Style was the martial art Balaclava and the other two operatives used.

"Personally, I like that mare's songs more than the music they got from those recordings." Skyfire commented. "Now, what was the singer's name again? Something that started with 'Velvet'?" She brought a hoof up to tap her chin in thought.

"It was Velvet Remedy, Skyfire." Myst said, and got a thankful nod from the pegasus in return.

"Alright, quiet, you two." I wanted to listen to what news the DJ had, whether it was from Equestria or from the zebra lands. "Let's hear what the DJ has to say." I turned up the volume on my pipbuck.

"Alright, enough of the music for now. It's time for the news.

"Well, I don't really know what to tell you. I'm pretty sure you're all scared to death of that black cloud thing going on to the south. The Legion seems to know about it, but haven't done anything that I know of to deal with it. What a bunch of cowards."

"Hmph." I huffed quietly to myself. I knew better. I knew, or at least saw, what was in that place. I honestly didn't blame the Legion for being more cautious in combatting the threat. DJPON3 just didn't understand; the Legion weren't cowards, they were some of the braver people I had met. Sure, I still hated them for causing the city so much trouble, but I could respect their bravery in facing... whatever kinds of mutants those things were.

"Anyway," The DJ started. "The one thing I can tell you is the obvious: don't go anywhere near the damned place. Reports from the few witnesses brave enough to go near the clouds have revealed... scary things. And I thought a fucking giant squid was enough, but it turns out there are even more... colossal things in there. Just do yourself a favor and stay as far away from there as equinely possible, alright? Maybe go underground to the tunnels; I heard some friendly-to-the-people groups control most of Roam's underground."

"They do?" Myst suddenly asked, sounding a little surprised. "Whenever I went down there, all I saw were giant radigators, radroaches, huge rats and lots of murky water."

"Well, he did say MOST of the underground." Skyfire commented.

"And when did you ever go underground?" I asked, a little intrigued by her statement.

Myst let out an 'eep' and folded ears folded backwards beneath her hoodie as she looked away nervously. "Well... it's a long story. I don't really..."

"Aw, come on!" Skyfire pouted, getting a strange look from both Myst and me. Zaita's camera turned around and watched us. "You know both of our pasts, how we got out here, and we've both saved your life at least once! I think we've earned a little info about you."

I had to admit, I was also curious about Myst. Sure, I knew she was shy yet could talk openly with one person at a time, had a preference for biscuits (biscuits which, I should say, were absolutely delicious), was at least partially suicidal (she was coming with me, after all), and knew the wasteland better than the both of us. But then none of those really told me just WHO she was, you know what I mean?

"I would like to know a little more about you, as well." Zaita added.

Well, I didn't know much about our transport, too. But that would be the subject for discussion later on. Right now we were talking about Myst.

"There, three against one. Come on, Myst. You've got to tell us something. it doesn't have to be deeply personal, just... something substantial." I said in the most encouraging tone I could bring up. From my pipbuck, the DJ was announcing my exploits since his last report; nothing really important for us, as we actually experienced it. And I doubted he knew it was me and Myst in that building, let alone already formed an opinion about it. So I just turned the radio off; all the important news was over, anyway.

She sighed, then looked us over. "Well... you see... I used to be a part of group of nomads that wandered into the boundaries of Roam. Where we originally came from I don't know, and neither did my parents." She looked us over again, this time with a wide-eyed and anxious look. Personally, I was quite surprised at this new revelation. Who would have known the ever shy and quiet Myst was once a member of a traveling nomadic tribe?

Skyfire's only reaction was widening her eyes. Myst looked at her with her own bulging eyeballs, but the two said nothing. Eventually, though, Myst continued.

"So, um, when we got here, we settled on a forested patch of land near the outskirts of the city. It was so boring there; nothing more exciting than the occasional radigator wandering into our camp happened." She sighed and looked at us with a strangely satisfied smile. "So I left. My parents weren't really happy about it, but they let me. They said that I would probably have left anyway, even if they tried to stop me. For the next few days, I wandered closer to the city in search of something exciting to happen."

Skyfire gasped excitedly. "So, you're saying you left because you... wanted to? Because you found your life boring and wanted to do some adventuring?" She asked with a wide grin.

Myst looked to her with a confident smile. "Yup." Then her smile faded and she assumed her much more shy demeanor. "I know I... might not seem like the adventurous type..."

'No shit. Mare looks like she should be a secluded hermit.' Shut up, Tod. I'm trying to listen over here.

"...but, really, I just can't stand being in one place for too long if nothing ever happens." At that, Skyfire yanked Myst closer and held her by the cheeks as she looked her in the eye with a wide smile.

"Oh, you and I will be the best of friends, I just know it!" Skyfire then proceeded to chokehold Myst's head and pull down her hood. "I take back everything I said about you being boring." She said as she ruffled the earth pony's mane with her hoof vigorously, and to my delight Myst didn't try to run away or break free. She actually seemed to enjoy it a little. That made me smile.

"So, how'd you end up in Road Town? Or for that matter, why'd you stay there?" I asked just as Skyfire released Myst from her stranglehold.

"Oh, right. Well, when I got to the city, I kind of... well, fell underground. It's kind of hard to explain. I was just trotting into the city, when there was an explosion somewhere down the road. I galloped to it, but it must have caused the weak pavement to give. The road collapsed underneath me, and I found myself in the tunnels." She shuddered, as if the memories of the underground weren't pleasant ones to recall. "I spent a week down there, looking for a way out. I nearly got killed by the air down there as many times as the radigators."

I laughed, but she didn't seem to be joking. "No, seriously. Some of the air down there's poisonous. Luckily, whatever the poison is doesn't kill too quickly. Now, where was I... oh, yes. Anyway, I finally found a tunnel in one of the old metros that wasn't collapsed. A few hours of wandering around later, and I found Road Town."

"But... why'd you stay? Place looked a little boring to me." Skyfire said with a questioning look.

Myst turned to her. "Well it actually wasn't for the first few years. And then the Legion showed up, and they were a lot stronger back then, strong enough to have a greater presence in the other zebra cities, and it wasn't really surprising to be attacked at least twice a month. Road Town was a little bigger back them too, in fact I think they were the head of an anti-Legion effort in it's area." She sighed sadly. "Of course, when the fighting subsided, Road Town was no bigger than it is today. It's allies in the form of other towns were all but decimated. Legion also refocused their efforts to licking their wounds; efforts which probably aren't going too well, if the fighting being harder now than ever is any indication."

"I have a very hard time imagining the Legion being STRONGER back then than it is now." Come on, they already had tanks, VTOLs, fighter jets ( or could VTOLs be fighter jets?), power armor, and an artillery battery. I can only imagine how they were back then.

"Believe it." Myst said with a small nod. "You wouldn't believe how much explosives we had to use back them just to blow up a single tank. Luckily, the Specters started showing up around here at that time with a whole lot of the stuff. For a while, they even went around selling some of it. Heh, I spent every cap I had on buying whenever they came." She smiled as she pulled out a detonator from one of her jacket's pockets.

"Don't you miss the place?" Skyfire asked.

"A little. I had good memories there, some of the best in my life. But... I never really made a lot of friends there. The few I did either died or went somewhere else. All of them except for Kira."

"Well, if you don't mind me asking... did you leave with me because life there got boring?" At my question, Myst cringed a little and let out another 'eep'. She cringed even more as Skyfire turned to look at her, both eyebrows raised. She was practically prone when Zaita's camera zoomed in closely.

"Well... um..." She gulped, then looked at me with guilt. "Well... y-yes..." She got up off the floor and looked me right in the eye. "Please don't be mad."

I didn't feel offended. Actually, quite the opposite; I respected her a little more for it. Rather than coming with me out of some suicidal impulse, she was coming with me because she just wanted to. While she had told me that before, I never really believed her up until now. Skyfire must have felt the same, judging from the amused smile she had on her face.

But I wasn't going to let an opportunity to tease our shy companion slip. "Aw, that's it? And here I thought you meant all that stuff you said about me being a good pony..." I said with a pout. Skyfire knew what I was doing, and she immediately brought a hoof up to cover her snicker.

Myst's pupils shrank to the size of grains of sand. "I did! It's just... uh... I... well... um..." She whimpered and covered her face with her forehooves. Skyfire had to bring up her other hoof to keep herself from bursting out in laughter. With Myst not looking, I laughed quietly to myself.

Then Zaita's camera looked the three of us over. In one of the times she displayed social unawareness, she blatantly pointed out our little scheme. "I believe he is teasing you, Myst."

Myst thrust her head back up, mouth agape and eyes wide and bulging, with the cutest shade of rosy red on her cheeks. Skyfire couldn't hold it in anymore; she laughed aloud and fell off the seats, slamming her hoof repeatedly against the floor of the APC and getting Zaita's camera's attention in the process. Then I too lost it, and laughed freely as I sat there in the APC. Zaita's camera then faced me, and somehow that made me laugh even harder.

"I do not understand the humor behind this."

Through our laughing, I heard Myst mutter, still with her blush of embarrassment, "I hate you two so much right now."

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

We were at the foot of a small hill. Myst and I were sitting down in the APC, looking at a blueprint-like image of the ZSI HQ on Zaita's screen. Skyfire had flown out and was scouting the cliff upon which the outer structure was built on, leaving us to plan how we were going to do this. I would have done that myself, if my wings weren't broken. How Zaita got the image, I don't know. Perhaps she had... hacked into a computer somewhere within and downloaded it? Yeah, let's go with that.

The HQ itself was built on the side of a steep cliff, the outer structure jutting out of the cliffside with a path leading to it while the inner super-structure was built within the cliff and reaching below ground level. The inner super-structure consisted of three major wings; each displayed as a large rectangular prism chamber with many smaller cube chambers within them. Each was dedicated to either scientific, military, or medical technological research. They were built atop each other, with what looked like an elevator shaft connecting each of them. According to the image, there were smaller structures exposed near the entrance which Zaita had identified as the update stations.

"...and then we could go down here, to the medical wing. Hopefully they stocked up on medical supplies, because were dreadfully short on healing potions." I pointed to the second chamber, marked the 'medical wing'. Our plan was to scour the place while waiting for Zaita to finish. First we would go to the offices, which were built atop all the wings, for any information on the past or the HQ itself (plus, the offices had the security station). Then we would check out the military wing. Lastly, we would go to the medical and scientific wings, respectively. The deepest part of the structure was a fairly large chamber several dozen feet below ground level, with the only way to it being a long, narrow, diagonal staircase. That place got my curiosity up.

Then I frowned. The last time I went down a diagonal hallway like that, I'd nearly gotten myself killed by... heh, 'zombies'. Ah, that term made me chuckle. Still, nothing good came out of my curiosity ever since I had entered the wasteland.

'Well, there was finding Road Town through Myst.' Oh yeah. Thanks, Tom.

"Well, maybe we should wait for Skyfire before we decide that." Myst suggested, to which I nodded in agreement.

A few minutes later and there was the sound of hooves landing on our transport's roof. A moment later, Skyfire jumped in, looking rather startled and shaken. She was pressing her hoof against her stomach and looked at us painfully.

"Okay," She gasped, sweat beading off of her face as she shakily brought her head up. Her armored vest had a few new bullet holes, most of which had blood pouring out of them. And of all the times for her to get injured, it had to be when we were practically out of healing supplies. Just my luck.

"What happened? The facility's defenses?" I asked, fishing out our remaining meager healing supplies; several vials with enough left in them to form one full potion.

Skyfire nodded as I handed her our last potion. "Yeah. Turrets along the path leading up and along the cliffside. Mostly machine guns... and... and a few missile pods..." She grunted and nearly collapsed.

As she staggered, Myst caught her and helped her onto the seats. "Oh my... here drink it..." Myst helped Skyfire lift the potion to her muzzle, then Skyfire drank the whole potion down in less than five seconds. That was our last healing supply right there. I suddenly felt all of my still-healing burned flesh and sore muscles and not-properly-healed bones. Oh, how I really hoped that the place had healing supplies.

Skyfire breathed heavily for a while, but with her wounds more or less healed managed to continue. "The doors to the facility are closed shut. There's this weird black-screen interface near it. Maybe... maybe you could use it again, like what you did in that building?"

"Maybe... but I wouldn't count on it. I think the only reason that worked was because the systems got fried or were faulty." I actually didn't know why that door had opened for me.

Skyfire took that in grimly but held onto her idea. "Well, it's all we've got. Luckily, the missile pods seem to be anti-air only, so we shouldn't have trouble from them. Zaita can drop is in front of the door, then we get in as quick as possible. After that, she can go to the update station." She took in more deep breaths and rested her head against the wall, still seeming a little shaken.

'This is fucking suicide. Still, it's not like my plans have ever ended well. And even Myst's incredibly dangerous plan had succeeded...' Ah well. I'd just have to hope we got lucky. Which, knowing my luck, wasn't very likely.

"My outer plating is strong enough to withstand the machine guns, yes. If you three manage to get inside, please look for the user-vehicle interface panel within the offices. I will be within the only functional update station: number four. So please hurry to the appropriate panel so that you may choose how to improve me." A section of the main chamber lit up in blue, showing us where this update control panel was.

"What do you mean by that?" Myst asked.

The camera turned to face her. "There are many aspects of my platform, most of which can be upgraded down a certain branch of preference. Several of the S3 Harpies during the war were upgraded from the default software and hardware to become full-fledged stealth and infiltration machines, while others were made into head-on combat vehicles, for example."

"So we get to upgrade you to how we see fit?" Well, this was surprisingly pleasant news. If we could upgrade her to the extent I hoped we could... well, we would have a much easier time in the city if it was as dangerous as I was hearing. And seeing, of course.

The camera turned to me. "Yes, you can. Prestige gained by my former crew have gained me potential upgrades for weaponry, outer plating, AI logic, and software. Only one upgrade can be chosen per category, so I advise you to think carefully before confirming your choices." The camera turned away, and the image of a much bigger, more armored S3 Harpy with what looked like a missile pod next to the turret appeared on her screen.

Skyfire kept up her troubled look and gasped as she pressed her hooves against a part of her that was still bleeding heavily despite her healing potion. That worried me greatly.

"Skyfire? You okay?" I asked in concern. She looked back up at me with a desperate yet somehow confident expression.

"Oh... yeah, sure!" She said, trying to sound better than I was sure that wound was letting her feel. "Just... a scratch..." She tried to hide her expression of pain from us, but I managed to see it. Still, she resumed clutching her wound.

"Let me see it, Skyfire." I told her as I got off the seat and approached her.

"No!" She thrust a hoof in front of her to stop me. "It's nothing, really! Just an old wound that... that..." She gasped for air and winced in pain. Myst approached her with a concerned look, and this time Skyfire didn't try to stop her.

"Come on, Skyfire. Don't be arrogant. If you're injured, let us see it," I urged, and reluctantly she removed her hooves from her blood-stained vest with a resigned sigh. Myst helped her take it off, and I saw a massive scar bleeding in the middle from a gunshot wound. The scar itself was where the jagged piece of the car door had pierced into her several days ago.

Myst gasped, "Oh... Skyfire... I... maybe there's some healing bandages around here..." She started digging through her own possessions, as did I. While the wound wasn't bleeding fatally and would probably stop in just a few more minutes, I didn't want the already tetanus-infected wound to be agitated by further infection. That and because I needed her at her best in case we faced anything in that structure.

We turned up with nothing. Myst whimpered and buried her face in her hooves; perhaps she did not want her newly made friend to suffer. And neither did I.

Then a thought struck me. I started removing my armor, leaving Myst and Skyfire looking at me; the former in confusion and the latter with pain.

"What are you doing?" Zaita asked.

"Myst, see if there's anything, ANYTHING we've got that has any healing properties whatsoever. Zaita, bring us to the front of the compound." I ordered, and Zaita began moving, her engine humming to life from her dormancy. I finished unstrapping the armor and vest and let the two fall off of me; it was the shirt I was after.

Myst looked confused but complied, and brought out a half-empty bottle of what appeared to be whiskey. I took the shirt off and ripped away a piece big enough to go around Skyfire's body, then took the bottle from Myst and soaked the piece with the alcohol.

"This is going to sting a little, but only a little." I said softly as moved the soaked portion over her wound. She looked at me tiredly but nodded, them clenched her eyes shut and bit her lip as I began. Apparently, it didn't hurt 'just a little'; it must have hurt a lot, if her hissing and hoof pounding were any indication. I felt a little like Myst when we were under the bridge, when she had told me the same thing but it turned out the opposite. Myst looked on with concern as I finally finished wrapping the strong-scented cloth around my pegasus friend.

"Thanks," Skyfire murmured as I put my apparel back on. She snickered, "I was being kinda stupid, wasn't I?"

"Yes, you were." I replied calmly, getting a look from the both of them. But I didn't care; what mattered was that I got my point across to my stubborn companions.

"Let's make this clear," I told them as I started tying the straps of my lorica chest plate; I remembered only now that that was what this thing I was wearing was called. "If any of you two are injured, worried, troubled, or otherwise in any kind of distress, you tell me. Don't hesitate, don't hold back. Tell me how you are as you are. As this little group's... 'leader' ( how had I become the leader, anyway? I was sort of the least qualified; Skyfire had been the sergeant of her squad, and Myst had obviously been a fairly high-ranking guard back in Road Town), it is my responsibility to make sure everyone under me is right and proper. And that includes you, Zaita." That got the camera's attention.

Myst and Skyfire looked at me uncomfortably for a while, then Myst said, "But Goldwreath, we don't want to burden you with every single problem or injury... I mean, we can't just let you do everything..."

"Myst, you're troubled. I know it. No one can leave their home, get nearly killed, nearly raped, and generally get screwed over time and time again and be alright. We'll talk about it later, don't worry. Understand?"

She took in a shaky breath, then looked away, eyes cast on the ground. "It's... nothing... really... I'm fine..." Stubbornness right there.

"Do you understand?" I asked with an edge in my voice, and Myst fell silent. Skyfire kept her mouth shut and continued pressing her hooves against her wound. They looked to each other for support, but said nothing. After a while, they both nodded obediently. I slumped against the wall, just like I had last time. "Good."

"This," Zaita said, "Is why I think Goldwreath is the most qualified of us to be the leader."

I took that in thoughtfully, not letting my disagreement to that statement show on my face.

'Yeah,' I thought, 'Of course I am.'

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

The bullets pinged against our vehicle with enough frequency to match the pattering of rain drops on glass. Myst sat huddled in her corner, eyes wide as she twitched and eeped at every bullet that struck close to her. I didn't, as I was confident of our vehicle's armor's strength. Skyfire was on the turret, firing off a few shots which each reduced the pinging just slightly. I was preparing my shotgun for the task ahead; if we faced turrets inside, next to Skyfire's plasma rifles, Tankbuster was the most appropriate weapon for getting through their armor.

I got up off my seat and wobbled unsteadily to the slightly cracked window; the cliff's upward slant wasn't making any movement inside the vehicle easy. Through the countless bright yellow streaks that struck our vehicle and through the dim light of twilight, I made out the dark metallic form of the door, above which was a large arced roof supported by metal columns.

"Ten seconds. Lock n' load, people." I found myself blinking hard at my own words. Did I just quote Balaclava? Maybe... maybe a subconscious part of wanted to remember the operative for his efforts in saving my sorry flank back in that building?

Skyfire fired a long burst, and the pinging reduced dramatically. She got up from the controls and sat down on the seat next to Myst, who was looking up at the hatch anxiously. Skyfire looked a little nervous, too. I guess even her huge ego could fade from time to time. I got up and readied myself for the vehicle's inevitable stop. I was breathing hard; our lives were hanging on the off chance that I would be able to repeat my success in opening that door.

'I don't really think this is a good idea...' You're right Tom. It isn't. But we're already here, no backing away now. Might as well get it over with.

The vehicle stopped abruptly, almost sending me crashing to the front as the vehicle's nose tilted downward. "Go," Zaita said, and the hatch automatically swung open. I jumped out first and fell to the ground hard in a pile of old skeletons as two large rounds caught me in the chest. Luckily, only one got through.

Skyfire and Myst jumped out next, the pegasus firing luminescent bolts of green from her twin plasma rifles while the earth pony got behind one of the columns and took cover. The APC hovered further down the path and turned, getting shot a few times by the turrets, before disappearing from sight around the corner of the cliff.

I rolled to the cover of a nearby rock, feeling the shrapnel from the rounds scratch at my helmet as they broke against the ground. That one wound I had just gotten was already bleeding, but the adrenaline coursing through me kept the pain at bay. The rock fragmented and broke as the heavy rounds struck it repeatedly, chipping away large pieces of my cover. I couldn't get to the door to try the interface; if I so much as moved for one second away from my already dwindling cover, I was fucking dead.

'Well, this plan is going well.' Shut up, Tod. I so do not need your worthless words right now.

Skyfire and Myst weren't having it any better. Their cover in the form of the two columns were also being pounded with bullets from the nigh-invisible turrets along the cliff's edge. But at least their cover was thicker, and made of metal.

"Skyfire!" I called out over the relentless roaring of the machine gun fire going on all around us. "Cover me!" She heard it and nodded, then promptly got out of her cover and let loose a bright burst from Sally. Myst helped her out, using Skyfire's temporary diversion to pop out of her corner and line up a shot with her scope. Despite the darkness becoming nearly pitch black, she was able to land a hit that caused one turret to explode.

I sprinted over to them, getting struck in a leg and stumbling before getting hit again in the chest. Luckily, with that stumble came the fortunate occurrence of landing right on front of the interface. My leg hurting like hell coupled with my heart pounding painfully in my chest didn't make getting up easy, but I did it. I hurriedly removed my hoofplate and touched my bare hoof to the glassy black surface.

'We're so fucking dead.' I thought as I kept my hoof on it for a second, then withdrew it. I mean there was just no way that I could replicate my success. The wiring was faulty, damn it! And here I got all of us into a situation we couldn't get out of. Of all my plans, this was the most ridiculous, un-thought over, unlikely to succeed...

"Access granted." Oh, ok... wait, WHAT?!

The huge metal door began sliding down, creating sparks at the sides as the unused door scraped away rust and dirt from two centuries of disrepair. For a moment, I just watched in disbelief. Skyfire and Myst likewise looked surprised as they crouched against their cover.

A bullet striking me in my shoulder plates reminded me we were still under fire. I charged back to my cover, blasting Tankbuster into the muzzle-flashes in the darkness. Two explosions signaled the destruction of those turrets. Skyfire once more turned and let out a furious volley of plasma. Unlike her previous effort where she was unharmed, this time she got caught in the gut thrice, and the bullets exploded out of her back and nearly hit me. She screamed and fell down, curling up like a fetus as she once more held her stomach. My heart stopped for just a moment, letting me watch her with disturbing vividness as a cold chill went up my spine.

"Skyfire!" Myst yelled, and charged across the gap between the two columns to get at her. That got her hit in the shoulder, the bullet also blasting out of her with a bloody spray and resulting in her crashing behind the column and next to the bleeding Skyfire. And yet all I was doing was watching.

'Fuck no.' I thought. 'We are NOT dying here because of this stupid ass plan.'

I don't know what came over me at that point. I whipped out my shotgun and, against all logic and reason, and even against my two brain entities, charged straight forward into the open and opened fire. Blast after blast roared from Tankbuster's barrel as the shotgun's power obliterated the only lightly armored turrets. In return they sent a vicious and non-stop stream of burning hot lead straight at me, punching through my armor most of the time and either burying themselves in me or blasting out of my flesh, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that I got their attention away from my injured companions because, unlike them, I could take it. If there was one thing I had learned in the outside, it was that my body could take severe punishment. So if anyone had to be torn at by heavy machine gun fire, it had to be me. No one else had to suffer for my plans.

When Tankbuster was out, and I don't even know how I managed to survive up to this point, I brought out Balaclava's rifle and opened up with that. Two more turrets went down in an electrical pop as I fired. The remaining turret's bullets slammed into my already shredded vest and armor, causing me to stagger and nearly collapse from the burning pain, but I kept shooting. I had to. I had to until that damned door came down.

Then one bullet smacked against my helmet's cheek guards and ripped away the right side of my face. Blood exploded in my face, blurring my vision. That was it for me.

I collapsed then and there, unable to resume my suicidal assault. I managed to crawl into a depression just deep enough to shield the majority of my body from harm as they continued shooting. Even with their severe injuries, my companions were looking at me with a look of utter horror and shock. Either my face looked absolutely terrible right now, or it was something else. I doubted it was something else.

That was it. For the next few moments we sat where we were, bleeding and dying and waiting for death. It felt horrible knowing I had once more lead us into danger, only this time we had no chance of surviving. Already the metal columns were so bent and damaged that eventually they would have to move to other cover, and then they would get shot. The door was only halfway down, moving so tauntingly slow that I wanted to scream. Maybe I did. I couldn't tell.

Then I remembered the zebra leader's words, 'Semper resistere terram!' Always stand your ground.

'Fuck me.' I started reloading Tankbuster and did whatever I could to prepare myself for one more charge. I had to do it. If I died buying enough time for them to get in and maybe find healing supplies, then good. That was all that mattered.

I held the shotgun close and breathed in deeply and slowly. This was it, I thought. One more suicidal charge. I got up and took one last breath and was about to open fire, when I heard something...

'Hummmmm...' The humming noise, one of the signals. The better one of the two. Well, as much as I appreciated the relieving effects of the signal on my mind, it wasn't really going to help me against the turrets.

Wait, speaking of the turrets, where were they? I couldn't see them through the darkness, as I had been using their flashes to know where they were for that whole time. I wasn't being shot at despite my exposure, and neither were my companions. What, did they finally run out of ammo?

I carefully and slowly moved from the depression and trotted forward, landing my hooves on spent and smoking metal casings with each step, until I came upon one of the machines. It was still functional, as it actually turned to face me. It still had ammo, as the belt feeding the bullets to the chamber still had enough rounds left to continue shooting non-stop for at least a few more minutes. A quick look at the other turrets with my pipbuck's lamp confirmed they were all still functional and looking at me. All around me, in the very air, the humming noise was still quite present.

The metal door slid down with a loud clang, and Myst helped Skyfire inside as they both tried to apply pressure to their wounds. Skyfire gestured me to get inside with them before they disappeared into the darkness of the interior.

With one final look of confusion at the turrets, I began limping over the casing-sprinkled ground and over to the doorway.

Just a step before I entered, a painful, piercing note suddenly sounded over the entire cliffside. I clutched my head and winced from the pain, and even nearly collapsed. With the dim light entering the doorway, I managed to see Skyfire and Myst looking at me with worry. I took one more painful step and got inside, and the note stopped... replaced by the dull hum of the other note.

A bullet shot through the doorway and struck the ground near the two, and I turned back to see the turrets resuming their shooting. The door automatically began to close again as I took cover next to it and waited out the sudden barrage. Myst and Skyfire wobbled further inside and disappeared in the darkness, only a few bullets whizzing after them. For the next few moments, as the door slid up, I heard the piercing note attempt to break into the building and get past the other note. It was kind of strange, like two different tides colliding into each other, being incapable of simply melding into a single wave.

The door closed with another metallic clang, and the bullets outside ceased their pinging after a few more scattered shots.

Now I collapsed, exhausted and in more pain than I ever had been in my life. I really felt like I could die at any second, what with the amount of blood I was losing through my many, many new holes. My face's right side felt... ew, just... ew. I was not looking into a mirror any time soon. My armor and vest looked shredded beyond repair, save if we found an entirely new suit. Maybe if we found one of those metal-wearing Legionnaires...

Skyfire's grunt of pain echoed through the darkness, and somehow I forced myself up and trotted into the large, spacious chamber at a brisk pace. All around me, the hum was still there, strong and loud in my ears.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

"No... no no no..." Myst murmured as she shook the unconscious pegasus. "She's not breathing!" Oh, that was a line I'd heard before, when I too was on the verge of death. Except this time, dying was a lot more likely for all of us.

Skyfire was leaned against a dusty old table, her blood pooled around her and cooling rapidly. My own blood was dripping off me in large doses, and in fact I could feel the moist coldness of my soaked clothing, but I worried more about her.

"She's not going to die while I'm still alive." I breathed hard and kneeled next to her, and tried to do... something. Honestly, I thought we were screwed. Not only were healing supplies not guaranteed, but I also wasn't sure if they could heal the level of injury I and my companions had suffered. Her tank crew vest did little to soften the impacts, but at least she only suffered three hits. I had suffered more... but I could take it. I hoped.

Myst must have seen my face with the dim light of my pipbuck's lamp. "Oh... Goldwreath, your face..." She reached a hoof to touch my face, but I stopped her.

"Don't worry about me, Myst. I've had my skull cave in on me, a little flesh ripped away isn't so serious." I said with a reassuring smile... one that her eyes widened at. I tried to sound less hurt than I was. I could worry about myself later, when they were accounted for. "Try to see if there's anything here that can help us out."

She looked at me uncertainly, but obeyed. When she had disappeared into the darkness, glancing back at me before she did, I turned my attention back to the pegasus dying before my eyes.

'Dammit, brain! Help me out! I need to think of something! Something that can save her!' I screamed in my head as I removed the vest off of her, hoping to... dammit I didn't know what I was doing! I was absolutely worthless.

Then I felt something in my mind... move. It was... disturbing, to say the least. It wasn't physical, like some worm had gotten inside. Rather, it was like... a part of my consciousness had removed itself from my head. Even more strange was, following that, I felt a similar movement in my head, except that that one... hurt. I suddenly felt... stranger; I was me, sure, but it was almost as if a foreign entity that I had kept in me had suddenly gone away and then an unwelcome guest took it's place.

I suddenly felt dumb and sluggish; so sluggish that I didn't do anything for the next few moments. It made me want to scream. Here was my friend dying in front of me, and I felt like I had come across a hard math problem. If that doesn't prove I'm not a good leader, I don't know what will.

I turned my attention back to Skyfire, when suddenly... I didn't want to. She was dead already, I thought. There was no point in trying to save someone so close to death. And, damn me, I actually believed it. I was actually about to leave her there to die.

As I got up, the noise in the room suddenly sounded... more concentrated. Like the very air itself had turned into sound. And then the sound washed over me, surrounding me like a twister. It hummed in my ears loudly, and I couldn't help but wince from the pain in my head. But that pain wasn't mine. It felt like the pain of something else, and that something was causing me pain in an attempt to reduce it's own suffering.

The sound intensified to such a degree that my whole head began throbbing terribly. Then my whole body. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest like a drum; it wasn't supposed to pound like this. This wasn't natural.

I collapsed, screaming and writhing in pain as I felt my brain being subjected to terrible torture. It was like something was forcing it's way into my mind, and in return something was trying to keep it out. Like that foreign entity was trying to get back in, but the unwelcome guest didn't want it to. My whole body throbbed painfully from the unnatural amount of blood being forced through my veins. I literally felt like I would explode!

Then it all stopped. The pain, the throbbing, hell, even my heart had returned to it's normal pace. The dull humming had reduced to a soft sound that was barely audible. My body felt, strangely, great. Certain parts of my mind felt somehow exhausted, like the unwelcome guest and returning foreigner had called a truce for a while. Only certain parts, the rest of my mind felt fine. It was quite disturbing that I was thinking of my mind this way. But I didn't feel sluggish anymore. Tired, yes, but not sluggish.

Myst must have found the light switch, as the lights turned on. The lights revealed the wide open space that was the offices to be covered in ash. It was everywhere; on the ceiling, on the walls, the ground, and even the cubicles. A few skeletons lay around, there bones blackened and made brittle by whatever caused the ashes. Skyfire was revealed to be leaning against the walls of one of the many cubicles in the area. Even better, she was awake. Tired and exhausted just like me, but she was alive and breathing. And even stranger...

"Skyfire... your wounds," I gasped, pointing to the scars where a while ago had been bullet holes wide enough to fit the barrel of a gun. Skyfire herself looked surprised. Then she looked at me.

"Your face..." At that I brought up my hooves to touch my face. I felt a large, ugly scar... but the wound was closed, and the rest of my injuries had somehow... healed.

"What the..." I murmured as I looked to all the places where I had been shot. All the wounds were closed and healed as well as any healing potion could do. Only my burns didn't show much improvement. "This... what the hell is this..."

'Well...' Tod started, sounding... tired. 'That was... strange.' Yeah, no shit.

As Skyfire and I resumed inspecting ourselves and questioning how this had happened, Myst approached us from the other side of the room. Her shoulder wasn't bleeding any more, as well. The wound had healed.

"Um..." She said, looking confused. "What just happened?"

Good question. "Don't know. But it's probably better to just accept favors when we can." That's what I told her. In truth, I was already beginning to suspect just what all that was. The thought of what it was... it made me... uncomfortable.

Anyway, with our wounds healed under mysterious circumstances, we began exploring. I told them that we would clear each wing together; no splitting up. They seemed to understand, and so Myst went to looting all the drawers and filing cabinets for anything of use or value. Skyfire accompanied me in searching for the security office, which was the place I was most interested in at the moment, next to the medical wing. For the first time, I was almost out of ammo for my heavy shotgun.

We climbed up a set of stairs leading to a balcony overlooking the main chamber of offices. Up here there wee more offices; not cubicles, but rooms. They had glass windows that I could see through, and through them I could see the offices inside. They had nothing that interested me. On the other side of the very long hall was the security office, if Zaita's image of the place was correct.

Skyfire leaned her head close to me, "Thanks for saving my life."

"No problem, Skyfire. As long as you two didn't die, I could endure the pain. After all, you two aren't failures and deserve to live." She looked at me with surprise. "What?"

"What do you mean by that? You think of yourself as a failure?" She asked in a tone that sounded surprised. Why would she be surprised? Hadn't I told her of my fuckups yet?

"Yes, I am. For several reasons. First off, all of my plans go wrong. And yesterday... all those people in the wreckage." I sighed, "I couldn't stop him. I'm supposed to be the Praetorian, Roam's defender. And yet I couldn't stop one zebra from murdering several dozen people." I hung my head in personal disappointment.

She looked at me for several seconds, then said, "It wasn't your fault, you know. You tried, but he stopped you. That makes him an ass and you a hero." A hero? Hell no.

"No," I shook my head. "That's not how it works, Skyfire. They were my responsibility, my charge. I was supposed to save them, but I couldn't. That makes both of us, not just him, responsible for their deaths." Their faces, burning and screaming, were still etched in my mind. It was a sight I would never forget. And I didn't deserve to be rid of it.

"And then," I continued, "there was in the stable. I promised him I would find his killer, Skyfire. I promised him his death and the death of his friends were to be avenged. I promised to kill the son of a bitch who murdered him." I shook my head, "But I couldn't fulfill it. Somehow, he'd impersonated me. Outsmarted me. And it makes me angry because I spent my whole boring life bettering myself, only to have those efforts fail me when I needed them the most.

"And then just now. You were dying, Skyfire! You were hurt, and so was she! And... and I froze! I was weak, slow, stupid. The only reason we're alive is because of blind luck, not because of me."

"Now, hold on there!" She said, sounding altogether disapproving of everything I said. "You DID save us. I was the one who got myself shot, and Myst got shot trying to save me. And you... you just threw yourself out there and took all the fire for us. That's amazing, whatever you say. You're just like Breezetail, throwing yourself in the line of fire for us."

I sighed. Didn't she understand? My ambition of saving this city was going to get us killed. It wasn't her fault; she exposed herself to save me, the pony who was going to get her killed. If anything, I should be down on the ground thanking them for sticking with me.

Instead I just turned away, feeling undeserving for all her words of comfort. "That... might be true. I did throw myself into the line of fire, but that was because you two are more important. You two haven't failed yet. And I still couldn't save those people. I still couldn't fulfill my promise. Both were important, and I couldn't do either. So it's only right that I should suffer for my short comings."

She sighed and shook her head. "You really have to treat yourself better. Not everything bad that happens is your fault simply because you were involved in it, you know. You aren't always to blame."

"And then who is to be blamed, huh? The murderer? Perhaps, but justice starts when the person who promised to avenge the victim suffers for his weakness! Justice starts when the person who failed to keep over forty zebras from roasting alive suffers for his failure!" She looked back to me, shocked at the anger and hatred, self-hatred, in my voice. I hung my head. "Justice begins when I have suffered enough from my mistakes to learn from them. Justice starts when I have suffered what my failures have caused people to suffer. Because if I disregard self-punishment... then pride and arrogance will root themselves in my mind."

She looked at me with a hurt yet understanding, but not approving, expression. "I... understand now. Just... don't overdo the self-hurting, alright? Making sure you don't get arrogant is good, but there's a difference between that and just being a dick to yourself." Then she turned trotted away, muttering something under her breath that sounded like 'and he calls me stubborn'.

We continued trotting down the balcony, and saw Myst on the first floor, rummaging through a box and throwing out all sorts random junk behind her. As we trotted past her, she pulled out a pink sock with her mouth and looked at it skeptically. Then she smiled, and wore the sock over her left forehoof, before trotting off to another cubicle to search for loot.

We reached the security office's door, which was a metal door partially melted by whatever had caused the area to blacken. If I had known that it was just above and to the left of the entrance, I would have just flown up. Granted, my wings were still broken ( again ), but it was just thirty feet up. Surely I could have pressed myself enough to have flown that height.

I tried opening the door, only to find it locked. I pulled out my last bobby pin and tried my luck on the door. The pin snapped. Oh well, I had gotten lucky on those other locks I guess.

"Maybe I can just melt the door. These rifles could melt through power armor, I guess it can melt the door, too." Skyfire suggested. I nodded, and stepped aside.

Two bolts from Mercedes later and the door had a whole in the middle big enough to fit through. But I didn't want to touch the very hot-looking melted door, so instead I reached a hoof inside nad flicked the lock before pushing the door open.

A turret came down from the office ceiling and opened fire. Skyfire bolted to the side, just quick enough to not get another wound. Instead, I jumped inside and blasted the thing with Tankbuster at point blank. The turret didn't even get a shot off at me. That made me smirk.

Skyfire entered, looking about cautiously for more turrets. There weren't any. Inside the office were several practice rooms; one for target practice and another for hoof-to-hoof combat. There were several lockers lined up against a wall, and opposite of that there was a reinforced glass window showing off different assault rifles and shotguns, with the occasional gladius and sidearm. In the corner of the room was a terminal on a rectangular table, and in the seat there was the slumpng skeleton of zebra wearing a segmented kevlar vest. There was another skeleton on the ground, old blood dried up around it.

"Skyfire, you mind taking care of the guns? And give me any shotgun shells and rifle mags you find; I'll go see if this place has anything else." This place had obviously not been looted since the apocalypse, so we were sure to get something else of value around here.

"Sure. Hopefully this place has a few SMG mags too." Oh yes, for her submachine gun.

While Skyfire focused on trying to break the armored glass with one of the metal chairs, I respectfully pushed the skeleton off the seat and got on the terminal, which had remained on for the last two centuries. The screen was so thick with dust it almost blocked all the light coming from it.

At the top of the screen was the word 'REMINDERS' in bold text. The screen showed a number of audio recordings, the recording dates of which had intervals of several days all the way to several years. Some of the, were also marked with a red tag. I was about to click on the first tagged one, when I bumped my leg against something beneath the table. Curious, I reached down and picked the box up and proceeded to read the text.

"Pocket radios, contubernium pack." I turned the box around, and at the very top, on red tape, were written the words 'FOR MILITARY USE ONLY'. I then proceeded to read the rest of the text.

"Instructions: change the frequency of all radios desired to be connected to that of the gold radio. Any frequency marked with a 'C8' broadcasts only to other radios of this package set to the same frequency. Inter-pack and inter-frequency communication is only possible via..." The rest of the instructions were too faded to read, but I had learned all I needed to know.

"Well, this is a useful find." I said as I ripped the box open and pulled the radios out, then took the gold radio out from the eight pack radio holder.

'Any frequency marked with C8, huh? Okay...' I flicked the switch on the side and set the dial on my newly acquired radio to the frequency 'C8 78.2'. A red light flashed to life on the bottom of the device, and next to it a green tinted glass remained unlit.

"Hey Skyfire, catch this." I said as I tossed another radio, a plain black device, over to her. She was still about to smash the chair into the window one more time when she saw the device flying towards her. She dropped the chair with a clang and just barely caught it in her teeth. She looked at me with slight annoyance.

Then I trotted to the door of one of the practice rooms. "Set the frequency dial to C8 78.2, then speak into it when I tell you to." I walked in and then closed the door behind me, separating myself from her. "Okay, now." I put the radio close to my ears.

Skyfire set the dial and spoke into the radio, but I heard nothing. A moment later, when she saw she had not turned the radio on, she did so. The green glass lit up. Again, she spoke into it, and this time her voice sounded from the device's speaker, just slightly distorted.

"Hey," She said, "if you're hearing this, I want you to know that I nearly dropped the chair on my hoof." Well, that confirms her being able to talk to me.

I placed my mouth closer to the speaker of my own. "Yeah, sorry about that." With the functionality of the radios confirmed, I went back outside while Skyfire continued smacking the bent chair against the glass.

'Wait, how are these things powered anyway?' I thought, and trotted back to the box. It didn't have anything on the subject, or perhaps any related text was faded, but I did see a logo of the sun's rays beaming down on a set of solar panels.

Now, without further interruption, I clicked on the first marked recording.

'Oh, hi!' The voice of a young, energetic mare said. 'My name is Jeina, and this is my first day as the ZSI Roaman area security chief. I'm so excited! I can already imagine just how exciting this job can be! Oh, and if the Equestrians try to get in here, and I stop them, it will be the highlight of my career! Jeina out!'

"Riiiight..." Skyfire drawled. "So, a security chief that WANTS the place to get attacked. That'll have turned out well," She murmured as she shook her head. I clicked on the next one. It was recorded several years later.

'I hope Lord Decarius blows that fucking thing back to the to the gods-damned stars!' Now she sounded... angry, mixed with fear. 'It's been here for years! Even before the war! And instead of... of destroying it, they've been... doing things with it! If it weren't for this order I was given to move it to the Forum, I never would have even known.' She sighed shakily, 'Maybe I should quit. A lot of the guys working on the level where the thing is held have had plenty of... mental breakdowns in the past few years. Maybe if I leave, it'll leave me alone or something! Maybe... Then the recording started to get static. Just before it became too much to hear anything in the background, I managed to make out a noise... A sound...

A very high-pitched sound.

When the static passed, she spoke again, now sounding rather... blithe and unconcerned. 'Well, on second thought, maybe it is a good idea to bring it to the Forum. Maybe the Caesar, as the Great Mediator, can clean it or something.' She grunted, and the sound of her bringing up a hoof to touch her head came from the speaker. 'Uh, what's with the headache? Ugh... Jeina out.'

I was very hesitant to click the last marked entry. I was still taking in that whatever we were experiencing now... that signal... was present even back then. And what were they working on? Some kind of experiment or project? Did the zebras of the war create it as some kind of secret weapon of some sort? Oh, great. MORE questions.

Skyfire also looked a little troubled, looking at the ground with the chair next to her. The glass was almost broken; maybe a few more bashes. "What do you think? Should I continue with the last one?"

She looked at me, and bit her lower lip. "I'm not sure I want to... but this is the sort of info we need to know." She sighed, "Go ahead. I'll... go break this window open." She glanced at me one more time before picking up the chair again.

I clicked on the last entry.

'Copy that, all science wing materials have been successfully transferred to Forum stable, over... No, medical's still being cleared. Military wing's cleanup crew's still coming. Uhuh, uhuh... no, I don't know if... No, Forum stable, listen, I... ugh... fine. I'll see to it. Okay, out.' There was a sigh from a mare, Jeina, from the sound of it. 'Gods, of all the times for them to call in important materials, they call it in now?'

'Jeina, come on! The sirens are up, and we're evacuating to the stables. Equestria's retaliation shouldn't come for a few more hours, but we should leave as soon as possible. You got the the passes?' Asked a zebra stallion. Despite the apparent threat of megaspell attack, he sounded rather relaxed. In the background, I heard the noises of dozens of other zebras leaving the area.

'Yeah, just give me a minute. Those asses in the Forum have decided to lay some work on my hooves. I've got to...' That was all she managed to get out, when a would-be deafening sound roared from the speakers. From the outside came screams and panicked shouting as some of the people were either running back into the building or to the outside.

'What... What's going on?!' I heard the stallion shout. He must have been leaning on the railings overlooking the offices on the ground floor.

'Roam... the western side... it's gone.' Came the shaky response from the bottom floor. 'How did this happen? The legates... they said we had hours to evacuate.' There was crying coming from downstairs.

'M-my family was on the bridge! They... they were going to head to the mountains... to the stables... gods...'

'Oh gods, there are more!' There was frantic shouting coming from downstairs, followed by several more thunderous noises in the background. 'That's Canterium... and that- thats Ravennaium! And... gods no... not Herculania! Damn it, my mother was there!'

Apparently, despite the megaspells landing all over, the general consensus was to leave the compound and make a run for it. Then there were more sounds. They were loud, but they weren't megaspells. They sounded more like... artillery, actually.

'That's the defense cannons! They're intercepting the megaspells!That means the stables and the network are still okay! We need to go, now! Jeina, come on! This place is going to go on lockdown the moment even a bit of that balefire hits this area!' Now the stallion sounded frantic. Obviously, none of them had been expecting the megaspells to land so soon.

'Okay, let's... wait... what's that sound?' She was probably referring to this rolling, thunderous roar that was quickly approaching. It sounded... well... like...

'Incoming balefire! Close the fucking door!' A moment later, there was a loud 'FWOOSH' that sounded very close to the office. For the next minute or so, there was only sound of every door in the compound slamming shut and the haggard breathing of the two zebras in the room. One of them must have ended the recording, as it stopped abruptly.

I looked around, startled, at the security office. Skyfire had broken the window and was obviously distracting herself from the recording by getting the guns. I looked down at the skeletons, and beneath one of them I saw a pistol with two empty casings near it. That told me all I needed to know about those two. I wondered which one of them was Jeina. Probably the one with the vest.

In the middle of my contemplation, Myst trotted in, still wearing the sock, and eating a biscuit with such relish that she seemed to have forgotten we nearly died just a few minutes ago. She opened one eye to look at us as she continued munching. "So, what did I miss?"

I looked to Skyfire with a look; one that she returned with a shake of her head. I got the message.

"Nothing really important, Myst. I'll just tell you later."

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

"Ah, Goldwreath. I am glad you survived. Those turrets obviously did not make entry easy." No they did not, Zaita. They nearly tore us to bits, actually.

"Yeah, they screwed us up bad. Luckily there was that... signal. Something happened to us, Zaita. Something... did something to our bodies. It saved us, sure, but... but now I'm confused as hell." Skyfire responded. Immediately, she reached up a hoof to touch her head as she winced. Apparently, while the side effect on me was sluggishness, for her it was pain. Judging from how happy Myst looked, hers was joy. Lucky mare.

We were in the room containing control panel number four. Zaita was in a garage looking area beyond an armored glass window. On the ceiling of the garage were several dormant robotic arms that I assumed were for removing the old parts of the APC in the station. Myst was on the panel, going through the different pre-upgrade verifications. Skyfire sat down and looked around. I was taking apart the different rifles and shotguns and piecing their best parts together to form weapons of good quality which I could sell later. Any spare parts I would use to repair Tankbuster and Balaclava's rifle; only Vengeance didn't seem to need any repairs. I guess Predator had done something to it that made it degrade slowly.

"Ah, so you three felt that? Yes, it was a rather strange occurrence."

Myst turned to face us. "Okay, for Zaita's armor we have two options: stealth cloaking or explosive reactive. What do you think?"

Skyfire looked at her with cool detachment. "Obviously the explosive reactive one. Who needs stealth?"

"Yeah, well, it won't really help us out much if we get shot by a tank. I go for stealth; I've dealt with several situations head-on, and each time we got into serious trouble. I think it's time to change a few of our tactics." I remembered my very first plan that went horribly wrong: the attack on Decarius'. I wanted to avoid more failed attacks if possible.

"I agree with Goldwreath. Stealth is a better approach in an environment populated by heavy vehicles."

"Me too." Myst added meekly, barely audible from the control panel.

Skyfire sighed and shook her head. "Fine," She said in a resigned tone, and then leaned against the wall. Myst tapped the screen, and there was a beep.

"Okay, now for her weapons. Do you think we should get rocket pods or another 25mm turret?"

"I vote for rockets!" Skyfire said enthusiastically as she jumped up off the ground. I gave her a strange look, as did Myst. "Oh, come on! We don't need another 25mm gun; they're good against infantry, but we'll need SOMETHING against heavier targets!" That was... true.

"I agree with her there, Goldwreath. If we get rockets, we won't have to run from every fight that involves another armored vehicle. Of course, there is the consequence of having to look for more rockets in case we run out."

I turned to Myst, but she just shrugged. Apparently she didn't really have an opinion on this matter. Still, Skyfire had a point on this one...

"Rockets it is." I said, and Skyfire looked at me with a wide grin. Myst tapped the screen once more, and moved on to the final upgrade.

"Last one is for Zaita herself. Here, we can give her greater control over the vehicle, which will allow her to shoot her weapons automatically. It's either that or greater processing power, and I'm sure you already know what that will do."

Okay, now this was the decision I had to think through carefully. If Zaita could shoot for herself, then that meant she could protect herself in case we weren't around. It also meant she could basically fight some of our battles for us, which I honestly wanted. We wouldn't have to do all the fighting ourselves now. On the other hoof, she could also turn on us. Then again, she had had plenty of opportunities to let us die, so I assumed she had no intent to kill us.

On the other side of the bottle cap, greater processing power would allow her greater cyber-warfare capabilities, which she could use to help us out in all things computer. She could, at least in theory, hack into systems and help us with the security of buildings, or even assume control of the systems themselves. And that could also be very useful, seeing as the city had lots of electronics.

"I'm not really sure what to go with on this one." Skyfire admitted. "They both sound really useful."

"Well... um... maybe... oh, uh... nevermind," Myst stammered.

"The choice is up to you, Goldwreath." Yeah, I picked up on that already, Zaita.

After a few moments of careful consideration, I made my choice. "Better processing power; we can fire the guns on our own. Besides, being able to see and know things computers and cameras can is going to be a big advantage if we want to keep a low profile."

"Very well."

"Sounds good to me."

"Um... okay." Then she tapped the screen one more time and there was a beep. Immediately, the robotic arms came down from the ceiling, carrying different brand-new and shiny parts for Zaita.

"This may take a while. Perhaps explore the place a little before I finish. Just be careful." I finished my tinkering and managed to create a fairly pristine rifle and shotgun. Balaclava's rifle and Tankbuster were still better, as the former already had various attachments and was still in better condition than my new rifle, and Tankbuster's power was still greater than the anti-personnel shotgun I had created, but it was nice to know all those boring years in stable maintenance had payed off.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

"Well, this sucks." Skyfire commented as we looked over the collapsed ceiling of the military wing. The moment we stepped out of the elevator, we were greeted with the sight of several tons of crashed supports and rubble blocking the arced doorway that led into the place. Even if we could get past this one blockade, the rest of the roof inside the wing must have collapsed as well. So much for looting this place.

"Well, back in the elevator then." I said, annoyed. Well, there was still likely another hour before Zaita finished anyway. Im fact, I thought I could hear the robotic arm's hydraulics through the ceiling...

Back in the elevator, we were descending deeper into the earth. We must have been traveling several hundred feet down, as the heat was quickly making itself apparent. Still, we needed healing supplies, and we were going to get them. That is, if there were any to be found. What annoyed me even more than the broken military wing was the repetitive elevator music that was playing.

The doors slid open with a ring, revealing a thankfully intact medical wing with no balefire ash. In fact, this wing looked in almost pristine condition, save all the dust floating around. In front of us was an arced doorway that opened into the main chamber. Now that we were here, I saw that the layout of the wings were much more intricate than they had appeared in the blue prints, and the general design of the place was a testament to zebra engineering. I was glad for the aqua blue light that lit the place up.

The roof was domed, with four massive arcs stretching from each corner of the chamber to converge in the center of the roof, where a thick marble column stabbed down to support the weight of the entire area. A rectangular prism shaped enclosed area marked where the many different testing sites were, separated from us and from each other by glass windows and armored doors. There were many different sub-chambers, each leading to what was apparently a different testing site for different medical technologies. Further inspection revealed that the enclosed area in the middle of the main chamber was simply the supply room, where all the necessary supplies for the different testing sites were held.

"Thank Celestia for motherfucking healing supplies!" I exclaimed, relieved and jubilant to have found that there were far more healing supplies here than we could even hope to carry. Some of them were still in the armored cubicles, others wrapped in boxes and seemed like they were to be brought away, and others looked like they were being used at the time of the megaspell strike.

"How do we carry it all?" Myst asked.

"We can't." Skyfire responded. "But we can stuff our saddlebags full with them," She said with a wide grin; one that I was all too tempted to share.

"Alright, branch out and restock. Don't wander too far off, and only stay in the main chamber. I don't want to know what they were doing in these sites, especially the one labeled 'muscular regeneration'." I shivered, the mere thought of technologies that could regrow muscles disturbing. While there was no doubt that could have been useful, it was just... gross. "Turn on your radios and tell me if you go anywhere. Just grab what you need and meet me at the elevator; there's still one more wing to clear."

They nodded, then trotted off into the prism to gather up on supplies. Skyfire melted through the perimeter glass with Mercedes, and Myst followed her in. That left me with the job of securing this place.

I turned around and began trotting away, only to find that Skyfire's weaponry must have activated localized security. Two turrets popped down from the ceiling, immediately locking on to me. I dove back through the doorway, the bullets ricocheting off the ground as I landed inside. Myst peered out of the melted glass and tried to fire a shot, but dove back in due to one of the turrets suddenly locking onto her and cracking the glass with a spray of heavy rounds. Deciding to use a silenced weapon in the hopes that no more security would appear, I pulled out Balaclava's rifle and attached the silencer.

A whole mag of silenced firing later and the two turrets were destroyed. Myst and Skyfire resumed their looting, and I resumed my patrol. Luckily, none of us had been injured, and even more luckily no more security came in.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

Our saddlebags and pockets and basically anywhere we could fit a healing supply in were stuffed to the brim with our plundered medical goods. Each of us took one just for the sake of healing any injuries the phenomenon earlier might not have taken care of properly. After I had taken mine, my wings and my burnt hide felt oh so slightly better, but the rest of my body felt the same.

The doors once more opened with a ring, revealing the scientific wing to have a near exact copy of the layout of the medical wing. The only real difference was that the prism at the center was being used for... nothing?

The whole place was quite thoroughly empty. Everything you would expect to find in a lab were absent; no tools, no test tubes, no weird green liquid pouring into some long elastic tube, and no computers of any sort. Hell, even the slots in the ceiling where the turrets were were empty. Really, the only things here were the metal tables that were bolted to the ground.

As I stepped further into the room, more of the lights lit up. I told them it seemed safe, and they started trotting around. Skyfire and Myst, ever so adventurous, each went down a different hallway that in the medical wing would have lead to different tech testing sites. I accompanied Myst down her hall for the sole reason of having absolutely nothing to do in the main chamber.

After a stairwell down, we found a circular room with a tall, cylindrical, glass chamber that reached all the way to the roof. Inside was, just like the rest of the whole scientific wing, nothing. The room itself had no interesting features, although there was a patch of wall with a square hole where wires were coming out of, which was where I assumed a terminal of some sort had once been.

I was just about to break the tedium of the place by calling Skyfire and telling her to meet me at the doorway that had the staircase which lead down to the deepest part of this place, when she called me first.

"Hey, Goldwreath." Her voice said from both my radio and Myst's radio. "I found something here that hasn't been looted or otherwise removed. Looks interesting, but I'd rather you get here before I do anything. Out."

I turned to Myst, who looked a little bit relieved to have found something interesting in the place. Honestly, so was I. "Come on, Myst. I saw which hall she went down, anyway."

We backtracked up the stairs and into the main chamber, then went down the hall Skyfire did. Unlike the previous hall which lead down, though, this one was simply a straight hall. We found Skyfire at the end, looking at a wall on which various lockers were built.

"What is it?" Myst asked as we reached her. "And whose names are these?"

I trotted closer and took a look, and what I found surprised me. Skyfire herself didn't seem to care much; although, the place was so empty that she must have been reduced to calling a wall lined with lockers, which she knew absolutely nothing about, 'interesting'. I, though, was quite pleased at the find.

"Shadow Corps Memory Archives." I looked at the different lockers. There must have been at least four dozen of them along this wall. They were arranged alphabetically, which allowed me to find the name I was looking for rather quickly. "Veltrio, Veteran Operative." The lockers all had the black screen interface I was familiar with. With little trouble, I managed to open the locker with the touch of my hoof. I grimaced, still a little confused as to how I was yet again able to access a place I shouldn't be able to. But I was bored as hell, so I really didn't put much thought into it back then.

Inside were three memory orbs; one with a large crack coming from a chipped away portion, and the other two the featureless orb I was used to. Without a moment's hesitation, I picked them all up and placed them in with the rest of my belongings.

"Who's Veltrio?" Myst asked, and Skyfire gave me a look that suggested she wanted to know too.

I didn't really want to share the details with them, so I just told them the truth that would answer her question. "He was an operative of something called 'the Shadow Corps'. According to the memories I've viewed, they were some kind of special operations group. Veltrio was present in the last orb I saw, so he grabbed my interest."

That seemed enough of an answer for them, at least for moment. Good. I didn't really want to talk more about it.

I didn't touch any of the other lockers out of a combination of respect ( I didn't really feel comfortable taking memories that weren't mine in the first place.) and lack of interest. After all, Veltrio had turned himself into a cyber-zebra willingly; if that isn't worth of some investigation, then I don't know what is.

After that, we went back into the main chamber. Jeina was right; they had cleared this wing completely. Although why they left behind the memories of operatives, I honestly didn't know. We explored the rest of the chamber, which honestly didn't have much. There was even a point when I wished a turret would pop down and take a shot at us just for the sole purpose of providing some movement down here.

Eventually, my boredom reached a point where I just couldn't take it. "Guys, it's been almost an hour. There's one more place I'd like to see before we go back up." They both perked up at that; apparently they were also bored and wanted something to do.

Myst smiled at me, "That chamber we saw at the very bottom of the blue prints?" I nodded, a grin of anticipation forming on my face. Whatever was down there had to at least be more interesting than what was up here.

Remembering the layout of the structure well, or at least better than I did, Myst led us to the huge arced doorway that lead down to the bottom chamber. It was at the very back of the science wing, behind the prism. It's arc was rather ornate and well decorated, sporting various emblems and insignias of various groups on it, as well as being supported by two columns on the side. At the center of the arc was the logo of the Shadow Corps, Autherius' creation. Following that logic, I concluded that the other legates must have each formed their own special tasks force, which simply weren't as famous or accomplished as Autherius'. Above the arc was a large logo of two golden wreaths.

Yet again with the black screen interface. Honestly, what was up with this? Not just the interfaces, but me. Why was I able to get into these places?

After I had removed my hoof from the interface, the door began to slide to the side. Except it wasn't a door. No, as I watched, what I had thought was a door was actually two solid slabs of steel several hundred feet thick and extending all the way down to the chamber. Even with them separated, there were little ports on the side of each slab, each projecting a beam of bright red to it's partner on the other side. Those beams disappeared after a while. To my complete surprise, a turret popped down from the ceiling right above the doorway. It wasn't the regular MG turret; it was much bigger and sported what looked like two massive plasma cannons, if the ominous pulsating and green light coming from it's glass components were any indication.

"Wow, if the Enclave had this..." Skyfire murmured. "This place must have taken it's security fucking seriously." She whistled at the turret. Myst didn't share her enthusiasm, as she instead cowered and cringed at the sight of the colossal gun.

"Yeah, and here we are just trotting in," I smirked. "Well, let's just see what's down there."

Okay, say what you will about staircases, but this staircase was LONG. It must have been a hundred meters minimum. I can't even imagine where they got enough metal to make the slabs that sealed this place off from the rest of the world. Every once in a while, the staircase would open into a large mini-chamber for the sole purpose of housing another gigantic plasma turret. At our passing, the turrets ground there swivels turning to point at us, but then just looked away a moment later.

A gold light shone onto the glossy ground through the doorway at the bottom. While the humming had been present throughout our entire time here, now there was this sound I'd never heard before... it... this new sound, it was... music. Several notes, playing together to create a beautiful tune of harmony. Skyfire and Myst didn't seem to notice it, for some reason. I pitied them; after what they had been through, they deserved to listen to this angelic tune. And I felt a little guilt because I felt that, somehow, I was responsible for whether or not they heard it.

We emerged into a crystalline chamber of a reflective crystal of some sort. The gold light bounced and played around on the crystal like light on water, making the whole room look like some kind of golden paradise under the sea. Now Myst and and Skyfire gasped, breath taken as they took in the splendor of the sight before them. I felt strangely... home. Like... I could live here for the rest of my life with content. And from the looks of complete joy on their faces, so did the other two.

And then I turned my head to see the source of all this beauty. There it was, in the center of the chamber, on a pedestal holding it high above the floor. It was this brilliant, golden orb. Like the sun in miniature and without the flames dancing off of it. But now that I looked closer, the orb wasn't merely gold. There were other colors; vibrant red, orange, magenta, violet, blue, and pink. They were significantly less powerful and bright than the gold in the orb, but they were definitely there.

There were two gargantuan statues of gleaming metal next to it, standing tall and proud on their hindlegs and on their own pedestals. They were metal zebras, both wearing praetorian armor, just like me. There expressions were serious and hard as they held their spears with one hoof and a massive metal shield with the other. On their sides were large blades in metal scabbards; gladiuses, from the look of them. Skyfire and Myst trotted next to me, awe etched in their faces, as I let my body naturally carry me towards the orb. It was so beautiful... so perfect... so... harmonious. I felt so happy I could fly... which, you know, I could. It just felt like nothing could ruin the moment.

It only felt like nothing could ruin the moment.

All of a sudden, the orb dimmed to a sinister shade of it's different colors. The light in the room became pale and lifeless. The feeling of serenity instantly turned into tension. The beautiful music stopped, replaced with... oh, no.

The high-pitched note flooded the room with such intensity that all three of us were floored, me immediately while the other two managed to resist for a while. We collapsed there, hooves held to our ears in a fruitless effort to suppress the sound. Somehow it had broken in. Somehow, it had gotten past the more gentle humming note. And now it was stabbing into my brain like a long, hot needle, frying everything inside my mind.

I heard and felt a deafening metallic clang vibrate through the ground. Against all the pain, I managed to open one eye and see the titanic statues step off their pedestals, heads facing us as they lifted their massive spears in a motion to obliterate our feeble forms then and there. It would have been so easy. We couldn't even run, not with the sound being so strong. They began lowering their spears at lethal speeds.

But apparently I had some kind of guardian angel.

They stopped just as I began to hear the noise falter. I could here it pulsating in my ears, and even the very air in the room seemed to wave from what was going on. After a few moments, the high note reduced to such a degree that I could make out another noise. The humming noise.

One of the statues looked at the other, then promptly bashed it in the face with it's shield. The piercing note seemed to fall away and stumble together with the other statue, while the hum became stronger. The other statue approached us and, with one quick motion, turned around, slammed it's massive shield on the ground, and positioned it's spear over the top of the shield. I just watched it along with my two friends, absolutely shocked at what was going on.

The other statue recovered, and with it some of the piercing signal's strength returned. The friendly statue in front of us took a small step back, just enough to be directly in front of us. It turned it's head and, with a voice strong enough to vibrate the room, said, "Run."

We didn't need to be told twice. The close proximity of the statue had reduced the pain of the other signal enough so that I and my friends could get up and begin trotting unsteadily back through the doorway. As we galloped, we each turned to look at the orb with a wistful look. We didn't want to leave, not like this. All of this violence in this chamber felt... wrong. It felt like it didn't have a place here.

The other statue charged, thrusting it's spear into the shield of our new ally strong enough to cause it to stumble backwards and nearly step on us. We got through the doorway as the two engaged in a melee battle so intense and loud each blow reverberated through the entire chamber.

Our friendly statue stumbled in after us, throwing it's spear at it's opponent before drawing it's huge gladius and back stepping after us as we galloped up the stairs. Just as it's enemy entered the doorway, our statue once more kneeled down and assumed a defensive stance. It's enemy thrust it's spear again, but this time our statue side-stepped and body slammed it against the wall before grabbing it and throwing it back out the doorway.

We continued galloping, hearts racing in our chests, as the two titans resumed their vicious battle. Despite our ally's efforts, it was slowly moving up the stairs as it's enemy attacked it savagely with it's own gladius. The turrets on the roof did nothing to help either side, though they did look to us and the statues time and time again, as if unsure what to do. From them, I could hear a combination of the two different signals.

We emerged into the science wing and galloped as fast as we could back to the elevator. Our protector tried stabbing into the side of the other statue, but got countered with a shield bash that sent it crashing into the prism structure.

We entered the elevator and pressed the close button frantically as our assailant sprang across the room, gladius in hoof. We stepped to the side just in time to avoid being impaled as the machine stabbed it's blade inside, preventing the doors from closing. It reached a hoof inside and began forcing the doors open.

Then two metal hooves grabbed it in the face from behind and threw it across the room. It smashed into the chamber's doorway, breaking the arc in the process. The last thing we saw before the doors closed was our ally approaching the recovering statue, both with their blades and shields in their hooves.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

"Zaita, please tell me you're done!" I begged the APC, which was having a rocket salvo installed on it's turret. Next to me, Myst and Skyfire were panting so hard they sounded like vacuum cleaners. "There's... there's something down there!"

"I know." Zaita said. "I saw them through the cameras. I just need a little more time; one minute and I will be ready to remove us from here." Damn it, one minute?! We didn't have one minute! Why, those things could be coming up through the elevator shaft any second now...

As if to prove that last statement, a huge metal hoof punched open the elevator doors, and one of the zebra praetorian statues climbed out, entire sections of it's armor ripped away. We ran into the main chamber and began galloping for the main door, when they collapsed. I urged Myst and Skyfire to keep moving for the door, but they couldn't. They were too tired. The statue approached at a brisk pace, now only with it's gladius. I tried with futility to drag them the rest of the way, but I was also exhausted. I collapsed and just watched the statue approach us, feeling completely helpless and useless.

To my complete shock, it walked past us and continued towards the door, only sparing us a glance. The sound of weak humming came from it as it passed by; it was our statue. I breathed the greatest sigh of relief I could as I lay there.

It reached the door and then, also to my complete surprise, began digging it's hooves into the metal. When it had forced it's hooves all the way to the outside, it began slowly but steadily pulling the door down, and the door ground in response. Now we managed to gather enough strength to get up and trot over to it slowly.

Then the other statue reached up from the depths of the compound. It's helmet was caved in and falling off in chunks onto the floor; apparently our ally had given it a serious beating.

We picked up the pace as it began dashing after us on it's hindlegs. Our statue at the doorway had pulled down the door about halfway, and we could get through. Myst reached the door first and was helped up and over the door by the metal hoof of our protector. Then Skyfire reached the door, and the process repeated. Then finally me.

I looked at the statue in it's cold, metal eyes and said with utmost sincerity, "Thank you." It didn't respond, but it kept it's gaze locked with mine before looking away.

I landed hard on my back on the rocks of the cliff just as the enemy statue reached the doorway. Our protector immediately got a savage hoof punch in the face that knocked half it's body outside. As it dangled there, slowly being cut in half by the re-ascending doorway and it's enemy's merciless attack, Zaita, now much bigger and with different outer plating, hovered quickly to us from the corner of the cliff. We got inside the brand new rear doorway with any remaining strength we had.

The last thing we heard before collapsing from complete exhaustion was a deafening, unearthly scream from our attacker's metal throat as the doorway closed completely, trapping it inside.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Power of the Mind -- Your mind, just like your body, has suffered greatly ever since you arrived outside, but it has adapted. Now you gain +1 to all S.P.E.C.I.A.L attributes within two hours of waking up from an eight-hour sleep.

Chapter 12 - A Dream Set in Motion

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Chapter 12
A Dream Set in Motion
"We all do our share of murdering around here, don't we?"

We were exhausted beyond words. Even lying on the cold, hard floor of our APC provided no relief from our palpitating hearts, not even after a full hour. Myst and Skyfire were a little better off than I was; I guess, despite my superior physical conditioning, it was still extremely taxing wearing over thirty kilos of steel. Every moment I could feel the blood pumping hard in my veins. The feeling felt similar to when our hearts went into overdrive and somehow healed our bodies, except this was significantly less frantic.

A little over an hour later, when I had gathered up enough energy, I started looking around the new cabin of our APC. Where before there had been a small, cramped rectangular space with a set of seats on each side, there was now a much more spacious oval chamber with the seats being on each side, minus the part of the oval leading to Zaita's controls and the new doorway in the back. I found that a little unsettling; I guess I had just gotten used to popping out of a small hatch than a wide, armored doorway. The interior camera was now on the center of the new circular oval roof. Zaita's controls were unchanged, though her screen was now a brilliant cosmic purple with a gold line running through the middle instead of her regular red and white. Along the ceiling, which was now a foot higher up, were several blue-glowing wires, all snaking around and converging atop the windows at the front.

I took in a few other minor differences, when Myst pulled out a tin of... I couldn't tell what of. There was no brand, no product name, no logo. Although, there were little strips of white still sticking to it where the identifying information would have been. As it was, it was just a plain rusty tin can, maybe four inches in height.

She lifted the cover, which she had apparently already opened, and pulled out a small, white tablet and placed it on her tongue. Immediately, her heavy panting reduced and she seemed to relax. Skyfire just barely managed to look at her with an expression of bewilderment.

"What's... that?" I breathed, and got a wide-eyed look from her. Her response came slowly... almost deliberately so.

"Oh... um... just... some candy I found in one of the filing cabinets in one of the cubicles." Her ears folded back underneath her hoodie, as if in shame. She looked the two of us over with a sad expression, then looked at me with a wan smile. "You want one?"

Our response was immediate. Maybe it was because we had seen how quickly she recovered from her exhaustion after taking one, or maybe it was something else. Whatever the reason, Skyfire and I each pulled one of the tablets out and popped them into our mouths. Myst looked even more ashamed, grabbing one more of the white tablets and popping it into her mouth before tucking the tin away quickly.

It had a rather minty taste. Not the strongest mint I've ever had, but it reminded me of Icing's special mint cake recipe he made during my birthday. The candy itself had this sensation of cooling relief, both physically and mentally ( I actually appreciated the latter more than the former ). It felt fantastic. And, judging from the look of bliss and amazement on Skyfire's face, she was also finding joy in it's effects. For some reason, Myst looked at us with such shame and sadness I thought she would cry.

And yet I just wanted more.

"Hey," Skyfire said, "Can I have some more of that stuff? My head still hurts pretty bad." I voiced my support for her plea. My head still felt horrible, despite the candy. There was just this painful throbbing mixed with this nagging feeling that... something was inside my head. Again, it wasn't a physical presence. I didn't tell them, but ever since the mind-fucking I had been getting from the two signals, I honestly started to feel... alien inside my own head.

Myst looked at us with horror, but managed to calm down. "Uh... no. They... um... they make it hard to sleep. Speaking of sleeping, I should probably get some of that. Night!" Then she curled up into a small ball where her corner was supposed to be and began making snoring noises. I didn't think she was sleeping; she didn't snore when she slept, Skyfire did, but not her.

We looked at her skeptically, but then Skyfire shrugged and sighed. "Yeah, I'm beat. We should probably catch some shuteye too, before we get back..." She yawned. "... back to Verge." She sleepily dragged herself to one of the seats, showing only a little interest in the changes of our vehicle, then curled up and began snoring almost immediately. Myst had stopped her own snoring and was a little less tightly curled up. She had fallen asleep, too.

I groaned. I couldn't sleep, no matter how tired I was. There was so much to do, so much to plan, so much to think about. For example, what had happened back there? I could understand the whole 'cleanup the place then go to a stable' thing, but what was in that chamber? That orb... and then those two statues. Each one emitting one of the two signals. Each one had their own intentions; one protected us, the other attacked us. No machine, no matter how advanced, could have done that. They had shown sentience. As far as I knew, only AI's had shown a level of awareness similar to sentience, and even that disturbed me.

Then I noticed something. "Zaita... what's going on? Why is everything so... quiet?"

"It has always been quiet in here when none of you spoke, Goldwreath." Huh. Her voice had also changed. While it was still her own voice, now it sounded more... aware. More intelligent, more powerful. Maybe it was the dual effect, similar to Veltrio's voice, or maybe it was something else.

"Yeah, but... I hear nothing. None of the two signals." Ever since the bridge, I had always been hearing them within the vehicle. They were soft and distant background noises, but they were always there. Skyfire and Myst never seemed to notice, though. It was almost as if I was the only one who had been hearing them the whole time.

"You noticed? Yes, the signals stopped broadcasting after what happened back there, but... you noticed? In the first place, the signals can only be heard at a certain strength. I had not been broadcasting them on the strength necessary for hearing."

"Huh." So THAT was why it was so... uncomfortably quiet. My mind was thankful for the relief, as I knew at this point that the two signals screwed around with it. "Well, I was always able to hear them." 'But why?' was the question. I had never done anything to my ears that could possibly have augmented them.

The camera focused on me for a second, before looking back outside. "Interesting." Well, not really 'interesting', Zaita. More like concerning.

But despite my stoic refusal to sleep, my body got the better of me. All I managed to do was crawl to the seat next to Skyfire and sit up against the brand new and shiny walls of our transport. Slowly, my eyelids came down. I tried fighting it, just for the sake of seeing how long I could last. Eventually, though, those efforts proved futile and they came down fully.

Just before I fell asleep, I mumbled something along the lines of, "Zaita... wake me up... if something... happens..."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

It was night time, and the clouds above were apart enough to see the stars in all their beauty. Yet again I was at the Forum, several hundred feet above it's towering spire in the middle. The city all around, except for perhaps a mile about the Forum, was alight with fire. The occasional artillery shell and explosion would bring a little more light to the city. I was floating again, which I still couldn't understand without the use of my wings.

But that wasn't what got my attention.

Everything was... normal. Well, as normal as I could hope for considering the weird shit that's been happening to me lately. The green and blue fogs were present, yet they were scattered and few, like they had been dispersed by a strong wind of some sort. To the south, the black land seemed to have temporarily stopped it's slow but sure spreading.

As I floated there, a gust of scattered green fog came close to me. It tried to wrap itself around me just like last time, but it was weak, for some reason. I easily broke free of what was supposed to be a grip of steel.

"Gah..." The sinister voice gasped... which sounded a lot like a mini-tornado was forming nearby. "Either I am getting weak, or you are getting stronger." It's voice in my mind elicited a little pain, and my thoughts immediately became harder to concentrate on. But amidst all that, my mind came upon one consensus: I was done being screwed around with by this thing.

"How about both, asshole?" I condescended, then flew forward and struck the fog ( how I even TOUCHED the fog, I don't know ). I was so angry at it. I wanted it gone. I wanted it to stop screwing with me. Somehow, I had deduced that the high-pitched signal and this entity, whatever it was, were one and the same. Either that or they were very closely related; they both screwed around with me, and both made me want to do things that were otherwise against my nature. Those were two similarities too important to dismiss as coincidence.

"How do you like being toyed around with, huh?!" I yelled at it as I grabbed the diminishing mist and punched it repeatedly. With every punch, I felt a small, a VERY small, pain sting inside my head. "How do you like being fucked with?"

I finally released it and spat at it out of disgust and hatred. It was a mistake, as immediately more fog appeared out of the air around it and it began to form a big green cloud. "Hahahah," The voice chuckled deviously, and this time the pain in my mind was stronger and my thoughts were scattered much more thoroughly. "Oh, I wouldn't be so sure about that. My little... confrontation with him earlier has only tired me out temporarily." His words both brought and scattered ideas within my head. The pieces of my thoughts that I was able to gather confirmed my mounting suspicions that the signals and these entities, whatever they were, were indeed related.

And if that was true, and the statue that protected me earlier was being controlled by the humming noise, then that meant the blue fog was friendly... or at least, didn't have bad intent. Now, if only I could figure out what the hell Tom and Tod were...

As if my thoughts of it was it's cue, a cloud of blue then descended from the night sky and slammed into it's rival green cloud just as the latter had gotten large enough to pose a true threat. They both tore each other into little wisps of fog. I just watched, curiosity and amazement replacing my fear. Eventually, the blue fog succeeded in driving away the green, which fled the area in little strands of similarly colored air. Just as they left, I felt a small stretch in my mind... it made me shudder.

"Are you alright?" The voice asked from within the blue cloud as it began to reform.

I smiled at it... no, 'him', in response. "Thanks for saving our asses back there. I thought we were toast." I meant it. If that higher signal had gone on for at least another second, we would have been impaled on massive spears.

"Think nothing of it. You are much too important to leave to the whims of a creature such as that. Wresting direct control of that mech from him, though, was... taxing, for the both of us." There was a sound similar to a clicking of a tongue from somewhere within the fog, and he continued, "Also, you really scared us when you approached the orb. We weren't and still aren't sure how it would react had you touched it."

"What do you mean?" Okay, now this was getting even more strange. "What about that orb? What exactly was that?" The musical notes of that beautiful orb were but a distant memory now, and that made me want to scream. When I was close to it... I felt so at peace, so safe. In contrast, every moment away from it felt like hell. "And I'm not that important. Sure, I try protect the city, but aside from that, I don't know what makes you think I'm important. There are other people who could use tour help aside from me, like the people in the city."

The cloud just floated around silently for a moment, the deep voice chuckling to itself. "You only think that way because you do not know just what you are. Believe me when I say that if you knew, you would think otherwise. As for the orb... well, that is a topic for another time."

Okay, now it was getting really weird. First some weird orb and then talking to these colored clouds. What next, was I going to start meditating with rocks? Yet I couldn't help but ask, "And just what am I, then? What could I be that's so very important?" Honestly, I didn't feel particularly important. Not that I was devoid of a sense of self-worth, but still.

Again, the voice chuckled. "That," He said, "is a topic of discussion for another time, when we feel that you are ready. For now, though, I think you should leave and get back to the physical world. There is a certain pony eager to meet you, and I feel it wrong to keep her waiting."

"Wait... uh, what?" I mumbled, feeling quite confused and more than a little unsettled by his words. I managed to sort out my thoughts enough to ask some important questions. "And who's 'we'? What exactly are you, and what's going on? And who's the pony?" But the blue cloud was already drifting away from me. "Wait! You've left me with more questions than answers! At least tell me who you are!"

At my pleading, the cloud stopped. For some reason, I could feel it watching me with eyes I couldn't see. "Who am I?" He asked rhetorically. "Well, all you need to know is that I am your ally."

With those words said, the cloud flew away to join a larger mass of blue fog once more locked in conflict with the green mist all over the city. The dark land was still dormant, though.

All of a sudden, my vision started to become blurry as I felt myself slipping away into another world...

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I felt my metal hoof plates scraping against the ground. My head was hung low enough that my face nearly touched the dirt. I lifted my head groggily, blinking hard to clear my vision. Around me, I heard the sounds of Verge's energetic night life, ranging from the passing by of a vehicle or the drunken mumbling of a local inhabitant. I felt two pairs of hooves holding me, both of which were supporting my weight from below.

"... gah, he really needs to lay off on the biscuits. He's getting fat," Skyfire grunted as she and Myst dragged me along the concrete path that lead to Verge's hospital building. Through my hazy vision, I saw Myst give a single nod of agreement.

I broke myself free of their grip. "Yeah, okay, I can carry myself, thank you very much!" I wobbled on my unsteady legs for a moment before I balanced myself. "And I'm not fat, it's the armor," I felt a little blush form on my cheeks.

Skyfire looked at me with a sleepy yet amused smile, then yawned, "Yeah... sure, the armor..." She shook her head, then looked beside her at Myst, who had nearly fallen asleep while standing. She gave her a gentle nudge, and the earth pony shook her head hard and blinked several times. "Myst, you okay?"

The earth pony once more shook her head hard, then looked at my pegasus friend with wide eyes. "Oh, yeah. Just... a little tired..." She swayed and closed her eyes, and Skyfire and I caught her just before she hit the ground.

"I'll take her in, you go on ahead." I told my still awake companion as I slung Myst onto my back, and immediately got a tired look of concern from Skyfire. "What?"

"I can take her in, you know. Now that you're awake and on your own hooves, I can..." She yawned loudly and rubbed her eyes furiously to keep them open.

I shook my head at her. "Look, it's fine. She isn't that heavy. And you need to rest; you look like shit."

"And you don't?" She asked, putting an even more concerned look on her face. "You nearly died back there, you know. You must have been shot dozens of times. I only got shot thrice, and Myst once. If anything, you need to take a break the most."

I began trotting up the slope, and I heard Skyfire sigh before she followed me. "I can't, Skyfire. There's so much to do, so much think about, so much to plan. I can take a day or two without sleep, so long as I get what I need to do done. That's what matters." I reached the doorway, the glow of yellow light flowing out from inside. "When that's done... then I can rest. Not before."

I pushed the door open and was about to trot in, when Skyfire stopped me with a hoof. "Is this part of your screwed up sense of self-hurting?" She asked seriously, and her tone for some reason brought a frown across my face. "Because if it is, then I have to say that's stupid. You're tired and hurting, yet you assign yourself no time to catch a break? That is the most ridiculous..."

"Skyfire, enough." I said sternly, and she shut up. I did not want to talk about this, not with her, not with Myst. I owed them, but I would not let them have their way with me. "I'm not doing this out of any sense of self-hurting, nor because I want to. I am doing this so that the next time we run into trouble, or you two get hurt, or we need to do something, then we can deal with the situation in the most effective manner possible. I am doing this because I have to prepare us for what lies ahead. I am doing this because I need to." She looked at me hard, eyes glistening as though I had hurt her.

I pushed open the door and went inside. Skyfire didn't follow until a few moments later, and when she did she looked at me with a hurt expression. I just looked back at her sternly, and she shut her eyes and looked away. I could have sworn I saw a tear make it's way onto her cheek, but I'm not entirely sure.

I laid Myst on the bed I had used the last time I was here. Skyfire looked at me with the same concerned and hurt expression as she slowly got onto one of the beds, then curled up under the sheets. I heard her sniff as I trotted past her and to Zeneta, who was looking up at me from behind her glasses as she sat on a chair in the corner, a book held in her hooves. I think the title was something along the lines of 'Roaman Journal of Internal Medicine'.

"Is the filly okay?" I asked, already feeling my concern for the foal overcoming my own exhaustion. I glanced behind me at the corner, and saw the sleeping filly tucked underneath the sheets of the bed Skyfire had been in. On the table next to it was a radio ( I think the one Skyfire had been listening from ), as well as several sheets of paper with various sketches on them, none of which I could make out from my position. There were blood stains near the center of the room which is where I assumed they had operated on her. The operating table was nowhere to be seen, though. Maybe it was detachable?

Zeneta looked up at me with doctorly concern, but she at least answered the question and didn't start telling me how I needed to rest or something. "Yeah, we had to remove a lot of burnt flesh for the new ones to start growing. We also had to cut her lips apart because they had melted together. We had to make like a dozen burn salves and regrowth brews for her level of injury. In all honesty, I don't even know how she had even survived." She sighed and removed her glasses, then looked up at me. "Which brings me to an unwelcome topic... we're going to have to discuss payment."

I closed my eyes and brought a metal clad hoof up to massage them. Of course we'd have to pay this time. They had patched us up before out of thanks, but this filly had done nothing for them. But that was alright. I was responsible for this filly, it only made sense that I would be the one to pay. At least I wasn't burdening Myst with finances this time.

"Name it." I said tiredly, though I was actually very ready to give up the majority of pilfered healing supplies. She must have taken my exhaustion as annoyance, though, as she immediately started to take her words back.

"Eh, on second thought, maybe I can just give that one for free again. After all, that one tank..."

"No, it's fine. I'm just tired is all. Besides, you need to make a living too. It's only justifiable that you require payment." I looked over at my companions, and I saw Skyfire looking at me from under her sheets.

"Eh, alrght. If you insist." She cleared her throat, then blinked hard. I guess we weren't the only ones who were tired. "Now, the removal procedure for the burnt flesh required a lot of painkillers and disinfectant, which total up to maybe... a thousand caps. Then there was the post-surgery medication..."

"Doc, let's just get straight to the point, alright? I'm tired as fuck, so please just tell me how much I owe you." I said, starting to get a little grouchy from the exhaustion. I didn't mean to offend, and in fact I was about to apologize for what I said. Still, I guess the doctor agreed with me on that point.

"Alright, well, in total you owe me three thousand caps. That's actually a lot less than what any doctor you'll find in the city would charge you."

Hmmm, three thousand caps, huh? Funny, a little over a week ago I would have considered myself lucky to find another dozen caps. Now, though, I was sure that I had more caps than I needed... in the form of my brand new healing supplies.

Some negotiating and the majority of my healing supplies later and that was set. She had actually argued that I may have given her more than what I owed her after the forty-second healing potion, but I suspected she was just saying that. I was also a little glad; with all that weight gone, I felt a lot less pressured. I had been left with a mere fraction of what I had, but that fraction still amounted to over twenty potions and several packs of bandages. If I pooled that together with what Skyfire and Myst had... well, suffice it to say we wouldn't be hurting for healing supplies any time soon.

With that out of mind, I trotted over to the filly. In general, she still looked pretty screwed up. Slow, shallow, uneven breaths were the only real sign she was still alive. She had a pale yellow coat, the strands of fur comprising it being less than a few millimeters in height. Beneath her coat were patches of new hide where before I had seen burnt flesh. Her mane and tail were also still regrowing, but they looked to be a dark brown. I couldn't make out her eyes, though.

But despite all that, I felt good. A little disappointed in myself, but better than I had felt in the past day. I had saved one of them from Predator, at least. It was better than every single one of them, though I still felt a little like I should have been able to rescue more. Dozens of people, and I only managed to save one of them. Now THAT made me feel so inadequate and incapable.

'Oh no,' Tom said, 'That wasn't your fault, alright? Listen to Skyfire, she's right. Not everything that happens is your fault just because you were involved in one way or another. You don't have to take responsibility for everything.'

'Maybe.' I thought back at him. 'But that doesn't make me feel any better. I still failed to save them, and I have to live with that. You're right, I don't have to take responsibility for it. But for some reason... I do. I don't want to, but I do. My brain's pretty fucked up, ain't it?'

'No, that's just your nature.' He responded.

'How so? Why would that be part of my nature?' Okay, now this was getting even more uncomfortable and strange. It was already weird that I was talking to my brain, but now it was even more so. 'And how would you know? And... what are you?'

For a moment, he didn't answer. He just chuckled, something which felt disturbingly like a miniature heart was beating in my head. 'Haven't you figured it out yet?' He asked, bringing to mind a suspicion I had been having for quite a while now.

Without delay, I decided to put my theory to the test. 'Let me guess... the blue fog?' It made some sense. The humming signal had been confirmed to be some kind of sentient entity, together with the other signal. Tod and Tom both acted up, or at least made their presence in my head greater, when the two signals were around.

Tom laughed once, then confirmed my suspicion. 'Ah, so you are becoming more aware. That's good. We'll need you aware when the time comes.' Again with the 'we' and 'when the time comes' crap. As much as I appreciated him saving our lives, I also wanted some answers from him. I mean, he was a talking blue fog in my dreams, a humming noise in the physical world, and a sensible entity in my head. Truth be told, I was actually surprised I didn't react to these realizations with more surprise, disbelief, or interest.

Again, I asked, 'What... uh, who are you? Why don't you tell me anything?'

'Because that would endanger you, and endangering you is the last thing we want. You'll just have to trust me to tell you what you need to know and when you need to know it.' He responded simply, then clicked his... tongue. 'In fact, this conversation we are having right now is endangering you. That... other one... is likely listening in.'

'You mean Tod? Yeah, what is he, anyway?'

'That is not his name, but... yes, him. In fact, I'm going to have to beat the living shit out of him right now to make sure he knows nothing. As for your other question... he is the same thing as me, except... misguided.' There was the strange sensation of him moving away from me, like we were having this conversation in a room, and he was heading for the exit. 'I must go now. There are other things I must tend to.'

'Wait! I still have so many questions, so many concerns you could help me with. Can't you stay a little longer?'

'Sorry, but there are others in need of my help. You get most of my attention, and only most.' He paused for a while, then gasped. 'Oh, wow, that's a lot of vehicles. And they're going to kill all those people...' My own heart stopped, and I waited intently for him to continue. 'Well, as long as he doesn't interfere, I can stop them. Excuse me.' Then I felt something similar to letting out a breath, except it came from my head. Now my mind felt empty and placid... except for this minor headache I was now having. Probably him dealing with Tod.

When I finally turned my attention back to what was going on around me, I realized that I had been standing in the same spot for nearly five minutes while I was talking to Tom. From the corner, Zeneta was looking at me strangely as she sat and held her book. I shook my head, then grabbed one of the chairs and set it down next to the filly's bed.

For the next few minutes I sat there, listening to her uneven breathing. Myst and Skyfire had fallen asleep, the latter positioned in such a way that told me she had been watching me while I was having that mental conversation. Zeneta finally stopped her reading and trotted out, locking the door and flicking the light switch as she did. That left me as the only conscious pony here. That let me think about... everything that had happened since I emerged into the outside.

The sound of a cricket came from outside the window, it's repetitive stridulating the only other noise I heard as I sat there, letting the minutes flow by. Occasionally, I would hear a few ponies or zebras trot by, talking about something I didn't care for.

It was midnight, according to my pipbuck. A group of passers-by were trying to get in. One of them, a zebra, from his accent, was picking the lock on our door. All the while he was whispering to some others about how high they were going to get, and how lucky they would be if they found more drugs in here. When the door opened, they trotted in; a group of five shadows against the moonlight, four zebras and one unicorn.

They flicked the switch, giggling and grinning in anticipation. Those smiles faded when they saw me sitting down in the corner, gladius at my side and wearing all my apparently intimidating armor, and watching them. For maybe a minute they stood there, staring at me anxiously and with knives in their hooves and mouths. I didn't react in the slightest... except for standing up and slowly and deliberately drawing my blade, letting it ring in the air as I pointed it at them. I took one step forward, putting emphasis on the weight of my metal clad hoof as I let it hit the ground. That caused them quite a stir.

Without a word, they left, leaving the light on and the door open. Before the last one left, he gave me a strangely thankful and apologetic look. I didn't return it. I trotted forward as quietly as I could and locked the door again. Then I flicked the light switch before going back to the chair.

'And that's why I can't rest.' I thought. Every moment I would spend resting, something like that, maybe worse, was happening somewhere. That was why I had to remain vigilant, remain on the watch. Because if I had been asleep when they broke in... one of my friends could have gotten hurt, maybe even the filly. If I ever let my guard down, someone would pay the price for my weakness.

So I sat there, a quiet guard, until the first rays of day came. By then I was even more exhausted than I was the night before, and my head throbbed terribly. My eyes drooped and every movement felt like I was lifting a ton of weight. My limbs were shaking and I was sweating madly. But all that was fine with me. So long as I would be there when I was needed, I couldn't care less how much I needed rest. So again I just sat there, until the rays in the sky became brighter and more numerous.

My headache stopped. I felt a strange breeze blow against my head, yet I was sure it wasn't from the wind; all the windows were closed.

'You are still awake?' Tom asked. I just nodded to myself in response.

'You saved those people?' I asked.

'Well... yes. It was a little difficult, but yes. Right now, though, I am more concerned about you. Can't fall asleep?' Again, I just nodded. 'Well, this should get you to fall asleep, then.'

My eyes shot wide open from their sleepy drooping at his words. No, I couldn't sleep yet! Not until I was sure nothing else happened, not until I was done thinking about what I had to think about.

But there was nothing I could do about it. I felt something in my head, like a zap of static. Something entered my bloodstream, and a single heartbeat later my eyes closed on their own. My limbs went limp and all my thoughts stopped. The last thing I felt was slumping onto the floor.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

I opened my eyes to the near blinding light of noon. All about me, the sounds of Verge's populace were playing out. I felt my head and body on a soft bed, which was soaked in my sweat. I was on Skyfire's bed for some reason, and when my eyes finally adjusted I saw her sleeping next to me, against the wall. That fact immediately woke me up as I stared at her wide-eyed, my cheeks blushing.

I gasped, "Oh, no... what... what the hell happened while I was out?" Did I... w-were the sheets wet?! Oh, Goddesses, they were... What... what the hell happened over here?

In the hopes of finding something, anything, to prove that I had done nothing lecherous, I looked around the room, and saw Myst sitting at the sunlit doorway, munching on some roasted treat on a stick. She turned to look at me and began trotting over, an uncharacteristically devious smile forming on her face as she looked between me and Skyfire. I gulped, preparing myself for the inevitable embarrassing remark her facial expression promised. Skyfire shifted a little, and I saw her face glistening with her own mild sweating.

"So," Myst purred, "How was last night?" Oh, boy. This was... an extremely awkward situation. The blush I was sure I had on my face only widened her devious grin. I also had to tuck my wings in closely to keep them from flaring out.

"Myst... I... what the hell happened? Why am I on the bed?" She just continued her extremely disturbing smile, all the while looking at me with an unbelievably... 'attractive' facial expression. She shifted to her side, then put her forelegs onto the bed close to me, giving me a good view of her. I never knew the ever-shy Myst could look so ridiculously... I'll just say it, sexy, if she put effort in it.

"Oh, I think you already know." She said as she batted her eyelashes. I may not have been able to see myself, but I was sure I was a fine shade of rose red at that point.

I buried my face in my hooves, shaking my head in shame and disbelief. "That's... no, just... no." Had I actually done this? Did I really, above all the things I had to do, do this? How did that even happen? I was supposed to be preparing for what we would face in the city, not... as Butterscotch had put it, 'take the load off'. A part of my head told me I had. That thought sunk in, and I lay back on the bed, still covering my face out of shame.

Then she started laughing; a deliberately slow, amused chuckle. I peeked out from between my hooves to see her laughing and shaking her head. "Oh, Goldwreath." She said, "You don't actually believe you did that, did you? Because if you did... well, that's just silly of you."

I just stared at her through my hooves for a moment, both immensely relieved that I had NOT in fact done anything... regrettable to Skyfire, and utterly disappointed in myself for being foolish enough to believe I had. But, now with my emotions a little more sorted out, I started to get rather pissed off.

"Why the hell did you make me think I had, then?" I asked Myst, who then looked a little bit ashamed of herself as she got off the bed. "I can't believe I actually believed that I did that! And you... you tricked me!"

Despite herself, she looked back up at me with a little bit of pride. "Well... you did tease me a few times. I guess now we're even." She smiled at me in a manner more friendly and calm than I would have given if I were her. After all, making your friend believe he had abused his friend... that would have made me feel ashamed.

Despite that, I actually laughed a little. She had me there; I had teased her quite a bit, together with Skyfire. As much as a part of my brain wanted me to lunge at her and rip her throat out, another part of me found some humor in the situation instead. And yet another part of my head just felt, strangely, amused.

"Hmph. Alright, alright, you got me. But seriously, how'd I get on the bed? I don't remember even wanting to go to sleep, let alone getting on the bed..." Really, the only thing I remembered was something about talking to Tom.

Wait, speaking of Tom, where was he? And Tod? I didn't have even a slight headache, which I had at this point taken as a sign of their constant presence in my head. I could tolerate and even accept Tom's presence; he seemed to be friendly, if enigmatic. Tod, though, was probably the source of a great deal of my mental agony, and his presence in my mind I did NOT like, especially now that I knew that they were the entities in my dreams. Right now, though... my mind was blank. Well, not really; just a lot less active than when they were around. I had just gotten so used to my mind being in a constant buzz due to what was most likely their activities in my head that my mind being placid was... pleasant, yet... strange. It just felt more natural when they were around, as strange as that sounds.

A concerned frown crept onto Myst's face before she looked up at me, rubbing the side of her sock-clad hoof with her other hoof in anxiety. "You were exhausted. We woke up after you collapsed onto the floor. Skyfire said she heard you fall down, then pulled you up onto the bed." Then she looked at Skyfire next to me with a concerned look, as well. "But... I didn't hear anything, and I think my ears are at least a little sharper than hers. I think... I think she was staying awake with you until you went to sleep."

She was? Why would she do that? I didn't need to be watched over, but they did. While I did not doubt their ability to protect themselves, I just felt like it was my duty to watch over them. It felt like it was my job, even if they had never even asked me to do it. Call me crazy, but that sense of patriotism I had for Equestria weeks ago was still with me, and that feeling felt somehow extended to the city of Roam, then to my friends. Why, I couldn't tell at the time. It just felt natural; maybe it was the praetorian armor or something else.

I looked over at her, sleeping peacefully next to me. She was concerned about me. Concerned that I might push myself too far or exert myself too much and that I might get myself hurt. It was true that ever since two weeks ago, I had been in a state of near constant pain, but weren't we all? Really, I wasn't very concerned about myself. I could take whatever the wasteland could throw at me so long as the people who deserved better didn't take the heat. I still had failures to make up for, injustices to punish myself over. I guess part of the reason I wasn't so worried about myself was because my desire for that redemption kept telling me I had to do more to make up for my mistakes.

That was only part of the reason. Honestly, the other reason was that I wanted to prove worthy of my title. People recognized me as the Praetorian, the defender of Roam. And if I was going to be the protector they needed... well, I had to push myself to be better, otherwise people would suffer for it. I didn't want myself to be inadequate again, not like in the stable. Because this time there were more lives on the line. Even a small mistake on my part could get a dozen people killed, and I didn't want that.

For the entire duration of all these thoughts, I sat there on the bed. Myst looked on, occasionally bringing up the roasted treat to her mouth and nibbling at it. Skyfire continued to rest beside me, her each breath raising her chest up and bloating the sheets.

And then I suddenly became more aware, like a sort of fifth sense, of another presence in the room. It was... a scared entity... I could detect it...

"Come on out, I'm not going to hurt you." I said to the bed where the filly had been last night. I didn't even glance at my E.F.S, nor did I even think of the filly since waking until now. Even stranger, the bed looked empty. The sheets were messed up and strewn around the bed and over it's side, yet I just knew she was there. Myst looked to the bed, then back at me with a confused look.

To the surprise of us both, the filly slowly poked her little head out from under the bed, behind the portion of the sheet that had fallen over the side. Now I could see her eyes; they were a lime green. She kept her eyes on me as she cautiously crawled out from behind the sheet and out onto the floor. When she did, she kept her head hung low as she took a few steps back into the corner where the bed met the wall.

I got off the bed carefully so as to not wake Skyfire and trotted towards the filly with small, light steps ( or at least as light as I could make my hooves sound ). The filly, despite her scared and uncertain look, didn't flinch or run away. She just sat there, looking up at me from her bowed head. Myst followed close behind.

"Hey," I said as I reached her, kneeling so that her eyes were on the same level as mine. Now she reacted, using her small forehooves to push herself against the wall with a soft whimper. "What's your name?"

She didn't respond for a long moment as she cringed into the corner like a trapped animal. She would occasionally glance up at the two of us nervously, all the while tapping a single hoof onto the ground repeatedly. I just waited patiently; this filly, after all, had recently had her entire family roasted to a crisp by Predator, who also nearly killed her. If that doesn't make someone quiet and reclusive, I don't know what will.

"Doodle." She finally said after about a minute. The volume with which she said it was so low that I thought she had completely lost her voice. Myst seemed to have heard it; I guess, being a shy pony who had shy friends, she was used to picking up small voices.

I, though, needed to hear that again. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

"My name's Doodle." She said, a little louder as she got up off the floor.

"Doodle? Nice name you got there." I spared a glance at her only partially burned and mostly healed flanks, and there I saw it: a cutie mark of a sketch pad partially opened, with a pencil laying on the ground next to it, shortened from immense use. Now the numerous crumpled sketches lying around the bed made sense.

"How'd you get it?" Myst asked, eliciting a confused and only slightly scared look from the filly. "Your cutie mark, I mean."

The filly shook her head. "I'd... rather not talk about it." Myst looked at the filly wide-eyed for a moment, then promptly hanged her head with an expression that told me she was berating herself for asking such a question so early into the conversation. Personally, I was glad she was punishing herself; I didn't tell her, but I thought that question at that time was absolutely stupid and uncalled for. Better that she learned that now before we came across another foal that needed a little talk.

And then I felt it again. That same awareness that had somehow alerted me to the filly's presence. Except this time the entity I felt in my mind was... tense. It was worried, frantic, and... and I could feel it coming closer. It felt strange; like my mind was a spread-out sheet, and the entity was like a marble rolling across the surface and towards the center: me.

And then I felt more entities, much further away from me. I felt a particularly large cluster of... of... what was the term? They felt malicious in my mind, bent and wicked. Not all of them, just a great majority of them. That cluster was moving towards me fast; really, really fast. All around and much closer to me than the cluster I felt a great number of entities, as well. However, they felt... 'neutral' is the only way I can possibly describe them. Right now, the things I was feeling... there was no description for any of these feelings. The closest I could get is that I was simply aware of them, even if I didn't see them.

There was this one entity I felt that really got my attention, though. It was painful to even recognize it in my mind. It's presence felt evil and wicked, yet it also felt... regretful and... sad. I didn't know what it was, and honestly at the time I didn't want to know.

I realized I had been feeling all this over the span of just a few seconds. But that was all the time needed for the frantic, worried entity to reach me.

The zebra I had talked to in the bar ( the one which I still suspected was a Specter ) burst into the room, sweating madly as he darted his eyes to and fro until they landed upon me. If he wasn't a Specter, then he at least had all he needed to be one; that is, a ridiculous amount of various types of equipment (not all of which he needed for mere traveling), far more guns and ammo than he could possibly need unless he was actually looking to fight, and a backpack large enough to be about half that of Doomtune's.

"Praetorian, I need your help!" He said in a rush as he trotted to me at a brisk pace. Myst stepped in front of him, rifle in her hooves in the zebra manner of holding weapons. The filly slowly crawled back under the bed with a whimper.

"It's okay, Myst. If he needs to tell me something, he should tell me now." I could feel the cluster was much closer now. Their presence in my mind caused me a little pain, but I suppressed it. "What is it?"

"It's the Legion. They're coming here. They've never come here before, as far as I know. They aren't changing course towards the anomaly to the south, so they must be coming here for something else." He looked around with a crazed look until he saw Skyfire lying on the bed. "And wake your friend up. If they decide to attack us, we'll need everyone with a weapon."

Well, that confirmed what the cluster was. I told Myst to take care of Skyfire while I galloped out with the Specter. I knew now he was a Specter because out of his backpack he had pulled out a similar helmet with armored gasmask, except that one was a tan coloration instead of black; much more fitting with his faded brown vest.

Already I could see the townsfolk running about, alerting the guards and the few APC's of the impending danger. To the north, I made out dozens of small or large dark spots against the sunny sky. If I listened closely, I could hear the rotating of blades and the combustion of engines.

We slowed down near the northern wall, within a circular clearing in the midst of a large number of merchant stalls. The merchants themselves were running further into the settlement together with all the other residents. The guards and armored vehicles were gathered near the walls, mounting machineguns and setting up along the platforms. The turrets of the APC's turned towards the sky, preparing their large caliber weaponry in the event of a shootout.

For a dreadfully long time we waited. Skyfire and Myst came to us from the hospital room, the pegasus' plasma rifles crackling with energy as she powered up both of them to their max. The guards stood about us, watching the growing mass of aircraft become bigger as they got closer. Myst displaced a while after she arrived; something about getting to a good sniping position. Zaita was floating above the other APC's. Perhaps she had someone inside mounting the guns.

Then they arrived. There were about two dozen small helicopter aircraft with leather-clad Legionnaires with rusty metal shields exposed on the sides. There were perhaps eight jet-VTOL hybrids with them, autocannon and machinegun turret barrels popping down from their bottoms like spears stabbing down from the sky. There was also a particularly large VTOL that was about two times the size of the regular and had what looked like vehicle cabins beneath it that could fit maybe one of the small helicopters.

They spread out above the circular clearing and a little further into the market, where the helicopter aircraft then descended down into the immense dust clouds being made by the VTOLs and their engines. Through the dust, I saw the gleam of metal as the Legionnaires spread out and secured the area. We didn't open fire just yet.

Then the VTOL's descended in uniform motion, leaving only the very large one still in the air. They touched down in a circular formation within the clearing and sent a blast of sand and dust that got into my eyes, and I had to blink hard to get the particles out. When I cleared my vision again, I saw the large metal draw-bridges slamming down onto the ground. More Legionnaires, this time clad in the kevlar vest with steel plate reinforcing similar to the ones I had seen in the memory orb, came charging out on their hindlegs, shiny metal shields held with their left forelegs and gladiuses held with their right. They had their guns slung across their back together with three metal rods; extendable spears, if the brightly glowing energy tips were any indication.

They didn't charge at us. Rather, they surrounded us, cutting off the circular clearing from the rest of the settlement. They turned to face us, then, in typical Roaman infantry fashion, they grabbed their shields and formed a solid shield wall that we most likely couldn't break through, even with the vehicles. Even though they didn't show direct motive to kill us, we kept our weapons on them anyway.

Finally, the largest aircraft began it's descent. The vehicle cabins opened, revealing not vehicles, but several dozen Specters. They varied in appearance, mostly due to the camo of their clothing, but they all had one similar characteristic: red and grey streaks painted on their vests and helmets and along their limbs.

They jumped out even before the aircraft touched down and landed in the dirt, rolling forward to avoid injury and immediately pulling out their guns and pointed them at us. The majority of them spread out around the ring of Legionnaires, while four of them kept their eyes on us. The friendly operative in front of me responded in kind when he pulled out two SMG's and directed them to his traitorous brethren.

Now the vehicle hit the ground, and it's weight vibrated through the ground with a dull permanence. The door slowly fell forward, and power-armored juggernauts marched our from each side of the doorway in single file. Their hooves stomped into the dirt hard as they continued marching, eventually creating a walkway in between them large enough for perhaps three people to trot side by side. They stopped in front of us, the two closest juggernauts glaring at me and Skyfire through their translucent visors. Skyfire reacted by entering a combat stance, and I had no doubt that she wanted to kill them. I remembered what I had told her back on that road, and how she responded; 'But I don't think I can give any of those people a second chance.'

Out of the open doorway came a power-armored zebra. He had no helmet, instead using what looked like a holographic interface that projected from a piece of headgear that he wore around his head. He had a bright red cape over his back, clasped to his chest by a golden circular plate. His power armor itself was armed with a large cannon on the left side. His neck guard was violet and the armor plates much more ornate; he was a high-ranking official in the Legion.

He trotted forward casually, his grin widening with every step he took as he approached us. I could just imagine how Skyfire felt about this guy; she was probably imagining what kind of pipe to use when she poured acid down his throat. I also had this feeling that Myst's crosshairs were right on this guy's forehead. The Specter operative in front of me directed his two weapons to him and away from the traitors.

"Ah, Praetorian. It is good to finally meet you. I am executor Thanus of the Equestrius cohort," He introduced himself and waited for my response. I didn't respond in any way. He sighed, "Really? And here I thought you would be willing to accompany me to the Forum. You seem quite intent on going there, after all."

"How did you find me here? And why would I go with you? Besides, I thought the Legion wanted me dead." I replied sharply. From the look Skyfire gave him, she really hated him for merely speaking.

He looked a little disappointed at the manner of my reply, but responded, "Dead? Yes, we DID want you dead, but not anymore. The Legate has generously decided to pardon your crimes against us. This mercy will not be extended to you again. As for your concern on how we found you, we knew you were in the general area of the city's southern outskirts, we just didn't know where exactly." He smiled, "That is, until we got an anonymous tip that you were in Verge." He shrugged, "It was all we had to go on, so we just assumed that the info was from a credible source. Glad to know it was. Now, if you would be so kind as to step into the transport so we can get this over with..."

"I'll meet the Legate on my own terms, executor. I'll not trust the safety of my friends to you, nor will I risk meeting your Legate in a situation completely beyond my control." I interrupted, much to the executor's surprise. He glared at me, then gestured for the traitor Specters to back away.

He stepped closer to look me right in the eye. "Who do you think you are to keep my lord waiting? All he desires is the chance to speak with the individual who seems so bent on getting to the Forum. Here I am merely providing transport to the place you seek, and you would decline?" He shook his head. "Disappointing. If you will not come with us willingly, then I must bring you with us by force. Take him to the transport." He turned away from me with a look of disgust. Several of the juggernauts stepped closer to grab me.

"Back off!" Skyfire said, and fired a bolt from Sally into each of their helmets. The metal melted slightly, obscuring their vision as they staggered away.

I don't think she should have done that, even if I shared her sentiment. The ring of Legionnaires who had before simply watched now advanced slowly, encroaching on us. The heavily outnumbered guards and accompanying vehicles stood their ground for the most part, though some of them did back away as the tips of the Legionnaire's energy spears came close. All of the juggernauts and the traitor Specters moved in on us, as well. The aircraft above began shooting further into the settlement, either warning any bystanders to back away or actually killing innocents. I seriously hoped it wasn't the latter.

"Control your friends, Praetorian. You wouldn't want any of these people to suffer for that bitch's arrogance and stupidity, would you?" Thanus asked from the doorway of his aircraft. I heard Skyfire's teeth grit as she glared at him. "All of this would be so much easier if you would just come with me."

"Fuck you, asshole!" Skyfire screamed and charged past the juggernauts, firing shot after shot from her plasma rifles. I tried to stop her, but she was too quick.

It didn't matter. All of her shots missed, and before she could get any closer one of the juggernauts punched her in the face, knocking her back and bloodying her face. When she tried to get up, they began beating her right in front of me. She tried to fight back, but there were too many of them, and I was sure even one would have been enough to overpower her.

I watched in shock for a few seconds, my anger boiling inside of me. I seethed in rage at what was going on in front if me. At that point, I whipped out Tankbuster and charged forward, intent on blasting their heads off in a spray of brains and gore for hurting my friends, and even more so in front of me.

But they had expected that. I didn't even pay attention to the operative's warnings. I got about halfway to her when three enemy operatives lunged at me, landing blows at any exposed part of my body; my neck, especially. I fell down in the dirt, coughing and struggling for air as they continued to render any exposed part of me useless with strategic strikes.

Just when I thought it couldn't get worse, the guards and the vehicles opened fire, the vehicle's heavy guns punching through the Legionnaire's shields and scattering the ring. Still, the storm of lead that they sent into the scattered shield circle and into the crowd of juggernauts was rather pathetic compared to the retaliatory fire. I screamed for them to stop, but they didn't hear me. I was too weak, too inadequate to get them to stop.

The juggernauts beating Skyfire into submission refocused on the guards and opened up with machineguns and rockets; weaponry good for dealing with both infantry and vehicles. Any exposed guards were torn to pieces and more than half of the vehicles exploded when the aircraft rained down missiles. All through this, I just lay there on the ground, covering my ears while fighting for breath. I managed to spot a few Legionnaires go down from head shots, though; most likely the work of our sniper friend.

The fighting went on for maybe a minute, wrecking the entire market area. Really, though, it was more of a slaughter than an actual fight. In the distance, I saw three flashes of blue and a few miniature bolts of lightning stab the area around the flashes. My battered pegasus companion and I were shielded from the fighting by the wall of Legionnaires lined up around us and destroying any resistance with ease. I felt guilty, having gotten the majority of the town's security force killed out of my refusal to just go with the executor.

"Alright, alright, obturatio dirigentes, Legionnaires." The executor said over the noise of the battle, which had gotten light enough that he didn't even need to shout. "There's no need to destroy the whole town. We have the Praetorian and his companions, we can leave now."

The Legionnaires stopped shooting, leaving the area in an eerie silence broken only by distant screaming and scattered shooting. They regrouped and began marching back to the vehicles they had come from, dragging the occasional resident or surviving guard in with them. I even saw the non-traitorous Specter, his vest torn to shreds and equipment confiscated, being dragged along by two traitor Specters into the large VTOL.

To my horror, I even saw Myst, bloody-faced and limping, shoved inside one of the smaller VTOLs. Next was the unconscious Skyfire, whom one of the juggernauts had the audacity to simply throw into the aircraft. I saw Zaita, deactivated and upside down, being lifted by one of the aircraft via ropes as it took off from the ground. Well, that explained the blue flashes.

Next they came for me, and the juggernaut and steel clad Legionnaire dragging me along first brought me to the executor, who looked at me disappointedly.

"I hope you're happy. You've just gotten people killed, and all because you just had to 'meet the Legate on your own terms'." He sighed and shook his head, then looked back at me sadly. I wanted that false look of pity torn off of his face, so I tried to break free of my captor's grip to do it myself. It didn't work, and I got myself bucked by power-armored hooves instead. He sighed, "You should have just listened to me. Then maybe none of this would have happened. None of these people deserved to die." He turned around and began trotting back into the aircraft, but stopped, along with everyone else, when he heard someone laughing. Immediately, their were surprised gasps and the sounds of dozens of gun mechanisms being readied.

"Well, that depends on how you view death; is it a gift or a curse? I personally view it as a gift!" One person said with a laugh. I recognized that voice. I hated it. I wanted the one who possessed it to be wiped from existence; to be set ablaze and have his ashes spread to every cursed and dark corner of the world.

I turned slowly, and there he was: Predator, sitting on the ruined remains of a stall, calmly loading bullets into the Vengeance-like revolver. He had an even larger backpack than Doomtune did, and maybe thrice as much equipment. Around him were perhaps a dozen juggernauts and twice that number in regular steel-clad Legionnaires, all pointing their weapons at him. He didn't react at all; in fact, after he loaded his revolver he pulled out a weapon that looked something like a hybrid between an assault rifle and a heavy machinegun and began loading that as well.

"Who are you? And where did you come?" Thanus asked slowly, obviously perplexed and a little bit annoyed by the bastard's sudden appearance. Even the Legionnaires now surrounding him seemed a little uncertain as to the circumstances of the guy's enigmatic arrival.

Predator took his time and finished loading the gun before he answered, and when he did he did so in the most complacent and relaxed manner as his dead voice could permit. "For the first question... well, you may recognize me as the... hehe, 'Great Arsonist'." Predator chuckled; a terrible and malicious laugh that made the Legionnaire's eyes widen in terror as they shuffled backwards a little. They murmured to one another; obviously, him being the 'Great Arsonist' meant a lot. Even Thanus himself looked greatly disturbed by Predator. "As for the second question, I came from the badlands, plain and simple."

"The... the Great Arsonist?" Thanus asked slowly, almost in a fearful manner. Then his expression hardened and his voice quivered with barely suppressed rage as he asked, "You are the one who set the entire city on fire all those weeks ago? You are the one who destroyed entire blocks of potentially priceless pre-war landmarks and industrial structures? You are the one who killed all those hundreds of people in three days of terrible flame?!"

"Yup, sure am," He said as he got up, casually cracking his neck. He picked up his revolver, and immediately the Legionnaires surrounding him backed away several feet. They relaxed just a little when he simply put the revolver in it's holster.

Thanus looked at the Specter with rage, then shouted at the Specters under his command, "Bring him with us! He has more crimes to answer for than he has lives to give!" Predator just snorted at him, and that seemed to piss off the executor even more. With his own snort of disgust, Thanus turned and stomped into his transport.

All of the Specters approached Predator slowly, like a pack of wolves around their prey, while the Legionnaires who had been surrounding him trotted away at a brisk and eager pace. When he saw his traitorous brethren slowly inch closer as they circled him, he rolled his head in boredom. "Come on, are you going to bring me with you or are you going keep dancing around me?" He rasped.

One of the operatives lunged forward, landing a blow to Predator's spine, which gave off quite a few sickening cracks. Predator fell forward with a howl slash growl of pain while the operative who had struck him hissed in suppressed agony as he hugged his hoof tightly. The other operatives picked Predator up off the ground, with at least four of them securing each of his limbs. He hung his head in apparent defeat.

My captors began dragging me to the VTOL where Myst and Skyfire were held, already strapped securely into the seats by other Legionnaires. To my chagrin, I saw that Predator was also being dragged to the same VTOL as I was. I glared at him the whole time, imagining different ways I would tear off his had the moment I was free of these people's grip.

Just as he was to be shoved into the vehicle's cabin, he raised his head up abruptly. "Hold on just a second." He said, and shook himself hard enough that he flung all of the Specters holding him into the air. He did it with such ease that I had to wonder if he could have just as easily killed all of them. He cracked his spine with a soft grunt just as the operatives recovered from their fall. Then he looked to me and crossed his forehooves onto his chest as he leaned against the doorway.

"So what about the filly, Praetorian?" My blood froze then and there, and even the two dragging me inside stopped. "You told me you would take care of her, right? Well, where is she? Or have you forgotten about her already?" He snickered and shook his head.

I hated him so much. I wanted to tear out his guts and strangle him with them. But he was also right; that filly had no family, no one to take care of her. I was the only person whom she had to turn to right now. I was responsible for her, and I had nearly left her behind. That made me feel even more disappointed in myself.

On the other hoof, what if Predator was just using me to get to her? He'd tried to kill her before, and only my friends' timely arrival had stopped him. If I brought her with me to the Forum, into the city, then... then wasn't I bringing her to danger? It was bad enough to be with me, considering the danger I had gotten myself and my friends into, and it was even worse to be with me once I entered the apparently very, VERY dangerous city of Roam. As much as I hated him, this was exactly the sort of predicament he had warned me about. Was I willing to do that to her?

Some part or my mind took over before I could really think about it properly. "No, I haven't," I said, surprising myself. "I'll bring her with me. I just need to go get her from the hospital." I looked hard at the two holding onto me. "And I will NOT leave without her." They looked to one another in uncertainty.

Predator laughed, "You don't need to go back there. She's already with me!" He grabbed at the air next to his left forehoof... no, that wasn't air. Air didn't shine like that. He pulled at the nearly invisible nylon string, tugging at it hard every few seconds. Every time he did there was a distant thud and a muffled yell. The operatives near him kept their guns on him, but he didn't mind.

Eventually, the slightly shiny nylon string disappeared into a patch of air directly beside him. He grabbed a knife from one of his vest's many pockets, then cut the string. He reached a hoof over to the air and yanked at it. There was a flash of blue, and there was the filly; bound with nylon all around her legs and with cloth stuffed crudely into her mouth. In Predator's hooves was a stealth cloak, which he then threw inside at Myst, who was watching this whole spectacle with wide eyes. "Thanks for letting me borrow that. Next time, try to not leave behind your valuables on a bed."

He turned to Doodle, who was looking up at him with absolute terror. He could have killed her then and there. It would have been so easy, like snapping a toothpick. He could have succeeded where he had failed several days ago, and I suspected the sadist in him would have loved to hear me scream if he did just kill her right in front of me. His long stare at the terrified Doodle almost promised he would just kill her right at that moment, and his soft growling told me he very much wanted to.

Instead, he picked her up and flung her at me. I barely caught her in time, and even when I did I nearly dropped her. One of the Legionnaires had the decency to get her safely onto one of the seats before turning back to Predator with a hateful glare; one that I shared with him. Instead of trying to defend himself, he simply said, "You keep your promise, Praetorian. Because if her life doesn't improve while she's with you, then I WILL end her suffering. And if I decide to, you won't be able to stop me." My glare wavered under the certainty of his threat, and I found myself glancing back at the terrified and cringing Doodle.

The operatives once more moved in on him, but this time he just dismissed them with a wave of his hoof. "Yeah, yeah, don't get your manes in a knot. I'll seat myself inside, thank you very much." He trotted in at a casual pace. When he passed by me inside, he simply pushed me aside and sat himself between Myst and a Legionnaire, both of whom looked very uncomfortable in his presence. He glanced at both of them, then leaned back against the seat and relaxed.

When all of us were seated and any remaining Legionnaires were once more in their assigned aircraft, the door closed. Blue energy rippled out of my seat's armrest and the armrests of the seats of Myst, Skyfire (who was unconscious but was laid against her seat), and Predator. That energy then wrapped around all four of our limbs. Next came another blue energy that snaked out from beside our heads, which then pulled at our foreheads and drew them tightly against the seat. Lastly, and this time it was for all of us, seat belts shot out from the four corners of each seat and wrapped around the chests of everyone inside.

The vehicle's engine began powering up, and I felt us slowly ascending. Despite my head's rather secure bound, I managed to shift it just enough that I could look out one of the windows at Verge. It was still intact, save for a large blackened circle where the battle earlier had taken place. Still, at lest the whole town wasn't destroyed. But that didn't shake the feeling of guilt I had. If I had simply yielded... then maybe there would have been no unnecessary death.

'So, this is how I'm getting to the forum; bound by energy and in the presence of a deranged psychopath. What a lovely way of meeting Roam's number one oppressor.' I groaned, closing my eyes as I took that thought in. I was actually finally going to get to the Forum, and it wasn't even under the circumstances I had thought I would. Yet another of my plans gone wrong.

Then I heard the pilot's voice over the cabin. "Licuit, populum. Tempus adquirendi ad basim. Next stop: the Forum."

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

We had been flying for a little over an hour at this point; enough time for everything inside the cabin to settle down. The scenery outside the window had changed from wide, barren wasteland to low buildings, and finally now I was seeing ruined skyscrapers and what would have been dome-roofed structures if they still had their roofs. Every once in a while, there would be an explosion in one of the buildings or an artillery shell landing near enough that I could see the impact, but I only heard the occasional ping against our vehicle. Every time I did hear one, I immediately felt the vehicle shake as the guns opened fire on whoever the shooter was.

"Sorry I charged in like that." Skyfire said as she looked around the occupied cabin. She had woken up recently and begrudgingly accepted some healing bandages for her face from one of the soldiers next to her. "I just... I just wanted to kill him so badly. I just felt like if I didn't then he'd do something really bad." She sighed, "That... and I still want the Legion to pay for my squad's death." She tried tugging at the energy holding her down to no avail.

"Just control yourself when we get to the Forum. I swear, if you charge like that again, then I'll personally drag you out and beat you until you get yourself under control." I was still mildly pissed at what she did earlier. As much as I didn't want to pin some of the blame on her, the fact was that her little stunt did contribute to the unnecessary shootout.

She looked at the floor sullenly for a second, then nodded. She then turned to look at the bound and seated Predator with a scowl. "So... that's him, huh?" She whispered over to me, then smirked, "He doesn't look so tough."

"And neither do you, Skyfire." Predator retorted. Apparently he had really good hearing to have heard that over the sounds of talking and the engine's humming. Skyfire's eyes went wide at the fact that Predator knew her name, and I myself was surprised. Myst simply tried to move a few inches away from him, but her own bounds stopped her. "Physical prowess depends not on the appearance, but actual conditioning." Skyfire looked at him with wide eyes and a slightly scared expression. "What?"

"H-how do you know my name?!" She asked, startled and unsettled.

Predator just chuckled, "You haven't exactly kept your identity secure. Besides, I heard your name every time your friends over here uttered it. If you really don't want people to know who you are, you should minimize the use of your name." He sighed, "And I suggest you remove the spy bugs I placed on your transport. I don't really need their feed now, anyway." He turned to look at me and Myst, respectively. "I know your names, too."

I turned my attention away from him, while Skyfire balked at him with a strange mix of confusion and anger on her face. "Creepy fuck..." I muttered.

Doodle was sitting huddled in her seat, with one of the Legionnaires trying to coo her into accepting what looked like a roasted corncob. Eventually, he just sighed and placed it away. Skyfire had begun angrily mouthing off at Predator for what he did, though Predator didn't really seem to care. Or maybe he did, but his reactions were simply obscured by his helmet. Myst looked around the cabin and at the conversing Legionnaires with the same anxiety she had for me and Skyfire a little over a week ago.

"So," One of the Legionnaires said, "We nabbed two dangerous individuals in one go. I'd say that's more success than we've had the past month."

"Yeah, and one of them's the Arsonist himself." He glowered at Predator, who was still listening to Skyfire's ranting without any obvious reaction. "That fuck killed my whole family and burned our farm to the ground. Hopefully the Legate'll let me execute him myself."

The pilot sounded over the cockpit again, "Alright, Forum is about twenty minutes away. Out."

"I don't know," Another Legionnaire murmured with a shake of his head. "This doesn't feel right. He gave up too easily and with barely any resistance. What if he's planning something? He didn't surrender the last time we cornered him, why would he now?"

That got the nearby soldiers to look at Predator worriedly. But one of them just laughed, "Please, what could he possibly do? He's been able to screw with us because he was illusive. Now that he's in custody, that advantage is neutralized." He got up off his seat and trotted in front of Predator. Then he spat at him, eliciting a low growl from the operative. The Legionnaire who had been trying to talk to Doodle looked between me and my friends with a look of discomfort.

That did bring to mind an interesting thought, though...

I smirked. "Hey, Predator," I called, getting his attention away from the still ranting Skyfire, who then quieted down a little. "I thought you said the next time we would meet the circumstances would be under your control? Or did you forget about that already?" It felt quite satisfying to have used the zebra's own words against him. Still, I got a worried look from Skyfire, Myst, and every Legionnaire who had been in hearing range.

"The situation is under my control," He deadpanned. I gave him a look suggesting he was crazy. "I am just waiting for the right time to act." Okay, now I was scared. Every Legionnaire in the vehicle was also very worried. Some even pulled out there guns in case he tried anything. The one juggernaut in the vehicle with us took a few slow steps down the cabin towards him.

I laughed in disbelief, "Really? So all this..." I rolled my eyes around at the cabin, "... was part of your ridiculous plan? You're saying you wanted to get captured?" Wow, this guy was an absolute moron...

"Of course!" Predator said with a little tone of pride. "After all, it would have been no fun if I just killed all these idiots when I had the chance, so I let them bring me along for the sole purpose of lulling them into a false sense of security before I destroyed them." Okay, NOW the Legionnaires looked very scared. I would have been as well, if my fear wasn't overshadowed by my disbelief.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Skyfire asked. I looked beside me and saw Doodle, cringing against the seat so tightly I thought she may have melted into it. "You can't do anything, you're tied down just like the rest of us! Or did you forget to account for the possibility of them binding you down?"

"Nope. I knew they would." He tried tugging at the energy, but that produced no result. "After all, I knew they would be using this model of aircraft to come for you, so I didn't worry." He turned to the scared and worried Legionnaires, "You really should secure your coms more tightly; even a novice operative could hack into them."

He looked out the window and saw that we were passing over a long, wide road with tall skyscrapers on both sides. I managed to spot the other aircraft through the windows before they disappeared from sight when our own aircraft turned a corner. The streets below were teeming with dozens of ponies and zebras, all fighting either alone or in groups. Muzzle flashes and explosions illuminated the gloomy ground, and almost every single building had at least one of it's walls blasted out. The streets themselves were so obscured by dust that I almost couldn't make them out.

"Ah!" Predator said aloud, "We have arrived!"

"Alright, I can't take it." One of the Legionnaires said shakily as he got up and pointed a pistol at Predator's head. "I'm going to blow your fucking brains out before you do anything!" Clearly, this guy had not faced Predator before. I knew that a headshot wouldn't work, even if it should have. I was still wondering just how Predator had survived the time I shot him in the head. I could still see the holes punched into his helmet from when I had.

Echoing my own thoughts, Predator chuckled, "Boy, a pistol shot into my own eye sockets wouldn't kill me, so I wouldn't even try it when I'm wearing a helmet." He sighed, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a plan to put into motion..."

He began grunting savagely as he forced his head and hooves against the energy bindings. At first, I thought he had gone insane; there was just no way even he, for all his strength, could just force his way out of this. It was ridiculous, plain and simple. I was proven wrong when the armrests got ripped away from the seat, the bindings deactivating as they were cut off from their energy supply. He reached up both of his now-free forelegs to his still trapped head and yanked away the bindings there as well. All any of us could do was watch; me and my friends out of disbelief, while Doodle and the Legionnaires out of pure horror.

"Open fire!" Yelled the juggernaut, his voice booming through the cabin as Predator removed any remaining bindings. The soldiers started shooting, the bullets ricocheting off of the metal near my friends and I as they bounced harmlessly off of Predator's vest. Still, he must have felt it, otherwise he wouldn't have been roaring in pain. He walked forward slowly, letting the would-be deadly storm of bullets strike him as though they didn't matter. Myst and Skyfire screamed, either out of the agony of the countless bullets ricocheting into them or out of the plain terror of the situation. I myself was frozen where I sat, my mind racing to piece together what was going on. Doodle was most likely screaming; her tiny little filly lungs didn't exactly make for the loudest voice. I just didn't hear her, anyway.

"It's not working!" Yelled one of them as he unloaded his automatic shotgun into Predator's helmet.

"I can see that!" Responded another as he sprayed Predator's limbs with enough rifle rounds to have torn off the leg of a manticore.

Predator jumped, landing into the crowd of perhaps a little over a dozen Legionnaires, minus the juggernaut. They tried to swing their guns around to get at him, but it was too late. Predator brought out a wickedly curved, razor sharp blade. I heard him chuckle; a chuckle of absolute malicious delight. Then he plunged the blade into one of their skulls, piercing through the helmet easily. I shut my eyes as he began his slaughter.

They never stood a chance.

He tore them apart, literally. I didn't look, and I was pretty sure neither Skyfire, Myst or Doodle looked as well. I could hear the Legionnaire's agonized screams as their limbs were torn from their body, or at least that's what I thought all the ripping noises were. I could feel their blood and guts splattering all over me. Predator himself was roaring and grunting savagely as he killed them. Occasionally, one of them would be lucky enough to get off a shot, but it probably had no effect. Somehow, among all the chaos I was hearing, I heard a resounding metallic 'pong'.

I only spared a quick peek, and I saw one zebra being lifted into the air by... whatever the hell Predator was... and then ripped in half by the Specter's incredible strength. All about him were the ripped, cut, and generally brutalized corpses of what had once been his comrades. There were still three of them left; three more to be destroyed. One of them was the one decent Legionnaire who had tried to communicate with Doodle; something I should have done. I closed my eyes again just as I saw Predator punch off the head of one of the survivors.

As I sat there, shaking out of horror, the noise finally died down. There was a sickly squishy noise that went on for a few moments, and I dared open my eyes to find out what was causing it.

The first thing I saw was a limbless, headless corpse on Skyfire's lap, Predator's blade sticking out of it's ribcage. Her eyes were wide out of terror as she sat there, not being able to find it in herself to close them. Next I saw Myst, covered in the blood of the six or so dismembered and mutilated bodies around her. She had her eyes closed. And then I saw Doodle, cowering and crying on her seat as she covered her face from the gore. Good thing, too. I didn't want her to see the torn off head on the seat next to her. Lastly, right on the seat opposite of me, was the juggernaut; a clean hole punched through his chest all the way to his back. All around me was the torn out and splayed guts and organs and body parts of what had once been the Legionnaires.

And in the middle of all that was Predator, standing on the barely alive, mostly limbless corpse of the only survivor of the carnage. I found out that the squishy noise was coming from Predator's hoof pressing into the ripped open Legionnaire's throat. He was looking up at the Specter with wide, terrified eyes. Predator, though, didn't even seem tired in the slightest.

"I... don't want... to die," The Legionnaire rasped softly, barely able to choke the words out with his ruined throat. "It's so painful... and... and I'm scared... of what comes... after." He took in a shaky breath, and weakly tried to push off Predator's leg with his only remaining hoof.

"I know," Predator rasped in an uncharacteristically soft and compassionate tone. "But you should not fear death, for death is but an escape from pain. The pain itself is only temporary, and I believe that a few moments of agony is better than an entire lifetime of sorrow."

The Legionnaire took in a few rough, deep breaths, then replied, "But... what of the after? What... what if... I have not managed... to earn... peace? If I die... then I cannot... do better than I have. I cannot... earn my rest." He looked up at the Specter with uncertainty and fear.

"You have, don't worry," Predator replied. "Trust in the gods. They know how to judge. And I am sure they will not condemn you for the evil I have caused." Predator lowered himself such that his head was but a foot from the Legionnaire's face. "They will not condemn the victim for the violator's crimes."

For a moment, the Legionnaire looked around the cabin with uncertainty. Myst had opened her eyes and was now looking at him with both pity and sadness together with Skyfire; surprisingly, Skyfire showed the same amount of both that Myst did, despite her supposed hate for the Legion. And then the zebra's eyes landed on me, his expression lost and pained. I gulped and gave him a reassuring smile.

He turned back to Predator with a resigned sigh, "Can... can you end it?" He asked softly. "I feel so cold... I don't want to feel cold..." He closed his eyes and began breathing slow, shallow breaths.

Predator withdrew his head to stand upright again. "Of course." He lifted his hindleg over the Legionnaire's head, but hesitated. "And for what it's worth, I'm sorry for what I've done. None of this would have happened if I had not been so foolish."

For what he had done? What did he mean by that? All of his words seemed to imply that all of what happened was his fault. While I didn't care enough to give a damn what Predator saw as 'his fault', his words still struck me because they were somewhat reminiscent of what I would do. I had always tried to take the blame for things even if I personally knew I did no wrong. I had done that because I believed that I could take it; after all, I still had failures to pay for, and taking the blame for others seemed an appropriate way to impose justice in myself. But why Predator would blame himself... I didn't know.

As those questions passed through my head, Predator stomped down hard. The Legionnaire's head was reduced to something similar to rotten lasagna. I closed my eyes too late to stop myself from seeing that, as did Myst and Skyfire. In her seat, Doodle cried even harder.

I opened my eyes a moment later to see Predator withdrawing his hoof from the zebra's brain. He took in one deep breath, then turned to me. I was staring at him with a look of disbelief and shock, both at what he had done and what he had said.

He breathed in hard, and said as if nothing happened, "Ah! Sixteen more put out of their suffering. I view that a success." He turned around and trotted to the door, where his backpack and our saddlebags had been placed. He dragged all of them in front of me and began rummaging through my stuff. A moment later, he pulled out Doomtune's communicator. "Now for the next stage," He said, then pressed a button. The device's single bulb lit up, and then he simply placed it back in my bags. After that, Predator looked a little confused, tapping his helmet with a hoof.

"Alright, what the hell was all that noise? I swear, if you jackasses are wrestling again..." The pilot said from the vehicle's front.

Predator lifted his head up, "Ah, yes, the pilot. I was wondering what else I had missed out." He began trotting through the gore to the armored door that lead to the cockpit. He stopped for just a moment, seeming to be listening to something, then quickly jumped forward several feet.

Then the wall of the cabin blasted apart! Metal and blood flew into the air as a huge metal slab pierced into the cabin just where Predator had been standing a moment before. Skyfire was right next to it, and the sudden shock of the event caused her to yell in a very uncharacteristic manner. Myst and Doodle, being further away, simply did all they could to protect themselves from the debris.

But it wasn't a slab. It wasn't even a piece of random metal that just so happened to have smashed into the vehicle. No, this was a drawbridge, and as the smoke cleared I saw dark silhouettes hurrying across to get into the cabin. I wanted to rip myself free and pull out my weapons so I could do... something! I wasn't able to do anything when the Legion killed Verge's residents, I wasn't able to do anything when we were surrounded and pinned down by those raiders back in that building, and I wasn't able to do anything when Predator himself had roasted dozens of people, so I had to do something now! Already they were getting closer, and I had made absolutely no progress! We were going to die!

That panic immediately left me when I saw who the silhouettes were: Specters, the non-traitorous ones. In fact, as the half dozen of them entered the vehicle, I even recognized one of them; the music he was playing was pretty fast-paced and fit the situation quite well.

"Doomtune?" I asked with a relieved, broken laugh. "The hell is going on?" The smoke had cleared away completely, and through the gaping hole in the vehicle's side I made out a small, sleek, VTOL aircraft where the drawbridge had been extended from.

The earphone-wearing Specter was about to respond, when the pilot said, now much more worried, "Shit! Where the hell did all those aircraft come from? Opening fire!" The vehicle shook as it's guns opened up.

As Predator neared the cockpit, Doomtune and his fellows brought out various tools and devices from their backpacks. "No time to explain, Praetorian! We have to get you and your friends out of here while they're distracted!" Doomtune yelled, his voice his own, as he began cutting though my seat's metal armrest with a miniature chainsaw, the sparks stinging at my exposed flesh. Other operatives clad in the typical black Specter attire began cutting away at the armrests of Myst and Skyfire's seats, as well.

Predator kicked in the armored door so hard it flew off it's hinges and smashed against the glass of the cockpit's window. "Oh shit! All Legion units, shoot this aircraft down! The Arsonist has escaped!" The pilot turned around on his chair and pulled out an SMG, then shot every useless bullet at Predator, who was approaching him with deliberate slowness. He stared in disbelief as Predator stopped in front of him, doing nothing. Then he grabbed the pilot by the head and flanks and raised him into the air. I turned away quick enough to not see him get ripped in half.

"Come on, child, you have to come with us!" One of the operatives pleaded as he tried to pull the terrified Doodle off of her seat. "You heard what the pilot said, we have to go before they shoot us down!" Doodle whimpered in response, but slowly crawled and curled up in the operatives forelegs. "That's a good filly!"

The whole vehicle suddenly began to shake, and from the hole in the side I heard numerous explosions. The vehicle with the drawbridge got hit by a rocket, but wasn't destroyed. Then Predator's voice, augmented by the vehicle's speakers, sounded over the cabin in a rather calm tone, "Passengers, we are encountering slight turbulence caused by enemy anti-aircraft fire. Please vacate the vehicle immediately through the gaping hole opened up by my comrades before I crash this thing. Thank you." Then the vehicle tilted downwards slightly, causing the operatives to stagger a little before recovering.

Doomtune grunted, "Agh, crazy bastard! Operative Killcount, operative Saltwater, hurry up!" Then he turned back his attention to cutting the remaining metal away. A moment later, my forehooves were free. There was a sharp pop, and the generators projecting the energy holding down my companion's heads were blasted apart by small explosives. Skyfire and Myst were now free and were being rushed across the drawbridge together with the operative holding Doodle by the other operatives. "Now for your head!" He pulled out a thin grey slab and attached it to the energy generators near my head. I closed my eyes, readying myself for the detonation.

It never came.

The explosions and the number of rockets flying into the air increased dramatically. Just as Skyfire made it across the drawbridge, a half dozen rockets struck the aircraft outside and the drawbridge it was utilizing to connect with the vehicle we were in. The drawbridge was blasted away while two operatives were still on, sending them falling to their deaths below. The vehicle itself began wobbling unsteadily as flames erupted from it's engines. It began flying away, my friends screaming after me. Skyfire even tried to fly to get to me, but Myst and an operative held her down.

"Goldwreath!" She yelled right before I lost sight of her as the aircraft lifted into the air and disappeared in a flash of blue. As it did, I saw two smaller, more combat-oriented VTOLs zoom by, firing their guns at targets I couldn't see. Their target definitely wasn't our vehicle; they had a very good opportunity to blast us, but didn't. It was for that reason I assumed that those aircraft were friendly.

Our own vehicle suddenly rocked violently, the rockets striking it again and again. Another gaping hole opened up on the floor, nearly sucking Doomtune into it and causing him to fall onto the blasted war zone below as he was about to press the detonator. As he hung there, holding on for his life, Predator suddenly chuckled through the speakers.

"Ah, you thought you could escape, executor? Ha! Not while I am hunting you!" Then suddenly there was a deafening screech of metal as we struck something. Through the holes opened up in the aircraft, I managed to spot one of the engines of the large VTOL, smoking and on fire. A moment later that engine exploded, blasting the remains of our aircraft away and sending a wave of fire surging out of the cockpit's open doorway and into the wind-swept cabin. Fortunately, the flames died down before they reached us.

The aircraft spun around in the air wildly, and the force of it nearly overpowered Doomtune's grip. Somehow, he managed to hold on, even when the mutilated corpse of a Legionnaire smacked into him and plummeted to the ground outside. At least it wasn't the juggernaut's corpse, because that would have been it for him.

Doomtune managed to take one look beneath him, then shouted, "Brace yourself!"

I already knew what was going to happen. But really, what could I do? My limbs may have been free, but my head was still bound to the aircraft. Really, I was sure I looked like some heavy-headed imbecile as I fumbled around, head stuck to the seat, looking for something to hold onto. I finally settled to just sit down and hope my neck wouldn't be broken by the impact.

Then we smashed into the ground, Doomtune being blasted up the hole and smacking into the ceiling before being flung around the cabin like a rag doll as the impact rolled the vehicle around again and again. I focused all of my energy on holding onto the armrest because if I lost my grip, then I would break my neck and dangle around lifelessly. As he crashed around the cabin, Doomtune had the misfortune to crash into a Legionnaire's corpse. Strangely, I heard a faint slash followed by a muffled scream. The vehicle rolled a few more times, sending most of the corpses out through the holes, before finally slowly skidding to a stop. By the time it was no longer moving, the vehicle was tilted up slightly on it's side, letting me see the blasted skyscraper through one of the holes in the aircraft's side.

I released a breath I hadn't realised I had been holding. I was freakin' alive! My neck was good, if a little sore, together with the rest of my body. The cabin was a mess and the cockpit was an unrecognizable heap of broken glass and metal. Predator was probably flung out through a window and crashed into the ground and died, but who gave a damn? What mattered was that I was alive, and so was Doomtune.

"Hey, Doomtune!" I laughed in relief, "We're alive! Now help me get out of this thing so we can get out of here!" Doomtune grunted, pulling himself out from under a heap of metal and the juggernaut's corpse. As he crawled slowly towards me, coughing roughly, some of my relief faded away, replaced with worry. Then he rolled onto his back and slumped against the wall of the cabin, a gladius piercing into his stomach.

"Uughhh..." He groaned, then coughed, "I... don't think... I can get you out of here now..." He said slowly, softly. He turned his head to face me. "Maybe... Predator... can... but I... can't..." Then his head leaned against the wall and he lay still. His music was still playing, and by pure coincidence the music now playing from his speaker-headset was a heartbreakingly sad violin tune that fit the situation so frustratingly well.

"No... no, no!" Come on, couldn't I get a break? This was exactly what I meant: I was supposed to be Roam's defender, yet I was thrust into more than one situation where I was forced to watch good and decent people die without being able to do anything. It was because I was weak, and that weakness would have to be stamped out so that none remained to compromise my efforts to save people.

But while I should have been trying to break free to try to save him, I instead just sat there, frozen. Doomtune, one of the more decent people I had met, had just died in front of me. I couldn't do anything about it, it had already happened. He was the one who had helped save us back in the building, and saved my friends just now, and I couldn't even return the favor. I couldn't help myself as I let loose a few tears for him. He was better than I was. He deserved better than this. I was pathetic, wallowing in self-hate and sadness. But hey, it was one of the things I got to do that didn't end up in someone dying.

Then I felt the ground tremble as if there was a tremor. I spared a look outside the original hole, and I saw several more of the fighter aircraft zoom by. A moment later, one of the Legion VTOLs crashed into the building I was staring up at. The trembling approached, and I found out the source was much closer than I thought. I could even hear it.

Out of the smoke rising from an impact crater rolled an Omni-tank, it's turrets pointed skywards. It's quad-MG turret sent a very visible stream of rounds into the air as it rolled over the cratered, smoking, and fire-filled streets to our crashed vehicle. When it finally reached us, it's turret swung down from the sky to point it's massive cannons at me.

'Oh, fuck me.' Okay, I may have hated myself for not being able to do shit that saved people, but I definitely didn't want to die! I tried prying at the still-active generators to no avail.

But the Legion didn't want me dead. They were planning something for me, but death wasn't part of the equation. No, they wanted me alive, if the duo of Legionnaires that came out of the tank and began galloping towards me were any indication. But as they neared me, most likely with the intent of freeing me and taking me to the Forum, one of them got a clean shot through the head. Immediately the tank swung it's cannons and opened fire at a building behind me, but the mere fact that the cannons shot in my general direction still stopped my heart for a moment.

"Oh, futuo! Gavis, vivum te?" The surviving Legionnaire asked the lifeless body of his comrade as he took cover behind a fallen billboard sign while the tank continued shooting. Of course, his ally was dead and didn't respond. "Dampnes eam!" He yelled, then took a look at the building I couldn't see. After that he began galloping the short distance to me.

Then ground exploded!

Of course it exploded. Because when you've got a city swarming with tanks, aircraft, artillery batteries, and militant groups that seem to have an endless supply of ammo and equipment, then chances are your own birthday gift is going to explode. You just can't go through a day in Roam without pulling a piece of shrapnel out of your flank at the end of the day.

As the turret of the Omni-tank swiveled to face the explosion (which had been directly behind it), there was a deafening, earthshaking blast coupled with a flash of light so bright it illuminated through the smoke, revealing a very large, dark form. Right after my eyes had adjusted, a tank shell landed next to the Omni-tank with such force the Omni-tank itself was shredded to pieces (and considering Omnis had like a foot of armor, that must have been one hell of an impact). The Legionnaire skidded to a stop before turning around to see his smoldering tank, only to have his body shredded to pieces a few seconds later by far more machine gun rounds than necessary. His body, an unrecognizable pile of guts and perforated chunks of meat, sloshed to the ground.

If the Omni-tank rolling towards me had caused the ground tremor, then whatever this thing was was causing a full-fledged earthquake. Even as I sat where I was, the debris outside and inside the vehicle began jumping up and down. Hell, even the Omni's carcass was shaking.

"What the hell is going on in my life?" I asked out of pure exasperation as the cause of the 'earthquake' approached.

A moment later, a MUCH bigger tank rolled out of the smoke. It had four main guns, each easily twice as big as that of an Omni. On the four corners of it's titanic frame were each a minigun turret, with enough ammo in the belts to last a crazed gunner for a lifetime. Even more, the tank had a full array of anti-aircraft weaponry on the top of it's main turret; missile batteries and an AA gun. On the side of the turret was the faded letter 'C' in golden paint. The tank was perhaps twice as tall as an Omni, and maybe fifty percent wider. It's ebony colored armor was so monstrously thick it must have used enough metal to construct a VTOL to make just one-half of the armor's total mass. It's treads each had ten large wheels so big I could have stuffed five equines in each of them if they were hollowed out.

"Just when things couldn't possibly get more overpowered," I groused. Seriously, how could things have gotten more ridiculous than Omni-tanks?

A deep, booming, heavily zebra-accented voice sounded from the tank's turret as it swung around. "Alright... uh, Archelius, radio back to Home Base and tell them the Caesar has five more kills to it's name."

"Alright. What does that bring us up to? Thirty Omnis and a hundred and thirty Legionnaires, right?" The voice asked itself.

"Ayep, and fifty-eight Infernos. And make sure to tell them to ready more 150 milimeters by the time we get back. We're almost out."

"Right. So, who's rescuing the Praetorian?" One of them asked, and the turret ground on it's swivel to face me. "Predator's still in there, right?" I felt mildly peeved that they didn't come out here themselves. I mean, come on! I was right there, less than a hundred feet from them!

"Yeah. Crazy bastard can survive anything." Out of the smoke came Specters, galloping to the tank. When they reached it, they all took cover behind it's massive armor. "Alright, everyone here? Let's go then! Continue the assault!" Then the tank began rolling forward again, vibrating the earth as it did. It eventually reached a large mound of dirt, which it began ascending sluggishly while the operatives inched up behind it slowly.

Once it had reached the top, machine gun fire and tank shells blasted at it, ricochetting uselessly off of it's armor. One tank shell caught it square on the turret, singeing away the 'C'.

"Ha! They scratched your paint job, Olvek. Let's tear them apart."

"What?! They erased the remaining letter? Oh those stupid..." Then the tank fired all four cannons at the same time. The fire that erupted from it's barrels actually blackened the area directly in front of the vehicle. Just a few seconds later, it fired them all again. Then it's miniguns opened up. The tank and accompanying Specters finally disappeared as it descended the slope on the other side.

For a moment, I just sat there with my mouth hung low out of disbelief. Seriously, there were things even WORSE than Omni-tanks? Oh, fuck my life.

I suddenly heard a loud groan beside me, snapping me out of thinking about the suicide-inducing overpoweredness of the tank I had just witnessed. The heavy heap of metal blocking what was left of the doorway to the cockpit was pushed to the side, and Predator stepped out.

"Ah, nothing like a good kamikaze strike to fulfill my daily dosage of killing." He sniffed aloud, then began trotting to me. That's when he saw Doomtune's corpse, slumped against the wall of the vehicle. He stopped and turned to it, then pulled out a gigantic syringe with the same drug solution Doomtune himself had given Myst a while back. He kneeled down and carefully positioned the syringe over his foreleg's joint.

"What are you doing? Can't you just leave his body alone? Why must you desecrate it?" I asked with a heart-wrenching mix of sorrow and anger. Predator was a bastard and a killer beyond doubt, but this was his new personal low for me.

Predator jammed the needle hard into himself. He didn't even flinch or otherwise show any sign of hesitation or pain, despite the needle's monstrous size. Rather than injecting himself, though, he instead sucked out of himself an ichor of colors ranging from a sickly apple green all the way to cosmic purple. He pulled the needle out and held it in front of him, letting the colors swirl around until the entire solution within was mixed with the fluid.

"I'm not desecrating him," Predator replied. "I'm saving him." That snapped my eyes wide open and got my ears up. He yanked the blade out of Doomtune's corpse, then plunged the needle into the operative's chest. I watched with odd curiosity and hopeful anticipation as the strange mixture disappeared into Doomtune's chest.

For a moment, I just watched. Even Predator stayed where he was, looking his dead comrade right in the visor. For a while the scene was eerily calm; the cabin was still and only the distant fighting broke what would have otherwise been unbearable silence. In the distance, I could make out the ground shaking blasts of the Caesar's ridiculously oversized quad guns, together with the occasional missile, scream, or echoing gunshot.

Then Doomtune gasped. For a moment he spasmed, flailing his limbs about like a person would if they were woken up by getting shocked with an electric cable. He thrashed around wildly, his breathing erratic and his head looking in all directions. Predator grabbed his head and forced him to look right into his visor. After a moment of scattered spasming, Doomtune relaxed. "Predator? I... I'm alive?" He asked as he brought up his hooves to his torso, feeling the area where the blade had pierced into him. Where there was supposed to be a clean stab wound, I instead saw the flesh healing itself. Little tendrils of skin reached to one another and pulled the wound close like a surgical suture. I could only imagine what was happening to his organs.

"Yes, you are. You wouldn't have died in the first place if you had vacated like I had told you to, though. And speaking of that..." Predator came over to me and placed his hooves next to the generator near my head, then yanked it free with disturbing ease. Now my head was free, just like the rest of my body. I got off the seat and used the opportunity to stretch my aching muscles. "You really should go now. This area should be secure, as we're far behind the front lines, but still..."

He was cut off by the sound of a beep. With a sigh, Predator walked slowly to his backpack and pulled out a communicator. He pressed a button and spoke into it, "Yes, what is it?"

The sounds of rapid gunfire and deafening booms blasted into the cabin. After a while, someone spoke. "Predator, where the hell are you?! The executor's getting away! The transport's too fast, and the Caesar can't get across the gorge. Only you can jump across! Get over here NOW!"

Despite the urgency of the speaker's tone, Predator simply responded, "Uhuh, yup." Then he stuffed the communicator into his backpack and slung it onto his back. "Well, gentlecolts, I must leave. Rescuing you was only half the plan, the other is capturing the executor. Speaking of which..." He pulled out a detonator similar to the one Myst had used the day before. This time the explosive count was a much bigger number: two hundred and thirty-two.

'Holy shit.' I thought. Where the hell did these operatives get all their stuff?

He casually pressed the trigger, and immediately I heard a chorus of distant thunderclaps, each sounding right after the last. Then I heard the unmistakable sounds of buildings, very TALL buildings, collapsing in the distance. "Now he won't escape," He said plainly. He trotted across the blood-washed metal floor to one of the holes blasted into the vehicle. I stared at him as he passed by me, and I was surprised at how angry I felt. Sure, I hated him, but I didn't realize just how much until now; the shock of recent events must have overcome my hatred. The guy had intentionally slaughtered over a dozen zebras as part of some ridiculous plan of his that apparently involved both rescuing me and capturing the executor, and he had completely disregarded any efforts to reduce Doodle's trauma.

He wasn't paying any attention to me. I could have shot him then and there; I could have gone to my saddlebags, pulled out Tankbuster, and unloaded every fucking shell into his face. I knew it wouldn't have worked, Predator just... couldn't seem to die. I mean, how the hell did he survive all the things that he did? It didn't make sense.

I was actually about to put that thought into motion, when Doomtune, still sitting down on the ground, asked, "Why, Predator? Why'd you save me again? I... I thought the only thing you could do was kill."

Predator was trotting through the original hole formed by the drawbridge when Doomtune asked that. He stopped and turned, then said, "Some people deserve to die, and some people deserve to live. I give death to end suffering, not cause it, just like I save life so better people like you can keep doing good. I do my best to give people what they deserve. And the first time I saved you was purely chance, I didn't intend it." He began trotting through the doorway again, but stopped when Doomtune spoke once more.

"Well, knowing your view on death... am I lucky to be alive, or am I UN-lucky to be alive?" Doomtune asked as he massaged the area he had been stabbed.

Predator didn't turn around, but said, "It doesn't matter whether life's a gift or a curse, just make good use of it. Besides, you haven't suffered nearly enough to warrant death. When you are a suicidal fool with nothing in your life but anguish and suffering, then you die. But you aren't one yet." Once more he began trotting through.

"Hey, Predator." Doomtune called, much to Predator's annoyance. Predator turned with an annoyed growl. "Thanks for saving me. I guess you're not all bad." Predator stood still as stone, growling softly. His growl, though, wasn't one of threat but of pondering... similar in nature to the purring noise Zaita made when she accessed the Databanks all those days ago.

He turned swiftly and began trotting at a brisk pace. I heard him mutter under his breath, "And you'd be wrong to think I'm not."

He stopped outside all of a sudden, then looked up into the air. There was a faint noise of rotating blades. Predator whistled, "Hey, down here!" Then he pulled out a gun from one of his pockets and shot a flare into the sky. About half a minute later a large helicopter sort of aircraft descended. It had the Shadow Corps. logo, faded and dirty, on it's side. He gestured at the pilot window, then at me inside the cabin.

The doors of the aircraft swung down, and a dozen operatives burst out and spread around the area. Three of them entered the cabin. Two of them began dragging Doomtune out, the other went over to me and grabbed my foreleg with his own. He pulled out a similar syringe, if slightly smaller.

"What's this for?" I asked, not wanting to be injected with drugs. I mean, I hadn't taken drugs yet, so I wouldn't want to start now. Myst had taken drugs because she needed to wake up, but I was in no need.

"It's tranquilizer. Thing is, we can't really let you see the way back to Home Base. No offense, but if you knew the way then there'd be a small chance the Legion might get that info out outta ya'. It's just a precaution." I frowned at that. That made sense, and I'm a reasonable person, but I still didn't like it. Still, if it had to be done, then so be it.

I frowned once more and held out my leg to it's full length. "Do it. Just make it quick." I felt the needle stab into my leg. Then a thought struck me. "Hey, are my friends alri-eeeuuughhhh..."

The last thing I felt as I fell forward was his hooves reaching around my chest to keep me from collapsing.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

I woke up on a rather soft, warm mattress. The surrounding area wasn't nearly as pleasing, but it was still better than a war zone. I felt surprisingly good, at least physically, despite what I had just gone through. All around me, I could hear the echoes of dripping water mixing with the distant sounds of laughing and talking, with the occasional reverberating clang of metal. I got up off the mattress and onto the slippery, moss-covered concrete and began taking in my surroundings.

It was a rather gloomy area, with barely any light illuminating it. What I could make out was that I was in fairly small room, and that the mattress I was using wasn't the only one here. Out of the dozen or so other mattresses, at least four of them were occupied by what I saw as operatives. There was a single doorway where a wan, greenish light was flowing in. Through the doorway I could make out laughter and hoofsteps, and the occasional sound of glass on glass. Water dripped down from large pipes along the ceiling, pooling together near the center of the room.

I began trotting to the door, splashing water with my heavy hooves, when I saw my saddlebags leaned against the wall. I went over and picked them up, only to surprise myself at how light they were. I could feel that nothing had been stolen, so I assumed that their lightness came from my current state came from my no longer tired and achy muscles.

I opened the door and stepped through, and was greeted with the sight of eight operatives of varying outfit coloration sitting around a circular chamber. Four of them were playing playing mahjong on a small circular table, the others sat around on crates or on the floor, talking. The floor here was more populated with water puddles, and the cement itself was festering with so much moss and algae it looked like a swamp. I found out that the light wasn't coming from a lamp of some sort, but rather from a brightly glowing mutated mushroom in the corner of the room.

One of the operatives playing mahjong noticed me, and he placed a wide grin on his face as he got off his seat and approached me. I recognized him: he was the operative from Verge. The vest he was wearing now was a new one, but it was still of the desert brown color scheme. "Ah, you're awake! Good, good. Now the tour can begin," He said enthusiastically, then looked behind him at one of the operatives wiping a rifle as he sat on a crate. "Hey, Ironbar, take over my spot in the game would you?"

"Yeah, sure." Then the other Specter, Ironbar, got up off the crate and sat down heavily on the formerly-empty seat and took the looked over the pieces.

The operative from Verge approached me. "Alright, let's go. I've got a lot to show you, so we'd better get started." He started making his way towards two heavy metal doors on the far side of the chamber.

"Now, hold on for a second." I said as I stopped him with a hoof. "Where exactly am I? And where are my friends? My vehicle? The filly? Doomtune?" An odd curiosity lit up in my mind, and despite my resistance I found myself asking, "And Predator?" A part of me felt a little annoyed that I had actually asked about the fucker.

The operative turned around and spoke, "Well, your friends arrived maybe an hour before you did. The pegasus panicked on the transport and tried to fly off; I guess she didn't like the notion of getting tranquilized and getting taken to a place she'd never been before. Of course, that only made us tranquilize her all the more. I'm not sure if she's awake yet."

'Why does she never behave herself?' I asked myself mentally.

"The earth pony was a lot more calm, though she was damned shy. Said she wouldn't leave the reception room, so I had to convince her to go out and mingle with the locals. Hopefully she's browsing the shops around the rotunda like I recommended. As for the filly, she went along with your earth pony friend the last time I saw her." Well, that was good. Although, knowing Myst's anxiety and the filly's need for comfort, that pairing probably wasn't working out well. Poor Myst must have been huddling in a corner.

"And Doomtune? Is he alright?" I asked. Sure, he was alive when I last saw him, but that didn't mean nothing could have happened while I was out.

"Oh, yeah, he's fine. He's in medical right now getting checked up; the docs aren't really sure what to make of his miraculous case of coming back from the dead. He told us his heart stopped beating, but then resumed a few minutes later. They said that was impossible." He paused for a moment. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

"Nope, sorry," I lied. I knew exactly what had happened back there. I just didn't want to talk about it.

He sighed, "Ah well. Anyway, your APC is... um..." He sighed once more, then shook his head a little. "Your... vehicle... is currently floating about outside. I swear, if that thing couldn't hover or talk for itself, we'd have just chained it down. As it is, it's actually INTERACTING with the people here. I swear, things are getting stranger and stranger. And as for Predator... well, he's still on the surface is all I know. We're still waiting for him to report."

Wait... 'still on the surface'? "Okay, so where exactly am I? This place doesn't look like it could house all of the operatives..." Not unless it was a lot bigger than I thought, at least.

He laughed, "And you're right, it can't. But the place beyond these doors..." He began trotting towards the metal doors again. When he reached them, he pushed them inwards. Bright light then flooded into the room, and my eyes hurt as they slowly adjusted to the sudden change in illumination. He stepped through without any hesitation, and I followed him as I shielded my eyes from excess light.

I stepped beyond the doorway, and immediately the air became a lot less stuffy. All around me I could hear what must have been hundreds of people talking and interacting with one another. The floor here was also significantly drier, not to mention having a lot less growths.

My eyes finally adjusted, and then I saw it.

Beyond the railings in front of me was a very wide, very tall cylindrical chamber with a dome shaped roof, perhaps over a thousand square meters in area. Sewage pipes snaked all along the walls and roof of the entire area, dripping murky water onto the ground below. I myself was standing on just one of many, many balconies on one of the numerous floors of the structure. Each circular floor had dozens of doorways; each turned into either some kind of makeshift residence or a shop. There were many smaller stalls where merchants were also selling their wares. At the very end of the chamber opposite of me was a huge statue; a statue of a zebra looking up proudly at the ceiling, which provided the majority of the illumination for the area through a very wide circular hole. Two elevator shafts ran up on the two sides of the statue, and two more were on my side of the chamber.

There were hundreds of people here; not just Specters, but regular zebras and ponies, all co-existing together. I even saw a group of three Specters and four regular zebras trot by, laughing as they swirled their alcohol bottles around. On the ground floor several hundred feet down, I saw several APC's and vehicles enter through an open arched doorway with two large turrets on each side of the entrance. There was a floating vehicle down there, hovering above the entering convoy. It was Zaita, I thought. Down there were facilities and equipment specialized specifically for tending to returning vehicles; mostly re-arming stations and crew pits. To my surprise, three of the small fighter VTOLs descended from the oculus-like hole in the middle of the dome ceiling and slowly glided down to the ground floor. The noise of all the activity going on here would have put Verge to shame.

The operative in front of me turned around with a proud grin. He got up onto his hindlegs in the typical zebra manner, then raised his forelegs into the air and said aloud, "Welcome to Home Base!"

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

The sweet-sour stench of spices and herbs assaulted my sense of smell with every breath I took. Not that I minded; the smell was a pleasant change from the musky and decayed odor of the locations I had been to before. Unfortunately for me, the ground here was slippery, not from water dripping from the sewage pipes overhead, but from all the cooking oil and filth and sweat all over the place. Needless to say, after slipping into puddles of muck on more than one occasion, I came to the conclusion that I liked the smell of dust over what I currently smelled like. Everyone I passed gave me some space, at least.

About an hour later the operative had brought me to just about all the floors and areas of interest. I had sold the rifles I had made in the ZSI Roaman HQ for a good price, and in turn I used the caps to purchase as many shotgun shells and revolver ammo as I could from the shops the operative suggested. The people were friendly enough, though I suspect that was simply because of the ever-present Specters. As it was, I got strange glances from people whenever Sanddune wasn't looking. Maybe it was the stench, I can't say for sure. Either way, I returned those looks with as little scorn and as much calmness as possible.

At one point, I even saw Myst sitting down near a food stall, a plate full of biscuits and a glass of milk on her table. She was sitting down quietly, staring wide-eyed at Doodle, who was sitting across from her. The filly's fur had regrown a little more since when I saw her in the hospital room. I guess that the brews they gave her in Verge accelerated the fur's growth. Doodle seemed to be talking about something, and Myst seemed to be trying her best to listen and at the same time not cringe at the presence of all the people around her. Doodle herself seemed on the verge of crying, and was doing her best to keep it in. Much as I wanted to go to them, I had to leave them alone for the sole reason of the operative insisting that his commanding officer wanted to speak to me immediately.

"I can't believe the size of this place," I muttered as I trotted along behind the operative, whose codename I found out was Sanddune. "There must be more than a thousand people here."

"Several thousand, actually." He replied as he lead me into a crowd of buyers in front of a particularly large store. I had to shove my way through, as did the operative. That got us a few glares from the different people. He glanced behind his shoulder at me. "As I said, this whole chamber, this rotunda, is Home Base: the home of the Roaman Specters. But if you go through enough doorways and chambers, you'll come across the main residential area where most of these people live. We co-exist, sure, but we need to maintain some secrecy when it comes to our operations." We emerged from the crowd... only to run into another. Big or not, this place was a little bit overpopulated.

"So where the hell do you get all the supplies to keep this place going? I heard what the Caesar's operators said. 150 milimeter tank shells? What the fuck? That's big enough for a battleship!" The question as to where they got their supplies was one of the few not answered by Sanddune's tour.

"Well, with the war topside, most people who can come down here. Even different factions and groups have settled down here. In exchange for safety, they sell us their products at gigantic discounts. The 150 mms are made by a group called the Forgers in one of factories down here." He laughed, "We've basically converted the underground of Roam into a city. Hell, some people have even taken to calling this place New Roam!"

"Factories?" I asked, disbelieving. "You have entire factories down here?" Why wasn't this part of the tour? I'll admit, I didn't NEED to see the factories, but I still would have liked to see them.

"Of course!" He replied. "See, back during the war, the entire city of Roam was the industrial heart of the Zebra Nation. Over half of the city was converted to anything that could support the war effort: factories, businesses, markets, military bases, you name it. Of course, the people still had to live somewhere, so when they ran out of space on the surface, they built them underground." He gestured at the entire area. "In fact, when we got here, this place was already inhabited. All we did was get the factories and facilities running and promise to provide security for these people, and for that we got permanent residence." He snickered, "I bet Canterium Prime wishes they had set up HQ here instead of that old deathtrap of a bunker they use."

We finally pushed our way out of the crowd and made our way to a stairwell leading up. The Specter guard there let us up without any resistance. We began ascending the stairs to the last floor, since the tour didn't seem to involve going to any of the floors we passed. I was surprised at how well maintained this area as a whole looked. Of course, there were the obvious signs of disrepair and dirt, and I even saw one of the support columns for the rotunda had collapsed. Still, considering the size and the population, this place was as close as anyone could get to a self-sufficient, well organized city.

"So, how do you keep yourselves stocked on food? I can't imagine growing crops on the surface. You have farms down here, too?" I didn't have to yell this time, as the stairwell had barely any people ascending or descending. On the other hoof, I noticed that the elevators were in constant motion.

"Yup. They're down there..." He leaned over the stair's railings and pointed at one of the massive, arched, armored doorways on the ground floor. "The unofficial New Roaman Senate runs most of the operations down here that we don't. They're the governing body down here, so they're responsible for maintaining employment of the locals and keeping the different groups down here in line. We're kind of like their unofficial military, actually. Of course we don't do it for free, and they still have to provide us with ammo and equipment."

We reached the top floor: an area severely devoid of people compared to the lower floors. In fact, the only people I saw up here were Specters. There weren't any shops or any residential rooms, so I assumed this was where the operatives discussed their plans. That thought was backed up by the fact that the only things I saw up here that were of any interest were dozens of crates, all filled to the brim with high quality guns of all types. I even saw one crate dedicated entirely to containing several polished, brand new assault rifles. The gun nut in me tempted me to go to every single crate to try to see how many of them I could name, but I kept that part of me at bay. Besides, I don't think the Specters inspecting the crates would have appreciated a pony gun addict lecturing them on the statistics of the different weapons.

"This where your leader stays?" I asked.

"Yeah, she's over in that room over there." He pointed at an armored structure jutting out from the railings. The structure itself was upheld by supports that extended up to it from the ground floor.

"Alright, let's get this over with." I sighed. The last time I had spoken to the leader of a settlement, I went on a mission to clear out an area from bandits and Legionnaires. Would it be the same this time? If it was, I wouldn't really mind; meeting the Legate at this point wasn't as important as, say, killing his Legionnaires so that they would stop terrorizing the city.

I winced at my own thoughts. Was I seriously preferring killing hundreds of zebra Legionnaires to finding a peaceful solution to all this fighting? A part of me felt like it was the right thing to do and that I had no other choice, but another part of me felt a little disgusted at myself. But then again, if Thanus was any indication, most of the Legion's executors were individuals of character not likely to allow peace for long. Or if they did, they would try to find a way to manipulate that peace. I couldn't allow that. The Legion had to be destroyed.

I felt a breeze blow against my face. But that was impossible, there couldn't possibly have been wind down here. Sanddune didn't seem to notice, and neither did any of the Specters. Even the dust was unaffected by the breeze. Suddenly, I felt a presence in my mind. A familiar presence, one that I had wondered the whereabouts of since I woke up earlier today.

'Not necessarily.' Thought Tom. 'They are capable of good. It's just that their leaders are making decisions that make all of them look bad. Their reputation is like cancer, infecting the whole body until it seems like the only choice is death. But they can still change.'

Perhaps. Maybe I was just letting my ambitions get in the way of my judgement. There were some good people in the Legion, the executor in the video and the Legionnaire who tried to talk to Doodle were examples. Still, I wanted a few answers. 'Where the hell were you? And where's Tod?' Okay, I don't really know why I asked for Tod. It's not like he was a presence that I liked.

'Ah yes, well, when you were asleep, both of us got... distracted by the phenomenon to the south. Really, I think it's better if you not ask for the details.' I wanted to question him about that. Then again, he had told me that if I needed to know something then he would tell me. So I decided to just leave it alone and trust my protector. 'As for him... well, I honestly don't know.' Ah well. At least he wasn't in my head anymore. Of course, the last time he left he came back just a while later, so I didn't get my hopes up.

I got shoved from my side. "Hey Praetorian, you going inside or what?" Doomtune asked. I found myself at a loss for words. We were standing in front of the open doorway. I hadn't even realized we had reached it already.

I shook my head hard. "Yeah, just thinking about some stuff. I'm good now." I took in a deep breath, "Okay, let's go."

We both trotted inside the dimly lit and dusty room, and the door automatically closed behind us. A few steps inside and I saw a zebra mare wearing black Specter gear sitting behind an old wooden table and looking over a bunch of papers. On the table next to her was a pile of more papers. To the sides of the room were a bunch of seats, and on each side a Specter guard sat. On the left side was Skyfire, strapped down to a seat with duct tape over her mouth. She looked bored to death, but upon my entrance she perked up and looked at me with relief.

"That's her," Sanddune said as he pointed at the zebra mare. "I'll go get your earth pony friend, she'll need to be here." Then he trotted out, placing his helmet on as he went. The gasmask must have removed the oily and rancid stench that hung in the air.

"Why is she tied down?" I asked the two guards. This scene was a little bit strange... okay it was VERY strange. If it weren't for the fact that Skyfire looked bored instead of scared, I would have assumed she was being held hostage and would have gone all shotgun-wielding-maniac on these zebras.

The leader spoke, "She talks too much. Wouldn't quiet down, so I had to have her strapped and gagged just so I could focus on sorting out all these papers." Of course. Skyfire just couldn't control her mouth. It didn't even surprise me anymore that they had to resort to gagging her to keep her quiet. I calmed down.

She got up off from her seat and approached, wagging her hoof at me, "And you must be the Praetorian I've been getting so many reports about. Glad to finally meet you." She reached a hoof to me, and I took it in one of my own before we shook hooves.

"Goldwreath," I introduced myself. At this point, if it weren't for Predator, I would have really liked the Specters. So it was for that reason that I felt it fine to share my identity with them.

"Madran," She replied with a nod. From her seat, Skyfire looked at me and raised both eyebrows in a manner that suggested she was trying to tell me something.

Her look did bring a thought to me, though. 'Madran? I've heard that name before... Oh, shit!'

I jumped away from her and pulled out Vengeance. The two guards on each of my side got up as well and reflexively pulled out their rifles. Even Madran whipped out a pistol from her vest. Skyfire just watched with a look of shock, and then tried uselessly to break free.

"Your that bitch that sent those Legionnaires to kill me over a week ago!" I declared, and was given a look by Skyfire that suggested that was what she was trying to tell me. I was actually about to mention the Specters back at the bridge, but then I concluded that, if anything, they were traitor Specters. Probably weren't traitors for long, though; they didn't have the red and grey streaks along their armor, like those in Verge did, after all.

"What the hell are you talking about?" She asked. "I sent operatives to contact you and bring you here, not to assassinate you." One of the guards tried approaching me, but backed off when I pointed the revolver at his head. Unfortunately, that gave the other guard the opportunity to buck the revolver away from me. When I turned to face him, he punched me in the face hard enough that I fell to the floor.

As they stood over me, the barrels or their rifles pressed down against my helmet, I said with heavy breathing, "Really? So who the hell were those guys then, huh? Unless your guys went rogue, the only other possibilities are either they got killed, or you intentionally sent them after me."

"Well, I can assure you that I did send people after you, but definitely not to kill you. If I wanted you dead, I could have had Doomtune or even Sanddune kill you, but I didn't." She took a step back and put her pistol away. "I'm not your enemy, Praetorian. You may or may not believe me, but it won't change the truth." She sighed, "Kind of a shame that those operatives I sent after likely got killed."

I just lay there, thinking about it. The guards had not withdrawn their weapons from my brow. It was true, she could have had me killed on many occasions. And really, I would have taken a Specter's word over a Legionnaire's. It didn't make me any less suspicious of her, but I guessed she was telling the truth.

'She is telling the truth,' Tom said. 'If you won't believe her, then believe me at least.'

Sanddune trotted in and took his helmet off. Behind him was the sound of trotting hooves. He closed his eyes and sighed, "Okay, Praetorian, your friends are..." He opened his eyes and took in the scene before him. A moment later, Myst came in with Doodle on her back. At the sight of what was going on, she tried to rush over to me, but was stopped by Sanddune. Doodle had the sense to not try anything. Sanddune facehoofed and groaned, "Oh, no... What did I miss?"

One of the guards responded with a bored sigh, "Apparently, Praetorian thinks Madran sent those two rookies from Canterium to kill him. What I think is that they got lost and some Legion fucks got wind of their plans." He looked to his comrade and nodded, then they both pulled me up and sat back down on the seats like nothing had happened. I got up and shot them both glares, but they didn't seem to care.

Sanddune shook his head, "Ma'am, you really should have had Predator break that to him. The part where you sent people to bring him here and not kill him, I mean."

"I did tell Predator to tell him. I guess he didn't." She rolled her eyes and sighed, "I guess this supposed attempt to kill you means you won't help us out, huh?"

'And there's the request for assistance. Right on cue.' I paused for a moment before answering. Was I really going to help these people? Sure, they were much better than the Legion, and if forced to choose I would have chosen the Specters over the Legion any day. Really, Predator was the only person that gave them some bad reputation with me. Was, that is. That changed when I met Madran, but I still had an easier time believing her excuse than tolerating Predator's horrendous acts. But I'm getting off topic.

Sure, I had to 'meet' the Legate (though at this point I wasn't sure if I wanted to negotiate any more), but the Specter's always seemed to be doing something good. I didn't know what the hell Sanddune was doing in Verge, though. Still, they did seem genuinely interested in helping people, and that I could admire.

I looked to Skyfire. She seemed to be treating the situation with an emotion somewhere between concern and boredom; I guess she didn't really have the tenuous admiration for the Specters that I did, but didn't hate them either. I also assumed that her stay here was causing the bored portion of her emotion. She never did like staying in any place for long (although, really, we had stayed in Home Base for at most just a few hours. That wasn't so long.).

Next I looked to Myst and Doodle. Both were looking at me with an expression suggesting they were leaving the choice to me. Myst was biting her lower lip anxiously, though. I guess she still had her own preference of choice, even if she was leaving it to me.

I took in a deep breath. I had made my choice. "I can put aside my personal suspicion. For now, at least. What's the mission?" I asked in a rather professional tone; one that surprised Madran almost as much as it did me. Skyfire sighed and relaxed in her seat. Myst and Doodle both gave small smiles that suggested they didn't like my choice, but accepted it nonetheless.

She smiled and asked, "Are you sure? It's not going to be easy, I can tell you that. Besides, you just came back from the rescue earli-"

"Look, if it has to be done, I'll do it. Just like my friend here, I too don't like staying in one place too long. Besides, every second I spend here is another the war up there is going on. The sooner we stop the Legion, the better." I said, feeling a firm determination form in my head. I had to do this. This could be my chance to do something that mattered. And chances were it would succeed; I wasn't the one planning, after all. All of my plans went wrong.

She kept up her smile and nodded, "Alright then." She trotted behind her table and pressed a button somewhere. At once, the single light bulb in the room became brighter and the light shimmered into a vaguely square shape in the air before me. A few seconds later and a holographic map of Roam was being displayed, with several red and blue arrows and marks and lines drawn all over it. One particular section, a small rectangular spot near the middle of the city and separating a river into half, was marked with a large red X.

Madran stood next to the hologram and tapped a hoof on the X. "We aim to take the dam. The Legion's been using it to regulate accessible fresh water from the populace. If they so much as suspect a group of beggars are their enemies, they won't give them a single drop." She walked through the interface to stand in front of me. "The people need that water. Without the Legion keeping it all to themselves and their few allies and giving only polluted water to the rest of the city, this place'll be a lot better."

So this was it, huh? Well, I was in! Now that dream I had all those days ago made sense. Now I wasn't just helping them because I needed to, now I was helping them because I WANTED to. That may seem strange. Doing good out of actual desire is a lot less common and a lot harder than doing good out of necessity. Trust me, I know. But hey, even if doing good is often the more difficult choice, there really are some times when you just can't help but take some joy in it.

With an excitement I hadn't had about a plan in a long time, I asked, "So when do we do this? I'm eager to get this shit done!" From her seat, Skyfire gave a muffled cheer of approval.

She responded simply and without any emotion whatsoever, "Now."

All my eagerness jumped out of a window and crashed brutally on the pavement below.

"NOW?!" I yelled. Sanddune and the guards snickered and chuckled, as if my exasperation amused them. I rambled, "What do you mean 'now'? We... we aren't ready to go 'now'! Celestia's flaring clit lips, we just got here! What about preparations? The plan? Why, this is even worse than when I organize shit! And that's saying a lot, trust me! I'm gonna rip off your-"

Then a loud alarm sounded over the entire area, even outside. The thundering of hundreds of hooves as they pounded the concrete floor was almost deafening. I brought my hooves up to my ears, as did Myst and Doodle. Skyfire couldn't and had to suffer.

"Alright," Madran said when the noise had gone down a bit. "Everyone assemble on the ground floor. Let's do this." She picked up a helmet from the corner of the room and put it on. It was the same as every other Specter helmet, though it had gray plumes arching front to back. Then she and the three other operatives galloped out of the room. Sanddune skidded to a stop, turned around, and ripped the tape from Skyfire's mouth, electing a scream of pain from my pegasus friend. Next he quickly cut her bounds while I hurried after Madran.

"Hey, wait! At least tell me the fucking plan!" I screamed after her, but she and the other two were already sliding down a rope that extended all the way down to the ground floor. A moment later Sanddune galloped by me and rappelled down after them. I looked around at the different floors and balconies and saw dozens of other operatives doing the same. The area was completely cleared of all non-Specters.

"Well... fuck," I muttered. "Just when I thought something might finally go right." I groaned.

Myst and Skyfire trotted up to me, Doodle following close behind. "It's okay, Goldwreath," Myst said. "We'll do just fine. I only need a few minutes to prepare anyway. It's one of the things I learned from being a sniper. Quick relocation, that is." She smiled and trotted towards the stairs. I grumbled and followed her.

Skyfire said rather enthusiastically, "Yeah! Now's my chance to kill those motherfuckers! All I need is maybe a minute of recharging with Zaita. I should probably get to that." She crouched and spread her wings, then took off and glided down towards the ground floor, descending in wide circles like a vulture.

'Is killing Legionnaires her ONLY motivation?' I wondered.

I could hear Madran addressing her operatives as we descended. Apparently, whatever the plan was had been formulated over a long period of time (or she was simply really good at forming ambitious plans over a very short duration), and now they were just getting a final briefing. I listened closely; as much as I was frustrated with her for making me go on such short notice, I still wanted to go. I needed to catch as many details as I could before this thing happened.

About three floors away from the ground floor, Myst approached me carefully. "You shouldn't have said all that aloud," She whispered. A few feet behind her, Doodle was trotting along rather happily. And considering what she had been through in recent days, that surprised me. I also noticed now that she was wearing Myst's pink sock over her forehoof. The sock was too big for her and sagged with each step she took, but she didn't mind.

"Huh?" I frowned. "Said what?"

Myst went a little red, then cleared her throat. "Celestia's flaring... c-lips?" She went even more red. "Not really the most appropriate thing to say near a filly, don't you think?"

"Oh..." I murmured. "Yeah, sorry about that. It's kind of a habit." Wow, what kind of pony was I? Not only did I nearly forget the pony I promised to improve the life of, now I was shouting expletives in her presence a mere few hours after she had witnessed the brutal killing of sixteen zebras. I hung my head in shame.

"It-it's okay," Myst stammered, a touch nervous. "It's not really your fault. You've been through a lot, and you need to blow off some steam. Just... try not swear so much around her. I'll make sure Skyfire gets the message, too."

I didn't feel any better, but I forced a smile across my face. "Thanks, Myst. You're probably right, I just need to relax a little." I breathed in deep and raised my head a little as I turned and began trotting down the last flight of stairs. "I don't suppose you know any ways to help me relax, would you? I never really got to relax much, even with the amount if time I had to myself back in the stable."

Myst stopped behind me, and I turned to see her blushing hotly. For what I couldn't tell. Was it something I said? Doodle trotted up to her and looked at her weirdly; I guess I wasn't the only one confused as to why she was blushing. I exchanged looks with the filly before approaching Myst.

"You okay?" I asked, "Why are you blushing?"

Myst shook her head, "Blushing? I'm not blushing! I'm just... just... oh, fuck..." She turned to her side nervously, scratching the back of her head, and saw Doodle looking at her strangely. Myst coughed a fake cough and stammered, "What? I'm not! It's just... well, you know... um..."

"Myst, get a hold of yourself. Remember I told you to tell me if you're troubled by something? Well, now's a good time to do that."

"Troubled? I'm not troubled! Why would thinking about ways to help you relax trouble me?" Her eyes went wide right after that last statement. Her cheeks went from a light pink to an unbelievable shade of red. It almost looked like she would have turned my own color of crimson. Doodle just barely suppressed a laugh at the earth pony mare's embarrassment. "Oh, please tell me I didn't say that."

My sluggish mind was still trying to piece together what the hell was going on when Myst trotted past me at a brisk pace. "Yeah, I think we should hurry up now," She said as she half-galloped down the stairs ahead of me.

"Uh... what just happened?" I asked dumbly. I looked to Doodle and saw her smiling up at me with a wide grin. "Surely you understand what just happened. I was never the most socially intelligent person..." It was kind of sad that I was asking a filly, of all people, what my friends were thinking.

"Looks like somepony has a crush on you!" She sang as she hopped up and down in glee. What did she mean by that? Myst didn't... oh, hell no.

'Does she think of me like that? I mean... sure I could understand how saving her life on multiple occasions could make her want to 'return the favor', but... Okay, what the hell am I thinking? No, no, Myst is a good friend, but not THAT kind of friend... I hope. Yeah, maybe now isn't the time to think about this... Oh, I just hope I can fix all this awkwardness.'

I felt my own cheeks go red. "She's just a friend, Doodle." I hope. Please, please just let her be a friend!

Doodle trotted past me, all the while looking at me with a playfully evil smile. "Yeah... sure, a friend'," She teased, and I felt myself go even redder. Then she skipped down the stairs, all the while singing, "Myst li-ikes Goldwreath, Myst li-ikes Goldwreath!" Despite my embarrassment, I couldn't help but wonder where she had learned my name. I was out for maybe an hour or two, maybe they had talked about me? However she did, I guess it didn't really matter.

When I finally got myself together, I continued trotting down the final flight of stairs. All the while I just kept asking aloud, "Does she really think of me like that?" I didn't even pay attention to Madran as she summarized the plan through a megaphone.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

When I finally caught up with them, I found them standing behind the assembled crowd of Specters. At my approach, Myst slowly inched away from me. Doodle giggled at that, but Skyfire looked at the filly with a little confusion.

"So, what's the plan?" I asked Skyfire.

She shrugged, "They haven't said anything that involves us yet. We'll figure out soon enough I guess."

As it turned out, 'soon enough' took it's sweet time getting there. I honestly nearly fell asleep listening to all the complicated battle strategies. I understood that it was stuff that I should have listened to, but when you have absolutely no idea what's going and whether or not you have any role in it you kind of tend to not give a fuck. Skyfire actually did fall asleep, but Doodle woke her up before she fell to the ground. Myst was paying much closer attention; I envied her of the incredible amount of endurance she must have had to actually pay attention to that stuff without looking even a little drowsy.

Despite my sleepy boredom, I managed to hear one operative ask, "And what about Predator and the Caesar? The other operatives still on the surface?" That got enough of my attention that I woke up a little more.

To that, Madran replied with a magnified voice, "They're keeping the surface and points of exit clear. I haven't heard from Predator or the Caesar, though."

I began drooping again. That was when she said, "Alright Specters, ten minutes of prep, go!" Her final word coincided with the sudden stomping and galloping of the hundred or so operatives in the area. The sudden noise of the jingling of ammo casings and the humming of VTOL and APC engines woke me up completely, and I rubbed my eyes as trotted off blankly. My friends gathered behind me, though Skyfire squealed at the sight of a recharging station before galloping off. Myst nervously told me she was going to get more ammo and trotted off, Doodle skipping along behind her. The filly glanced at me, then at Myst, before smiling deviously. I shooed her away before anyone else saw that.

As I had already gotten ammo for my weapons, except for Balaclava's rifle, I decided to just go around and mingle with the different operatives as they prepared their equipment. They were too busy readying all their guns and making sure they had all their tactical gear, such as what they called 'flashbangs', to give me any more attention than a detached 'uhuh' or a 'yup'. I guess I couldn't really blame them; if you were in their position, making sure all your gear was ready for a big fight, then I guess you'd want to be left alone.

Their was one operative that caught my attention, though. "Doomtune?" I asked the music-blasting operative as he attached rails to a brand new rifle. He turned his head to face me as I approached the small workbench he had claimed for his own. "You're joining this fight?" Hadn't he technically died a while back? I may have been no doctor, but I knew that he should have been resting instead of fighting.

"Well, yeah," He said as he finished attaching the rails and began pulling out various optical sights and clicked them onto the rails. "All combat operatives are needed for this. We've been planning it for too long to let it fail now. Home Base'll be safe; a combination of New Roaman security and utility operatives will be here."

"But aren't you, I don't know, supposed to be recovering or something? You actually died back there, you know." Seriously, he was going? Like this? It reminded me of my first meeting with Skyfire; the time when I too tried to keep her in recovery, but failed simply because I had to let her come with me. I wondered what Doomtune's motivation for pushing himself was.

"Docs said I was good, though they aren't sure why. But that's all I need. If I'm good to go, then I'll go." He sounded detached, like he was saying all this and preparing all his stuff while thinking about something.

He was thinking about something. And I suspected I knew what it was. I didn't know where I got the suspicion, or really how I knew he was thinking at all. Some part of my mind simply... knew.

Before I could really think about whether or not I should put my suspicions to the test, I asked, "You're thinking about what happened in the building, aren't you?" I personally wouldn't have thought he was thinking about that rather than, say, what happened back in the transport, if it weren't for my suspicion. Because between an event where I NEARLY died and an event where I DID die, I would be pondering about the latter.

Doomtune was tightening an extended barrel on his heavily-modified rifle when I said that. He stopped completely, then slowly turned his head to face me. Through his visor, he seemed a little pained. Not surprised at my correct inquiry, but instead pained. "Yeah... what about it?" He asked, all of his attention now focused on me with such intensity that I thought if I asked the wrong question he'd paralyze me with a hoof strike.

Good thing that he'd asked though, because that gave me the permission to ask questions I wanted answers for. At least, I thought it did. Remember, I was never really the most socially intelligent pony.

"I just have to ask... why did you seem so concerned about my friend?" He raised an eyebrow at me from behind his visor. "You know... when we found out they were trying to rape her? Why were you so concerned?"

He didn't respond for a moment, instead putting his rifle down on the table and tapping it with a hoof repeatedly. "Wow, you really know what questions to ask to throw a buck's focus off, don't you?" He said with a shaky chuckle. "Well, if you must know, I kind of have a personal hatred of raping scumbags. Let's just say it happened to someone important." Behind his helmet, he sniffed.

"Who?" Okay, I'll admit I may have been making the situation a little awkward, but I was genuinely interested.

Despite his hesitation, he obviously wanted to talk about it. Probably to get his mind off of it. "One day, my... uh, 'family'," He said the last word with a little bit of tension before he paused for a moment and continued, "One day they were scavenging the jungle near Canterium. There was a drought back then, so they said, and most people were resorting to hunting to get their daily meal."

He paused again, looking over the entire chamber. All the other operatives had now finished personal preparations and were tending to the vehicles parked around, especially the APC's. "Anyway, apparently radigator's good food if you cook 'em right. My dad found a cave of them deep in the forest, but told only my family so as to limit the number of people who knew about it. The next night he left for the cave. Said he'd be back in a few hours at the most."

He took in a shaky breath and shook his head. "Then some fucking raiders came along, maybe ten of them. Since my family camped a little further from the other hunters, we were exposed." He looked at me, and I was surprised at the anger and hurt in his puffy red eyes. "They tied my mother to a tree and raped her! For a fucking hour! And my sister..." He coughed and took in another shaky breath. "I don't know where they learned it. Maybe they saw it some old history book or something. Wherever they learned it, they made a pretty good cross. They crucified her." He sat down and hung his head. "Dad came by a little later and killed those SoB's, but my sister was already dead. Blood loss from the many nails they used. Mom was alive but traumatized. Dad wouldn't stop stomping their corpses into the dirt like the filth they were."

"And then what happened?" I asked, altogether sorry and sympathetic for the guy. So this was why he was so anxious to kill them. Now I understood why. And I shared his anger; if anyone I cared for ever got raped... I would have peeled their attacker's hide off and boiled them in salty water.

He took off his helmet, and I saw his face etched with such hurt and hatred it made me balk. Even one or two of the operatives looking in our general direction suddenly stopped what they were doing just to look at him. The furious tears running down his face as he took in his breaths in deep hisses only served to make his fury more apparent. Despite his seething, he responded rather calmly, "I happened."

All of the thoughts in my mind left, leaving it completely blank. All thoughts except one: 'What?'

He smiled brokenly, sniffing and wiping his face. Then he laughed, "Heh, they kept telling me what happened that night again and again just to make me feel like shit. They hated me. They told me the story every night the moment I could understand them. For them, I was just a reminder of what happened that night. For them, I was just another raider." He smiled a little crazily, then looked at me and laughed a little.

"But I loved them. Even after they sold me to slavers near Canterium's walls. And when hate crept into my mind, I just kept reminding myself why they did it. They never asked for me, it wasn't their fault." He sighed. "Then Predator attacked the convoy. He just laid waste to the damned thing, killing both slaver and would-be slave. A few of us were spared by him, and he even led us to Canterium Prime. Then I got my training and... here I am."

For a moment I just stood there, looking at him with disbelief. And anger. Not anger against him, obviously. Anger against his parents. Seriously, what kind of people do that? Selling their own child, even if unwanted, to slavers... sickening. If they were still alive up to now, and I had a means of finding them, then I would personally buck their sorry heads off. I was also a little bit pissed off that Predator had killed some of the slaves instead of just the slavers.

Myst, Skyfire, Zaita and Doodle started across the room towards me, with Zaita hovering several feet above them. At the sight of them Doomtune placed his helmet on hurriedly, then made his visor opaque and pressed the button that changed his voice. As they approached, Doomtune leaned close and rasped softly, "Thanks for the talk. I needed it off my mind." I nodded at him, then hesitantly trotted to meet my companions half-way.

"So, you three ready?" I asked. Skyfire's rifle's glass components were glowing brightly from the energy they had absorbed, while Myst had at least several more cartridges for her rifle. Zaita looked only a little scratched from the fight back at Verge.

Skyfire grinned and nodded, shucking the twin rifle's closer to her shoulders. Myst bit her lip, looked at me from behind her hoodie and nodded, then quickly glanced away. I sighed... was that whole... 'conversation' back at the stairs going to be a problem? I had finally gotten Myst to be open with me since she started traveling with us, so I really didn't want her to be all shy again because of a single awkward conversation.

"I believe so. The Specters have restocked me on 25mm ammo and rockets, so I should be ready. And you, do you know the plan?"

I shook my head, "Yeah, I didn't really pay attention. Neither did Skyfire. I think Myst did, though." I glanced at her, making her gasp and pull her hoodie over her head more.

'Oh yes, definitely going to be a problem.' I thought.

Zaita explained, "Well, it's simple really. The push towards the dam will take perhaps a day of intense fighting, assuming the Legion doesn't call for reinforcements and the Specter's allies join up with us. I will be joining the assault on the surface as part of the armor line. The Specters within me will be mounting the weapons, and I will maneuver us across the battlefield until we reach the dam. All I heard about you was something about a tunnel."

A tunnel? Why would we go through a tunnel? I wanted to help fight on the surface, not crawl like a rat in a sewer. And Zaita was going to be up there? I didn't want to risk her being destroyed; she may have been an AI, but she had saved our lives. For that, and I still feel a little awkward saying it, I considered her my 'friend'.

I groaned my disapproval. My own plans may have been crap, but this plan was just horrible. Not only were we going in not as prepared as we could be (thanks in no small part to the fact that we had to go 'now'), we were also being separated from our transport and would have to go down a tunnel. That just had bad written all over it. Even Myst looked a little worried about it, but then again she was always worried about something. Skyfire didn't seem to give a damn.

"I'll go get more details from Madran. Maybe I can also convince her to let us up on the surface instead." And with that, I trotted away from my gathered friends.

Maybe halfway through the tables and workbenches, I heard it. It was a thundering, echoing metallic slam that vibrated through the entire chamber. It sounded as though some giant was knocking hard on a very large metal door. Everyone paused what they were doing, resulting in many spilled oil barrels and a lot of screws falling to the ground, all accompanied immediately by frustrated swearing. Every single turret in sight began slowly turning.

For just a few seconds, everything was calm. No noise, no talking, no movement. Just the tension that comes when a hundred or so operatives all feel nervous about something. And considering the sorts of things they were capable of, if they're nervous about something, then you should be nervous about it as well.

Then it sounded again, a little less loud this time. Even still, the sound carried with it a reverberating permanence. The slamming of metal on concrete sounded one more time, and everyone turned their heads towards one of the large arched doors. The door shook and wobbled as whatever was striking it hit again and again.

"You think you knocked too loud?" Asked a booming voice from beyond the doorway. I recognized that voice. It was the voice of the ridiculously overpowered tank known as the Caesar.

"Pretty sure I did," Predator said, his voice magnified. "Alright, what's the hold up? Madran, if you're in there, open the damned gate. Hostiles don't knock first."

The tension in the room very quickly dissipated at that. Everyone went back to their final preparations with only a hint of anxiety left in them. Several operatives went to the gate and activated the raising mechanism, and the thick metal gate slowly rose up. Along with my friends, I trotted in front of the gate and waited for it to fully rise.

Dust, water and smoke leaked into the room as the door opened. Beneath the door came wan rays of sickly green light, illuminating through the smoke in such a way that the scene looked like some kind of monster was going to crawl in. When the door finally opened fully, at first I couldn't see anything besides green-tinted dust and smoke, nor could I hear anything but the faint trickle of water. But when the dust cleared, I saw him.

Predator was standing in front of the gargantuan chassis of the Caesar, the dust swirling around their dark forms. Behind them was a very long tunnel illuminated by more glowing green mushrooms, sloping upwards at just a slight degree. He had something on the ground next to him, something metallic. He stood there for a while, breathing in deep regulated breaths through his ruined and cracked helmet. I just stared at him, an emotion of a mix between anger, curiosity, and disgust piling up in my head.

After a while of just standing there, the tank's engine hummed to life and it drove in, actually taking the time to maneuver around Predator instead of telling him to move. "Alright, enough drama! Where the hell are the 150 milimeters? Surface is crawling with fucking enemy armor, so get loading!" The tank itself looked like it had taken a beating; nothing truly serious, just bent and blackened exterior armor. One of the turrets was a smoking pile of fried wires and melted metal, but that was about it. As the tank rolled in, robotic arms carrying gigantic shells emerged from manhole-sized circles in the ground. Other arms emerged and tended to the tank's damage.

Now Predator trotted forward, dragging the metallic lump along with him. For the most part I just glared at him, though I did spare a look at what he was dragging. It was mostly grey, though it did have a few streaks of violet...

Two operatives moved forward to meet him. "You got the executor? He's vital for this plan," One of them said. "If you don't have him, then we won't be able to keep them negotiating while we sneak into the dam."

Predator growled as he flung the metallic heap at him. Except it wasn't just a metallic heap. The two operatives barely caught the unconscious, battered, beaten, and generally screwed over executor before he hit the ground. I only spared a glance at him, but what I saw suggested he had tried to put up a fight against Predator, and that effort failed completely.

"There's your answer," Predator said, and he trotted towards Madran. I followed him, letting my strange curiosity of him overcome my disgust just for now. If I let my anger get a hold of me, then I might have started a fight, and I was pretty sure I would lose. Not that I doubted my combat skill, but Predator just destroyed everything he wanted to. I even had the thought that, if he wanted to, he could have knocked the gate down. A part of my head told me that was impossible and illogical, but then again lots of the stuff I saw out here didn't make sense.

"Predator!" Madran called out. "You're late."

"Well, you haven't left yet, so I assume you've changed the plan. If you didn't, you would have just left me to catch up." Madran silenced at that, hanging her head and sighing. Predator leaned against one of the tables, "So what's my new role? Espionage? I can do that, yeah."

Madran groaned, "How do you even know these things before I tell you..." She sighed, "Yeah, espionage. In a sense. We need you to sneak in through the tunnels and disable the dam's defenses from the inside. You know the underground more than anyone, so you shouldn't have a hard time of it."

I expected Predator to argue, to complain. Here, he had been lead to believe for an apparently long time that he had a different role, and now he was being relocated last-minute. I expected him to go into a fit of rage or disappointment. Instead, and to my surprise, he just said, "Alright." Then he began trotting towards one of the smallest arched doorways of the ground floor. He didn't even get more ammo or ask for time to rest. He just... went; without hesitation or complaint. That showed either great obedience or great disinterest. Somehow I felt it wasn't the former.

Then Madran looked at me, and through her visor raised her eyebrows.

"What?" I asked.

"Aren't you going with him?" She questioned.

"WHAT?!" Skyfire yelled, then dashed towards the Specter leader to point a hoof at her. "You expect us to go with that piece of shit? You can't be serious! In fact, why are we going down tunnels anyway?" For once I appreciated Skyfire's direct manner of approach. I SO did not want to be stuck in an underground tunnel for who knows how long with a psychotic, cold-blooded killer. I may have unwillingly lead my friends into danger before, but allowing this... that would show not only incapability to assert myself, but also unwillingness to protest for the safety of my companions.

"Because on the surface you three will be gigantic targets. Do you know why we had Predator capture an executor? Legionnaires are extremely loyal to their leaders, even those not directly assigned to them. They wouldn't dare shoot at us if there was even a slight chance they would strike their leader." Madran shook her head. "But having you three up there, on the assault, just might override that instinct. They just might open up on us with all their power. The truth is we're outgunned, outnumbered. Using the executor as a shield is the only real chance we've got to reach the dam with even half of our force remaining."

She sighed and looked my glaring pegasus friend in the eye. "Besides, we need a team to infiltrate the dam. We can't really spare operatives for that operation, we'll need them all on the surface. While normally I would send Predator alone, I can't risk it. Whether either of you like it or not, I have to send in a team, not an individual."

Damn it, she was right. The Legion overpowered the Specters in sheer power, and my presence would simply make them fight back with overwhelming force. As much as I hated being forced to go down a tunnel with Predator, I couldn't deny the logic behind her statement. And if Predator really wanted us dead, he could have killed us before. As much as I hated being separated from Zaita and having to do this, it was for the best. I suppose I just had to put aside my personal hate for the fucker.

Myst didn't voice her disapproval, though I could see the worry on her face. Doodle looked a little anxious, twirling the sock around in her hooves. Zaita, as usual, didn't show any reaction that I could see.

Then the alarm sounded again, and at once the operatives began boarding the VTOLs and parked helicopters. They got into the APC's, one of which was Zaita. The Caesar began rolling out of the open doorway again, the many smaller ground vehicles following it as it slowly ascended the slope. Madran mounted the side machine gun of one of the VTOLs as the many aircraft began ascending through the hole in the ceiling, blasting the few of us still down here with moist and smelly air. I saw Doomtune and Sanddune sitting together on the side of one of the APC's as it drove up the slope, the latter playing a suspenseful beat that the Specters marching along beside the armored vehicles seemed to be bobbing their heads to. I watched them until their dark forms were lost in the shadows of the tunnel.

Before she followed the convoy up, Zaita approached me and said, "Be careful, Goldwreath. I calculate a very high danger level for this operation."

I smiled. Amid all the disappointment and worry I had for this, her monotone voice brought me a little comfort. "Be careful yourself, Zaita."

When the armored door slammed close, the area was disturbingly empty and calm. The rotating of blades and the combustion of engines were distant echoes coming from the oculus in the ceiling, and the ground slowly began to shake less as the vehicles and Specters in the tunnel went further and further up. The few remaining operatives began letting the populace back into the chamber. Along with them came zebras wielding rifles and wearing combat armor with the letters 'NRS' painted in blue on their chest plates. I assumed that meant 'New Roaman Security'.

Myst nudged me, "Come on, let's go." She started trotting, along with Doodle and Skyfire, towards the small door at the northern end of the room. There, Predator was waiting, leaning against the wall. I took in a nervous breath. I was actually going to do this.

"So, I'm assigned with you, huh?" Predator asked as we reached him. In his presence, Doodle had changed from her rather cheery and playful demeanor to a quiet, tense filly. I couldn't really blame her; the guy had this aura of tension that just made you alert whenever you were near him.

"Don't think I like it," I growled. "I'm going with you because I need to, not because I want to." Beside me, Skyfire shook her head once in approval of my statement.

"And I'm not asking you to like it. But if we are going in together, then I need to establish one rule that you MUST follow." He got up from leaning against the wall and approached me and my friends. Even if I couldn't see them, I could just feel his eyes on me. "These tunnels are dangerous, but if you follow what I say, and EXACTLY what I say..." He leaned his head close to Skyfire, who then scowled at him. "... then they won't be. Follow that one simple rule and you might survive." He turned to the door and forced it up. The tunnel ahead had such a strong stench of decay that everyone but Predator gagged from the reek. Predator then trotted through, slowly disappearing into the shadows.

"Alright, everyone ready?" I asked as the stench died down. I could hear Predator's hoofsteps as he stepped in murky pools of mud and still water inside the mushroom-lit tunnel.

Myst and Skyfire coughed but nodded, then trotted into the tunnel after him. Doodle was about to as well, when I stopped her. "Wait, you're coming with me?" I asked. I understand that leaving her here, along and without company, was a horrible idea. Them again, bringing her with me was also a terrible choice, if Predator's warning had any truth to it. Which, in this case, it most likely did.

"Yeah!" She piped in a strangely cheery voice. "I can't wait to go on this adventure! It's gonna be so awesome!" Wow. Here was a filly who had recently had her parents killed, nearly got killed herself, witnessed the brutal killing of sixteen zebras, and yet she still wanted to go down the extremely dangerous tunnel with the zebra... creature... that she should have been terrified of. I expected her to be traumatized, not... eager.

I tried to dissuade her. "But aren't you scared? I mean, you know..."

"A little," She admitted, her eagerness dying down a bit. "But I'm not scared of mister Predator, he just makes me uncomfortable. I'm scared of the tunnel itself. But as long as I follow his instructions, I'll be safe."

I wanted to keep her here. This wasn't right, taking her with us. Who knew what was down there? I was about to throw another group of statements to keep her here when Predator's voice called out from the tunnel. The sound of it made it obvious that he was already quite a fair distance in.

"Just bring her with us," His voice echoed. I could hear them trotting into puddles and stepping into algae inside, the latter making wet, squishy noises. "As I said, I won't hurt her as long as she doesn't suffer permanent emotional and psychological damage."

The fact that Doodle was cheery and eager despite what had happened already suggested that there was something wrong with her. No filly could be this happy after going through all that. Still, at least in the presence of me and my friends she was protected. Perhaps not completely safe, but protected. Besides, leaving her here with these people also wasn't a good idea. I would have to talk to her later, find out why she was so positive despite what she had gone through. The answer, as I would later discover it, would surprise me.

Two NRS guards took their positions beside the door, waiting patiently for us to go through before closing it.

I sighed as I let her ride onto my back. "Alright, fine. Let's go." Then I galloped in, hurrying up to catch up with them. The door slammed down a moment later.

A few seconds in, a minor headache erupted in my head, surprising me enough to slow me down to a canter. What was that?

'So,' Tod said, 'You missed me?'

'Aw, hell no.' Both Tom and I thought.

Footnote: Level Up

New perk gained: Mental Perception, Level One -- You don't know how, but your mind has found a way to perceive things your other senses cannot. You gain +2 to your perception attribute.

Chapter 13 - Predator

View Online

Chapter 13
Predator
"I don't kill because it's fun or because I want to, that's for sadists. I kill because I need to, and don't think I like it any more than you do."

We had been trotting down here for maybe an hour. The surrounding area had changed from a dirt and rock cavern into industrial sewers, but there was still as much mutated algae as ever. Tom and Tod had begun a war in my head that gave me a massive headache, but thankfully I didn't have to do much aside from following Predator's lead. Myst and Skyfire kept quiet, both neither having anything to talk about, or if they did they didn't want to talk about it in Predator's presence. For the first few minutes, Doodle had gone on energetically about how excited she was, but eventually quieted down since none of us were really paying attention.

I could feel the battle going on above, the explosions so powerful they rippled all the way down here. Every so often, there would be a blast powerful enough to actually shake the sewer walls, even though we must have been a hundred feet minimum beneath the surface. The shaking coupled with the slippery green moss down here knocked all of us down at least once, except for Predator, whose balance on his hooves far surpassed our own. Predator paid the explosions no attention, and since he apparently did this a lot, neither did I.

Even my hatred for him and this plan did not change the fact that I was a pony who needed to converse. Doodle seemed to have fallen asleep on my back, so I directed my attention towards the other two. Myst was still trying to avoid me, even to the extent of trotting directly beside Predator to do so. So I settled for Skyfire as my conversational partner.

"You know Skyfire, you haven't really told me much about yourself," I said. It was true that she had told me where she came from, and that she had told me all about the Enclave and Dashites and the like, but she was my friend now. I had to get to know her more than I did.

"Well, there isn't much to tell aside from what I already told you," She said. Despite that, she obviously welcomed the sudden conversation. The silence must have been too much for her. "I told you how I got my cutie mark, and my parents really aren't of much interest. I guess you could ask about my life, but really all I did until I joined the military was going to the Enclave's academies in Neighvarro."

Well, even if all that was true, there was still one topic I was immensely curious about. "So... what was your life in the military like?" I asked slowly. I was slowly inching my way towards the topic of her squad, since they obviously meant a lot to her. Hopefully we could reach that topic without her crying or getting mad.

Thankfully, she seemed a little more open to her life in the military in general instead of her squad specifically. It was a start, at least. "Well," She said, "It was a lot more fun than my time in the academies, that's for damned sure. And that's saying a lot, considering that's where I met the ponies who would become my squad later on. The only thing I really didn't like about it was the fact that I had to keep taking orders from people."

"Why?" I asked. "What's wrong with taking orders? As long as the leader's competent and tells you to do the right thing, I don't see the problem."

She snorted, "Yeah, but most of my superiors were asses. They kept saying that all the ponies below the clouds were diseased, irradiated, murdering, raping filth that we had to be kept away from. Whenever we went to the surface, they'd order me to kill a group of wastelanders just because they were wastelanders. I hated it... but I had to do it. The only thing we ever did that interacted with the surface in a relatively friendly manner was constructing the Volunteer Corps, and even that barely does shit."

"Didn't you say you had to report back?" I asked. "Something about them either leaving this place alone or attacking it? Because I'd really rather not involve the Enclave in this conflict."

"I can stay with you for quite a while, actually. Maybe until your mission over here is complete. Besides, chances are they'd shoot me on sight for being 'contaminated'." Skyfire replied with a scowl. "The Council takes a really long time to decide on stuff, even on serious matters. Chances are that it'll take them weeks to analyze the potential threat of this place, and then maybe another week just for deciding a course of action."

"Why are you still with him?" Predator asked. "Not only has he not lead you to near death, but you can also leave whenever you wish. The promise he made binds him to stay with you, but not the other way around."

"I don't have to answer to you, 'Predator'," Skyfire retorted. "But if you must know, it's because I care about the surface, just like Goldwreath. I always did. Maybe less here than in Equestria, but I care all the same. I never bought all that bullshit about the surface being completely bad. That and, like I said, they'd shoot me on sight." She inhaled deeply, then sighed, "That's one of the reasons I loved my team. They didn't buy it either. They always tried to find a way to help the surfacers, instead of just blindly following orders."

"Really?" Predator asked slowly. "So, I take it that you would have agreed to help surfacers the moment you heard they were in trouble even if you never met the Praetorian? Even if you had never met your team of supposed idealists?" Skyfire looked at him with absolute hatred, yet despite that she glanced off to the sides in doubt. Predator smirked, "Didn't think so."

"Hold on there," I interrupted. "I'll have you know that Skyfire does indeed care about helping these people, and she would have done so even if she had never met her squad or me. Besides, why would she follow me? I'm a terrible leader." Skyfire then looked at me with astonishment, then slowly put a smile on her face.

"I don't think so," Predator responded calmly. "I don't think she truly cared about the surface, and perhaps she doesn't right now. I know for a fact that she believes you are a good leader, and I know that she believes so even if you don't. But the question is why?" He stopped trotting, and so did we. Myst didn't seem comfortable at all this talk, but she didn't want to wander off. Predator approached Skyfire slowly, making her back away until she was right beside me. I painfully brought my broken wing over her to help her stand her ground. At the touch of my feathers, she stiffened, taking in shaky breaths as Predator neared.

"To that, I believe I know the answer." Predator said, then leaned close to Skyfire. "Goldwreath here reminds you of someone, doesn't he? Someone you... tried to be better for? Someone who made you care about the surface, even when originally you didn't?" He put such emphasis on the last word that Skyfire tried to back away from under my wing, but I held her there. "Another question we can ask is HOW she cared for this person."

"What's he talking about, Skyfire?" Myst asked shyly as she got up next to my pegasus friend. "Is he trying to say that... Goldwreath reminds you of someone you loved?" Skyfire cringed beneath my wing, looking around fearfully.

Then Skyfire looked at Predator. "Shut up," She said softly.

"Ah, so he does, doesn't he?" He turned away from her to look at me, then he laughed, "Oh yes, now I understand. I think that she's trying to care for the surface only because you remind her of someone who made her care. I believe that that someone is now dead, and she's trying to replace him with you."

"Shut up!" Skyfire said, getting up from beneath my wing to push a hoof against Predator's chest. He growled at the contact, but made no attempts to push her away. "All of what you're saying isn't true! Goldwreath helps me think about the right decisions, but I can do good even if he isn't around!" She breathed in shakily, "He's a good pony as he is, and he doesn't have to be like anyone else to be!"

Predator stood there for a moment, growling softly behind his helmet. Then he smirked, "What was his name? I heard you say it a few times before..." He looked up at the ceiling in thought. Skyfire put her hoof down and backed away a few steps. "Ah, yes! It was Breezetail, I believe." He then looked behind the shaking Skyfire and at me. "Yes, I can already imagine what Breezetail was like just by looking at Goldwreath. Hmm... yes I can see what you would admire about them both."

Skyfire reared and bucked him in the helmet, but Predator's stance on the ground was so stable that Skyfire instead fell forward into the dirt. She scurried out of the muddy pool and looked at him with a terrible expression. "Don't say his name! Or Goldwreath's! You don't deserve to call them by their names! They were far better people than you!" Then she looked away and leaned against me, crying. Thank goodness Doodle was asleep during all this.

"I know they are better people than me, Skyfire. But I will speak the truth, and I will not stop simply because emotions hurt." To that Predator turned to me, then said, "And the truth is that she loved Breezetail, and she feels the same for you."

My heart stopped.

Did Skyfire really think of me like that? And her and Breezetail... I had always thought they were just friends. I had never anticipated... never gotten any hints... but I had. She had referred to her squad several times to describe me. I remembered what she said to me back in the ZSI compound. I had simply never picked up on it. Now I understood why she wanted to kill Legionnaires so badly, and why she had taken to me so quickly after her squad's death. Now I understood why she apologized to him after she killed that juggernaut; she wanted to be better for him, and for me. She wanted to be better so I would notice her. And each time I would push myself and get myself hurt, she felt it too. Now I understood why she wanted to come with me, and why she made me promise to never leave her.

"Is... is that true, Skyfire?" I asked. Beside her, Myst looked on with a stricken expression before slowly hanging her head and backing away behind us.

Skyfire cried against me for a moment, then looked up at me with eyes etched with such pain and humiliation at the premature revelation that I could feel it in my mind. Tom and Tod had stopped their arguing and seemed to be paying close attention, leaving my mind in an optimal state for receiving emotions. Again, it was kind of strange how I had come to think of my mind ever since leaving the sable; first I thought I was crazy, then I thought some foreign beings were screwing with my head, and now I felt like I could get into the minds of others.

She said shakily, "Y-yes..." She sniffed, then pulled herself away from me and sniffed hard. I tried pulling her back to hold her close, but that didn't seem so appropriate at the time. She started trotting down the tunnel forlornly, passing by Predator with just a quick glance. A little ahead of him she stopped, then looked at us.

"Let's just go on, okay?" She pleaded softly, and immediately Predator began trotting along again and passed her without so much as a turn of his head. I followed after him, too stricken and shocked to feel anger against him for what he had done to my friend. I stopped next to Skyfire, who was leaning against a moss-covered metal pipe and letting out a few more tears. Myst decided to take Doodle off of me before trotting slowly after Predator.

"Come on," I said as I nudged her softly. "We don't have to talk about it. You can keep quiet if you want." I knew I should have been talking to her about it. I had lost Lighthouse and my home, sure, but... but I had lost nothing compared to her. She had lost her family, her squad, her loved one, and her home all in one fell swoop. I was just too... too shocked to do anything.

Slowly, she pulled herself away from the pipe and trotted down the tunnel towards the other two. I trotted along beside her, deciding it best to be with her instead of leaving her to follow us slowly. Eventually, she leaned against me and whispered, "I'm so sorry."

"For what?"

"For being such a failure to the both of you." She sniffed. "For not trying hard enough to do better."

Huh. She sounded like me, what with all the 'not trying hard enough' and 'doing better' stuff. I wanted to tell her it was alright. I wanted to tell her it was my fault for starting the conversation in the first place. But a thought stopped me. And that thought was the words Skyfire herself had said a little over a weak ago, when I had broken down; 'We let him get through it. He isn’t going to get over it until he can put it all behind him'. As much as I wanted to go against those words to comfort her, I had to acknowledge the truth behind the statement.

We trotted along like that until we eventually reached the others, who had slowed their pace enough for us to catch up. After that, we trotted together down the sewers at the same pace. I don't know how much time passed like that, with her leaning against me. Predator didn't say a single word, and Myst kept looking between me and Skyfire with longing. Every ten minutes or so, she would pull out one of the candy tablets and put them in her mouth. To my surprise, Predator would do something similar; he would pull out a large syringe from his backpack and inject all the fluids into himself. Each time he did, he let out a muffled grunt of pain. Doodle was STILL asleep, amazingly. Tod and Tom had, for some reason, not resumed their fight. Instead, I could feel them buzzing around in my head busily.

'I just wanted to break the fucking silence, and instead I get this? Why can nothing ever be simple?' I asked myself over and over again.

We continued on like that for hours, the only accompanying noise to our hoofsteps being Predator's continuous soft growling, the trickle of sewer water, and the distant roaring of the fighting up on the surface. I was actually rather surprised we had run into no danger yet. Either that meant my luck was turning, or the wasteland was planning something for me.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

'BU-BU-BU-BUG!'

Predator's heavy machinegun-assault rifle hybrid flashed once more in the darkness of the pathway we had to take, about a hundred feet ahead of us. The unmistakable snarls of ghouls sounded again and again as their two dozen or so red bars winked out in pairs on my E.F.S. We were trotting down an old metro tunnel, where trains had once passed. All of them seemed like they were heading east, for some reason. Off to the sides were the remains of those old machines, wrecked and piling on top of one another. Within them I spotted the many skeletons of those once riding them.

Skyfire, Myst, Doodle and I were very tired. So tired we were lagging so severely behind him that he could have sat down and waited for five minutes, and we'd only be halfway to him. We must have been trotting non-stop for a full day at that point, with so few breaks and meals that even I, for my generally superior conditioning (at least compared to the three females in the group), was on the verge of collapse. Rather than letting us rest at the stations and tunnels which my pipbuck claimed were free of hostiles, he actually told us to move faster at those places. Thankfully, our distance from him allowed him to go ahead of us and take out any dangers we came across. Those were, if his counting was to be trusted, a hundred and seventy-two ghouls, eighteen radroaches (or cockroaches, as I prefer to call them), three radigators, and about six 'centaurpeeds'.

I had asked him what centaurpeeds were after our initial encounter with them (in the third metro station we came upon, on the evening of the first day we were down here), and he showed me the five foot long, carapace-clad, multi-limbed remains of a creature that was once a zebra. The worst part were the long, spiky tongues that came out of their mouths. Doodle expressed the most disgust, yet also the most curiosity about them. Myst snatched her away before she actually touched the thing's corpse. After that we continued along.

We panted heavily with each step we took, struggling hard to keep up with Predator. He was still wiping out the ghouls ahead of us, his machineguns's roaring drowning out the death sounds of the many ghouls it was slaughtering. We slowly made our way over to him, careful to not trip on any of the corpses (many of which looked like they had been down here for years) or any of the 50.cal casings Predator had left behind in his advance. Then the firing stopped.

Myst just barely managed to speak. "You... you think he needs help?" She asked, gasping. From her expression, she didn't feel comfortable even with the mere notion of coming to his aid.

"Nah... Crazy bastard survived stuff that would kill us several times over. He probably just stopped shooting to cool down the barrel or something..." I breathed in hard.

A few moments of the sound of a blade slicing meat later and the last of the red bars disappeared. A minute later, Predator came out of the darkness of the tunnel, his HMG's barrel smoking and glowing red.

"This isn't right," He declared. "Ghouls and mutants on the upper levels are normal, but I've cleared these tunnels several times over. There shouldn't be anything down here aside from the occasional straggler." He looked around the tunnel a bit, as if in search of something. "Either the mutants actually learned how to open armored doors and hack terminals, or someone's been letting them down here."

"Isn't the war topside just, I don't know, driving them deeper down or something?" I asked, still struggling for breath. The others came up behind me, also looking on the verge of collapse.

"No," He responded. "Mutants like these have no self-preservation instinct. Only possibilities are either people came down here and got mutated, which would be stupid of them, considering how dangerous these tunnels are, or someone brought them down here. Oh yes, speaking of radiation..." He put his backpack down and pulled out several plastic bags of the rancid substance Myst let me take when I had radiation sickness. "Take these," He said, then tossed one to each of us. He pulled out one of his syringes and jabbed himself with the needle, injecting the contents into himself.

Oh yes, these tunnels were irradiated. No surprise. The few radiation-removing supplies we had pilfered from the ZSI Roaman HQ were quickly drained in the first few minutes of entering the metro tunnels, and only Predator's seemingly endless supply of 'rad away' (that was what the rancid, orange tasting substance was called, I would later learn) kept us from dying from radiation sickness down here. My pipbuck's continuous clicking was getting pretty annoying; yes I knew there was a lot of radiation down here, couldn't it just shut up?

After we had downed those we felt much better. Not any less tired, but better. "Well," I said, "I guess it isn't really important right now. Let's just keep moving." The sooner we got out of these immensely irradiated tunnels, the better.

"It doesn't matter to YOU," He said, taking a step towards me. "If there's one thing living in the wasteland has taught me, it's that you never leave things to chance. But you're right, we should keep moving. I'd keep out your weapons if I were you, though. No telling how many more of them are down here." Then he turned and trotted at his own pace into the shadows.

The rest of us weren't so tireless, but we managed to continue. Skyfire was reluctant to accept any assistance from me to keep her from collapsing (no doubt she still felt uncomfortable around me due to the fact that I knew her little secret), but she eventually accepted after she DID collapse and couldn't get back up.

I couldn't tell how many more hours passed like that. What I did know, though was that Predator was right. There was something down here, I could sense it in my head. They kept asking me why I was so anxious to be as close to Predator as possible, and I told them the honest truth: if whatever was down here was close, then Predator was our only chance of surviving. That answer made all of them, except the ridiculously cheery and joyful Doodle, look extremely uncomfortable.

What really freaked me out, though, was that Tom was quiet. Too quiet, almost like he was scared. Tod just kept chuckling forebodingly in my head.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

"We rest here tonight," Predator said finally, his voice... different. Out of exhaustion, I collapsed onto the slippery, soft green moss. Skyfire and Myst did the same, the two of them laying down in the far edges of the area. Doodle had collapsed from exhaustion hours before, and was now sleeping soundly on a bunch of luminous leaves that Myst laid her on. Honestly, the only one of us who showed no signs of fatigue whatsoever was Predator. Either it was the constant injection of what I thought were drugs, or he just had that much stamina.

We were in a cylindrical depression in the sewer system, where water from various locations would gather and and get sucked down into the earth where the water processing facilities were. All about us were beautifully luminous green and blue flora, ranging from translucent vines hanging down from the pipes overhead to opaque yet brightly glowing algae on the concrete tiles beneath our hooves. The water trickling in from the various entrances and pipes gave the atmosphere here a cold, moist feel that I absolutely reveled in. It felt so comfortable to the point that I actually buried my face into the moss and I felt absolutely no repulsion whatsoever. Good thing the stench of the sewers (which I had to endure) wasn't present here. Thank the Goddesses for the plants.

Instead of lying down like the rest of us, Predator instead began picking at the plants for various substances; mostly leaves and pieces of the stems, but occasionally he would pull a mushroom out of the ground. He gathered them up in a pile near a small river of sewer water, making sure they got exposure to the water.

"What are you doing?" I asked. I should have been angry at him. I should have hated him for making my relationship with Skyfire so awkward, when my relationship with Myst was already... strange. Instead, I just felt extremely curious. That surprised me.

"Brewing more mixtures," Predator replied, his tone tense. Now I recognized what was different in his voice; it was less raspy and more savage, and just an octave lower than normal. He set his backpack down, then pulled out various apparatuses that looked meant for heating and transferring substances. He pulled out a syringe and injected himself. The grunt of pain he let out seemed to indicate more pain than when he was shot back in the VTOL. "That was my last mix. I need to make more," He murmured to no one particular.

"Why? What do you need those for?" I asked. "And why is your voice different?"

He stopped squeezing the juices out of the mushroom, dropping the crushed fungus onto the ground. Then, slowly, he lifted his head to look at me. What I saw made me stare at him with terror.

Where his eyes were supposed to be there were instead two glowing blood-red orbs. The light shining out of them revealed a small area around his eye sockets, and what I saw of his skin was a surface of mottled, wrinkled, scaly and decayed flesh. His eyes pierced into me, freezing me in place as I lay there. Really, I couldn't find it in myself to move. It was like his gaze alone was paralyzing me.

"I need them because if I don't take any, then I will become something... different. A creature within me is constantly trying to claw it's way out, and only satisfying it's bloodlust or injecting myself with these deadly poisons keeps it at bay," He said quietly, his voice quivering with tension. Then he looked down at the plant materials gathered and sighed. "I don't have enough time. That last needle won't keep it away for long." He hurriedly squeezed out the juices from the materials and poured them into a large plexiglass container. Then he took the remains of the plant matter and piled them up at a corner without any vegetation. He pulled out a lighter and set them on fire, then put the plexiglass container onto a metal stand and heated it over the flame.

"That's nice... very nice," He muttered as he watched the mix of apparently poisonous juices boil. Then he fell forward and held himself up weakly on his forehooves and howled. He shook his head hard, breathing erratically.

I readied Tankbuster. "Predator? Should I be worried?" I asked as I took a few steps back. I looked at the others and found all three of them already sleeping. It really sucked that if Predator went all murderous that I'd be the only one there to face him. Then again, maybe he'd only go after me and leave my dormant friends alone.

For a moment he stayed there, scratching into the dirt and smacking his hooves into the concrete. Eventually, he calmed down. He looked at me, his glowing red eyes brighter than before and looking murderous. His eyes froze me in place. He growled, "No... no you don't have to be. For now." He got up shakily and trotted to his backpack. He pulled out a heavy metal block and laid it on the ground. Then he started pulling it apart, extending it and clicking it until it wasn't a block anymore.

In Predator's hooves was a very large sniper rifle. I knew it's model. It was an HEV anti-armor rifle, the same one my stable had, except this one was so heavily modified to the point it was collapsible. He pulled out several large magazines and loaded one into the rifle, then placed the others into his vest.

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked. What in the world was he going to do with a rifle like that in a place like this?

"Going hunting," He replied. "Like I said, either I kill something to satisfy it's bloodlust, or I take an injection. The mix isn't ready yet, so I'll have to look for something to kill. There's got to be a radigator or ghoul down here somewhere." He began trotting towards the ladder heading up and out of the depression.

"So, what do we do? You said we should rest, but we can't do that if we have to follow you," I said, feeling my eyes already starting to close on their own. My muscles were achy and shaking, and I didn't think I could have kept up with him.

"Then rest. You don't have to come with me. In fact, I think it's better if you don't. Especially if the creature within manages to get out," He said as he cleared the ladder and began trotting into the darkness of one of the sewer tunnels. "Don't worry about safety, I've got it covered," He said as he disappeared completely, his voice echoing ominously off of the walls as his form blended seamlessly into the shadows.

"Predator," I called, and he stopped and turned in the darkness, letting me see his piercing glowing eyes. The question I was about to ask next was a question I didn't really want to know the answer for, but I needed to know. After all, all this talk of a monster inside him... his unbelievable endurance, even in the face of bullets... and his disturbing knowledge of my companion's personal lives made me incredibly curious towards him instead of making me fearful and angry. "Who are you really?"

He growled softly yet threateningly as he stood in the darkness. I almost thought he would have just left, but then he said, "I think you mean 'what are you'. That's a more accurate question, as I have lost all rights to being a zebra. To that question, there is only one answer: a monster." Then he turned and left, letting his growling echo behind him as he trotted into the tunnel.

I thought about that for a moment as I stood there among the luminous plants and only slightly irradiated water. What the hell did he mean by that? I agreed with him, he really was a monster. But... while he barely had any emotion when he said those words, I could almost detect an extreme sense of self-hate within him. And what could he possibly have done that would strip him of his rights to being a zebra? If it was something worse than what I saw of him so far, then it must have been truly terrible.

I trotted away and lay down next to my saddlebags. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't sleep anymore. There was so much to think about... my relationship with my companions, Doodle, Predator, the war, what I would do about the Legion... There was so much I had to do and to think about that I wanted to scream. When I first thought of all this, I thought I just had to go to the Forum and convince the Legate to stop. Now... now I wasn't sure if I had to kill every single Legionnaire just to get to him. I didn't want to, but I would do it if I had to. The city as a whole was more important than just one group.

I should have been talking to her. Skyfire needed me now more than ever. She had never asked anything of me, and I still owed her. Now was the time I should have talked to her about... everything. My apparent likeness to Breezetail and the sincerity of her desire to help me on my quest, especially. In contrast, the awkwardness between me and Myst seemed negligible.

Instead, I decided to selfishly distract myself from my obligations. Veltrio's memory orbs would suffice. I fished one of them out along with the memory viewing headgear. "Okay, Veltrio, let's see what else happened to you," I murmured, then slipped the orb into the depression.

Well, I was used to this feeling at this point, anyway.

ooooOOOOoooo

The atmosphere in here was similar to the atmosphere back in Tekasho's memory, in the APC. Just like there, the air in here was tense. It was dark except for only the faintest glimmer of metal, and I could hear the regulated breathing of perhaps a dozen others in here with me. The vehicle we were in was rocking slightly and a lot less wildly than in Tekasho's memory, so I assumed the ground this vehicle was driving over was significantly smoother.

My host, Veltrio, was wearing his operative gear, if the gasmask helmet on my head and the heavy vest pressing down on me and the jingling of guns and grenades were any indication. Despite the weight of it all and how uncomfortable it looked like from the outside (if Specter gear was any indication), it was actually rather comfy and the vest and synthetic mesh themselves didn't feel like it would restrict my movement so much. Really, the only thing that made me feel even remotely uncomfortable was the sweat and moisture in my host's helmet, condensing on the glass of my visor and making view of the outside blurry and crystalline.

A light flashed to life from the seat opposite of me, hurting my eyes for a moment until they adjusted to the white beam. The light bounced off the metal surface of the vehicle's interior behind me, partially illuminating the dark figures of other operatives within the vehicle with me as they turned their heads to the sudden light source. Through their visors, I could see that they were sweating nervously.

"Alright," The operative illuminating the interior said in a scratchy, reverberating voice; the voice that his helmet assigned to him. "We're almost at the Forum. The Praetorian Guard have the entire area locked down and are keeping the citizens away. The Caesar's safe, along with the legates. Everyone ready?"

"Yes sir," Every operative in the vehicle said in unison. Then the vehicle stopped abruptly, eliciting surprised and anxious gasps from everyone, including my host. The doors of the vehicle swung open on their own, and the bright yellow light and warmth of midday flooded into the vehicle, rendering the initial headlamp light from the operative's helmet invisible. Fresh, cool air blasted out the tense and stuffy climate within the vehicle, and the breaths my host took in after were far cooler and pleasing on the nose. The bright warm colors of Roam's structures and flags and paint and logos stood in stark contrast to the dull metallic grey and uniform black of the vehicle we were in. I could see the foot of the mountain the Forum stood on, and I could see the large marble-laced pathway heading up. The scene as a whole looked and felt like paradise, at least according to how I viewed perfection.

Then my host looked over the gathered crowd of clamoring and worried zebras, all standing and leaning against a concrete barricade behind which stood a line of serious-faced, brightly dressed, armored zebras armed with tall energy lances along their backs and energy gladiuses and metal shields in their forehooves. The crowd didn't seem to be rioting, instead it seemed like they were simply very worried about what was happening. And considering the dozen or so heavily armed VTOLs I saw fly by above us and hover up the mountain, whatever it was was very serious. The tension coming from that scene alone flooded into my host with much more force than the previous tension.

The operative who had flashed the light got up and out of the vehicle. Just like Madran's, his helmet had similar grayish plumes on it arching back to front. On his chest was the veteran operative logo that I had seen on Veltrio in Tekasho's memory. He turned to face us, still looking on at the scene with worry and anxiety. "Alright operatives, get to your positions. Let's breach the underground maintenance facility and take out those infiltrators. Who knows what they're doing down there." Considering how he spoke to us as though we were his subordinates, I assumed that this was before Veltrio himself became a veteran operative.

The veteran drew himself up, then said in a tone much more authoritative, "Operatives, formation!" All of us got out at that, and our number was revealed to be nine; one squad leader and eight subordinates: a contubernium.

The noise of all the activity became louder with each step we took as we trotted down the street in formation towards the Forum. There were as many military vehicles parked around here as there were civilian, although it felt like this was a natural, everyday thing rather than a restriction only to this event, whatever it was. My host took in the towering majestic structure of the Forum on it's mountain, which was blooming with beautiful green grass and flowers along it's slopes and trees on it's steep sides. Seeing it now, in all it's pre-apocalyptic beauty, made me want Veltrio to keep staring at it.

But he had seen it many times before, and as such it's beauty for him was lessened. What he seemed to be paying attention to as he trotted along with the others were the numerous gathered VTOLs patrolling above the mountain and the Praetorians keeping the crowd at bay. He looked to the side, and I saw another team of operatives emerge from another street in between two skyscrapers.

We reached the crowd, but instead of having to push our way through the people instead moved to the sides to make a straight path for us all the way to the guard line. They bowed their heads respectfully and gave us soft smiles as we trotted by, and they did the same for the second team right behind us.

As the veteran operative leading our squad reached the Praetorians, the nearest guard stepped forward, and we stopped uniformly. Our squad leader stepped forward as well, and at the exact same moment they both touched a forehoof to their own chests and said, "Ave."

They nodded to one another, then the Praetorian turned and trotted up the wide staircase leading up. Every single guard on the two sides of the gap he left all took one step to their respective side with such uniformity and discipline that they must have practiced doing this for recreation or something. With the gap wide enough for us to trot through, we ascended the pristine, purely white marble staircase after him. After the second team had entered the gap behind us, the guards then stepped back in to close it.

Instead of admiring the beauty and strange serenity of the gardens and statues to the side of the marble stairs, Veltrio and the other operatives instead showed more signs of anxiety than they did back in the vehicle or during the trot here. I couldn't imagine what was possibly causing all this anxiety and tension. Really, take away the steel-clad Legionnaires rappelling down ropes from the overhead aircraft by the dozens, the aircraft themselves, and the giant Praetorian mechs patrolling up and down the stairs, and the Forum would have looked like a freaking five-star hotel. A very heavily defended hotel, as the Praetorians I saw patrolling around with the mechs seemed to be patrolling out of routine instead out of whatever security measures the situation called for.

"The situation is bad," The Praetorian said all of a sudden, yet in a manner fully anticipated by the veteran. For us non-veteran operatives, though, the sudden declaration caused our already twitchy and nervous bodies quite a stir. "I'm sure the ZIB already told you what's going on, so I will simply get to it. The Equestrian spec ops teams down in maintenance number at around two dozen, and they've been down there since early this morning. How they got in is a mystery, but we have confirmed that they have cleared out the entire place of our personnel. The area is populated by nothing but hostiles."

"Weapons free, then," The veteran surmised. "Go in, take 'em out, disarm the balefire bomb, take any survivors hostage and interrogate them for answers, then done." He sounded rather confident; he was a veteran after all, surely he had gone through several situations like this.

And a balefire bomb? So that's what all this was about. This must have been the incident Zaita had told me about. Strangely, instead of worrying me, that revelation relaxed me. I knew for a fact that the detonation attempt had not been successful; the Forum was, after all, the main base of operations of the Legion, and if my dreams were any indication the Forum as it was now was completely unscathed saved for the ravages of two-hundred years without maintenance. I didn't worry about the Forum, now I worried about the Equestrian teams down there. I may have given my loyalties to Roam in all I have done, but I was an Equestrian at heart. I guess you could say I was a little worried for my fellow ponies.

"Perhaps," The Praetorian said softly. "The Caesar would prefer, though, that as few people as possible are informed of the true circumstances of this event. The public simply believe that there was a major accident with one of the maintenance teams and that we have to clean it up."

About halfway up the first flight of stairs we trotted off and onto a dirt path leading into one of the gardens. A felt a little peeved at Veltrio's gasmask helmet, trapping the stench of his sweat in and keeping the aroma of the flowers out. Eventually we reached an arched doorway built partway into a tunnel that dug into the mountain side. Another two Praetorians stood guard on each side of the door. While Veltrio's squad took positions outside of this door, the Praetorian left us and lead the other team off to another entrance.

"Bonam fortuna," He said as he trotted away and lead the other team to their position.

When Veltrio's squad had finished setting up the explosives on the door (it was locked, and just like Balaclava said, trying to punch it down wouldn't work), they waited. A while later, their was a single beep from each of our helmets, and my host looked down at a small text on the lower left corner of his visor: 'Network link activated', it said.

"Alright," The veteran started, "Remember your training and stick together. If we have to split up, we split up in groups. Watch your corners and keep your hooves on the trigger. We can NOT fail this, gentlecolts. The fate of the Nation depends on this." My host gulped nervously but nodded, then closed his eyes and took in a hot, feverish breath. I may not have felt it, but I was sure the nervousness was absolutely killing my host.

"Activate Network HUDs," The veteran ordered, then pressed the button the Specters pressed to darken their visors. However, whereas when the Specters did it their visors simply turned dark and opaque or translucent, the visor of the veteran operative had a slight ebony glow to it in addition to darkening.

My host and the others did the same, and at once my vision through the glass became darker. Information streams flashed up in red on the left side, which showed such information as 'Entities within ten meters: eleven', while the right side showed it's information in blue text and instead said things like 'Shadow Corps. newsletter: Software updates for HUD now available to all non-recruit operatives'. A golden, gear-shaped targeting reticle rotated continuously in the center of the visor, and whenever the reticle would move over one of the other operatives it would turn blue. The helmet also now gave off this soft, ever present electronic hum, and the hum would go louder whenever Veltrio moved his head. When he did turn his head, small pieces of information would pop up next to objects. For example, when Veltrio glanced at the garden behind him, one of the rocks was highlighted in gold and something along the lines of 'Potential threat percentage in accordance to environmental scans: 3%'.

But as interesting as all that was, my attention was immediately grabbed by one disturbing detail: the high pitched signal. It was broadcasting into the helmet through it's own audio devices. As I recalled, it was present even back then during the war. I was quite uncomfortable at being in a memory where I got exposure to the signal, considering it's nature, and I was also worried as to how Veltrio would react. Instead of trying to get rid of it, however, Veltrio seemed to relax because of it. I could... feel it broadcasting from the other helmets, and the operatives looked quite relaxed now as well, even the veteran. I could feel the signal... screwing with Veltrio's head, or at least I hoped it was his head. The more my host listened to it, the less nervous and more confident he became. I could feel his muscles getting stronger, his heart beating faster, his blood pumping harder. It felt like what Tom had done to save me and my friends back in the ZSI HQ, except these operatives took it in as though they had been expecting it.

The veteran said aloud, "Ah, Lord Decarius and Lord Autherius' gift is wonderful, is it not?" At that, my host smiled and nodded in agreement along with the others. If I could have, I would have shook my head in blatant disagreement. I wouldn't have cared how badly they would have beat me up, I did NOT like this one bit.

The two Praetorians here didn't share their love of the signal, and neither did I. Instead, they looked pained. They brought their hooves up to their heads and massaged them. They looked to one another as if wondering whether the other felt it, then looked to us with an expression deeply troubled and partially shocked. They tried putting back on their stoic and serious expressions as they stood guard where they were, but I could tell they were still disturbed. I felt myself scowl at them, as though them not liking the signal upset Veltrio greatly. What really worried me was when the visor, which was locked onto them, turned red.

Now we took up position to breach. The veteran would go in first, followed by side-by-side pairs of the eight of us. First one pair, then Veltrio and his partner, then the other two pairs behind us. We brought out assault rifles of rather strange make; rather than the typical everyday rifle, these started out as pistol-sized handles, which then automatically extended forward and back to make the barrel and body, as well as the buttstock. When that was done, we pulled out magazines and loaded them into the rifles. That made me wonder whether the HEV rifle Predator used was self-modified, or whether it was made by the company who made these guns.

Then there was a beep from a device on the veteran's shoulder, and at once the door blew in. We charged into the smoke, the Praetorians moving to cover the door as we entered the long hallway with a flickering light. The HUD's left side gave off all sorts of combat and danger related information as we stepped onto the metal floor, and my central HUD outlined every single object in gold. The blue section disappeared, replaced instead by what looked like an E.F.S, except each bar had what seemed like a danger level indicator. Seeing as the only bars visible were friendlies, their threat level was at zero.

The first thing I saw that should not have been here was the dead body of a zebra mare wearing a maintenance outfit lying limply in a pool of her own blood next to a large pipe. We trotted past her briskly and without so much as a glance. We kept focused on the path ahead of us, storming through any steam out of a leaking pipe without any hesitation. Bullet casings riddled the floor. Eventually we came upon a three-way intersection, going off left, right, and forward. On the path forward were even more dead zebras, this time Praetorians who looked as though they had been killed while trying to retreat.

Without a word, the veteran and the first pair in front of us went forward. As if it were part of a script, my host, his partner, and one of those from the pair behind us went left, and the last three went right.

I could feel my host's body was ready for battle. Not just physically, but mentally. He and his comrades showed no sign of fear or anxiety as we charged down the hall as quietly as ghosts. It was scary to think what the signals could do to our bodies; turning us into unstoppable forces. There was blood along the floor, though it looked as though the bodies from which it had come from had been dragged away somewhere.

Then their was a faint pulse in the hum, similar to when a hovering vehicle, like Zaita, speeds up. A white outlined bar filled with blue appeared at the bottom of the middle, but the blue slowly began depleting.

The others became clear as glass almost instantly, and the only sign of them I could see now was their faint distortions in the air. My HUD highlighted them in gold, and that allowed me to see where they were in front of me as we neared a room. We could see a group of three or so dead bodies piled up at the end.

We all stopped instantly, right outside the doorway. There were five red bars in there, danger level seven each. They were spread about: two to our left, three to our right, the last two to the far right.

Despite our cloaks, we didn't enter. Instead, we each nodded to one another and brought our hooves up in front of our invisible helmets. The signal became more tense as we did that, like a bowstring being pulled back far, readying the arrow for a powerful shot. The reticles highlighted our limbs in a strange green. Then we jerked our hooves down, and at once the signal became so strong in my helmet and from the helmets of each of my comrades that it actually hurt me. Yes, it hurt me. It wasn't Veltrio's mind that was in pain, it was mine.

'Ah, refreshing!' Said Tod. 'What a lovely way to recover from that unpleasant encounter!' Yes, that was one of the reasons I knew it was I who was being affected, and not just Veltrio.

'No...' Tom protested weakly. 'It's not... refreshing...' I agreed with him completely.

What really disturbed me was what happened next. Sickly, sinister green light erupted from our visors, and I saw the brightly glowing green eyes of the operatives with me. My own vision was tinged only partially green, but I could see tendrils of green flying about in the corners of my vision. Every single text on the screen was replaced by a series of glyphs. Not zebra glyphs, these looked... unnatural and evil. Almost alien.

And now my host felt strong beyond compare. His heart was beating slowly but heavily, and his blood burned like fire in his veins as the signal flooded into his helmet with such strength it became almost deafening. His focus to details became so clear that I could actually see an ant crawling quietly on the wall behind the operative in front of me. My muscles felt like they could tear through metal with a simple push, and every breath I took was thick. To my host, all this was wonderful. To me, it was horrible and disgusting.

He felt absolutely unstoppable.

This was wrong. This didn't feel like anything... explainable. No drug could do this that I was aware of, and no cybernetic enhancement could possibly have been so advanced as to do all this. Perhaps Veltrio took it in naturally; he must have done this before, but I hated this sensation. This strength and power felt unholy, and every fiber of my being that was not Tod thoroughly despised this occurrence. If I could have, I would have forced myself out of the orb.

We de-cloaked and charged in, me in the center and the other two on my sides. At once, we were opened up on by the seven ponies in here; four unicorns and three earth ponies, each wearing an advanced looking blend of stealth armor and combat armor. Their dual weapons on their battle saddles dealt damage through our suits, and several high-caliber rounds sank into our flesh. Sparks flew up as some of the smaller bullets ricocheted off of our helmets and the meal surfaces about us.

But I felt nothing. No pain, no fear, no weakness. There was nothing but the signal in all of my senses; I could see it, feel it, hear it. I didn't even feel the impacts, nor even the feeling of muscle being torn into.

We opened fire on them as we moved in with deliberate slowness, the green light shining through our visors like lamps and the signal broadcasting from us like a terrible screech. I didn't even hear my rifle as it fired. We were a terrible force, like troopers of terror and intimidation. With my enhanced vision I could see the immense pain and fear etched in each of their faces as they tried to fight us: living, walking incarnations of the terrible signal. I saw their faces widen in horror as they saw that all that they did to us had no effect.

Just like with Predator and the Legionnaires, these ponies never stood a chance.

A mere minute later they were all dead. One of the unicorns had, in a desperate bid to survive, driven a knife straight through my host's neck with her magic. Without hesitation, Veltrio pulled that out of him. I didn't feel them, but from the sight of my allies' wounds healing, I was sure mine were, as well.

"These degenerates should have known better than to stand against the unstoppable," My host said in a horrifyingly evil and demonic voice; one that would have made bones crawl out of my body if they could have.

"These, my fellow Risen, are the type of people that the New World will have no place for. Only the strong, those who have accepted this gift, will thrive and ascend to the next realm of existence," Said another as we continued trotting to the other side of the room, to another doorway.

"Have you found the bomb?" I heard the veteran ask through our helmet's comm systems.

"Not yet, sir," Veltrio responded, his voice still unnatural. "We just ran into a group of degenerates. We're moving in again."

"Alright. Try to keep yourselves disciplined, my brethren; I understand the gift's benefits are great, but our Lords would like us to practice discipline in it's practice. If you can, try to get through this without using it," The veteran replied in a serious tone.

"Very well... sir," One of the operatives responded, then he sighed. We looked to each other and, as one, once more performed the same gesture that had activated the signal's power. Slowly but steadily, the normal elements of the HUD faded back in and our bodies returned to normal. Our visors darkened again as the green light from our eyes faded. It was then that we each became painfully aware of out recently healed wounds.

One of them groaned as he massaged his stomach, "Hopefully this fragile form will be improved upon when Lord Decarius makes us true soldiers of change." What the hell did he mean by that? What, were they going to intentionally mutate themselves? I seriously hoped not.

We once more charged down the halls, quickly and quietly. More bodies were found; all of them zebras. Whoever had attacked this place must have hit hard and fast and in the process took no casualties themselves. I remembered that Zaita had said that these ponies were snuck in by traitors, so I wondered what happened to those zebras. I felt an odd mixture of desire for their deaths (For betraying Roam) and desire for their survival (For helping Equestria, my home).

After a long descent down a flight of stairs, we eventually exited the narrow and dimly lit hallways and found ourselves on a catwalk over a wide chamber with dozens of large generators, all purring softly. There were narrow spaces in between the generators, and in those spaces there was the occasional dead zebra lying down near a box of tools. Just like the hallways, the floor beneath us was riddled with bullet holes and casings.

Our HUDs started getting distorted. Static screeched in our helmets, and it felt as though we had entered a field of potentially fatal energy. Our zebra E.F.S went crazy and started spinning around madly.

We jumped over the railings and landed quietly on the ground below with a roll. "Balefire bomb located, sir," One of my fellow operatives said as we got up. "In generator room five. Exact location unknown, we'll start searching."

All that came back in response was a broken "-gain? Gen-... four or five? What?"

After a few failed and slightly noisy attempts to get the point clear, we decided it best to let them figure it out. We split up and began searching in between the generators and machinery. One of them had protested to splitting up, but my host and the other operative had swept aside those concerns.

My host briskly trotted down an isle with dozens of generators on one side and a metal wall on another. The catwalk loomed overhead, groaning softly as though there was a weight shifting on it. Veltrio paid it no attention and continued turning corners in search of the bomb.

Then there was a distant and faint pop, followed a strangled yell. That got my host's attention, and soon he charged into the maze of generators in search of the source of the commotion. His worried breathing slightly fogged the glass visor, which now looked more distorted than ever.

He found it. One of the operatives was lying down near an open toolbox, a screwdriver stabbing into his visor and right into one of his eyes. More fluids than just blood oozed out of his head as my host inched slowly forward, cautious for any traps.

Upon closer inspection, my host found out that some kind of improvised tool gun had been crafted into the toolbox. A sensor module had been utilized to detect motion, and this operative had had the misfortune of not only activating the module, but also of looking into the toolbox itself. I could see what may gave gotten his curiosity; within the toolbox was a wire coiling out and into one of the generators. He must have thought it was linked to the bomb.

Just as my host was about to get up and continue moving, there was a shattering of glass from somewhere and the sounds of a scuffle. My host hurriedly got up and galloped for it. A few seconds after, the sounds stopped. That only drove my host faster.

He turned a corner, and there he saw it: a fairly small orb of disorienting colors, with shapes within that seemed to be in constant motion. It was clamped in between two miniature power generators, upheld in a magnetic field being generated by an improvised electrical field. On the ground nearby was the dead body of my remaining ally, a set of knives piercing into his neck and out the other side. The glass window above the strange orb was shattered; perhaps whoever the killer was had emerged from there.

More cautiously than ever before, he walked forward slowly. He kept glancing to the sides, at the different corridors and isles from which whoever this killer was could emerge from. As my host neared it, his HUD disappeared altogether, and a pressure built up in his ears. He was nervous again, if the moist and hot breaths he was taking in were any indication.

'So that's a balefire bomb,' I thought. I had thought balefire bombs would look... bigger.

Veltrio kneeled down and began inspecting the setup, tracing the various wires to their destination. The majority of them were dummies, meant to confuse anyone who would have tried to disarm the bomb by removing it from it's power source. Eventually he found the correct wires: a pair of plain black wires linked to one of the largest power generators. Not at all like the blue and red ones I had seen in movies and comics.

He reached behind him and reached for some wire cutters strapped to his hip. As his hoof touched the tool, there was an ever faint crack of glass behind him; one that I don't think I or my host would have heard had it not been for his enhanced senses.

He turned and saw a fairly lanky blue unicorn stallion with a red-streaked blue mane staring at him, a knife floating next to him in a faint blue aura of magic. His cutie mark was obscured by his armor, which was stained in the blood of the two operatives he had killed and those he had killed before that.

Although initially looking shocked, the stallion then jumped forward and flung the knife at my host with his magic. In the process, he magically levitated all the shards of glass scattered along the floor and floated them around him like a tornado.

Veltrio responded immediately, jumping to the side and ripping the knife from the magical field out of brute strength just as the blade stabbed at where I had once been. The unicorn landed in front of me, and my host raised his hoof to bring the knife down. The pony looked up with wide eyes as I brought it down.

Just then the stallion quickly reared and bucked me in the chest, sending me sprawling onto my back and sending the knife out of my grip. I got up immediately and charged him, only to have the glass shards flung into my visor and held there, essentially blinding me. My host thrashed and kicked and backpedalled as he tried rubbing the glass shards off.

When I finally got the shards off, I took in the sight of the stallion's rear legs, already positioned to kick me in the face. Once more I was sent sprawling onto my back, though this time I recovered far quicker and got into a fighting stance on my rear legs; a Fallen Caesar stance, if I remembered it correctly from when Balaclava had to fight hoof-to-hoof.

"So," Veltrio said, "You are the one who killed off my brethren. I will enjoy tearing off your hide with a hot blade and putting you on a cross."

The unicorn took a step to the side, and so did my host. Soon we began circling each other; him on all fours, and me on my rear legs with my forehooves positioned in front of me.

"I didn't want to kill them," The unicorn admitted in a voice somehow relaxed and yet tired at the same time. "Come on, I just want the war to end. Lots of people have died already, dude. This war isn't getting us anywhere."

"Hah!" My host barked in insult. "The war will not end, boy. It must continue so that all the unworthy will be wiped off the face of the earth, while the strong remain to thrive." I breathed in haughtily and continued, "All those who have died died because they were unworthy."

"More insane fucking zebra logic..." The unicorn grumbled. "What the hell are you talkin' about, dude? Can't there be peace? Do we have to use WMD's just to end this madness?"

"There can be no peace!" My host yelled and jumped forward savagely, catching the unicorn off-guard and tackling him. Soon we were rolling around on the ground, and continued like that until my host kicked him hard into one of the generators. My host ranted, "Your people, you degenerates, are unworthy of the New World! Your culture, your bodies, your government, your very beings are inferior and useless! We zebras are the rightful masters of the world! Only your kind's treachery ended Roam's rule over the world that we had so long ago!" Then I trudged forward and raised his hoof over the stumbling pony. I felt the signal grow strong in my helmet.

The unicorn looked up for only a split second before scrambling away. Good thing he did, as the punch my host performed absolutely destroyed the generator, in addition to heavily cracking the floor.

The pony scrambled up on his hind legs, then entered into a position similar to Fallen Caesar style. My host turned to him and laughed, then briskly walked towards him. "You're fucking crazy!" The unicorn said. "What the hell are you talking about? All of this crazy zebra mumbo jumbo crap..."

At 'crazy zebra mumbo jumbo crap', my host howled in rage and charged him with all the speed he could muster. And considering his heightened physical prowess, that was a lot.

The unicorn let loose one of his hooves, aiming for my helmet. I blocked it with one of my forelegs, which then bent so horrifically inwards I was sure my host could never use it again.

But from my leg came the sound of metal. Really, as the pony drew his hoof back, hissing in pain, he stared in disbelief at my host's leg as it slowly but steadily reformed into it's original shape. "Hahaha," My host laughed, to the stallion's horror. "Your people believe they have accomplished so much with your 'Project Steelpony'. Perhaps you have, but we are masters of cybernetics as well!" Then I reared and bucked him in the chest, breaking his chest plate and splintering it.

'His leg's made of metal?!' I yelled in my head. All throughout the memory, his legs felt natural; you'd think that a metallic limb would feel different from everything else, but either my host had gotten so used to it that it felt natural, or their technology was just so advanced as to actually integrate so seamlessly with his biological parts.

Then I remembered Autherius' memory where Veltrio had been shown to have had a cyber limb. I guess this memory took place after that one.

The unicorn smashed into the glass window; although his head and the majority of his body smacked into the metal above that. He slid down and fell onto the floor, and there he lay for a few seconds. Then he started crawling weakly towards the bomb, holding one hoof to his chest as he gasped for air.

"So very predictable," Veltrio said, then walked up to the unicorn and kicked him in the face. "You should have known better than to attack the heart of our nation." Then I picked up the limp pony by the collar of his vest and flung him easily into one of the generators. He managed to crawl a few feet back towards me, when he collapsed onto the floor.

After that my host made short work of disarming the bomb. After he had disabled it's power supply, he left the still glowing orb where it was. With the bomb no longer interfering my host managed to contact the others; they had taken casualties as well, though they managed to disarm the other bombs. Yes, as it turned out, there were more than one. A fact that my host had to confirm again and again before he finally stopped asking.

I trotted to the barely conscious pony, who was using any remaining strength he had to glare at me. "Now, I suppose I'll have to kill you, just as I intended. It's a shame I don't have any fire to heat my knife over, but I suppose I'll have to manage." I sighed and pulled out a combat knife, one of my many, from a waist pocket.

The unicorn tried to back away, eyes wide in fear, before Veltrio stepped on his chest and pressed him hard against the floor with my leg. He gasped painfully as I put all of my weight on his ruined chest. Amidst all that, he managed to put on a weak smile. My host leaned closer, as though making sure he was seeing things correctly. "Ah, you smile at death? Good, good. Accepting your weakness is one way of serving us."

The unicorn barely managed to spit out, "No... I'm not smiling at my death." His smile became wider. "I'm smiling... at yours." Then he pulled out a yellow-green glowing apple shaped grenade and stuffed it into Veltrio's vest. The slack from when I had leaned down made enough room for the grenade to enter.

My eyes went wide. I furiously punched the pony in the face and flung him away, then proceeded to frantically unstrap my vest. All the while my host was breathing in, for the first time I had seen, out of fear.

I had just gotten the last strap and was about to take the vest off when the plasma grenade exploded. It didn't hurt actually, thank the Goddesses. I think all of my nerves were either burned or liquefied at the first touch of the plasma. Really, all that I could make of the experience was that I heard a really loud explosion, which didn't sound like a conventional explosive at all, and that I saw the green plasma singe my visor black.

I sloshed to the ground, and I had the misfortune to actually see my very much liquefied bones collapse like melted metal into my nonexistent ribcage, where my organs had turned to green goo. My rear legs still had some flesh on them though, as well as portions of my forelegs. If this wasn't the explosion Tekasho had spoken off that had apparently nearly killed my host (An explosion which had apparently resulted in getting a cybernetic limb), then I don't know what it could have been.

My vision darkened quickly, but I wasn't dead yet. Yes, I felt death was right around the corner, but it seemed like I was dying much slower than normal. No doubt because of the signal and whatever it did to Veltrio's body.

Eventually, my host closed his eyes completely. With his weakening sense of hearing, he heard the sounds of hoofsteps on the catwalks and about him. I felt the signal broadcasting from their helmets. It felt so comfortable, so warm...

"No... no, no!" I heard someone scream, them there was a dull thump over and over again, each coupled by a pained grunt from the unicorn.

They tried to get my melted body off the floor. But it was pointless. My body was dead; I had no heart, nor organs. I had the feeling that the only reason I could still sense was because my host's brain was being kept alive by the signal.

But even that couldn't stop the inevitable. They shook my helmet and called for me to hold on. They said something about a shaman of some sort coming over. My host tried to fight, he really did. But there was nothing of him left. Not even lungs to breathe or vocal cords to speak. Just a head, protected from liquefaction by chance and a helmet. His mouth worked slowly, but nothing came out.

And then there was a sensation of resignation in my head. And then, just like that, he died.

But even as all sense of life faded, I still heard the distant echo of the signal.

ooooOOOOoooo

I peeled my eyes open tiredly. As it turned out, my body had actually tried to fall asleep while I was in the orb. Well, as far as I was concerned, we hadn't been attacked, so I suppose I could have given myself a little time for rest.

So, Veltrio had actually died? That was... interesting. If that were the case, then how had he been alive in Tekasho's memory? What, had they constructed a whole new body for him? That seemed the most likely, considering how cybernetic he looked in his brother's memory. And what the hell was 'Project Steelpony'?

The first thing that really hit me was the smell. There was this wholesome, meaty, smoky aroma in the air, like cooked meat over a fire. I took the helmet off and looked around. There, near the edge of the depression, right against the wall, was a giant radigator, or what I saw as a radigator, pierced with a thin metal pipe and cooked to a crisp over a fire. It's head was gone; blasted to pieces before having it's remains cut off. Predator had used his rifle. I wondered if using an anti-armor rifle was really necessary.

Myst, Skyfire, and Doodle were huddled near it, the former using a stick to munch off of a piece she had cut for herself. Skyfire didn't seem to be joining in on the eating as the other two were; come to think of it, I had never seen her eat meat ever since I first met her. Maybe she was a vegetarian just like me?

With a soft groan, I pulled myself up and trotted over to them. Doodle smiled at my approach and got up to offer me a bite, but I refused, gently, for two reasons: I wasn't hungry, and I was a vegetarian. I was honestly a little repulsed that Myst was eating meat, but then again she did what she had to survive. Speaking of her, her only major reaction was giving me a faint smile before turning away. It was at that point that I noticed Predator's apparatuses were gone and that the ashes of the plant matter he had used were scattered about.

"Hey," I said softly as I sat down next to Skyfire, who was staring into the flame dancing around in front of her.

"Hey," She responded blankly, as though she was deeply thinking about something. Myst coughed and got up, then slowly trotted away.

"Come on, Doodle. Let's leave them alone for a bit. They need some privacy," Myst said as she trotted off. Doodle looked between me and her, then hesitantly went close to the patiently waiting Myst, who was looking between me and Skyfire with a rather sullen expression. After Doodle reached her, they began trotting around the far edges of the depression, taking apparent interest in the plants.

'And I thought she said she couldn't talk to foals,' I thought.

I turned my attention back to Skyfire. "Do you... want to talk about it?" I didn't. I honestly didn't. I liked it better when I just thought of us as friends, just like I had thought of Myst. Now things were weird between all three of us, and I had Predator to thank for the great majority of that awkwardness. Honestly, I was surprised that I didn't want to kill him more now than I did before.

She hung her head and sighed, "Yes... and no." She looked at me with shameful eyes, then closed them and looked back to the fire. "I don't know what I want right now. Three weeks ago, I left with my squad with the simple objective of finding out what was going on. Then when they died I just wanted to kill every fucking Legionnaire. Then when I joined up with you, I wanted to... to..."

"Get me to notice you, like he did?" I asked softly, and she hung her head even lower.

"Yeah," She said quietly. "You just remind me so much about him. You care about people, you take the fire for us, and you even think like him... though, he did have a greater sense of humor." She chuckled mirthlessly, then saw that I wasn't laughing, then shut up. "Sorry, I just... I just thought I could replace him, you know?"

"How did you come to like him, anyway? Or did you two like each other?" I prodded. Based on what Predator has said, I was able to determine that she at least liked him, but I couldn't say if he reciprocated.

She didn't answer for a moment, staring sadly into the into the flame. She looked incredibly lost and pitiful, not out of her physical state, but emotionally. I could see regret and longing in her expression. Despite all of this, though, I could at least take a little comfort in the fact that I was now truly trying to help her with her problems. I had kept telling myself I would talk to her, but I never got around to it until now. It was too bad I couldn't prevent all this awkwardness, though.

"I don't know," She murmured softly. "We started out as friends, really. Back then my life was so... so boring. Day after day of Enclave routines and propaganda; of them telling us how superior we were to the surface and how those who lived below would always be scum. I was sick of it, and so were the rest of my squad. Breezetail didn't just hate it, he actually tried to do something about it. After being promoted to captain, he tried to create a specialized force entirely dedicated to helping the surface."

"Was that his last wish, the one I heard you talk about in the fissure?" I asked, and she nodded.

"Yeah. It was being processed last time we heard of it; and that's saying something, considering how much the Enclave hates the surface. Maybe the official it had been directed to was also sick of all the Enclave bullshit," She said matter-of-factly, which was a rather nice change of tone from her generally depressed demeanor.

"So... you think he liked you back?" I asked again, careful not to sound too curious; I may have been the pony of her desires right now, but that didn't mean she couldn't get annoyed. And considering Skyfire's history of getting annoyed at personal questions, that was fairly likely.

"Maybe," She responded quietly. "He liked all of us. We were like a family to him, always cheering him on when his efforts to talk some sense into the other pegasi didn't seem to work. So really, I wouldn't know if he had a particular liking for me." She sighed quietly, "And I guess now I'll never find out."

Then, slowly, she turned to look at me. There was this look on her face; a look desperate yet hopeful, like a starved dog knowing it's next meal was only a few moments away, and was waiting for it patiently. "Do you... do you like me?" She asked quietly, eyes staring up at me and shining in the light of the fire.

I didn't know what to say. Surely, I liked her as a friend, but... but this was all too sudden. I had known her for just a little over two weeks, after all. And sadly for her, I honestly didn't feel that way about her. At least... I thought I didn't. I knew what I was about to say was going to hurt her all the more, and I knew that I owed her, but... but this was a matter of the heart. I knew absolutely nothing about romance, and it would be absolutely stupid to get into one.

Yes, a subconscious part of me told me to accept. I couldn't tell if it was Tod or Tom, or maybe just a normal part of my brain. Yes, I did feel a little lonely out here, and even back in the stable. Yes, I did want to be loved; but it wasn't me she loved, it was him. I didn't want to be used like that.

I didn't like what I was about to do, but it had to be said.

I gulped and nearly choked on my own words, but I got them out. It was a lot harder to say than I thought. "I'm sorry Skyfire, but... no, I don't. Not that way." There, I said it.

Skyfire looked at me with wide, glistening eyes. She trembled all throughout her body as though she was cold. She was taking in shaky, deep breaths. I looked at her sadly, wishing I could have taken back my words, or maybe even have accepted, for her sake. Myst and Doodle were watching us from afar, the former looking... conflicted; like there was a part of her that was happy about all this while the rest of her felt sad, and the latter tugging at Myst's sleeves and asking what was going on.

"But... but but..." She stammered, getting up and raising a forehoof towards me. Then she looked at the ground shamefully and lowered her hoof. I gulped and grit my teeth, trying to keep my own guilt in. "No... no, I... I shouldn't try to force it. I can't force you," She said in a horrible, fragile, weak voice; not at all like her typical bombastic and cocky tone. She looked at me with those miserable eyes and said softly, "I... I'm so... I... don't know what to say..." She took in a shaky breath.

Hard and painful for me as it was, I managed to speak up. "I'm sorry, Skyfire. I wish I did, for your sake, but... I just don't." I turned away, not wanting to talk about this any more. I had gone into this without much emotion, but now that I saw her like this... desperate and pleading... it just hurt to keep talking.

"Goldwreath, wait!" She called, and I stopped and looked over my shoulder at her. She was raising her forehoof at me again, as if begging me to stay. Then, once more, she lowered her head shamefully and let her hoof drop limply. "No, um... nothing. I... I don't even know why I called after you." Then she said with a broken laugh, "It's okay, I'm okay! Just go! Go and..." Then her expression turned even more miserable than ever before. She said with such a tone of loss and hopelessness that it nearly broke my heart as well, "... and leave me alone."

I nearly broke down right there. She definitely did, deflating completely and sobbing quietly to herself where she was. The other two approaching her slowly was what I saw before I turned my head and trotted away down a tunnel. I wasn't leaving them; this tunnel was the one we had come in through. I just needed to be left alone for a bit. The sounds of her broken-hearted crying and the other two's failed attempts to comfort her, and Doodle's pleas for me to come back, were too much for me.

All the while, each step I took became harder and harder as the weight of what I had done came fully upon me. I had just broken her heart. I did my best to keep my tears in and to just suck it up... I really did... but even soldiers need to cry.

After a minute of letting out some of the guilt, standing where I was, I sat down hard and whispered to myself, "What have I done..." Then I shook my head and slammed my forehooves into the ground, hoping to expel any remaining emotion.

Just when I really didn't want to hear him, Predator's voice said from the darkness of a side tunnel, "Emotions. Never did do anyone any good. That's why I keep mine in check, lest I compromise my otherwise unbiased judgement."

Slowly, I turned and looked in the direction his voice came from. The only part of him I saw (for there were no glowing plants in that tunnel, though I swear there were some when we first came down through that way) were his glowing, red, orb-like eyes. The rest of his body was shrouded in shadow, but I could tell he was sitting down. Unless, of course, the side tunnel sloped downwards, in which case he could have been standing up.

"You heard all that?" I asked with a sniff, clearing away my own tears. It wasn't really the most important question to ask, but I wasn't thinking clearly.

"Yes," He replied simply. "And I must say, I am pleased to see that you have learned something from our previous encounters," He said, then there was the sound of a blade being withdrawn from it's scabbard and being sharpened with a rock. He bowed his head to look at the blade (which I couldn't see), causing me to lose sight of his eyes.

Predator was a lot of things to me over the course of my adventure. At this point, I considered him a distraction from... everything going on with my life. I should have hated him, but, once again, I found that the anger and hate I had for him was... a lot less than I thought. But hey, Myst and Skyfire distracted themselves, why couldn't I?

Feigning annoyance, I looked straight at him (or where he was supposed to be) and asked, "Really? And what the hell would that be?"

"Not letting yourself be manipulated," He said calmly as he sharpened a blade I couldn't see. "That much at least you've learned, though you did let Madran get her way with you without so much as a formal protest. Still, you managed to reject Skyfire on an emotional basis, and so that success overshadows your preparatory failure earlier."

Damn me and my curiosity. "And why would rejecting Skyfire be a success? I just broke her heart back there!"

He looked up at me, revealing his red eyes once more. "You're lucky it was only hers that was broken. Had you accepted, no doubt if your strange mentality of 'owing them' had prevailed, you would have been lead on and on on an insincere relationship which may have eventually broken both your hearts. One heart, I think, is better than two."

Damn it, he was right. I may not have known much about relationships, but if there was one thing I knew it's that one-sided relationships didn't work out. He may have been a damned murderer, but damn did he know a lot about lots of things.

"So, what? Are you glad I didn't get into that relationship? If so, why?" I asked, the annoyance now very much genuine. His knowledge of this topic was... unsettling. And annoying, of course.

"Relationships are complicated, boy. But I won't get into the specifics. To answer your questions, and I intend to hidden meaning in the answers whatsoever: yes, I am glad you did not get into that relationship, and for the second, I am glad simply because you managed to gather enough wits to reject her." Wow. That was... blunt.

"And how would you know, huh? I don't think you're getting any of this from experience; anyone who loved you must have been stupid as fuck."

"No, they weren't stupid. They were good people, good people who made the mistake of trusting me." He sighed. "Still, I am speaking from experience, though not the kind of experience you are talking about. My experience is much more family oriented than stallion to mare experience. Still, it is experience nevertheless, and therefore I believe you should take my advice on this matter."

"What?!" I screamed. "You expect me to take relationship advice from you? No-fucking-way! I'd rather ask Myst or Doodle, hell, even Zaita, before you, you bastard!" Seriously, Predator expected me to listen to HIM when it came to my friends? That's where I draw the damned line!

Despite my screaming, he actually seemed rather indifferent to my decision, as signified by his, "Alright then." Then there was the sound of him sheathing his blade. A moment later, there was the noise of paper being unfolded. "Hmm...", He murmured, "'Pyromaniac: Inferno Edition'. Well, I haven't read this yet, so..." Then he cleared his throat and looked down at the pages of the book, which were illuminated just enough to be seen by his glowing red eyes.

I spent a few moments just standing there, watching him. I was so curious about him. Only a little angry, despite my desire to be more so. Really, I just couldn't bring myself to hate him as much as I should have. Perhaps it was what he did back in the transport for that Legionnaire, or maybe even saving Doomtune (Again, apparently). Whatever it was, I just couldn't hate him for being completely and totally evil, as I had brought myself up to believe. I guess it was just that the sparks of good he had shown had broken the otherwise completely dark image I had of him, and my screwed up head just couldn't keep up.

It was also at this point that I noticed a startling similarity between the two of us: we were both very much straight to the point. Whereas Myst and Skyfire, and perhaps Doodle and Zaita, had been keeping secrets and feelings from me (and perhaps still were), Predator had no such restrictions. Really, in my time with him I've discerned that you can ask him a question with a normally very complicated answer, and he'd just get straight to the point and give his honest opinion. No dancing around it, no hiding from it, no deception, no unnecessary words. Just the answer.

I guess that was the first bridge that established the two of us together. While I of course took a person's emotions and desires into account before answering, and he didn't; we were both blunt all the same. He was definitely more so, but still. It was strange, but it was kind of nice to know someone whom I could turn to for an honest, unbiased answer when everyone else's emotions clouded their judgement.

Now, turning back to the present, I found myself in a rather awkward situation. Even the fact that Predator was one of the last people you'd want to talk to couldn't keep my desire for conversation at bay.

"So," I started lamely, "Why are you all the way over here? Why don't you stay with the rest of us?" I know it was strange; I should have been glad he wasn't staying with us, considering what I had learned about him and what he had done to Skyfire and his... 'beast' problem, but their was just so much truth in all his statements that the logical part of me just couldn't help but agree with him on them. Perhaps that was another reason I wasn't as repulsed of him as I should have been.

Either that or Tod was screwing up my brain so badly I wasn't thinking straight. Ah well, I'd just have to hope that Tom was dealing with him.

"Why should I?" He asked simply and without any emotion whatsoever as he flipped a page. "I'm not welcome there. Skyfire doesn't show it much, but she absolutely loathes me for revealing her secret prematurely. I'll give you one thing, though: some of her hatred for me truly is out of what I've done, so perhaps there was some sincerity in her 'caring about the surface' statement." Well, that was good to know. At least she wasn't completely pretending to care just to get close to me, like I had feared.

"And then Myst. She also doesn't show it much, but she loathes me as well. Seeing as it's her only true motivation to despise me, she hates me completely because of what she knows I have done, and that alone. Although... now that I think about it, she also hates me a little more now because I hurt her 'best friend's' feelings," He continued. "I don't know what's with Doodle, though. Honestly, she's more difficult to discern than the three of you combined." Ouch. Were we really that simple?

He sighed and looked up at me from his book. "And then you. You don't show it much as well, and maybe you don't feel it much either, if your facial patterns are any indication, but you also hate me. In your case, you hate me for all of the reasons stated, in addition to showing you how weak you are at stopping threats from victimizing others. Like when you blame yourself for being too weak to stop me when I burned all those zebras and ponies, for example."

Okay, NOW I felt a little angry. While I would later on appreciate his straight-forwardness, at the moment I had no like for it at all. And I definitely didn't like him reminding me of my failures to save people, especially that night when he shot down that transport. "What is with you, huh? From the way you speak, it's almost like you choose your words in order to get people to hate you. Why the hell is that?"

"No, I don't provoke people to hate me, Praetorian. It's just that my words bring with it one fundamental truth: the truth hurts. If they get angry or upset at my choice of words, which I choose in order to display the truth clearly, then there's nothing I can do about that. They get upset, and often the truth lands on the dirt, unheeded and unconsidered." He shook his head as his eyes looked at the ground.

"Then... word things differently." I offered, and he looked up at me and raised an eyebrow (or, at least, that's what I thought caused one of his eyes to look a little bigger than the other). I elaborated, "You know... make the truth more appealing. Whereas you would say 'they're all dead', I would say 'I'm sure there are survivors, let's look for them'. You know, encourage them. Try to make the situation seem better than it is. Give them hope." Surely he could do THAT at least, right?

"That is a form of deception, Praetorian. Not only is offering unlikely possibilities a form of lie, but it also raises their hopes up only to break them later on." He got up and trotted slowly to the edge of the shadows, just where the light began to seep into his tunnel. "I am many kinds of monster and I perform many evils, but their is one thing I will never, ever be again: a deceiver. Deception on my part has caused truly great destruction, and if I could do it, I'd reverse the effects of what I've done," He said in a rather uncharacteristic tone of guilt; one that sounded... strange, coming from a guy who killed and slaughtered without remorse, at least.

"Aw, come on, it couldn't have been that bad. Not unless you caused the apocalypse or something!" I laughed, hoping to break some of the immense tension piling up because of our conversation.

He didn't laugh, not even chuckle. Instead, he growled softly and continuously as he stared at me. Still, it wasn't a growl of threat but of... well, if felt like a growl of reminiscence. The atmosphere suddenly became very dark and tense; indeed, all the sources of light seemed to become even dimmer than before. He stood still as stone in the darkness, keeping his glowing red eyes on mine. They kept me in place; I actually couldn't find it in myself to move, not even a little. That really freaked me out.

Then he turned with a snarl and trotted back into the darkness, and I could move again. "Go back to your friends. Tell them we're leaving soon. I must prepare a few things before I get back to you." He sounded deadly serious, as though me prodding into the topic of his apparently super serious deception had activated a very angry and very grumpy side of him.

"Predator? What's going on?" I asked, feeling as though I had crossed a line that even Predator, for all his emotionlessness, took very seriously.

"Nothing. Just leave. We must catch up with the assault as they move across the surface," He said, then sighed, "There are things I must contemplate upon." He growled as he turned his head around to look at me. Then his eyes disappeared; I guess he could control whether or not they glowed. A moment later, the sounds of his hooves went away as he went further into the tunnel.

So there I stood, looking down into the darkness of a tunnel. Back down the way I came, it sounded like the other two had managed to calm Skyfire down a notch. Still, that didn't make it any easier to go back to them.

Difficult as it was, I turned around and trotted back to them. All the while, I couldn't help but think about all Predator had said. I couldn't stop thinking about him in general at this point; not only did he pique my curiosity immensely, but he also seemed to be hiding something. Something that I really needed to know. I guess even he could have a secret.

And I intended to find out just what it was.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

We had been trotting along down here for about a full day, heading north east. Predator had cut off any remaining meat from the radigator and wrapped them tight in some cloth rags he had in his pack (a pack which, I must say, seemed to have everything anyone could POSSIBLY need). We passed through whole metro stations and must have covered dozens of miles over that time, only taking the occasional break for Predator to go hunting again (or to brew more mixtures, I thought). Most of the time he'd come back about an hour later, though once he was gone for a startlingly long amount of time. We would later learn that he had tried to go back up to the surface to assess the assault. He had abandoned that effort when he found out that the tunnel was caved in by hundreds of tons of rock.

The sounds of the war going on above became fainter as we descended further into the earth, although there was still the occasional blast strong enough to reach us all the way down here. I wondered how the assault was going.

Just as expected, Skyfire had been trying to avoid me. Myst and Doodle occasionally tried to get her to talk, but in general she just wanted to be alone; even to the point of falling far behind us. Doodle was the only one with any true success in the endeavor, as her filly-aged vocal cords provided the perfect pitch to annoy even the most seasoned soldier into conversation (in fact, Predator had told her to shut up. She just stuck her tongue out at him, gaining a startled growl. She continued talking, leaving Predator to growl all he wanted). For the majority of the way to where we currently were, the two of them chatted amiably until Doodle brought up the topic of Skyfire's squad. The pegasus fell silent at that, and any attempts by Doodle to get her back into the conversation afterwards had no effect. Myst and I told her it was okay, and that we too had made the same mistake before.

After that she had asked Myst and I what was wrong with Skyfire. We weren't able to answer her; surely a filly of all types of people wouldn't understand the emotional background. Unfortunately, our efforts to stay away from the topic were rendered pointless when Predator simply told her what had happened, plain and clear. The three of us expressed our annoyance and anger at him (especially Skyfire, who nearly picked up a rock and hit him with it. Thankfully, we stopped her before she did.), but he didn't care. Honestly, Doodle's only reaction was a long, oblivious 'Oooohhh...'. After that she stopped questioning us about it and trotted along happily.

We were in a generator chamber now, where power for the electrical facilities was produced (in fact most of the generators were still working, providing electricity to the lights. Which was good, as the sewer systems managed to stop the leaking water that caused the growth of luminous plants in unlikely areas). Behind us was a catwalk overlooking said generators and leading back the way we came, and off to our sides were doors that Predator said 'we should be uninvolved with'.

In front of us was a large metal door, recently polished and cleaned, from the look of it. Off to it's sides were a dozen bullet-ridden corpses; a change from the abundant dusty skeletons we had seen along the numerous sewer tunnels and occasional metro track we had passed. The corpses were those of ghouls, unless they had been here for a really long time. Which, according to Predator's sense of smell, wasn't likely.

"This isn't right," Predator declared once again as he looked the large steel door over. "This gate was rusted to the point it couldn't even be closed. It was always open, for as long as I can remember. So why is it closed and locked?"

"Maybe someone down here got it back into working condition?" I offered. Predator may have known the underground pretty well, but even he couldn't remember every single door and pathway down here. More than once had we found ourselves at a crossroads, and Predator had to think for a few minutes to remember which was the correct path. In fact, in had happened so frequently in the past few hours that Predator himself was getting annoyed. And trust me, he's not the kind of person you want to annoy, no matter how uncaring he may seem at times.

He groaned as he covered his face with a hoof, "Maybe. Legion's been trying to gradually repair the underground. Wouldn't be surprised if they had sealed this section off so their Legionnair's could work safely." He got closer to the door and pressed the side of his helmet against it. "Oh yes, it's definitely them. I can hear them working... and... I can hear treads. They must have armor down here." He sighed as he pulled away, then looked over the entire area. His eyes landed on a side door on the generator floor, which was ominously concealed by a dark mist. "We'll have to take an alternate route."

"Why?" Skyfire finally spoke. Her question was quiet but it had plenty of anger in it. Still, I welcomed it more than when she was quiet. It just didn't feel right. "Considering what I've seen of you, I'm pretty sure you can break the door down. Why don't we just break in and kill them all?" Right after her question her expression turned from one of anger to one of realization. She looked at me, then hung her head.

I shook my head. Even now, she still wanted vengeance. I wondered how long it would last and what it would take to take that desire away. I didn't think any attempts at diplomacy with the Legion would succeed if she kept on going on like that.

Predator's disapproval was far more practical and less emotional in nature, but it at least coincided with the logical portion of my own disapproval. "Because," He said, "If any of them survive then they will inform the Legionnaires at the dam of our approach. I have been doing my best thus far to avoid contact with any groups down here, hostile or otherwise. Why do you think I've been taking us through the deeper and less frequented tunnels?" He began trotting back towards the catwalk, where the stairs down were. "I'd hate to have all those efforts go to waste because of your uncontrolled desire for vengeance."

She growled at him and was in the process of charging when I stopped her. I frowned at her so sharply and with such disappointment (yet with a touch of sympathy. I knew she was just stressed, and to flood her with disapproval now would only worsen her situation.) that she backed away shamefully, hanging her head as she got behind the other two. She remained that way as we trotted across the catwalk after Predator.

We found him staring at the door, growling softly, his eyes glowing. All about him was an ominous black smoke, or at least what looked like black smoke, that seemed to be crawling in from a small air vent above the door. The smoke was swirling about him and getting denser with each second. When we were about to descend the final set of steps to reach the ground floor, he stopped us.

"Don't move," He said seriously. Then he put his backpack down and began rummaging through it.

"What's wrong, mister Predator?" Doodle asked with a fascination only a foal could have about weird and dangerous things.

"Black Cloud," He said in a very grave tone.

"What the hell's 'Black Cloud'?" Skyfire asked before I did. Honestly, as long as she wasn't going all 'revenge' against Legionnaires and would at least try to control herself and her emotions, I was fine.

"Zebra terror weapon back in the war. Part of the Cloud series of zebra super weapons. Smells and looks like smoke. It consists of microscopic black spores that, when inhaled, grow exponentially in the lungs. Then they each explode with enough combined force to match a grenade, sending spikes blasting off in all directions," Predator responded. He turned and looked at the four of us. From the surprised gasps I heard from the three of them, I discerned it must have been their first time to see Predator's glowing eyes. "Your earth pony friend here can tell you more." Then he turned back to his bag.

I turned to Myst, who, along with the other two, looked a little stricken by the sight of Predator's eyes. I know I should have been concerned with their safety; especially Doodle's, considering I had let her come with me. And I know that I should have been thinking about this 'Black Cloud', but, not for the first time, my curiosity got the better of me. Except this time it was about my companions rather than about the pre-apocalyptic phenomena.

"Myst, what's he talking about?" Really? Myst? How could she possibly know? Oh... wait... right, the time she went down here. Could this be the poisonous air she had told us about?

She eeped and looked about for a bit, startled and shaken and even more uncomfortable than before. Then she looked at our three curious and slightly frightened expressions and sighed. "I don't really want to talk about it..." She shot a glare at Predator, who paid it no attention, then continued, "...but I guess you should know."

She cleared her throat. "Well, when I came here to the city... I wasn't exactly alone. I met a few zebras along the way, and Kira was actually one of them. Her family and I had the common goal of finding some place safe to settle down." She paused, looking up at us as if uncertain how to continue. Skyfire gestured her to proceed, and she did. "Well, even though the Legion or the Specters or most of the groups today weren't even around yet, the city was still a war zone. We didn't know any better, so we decided to go underground to avoid the fighting. Then when we were looking for a way down here... you know, the the ground cracked and we fell in. That's all to it." She sighed in relief and averted her gaze hurriedly.

"Go on," Predator said, not turning away from the pile of stuff he was pulling out of his oversized backpack. "Tell them what happened next."

That was too much for her. "Why do you want me to tell him?!" She screamed. "How do you know so much about me? About Skyfire? And considering what you've done, how dare you even speak to us like we're friends! You should just keep your mouth shut and continue just fucking guiding us! Then, when we're out of these fucking tunnels, we can just leave you the fuck behind!" She panted heavily as she looked at him so murderously I honestly thought she was going to attack him. The three of us looked at her in shock, Skyfire most especially. Doodle actually just looked at her weirdly, like she thought Myst had gone crazy.

Predator really didn't seem to care about her sudden outburst, though. "Ah, there it is. It's good that your letting your emotions out, it's one way of keeping them under control." He cleared his throat and stood up on his hindlegs, dark silhouettes hanging down from his forelegs as he approached us, his eyes still glowing.

He said, "For your first question, I believe you should tell him because we'll actually be going INTO the cloud. For the second and third, I keep tabs on over six hundred different individuals, using assets like facial expression, body language, social anxiety, etcetera to determine their potential threat. Let's me know if any of them need to die." He emerged from the darkness, and in his hooves I saw several Specter helmets, hanging down from a bundle of rope. He began ascending the stairs. "Then for your last two statements, I know I have no right to speak to you as casually as I do. I have not earned trust from any of you, on the contrary I have earned hate. But I am a practical zeb-... perso-..." He paused for a while, seeming to think of the correct word. "...being, and so I will not let either your emotions nor my emotions get in the way of my goal. And that goal is currently helping the four of you get out of here alive."

Remember when I said he was blunt? Well, that was a good example.

Myst continued to glare at him as he held out the bundle. Doodle eagerly took one of the helmets and placed them on, only to find out it was several sizes too big and a little heavy for her to wear without staggering. Skyfire helped her tighten the neck seal so it would fit before tossing her onto her back. Doodle cheered happily as she mumbled something about 'adventure'. Skyfire then reluctantly got two more helmets; one for me and one for herself. She looked at me curiously as I took one of them from her. I spared her only a quick glance before taking off my own helmet and putting on the Specter helmet. I had experienced wearing this sort of helmet in Veltrio's memory, but the very sensation of putting it on myself gave me uncomfortable thoughts of the signal suddenly appearing out of nowhere.

It wasn't necessary. Tod giggled in my head, and immediately my headache came back. There was a faint ring in my ears as I felt something move inside my head. Tom only managed to say something along the lines of 'come back here you piece of shit!' before his voice disappeared.

My breathing was now regulated by the gasmask built into the helmet, as was the breathing of Skyfire and Doodle. The sense of having the helmet enclosing my head made me a little claustrophobic, but I got over it. The other two both looked rather strange wearing those helmets, but I knew the gasmask was necessary. I definitely didn't want to breathe in something that could make me explode.

Myst was still eyeing the gasmask helmet hatefully, determined to appear as indignant towards him as possible. I would have done the same if I were in her position, I really would have, considering what he had done in the past and how much I would have hated him, but... but I just couldn't. I really just couldn't.

That went on for a few more moments, until Skyfire trotted up to her and nudged her gently. "Myst," She said, her voice muffled. "Just take it. I know you don't like him, neither do I." Then Skyfire looked at him with what I supposed was a glare, but then sighed. "If Goldwreath trusts him enough to let him lead us around down here, then we should trust him as well." Doodle nodded her head quickly while on Skyfire's back.

Myst looked at her with a startled expression, then looked between her, Predator, and me with a look of confusion. "You trust him?" She asked me. "And Skyfire... what about what he did to you? What about him revealing your secret before you wanted to?" Then she turned to Doodle. "And, Doodle, why aren't you scared of him? In fact, why don't you seem to mind him at all?"

Doodle raised a hoof in the air and took in a deep breath to answer, but I spoke first (a fact that she expressed great disappointment in).

"I don't trust him, Myst. I can't, not after what he did." I paused for a while, wondering if my next choice of words would make sense. "But I can give him a second chance. I gave you one when we first met. And I gave Skyfire one after she killed that Legionnaire. Besides, hating him isn't going to do anything. It's just going to make me unfocused." Yes, now I understood. I did hate him. It was just that my desire to give him a second chance was keeping that hate in storage.

"Oh, trust me Myst, I REALLY hate him. But..." Skyfire said. Then she looked at me, and her eyes through the visor were... hopeful. "Well, let's just say I'll try to give him a second chance as well. Let's see if he'll try to do better." I raised my eyebrow at her. She must have seen it through my visor, because she immediately looked away. I turned to Predator, wondering what his response would be.

Predator looked at her for a long moment. "You're just agreeing with him on this in order to increase your miniscule chances of getting him to accept you, aren't you?" I looked to her again and put on a quizzical look behind my mask.

I heard Skyfire grit her teeth through her helmet. "No..." She drawled. "I just honestly want to give you a second chance." She sounded uncertain, and then her gaze landed on me from behind her visor. She looked away quickly. "Well... maybe a little..."

I sighed. This was definitely a problem that I needed to resolve with her.

"Ha!" Predator barked. "You have no idea how many times I've heard 'do better' and 'I'll give you a second chance' and 'I can put aside my hate, for now' over the course of my existence." Then his eyes suddenly looked more... tired. Not out of physical exhaustion, but out of some kind of repressed emotional problem. Then he said in a much softer tone, "It's gotten to the point that almost everything I think about are the instances where I absolutely failed to live up to those expectations." He hung his head, casting the glow of his eyes onto the hard floor. The atmosphere in the room suddenly became very dark and tense, just like when I had spoken to him last time. The other three seemed to feel it too, thank Luna. I was getting kind of fed up of being the only one to notice certain things (such as when I found out I was the only one who could hear the signals at the strengths Zaita had been emitting them).

"Mister Predator, what's wrong?" Doodle asked, much to Predator's surprise.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. Nothing at all..." He responded. But there was something, obviously. His response made it as clear to me as it is to you. "Just... some memories. Nothing to worry about." He looked rather forlorn, standing there on the edge of the darkness, just close enough to the light that some of the reflecting beams illuminated his dark form.

Then he looked back up at Myst, and dimmed down his red eyes. "Just take it, Myst. The sooner we get out of here, the sooner you can leave me behind, if that is truly what you want." He held out the helmet further into the light, partially exposing his dark, leather-clad leg.

Myst looked at it uncomfortably for a second, then to the three of us. Doodle was so eager she was jumping about on her hooves. Skyfire nodded at her. I gestured her to take it. And so, with a defeated sigh, she hesitantly took it from him and put it on. Predator immediately stepped back into the darkness. A moment later there was the sound if the door sliding down, and at once the Black Cloud became thicker.

"Hurry up," He called. "I'll need to demolish this door. We can't let the cloud keep seeping out through here. I'll start setting up the explosives."

Then we trotted into the thick of the cloud, all of us anxious to see if the gasmasks worked. They did, if the lack of the smell of smoke was any indication. With that, we trotted underneath the doorway. The cloud was so thick I really couldn't see anything further than a foot from me. We just barely managed to make out Predator's dark form on the side, sticking a slab of grey onto the wall.

We had not gotten far down the tunnel when the explosives went off. The blast blew away some of the cloud, allowing us to see each other for a while. Doodle didn't seem very eager any more, clinging onto Skyfire's back tightly. Myst used the momentary cleanliness of air to take off the helmet and pop one of the white tablets into her mouth before putting it back on. Then the cloud quickly came back, concealing all of us once again.

The only thing I saw were Predator's brightly glowing red eyes, the light coming from them piercing through the cloud like lasers. He approached us slowly, his hoofsteps echoed by the tight space of the tunnel and made clear by the lack of any other noise in the entire area. "Well, we should be safe as long as we're in the cloud. Anything that breathes and has lungs won't survive here. As long as you don't breathe in any of the cloud, you're good." He trotted to each of us individually, taking out glowsticks and sticking them in our clothing. I saw an orange glowstick, indicating Skyfire. Above her was a pink glowstick for Doodle. Then a green one lit up, showing Myst's position.

Lastly he came to me, holding a red glwostick in his hooves. He tucked it into my vest. I appreciated it; not only because now we could see each other, but because red was my favorite color.

He turned away and began trotting through the cloud. "Come on. One more day and we'll be there. I suggest you keep your weapons ready."

I sighed. One more day, huh? How long had we been down here, anyway? According to my pipbuck, we were down here for around three days, but it felt so much longer than that. The assault must have reached the dam at that point. I didn't worry about being late; we weren't supposed to join the assault, if you remember. We were simply supposed to infiltrate the dam and disable some of the defenses.

I turned to the other glowsticks. "Come on, let's go." Then we followed after him, relying on the sight of his almost lamp-like eyes to identify where he was. I pulled out my trusty shotgun and and loosened my gladius from it's sheath. Skyfire's rifles lit up with energy. From Myst's direction came the sound of a lever being pulled back, and a little later a metal casing struck the ground.

After a while, Predator called out, "Myst, you still haven't continued. I suggest you do, so that you may remove the anxiety I know you are hiding behind that mask and so that your friends may be better informed about the Black Cloud. Besides, that anxiety may be detrimental in case we do actually come across anything down here." Yes, despite everything, he remembered that Myst did in fact not continue in telling us what had happened. He was always good on remembering details like that, just like Myst was.

"Oh, damn it..." Myst muttered. Then her greenish glow stick approached me. "Fine. I guess you really do need to know..." Skyfire and Doodle's orange and pink glowsticks approached us, as if they too were curious. "Oh, yeah. Um, you two should know too, I guess..." Ah, shy and anxious Myst, how I have missed you! Honestly, she had changed quite a lot in the time she was with me. It was good to know that some of her old self was still down there.

She cleared her throat, and began explaining.

It would have been a really good time for Tom or Tod to have spoken in my head. There was this sense of tension in the air... like we were being watched. It was good that I was listening to Myst, otherwise the sensation would have made me paranoid. I didn't know if the others felt it, though. I was sure Predator felt it; he was, after all, the one who felt that way first.

I really would have liked it if Tom could have warned me about what would happen next. I didn't know why he was so quiet, while Tod was scurrying about inside my head. I just had to trust him; surely, if he had to disappear and leave me alone with the enigma that was Tod, he would have told me. As it was, that strange sensation of awareness was the only thing I had.

And whoever these beings were, they felt immensely powerful in my head.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Tunnel Trotter -- You're long time spent underground have made your senses more acute and has tested your endurance. In low-light circumstances, you gain plus +1 perception. You also gain plus +1 endurance.

Chapter 14 - Monsters

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Chapter 14
Monsters
"They say that people should die before they become monsters. If that's true, then I'm unlucky beyond compare."

"So, let me get this, they EXPLODED? And spikes blasted off in all directions? Wow, that's disgusting..." Skyfire said as she (or at least her glowstick) moved along with the rest of us as we went down cloud filled corridor after cloud filled corridor. It was good that we all had something to talk about. It distracted us from all of our personal problems, like me from my increased paranoia, and Skyfire from her emotional distress.

I myself couldn't really believe it. What kind of sick bastard creates a weapon like that? And according to Predator's occasional chiming in, there were more of these 'cloud' terror weapons. Seriously, what would anyone use a Pink Cloud that melts people for? That was just absolutely sickening...

"Ew," Doodle muttered sourly as she rode on Skyfire's back. "That's gross."

"Believe it," Myst replied to all our disgusted muttering. "Kira was absolutely traumatized. I couldn't really believe it either." Her glowstick stopped moving in the smoke. She sighed, "Like I said, I wouldn't even be alive if her parents hadn't given up their gasmasks for us." She murmured shakily, "But if I just hadn't gotten one of their masks broken... then maybe... I don't know, maybe one of them would have lived..."

"It wasn't your fault," Predator called out from ahead of us. The fact that he, of all people, was trying to comfort someone a mere few hours after he had pissed off said person was a little surprising.

'Well, I was going to say it, anyway,' I thought. Though, obviously, Myst would have liked it better had I said it.

She scowled, "And what makes you say that?" Then her tone became a little softer. "If I hadn't fallen down that tunnel... panicked in that train... then maybe..."

"You aren't to blame," Predator insisted plainly. "The mere fact that they just so happened to give you their gasmask and that you just so happened to be attacked by those ghouls does not put you at fault."

"No! It was m-..." She started, but I silenced her with a hoof.

"I agree with him, Myst. Much as wouldn't like to sympathize with him, he's right. You're not to blame," I said sternly. I could handle nonsensically blaming myself for things (If Tom's insistence that that was 'my nature' was correct), but I couldn't handle them blaming themselves. Not while our emotional bonds were still fragile and healing, or just plain awkward.

Skyfire voiced her approval. "Yeah. Just because they sent you ahead doesn't mean it was your fault. At least you managed to save Kira. I bet they would have appreciated that."

Myst babbled and stammered for a bit, trying to insist that she was to blame. Finally, though, she conceded defeat. "Okay..." She murmured softly.

There was no more conversation for almost half an hour. We passed several more empty maintenance tunnels and a few metro rails. In one corner of a room, where a light bulb was glowing forlornly in the darkness, I saw a corpse. Just as Myst had described Kira's parents after exposure to the cloud, this zebra mare's chest was split wide open, spikes perforating her bones and internal organs. One spike had shot out of her eye and lodged itself in the ceiling. Next to her was a gasmask with the tiniest crack I ever saw snaking along the glass. I mentally thanked the Goddesses that the ones Predator had lent us were built into an armored helmet with a thick visor.

All the while that we were not talking I could feel them. They seemed to be all around us, yet completely out of sight. I checked my E.F.S and saw nothing, and that only worried me more. The feeling of terror at being followed by a large number of powerful-feeling entities which not even Predator could directly sense was unsettling. He insisted that we move faster, and for almost an hour we moved at half-galloping speed. Eventually, we left them behind. Yet I was sure that they wouldn't be gone for long.

Amidst all my paranoia-filled cantering, Predator finally broke the silence. "Doodle. Because I cannot tolerate your very odd acceptance of my presence, I will instead turn that into a venue to distract myself from my personal problems. Why are you not scared of me?"

"Hm?" Doodle murmured sleepily. The long amount of time without conversation must have lulled her to near sleep. "Oh, right! That!" She giggled, "Well, why would I be scared of you, silly?"

I heard Skyfire facehoof. Myst 'uhhh...'d in confusion along with me. What did she mean 'why should I be scared of you'? He had nearly killed her, for Celestia's sake! And not to mention the fact that her parents burned by his hooves! And the fact that he showed no regard for her back at Verge... and slaughtered in her presence in the transport...

Even Predator seemed profoundly dumbfounded. "What?" He asked in astonished disbelief. "Well, one thing I do know is that when someone kills someone else's parents, the victim becomes fearful. My question is why you are not as fearful or as uncomfortable around me as you should be. That and how you recovered from the surprisingly small amount you had of both so quickly." Clearly, he was hoping his direct to the point statements would get the answer out of her immediately. I was glad he had asked, though. Amidst all the drama recently, I had completely forgotten about asking her that.

"Oh!" Doodle giggled and laughed happily, "My parents weren't with me, silly! No, they're ALL the way back in Equestria!"

I stopped trotting immediately and stared forward blankly. They were? Then... so... so she wasn't terrified of the most dangerous person I had met out here so far because she didn't lose anyone she loved when he shot the transport down? Well... that explained a lot.

"But then why did you seem scared of him when I rescued you? And... Equestria?" I asked, feeling the need to get more answers.

"Oh..." Doodle's tone dropped to a far quieter one. "Well... it was just kind of the moment. He did try to kill me, after all. And I'm actually still a little scared of him, but just not so much. Plus, I did get to talk to miss Myst over here about it, and now I'm not so worried anymore." Then her tone cheered up as she said, "As for my family, they're all the way in some city called Fillydelphia. They work for mister Redeye over there. We were poor before he came along and took me with him. In exchange for taking care of me and teaching me along with some other kids, he asked my parents to work for him! Isn't that nice? They got jobs, and I get to visit them! Though I don't know why they seemed so sad about it. Reason why I'm down here is because mister Redeye needed somepony to help his troops. My parents tried to keep me there, but I wanted to go!"

"And why is that?" Predator asked, sounding genuinely confused. I shared in his confusion, and I was pretty sure the other two did, as well.

"Well, not like it was bad there or anything. The soldiers there were real nice to my parents! Why, in fact, they went to my parents' hut every night to help my mom with something! Then in the morning, when I visited her, she was so happy she didn't want to talk about it! Dad kept trying to tell them 'no', but what's wrong with helping my mom relax?" She sighed. "My dad never did like them. Kept trying to tell me they were slavers or something. Anyway, reason I wanted to go was because I wanted to help mister Redeye spread his love and care to all the wasteland!"

Oh, wow. Doodle was this oblivious? "Doodle... how do I say this..." I started.

Skyfire took over. "You do know that Redeye controls an army of slaves and slavers, right? And that each night they came by they actually raped your mo-..."

"That is a lie," Predator said, turning around and fixing her with his blazing stare. Skyfire's illuminated form immediately froze. "What's wrong with helping her mother relax, huh? Clearly, if they did that, then they couldn't have been slavers. Slavers are cruel, evil. Those ponies sounded good." He dimmed his eyes down and looked over at Doodle on Skyfire's back. "Whatever they say, Doodle, believe in the goodness that... 'mister Redeye' showed you. Understand?"

I stared at him in disbelief. Did Predator just... lie? He had blatantly pointed out the truth, even when it seriously hurt my friends' feelings, made it clear to me that he was no liar, and literally every instruction and warning he had given us down here was a hundred percent correct. And yet here he was lying. Well... maybe he didn't know Redeye was a slaver? That's what Skyfire told me he was, anyway. Maybe Predator just honestly didn't know? He did say he found Doodle the hardest to discern, was he having trouble right here?

Before Skyfire or Myst or I could say anything, Doodle piped, "Well, duh! Of course he's good! I learned lots of things from the books that he let me read, you know. And one of the things I learned from them is that I should ALWAYS trust Redeye!"

Skyfire gasped as Predator took his gaze off of her. She looked around warily, then shook her head. "Wow..." Skyfire muttered. "Alright, I think Doodle needs to know the truth. Doodle, the truth is that-..." Then Predator looked to her and made his eyes glow bright again. Once more she froze, not continuing her statement.

"Those ponies were good, and there is no doubt about it. Understand, Skyfire?" He growled and looked upon Myst, and she froze with a soft whimper. "Understand, Myst?" And finally he turned to me. I tried to resist the strange and rather scary sensation of being frozen; who knew, maybe it was some kind of placebo effect. It wasn't, and despite my efforts I froze as well.

Skyfire barely suppressed her growl and Myst just managed to stop herself before she shot him with her rifle. Begrudgingly, I nodded. I just had to ask myself why the fuck he was doing this. I couldn't believe that Predator was actually stupid enough to believe Doodle when it came to Redeye; he was far more capable of detecting lies and extracting the truth than we were, and so it just didn't seem possible.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

Almost another hour of trotting and we emerged from the metro maintenance tunnels and onto the actual metro tracks. We were in a wide area, with two sets of tracks on either side of a concrete platform, on the center of which was a flight of stairs leading up. This was perhaps the tenth station we had been to in our time down there; the other nine were all mostly intact and allowed us quick and unimpeded (except for the occasional ghoul and centaurpeed in the few areas where there was no cloud) progress through Roam's underground. The cloud was as thick here as it was everywhere else, and only Predator's certainty of our whereabouts convinced me of our location. He told us to stay put for a moment as he went over to a partially lowered metro security gate and lowered it completely, the metal clang shaking the ground. When he came back and Doodle asked him why he did that, he responded with something about not letting the cloud escape onto the surface.

We started up a flight of stairs, which was actually a dormant escalator. The glow of two light bulbs along a wall at the top of the steps illuminated the foggy forms of the escalator's railings.

I moved up next to him. "Why'd you do that?" I asked quietly. It was a question I had been pondering in my head, and I wanted it answered.

"I assume you're talking about what I told Doodle. I did that because her innocence must be preserved," He responded simply. He didn't even try keep it quiet or dance around it, despite Doodle's fairly close proximity. She didn't even hear it; she was far too busy trying to get the other two to talk to notice.

"Uh... what?" I asked incredulously. "What the hell do you mean? Protect her innocence... what? And I thought you said you'd never 'be a deceiver' again."

"I can make exceptions to my own rules, Praetorian. I may not have made such an exception in a very long time, but I still can. Today was the first time in many years," He responded, looking to the ground as though his own words had brought to him an uncomfortable memory.

That may have been true, but I needed a better answer than that. "But why did you make the exception, for her of all people? Now of all times?"

He kept trotting until we cleared the stairs and were on the second floor of the train station. Once we were all there, he stopped and turned to us. "Five minutes," He said, gesturing at a set of old seats next to a wall. Yeah, in our three days down here, he would occasionally let us take a break or two.

The others got the message and went over to the illuminated seats, with Doodle hopping and skipping as she circled Skyfire and trying to get her to talk. Predator gestured towards me, then turned and trotted into the un-illuminated Black Cloud on the other side of the floor. I followed him, and soon only the dim glow of the bulbs and the echoing voices of my friends remained.

He looked at me from the darkness of the cloud shrouding him, his eyes just dim enough to not freeze me in place. "Doodle is... an... extraordinary individual," He started with a very uncharacteristic amount of slowness. "You saw her back there. In the past week, she's been shot out of the sky, burned, thrust into the company of complete strangers, witnessed horrible carnage at my hooves, and seen horrifying monstrosities." He nodded his shadowy head in their direction. "Do you see where I am getting at?" Just then Doodle giggled in delight as she got Myst to tell her about Kira.

I thought about it for a moment; this was one of the few times Predator had been even slightly vague. Still, I knew what he was talking about. "Yeah... she's too happy. Too positive, to optimistic, despite what she's been through." Wait, what was I saying? Shouldn't I have been glad she was? It was definitely better than... than...

Then there was a quick but immensely strong screech in my ears. No, not in my ears... in my head. Tod was doing something in there! "It's... unnatural," I said, my voice lowering threateningly as I looked behind me at their positions with a look of disgust.

Then I thought about what I had just said, and the callousness with which I had said it. Seriously, what the fuck was I thinking? It wasn't 'unnatural'! It was good! Tod... Tod was doing something! It wasn't my fault!

I looked back and saw Predator looking at me, staring. I was about to try to defend myself and justify what I had said, when his eyes glowed brighter and I froze. The activity in my head suddenly stopped, and he stepped out of the darkness and approached me, then looked me right in the eye. Rather than smacking me across the face like I deserved, he instead slowly reached a hoof up to touch the side of my head.

And when he did, there was a shock like lightning that spread across my head and into my brain. For just a moment, everything in there was quiet. Slowly, I felt Tod and Tom move again, and it felt as though Predator now had their full attention.

"It isn't unnatural, you creature," He said firmly. Strangely, it felt like he wasn't talking to me. "It's remarkable. Never before have I seen a pony or zebra with such extraordinary resilience to the dark and horrid realities of the world. That resilience is born of innocence rather than knowledge, and it must be preserved. This world has enough lost souls." He leaned in very close, locking me in a gaze as strong as steel. Then there was the blood-freezing sensation of numerous... tendrils... entering my head through my ears and my eyes. It wasn't of either Tod or Tom. It was from Predator. "And you would do well to remember that, 'Tod'."

Then he dimmed down his eyes and just like that the feeling of the invisible tendrils was gone. He back-stepped into the shadows as I panted for breath, disturbed at what had just occurred. What had just happened? What did Predator just do? And why was Tod now as quiet as Tom, even if that silence was out of spiteful recognition? And... how did Predator know of them?

"You feel them too, I see," Predator said quietly. "Your head is festering with that one's influence. Luckily, you have the other one openly assisting you."

"What... what was that about?" I asked as I panted. I murmured,"And... how do you know of them? I thought I was just crazy or something..."

"I don't know what they are, Praetorian. Just that they have been the driving forces behind many events in post-apocalyptic Roaman history." Then he suddenly reached up a hoof to his own head and grunted in pain. There was a faint, high-pitched ringing in the air all around us now, pulsating as though a beating heart deep beneath the earth was pumping the air around us. The signal reignited my headache, and Tod began moving about in my mind more actively. "As for your second question..." He said with grit teeth, then reached up another hoof to his head and growled fiercely.

Tom finally did something. His gentle, monotonous hum filled the air and blocked out the high-pitched signal (though at this point I was beginning to doubt it was just a signal. If it was Tod's manifestation, I supposed it was more of an energy.) Over at their seats, I heard the others sigh in relief as Tod's energy fell away. Both Predator and I slowly regained control of our breathing.

He sighed and looked back up at me. "You aren't the only one that deals with them. Your friends do, though they think that they're just products of stress. Doodle should get as little exposure to it as possible, lest he find some way to break her naive joy." Then he took in a shaky breath and said, "And so do I."

I had gotten into the conversation hoping to merely understand why Predator had done what he did. While now I understood, and actually sympathized with him on that matter (Though a part of me did feel that Doodle should have been exposed freely to the horrors of the wasteland. I mentally beat the crap out of that part of my head, which strangely resulted in my headache getting a little better. I assumed that part of me was Tod.), I really wanted to figure out JUST that. Now I had more information about Tod and Tom and my friends and Predator to process than I would have thought my sluggish brain could handle. Ah well, I'd just think about it later. Trotting underground in tunnels while a war's going on above you and having two entities fighting inside your head doesn't really provide the best environment for thinking.

I looked at him curiously and saw him looking at the ground in apparent contemplation. "And how DO you deal with them?" I asked, getting a startled growl from him.

He lifted his head slowly and looked at me as though I had asked a stupid question."What?"

I explained, "Well, in the two or so weeks I've known you, you've been more or less the same. Unless I'm wrong in my observation, Tod makes people... different from who they are; tries to make a person act differently than they normally would. Tom, though, seems to do the exact opposite. So how do you seem to stay the same, even though you'e been exposed to them longer than I have?"

He thought about that for a moment. "Hmph. You think I handle it well? Well I don't. Not by a long shot."

"That warrants some explanation, and I want to hear it," I prodded. After all, he certainly seemed to have handled it well.

He thought for another moment, shifting uneasily in the darkness. Clearly, this was a topic he didn't talk about much. "Remember the bridge?" He asked, and though a little anger sparked in my head at the memory of my first encounter with him, I nodded. "You want to know why I was actually there? Definitely not because Madran told me to look for you. Really, there were two reasons: the first is that I believed it was time to confront you directly instead of just observing you from afar. The second-..."

"You were 'observing me from afar'?" I asked, a little bit confused as to what he meant.

"Of course I was! How do you think I know that you spared that slaver near Roam's walls? Or that your initial encounter with Myst ended up with getting gunbutted in the face? Or how you reacted to Skyfire killing that neutralized Legionnaire? How else would I know your type of character, and how to piss you off and get on your nerves when I inevitably attacked you on the bridge?" Uh... he actually planned all that? And he actually WANTED to piss me off? Fucking asshole...

"Uh... yeah... wait, you mean to tell me you said all that; all that crap about death and pain and time and whatnot, specifically to annoy and depress me?" I asked with great annoyance. Great annoyance and an anger spike, that is. I mean, what he said to me on that bridge... and at the crash site... all that really got to me. For fuck's sake, his words had nearly made me give up!

"Yes," He replied, as though the memory of what he himself had done and said sparked no emotions whatsoever.

Ugh... ok, nevermind that. It happened and it was over, there was no point lingering on it. "Just get to the point already," I said, feeling a little unnerved that literally all of my activities since leaving the stable had been monitored. Thank Celestia I had resisted the urge to jack off back in Myst's outpost...

"Finally. Honestly, you're desire for conversation brings about many unnecessary sub-conversations. Anyway, the second reason is because I..." He looked around a bit, seeming uneasy. Then he leaned close and whispered, "Because I was under the influence of... 'Tod.'"

Wait, what?

"The hell do you mean by that? You mean you did all that because you were getting nagged at by some annoying signal that seems hell bent on pissing me off with his non-stop and extremely annoying presence in my head? Care to explain that?" I honestly couldn't believe that. I mean, had you been in my place; having your friend nearly killed by someone, then having that someone come to you and say 'it wasn't actually me', would you?

"No, I don't care to explain. But I will, and thanks for asking." He cleared his throat and said, "Well, look at me. Between me now and me during the bridge and when I shot Doodle out of the sky, which would you say you would rather be around?"

Hmm... that made sense. And I could see where he was headed; his character back at the bridge and at the crash site were both extremely cold and brutal, and tried to make me believe that killing was the only answer to suffering. As he was right now, he was definitely less cynical and tons more sociable, though he still pissed me off immensely from time to time, not to mention being just as straight to the point and as calculating as ever. "Well... I guess I'd rather be around you right now."

"Exactly," He said, then sighed. "I'm not going to defend myself. I know the things I did back there were wrong. It's just that 'Tod', as you call him, has a tendency to bring out the worst in people. He manipulates, he deceives, he destroys. He exploits a person's weaknesses and brings that person's dark side to light and projects them in such a way that that is all we see of them." His eyes turned apologetic; more apologetic than I had ever seen on one of even Myst's expressions. "I'm not hopeless and I do know there are other ways of ending suffering. What I did and said back in the transport were the after effects of almost a full week of being under him. I'm not really like that, I hate being like that. I know you may not believe the words coming out of my mouth, but what can I say? It's the truth."

So, that was his explanation for all of what he did, huh? That he was under Tod's influence the whole time? Strange as it may sound, I actually believed him. I had seen what Tod was capable of, and if he was able to directly control a mech, then surely he could somehow physically take hold of someone. I had been under but a mere fraction of Tod's power, thanks to Tom. Predator had no such fortune; I could only imagine what Tod could have made me do by now had I not had been lucky enough to have friends who were concerned for me. Did Predator have friends who cared for him, who tried to help him in times of distress and weakness? I doubted it.

But that didn't mean I was without suspicion, or that what he did would no longer entice some anger out of me. "Then what was all that you said to us our time in these tunnels? Lots of the stuff you said were almost as cold and dark as when you were supposedly under him. How do you explain that?" After all, what if he was trying to trick me? What if this was all some unnecessarily convoluted plan to get me to trust him so that he could analyze and exploit my weaknesses for his own goals? Balaclava had warned me about him, about how he got into people's heads. Sanddune himself had told me I was too trusting; was I showing that supposed flaw right now?

He hung his head and said quietly, "Because while I may hate being under him... I see some truth in his influence. He claims that all efforts to improve the wasteland through peace and diplomacy and caring will end in vain. I denied him for years, but in my travels... I've discovered there's more truth in his statements than I would believe possible. I've seen things, experienced things. Been deceived, been used, betrayed and altogether abandoned. I've seen the wasteland at it's worst and never at it's best."

He looked back up at me. "I hate to admit it, but it's made me... different. I used to try to do better, but I no longer do. I used to care, but not any more. I've thought of killing myself more times than you'd think, but that won't change a damn thing, and it'll just take away my meager chance of atonement. He'll still be here, and he'll just keep on tricking. That's why I try to find distractions when I'm under him, so that the damage I do can be minimized. Had I not found you when I did, and used you as a distraction like I did... who knows who I would have attacked, what settlement I would have slaughtered. That's why I stay down here unless I'm needed up there; at least down here I can keep myself away from the world so I don't hurt it any more than I already have."

Then he looked to both sides, as though he was worried someone else was listening in. Then he leaned in close and whispered hoarsely, "And the worst part is that if I don't kill, then the monster in me gets out. Much as I hate myself for what I've done... the being I become is a nightmare no one should witness. And so... so, as much as I don't want to, I have to kill. Gods damn me, I have to."

"Oh..." I murmured quietly. Well, I guess I didn't really have the right to judge him anymore, did I? He'd lived out here, he knew just how bad things could get. I didn't, and I'd only seen a fraction of the evil of the wasteland. He'd killed and slaughtered and burned and destroyed... but had I been in his position, caught between giving up to a sadistic entity, becoming a nightmarish creature of destruction, and giving up hope completely, would I have handled it any better? Could I force myself to manage my emotions like files and fight for my identity at the same time? Could I find the strength to seclude myself for the sake of others while still maintaining my sanity? Could I force myself to kill one group of people so that others may be spared? I didn't think so.

'Very... regrettable...' Tom said tiredly in my head. 'He's not tricking you, by the way. I can see in his mind. And I did try to help him, actually. But his influence over him is... strong. It's rooted in his mind, and cannot be removed. I may stop him from doing one thing, but that would only make him try harder to push this poor soul past the point of redemption. The truth is that the less attention I give to things, the less my counterpart tries to bend that thing to his means.'

Really? Well, that just sucked. I wondered how much of his attention Tom was giving me. "That's why you said you killed those Legionnaires to satisfy your daily dose of death-..." I started.

"And you and your friends must have thought it some kind if figure of speech I uttered out of wild vigor at the act of killing," Predator finished.

I took that in as I looked Predator's shadowy form over. I was wrong about him. He wasn't bad, at least not intentionally. I could understand. He was caught between a rock and a hard place with no means of escape. Suicide was out of the question; that would snuff out his already tiny chance of redemption completely. He wasn't actually a predator; he was prey, constantly being harassed by a being of malicious intent and a creature within himself, and resorting to secluding himself in order to reduce the destruction he wreaked.

I took in all I had heard and learned. All-in-all, it was far more than I had intended to l to learn (that tended to happen a lot when I tried to talk to people, much to my chagrin), but the knowledge I had obtained was of great significance. I had gained a lot more context on the two entities in my head, (which was useful, let me to tell you) and I had gained some insight on the enigmatic workings of Predator's mind. And needless to say, I viewed him very differently now than I had the past two weeks.

I was also scared to death of Tod at that point. I had the very sudden urge to smack my head against the ground for the small chance of getting him out of me, but the logical part of my head knew it wouldn't work and stopped me. So I just settled for begging Tom to do more to keep him from screwing with me.

Finally, his eyes hardened. "Alright, enough indulging in the kindness and patience of others. I won't be able to redeem myself just standing here. Let's go," He said, then paused for a short moment as he counted to himself. "Besides, we've been talking for seven and a half minutes now. That's two and a half minutes the assault on the surface could be wavering."

At once all of my thoughts of the recent conversation disappeared. He was right, there were people up there who were depending on us. Once the dam was taken and we weren't in imminent danger from inhaling explosive spores, then I could think clearly.

As we trotted back to the others, I approached him and said quietly, "You should tell them. I don't think they can continue hating you if they knew your situation." I paused, wondering if my next words would make sense to him, or even to myself. "All I know is that I can't hate you any more, or at least not too much."

"No," He responded. "I deserve their hate. At the end of the day, Tod only influenced me to do the things that I did, he did not force me. I am still at fault, and so I deserve every ounce of loathing I get. My weakness is my own, and I must be punished for them." He stopped for a moment, as if in thought. "And besides, even if I did they would not believe me. They wouldn't care."

"Oh, I think I could make them care," I said evenly. "They'll listen to me. I think I could help them understand."

For a long moment he just stood there, staring at me. "Maybe. I wouldn't ask you to. I don't deserve your second chance, it is wasted upon me."

"We'll see about that," I murmured, feeling a fierce determination to get the others to understand Predator's predicament forming in my head. Funny, if I had even thought of sympathizing with him four days ago, I would have shot myself for the mere thought of it. Now here I was openly admitting to wanting to help him. Strange how one's mindset can change so quickly, huh?

Once more he stared at me for a long moment. His eyes weren't of the brightness necessary to freeze me, but I stayed still anyway. His gaze was calculating and cold, as if he were digging through my head to determine the intentions with which I was making my offer. I could feel the invisible tendrils moving around inside my head.

Then his eyes softened. In fact, they looked almost... exhausted. "I've never had anyone try to help me before. I never even thought I deserved to be spoken with." He looked away from me, and I heard the faintest sniff. "You are truly a good pony to show me such kindness. I pray that I may prove deserving of even your spit."

I stared back at him with pity. He truly, truly hated himself. In comparison, my self-imposed justice for my weaknesses and faults were utterly miniscule.

Then I thought of all my companions in general, even those not officially with me yet at that point. Skyfire needed help with her emotional distress regarding her dead loved one, Myst was more or less stable except for her near rape, thank the Goddesses. Doodle was damned puzzling, to the point that even an experienced individual such as Predator couldn't quite comprehend her startling resilience to the terrors of the wasteland. Predator himself was a mental battlefield, constantly looking for ways to cause as little suffering while still keeping his monster away.

And then I thought of myself, and compared my problems with theirs. I had it fairly easy, to be honest. Sure, for the first few days I had thought that I had it really bad, but that changed dramatically. What was the worst and most traumatizing thing that had happened to me since I was out here so far? Oh yeah: I killed. So what? I could deal with the guilt and terror of that, but what my friends were going through was much more significant. And, much as I didn't want to forget it, my promise to Lighthouse just had to be changed to the least important priority I had. There was just too much to do.

So what exactly did it mean when the most untroubled of us was a hovering, talking vehicle who had been lying still in a garage for two centuries? I think it meant to say that we were fucking insane.

Just then there was a terrified scream followed by a thump. Myst and Doodle called out frantically for me (with Doodle calling 'Mr. Predator' more than once). I galloped through the smoke towards the light of the bulbs, hoping and praying that whatever had happened wasn't too serious. Predator's remarkable speed brought him there in less than a second, leaving me lagging pathetically behind.

I stormed through the cloud and saw Skyfire lying on the ground, shaking and stretched out on the ground as though she were possessed. Myst was trying to hold her still, but Skyfire was shaking too hard. Doodle was running around in panic, screaming and blabbering all sorts of useless words.

Predator wasted no time, pushing Myst away and forcing Skyfire's shaking form still with his forehooves as he pinned her down. He let his immense backpack fall down to his side, and at once a dozen or so small, silvery boxes with small, red glowing crystals on their sides poured out and scattered onto the floor.

I arrived a moment later and assisted him in keeping her still. Myst was too shocked and being roughly pushed away and was still recovering. Doodle was running around in circles, and her yelling was definitely wasn't helping me concentrate and determine the cause of all this. Was it something she saw? Something we ate? We had come across some interesting wildlife that Predator claimed were safe (including some surprisingly tangy glowing berries), but maybe he was mistaken?

As I kept her trembling body from shaking uncontrollably, Predator picked at the dozen or so small boxes, tossing some of them away at random. I didn't know what the hell he was searching for; all of them looked exactly the same.

Then suddenly he picked one up. "Aha!" He said in triumph. Then he opened the silvery box and turned it upside down, and at once dozens of small syringes clattered onto the floor, each filled with the same drug mix Doomtune had given Myst. He picked one of them up and was about to inject Skyfire with them, when I stopped him.

"What are you doing?" I asked, concerned for my friend and a little angry that Predator was about to utilize drugs. "I am not letting you pump my friend full of potentially addictive drugs!"

"There's no point arguing," He said calmly. "This is severe tetanus. We keep her like this long enough and she dies. You don't want that, do you?" Then, without another word from either of us, he jammed the needle into her chest and emptied the syringe. Immediately afterwards he coated the needle's entry point with a purplish salve he brought of his vest.

We watched in tense anticipation as Skyfire slowly relaxed, the occasional spasming quickly reducing and then altogether disappearing. Doodle slowly brought her head close to Skyfire's, then fell forward from the weight of the helmet and let out a little 'oof'. Myst just sat nearby, waiting to see if Skyfire was indeed alright. Predator was utterly still, staring down at her as her breathing became more calm. I didn't like what he did, but at least she wasn't shaking any more. Still, I didn't like that I was letting my friends get drugged just for temporary relief.

She breathed in shakily for a moment, then slowly rolled towards the closest of us, and the closest just so happened to be Predator. If he appeared still before, now he was as frozen as though he had looked at himself with his own eyes. His breathing became tense and altogether bewildered as Skyfire let out a few relieved sobs into his legs (technically into her helmet, but still.) Even I was surprised by the motion.

"Th-thank you..." She muttered in between a set of hiccups. "I... I felt like I was going to die. I couldn't even scream or gasp. Just shake."

"Don't thank me," Predator replied. "Thanking me would imply that I have done something worthy of admiration or reciprocation. As it is, I have taken a tiny step on a thousand year journey to redemption." I looked to him, making sure my surprise reached my eyes as I gave him a look. Then to me he said, "Redemption which I will never reach."

"What are you talking about?" Skyfire questioned as she calmed herself down. "You mean when you did those things we hated you for?" Predator looked down at her, but didn't do anything else. "Because if it is..." She glanced to me, then back at him. "...well, you did save me just now. I think I can cut you some slack."

Predator just stared down at her for a moment, growling low and soft. Myst seemed to take that as a sign of aggression, as she kept her rifle pointed on the head of our mysterious guide. Doodle just sat down and watched us with relaxed curiosity. And me? I knew enough of Predator's growling to know that it didn't always mean he was going to kill something. Nevertheless, I kept Tankbuster close.

Then he helped her up and shoved her towards me. The action made Skyfire uncomfortable for two reasons: that she didn't like being shoved, and because she was still trying to avoid physical contact with me out of the only slightly reduced awkwardness we both felt. "We should keep moving. No more delays. The sooner we take that dam the sooner you can continue on your little quest," Predator said as he stuffed all the mysterious boxes back into his pack, then he trotted ahead of us and into the thick of the un-illuminated cloud.

We were about to trudge after him once more, our hooves sore and chafed, when suddenly there was a tremendous ring all throughout the tunnels. Tom's gentle hum faltered and gave way to it, and the force of the burning pain it singed into our heads floored all of us completely. I couldn't tell if Predator was floored, though; I couldn't see him through the cloud, except for the faintest glow of his red eyes. All of us, especially me, screamed in agony as the energy cooked our brains like a piece of meat in boiling oil. The rest of my body itself felt as though acid was flowing through my veins. Worse, my many wounds and scars that I had accumulated over the course of three weeks were reopening. As in, bleeding and throbbing opening. Hell, even those of the others were coming back up. All our blood piled up around us and began cooling rapidly as it bubbled. Yes, bubbled. I didn't know what the fuck was happening to us, but it was so not good.

Tom's energy acted up and intervened on our behalf. For about a minute, his humming struggled against the piercing energy of Tod, and the whole time all we could do was thrash and scream. Ahead of us, in the cloud, I could hear Predator wail and scream and growl and roar. His eyes turned green and became bright enough to pierce clearly through the Black Cloud, and his gaze fell upon me. Despite all the pain, I froze. He began slowly approaching me, growling low and threateningly. And all I could do was stare at him in horror as he pulled out a blade and held it in his hooves.

Tom prevailed, and when the sonic battle going on around us subsided, Tod's was gone. Tom's was weak now, though. Almost as if another attack like that and he'd fail altogether. Really, a part of my brain suddenly felt very tired.

Predator eyes turned red again. He shook himself hard, then grabbed the hoof that had the blade and held it close. He glanced at me with a look in his eyes I couldn't quite fathom, and then looked over to the others. Then he cast his eyes to the ground and sighed, taking a few steps back into the darkness.

When all that subsided we took a moment to recover from the attack. Tom was utilizing whatever strength he had left in his signal to help our bodies regenerate. The others expressed great discomfort and confusion as to how it was happening again (except Doodle, who instead watched with glee as her few wounds quickly closed up). Predator and I kept quiet in the matter as we looked at each other; he and I both knew what was happening, him more so than I. Our trip down here had taught me to trust his instructions and his lead, and I had learned that well. So if he, who had far greater knowledge and experience with Tod and Tom, was keeping quiet about it, then I would keep quiet as well.

My head, and for some reason my body (even the parts of me that weren't bleeding or stinging), was aching terribly, and from the groans and moans from the others, so were theirs. My head wasn't silent, though; quite the opposite, Tod was laughing madly as each beat of my heart spread throbbing pain all throughout my body. Tom was nowhere to be felt or heard, or maybe he was there, but that his strength was so little I couldn't detect him. Perhaps all of his efforts on our behalf had drained him? Either way, he was gone, at least for that moment.

Then there was an echoing, low growl that reverberated all over the station. It sounded like Predator's growl, except this one was much more... savage; less repressed and more primal. On my E.F.S, a single red bar appeared. I really wished my E.F.S had the zebra version's ability of determining the potential danger level of each red bar, because right now, in my head, this one bar felt immensely powerful.

Predator listened to the growl carefully as it sounded again. His glowing eyes widened and looked up from the floor and down the tunnel the growling was coming from. "It can't be..." He murmured. He shook his head in apparent disbelief, and when the sound came again he closed his eyes and focused. When he opened them again, he nearly screamed in rage and disbelief, "It can't be!"

"Mister Predator, what's going on?" Doodle asked worriedly, glancing back and forth as she sat on a pool of her dried up blood (her blood, as I saw, bubbled significantly less than ours did). Myst was doing the same, and Skyfire herself readied her plasma rifles.

He ignored her question and turned to us, barely keeping his breathing calm. "Run. This is a foe none of you are capable of fighting. Move down this path as fast as you can, don't turn back. No matter what you hear. If... if this turns out in my favor, I will rejoin you. If not... keep moving," He said as he gestured down a cloud-obscured hallway.

The others showed only a bit of hesitation before galloping through the cloud, with Doodle riding on Skyfire's back. But I didn't want to leave Predator alone to face whatever this thing was, no matter how ridiculously strong and fast he may have been.

When he noticed me standing beside him, shotgun ready and in a battle stance, he shoved me away roughly and said, "Go, Praetorian. This is not something you should face."

"I'm not leaving you behind! Either you come with us, or we face it together. Bad things happen when I separate from my companions," I said obstinately.

"Yes, I know. I saw what happened when you told Myst to leave you that one time, but this is entirely different. You will be too slow to escape it. Only I can buy you time. Besides, if this thing really is what it feels like it is, then I'll need to see it for myself to believe it. You can feel it, can't you? If you can, then you know how powerful it feels," He responded quickly, hints of worry and stress creeping into his voice.

There was the sound of a metal metro gate (the gate which Predator had lowered after our arrival here, if you remember) being smashed open from the tunnel the growling, now constant and continuous, was coming from. I felt my head begin to ache from the power of the signal radiating off of this being, and Predator seemed to feel it, too.

"Goldwreath!" Skyfire yelled, popping out from the doorway, with Doodle no longer on her back. "Let's go, let's go!" Then she galloped towards me and began pushing me towards the door. I wanted to tell her to go, to leave me behind to face this thing, but I didn't. Predator was right about this thing, as I would learn just a few moments from that point. I just wished I had listened to him while I still had time.

The being felt like it was very close now, and it's presence sent horrified chills up my spine. It felt so powerful and so altogether terrifying that it took all my effort to not cower on the floor like a lost foal. Even merely standing up was a challenge, as every second the painful pumping of my heart caused my already overtaxed brain to throb in pain. Skyfire herself seemed to be nearly petrified, though she was still better off than I was.

Then there was the feeling of a field of energy, spreading out around the area. It made it's way to the four corners of the station, like a sheet getting draped over a bed. With one quick jerk, the energy pulled inwards towards the center of the station.

The cloud swirled towards the center of area, forming a spinning ball of Black Cloud in the air and revealing the ground floor of the metro station. There, standing in the tunnel which we had used to arrive here, was a large, shadowy form standing on two legs, with shadow-shrouded wings extending sideways. It was a large being, standing perhaps ten feet in height and had a width of perhaps a meter, shoulder-to-shoulder. It's long, talon-tipped arms hung down from it's immense torso, and the shape of it's head seemed to show it had horns of a sort. A long, slender tail swished around behind it. Tod's energy emanated from it with immense strength, the likes of which quite nearly floored me again.

But, as with many things, my initial observations weren't what got my attention. And the next discovery I made chilled me to the bone.

It's eyes blazed with a blood red coloration, brighter than even Predator's. It's horrible glance landed upon me, and as I froze so did Skyfire. It growled in satisfaction as it took several steps out from the tunnel and towards the staircase, it's steps tauntingly slow and heavy enough to shake the earth slightly with each dark foot it placed forward. All we could do was stand still and watch in horror, while Myst and Doodle were galloping to safety.

Then Predator trotted forward, towards the end of the staircase. He growled as he went the short distance, and the area became significantly darker than before as he neared the creature. He brought his HMG-assault rifle hybrid up, readying the mechanism with one swift pull of the lever. Skyfire and I only watched with frozen terror as the creature's large, mysterious form got halfway up the stairs.

"You shall not pass," Predator said, his own voice a terrible mix of a growl and a snarl.

The creature looked up at him with the exact same red eyes that Predator possessed. It spread it's wings out to full length and stood up to it's full height, then said in a sinister, rough, and bestial voice, "Ah, the Arsonist. I have looked forward to this meeting with you. Surely, as brothers of the same blood, you and I could-..."

Predator cut it off without any hesitation and said with disgust, "Silence, fool. I don't know what kind of gutter you were fished out of, or how you or whom you serve managed to reopen that gods-forsaken project, but that doesn't matter." He dared take a step forward. "What I want answered is 'why'. Why in the name of all things would you turn yourself into this monstrosity?! Why would you be so foolish as to let yourself become what you are?! And why would you get yourself involved in this? Did you even know what you got into when you did this to yourself?"

The creature laughed; apparently, it had expected as much from Predator. "Ah, but I do know what I have gotten into. I am on the verge of rising, brother. I'm sure you know what that means," It said with a low chuckle that pulsated through the air.

"That's... not possible," Predator replied, taking a step back. "I shut down the facilities years ago. There's no way you could have recovered it. In fact you shouldn't even have access to the biological half of this project."

"Yes, I don't. Nor my other brethren, near-ascendance and rising alike. Only the Father knows how. Him... and you," The creature replied with a step forward, raising one of it's talon-tipped arms forward and clenching it's fist tight. At once, a faint green light flowed out from it's fist, growing brighter and stronger. When it opened it again, there was a brightly glowing orb of swirling sickly green light in it's claws. Tod's energy pulsated from it, causing all of us but Predator and the creature pain. Predator stared it with wide eyes, taking several more steps back.

"Shatter your mortal bounds, Arsonist. Become the god you and all of us are meant to be. Show us your true form, your true power. Cease running from your destiny and join us once more, and together with our brethren we will cleanse this world of the unworthy and the weak. We will bask in the Gift, and ascend to the next stage of existence," It said as it took another step up, spreading it's shadowed wings even wider and raising it's non orb-wielding arm up.

Predator looked at the orb first, then looked up with a growl at the creature before him, it's features still not revealed even by the glow of the orb. "You imbecile! Not only are you losing yourself every second you bask in this... this... curse, but you actually brought it to OTHERS?! Do you realize what you've done?!" Predator screamed, dropping his weapon and backpack onto the ground and galloping forward, tackling the creature and sending them both down the stairs. The orb immediately vanished in a green flash. They rolled and slammed into the railings until they landed at the bottom with a loud thud, with Predator on top.

"Yes, I did. And yes, I do. In fact... they should be here right now," The creature said with a low chuckle.

And then I felt them. Dozens of entities with a similar presence in my head that Predator and the creature shared. The exact same ones that I had been feeling for a large portion of the trip down here. How had I not felt them in the last hour? They were so close now, too close to have been undetected by Predator's very acute senses. Perhaps Tod had been shielding them the whole time?

"No... no, no!" Predator screamed, also feeling the presence of our ambushers. He punched the creature in the face repeatedly, each blow sending a sickening crack through the air. "What have you done?!" He screamed as he continued beating the creature with his ultra-powerful hoof strikes. In fact, his punching had shattered the concrete and sunk them both into the earth, about two feet down.

While Predator was continuing beating the shit out of the creature, Skyfire and I finally managed to gather enough wits to move. She was shaking and breathing in hurriedly; clearly, that whole conversation had disturbed her greatly. I was disturbed as well, mind you. I just manifested that shock and horror in a different manner which was, to put it lightly, partially soiling myself. Luckily I managed to regain bladder control right after I lost it.

Just then there was a terrified scream from down the hallway Myst and Doodle had gone down. The scream, of course, was Myst's. Doodle was much too enigmatic to get frightened at nearly anything. Strange how I can look back at these moments from where I am now and feel only accomplished joy, despite how horrible it all was...

Anyway, my terror was much more real back then. For just a moment upon hearing said scream, Skyfire and I balked and hesitated. Then we both shouted in unison, "Myst, Doodle!" And then, with my heart thundering in my ears and chest and with my wounds still stinging and Predator still pounding, we galloped down the hall after them. I would only look at my E.F.S later, and for several days after I would wish I had looked sooner.

Good thing we moved through the doorway when we did, though. It was just at that moment that Predator crashed into the wall right behind us and blasted through it, to a room or chamber of some sort on the other side. The hole his impact made in the wall was big enough for Zaita to fit through. We only stopped long enough to see him get up, groan, shake his head, and charge back down the hall to the creature before we continued galloping.

With the sounds and vibrations of roaring and growling and concrete-smashing, steel-shattering melee combat between Predator and the creature erupting again and again behind us, we continued galloping for a mere ten seconds before we saw Myst galloping through the severely reduced cloud towards us. Her helmet was severely scratched and beaten, yet thankfully had no cracks that would have exposed her to the cloud. Doodle rode on her back, clinging to Myst's neck like a parasite as Doodle herself waved her hoof behind her and said something along the lines of 'go away, you meanie monsters!' again and again.

"Myst! What the fuck's going on?" Skyfire asked as the earth pony and accompanying filly galloped past us. She didn't even stop for breath or to tell us. Really, the only thing that she said that was evenly partially fathomable through her erratic breathing was 'run!'.

"Run from what?" I yelled after her. Skyfire instead galloped after her, intent on dragging getting a better explanation.

Of course, now I was alone in the long hallway, with Predator fighting a being of indeterminate origins and abilities and my friends getting further away with every second. My head was in severe panic, ruining any organized thoughts the moment they entered my head. I couldn't do anything but dart my eyes to and fro and breath, trying to think of something, anything, that could help. It was at that point that I finally took the time to look at my E.F.S and try to detect where these other beings were.

On my E.F.S was a paltry five bars, a part of the oncoming horde of the dozens of entities I sensed all around us in the tunnels. I had a hunch that I could only see and sense them on my E.F.S now because these were the closest, and that whatever magic or power hiding them was temporarily abolished or weakened. That power was still at least partially active over the others, as my detection of them was blurry, and at times some of them would disappear from my mental radar for a few seconds before appearing again.

While I stood there blankly trying to detect them and to conceive some kind of plan, a dark form with red glowing eyes lunged out of the darkness and tackled me, sending us both rolling along until it flung me away and I smacked against a wall. I had been so focused on my mental radar that I didn't even pay attention to my E.F.S.

I recovered and drew out Tankbuster, then fired all the shells as quickly as I could as the form prepared itself to lunge once again. The muzzle flashes from my shotgun illuminated the creature, and what I saw of it were truly horrifying.

It was perhaps a little larger than I was, maybe three inches taller and a little wider. It was vaguely equine-shaped, at least in the sense that it had a tail and four legs. However, it's tail was some kind of slimy, black carapace-clad length tipped with a barbed stinger. It's coat, or what was supposed to be it's coat, consisted of thousands of scales, ranging in color from red to gray, which formed a suit of armor akin to that a dragon possessed. It's shoulders were protected by some kind of biological shoulder plate consisting of the chitinous black carapace, and it's chest was plated with the same biological armor in addition to the scales. It's legs were no longer quite equine-shaped, as the muscles bulged out of the yellow, leathery, scaled hide that coated it's limbs, like the legs of a manticore studded with the scales of a dragon. It's mane was non-existent, and was replaced instead by a razor sharp, black, bony, blade-like growth that extended back to front, like the plumes of my helmet. And to make matters even worse, it had properly-proportioned, bat-like leathery wings protruding from it's back.

It's head was what truly caught my attention, though. The red glowing eyes aside, there were even more monstrous things consisting it's face. A grayish reptilian snout jutted out from where my muzzle should have been, with a small stream of smoke rising up from it's nostrils. Around it's dragon-like maw were three fleshy protrusions, linked together by slimy skin. The protrusions looked as though they were supposed to be some kind of second, external mouth; mandibles, basically. It had gills on the side of it's head, slime seeping out from the slits.

Long story short, this was some kind unnatural hybrid that had to be destroyed.

Of course, that was easier said than done. Even after Tankbuster was out the creature was only partially bleeding, and whatever scales I had shot off or damage I had done to it were quickly regenerating. Damn it, Tankbuster was powerful enough to punch through power armor, yet couldn't kill a purely biological creature? That meant this beast was damned strong.

I pulled out my gladius and attempted to stab the creature's eye, but it jumped to the side and sent me flying down the hall with it's immensely strong hindlegs. It was much stronger than Predator's buck, but then again he had held back (or if he didn't, he got a lot stronger over the course of a few weeks). Pain exploded in my ribs as my armor bent to the force, and as I flew I found that it was harder to breathe. I had probably not heard the sounds of my bones being broken over the noise of the destruction going on behind me.

I crashed against the railings of the metro station's second floor, and the concrete cracked at the impact. Myst immediately got over to me, helping me up as Skyfire stared down the dark hall where all of these creatures were coming from. Doodle was running around in circles, screaming in panic and fright.

I helped Myst get me up by pulling myself up using the railings. Then I saw Predator's comparatively small form lifted up the gigantic creature, who then flung him across the area and at us. I ducked just in time to not have my head broken, and Predator smashed against the walls once again. It was just then that the creature I fought earlier emerged from the darkness and lunged at Skyfire, whose plasma bolts seemed to be doing actual, non-regenerating damage to it. She ducked, and the creature instead landed on the still recovering Predator.

Despite obviously having been on the losing end between his fight with the monstrosity, he was far more capable of combatting something more his size. Even as the creature backed away, seemingly scared of my mysterious guide, Predator tackled it and with two powerful punches to it's head, caved it's skull in. He then ripped it in half and threw the creature's corpse away with a growl of disgust.

The monstrosity on the first floor was coming up the stairs, seemingly intent on finishing us off. "Arsonist, show me your true form! Your true GLORY!" It yelled in an earthshaking voice as it cleared the stairs.

Predator roared and threw himself at it again, smacking into it's head and sending it tripping backwards and falling to the ground just as it reached our floor. Leaving him to that, I called for the others to join me in defending the doorway. My E.F.S showed one solid wall of red, as all the entities comprising that wall were all coming from that direction.

It was not the first time we were in an impossibly hopeless situation. After I had finished reloading my shotgun, I joined them in pouring down as much fire as possible down the hall as more of the creatures sprang towards us, some of them even crawling on the walls and ceiling like the monsters they were. For a moment after our enemy's numbers were revealed to them, the other two momentarily paused their shooting and balked at the hopelessness of our situation. I'll admit, I was so sure of death at that point I thought of running for it and leaving them behind. Even they seemed to be contemplating it, looking behind them and to each other and to me with a look of terror in their eyes.

But retreat was out of the question. My stubbornness towards the act of retreating and getting cut down like animals would later on save our lives, yet hurt the people I cared for.

I stomped hard. "Hold your ground!" I bellowed, getting such a startled look from both of them that I thought I had to smack them up their heads. I did, and despite looking even more startled they got back to shooting, occasionally casting me a glance that suggested they hoped I knew what I was doing.

And if 'knew what I was doing' meant charging forward into the horde of monstrosities in a fit of suicidal courage was what my plan was, then for the sake of all things stupid, that's what I'd do.

I galloped forward, gladius in one forehoof and Tankbuster in the other, and unleashed all of my fury upon them. The first I crashed into was no different than the first one of the things I saw; the same appearance, almost an exact clone, save for different battle marks on it's carapace and scales. The force of my impact sent us rolling, toppling several others in our wake. Unfortunately, it seemed to have anticipated my ludicrously stupid move, as it absorbed my impact better than I would have expected and recovered quickly, in the process throwing me away and sending me against another of it's kin.

It and several of it's many comrades (some of which looked different from one another in one minor detail. For example, one of them had a strangely small left wing, while another's scales were for some reason peeling off) were about to come down on me and stomp me to paste, or worse, when one of the creature's eye sockets exploded in a shower of gooey emerald blood. The bullet pierced through it's other eye and ripped away a portion of the creature's snout, and it's dead body then slumped against the creature next to it.

"Goldwreath!" Myst called, "Aim for the eyes!"

Yeah, I had already gotten that. Nevertheless, her reminder got me off the ground and filled me with enough bravery to start killing these SoB's. Skyfire poured on the fire as I jumped on one of them and stuck my blade into it's eye, and it let out a reptilian hiss before it died. Her plasma bolts kept them from simply tearing me to shreds, as they seemed to know that energy-based wounds wouldn't heal.

Of course, these creatures weren't just going to let us pick them off now that we knew their weaknesses. Even as Myst and Skyfire did all they could to help me out, their eyes were still damned small targets. I slashed and stabbed and swirled and kicked, but they seemed to be letting me strike only their less vulnerable extremities. Hell, even one of the wings of the creatures that I had cut off were already regrowing.

One of them reared and kicked me into a wall, and one of the jagged shards from a ruined pipe pierced me through my side. I screamed as I struggled for breath and to keep my eyes from wincing, feeling my blood pour out of me in great volumes. Good thing I didn't close my eyes, lest I wouldn't have seen the rear legs that were about to smash me into the wall. I dodged to the side just in time to not become part of the explosion of concrete and steel, tearing the piece of metal away in the process. Of course, now it was stuck inside me, too. That really didn't feel good, let me tell you.

And the worst part was the Black Cloud. Not only were these creatures not affected, but if so much as a small crack appeared on my helmet, then I was done for. Even worse than that was the fact that, according to one of Predator's earlier remarks about one of the dead bodies we came across, the cloud could get into one's lungs through the bloodstream. I may not have felt them, but I had the nagging worry that every second I breathed may have been the last I lived before I exploded.

And even as I rolled, another of them sank it's jagged fangs into my armor, piercing through the metal easily as it's teeth plunged further and further into my back. I couldn't get at it, no matter how I struggled to get free. It lifted me up with it's mouth, and more of the creatures then reared up and lifted their paw-hoof hybrid legs up. Then long claws erupted from each of them, and they then began tearing away at me.

It hurt a damned fucking lot, to say the least. I'm not even going to describe the pain that comes with having your body horribly mutilated. They tore at me like a cat with it's play toy, rending my flesh and armor alike. I saw my muscle fly off in all directions as they sadistically ripped me apart. And I say sadistic because these creatures seemed to be sentient enough to laugh, and I took that as a sign that they very much enjoyed my pain. I yelled and kicked with whatever strength I had left, which wasn't much. Already I could feel my insides growing cold from blood loss, my eyes heavy and tired, my heart weak and frail. Tod's energy all around me seemed to be laughing along with them, and with all my mental consciousness I cursed him. I cursed them all, every last one of them. Myst and Skyfire cried out for me, both of them audibly LITERALLY crying, despite everything. They poured on the fire and advanced forward, gaining the attention of those of the creatures less focused on me.

The creature let me fall out of it's mouth and I fell to the ground. I saw the bloody shreds of my organs slosh onto the floor and onto my shredded armor, bile erupting from my stomach and strange, pea-sized black spores pouring out with the blood coming from my lungs. Then they turned all their attention to my friends, who were already being attacked and hopelessly surrounded by them. I was sorry for that; leading them down here, I mean. For allowing us to take this dangerous path. For not preparing for the attack when I had already detected them beforehoof. For being so stupid as to attack instead of retreating, and for making them do the same.

I felt numb now. No more pain, in fact I didn't feel anything. It was a strange sensation, being able to watch all of my irreversibly torn and maimed body, yet not feeling a single thing. It made me feel like a spectator to my own body, just watching and not feeling; just like in Veltrio's memory. The only thing I could feel was everything inside me shutting down, like the switches of the things keeping me alive were being flicked one by one. First my lungs; I wasn't breathing anymore, actually. Then my limbs; those were all horribly disfigured. Then my lungs; good thing too, as in my last moments of feeling I felt things growing in them. Then my heart.

I lay there for a few moments, looking up at the ceiling. I glanced back down for a moment, at my horribly pulverized internal organs. The sight of them would have made me void my stomach of all it's contents, if that weren't torn open and already emptied. In all honesty I don't even know how I survived all that.

The coldness of doom wrapped itself around me like a blanket of snow. I saw the Reaper's scythe being held by his bony, tall, hooded form. About him was a fiery inferno, and through the haze I saw the vague form of a throne, a dark figure sitting upon it. The Reaper raised his tool in preparation to strike me. I could feel his malice, growing with his skeletal smile as he anticipated my soul in his prison.

I didn't want to see the blade cut through me. Slowly, I closed my eyes. I heard the blade slash through the air, milliseconds away from taking my soul. I wondered if Veltrio saw the same thing I did.

And then, just like in Veltrio's memory, my mind shut down. I was done for.

I was dead.

And yet... and yet right at the point when everything was supposed to end, when all sight and hearing and taste and feeling and smell was supposed to be no more, when the blade was supposed to strike me and send me to oblivion, I heard it.

Tod's signal was ringing through the tunnels like a thousand dog whistles, gripping my attention immediately, despite everything else I should have noticed with my quickly reawakening senses, like the burning of my muscles touching the floor and the sickening cracks my bones gave off as they reshaped, and the general pain of feeling every single organ in my body being forcibly regenerated in a matter of seconds.

The noise felt and sounded like Tod's energy... but it also felt different. I don't know how to describe it; it was him, yet... yet the signal felt manipulated. Controlled, monopolized, whatever you want to call it. Really, as the creatures backed away from me in almost drone-like unison, and as my bleeding stopped, I could almost feel Tod screaming in my head, yelling out of shock and demanding to be 'let go'.

With my surprisingly quickly recovering strength, and with a whole slew of questions in mind, I turned around. I didn't bother to watch my regenerating organs, lest I get images of myself that would never go away. I already had enough nightmare fuel, thank you very much.

Any remaining creatures were backing away slowly, even abandoning their assault on my friends. Skyfire got up and screamed, then opened fire without restraint. Myst was still trying to get up, and I saw Doodle poking her head in to look at us from where she stood at the hall's entrance.

When they had all stepped behind me, I saw him. Predator stood at the hall's entrance, his vest battered and helmet crushed and scratched; he'd probably need a whole new suit. Doodle was looking up at him curiously. Skyfire and Myst did the same, except they were looking at him with fright and horror instead of curiosity. His eyes shone with a sickly greenish light, like floodlights were within his helmet. Even the rest of his body glowed a faint green. He blankly gave both Skyfire and Myst a syringe, and despite looking horrified and worried, with Myst cringing at his approach, the two promptly injected themselves. I didn't know what it was for, though.

He stepped closer, and I saw the very air around him ripple with energy as he manipulated Tod's energy. In a sense, he was an avatar of the energy, just like Veltrio and his compatriots were. It was at that point that I came to realize one thing (although I suspect you already picked up on it. You weren't in my place after all, and if you were I doubt you could have spared the brainpower to realize it sooner) : whoever Predator was, he was from back then. Maybe he was a ghoul? Predator himself had told me that there were such things as sentient ghouls; ponies and zebras who were exposed to enough radiation to mutate, yet maintain their sanity. Or maybe he was something different? His eyes' resemblance to the creatures gave me a few stomach-churning thoughts about what he might have looked like beneath his armor. As for his true appearance, I would find out only later on.

He approached me and kneeled, the energy around him forming little wisps of green and encircling me. At once my already quickly regenerating body went into overdrive; healing at about thrice the speed it was before. I couldn't hear anything through the extremely loud signal, though. Still, if it were any other circumstance I suppose in addition to having it in my ears I would have been getting a nasty headache to boot. As it was, there was nothing in my head except for Tod screaming and yelling like he was experiencing as much pain as I was.

He pulled out a syringe from one of his pockets, similar to the ones he had given my friends. Before I could ask him what was in it, or really before I could do anything else, he plunged it onto my still healing ripped-open chest. At once I felt the spores in my lungs grow smaller, some of them even disappearing altogether. It eased my pain a bit, and just a bit. My body still stung like I was bathing in a tub filled with live jellyfish, and my bones snapped and cracked disgustingly as they reshaped, but at least I was going to live, even if it felt like I wasn't.

After a few moments of watching me he got back up and trotted towards the creatures. In my head I could feel them; they were... obeying, yet begrudgingly. As if Predator's control of the signal was also controlling them. And yet I also felt blind respect and adoration festering in their heads; clearly, whatever Predator was, he was some kind of objective being for them.

"Leave and be yourselves once more. Do not get yourselves involved in this any further than you have. This is no gift, it is a curse, and do not ever think otherwise," Predator said, his voice similar to the time three days ago when he was struggling to keep himself from turning into... whatever he was scared of turning into.

There was a great disturbance in the field of energy I had come to know as Tod's. I could sense the creature's hesitation and anger, and several of them in fact snarled and snapped their maws at my guide. Predator didn't move, in fact he stepped forward even more. That increased whatever emotion was in each individual creature's mind, ranging from anger and betrayal to eagerness.

Then Predator raised his forehooves and drew them back with a jerk. At once, hundreds of wisps of green light emerged from their minds and began flowing around Predator. The creatures yipped and barked and roared as they tried backing away disapprovingly. I was especially surprised and quite unsettled when I saw a wisp emerge from my head and the heads of my friends, an especially large one coming from Myst's.

They swirled around him like a tornado, until all the wisps slowly made their way to Predator's head. They disappeared into his helmet, and with each one he absorbed he shook and flinched. Obviously, whatever he was doing he was doing out of necessity rather than desire.

When at least they were all absorbed, I felt much more... whole. More myself, less awkward. Like I had felt before leaving the stable, minus all the horror I had witnessed. I just felt more... me. The energy was completely gone, in the air and in my mind.

And even more strange was how each creature now felt in my mind. They were no longer angry, or at least the great majority of them weren't. Now they were all for the most part confused. They didn't feel like blights on my mental radar anymore, despite their appearance. Now they felt like... regular ponies and zebras.

"Go," Predator said with a small wave of his hoof. "Be free. Don't get caught up in all this again. Leave Roam, this place is just a damned deathtrap... and worse."

Like a crowd of confused rioters, they left. Some of them, those who still felt angry and furious, stayed behind and stomped hard and roared aggressively at the Specter. He didn't budge in the slightest, but looked on them with pitiful eyes.

Eventually they too left. One by one, their presences in my mind winked out. We stared at him in disbelief and shock (except for Doodle, who was hopping around happily) as he turned and began trotting back to us. Then he collapsed on the ground, weakly supporting himself with his forehooves as he panted heavily, the green glow fading slightly.

I got up and limped towards the others, whimpering from the soreness of my body. Every muscle felt odd and awkward, like I was learning how to use them all over again. My heart was fine, thankfully, as were my lungs. Without the presence of either Tod or Tom in my head, I felt much more at home in my mind. A little... sluggish, for some reason, but more at home.

In addition to the physical hell I was in, I also felt a pang of loss as I glanced back at my absolutely destroyed armor and vest. My Praetorian helmet was still fine, thankfully, as was my current helmet (luckily none of them had thought of just tearing out my brains through my Specter helmet, and the helmet for that reason was unscathed and not punctured). It was a strange and impractical thing to feel at the loss of some garments, but I felt much less confident without it on. So, now I had to look for something new to wear.

Skyfire and Myst galloped up to me, Doodle skipping after them. Skyfire reached me first and flung herself at me, wrapping her forehooves around my neck as she struggled to get her breathing under control. A moment later Myst reached me, looking on with an expression both concerned and... wistful.

"A-are you okay?" Skyfire stammered, drawing me in close and nearly suffocating me from the strength of her grip. I heard her sniff and choke on her half-formed sobs.

Was I? Yes... that was certainly up to debate. On the one hoof, I was alive and myself, and in fact my mind felt much more my own now. All that mattered on a practical realm of thought was that I wasn't dead, and for that I was grateful. On the other hoof, I felt unnatural. What kind of phenomenon could be so malevolent as to tear one away from death, and to wrap itself around the minds of people? Worse still, that phenomenon had been utilized to bring me from the brink of death by forcing my body to do... something. It wasn't logical or practical, but I just really felt so filthy at that moment.

Of course, she didn't need to know that. Nor Myst or Doodle. I could handle it, they didn't need to be bothered.

"Yeah," I breathed. "Just... startled. That was some weird shit that just happened back there."

"You're sure?" Myst asked softly as Skyfire hugged me tighter. Obviously, while both of them were scared to lose me, Skyfire feared losing me more. I had the vaguest suspicion it was because of my highly uncalled-for connection to her former love life.

I suddenly felt the urge to retort at her with some snide remark. Of course I wasn't okay! What kind of fucking question was that? In the past three weeks I'd been shot, stabbed, pummeled, tortured, skinned, burned, mutilated horribly, had my wings and bones broken more than once, fallen hundreds of feet, knocked out many times, drugged, harassed by some kind of sadistic piece if shit energy slash entity, been exposed to some of the terrors of the wasteland, nearly had my lungs blown up by spores, crashed out of the sky, nearly died THRICE, and she asked THAT of all questions? Was she seriously that stupid?

"Maybe... maybe when we're done with this dam business we can look for a doctor or something... to check up on you, I don't know..." Skyfire said softly, burying her head in my shoulder. It was good she said that when she did, as it immediately wrested my attention away from snapping some sarcastic remark at Myst.

She pulled away a little and looked at me through her visor. "You nearly died. And I... all I could do was watch. I couldn't do anything, I hate not being able to do anything! I hate not being able to protect you like you do us!" She began shaking.

"It's okay, Skyfire," I said soothingly, though in reality I was fighting just to breathe. My 'new lungs', like the rest of my regenerated organs, felt really awkward and foreign, like they still had to be integrated into my body. "It's my job. I wouldn't be the Praetorian if I didn't do shit like this everyday. I go through this sort of thing so people like you don't have to, understand?"

She must have smiled, as I saw her eyes perk up. "Heh, yeah, I guess. But that doesn't mean you have to suffer all of it alone." She stepped forward a little, puffing her chest out. "We're here for you, you know. And as your friends, then we personally tie you down until you agree to let us do things with you."

"Yeah," Myst chimed in softly. I stopped myself before I lost control of my words and snarled at her. "I promised to go with you no matter what, and that's what I intend to do." Skyfire and I both gave her a look, and she glanced away and scratched at the back of her neck. "Well, I did, didn't I?" She tried to sound fierce, though she actually sounded even more nervous. Ah well, at least my anger at her stupidity was fading.

I smiled. "Thanks. But really, relax, you two. I'm fine. Really." That was what I said. That was how my mind felt, too. But it wasn't how my body felt, not by a long shot. It almost felt as though something in me was changing, slowly and surely. It made me want to bathe in acid just for the small chance that whatever was happening to me would stop.

Skyfire smirked and shook her head, then turned away. Right before I lost sight of them, I saw her eyes turn from uneasy confidence to terrified and hurt. Clearly, she didn't like me keeping it all to myself, but wasn't going to say anything about it. At least for the moment. Myst looked between her and me, took a few tentative steps to me, choked on whatever words she was trying to say, then awkwardly turned around and went after Skyfire. Doodle skipped after her, absolutely unfazed by what had happened.

"Let's... let's go," Predator stammered weakly as he finally reached us, the green glow of his body gone. He picked up his backpack and weapon off of the floor where he dropped it, then leaned forward against the railings.

"What was all that?" Myst asked in a soft, unsettled, yet slightly demanding tone as she cradled her head. Skyfire was shaking hers hard as she sniffed, obviously trying to wrap her mind around what had happened, in addition to trying to get her emotions under control.

Predator didn't answer, instead standing where he was, still as stone. He seemed to be staring at something down on the first floor. I got up next to him and saw the dark form of the creature, it's head crushed underneath a train cart, it's wings torn off and industrial steel bars stabbed into it's chest. Clearly these things could only regenerate from damage that didn't outright kill them. All about it was the ruined mess of what had been a simple metro track; impact craters several feet deep in the concrete, holes in the wall where metal pipes had been ripped, and various train parts scattered about the floor.

"Predator?" I asked as I nudged him softly.

He still stared at the creature, not paying us any attention. "The 'Father'..." He murmured. "No, it can't be him. He's dead, remember that," He muttered to himself, then shook his head. "But how else could they have reopened it? Who else could have strengthened this plague and spread it over the minds of the populace? Who else could have done all this..."

"Predator?" I asked again, giving him a light shove.

Again, he didn't seem to notice. "How far has the curse spread? How many people have been brought to it? Could it... no, it couldn't..." He continued murmuring.

Then Doodle approached him. "Mister Predator, what's wrong?" She asked, scratching his foreleg softly with her own.

He stirred, looking down at her with a surprised gasp. Despite initially having a murderous look in his eyes, a look which nearly made me shoot him, but did absolutely nothing to Doodle, he relaxed. He sighed, "Everything."

He ignored our further inquiries as he trotted down the stairs. We followed after him, still too puzzled and too shocked at what had happened just a while ago to gather up enough sense to know that he wasn't going to answer. That was either because he simply didn't want to or because he didn't hear us, which was unlikely, considering how many times we asked.

He trotted over to the creature's bleeding corpse and kneeled, seeming to inspect it. "Hmm... stage four already? That can't be. I destroyed those facilities years ago," He murmured, shaking his head.

"Alright, that's it," I said, feeling both incredibly curious about Predator's connection to these creatures and incredibly annoyed that he had not shared this... whatever all this was... with me before. "What the fuck's going on? What happened back there? What did you do to me? I demand answers!"

He only turned his head around to look at me. "And you will get your answers. But not now. I must divert all of my mental capacity to... contemplating about what has just happened." He inspected it a little more, then got up and lifted the creature's still unlit corpse. He looked at where he had ripped it's wings away, scratching at the flesh beneath it's skin. He seemed to take great interest in that one area of it's back.

He turned to me, still lifting the corpse. "Tell me, when you severed their limbs, did they regenerate?" He asked curiously.

"Well... yeah," I responded, shaking as the thought of regenerating body parts made me think of what had happened to me just now. "That was some freaky shit. I hope I don't have to fight those things again."

He looked at me for a long moment, then slowly turned to look at where the severed appendages were supposed to be. "Hmm... interesting," He murmured. "That means their biological process is flawed, imperfect. Perhaps they had to make another out of scrap..."

What the hell did he mean? What, were they... were those creatures, or whatever they were before that, voluntarily turning themselves into those things? Did they even have a special process for it? Oh, what the fuck! Just when my life couldn't get more messed up.

"I really want to know just what the hell happened just now," Skyfire said. "In fact, I want to know as much as possible. What were those things? What was with that faint ringing I heard, the one that made us collapse? That light around you? I need to know." Beside her, Myst nodded once in agreement. Doodle was trotting around idly, seeming to not have a care in the world.

I looked at my fellow pegasus and raised an eyebrow skeptically. Not that her asking wasn't good, on the contrary it was VERY good, but since when did Skyfire ever try to think and plan and gather information before doing things? Definitely not when Thanus went to Verge, and definitely not back at Home Base, that was for sure. She caught me looking at her and flushed, looking away awkwardly.

"And to that I say to you the exact same thing I told the Praetorian just now," Predator replied, gaining an annoyed groan from Skyfire and an exasperated huff from Myst. Doodle just 'aww'd in disappointment.

A minute later he finished inspecting the corpse and gathered the bodies of all the creatures we had killed; around five of them, minus the especially big one Predator eliminated. He set them on fire on the tracks, the burning corpses of the smaller creatures obscuring view of the bigger one. I wondered where he had gotten the source of the flame. Of course, he was nicknamed the 'Arsonist', so I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that he was able to light them up. He didn't wait to see them turn to ash, and soon we were finally moving again. Before we began our journey again, Predator called me and quietly told me to keep my mind up in search of any of those creatures, lest we be attacked again. When I asked why, he told me some cryptic message about needing to think, and to not concern myself or my friends with the occurrence.

Then I put a thought that had been bothering me into words. "And what happened to me just now? I... regenerated? How is that... I mean, you know..." I stammered.

"I told you not to concern yourself," He snapped back at me, sounding annoyed. "I will tell you in due time. Not now. Just leave me to it, alright? Don't worry about it, this is my problem."

'Yeah,' I thought, 'Because getting attacked by chimera monsters is obviously something I shouldn't be worried about.'

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

Another hour of tense, awkward, unbearably silent, thought-filled trotting later and we emerged into a vast, spherical chamber that opened up before us without any warning, and I nearly fell in due to the cloud's obscuring of it. The chamber was an almost perfect in shape, with the ground depressing as much as the roof rose, and the sides pressing into the thick concrete in equal measure. The walls and floor of the place looked as though they had been made of polished black stone, or maybe they had been singed black, I can't say. The ground depressed into the ground maybe fifty feet, at the center. I wouldn't be able to climb up the slope to get to the tunnel on the other side, but perhaps Predator could toss me up. By then I had used my organs enough that they no longer felt foreign, and my muscles no longer felt sore and underused.

"What is this place?" I asked, looking over the entire area. I understood that zebra architects LOVED building large and grand things, but what the hell would something like this be doing right in the middle of a metro tunnel?

"A little place I like to call 'Blast Zone 236'," He replied distantly, as if in thought. He then got over to the edge of the spherical chamber and jumped down into the depression.

"The zebra government made hundreds of places like these?" Skyfire asked, sounding baffled. I jumped into the depression, sliding downwards slowly towards the center after Predator.

"No," Predator replied. "I said I call this place that. After all, this was the 236th area I exploded in. That's why this chamber exists in the first place."

"Wow!" Doodle gasped, looking over the area as Myst helped her into the depression while Skyfire slid down after me. She began pumping out questions, "So you exploded? And your explosion made this place? How many other places like this exist? Can you explode more than once? Does anypony else know about these places? Why'd you explode?"

"Yes, yes, there are 354 places like this, yes, no one else knows, and for your last question, I don't want to tell you," Predator replied evenly, getting a disappointed 'awww' from Doodle. Predator seemed to panic a little, turning around to try and say something to, I presumed, assuage her disappointment. However, he stopped himself at the last moment, shaking his head and muttering something underneath his breath as he turned away.

Skyfire and Myst gave him a long stare, then, "You WHAT?!" Skyfire yelled aloud; loud enough that her question echoed for a few seconds off the walls of the chamber. I was about to ask the exact same thing, but she beat me to it. Seriously, he exploded? Yeah, right. He had probably just gotten some explosive and set it off here or something; much more palpable and less insane.

"I exploded," He replied blankly. "If you weren't able to discern that from my original statement, then you have a mental problem. Or curiosity which, you think, should be projected very loudly through shouting. Probably both, considering what I know you've done and been through."

"How the hell did THAT happen?" I asked. "What, did someone strap explosives to you and tie you down in more than two-hundred different sections of the metro track?" Whoever did that must have really wanted this guy dead.

"Energy release. Remember what happened back there? All that energy I absorbed? Yeah, I explode to release it all," Was his simple response. Predator and I finally reached the center of the depression, the others just a little bit behind.

"You still haven't explained what happened back there," Skyfire muttered. "All this talk of energy and weird chimeras, and all that faint ringing I heard... I just want to know about it all."

Predator sighed. "Like I said, you will get your answers. Not now, maybe not even soon, but you will get them eventually." He thought for a moment, then said, "That is if I am still around, which is not likely, considering that your 'quest' will take you down a different path than I will take. Besides, Myst really wants me to leave because she believes I am going to endanger all of you, right Myst?" He asked, turning around to see Myst just reach the bottom of the spherical chamber. Doodle and Skyfire were already down here with us, with Doodle ruffling Skyfire's feathers playfully, getting a blank stare from my friend.

"You have no idea," Myst replied in a soft yet startlingly threatening tone. I turned to see the dark, hateful look in her eyes. "I don't care for your problems, or you exploding or anything about you. You being near us nearly killed me and my friends. The sooner we leave you behind, the better."

'Wow,' I thought, 'When did she become so critical?' Skyfire gave her a look both surprised and concerned, then glanced over at Predator with a slightly suspicious glare.

Predator, as usual, didn't have any emotion in his voice as he responded, "I know."

After that there was the predicament of getting up the slope to the other side. Predator had some rope that he gave to Skyfire, who then flew up to the tunnel entrance. He then pulled out a nail from his pockets and punched the other end of the rope down into the blackened concrete. He tugged at it a little, testing Skyfire's wing strength and at the same time whether or not the rope would stay put on our end. Both ended up having the necessary strength, and so Doodle started climbing up the fairly steep slope.

I glanced behind me, at Predator watching Doodle ascend, and then at Myst glaring at him hard. I approached him. "You really should tell them," I said softly. "I hated you, I'll admit, but things have changed. You can't blame yourself for what Tod makes you do."

He didn't respond as he watched Doodle reach the top. After that, Myst got over to the rope, pointing her snout in the air as she huffed and swished her tail insultingly at our guide. He didn't seem to care. When she was a little less than half way up, he responded quietly, "Like I said, if I succumb to his influence then it is because of my own weakness. Besides, it won't mater to them. They won't care."

At that I once again found myself saying, "I could make them care." He glanced over at me, growling softly in a contemplative manner. Then he turned his head away without a word.

I saw Myst's obscured form finally clear the edge. Now it was my turn. I got up on my hindlegs like a zebra and used my forehooves to pull myself up. It wasn't easy, but then neither was biting down on the rope. That would have just hurt my jaw in addition to being hard.

I had made it maybe halfway, when suddenly a green light lit up from behind me, illuminating my friends through the cloud. The ringing came along with it, loud and clear (at least for me. From what I heard from them, the other three seemed to hear the intense sound as a faint ring). I heard all three of them gasp, and at once Skyfire powered up her rifles and Myst cleared her gun's chamber.

I glanced behind me just in time to see Predator's brightly glowing green eyes less than a foot from me. Out of the cloud came one of his hooves, which grabbed me and flung me back down to the bottom. The two of them opened fire as I fell through the cloud, the plasma bolts and rifle rounds flashing through the darkness and hitting Predator to no effect.

I landed with a thud, groaning as my spine sent shocks through my body at the impact. For a moment my breathing became harder after my lungs blasted out the air in them. Predator let go of the rope and fell down after me, and I barely scrambled away just in time to not have his forehooves stomp my head in. I wouldn't have believed his impact would have killed me, though, if his landing hadn't shattered the blackened concrete in a ring around him.

I stammered as I staggered away, "P-predator? What the hell are you doing? Why are you-..." He didn't let me finish. With his speed he lunged forward, landing a hoof against the front of my helmet. There was a hiss of pressurized air and the crack of metal, and at once I smelled smoke. I flew backwards from the strike, my muzzle bleeding as I involuntarily took in breaths of air contaminated with Black Cloud. I could already feel the spores getting larger in my lungs.

Myst and Skyfire landed as Predator approached me, murderous green eyes shining like emergency lights. He didn't pay any attention to the rifle rounds that struck the back of his helmet, or the plasma bolts that turned small portions of his vest to goo. I could hear Doodle screaming in panic; she was probably running around in circles again.

He picked me up and was about to smash my face in, when Skyfire flung herself at him and threw him to the ground. He recovered far too quickly, and despite the fight she put up he managed to get on top of her easily. He raised a shadowed hoof up to turn her head to bloody pulp.

Not on my watch. Screw the fucking Black Cloud. I got up as fast as I could and apple-bucked his helmet. The action sent me tripping forward, but it did at least knock him off of her. The three of us recovered and formed a line opposite of him.

"What the hell's gotten into you?!" Skyfire yelled as Predator growled and got up, then turned his murderous gaze on us; me specifically.

"I knew we couldn't trust you, bastard!" Myst yelled.

Predator didn't respond to either of their statements. He just jumped up into the air and disappeared after perhaps a dozen feet up. While the other two kept their eyes on the ceiling, I had the great misfortune of feeling my lungs swell up from the amount of spores growing in them. I began to panic; the sensation of my breathing getting more difficult each second was quite frightening. I may have nearly died before, but I would really die now unless... was there even a permanent cure to Black Cloud? Predator had informed me that the injection he gave us earlier only temporarily stopped the spores.

Instead of just standing there, panicking, I should have told them to move. I knew what was about to happen, I knew damned well. Maybe the other two were too caught up in their own personal feelings to think straight, and honestly so was I, but at least I knew what was about to happen. "Move, move!" I shouted, but it was much too late.

Predator slammed into the ground in front of Skyfire, shattering the concrete all around us and sending us flying in all directions. Myst landed somewhere a little further from the two of us, as we landed in the same section of the slope. We had only just recovered when Predator approached us quickly and was now just a foot away.

Myst tackled him from behind, but he didn't budge. At most, she was just annoying him as she clung to his back. Skyfire's additional weight knocked him down, though. They scuffled on the ground as I tried to get into the fray, but couldn't do to their flailing limbs. I was not stupid; one hit from any of those very quickly flopping limbs, and I could have had one of my own broken. Then I wouldn't be able to do anything at all, and that was worse.

When Myst was tossed away, she managed to bring his backpack along with her. The contents of it spilled out all over the ground, dozens of items ranging from secondary firearms to medical supplies, to ammo to miscellaneous items, and even to his large supply of syringes scattering all over.

My attention was wrested immediately by the syringes. I scrambled to search for the one he had used on me earlier; no way I was going to die due to internal explosion! The other two kept him busy as I searched, and eventually I came upon the right ones.

Skyfire landed hard next to me, unconscious, helmet shattered and left foreleg seemingly broken. At least, I knew the forelegs couldn't bend that angle. A moment later I saw Myst smack into the slope on the opposite end, and she began rolling limply down towards the center again.

I grabbed another syringe and injected Skyfire immediately. Predator was still focused on Myst, much to my chagrin and relief. I didn't want her to get hurt, but she was at least buying us time. I plunged two more needles into her chest, just to be sure. Then I finally paid attention to myself and injected two needles fast as I could into my chest. At once, the swelling in my lungs reduced, and I could breath easily again.

I was about to inject a third time, when Myst's limp body crashed into me. Her helmet wasn't broken, thankfully. Still, she wasn't moving, and she had a bleeding bruise on her hindleg. I reached to pickup another syringe, when I was kicked away savagely and landed hard on my side. A sickening set of cracks accompanied an explosion of excruciating pain, and I looked to my side to see one of my ribs had punctured through my skin.

I barely got to take that sight in for three seconds before Predator turned me onto my back and pressed his hindleg down on my throat. I struggled to breathe, even though I knew that was what I shouldn't have been doing. I felt the cartilage in my neck begin to snap, and any attempts to gasp for air later on would bring only pain, no relief.

He wasn't pressing down hard enough to kill me, though. Just enough to knock me out, if he kept it up long enough. Normally, I would have fought, struggled. I actually was, but... I was too weak. I was still sore from earlier, and my many broken bones and swollen lungs now definitely weren't helping me. I couldn't do anything. And this time I didn't have Tom to help us out.

Just before I did, I managed to choke out, "Don't... let him... control you..."

"You think you are speaking to Predator?" He asked, his voice not his own. In fact, it sounded disturbingly like Tod's voice in my dreams... "Well you're not. 'Predator', as you know him, is much too boring to be me. You are speaking to the bringer of your salvation, 'Praetorian'." Then he twisted his hindleg into my throat, and I passed out to the snapping of a bone in my neck.

Footnote: Level Up

New perk gained: Altered -- You don't know it, but something is happening within you. Something that you cannot stop. Nevertheless, when your hit points drop below 20%, you regenerate health at a rate of 3hp per second. This lasts until you are at half health. This effect is improved to 5hp per second when certain individuals are nearby.

Chapter 15 - Underground Army

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Chapter 15
Underground Army
"Make no mistake; war is coming, with all it's glory. And all it's horror."

Now, at this point I have been knocked out around five times, either by circumstance, folly on my part, or the actions of others. However, each one of those times I woke up in relative safety and comfort, usually on a bed with my friends either nearby or in the general vicinity. Those times, my body had recovered as well as it could from any injuries I had obtained, either because it just healed that quickly or because someone had taken care of me while I was out.

Hard as it is to believe, considering the circumstance of how I got knocked out recently, this time was actually only a little different. I was on a mattress, though this one was stiff and festering with... I don't even want to say... and reeked of rot. My ribs weren't puncturing my skin any more, although whether or not someone was responsible for that I couldn't say. I wasn't dead, and the spores in my lungs weren't swelling up, which was very good. Still, if I focused enough I could feel what felt like tiny grains of sand in my lungs; the spores must temporarily go dormant when the victim utilizes that drug or mix, or whatever it was. Although that would have meant that someone was indeed taking care of me while I was out. I couldn't see my friends yet, but then again I was facing a wall. My helmet was gone, as were my things.

On the plus side, my wings were no longer broken. You know, in the past three weeks they've been broken and fixed at least twice. It also kind of sucked that I didn't get to use them much, seeing as I was underground for maybe four days, and even before that I didn't use them much. Maybe it was because it was hard and taxing to fly in my former praetorian outfit?

I was in a small room, maybe thirty square feet in area. The floor was dusty and dirty but not particularly ruined. Cracks ran along the ceiling, threatening to send fairly large concrete blocks down on me. The air in here was stuffy. I got up and trotted over to the door. It was, as expected, locked. All of these, of course, quite resembled the locations where I had woken up before.

Now, the real difference that separated this circumstance from the others? The screams and the torturing.

The sounds of it all was coming from everywhere. Distant echoes of tortured cries rang through the floor and into the room I stood in. Muffled yells sounded again and again from every direction. The constant crackling of electricity accompanied every yell, and the sound of hard hammering and enraged roaring and growling was as terrifying as anything you could possibly hear. A thousand wild cats and dogs being roasted alive together in the slowest and most painful manner wouldn't have compared.

A particularly clear scream came from nearby. Much as I didn't want to, and instead wanted to just curl up and never awake, I turned around. There was some kind of reinforced ballistic glass on the other side of the room; a large enough window for viewing. On the other side of the room beyond was an opaque glass window; probably for another viewing room. Through the glass on my end I saw a dozen zebra stallions, all blindfolded and tied to chairs, with three chimera creatures inside with them. The majority of the zebras had disgusting mutations, like scales snaking along their neck before disappearing on their faces, or black carapace growing out of their shoulders. They looked as though they had been tortured like this for days or maybe even weeks, and at least nine of them were probably dead, failed-looking mutations and growths dotting their corpses, while wires crackling with electricity zapped and cooked at their rotting flesh.

As I watched, one of the chimeras split open the stomach of one of the zebras, eliciting a howl of pain so loud I heard it through the glass. As he bled, another of the chimeras, one that glowed a faint green, lifted one of it's front paws above the bleeding zebra and held it there. There was a piercing ring, and in a few seconds the zebra's stomach was closed again. Some soft-lookng scales then grew onto the new skin.

Okay, this was bad. Really, really bad. I had to find my friends. I couldn't bear the thought of them being tortured like this in some other room. I had to find Predator; I knew he wasn't in control of himself back there. He had absorbed all of that energy, maybe it messed with him and turned him on us? I just couldn't be sure with Tod any more.

I barely took two steps away from the door, when every single chimera in the room beyond all turned to look at me. Their glowing red and green eyes froze me in place immediately. I could feel their hatred for me in my head.

'So,' One of them, one of the green-eyed ones on the left end of the room thought in my mind, in Tod's voice. The mere fact that these creatures were communicating with me nearly made me crawl back to the mattress. 'You thought you could stray down here, in my tunnels, with the Arsonist, and not be noticed? Hahaha! Oh, the irony.'

'My Lord,' Another of them, the red-eyed one right next to the one who had spoken to me, thought. It wasn't in Tod's voice. If I didn't know it was coming from some chimera, I would have thought it was coming from an actual zebra! 'This one's resistance is crumbling. He will be stage three soon. Shall I have him brought to the exposure chamber?'

The one who had spoken to me approached the closest zebra. If by 'his resistance was crumbling' he meant 'on the verge of looking like some kind of mutated freak from a monster movie', then yes, his 'resistance was crumbling'. Indeed, I could already see the scales covering most of his body. His snout already partially resembled a crocodile's, and his legs were already growing brownish fur. Forced mutation; it sickened me.

He grabbed the drooping zebra's head and pulled it up. "Surrender yourself, and your suffering ends. I grow bored of torturing people who don't break on the deadline I set," He said in a voice reminiscent of Predator's, creating a small orb of green light in it's other paw. "Join us, and we will forge a world immune to chaos and the frailty of your pathetic nation. And maybe THEN I can finally take a break and go on vacation."

Then there was a pained screech, and one of the creatures fell to the ground, clutching it's head. I felt around in my mind, and I sensed the immense pain the creature was in. I detected what was causing it and where it was coming from; the signal was being forced into it's head like a blade, and the one manipulating it was one of the zebras. He had as many growths on him as the others, but those growths seemed to be having a hard time maintaining themselves in his body.

The zebra gasped as he released his control over the signal. "How do you like that, demon? Heh, it'll take more than some damned mental torturing to turn a Legionnaire away from his duties!" He screamed at the recovering creature, who then got up and carved a meaty chunk out of his hindleg. He hissed and finally cried out in pain as the creature cut off what must have been five pounds of muscle.

The green-eyed one grabbing the zebra's head released it, and at once the zebra's head bowed limply. The chimera approached the other zebra and gestured the one who had mutilated his leg to turn his attention to one of the other zebras in the room. He picked up the zebra Legionnaire's head in his paw like before and leaned in close, snorting a small tongue of emerald fire into his face. The zebra hissed as the fire singed his abused and beaten face.

"You are proving to be a nuisance, fool," The creature said threateningly. "For the sake of your own pain threshold, I demand you surrender your body and mind to me. Your existence will mean more in service to us than to that idiotic 'Legate'," The creature said with a growl of disgust.

The Legionnaire snorted, "Yeah, like that'll happen. You're a fucking fool if you think I'll back out on my oath to Roam just to end my own dammed suffering, even if I've been in this stars-damned place for gods know how long. I don't care what the hell that shit was that you pumped into me, go ahead, I can take it!" He screamed in the creature's face.

The chimera pulled away slowly, growling in annoyance. Then it turned it's head slowly to me, and a devious smile crept onto it's dragon-like snout, and the mandibles worked themselves as though they were gesturing me to come closer. "I hope you're sure about that," It said with a low chuckle, then picked up one of the electrical wires off the ground and created a ball of green light in it's paw. Then it jammed the wire down the zebra's throat and pressed the orb against the zebra's forehead, and at once the Legionnaire started wailing in agony. I saw the sparks flash in his throat, cooking his vocal cords. Soon his screaming became horrid chokes, broken only by the occasional pained sob.

What was worse, the growths on his body were growing exponentially, with the tumors and scales and chitinous carapace popping all over his hide. All I could do was watch in frozen terror. There was nothing I could do, not even turn away. It made me feel useless beyond compare. To my disgust, the other chimera in there was watching with a look of inspired awe. The other two Legionnaires, or at least I assumed they were Legionnaires, seemed to be in pain as they listened. I wanted to go in there so badly and kick that thing's flank so hard it turned to pulp!

The creature pulled away, and it had to tug at the wire to pull it out. Along with the sparkling tip came a strip of fried flesh. "You sure about that?" The creature asked with sarcastic amusement. The Legionnaire choked and coughed hoarsely in response, nodding his head afterwards with a pained pout. "I said are you sure about that!" The chimera yelled, and at once a piercing ringing flooded into the room from all directions, including from behind me.

The Legionnaire's wounds began to heal immediately. The chunk that had been cut out from his leg was regrowing with startling speed, and any other wounds he had on him were healing. His lips quivered as he just sat there, letting his body regenerate. Clearly, he had gone through this before and had expected it, though he still felt immensely disgusted at what was happening to him.

Once his wounds were fully healed, he went through a whole 'nother round of torture. The creature ripped and slashed and plunged and tore, and with each strike the Legionnaire would wail and scream and howl in endless agony as his normally fatal wounds were healed afterwards. There was nothing I could do but watch as his organs and flesh flew about the room, spreading blood and bodily fluids all over. I didn't care that he was with the Legion, nobody deserved to be put through that torture. I actually screamed and pounded against the glass, but it didn't even get scratched. After that proved futile I finally just gave it up, panting as I leaned against the glass.

All I could do was fail to defend the people I promised to protect. And all he could do was endure round after round of pain.

Again...

And again...

After nearly a quarter of an hour of tearing, the creature finally seemed to grow bored of repeatedly beating the Legionnaire to near death and decided to give it a break. I had stopped my pounding minutes ago and was now just watching with wide eyes at what was going on on the other side. In that time the other chimeras had taken the other two zebras, who seemed to have succumbed to the mutations and were almost completely chimera, out of the area through a door on the far side of the room.

The remaining zebra was now a hideous, scaly, mutated, bleeding, scarred, panting, pitiable creature. Most of his hide was now covered in scales, and the chitinous carapace was all over his chest. The wings and the snout weren't there yet, thank the Goddesses.

To my complete disbelief, though, the scales and the carapace was slowly receding into his flesh, disappearing underneath his skin. I detected the effort he was putting up in his mind; whatever was being done to him, he was resisting it. And to be honest, he was doing a damned good job at it.

The creature, though, was obviously not impressed by his efforts. He picked the zebra's bowed head up by the mane and stared into the Legionnaire's blindfolded eyes. The zebra scowled at him, and the chimera returned it with a snort of flame. "Surrender yourself!" It growled in his face.

The zebra breathed in for a moment, before his scowling mouth opened. Then he screamed in it's face, "I am a soldier of Roam! I will not yield!"

My jaw dropped. Here was a soldier who has gone through days, maybe even weeks of torture like this, and yet he still had the will and conviction to not turn his back on his duties. That warranted a lot of respect and admiration, and I gladly gave it. It wasn't much, in fact it was useless to him and wouldn't help him survive, but it was all I could give. I wished I could have done more for him, considering my failure to do anything for him during his torture, but there was truly nothing else I could do.

The creature laughed, "Yes, yes, that's exactly what the other cent-..., how do your people say it? 'Kenturions'? Yes, that's exactly what your fellow kenturions said, before we shattered their dreams and will and resistance, and made their forms our own. Now they thrive as one of the Rising, immune to the weaknesses that plague your race. Honestly, what is with you people and your great fondness of wines..."

Then the creature's eyes lit up, literally, as it seemed to realize something. In my mind I sensed he suddenly had an idea; a thought of malicious intent and sick cruelty. "A weakness that plagues the newcomers as well. A weakness... like pleasure." It chuckled as it walked away, towards the doorway the others had exited through, "Oh, this is going to be great!"

"W-what?" The centurion Legionnaire (or 'Kenturion', as the ancient Roamans would have pronounced it) asked softly as he turned his head towards the walking creature. "What the fuck do you mean by that?"

'Oh, no,' I thought, already getting an idea of what was going to happen. I tried slamming against the glass harder in an effort to get him out of there before... before what I thought was going to happen would happen. All of my efforts yielded no fruits, much to my dismay.

The creature opened the door, letting some of the wan external light enter the scantily lit room. "Profligate!" The creature called, "Get in here! I understand your... 'equine' libido is acting up again. I have a fairly suitable partner for you."

"Wait, what?!" The centurion yelled, yanking at his restraints to no avail. "I am an officer of the Roaman Legion, and I demand to know what you intend to do!" He demanded, but I could sense the fear and frailty in his voice. Clearly, he was as worried about what was about to happen next as I was.

A slightly chimerafied yellow earth pony mare with a white mane entered the room and closed the door behind her. She had scales growing along her neck and down her back, which showed no signs of growing wings any time soon. Her cutie mark seemed to have been removed or singed off, somehow. Other than that, though she seemed normal. I also had the distinct feeling that I knew who she was, or at least saw her before...

She looked around the room intently, and when her eyes landed on the tied down stallion they perked up. Slowly, an intent grin crept onto her face. Then she seemed to realize something and looked to the chimera monster, it's glowing green eyes focused on her. "Are you sure, my Lord?" She asked meekly, clearly having some kind of deep, unnatural respect for the creature or the signal controlling it. I couldn't tell which. "I... understand that... it is a weakness, and I don't want to indulge..."

Okay, I REALLY recognized that voice...

"I am sure," The monster replied evenly. "Not only will it perhaps break this one's resistance and add to our numbers, but it will also teach THAT one the futility of his efforts to protect people," He said with a nod at the glass, at me. "Plus, it's gotten boring hearing screams of pain. Now I want to hear screams of denial, instead."

The mare seemed a little confused, then tried closing her eyes and focusing. There was a faint ring for only a moment, and then it died down. She gasped from the effort. "I am sorry my Lord, but I... cannot quite detect others yet. I am still working on it," She said, ears drooping.

"Hurry it up," The creature replied with a role of it's eyes. "The plan will not wait for a single newcomer to master our abilities. Now, if you are done questioning, we have an individual to break and a womb to fill."

Immediately the mare's smile returned, wider than ever. She slowly rolled her eyes over to the struggling Legionnaire, and put on a sickly affectionate look on her face. She started trotting over to him, licking her lips with a thankfully still equine tongue. The creature just waited in the corner of the room, watching me through the supposedly opaque glass and chuckling to itself. All I could do was watch, hooves on the glass and breathing hard. I tried a whole slew of things to stop this... violation... like mentally willing the mare to drop dead. For a moment, I actually thought it was working, as the mare staggered a little. Then she recovered and, just like that, continued trotting as though nothing happened.

When he heard her approaching, the Legionnaire said, "I'll not partake in this, whore! I am a dignified officer the Legion of Roam, a husband with three children, and among many other things, the one thing I am NOT is a tool for the reproduction of abominations!" Still, despite his tone, I could sense the fear and terror in his head. He knew as well as I did there wasn't truly much he could do about it.

"Three children, huh? That must mean you have good genetics," The mare said with amusement as she got up to him, then kneeled down towards his stallionhood. The feeling of her breath made him press his tied down hindlegs together, eliciting a small frown from the mare.

"Silence yourself! I-I will not... I will not! I will not do this! You can't make me!" He shouted, though now his voice was filled with nothing but anxiety and tension, and the supposed fierceness of his tone was obviously spawned by desperation.

"My, my, you are a very loud-mouthed stallion," The mare teased, getting up and putting her lips next to his ear. "I will enjoy hearing more than just yells from that mouth of yours." The Legionnaire gulped and went a little red, letting out a shaky breath as he pressed his legs even closer together.

I gulped as well, and was about to turn away from the scene when I found out I couldn't move. I couldn't even move my eyes to look around, nor close my eyelids. I was just frozen. I mentally cursed the chimera creature again and again for making me watch this... desecration of life. The amused chuckles I received in my head told me he had gotten my swearing, at least.

I would have to watch...

The first thing the mare did after pulling away was snaking her forehoves down his chest, tracing over the fading scales softly. The stallion whimpered, scrunching up his face in an effort to keep some of his shame in. Next she carefully placed her hooves on his knees, and began slowly pulling his legs apart. The Legionnaire drew his head back and jerked it forward in a savage headbutt, but the mare was able to dodge it. She frowned at him, then pulled away entirely. That made the stallion let out a breath of relief. I too breathed out in relief, and I even went so far as to hope that this act of disgusting violation would stop then and there.

Then she reared and bucked him hard in the face, and the chair almost toppled over from the impact. She waited for the chair to fall back down before she bucked him again, this time with a few chitinous edges on her hooves. That impact cut several bleeding gashes in his face, and he barely suppressed his pained scream. She bucked again and again until his head hung limply from his neck, though he was still conscious, if his haggard, soft breathing was any indication. My breathing became hot as I seethed in rage out of my inability to do anything to cease this travesty and to save that poor soul from it.

Again he tried headbutting her, and again he missed. For that effort he was punished with having a portion of his cheek scraped off by the mare's carapace-covered hoof as she smacked him across his face. He tried rocking the chair to get her off, but that just toppled them over at an angle that the chair's butt rest obscured their flanks, with her on top.

He yelled out all sorts of profanities as he thrashed around, attempting to shake her off. Instead, she just brought her hooves down on his neck again and again until he choked out some blood and his breathing became a horrible wheezing. It was good that the chair had fallen in an angle where the butt rest obscured them, though, because it was at that point that the Legionnaire's already exhausted body couldn't seem to muster up any strength any more. She just gave him a few stomps to the face to make sure, but not enough to knock him out. He whimpered pathetically, taking in shallow breaths.

'Please no!' I yelled in my head. I did not want to see this! Even if it was obscured by a piece of flat wood, this was... was... this was an act more abominable than mere killing! At least in killing the suffering eventually ends, but this... using them as breeders for who knows how long, then turning them into monsters... there wasn't enough medicine in the world for how sick it made me.

Screw my body being frozen, I was NOT watching this.

I forced all of my will into my muscles; I didn't care that the creature was staring at me, I was NOT going to watch this! I imagined my body occupied by enemy troops, my limbs populated by fortifications, in turn filled with green-wearing zebras. Then I imagined a wave of tanks and infantry emerging from my head, opening fire on the invaders. Slowly but surely, they were regaining control of my limbs.

Then, very slowly, I could turn my head. It may have been exhausting, and certainly my lungs nearly gave up on me. My neck became sore from the amount of effort I was putting into merely turning them; it was almost like it was made of stone, and I was cracking it just by turning. I forced myself to go on, and finally I managed to turn my head just enough that I was no longer looking at the glass. I could already hear the sounds of it going on.

There was a wet slap that accompanied every bounce. I could hear it clearly, even above the mare's pleasured gasps and moans and Legionnaire's disapproving yells and cries. Every once in a while I heard him manage to shake her off, but then I heard her just get back on him. I couldn't find it in myself to move again, so it was good that I had managed to turn. All I could do was listen. Had he not had a blindfold and the glass not been opaque, he would have seen me listening him get violated. I don't think I could have stood the begging look for assistance he would have given me, seeing as I could do absolutely nothing, literally, except for fighting the creature's efforts to make me turn my head. Aside from that, I just distracted myself by congratulating myself for being able to turn away. It was pathetic and irresponsible; I was supposed to be helping that guy, not distracting myself!

She huffed as she increased speed. Every few seconds I heard her turn around to give him a good set of stomps. That happened less and less frequently as each beating stomped out more and more of his remaining strength, and soon I could hear no more of his efforts to resist. In fact, unless my ears were tricking me, I was SURE that his groans and gasps became a lot more... willing. Either way, the creature was right; pleasure was a weakness that could topple almost anyone.

Before long the mare gave a series of loud, thrilled yells accompanied by a heavy grunt from the centurion. I heard him give one last struggle for freedom, but then there were the sounds of his ribs cracking as her hooves were brought down on his chest. I just stood there shaking as both thanked the Goddesses for not letting me see it, and cursed at them for letting it happen at all.

The mare breathed in heavily for a moment, then got off. There was a soft pop as she removed herself from him; a pop mostly drowned out by the Legionnaire's shamed whimpering. Feeling it was over, and with my neck being more sore than it had ever been before, I finally gave it a rest and allowed it to turn.

As the mare trotted away, she stopped abruptly. She reached a hoof to touch her stomach, then looked at where I assumed the chimera was. "I... I don't feel anything, my Lord. The others started carrying almost immediately. Did I do something wrong?"

'What?!' I screamed in my head, utterly baffled. Not only were there MORE of these... things... but they started carrying their abominable offspring immediately? Goddesses fry my cock with a solar flare...

"Then there is only one solution," He replied, his gaze brightening and freezing me in place. I panicked and tried struggling again, but no matter how many mental tanks I conjured up in my head, nothing was happening. I mentally berated myself for turning around and letting it freeze me. "Go again until you are filled."

'Oh, NO...' No! Just... no! Again? What madness was this?!

The mare squealed in delight, then glanced behind her at the stallion, who was trying to curl up into a ball as much as his restraints would allow. She didn't hesitate this time, pouncing back onto his cowering form with lust burning in her eyes.

"Get off me, bitch!" He yelled in a high, tense voice as he tried to curl up defensively. "You may have done this to me once, but if you think I'll let it happen to me again then you are truly idiotic."

"Aw, come on!" The mare said merrily. "There's nothing you can do about it, might as well enjoy it before we lose the ability to fuck."

"But there is nothing to enjoy!" The stallion hissed. "This is supposed to be a gift, not a torture method!" He breathed heavily for a moment, then let out in a hiss, "There is nothing nice or pleasing about this. Personally, I'd rather be set ablaze, you whore."

The mare just looked at him with a small smile, before turning her attention back between his legs. "Really?" She asked teasingly. "So, you are telling me you do not enjoy this?" Then she lowered her head down again, licking her lips as she did so.

He jerked his head up. "Now, just stop right th-..." He stopped abruptly and let out a gasp as the mare's... 'oral treatment' wrested his attention away from his protest. He tried speaking again, but his voice cracked and he stammered gibberish. The mare's head stayed down there for nearly a full minute before she pulled it up, looking at his erect member with wonder (Thankfully I still couldn't see it). The Legionnaire just groaned softly.

And this time I would have to watch.

After a moment she was giggling in glee as the zebra still tried to resist. He shook and kicked and yelled out all sorts of insults, until at last he just lay down and looked to the side, a sharp frown on his face. It was all that was on his face as he endured it again. I shared his feelings... but I couldn't do anything as I stood there helplessly watching him endure a second round of humiliating violation.

And a third.

And a fourth...

And a fifth...

And a... sixth? Wow, really? Horny bitch...

Finally she pulled herself away, a look of imperishable bliss on her wet lips. She looked behind her shoulder at the staunch zebra, his jaw locked in a stubborn frown. That got a disappointed look from her, and as she trotted away she scoffed at him.

Finally the creature took it's glance off me and I could move, and the first thing I did was turn away and slump against the wall. All I could do was breath shakily and quickly as I replayed what had happened over and over. It disgusted me... and yet I couldn't find it in myself to forget it. Every detail was burned in my mind, every single noise, every single motion... Thank Celestia Myst had not seen that. Or any of my friends for that matter.

As I sat there trying to get my thoughts under control, the creature said, "Well, that provided a nice change. Now that that is finished, continue learning your abilities. I'll take care of our guests here." Then there was the sound of the mare trotting out, and a moment later the door closed. I got up and looked through the window, and I saw the creature staring at me from the other side, a faint piercing note emanating from it's glowing body. I found it strange that it's gaze hadn't frozen me, or that the sound didn't cause me a headache...

"You sick bastard," I said to it, specifically at Tod. The one-way sound proofing probably muffled what I said, though. Then again, it was also supposed to be opaque from the room beyond, yet it was staring at me. "I don't know what kinds of other things you do to these people, but I hope that when the end comes that your black soul suffers for eternity in whatever hell exists. What are you trying to prove, huh? That weeks of torture can break people? Yeah, I already picked up on that even before I left my home," I said with a glower.

"I am not trying to prove anything," The creature replied, in Tod's voice. "I simply made you watch so that you will feel the pain of being useless. That is all. Besides, you did beat me out of your head more than once, I'd say that was payback. Oh yes, and it was fun to make you watch. You have NO idea how boring it can get down here." Wow, this thing was sounding a LOT like Predator when I had first met him. Minus all the 'fun torturing' parts; Predator as far as I knew may have been a sadist, but at least he was so in a more subtle manner. "Of course, there was also the necessity of breeding my army. Had that not been necessary, I would have left that mare's libido to fester for all I cared. My mutations would have eliminated it completely at one point, anyway."

Then it seemed to remember something as it's eyes perked up. "Speaking of the mare, I would like to inform you that she has been a fair nuisance since we captured her. I don't understand why you even spared her outside the city's gates. Still, if I can do it with her, then I can drag all of you savages from your primordial frailty and to the perfection you people so constantly strain yourselves to achieve."

Fuck. So that's why I recognized her. If I recalled, I promised to kill her the next time I caught her; yet another promise I couldn't fulfill. If this creature's... or Tod's goal was to make me regret sparing her, then he had succeeded. I guess it was a little too much to hope that she wouldn't do any more wrong just because I threatened to kill her. Still... it was both disappointing and disheartening. I had so much hope that perhaps she would change.

I kept myself from cursing it and instead turned my attention to the violated zebra. He was curled up as much as his restraints would allow, a few tear stains on his blindfold. My heart went out to him; if I felt this devastated at the rape of someone I never even knew, I could only imagine how I would have felt had it actually happened to my friends. And to think, it was just several days ago that it nearly did happen.

Then I found myself murmuring, "I'm sorry I couldn't help you." It was a stupid thing to do. I was not responsible for what had happened, nor would my apology do anything to make him feel better. But I had taken on the responsibility of helping these people, and so to not be able to do anything in their time of need just stabbed my heart. And made me want to tear off the nutsacks of the mofo's who hurt the people, of course.

The creature growled in annoyance bordering on disgust, "What is with you?" It took a step closer to the window. "Every single sentient being I found is a self-centered profligate, whose life consists of nothing but pain and suffering and guilt. Do you know how to deal with that pain, Praetorian? Muscling it out is impossible. There is only the option of numbing one's self, and to do that we must experience more and more pain." He gestured behind him at the violated equine. "Showing compassion: WEAKNESS. Showing mercy: ILLOGICAL and a waste of time. There can be only one solution, and this poor scum is already on the path to achieving his perfection. YOU are simply withholding that from him, and yet you claim to want the best for others!"

I glared at him for the longest time, utterly disgusted and horrified at his... or it's words. This was exactly the sort of thing Predator had told me about. To think that there were more creatures like this, spreading their lies and words of destruction and pessimism to the populace under the command and influence of Tod. Had what I seen in my dreams been Tom and Tod battling it out for the freedom and enslavement of these people's minds, respectively? What was all of this... indoctrination? Mass hypnosis? Social manipulation? It didn't matter what it was, it had to be stopped.

Finally, I said with a low voice, "I just want things to get better. The world's seen enough suffering, it doesn't need more." I glanced past the creature and at the zebra. "I just want to help people."

The creature roared and raised up a paw, the signal increasing in strength as it rose up. "You want to help people?!" Then it punched the ballistic glass so hard it shattered, and the large shards flew into the room and nearly perforated me. I covered my face with my hooves until all of it passed.

When I withdrew my hoof, I saw the creature reaching in one of it's forelegs to grab me. I jumped away, but I don't think that it was looking to grab me physically. Immediately an energy like invisible water wrapped itself around me, and I was levitated into the air and flung into the room beyond. I crashed against the ballistic glass on the other side, nearly breaking my bones again in the process.

As I struggled to get up, the creature's large, monstrous form got up to me and grabbed my head with it's paw. I fought to breathe through it's grasp as I flailed around. A moment later it slammed me on the ground next to the tense zebra. I could have sworn I heard something pounding against the non-shattered ballistic window, as though someone were trying to get into the room as well.

"Then help him!" It growled in my face, then turned away. It went over to the other side of the room and leaned against the wall there, watching me with unblinking, angry eyes.

I shot a dark glare at it, resisting the urge to charge it and tear it's chest open now that I was not obstructed from it; I was a logical pony, and I knew that I would lose in a physical confrontation with this thing. I was NOT Predator, and so possessed none of his ridiculous physical ability, despite my robust conditioning.

Then I looked down at the shaking zebra below me. This close, I could see the countless scars that snaked all over his hide where he had been eviscerated again and again. I looked over myself once, taking in the many scars I myself had obtained since my emergence. Even still, my own scars were few and minor compared to his. His mutations were coming back up; his mental resistance was weakening. His lips were dried and bloody, his skin sweaty and filthy, his breathing rough and shallow. He was in such a sorry state that I imagined he had gone through at least four times as much as I had been.

I carefully placed my hoof on his shoulder. He jerked away at the contact, rocking the chair a little further away in the process. "It's okay, soldier," I murmured softly. It was all I could do. I didn't have healing potions, nor any of Predator's ridiculous amount of medical and drug syringes, nor did I know any first aid. "It-it's alright. You're... you're safe now." Was he? No, no he wasn't. And neither was I, or my friends if they were near. As long as we were in wherever the hell this place was, we were absolutely in these thing's power.

He breathed for a moment, before he sucked in his tears and his expression hardened. He turned to face me. "And who are you to say that, huh?" He asked hoarsely with a forced indignant tone. "You're probably just another one of them, taking someone else's voice to try to trick me into submission. Probably just that fucking mare, changing her voice. Well, whoever you are, fuck you," He rasped, then spat in my face. Afterwards he went into a fit of coughing and gagging, spitting out blood and... purple phlegm.

Despite everything, I wanted to stomp his face in. Here I was, trying to help him in the only way I could, and he was not only refusing it but also insulting me? I deserved better than that, and not getting that respect made me angry! I had gone through enough to warrant some kind of break, dammit!

Then I glanced behind me at the creature, a devious grin on it's reptilian face. No, I couldn't feel that way about this guy. That's just what Tod wanted. Much as I and my friends were stressed, this guy had gone through more. I couldn't get mad at him now.

I turned back to him. "Listen," I said softly, "I'm not here to hurt you, nor am I one of them. I'm just like you: a victim. I don't know where I am, or what these things are." I took in a breath, then leaned close. "I know what you went through. I saw. I couldn't do anything, but now I can. Even if all I can do is talk."

He gritted his teeth and snarled, apparently both angry that I didn't do anything when he had been used and hurt that I even spoke of it. I felt a little presence erupt in my head, prodding around inside. Then after a few moments it disappeared. His expression softened a little, and slowly, very slowly, he shifted closer and closer to me, sniffing as he did so. I met him halfway, and did all I could to muffle his already repressed sobs as he buried his face in my chest.

I couldn't do anything else. I couldn't say any words of comfort that would help him out. I couldn't speak to him on his level; that would require that I be hurt in the same manner as he did, and I did not intend to let that happen to me. I couldn't remind him of good memories he had; I had never known him. I couldn't even kill the bitch that did this to him, or any of these damned monsters. Still, I could at least hold him close and pat his head. He had endured enough. Even soldiers needed to cry.

And all the while the creature was just watching us, a look of disgust on it's monstrosity of a face.

After a while his crying died down. "I'm sorry," I murmured. "I don't know how it feels, but I know it won't go away. So if there's anything... anything... that I can do, then tell me."

At that he silenced. After a while, he rasped softly, "Please... kill me."

"What?" I asked, baffled. "You want me to kill you? Bu-but what about your wife? Your children? Your oath to protect the city?" I understood that he was hurting and all, and that he didn't want to suffer any more, but... how could he ask for that? How could he back out on his service to his nation?

"My wife hates me. I lead all three of my children to death on the battlefield, and she couldn't take it. Now she's with someone else." He sighed sadly, "As for Roam... well... I've served for twenty-five years, a full campaign. I served her since before we even emerged onto the surface. Technically, I can retire now. And... well... this is my retirement."

Twenty-five years? Yes... the ancient Roamans had their troops serve for that amount of time, after which they could retire. Of course, they could serve for longer. Still, twenty-five years of service in combat against the wasteland was very, very different than that much time against barbarians.

"But... but I'm not sure if I can. I killed people who tried to kill me and my friends, but I don't think I can do that to someone who didn't." I paused for a moment, then murmured, "And I don't think I'll ever want to."

"I know," He replied. "I've seen the world, you know. From Canterium to the beaches, from Neapolis to Ravenna, and I'm sure I've seen every street in Roam. In the months I've been out here, I've seen how fucked up everything can get, but I could always take it because I knew my cause was just." Then he said a little angrily, "And I sure as hell am not going to turn into one of these things and terrorize the city that we all fought so hard to protect. I'd rather die before they break me, and that's where you come in."

I wanted to protest, to disagree. This wasn't right, even if it was mercy killing. At the time I didn't care that I wasn't putting the concept of mercy killing it's fair share of my mental capacity, because the majority of my head reached the consensus that it was wrong. There was always supposed to be an alternative; something to give the person desiring death a reason to continue living. There was aways another way.

"But... but I..." I stammered, then stopped. He was right. If he lived, they'd just keep torturing him until he finally just gave up. He'd lose himself to the signal, surrender his mind and body, and turn into a monster. Even if he would never feel it, his subconscious would scream in sorrow as his monster tore down that which he protected. I couldn't let that happen, and neither could he.

But this was an exception. The circumstances were too much against him. Even if I did manage to break us out of here and find him some kind of purpose, he'd carry it with him his whole life. He wouldn't be able to forget it, wouldn't be able to go near a mare without being reminded. He'd be unable to live normally ever again. And the alternative was staying down here and getting turned into a monster...

I really didn't want to... but I had to. Luna pound me to pulp with the moon, I was actually going to.

"You said you wanted to help me, well this is the only way you can. If you won't, then I'll try pissing off that thing as much as I can again. Not like that would do anything," He said solemnly.

I sighed, gritted my teeth, and relaxed. "Alright," I said softly, shaking my head out of disgust at myself. "But what am I going to use? I don't have a gun, nor a blade. And I'm definitely not going use the electrical wires. I want to make it as painless as possible." That I should give at least. He'd gone through too much suffering only to have his escape be filled with agony.

"Well, you got hooves, right?" He rasped, and, much as I didn't want to, I replied in the affirmative. "My neck's not yet... changed, or at least not so much. Damage there doesn't heal quickly, compared to the rest of my body. One good snap, and I think that'll be it."

"Piece of..." I murmured, looking away and shaking my head. Fuck, was I actually going to do this? Not just the whole killing him thing, but killing him like this? It was already slapping me in the face just thinking of actually doing it, it was even worse thinking that I'd end it like this. I looked around and spotted only broken pieces of wood and concrete and the sizzling electrical wires; none of them good for a painless death. I also noticed that the pounding on the glass window was getting more and more frantic.

It was the only way.

Slowly, I wrapped my hooves around his head. My left went around and clasped on his right ear, my right went beneath his muzzle and pushed against his neck. I could have sworn I felt his mouth curl into a small smile.

"Do it," He said in a tone of patient joy.

'Okay,' I thought. 'Just one quick jerk. Just one, and it'll be over. You can't let him suffer more, you have to do this. You have to.' I focused, feeling every single detail I could. The hot moisture of his tears soaked into the cloth, his matted and bloody fur, the few scales hardy enough to have remained on his flesh, his deep, shaky breathing. All of them I could feel with startling detail, all of them reminding me of just how much he had been through. All of them begging me to end it all.

Just one quick jerk. That's all it would take. Okay...

One.

Two.

Three...

I pulled my forehoof a little, bending his head along with it. It was a lot slower than I had hoped, and I could feel his neck bones crackle faintly. He huffed, obviously surprised it wasn't as quick as he had expected. I panicked, and I released my hold and let my forehooves fall to the side, shaking. He just sighed.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, shaking my head softly. "I... don't think I can." And I sure as hell didn't want to. I may have 'needed' to, but I SO did not want to.

"Let's try again," He said disappointedly, and my ears drooped at his tone.

"But I... don't think I can. It's... I just can't..." I stammered.

He silenced me, "Listen, if there's one thing being with the Legion's taught me, it's that I do what I have to do. It's a core motto, made by the Ursalanix cohort: 'Do what you gotta do'. So if you know you gotta do it, you do it quickly and without hesitation, understand?" He sounded a lot like Lighthouse, back when I made a mistake and he had to correct me. Lighthouse yelled at me though, while this guy just told me sternly. Still, it was the same in nature.

I sniffed and nodded, then brought my hooves around his head again. Okay, don't think about it. Or if you have to, think about what you're doing for him. He'd suffered, he deserved an end. There was no other way; nothing that could work, at least.

"Do it," He said quietly. "Don't think about what you have to do. Just do it." The pounding on the glass became even more frequent.

Okay. Just... don't think about it... simple enough.

Then a thought struck me. "What's your name, soldier?"

"My name? Eh, easy enough. It's Asturion, though my friends called me 'Asty'. Heh, assholes..." He murmured, a small smile on his face. Then he asked, "And what about you? I'd like to know the name of my savior when I meet Hades."

"Goldwreath," I replied without any hesitation.

"Huh. Nice name, describes the symbol of the Roaman Caesars. Is it symbolic, somehow?" He replied.

"I... don't know," I admitted, once again feeling stupid about matters regarding my identity.

"Eh, oh well. So much for that. Now," He coughed, "Where were we?"

Oh, right. I still had something to do. I breathed in deep, as did he.

Then, without hesitation, I jerked as fast as I could.

I felt every single crack in his neck like fireworks exploding on my skin.

I stared as I let his corpse drop to the side, his lifeless body letting out his final breath. I could feel my hooves shaking, my mind condemning me for doing what I did. One second. That was all it took to end it all, yet it felt so much longer than that. One second was too short of a time for all of those snaps to have taken place. It might as well have been a full hour; a full hour of jerking his head sideways, again... and again... and again...

Suddenly, the gravity of what I had just done fell on my head like a barbel, forcing me to slump to the ground, shaking. I had just killed a zebra who had asked for death. That was... suicide! Not direct, but still! Suicide was never supposed to be an option! I wanted to play back time and stop myself, and just smack the guy upside the head until he found some way to deal with it. I was angry, both at myself and at him. At myself for being so... stupid as to actually do that, and at him for even asking me to do it! I was so enraged I wanted to stomp everything nearby to fucking glue! That fucking creature in the corner, watching me. The walls would crumble beneath my fury, the floor crack and break. I would stomp until the very earth trembled to my rage, unstoppable and insatiable.

Instead, I just lay there and shivered. Yes, shivered. For all my burning rage and regret, I was shaking like I had bathed in ice water. It was good, though. Good because it calmed me down, despite my rage being supposedly unquenchable. Good because it helped me see through my emotions and at the logic with which I did what I had. My mind still seethed at my abominable act, but at least I could find some comfort in knowing that it had to be done. It had to be.

But that didn't make it any less wrong, a part of me felt.

As I lay there, shaking and looking at his body with eyes blank as a white cloth, the creature finally said, "Oh, boohoo. So you killed someone, big deal. Not like it makes much of a difference. You killed before after all, what difference is one body?"

Any rage that died down reignited at once with explosive force, blasting inside my mind like a truckload of napalm. I turned and looked at the monster with eyes so full of hate and rage I thought they should have been able to shoot lasers. That would have reflected my hate rather nicely. I wasn't supposed to be angry at myself, I had to do it. I wasn't supposed to be angry at the zebra, he deserved it all to end.

I was supposed to be mad at this piece of shit right here.

"You..." I said threateningly as I got up and turned around. "YOU..." I said again, a little louder. "YOU ABOMINATION!" I screamed as I flew forward, blasting my wings behind me with enough force to send me as quick as a bullet.

Maybe it had not expected such a move, as the creature made no attempts to block my forehooves from it's face. I impacted so hard I must have cracked my own hooves, instead of just breaking one of it's mandibles. I didn't care. Pain was not present in my mind. Only hate and rage. No, as it fell down, I stomped down on it again and again, making sure to put in EVERY LAST ounce of fury into each stomp. I was going to make it suffer as much as it had made them suffer! I was going to break it's unnatural ribs and force them out it's back, then grind it's head to pulp with my own bare hooves if I had to! It deserved NO MERCY!

It had had enough. Even as my stomps were finally beginning to take off scales and flex it's ribs, it dodged my last stomp attempt by rolling to the side. I turned to it and was about to dash it against the wall, when it reached a foreleg forward and with it's paw gestured at me with crooked extremities.

At once I froze completely. Not just plain frozen, though. This sensation of being unable to move hurt a damned lot. It was as if my blood had turned to radioactive sludge in my veins, corroding my body and burning through me like acid. My bones felt like they had condensed so much as to be brittle, and that one pebble flung at me might have shattered me like glass. My muscles spasmed, tearing themselves as they did. My internal organs lurched and contracted; even those that shouldn't have been able to, like my kidney.

And that was nothing compared to how my head felt. It hurt so damned much that a thousand hot knives dicing my brain up all at the same time would have been about as pleasing as getting a massage. I could not think at all or perceive anything except for what my eyes were forced to see, no matter how hard I tried. Hell, the burning pain was so intense I couldn't even put one plus one together.

All in all, I'd say that I would have woken up deaf people with the volume of my screams, had I been able to yell at all. All I could make out was through all the agony was the pounding on the glass.

Then it turned to the glass window, and roared at it, "And you want to help your friend here, I take it? Then join him!" It reached out another foreleg towards the glass, and after a moment jerked said foreleg back.

The glass exploded outwards, small shards eviscerating my hide and adding even more pain to my suffering. The ones that struck the creature simply bounced off it's scaly hide, and even it's barely scaled limbs were unperforated.

Skyfire, Doodle, and Myst were levitated out, the first flailing her hooves about in mad rage, and the other two shaking uncontrollably. They had all their clothing and items removed from them, even Doodle's sock. They had scratches and bruises all over, though they weren't really serious, except for some of the bruises. They didn't seem hurt beyond that, though. Which was a blessing, as I don't think my head could have handled how much more it would have enraged my burning mentality.

Then Tod floated several severed wires off the ground, and with it forcibly bound all three of them like hogs. Skyfire struggled and thrashed, yelling at the creature with an enraged tone, "I'm gonna tear out your stomach and use your intestines to strangle you, fucker!" For some reason, Myst looked like she was fighting tears as she simply lay still, eyes closed and nose runny. Doodle looked on with absolute terror as they were brought further into the room, struggling to back away from the monster as though her bound hooves were on solid ground.

The creature released it's telekinetic grip off of them, and they each dropped to the floor. Skyfire raved at it as she strained the wires trying to get free. Again, Myst seemed on the verge of crying as she curled up on the floor, with Doodle inching towards her slowly before hiding herself from the chimera with Myst's body.

I stared at each of them, then turned my hateful gaze to the monster. "Release them, demon! I'll not just watch as you torture them for mere fun! I'll break my own limbs if it means freeing us from your unholy grip! And I swear, if you've touched them..." I glanced over at Myst, pressing her hindlegs tightly together. The mere sight of that made me want to break free of my telekinetic bounds and tear off the monster's limbs, however painful and impossible it may have been.

The creature's face hung low in sudden realization, then it face-pawed. "Ugh... I can't believe I forgot to have your friends violated while I had the chance!" Skyfire suddenly put on an expression of absolute disgust, temporarily stopping her thrashing. It sighed, "Ah well, more time for that later. And If I were to torture them for fun it would be in a much more memorable way than just beating them, just so you know."

It paused, seeming to think of something. Then suddenly, "Ah! The archon is here! Good, now I can finally get another few dozen into their salvation."

The creature's eyes went from green to red, and the creature's gaze on us became more... hateful. Not the kind of hateful glare you give someone when they did something personal to you, though; more like the hate you have for someone merely for a bad reputation. Since I more or less knew at this point that these creatures had some kind of telepathic link, I assumed that it had gathered said hate from what I did to it's other comrades.

It snarled as it turned around, opening the door and levitating us along with it. I heard the sounds of distant torturing flow in from the doorway; clearly there were even more rooms like this, wherever we were. I barely managed to look behind me through the agonizing burn of my body, and what I saw was Skyfire screaming and yelling and Myst and Doodle huddling in on themselves as much as they could.

We were levitated out, and at once I was greeted with the terrible sight of the scenery before me.

This place was in many ways like Home Base; it had a similar cylindrical shape, with the floors ringing around the edges all the way to the top, a thousand or so feet up. There were many doors and passages, all of which seemed to still be serviceable. Hell, the place even had similar blast doors, maybe twelve of them, each leading off in a different direction.

Of course, it was also VERY different from Home Base. The oculus like hole in the ceiling was completely gone, with no sign of removal or any hint that it had ever existed at all. The areas of the first floor where the Specters had set up robotic arms and crew pits were gone, as well as any merchant stall. The result was a vast, almost completely empty chamber, save for some kind of ziggurat at the center, jutting upwards maybe until the second floor. The whole place was much less well lit, yet it also had a slightly less ramshackle look to it. The walls and floor were actually less cracked than Home Base's, although a little dirtier. There were signs of ongoing construction, though: stone and concrete lay in controlled piles near the edges of the floor, where entire sections of the wall were torn away and more of the creatures seemed to be creating new chambers, which they apparently were going to make as well-constructed as the rest of the place, if the construction equipment I saw were any indication. The rooms on the different floors were converted from what would have been residential chambers in Home Base to interrogation and torture chambers, and there were dozens of them.

Now, the creatures were the biggest difference. There were hundreds of them, all either flying about the very wide empty space of the chamber (I actually wanted to join them; not really JOIN them, but to use my wings. Apparently, pegasi had this natural craving for freedom. I guess it's in our nature), or climbing along the walls and pipes, or even gathering together in small groups about the different floors. Many looked the same, though the majority were different from the others in some subtle way; some lacked wings, others had an underdeveloped snout, etc.

However, the majority of them looked like regular ponies and zebras. Well, they would have been regular if they didn't have scales and chitin on their hide, if their cutie marks and glyphs weren't removed, and if they weren't mingling with these abominations. The mere thought that my fellow ponies and the zebras that I promised to protect were joining with these things filled a great chasm within me with disgust and shame.

The chimera levitated us down the stairs to the first floor, before jumping down after us and landing with a loud thud. Skyfire glared at it fiercely, and I did my best to do the same, despite the hell I was in; it was all I could do to express to the creature my absolute loathing for it, aside from trying and failing to break through to it on a mental basis and call it all sorts of colorful names. The other two simply cowered, much to my discontent; for what these creatures did to them, they should both have hated these things and shown it.

All the attention in the very large chamber was turned to us almost immediately, and I could feel all their disgusted and hateful glares on me; yes, me specifically. Not much attention to my friends, except for Skyfire. I guess not even powerful chimera monsters with telekinetic powers can ignore the very undisciplined and loud-mouthed pegasus.

And everywhere was Tod. I could hear him, loud and strong in the air as we were levitated along the first floor to the ziggurat. Through him I could feel the magnified loathing they all seemed to have of me, and through him I could feel the pain and misery of the many other unseen prisoners, their minds tapped into the telepathic community and sending echoes of their agony rippling across to me. Skyfire steadily silenced, and in one if the few instances she ever seemed to, she was listening, thinking. Her expression turned horrified as a particularly pained howl blasted across the mental landscape, but to my complete disgust a great majority of the monsters put on horrid smiles on their reptilian maws.

I did my best to not feel that particular one's pain. I didn't know if it was actually what I was doing, but I managed to focus my thoughts into imagining a glimmering shield of energy around us, protecting us from the waves of pain and torment and thoughts of malice. It actually seemed to work, if Myst and Doodle's slightly lessened shaking and sobbing, and Skyfire's slightly disturbed expression, were any indication.

Finally we reached the ziggurat, and in front of it was a wide circle carved into the ground, with massive chains of a strange silvery metal bolted to the ground around the circle's edges. Those chains all converged on the center, towards a large metal block with hundreds of metal spikes jabbing into it. I looked at the block more closely, and I saw that there were at least two of the titanic chains bound to each of the four leather-encased limbs I saw stretched out from the corners of the metal box. Predator's helmet stuck out from the front, gaze frozen forward like a statue. Still, I could have sworn I saw his glowing eyes move to look at me as we were brought closer.

I felt a weak yet familiar presence reach into my mind; it felt like another of the chimeras, yet it had this distinct difference to it.

'I didn't intend this,' Predator said drowsily in my head. 'I never even knew these abominations had grown to such power. I thought I had destroyed them all those years ago. It doesn't make sense. And when he took control earlier...'

'If we survive this, you are going to tell me everything about these things, got it?' I said sternly, mentally of course.

Their was a rustling of chains as the block in the middle moved uneasily, almost toppling over. Several of the creatures approached it, and in unison gestured their paws to it. A piercing note sounded over the block, and the spikes descended even deeper.

'Argh!' Predator roared in pain in my head, his agony seeming both particularly pleasing and particularly sad for the creatures.

I heard him stammer a little inside my head, mumbling to himself on whether or not 'my brain could be trusted'. Finally, though, he said in a tired yet still fiercely powerful tone, 'Fine. But I will educate you on the matter in my own ways, not yours. Got it?'

I thought for a moment, pondering on what that meant. Predator said he was changed, by Tod and by what he had had to do. That had serious mental implications, which could potentially affect how he would 'teach' me about the weird-ass phenomenon going on around the here. What would he do? Would he bring up his depressing, death-speaking, pain-ending side to numb me so that I would understand his point, or would he maintain his fairly sociable, yet calculating and cold persona? Though the two had their similarities, I would obviously favor the latter over the former.

Still, my fucked up brain eventually reached the consensus I had fully expected, but not necessarily wanted, to come upon. 'Alright,' I replied with a mental tone of discontent.

We were set down in front of the circle, a few feet from each other. From here, I could only make out the edge of the ziggurat's top floor. The creature had finally withdrawn whatever power it was using on me, and I could move again. The other three had their bounds removed, and the first thing Skyfire did was charge the still mostly zebra chimera removing her wires. Two of the full chimeras intervened and began beating her to submission, and all I could do was pant for breath; the pain had been extreme, and I felt that I shouldn't have exerted myself to save Skyfire's sorry flank. She needed to be taught that she shouldn't attack everything all the time, anyway. I didn't worry that they were going to kill her; they had had opportunity before. Besides, it was obvious they wanted us for something. That something was what I was really concerned about.

When they finally ceased, Skyfire had a few new scratches and bruises. Nothing serious, really; I suppose that they were holding back, though why I didn't know. She seethed at them and seemed like she was going to attack again, but the creatures just snorted flame at her and she backed away in surprise; apparently, she hadn't known they could do that.

Myst and Doodle were the ones I actually worried about.

The creatures simply wandered about, paying us little heed. Two sentries stood by, though, their eyes staring at us with the intent to kill should we try anything. I decided to not press their patience, however much I loathed them. I shifted closer to the cringing, quietly sobbing Myst. Doodle was pressing herself against the earth pony's side, darting her eyes about in fright.

"Myst?" I asked quietly, getting over to her.

She didn't respond for a moment, just laying there and shaking. Finally, though, she murmured quietly, "Please... go away..."

Yeah, like I was going to do that. "They didn't hurt you, did they?" I asked, feeling an overprotective part of me take over my mind. If these monstrosities had indeed done what I suspected of them, then they were fucking dead.

"Go away," She said a little louder, crawling away a few inches. Doodle got up partly onto her back, looking at me with wide, scared eyes.

"Myst, tell me." I placed my hoof on her side, hoping to get her to talk with me. She froze almost instantly. "I know you're scared, there's no shame in-..."

She whirled on me and shrieked, "Don't touch me!" Then she hit me with her hoof so hard across my jaw that I bit my tongue mid-sentence. Blood flowed out with all it's coppery tanginess as I yelled out in pain and fell backwards.

That yell echoed ominously across the area, at once silencing all talk both mental and physical. I stared at her in shock, holding a hoof to my mouth to keep the blood from flowing out. She returned it, staring at me with a horrified gaze as she shook so uncontrollably she fell down on her haunches. Skyfire and Doodle both looked equally astonished, giving her stares which she tried to hide her face from.

"Goldwreath... I... I..." Myst stammered, glancing up at me with her bowed head, unable to meet my gaze, nor the gazes of the other two behind her. Finally she hung her head low, then looked up at me with hurt eyes. "I'm... I..."

All of a sudden, the great majority of the creatures started laughing, both mentally and physically. I detected the great torrent of mocking laughter and jeering they sent to Myst's mind, making her curl up and cover her ears as she whimpered in shame. A great wave of anger washed over me as I turned to face them.

"Stop it!" I yelled at them, doing my best not to choke on my own blood. The wound was closing slowly, I could feel it, but much as it should have disturbed me I didn't care for it at that time. "Leave her alone!"

'And why would we do that?' One of them asked me in my head, amidst all the laughing. 'We happen to like seeing her like this. So weak and pathetic... so abusable,' It said with a malicious chuckle. At the last word, Myst curled up even tighter and shook even more.

"Shut up!" I snapped at them in general, hoping that whoever spoke was within my field of vision as I glared at them. Skyfire got up next to me, wings ready to propel her in a charge. Doodle was the only one of us who'm Myst didn't try to shove away as the filly tried (and failed) to comfort her.

They laughed some more, yet despite all that there were in fact some who simply looked either bored or even a little disgusted at their brethren's actions. Whether or not it was disgust out of dislike for what they were doing or something else, though, I couldn't say. Still, at least there were SOME of them that didn't like it. Nothing was ever completely evil, I guess. But that didn't lessen the rage burning within me.

Suddenly there was a loud omniscient pong, like the entire area was encased in a shell of metal and that shell was suddenly struck by something. The creatures ceased their jeering, coming closer to the ziggurat with their attention turned up towards where the oculus should have been. Most of those on the floors ringing the area either jumped or flew down, though a few stayed behind and entered the various interrogation rooms.

A moment later the ceiling exploded, sending giant concrete blocks down upon us. I barely had the mind to move, dashing away from the area of effect. I yelled for my friends to move, but only Skyfire did as Doodle was preoccupied with Myst. I ducked and covered my head, my mind split into hoping that we were being rescued, or at least that what was happening would allow us to escape, and the other half being scared to death at being crushed by suck large blocks.

I got all sorts of amused laughter and snide comments inside my head for doing that. After about ten seconds where there was no impact, I decided to glance up. Skyfire did the same from her position several meters away, as did Doodle and Myst.

The gargantuan blocks of concrete were floating there, slowly moving about the great gaping hole in the ceiling. They formed rings around said hole, letting the bright gold rays of early morning or afternoon descend into the darkness of our prison. Three dark forms loomed in the hole as I looked up at it, casting their shadows upon me.

Two very large, very scary-looking chimeras descended. Their dragon wings spanned ten feet in both directions, yet that wasn't what was allowing them to descend slowly down to the ground; they weren't flapping. Whereas the smaller chimeras had hides of comparatively frail scales and brittle-looking chitin and thick leathery skin for their legs, these chimeras had a full body suit of monstrously thick, obsidian-colored, sharp-edged carapace. Their scales were much larger and thicker, visible through the small gaps of their biological armor. Their dragon heads sported two bony horns protruding from the sides, and the smoke puffing out from their nostrils was blacker and thicker than that coming from any of the other chimeras. And it was their telekinetic ability, I detected, that was upholding the concrete.

If these were the sorts of things that Predator had been so thoughtful about, I didn't think I needed any explanation as to why. If these things got onto the surface...

Between those two loomed another dark, hooded form; actually, not quite dark. It's wings weren't as large as their's, but whereas their wings were purely biological in appearance, this one's wings consisted of bony appendages from which hung wings of transparent, luminous green energy. It's veins glowed a bright green, snaking along it's visible limbs like radiation goo trails. I could see a circular pattern on it's obscured forehead. Whatever it was was also significantly smaller than the other two, being perhaps just the size of a regular pony or zebra.

They landed on the top of the ziggurat, the two giant monsters immediately bowing and covering themselves with their wings, while the hooded, green-glowing being in the middle stood up on it's hindlegs and splayed out it's wings proudly, the green glow of it's energy wings increasing in intensity. Their presence on the mental landscape was significantly more powerful and immediate than any of other being. Except maybe for Predator, whose presence was significantly more... compressed. He felt just a little more powerful than the smaller monsters, yet I could compare his presence with that of the three recent arrivals.

The creatures approached and gathered about the ziggurat as the concrete blocks floated into the gaping hole in the ceiling and came back together to fill it up as though the explosion had never happened. The creatures were obviously eager to partake on whatever special ritual the three's arrival entailed. Inside my head, I could feel Predator's worried and frantic presence.

One of the large chimera's eyes suddenly glowed a bright green, and it stood up from it's bowing posture. The hooded head of the one in the middle looked to it once, then immediately turned and bowed to him instead. Every single chimera in the area did the same.

"Rise up, already," Tod said, sounding a little impatient. "You took your sweet time getting here, archon. Do you realize how boring it's been getting around here? I haven't had any new arrivals except for these five, and the ones I've had here before have become SO pathetic. Why, I think I've just been beating the ruins of their hopes for days now. It is NOT fun destroying something that's already destroyed."

The archon rose, along with every other bowed creature. "Forgive me, my Lord," He said, his voice carrying an echoing permanence with it. "Travel by the surface has become difficult, what with all activity going on. And then there is their arrival down south, messing with our link."

Tod just rolled his eyes. "Let's get this over with already. I'm sure that with the Arsonist's genetics we can formulate a more flawless serum for getting the new arrivals up to speed." He gestured his host chimera's clawed arm with boredom around the area. "Come on, no time to waste and all that."

Then he looked to the ground of the ziggurat's top floor, where he was standing. He leaned down and picked something up. I strained my eyes to see it, and I could make out the form of my praetorian helmet in his filthy clawed arms. He raised an eyebrow and looked down at me, then tossed the helmet behind him with a bored roll of his eyes. Then he telekinetically lifted up a piece of clothing... it was... Myst's hoodie? And then Skyfire's battle saddle, rifles attached. And then even Doodle's sock. Tod seemed particularly baffled as he looked the sock over, looking so altogether puzzled that he finally just tossed it behind him with a shake of his head, eyes wide. The archon simply stood by, seeming to be chanting something as he looked up at the ceiling.

Well, I guess that meant that our stuff was up there, getting clawed by the arms of a freak of nature out of his own curiosity and boredom.

Soon there was a clanging of dozens of doors from each of the floors. Pained and frantic cries came from the mouths of ponies and zebras as they were either hauled along down the stairs or flung off the rails, screaming their lungs out in panic only to be caught by a telekinetic grip from one of the creatures. All of them, I saw as they were brought closer, were blind-folded, beaten for what l must have been weeks, and partially chimerafied. Along with that, their presences in my head were all of such anguish and hopelessness that I had to divert my attention away so as to not suffer an emotional breakdown; most of them were soldiers, some even Specters, and I always had a little more affinity for soldiers than I did for most people.

Eight chimeras came out of the crowd and walked over to us and divided into four pairs, with each pair watching over me and my companions. Not even Doodle was spared of it, and soon they took us away from each other several meters. Skyfire screamed and kicked, and Doodle could only struggle weakly with terrified eyes as the creatures took her away from Myst, who could only keep her eyes shut as they took her further from me as well. I resisted the urge to let my overprotective side take control and beat the crap out of them; I was NO match for these things, either against groups or a one-on-one, and so struggling would have just lead me perhaps being taken even further from them.

They set us down with a few meters interval each, with Skyfire being the closest to me. The blind-folded equines arrived a moment later, most of them struggling, yet all of them were thrown onto the ground with the same cruel brutality. They were set down along with us, kneeling to the ziggurat in a circular ring of people. After that we were all frozen in place; thankfully, this time it wasn't the painful type. Even better, I could move my eyes around. Unfortunately I couldn't close them.

Tod stared down at us, looking mildly amused at the ring of several dozen equines set about before him. The archon was kneeling next to him, not necessarily at him, and gestured up at the ceiling with both forehooves. The other large chimera was crawling all over the ziggurat, looking like a hunting animal as it sank it's claws deep into any crevices or nooks in the ziggurat's design. It crawled around until it clung to the wall in front of which was the chained Predator. It jumped down and circled my incapacitated guide, snorting flame and growling all the while.

A great wall of green energy erupted from the edges of the chamber, it's glow growing stronger with each passing second as it raced towards the center of the chamber, on top of the ziggurat. As it passed through me, I felt a tug inside my chest and head, like a tissue was aching to go along with the luminous wall of mysterious light. The energy compressed to a small orb above the spread out forehooves of the archon, who at once took it into his hooves as though it were a physical object. The orb's glow dimmed, yet I could sense that it's power was growing.

Then it detonated like a nova, the walls expanding like a great bubble, except this time they were clear save for green motes gathered within the boundaries of the luminescent energy. The light of it stung my eyes as though a drop of hot oil had landed in my sockets, yet I couldn't scream or close them; I was frozen. Still, at least some tears flowed out to ease the pain a little. I wasn't the only one who had suffered the pain, though; everyone in my field of vision except for the chimeras stiffened and twitched.

When my tears dripped away and I could see again, the entire area was encased in a scintillating, wavy wall of watery energy. The creatures paid little heed to it, save for the only partially chimerafied, who looked at the dome with awe. I myself was stunned at the sight before me, my curiosity, of all emotions, taking over and begging me to try to find out more about it.

"Now it is time to welcome more minds to our glorious salvation," The archon declared, raising his wings and stretching them to their full length. The creatures surrounding the ziggurat all drew themselves up and did the same. There was a great movement of air, like the very area was taking in a massive breath.

'What the hell is goi-...' Was what I thought.

Just then all of them opened their maws and mouths wide and blasted out emerald green fire into the air. The mere heat of it nearly singed my coat, and drowsiness flooded all my senses as the wave of extreme temperature blasted me again and again. The sensation of nearly passing out mixed terribly with the fact that I could not even close my eyes; I can't quite describe it, save for it resembling an overwhelming sense of panic. The breaths I took were hot and burned within my lungs, which were doing what I could not: express pain. I even lost all breath for a few moments as the heat swarmed about me, reaching temperatures which I worried would melt the whole place down on top of us.

They finally stopped, and at once I drew in breath once more. I wanted to gasp and take in deep, heavy breaths, but my breathing was limited to the regular pace by the monster's tyrannical grip. Just as well, though, as had I breathed in the hot air deeply I believe I truly would have passed out. Slowly, very slowly, the sensation of nearly passing out left me as the heat subsided.

The blindfolds were removed, and at once I saw the many pairs of eyes darting to and fro in horrified fright. So many of them landed on me and looked at me with alarm; they must have been so used to seeing beaten up and changed ponies and zebras that seeing one who wasn't either surprised them. Skyfire, Doodle, and Myst all got the same looks, and only the last of the three could not return any of the gazes.

"Silence yourselves," The archon commanded, and over the course of a few seconds the area went from a noisy, clamor-filled chamber to an eerily quiet and calm one. I could sense the anticipation of the monsters, the fear and uncertainty of the captives and Predator, and the immense boredom of Tod as he sat upon the ziggurat's peak, leaning his host's head on it's clenched fist.

But Tod finally stood and spoke up, putting on a tone of strangely genuine eagerness, "Ah! Finally, my favorite part! I don't get to enjoy this part often." He got up off the ground, gesturing an arm in an arc before the crowd assembled before him. "Let us welcome our new brethren! Let us grow our army! Let us perfect these weaklings!"

The crowd cheered, an ear-splitting mix of howling and roaring. The volume of it all vibrated through the ground, nearly toppling my frozen body over. Even when they stopped, their echoes rang all throughout the vast chamber. At once the signal all over the chamber began pulsating, like stagnant blood that was finally being pumped. Each pulse was like a war drum beating, it's deep ominous thump growing stronger and stronger. Soon the chimeras were chanting along with it in a language I couldn't fathom. In fact, had it not been for the repetitive organization of the exact same sounds, I would have thought that they were just groaning and roaring loudly. Glyphs appeared out of the motes on the energy dome, but they weren't zebra glyphs. They looked far too sinister to be zebra glyphs.

"You there," Tod said, pointing at the large chimera standing by Predator. The monster turned it's gaze up towards Tod. "You get to have the honor of extracting perfection's essence." The archon approached Tod's avatar reverently, a very large, custom-made looking syringe in his hooves. Tod took it without so much as a glance at the archon, then flung it off the side of the structure. The creature below caught it midair with a telekinetic grip, then slowly lowered it down to it's claws.

The creature approached the chained Predator with a wide grin on it's face. I tried forcing my way out of being frozen, but my efforts were stomped to paste brutally by the mentalities of at least a hundred different creatures. I was left with a headache the like of which I only had when Tod screwed with my head the first few times. I mentally yelled for Tom to appear and do... something! Damn it, we were likely going to be forcefully turned into freaks after weeks of torture, and I so did not want that! He saved us before, why couldn't he now?

The needle plunged deep into Predator's shoulder, and at once it began extracting the same multicolored ichor he himself had used on Doomtune days before. I sensed Predator's great sensation of anger panic, both growing exponentially. Even still, with him incapacitated, the creature just kept on extracting until the syringe was full. By the time it was, there was probably enough ichor in it to fill up a fourth of a bathtub.

The crowd's chanting increased, raising and lowering in volume every few seconds. Tod stood on the edge of the ziggurat's top floor, standing up tall with wings splayed out. He was bobbing his reptilian head up and down in accordance with the crowd's cheering, and for once I saw a terrible smile of absolute delight on his face. Clearly, these creature's admiration and glee were absolutely thrilling to him.

"Let us welcome them, then!" He yelled in a voice that was a mix of his host's horrible dragon vocal cords and his own sinister, imp-like voice. The crowd roared and stomped and blasted fire everywhere in wild agreement, some of them even snapping at each other and at the captives through all the chaos; and Tod reveled in it all. "Who shall we begin with? Who shall be the first to experience me in earnest?"

At once their was a great mental clamor, the hundreds of creatures debating as to who should be 'perfected' first. Quite a few voted for me; I was, apparently, an extremely annoying case for them. Still, others voted on others who had been here longer and had caused more trouble.

They came upon their conclusion: a zebra stallion Specter, one who had been a captive for several months. He was already mostly chimerafied, as all he lacked at that point was a pair of fully developed wings and a distinct dragon snout. He managed to temporarily break free of being frozen and of the grip of the two chimeras holding him, and at once he turned and blasted a jet of emerald fire at the crowd. He was quickly subdued by Tod, whose manipulation of the signal was too strong for even an experienced manipulator to resist. The two chimeras then came back on him and dragged him in front of the ziggurat, in front of Predator.

After a moment of stomping down any and all resistance the Specter still offered, they finally let his beaten and tired form slump to the ground. The two chimeras backed away as the larger one approached, syringe in it's claws. Tod and the archon paid close attention as the fluids were pumped into the barely conscious Specter's form, while every other creature was chanting louder and louder as the ominous thumping grew.

Predator, though, was mentally screaming at the top of his non-physical lungs.

The fluids disappeared, and the large chimera slowly backed away. It was then that I started feeling a rapid change in the operative's mind; all thoughts were being twisted and some were altogether removed. Soon there was a great torrent of energy washing over his head, flooding out any and all foreign thoughts and presences. I was pushed out, and was unable to detect any more changes. From the look on Tod's face, though, he could feel what was going on inside the operative's head and was as jubilant as though he were watching his favorite show.

Then the Specter's body jerked up, head looking up at the ceiling as though he were possessed. His wings were becoming bigger and longer with each passing second, as was his body. There were the sounds of his chest and bones ripping open and cracking as his chimerafied body struggled to keep up with the changes. A very distinct dragon snout suddenly jutted from his head with a resounding crack of bone, and it was all he could do to reach up his rapidly changing arms up to touch his face. He shook uncontrollably, glancing to the sides in terror.

Then he suddenly let out a noise like the moan of a whale as he collapsed and howled, roaring as his skeleton was forced to grow more than eight times it's original size over the course of seconds. His weak scales came off in great piles, immediately replaced with tougher looking ones. Chitinous carapace jutted out from his joints before spreading steadily across his body, covering him in a completely black suit of nightmarish armor.

Then he stood still, a monster of great proportions and a color scheme of nightmares. It's carapaced head was bowed, it's obsidian body glowing softly in the wan green light of the area. It's growl low and foreboding, the intense glow of it's hidden eyes illuminating the patch of concrete it was staring at with a deep blood red coloration. It's limbs were tense, ready to spring up at any moment and destroy any and all things within it's grasp.

Tod and all the types of creatures watched in anticipation, tense and eager at the same time. The gargantuan creature stirred, extending it's wings to it's full length and standing up on it's rear legs. It's eyes scanned the quiet crowd, a rumble of a growl emanating from it's throat. It reached one of it's arms up, looking at the new clawed hand with curiosity. After that it looked down at it's self; at it's chest, puffing in and out with each breath. At it's legs, where underneath the obsidian colored carapace was a skin of scales.

Then it roared, not one of terror or any sense of being a monster, but a roar of absolute pride. With it the others roared as well, all in unison. "I am perfect!" It yelled in a deafening boom that shook the earth and blasted me and the nearest captives (a very terrified Doodle and Myst, and a very wide-eyed Skyfire) away, and only the chimeras holding us in place kept us from getting blown into the crowd.

I looked up and saw Tod closing his eyes, and when he opened them again the creature's eyes were red. I felt a massive presence float through the air; a presence of great power and malice. The presence encircled the newly made chimera, who was gesturing his limbs and wings out as though he were truly welcoming the incoming entity. A moment later the presence flooded into the chimera's body, and the creature's eyes went green.

"Ah!" Tod said, his voice more controlled than when the Specter's conscience had been in control. "This form feels so much better! Sadly it isn't completely perfect, a few quirks here and there, and my neck feels a little stiff. Still, much better!" He said with a tone of delight as he stretched his host's arms.

'Heh,' I chuckled in my head, out of spite for him. 'Yeah, you went through all that and you're still not perfect, asshole.' Okay, maybe not just spite. Throw in a little relief in there; at least if his form wasn't perfect, then he had SOME weakness that could be exploited.

'Yeah, don't rub it in,' I heard him reply with a sour, disappointed tone that did not fit his disappointed mental one. I mentally smirked, and he grumbled.

He drew himself up, making his host stand to it's full height. "And now, who shall be next?!" He yelled at the crowd, and they cheered.

I tried tapping into their mental debate. Some of them, those more focused than the others, had the sense to keep me out of their conversation. But they were few, and after some time looking for an opening, I managed to get in.

Quite a lot of it was discussion about the different prisoners; about how annoying some were, and about how much resistance they gave to 'the gift'. I heard them clash mentally as to which individual to break so as to have the greatest effect on others; some of them were closely related, they claimed, and said that if particular individuals were turned in front of the rest, that the wills of the others would crumble.

Shattering hope... mental warfare. It disgusted me; there was no satisfaction in beating an individual who didn't resist. It was like a vulture swooping down on a dying animal, cheap and opportunistic.

After sifting through the thoughts, I finally came upon a large group who were talking about us.

'That earth pony mare doesn't seem capable of resisting in the slightest,' One of them said.

'Yes, and she witnessed that annoying one, Asturion, get violated earlier. Though I believe that she should be numbed first before we turn her; no telling what her trauma will do to her psychology when she joins us,' Another said.

'Well, if not her, then that pegasus mare is another good candidate. Melted one of my wings when we attacked them earlier. Or maybe even the Arsonist. I had to re-merge with the gift again because he stole it from me!' Another of them yelled.

'Sad as that is, brother, I believe that breaking the earth pony, that... 'Myst' will break the Praetorian as well; he is very overprotective, he even attacked the Lord earlier!' Yet another of them said.

A lot of them expressed their disdain for me after that, and the majority of those who spoke after agreed to chimerafy Myst.

'Oh, fuck no...' I said mentally, a growing worry for Myst forming in my head.

I probably shouldn't have done that, though. Amidst all their debating and elaborating, they had not noticed my mere presence. But at my words, I was immediately and brutally shoved from their mental talk room, my mind erupting with massive headaches as they bombarded me with mental attacks. Some of them even went so far as to cause me actual physical injury; my scars were slowly reopening. I mentally cried out, to their laughter.

Tod looked over at me, bleeding and shaking, and I saw a horrid smile crawl onto his face. "I believe you have reached a consensus?" He asked, and after some time the mental torture stopped, to my immense relief; I wasn't sure how much damage my already screwed up head and battered body could sustain, and didn't want said endurance to be tested.

"Myst!" They yelled in unison, most being so eager in the proclamation that they flapped their wings hard and roared flame all over the area. I myself was just barely out of the range of the nearest pillar of flame.

I saw her eyes pop wide, and I'm pretty sure that she would have ran 'til she was out of breath if she could have. She was able to shake, though; it was the only way she was able to manifest that fear, and I didn't need to locate her mind to know that she was scared to death. And as she was hauled over in front of Predator, who was still staring forward, I saw the faintest signs of Skyfire trying to break through being frozen to help her friend out.

How could I do any less?

I was already enraged by the acts of these abominations, more so after finding out how many captives they had here and after being forced to kill Asturion. My mind was under control by the very protective aspect of my personality, and I was just aching to tear out there guts through their fucking scales and splay it all over the place; okay, maybe that last part was my very angry side rather than my overprotective side, but still. And damned if I was going to let these things do to my friend what they did to who knows how many others.

All I had to do now was channel all that emotion.

Myst kneeled in front of the circle with her eyes tearing in fright, this time with Tod personally extracting Predator's ichor. As he did, he used his other hand to project the signal (or was it 'himself'? Was Tod actually the signal, or merely some being influenced by it? I personally believed it to be the former) at the syringe, and very slowly, after the other colors winked out one by one, all that was left was the emerald green blood of the chimeras. A smirk crept onto his face, and he looked down at the bound Predator with a look of amusement.

Alight, that was as far as I was going to let this go on.

I concentrated every emotion in my head, from the only partially subsided burning rage to the immense pity I had for the captives. I imagined the feelings coming together to form a multicolored, glowing spear. Next I imagined myself in a vast, endless void of black, surrounded by a glowing field of energy projected by the luminescent presences all about me. I pictured myself picking up e spear, then I pictured myself ramming at the shield full speed. My vision became blurry as I focused on my mental imagery.

To my amazement, the shield cracked. No, I was not the one imagining it cracking, nor was I even imagining this scene anymore; I was actually standing within the shield, spear in hooves and surrounded by blackness broken by cheering green-glowing forms and an omni-present green fog. I stared at all this in disbelief for a moment. Was... was I actually in my head? Was that possible? It couldn't have been possible! That was like... like getting superpowers! It was just an imagery, it wasn't supposed to be real! I began panicking, and I dropped the spear as I backed away.

'No,' I thought, stopping myself. 'Keep it together, Goldwreath. Your friend needs you, your lives depends on this. Your head is already fucked up, are you actually surprised this is happening? Pick up that spear and break that shield!' I screamed mentally at myself... okay, I screamed in the mind of my mind at myself... ugh, nevermind. Look, I just shouted at myself to get myself motivated, okay? Okay. Wow, this paragraph sounded way better in my head...

Anyway, I picked up the spear again. Tentatively, I rammed it into the shield again and again. Whatever sane part of my head that was left screamed and yelled at how unnatural all this was. I shared it's feelings, but right now I had to do this. I had to.

The shield cracked and flashed, and the shards fell to the ground like pieces of green glass. At once I brought the spear up into my jaw, and with all the force I could muster flung it at one of the luminescent beings. The spear disappeared into it's glowing shape.

Suddenly I was back in the real world. One of the chimeras was thrashing on the floor, reaching for it's back as though trying to pull out the spear. It howled and snarled, it's pain rippling across the mental landscape like the waves of a tsunami. All the other creatures were too shocked at the occurrence to pay attention to Tod, who himself looked absolutely dumbfounded.

Now was my chance.

Just as I felt, I was able to move. The pain was there, gathered in my limbs like shards of crystal locking my joints. I forced myself past it and lunged forward, swooping at Myst with the intent of somehow... somehow... get us all out of here; that somehow, I could bring all my friends out of the mess I got them in. I dashed the short distance with a quick glide, and I grabbed the still frozen body of Myst as I flew up. Without all my heavy gear, my strong wings were able to bring me up quickly and efficiently.

Just then I glanced behind me, and I saw the dozens of chimeras taking off and flying after me. Damn it, they were fast! Whatever distance I had gained on them was quickly dissipating as their even stronger wings brought them closer each second. And to think, for a moment there I had actually been so foolish as to think this plan would work!

As with all my plans, this one went to hell as quickly as it was formed. One of the chimeras crashed into me from above, sinking it's monstrous claws into my side as it used it's weight to push us towards the ground. My side began to bleed and my wings were straining themselves just to maintain altitude. I focused all effort I could spare into bucking it's chest with my hindleg as I repeatedly struck it in the gut again and again. I think I managed to push it away only because it had not sunk it's claws THAT deep into my chest.

Then another came down on me, and I very quickly lost altitude as it suppressed my wings from flapping. Then a second lunged up at me, grabbing Myst's dangling hindleg. And then a third, crashing into me from the side and sending us spiraling out of control as we plummeted towards the mass of very shocked and very angry monsters below. I landed with a thud, and I lost my grip of Myst and she rolled away from me several feet.

Needless to say, I was quite thoroughly pummeled when I crashed. Very angry chimeras stomped me with as much non-lethal force as they could muster. Really, had they each used their full strength, I'm pretty sure there would have been an earthquake. I flailed my hooves defensively, not taking notice of the fact that through all the agonizing stomping, several of them were dragging Myst away. I finally noticed that, and was about to get up and do whatever the hell it took to get us out of here, when I was lifted out of the angry crowd by a very large hand that smothered my face and made my neck sore as it lifted me. I felt my limp limbs droop down and my blood dripping in large volumes; was I really getting myself injured this much out here? Really, just three or so weeks, and I had already gathered up more scars than I would have ever thought possible!

I was flung in the air, and was caught by some very sharp claws by my surprisingly non-broken wings right before I struck the ground. Tod lifted me close to his face, letting me see every ugly detail of his chitinous carapace and maw... that, and he was just generally ugly as hell. I never did understand what they imagined 'perfection' to be like.

Tod raised an arm, and green wisps erupted from the head of every chimera in the area. At once I felt their anger subside, replaced instead by confusion. They looked at him with a questioning look, but then he sent a wave of piercing energy to all of them. At once they began returning to where they were before my little stunt, some if them still looking confused.

He exhaled, "You are very, very annoying, you know that?" He turned and shook his head, not taking any effort to handle my wings less painfully as we went back to the ziggurat. "What in the name of all things is wrong with you? Always trying to do things for others, even at your own expense... sickening."

"You're crazy," I murmured as I struggled for breath, letting my very fucked up body and head take care of my wounds; at the moment I wasn't as disturbed of that as I should have been. "I'm just... j-just trying... to help things get better."

"Then join us!" He said, lifting me in front of him and making me stare into his eyes. "At the end of time, only chaos will remain. You think you peace-loving mortal equines can survive? You think you can thrive? Well, you can't!" He pulled away, and looked over the entire area and at the creatures with a look of pride. "But we can. I just have to eliminate a few more weaknesses, a few more imperfections. Then we can face the tide of doom... and laugh in it's face."

"Chaos?!" I yelled. "What the hell do you mean? If you're trying to imply that you're FIGHTING chaos by causing destruction, then you're fucking insane!" Honestly, that was the most ridiculous concept I ever heard of. For, you know, the past three weeks, at least.

He harumphed, "I would not expect your un-enlightened mind to understand. You mortals, going about preaching values of honesty and bravery and organization; promoting your futile 'order' and 'peace'." Then he frowned. "There was a time such fragile concepts were palpable. A time when joy was so commonplace it was basked in in great abundance. A quiet time in the universal cycle, marked with happiness," He said quietly with a tone of reminiscence akin to Predator's whenever we asked him about his past. Then a resolute expression formed on his reptilian jaw. "But no more. The time of order is over; chaos is coming, and only those who will adapt will be spared."

Despite everything, I took in his words and analyzed them with as much focus as I could spare. What in Celestia's name was he talking about? The universe? Chaos? Just... what? What was this, a prophecy of doom? Oh, come on! I knew the world was fucked up, but what the hell could be so destructive as to wipe the planet out? What could possibly be SO powerful to do anything of that magnitude?

We arrived back at the circle, and this time the number of sentries per prisoner (including my friends) was increased from two to five; clearly, they did not want such an incident happening again. I was set down hard in front of Predator, his eyes looking at me with a look I couldn't quite fathom.

"Now," Tod started, "I believe it is now a general consensus among all of you that the earth pony is, in fact, NOT the one you want to break first." The crowd roared it's response in the affirmative, many of them looking truly pissed that I had interrupted them earlier.

Tod just nodded. "Mhm, yes, I see. Now, I'm not even going to ask because I already know who it is." He looked down at me as I lay on the ground, exhausted and in pain. I returned his gaze with a weak glare.

He picked me up by the skin of my back, piercing his claws through my hide to dangle me. I wanted to scream in pain, but I was exhausted of everything. Exhausted of constantly screaming in pain, exhausted of trying to figure out answers to the many questions coming up in my head, exhausted of trying to think about what the hell was up with the city, and most especially exhausted of trying to keep fighting... whatever I came across. I just wanted a break, or at least something going my way for once. We would have been dead at that point had it not been for luck and Tom. No, as I hung there, my back bleeding profusely, I just winced from the stinging of the sharp claws.

That was to the surprise of Tod, who shook me vigorously as though confused. When I still didn't scream, I could have sworn I heard him chuckled to himself. "Ah, good!" He said, then turned to the crowd. "Congratulate yourselves, for through our combined efforts we have broken the extremely annoying Praetorian! Now, it is time for him to join us!" He threw me down onto the ground, and procured the syringe from where he had dropped it.

Go ahead. That's how I felt. Just let them do it. I was tired of everything. Maybe once they were done they'd let my friends go; it was a small hope, but there it was.

I was in such a near constant state of pain ever since leaving the stable that I had grown numb to most of it, and I was sick of it. I was tired of failing at every single plan, no matter how simple. First and foremost was going to the Forum; how had everything gone so wrong? The plan was simple: go-there. Then getting Zaita updated, that was also supposed to be simple! Instead we went on an adventure that nearly got me and Myst killed, and in her case nearly raped! Then going to the dam... I had thought it was as simple as following a guy I hated. Instead, I had learned how supremely misunderstood he was and got us captured by monster chimeras controlled by Tod. I was in the city for barely a few days, and already things were proving far more difficult than anticipated; how much more the more I stayed here?

I was stupid. I had charged into all this mess without any thought. I looked over the city once, and then... then I decided to spend my life trying to save it from itself? Was I really that ambitious? Julius Caesar of the Roaman Republic had been ambitious too, but at least he had the means to succeed. I didn't. He had smarts, I didn't. His plans went right, mine didn't. He had an army, I didn't. He had a people backing him up, I didn't. I may have been respected by the common person in Roam, but the Legion was the supreme authority, and they hated me. That counted for a lot.

I just wanted to give up. So much to do, each task seeming more impossible with each step... It was enough to make me very, very tired. I just failed at everything. At going to the Forum, trying to protect my friends, making plans, trying do something simple...

Trying to avenge the death of the only one who had taken me in...

'For fuck's sake, snap out of it!' A voice yelled in my mind, and I shook my head hard.

What the hell was I thinking? Was I actually giving up? Already? Well... fuck that! A great wave of determination and fresh rage washed over me, and at once I diverted all of my attention back to what was happening in the physical world.

I looked up at Tod, seeing his clawed hand holding the needle, which was already in my skin, ready to pump Predator's altered ichor into me. Cold calculation took over my mind, and I began to assess the severity of my situation more closely; chances of escape, what I could do to improve the chances of those actions, and how to integrate my friends into those actions, mostly. I didn't panic; panic was a terrible enemy at a time like this.

However, my calculating mind was suddenly stopped short when it realized something.

'Wait,' I thought, 'Who just spoke in my head?'

Tod suddenly stiffened, and then, very slowly, he looked up at the center of the energy dome the archon had formed. There, right smack in the middle, was a hole the size of a chimera, with the edges of the energy rippling like water washing onto the shore. Every other chimera, in unison, did the same, and at once their eyes widened in shock.

Tod took in a deep breath and boomed, "Seal the gap! Seal it no-..."

A great pillar of blue wind struck down from the hole with a mighty sound of thunder, slamming into Predator with such a strong impact that every single chimera and prisoner were blasted to the very edges of the chamber; everyone, except for me and my friends. Tod managed to hold his ground, sinking his titanic legs into the concrete as he braced himself against the wind. I only felt it as a breeze on my face, gentle and kind. And as I let it blow around me, I heard a voice. It was... distant, yet all around me and accompanied by a humming... a voice I recognized...

"Goldwreath, move closer now!" Tom yelled from the omni-present blue cloud roaring around me. "Don't worry, I'll take care of your friends!"

Damn it, Tom! Of all the times to show up, you show up now? You could have gotten through to us earlier! You could have... you could have saved some of these people! Saved them from losing their minds ad bodies to Tod!

I decided to not be angry at him just for the moment, and so I bolted towards the center of the room, where the continuously swirling column of blue wind touched the ground, completely obscuring Predator in the process. I saw my friends through the cloud, struggling to keep away from the column; I couldn't blame them, as they didn't have the same amount of contact with Tom as I did. In fact, I had to question whether or not they had ANY contact with him at all.

As I was about to reach the center, finally being able to see Predator's hazy form, a sharp pain erupted along my spine and spread to all my four legs. I yelled and collapsed, and Tom was forced to begin dragging me back towards him.

"Oh no you don't!" Tod yelled, jumping out of the blue cloud behind me and landing just a few inches from my head. His host was quite different from what it looked like before, as now veins of brightly glowing green light spread across it's whole body, and his wings were already translucent glowing energy, bigger and brighter than the archon's. His eyes glowed a murderous green strong enough to pierce through the blue cloud like a knife.

But as he approached me, intent to destroy evident in his gaze, all the cloud within the chamber began racing back at great speeds towards the central column. My friends and I were forcefully dragged along, but as we reached the swirling formation of blue our momentum ceased and we slid gently across the floor. We found ourselves within the column, and from within it the outside was a blue-tinged blur.

The creatures that had been blasted all the way to the edges of the area took that opportunity to swarm us. I felt a horrible sensation of chilling fear at the sight, as all their howling and groaning and snarling reminded me of that dreadful night back in Pyro Kinetic, when I first encountered ghouls. My friends were similarly petrified, watching the oncoming horde with resigned and terrified expressions.

Then a great inward wave dragged us all closer towards the center, and again my friends tried to resist. On the contrary, the progress of the angry monsters charging us was significantly slowed, as though they were running underneath water. Tod was less affected by it, but I could see the strain on his face.

Suddenly a blinding detonation erupted behind us, it's force sending a powerful shockwave that blasted in all directions. Yet it was not a detonation of explosives, but a detonation of gentle energy that raced across the landscape, once again pushing back all the chimeras, save Tod. The light only temporarily blinded me, and from behind us the sound of a great battle-cry thundered from a throat both physical and... metaphysical.

I barely had the mind to turn and look, as at this point I was almost as scared of Tom as I was of Tod. There, behind us, standing amidst the blue mist and blinding light, was a two-armed shape formed out of the blue cloud. It's featureless legs were obscured by the blue glowing fog, but it's several dozen foot tall cloudy body loomed over us like a tower.

It let out a deafening yell as it pulled something from it's side, and as it did a metallic ring filled the air. A hundred foot long blade of solid blue cloud jutted out from the form's hand, the tip shining like a star.

Tod looked at that for a moment and roared, and at once his veins seemed to erupt with green flame. As his body grew ever larger, the flesh cracked and widened to reveal his insides to be nothing but pure green glowing energy, and his light filled the chamber to combat the blue form. The chimeras also roared, their green eyes piercing through the blue cloud like candles in the night.

But as they once more charged, the sword tip pierced into the earth, splitting the ground in front of us into a wide gorge. A great wind blew from behind us, and with it dozens of cloudy forms emerged from the source of the blinding blue light. As they neared, they seemed to me like strangely clad beings with large round shields, armed with spears with faintly shining tips. They rushed into us, passing through us like ghosts and forming a ring of ethereal shields in a wide area before us.

The form removed it's sword from the ground, and at once the tip shone brighter than ever before. Motes of energy appeared out of the air, gathering around the tip and forming a small sphere of blue around it. By then Tod had grown almost as large as the gargantuan cloud form, and all his parts save his murderously glowing eyes were obscured by massive tendrils of dark green.

The sword tip erupted with multicolored lightning, a great bolt of blue impacting the ceiling above us and blasting through the concrete, while smaller bolts of different colors struck the heads of the creatures comprising the rampaging horde, and any that were struck dropped dead as fried corpses.

But that did not stop them all. Right before they reached the ethereal wall of translucent shields, the blue form reached down one of it's arms and gripped me and my friends within it's grasp, and at once it flew up, still blasting the continuous bolt of blue lightning into the thick concrete. As we ascended, there was a great crash as the swarm smashed into the shield ring. That was followed by a resounding snap of metal, followed by the faint dangling of chains.

As we went further up, reaching the ziggurat's top, I saw the archon sandwiching his head in between his hooves as he staggered in apparent agony. As we flew even further up and finally into the large hole blasted into the concrete, our stuff, which was thrown about along the roof of the ziggurat, was enclosed in a small cloud of blue and levitated up along with us. At that, amongst all things I should have been feeling -- fear, anger, worry -- I felt immensely relieved instead.

The sounds that came up at us from below as we ascended were pained howls and united battle-cries, but they were soon drowned out by the loud crackling of electricity. Bits of concrete fell all around us, crashing into the diminishing hole of the chamber beneath us. And as we went further up into the darkness which was only broken by the blue luminescence of the form and of it's lightning, one thought in particular stole all my attention:

'Where's Predator?'

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

At last we blasted out of the hundreds of feet of concrete, and immediately us and our stuff were gently floated down onto the moist floor of a massive sewer pipe which had a huge portion broken away, revealing the city of Roam outside. Skyfire jerked herself free and took several steps away from the cloud, while Myst and Doodle carefully crawled away to the cover of a nearby rock. Finally being close to the city, I at last heard the very constant gunshots and explosions.

But they were had to hear through the loud humming coming from the blue cloud. It slowly compressed and collapsed into a much smaller version of itself, and that much smaller form then approached me and stood still.

"You're Tom, I suppose," I said quietly, looking the shimmering being before me over; this was him, I could feel it. "What... what are you?" It was a question I had asked a few times, and with each encounter with him I wanted to know the answer more and more.

"That is a question for another time," Tom responded. "For you see, I have been searching for that chamber for quite a while. Now is my opportunity to destroy it before Tod gets that abomination of his out of there."

The blue form raised it's arms high, then slowly lowered them in an arc towards it's sides. The blue cloud shimmered violently before forming into a concentrated blue ball and quickly flew over to the gaping hole in the ground, the water trickling into it and falling down into that chamber down there. There, right where the fairly large blue form had been standing earlier, was the kneeling form of Predator, his head bowed and downcast eyes glowing blue. As the blue ball flew further away, the glow steadily disappeared.

'Well, that answers that question,' I thought, before I turned my attention back to Tom.

"And what about those prisoners?" I asked, and Tom stopped. The hovering ball seemed to turn to face me. "What will you do about them?"

"What I can do, if saving them is possible, and what I must do, if it is not," He responded ominously, then hurriedly flew down the hole as if avoiding conversation with me.

"Yeah. What you have to do..." I said sullenly, remembering why I had to kill Asturion. It was an evil... but a necessary evil. That little epiphany didn't really make me feel better.

I sighed and turned my attention to my friends; they deserved it all right now. "You okay, Skyfire?" I asked her, looking at her shocked and wide-eyed expression. She kept that look up for a moment, but then nodded her head in two quick jerks. I was of course referring to her physical condition; she was not alright, none of us were. Not after having had our bodies fucked up by Tod. Not after what happened down there.

Next I turned around and looked at Myst, who actually seemed to have the sense to start picking up her stuff off the floor. She had already gathered up her only real belongings: her rifle and accompanying cartridges, her single saddlebag, and her hoodie. She zipped the final zipper of her hoodie, her eyes half-closed and looking at the ground miserably. Doodle looked around frantically, before spotting her little pink sock next to a small stream of sewer water. She squealed and galloped over to it, raising it in the air with both her forehooves and putting on a smile wider than I would have thought possible. Despite all the shitty problems I knew our recent experiences would bring up which I had to think of, I couldn't help but smile as I went over to pick up my Praetorian helmet.

Skyfire cantered to Myst before slowing down to a trot. "Myst, you okay?" She asked softly, and Myst turned her head away silently. Skyfire nudged her flank with her own, "Come on, talk to-..."

In one swift move, Myst unslung the rifle from her back and with the butt of it delivered a savage blow to Skyfire's face. My pegasus friend collapsed onto her back, grunting as her bleeding snout dripped her blood all over her chest.

"Gah! Myst, wha-what are you doing?!" Slyfire asked in shocked pain, before Myst whirled on her and stepped on her throat, then pressed the barrel of her rifle against Skyfire's head. Myst looked crazed, anger and murderous intent visible in her eyes; a look I thought I would never have gotten to see from her. All Skyfire could do was cough as Myst's hindleg buried itself in her throat.

"I won't let you fuck me, I won't!" Myst half-screamed at her friend, pressing the barrel even harder against Skyfire's head. Skyfire tried to speak but choked, then brought up her forehooves to try to push the leg off. At that Myst pressed her leg down even harder before bringing the butt down on Skyfire's face again and again.

I had just finished strapping the helmet on. I stared at them in horror for a moment, before I finally gathered enough wits to speak up, "Control yourself, Myst!" I angrily stomped towards them, when suddenly Myst pointed the barrel at me. My anger subsided, replaced by sudden fear and even more shock.

"Myst..." Skyfire managed to choke out, "We're your friends... we... won't hurt you..." She gasped and brought her forehooves up once more. The amount of blood on her battered and twitching face was a testament to how hard Myst had struck her.

Myst stared at me a moment, eyes no longer fierce and murderous, but wide and fearful. Her forehooves began to shake uncontrollably, and she slowly looked down at her choking friend, and at her own hoof crushing her windpipe. She looked back to me with a desperate look, and saw the look of bafflement I gave her.

The rifle clattered to the ground as she dropped it, and then she herself fell down shaking, pulling her hoof off of Skyfire's throat. The pegasus gasped hard and crawled a few inches away, massaging her throat. Myst looked at her with horror, trying to scuttle away with her hooves. She scurried off and pressed her back against the wall, looking at me and her with a look of terrible guilt.

When Skyfire finally managed to get up, she and I approached Myst together. She seemed only a little hesitant at approaching the mare who had, only a few moments ago, pressed a gun barrel to her head.

Myst's eyes darted between us, a look of desperation and fear showing through them. She finally stopped trying to push herself away and just hung her head before lying down as though just waiting for us to kill her. She opened her eyes and looked up at us, then curled up a little bit before saying in a voice so soft and burdened with guilt it thrummed, "Please don't hurt me. Please..." She sniffed and pressed her legs closer to her body, looking up at me with an expression that seemed so certain I was going to hurt her.

Skyfire looked at me with a look so surprised her blackened and swollen eye popped wide open. Then she turned her attention back to Myst.

"Myst, tell us-..." We said in perfect unison, getting startled looks from each other. Again we tried speaking, and again we emulated each other perfectly. Finally, she gestured for me to go ahead.

I sighed and looked my earth pony friend in the eye. "Myst... talk to us. Come on. Please?" I lifted a hoof to try to pat her, but at that her eyes widened and she backed away with a scared eep. Now she was pressed so tightly up against the wall her flanks slid upwards.

"Myst, please!" Skyfire begged, daring to take a step forward. Myst just closed her eyes and shook as though she were cold.

Skyfire backed away, and we found ourselves looking at each other and at her with uncertainty. We seemed to come across the joint conclusion that it was best to leave her alone for the moment, and so we backed away. Just then Doodle sat herself right next to Myst's head as she began crying. Doodle looked at her with a look of sadness that suggested she was only sad because Myst was sad, and then she curled herself up against Myst's body. At that Myst pressed her head lightly against the filly.

Skyfire only wiped the blood from her face before picking up her stuff off of the ground: her battle-saddle with attached plasma rifles, and her SMG. I went over to pick up my own things, but it all felt lacking without my armor.

Predator finally got up, and looked at each of us silently. His eyes were blank of any emotion; they always did manage to convey feelings his voice didn't. After a moment, his eyes' glow disappeared.

I had tried getting him to talk as well, but he only looked over at the weeping Myst and the now weeping Doodle and continued his silence. I could feel his presence in my head, but I couldn't feel in on his thoughts. When I tried, he looked at me with an expression so blank and lifeless he made a corpse look like a fucking dancer.

Then he simply picked up his backpack off the ground, and from it procured another HMG-AR hybrid easy as he pleased. Then, with a simple, "Let's go," -- his only words to me ever since back down there, in the chamber -- he turned and began climbing up and out of the massive sewer pipe we were in.

I sighed and looked to Skyfire, seeing the immensely distressed look on her face. When she saw me looking at her, she put on an expression that was more certain and collected than I was sure she actually felt.

"Come on," I said quietly. It was stupid. Among the many other things I should have been discussing with them or thinking about -- what was happening to my head and my body, my friends' own distress, the Tod and Tom phenomena, Predator's role in recent events, the battle at the dam -- I just said that? Was I really that much of a procrastinator when it came to problems?

"Hold on -- what happened down there?" She asked in a tone just short of a demanding one. "I don't want to go any further with that guy unless I get some answers."

I sighed, "Alright, I'll... I'll get him to spill. Just... just let me handle it, okay? I'm not really in the best shape to think right now," I admitted. That got me a look of concern from her. "Look, just get Myst and Doodle. When I get an answer, I'll tell you, alright?"

She gave an uncertain little nod, before proceeding to collect Myst and Doodle... somehow. I didn't really care. I climbed the slope leading out of the pipe. When I finally got out, I found myself standing in the crossroads in between four titanic skyscrapers. The rubble that had fallen from them piled up in messy heaps all around them and onto the ruined road.

I saw an old billboard on one of the piles. It showed an image of a zebra sitting on a golden throne, gesturing his forehoof forward at me. Rays of golden light shone from it and gleamed off the metal marble buildings around him. Above the zebra's head, where the old text was supposed to be, there was instead a new sign. Only the first three words remained of the original text.

"Salutatio ad Roamae," I read the first three words. Then the last two, crudely painted, read, "Civitatem bellum."

I gulped and read the Equestrian translation aloud, "Welcome to Roam. City of War."

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained : It's My Mind, Level One -- Tod has tried and failed to completely control and subjugate you. For your efforts, you gain your very first Mental Resistance attribute. You get +1 to your MR attribute.

Chapter 16 - Idealism

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Chapter 16
Idealism
"This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object."

The streets of Roam were layered with so much dust and rubble and blood and skeletons from past battles that they looked like a magnificent graveyard that had lost it's opulence long ago. Ruined and crumbling structures from the ancient empire and more recent structures alike groaned under the stress of war -- of constant shelling and fighting and explosions. More than once did we find ourselves needing to jump over a huge split or chasm in the roads, and in the latter there were many carcasses of military and civilian vehicles and skeletons. All of them seemed like they were heading east, just like the trains in the underground.

And then there was the fighting. Every single second there was at least one gunshot, explosion, fwoosh of a rocket, or the rumble of distant vehicles. We ourselves had yet to encounter anything along that road that had intent to attack us, and for that I was grateful. Still, I kept my guard up in case we did come across anything. The only thing I saw for a duration of time was the distant form of a zebra wearing cobbled together leather armor run hastily into one of the buildings. Predator paid him no attention; probably just a scavenger. Despite our relative safety, we all still kept our weapons out; even Myst, who looked around at the surrounding buildings with a look very much disturbed and tense on her face.

Predator hadn't said a single word ever since we finally left the underground ten minutes ago, and really I don't think any of us were in the mood for conversation. Skyfire hung back with Myst, but she gave her a wide berth and didn't try to make any physical contact; she just looked on with a look of concern, only occasionally doing anything else. Doodle trotted along, a slightly sad expression on her usually cheery face.

My mind, now no longer being flooded with worry of the potential death of my friends at the claws of telepathic chimeras controlled by Tod, finally allowed all of the questions festering within it to flow forth freely. What EXACTLY were those things, beyond being chimeras of some sort? What was Predator's involvement with them? Was he actually one of them, or something similar but different? And what exactly were Tom and Tod, besides what I already speculated of them? What exactly were they, and what did they want?

And most of all, what were they doing to me and my friends?

I shivered at that, despite the noon sun's heat. That was a question I had been pondering ever since the ZSI HQ, and I had yet to come across a definite answer. Were they trying to... to mutate us? Oh, that thought churned my stomach. Or were they trying to get a message to us through all my contact with them? If so, what and why? And what was so important about me that I was in the middle of their conflict?

I groaned softly and shook my head. "Too many questions."

I decided to stop thinking for a bit and let my subconscious -- if that was still intact, amidst all the mind-fucking I had gotten -- automatically think on my problems. I had read a year or so back that sometimes our subconsciousness can decipher problems when we couldn't, and I was seriously hoping that that was true, because I really didn't want to think at the moment.

I glanced back at the three mares trotting along in the dust behind me. Myst still couldn't meet my gaze, nor the gazes of Skyfire or Doodle. She just trotted along like dead weight, unspeaking. I sighed and took a few steps back to them.

"Myst, you're really going to have to let us help, you know," I said simply, to which she immediately raised her head and cringed. I saw the look of guilt and fear in her eyes. "Look... what you did back there... that wasn't you. All of us are under a lot of stress, and I honestly don't blame you." Her eyes looked down to the ground, a little bit angrily.

"Neither do I," Skyfire finally said, getting up next to me. Myst clenched her eyes shut and grit her teeth at that. "You know I really don't have anything against you." She let out in a little chuckle, "Hell, if it were me, I think I would actually have shot first! So, as you can see, none of that was your faul-..."

"No!" Myst yelled, getting up off the ground and fixing both of us with a pained glare. "Why do you both say it wasn't my fault?" She gestured her hoof at us in an arc before her, saying, "I hit both of you! You're my friends and you were just trying to help me, and I hit you! What kind of friend am I for doing that?"

"The kind that is obviously under a lot of stress," Predator said at last, appearing out of nowhere behind Myst (Wasn't he in front of us?). She jumped up and turned around in surprise, as did Doodle, who had been watching our little argument without a word. "I'm quite sure that under normal circumstances you wouldn't have done that. What you did was obviously triggered by stress."

"And how would you know that?" Myst asked softly yet threateningly. "Do you know what I saw in there? Were you beaten and thrown into a dank room, only to see what the four of us saw?" She asked shakily, taking a step forward.

"Yes, yes, I know what you saw. You saw some stallion get abused, and you're afraid that it might happen to you," Predator pointed out without a hint of hesitation. "Since it was a mare who was the rapist, you reacted to Skyfire's contact more violently. Simple, and it really wasn't that hard to discern."

'Damn it!' I thought, berating myself. That was right, my friends had in fact seen that as well. I couldn't believe that I forgot they had. To think, I was trying to comfort Myst on the thought that she was under simply under a lot of stress, yet I completely forgot to take the fact that she saw that into account. I wonder how it would have gone if I talked to her without remembering she had witnessed it...

Myst stared at him with a wide-eyed, shocked, and somewhat angry look. Then she hung her head and sighed, looking behind her at us with a look of resignation. Then she turned away and closed her eyes. "I just... I just don't want to think that it might happen to me. I don't want to believe the truth that it can happen almost any time, and to anyone," She said quietly.

Doodle nodded once, then said in agreement, "Why would anypony do that?" Her tone was that of such genuine sorrow and innocence the likes of which I only heard from her now.

"You saw that?" Predator asked in a rush.

Doodle looked up at him. "I... I heard what they were doing. I heard screaming and... other noises." She took in a shallow, shaky breath. "I can't believe they were beating him up like that."

He murmured softly, "Beating him up..."

"Yeah," She replied softly. "Miss Myst and miss Skyfire told me how they were beating that stallion up, but they didn't let me see."

He looked at the bowed filly's head, a soft growl rumbling from his helmet. Just as soon as it came up, there was a catch in his breath and he looked away, shaking his head. When he turned it back to face us, he saw my gaze. Without words, I understood; a part of him was aching to kill her.

I felt a little pang of terror at that. If some part of him wanted to kill her, then that meant -- and I was using what I knew of his predicament come to this conclusion -- that the evil Doodle had witnessed was something Predator knew would most likely be permanent. I remembered his words days back: 'I won't hurt her as long as she doesn't suffer permanent emotional and psychological damage.'

He kept his gaze on me, and once again I understood; I should be more careful with what I let happen to Doodle, or else. I gulped and nodded in understanding, and he returned the nod.

"So... you won't talk to us, then?" Skyfire asked disappointedly, ears drooping.

"I... I can, and I will," Myst replied in a stutter. "Just... please, no touching. Okay? I don't really trust... myself right now."

"You sure you'll be okay?" I asked out of concern.

She took in a shaky little breath, then replied with an uneasy smile, "Don't worry, I'll handle this. I can deal with just one problem." Then her ears drooped and she looked to the ground. "Somehow..." She said forlornly.

Skyfire and I looked to one another, then nodded tentatively; except for Doodle, I think that Myst was okay with her. Predator looked at her, but didn't nod. After that, he turned around and began trotting again. We followed suit, Myst now looking just a little more comfortable. Doodle likewise cheered up; I suppose that at least part of Doodle's sadness was due to Myst's distress.

We moved on, turning a corner of what must have been an office building of some sort. The glass windows were all cracked, revealing all the disorderly and ruined contents in the form of office chairs and desks, with quite a lot of papers and wrappers either flying around in the soft wind or piled up on the ground, rotting. Skyfire told me what she was going to do and flew up into the building, checking out one of the floors. A little later, when we turned the building's other corner and were on a road that looked like a highway, if all the cars and military vehicles, all heading east, were any indication, she glided down from the broken side and landed next to me. Myst gave her a quizzical look, but she just shrugged in response.

'Eh,' I thought, 'Not all exploration yields good results, I guess.'

I turned my attention to Predator trotting wordlessly a little in front of me, the clanking of his equipment the only noise coming from him aside from his breathing. "Well?" I asked, "What about you telling me what the fuck happened down there? I'm not going to endanger my friends by traveling with you to this dam unless I get at least a little context here."

He took in a deep breath and exhaled, but didn't say a word for a moment. Then, slowly, he said, "I hope you'll excuse me, but I am trying to find out some answers as well." He glanced behind his shoulder at me. "You can tell Skyfire that she'll have to wait for her answers, because I don't have them. Or at least, not all of them."

"Then tell me the ones you do have," I replied. "In the past three weeks, I've experienced things that will forever change my life. I don't know how I am able to... to continue living without thinking about them all the time, but really I think that's good; I can only imagine what it would be like if I spent all my time regretting and in sadness. But that doesn't change the fact that Tom and Tod are the most puzzling and fucking annoying phenomena I've encountered." I trotted a little faster, getting right up next to him. "And YOU'VE known them longer than I have, so YOU'LL tell me all you know about them."

"And I will," He replied, a slight edge to his voice. "I will. But not now. If I tell you now, you might get involved in all this mess even more. That wouldn't be good. In fact, it's better that you do your best to stay away from them; the more you contact them, the more hopelessly you're getting yourself intertwined in this. As it is, you can still not get involved."

I groaned, "How long do you intend to keep putting this off? Predator, my friends and I have nearly died following you! I do not want another incident, and so I demand that you tell me. And as for my involvement, I am this city's Praetorian, and as such all matters regarding Roam's citizens' safety concerns me."

He kept quiet for a moment, then lowered his head a little and looked at me. "I will put this off as for as long as I can, because you do not NEED to be involved. And if you really MUST know, then you will be wise to wait until I am willing to tell you, understand?" He said sharply. Then he turned around and murmured, shaking his head slightly, "Roam's citizens..."

I glared at him for a moment, my mind disapproving of the thought of conceding. My friends safety depended on this. Hell, I needed to know. Too many questions and too many dangers were coming up, and a great many of them were about Tom and Tod.

But he had the answers, and pissing him off was not going to help me get them. "Just hurry up then," I said, practicing great restraint on my part; oh, how I SO much wanted to demand further.

"Good," He replied with a tired sigh, lifting his head up. I was astonished at how exhausted he sounded, and being one that nearly gave up because of being tired (an action which I still loathe myself for), I could find a little room in my head for giving him some slack.

Giving up. Yeah, that's how I felt back down there -- tired of everything and just wanting my life back. I remembered how ready I was to let it all go. And to think, all I was doing to account for my friends was hope that they would be let go. Yeah, like that was going to happen; but I was actually going to leave them to chance. Damn, was I really that selfish?

But when I thought about my stable... about killing the piece of shit that murdered my close friend... I snapped out of it. A fire within me that I had not felt burning reignited, and I knew I couldn't let go yet. I still had someone to avenge, and I sure as hell wasn't going to let that go because of some sadistic asshole named Tod.

After all, whoever impersonated me was the person responsible for thrusting me out into the wasteland.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

After a few minutes, we passed underneath a large concrete arc that upheld a narrow bridge which came out from the alleys of two ruined buildings on each side of the street. I looked up at it and examined it; it was far too thin to be a bridge, unless it was a bridge that just one pony or zebra to use at a time. Filthy water dripped off it's broken sides, piling up in pools on the broken road in front of us. Some pools had gone stagnant, and within them I saw very large tadpoles swimming about.

"Wow, what is that?" Doodle asked in a voice a little too loud for my liking; not that we were exactly sneaking to the dam at this point, because if we were then I suppose Predator would have made us pass into the buildings. Still, I didn't want to draw any attention to us.

"That is an aqueduct, Doodle. They were an ancient Roaman invention used to bring water across great distances from mountains and valleys to their cities," Predator responded in a tone filled with a surprising amount of vigor; I suppose he loved talking about Roam. Doodle's eyes widened in awe as she stared at the aqueduct, then cantered to Predator with a look as if asking for more information.

"What?" Predator asked.

"Tell. Me. More!" Doodle said gleefully, eyes widening and taking a step forward with each word.

Predator looked at her for a moment, then chuckled, "You remind me of someone I knew. Not that that matters, so..." He reached behind him and put a hoof into his backpack. He pulled out one of the strange silver boxes and laid it down, before turning it over. At once, dozens of books of all shapes and sizes fell out and onto the dusty streets. Predator picked one up and handed it to Doodle. "Read that. It's a foal' book about the ancient Roaman civilization, I think you'll like it." After that, he went to pushing the remaining books into the box, and as they entered it they shrank and became small as mini figures.

Doodle looked at the book in her hooves with curiosity only a foal could have. Her eyes widened so much as she looked at the colorful cover of 'The Ancient Roamans' children's book (which showed a great many legionnaires marching underneath an aqueduct) that they seemed like gleaming glass orbs.

Then, with a squeal of delight, she rushed Predator and jumped at one of his forelegs, taking it in an embrace. "Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU mister Predator!" She said over and over again as she clung on, despite the very shocked and frozen posture he had.

"Uh... I... well... gah..." He stuttered uncharacteristically, much to the surprise and amusement of the filly, who giggled playfully as he tried gently shaking her off. Finally, he managed to retrieve his composure (or, you know, whatever 'composure' he had). "You're welcome," He said, still a little disturbed.

She squeaked and got off, trotting away and looking at the book in her hooves happily. She did that until she reached Myst, and when she did she simply got onto Myst's back, placed the book on the mare's head, and flipped the book open. Myst seemed only a little bit uncomfortable with Doodle on her back and the book on her head, but the look of quiet hatred she gave Predator seemed to tell me she didn't think Predator had any right to interact with the filly. He returned that look with a blank stare for a moment, before turning around and trotting again. Skyfire and I looked to each other, as if wondering if we both saw that.

After a little while, I trotted ahead of the others and got up next to Predator. "What was that about?" I asked quietly.

"You're going to have to be more specific," He deadpanned.

I suppressed a groan and elaborated, "You know, why'd you give her that book? And why'd you even entertain her question with vigor, when you seem content to answer us with only the most necessary details?" It was true; Predator had quite thoroughly entertained Doodle's questions while we were underground, but only answered us with laconic sentences.

He took in a breath. "I see you've picked up on the fact that I enjoy her presence," He said simply. "Well, I'm not one to lie -- except for the exception you know of -- so I'll just say it. I happen to like Doodle. She... she gives me a little bit to look forward to in the darkness of my existence. And she seems to like me back, despite the fact that I nearly killed her before." He hung his head a little. "I know I don't quite deserve her forgiveness or her presence... but I can make exceptions to my own rules, including my rule to not let myself indulge in joys I don't deserve."

Wow. Well... that was... more than I wanted to know. That tended to happen a lot when I talked to people, as I said before.

I took that in, glancing behind me at Doodle still happily reading the book. Skyfire seemed curious about Roam as well, as she was trotting along right beside Myst with her eyes glued to the book's pages. She made sure not to make any actual physical contact, though. "Who does she remind you of?" I asked plaintively; not that I was sad or anything, but thing is, whenever I talked to Predator there just seemed to be this aura of general sadness around him.

"You don't need to know," He replied sharply, and I was shocked at his tone. He didn't relent, saying in as sharp a tone, "That topic will bring me many good memories which I do not deserve to remember. It would be an injustice I myself would permit if I remembered them. That, and I simply don't want to tell you."

"Why do you say you don't deserve anything good?" I asked, interrupting him before he could say anything else. "If it's because you killed all those people, then again I should say it wasn't entirely your fault. Weakness or not, I don't think I'd be able to resist Tod if he exerted as much effort on me as he did on you." I sighed, shaking my head, "You don't have to take the blame for everything. Not everything that happens is your responsibility."

"Haha," He chuckled darkly in response. "You know, those are exactly the same words that your friends over there told you. But there's a difference that separates you and me," He said, then stopped trotting and whirled on me. "For you, it is true that not everything that happens is your responsibility. I don't fully know from what part of your psychology that aspect of your character comes from -- whether it's from your desire to live up to your Praetorian title, that other mentality of yours that says that for your flaws must be punished, or something else -- but that is the truth, and do not think otherwise."

He trotted forward slowly, proclaiming as he gestured at the city around him with one of his hooves, "But for me it truly is my responsibility, my fault. What I've done has caused immeasurable suffering, and nothing can change that. I have taken up an oath to protect this nation; you haven't." He lowered his hoof, and glanced behind his shoulder at me.

"You are simply one of the many individuals that do not deserve the life you are suffering. Had I not done what I did... everyone's life could have been different. You could have had a family; maybe Doodle would be in school, or Myst having a job, or Skyfire in the true Equestrian military. Because all this?" He waved his hoof once more at the city about us. "All this is my fault. All this was my responsibility. And because of what I did... I don't deserve the simple joys that people like you partake in. My punishment must be more severe; my only penance my unending struggle to undo what I've done. Nothing else will suffice. If I could, I'd give up my soul to atone for it all."

I stared at him for a moment, disturbed at the conviction of his tone. The others were right behind us, looking on with a gaze of confusion and uncertainty. Clearly, they were wondering why we had stopped and what we were talking about (except for Doodle, who's attention was focused completely on the book).

"And what did you do?" I asked quietly, trying to not let the others here it; not that I didn't trust them, but if Predator already didn't want to talk about this with one person, I could only imagine how he would have handled more people.

"You don't need to know," He said once again in that sharp tone of his, then turned around with a snort and began trotting again. I looked to the others; all of them save Doodle were giving me concerned and questioning looks.

I didn't think I would have gotten any more out of him than that, so I begrudgingly followed after him. Neither Tod nor Tom were in my head again, so I just had to wait for one of them (preferably the latter) to arrive before I could get any answers I might not have gotten from Predator.

Soon we were going down a road that was once wide, but because of the collapsed structures to it's sides was now almost nothing more than a narrow isle of concrete running down the middle of all the rubble.

In the distance, across a field of flattened structures and rubble, a red-glowing four-story building was steadily becoming brighter and brighter, it's form seeming to melt. After a few seconds, the completely molten structure sloshed to the ground, spreading it's lava-like remains to the surrounding area. I glanced behind me and saw the dropped mouths of Myst and Skyfire (Doodle was as oblivious as ever, reading an article about aqueducts in her new book). Seriously? Buildings that melt? Oh, fuck my life.

Predator just looked at that for a moment, before shaking his head and murmuring, "Damnatorum Excoquat Aestibus."

"'Molten Tides'?" I asked. That's what 'Excoquat Aestibus' meant, for you non-Roaman readers.

He said through gritted teeth, "A particularly large gang of raiders and ruffians who managed to break into one of the old military bunkers. The bunker they broke into just so happened to have the Roaman Legion's building-melting technology. Oh, and before you ask, no -- I don't know why the Legion commissioned building melting laser technology." He groaned and then sighed, "Worst part is, I think I inspired them. They only showed up after I burned the city a few weeks back."

I felt a little spike of anger erupt in the back of my head at the mere image of him burning the city, but I stomped it down. Instead, I shook my head in disbelief. Bad as the Legion may have been... melting buildings... all the people who might be inside... sickening. A little hope erupted in my head that, maybe, the Legion might wipe those Molten Tides out.

As I stood there, I noticed the others already moving on down the road. Skyfire was glancing over her shoulder at me, giving me a weird look. "You coming?"

"Yeah, just... a little... disturbed," I replied unevenly. 'Disturbed' was what you could have used to describe me if that melting building was what I first saw ever since coming to the outside, but after all the other things I saw and experienced -- Tod and Tom, the ZSI HQ, the super-powered Legion, the chimeras, Predator's predicament, my friends -- 'disturbed' was a damned understatement.

I was just trotting along, doing my best to keep my head as clear of those thoughts as possible, when Skyfire suddenly asked from beside me, "How are you doing?"

It took me a while to register that question, and when I did I shook my head before turning to face her. "Hm? Oh, yeah, right. I'm... doing... great, I guess," I lied. And she knew I was lying; I could see the worry on her face, and I could have sworn her eyes were glistening. I forced a smile and said, "Hey, really, I'm fine. I'm not dead, and that's what matters, right?" Her eyes glistened even more. "Hey, come on! I can take whatever crap the wasteland throws at me so long as I can deal with it effectively and efficiently and no one got hurt because of my failure; if I did fail, that is." Her eyes narrowed. "Why are you worried about me? I'm fine!" I said nervously.

She just looked at me for a long time, eyes sad and worried. "You're not okay, are you?" There was a tone in her voice. Something certain and yet uncertain at the same time.

I kept up the confident little smile for a bit, but it wavered underneath her gaze. "No, I'm not. I'm tired, Skyfire. So tired of... of failing at... at everything! You saw what I had to do down there, you saw how pathetic I was." I turned away, shaking my head out of personal loathing, a great anger stirring in me. "I just want something to go my way for once, is that so much to ask? For Celestia's sake, is it?!" I screamed at the sky, hoping that, somehow, the Goddesses were listening.

That shout of mine caused us all to stop for a moment, Predator glancing back at me with an expression I couldn't see before looking around the area, weapon raised and ready to shoot. Myst and Doodle both gave me looks of confusion and worry; or, in Doodle's case, just confusion.

I exhaled and fell down, suddenly feeling just as tired as I should have. I remembered how I had felt like this back down there, and suddenly I felt a few tears run to my eyes. I couldn't break down now, not while I still had so much to do. For fuck's sake, the others had it harder than me, and here I was breaking down in front of them? How pathetic.

"I'm sorry," I murmured as I sniffed and got up, wiping my face and shaking my head. "I... uh... I shouldn't be breaking down like this. I should be... be trying to improve on my weaknesses instead. Yeah, that's right. I should be doing that instead; make sure no one suffers because of my inability next time." I gave myself a good hard shake of the head, clearing my emotions away.

I was only starting to trot again, and Predator seemed like he was going to as well, when I felt her hoof on my shoulder. I froze at the firmness of her touch, and I slowly turned to see her fiercely disbelieving expression, which was made only worse by the startling amount of anger in it. "What is with you?" She asked in a very tense voice. "Why do you keep saying that you're inadequate? That everything bad that happens near you is your fault just because you couldn't do something about it?" She shook her head slowly, before clenching her eyes and sighing, "Why don't you ever give yourself the break you deserve?"

"Yeah," Myst chimed in, getting close enough to us that, whether I liked it or not, Doodle would most likely involve herself in the discussion. "I've noticed that about you, you know. You do so much, stress yourself out and beat yourself up, yet you never give yourself the rest you deserve." Her own eyes suddenly turned sad, even more so than they already were. "Why do you keep doing this to yourself, Goldwreath? Why don't you ever just... relax for a bit?"

"Because I don't deserve to!" I hissed, much to the shock of all three of them -- Predator might have been shocked, but I couldn't see it through his helmet. "Don't you two get it? Unless I can go into something, and actually SAVE the people involved, then I have earned no respite! Why can't you see that? Why do you have to keep trying to tell me to relax, when me relaxing would get people killed?" I stopped for breath, realizing just now how my hard-pressed my lungs were to keep up with me. Probably the spores in them.

They both looked at me for a moment, uncertain of how to continue. Then Skyfire trotted closer, and with one of her hooves patted me on the back. Without a word, she trotted ahead, and Predator promptly started moving again, sparing me only a glance. Myst likewise began moving again, and as she passed me both her and Doodle gave me cautious looks. What, did they think I was going to attack them?

'Well,' I thought, 'Considering how I sounded, they'd probably be right in being careful around me.' Yeah, they probably were. I'm no fool -- I was very... unstable back then. Much as I wouldn't have wanted to, I really would have hit them if they pressed me about it.

I saw Predator looking at the buildings as though they were going to attack. For that reason, I glanced down at my E.F.S., and in it I saw a few blue bars approaching from behind me. They were probably just scavengers curious as to who was making all the noise, but I decided to not leave it to chance. I picked up my pace and caught up to them.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

We kept going on like that for maybe ten minutes, until we reached a portion of the city that had many of it's structures leveled and was several dozen feet lower into the ground, as though it had been built on the plains next to low hills where the rest of the city had been built on. That was most likely the case, as Roam was indeed built on a series of hills. The road leading down was cracked wide and sunk into a deep chasm on the slope down, and only Predator would be able to jump that distance; sure, Skyfire and I could have flown, but what of Myst and Doodle? Further down the road, underneath a small bridge,

The ruined and flattened structures allowed us to easily see the distant shadow of a large, still intact structure loomed in the distance, standing out like a shining beacon of structural soundness against the destruction around us. It's shadowed feet were illuminated by distant explosions and flashes, but there were dozens and dozens of them; far too many for just a little skirmish between a set of hostile parties.

"What is that place?" I asked. Doodle was looking at the structure with a look of awe and immense curiosity.

"That's the dam," Predator replied simply. "We're going to need to get to it soon; see how the assault is going. And we're going to have to move quickly; we're in Legion territory, and with the fighting they're likely going to send reinforcements that way. Which means that they might come across us."

"I see," I said in response. Then I turned to Skyfire. "Skyfire, my wings are good now, but I don't want to stress them after they just healed. I need you to do a quick fly over there and tell me what's going on. We'll meet you along the way, just watch the road."

"What?" She asked with a look of annoyance. "You want me to fly over there, LEAVE YOU GUYS BEHIND, to most likely get shot at? Uh-uh, nope. I'm going with you guys," She said indignantly.

"Well... um... I could... go there," Myst offered quietly, getting a curious peek from Doodle.

"Yeah... no," I replied, speaking to Myst. "Skyfire, if we're going to do this, we'll need to know what we're getting into. And Myst, I don't think galloping ahead of us is a good idea; Skyfire can fly, you can't. Not a lot of pegasi come down here, I don't think people will keep their eyes on the sky when they know there isn't an aircraft nearby." That actually got a look of both relief and, strangely, disappointment from Myst.

"Ugh..." Skyfire muttered out of irritation. "Why do you want ME to do this alone? You can fly, from what I can see. And why not send Predator? He knows this city better than I do, and he can't fucking die, apparently."

"Weren't you listening?" I retorted. "I said MY WINGS JUST HEALED. Are you saying you want them broken again?" Her eyes widened at my tone, and she looked to the side and bit her lip.

"I would go there, but I don't want to," Predator deadpanned, though at least it got Skyfire's attention.

"Why?" Skyfire asked sharply.

"Because I don't want to," He deadpanned once more, and Skyfire face-hoofed out of exasperation. I could have sworn I saw Myst give him a quizzical look, then roll her eyes.

I shook my head at the general uncooperativeness of my traveling companions. "Skyfire, I need you to do this. I know you don't want to, but just do it. Please," I pleaded in a tone that probably showed more of my growing stress than I had thought it would.

She looked at me concernedly for a second, probably because of my tone, before letting out a resigned sigh. "Fine. I'll do it. But if I get shot at again, and none of you are there..."

"Don't worry, you'll be fine," I said with mild irritation.

She shook her head a little, "I just don't think it's such a good idea to separate, considering what happens when we do. So, I'm just saying-..."

"Then turn on your radio, you have it with you right?" I interrupted. "Mine's on, don't know about yours. If you're really worried about communication use it," I continued, really getting irritated.

She nodded and pulled out her little radio from one of her pockets; good thing Tod didn't decide to take them. She turned it on, and looked to me. "Okay, there. But... I still don't want to do this. I mean, what if I-..."

"Dammit, just go already!" I half-yelled, and I was surprised at my tone. What, was I actually angry at her? For sure, she was annoying me by not cooperating when I really would have liked her to, but was that really an excuse to shout? And heck, why WAS I so irritable right now? I was never this easily angered in the stable.

She looked at me for a moment, an expression slightly hurt and slightly concerned at the same time etched on her face. Myst and Doodle likewise looked shocked, the latter looking between me and my fellow pegasus as if wondering if one of us was going to shoot the other.

Then, without a word, Skyfire took off and started flying for the dam. On her ascent, she glanced behind her at me and the others, a look of immense concern on her face.

They just stood there for a moment, watching me as I slowly turned away from them. I felt ashamed and guilty, especially guilty. I could feel Myst's worry and Doodle's confusion (I'm not lying, I could really FEEL them; a new ability of my head which I did not like at all). I couldn't tell how Predator felt about all that though; he was already difficult to discern even when he spoke, he was even more lifeless than a corpse when he didn't.

After a long, silent moment broken only by distant booms, Doodle asked softly, "Is mister Goldwreath in trouble?"

"Not in my opinion, no," Predator replied as though nothing happened, then turned and started trotting into one of the buildings on the left side of the road -- it was a pitiable structure, an apartment from the looks of it. It had it's entire front side blown down, allowing us unimpeded access into the concrete and marble structure. Tentatively, I followed; I didn't want to, though. I just wanted to sit down and try to sort through all the feelings seeping out of that storage area inside my head. I didn't want to be near any of them at the moment.

It was for that reason that I did more than follow; I went ahead. I knew what we were doing, anyway -- exit the building on a side that got us across the cracked road. The extra distance I got from them made me feel a little less volatile.

"Well... he might be... maybe a little," Myst said to herself as they climbed the stone and dirt ramp that was once the front wall. I was already in one of the rooms. It was nothing special, just a small square space with the expected ruined furniture and papers. A poster on the ground of a Shadow Corps operative's helmet staring at me with a background of praetorian mechs on the left side and other operatives on the right, and the words 'Vestra umbras tradit te; tu non potes abscondere absconditis tuis a nobis' -- which translated into 'Your shadows betray you; you cannot hide your secrets from us' -- caught my attention, though. Then I spotted another door on the far side of the room, and made my way to it.

"Why would you say he might be in trouble?" Predator asked with a tone of disinterest. "Far as I'm concerned, Skyfire should have known better than to continue being so uncooperative when she already knew Goldwreath over here was stressed -- a fact which, by the way, is the only real reason she conceded just now."

"You know, I have to ask-..." Doodle started.

"Well, didn't you see what he said back there, and how he said it?" She hissed, as if trying to keep their conversation a secret. They were failing miserably, mostly because they were still in earshot, and also because Predator made absolutely no effort to quiet himself.

"Yes I did," He deadpanned.

Myst waited for a moment, looking at him with both eyebrows raised as they cleared the ramp and started making their way to the room Ib was in. "Sooo?" She drawled.

"So what?"

She barely suppressed her groan, instead settling for wincing and clenching her face before relaxing and saying, "So, don't you think that he might be in just a little trouble, considering what he said?"

"Um, I just want to know-..." Doodle tried again.

"Nope," He replied. "Personally, I think Skyfire would just let that one incident go. Considering how rashly she acts almost all the time and how often your friend over there forgives her, I think she'd be willing to return the favor."

"Return the favor?" She asked in a rushed, worried tone. "L-like how?"

I stopped where I was and glanced behind my shoulder, and I saw him doing the same within the doorway. I couldn't see Myst or Doodle through the doorway, though. The good thing about all this was that my curiosity for her response was replacing at least some of my irritability. "Your cheeks are a fine shade of pink right now," Predator said simply.

"Um... I... gah...." She whimpered and stammered, and if I saw her I was sure I would have seen her trying miserably to cover her face. "I mean... um, like you know, why would she..."

"Hey!" Doodle said at last, loud enough to finally get attention. "I need to ask something really, really important: what's a colosseum exactly?"

There was an odd silence for a moment as Predator just kept looking over his shoulder at them. "Heh, saved by the filly," Predator muttered with mild amusement. "Doodle, a colosseum was an ancient Roaman structure used for... well, playing games. Really big games."

"Wow! You mean like hide and seek? I love that game!" I couldn't see her, but I was sure that if I did Myst would have had an expression of absolute relief (and embarrassment) on her face. Of course if she saw me looking at her, then I was pretty sure she would have hidden her face from me. Ah, what a shy mare.

"Well... more or less, yes," He replied slowly. Clearly, he did not want to tell her that colosseums were used for en masse bloody gladiatorial combat. Still, despite everything, I couldn't help but smile as I shook my head and rolled my eyes, then pulled the door open. Ah, the curiosity of little children; a little light of good in the bleakness of wasteland existence.

"Goldwreath, wait!" Myst said in concern from the doorway, but I was already trotting through.

Oh yes, speaking of wasteland existence, did I tell you that there were lots of explosions in the wasteland?

I didn't hear myself snap the tripwire in half, and only when the grenades came tumbling down onto my helmet and down my shoulders did I know I was fucked.

I did try to run back, but I did NOT have the quickest mind (Thanks to Tod, no doubt). Really, I actually only discerned that the metallic rods on the ground below me were grenades when Myst yelled for me to run. THEN I tried running.

I got away maybe two feet when the three zebra grenades went off and filled my side with old concrete and small rocks, and I felt every single piece of shrapnel scrape into me and fill me with hot fragments. I didn't scream, though; it actually wasn't that painful, though I could feel the ripped flesh and the blood on my hide as I was sent flying back through the doorway and thudded against the wall. I winced the dust and dirt from my eyes as I fought to get myself into a position less ideal for letting my blood flow out.

Myst skidded to a stop and knelt before me, eyeing my wounds in horror. Doodle was shaking as she held her book in her hooves, a fair amount of my blood on her face and on her book. They looked me over in silent terror, clearly too shocked to help immediately. I just looked at them, then down at my eviscerated side and scraped legs; I could see the bone, and it reminded me of the night when that bestial attacked me back in Myst's outpost. Even more hideous were my organs, for though a bloody gap ripped in my abdomen I could see my bleeding stomach. My breathing became hard and frantic and my heart thundered in my ears, and only now did I feel the agonizing pain of having hundreds of hot shards within me. I could feel them searing inside my flesh, burning through me and causing permanent damage. I could even feel the sand-like pores shaking around inside me with each breath, and had my stomach been capable or my brain less used to revolting sights and feelings, I would have voided whatever I had eaten.

Myst dove into her saddlebag while Doodle got off her back. The filly just stared at me, as though remembering a distant horrifying memory. I just returned the stare, certain that at any point my lungs would give out. I winced and twitched, and no matter how I tried to calm myself by breathing only escalated as the possibility of death increased every second.

She pulled out a healing potion vial, but the container was cracked for some reason. The precious healing fluids were already half-drained, and every second it hung there the vial lost just a little more of the potion. Myst winced at the sight of it, then hurriedly opened it and shoved the container in my mouth before I could say anything. I drank down greedily on what little there was while she proceeded to get another vial; hopefully one less cracked.

I finished it and let the empty and cracked bottle fall to the ground next to me. I didn't feel any better. It seemed as though my wounds were barely even healing, and surely the bit of potion I drank should have been healing me a little better than that! All I saw was the flesh coming back together at speeds so achingly slow it looked as though I had not even taken a potion. I stared down at my torn skin with absolute bafflement and terror.

Predator trotted forward slowly into the room, eyes set on me. I could feel his presence grow stronger with each step as a faint ringing seemed to enter the room. At that Myst brought a hoof up to her head, despite having been frantically searching for an appropriate potion just a while ago. My already hard breathing became even more panicked as I tried futilely to back away from him, and the few wounds on my back stung terribly in protest as they scraped against the sharp concrete slabs.

He pushed Doodle aside without any restraint, and when Myst brought out another potion he reached up one of his hooves and stopped her from giving it to me. She snapped her head to look at him with surprise and bafflement.

"Don't," He said sternly.

She shook her head, mouth hung low. "What?" She replied with an exasperated breath. "He's dying over here! H-he... look at him! I have to help him!" She replied rebelliously, and tried to break her hoof free to get it over to me. I just winced at what was going on, too overtaken with the thought of dying to care any more than I did. You'd think that after surviving death more than once that I'd be confident I'd survive, but you'd be wrong.

"Don't waste your supplies," He replied evenly. "He doesn't need them."

"Liar!" She yelled at him. "You're just trying to get him killed, aren't you?!" She tugged against his grip, to no avail "Let me go!"

At that he tossed her over to the other side of the room, and she just barely landed on her hooves. Doodle looked between each of the three of us with wide eyes, her book lying on the ground. He took one look at each if them, then turned around to face me. His presence seemed to grow as he continued staring down at me, and the ringing became slightly more noticeable.

Then I looked down at my ruined and stinging side, and saw the flesh slowly knitting together. Little stretches of my skin reached across the different scratches and holes on my hide and latched themselves onto the other side, and then they began pulling the openings close. And very slowly, I saw the bleeding in my organs subside as the wounds closed fully. All that was left were some very ugly scars and patches of skin where my hide was absent, but as I watched was already regrowing. And then the ringing stopped, and Predator's presence moved a little distance back. I felt Myst and Doodle's presences just standing there, looking at me.

I felt filthy and unnatural. I didn't want to be injured, but compared to how disgusting I felt, I would rather have endured a little more pain and be healed conventionally. What was I? I still felt like a pony, I sounded like a pony, and I looked like one too. But there was this nagging feeling I had in my dumpster of a brain that... something, somehow, was going very very wrong. I was changing, no doubt about it, and that change was happening slowly, steadily. And who, or what, was causing it? Was it Tod and his signal? Radiation? Both? I couldn't quite tell anymore.

But what bothered me more was how much I hadn't cared and had put it off until now. I really hadn't; I was much too occupied worrying about actual events than what was going on inside me. Even during that morning in Verge, when I first started being able to detect others, I had paid it little attention; you'd think that having freaky brain powers would either scare or surprise me, but frankly I was neither. But now that I knew it's origins -- the telekinetic link with Tod, or a side effect of what he was doing in my head -- I at last paid it some more attention. And with each second I spent pondering it, I grew more and more uncomfortable.

Still, one thing that I could not deny was that the ability to detect entities was useful, and for sure being able to heal automatically was just as an advantage. I may have felt like some kind of freak, but no matter what I told myself, those were useful. And I was a practical pony in just about all matters.

After staring down at my flesh for a few moments, I looked back up at them. Predator was standing at the doorway, his MG-assault rifle hybrid in his hooves as he looked around. He seemed to spot something. He glanced over his shoulder at us, then went away back down the dirt slope back to the outside. And then I looked in front of me at Myst, who had an expression I couldn't quote fathom on her face -- something of a merge between disgust, relief, and fear.

And then I looked beside me at Doodle, who was just staring at me with the faintest glossiness on her eyes before putting her forelegs on my chest and nudging her head against my neck. I was a little surprised at that. Where was this coming from? Was it... oh... wait... ah yes, she must have viewed me with some care and admiration after I saved her. That would explain the affection.

But then, right at that moment, a thought that wiped out all of my discomfort hit me: with these changes, I could be better. I could be strong enough, quick enough, fast enough, and good enough to save people. I could do things that I couldn't do before. If Tod was doing this to me with the intent of making me feel miserable, then he was wrong. I could no longer be inadequate. I could use this!

It was that thought that put a massive grin on my face and made me laugh in relief and joy instead of making me cringe and despise myself for what I was. I felt great. No longer being so pathetic in situations that required me to be at my best, and no one suffering for my weaknesses... jubilance radiated just from the mere thought of it.

That grin and laugh, and the prerequisite phenomenon, had quite the opposite effect on Myst and Doodle, though. Doodle backed away from me like I was crazy, and Myst likewise took a few steps back, eyes wide and fearful and darting all over me as if worried I might grow tentacles and attack her.

"What?" I asked with a laugh. "Isn't it great? I'm healed! I'm not dying! And I feel great, too! Ah, such a wonderful feeling!" I said with a joy only a crazed person could have.

She looked at me with disbelief and shook her head, then backed out of the doorway. "Predator! Predator, get over here now!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, while I just got up and dusted myself off. Then I noticed that the blast had blown away all my stuff, which Doodle seemed to have gathered in a pile. She looked at me with a half-relieved, half-worried look as I trotted towards her.

I smiled down at her and patted her head, "Thanks." At least all I had to do now was pick up my stuff.

Despite looking a little uncomfortable, she managed to give me a sheepish little smile before slowly backing out the door to Myst and yelled, "Mister Predator!"

After a few seconds, he appeared behind her at the doorway and leaned against it. "Yes?" He asked.

Doodle turned with surprise, then collected herself and gulped nervously, before saying in a Myst-like tone of timidness, "Miss Myst is looking for you." Amidst all this, I just tended to my stuff, a smile of relief and joy still on my face.

He just nodded his head, and entered the room. He stopped abruptly when he saw me just checking all my stuff as if nothing had happened, and I felt a little bit of confusion in my head come from him. "Why are you confused?" I asked with a cocky little smile. He just shook his head slowly, and I felt it was more out of disbelief than out of disgust. At that I asked once more, "What?"

Myst appeared at the doorway behind him, with Doodle behind her. Myst narrowed her eyes at Predator. "You," She said in a soft yet sharp tone as she stepped into the room. When she reached him, she placed both her forelegs on his side and pushed him a little further into the room. She pointed at me, still looking at him. "Whatever you did, fix it! This... just... look at him! He's not himself! I don't know and don't care what you did to him, just fix it!"

"Damn it you three, I'm fine! I'm great! What the hell is wrong with you guys?" Come on, couldn't they understand? With all this, I could actually be something better than the mediocre protector of Roam. Couldn't they understand why I was so happy? Why were they acting like this? This was crazy!

"I know he's not acting like himself, why do you think I got this?" He replied, then showed her the memory orb in his hooves. She looked at it with confusion, then to me with a bit of understanding dawning on her expression. Then he turned to me. "Help me pin him down, he's going to struggle."

"Woah, what?" I asked as I backed away. "W-what are you going to do? You are not going to force me into that orb!" They just trotted closer. "I demand the immediate termination of your approach! I will not tolerate this heinous insubordination!" Myst flinched a little, but otherwise they just continued approaching.

"You go for the saddlebags, get the memory viewing helmet. I'll hold him down," Predator said as he and Myst trotted closer. Myst looked at me with an expression of uncertainty and apology that seemed to say both 'I'm sorry' and 'Why am I listening to this guy?' at the same time. Doodle just looked at us from the doorway, like a child watching helplessly as his or her parents quarrel and fight.

"For fuck's sake, I'm okay!" I shouted, getting both extremely annoyed and extremely disbelieving at how they were acting.

My hooves trotted backwards until my flank struck the wall. I glanced behind me to see if there was anywhere else to back away into, and found only the doorway where the grenades had been.

Then I turned my head back, only to have myself pulled out from under my hooves by Predator. He yanked my praetorian helmet off and flung it away, then began dragging me by my hindleg to the center of the room, where Myst was waiting worriedly. I struggled and kicked and yelled, a feeling of absolute betrayal forming in my head at the mutinous actions of my supposed friend and my supposed guide. Predator threw me onto the ground, before proceeding to brighten his eyes and thus freeze me in place. I mentally yelled all sorts of colorful slang into my head as I felt every part of me go stiff and cold.

"Please don't fight," Myst pleaded. "I'm just trying to help you. You're... you're not being yourself."

"Lies!" I shouted in her face through gritted teeth as she went for my saddlebags, which were still strapped on to my sides. She looked away from me as she dug her hooves around inside my bags. I hissed through my locked jaw, "You fucking traitorous bitch! When I get my hooves on you, I'll make sure your neck snaps like a toothpick, you hear me? I'll have you nailed to a fucking cross and leave you as carrion! I'll have both of you hung from a noose!" I threatened as she continued digging around inside, looking hurt yet resolute as she closed her eyes.

Finally she brought out the helmet, and my panic spiked. I tried to force my limbs to work for me, not for Predator. They were my limbs, and they weren't even paying attention to me! Even my own body was betraying me!

Predator took it from her meek hooves, and after she proceeded to trot out the doorway, sniffing as she went. Then I turned all my feelings of betrayal and rage towards the being standing before me. "I will tear you to pieces when I get the chance, you understand? All of you! All of you who threaten Roam and would have me weak when my city needs me!"

He just looked at me for a moment, shaking his head. "Boy, I don't know what manner of madness your conscious thoughts have been reduced to, but even I'm getting disturbed. And that's saying something. Anyway..." He raised the memory orb with one hoof and with the other brought up the helmet. Then he calmly placed the orb in the depression, and just as calmly lowered the helmet onto my head.

And the last thing I saw was my vision go red with rage before I lost all sight of the real world.

ooooOOOOoooo

Fuck! Forced into a memory orb by my supposed allies, huh? Well, when I get out of this memory orb...

Bah, nevermind that. There was nothing I could do about it while in here, anyway. Might as well pay attention to the memory. Now, let's see...

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

The intense light of midday flooded into my host's vision as he passed from underneath the cover of a gleaming marble arch, rendering me blind. My host himself was a zebra stallion -- if you're wondering why it's always a stallion, the Roaman Empire was male-dominated -- who stood atop what felt like a rocking platform of a sort that was being pulled by something I couldn't see; basically, a chariot. I didn't even need to see through the sun glare to know it was a chariot. He seemed to be wearing a set of rather light metal armor, thought it was still heavy enough to not feel like I was wearing sheet metal. The weight aside, it was actually quite comfortable due to the soft inner layering.

But I could still hear what I couldn't see, and all around me I heard what must have been a crowd of thousands all cheering at the top of their lungs. Joining the crowd in their monstrous choir of cheering were the sounds of constantly ringing bells echoing all over the landscape. The sound of it all vibrated in my ears, fueling my host's smile of anticipation. Were I in his position, I would've smiled if I wasn't being blinded by sunlight, not while I was.

And there were more sounds, too. Behind me was the thundering of hundreds of plated hooves marching along in near-perfect synchronization. Above me, the sounds of dozens of rotating blades and combusting engines were almost as loud as the crowd and the marching combined. And off to the sides of my host's sun glare saturated sight came the rumbling of engines; from the familiarity I had gained of them, I could tell that most of those engines were from Omni-tanks. Also, was it just me, or were those things practically mass-produced?

Then my host passed into the shadow of a tall structure and at once I gained my sight back. What I saw would have made me lose my breath just from the mere sight, but did nothing to my host, as he had clearly seen the sight before (of which I was annoyed, for I was getting tired of not getting to act of my own accord while in memory orbs and would have really liked my host to act as surprised as I was).

Thousands of zebras, lining every window and every floor of every single gleaming marble and concrete structure. The streets were filled to the brim, the sidewalks crowded -- yet not overcrowded; Roam's streets were much too big for that -- with cheering onlookers. Flower petals rained from the sky, to which my host looked up to and saw dozens of VTOL jets. The chariot on which my host stood on was being pulled by three tamed manticores; one on the right near the crowd, one on the left also near the crowd, and one on the center of the very wide marble street. On each side of the street was a whole column of armored vehicles; tanks, and almost every single one was an Omni. My host glanced behind himself, and I saw hundreds of worn and battle-hardened legionnaires marching along in uniform formation. Any centurion who saw my host's glance on them looked my way and nodded their heads in a respectful half bow, and my host returned it with a familiar smile for each of them.

Then he turned back around, and through the heat haze looked at a mountain not so far away; atop it stood a structure with a circular wall and a tall tower reaching up to touch the sky: the Forum. Looking at it once again, in all it's undamaged and shining opulence... it made me wonder exactly when I would actually get there, and what I would see when I did. Sure, I'd seen it's ghostly form in my dreams, but I never really paid attention to what it actually looked like (being hoarded around by colored fogs tended to take my attention away from looking at details).

My host just smiled and waved, and somehow that made the crowd cheer even more loudly than before. Clearly, whoever I was was either a super celebrity or the Caesar himself.

I continued on like that for a few minutes, just smiling and waving -- and fearing for my sense of hearing -- and letting my chariot pull me along, until eventually we eventually reached a raging river of clear water, over which was a wide arched marble bridge painted in bright colors. On the four corners of the bridge were red banners with the symbol of golden wreaths and the letters 'IPQR' between them. I assumed that meant 'Imperator et Populusque Roamanus', which would translate into 'the Emperor and People of Roam'.

In the distance, across maybe a hundred yards of lush green grass and garden (which was being tended to by, of all people, praetorians), was a tall metal wall with bulletproof glass windows halfway to the top, where even more praetorians stood guard; how I even missed seeing this wall when I saw the Forum in my 'dreams', I don't know. I would normally blame my rotting brain and my crappy perception, but I decided to just screw that and blame Tod. From somewhere behind me came the glorious sound of a horn, followed by the even more glorious melody of a practiced choir sung by the throats of the hundreds of professional soldiers behind me.

A responding horn sounded from the wall, and at once the massive fortification turned into light. Yes, turned into light -- the wall and it's corners, it's floors and it's nooks, and anything else placed on the different levels -- all of that became transparent and was outlined in a deep luminous gold, exposing the different praetorians standing and sitting about on the different floors. My host raised a hoof, and gestured behind him at the zebra legionnaires. One of the praetorians nodded, then brought out a holographic terminal from somewhere out of the transparent wall. A pulse of golden wave shot through the ground, creating a circular ring around every single zebra following me. At the sight of that they all looked astonished, then slowly looked up off the ground and gave my host a series of thankful smiles. Clearly, whatever this was about was important to them.

I crossed the bridge, the tanks doing well to stay behind and not test the structure's strength. The legionnaires followed, though, as did the aircraft up above. The echoing of the bells faded as we passed into the field, and the people gathered on the edges of the riverbank, still cheering us on. To their surprise and the amusement of my host, what appeared to be praetorians wearing diving gear came out of the water and waved them back. I don't know if my host saw it, but I swear I saw one of the praetorians bring out a bottle of wine and take a swig -- why they would even... oh wait, nevermind; the Roamans drank so much wine it was like water for them. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised (though I do wonder how they barely ever got drunk).

At last we reached the wall, and my host passed through the transparent fortification as if it were air, and got onto a marble path cutting across another field -- this one also a garden -- to some stairs at the foot of the mountain; the same one Veltrio had used, though I almost didn't recognize how different it looked. In fact, I don't remember seeing the river, the bridge, this field or this wall in his memory. If they added all that, well... add that as another engineering achievement for the Roamans.

The legionnaires behind me seemed a little hesitant at first, but otherwise all passed through eagerly when they found they could enter as well. A smile crept onto my host's face at the suppressed giggles of excitement and joy of the soldiers. It may not have been my own smile, but I was glad my host (whoever he was) shared my sympathies for people who'd gone through hell for others. After a minute of moving, we finally crossed the garden field and were at the stairs.

My host got off at the foot of the stairs, making sure to pet each of the manticores once before ascending. Before going any further up, my host turned around and gestured his spread out forehooves at the field. The legionnaires nodded respectfully before heading off into the field. What, were they all going to sit down there? If they were, I'm guessing those praetorian gardeners would be real pissed off.

Not long up the stairs did I climb, before I glanced behind me just in time to see two decloaking praetorians on each side. They looked at my host with smiles too familiar to suggest their relationship was purely superior-subordinate.

"That's real creepy, guys," My host said in a tone surprisingly youthful and confident.

The one on my left smirked and said, "Welcome back, Lord Cadian." Then he pulled out a bottle of wine from his side and handed it over to my host as I continued ascending the really numerous steps up.

"Thanks, Justinian," My host replied, and took the wine bottle from him. I looked it over. "Heh. You know, it's been a few months since I've drank some good wine. Thanks." I opened the bottle and brought the opening to my mouth, before muttering, "And you two know very well I'm not one to be called 'lord'." Then I brought it to my mouth, and my host started gulping down on the stomach-burning fermented grape juice in deep chugs. Not being a drinker, I was glad I couldn't get drunk from this.

"You're father knew you might have ran out, even if you did take half of Roam's supply of wine with you, so he sent us," The other added, then chuckled, "How long did those hundreds of bottles last you and your men, anyway?" His father, huh? Who was this guy, the Caesar's son?

My host chuckled around the bottle, "We ran out on the harbor heading for Hadrian's wall, Velian." My host pulled the bottle out and looked at the red wine inside. "So, how is my father?" Okay, I'm starting to really think my host is the Caesar's son...

"He's good. Not like he'd even need all his praetorians to defend him -- in fact, seeing as he taught all of us how to fight, I'm pretty sure he'd kick all our flanks if we turned on him," Justinian replied with a grimace. "You know the time of praetorians killing emperors is over."

Ignoring that last remark, my host asked as he took another swig, "And what is he doing right now?" Sadly the bottle was already out, so I just handed the the empty glass to Justinian. He lifted in the air on one of his hooves, and after a while it disappeared in a flash of blue accented by bright white pixels.

"He's having a meeting with his top legates. You're taking back of Hadrian's wall is setting in motion a bunch of reclamation plans. You know, stuff to kick those pony barbarians off of our land and back into their own, that sort of thing," Velain said simply.

"Mhm," Cadian replied as if in thought. "Those pony barbarians..."

There was no conversation the rest of the way up, which was not very long. The little chat had passed the time until my host was already a third of the way up, which was strange considering the mountain was tall enough to tower over the rest of the city. Surely, there must have been some kind of magic here. No one could climb this mountain without needing to take a break. Hell, the Forum's arched pavilion with the engraving 'IPQR' was already occupying my whole field of vision.

At last I stepped on the polished marble porch of the Forum, and saw the massive and intricately carved armored golden gates of an entrance. I also saw the polished-to-a-gleam marble floor and pillars, together with two gleaming marble statues of zebra praetorians next to the door. I didn't really trust how big those statues were... or why they had so much equipment. Still, I don't think a fifty foot high armored door reaching halfway to a hundred foot high arched ceiling with a surface area of a hundred meters was necessary. Even for the Roamans, that seemed a little too much... wait, what was I saying?

"Your father installed new locks, as the old three-thousand year old ones finally broke when you were gone. I'll get them to open it," Velian said, and brought out an earpiece from his belt. "Hoc est Velian, cur gehennam sit ostium non patet? Tu nosti dominus Cadian venit iterum."

My host just approached the door. "Velian, Justinian, get back to your posts." My host gave them a cocky little smile, "Chill the hell out. I got this." Then he placed his hooves on the door, and with a soft grunt forced the doors to swing inward at a speed a little too fast for my liking.

As the space within slowly opened out from in between the doors, a very surprised looking praetorian standing just far enough from the door to not get hit stared at my host with a hoof to an earpiece. I saw that Velian and Justinian were giving my host a similarly surprised look, but I just raised an eyebrow at them before getting down on all fours and trotting in. The praetorian inside gave my host a confused head shake before lowering his head in a bow.

"I assume the door wasn't really locked to begin with?" My host asked, playfully.

"Uh, it w-was, my lord," He replied, a little bit shakily. "I had just gotten Velian's notification and had opened the gate... then you pushed it open. I don't think I was ever so scared of those door's in my life."

Cadian gave him a good natured laugh, patting him on the shoulder. "Relax, don't you know the occasion?" The praetorian shook his head uncertainly. My host frowned dramatically, before raising a hoof in the air, proclaiming,"Heresy! It's the holiday of my return from Equestria! People should be celebrating! Now go, spread the word of my arrival to those of you still unaware of my presence! Honestly, this place should be alive as the city, it's so boring right now! Go, man, go and get the cake!" My host said, and lightly shoved the guard along as he started darting and huffing along down a hallway, making sure his helmet didn't fall off.

My host was about to turn and let me get a good view of the Forum -- the place I had currently spent about a month going to -- when he stopped and turned around again. "And where are my children?" He yelled, but the guard was already out of earshot. Cadian pouted and turned, walking down the hallway at a brisk pace. Still, the little Roaman fanboy in me huzzah'd in delight as I was given a good view of the interior.

To be expected of Roaman interior designs, this place was sparsely decorated yet had this sense of pure awesomeness about it. Bronze statues of animal heads were mounted off of the walls at the edges of the curved chamber, while tall marble statues of zebra heroes and emperors stood on pedestals, evenly spaced from each other on the hexagonal floor grid despite the curving nature of the structure. Finely polished wooden furniture sat near the foot of some stairs leading up, complemented well with not too brightly colored carpets underneath. Praetorians in startlingly dark iron armor patrolled without paying my host much attention, and the walls were lined with so many praetorian 'statues' -- yeah right -- I would never try to rob this place even if I could. Painted portraits of scenery hung down from pillars in the wide and spacious hall, and light entered the room from a glass-covered oculus positioned above the doorway.

"Father didn't waste any money renovating this place," My host murmured as he climbed the stairs, looking almost as awed as I would have been if I were in his place; clearly, this place had looked very different when he was last here. At least on the inside; I think the Forum had looked like it does from the outside ever since the Republic. While I should have been admiring the Forum's fairly simple beauty, I was instead wondering why the hell those black-armored praetorians were looking at my host liked that.

Ignoring them, my host continued on, eyes drawn to smaller details in decoration. There, down the even much more simply decorated middle hallway, was an even more massive armored semi-circular door jutting out of the ground, with ornamental crystal windows around the edges of it from which an ominous pulsating gold light shone through. That structural weakness was negated by the fact that those windows seemed to be made put of diamonds; oh well, even the Roamans... indulged from time to time. And while I had no doubt diamond was used for it's strength, they admittedly looked damned good in this place.

My host took in a deep breath, and closed his eyes. Clearly, this was where his father was -- whoever his father was. I was voting for the Caesar. Just as my host moved up on his hindlegs again and was about to place his hooves on the door, the noise of tripping furniture came from somewhere behind me.

"Excuse me, I need some help. I have to get this flour to the bakery; lord Cadian wants cake! Why didn't we prepare cake for him in the first place?" The praetorian from earlier huffed, sounding very tired and very in a hurry.

"Movere, morionem!" Another praetorian snarked rudely. Probably one of those suspicious looking black praetorians. "I don't have time to deal with your idiocy, I have important matters to tend to," He said darkly.

My host gasped, and glanced over his shoulder with narrowed eyes. He hissed, "Preposterous! Nothing could be more important than cake! Why, it should be made the official pastry of Saturnalia!" Then my host huffed, and his eyes just so happened to glance up the ceiling. There, small and barely noticeable above the door, was a camera looking down at my host. The sight of it just zooming in... something about that felt so Zaita. My host pointed a hoof at it, "Surely you agree with me, yes?" I'm not sure if what I saw was correct, but I think I saw the camera nod quickly in response.

Cadian nodded to himself, and returned his attention to the door in front of him and frowned. "Okay, enough screwing around. Time to meet father for the first time in three years," He said softly, and placed his hoof on the handle and pushed it down. There was an ominous echoing thump, and the door started rotating to allow me entry.

As it turns out, the door really was just half a circle, and soon I was nearly blinded once again by the golden light flowing out of the room like water. No, seriously. The light seemed to come together in the air to create motes, making it seem like I was underwater as the motes moved to and fro as I started wading into the chamber, it's crystalline floor shining as I went further. Deep into the chamber was the ghostly form of a white marble wall. The mere feeling of walking into this obviously very important place, with all this light surrounding me... it felt awesome. It wasn't long before the sounds of arguing reached my ears, though my sight was still saturated.

"... your hallow bravado does no good for Roam, Cascadiux. Your dragons only do well when they take Autherius' command, as they should," One gruff and gravelly voice argued calmly.

"I'll have you know, though, that MY legions are the ones keeping Equestria from penetrating deeper into Raveena so your legions can focus on taking the fight to them. I heard you almost lost the ninth legion, Voltarius! Why, it would have been the Teutoberg forest all over again," An oily smooth voice, I assumed it was Cascadiux, replied.

"I'm confused, isn't the Teutoberg forest the Everfree forest?" A young sounding voice -- most likely a servant or a guard recruit or something -- asked.

"Titus, you know you're not supposed to speak!" Another voice, this one fit for giving long and boring sermons, squawked. Then he sighed, "But... yes, it is."

Another voice, one very very familiar, groaned with displeasure, "Gentlecolts, you all know very well that it doesn't matter who the dragons follow, as long as their objective is accomplished. Personally, I think Cascadiux did fine with my dragons while I was on the ground, even if he did lose a few more than I would have liked."

A spark of intrigue lit up in my head at the sound of his voice. That was one of the stallions who had supposedly 'gifted' Tod to the people of Roam back during the war -- and in the process likely caused SOMETHING bad to happen. Who knows what else Autherius could have done, with his agents the Shadow Corps or otherwise? I know I didn't truly have much on him aside from him obtaining stable blueprints for... something, but I still didn't really like the guy at all, and wanted to know more about those plans of his. Maybe I should go into memory orbs more often... yeah, let's go with that.

Not long did my host wade in, when a shadow formed out of the veritable ocean of light and motes in front of me. It was approaching quickly, seeming to be holding something in it's hoof. And then, right as it stood in front of my host, it took one final step, and the form became clear.

He was a fairly lanky stallion wearing a metal torso plate that accented his chest muscles and a red cape over his back. His mane was rough and just hung from his shoulders as he stood up on his hindlegs. In his left forehoof he held what appeared to be a goblet of water.

And I recognized this SoB, too.

"Decarius?" Cadian asked, removing a hoof from his brow to allow more light to shine on the still fairly blurry form of the legate.

The old stallion's face lit up with life. "Lord Cadian! I heard you were coming back to Roam from Equestria, but so early!" He brought up his other hoof, which had a watch. "Why, it's not even the hour of ten."

My host breathed a sigh of relief, and put on a smile before patting the older stallion on the shoulder, "Ah, Decarius. My father did well to invite one of the more sensible legates -- and good friend -- to the meeting." Okay, seriously? The guy was acting like he wasn't doing anything wrong, how freaking suspicious was that? He clearly had some kind of master plan here, and yet my host didn't seem to notice. I could not believe it.

The older stallion returned the pat with a warm smile, and started trotting back into the light, still facing my host, before raising up his hoof with the goblet. "A drink? You look thirsty."

My host turned it down with his own hoof, and started trotting with him, saying, "Nah, it's fine. Velian and Justinian already gave me some of father's wine, and that's all I need." The legate smiled and shook his head sagely, then proceeded to bring the goblet to his own mouth.

We started trotting together into the light-obscured crystalline chamber, and my host said as his eyes more properly adjusted to the illumination, "So, how have things been over here? Don't tell me that I've been pushing the first legion Roamana to it's absolute limit only to have home efforts fail miserably like paper planes in the rain."

Decarius chuckled -- not a dark chuckle, much to my suspicion -- and brought the goblet down. "I assume you overheard Cascadiux's tremendous mismanagement of Autherius' dragon fleets in one of our more recent battles. That stallion had those dragons shot down like flies..."

"So everything's going to hell, then? Well, fuck my life," My host commented, shaking his head.

The legate pointed at me with gentle correction. "Now, now, there's no need to speak like that. You know your father's hearing is very good, you wouldn't want your first day back to be spoiled by a lecture, would you?" My host pouted. "Anyway, no. Not everything's going to hell. Cascadiux's failure aside, Julianix and Parthius and some of the more recent legates have been doing well keeping the Equestrians from pushing deeper into our territory. Autherius' Shadow Corps have also been undermining Equestrian companies and organizations." Then he frowned, and my scumbag mind had the audacity to actually feel sorry for him.

'That's it, my mind's officially fucked up beyond all repair,' I thought.

Cadian noticed his frown, even if it was just for a second. "Something wrong?"

Decarius snapped back to him as though coming out of a trance, and shook his head and wiped his face. "Nothing, it's just... well, when you reach my age, you tend to... fear death. It's a... a strange feeling." He sighed, "I'm not as spry as I used to be. I'm... a little concerned that, if Roam will ever need more than it does now -- if it's very existence depended on me -- I'm not sure if I can be the general that she'll need."

"Heresy!" My host said, a little loudly. "Decarius, you are the legate who destroyed seventeen griffin tribes with a gladius and one cohort. You are the commander who annihilated the modern Gaul barbarians with just two legions and no reinforcements. And most of all, you have dedicated your life -- your time, your skills, your wisdom -- to Roam. Not a day went by when I was a child that I didn't see you thrusting a pilum through one of our garden trees." I placed my hoof on his shoulder, and turned him around to face me. "Decarius, you are the kind of commander I hope to grow up to be." My host smiled at him and hiccuped.

Decarius looked genuinely shocked -- yeah right, he was probably secretly soaking all the praise up -- as he stared back at the much younger stallion before him, before a much more resolute and sincere smile on his face. "Thank you, Cadian. I'm glad to know that Roam will be in good hands when I asce-..." He stopped abruptly, blinking his eyes hard and gulping, looking up at the ceiling with crazed eyes for a moment. "When I'm gone, is what I mean," He added quickly.

I looked at him for a moment, a concerned frown on my face (I wasn't the one concerned, just so you know). Eventually, there was the sound of some large doors opening, followed by the immediate marching of a dozen or so armored hooves. The sound of chairs being dragged along the ground quickly came next. The light in the room seemed to become even brighter, and the motes multiplied.

"All legates please stand, the emperor of Roam enters the hall," A voice called out.

Cadian breathed in deep, gulping nervously. Noticing that, the legate nudged him a little further into the still blearily illuminated chamber of crystal columns and ghosts of gleaming marble statues. "Come on, Cadian. Your father wants to see you, probably why he came out of his throne room in the first place."

"You think he's lost his sense of humor? I'm going to step right in, and just wreck whatever formalities there are in that meeting," My host replied tentatively.

Decarius laughed, "Oh, I'm sure that amidst the direness of many things right now that he'd welcome his long-awaited child's humor."

As it turns out, this whole time we had been trotting along right next to the wall that I had spotted, and right around it's corner was where the meeting was taking place. Right as I tried to turn the corner, Decarius stopped me, and glanced around it first. "Okay, nothing serious has happened, they're just paying your father respects." He turned around and gave me a warm and encouraging smile. "Go and step right in, child."

I gulped nervously once again; clearly, a great deal of Cadian's feelings composed of anxiety at his return and of his emperor father's reaction. Were I in his position, I would have taken the wine as insurance that things were okay and that I was expected. Then again, I didn't even have a father anymore, so... wait, why the hell am I bringing this up?

"Okay," Cadian muttered at last. "I'm ready." Decarius smiled and gestured me to step in first. I breathed in one last time, and murmured very quietly under my breath, "Hello, father."

"Welcome back, my son," A sagely, warm voice echoed in my head. "I've missed you." While I was personally very surprised at the voice in my head, Cadian seemed to take it as a normal occurrence.

Then, without further delay, I stepped around the corner and I saw the outlines of a zebra wearing purple and white robes being approached one by one by armored legates, next to whom stood a line of praetorians.

But at my second step inside, the light overtook my vision and the motes seemed to reach into my mind. And at my third step, my vision started fading back into the real world.

ooooOOOOoooo

I opened my eyes and was greeted by the sight of dimly lit rubble in a small and cramped room, with water trickling in from a broken pipe overhead. The sounds of rapid, heavy gunfire from Predator's overpowered HMG-AR hybrid was the dominant noise, though his occasional pause did let me hear other things. The sounds of falling rubble, distant explosions, trickling water, and muffled yells were some examples.

But through one of the pauses I managed to pick out some very soft noises: the sound of a tin can being opened and closed, accompanied by the noise of someone breathing in a suppressed manner.

I turned my head and saw Myst in a corner, her face illuminated by a wan ray of light that somehow got into the building. She was sitting right next to me, yet not looking at me. And as I watched, I saw her quickly open her tin can of candy again and pop another white tablet into her mouth. Anger and murderous intent crept into my mind, and I decided to act.

I moved my hooves with the intent to come up behind her and strangle the treacherous whore before she could alert that asshole of a Specter, when metal chains tugged against my limbs. The clanking of iron that followed was tremendously clear in the fair quietness of the room. I looked down at the chains with utter bafflement. Where the hell did they get these things?

She nearly jumped up in surprise, and she spilled some of the tablets as she scuttled away. She turned and looked at me with wide and bloodshot eyes upon a sweaty face, and each breath sounded so shallow they barely made her chest puff in and out. She took in a gasp at the sight of the spilled candies on the floor, and looked between me and them with crazed eyes.

She knelt down and placed some of the less dirtied tablets back into the tin and placed them carefully into her hoodie, before getting up and saying softly, slowly, "Um... hi... Goldwreath." I just kept quiet as I glared back, giving the chains a light tug. She pulled out a key from one of her pockets, saying with a broken little smile, "Um... P-predator told me not to let you go... when you woke up, but I don't like seeing you like this." I still just glared back at her. Her smile faded and turned into a frown. She sighed, "I... know your mad at me. But I'm going to let you go now, okay? So... p-please don't try anything, or I'll have to... have to..." She gulped, shaking her head and starting across the small distance towards us. I could see her shaking as she approached, exhaustion most likely. Mare looked like she'd been through hell while I was out... good, she wouldn't be able to resist the moment I was free.

Four turns of a key and the clank of chains later and I was free. She stood off a little distance from me, shaking as I got up. "Now, um... we should go get the others so we can... you know... get out of here and try to help you out, with, you know, a doctor or somethi-..."

"You're mine now, idiot," I said darkly and with a smug little smile on my face, before taking a casual step forward.

She half-cringed on the floor almost immediately. "G-goldwreath? Wha-what are you doing? Please, you're scaring me," She whimpered and took a few steps back, eyes wider than ever. Ah whimpering, what a nice sound to hear from the traitorous mare that was Myst.

I didn't respond. I just lunged forward, putting so much force into my wings that I must have broken a rib or two when I impacted her; maybe, maybe not, it didn't matter. She lost her breath immediately, yet a puff of air still came out of her mouth as I slammed her back against the wall. She tried to crawl away, placing a hoof to her chest as she did, but I pinned her down by placing all of my weight on her. She squirmed and jerked, yet couldn't wiggle her way free.

"How's it feel, huh? How do you like being forced down and being submitted to the will of others? Huh, how's it feel?!" I yelled down at her, and slowly she stopped struggling. The only sound remaining aside from the distant booming of Predator's weapon was her annoying shallow breathing.

"Please don't hurt me," She begged pathetically, and I smirked sadistically at the meekness of her tone. "I-I was just trying to help..."

"Fuck that shit, I'm going to fuck you up until you can't walk," I murmured darkly, and she immediately froze all actions as she lay pinned below me. "You know of what I speak..." I continued, and put extra emphasis on all of my weight on her; basically, dropping myself.

That got me the reaction I wanted. She started shaking, almost uncontrollably. After a while, she instead started bawling at the top of her lungs as she thrashed around, "No! No, please no!" She even started sobbing like a foal. Oh yes, did I forget to mention that I absolutely reveled in the sounds of her misery and terror? Bitch deserved it.

That went on for a few more moments, with me pinning her down and her trying uselessly to escape from underneath me. I got tired of it, and so decided to just wring her and end her struggling. I got off of her just long enough to twist her around. She tried to escape, but I already had my hooves pressing down on her throat. She started gurgling and choking almost immediately, and tried to push me off with what meager force her weakened body could muster.

Soon I started hearing her throat crackle -- such a wonderful sound -- and her eyes bulged and her hide went pale, but blue around her face. Her struggling slowly ceased, and soon all that was left was the spasmodic flail of a limb. I didn't really give a damn.

Just then she managed to choke out, "Goldwreath... I... please, let me go..." She coughed softly, eyes as bloodshot as ever, but this time with tears streaking across her face. I could see her fear, it was evident in the stress her expression showed.

I released her quickly, only realizing now the cruelty and heinousness of my actions. The realization of what I had done and what I was about to do hit my mind like a sledgehammer, forcing out all thoughts of betrayal and revenge and replacing them with an absolute feeling of guilt and wrongness. I couldn't take it, and so I took several frail steps back, tripped over and fell down on my haunches. Myst just choked and massaged her neck as the color returned to her face, and she too crawled away from me, pushing herself against the wall and pressing her hindlegs tightly together. Only then did I notice I had stepped further into the darkness of the room, while she had crawled away into the light of the doorway. It made me wonder how Predator felt, always keeping himself in check like he did, always watching from the edge of darkness at the world. And it also made me scared that I was becoming like him, too.

"Myst... I am so, so sorry, I just... I couldn't... I wouldn't..." I stammered, before placing a hoof up to my head and try to collect my thoughts. I came to one inescapable conclusion: I had to get away from her first. There was no amount of apology I could say that would undo my act of absolute, irrevocable evil, because I had actually tried to kill her over there! I had, and... and it took me that fucking long to notice? It took THAT to knock me out of my vengeful madness? What would have happened if she didn't manage to choke out those words? Oh, I don't think I would have ever forgiven myself.

She just looked back at me with an unfathomable expression -- whether filled with anger or fear, I couldn't tell -- and so I left the room, picking up my helmet as I went, and found myself facing the city of Roam through a gigantic void where the rest of the building was supposed to be. I couldn't tell where Doodle or Predator were, and honestly right then I didn't care.

Another door, this one clearly having been broken into many times before us, caught my attention, and so I made my way to it. Next to it was a dead zebra with wide open eyes wearing kevlar lorica; a Legionnaire. On the ground floor of the building, on the rubble of the chasm, were more dead Legionnaires. Predator must have done all this. I went inside the room, which was nothing more than an empty space with it's ceiling gone, replaced instead by a gaping hole where wan light flowed in. I sat myself down on some rubble, and started crying.

"What's happening to me?" I coughed in between my choking and sobbing, and hated myself for the mere memory of what I just did.

It had all been so much, so fast. Not just all of this crazy conspiracy and fog and war stuff, but what happened in the stable, too. In just one fell swoop, my whole life -- my incredibly boring but safe life -- had been taken from me. I had gotten absolutely no time to adjust, to cope, and to renew hope in a bright future. I had been under a lot of pressure, and at last that stress, magnified and enhanced by my experiences out here, was showing me just how deep the cracks were. I had been thrust almost immediately into a life of pain and hardships with little more than sympathy from my friends, and even my relationship with them right now was taxed precariously.

I was not prepared to help these people, to be the defender they needed. I wasn't ready for any of this, and my skills had never been so severely tested. I couldn't do this.

I found a little solace in banging my head against the wall repeatedly, though I still hated myself immensely. "I can't protect this place, not like this. Not while I can't even control myself, I just can't..." So what could I do about it? I had taken up the impossible task of helping this city out, and people were depending on me. I had almost nothing on my side to help me, but that was just it, wasn't it? This was what I had gotten myself into. There was nothing I could do about. There was nothing to do, but either give up or keep moving.

"Maybe I should just give up. Stop getting myself involved in this madness before more shit happens. I can't do this shit," I murmured to myself, shaking my head out of disgust. Giving up definitely sounded like the right thing to do, the sane thing to do. Who was I fooling? Just one pony and a group of idealistic friends versus a whole city with a military organization, a sentient cloud of green, and weird demon-things to the south didn't really show good odds. "Fuck, I hate my life," I groaned as I scrunched up my face, hating myself for my indecisiveness. Still, with each passing moment, my head was leaning more and more towards giving up, and I felt a part of me smile at my sane decision.

No, I couldn't! What the hell was I thinking? Fuck giving up!

I slapped myself across the face, saying, "Get it together, boy. You haven't earned that respite, don't forget that. You will stand your ground, you will do better, and you will not give up. You will put on that damned helmet of yours, and you will protect this city, understand?" I shook my head uncertainly, still, but stopped when another though came into my mind, and I said it aloud. "You are a soldier of Roam. You will not yield," I declared resolutely, and nodded my head in firm confirmation of my statement. Still, I imagined a great many disappointed brain cells voicing their disapproval in my head.

Then my eyes widened at what I just said. "Well, fuck. I actually just convinced myself to keep doing this shit." I groaned loudly, and I sighed with resignation, "Fuck my life. If this isn't a testament to my madness, it's at least a testament to my suicidal ambition." Heh, funny. Four weeks ago, the moment I learned I was on a suicidal mission, I would have given the thing more thought. Then again, I didn't know what I'd be facing.

So I did the only thing I could at the moment. I just put on my helmet and sat back down. I still didn't feel any better about myself in regards to what happened earlier, and in fact I had not finished shedding my own broken tears of stress. Still, with the thought of quitting out of the picture for the moment, I could at least concentrate all my emotion to making myself feel like the vengeful scum and worthless friend I was.

A few minutes into my self-loathing filled bawling and I felt a presence erupt in front of me. It was comparatively small to, say, Predator, but it was there. And I knew who it was. She was shy, and too scared to say anything to the one who had so badly hurt her less than ten minutes ago.

I opened my eyes and saw the light of day flow in through the open doorway, and to my side it illuminated a shadow of a mare wearing a hoodie. Her eyes were less bloodshot than earlier, though they still gave her this look of paranoid fear and desperation. I knew part of her expression was because of what I did, and especially because of what I had threatened to do.

There wasn't much to say. I wiped my tears from my face, feeling the grime wash away in muddy little drops. I sniffed, "Myst, I am so sorry. I don't know what came over me, you have to understand. That wasn't me, and I know that now. And what I threatened to do..." I shuddered and said with a shaky little exhale, "The moment I turn into a rapist is the moment I'll throw myself on a pike."

She shuddered at my words, yet strangely approached with the most queer look of concern on her face. She sat herself down on the rubble near me, dragging herself slowly closer. As she went, I could sense the uncertainty of her decision; I could see her hindlegs pressing more tightly together with each inch.

Finally she sat right next to me, and even went so far as to place a hoof on my shoulder, patting me slowly and uncertainly. Finally, she asked in a voice so strained and raspy I almost didn't recognize it to be hers, "You can talk to me, you know. I'm here for y-... I'm your friend." She almost squawked out the last few words. Clearly, she was trying to say something else. I wondered what it was.

Fine, I'll talk. I needed to talk. And so I said, "I don't know, Myst. What happened earlier... when I saw myself heal... I was jubilant. Jubilant because I thought that-that I could use that. Use that to be better, to be good enough to help these people. I've failed, Myst. You and Skyfire, hell maybe even Zaita, may not think it, and I may not believe it, but I've failed at almost everything I've done ever since being outside. Look around you, Myst. How am I supposed to fight this? How am I supposed to face this if I can't succeed at anything? If I don't have a sort of... edge over this place?" I shook and covered my face with a hoof in shame.

She just sat there for the longest moment, eyes looking around uncertainly. Then, at last, she asked softly in a strangely kind tone, "Why are you trying to save everyone here, Goldwreath? What's driving you to keep doing this to yourself? Why are you doing all this?"

I didn't think about the answer. It just came out of my mouth naturally, like I was born to pull out witty lines out of thin air. "The moment I tell myself I don't deserve the hell I'm going through is the moment I'll have told the ultimate lie. I deserve everything I get, because they challenge me to prove myself worthy of the title I've been given, this... responsibility I've taken up. I keep pushing myself because I don't want others to suffer for my inadequacies, and because I need to feel like all the time I spent bettering myself didn't go to waste. And through it all I just have to believe that it's all worthwhile because my cause is just."

She looked up at me, a look of understanding forming on her face. "Well, you don't have to face it all on your own you know. Me and Skyfire and Zaita are here for you, we're your friends. We care about you." There was a short pause, and then she said in a soft whisper as she leaned close, "I care about you, Goldwreath."

"Thanks for the sympathy. You have no idea how much I appreciate it," I replied, shaking my head, still unsure if what I was hearing was correct. Then I glanced behind me at her, and saw a strange look on her face. "Why are you looking at me like that?" She just looked back at me, keeping quiet. There was this look in her eyes, this... flame of a sort, if that makes sense. She cleared her throat and nudged herself forward a little. I gave her a quizzical look, "What's going on here?"

She still didn't respond, just looking back at me, darting her gaze between each of my eyes. At last she whispered softly, seeming a little bit worried by my obliviousness, if her biting of her lip was any indication, "I care about you, Goldwreath." Then she leaned back, seeming nervous and hopeful for my reaction. Her hooves played around each other, shuffling in an anxious manner.

I raised my eyebrow at her. "Yeah, I know, I'm your friend. What's your point?" I asked, raising my head skeptically. Seriously, this was beginning to really confuse me.

She sighed and closed her eyes, as if readying herself for something. She gulped and opened her lids, and put on a little hesitant smile on her face. "This is what I mean," She said, and half-closed her eyes and started leaning forward.

I just looked at that for a moment, eyes narrowed dumbly and mouth hung slightly out of confusion. What, was she... trying to give me a hug or something? Wait... hugs...

Then it hit me.

'Wait, where the heck is this coming from? Isn't Myst supposed to be the shy one? Di-did she forget what happened earlier?' I stammered in my head, while my physical body was left basically limp in real life. How was I supposed to deal with this? I had never even kissed a mare before, or even seen that kind of contact outside of movies and comics, what if I sucked at it? My heart started pounding in my chest and my breathing became hot in my mouth as my panic spiked, and I felt the strangest fluttering in my chest. My wings started flaring out, much to my embarrassment and shame.

Then I felt her lips on mine, and all my thoughts and panic went out the window. Even the remnants of my guilt and terror at what I had done earlier immediately went away.

My attention snapped back to reality, and my eyes went wide as I took in the sight of the mare before me. She pulled away for a moment, cheeks flaming more than ever. She nudged forward tentatively and bit her lower lip, as if unsure I wanted it. I wanted it so much, and so I pressed forward and locked her lips with mine, causing her to gasp in surprise. She recovered and pushed herself against me, and I responded by laying on my back on the rubble and letting her onto my chest, still returning the affection in the form of a passionate kiss. My helmet clattered off of my head, but I didn't mind; it was beginning to chafe my forehead, anyway. The feeling of her body against mine was the most arousing and warm sensation I had ever had. I didn't even question where she had learned to be such a great kisser.

She pulled away for a while to smile down at me with the most loving smile I had ever gotten from a mare in my life (aside from my mother, but that's different). There was this... this look of satisfaction and bliss on her face that I had never seen on her before, and it made me smile up at her because I knew I was the source of her joy. I could be something aside from a failure, who knew? My mouth opened wide as I saw reach her hooves up to her hoodie and pull it down, allowing me sight of her barely seen mane. Then she proceeded to unzip her hoodie entirely, and she put the clothing aside and lay against my chest. She was beautiful, make no mistake, and even her still bloodshot eyes didn't mar the sight of her.

I felt her breath on my face as our lips met again, her hooves stroking my cheeks. My own hooves found their way onto her back, and I caressed it, making her moan in delight and excitement. Just to hear the wondrous and extremely arousing sound again, I rubbed her hide there more vigorously, and it came even louder. I decided to make a move, and slid my hooves further along until they made contact with her flanks right beside her tail.

She gasped in surprise, and pulled away to let me see a look of uncertainty and minuscule fear on her flushing face, an expression that seemed to recall what nearly happened to her before. She bit her lip and glanced back there, before turning to look at me with a vaguely paranoid expression. "I'm sorry," I said softly, feeling stupid to have tried it in the first place; not like I would actually have done her even if I did get the chance, mind you. I pulled my hooves away urgently and rested them on her back instead, feeling a little disappointed.

She relaxed at that and gave me a grateful little smile, and I returned it as affectionately as I could. "Thank you for being considerate," She said softly, genuinely. She stroked my cheek in apparent gratitude, and kissed me again.

But among all things to run into my mind, an image of her tying me down to a chair was what gripped my attention. That wondrous fluttering in my chest was brutally murdered, and I tensed so much that I thought my muscles would sprain themselves.

My eyes shot wide open as an overwhelming sense of danger flooded into my head and killed off all feelings of bliss. Her lids fluttered open and widened at the sight of my own eyes staring at her. "No!" I gasped, and pushed her away from me. Her expression turned confused, and very much concerned.

"Goldwreath, I'm... I-I... I don't... I wouldn't ever..." She stammered as she leaned back in, seeming desperate to assuage my concern. I looked back at her with paranoia in my eyes, and pushed her away with a hoof. Then realization dawned on her face, and she breathed, "Goldwreath... I would never hurt you like that, you have to believe me." I knew that, of course. I don't think she would ever have it in her to become... that, being paranoid it would happen to her and all.

I gulped and sat up, and she got off me and sat down right by my side. I brought a hoof up to my head, massaging it while she scooted closer. "I know," I replied solemnly, before turning and looking at her anxious and desperate expression. Clearly, I wasn't the only one who didn't want that experience to end. "But... I'm sorry, this is just... really... sudden. I've... never even considered a mare would ever even hug me, much less kiss me. I... don't know how to handle it. It's... weird."

I got up and trotted slowly towards the center of the room, shaking my head in confusion. "I... need to think about this, Myst. Please," I begged despite her already saddened and even more desperate expression. Still, she didn't disagree, instead looking at the ground and whimpering. "Thanks for understanding," I said, and started for the outside.

"Goldwreath... um, I..." She said softly, almost whispering, before I closed the door behind me.

I stopped and stood at the edge of the chasm, looking out over the city and shaking my head indolently. I could still hear Predator's HMG-AR firing, almost non-stop. Then I sighed deeply and muttered to myself, "Fuck, I'm actually going to ask the guy for relationship advice." I canted my head slightly in thought and shook my head slowly, before coming to the conclusion that I was ACTUALLY going to do this.

I glanced one more time at the door, finding it unopened with Myst still inside, and started down a small dirt path on the side of the building leading down to the first floor.

From the ruined and exposed first floor, I could see that the area beyond was some kind of business district, the building I was in included. The street in front was fairly wide but cracked and broken beyond any hope of repair. Mounds of rubble and steel blocked off entire smaller roads.

I started searching the area. But as I did, a painful throbbing erupted in my head.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

"Where in the name of Jupiter's electric thunderbolt dildo is that bastardus?" I asked out of pure exasperation as I did my second sweep of the area, not taking heed of the possible danger I was in; I was trying to clear all my thoughts for the chance that how I completely blew it earlier would be forgotten. Also, you'd think that finding a guy with a very loud and very big machine gun would be easy, yet strangely you'd be wrong. There was just this sense of confusion I had that directed me to a place where he obviously wasn't. Maybe it was the other gunshots, or something else.

I stopped for a moment, remembering the emotions and feelings of what had happened less than five minutes ago. I glanced up at the building above me, knowing that somewhere up there was a very confused and possibly very broken-hearted Myst. Guilt and confusion flooded into my mind, followed by immediate longing. So close, I was so close to getting a break, and I blew it big time. With just one illogical mental image, I completely shattered a moment that could have given both of our lives more meaning. So much for that warm feeling after first kisses, I felt cold and disappointed instead.

I decided that he was not in the immediate vicinity, and made my way to an unblocked side road, where more dead Legionnaires and a centurion lay with great bloody holes in their bodies. There was the occasional body of what appeared to be raiders or bandits of a sort wearing a uniform outfit of metal-studded barding with flame patterns painted on them. I paid them no attention; probably just some random gang of barbarians. Off to the side, about a hundred meters away, was the main highway we were trotting along earlier.

I started trotting around, towards the sounds of the gun producing the closest resembling noise to Predator's weapon. That lead me to a side street of one of the buildings right next to the one I was in, and I found the path was filled with more Legionnaire corpses, these ones charred and burned. I followed a trail of of melted metal and blackened kevlar bits, and soon I started hearing the sounds of battle; well, not really 'battle', but more like 'people shouting in a manner suggestive of battle'.

I turned the corner and took cover behind an old dumpster, and peered out from the side.

The area beyond seemed like an old parking lot. In here was a group of sixteen Legionnaires -- two controberniums -- with a centurion in the front of the group, which was pressed up against the wall of a building. All of them looked like they'd been fighting for quite a while, and some even had burn marks and blood splattered over them. Their faces were grim and hard, seeming ready for death.

Surrounding the group and keeping them from escaping was a crowd of around fifty very angry and very hysterical looking zebras, these ones wearing the same metal-studded barding as the corpses I saw earlier. They had guns and flamethrowers, yet they didn't seem to be using them; the same with the Legionnaires, minus the flamethrowers. I came to the conclusion that both sides had run out of ammo, and indeed the ground here was littered with bullet casings.

The gang group just continued to rave and laugh at the Legionnaires, occasionally stepping forward and throwing a rock or a piece of debris of some sort. Clearly, they didn't want to actually attack the Legionnaires in a melee confrontation.

But then one of them stepped in front of the others, and turned to them and raised his flamethrower in the air like a heavy stick. He shouted something in tribal zebra -- not imperial zebra, as you've heard in memory orbs from Roamans -- and began taking a few tentative steps towards the Legionnaires, occasionally turning to his comrades and urging them to come along. Soon the others joined in, and eventually they seemed like a scattered but very large wave of angry protesters charging a line of riot police.

The centurion -- I'll just call them kenturions from time to time to respect Roaman linguistics -- took a look at them, raising his head skeptically. And as the nearest ganger got within twenty feet, the centurion brought up a whistle to his mouth and blew. At the sound of it the Legionnaires brought up their shields as one, preparing for the onslaught. The kenturion brought up his own shield, a slightly smaller and circular red object with a painting of a golden eagle on it, and drew his gladius.

The ganger's flamethrower smacked against the kenturion's shield, yielding no result aside from a loud clang of metal on metal. The centurion parried the blow with his shield, before raising it up and thrusting his sword forward in a powerful stab. The blade punched through the cobbled-together zebra's barding easily, and blood exploded out of the zebra's spine.

The other gangers promptly reached the rest of the Legionnaires, who blocked their initial blow easily with a similar move as the centurion's. Soon, every front-line Legionnaire was occupied, blocking and stabbing against the savage beating of at least three of the gangers. And as they continued to block and stab and parry and slash, I could tell that warding off the onslaught of the heavy blows was beginning to take their toll. I could see the exhaustion in their faces, the fear in their eyes.

The centurion observed that as quickly as I did, and shield-bashed his attacker and quickly brought up the whistle before giving it a quick and loud blow. The other Legionnaires disregarded whatever they were doing and simply bashed their shield forward as well, pushing away their own attackers and allowing the second line of Legionnaires to replace them at the front line just as the gangers recovered and charged again.

And then they were at it again. The gangers would charge again and again like mindless fools, heedless of their casualties, while the Legionnaires maintained formation, bashing and blocking and stabbing. It was a sight to behold, seeing Roaman discipline in action. These were the tactics the ancient Roamans used to conquer the known world, and even in times where these tactics would have been rendered primitive -- during and after the war -- they were still effective. It made the Roaman fanboy in me orgasm from delight.

"Shields on me!" The centurion yelled in a masculine, rough voice, and gave the whistle a long and hard blow. The Legionnaires lunged forward, bashing whoever was in front with a rib-cracking smack of their shields, and gathered together in a tight formation resembling a dome. Soon they were completely encased in a bubble of metal, and started making their way out of the area as the gangers continued throwing themselves against the sphere like the imbeciles they were.

I had the highest hopes they would escape and get to safety, even if they would continue living to terrorize the city, when the area suddenly became very hot very fast.

Out of the corner where they would have gone to escape came a figure clad in black, with a weapon with a barrel glowing red hot and with smoke coming out of it like a stick of incense burning on the hills of Roam. The figure's eyes glowed a murderous red, and his mere presence caused the stop of all activity within the area, whether from the Legionnaires or from the gangers. And with his presence came an almost immediate sweat-inducing heat.

Predator shook his head idly at the shield formation just as Legionnaires stopped moving, while the gangers stood where they were, as if waiting for something. "So feeble," He declared plainly, and raised up one of his forehooves and pointed it at the shield formation.

A great wave of heat and piercing signal passed through the air, concentrating on the dome of shields. The mere passing of the wave caused me to lose my breath.

And then, just like that, a great fiery explosion erupted from within the dome, immolating all the Legionnaires within with fiery demise. Some of them didn't burn to an ash immediately, and started running around, screaming. The gangers laughed sadistically, beating to death any burning Legionnaires they could get their hooves on. Amidst the confusion, the centurion, his entire left foreleg burned to a crisp, crawled away and lay against the dumpster.

"Alright, Excoquat Aestibus, gather around me," Predator commanded simply, and the gangers -- the Molten Tides, if I remembered the name -- gathered around him with wild, nearly reverent vigor. Predator looked them over, declaring, "I am very disappointed with you, my children. I gave you one task, one task, to perform while I was destroying a Legion base, and you failed miserably. I am not pleased."

The crowd whimpered and cried out in disappointment, until one of them asked aloud, "What would you have us do to atone for our sins, oh great and powerful Arsonist, Son of Pyro?"

There was a mental snicker in my head, and I saw Predator turn his head to face me. 'These idiots,' he seemed to say.

He turned to look them over, proclaiming, "Your god is a merciful one, but only fire will cleanse these heinous disappointments." He gestured a hoof at each of them, "It seems your immolation will come sooner than you expected."

Despite everything, their faces lit up with joy, and so the one who spoke earlier declared once more, "We give our lives to you, Arsonist!" Then he raised his weapon, and the others followed suit, yelling at the sky with zealous enthusiasm.

'Good,' Predator spoke in my head, and another great wave of heat washed over the whole area, focusing on each of the gangers.

At once they all caught fire, still screaming at the sky with blind zeal and fury. "For Pyro!" They yelled again and again, until at last their cries died down and disappeared with their ashes into the wind.

And then Predator just stood there, shaking his head at any remaining ash. "Superstitious idiots," He said aloud, and idly trotted to my dumpster, where the centurion lay shaking and bleeding out of his fried leg. At Predator's approach he pulled out a pistol and pulled the trigger, but there was just a click.

The centurion's face turned resigned and he sighed, dropping the pistol onto the ground next to him. I could only listen as Predator approached.

"Now, now," Predator said plainly, "Let's not give up on the possibility that there's still ammo in this. You were fighting hard, it wouldn't be a surprise if your equipment jammed." There was the sound of the pistol being picked up, promptly followed by the sound of the magazine sliding out. There was a short pause. "Ah, there's your problem," He said, "The spring's jammed into this little crevice over here, see? You still have three rounds in here. This should be easy to fix." There was a twang of metal, followed by the sound of the magazine being slid back into the gun, then the cocking of a mechanism. "There we go. Now I'm going to have to kill you with this, I don't want to waste my own ammo."

Hell no. I got up and darted around the corner just in time to see Predator push the barrel against the centurion's forehead beneath his helmet's brow plate. "Predator!" I called, "You are not executing this Legionnaire. I don't care what you say, this guy's life can improve, and I will NOT let you take that from him!" I panted heavily, hoping to appear fierce or otherwise convicted enough to persuade the operative to let this one go. Funny, I don't think I would have felt the same way about this guy if I hadn't seen how good of a field officer he was.

The centurion glanced to me, face sweaty and resigned, before a little smile of hope lit up on his features, and damn me if I was going to let his trust in me die out.

Predator nodded slowly and said with a bored and indifferent tone, "Mhm... yes... I see..." He spoke a little louder, saying, "Well, if I were trying to kill him on the account of him suffering a miserable life -- which he is not -- then perhaps I would release him into your custody and let you keep your promise, and then you'd have another individual like Doodle on on your little group." I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at him, wondering where he was going with this. So he spoke again, "But I am NOT trying to kill him on that account. I am going to kill him because he is my enemy." Then he pressed the barrel against the centurion's head, and without any hesitation whatsoever blew his brains out of his skull.

Well... damn me.

I stood there, shaken and frozen, until I took several steps closer to his dead body and my knees gave out, and I kneeled close to his corpse. "No... no..." I murmured, feeling tears form in my eyes as I put a hoof to his metallic mesh-clad shoulder. His face hadn't moved from it's hopeful little smile; Predator hadn't even given him the time to notice the barrel against his head. At least he died with some hope.

But I still failed to deliver, to save him. I still failed to grab an opportunity that was literally right there in front of me, an opportunity to... to SAVE someone from needless death. Roam just lost another officer.

I turned to face Predator, my eyes puffy and red and mouth agape in sorrow, and saw him loading six different units of the same HMG-AR weapon, all of them smoking and with red barrels. Where he even pulled those out of, I don't know -- his backpack? Most likely, damned thing could fit anything.

But I didn't really pay that much attention back them, feeling my heart heavy with disbelief and sadness. "W-why?" I asked, crawling a few inches away before getting up, sniffing. "Why did you do that? You... you just... without even thinking..."

"Collect your thoughts and use your reasoning, boy," Predator replied, his back not even turned to me. "Emotions cloud judgement, sympathetic value places what's less important higher on the priority list than what's actually important. Right now, your mind is festering with both." He glanced over his shoulder at me, the glow in his eyes gone. "Use your logic; had I released him, what could happen? Would he survive without his combat limb? And if he did, would he not tell the nearest Legion camp that the Arsonist and the Praetorian are together, conveniently close for one ambush? And an even more important question, would you be able to face the consequences of your... 'mercy'?"

I just looked back at him, eyes still puffy and breathing hard. I glanced behind me at the centurion, and my gaze met his dead stare. I gulped, and turned around. "He could have had a life, Predator. Something else... I don't know, with his leg gone, maybe he'd be forced to retire from service? Maybe then he could... he could do something else with his life."

Predator shook his head sagely as he glanced back at me. "So idealistic," He murmured, just loud enough for me to hear. He turned around completely, still loading one of his weapons. "Idealism, Goldwreath, is a strange thing. In the right time, under the right circumstances and with the right people to propagate it, your philosophy could have spread to every corner of the empire, published on paper and posted in the Databanks. Your words and actions could have guided any number of confused and depressed Roamans to a new of life, a new way of looking at the harshness of the world. You could have been recognized as an advocate of peace who'd been through war, and for that you could have been famous. You could have been great."

Then he finished loading his weapon, and idly stuffed it into his backpack, before proceeding to pick up another. "But idealism and philosophy in times of mental degradation, such as now, gets people killed. I have seen. Passionate and determined individuals like yourselves, charging into the mechanisms of the world's chaos, hoping to diagnose the problem and fix it. And guess what? They got caught in the gears, crushed to a pulp by the massive, unfixable corruption of the enigma that is nature." He sighed, as if for once he himself didn't like his words. "There is only adaption; it justifies all actions, good or bad. It is the only alternative."

I stood there for a moment, unsure of what to say in response. Was that true? Was I just an idealistic fool, unable to accept the reality of the world, unable to adapt? Would I indeed die because of what I believed in? For sure that was seeming more and more likely; just about everything I had suffered, specifically my many near-deaths, I suffered for the opportunity to impose justice on myself for my weaknesses and to protect Roam and my friends. And the more I thought about it, the more I couldn't help but recognize the undeniable truth: my idealism would very likely get me or someone I loved killed. What then? If I lived, would I pursue my ambition to improve the world, or would I adapt to it? And if I adapted, what would become of me? Would I become like Predator, or raiders, or something else? What would I do then?

He noticed my silence and spoke, "Ah, but you did not come here to get a lecture on wasteland life, did you? Of course you didn't." He sat down on the ground, still loading his weapons with a seemingly endless supply of 50.cal ammo. "Come, tell me of your troubles, for my mind is currently willing to listen."

My sadness and indecisiveness faded almost immediately, partially because I didn't want to feel sad (after all, who did?) and partially because the main focus of my mind was still the little scene with Myst about five minutes ago.

Shit, was I actually going to talk to him about this? Well, cover me in oil and immolate me, I was. Great, I WAS going crazy

I sat down next to him, feeling silly and foolish that I was actually going to do this. But what the heck? I was already here, and went through seeing all that for this, might as well get it over with. I breathed in deep, and let out in one full rant, "I woke up and saw Myst eating candy, and I was so fucking mad I wanted to strangle her. She noticed I was awake and let me go, and I attacked her and pinned her down, even threatening to rape her. I realized what I was doing before I strangled her to death and went to a room and broke down. Then she came in and we made out right there on the rubble. I was really confused by it, so I went to look for you so you could give me some advice. Then I saw all this and now here we are." I took in a heavy gasp of air, and closed my mouth.

He just looked at me for the longest time, unmoving. I tried to sense his emotions, but found nothing. The area became eerily silent as time went on, and I almost asked if he was paralyzed.

At last he spoke slowly with an incredulous tone, "So... let me get this straight. Your friend whom I SPECIFICALLY told not to let you go when you woke up did the exact opposite of what I told her to do, and after which you attacked her, threatened to rape her despite knowing her immense fear of said atrocity occurring to her. Afterwards, when you regained control of yourself over your rage, you then proceeded to exit the room and into another, where you then bawled like a pathetic little infant for several minutes. She then entered, and you two... made out. Now, I assume that you stopped the experience from resuming because a subconscious part of you is also terrified at being abused, and so you thought up some excuse to pardon yourself from the room. You then went out into the very dangerous streets of Roam, unarmed and unarmored, so you could ask for advice from me. Am I correct?"

"Well... yeah. So, what do you think?" I asked, hoping he wouldn't think up some kind of snide remark.

"I think that you are an extremely stupid stallion for coming out here like this and going through all that effort just to complete a VERY unimportant objective," He said, then finished loading his weapons and stuffed all of them save one into his backpack.

I rolled my eyes in slight annoyance, before saying, "No, I mean what do you think about me and Myst? She likes me, clearly, and now that I know that I'm... I think the feeling's becoming mutual. But... I don't know what to do."

"And you think that I am the best person to ask regarding this? Why don't you talk to her about it?" He replied.

"Because... well, do people do that? Talk to the one they're confused about, I mean? Doesn't seem right..." I explained. I had never been in a relationship, so I really didn't know.

He shrugged. "I had a brother and two parents who died due to cancer. My only real family was my brother's, his children specifically. No special someone, no love life." He started trotting towards me. "I don't have much experience when it comes to this sort of thing, so I really don't know. And neither do I really care; I have much more important things to concern myself with."

Oh. "I'm sorry," I said, "I know what it's like to lose parents." I sighed and changed the topic quickly, not wanting to stay on this heart-tugging one. "Anyway, so you really have nothing to say that could help me out?" I asked, ears drooping in disappointment. So I had done all this for nothing...

He was silent for moment, probably still on the whole 'sorry your family's dead' thing. At last he replied, "What advice I can give I have given. Talk to her, not me." And then he trotted away from me to begin scavenging whatever was salvageable off of the many burnt corpses in the area.

Despite everything, I found myself doing the same. The savage barbarians I found no qualms in looting, though the fact that they had let themselves burn to an ash meant that whatever I would attempt to procure from their corpses would be little more than melted metal and burnt leather. They didn't even have any ammo on them, and their flamethrowers were far too numerous and heavy for me to carry (Predator might have been able carry it all, but I decided not to ask). Still, I was able to pilfer a few blackened caps and some other useful stuff: a hammer, a wire cutter, and a pair of heavy rubber hoof-boots. I placed those on and held onto my other pilfered stuff; I had forgotten my saddlebags. The Legionnaires' armor was salvageable, but the suits were too deformed and blackened to have been able to adequately protect me from anything but the weakest of attacks.

Then my gaze drifted to the dead centurion, and a great surge of a dutiful feeling filled my heart. I trotted over to him whilst Predator continued salvaging the corpses, even the ones I had picked, and kneeled down to look him over.

His helmet was scratched and bloodied, the plumes stained black from dried blood. His shield, laying several meters from him, was darkened with ash and the paint was peeling off, but otherwise was in good condition. His gladius was nicked and slightly bent from the times he had used it. His armor greatly resembled an ancient Roaman centurion's in that it consisted of a shirt of chain mail made out of synthetic metal, but this time it had shoulder and chest ceramic plates weaved in with it. Also, despite having been set ablaze, it was in fairly good condition, as the flame had only burned his flesh and not the synthetic metal mesh.

That feeling in my head drove me to begin unstrapping his armor off of him. Not only would it do me more good than it would his corpse, but maybe in wearing it I could do his leadership skills a little justice and protect Roam, like a real centurion would. That... and the fact that I felt really exposed without my Praetorian armor, I guess I kind of wanted something that resembled it in one key aspect. Next I took his shield and slung it across my back. I left his helmet and his sword alone, though; I don't think I would have been able to take them even if I wanted to. They represented what he was and what he did; he fought for Roam as her officer. I could respect him for that.

I took his whistle, too. It was this shiny little metal object on a chain necklace. It seemed useful if I wanted to control my group, and if Skyfire went nuts again, then at least I could whistle her to her senses. I put it around my neck, feeling a little bit glad to have a means of control when Skyfire went berserk.

I finally removed his armor off of him and started stepping in it. Luckily it's shirt-like nature allowed it to accommodate my size, as it would really have sucked if it couldn't, not to mention awkward as hell.

I was halfway finished with getting myself inside, when Predator said from my side, "What are you doing?" He sounded disbelieving; perhaps I had crossed some kind of moral line of some sort. Then again, if they were HIS moral lines, I wouldn't really have minded breaking them. In fact, I had to question whether or not he had any concrete moral lines at all.

"Simple. I need protection, he doesn't. This armor's no good on a corpse. It's only logical," I replied, glancing over at him with mild satisfaction. "After all, if he can't live to do his job, then I will."

Predator looked at me for a moment, and shook his head. "So sentimental," He groaned, and resumed his salvaging.

'Maybe,' I thought. 'But sentiments are what separate barbarians from civilized people.' And with that thought in mind, I resumed strapping the lorica hamata on with a small smile on my face.

*** Magnus et Potens Roamanus ***

The area was pilfered, our exit unhindered. The corners were dusty, for the wind was gusty. Predator carried, while I simply tarried. I tarried for I could not conclude, among all things, how to solve the problem of uncomfortable wings.

Now enough rhyming, I was just in the mood. The reason I said that, to put it lightly, is because my still healing wings felt really constrained tucked away underneath the mail shirt. I wouldn't have been able to fly in it, so I had to cut away circular portions for my wings to jut out of. Those wire cutters really helped. Predator was annoyed by the amount of time it took to cut, and he almost decided to just leave without me.

But at last I finished, and with my wings feeling the wind around them I felt much better.

After a while I couldn't help but bring up a conversation. "So you mind explaining what happened earlier?" I prodded as we finally started out of the area and back towards the structure where Myst was. I didn't know where Doodle was at, though. Well, surely Myst or Predator wouldn't just leave her without knowing where she was... right?

"You're going to have to be more specific; lots of things happened 'earlier'," Predator said with a tone of receding annoyance, much to my own exasperation.

"That whole 'pinning me down and forcing me into a memory orb' thing. I'd like an explanation," I replied, resisting the urge to attack the guy as a spike of rage erupted in my head over my memory of his involvement in the 'betrayal'.

"Simple," He said, "You weren't acting like yourself. I've been monitoring you ever since you passed into the city a month ago; I know you just about as well as your friends do, and I was quite disturbed at how... serene you seemed. It was... unnatural."

"Why?" I asked. "What's so very disturbing about a stallion taking joy in a little gift from Tod?"

At that he whirled on me with surprising speed and said with a correcting tone, "Taking joy in gifts is good, but not when that 'gift', intentional or not, comes from something like him. Nothing he does is good, and you would do well to remember that." He snorted, "Take it from a guy who once welcomed that piece of shit into his body with open hooves. Believe me, you do not want to be under him if he decides to betray you. Which isn't likely; he openly hates you at this point."

I huffed and sighed, feeling disappointed and wistful at the same time, and just a tad worried at what Tod would do next. I had thought that I could use it to be better, and yet here I was getting a lecture on how no gift of the like would ever be good. "But if I got hurt again, wouldn't the same thing happen? Wouldn't I just heal like earlier?" I asked as a sliver of hope ignited in my head.

"No, I tore that particular bit of his influence over your biology out of you when you were out," He said plainly, and that hope died miserably.

Well... wait, how would he... ugh, I don't even want to know. I sighed, "Fine, no point brooding over that. But at least tell me where you got the memory orb. That was one of the more interesting ones that I've viewed, actually."

"I found it in the hooves of some skeleton in some armored transport heading off to the west; strange direction, really. All of the Roaman citizens were evacuating to the east, who'd go the other way? Probably some idiot," He grumbled and shook his head. Then he slowly turned his head to look at me. "Why? Who was in there?" He asked with mild curiosity.

"Some guy named Cadian, apparently the Caesar's son. The whole orb was about him coming back from some place called Hadrian's wall," I replied, and he stopped trotting almost immediately. "What?"

"You... saw Lord Cadian?" He asked slowly. He looked up at the sky, "Then... that would mean that that skeleton..." He gasped, "If it was, then that means that I ripped off the foreleg bones of imperial royalty. Oh gods..."

He continued like that for a moment, murmuring to himself. At last I interrupted, "Uh... no. I would have, if I wasn't him, I suppose," I wondered just why Predator was so concerned. He didn't even live back... oh wait, he did. Nevermind, forgetfulness on my part.

He snapped his head to me and said in a deep breath, "You lucky bastard. It's times like this that I wish that I could get into those orbs." I gave him a shocked expression, and opened my mouth to speak. "And before you ask, I can't get into memory orbs for the reason that my head isn't... compatible with that magic. Believe me, I've tried." He took in shallow, shaky breath, "It is not an experience I want to repeat."

We continued on in silence after that, which thankfully gave me the opportunity to think about what I thought I should have been thinking about instead of focusing on my petty anger against actions that were probably good for me, anyway. Predator's murmurs about the skeleton did distract me, though. What can I say, the possibility of Cadian's remains being in that vehicle was a damned distracting little thought. I had BEEN the guy, after all.

At last we turned the corner back, and faced the front face of the building -- which from the outside looked like an open maw with teeth of concrete -- that I had woken up in. To my immense relief, I saw Doodle in the front, happily reading her book with her little pink sock in her mouth. I didn't even wonder where sue had been. At the sight of us her face lit up with excitement, and she started galloping towards us. As she went, she called out, "Miss Myst! They're back!"

There came the sound of shifting rubble, and Myst came out from the ruined doorway of the first floor, a look of immense concern and anxiety on her face. That look somewhat faded and was replaced by confusion when she saw my new outfit.

Doodle reached Predator and jumped at his leg, wrapping her little hoovsies around his limb. "Where were you mister Predator and mister Golwdreath? I was so worried! When miss Myst told me about mister Goldwreath leaving a while ago, I was real sad and a little confused because I didn't get to talk to him!" She turned to me, eyes wide. "Why'd you go away instead of talking to me?!" She cried.

"Well, Doodle... it's because... well, fu-... erm, sorry, I just... gah..." I stuttered and stammered, trying and failing to dance around the real reason I had stomped off earlier. It... wasn't really the sort of thing to explain to a filly, especially one as fairly naive as Doodle.

Predator, surprisingly, came to the rescue. "Now Doodle," He said kindly, "Goldwreath here has a lot on his mind. He has a lot to worry about, and he's still sorting through it all. So to let him finish and later on talk to you, why not talk to me first?"

Doodle looked between us for a moment, seeming a little freaked out by my nervous smile. Then at last she looked to Predator again and smiled. "Okay!" She said gleefully, and started bouncing up and down in excitement. "Tell me what happened, tell me what happened!" She repeated over and over.

"Well, it all started when I saw a group of Legionnaires in a building..." He started, and she sat down immediately, eyes going wide as bowling balls as she listened.

I smiled at that, finding her curiosity both amusing and just plain adorable. Ah children, they deserved so much better than the wasteland.

Then I turned to see Myst looking at me anxiously, scratching her left foreleg with her right one and biting her lip. Her eyes quivered with fragile uncertainty, and her body shook slightly as though she were afraid. Which, considering what I had done earlier, was fairly likely.

Taking on a preparatory breath, I started trotting over to her while Predator tried to make his slaughter of Legionnaires sound like they were playing hide and seek.

"Um... h-hi, Goldwreath," She said softly, taking a step back as I got closer. She took in a shaky breath and produced from behind the doorway my saddlebags, with all my belongings tucked neatly inside, with my weapons sticking out. Next she produced my helmet, and laid it on the ground next to my stuff.

I looked down at my helmet, only now giving it a good look since I had left the stable.

It looked like a piece of metal that had been through hell, basically. It's plumes, once bright red, were now bloodied and dark, matted down to the metal by the solidified grime. The cheek plate that had possibly saved my life when I got shot outside the ZSI HQ was little more than a piece of sharp-edged steel. The brow plate's numeral 'III' was so filthy and coated with dirt that it was difficult to tell if there was was a numeral at all. The head plate was so severely bent and scratched from the beating I had gotten from those pyromaniacs that it looked like desiccated mud. There were even burn marks along the back from when I had been set ablaze.

Through thick and thin, this thing had been with me, and saved me more than once. And with that in mind, I reverently picked it up and strapped it on with what little excuse of straps remained. Myst just looked on, sighing as she watched.

"I, um... prepared your stuff... for when you got back. So... yeah..." She said awkwardly, giving me a sheepish grin. It wavered as I looked back at her, and not with any scorn or anger, mind you.

"You mind explaining what happened back there?" I asked.

"Oh. Well, it's simple. I... wanted to have some candy while you were out," She said in a rush, giving me another nervous smile.

I gave her a blank expression. "You know what I mean, Myst." Okay, that may have come out more seriously than I intended...

She frowned and looked to the ground uncertainly. "You mean about... what happened in the room?" She asked slowly.

I nodded, "Yes, exactly."

She cleared her throat and opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out at first was a little squeak. Still, she finally managed to get out, "I... well, you just seemed so... exhausted. Tired, stressed, angry, so... unhappy. And... and so I thought that maybe if you could feel... good for just a little while, then maybe you'd be a little more... well, satisfied." She looked up at me, saying, "So I thought that, if I could... help you, then maybe you'd... I don't know..."

"And just let me ask, why did you decide to help me like... that?" I asked, a little flutter erupting in my chest at the memory.

Her eyes widened, her cheeks flushing as she gasped. "Well, I... um... oh, crap..." She started looking desperate. "I don't know. I just... wanted... well..."

I smiled an amused little smile, and interrupted her, "You wanted more than to just make me feel good, didn't you?" She stopped dead silent, and gulped a fearful little swallow and whimpered in shame. "You did, didn't you?"

She brought up a hoof to scratch the back of her hoodie uncertainly. She looked up at me with a caught-in-the-act sort of smile, and said slowly, "Well... what can I say? You're... an... attr-..." She coughed on her words, clearly wanting to continue but couldn't say it immediately. "You're a very attractive stallion, Goldwreath. I... guess I lost some control of myself after you... reciprocated..."

Then she frowned, and looked off to the sides in longing mixed with sadness. "But I guess you already knew that I liked you before, so..." Then she closed her eyes and looked at the ground.

"I did," I said with a firm little nod. I really had, you know. Ever since Home Base. I had known and... I had dismissed it. I hadn't cared for it, as I thought it was just a sort of... thing that would pass with time. Well, back then I was focused on being exasperated by Predator's presence. So, to be fair, I guess I hadn't had a lot of room in my head for Myst's feelings.

I glanced over my shoulders and saw Predator gesturing his hooves at his HMG-AR, pretending to shoot it. Doodle just watched with the most curious and wide eyes. At the sight of me, Predator wiggled his weapon and free hoof at me as if warding me off like I was some kind of annoying bird. My eyes widened at the sight of that. That was kind of creepy, not to mention weird.

I turned back and saw her looking me straight in the eye, a gaze of uncertainty piercing into my head. "So what now?" She asked carefully, scratching her hooves on the ground.

I gave her a quizzical look. "What now what?" It was kind of sad that, amidst a conversation about emotions, I didn't even know what she was talking about. At least I'm a lot more socially aware now... I think.

She gulped and said softly, "Well... we kind of kissed. And you seemed like you liked it. I definitely liked it, eheh." She blushed so heavily at the last words that her face looked like it had gotten food coloring powder on it. "So... technically... this is the sort of thing that people do that get them to... you know, get to know each other better, and... stuff..." She continued.

Okay, yeah, even I'm not stupid enough when it comes to social stuff to not know what that means.

"You wanna get in a relationship with me?" I asked, surprised. I know, I know. 'Goldwreath, of course she does!' 'Goldwreath, wasn't it obvious?' 'Goldwreath, why so surprised?' Well, I was just surprised, alright? I had never quite expected a mare to like me in this manner, that was all. I mean, sure I had known for a while now that Myst was into me, but I didn't think about it much. Back in the stable, I immediately dismissed the mere notion of getting into a relationship as fantasy; it never seemed possible. And now that it seemed possible... it was just so sudden. So many changes across just a month... it was both scary and relieving. But through it all I could conclude one thing: I didn't know how to act in this situation. I... Goddesses, I was fucking scared.

Then again... I also felt damned lonely. Not just now, but as stated even in the stable. Not once had a mare ever shown any interest in me whatsoever. Not once had I ever been the subject of anything important in the stable, save if the Overmare's lights went out. I had never ever been loved by anyone except my parents, who were dead, and Lighthouse, who was also dead. Sure I had friends, but they were few, and not even close. I had to face the fact: I hadn't gotten nearly enough attention as I would ever have liked.

So what was so wrong if I wanted a little now?

"Well... y-yes," She said in a forced tone of firmness, nodding her head, before amending quickly, "I... well, it's okay if you don't. I mean... well, you do have lots of stuff on your mind, so I guess I might just distract you." Her ears drooped at that.

I breathed in deep, knowing now was my cue. Now was the time to tell her just what I thought. My heart stared pounding and some parts of my head protested against what I was about to say next, but this was it. No turning back.

"Myst... I'm sorry, but..." I started, making her eyes widen in apparent horror. Then a devious little grin crept onto my face. "... but... yes."

She kept her eyes on me, then narrowed them a little in confusion. "Yes what?"

I swept away my devious grin and put on a smile that more truly reflected the feelings of this immensely important moment. "Yes, I would like to get to know you." There, I said it. Strange, but for someone who never quite knew how to feel at a moment like this, I felt really... glad.

She stood there for a moment, a blank expression on her face. It was that expression that incubated my mounting worry as time went on. Soon it seemed like it was a whole day since she'd spoken, and by then I was starting to sweat from anxiety. Oh Celestia, what if I said the wrong thing?

Then, slowly, a small and slightly annoyed-looking smile crept onto the corners of her lips. "You tease!" She said, a tone of a strange combination of joy and annoyance in her voice. "I was so worried there for a moment!"

I mentally released a wave of pure worry and thanked whatever good there was in the universe that I hadn't broken our relationship already. I smiled and chuckled, "Come on, it was just a little joke. You should know by now that I like teas-..."

That was all I managed to say before she wrapped her hooves around my head and drew me in an embrace, the likes of which froze my thoughts more than even that kiss earlier. I felt immensely sluggish and lost, but despite that managed to wrap my own hooves around her and drew her in tighter.

Oh, yes. I wanted this so much, more than I did most anything else. This was the break I wanted so badly. I could finally feel like I had someone out here who would care for me. Someone who'd share my worries and my cares, and help me deal with them. Someone who would understand my ambitions and sympathize with my motivations, however suicidal they may have been. Screw everything and my conflicted brain, I could actually feel good for once without feeling selfish about it! I could finally find some meaning in this life outside; something else to live for aside from Roam. Someone to care for.

"Oh, gods..." I heard Predator grumble from behind us. "Not another relationship. Can you believe this?" He asked someone, probably Doodle.

"Awwww!" Doodle said, "That's so sweet! Just like mom and dad!"

I heard Predator facehoof. "Of course..." He groaned, then sighed quietly, "I'll give it a few weeks."

I didn't mind his comments, they weren't important. Right now, this was what was important. And call me cheesy or crazy, but it felt like Roam itself was keeping quiet just to emphasize that moment. For just that moment, the wasteland was quiet.

The sound of an echoing gunshot from further along the road completely broke the moment, unfortunately. There was a resounding 'pong', and then more gunshots.

I pulled away quickly, and saw Predator lying on the ground, a massive hole punched in his helmet. He was getting up, but damn did that hole look freaking scary. Doodle screamed at the sight of something down the road, and I glanced over to that direction, as did Myst.

Ah, wasteland, you never cease to screw around with me, do you?

Two power-armored juggernauts with anti-material assault rifles on both sides of their armor stood atop a mound of piled up concrete and metal bars. Rushing onto the road ahead of them and dashing for cover were perhaps two dozen armored Legionnaires. Behind them, rolling onto the road, was an armored ca, and behind that was the unmistakable behemoth of an Omni. Two VTOLs silently hovered overhead, dropping their own Legionnaires onto the rooftops of any intact buildings in the area.

"Take cover!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, and pulled Balaclava's rifle from my saddlebags. I turned to Myst, who looked like she was still recovering from having her feelings so quickly change from joy to shock. "Get back in the building, now! Bring my saddlebags with you!" I screamed in her face, and she blinked twice before nodding jerkily, pick up my saddlebags, and rush through the front door.

I turned and aimed, then fired a burst into the head of one of the power-armored Legionnaires. It didn't do much but scratch his plating, but it did get him to recoil from the impact enough that his next shots didn't pound Doodle to a bloody pulp. Next I opened fire on the other juggernaut, just to distract him from focusing his fire on the doorway, where Myst took cover behind.

A Legionnaire with a shield in one hoof and a single-hoof shotgun in the other came out of cover, and was immediately followed by three others. They came together and formed a shield wall in front of me, but made just enough room in between the shields to point their weapons out of.

My eyes widened, and with a hard shake I dislodged the centurion's shield from my back and crouched, letting it lay against my side. Blast after blast of buckshot rammed into the shield, and it pinged painfully into my ears, but it withstood the assault. Soon I heard the unmistakable sounds of guns clicking on empty chambers.

I got up and opened fire into the gaps in between the shields before they could come together, and managed to get one of them in the cheek. His cheek plate protected him from what could have been a fatal shot, but it did knock him down. The gap he made in the shield wall exposed the other three, and I opened fire on them too. To my dismay, my rifle simply wasn't strong enough to punch through their armor, even after I had used the whole mag. It knocked them down, yes, but they weren't even bleeding. I picked up the shield and drew my gladius, before taking several quick steps back, hoping to get into cover before the rest came out.

It just so happened that while I was dealing with those guys, the rest of them had been flanking me. A piercing sting in my side signified the strike of a bullet, which was thankfully stopped by my centurion armor. The juggernauts opened fire on Predator and Doodle, but the operative managed to shield the filly until they reached cover.

I turned to see the doorway blocked by more Legionnaires, who had come from another path from around the building. Several of them were already entering the building, much to my horror. Immediately afterwards, there were echoing gunshots as Myst opened up on them.

Now these particular Legionnaires decided to come at me with their swords, putting their weapons away and breaking from their original shield formation and charging me in a very un-Roaman fashion. I brought my own shield to bare and prepared, keeping in mind what the centurion from earlier had done against this same type of attack. Except this time I was alone, of course.

'BU-BU-BU-BU-BUG!' Predator finally retaliated against his power-armored opponents, his HMG-AR competing in firepower with their anti-material assault rifles. The difference was, however, that Predator's HMG had a much larger magazine and that Predator, as usual, could not seem to be killed, even when his vest was already being eviscerated. After a few good shots to the neck, one of the Legionnaires went down in a metallic heap. The other jumped for cover as Predator advanced, and Doodle rushed to one of the windows of the building and jumped in.

The armored car at last rolled onto the road, and pointed it's autocannon at the still-advancing operative. With a loud and thunderous choir of rapid shots, it started blasting the ground around Predator, the dust created concealing him in a cloud.

I didn't have time to think, as one of the Legionnaires in front of me jumped up and brought his sword down hard on my shield, sending me staggering. I oriented my back to face the building as another did the same, once more sending me hobbling towards the door. That was what I wanted, of course; in the narrow space of the doorway, they couldn't surround me, and I could put up a better defense.

At last I stepped underneath the stone doorway, and immediately stomped my hooves down and prepared. They weren't getting past me unless they killed me, which was so not happening. I managed a glance behind me, and saw two Legionnaires with holes in their heads slumped in the dirt path I had used earlier. Outside, the armored car gave a horrific groan of metal, and fell silent.

A Legionnaire lunged forward, attempting to stab beneath my shield. I blocked it and trapped his hoof on the ground, and gave it a hard stomp. He screamed and pulled away, his gladius no longer with him. And as he staggered back, I raised my own sword and brought it down on his neck. Above me came another echoing shot, and one of my attackers went down, blood exploding out of the top of his galea (that was what the helmet of Roaman soldeirs was called).

I shot a menacing look at the other two Legionnaires. Time to let my training pay off.

Another of them stabbed, this time bringing his gladius down from above. I barely blocked that, as the blade very nearly struck my face, and my action left my lower body exposed. The other Legionnaire came up behind him quickly and lunged beneath me, but I managed to dodge it. Again I brought my hoof down hard, and so another gladius was dropped to the floor. I shoved my shield hard and pushed the other away, but as I stabbed he managed to direct my hoof towards the ground, my gladius on the other side.

I grunted loudly as they employed my own move against me. Their hooves stomped again and again, and I truly wanted drop my sword and pull away. But I didn't. I made a promise; I would never lose this thing, not while I still drew breath.

They raised their hooves again, and I made the bold move of coming out of the doorway to shove them back before they could stomp anymore. After that I stepped back through, and I felt one of their swords slam against my shield. He must have been pushing against me, because as I stepped back into the building he fell forward. I took the opportunity to stab into the back of his neck as he struggled to get up. The other grabbed his sword off the ground and rushed me, slamming his large shield into my own. My hooves scraped across the ground until I managed to stop his momentum, and we peeked over our shields to glare at each other.

Another echoing gunshot, and his head exploded in a shower of metal and bone. I looked up and saw Myst peering down her scope, before turning her attention back to a window in the broken down front wall of the building.

There were heavy hoofsteps behind me, and I turned and assumed a combat stance. But it was just Predator, his vest and weapon smoking like he had bathed himself in fire. Through the doorway, I saw the armored car smoking, with flames dancing on it's carcass.

We took cover against the wall as a barrage of bullets from the Legionnaires in the other buildings whizzed through the door. "Why the hell are these guys coming after us?!" I yelled, "Are they this violent to everyone they see on a road?!"

He yelled back with mock contemplation, "Hmm, I may have spared an officer or two back in that Legion base. Guess they decided to have some payback." Despite everything, he snickered, "This is what happens when you try to be merciful!"

"Fuck you!" I yelled back at him, and pressed harder against the doorway as a bullet scraped my helmet. That at least allowed me to see Doodle running up the stairs, looking very terrified yet somehow thrilled.

He snapped around the corner and opened fire, but stopped after just a few shots. He stood there for a moment, just taking whatever shots were fired at him like beestings. Then he turned to me. "MOVE!" He yelled, and grabbed me and jumped away from the doorway.

A deafening explosion blew the petty remains of the front wall down, and the tank shell blasted a huge hole in back of the structure, piercing into the wall of the next building. And the next building, and the next, and the next...

Predator got up off of me and fired every round into the smoke. "Get up!" He told me, "Grab that shotgun of yours!" He nodded his head over at my saddlebags, pressed neatly against the foot of the stairs. Outside, there was a power armor-enhanced shout followed by battle cries. Above us, Myst started shooting at rates suggesting aim was not her priority anymore.

I got up and clumsily hobbled over to my weapons, nearly tripping over as the Omni's treads shook the earth. As I reached them, I whipped out Tankbuster and decided to just put my saddlebags on, not wanting to reach them every time I needed something.

The power-armored Legionnaire stormed through the smoke and slammed into Predator before the operative could bring his weapon to bear. They smashed through the hole and into the next building, where Predator then kicked the juggernaut away. The last thing I saw was Predator rushing the juggernaut.

A centurion appeared from the smoke, and his eyes widened in apparent surprise upon seeing me. He narrowed his eyes and glared, then put a whistle to his mouth and blew.

Legionnaires stormed out of the smoke to his sides, and I found myself retreating to the stairs; it was a far more defensible position than the open first floor. As I went, I fired Tankbuster thrice, downing just that many. Their armor barely did anything to stop my awesomely epic shotgun.

But that was all I managed to do before I was forced to once more draw my blade and stand my ground. The six or so other Legionnaires divided into groups of four and two; the first pulling their own shotguns out, and the other two charging me. I stood my ground as the bullets pinged again and again against my shield. As the other two neared, the rest stopped their shooting.

The two of them bashed into my shield at the same time, and it took all my effort to not topple over. I backed up until my hoof found a stair step, and I used that to keep my position firm as I pushed back against them.

The juggernaut's metallic corpse flew into the room, crashing into the other four before they could move. The centurion's eyes widened as his troops, flung by the juggernaut, then crashed into him, and hell back into the smoke.

The other two facing me were temporarily distracted by that, allowing me to shove them away from the stairs. One of them tripped and fell down, while the other managed to recover and charge again. I slammed into him halfway, using my superior weight to knock him down as well. With both my opponents on the ground and trying to get up, I pulled out my shotgun. They tried to protect their heads with their shields, but the metallic plates were no match for Tankbuster.

Predator entered the room. "We're going to have to retre-..." He was saying, when a bright blast erupted from within the smoke, and a tank shell crashed into the staircase behind me, flinging me away and sending me crashing into the remains of the broken wall.

The building started groaning, the upper floor swaying precariously. Myst appeared at the edge of the second floor, eyes wide and fearful. Doodle clung to her back, shaking yet somehow looking like she had merely ridden a really intense roller coaster and had not survived a battle.

Another terrifying boom, and another tank shell smashed the remains of the back wall down, in the process causing the building beyond to begin groaning as well.

"Fuck, move! Get out of the building!" I yelled, and started galloping outside. Not through the back; the building beyond was going to collapse, too. No, I galloped into the smoke, and could only hope that if worse came to worse that the Legion would be willing to take prisoners.

They followed quickly, Predator firing his weapon blindly into the smoke. Soon he overtook me, and the last thing he did before I lost sight of him was jump through the cloud, still shooting. There were gunshots and screams, and another tank shell blasted the ground next to me, sending me flying forward and out of the smoke.

I landed hard on my side, my shield clattering away and resting against some rocks. I groaned as I strained myself to get on my back. "I think I broke my wings... again..." I grunted. That was a lie, of course; I was just in a hell lot of pain.

Just as I managed to get on my back, four Legionnaires came over to me and pointed their weapons down at me. I looked to them and said, "Oh, fuck my life." I glanced over beside me, and saw Predator had accidentally gotten himself surrounded by a great many juggernauts, and even had the tank and the aircraft above pointing their weapons at him. He wasn't dropping his weapon as they were ordering too, though.

Myst staggered out of the smoke, eyes watery from the dust cloud in her eyes. On her back, Doodle looked terribly shaken, but was otherwise alright. Myst saw me and gasped, but just as she was about to rush to me, two juggernauts decloaked next to her and grabbed her. She tried struggling for a moment, but her gaze met mine. For a while I stared, and at last I nodded. With a soft sigh, she let the two shove her along.

One of the Legionnaires grabbed me and pulled me up, saying, "Surgere, morionem!"

Once I was up I asked them in my most relaxed and diplomatic tone I could muster, "Forte casu es agnus dei excipiendos? Utinam spatiere multo appreciate is si vos faciebat." Basically, I was asking them if they'd be willing to take us prisoners.

"Silentio, ydiote!" Another of them said, and bashed my face with the butt of his rifle. I fell down again, much to their amusement. "Non utique occidere et terrore futuri sumus fine spurii semel illuc et amicis," He continued, and pushed the barrel of his weapon against my head. I gave him a hard glare, and he seemed to flinch a little. Truth was, of course, that I would die if these guys really shot me in the head, and that scared me. I didn't let that show, though.

"Exspecta, ego te putabam populo defuit me vivit?" I asked. Seriously, hadn't these guys said that they wanted me alive just, like, a week ago?

"Legatus non potest punire nobis, si numquam scit," The centurion from earlier said, getting closer and pushing his way past the others to fix me with a devious smile. The barrel was pulled away, much to my relief. "He'll never know we disobeyed," He said mischievously.

"You fucking traitorous bastards," I growled. "You'd deliberately disobey your orders just to kill me?" Oh, I so wanted out of here. I looked around the area, piecing together chances of escape. There were around sixteen total Legionnaires in the buildings, with perhaps twice that number down here. The tank and aircraft were some very serious threats, though...

"Yes, and JUST for you," He replied, breaking my train of thought, then glanced over at Predator and Myst, the former still not surrendering his weapon and the latter being held in place by the two juggernauts. "Well, for them, too," He added.

Wow, was I seriously this annoying to the Legion now?

The centurion nickered and ordered, "Caedite eos. Accedere matrem faciam." He started trotting away to tank.

The Legionnaires around me giggled and once more pressed the barrel to my head. So, was this it? Survive getting shot, burned, stabbed, shredded, paralyzed, mauled, bitten and eviscerated just to die like some POW who wasn't even taken prisoner? I'll tell you, it really felt like it at the time. I was tired, maybe not in too much pain, but tired. Ever since leaving the stable, I honestly didn't have much hope for surviving out here. You know, when you have your life taken from you, and are forced to live a life like this with no transition... well, it kinda makes a person pessimistic.

And honestly, as I felt the barrel's cold hard steel press against my head, time seemed to slow down for me, allowing me view of details I wouldn't have seen otherwise. Myst's horror as she stared at me, for example. I was sorry for that. Sorry because I had done something to make her care for me, yet I was doing little to spare her the pain. And then there was Doodle's wide-eyed but not necessarily frightened expression as she looked at the immense rifle on a juggernaut's side. And then even Predator, obstinately standing against a force even he might not be able to mow down.

But despite all my own exhaustion and pain and the suffering of my companions, I smiled. I smiled because I knew none of it was necessary. I still had one surprise up my sleeve of chain mesh.

S.A.T.S

Surprise, motherfuckers!

I cleared my throat and casually got up just as the bullet left the chamber. It's impact on the ground actually looked pretty awesome in slow-mo. Next I proceeded to cut the throats of the four closest Legionnaires. Quickly, I rummaged through their stuff as they slowly fell down and found just what I was looking for: a grenade.

I made my way to the tank and flew onto the chassis, and with Tankbuster blew the armored hatch door away. Next I pulled the pin and tossed the grenade in, and glided up towards the two aircraft. As I went, I marveled at the explosion below; it had this beauty to it, this... flower of flame sort of thing.

The aircraft were sturdily built VTOLs with combustion engines. They were the exact same model that had taken me out of Verge, so I knew that there was a spacious chamber inside with seats that could strap people down. It was a beautiful work of Roaman engineering. Too bad I had to blow up it's engines.

Half a minute of reloading and shooting later and they were very slowly making their way towards the ground. I landed amidst the juggernauts, and prepared Tankbuster for one hell of a fight.

The spell gave out just as I finished reloading. Now, unlike the first time I used this spell where I didn't know how long I had in S.A.T.S, this time I did. And this time I was prepared.

'VUJ-JING! VUJ-JING!' Two juggernauts went down to the awesomeness of Tankbuster, and the others were too surprised at my very sudden appearance to immediately notice. When they did, they bumped and smacked into one another as they all turned to face me, buying me enough time to yell, "PREDATOR!"

'BU-BU-BU-BUG!' He brought his weapon up and opened fire, catching a whole slew of very unprepared juggernauts in the back. They had about three seconds of awareness before the heavy bullets started punching their way through their armor, and soon they were collapsing in droves. I didn't even get shot, as they were much too confused to react properly. That allowed me to fire off all eight of my remaining shots, downing just that many more.

The aircraft up above spun out of control, and one of them crashed into the building we were just in, collapsing the structure with a tremendous groan and sending an enormous cloud of dust everywhere. The other managed to spin a bot longer, before hovering slowly and clumsily back down the road, and nearly hitting one of the taller buildings in the area.

Myst finally caught up to what was happening, and yanked her rifle away from a normal Legionnaire, who seemed to have been confiscating it. Next she brought it hard against his face, causing him to collapse. He looked down the barrel with terror, and his eyes managed to meet hers. Not being Skyfire, Myst simply brought the weapon down on his head again, knocking him out.

And so we were at it. I took cover in an alley off to the side and reloaded Tankbuster, then brought out Vengeance. With Tankbuster's awesome firepower I would obliterate any opposition, and with Vengeance's precision and strength I could clear the windows. Predator started mercilessly pounding the remaining Legionnaires with a nigh non-stop barrage of 50.cal ammo. Myst took cover with me, Doodle getting off immediately and pressing her back against the wall of the alley. Her eyes widened, and she pulled her shirt away from her to create some slack. Her book fell down much to her delight, and she hugged it like it was a teddy bear. Then she started reading it, right there in her cover.

Myst looked at me and smiled, and with the confidence garnered from my recent exploit I returned it with a smile nearly as cocky as one of Skyfire's.

I snapped around the corner and went on the assault, opening fire on the Legionnaire's as they ran down the road and over mounds of rubble. Three fell to Tankbuster's powerful but spread out shots, and so I whipped out Vengeance and fired all six rounds. Those who had their shields to us were saved, but two got shot in the head and in the... ass... respectively. The one shot in the flank collapsed, and within seconds came under fire from Predator. He didn't really survive, to put it lightly.

I stepped over the centurion's bloodied corpse just as they climbed over a mound of marble and into a four-way interesction, all their shields facing us. It was for that reason that the silently descending VTOL, right above their heads, was not noticed until it crashed onto the road behind them, blocking off their exit. They glanced behind them disbelievingly, and Predator and I reached them. Myst was way behind us, peering down her scope.

"Well, I suppose the odds are now in our favor," I said, looking over them one by one. They were scared; I could see it in their eyes. And they were desperate, too.

"Now, I'm a nice stallion if you're not trying to terrorize the city, hurt me or my friends, or otherwise go against my morals. One of those morals is giving second chances," I continued, and put my shotgun away and sheathed my blade. "I will not extend this mercy again, remember that," I said, and started trotting back. There was no point in killing them, and I had enough blood on my hooves -- literally -- and as much as possible didn't want more on them.

At my words, Myst gave me a thankful little smile. I returned it, feeling good about myself. There was this too, of course; it was nice to know that I was making at least some of my companions happy.

Predator's HMG-AR gripped my attention immediately, and I whirled around to see him mowing them down like cattle. Their shields did nothing for them. A great rage filled my head, threatening to combust in a dreadful eruption.

"Predator!" I called, "Cease fire immediately!"

He didn't stop. He just kept shooting, much to my horror. At last his weapon clicked on an empty chamber, and he started reloading. "Nah," He said, "We're much too important targets for them to just ignore. The moment they could have, they would have sent another detachment at us. Then the process would repeat again and again... oh, it's so tedious."

I was about to shout out a whole slew of profanities, when one them groaned and flopped one of his limbs, which was now a stub of bone and muscle. All anger left my head, replaced by blind hope and concern. I started making my way the pile of bloody limbs and shredded muscle. "Oh, so foolish..." Predator muttered, and sighed disappointedly.

I whirled on him. "Fuck you!" I yelled, and turned back around, fuming.

And that's when I saw the remaining Legionnaire sitting against the armored carcass of the transport. He was holding a single-hoof shotgun in his mouth, chest puffing in and out rapidly and breathing rough and hoarse. One of the bullets had grazed his temples, burning his fur and flesh there.

"We didunt wunt yer mershy, ashhole," He said around the mouth grip. "You andg yer terrorisht friendsh cang go to hell."

I shook my head disbelievingly, "No..." My breathing became difficult, my eyes watery. I breathed, "Why?"

"Fuck you," Was his reply, and he worked his jaw to bite down on the trigger; he hadn't quite gotten it well into his mouth.. I just stared, unable to accept that they would have attacked us despite my leniency.

"Don't do this... p-please..." I begged.

His jaw pressed on the trigger.

'CHUG!' Myst's rifle sounded over the landscape, and half the Legionnaire's head exploded into bloody bits.

I still stared, frozen and unable to believe. Why? Why would they have attacked? Hadn't they seen us mow down their allies? Wouldn't that have changed their minds? Were they simply that overzealous?

I started shaking uncontrollably as I made my way forward into their midst, and collapsed forward, kneeling and staring at where the rest of his head was supposed to be. I just stared at them, unable to... to comprehend how someone could so simply disregard being forgiven. Being given a second chance was supposed to be... to be when you change, right?

I grabbed his body and screamed at it, "WHY?! Why would you throw away your life? Why would you forsake a second chance for such idiocy?!" I started slamming his body again and again against the transport door, glaring at his remaining eyeball with such anger and hate that I felt like I could tear his head off. And by Celestia, I wanted to!

I kept violently throwing the body around, until I felt her hooves on my shoulders, and amidst my anger I very nearly whirled on her. "I'm... sorry it didn't go how you hoped," She murmured in my ear, making me calm down enough for her to pull me close. I dropped the body, letting it's mutilated form just slump.

I didn't care anymore. I was too damned depressed to care. I did the only thing I could: let her pull me close, lean my head against her shoulders, hide my face from the world I hated so much, and started letting loose whatever tears I had. And she held me close and stroked my mane, tenderly pressing her head against mine. And I was thankful for it, so very thankful.

I had tried to be merciful in a world where people killed for fun... and I got my effort shoved in my face like this? I had tried to save someone who's life didn't have to end -- which could have improved -- and I didn't even get to try to prove my point? That was... just... wrong! Nothing in this world had to be like this! It was unfair!

"What's mister Goldwreath crying about?" I heard Doodle question. She mustn't have seen what just happened. Good for her.

"He's just really stressed, don't worry," Predator assured her. At least he kept her from knowing; I don't know what I would have done if he had told her.

After a while I managed to get myself together. I looked over at Myst, and saw that she shared a look of pain similar to the expression I was sure I had on my face. That comforted me a little. Not everyone in the wasteland was an in-equine monster and a cold-blooded murderer, at least. I was very glad that Myst had just knocked out that Legionnaire earlier, and that Predator didn't know he wasn't dead.

I opened my mouth to speak, maybe to get us moving or something, I don't know, but nothing came out but a shaky little breath. I tried again, but was interrupted by a sound most unexpected from above us. At the moment, I honestly couldn't quote care for it.

"Ahah! I finally found you! I've been looking all over for all of fifteen minutes! Heh, but I knew that the smoke in the distance couldn't have been for anyone else, considering what shit happens when we separate. Now, we really should get to that dam so we can..." She paused. "What the fuck happened here?" Skyfire said, initially sounding blissfully oblivious to recent events, but at the last words sounded rather... annoyed that she wasn't here for whatever happened.

"Skyfire," Myst interrupted, "Now's really not the time..." She started.

"... to just sit here and do nothing," Predator continued. "Yes, let's go already; leave all this emotionally heavy crap behind and get practical things done. I've had enough of this shit."

"Predator!" Myst shouted, "Would you SHUT UP?! Ever since you've been with us, you've been nothing but a source of pain and suffering for us. The least you could do is give Goldwreath some respect when he needs it."

"I give more than just respect, Myst," Predator replied. "I give wisdom. You may not care for it, seeing as it would not coincide with your idealism, but it is wisdom. Your friend here is simply... integrating the truth into his mind. He'll get over it. See, this is what happens when undeniable truths meet stubborn individuals."

Myst gritted her teeth, but didn't say anything. I personally wanted to snark a classic 'fuck you', but decided against it, knowing it would do nothing.

"Woah, what the HELL'S going on here?" Skyfire asked, sounding immensely confused. "I leave for... two and a half hours, and now it seems like I missed a whole night's worth of bickering! Man, life is weird..." She paused for a moment, then asked concernedly, "Is... is Goldwreath crying?"

"Obviously," Predator drawled. "Ugh, this is taking much too long. So, what's the best way to get there? Would we need transport or something?"

Skyfire didn't answer, but I felt the wind next to me blow against my hide. I felt feathers on my neck. "Oh, fuck..." She murmured, and, just like Myst, took me in an embrace. "I'm, uh, sorry I wasn't here for... what happened. I was busy doing, well..."

I sniffed loudly and wiped my face, then looked to both mares with a forced smile. "It's okay. I got over it. Skyfire and Predator are right, Myst. We should get going, people are depending on us." I got up, pushing them away gently, and forced myself to walk a bit as if nothing happened. "So... how do we get there?"

They both looked at me with expressions so deeply concerned and worried that they looked almost exactly like one another. I raised my eyebrows at them questioningly, doing my best to appear more calm than I was sure I would ever have felt. Skyfire looked to Myst as if demanding some context, but Myst just returned it at first with a look of utter uncertainty, then a sheepish grin.

Skyfire rolled her eyes a bit, but relaxed as her gaze caught me. "Well, I've arranged for transport to get there quick. I think you'll like it," She replied, then grinned. It didn't seem like a forced grin, thankfully. "It's also got awesome firepower!"

I perked up at that; it was something, at least. "Great! Now, where's this transport? And do any of us even know how to use it?" If we didn't, well... shit.

She kept up her grin, and looked to the sky and said, "Let's get this party started!"

The sky? Why, what could possibly be in the sky that would be so very... very... oh, Celestia...

A massive form appeared in a flash of blue, and the silvery outline of the immense VTOL started scintillating out of thin air to appear right above us. The combustion of it's engines blew the dust around us away, but wasn't strong enough to move me for than a few inches. It was large and quiet, and as more of it started to appear, I made out the forms of long, sleek barrels and bent-down wings.

'Oh. My. Goddesses,' I thought, eyes going wide as the form truly appeared.

The form was a hundred-foot long, zebra Umbra-class stealth aircraft. I'd read about it before, and I have to say it looked just like it did in the pictures -- five-foot long railgun barrels utilizing electromagnetic technology and ballistic magic; silvery, segmented armor plating shaped to look like a massive flying spear-tip with half-triangle wings on the sides; standard-issue stealth engines, and most of all, it had the most slimming cyan stripes going from the back to the front, just above the windows.

It was one of the most beautiful vehicles I ever saw, and my awe-struck mind for once fully agreed with me.

The VTOL descended without making a sound aside from the faintest of clangs, and at once it's armored backdoor came down like a drawbridge, allowing us entry. The inside was a finely polished steely silver, with soft blue fluorescent bulbs lining the top of the chamber. There were seats on both sides, unoccupied. The armored cockpit door had the Shadow Corps insignia, polished and un

A small ring of metal extended from the side of the door, and at once a hologram showing a golden horizontal line on a square field of cosmic purple was projected.

"Goldwreath, I have exciting news," Zaita said, "Due to the upgrade I got in the ZSI Roaman HQ, I am capable of hacking and finitely controlling other S3 vehicles, such as this S3 Umbra-class stealth craft. Isn't that amazing? Because I am amazed, very amazed. Why, I didn't even know I could feel amazed..." She fell silent, almost awkwardly so. "Are you crying?"

I wiped my face again, harder this time, and smiled, because this news was the sort of thing I would usually smile at. I had to appear like I had myself together right now. "That's great, Zaita. But, uh... where are you?" I asked.

The golden line arced upwards, and the entire hologram looked left and right, then turned back to me. "I am here," She replied.

"No, I mean where's 'you'? The APC you. The original Zaita," I elaborated

She seemed to understand, and said, "Ah, I see. My APC platform is currently... sneaking Doomtune and three other operatives onto the top of one of the dam's watchtowers. Do not worry, I am cloaked."

"That's very interesting," Predator interrupted, sounding immensely bored. "Now why don't we talk some more INSIDE the vehicle? We're wasting time," He said, and started started trotting inside.

The armored door rose up a little, preventing Predator from immediately entering. The operative growled at the hologram, which just stared at him. Then it looked at me. "Goldwreath... we are bringing him with us? Is he not the one who caused you so much grief and doubt?" She asked, sounding somehow confused despite her monotone voice. "Plus he is the one who attached spy bugs onto my platform. And for that I don't like him."

I nodded tentatively, sighing, "Yeah, we are." Then I glanced at the operative and glared. "But for how long... I don't know." He stared back at me for a moment, his expression unfathomable. But he was right, we were wasting time with all this. "Open the door, Zaita. We'll talk some more inside. Please. I'm... not in the mood for any of this." And that was very true. I was still depressed and very tired from recent events. I just wanted a little break, even if for just an hour. Or however long it took to get to the dam.

The hologram stared at me for a second, then to my friends. Myst nodded uncertainly, while Skyfire just shrugged. Doodle was too busy staring at the apparently very interesting talking hologram to do anything.

The armored door came down with a soft clang. "Very well. Everyone please enter the vehicle."

Predator scoffed, "You rammed me, you know. For that, we're even." Then he entered, and seated himself casually on the seat farthest inside, on the right.

Myst approached and whispered in my ear, "Come on. You can relax inside." Then she started trotting inside, Doodle following close behind and staring at the holographic image as she went. Zaita returned the gaze, turning the image to follow her until she sat inside.

Skyfire got over to me and patted me on the back. "Come on. You look like shit. You should rest a bit once we're inside."

I sighed, "I'm not really tired, Skyfire. I'm... confused. Confused as to what to think and feel. Nothing's simple anymore." I glanced at her, seeing her sympathetic and understanding expression. "You go on ahead, I just need to get something. It'll only take a minute."

She nodded and went inside, while I made my way back down the road and over the mounds of rubble to where I had nearly gotten killed. Again. There, right where it clattered to, was my shield. It had taken a beating from the recent fight, but it would hold. Roaman steel didn't give so easily.

Sparing only the barest of glances to the dead Legionnaires, I made my way back, utilizing my thankfully un-broken wings to get there. I found the door still open, with my friends (and Predator) waiting inside. I sat myself down next to Myst, and with a tired breath she leaned against me. With an exhausted breath of my own, I laid my head down against hers.

Skyfire looked at that with a disturbed and somewhat paranoid expression as the door closed and the aircraft started ascending quietly. "Am... I... missing something here?" She asked slowly, cautiously.

My eyes shot wide open.

Oh, fuck. How in the name of Neptune's three-way penetrator trident had I forgotten about HER? Skyfire... she'd be devastated. I... maybe I didn't feel that way about her, but... how would I break this to her? What words could I utter to soften the blow? Even if she had said she couldn't force me... she'd be depressed. I... I felt like a piece of absolute shit.

Myst seemed to understand what was going on, and said with a firm tone, "No, not really. We're just... tired, is all." Skyfire somewhat relaxed at that, though she still looked at us concernedly as she pressed her back against the seat.

I gulped and clenched my eyes shut. Oh, I was so fucked when... or IF Skyfire found out.

'Boy, you are screwed,' Predator said in my head, 'Lying tends to make these sorts of things... complicated.'

'I thought you said you knew nothing about this?' I asked with annoyance.

'I don't. I'm just stating the obvious,' He replied. I glanced over at him on the other side, and saw him staring at me with the faintest glow in his eyes.

Before my mind could continue down that train of thought any more, Zaita said, "I suppose I must tell you something." There was a momentary pause, and she continued, "Now, there's no other way to say this, so I'll just say it."

"Oh, gods and Goddesses..." I groaned. "What in the name of all things could it be now?" I just couldn't get a break, could I?

"This matter concerns the possible continued existence of the remains of the Roaman Empire, Goldwreath," Zaita said, immediately snapping my attention away from Myst's nice soft head to Zaita's voice coming from speakers overhead.

"What's the situation?" I asked.

"The weapons of the apocalypse have returned, Goldwreath. The Legion... they're transporting Balefire megaspells to Roam."

Oh, no.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Precise Striking -- Your precision with your gladius is astounding and is capable of competing with that of a full-fledged Legionnaire. You gain +20 points to your melee weapons skill.

Chapter 17 - To Converse With a God

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Chapter 17
To Converse With a God
“War is our sculptor. And we are prisoners to its design.”

Stress is a very interesting thing. The right amount, people say, keeps them alert and aware; it makes them prepared for anything. It allows them to adapt and survive, to utilize their resources to achieve a goal. Stress is the work-area force that keeps people at maximum efficiency if they can take it and synthesize it. Stress can help ordinary people -- like me -- do more than people who're constantly relaxed can.

Of course, the problem was, to put it lightly, that I was under too MUCH stress.

Week one, I had been introduced to the near-omnipotent Legion and had witnessed a giant tentacle monster, not to mention had Tod and Tom inside my head. Week two I had been captured and beaten brutally by some fucking raiders, and been to a crazy scientific research area where Tod and Tom fought for my life, and had been taken temporary prisoner by the Legion, only to be shot down and witness an overpowered tank a little later. Then I had volunteered to help out at a battle at some dam. Week three I had been crawling underground -- exposed to black cloud -- all the while pursued by monstrous chimera things, and later held prisoner by them. And finally, week four was now. So far I had been temporarily betrayed, seen my flesh heal on it's own, gotten into a joyous relationship only to have that joy turn to depression, and now had to deal with a megaspell threat.

If this kind of shit doesn't make someone crazier than a cage full of rabid monkeys fighting for the same banana, I don't know what will.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

It had been a few minutes since the transport had left the battleground, and there had not been a sound from outside since. Either we were cloaked or the enemy just didn't want to shoot at the aircraft with the very powerful railguns. We must have been getting close to the dam; we were about just an hour's brisk trotting away when Skyfire left a while back.

The back of my skull finally started getting sore from repeatedly banging my head against the wall. Myst looked either at me with uncertainty or to Skyfire with an anxious stare, which the pegasus did not return in the slightest, instead just shifting uncomfortably on her seat and avoiding all sorts of contact. Even Predator seemed immensely concerned by the revelation. Zaita's hologram, projecting from a ring that jutted out of the side of a seat, stared at me as if waiting for some kind of response. Doodle, for once, seemed to understand the direness of the situation, as she was chewing her little sock nervously, soaking it in her saliva.

Speaking of Skyfire, whilst I was banging my head against the wall repeatedly for several minutes, splitting my wits over how to proceed, a part of me couldn't help but notice that she looked so very... lost; paranoid and desperate, even. I tried to make eye contact with her, yet she seemed to be avoiding it. Myst's eye contact, too, much to the earth pony's visible discomfort and worry. I couldn't think of any reason why Skyfire would be this way; she seemed fine when she first found us. She was even glad when she introduced Zaita's aircraft platform.

She only started looking like this after she saw me and Myst together... did that mean that...

... Nah, probably just the megaspell threat. It was worrying all of us to no end, even Predator. And that's saying something, trust me. Besides, Myst had already assured her that there was nothing going on between us. Surely Skyfire didn't know ALREADY... right?

Myst at last decided to break the mounting tension in the cabin. "That's... just... impossible..." She said, her voice dripping with uncertainty and fear. And who could blame her? A megaspell threat... was one apocalypse not enough? Roam and her empire had been reduced to the very marrow of their bones with just one apocalypse, what would happen after another? "I... I don't know what to think, or to do." She looked at me with a concerned and worried gaze, and I looked back at her, letting all my cluelessness and exhaustion show. She bit her lip and said, "Goldwreath... what do we do?"

Damn, she had to ask me. I... didn't know, honestly. "Myst... I'm afraid I don't-..." I was saying.

"I'll tell you what we'll fucking do," Skyfire interrupted with a stomp, sounding enraged. "We're going to fly this thing to Equestria, convince the Enclave to help us out, get back here, and blow all these fucking cocksuckers all to hell with their own Goddesses damned missiles!"

Zaita looked to her. "I do not think the Enclave, given your ranting of them whenever you get the opportunity, would even think of helping us."

Predator looked to Zaita, and slowly rolled his head over to Skyfire. "Profanity aside, I thought you said you could not return to your Enclave because you're 'contaminated'? Would they not shoot you on sight? Really, I'd prefer that you live," Predator said with a bare hint of concern.

Skyfire snorted, "Why the fuck do you care? Seems like you'd let any of us die if it meant you'd get your fucking philosophy across to other people." She glared back at him, saying in a hushed voice, "Like how you nearly killed me just to depress Goldwreath over there." Hey, I wanted no part in this conversation, just so you know. Now, if she got out of control, again, well...

"Skyfire, I would request that you reduce your profanity-spouting when non-combatants are in the area," Predator said, a slight edge in his voice. "Surely even YOU can do that." Then he murmured, "I can't believe she's still on that..."

"Of course I'm still fucking on it!" Skyfire yelled, surprising all of us with the amount of strain and pain in her voice. Doodle huddled closer to her seat, trying to curl up. "Damn it, you nearly fucking killed me back there! You think that just because you save me once that you're forgiven? Well you aren't, you piece of shit!"

"Skyfire!" Predator interrupted harshly, stopping her mid-rant. "I don't know what kind of inconsiderate imbecile you are, but there are people here whose minds are not contaminated with profane poison and hateful vengeance. I would like to keep it that way." He looked to Doodle's uncertain form sitting next to him, and reached out a hoof to pull her close. She saw it and scooted closer, looking just slightly less anxious in his embrace. "And I would not expect you to forgive me. But at least do not make others suffer your anger."

Skyfire growled, "We're talking of a megaspell threat here, and you're thinking about HER?" She shook her head, muttering, "Why, that is the most unrealistic, soft, pedophili-..."

"Silence yourself, Skyfire!" I interrupted at last, not wanting to allow this argument to escalate. I got up to point a hoof at her, nearly poking her muzzle in the process. Predator took the filly in closer, covering her ears. She leaned against him and closed her eyes, scared. Skyfire cringed on her seat.

Knowing Doodle's hearing was muffled, I hissed, "This filly is a shining example of innocence and peace -- values not possessed by nearly everyone in the wasteland! Would you take that from her? Would you destroy her happiness simply because of your own desire for tainted justice? Well, here's the reality: if you do, then I'll cut out your tongue." I panted, exhausted from my outburst, "Not everything in the wasteland has potential for good. I'd like to protect those things that do."

Skyfire's eyes stared back at me with pure disbelief for several moments, her mouth hanging open from the shock of my words. Her eyes averted themselves to look to the sides shamefully, and she said softly and slowly, "I'm just trying to address real problems here, Goldwreath. I'm... just trying to think with reason." Her eyes looked back at me, looking shamed and sad. "Just like you normally do," She murmured, bowing her head and tucking her wings in tightly.

Argh! Gods and Goddesses damn it, I SO wanted to smack her across the face for bringing this up! I was already confused and worried for my own fucking sanity, it was NOT helping that she had to remind me of my obligations to treat my friends with the respect they deserved. I wanted to, really, but that obligation was getting more difficult; I was just so confused, so... mentally and emotionally in turmoil. So much had happened so quickly, and I had so little time to relax and think properly. There was so much to do; talk to them about their problems and find palpable solutions... stop a fucking war, or at least end some of it... and then there was this whole Balefire business. So was it so much to ask for just one fucking hour of calm and peace? Just... argh!

I glared at her for a moment, angered at her disgusting accusations. I understood that Skyfire was spontaneous and reckless, and I had more or less come to accept her for it, but those words... sickening, absolutely sickening.

Then Myst placed her hoof on my shoulder, and I relaxed. The weight of all my belongings suddenly became a lot heavier, and I just let my shield slide off my back and clatter onto the ground. My eyelids started drooping, my head rolling on my neck.

I was tired. So... very... tired. This exertion was not helping at all. It felt like I had been told something that would decide the fate of the whole world. And I HAD been told something that could decide the fate of the world; if the Legion used those bombs... no, they wouldn't. Surely they were going to use them merely for threats or... or something else, right? They had to be.

Nevertheless, I possessed knowledge that could decide the fate of Empire. That could... oh, so sleepy...

I sighed tiredly, taking shaky steps backwards and sitting down, almost collapsing onto the seats next to me. Myst kept that from happening, instead pulling me close and leaning me against her side. Oh, soft and warm fur... it was like being on a bed again... For the immense blessing of her presence, I managed to give her the barest of smiles before half-closing my eyes.

Skyfire snapped her head up and looked at me, but I didn't care. I was too exhausted to care, even when she lowered her head again and sniffed.

After that the area was dreadfully silent, save for the heart-tugging sounds of Skyfire sniffing. Damn me... why was I doing this? What Skyfire said was wrong, sure, but was there no better way to correct her than to threaten to cut off her tongue? Was that something I would ever threaten to do under normal circumstances? Would I have said that if I wasn't exhausted and confused? No, never, not in my life. If there's one thing I can credit myself for, it's having a genuine desire to protect my friends and make them happy.

So why did I want to cut off her tongue so much just to teach her to control her mouth?

"Perhaps this can help ease this dire situation," Zaita said, her monotone voice a welcome sound after all that had happened recently. After a shriek of static that somewhat frightened the tense filly, elevator music started playing, much to Doodle's amusement. Damn me, I actually remembered the track: Elevator # 57.

I shook my head with a smile on my face (a smile that wouldn't have been there if not for Myst), remembering that time nearly a month ago when I had first stepped into Zaita's cabin and for the first time heard her music. Ah, such simpler times...

But Skyfire was right. This threat was very serious and required immediate action. And so, much as I just wanted to rest, I forced my eyes to open at least halfway and asked, "Zaita, you're sure about this threat? Can we get confirmation?"

The hologram looked to me. "Yes, I am sure. This three megabyte media audio file proves it..."

There was a crackle of static that got all of our attentions. Predator and Doodle paid attention, though the filly seemed to be concerned about my pegasus friend. Skyfire lifted her head to listen, then caught me looking at her with exhaustion. She gulped, and very slowly lowered her head again. I grimaced, shaking my head. So many relationship problems, I swear...

After a while the static faded and was replaced by the sounds of splashing waves and groaning steel. A stallion's voice, heavily accented in Roaman Imperial speak, came up.

"... Leviathan duas, est megaspell onerariis securus?"

"'Leviathan two, is the megaspell cargo secure?'" I found myself translating. Then, for some reason, my lungs gasped for air and my heart started pounding in my ears. I winced as the thundering in my head gave me a minor headache.

Another voice came up over the sounds of the sea, "Yup, secura ita securi potest esse. Mediolanum adhuc sumus portum Roamam profecturus sunt. Super."

My head felt dead as a corpse, but I just sucked it up and continued, "'Yup, secure as secure can be. We're still at the Mediolanum port, but are about to depart for Roam. Over.'"

"Egregius. Tu explorato habere repperero 'Neptunum' transtulit. Certe postea quam Forum deductus est."

I took in a shaky breath, and forced my mind to try to translate the sentence. "'Excellent. Make sure to... erm, t-to have it transferred to... ugh... to...'" Erg, so... tired...

Myst next to make took over, and said with the Imperial accent in her voice, "'Make sure to have it transferred to the 'Neptune' when you come across it. We'll have it escorted to the Forum afterwards.'" There was a crackle of static, and the elevator music started playing again. Myst looked at me and gave a proud little smile.

"That message was sent yesterday from the port of Mediolanum, the naval capital of the Empire in the past. It is quite likely that the Leviathan super-sub containing the megaspell missiles is already four-fifths of the way to Roam," Zaita informed.

While Predator and Skyfire took that in with silence, I turned and looked at Myst with a surprised look on my face. "Y-you... you know Imperial zebra?" I asked tiredly.

She looked back at me and smiled, an expression of pride on her face. "I... well, I was alone lots of the time. I read, I translated, but not so much. I was busy doing other things to master the language."

Well, this was a pleasant surprise. "Wow," I murmured, "So not only are you good with explosives, stealth, and sniping, but you also know some Imperial zebra." I shifted a little, pressing myself just a little more against her, and murmured in her ear, "That's an impressive skill set you got there." Then, with a little smile of my own, I asked, "And what other things did you do while alone?"

"Oh. You know... stuff..." She said softly, hesitantly. "Just... things that I do when bored," She added with a suppressed chuckle.

Skyfire's head popped up, her eyes seeming terror-stricken as she looked at Myst with an agape mouth. Somehow that look tugged at my heart; there was just this look of... hopelessness and confusion embedded within the details of her face. I couldn't quite discern the possible origins of why I felt so... crappy. Did I do something wrong? Well, to be sure, yes, but why did I really feel it this time?

Myst next me gasped and averted her gaze, looking at the ground, then at me. There was this look on her face that told me she for some reason felt like I did. Still, I didn't let it stop me from prodding. "So, things like what?"

She closed her eyes and sighed disappointedly. "Goldwreath... now isn't really the time..." She was saying, timidly, as she usually does.

Predator interrupted, "I think what your friend over here is trying to say, Goldwreath, is that we should pay the immensely important matter at hoof more thought. We have gotten confirmation, yet we have not decided upon a definite course of action. I understand that you are all very stressed and very confused, and that your heads are subconsciously seeking a distraction from how incredibly ridiculous your lives have become so quickly, but that's no excuse." Then he said with a slightly suggestive tone, "Your... sensuous... conversations can resume later." He got up off of his seat, and turned to look at all of us with an unfathomable expression.

"We must decide now how to ERADICATE this threat," He declared. I heard it, but I wasn't paying attention; I was kind of stuck on wondering what he meant by 'sensuous'. Me and Myst weren't talking about anything sensuous, were we?

Zaita looked to me. "Against logical and emotional urges that I would have were I an organic, I have to say I agree with him."

I sighed. He was right; the matter was confirmed, yet we were acting like we had heard nothing greater than news of the destruction of our local mall. This matter had to be decided immediately, and the decided upon action had to be carried out with absolute certainty. Flinching during the operation could doom us all.

I leaned forward on the edge of my seat, once more making the dire mistake, I now knew, of forcing my body to work and my emotions to screw off. It was hard, flushing away all thoughts so completely in favor of this matter -- whatever joy remained of my recent induction into a relationship, the guilt of what I had done, the weight of what I had failed to do -- but it had to be done. No person could function properly if their mind was unfocused, that I knew for certain.

And so with my head blank of all things save that which would concern this decision, I started saying in a low and serious tone, "I need everyone's thoughts on this. This... matter -- this piece of information that only we in this cabin know of, aside from our enemies -- and the choice made for it, may decide the very existence of known world. Of Roam as we know it." The tension in the room, dissipated by Zaita's elevator music which had stopped playing after the audio file, returned tenfold, and the silence seemed so absolute that it felt like it was crawling up my spine like an orchid wrapping itself around s tree.

I got up, looking at each of my friends in the eye. Somehow, I had all their attention, as even Skyfire seemed to have managed to lock her emotions away for a bit. Even Predator, for all his deadness, seemed fully alert. Good, I needed all of us focused. We were tired and twisted up, confused and lost, in turmoil and hurting, but we could do this. We had to. Really, only Doodle seemed like she wanted no part in this. She just curled up on her seat and seemed to fall asleep. And I didn't blame her for not wanting to join in; she was just a filly, and one that didn't want to feel tense or in danger. I could understand that.

Resuming my train of thought, I stomped on the ground for emphasis, declaring, "The decision made hereupon shall decide for a great many people the fate of their lives and the course of their future. There will be consequences, no doubt, and not all can be spared from the repercussions of our choice. This weighs heavily on my heart, for I do not want to see the bones of the once glorious empire reduced to dust at the hooves of tyranny. Therefore I ask you, friends and accomplices, for your thoughts and opinions on this matter. And before anything else is said, know that neutralizing this threat is the absolute most important objective as of now; all else must be disregarded."

I felt quite disappointed, actually. I had spent the last week brooding over how to act once at the dam, yet all that was going down the drain, seeing as I had to convince Madran of the severity of the threat, and why I had to pursue it first. Surely she would understand.

I turned to look at Zaita specifically. "Halt the vehicle, Zaita. Tell me, how goes the fight at the dam? Do our allies need our aid, or can they handle themselves?" I hadn't known how the battle at the dam was going, and surely the operatives could handle themselves, but it couldn't possibly hurt to ask.

There was a momentary shift in the vehicle's orientation, causing me to nearly fall over. After that, Zaita replied, "The battle is an utter stalemate. Not only has neither side made significant progress in either claiming the dam or holding off the assault, but whatever reinforcements exist for either group could not reach them in the first place. As of yet, this may last until one group decides to take some form of drastic action."

Predator stepped in before I could say anything. "And what do you think it would take for this balance to be tipped off?"

The screen looked to him. "Either the Legion utilizes all their armor into a frontal assault, thus overwhelming the less adequately prepared Specters, or the operatives manage to break into the dam's control room and shut down all defensive emplacements and wrest control of the area before the Legion can regroup. The Specters may not be able to easily accomplish their goal, however, as they have no intel on the exact path to the dam's control room."

"And what's keeping them from sending all their armor?" Myst asked, much to my surprise. I didn't think she'd want to be involved in this conversation, being... well, Myst.

Zaita looked to her, the golden line arced upwards slightly. Perhaps she too hadn't anticipated the query from the usually shy and quiet mare. Still, in response, the AI said, "The Caesar."

'You're shitting me,' I thought, 'That thing's still operational? Son of a...'

"Not surprised," Predator chimed in. "Damn thing could take a concentrated megaspell... or a hell of a lot of missiles."

Skyfire sniffed and wiped her face, before saying in a tone that was, to my relief, devoid of any depression or sadness, "Heh, talk about firepower. That thing was a fucking beast!" She even cheered up a little, a grin on her face as she continued, "Now if Zaita could just take control of it..."

"That is actually possible," Zaita interjected, "The Caesar is a modified Omni-tank, but it still uses the same S3 operating system as other S3 vehicles do. Though, I don't think the Specters would approve of having their one true armored asset controlled by an AI..."

"Okay, can we PLEASE get back on topic?" I said, doing my best to suppress my exasperation. "I swear, we get off topic SO easily... Anyway, my opinion shortened, I think that we should go to the Forum and confront the damned Legate."

There was a momentary silence as my companions looked to one another, as if confirming they had just heard what I said. Skyfire's eyes brightened up at the statement, though... okay, I'll admit, because of that I wanted to rescind my statement, but as I said, indecisiveness could doom us all.

"Seems... fathomable," Predator said slowly. He tapped his helmet for a moment in thought. "Very well, I agree. This threat must be eliminated at once, what better way to neutralize it than directly confronting the individual behind this madness?"

"Well, we'll need an escape plan if things go wrong," Myst added, to which I nodded my head in agreement. "Though... I'm not really sure if confronting him is a good idea. What if he's crazy and decides to kill all of us by detonating the megaspells?"

"Not likely," Predator said, "While Vesperius may be viewed with contempt, I don't think him the type to commit mass genocide at the hour of his death or whilst in distress."

We all looked at him strangely and with confusion; even Zaita just stared at him. He looked to each of us, and though he would never be one to admit it, I could tell he was immensely puzzled.

"Who?" Skyfire asked.

Predator canted his head. "Vesperius?" He asked us. "None of you know of him?"

We shook our heads, while Zaita gave off a grating game-show style buzz. Predator shook his head in response, seemingly disbelieving that none of us knew who this 'Vesperius' was. Personally, I couldn't give two shits. I had lots of other things to think about.

He sighed and elaborated, "Legatus Vesperius Titanus Aurelius Augustus -- or just Vesperius -- is the name of the Legion's current leader. He's the Legate, and has been ever since the Legion first came out of the Maximilian-class stable underneath the Forum." He grumbled, "Of course, if any of you had enough wits to find out who you were fighting, you would have known that."

"How do you know this?" I questioned, intrigued at all this new information. Especially that whole 'Maximilian-class' stable thing; if the Legion came out of there... how large it must have been. That also led me to a question: did Stable-Tec give them the schematics for that stable, or did the zebra government make their own designs?

Skyfire narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Yeah," She drawled, "How DO you know all this?"

Predator snorted, "If you think me some kind of Legion spy, Skyfire, then you are even more idiotic that Goldwreath can be at times. If I truly wanted your deaths, I wouldn't have procrastinated on that bridge." His tone darkened as he continued, "As for how I know, I was there when they first came into the wasteland." He silenced for a moment and looked to the ground, before murmuring, "It was then that I saw two-hundred years of preparation and planning come to fruition. And it was there that I tried to stop them, to no avail."

The area was once more silent, and it irritated me because our talks about how to proceed with confronting Vesperius -- hell, what to do about the dam -- were constantly being cut off and the subject changed. We needed focus. Sure, maybe under normal circumstances, or what would count as normal in the wasteland, I would have been more intrigued by Predator's involvement when the Legion first came out, but these were not normal circumstances.

"Alright," I said, "Let's process all this later. Right now, and to avoid further distractions, I ask you one thing: what are we to do about the dam? It's a stalemate, yes, but should we leave it like that? Severe as a megaspell threat is, I'd hate to leave those soldiers without notifying them. Once we have decided what to do about them, then we shall proceed to the Forum." I felt quite disappointed, actually. I had, for so long, thought that I would have participated in the battle. I had actually been waiting for it eagerly. Now... all that was going down the drain.

"Maybe we should go to the dam, tell that Specter lady what's up, maybe even get some stuff, and get over to that Forum place?" Skyfire suggested, a tone of mounting eagerness in her voice. I swear, if she started going nuts at the Forum...

"Seems feasible," Zaita intoned, "Perhaps it would be wise to inform Madran of the situation, given the resources she has and her potential to lend us assistance."

"So that's three out of five," I summarized. Now all that remained was my own opinion and that of Myst. Well... actually, throw my opinion in with their's; Skyfire's words may have been... simple, but they summarized my thoughts rather nicely. "So, Myst, what do you think?" I asked softly, trying to appear more calm and collected than I actually was. "Your opinion matters here; a lot, actually."

She lowered her head and closed her eyes, humming quietly to herself in thought. While of course Predator, Zaita, and Skyfire's agreement with the plan was of course enough to sway me, I simple felt that, somehow, Myst's opinion was as important as all three of their's combined. Maybe it came with the 'relationship' -- oh, up to now that word still makes my heart flutter with joy; I, Goldwreath, was actually in a freaking relationship! -- or something else.

"Well... we'll need an escape plan..." She said slowly. "And I think, being someone who makes escape plans a lot, I can take care of that..."

"Escape plans..." Skyfire muttered with disgust. "It's stuff like that that's for people who WANT to retreat."

I shot her a glare, making her eyes widen. After a while they shrank back to a normal size, and she looked away from me. If she couldn't say anything smart or disciplined right now, I could only imagine what she'd do when we got to the Forum. I looked to Myst, and motioned her to continue.

Myst looked at all of us for a bit, as if wondering if all of us were really for this. I knew I was, and gave her a look suggesting just that when her gaze fell upon me. "... so, yes. I'd say I'm with you," She continued, and bit her lip as if unsure.

"You're certain?" I asked. I could not tolerate uncertainty right now. Not even from her, much as I knew that she needed more time to decide or be sure about some things than, say, Skyfire.

She took in a breath, and sighed, "Yes, I am. If this is what you think we should be doing... then I trust you. I trust that you'll bring all of us back." She smiled at me, and said softly, "I always have."

I smiled back. It was... nice. All this shit with Tom and Tod and that black land stuff to the south... and then this Legion-Specter conflict... constant depression and worry... it was nice to have something to look forward to. It was nice to know there was someone who cared for me.

"So it's decided then," Predator said, "We will go to the dam, inform Madran so that she can lend us whatever assistance she can, and then speed over to the Forum to confront Vesperius." He hummed in thought for a moment, then continued, "I could inform Canterium Prime of this threat. Surely they would see the severity of it all."

"Well, good," I said, relaxing a bit now that a course of action was decided upon. "Take us to the dam, Zaita." The vehicle gave a beep, and the engine started humming through the metal walls.

My eyes looked over the chamber, at each of my friends and companions. They were all with me, even Predator. Doodle... well, she could stay inside the vehicle when we confronted the Legate. Skyfire would need to practice restraint, but she was with me too. It was a joy almost as great as when Myst and I got together less than an hour ago to know they were with me on this. Now, whenever I thought the words 'let's do this', I really was referring to more people than just myself. It felt... good. It was strange, though; I had so rarely felt good since coming out to the surface that the feeling of being relaxed was becoming alien to me.

Then my eyes drifted to my saddlebags on a seat on the far side of the cabin, and through a small gap I saw the faint glimmer of a glassy orb. A spark of curiosity lit up in my head.

'Damn me and my curiosity,' I thought, and got up and started trotting over to my bags. I picked out the orb from within, and afterwards the memory-viewing headwear. I started trotting back to my seat.

"What are you doing?" Zaita queried.

"Distracting myself," I replied with a shrug. I got a strange look from Myst; an expression... concerned and confused at the same time. Addressing her questioning look, I said, "I am tired and I am very, very unsure of how to think or what to do right now. Memory orbs like these give me some time to... to think of things aside from what's going on here. In these orbs, I see the world before it was destroyed. I take some comfort in knowing that this earth wasn't always a parched wasteland."

Then I smirked, "Besides, I could never bring myself to sleep at a time like this; I'd be missing out on WAY too much important stuff. But technically, memory viewing isn't sleeping, and I can still think."

"Your technicality and logic makes no sense," Predator replied. "Not only do you give your already over-taxed mind more to think about when viewing those damned things, and not only do you not get any refreshing rest whilst using them, it would also be impossible to wake you up should something occur. But go ahead; we all need distractions, right?" He said with a tone of mock sympathy -- a tone which, given how much I didn't quite give a damn, I just took as earnest sympathy.

Skyfire chuckled mirthlessly, "Heh, yeah... we all need some distractions." She looked at me with a quick glance, and cast her gaze down onto the floor.

Damn it, guilt trip. "Okay, look," I sighed, feeling some shame and sadness coming up in my head. "If anyone of you disagrees with me going into this, then say so now and I won't view it." I may have wanted to distract myself, but not if it meant leaving my friends behind to wallow in their own problems; no sane group leader would leave their comrades behind to suffer on their own.

"I only questioned what you were doing, I did not object. Besides, given the case that something should occur, I believe that Predator's firepower combined with my own would be more than sufficient to get us out of it," Zaita said.

Predator nickered, "Yeah, sure. View the orb, just don't blame me if something bad happens while you're out; or, for the sake of your mental health, blame yourself if something DOES occur. I swear, you and your self-blaming..."

Skyfire said with a little shrug and with a slightly approving tone, "Go for it; not like anything bad would happen to a cloaking VTOL." Her tone turned to a more concerned one as she continued, "If you're not awake when we get to the dam... well, we'll take care of it. We'll talk to Madran... and everything else we need to do. You should just stay in here and rest." She gave me a small smile, but frowned as she asked, "So... what do you think, Myst?"

"I say get in that thing," Myst replied with a startling amount of firmness, surprising both me and Skyfire. She stared me in the eye, saying in a strangely nagging tone, "If you won't give yourself some sleep, at least give your body a little break. And when was the last time you DID sleep? You look like you've been awake for days, and that's probably true! Why, if it weren't for this threat and us needing to think about it, I'd force you to sleep."

"Eh, uh... okay..." I said in response. That was... weird. I understand that my friends (and Predator, to a degree) were concerned for me, but that... her speaking like that... strange.

Skyfire smirked. "Heh, turns out some of my assertiveness got to 'ya, eh Myst?" She asked, giving her friend a cocky little smile. A smile that I was SO relieved to see, by the way. Good to know some of the old Skyfire was still in there; just like, amidst Myst's changes, there was still that inseparable socially anxious part of her.

Myst kept up her firm face for a moment, and she did it so convincingly that I almost thought she'd nag Skyfire too. But then she smiled sheepishly -- and I swear I heard a squeak -- before saying awkwardly, "Eheh, I always did act like that around people I actually knew and cared about. Like one time when Kira couldn't sleep because some foals kept playing tag outside her store at night. I had to give her sleeping pills I got from one of the old drug stores to get her to sleep."

"Huh," Skyfire replied, seeming amused at the revelation. "I never would have guessed."

"Interesting," Zaita said, "Is it just me, or have you two changed quite a lot since last month? For one thing, Myst is much more open now; and for another, Skyfire is a little more... reserved."

Skyfire replied with annoyance, "What are you saying? That I've been some overly loud-mouthed, undisciplined, impulsive braggart, and only changed in the past few weeks? Huh, that's what you're saying?" She pointed a hoof at the hologram threateningly.

"Yes, and I'm quite sure I am not the only here who thinks that." The hologram looked all of us over.

Skyfire's eyes widened in disbelief, her head recoiling backwards from the blunt response as she put a hoof on her chest. "Why, I'll have you know that I was second in command of my scouting party! That required a lot of discipline, you know."

"And yet you show none of it," Predator replied with a snicker. "So much for your Enclave's military personnel's disciplinary training."

Skyfire turned on him, face wearing an overly dramatic expression of shock. "How DARE you!" She said, seemingly insulted. "The Enclave's military personnel are some of the most well-trained ponies I know!"

"And yet they suck in comparison to Legionnaires and Legion officers," Predator replied flatly.

"Judging from what I've seen of you and what information I've been able to get on the Enclave, I have to say I agree with him," Zaita intoned.

I didn't pay attention anymore after that. The next few moments were just filled with ranting and un-thought out responses on the side of Skyfire, and more than just a few profane statements from her which I couldn't really bring myself to care for. Thank goodness Doodle was asleep during all this...

At the point when I was just basically staring at the air, Myst decided to nudge me and get me out of my trance-like state. I shook myself, and looked at her with a little smile. "Yes?"

"You are getting in that orb, right?" She asked.

I frowned playfully. "Why so eager to have me incapacitated by an orb again? You planning to do something to me?" Yeah... at that time, I didn't quite understand what I was implying. Yes, I was THAT socially unknowledgeable.

Her eyes widened and she nudged herself a few inches away from me, cheeks flaming. "What? No! I just thought that you should, you know, get in already, and... stuff..."

I chuckled; she was so cute when she was like this. "Alright, but that doesn't really answer my question. You planning something for me?"

"Oh, just get in that orb!" She said with an assertive little stomp, which actually sounded just a little louder than if I stepped on the ground. Still, through all her supposed fierceness, I could tell that she was embarrassed as embarrassed could get.

I rolled my eyes with a smile. "Sheesh, I'm just having some fun. It feels good teasing you." Yeah... not exactly the best choice of words, I now know.

Myst stared at me for a second, her expression firmly divided between her cheeks and her eyes. Her eyes, wide and calculating, stared into mine as if wondering just WHAT I meant by that; her cheeks, red as though they had been slapped, showed just how embarrassed she was. Skyfire, Predator and Zaita were still having an argument regarding the Enclave's true power, and for that I was thankful, for they were not paying attention to the incredibly anxious-looking Myst. If they were, well... it would have been like the first time I met her all over again.

"Alright, I'll just, uh, get in now," I said, hoping to break the growing awkwardness of the strange moment.

She smiled with relief, and just a hint of exasperation. "Yeah, you do that. Don't worry, we'll take care of what we need to do at the dam, just relax."

I nodded, mind split between confidence in their promises and doubt for their capability. But come on, they were my friends. They had gone through all the things I went through, and they had always pulled me and each other out of it one way or another. I could trust them.

And with that thought, I strapped the helmet on, glad for the temporary respite awaiting me within. And with one final glance and a smile at Myst and my other friends -- Skyfire still fervently arguing for her point -- I slipped the orb into the depression and let my mind slip away.

ooooOOOOoooo

Veltrio sat down in a small grey room, the table he placed his forehooves on illuminated by a bright lamp from above his head. On the left of the steel table side lay his helmet, and on the right side a stack of rifle magazines placed neatly one atop the other. Beneath the table lay his backpack, stuffed and bloated as I had come to expect of operatives.

For a brief moment I just stared at the table, seeming to contemplate. My host's breathing was slow and deep, and occasionally he would sigh disconcertedly. For a moment he lifted his hooves off of the table, and I saw them shaking almost uncontrollably; he was nervous. I could feel his heart pounding, his breathing hot in his nostrils, his eyes twitching periodically. And all this worried me, for if something could worry one with the capabilities and skills of Veltrio, then it was truly something to be reckoned with.

I lifted my hooves again and looked at them, trembling like a pole quaking to the tremors of the earth. I sighed, and closed my eyes. A great rumbling energy stirred within me, and rushed through my veins like ice water, rejuvenating my limbs and awakening my dead nerves from their slumber.

Then my flesh suddenly erupted underneath my suit like a thousand warts had grown onto every inch of my skin, and portions of my suit puffed out sharply, threatening to tear; my helmet felt a lot tighter on my head. None of it was painful, though. To my own bafflement, it felt good -- calming, soothing, comforting, and most of all... natural; blissfully integrated into nature's rhythms and ways as air is to the wind. My breathing started sounding calmer -- and certainly I felt much more calm -- yet it seemed more feral, too. More... beastly.

Veltrio produced a small black orb on a tiny platform of obsidian-colored metal and placed it on the table, flicking a small switch on the side as he did so. A holographic screen came up, and within it I saw first the reflection of my host's vest and of his limbs. All seemed natural, though of course I didn't see the flesh. So my host started looking up to see his face...

'Celestia save me,' I thought to myself in horror.

My... face... was a monstrous form of shaped black carapace, with protrusions like blades jutting out from my head and angling backwards. Every millimeter of coat was covered in black, glossy chitinous carapace. My eyes were a soul-freezing glowing green, and stared off into the mirror with the most disgusting look of pride and amusement. My neck bore black scales of reptilian appearance, and the carapace there seemed to from chitinous plates of the most sharp-edged armor.

After a moment of looking at himself with unnatural calmness, a surge of energy once more flushed through my host's veins, and the blade-like protrusions sank back into my flesh so cleanly it left no mark upon the zebra-looking coat that then appeared on the mirror. The green glow in my eyes remained, though.

My host sighed, and turned off the mirror with what was thankfully a hoof and not, say, a talon.

"Soon, when this gift becomes common place. Then shall I walk in the glory of a flawless form shamelessly and basking in the glory of a perfect existence. But not yet," My host said, and I felt a sickening smile cross his face. Oh, I did not like the sound of that.

Then, through the claustrophobic metal walls of the room, the racketing wail of a siren sounded throughout the space beyond, increasing in volume to nearly insane levels.

My host's eyes stared forward as though they were trying to burn through the walls, but after a moment I got up and trotted to the lightless back of the room. I didn't see them nor the bed, but out of the darkness my host pulled several compact blocks and rectangles of metal. He laid them on the table, and then produced from his vest's pockets a silvery box like the ones Predator used. And with that, he stuffed every block into the silvery box.

'I'm really going to need to ask Predator what those are,' I thought, and just then felt just how much I had intended to ask him that.

After that my host put on his helmet, loaded the magazines on the table into whatever empty pouches there were on his vest, and exited the room. Beyond was a typical long metal grey hallway, with other doors on the sides that other operatives came out of. We trotted down the hall together, silent but aware of each other. Very aware; I could feel them in my head, and it did NOT make me feel comfortable.

Soon we came upon a large metal gate, which opened to us automatically. Yellow light flooded into the dull hallway, and when my host's eyes adjusted I saw it.

The sky.

It was so much more beautiful than it was today: it was a vast all-encompassing sphere of heavenly blue, punctuated with giant feathery and cotton-shaped clouds of white; a pegasus' dream, the desire of our souls, freedom made real and visible. The golden light of an afternoon placed a hue of mesmerizing orange onto the backs of the clouds, and saturated the sky with blazing glory like the glow of Roam' fires. The rays of light stabbed down onto the vast lands below, illuminating in lit patches a great forest of dreary green.

Yes, quite a dramatic description for the sky, I know. But surely you must have noticed by now that I like to describe scenes with great detail.

To my chagrin, Veltrio paid that little attention, and almost immediately started trotting to the edge of the wide circular platform that was this aircraft's runway; it had smaller aircraft on different pads, mostly VTOLs and what looked to be jet fighters.

Said platform was bustling with activity and held points of interest: zebras in pressurized suits directed silently hovering VTOLs onto and off of the much larger aircraft, and power-armored juggernauts stomped by us, carrying missiles on their backs. Regular legionnaires stood in a corner, looking nervous as they talked to one another. Auxiliary troops -- zebras clad solely in a simple vest of kevlar with bright colors, and nothing else -- did the same all across the platform. And above me, standing tall above the armored structure that had housed me just a while ago, was a massive gleaming marble column, atop which was a glowing blue orb with lightning spiking around it.

All this I noticed whilst my host and the other five or so operatives trotted across the runway, and with each zebra we passed they stood stiff as a statue and saluted us. Not even when we passed them did they ease, and soon even those we had not crossed yet formed in front of us two columns of saluting zebras, in between which was a narrow walkway to the very edge of the platform. My host looked at them, left and right, and underneath his helmet smiled proudly.

Soon we stood upon the edge of the immense aircraft, and the sight below reminded me very much of when I had first came up to the surface; that short-lived time when I was laughably scared of the sky. I had thought I was completely over it. I guess I was wrong.

I felt my host's muscles tense as he looked to the other operatives, and an uncomfortable thought started brewing in my mind. Don't tell me he and his comrades were going to jump off of this thing! Parachute or no, that was just... fucking insane!

A zebra juggernaut approached us slowly, carrying on his back what appeared to be several neatly folded parachutes. He stood behind us, and bowed his head before turning on his side, inviting us to take them off his back.

My host grimaced but went over and took one, as did the other operatives. I had the distinct feeling we didn't actually want to use the parachutes. Perhaps some kind of formality was obligating us to take them. At least it assuaged some of my anxiety with regards to my host jumping off of the aircraft.

We slung the chutes across our backs and formed a line on the edge of the aircraft. We looked to each other for a moment, as if some last semblance of anxiety had hold over us. And certainly I could see it in their eyes, past their nearly opaque visors.

But then my host smiled, and without further action stepped off of aircraft, the others following right behind me and accompanied by thunderous cheers.

My mind was thrust into a frantic panic as I started thinking, 'Oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit... OH SHIT!'

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

'... OH SHIT OH SHIT OH SHIT OH SHIT... OH, SHIT!'

Veltrio slammed into the earth with such force that the ground quaked underneath the impact, sending green water and mud into the air. I was not hurt, nor did I feel even slightly uncomfortable or sore in any way; it creeped the hell out of me. Veltrio and his comrades had not used the chutes at all; quite the contrary, we flung them away halfway down to the ground. When they did, I swear to Celestia it was almost like my own heart stopped beating out of the sheer stupidity and shock.

But I was alive. My host looking up from the heavily-waving water to look over the large and dark forest confirmed that. Veltrio reached a hoof to his helmet, and tapped a button on the side. At once the HUD activated, and began outlining everything in gold. Information streams popped up on both sides of my HUD, and a minimap of the surrounding area flashed to life on the bottom right.

"Locate target," My host said calmly. "If she is found, send a signal and go silent. We'll find you, we'll take her down together."

And with that, my host sprinted out of the damp swamp and into the forest with such speed and agility as to put a cheetah to shame. Not a single accident met my host as he galloped into the darkness of the forest. And he was silent, too; add that with the fact that he was cloaked and you'd have yourself the perfect guy for mass murder in a forest.

Veltrio jumped and landed silently in the trees above, taking a moment to steady himself before stalking through the branches with undaunted speed. What he and his comrades had done to themselves to achieve such physical prowess... no, the better question was what had TOD done to the them. No equine, pony or zebra, could be capable of this.

And yet... yet I saw the advantages. With soldiers like these, fewer lives would be lost. Less resources used. Less sacrifices made. People like these, however mutated, could save others lots of trouble, lots of pain. They... they were the future of warfare. They were... perfect.

No! No, I can't think like that. Self-sacrifice was commendable, but too much of anything was bad. No, these... abominations deserved no respect from me. They deserved my hate! And Tod... he was their patron, and Decarius and Autherius were their masters. These 'people' and their abominations had no place on this earth!

I felt a stab in my head, excruciating and sharp. All thoughts seemed to leave my head, replaced with... numbness. Numbness throughout my whole body...

'So stubborn...' A soft, impish voice whispered in my head, echoing within my mind. 'Worry not... you will change before the end. You will see the error of your ways...' And then he fell silent. But even still, his words had sent cold, sharp spikes of terror into my head, and if I could have I would have shook from the trauma.

Oh great, Predator was right; these things DID give me more to think about. Tod, his affiliations with the two zebra legates, with Predator, the Shadow Corps... oh, so very much to think about.

When I finally truly regained control of my thoughts a moment later, I began paying attention once more to what was happening on the memory, albeit with anxiety than eager curiosity. I was especially surprised to find out that my host was talking to someone, and apparently had been for almost a minute.

"... bu-but uncle, when will you get back? Please, we don't want to lose you. We don't want to lose dad," A mare said with frail softness. The sadness in her voice broke my heart.

"You won't, Eiya," Veltrio responded kindly, warmly. "I'll be back before tomorrow afternoon, don't worry. And your father... my brother... I'll drag him on his flank across a rocky mountain to get him back to you. He's not dying on my watch, and I'll make sure to force his heart to beat if he does. You have my word," Veltrio promised solemnly, and I was surprised at the conviction of his words. They didn't sound at all like the crazy devotion he had when speaking about 'the gift' or 'perfection' -- here, he sounded genuinely concerned. I guess even abominations could care.

"But... but but..."

"No buts. Eiya, you have to trust me. I'll bring us both back, nothing's gonna stop me, nothing can stop me," Veltrio replied sternly. "Now, make sure your brothers are studying. Ask Kalvis to check their work if you can't; he's good with foals."

There was a momentary silence over the call, such that my stopped stalking through the tree tops for a moment and crouched on a large branch. His cloak was more than sufficient to keep him unseen, I don't know why he still bothered.

"A-alright. Sorry, I'm just... just worried," Eiya responded shakily, almost as if she was holding in tears. Then there was a sniff, and after a moment she whispered, "Uncle?"

"Yes?"

"When will this war be over?"

Silence. Pure, cold silence. Even the beating of my heart, formerly thundering and forceful, now seemed calm, almost nonexistent. The very jungle seemed to grow still, as if emulating the demeanor of my host; disturbing, very disturbing.

The quiet went on for several moments, until at last my host responded calmly, "It'll end when it'll end, under what circumstances... only greater forces know. Now goodbye, Eiya. I have work to do."

"Uncle, wait! There's something I need to tel-..."

"TRANSMISSION ENDED," Said the intimidating voice of my helmet's computer.

Veltrio shook his head, "She must never know. She will partake in it's rewards, but the process... she must never know."

After that he remained still, crouching on the branch of a tree in a forest somewhere. He laid his head against bark for a moment, sighing and shaking his head continuously. Minutes passed by, and the area gradually became alive again (or, you know, as alive as swarms of mosquitos and other bugs could make it seem). The forest was soon teeming with colorful little insects all over, from the lowest puddle to the highest treetop.

But it was getting dark; the clouds above -- gold on the top, rainy grey below -- had blocked out the sun. The downpour was immediate and savage, and in the midst of the rain my host's sight became eluded and unfocused. The bugs disappeared as the area became a blur of large rain drops, obscuring sight of all things save what was immediately in front of me. A few blinks from my host, though, and my sight was sharper than before; worst of all, I felt something move in his eyeballs.

Then there was a recurring beep, soft but not drowned out by the splashing of heavy rain drops. A small flashing icon came up on the bottom-left most of the HUD, with the word, small as fine print, 'DISTRESS' next to it.

Veltrio looked at it for a long second, and from the warning expanded a map of a great section of the forest: around one hundred square miles, more or less. On the map were four arrows heading at great speed towards a flashing red triangle near the center. There was a fifth arrow, though; it wasn't moving.

But when my host turned and galloped with speed quicker than lightning and nimbleness surpassing any other, the dormant arrow started speeding towards the flashing icon at a rate at least thrice as fast as the others. The seventy-eight miles I had to gallop would pass by in less than fifteen minutes, according to an estimate timer on the upper-right.

And as my host galloped like a ghost through the dark forest, he said loud and clear, "Bring up target profile." The left information stream disappeared and was replaced by a picture of a paranoid-looking zebra mare with glyph-like tattoos covering her muzzle and stretching down her neck. Lines of text underneath the picture told of her background and her present day situation. She even had a trivia section, like she was some kind of character in a book; I found that little fact kind of hard to digest.

"Time to catch up on my target," Veltrio said with a snicker, as if not reading up on her before amused him; perhaps he was a procrastinator when it came to things that didn't quite interest him? Because I knew many a pony and zebra who took pride in being 'professional procrastinators'.

"Alright," Veltrio said as he started reading, "Tenexia Ziata is a Dacian tribe psychic, and is considered to be the continent's most telekinetically capable zebra..."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

We stood together in a clearing in the forest, letting the heavy downpour mask us as we pressed our cloaked bodies against the trunks of large trees or submerged ourselves in the growing pools of turbulent rainwater. Veltrio himself stood almost completely submerged in a pond teeming with frogs and insects, while two of the other four of us were face-down in a fairly deep puddle of mud. All-in-all it was quite a bit of stealth precautions, but it was good given who our target was.

Okay, so apparently this mare, this... 'Tenexia Ziata' was a zebra psychic, born in the modern-day Dacian tribe that inhabited the province of Dacia on the Empire's southern borders during the war. When Dacia once more came under the wartime Zebra Nation (they had come under them before, during the ancient times when the Zebras were still the Roaman Empire), the Caesar demanded that all those capable of using their minds to manipulate matter -- telekinesis, which unicorns could tap into easily -- be handed over for experiments to develop potent mental warfare weapons. That was done in other territories forcibly annexed by the Nation at the war's start, and was a major cause for unrest and riots during the war.

Tenexia herself was, through experimentation, determined to be the most capable of these individuals and was to be brought to a facility in Roam, but was freed by her people on the way there. Before the legions could take her down, she was already being transported by traitorous Dacians to Equestria, whom the Dacians sought to ally with because of the pony's respect for telekinetic power; the Dacians themselves had a culture to respect one's mental abilities, and so hated the Zebra Nation for intruding. The transport was shot down over the Teutoberg forest (or the Everfree forest, as the Equestrians called it), but Tenexia escaped further into the woods. Veltrio and his team had been sent on a 9th legion Deus-class aircraft carrier on it's way to destroy a fleet of Equestrian Raptor aircraft before she could inform the Equestrian Princesses of the Caesar's plans.

Now, enough context. Back to the orb.

We were still in the most complete sense of the word; even our hearts had stopped beating, or at least mine did. I blinked not once, nor did I breathe, nor did I even move my eyes a millimeter. Even my mane seemed stiff as a stone. But while the operatives were as calm and unmoving as a flower on a windless day, MY mind was in a frantic panic. Even though all our HUDs were off, and our radios silent, I could just tell that Tenexia was getting close. We had planned to ambush her here, after all. But what if the attack failed? The file said that Tenexia had crushed an Omni with her mind; could we stand up to that? Parts of my head -- 'was it actually MY head?' was the question bothering me at the time -- said yes, others... doubted.

And then she entered.

She looked quite pathetic rather than fierce, actually -- she was thin and pale, and filthy from the experience of trudging through the forest. She wore about her tattered tribal garments of various colors, dominantly light blue, and on her neck she wore a crystal necklace. Her eyes bore this paranoia that marked her a psychopath, and her legs trembled with anxiety as she cautiously stole her way into the flooding marsh, her gaze darting to the trees and branches and rain like a starved dog suspicious of it's own hunting grounds.

But she was dangerous; her very presence bore an aura of power and demanded caution. My eyes snapped to her and stared, glaring hatefully, seeming to loathe this supposedly pathetic wretch of controlling such power. Considering how lowly my host spoke to non-operatives or their patron legates, that was quite possibly the case.

Three people came up behind her -- two glyph-tattooed zebras with light blue cloaks and cobbled-together vests of kevlar and iron, and an Equestrian earth pony soldier wearing green combat armor.

"Tenexia!" One of the zebras yelled over the rain, "We cannot stay here! We must move; the Empire's agents are likely tracking you down already!"

Tenexia collapsed onto the mud in front of the growing pool of turbulent water that one of my fellows hid in, less than a meter from her. She panted with exhaustion, and her face bore an expression of agony. I felt sorry for her; Veltrio growled, kind of like Predator.

"Can you not see she is tired?" The other zebra yelled out, pointing at her. "She's been captive in Imperial facilities for a year, who knows what those Roaman dogs did to her? I say we camp out and let her rest."

"But not here!" The other zebra responded. "This rain will drown us or get us sick! Then she won't be the only one who needs to not exert!"

The earth pony staggered against the wind to reach the zebra mare. He helped her up, getting a faintly thankful smile from her. "We need to move. Can you trot a little more?" He asked, and if it were not for my host's acute ears I would not have heard it. She nodded after some hesitation, and seemed like she wanted to take it back immediately. Then they started slowly making their way back out of the clearing. The other two seemed to be having a disagreement.

My host moved, and my HUD activated to outline in gold four other glass-clear forms as they approached the unaware group. Veltrio growled menacingly as he approached, and his muscles tensed. I had the distinct feeling that, if he could have, he would have just killed her without hesitation -- clearly the Caesar's orders still bore great weight despite the operatives being loyal to their patrons. Three of the clear forms made their way around to flank the group, while I and another phantom of an operative stood right in front of the group.

My host decloaked right behind them.

"Well, filly and gentlecolts," Veltrio said, clear enough to be heard but not particularly loud. "I would be quite glad if you surrendered to Imperial superiority so that I can make your deaths quick and painless."

They turned around slowly, and I saw Tenexia's gaze filled with such frozen terror that her very body stood still as a statue, before shivering violently from the cold and her fear. The pony's mouth went agape as he stared at my host, and he tensed so much he too seemed paralyzed.

The two zebras yelled and pushed them aside from behind, and Tenexia and the pony landed splattering in the mud. The zebras pulled out makeshift rifles of improvised design, and pressed the barrels against the visor of my helmet. My host didn't react, much to their disbelief and looks of paranoia.

"I highly suggest you don't," I said flatly.

Of course, they did the exact opposite.

Under the pressure of their fear and their paranoia, they opened fire and blasted every single round in their magazines against my visor. The thick glass cracked and allowed the bullets to enter, but my host just closed his eyes and let the remaining rounds strike his eyelids. Energy surged to my eyes with every impact, and at last their shooting stopped.

My host reached forward and grabbed them, before opening his eyes and locking one of them with a stare. A stare that... that illuminated his water-glistened form in green. He shook and kicked and yelled in tribal Dacian, as did the other, but my host just held on with no trouble.

"Look into my eyes," My host said demandingly, not in his own voice, but in the voice of a creature; a creature rough and sinister in tone, feral even. A transparent wave of vague green flew through the air and towards his head, and immediately his eyes snapped open and stared into mine.

And then quickly, very quickly, his flesh and clothing turned grey, starting from the chest going out. His arms became so stiff and his chest so still that he indeed seemed like a statue, and his face froze in an expression of absolute terror akin to how someone would have looked had they seen Medusa herself (it was rather coincidental how the situation WAS quite alike to someone seeing Medusa). And then, less than three seconds later, he was nothing but grey, and heavier than he was in weight.

Veltrio dropped the heavy, stone-like, zebra-shaped form while simultaneously crushing the neck of the other zebra, and flung that corpse into the thick bushes. My fellow operatives decloaked next to me -- chuckling and seeming relaxed as only fools could seem like in these conditions -- as I turned around to see Tenexia and the pony wading through the pools and puddles with whatever speed they could muster: not much. The zebra was slowing them both down, such that we simply trotted to them with no problem, despite the water.

The earth pony buck took one looks at us oh so casually approaching, and bade the mare go on quickly. Then he pulled out his own weapon -- a semi-auto shotgun: a Horseshoe-5 anti-infantry model -- and unloaded every shell at us to no effect. Eventually he clicked on an empty chamber, much to our laughter. One of the operatives simply waved a hoof at him and sent a wave of piercing energy at him, and his veins erupted like volcanoes. He crumpled in on himself, and was in a fetal position by the time his dried-of-all-blood body lay on the muddy grass.

"So this is the great Tenexia Ziata, 'she who controls the forces of gravity and inertia'. Oh, what a joke!" One of the operatives scoffed as the zebra mare staggered out of a pool of flank-deep water. She didn't seem like she could go on any longer, though; she seemed on the verge of collapsing just as she was. "Why, a dog in it's early years intimidates better than this... this worthless meretrix."

Another of the operatives spoke up as we circled her and cut her off from her escape route, "Hah! This saeva tribuumve probably just paid for special effects to make her skills seem great or something -- such is the case of the unfounded hubris of barbarians like these." He got up on his hindlegs and spread out his forelimbs, and declared insultingly, "Ah, how useful your skills could have been if you degenerates had joined the Empire willingly."

''Unfounded' my flank, you guys speak for yourselves,' I thought as I heard those ironically VERY hubris-filled words.

Another of us snorted, "This filthy wretch doesn't deserve her power, she's too incapable. You think we can tear her abilities from her later?"

The last of us laughed as the mare staggered and tripped face-first into the muddy grass, "Hahaha! Eheh, thi-this pathetic equine? Why, I'm surprised she can stand at all, considering how f-fragile she is! What's the matter? Bones made of cardboard?"

My host rolled his eyes, a wry grimace on his face; he was the most reserved of us, and for that matter probably the most disciplined -- the others were cocky jerks -- but he still took some joy in all this cruelty. He was just a slightly better beast than the rest of these louts were. "Alright brothers, that's enough. I know what you're thinking Kivlan; you'll have time to spout insults and satisfy your equine urges with her later, as horrid and undeserving as she is. Come, we have a job to do," He said in that horrible, beastly feral voice that was not his own, and the others silenced -- somehow, I felt like they might not have if not for the voice. I stepped towards the crawling, huffing mare. "Come on, morionem, don't make this hard..." I wrapped a hoof underneath her shoulder and started lifting her out of the filth.

Through her huffing and panting, she slowly brought her head up. The mane covering her eyes had an eerily fearful effect on ME, the orb-viewer; it was kind of like the generic horror movie can't-see-the-eyes crap. Still, unlike in those movies and comics, this time it WAS scary.

Her voice was low and threatening as she glared at me, hissing, "Don't touch me, demon." She huffed for a moment as I brought her up. "You and your star-cursed Empire will bring about an age of chaos and destruction and bring an end to all things on this earth." She yanked herself free, and the threat in her voice was such that when she trotted closer, it was my host who took a few steps back. Then she looked me right in the eye, and I got the strange notion it was not Veltrio she was addressing as she intoned, "Your foolish ambitions for control and power through chaos will fail, and then you'll have no one to go to but yourself -- your pathetic, lonely, forgotten, unloved self."

The rain seemed to stop.

A great wave of anger that was somehow... tangible passed through my head, but my host managed to keep control of himself, even as the others growled and snarled as if it were they who had been referred to. I hissed like a crocodile at her, before looking up and seeing a visible sphere of scintillating clear bubble of energy and water around the entire clearing, keeping out the rain and any water from elsewhere from pouring in. My own thoughts were focused on feelings of awe; no unicorn I had ever seen was capable of anything even near this magnitude!

"An impressive little feat," Veltrio commented with receding anger, and reached out a hoof to grab her once more. It felt like his hoof had to punch through a magnetic field to touch the flesh. "Now if you would be so sane as to just come with us-..."

"Don't touch me!" She shrieked in an ear-splitting dual voice with the boom of thunder, and I was at once blasted back with such force that I felt my host's ribcage flex so much it touched my organs. The others flew back as well, and we crashed hard into a tree, smashing through it's thick trunk, before landing in a formerly calm pool of water.

My host growled and snarled, and immediately pulled himself out of the water just as the others were recovering, seeming immensely angered as well. Veltrio's eyes widened at the spectacle before him.

A bubble of thickening ice surrounded the entire clearing and an area beyond it, being added to by the heavy rain drops that immediately hardened into frost and further increasing the bubble's thick width. Rocks and rotting tree trunks were torn to shreds even as they flew through the air to form a tornado of lethal shards around the energy-encased Tenexia, who stood on a dry patch of grass amidst a crater of equally dry soil. Water circulated through the entire area in disorienting whips of ice-spiked lethality. The leaves of the trees detonated away from their branches as though nature itself had gone mad, and the grass and bushes were torn from the ground to add to the amassing tornado around the Dacian psychic.

"I'll never be a part of your schemes! THE STARS HAVE NO HOLD OVER ME!" Her voice emanated from the everywhere around us with terrifying force; from the very soil we stood upon to the very air in our lungs, and from the very flesh on my host to the very helmet on his head.

'Get out of here get out of here get out of here get out of here!' I screamed again and again in my head as mad panic flooded my head.

Of course, we did the very crazy opposite.

Even as the wind within the sphere picked up to reach typhoon speeds, as the rock shards formed together to harden into stone spears and as the leaves blinded our acute vision, we charged like madponies. With a noise like a whistle gathering up behind us, and with motes of our own green telepathic energy flying out from our own minds, we charged to subdue her; a bowed form on an island of serenity among an ocean of chaotic forces, and from whom all this destruction came from.

But Tod was not omnipotent.

No matter what he was, no matter where he came from, Tod's power and influence had limitations. His abominations -- his... 'chimeras' -- were not perfect, they had flaws, much as he would never admit it. They could be defeated even by those supposedly weaker than them, as shown in this memory. When the invisible tide of energy was strong and the winds too fast, and when the obstacles were too great, we were driven back; flung into the air as though we were struck by a wrecking ball. And we spun and spun in the air like helpless dummies, smacking into spears of stone and sharp icicles. My HUD flashed onto the remaining shards of my visor all sorts of unintelligible warnings and suit punctures.

We spun over and over again, and the world reduced to a disorienting blur of dreary colors. Pain erupted through my host's body as we crashed again and again into trees, often breaking them, and into spears and whips of rock and ice. The wind flooded into my visor and dried my eyes, and flooded into my suit to preserve my limbs in a cold chill of icy air. Try as we might, we simply couldn't find something to grab onto, and soon we smacked again and again into the thick sphere.

And then, right at the point when I would have asked my friends to forcibly take me out of the orb out of the sheer endlessness of the torture if I could have Tod's note rang clearly in my ears and reverberated in my skull, and motes of green surrounded me. The noise had this... panic to it -- it seemed frantic and worried, like the mighty emperors of Roam would have felt when their legions fell to barbarians. The note washed into me... flooded into my veins, changing me. Pulses of energy pumped from my heart, and my mind seemed to be bending towards... something. My body was morphing; it was forming into something... monstrous, the likes of which would have stunned me with horror from the mere sensation of it. All these were feelings I wasn't used to or even felt before, even after all the ridiculously strange things I had felt the past month.

And then my helmet cracked wide open and fell of my head, and my suit ruptured and tore off. Green flooded the edges of my vision, and my hearing was muffled to hear only a fraction of the chaos going on around me, yet I could hear everything with supernatural acuity. My blood felt like acid in my veins, burning, agonizing. My mind felt sprained and flattened, and a strange, ever-present ringing pulsated in my head. The body I was in lost whatever nature it had left in it; now it felt as though every movement I made was grinding gears in my limbs and joints, tearing my muscles to shreds. Large and muscular wings extended from my back, and flapped painfully against the wind, forcing me to the earth while my comrades spun in the air helplessly.

The limbs clinging to the earth with ebony talons were not Veltrio's, however monstrous he may have been. And neither were the muscular limbs themselves, clad in scale and carapace, glistening like polished bone blades and wet rocks in the dark. The horns on my head stuck out like long, bony blades, large and terrifying. The wings on my back insulted and disgusted me greatly, and from then on I was not able to feel my wings the same way. The crocodilian tail sweeping the ground in front of me was thick and studded with spikes -- a terrifying sight -- and the growl emanating from the depths of my throat sounded more like the earth grinding itself. The body I inhabited was nothing of this world. It was not anything that could have possibly been natural.

Chimeras were not natural.

And with rage and power beyond what could have been possible, my form charged through the storm and obstacles with such swiftness as to be comparable to an arrow in calm air; my monstrous extremities slammed into the earth as I charged like a bull, tearing the ground open in my wake. Whereas even a manticore would have fought hard merely to keep itself down, whatever I was storming through with no problem. Tenexia's telekinetic tide hampered me only about as much as water would a squid, and her spears and whips broke upon contact with my body. Power burst from my head and manifested itself as green, wavy motes in the air.

And then I reached her, encased in a cocoon of snow flake-saturated telekinetic energy. She seemed as though she were having a prayer session so sanctified that whatever gods or deities existed were trying to protect her. And it was almost as if this... beast I was in existed just to tear away that sanctity.

With a clawful of green and a swipe of my arm, I banished away the frosty wind surrounding her, and at once the the chaos receded -- everything fell to the ground, and the winds stopped almost as quickly as the water splashed onto the soil. Grass and plants littered the place, and there was so much mud it reached almost halfway up my host's large and monstrous form. The other operatives, possessing neither this creature's stamina or durability, panted and crawled, groaning and grunting, on what solid pieces of land near the few non-uprooted trees they could get at.

She just sat there, bowing her head. Soon she started shaking, this time seeming more out of fear than fatigue, even if she had not looked upon me. A gathering wave filled the air in front me, gaining strength. She was going to try it all again.

But Tod had had enough of this, and so with a violent grab at her skull the creature raised her by her head, grabbed her body with the other arm, released her head, and stared into her eyes. The fear in her expression was evident even through her exhaustion. And yet, to her merit, she neither closed her eyes, cringed, begged, or screamed; she glared, scorn and disgust burning in her eyes.

A pulse of energy went to my eyeballs, and they glowed like lamps, illuminating her small, fragile form. She started turning grey instantly, though slowly -- there was... resistance. I could feel it, vaguely, like I was dipping my limbs in thick syrup. It was a sensation I was not un-used to, even if I had never felt it before; I had felt far stranger things for this one to freak me out.

But at last, with eyes narrowed, promising retribution, she was stone.

The creature I was in growled menacingly, loudly, at the statue in it's grasp, sounding so angry and irritated I thought it would have just thrown the petrified zebra to the ground. Instead it relaxed, after some violent snarls, and looked over it's shoulder at the operatives, still recovering from earlier. I growled at them, too -- knowing Tod and/or Veltrio's mentality, whichever one of them currently possessed this creature's thoughts didn't like how 'worthless' they had been in the recent occurrence.

I tossed the statue at them, and it landed hard in the mud. With a voice sounding all too similar to Tod's for me to have any doubt who was in control, I ordered, "Bring that wretch back to your HQ, I will take this... this... surprising form on a little test drive in the Equestrian countryside; see what it's capable of." I turned away from them, and took slow and heavy steps through the mud.

My tone turned thoughtful yet glad as Tod said softly to himself, "It... feels like a... a perfect mix of all the creatures I have assimilated. It is... surprising; I had expected it would take longer to properly blend all the genetic material together. But this occurrence, it seems, has proven that my catalyst is ready." A wicked grin formed on my... 'mouth'. "Good. When Decarius and Autherius join this one in it's perfection, perhaps I can let them lead these people to their salvation; I grow bored of doing nothing else save what has to deal with perfecting these 'Roamans'." He sighed, "Now, if only my brother had as little patience for his duties as I. Then perhaps I could have some more fun screwing around with things."

I took off into the air, flapping my wings hard and blasting the thick mud beneath me apart. The chilly air within the sphere reacted gradually grew warmer, and together with the rain began melting the ice. Before I could do that, though, a shift in my head occurred. It felt as though my head had been filled with living, acidic oil that rang; now, though, it felt... normal.

"Pardon me, Lord," Veltrio said in his beastly voice; at least it wasn't Tod's. "But I must say something first." I turned to face the others on the ground, now looking up at me with what must have been awe. "Brothers! Tell my niece Eiya that I am... sorry that I cannot return tomorrow. She'll be disappointed, so please... comfort her, tell them I'll be okay. Goodbye."

And with that I turned to face the sphere, and with a hard flap of my wings smashed through it. The rain outside had not lightened up, but it was still far weaker than the veritable typhoon that had been inside the sphere. With a sigh, my host closed his eyes, and the shift in my head occurred again.

"Strange..." Tod said, "I had thought I had this one's complete loyalty and attention, but it seems he cares too much for his family to let me erode it... curse these Roamans and their strong family ties. Ah well, I shall wait and see whether it's detrimental." I started flying low, just over the trees, going deeper into the forest.

The shift occurred in my head again. "My Lord?" Veltrio asked meekly.

The shift came again. "Yeeeeesss?" Tod replied, sounding annoyed.

And again. "Please don't take my love of them away from me. I... I promised my brother I'd take care of them."

There was a long silence, even after control of the chimera had returned to Tod. Finally, though, he replied with a disgusted grimace on his face, "We shall see, child. We shall see."

After a moment of no reply from Veltrio, a grin came onto my host's face. "Oh, how I will enjoy the sadism of this..." And with that, I flew down into the forest, and crashed into the trees in a blur of broken wood and water.

ooooOOOOoooo

My eyes peeled open, literally; I felt the disgusting crust crack and fall to the side as my eyes stared at the metallic ceiling. The air was warm and I felt no vibrations run through the seats -- we had landed, for what reason I couldn't say, and the aircraft was off. The seat was still cool beneath me, indicating we had landed just a while ago. After noticing that I thought of what I had seen in the orb, and groaned loudly, "Damn it, more questions. More mysteries and more questions... I'm never going to get the end of it."

Trust me, at that time it seemed so. While I certainly have solved most of my problems by now, back then the ridiculous amount of questions and mysteries and monstrosities I was being forced to think about damned agitated me. Now, normally people would think a lot about things that bothered them. My problem, or so I thought, was that I was thinking too little about what I had to do. Couple that with the fact that my friends kept telling me I needed to stop exerting myself because I was working too much, and you've got a recipe for major confusion. 'Which was it?' I kept asking myself. Did I do too much, think too much, or the exact opposite? I decided to just screw that train of thought for a moment, and just relaxed on my seat.

And then out of the droning buzz created from the mix of ambient wasteland noise, I heard it.

Music -- rejuvenating, quickly-pulled violin strings.

It was nice hearing it, just resonating through the cabin. The last proper music I had heard was months back. I tried to identify who the artist of the music I was listening to now was; Mozart, I believe. I think it was string serenade... But that doesn't matter right now. At that moment though, it was the most beautiful sound in the world. And it was also breaking my heart, for I knew that such music was almost lost in the world I lived in.

I turned my head to find the source of it, and on the seat opposite me I saw an operative, his forehooves holding a book -- it was Doodle's Roaman book. His visor was clear; I recognized his eyes as they looked back at me. His headset was also a dead giveaway.

"Doomtune?" I asked, getting up and sitting against the backrest.

"Yeeeeeessss...ssss?" He hissed, playfully, and with a snicker afterwards. He shook his head with a chuckle, and placed the book down before turning the volume of his music down. "Okay, now seriously. Whaddaya need, whaddaya want to know? I can guess you're confused right now."

My mind scrambled for questions, for indeed I was confused. I took a momentary glance outside the door, and saw only the tall spire of the Forum, stabbing upwards upon its mountain, untouched. It was so close. It seemed so close now. After a month of suffering and pain, it was so close. Ah, how I remembered the number of days I had thought it would take to get to it. I guess I needed to have an extraordinary amount of good luck to have gotten to the Forum in just three days.

I turned back to him. "Well, for one thing, how long have we been down? And where are my friends? Also, why ARE we down?"

"That's three things," He replied, and shrugged. "For the first question, we've been down for... ten minutes. Second, your friends are inside the Library, clearing the place out. Doodle's just outside, doodling. Heh, Doodle doodling..." He snickered, but continued, "Zaita -- the APC, not the aircraft -- is... well, also in the Library. She likes to go into places vehicles shouldn't go to and do things people do, you notice that? When we were at the dam, she was with us inside the tower overlooking the road. I swear, vehicles are getting stranger and stranger..."

"Alright, let's not get off-topic. Where are we and what Library is this? And, again, why are we down?" I interrupted, and... now that I think about, I may have sounded rude.

He cocked his head at me, seeming confused. "The Library? Oh you know, the Great Library of Alexandria, recreated by the Roaman Caesars after Julius destroyed the original. Damned thing's practically untouched by the apocalypse. Can't say the same for the stuff inside; most of that was paper, but who knows?" He shrugged, "I guess it isn't surprising you don't know about it. News of its construction was only placed in official history when it was finished, and that was just a year before everything went to hell. Still, it's a damned marvelous sight -- your friend Skyfire told me you like stuff like this, you should check it out. I was just here to watch over you while they cleared it out." He relaxed for a moment, seeming to think that his answering was over. Then he remembered, "Oh yeah, as for why we're down.... something about needing to recharge the aircraft or something."

I nodded my head once, slowly. "So you've been staring at me for ten full minutes while listening to your music?" I asked.

"Well... yeeeaaah," He drawled.

"And no one is around, except Doodle, who's outside?" I continued.

"Yeeaaah..."

I stared at him for a moment, and he stared back. "That's really creepy, dude."

He rolled his eyes, bemused. "Yeah, let's not go down that train of thought. Just go talk to your friends inside or something; I've got to clear the surrounding vicinity. Predator would have if he was here, but I guess I've practiced room-clearing well enough."

That got my attention. "Predator's not here? Where is he?" What, did he fall out of the transport on some die-hard, unnecessarily convoluted extraction plan or something? Because that actually didn't sound so unlikely, considering him...

Doomtune shook his head, "He's at the dam; he figured that someone had to take care of that piece of business. Madran told him to go with you, but he was determined to take care of it. Last I heard he was breaking through the defenses to the control room. Who knows, maybe the Legionnaires at the dam are already retreating if he already took the defenses down. That'd be convenient, and it'd end that stalemate." He shuddered; clearly, there were things he did not like to remember about that battle. "Anyway, Madran sent me with you instead; she thought that, with a threat as big as this, that we Specters need to have a little part in stopping it." His tone turned determined as he continued, "I think it's appropriate. I swear, if the Legion uses a single one of those megaspells, I'll kill 'em. And NOT in the absurdly gory manner I'm sure Predator would, just so you know; I'm not that kind of guy."

Huh. So Predator had gone off to wrap up the dam business? Well... that made some sense, I suppose -- although what motivated him to do that eluded me. Was it a sliver of compassion for those who needed the water, a desire to not let the sacrifices of his fellows go to waste, or something else? While I was glad that that particular concern was being addressed, yet I could not help but feel a tad disappointed; it's crazy, I know, but at that time I had grown so used to the guy -- and his depressing and philosophical, not to mention thought-inducing, statements -- as to find his absence... unsettling.

"Is he rejoining us?" I asked, hoping to find a definite answer.

Doomtune tapped his helmet for a moment. "Meh, who knows. Crazy bastard's unpredictable. Still, he's been known to do everything he has to settle business, so if you've got some kind of transaction or whatsoever with him, chances are he'll come back, yeah."

Well... he did want to accompany us going to the Forum. I just hoped that that really held sway with him. I got up off my seat and stretched my back. "Well, I guess I should go to the Library, then. My friends are inside?"

"Yeah, just take the stairwell down. You'll find them, even if the place is absurdly large for a library."

Stairwell? "Are we on the roof?"

He got up as well, picking up Doodle's book as he went. "Yeah, Zaita figured that since we're in Legion territory, we'd less likely get spotted by patrolling auxiliaries if we were on top of something." Then he trotted outside, and as soon as he cleared the doorway called, "Doodle, let's go. Goldwreath's awake. Thanks for the book, by the way."

Doodle approached the operative, a piece of paper in her mouth, and gently took the book from his hooves. She then stuffed the book under her shirt, and said around the paper, "I just need to show mister Goldwreath something, I'm sure he'll love it!" Then she started trotting to me.

He paused a moment. "Of course you do," He said blankly, and trotted out of sight.

I met Doodle halfway, and she eagerly raised up her muzzle to show me the paper. I took it from her, expecting nothing more than some poorly-drawn stickponies or something.

My mouth fell down, my mind reeling at the amazing quality and detail of the... the augustness on the paper before me. Why in fact, I'll go so far as to say that the drawing in my hooves was the most detailed and well-drawn sketch I had ever held and touched! The detail was as impeccable as Roaman designs! The technique, the shadowing, the stroking... all of it was perfect! Why, this... art was the single greatest thing to bless my hooves with non-lethal glory since leaving my home!

On the wrinkly brown paper was a drawing of me wearing a suit of praetorian lorica segmentata -- which is also one of the reasons I loved it so much; call it vanity if you want. My wings, glorious and with ruffled feathers, were spread out wide and proud as I stood upon a rock on the grassy slopes of a hill, the sun almost directly behind me. My centurion shield was strapped to my side, and my plumes were flowing in the wind, along with a long and thick cape. The expression etched on my face was determined yet vaguely relaxed -- something I wish I could have been -- as I looked down the hill. On the grass next to me was a tall staff topped with an eagle, below which was a hanging banner with the letters 'SPQR'.

"Do you love it?" Doodle squealed, eyes wide and mouth locked in a grin. I could almost hear her little filly heart beating from excitement.

"I... wow, it's really good," I said, and wanted to face-hoof from how much my statement did not do justice to the epicness of the art. And with desire to correct that burning in my heart, I picked her up and raised her above my head, "Doodle, it is the SINGLE GREATEST DRAWING my hooves have been given the privilege to touch! Why, it's... it's absolutely stunning! You MUST show this to the others, for their eyes too must be blessed with this sight! Come, I shall bring you to them myself!"

"Weeee!" She squealed as I tossed her onto my back and darted around the corner of the aircraft.

I was almost immediately blinded by the absurdly bright afternoon sun's light, but I recovered before I crashed into something in my blindness. 'Sometimes I wish this city had more clouds,' I thought.

About ten meters away was an arched structure of yellowish marble, underneath which was an open arched doorway leading to a flight of stairs, the railings lined with scarlet and red cloth. My heart was beating with vigor, and I was more than eager to show my friends the amazingness of Doodle's talents.

"Hold on tight!" My wings flapped hard, and I flew quickly across the space to reach the doorway. I somersaulted down the spiral stairwell, catching Doomtune as a blur as he descended the absurdly numerous steps, and before I smashed into the ground spun again. I extended my wings to catch some air resistance, and flapped slowly until I landed softly on the tiled marble floor.

"We have arrived! Doodle, seek out my friends, I shall do the same! They must... must..." My awe and wonder left Doodle's art... and was replaced with EVEN MORE awe and wonder for the sight before me.

"This is one big library..."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

If there's one thing I absolutely loved about that day, it was my own love for everything Roaman, for it allowed me to find joy in the architectural greatness of the city. I could only imagine how I would have felt if I didn't like Roaman stuff or, Goddesses forbid, disliked Roaman designs (how truly horrible that would have been). As it was, my heart was bursting with overwhelming fanboyism as I eyegasmed again and again at the sight before me.

The Great Library of Alexandria was not called that without good reason. It was at least three-hundred square meters in surface area, not counting the external staircase and pavilion that every great Roaman structure had. Hundred foot high pillars of intricately detailed and sculpted white marble held aloft the great and arched roof, which was also made of white marble. Bookshelves of finely crafted -- yet sadly moldy -- wood stood up to at least half the height of the entire structure, and crimson banners of great heroes and worthy emperors hung from golden supports overhead, seemingly untouched by the war. The second floor balconies on both sides of the structure extended the entire length of the library. White statues of legionnaires and centurions upon obsidian pedestals lined, with regular intervals, the main walkway of the entire library, which thirty or more people could trot abreast. Arched windows allowed the lingering light of afternoon to flow in, and illuminated the countless scrolls and books and statues and banners and columns in gold. The general color of white in the area reflected the light perfectly, and the entire interior seemed a blur of golden light and of hazy golden walls and pillars.

The apocalypse had, of course, taken some toll -- on the floor were scattered about dozens of parchments and books; all priceless in worth yet uncared for. The walls were cracked, and little puddles sprang up here and there where rainwater had pierced the roof. And saddest of all were the banners and the edges of the windows, for the balefire had singed them both, marring their perfection.

Still, it was in damned good shape for a post-apocalyptic structure.

"Eeeuuughhhhh..." I hummed dumbly as I stared with wide eyes at the majesty before me, and drool started dripping off the sides of my muzzle. I also could have sworn that the inside of my nose started bleeding, even if no blood was coming out.

Doodle got off my back. "Miss Myst! Miss Skyfire! I want to show you something!" She called, her voice echoing, the widest grin ever on her face. She rounded on me, and said as she squeezed her little filly cheeks in her hooves, "Their reactions are gonna be so awesome!"

Out of the corner of one of the bookshelf corridors came Myst, her eyes looking at me as if wondering just what could be so interesting. Then from one of the support columns spanning the width of the library above came Skyfire, the pegasus seeming at least partially awe-struck.

They both approached me. "What is it?" Myst asked.

"If it's something awesome, then I don't think any other day could match today!" Skyfire laughed as she landed.

I looked to Doodle with a grin on my face. "It's your art, you show them." Then I leaned in closer and whispered, "Like you said, their reactions are gonna be so awesome!" And indeed, I was quite excited to see the reactions of my friends to Doodle's talents.

A squeak escaped her mouth as she grinned ear to ear, took the drawing from me before trotting forward. Skyfire took it first, and laid it on the ground to look at it. Her eyes widened, and she blinked several times over. "Wh-where'd you get this?" She asked, so awed she stammered.

Myst gently nudged her friend away, yet Skyfire' eyes were glued to the picture. Myst looked down, and an expression of such pure bafflement exploded onto her face. Her mouth worked as she tried to speak, but all that came out was a groan. Then she cleared her throat and looked at Doodle. "Wow... it's really good," She said, shaking her head blankly, as if trying to piece together how a filly could have done this.

"Thanks!" Doodle piped. "What do you think of how I made mister Goldwreath look? Did I do anything wrong? I don't want to make a similar mistake when I draw you guys too!"

"No, no!" Myst interrupted, waving her hoof to stop Doodle. "It's perfect as it is. It captures him so well! The detail, the posture... it makes him look so..." She looked at me and smiled. "... so heroic."

I blushed and looked away, and ruffled my plumes with a hoof. Surely it made me look like the stuff of legends, but come on, I was far from heroic in real life... or so I thought. Truth be told, now that I look back at myself, yeah, I was heroic; call it vanity if you want, but I'm not deprived of self-worth, nor am I now a self-loathing jackass.

Doodle squealed on delight, but Skyfire's genuine awe suddenly disappeared. Instead she sighed, and seemingly forcing an calm expression, turned to Myst and said in tone that was casual, "Yeah, heroic. Just like, uh..." She looked around, and her eyes lingered on a centurion statue, who coincidentally seemed to be in an almost exact position as I was in the drawing. Maybe Doodle had used it as a model, I don't really care, the art was still spectacular nonetheless. "... like that guy!"

Myst looked at her, eyes half-closed and sad-looking. Then she shook her head, and before Skyfire could see her expression she changed it to something more casual. "Yeah, he kind of does," Myst said, suddenly acting casual as well; at that time I thought that all this strange behavior was coming from both of their desire for me, and I was not proven wrong. You'll see what I mean.

It was just then that I felt a light, warm and continuous flow of air blow against my himdlegs. I turned, and found myself face-to-camera with Zaita, the APC sloped down so much and hovering so close to the ground that I didn't even know HOW she didn't fall from lack of proper propulsion. For a moment her camera was at full-zoom and staring at Doodle's drawing, then it turned to look at me. The sensation of having Zaita's camera zoom in on me like that was not one I had felt in like a week, and so it felt a little disgruntling at the time.

The camera turned between the drawing and myself several times, and all of us just stared back at her. Even Doomtune, who just then finally reached the bottom, stood where he was and looked on. The look in his eyes almost screamed, 'I told you she does stuff that regular people do.'

"What a remarkable piece of art," Zaita said. "I shall document it and digitalize it in my spare time. Perhaps when Doodle has drawn all of you, I can make it into my wallpaper." Then she hovered past me, and there was a soft click as her camera snapped a picture of Doodle's art on the ground. Then without a word she left, leaving a very awkward silence in her wake. She hovered to the very last bookshelf, and turned the corner, playing elevator music as she went.

"Hey!" Doomtune shouted as he galloped past us. "Come back here! You're useless without a gun operator!"

I couldn't help myself. What just happened was just so random and somehow extremely entertaining at the same time that I could not hold back my long and definitely out of place laughing. I finally regained control of myself after a moment, and saw that Doodle was looking up at me with a confused little smile. The other two looked amused, though they shook their heads.

"Ah, Zaita, how your demeanor amuses me..." I murmured, and sniffed away the last of my laughter. My tone turned more serious yet still relaxed as I asked, "So, is the place clear? Okay for exploring? 'Cause I would LOVE to check the place out a bit."

"I can tell," Skyfire grinned. "You're absolutely beaming with excitement! I can see it on your face, that... gleeful joy in your eyes." She smirked at me, but not smugly, "It's good to have something that you love to look forward to, eh?"

I was quite taken aback by that. Skyfire, speaking like that... don't get me wrong, it was nice to see her sympathize with me -- whoever didn't get taken aback by Roaman glory was an absolute fool -- but... where was this coming from? Was Skyfire not one to speak in short, simple sentences? Or long ones, saturated with profanities? She had just spoken dramatically, like... well, me. Was this... was this actual change from her pure motivation of revenge? Hell yes if it was!

I smiled at her, "Hell yeah it is."

"Well," Myst said, "We explored most of the main chamber, it seems safe. Apparently the balefire didn't destroy the gates, and that seems why no one's been able to get in. Don't know why the Legion didn't try, though." She turned and started trotting, but looked over her shoulder at me as she went, saying, "So yeah, place should be good to explore. I'd keep your guard up anyway, though."

Skyfire nodded, "Yeah. If you need me, I'll just be... I don't know, looking through the aisles." Then she turned around, murmuring under her breath, "I wonder if they have an action section here... It'd probably all be in Zebra, though..."

Doodle galloped to catch up to the pegasus. "Ooh, help me find the history section!" Skyfire gave the filly a quizzical look, but shrugged and smiled.

Then they went their separate ways, going down one aisle or another, looking to take advantage of the wealth of knowledge. At the farthest edge of the room, on the other side of the main walkway, Doomtune opened the large bronze gates that had sealed off the library for years. Light flooded in and landed on the marble tiles, and at once the very thin crystalline lining in-between the tiles of the library lit up like gold neon lights; they were probably some kid of magical building materials of some sort.

I took one last look at the library before me, and trotted down the main aisle. I had no definite destination, for I had so many things I wanted to read. I also wondered just how Myst and Skyfire and Doodle would enjoy the literature here, for only the first of them knew any Imperial, and even then not much.

But despite that, a wide grin crept onto my face, and it would not fade away. A surge of pure awe and excitement shot through my veins. A nagging thought repeated itself in my head again, and would not go away:

'Literature and philosophies, accessible in my Stable only through computers... now... tangible. This place feels like... home. A real home.'

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"... et ut sic fecit Carthago cadat ad legiones Scipio," I read aloud, finishing the article explaining how the city of Carthage fell to the Roaman legions of Scipio. I blinked my eyes hard and got down onto all fours, and massaged my forehead. Myst would have been dissapointed in me, for I did not heed her advice of keeping my guard up; all my attention had been glued to the book I was reading.

I had read a straight one-hundred pages of Roaman history, starting from the very first days of the Republic. Less than an hour had passed, and now my eyes were sore and my head tired. Doodle and Skyfire's interruptions and shenanigans from the nearby aisles didn't help. But despite all that I was proud of myself for having passed the self-test I had given myself. As it turns out, my mind still was functional!

I sighed contentedly and placed the book reverently in my saddlebags, along with fifteen other books I decided to read after we left the Library. It may have been a lot of reading material, and for certain I was not completely fluent in Imperial Zebra, but hey, practice makes perfect. The light outside was beginning to turn heavily orange; it was getting late into the afternoon.

With wonder in my heart, I trotted out of the ancient Roaman history aisle -- which had what must have been hundreds of books and parchments, and was just one of the fifteen aisles under the history section -- and found my self idly trotting towards the stairs going up.

So apparently the entire library had been divided into two sections: the Imperial Zebra section and the Equestrian section, which took up the right and left halves of the Library, respectively. Each aisle and each section had it's exact copy -- except in language -- opposite of it; the Nation supposedly had a large number of pony citizens, and was gracious enough to have an exact copy of every document in the Imperial language translated into Equestrian. The upper floor was for the more advanced subjects, such as advanced ballistics under the advanced sciences section, while the lower floor was for more rudimentary stuff, like foal's books in the more modern-looking squared-off cubicles or basic geometry in the basic mathematics section.

Yes, I only all found that out only after looking over the entire library over from the second floor, as it was from up here that I could finally read the faded signs -- in Equestrian and Zebra -- that indicated the identity of the sections and aisles. It was also because of looking over the Library from up here that I must again that it was absolutely massive. Zaita, who hovered above the bookshelves and in-between the aisles, which were actually big enough for her, was barely the width of one of the columns upholding the place. Skyfire and Doodle, who were on the other side of the ground floor, were almost small as dots. In fact, the other side of this place was almost invisible through the fog created by the dust.

But the much more... beautiful things, much closer to me, were quite visible and clear.

Yes she was beautiful, even if she was just looking at the different books, contenting her own desires and curiosity as she saw fit. Even if she barely moved any part of her, save her head and eyes. Even if she made no noise but the sounds of her hooves, her curious hums, her cutely puzzled whines as she struggled to read the text...

Yes, those were the things Myst did as I stared at her from my perch, unable to hold back my smile. I just watched, finding myself looking forward to her next move, however minute or irrelevant. I couldn't find purpose a practical reason for it, yet I couldn't bring myself to look away. The mere sight of her held my eyes prisoner, and the strangest... a queer feeling emanated from within me. Warm and kind, alert and prepared. It was... good. Today was good, even after what had happened earlier today.

'Not everything in the wasteland's bad,' I thought, 'There are some good things. Good things which people would do well to appreciate, living in a bleak world. Good things that have withstood the harshness of the apocalypse.' Ah, how that thought comforted me as I looked on at the earth pony. I won't lie, at that moment I felt happier than I had since leaving my home. And I had both a mare and a city of greatness to thank for that. They helped me to stay sane, to fight off the troubles of the world.

To find some meaning in this life outside.

After a few more moments of admiring her from afar, she trotted down the aisle. Her gaze just so happened to glance upwards, at me. She paused, seeming surprised, but then smiled warmly. I smiled back, and waved a hoof at her, half a hundred feet below me. Her smile widened, and she gestured for me to come down. With an eager nod, I extended my wings and glided down, landing softly on the tile in front of her. I looked up at her, and gave her the best good-natured smile I could; it felt good smiling, all the more now that I had someone to smile for. That was new to me, as I had never genuinely had someone to smile for.

I took a little step forward, asking, "You called?"

She nodded with a smile, and said with barely suppressed excitement, "I wanna show you something. Come over here." Then she took my forehoof with her own, and pulled me a little way before letting it drop. After it did, I took a moment to pause and stare at my hoof, just recently touched like that... by a mare... who wasn't my mother... Oh, how it made my heart flutter!

She noticed my pause, chuckled, and called out from a little way ahead, "Hey, you wanna see it or not?"

I shook my head clear of my awe, and it was at once replaced with embarrassment. That was NOT a good first impression of the level of my attentiveness! "Er, sorry! Coming, coming," I said with receding shame, and cantered over to her.

She stood in front of a set of books on the ground, ones she had collected in a little pile. Their titles were obscured, though they possessed a general color of red, in many shades. Upon my arrival, she turned to me, picked up a book and handed it over to me, grinning excitedly.

I read the title, "De Arte Neglexit." A touched smile crept onto my lips, even if I had absolutely NO idea what a book titled 'The Art of Caring' implied in this situation. I looked to her. "Soooo... what does it mean?"

Myst chuckled with amusement at my obliviousness, and it was the most lovely sound I'd ever heard. "Oh Goldwreath," She said, "You don't know what it's supposed to mean?" Well, I didn't. You'd think that someone who had gotten as little social contact with others as I did would be as socially unknowledgeable as I was, yet here was Myst: a mare who knew more of social paradoxes and interaction than I did.

I shook my head in shame, ears drooping. "No."

She smirked, "You do know what section this is, right?"

I scrambled my head to remember; I had spotted it when I as up there. Through a cloud of emotion-saturated memories, I managed to pull the one tidbit of info I was looking for.

Oh... well, this was... quite a surprise. "It's the... the romance s-section," I said lamely. Then I perked up and smiled. "That's so... erm... sweet, I think..."

'I'm a fucking idiot when it comes to this stuff.'

She smiled sheepishly; at least I now knew I wasn't the only one who was finding this interaction awkward. "I um... well, I thought that, since we're kind of, you know, in a... relationship, that I should try to, you know, know how to act, and stuff..." She scratched the back of her head nervously. "So that I could, maybe... well, maybe know how to talk to you and whatnot..." She continued, tapping her hooves nervously and looking aside, flushing.

Oh. Oh, how my heart was fluttering at this! I blinked twice as the emotion rushed through me, but relaxed and said far more confidently this time, "That is SO sweet."

She looked at me, grinning sheepishly. "Really? Oh, oh good! 'Cause I wasn't really sure if it was the right move to, you know, look for something like this." She paused, and looked at the ground sadly. "I... thought it would make me look stupid if you found out..."

Seeing her like that broke my heart, and so I raised her head by the cheek to look her right in the eyes. They were filled with shame... shame that had to be eradicated! "You're not stupid, Myst. That's not true and never will be. How you act and what you say doesn't matter; just be yourself." That in its own was very much the truth; at the least, she would always be smarter at that stuff than I would ever be. I pulled her a bit closer and smiled down at her. "You're good just the way you are, Myst."

She stared up at me a bit, and smiled too, blushing. A disbelieving smile crossed her lips. "Really?" She asked, as if she were asking for absolute assurance.

I nodded, "Really."

She looked at the ground again, this time smiling. Her eyes darted a few times between the floor and me, and she shifted uncomfortably. Clearly the apparent seriousness of which we were discussing this peculiar topic was getting to her. It was definitely getting to me.

Then she leaned in closer to me and placed a hoof on the one I was using to hold her face up, much to my surprise. The other hoof she used to stroke my shoulder, and even through my chain mesh, the feeling of her touch sent shocks through my nerves. I absent-mindedly wrapped a hoof around her neck, onto her mane, and pulled her closer such that out foreheads touched.

We were like that for a moment, just... well, cuddling's the term, I think. My mind was lost in the moment, just feeling what was going on. And she seemed to be doing that too. We didn't make any sudden movements, until at last she sighed, "So... what are we going to do now?"

I narrowed my eyes. "I don't understand."

"With the relationship, I mean," She explained. "How do we go on with this? Do we... do we... well, I don't actually know what to do. The books seem to say that relationships need to keep moving forward, albeit at adjusted speeds, but... well, I'm not sure. What do you think? Are we going too fast?"

"I have absolutely no idea if we are; I... don't know anything about relationships. For now, let's just follow what you said," I offered, and she looked up at me with confusion. "Let's get to know each other first."

She smiled at that, seeming content with the answer. "Alright," She nodded her agreement, and seemed like she was about to pull away.

Then I kissed her.

I know, I know. 'Goldwreath, awkward much?' 'Goldwreath, you sure that was a good move?' 'Goldwreath, you dog!' Things like that are probably going through your mind; I'm not sure, I'm not you. Truth be told I myself wasn't sure why I did that. It just seemed... right. Like the moment was just asking for it. Like we both wanted to, but were too... too afraid to do it. So I decided to not the opportunity slip. After all, when else would I get the chance to kiss a mare in the Great Library itself? Once in a lifetime opportunity right there.

When I finally pulled away, feeling somehow proud yet anxious at the same time, I was left to see a very shocked, very wide-eyed and very flushed Myst. She looked at me blankly for a second, then said shakily, "OKAY. Well, I guess we can start getting to know each other like that, I guess." Her surprise receded, giving way to a smile. She took a quick step forward and planted a kiss on my cheek, and whispered sultrily in my ear, "You really should see the rest of the place, though; I know you love this sort of stuff, you shouldn't spend all your time on me." Oh, but I so wanted to.

She gave me a nudge back out the aisle, and finally turned around. I had the urge to follow, and managed to take a few steps forward before she looked back at me, and raised an eyebrow. I stopped dead in my tracks. She smirked, "Caught between me and Roam, are we?"

I flushed, and replied slowly, "Well... much as I love Roam... right now, you have my attention. I've given the city a month, least I can do now is give you an hour or two." She looked taken aback by that. Perhaps she had thought that, due to my apparently intense love of the city, that I would never say such things. I'll admit, it surprised me, too.

But as glad as she seemed to hear that, she gave me a gentle push back towards aisle's exit. "Now now," She said, NOT in a typical Myst tone of anxiety, which worried me. "That's nice of you to say, but we aren't going to be here forever. Best enjoy what's limited while you can, right? Give the city a few more hours, I'm always with you, anyway."

"But... but but..."

She yet again raised an eyebrow at me. Then she rolled her eyes. Then without a word she turned around, leaving me right there where I was, feeling on the verge of crying. I... had thought that... I just thought that she'd, I don't know, be more willing to spend time with me. Was this something people in relationships did often?

I gulped and turned too. She was right, she was right. I probably wouldn't get another chance to come here, might as well use what time I had. I guess that was her way of caring for me; she cared for me enough to know that I probably wouldn't forgive myself if I missed out on this place. Heh, smart mare.

And so, hard as it was to do, I turned and started trotting away.

On the very edge of my hearing, I heard her declare in triumph, "Yes! Tip number three does work!" Heh, not so smart after all.

I had made it not very far, in fact I was just passing by a column in the main walkway, just a little way from the Imperial romance section, when one voice stopped me dead in my tracks:

"M-Myst? You're in the romance section too?" Skyfire sounded genuinely surprised, and maybe even a bit shocked. My eyes popped wide open, and I involuntarily found myself rushing the column and pressing myself against it to listen in on their conversation. This I had to hear.

Myst's startled gasp resonated through the air with surprising clarity, "S-Skyfire? Oh... um... Hi."

"Uh... hey. Don't mind me, I'm just... looking at books," She replied slowly. There was a momentary pause, then Skyfire spoke, cautiously and nervously, "So... what books are you looking at?"

"Oh, well, um..." Myst stammered.

"Those are romance books, right? We are in the romance section, after all." Skyfire prodded, a knowing tone in her voice.

"I, uh... well, no!" There was a pause. "Well... actually, yeah, they... are," Myst admitted. I could just imagine how she looked just then: ears drooped, eyes to the ground, and scratching her forehoof with the other. Then suddenly she asked with suspicion, "Why? What's so wrong if I'm here? There are lots of good stories here, maybe I just wanted to read them."

"Do you?" Skyfire prodded.

Another long, awkward pause. "Well... yeah," Myst replied firmly. Then she asked, slowly and carefully, "Um... how about you? Why are you here?"

"Well..." Skyfire started. "I was... kind of looking for some romance books, too. Novels. I never really read, but... you know, interests can pop up out of nowhere." Then she chuckled mirthlessly for a moment.

"Oh..." Myst replied. "Well, the Equestrian versions of these are over there. These are all Zebra, you wouldn't understand them."

"Thanks," Skyfire replied, not sounding entirely thankful. There was the sound of hooves on the floor for a moment, but they stopped. "Why are you in the Zebra language half, anyway?"

Myst eeped. "Well, I-I thought that, maybe, to practice my, um, language skills! Yeah that's right, that I should, you know, eheh, read the Zebra ones!" Wow, that did NOT sound convincing at all.

"Uhuh..." Skyfire replied, sounding suspicious. "... right. You sure about that? There's no... other reason you wanna get fluent in that language?"

"What are you getting at?" Myst replied, sounding falsely annoyed; I believed her annoyance was fake, for Myst simply didn't seem like the type to get annoyed by this sort of thing.

Skyfire sighed.

"W-why are you looking at me like that?" Myst asked in a stammer. "There's really no other reason. I just want to read these books and practice my Imperial at the same time. Really," She added firmly.

The pegasus took a deep breath. "Myst," Skyfire said slowly, "I know."

My limbs turned to jelly, and I slumped against the column. An even longer pause ensued.

"Y-you... you do?" Myst asked softly, yet loud enough for me to hear it. The level of disbelief in her voice matched how much I had in me. How could Skyfire have known?

Skyfire sighed, "Well, it was kind of obvious. You guys suck at lying." Oh... yeah, I guess we kind of did.

The sound of hooves came again. "Skyfire... I... don't know what to say..."

"There's no need to say anything. I can't force him to be into me," Skyfire replied with a sigh. "What can I say? I'm too... too reckless, too... unstable for him. I'm not his type." There was a shaky exhale, and she said slowly, "You are. Heh, good for you..." She sniffed.

"Skyfire..."

"No, it's okay Myst. I'm fine, I'll get over it. I already have you guys as friends; friends are more than I expected to have when I crashed here. I'm happy for you guys. Don't worry about me." She paused, and I heard her let out in a shaky breath, "You... you just watch out for him, alright? Keep him safe; help him to... to stay sane. People tend to go crazy when something bad happens to them, eheh." She sniffed again, and started trotting away.

"Skyfire," Myst called, and the trotting stopped. "I'm... so sorry."

A long, long pause ensued, and only the thunderous beating of my heart was heard in my ears. The tension of the moment was almost too much, and I almost galloped away at full speed. Oh, how shameful that would have been.

"There's nothing to apologize for," Skyfire replied, and the sound of her wings blowing against the ground came. I looked out from behind the column just in time to see her flying outside through the open doorway.

I closed my eyes and laid my head against the wall, feeling my lips quiver from what I just heard. So... this was the price of happiness. To attain my own, anothers had to be destroyed. Was that it? Not everyone could be happy all at once? Was that how the world worked?

I sighed. Yes, it was. Much as I would have wanted for everyone to find some meaning in their lives, it wasn't like that. The world and society was too cruel to let it be like that. Not even Roam, nor Equestria, had attained universal joy.

But it wasn't the world keeping us like that; quite the opposite, it was our own evils that kept the world as it was.

To fix the world on a societal scale... we had to fix ourselves. And by Celestia, Luna, and the gods of Roam, I so wanted to be the one to change it, this... plague of greed and selfishness. A glorious, peaceful future for the next generation depended on it.

But how do you fix a people who evolved for survival?

I got up and started trotting aimlessly, that question resonating within the depths of my mind. What joy I had was gone, my heart left cold and barren. The light in the Library itself seemed to have gone dim, marring its radiant beauty. There was no one to talk to about something as absurdly ambitious as fixing people. Not Myst. Not Skyfire. Not Doodle. Not anyone.

But as I ascended the stairs, a thought just so happened to drift into my head.

'There is only adaption; it justifies all actions.' Yes... perhaps, but what of the situations surrounding adaption could be manipulated? What if... what if a new set of conditions could be set for society to grow upon?

These were quite ambitious thoughts, mind you. Even I had to acknowledge the severity and the depth of my ideas. But now I knew who to talk to about changing the way people think. He was a person heralded as a demon, yet fought heroically against himself to spare others suffering. Someone who understood both the spectrums of good and bad, and was familiar with the ways of the world.

Predator.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I spent the rest of the afternoon pouring through the psychology section, scrutinizing and analyzing every single paragraph I could find on the inner workings of people and how they acted in society. Most of it fell upon my head unabsorbed, for to understand most of it I needed a lot of prerequisite social intelligence, which I barely had any of. That frustrated me; curse my lack of social knowledge! It would be the death of my ambition for a civilized society.

Even as I wanted to press myself to keep reading, it was already nighttime. My eyes were once more sore from having read in the dark, and the scattered pile of books about me did not help to make me feel any more comfortable.

At last I slammed the book shut, and stuffed it into my saddlebags with a few other psychology books. "Useless," I grunted, frustrated and generally NOT in a good mood. "If Predator's coming back to rejoin us, he'd better do it soon; I find the mere notion of asking him for advice once more strange, though." It was true that I did not feel comfortable at with asking for his advice regarding this... ambition of mine, but of all of us he seemed the most knowledgeable in the field of understanding others. For that and the sake of my ambition, I had to put aside my disposition towards him and ask him for his help. If he came back, that is.

I ruffled my mane vigorously and trotted out of the upper floor psychology room, and found that the ground now illuminated itself an entrancing silver. Moonlight shone in through the arched windows and fell upon the white interior, and shrouded the entire area in a white haze.

There was, however, a small fire blazing in between two of the walkway statues, with what appeared to the forms of my friends within it's range of illumination. I took to the air and landed softly atop one of the bookshelves and looked down. Indeed my friends were down there; Doodle was, among all things, curled up like a puppy in and asleep, with her foal's Roaman history book and various pieces of paper and a pencil right next to her. Skyfire and Myst sat opposite each other, both of them reading books. Well... at least they were still friends, and that was a little comforting. I knew for one thing that triangles like these tended to be disastrous. Thank goodness Skyfire wasn't going berserk over this, and even more so that I had some form of assurance of her approval. Whether that approval was genuine... I didn't know.

I glided down and landed in their midst, eliciting a slightly startled gasp from Myst. "Hey guys, sorry I took a while to get here. You really think fire's a good idea, though? What if we accidentally burn this place down or something?" Then I sniffed the air in, and what I smelled surprised me. "And... do I smell potatoes?"

"We'll keep the fire down, don't worry," Myst assured me. "As for the potatoes, I found a few good cans in a convenience store a while back. Skyfire's a vegetarian, so I just gave them to her."

I looked to Skyfire, who was NOT reading a romance book -- it was instead just a book about Equestrian and Roaman tanks during the war -- much to my relief. I don't think I could have handled the guilt trip. As for the food, I did indeed see several steaming cans of potatoes in hot water next to her. It was just then that I noticed I hadn't eaten since... huh, I actually can't remember when I last ate. Nonetheless, I was absolutely famished.

Skyfire gave me a genuine-looking smile and nudged one of them over to me. "Go ahead. Not like I can eat all these by myself right now. The cans aren't that hot, so don't be afraid to handle them. Not like you'd get burned with those heavy rubber boots of yours, anyway." Then she flipped a page, and continued reading.

The casualness of which she acted around me was both comforting and disturbing. She could have gotten over me and Myst, or she could have been lying. If she was, what would happen? Still, at that one moment I really couldn't care; my stomach had overruled all higher thoughts.

I sat down next her -- if she and I were going to be good friends, then I had to be able to act without letting my relationship with Myst control all actions regarding her -- and started carefully pouring the steamed potatoes into my mouth. The starchy taste wasn't much, but at that time it was tasty enough to give me some satisfaction.

I looked them all over for a bit, and looked down at my Pipbuck. It was early evening, six PM. I checked the radio stations, ad was surprised to find that DJ PON3's signal was up. I had been so long since I had heard a broadcast...

I was about to press on his signal's icon, when a thought struck me. "Where's Doomtune and Zaita?"

"I'm right here, Zaita's explorin'," Doomtune called, surprising all of us. We turned around to see him appear into the air out of a flash of blue and walk down the aisle, slowly and deliberately as he coiled a rope in his hooves.

'What's with these guys and always appearing out of cloaking?'

"Whelp, I've got some good news," He said as he got into the fire's range of illumination. He looked each of us over, his eyes lingering for a second on the books we were reading. "The surrounding structures in a one kilometer radius are clear, didn't even have to kill anyone. The Via Triumphos and the Colosseum's alight with activity, though. We might need to keep our heads down if we want to go through the night without someone busting the gates down to check this place."

"The Colosseum?" I asked, "There are people in the Colosseum? In fact, the... the fricking Colosseum's still intact?" That... that was... astonishing! The Colosseum was one of the most famous and prestigious Roaman structures to ever have existed! To know it was still intact, and possibly with improvements made by the Zebras during the war, like they had done with the Oculus Roamae... needless to say that, after what had happened earlier and my frustration at finding nothing useful in the psychology books, that this news was very welcome. I got up off the ground, very much eager to see it, despite the fact it was night. "I would very much like to go there and see it!"

"Hold on there for a second, dude," He said, stopping me with a hoof as I tried going for the door, which I did not notice had been closed. "Colosseum's just FESTERING with all kinds of bad people. Tribals and raider groups, mostly. I've identified most of them; they're NOT enemies of the Legion, or at least not actively at war with them, which may explain why the Legionnaires haven't cleared them away."

Then he sighed and shook his head and said gravely, "Worst is that guy Redeye's slavers. Place is crawling with them, and it seems like they've allied most groups there. Place is like a fucking pirate haven. And seeing how many reports I've seen and heard about them wanting to apprehend you, I really don't think going there's a good idea."

What? WHAT?! A whole arena, turned into some den for all kinds of filth? That was just wrong, how dare those savages occupy the Colosseum! The Legion may not have been entirely true to their supposed purpose of protecting the city, but they at least had to have some care for the city's structures falling into barbarian hooves! It just infuriated me to know that no one seemed to care about the city anymore. Anger boiled within me as the thought of such landmarks falling to scum like those festered in my mind.

"So why haven't the Legion declared war on them, then?" I asked, furious. "Groups like them, especially that Redeye character's slavers, need to be put down. What, has the Legion lost ALL sense of their self-stated goal?"

He shook his head. "I don't know," He shrugged.

My eyes looked him over; he was an operative, and they said they were doing everything they could to improve lives! "And how about you Specters? Huh?" I pointed a hoof at him, and pressed it to his chest. "Why haven't YOU guys taken them out? Why would you let something like this happen?!"

He raised his eyebrows at me, and I saw fury light up in his eyes. "Because!" He said sharply, "We've never infiltrated this far into Legion territory, and it has NEVER been our priority. Our priority's been to help these people. You think it's easy doing our work, even with our resources? Do you want to know WHY we've disregarded the fucking buildings?" He took one of his hooves and pushed me with it, and anger sparked within me.

"Because we've been helping out the people and fighting this war where it's been toughest, not infiltrating the gods damned inner city! Do you know why we're safe right now? Do you know why we can stay here without having the walls blown down on us? That's because most of the thousands of Legionnaires are tearing the city OUTSIDE apart!" He yelled, and the tension within his voice startled me. Myst herself had stopped reading and now simply sat, curled up, in her spot. Skyfire looked on between us, not saying a thing, but tension was brewing on her expression.

He took a step closer to me and looked me in the eye, then pointed at the massive doors. "You go beyond what I've secured, and you'll see raiders the Legion either can't or won't do battle with just trotting on the streets. I don't know why the Legion aren't just wiping them out, and I don't care. Why? Because this place isn't populated with innocents. This place isn't ruined to hell; it isn't burning and collapsing like the outer city is, it isn't smashing undeserving Roamans underneath tons of rubble! This place doesn't need us to fix it up; it isn't desperately calling for our help, not like the people suffering war every day out THERE! This Legion heartland could rot in hell for all I cared!"

At last, with that terrifying outburst out, he took a step back, shaking. The weight of his heavy backpack seemed to double for him, and he fell on his haunches, panting heavily. Skyfire idly and awkwardly put a hoof on his shoulder and patted him, looking up at the roof as she did so. He said softly, "I couldn't care less for the city, it's the people I watch out for. The Roamans; it's the people that make up Roam, not the buildings. Not the buildings..."

We all just watched for a moment, silent. He was right. I loved both the people and the city of Roam, but... but for the last month, I had grown more attached to the latter. The city, after all, would stand even when the people died; it was a legacy that wouldn't fade into dust like bones would.

But it was the people who made the Empire great. From any one of these citizens could come forth another Julius, Marius, Augustus even. In them was the seed of greatness; in them was the future of the Roaman people. Roam was them, not the city.

"I am sorry," I said evenly, contemplating his words. "I did not mean to incite such a reaction from you, I was just... just frustrated, at this news and others. Like you, I too am tired of this fighting." I looked at the door. "I will leave you to calm down awhile. I believe we both could use some time to think."

Myst looked at me concernedly, as did Skyfire. "Goldwreath..." Myst started.

"No, none of that right now, Myst. He is right, but that is not what I need to think of. My thoughts shall wander to more... equinitarian concerns." I started trotting down the walkway, giving the marvelous statues a mere glance as I went. A shame that I gave them only that; in the fiery glow of the firelight and the soft illumination of the moon's silver, they seemed all the more magnificent, like a... a art piece being unveiled from the shadows. As I got further I called back, "I shall be safe, don't worry." That should assuage their concerns, so I thought. And it did, at least such that they didn't try to stop me.

As I went, I thought disappointedly, 'So much for just relaxing and listening to the radio.'

At last I reached the large bronze doors -- carved with images of Roam -- and thought with relief, 'I have no idea why Doodle is always asleep during stuff like this, but I'm glad she is. Her innocent mind must wander free of such heavy philosophies.' Then I slid aside the heavy lock, and with some effort swung the doors outward. Moonlight flooded in, adding to the silvery glow of the tile-lining.

Oh my...

If there's one thing I loved about Roaman architecture and external designs, it was their love of all things big and glorious.

The Great Library behind me stood on its own atop a tall hill, around which was a wide circular garden, divided into four sections like the slices of a pie. High concrete walls with arched gates enclosed the entire area off, and it seemed as though the walls may have been what kept out the post-apocalyptic world. Tall trees, though dead, lined the edges of the wide marble path leading from the foot of the marble staircase to the largest gate, all the way on the very edge of the half a kilometer enclosed perimeter. Tall marble columns, atop which were shadowy forms of statues, stabbed upwards like large needles, dotting the gardens with regular intervals.

Beyond the wall was a much more chaotic and unspectacular scene. A ring of leveled structures of bland gray and dirtied white -- together in sections of four, surrounding the walls of the library like segments of a broken circle -- lay broken and piled on the streets, marring the sight of it all. Fire shot up here and there in the open former-fielded land beyond that, marking explosions of one form or another. Torches were alight en masse on the roads further off, and red-tinged smoke rose to the skies.

And then there was the Forum, standing tall atop its mountain, seemingly untouched by the war. And rising up from a background of destroyed concrete, just far enough from me such that it was obscured by haze yet close enough to easily distinguish, was a structure of cylindrical make, its surface dotted with windows like pores, which were filled with torches: the Colosseum. It stood on its own a mere mile or so from the foot of the Forum's mountain, and the only structures that stood as tall as it were whatever industrial factories whose engineering had proved sufficient against the apocalypse. Doomtune was right, it was alight with activity; I could even see the faint lights of vehicles around it.

But I wasn't going there, not now at least. My attention was more for the immediate vicinity, the gardens, specifically. After that, perhaps I would deign to trot the ruined streets beyond. Doomtune had said it was clear in a one kilometer radius, after all. Of course, I would keep my guard up just the same.

So with thoughts of exploration replacing my immediate concerns -- and with only slight concern for the integrity of my wings -- I flew up into the air and into the night.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

As it turns out, the gardens really weren't all that interesting. Sure, reading the old inscriptions on each of the bronze plates of the different columns -- upon the plates was engraved the history of the Library, ranging from ancient times to when it was built -- was interesting, but it didn't even take me ten minutes to read. And sure the gardens were peaceful and beautiful, as small patches of green grass still clung to life, and what few flowers there were gave the air a soft aroma. And the moon... it casted its rays through the dead branches like the light of aurora, silvery and beautiful.

But it was just that; it was too peaceful, and my mind... my mind at this point was not accustomed to peace. It had been in such a constant buzz that peace now seemed alien to me. And peaceful as it was, it was in the city of Roam. And Roam, after all, was a city of war.

It was for the aforementioned reasons that I quickly grew bored of the gardens and flew above the absurdly thick walls and into the wrecked land beyond. I landed right in front of the gate and found myself on a three-way intersection, with roads coming from both sides and in front of me.

My eyes looked over the scenery before me, and a great sorrow washed into me as I stared up at tall mounds of formerly magnificent structures composing each of the two sections to my front-sides. Two structures in each section still stood, if only partially, though. Skyscrapers, both of them twins. One of them had broken halfway to the top, and the upper half now leaned precariously against its sister structure on the other side of the wide marble street. What appeared to have been a bridge between the two skyscrapers had collapsed, and now formed a barrier blocking the street.

After a few moments of idly staring up at the colossal wreckage before me, I started trotting. I had no particular goal, no destination. Rather, I would use this time to do what I did, in the opinion of my friends, much of: thinking. It's not like I really had anything to do at the time, anyway; Zaita's aircraft was recharging, and I would wait at least until the next day for Predator. Then of course there was the colosseum... I would not leave for the Forum until I had at least stepped within it, so I promised myself.

And so my thoughts drifted off.

First and foremost, my problems. My greatest concern was not the war, nor the chimeras, nor Tod and Tom, nor even the Black Clouds to the south or the mountain artillery in the mountains. It was how much my ambition would drive me to go. For certain I would confront the Legate, but what then? Would I leave it to Predator and Tom to take care of Tod, as they had said? Would I ignore Predator and get myself involved with the chimeras? And what of the monsters in the south? What of them? Would I face them myself, or would I drag my friends with me, that is if I faced them at all? And what of the artillery, of that supposed defense network either Decarius or Autherius had constructed? Why was it shooting at the city?

These were my problems. It was not a question of whether or not I should get involved, as I could refuse to address any single one of them, really. But it was my vision of a... a glorious and reborn Roam that was driving me to face them. The question now was whether or not I could control my ambitions and not get us killed.

And then there was of course the most recent addition to my list of desired achievements: to change this society. People were not machines, they could not be programmed to do what one person wished; they were free, but that freedom could be abused. And it was being abused, for no person should use their freedom to destroy and terrorize, which is what most were using it for.

So then there was a thought that occurred to me. How would I stop them from abusing their freedom? Could I adjust what was, for them, an established set of moral boundaries? Or could I adjust the circumstances that had in the first place made them establish their morality? The second seemed far more feasible, for I didn't know how to... to get into people's heads enough to modify their behavior. Predator, though, could. And Tod and Tom seemed like they could.

So, now I just had to choose between adjusting circumstances, or the people's psychology. To do the latter, if I ever decided to go that way, I would need Tom and Predator's advise on how to proceed. All I had to do was ask them how to obtain their... 'unique abilities'.

I grinned. Yes, I could do that. I could learn from them. I could learn to manipulate these people. I could learn to control them.

Then a massive spike of pain stabbed into my brain, and I winced as I continued onward, blind. "What manner of betrayal is this, brain? Just when I formulate a reasonable plan, you decide to make things hard for me?" I spoke to myself, annoyed, as I massaged my temples with a hoof and closed my eyes.

'No I'm not,' An impish voice replied, smugly. 'I'm just rearranging your head to give you the ability you desire.'

Despite everything, my eyes shot wide open. "No!" I screamed, and I didn't care that it may have been too loud for my liking. I brought my hooves up to hug my head tightly. "Get out of... my h-head!" I grunted as the pain escalated.

'Oh, now that would be no fun!' Tod replied. 'After all, only I can give you the power you desire. You would sacrifice your life for these rabble, why not give me your mind to save them? Is that not a good deal? Certainly better than getting nothing out of dying for these degenerates, anyway.'

I didn't reply. The pain was too sharp and agonizing to formulate even the simplest profanity. I just thrashed around, moving in unguided steps accompanied by pained grunts. "Gods damnit, Tod... get... out of my head..."

That went on for one full agonizing minute, with me just fumbling around clumsily, when my hoof touched the surface of a cold pool of stagnant water. I fell into the water, and was submerged completely in it. Even still, the pain did not leave my mind, and I struggled and kicked around in the cold liquid, losing more my breath with each fruitless action. I couldn't even open my eyes to see how deep it was! I just kept sinking, and the pain stabbed into my head again and again as Tod laughed sadistically.

Then I felt a touch on my foreleg, and something gripped around it. A shock like static shot through my veins and amassed in my head, and the pain immediately receded, much to my relief. I was left numb, and barely registered the contact, but I felt it. I forced all my willpower into my eyes, and slowly opened them, despite the sting of the water. Through the blur, I made out the black form gripping my leg, and glanced upwards to the surface. There was a black shape standing in the way of the moon, with the most oceanic blue eyes glowing in the darkness.

Right when I was about to run out of breath, the form pulled me up and out of the depths and onto the cold, hard asphalt. My lungs spasmed and coughed the water out while I struggled to regain my breath. I felt weak and slow, my limbs not wanting to move. The pain had receded, but it was not gone, and instead it was now a pulsating throb in my head.

The form rolled me onto my back, and I managed to get a look at my savior in all his shadowy obscureness as he kneeled next to me. What I saw surprised me, but before words of confusion could slip out of my mouth, he asked slowly in a voice benevolent and deep, yet sharp and demanding, "Why are you here?"

No words came out of my mouth, and no matter what I tried my mind could think up no response. It was just silent, as if afraid; I could sense fear, yet it was not my own. It belonged to whatever was inside my head.

Through some effort, though, I did manage to spit out, "I don't know what you're talking about." It was strange, though. I didn't intend to say that; I didn't even control my head enough to think clearly, how could I have spoken? "Please, just let me go... I've done nothing."

The shadowy entity with glowing blue eyes and wearing Predator's outfit nodded once, but out of thought rather than agreement. He got up and stomped hard on my neck, making me gasp in surprise and pain. "You can't fool me, Tod," He said plainly, and extended his foreleg. Out of his hoof projected a sharp blade with edges dancing like fire, made of blue motes and light, alien and mesmerizing in appearance. "I think I would rather remove you from him, if only for a while." Then he raised his hoof into the air, and stabbed it into my neck. A pained howl escaped my moth, yet I myself felt no pain. The entity in my head, though, was thrashing about like an animal nailed to the floor.

He kicked me aside, and at once I was in control of my mind again. No pain, no numbness. I was myself, and that relieved me SO much.

What I saw flailing around in front of me, though, quite simply scared the crap out of me.

It was a green form, not equine in shape -- it resembled something more... bipedal -- and was made of green motes and light. It had no definite shape, as its edges scintillated and danced around like the edges of a flame. It was almost painful to the eyes to watch, and even when I looked away and closed my eyes from pure disbelief, its image flashed in my head. Its shrieks and cries of agony sounded nothing like any creature on the earth could make. Its eyes and heart shone like little stars of green, though, and those were the only things I could look upon without getting disoriented.

The being sticking the blue blade into its neck just looked down, shaking its head. "Desperate for revenge after having your new batch of filth eliminated I see," The being, whose voice sounded far too similar to Tom'a to be a coincidence, taunted. The green being roared and hissed in response, frightening me but serving only to amuse Tom.

Tom drew himself up. "Right then, time to finish you off." And with that, another blade erupted out from his other hoof. Tod -- or at least I thought it was Tod -- shrieked in apparent fright. The blade plunged itself deep into Tod's head, and in a bright green flash accompanied by a ringing in the air, he vanished from sight.

That left me staring with very wide eyes and with great confusion at Tom, who oh so casually stood straight up and turned to look at me. He raised his hooves up to his sides, and said with great relief, "Ah, Goldwreath! How good it is to see you, and how glad am I that you didn't get yourself into too much trouble while I was gone. So, why are you out here instead of being with your friends in the Library of Alexandria?"

"It's the GREAT Library of Alexandria, Tom," I corrected, feeling only slightly awkward and stupid for speaking to... whatever Tom was. "And if you don't mind, I have more IMPORTANT and NUMEROUS questions that need answering than you do," I said, greatly annoyed and very much confused as to just what the hell was going on around here.

He looked at me for a moment, fixing me in a stare with those piercing, glowing blue eyes. Then he shrugged, "Not actually true, but alright. Ask away."

"Okay," I started, "First off, what the hell are you right now? Are you actually Predator?"

"No," Was his response, though the voice was not his own, but Predator's. "Tom is not me, I simply allowed him to... use me as a vessel, for a little while was the agreed upon terms."

He blinked twice, before shaking his head. "Well, there's your answer."

'If I had thought a month ago that I'd go outside of my Stable and talk to freaky body-controlling, mind-hacking beings, I would have shot myself from the plain madness of it all,' I thought, lamenting for just a moment over how absurdly strange my life had gotten. Oh, how I now yearned for the dull simplicity and tediousness of the life I had.

As if sensing my thoughts, Tom said sagely, "Oh, don't fool yourself, no you wouldn't have. Now, I assume you have more questions?"

YES. Yes I did. "Okay, well... where did you... er, Predator come from?"

He raised his head up, "A fair question. You see, Predator and I speak with frequency surpassing even how often you and your friends talk. As such, when he disabled the dam's defenses, I approached him and suggested a plan to approach you. He agreed, and he has since used his physical prowess to smash through the sewer network to get to you; he knew you were here, you see, for he knows your scent." He pointed down at the pool of sewer water I had been in. "We actually came from here, just a few minutes ago. In fact, we're the reason that pool exists."

I had a scent? Oookay... "Eh, fair enough, I guess." I said that, of course, because it confused me and I did NOT want to discuss it. "Now for the top four questions," I said, and let out in one quick barrage,"What are you and Tod, what's with the chimera crap, what was that green thing just now, and when -- if ever you decide not to explain all this now -- are you going to give me context? Because I do NOT like going on this... 'quest' of mine while having those questions pester me with near-constant frequency!"

It was true. Ever since I had met Tod and Tom, a whole world of questions had opened up from them, and it was really beginning to piss me off that I had gained next to no context about them, save for their powers, and even my knowledge that was not very comprehensive. What I wanted now was an absolute knowledge of everything about them.

Tom was silent for one long moment, his glowing eyes seeming to hint on great internal contemplation and debate. Perhaps I had thrown too many important questions too quickly, but I didn't care; I wanted, no, needed that context.

At last he moved, though he didn't speak. Rather, he placed Predator's hooves on Predator's helmet, and started taking it off. Despite everything, I was excited. I was actually about to see what Predator was like underneath! He had had the chimeras' eyes and abilities, though, so I wouldn't really have been surprised if he looked just like them, but still!

The helmet fell to the ground, and what I saw was the head of a zebra, with some kind of breathing mask clinging over his muzzle and with black straps extending to the back. A transparent plastic piece, snaked from the mask's top and onto the bridge of his nose, then over the zebra's shaved mane to meet with the black straps behind his head. Well... maybe his muzzle had tendrils?

Tom first placed a hoof onto the gasmask-looking apparatus, and pulled on a wire underneath it. Pressurized air escaped from within, and he took the mask off, revealing Predator's face.

He was... a zebra.

A plain, unspectacular zebra, with no special or interesting features whatsoever. No differently colored fur... no chitinous carapace... glowing blue eyes, but aside from that... plain. My heart's curiosity diminished, and I found myself staring blankly at his face. Inside, though, I was very much disappointed. I had just thought he would look... different, unique, exciting.

Then Tom spoke, now in a voice unmuffled by the helmet and the mask, "I... suppose it is time for you to learn about at least some of the things you question. But if I am to answer your questions, I must make you aware, first and foremost, of what it is that separates Tod and I. Now how to begin..."

He sighed, and explained grimly, "Tod has this foolish vision of a... a perfect being, capable of surviving and adapting to any situation; physical or psychological." He paused looked to the ground, and said with a shudder, "He believes that... that the secret to an infallible being lies within a perfect synchronization and synthesis of all the good traits of all creatures, whilst completely eliminating the bad. Fire resistance from dragons, water breathing from aquatic life, flight from manticores, and horns from Cerati, to name a few." Then he looked up at me and stared into my eyes. "And... sentience from equines."

I too shuddered, horrified despite the fact I had already discerned all this; my suspicions were now, after all, confirmed, and that alone was terrifying. The mere thought of... of turning people into abominations... even where I am now, it still grips my heart and mind in a fist of ice.

"How does he make them?" I asked.

Tom shook his head. "I don't know, at least not much. I know it involves torture -- unless the subject is willing -- and that a mutagen is needed. For you see, the... 'signal', the noise you hear? That is a... catalyst. Like saliva that digests food before it reaches the stomach, the signal... it tampers with your brain, makes it transform your body; prepares it for the mutagen." He took a few small steps towards me, slow and foreboding. "It turns your own body into a factory that works against you. Think of it like the mythological zombie virus, except in this case, the brain still lives, albeit with growing intent to turn you over to mutation."

I looked down at my hooves, and shook. So my hypothesis had been correct. The signal had indeed been tampering with me, as I had expected. But I had no idea it was preparing me for mutation. That was... horrible, absolutely disgusting and abominable. And I had been exposed to it. Me, my friends, the people of Roam, the Legionnaires, the operatives and legates during the war, even...

Everyone had been exposed, from common wastelander to the long-dead generals of Roam. Which meant that... oh, Celestia save us all.

"He intends to turn the entire city into an army, doesn't he? An army of sentient slave monsters to... to bring 'perfection' to everything, that's his goal, isn't it?" I asked grimly, and let that sickening thought sink in.

Yes, he was. All signs pointed to it -- the memory orbs, the chimeras, the biological and psychological manipulation... and I had not suspected it. I hadn't, even if it may have been obvious for some. I had thought he existed merely to cause misery and make people act... well, unlike themselves. At the most, I had thought he wanted to forcibly carve out some room for himself on the surface through his chimeras and his operatives during the war. That was what I had speculated. But now that I knew his true goal, I was at a loss. Bending people's minds and bodies so they served him... what kind of vile abomination would have goals so heinous and monstrous? From what realm of evil would such a being come from?

Tom nodded, "It was, and still is. He has never given up on it, not even after the war. He, make no mistake, is the source of this city's suffering. Roamans are civilized people, Goldwreath, down at the depths of their hearts. Even at the declaration of war, most of them had thought first of how to assist each other. Even in the wasteland, and trust me when I say this, they are still civilized."

Predator's -- or was it Tom's? -- face hardened into a glower, and he said calmly yet with fury swelling up in his tone, "That is why I fight, Goldwreath. That is why I must keep him from taking the remains of this Empire and driving it to madness. You and I, Goldwreath, we are after the same thing. We want this city to thrive again. This is what separates me from him: I fight for the liberty of the minds and souls of all things on this world, whereas he and his ilk strive to enslave and destroy the identity and nature of life."

I nodded at him sullenly, taking his words seriously. Perhaps he and I were fighting for the same thing. It didn't matter if we were, what mattered was that we were both fighting Tod and his malevolent plans. But I was, as with everything else told to me, without suspicion. "Tom, much as I would like to trust you -- you have saved me and my friends after all -- I simply cannot just take your word for it. How do I know you aren't secretly mutating people too?"

Tom trotted a short distance, and stopped at the edge of the pool of sewer water. He glanced behind his shoulder at me, and looked at me with those glowing blue eyes. He blinked, and the light shining from his pupils shone instead from the whites of his eyes to reveal irises of gold -- the typical zebra eye color. He turned around, got onto his hindlegs, and gestured to himself, saying, "Look at Predator, Goldwreath. What do you see?"

I gave him one quick look just to make I wasn't missing any important details. "A zebra."

He pointed a hoof at me, "Exactly! And how do you think he appears to you as such, when there was evidence that he would resemble a chimera in appearance?"

"I... don't know. Magic?" I offered lamely, and at the blank look he gave me smiled sheepishly.

He opened his mouth to speak, and said slowly, "Nooo..." He shook his head and continued, "As I have said, Tod manipulates DNA to achieve whatever goal he has for whatever creature he wishes to change. I, on the other... hoof, do the opposite: I undo, to the greatest of my capabilities, what he has done. So it has been with the minds and bodies of all exposed to him, and so it shall be until this conflict -- this... war of indoctrination and counter-indoctrination, of mutation and counter-mutation -- ends for good."

He gestured at Predator's body, "What you see here is Predator as he was. With me, biological and psychological identity and freedom remains safe. I know you have reasons to be suspicious, but that is the truth, whatever you think of it."

I looked back at him, then cast my eyes down and nodded. He was right, I did have reasons to be suspicious. Him and Tod, they were of the same make, I believed. And with that similarity could come similar intent, buried within their minds underneath layer over layer of thought, each either counter-acting or complementing each other and leaving their beliefs a twisted child of self-indoctrination. But he did save us many times, and he did relieve my mind and body of its burdens on at least one occasion. My friends had as well, perhaps he had done the same with them. He saved us from that centurion back on the bridge, and from Tod in the ZSI facility.

'Alright,' I thought, 'I'll trust you for now.'

He smiled and nodded, "Glad to know it. This constant fighting can in itself get so tiring, it's good to know that some people out there are willing to trust me."

I looked him over for a second, then cast my gaze onto the surrounding area. I had, unknowingly, fumbled deeper into the ruins, and was now in a fairly wide alley in between two ruined structures, just a few dozen meters from one of the intact skyscrapers. So much destruction... and Tom and Tod -- and Tod's minions during the war -- had something to do with it. What were they to have such knowledge and such power? What were they to be able to treat the physical and mental realms like mere playthings?

I decided to put my concerns to question. "So what are you, Tom?" He looked at me, and within the glow of his eyes, his golden irises seemed to express confusion. "I'm serious. What are you and Tod, and why are you here?"

He took a deep breath and shifted uncomfortably. "Tell you what," He replied unevenly. "I will answer your question. But first, give me time to think on the explanation. By the time we meet again, I will have my answer. Alright?"

I wanted, as always, to protest against him and his incessant desire to delay my much needed context. But here I was getting some assurance of actually GETTING that context, and it did not seem wise to reject the deal proposed by the mysterious and powerful being. And so I nodded tentatively, "Alright. But in the name of the gods and the Goddesses, Tom, you had better have your answer the next time we meet."

He chuckled with amusement. "That threat won't work, I'm afraid, because you are making that threat in MY name."

Wait, what? "Huh? What do you mean?"

He chuckled again. "That is another question I will answer when we meet again. But not now." Then he put Predator's breathing mask back on and with a hiss of pressure it attached itself to his face. Then Tom put the helmet back on, and closed his eyes.

"Tom, wait!" I demanded, but I was too late. A great presence seemed to leave my mental radar, and in its wake it left a void, suddenly occupied by a far more grim-feeling presence.

When Predator's eyelids opened once more, the eyes that stared back at me were glowing red, and pierced into me like a laser, freezing me in place. Then with a blink, the glow receded, and I could move once more. "You still have questions, don't you?" Predator asked, sounding not at all willing to answer if I said I did.

Still, I nodded. "A whole bunch, actually."

He nodded sympathetically. "That last bit about 'in his name' has sparked intrigue within me as well, but he has assured me -- better than he has with you -- that answers are going to come." Then he snorted, "But enough of that. Come, tell me of your ambitious plan."

"What plan?"

He replied as if I should have known, despite the little context he gave me, "Your plan to change society, of course. It is ambitious yet quite similar to what many people are attempting to achieve. I am eager to discern how likely it is to fail."

To fail? Oh you stupid... "It's not going to fail, Predator," I responded determinedly.

He chuckled darkly in response, "And why is that? Because you believe I will assist you? Not likely given the other things I must do and divert my energy to, but go on. Enthrall me. Give me a reason to."

I should have been annoyed, or even angry. Here I had a plan to help people change through psychology, a field Predator seemed quite knowledgeable in, and he was mocking me. I should have been angry, right? Did his ridicule of such a noble goal not warrant anger?

But instead of being angry, I smirked. I smirked, for I indeed had a good reason. "Because," I started, a grin on my face. "You don't lie, right? It caused so much suffering you wouldn't try it again right?"

He raised his head at me, and with annoyance just dripping in his tone -- I must have touched a sensitive subject for him -- said, "Where are you going with this, boy? Trot carefully, for I have yet no qualms of snapping your neck like a toothpick."

Despite his tone, I continued with hope building up inside of me, "Which means that what you told me about about wanting to redeem yourself was true, right?"

He growled fiercely in response, much to my fright. Still, I adamantly continued, but nearly gulped from the tension building up. "Which also means that you should take any opportunity to do that right? Well, here's your chance. Will you take it or not?"

He glared back at me, murderous intent blazing in his eyes. The sight of that made me want to crawl away, very slowly, and hope that he didn't tear off my legs with a knife and beat me to death with them. The silence and tension was unbearable, despite my own attempts to calm down. After all, what of I had approached this wrong? What if, in touching this apparently very important subject, I had earned Predator's eternal hatred?

I waited for almost a minute, mind screaming for me to run away before he brutally painted the city with my blood, when at last he laughed.

It was not a dark laugh, nor a laugh of cruel amusement at someone's pain. Nor was it even a sarcastic chuckle, and neither was it foreboding in nature; it was just a laugh. A pure, unmistakable laugh, born out of either genuine amusement or something he found laughable... the sincerity and lightheartedness of it greatly disturbed me. He wasn't acting like himself; he was too jolly, too... lively.

Whatever the reason, he placed a hoof around me neck and said, gesturing up at the city around us, "Very good, Goldwreath! First thing one shall need for this goal is determination, and determination that does NOT crumble when in the presence of someone who could very easily tear out your brain and dangle it with your intestines for your friends to watch in horror while I sadistically use your skin to strangle them and fill their last moments with terror and regret at having joined you on your absurd little journey."

I gulped. I knew he was at least partially sadistic, but that was just wrong. That was... not a picture that would be leaving my head any time soon. Oh great, now it's going to be stuck in my head as I continue narrating this thing to you...

"So you'll help me?" I asked, the barest sliver of joy erupting in my heart despite the guy's threat and my head's confusion as to why his presence in my head felt neither grim or dark.

He looked at me for a moment, and his eyes lit up -- literally and with life -- as he looked me over. "Of course! I'm no fool; the wasteland needs more people like you, and if it helps my soul, then I shall help."

I sighed, immense relief flooding through my veins. "Well, good. That's a relief. So, eh, when shall we begin discussing how to proceed?"

"Tomorrow," He replied, seeming immensely eager to get it started.

Confusion mounted in my head, replacing my... well confusion as to why he was acting so jolly. Great, now I'm confused... "Why tomorrow? I'm willing to start now, and you seem like you do, too."

He pointed a hoof at me. "Ah, and I am! Yes, it may be true, BUT your mind is tired, whether you feel it or not. You need sleep."

Oh, come on! Why did he care about this? "I'm not tired!" I protested.

He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Are you sure?" He asked slowly.

I nodded my head quickly. "Yes, I am! I'm willing to talk all night if I have to!"

"I see," He said in an obviously sarcastic tone, and explained, "You know, Tom knows your goal too. He requested that, in the case you were unwilling to do what's good for you, that I make you do it."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Yeah, well, it's not going to happen. I'm not going to put this off, this is important!"

He sighed with relief, and said with what sounded like eagerness, "Ah, good, I was hoping you'd say that. That gives me a reason to do this, then!" He raised his hoof up to his shoulder, like he was going to punch something. He chuckled quietly, this time somewhat forebodingly.

I took a step back. "Predator, I swear, if you punch me I am going to-..." I was saying, when the piece of shit hit me in the face and knocked me out cold.

Footnote: Halfway to Level Up
Follower perk gained: Juggernaut Psychologist -- Predator, if he is nearby, will assist you in conversing with any individuals who require a speech check. If it fails, he will also physically get the point across.

Chapter 18 - Sadism and Adaption

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Chapter 18
Sadism and Adaption
"Change is coming to the world. Many fear change and will fight it with every fibre of their being. But sometimes change is what they need most. Sometimes change is what sets them free."

My eyes opened, and was at once blinded by golden rays of light flowing like a curtain down onto my face from one of the arched windows of the library. I scrambled away, an image of the rising ball of the sun singed into my eyeballs, bright and radiant. Through the blur of temporary blindness I managed to glance around, and saw sleeping forms on the ground next to me: a gray one, a yellow one, and another yellow one, though smaller. A few blinks later and my sight became clear, and confirmed to me that those forms were my friends, who seemed to have used a pile of books as pillows -- the discomfort of that, I only imagined.

I groaned and rolled onto my back, staring up at the ceiling for a moment, and my senses soon registered the soreness of my face from the previous night. Predator had, at least, not broken my nose. And speaking of him, where was he? He seemed, as always, to be off somewhere. Honestly, I wouldn't have been bothered if he appeared from right behind me out of a flash of blue and asked how I slept. Well... actually, the 'asking me how I slept' part might have, but that's not my point.

A few moments later I lifted up a hoof to check the time. It was six AM. I wasn't surprised, as I tended to wake up at that time often. A thought occurred to me, and I checked the radio stations. The DJ's signal was gone, much to my disappointment. So much for getting some news on Equestria.

I laid my hoof back on the ground and sighed. It was pretty early, and my friends were still asleep. Predator was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Zaita nor Doomtune. All that meant that I could read without being disturbed for at least another hour, and I wanted to make use of the time to educate myself before we had to leave this place.

My back crackled a bit as I got up, and afterwards my spine felt less sore. I stretched my limbs a bit and started trotting out of the little circular formation we had all been sleeping in. The fire had thankfully not burned anything, which was a relief. The ash had been spread a bit by some air currents, though.

Before I left I took a look at my friends, all sleeping with some degree of smile on their face. Doodle's was the largest, of course. She held in her hooves a draft sketch of Skyfire in flight, performing an aerial backflip above the city with the sun shining underneath the arch formed by her graceful posture. Next I took a look at Skyfire; she too held something in her hooves: a book, the same Equestrian-Zebra tank comparison book I had seen the night before. She was smiling as well, as though she were having a good dream. There were tears snaking down her cheek, though; perhaps her dream was eliciting tears of joy?

And then there was Myst, curled up in a little field of books, one of which was held in her hooves. I took a look at it, and found it to be of similar topic to the one she had shown me the day before. The difference was that this one was a foal's book: 'Hugs Show Love!' it said. She too was smiling, but it was covered underneath some of her mane. I brushed it aside and saw a blissful and carefree expression, and it warmed my heart.

I looked at her like that for a moment, before Doomtune called out, "Well, this is interesting."

My eyes glanced upwards, and I saw the operative had established a network of wooden plank bridges connecting the tops of different bookshelves. He had apparently devoted such time to building the network that the bridges spanned even across the different sections, and that he had even stacked some books up to create the foundation for ramps which lead to the upper floor. He himself sat on the edge of one of the bookshelves, and looked down at me, an expression suggesting he was grinning beneath his helmet on his face.

"What is?" I asked.

He pointed at her, then at me. "You two... are...?" He asked, sounding genuinely intrigued. Why he would have been intrigued was beyond me.

Well, it's not like it was shameful to admit we were. "Yeah, we are. It's just the second day, though, and honestly I don't know how to act at all. I've... never been in a relationship." Okay, there WAS a bit of shame for that last part.

He shrugged, and pushed himself off of the edge. He landed with a roll, and stood up right in front of me. He said casually, "Neither has she, or so her mumblings tell me. You're lucky, though. Last night while you were out, she was reading these books, these... romance novels and whatnot." He patted me on the shoulder and said softly, encouragingly, "You my friend have got a mare who's too unknowledgeable and innocent about this kind of stuff that she'd do everything she could to make sure she acts appropriate. Not a lot of mares like that; most would just bang you and leave you to rot. My advice? You do the same. Make it a real relationship."

Well... awkward topic of discussion aside, that DID sound like good advice. "Thanks," I replied, and patted him good-naturedly. We exchanged friendly smiles (though I couldn't see his under his helmet), and he trotted past me.

I too was about to trot off, when a memory from the night before slipped into my mind. "Doomtune," I called. I turned, and found him already looking at me questioningly. "Sorry about last night. I... I was just pissed off. I just thought that I had finally gotten some GOOD news, you know? I mean, the fucking Colosseum was there! Yesterday kinda sucked, so I just thought I could sleep with my last thought being good, but then you said it was occupied..." I sighed, and shook my head.

He looked away for a moment, nodding in understanding. Then he clicked his tongue, "Whelp, can't say my story's different. I wanted to have something good to think on too. One of the reasons I went exploring. Saw the Colosseum and the Circus Maximus, and found both to be occupied and turned into a graveyard, respectively." He approached and placed a hoof on my shoulder. "So I guess we both just wanted something to dream of, huh? Can't say I blame you. Roam... it's beautiful, dude. The arches, the roads, the domes... all of it made by the people. So I hope you'll understand that little outburst last night."

I nodded. "Yeah. We're both just stressed out." He nodded as well, and looked down on the ground, pain in his eyes. He hiccuped, and turned around covering his visor with a hoof. "Something wrong?" I asked, concerned. Perhaps he had remembered something painful?

He croaked out, "Just... stressed out." Then he shivered, and said immediately afterwards, "S-so much death."

I took a slow, tentative step towards him, a part of me already aware of what he was talking of. It was kind of hard to miss; I had, after all, failed to help out in it. "What are you talking about?"

He turned, and I saw the anger and hate in his eyes. He let out in one slow, monotone speech, "There was so much of it at the battle, dude. Operatives slaughtered by the dozens, torn to shreds and trampled by tanks. Legionnaires... burned to a crisp, immolated by our napalm. Roamans for miles around were drawn into the fighting, their desperation for-forcing them to side with the group they believed would pull them out of the pit of their lives. Slaughter, so much slaughter... and then the fucking artillery from the mountains crap finally came in after days of fighting, and... and bits flew everywhere..." He shuddered, his shaking reaching his limbs.

"Doomtune..." I said, and took cautious steps forward, reaching out a forehoof to try to calm him down. "I know it's gonna be hard to do, but you need to relax. You need to put this behind you, and move on before you-..."

He grabbed me and drew me close, and stared at me with puffy and fierce eyes. "Don't you tell me to calm down!" He shook his head, all the while staring at me with those wide, crazed eyes of his. "The people, man! The-they fought us! They attacked, day and night, artillery or no, whether we were prepared or not. Gunfire cracked in the air... artillery shrieked in the night... sleep was a dream. War was the reality. We just kept fighting and fighting and... and..." Then he laughed, mad tears streaking out of his glossy eyes.

He pulled me closer, and I dared not attempt to break free. "Did I ever tell you the definition of insanity?" He asked quietly. I shook my head, though I did indeed know its definition. "Insanity is... is doing the same thing, over and over and over again, and... and expecting things to turn out differently. A-and that's what we fucking did! We killed again and again, with the tips of our shovels and the knives on our belts and the guns on our backs, we killed. And each time we did we expected things to change. We expected the battle to end sooner. But no. More troops came in, and we killed again." He laughed again, "And it was insane! All the killing was insane! We were insane, the Legion was insane, I was insane!"

I tried to take a step back, but he gripped me more firmly, and his attention turned to me. "Y-you..." He said, wagging a hoof at me. "You and your friends, you keep fighting to help, right? It'll all be for nothing! You'll just keep fighting and nothing will change! You're all insane, HAHAHAHA!" He laughed in my face hysterically, and I found myself too petrified to do anything. I could only listen and let his laughter echo in my head.

Then two black-clad hooves gripped his neck from behind and pulled him away from me. A foreleg went around his neck and pulled tighter and tighter. Doomtune's eyes bulged in their sockets as he struggled and kicked, reaching out his own forelegs to grapple his assailant. Then his eyeballs rolled into his skull, and he stopped.

Predator released him and laid him gently onto the ground, and the operative's breath left his body. For just a moment, I thought he was dead. Then his chest rose, and I relaxed; he was still alive. My eyes shifted and looked instead to the other operative before me, who was oh so casually dusting his hooves off.

"What a queer occurrence," Predator said flatly, and reached down to his fellow's helmet. He turned the knob on his fellow's headset while simultaneously using the other hoof to select a track from Doomtune's playlist. After a moment, a slow, deep-throated male choir started playing, accompanied by a more subtle female choir.

I found myself at a loss for words, and so said nothing as Predator dragged Doomtune away and laid him against one of the shelves, making him look as though he were asleep. All I could do was blink, unable to think clearly about anything after what just happened.

Predator approached me again, and tapped me on the shoulder, saying as if nothing had happened, "Dwell not on it. That was, after all, what you were trying to tell him, yes? Be a monument to your own words and forget it." He started trotting off, when a voice stopped him cold.

"Mister Predator?" Doodle asked sleepily. We both turned and found her leaning against a bookshelf, a brown, water-stained, torn and dirty teddy bear in her hooves. Where she found that, I didn't know, though I did find it a little surprising and even a little... well, cute. She yawned, "What's with all the noise? Are... are all the poachers here for mister Bear?" She yawned again, and wobbled a little. "Please don't let them get to him..."

I only stared, my mind still slow in adapting to the situation. First last night -- hell, yesterday in general -- then this morning, with Doomtune's little outburst... it was all enough to make me very, very confused. I questioned myself. I played his mad rant on my head again, and I just had to wonder... was I really ready for this life outside? I had trained my whole life; read books on philosophy, art, war, and seen films depicting every genre of media -- I had developed myself to the best of my abilities. But was I ready?

Hm... no. No I wasn't. If I couldn't adapt quickly, I was dead. And I wasn't adapting quickly. For all my preparation, the raiders were more suited to the world than I. Ironic, really, but that was the truth.

Doubt trickled into my veins like poison and I stared blankly at the ground. I gulped and breathed deep, doing my best to try sort through it all. I wasn't even paying attention to when Predator had apparently assured Doodle everything was alright.

"... okay," Doodle said, and it was the only thing I heard from their conversation. Predator watched her trot off and curl back up before he turned and approached me. There was this aura about him, though... something foreboding, I could feel it... it grew with each step. He... he seemed like he was going to...

Like he was going to charge me. I already saw him stomping closer, but then he broke into a full gallop, much to my shock. My eyes widened and I took some steps back, worry mounting in my head. "Predator, what the hell are you doi-..."

His impact against me was quick, painful, made little noise, and punched the breath out of me better than a sledgehammer would have. We flew through the air, and the sudden change of events left me too shocked to attempt to break free. Our landing was noisy, but the fact that we landed all the way in the opposite half of the library would render even screams hard to hear. We rolled to a stop, with him on top. My heart thundered as I fought for breath, and I struggled to think through the wall of sluggishness keeping me in check. I could feel the pain pulsating through my limbs, the adrenaline waking me up. Suddenly, my mind fully awakened, and the thought occurred to me: he was actually attacking me!

The gears of my head started turning. My eyes followed his hooves as he raised them up to strike me, analyzing the situation. Then with speed like lightning, he punched downwards.

My training-developed and combat-tested reflexes took over, and with one quick motion I swiped his limb away and jabbed the guy in the neck before he smashed my face in. The punch did nothing more than get me a little slack as he wobbled to the side, but that enabled me to land two solid uppercuts, forcing him off me. I rolled to the side as he cracked the ground where I had been laying with a powerful stomp, and got up to draw my gladius.

The metal rang in the air as I drew it. "Predator, what the fuck are you doing?!" I asked in a rush, bewildered.

"Teaching you a lesson!" He barked in reply, and lunged forward to tackle me again. This time I jumped to the side, and he landed with a roll as I turned around to face him. He charged me and flew into the air, and I only managed to jump away before his stomp turned me to paste. The force from the impact was so strong, though, that the marble beneath my legs ruptured and a big slab of it shot upwards, with me along with it.

My wings extended as I forced myself to a hover, and I turned around and saw him already sailing through the air towards me. With little thought, I stabbed my blade into his chest as he reached me. The sword skidded across his flesh as though it had struck stone, and ended up piercing only through the side of his vest. The impact once more blew the breath out of me and prevented me from pulling the blade back out. We started hurtling towards the ground, kicking and struggling against each other. He grappled my neck and forced my face to gaze upon the ground, and I knew that if I landed head-first against the floor I would be dead.

My body once more took over, and without any thought, I forced my wings to extend once more. The air slammed into my appendages, the sudden extension forcing my wings to catch the full force of the air resistance. But the pain was worth it because I had altered our fall enough such that he was the one to crash into the ground.

Even if he did smash into the floor first, the impact sent a shock both painful and stunning through my nerves, and a memory of what happened back underneath the bridge flashed in my mind. The landing sent me rolling several feet away, with just enough time to get up before he reached me. By the time I was up, I only had a split second for my body's reflexes to take over and pull my head back before Predator's punch broke my jaw. I staggered back, giving him the opportunity to throw another blow. I parried the strike at my bone's own expense and delivered a swift counterattack to the side of his neck. The punch did nothing, and he threw another blow at me with his other hoof, smacking me in the chest and sending me flying against the wall.

I got up again, fury and an instinct of survival controlling me. It was the fury that drove me to charge and throw savage yet carefully aimed blows at him, most of which he blocked, and it was the instinct for survival that heightened my senses such that I was even able to block his blows despite his beastly and unnatural strength. We were a blur of blocking and punching, so mercilessly fast-paced that the slightest mistake now could mean death. Our blows sailed through the air as we both gave ground to each other, and we found ourselves slowly taking our fight back to the central walkway.

He dove below and blocked a jab, and with a kick tripped me from underneath. I landed flat on my back, but involuntarily rolled away as his rain of quick but hard blows cracked the marble. I returned the movement as he approached me, and sent him tumbling down right next to me and landing on his side. That gave me the opportunity to yank my blade out and try to chop his head off. The sword sparked off the marble as he moved, and before I knew it he was already up. My gladius shot through the air as I aimed a stab at his neck, but he parred the strike with a hoof and with the other jabbed my face, bloodying my muzzle. I staggered back, and he yanked the blade from my loosened grip before rearing and bucking me in the chest, sending me flying and slamming me against a column. I growled furiously as I fought to get back up.

I turned and stepped forward, but immediately recoiled before I accidentally impaled my neck on my own sword. I growled angrily at Predator, who was so calmly pointing my own blade at me. He didn't seem to care at all. How dare he hold that blade, not meant for his hooves! It was meant for me, not him!

After a moment I threatened, "Give. My blade. Back. Give it back, or I swear to every fucking deity that exists I will tear your leg off and cram that sword up ass." And by everything good, I meant what I said.

He stared back at me for a second, not saying anything. Through his opaque visor, he seemed to be scrutinizing me, as though he was gathering information from what had just happened. His silence only intensified my already seething anger, but at last he casually flipped the sword over and tossed it over to me. "There you go," He said as though nothing had happened, and trotted over near a pillar and sat down like no one's business.

I snarled, one part of me screaming for his death at how severely pissed off he made me and another part warning me against trying it. He had after all just tried to kill me, or so it seemed. Despite all my emotional urges to skin the fucker alive, however, I calmed down and approached him. Predator was Predator, after all; he did things for the most bizarre and strange reasons.

I reached him and sat down, and with the remaining anger within me hissed, "Okay, now tell me what the hell all that was about!"

He breathed deep and sighed, "That, Goldwreath, was a test."

"A test?!" I hissed, furious. I said through grit teeth, "I don't know about you, but I like getting some warning before my tests so I can prepare. Surprise quizzes weren't exactly allowed in my Stable."

"Then they should have been," He deadpanned. "Those of you who could survive the tests even without warning -- those of you who were not lulled into false safety, and were not deceived into order -- are the ones best suited for surviving."

I shook my head, annoyed. "And you couldn't have tested me in another manner?"

"No," He replied calmly. "Only tests of reaction tell me how you fare. Besides, had you known you would have altered your behavior. I needed to see just how you acted and how well you performed after being confused and disturbed by various occurrences. Only results under those circumstances can tell me what kind of meat you're made of. I'm actually rather glad Doomtune's stress finally got to him just because the occurrence disturbed you."

"You fucking sadist..." I murmured, and said threateningly, "So you WANTED to be unpredictable? You wanted all this to happen -- and you wanted to attack me -- just t-to see how I would react under all the stress and confusion?" At the time I really wanted to attack the guy even if I knew he'd beat me. What else should I have done? He had purposely taken advantage of my confusion and stress to test me, which honestly was leading to MORE confusion and stress. Somehow I managed to hold my rage back, even if I did pace back and for a moment just to stomp in frustration and disbelief. Yeah, this was what almost every major interaction with Predator was like.

He got up and patted me on the back, laughing as he did. A deep chill shot trough my veins, and for just a second my vision turned so blurry and my limbs so weak I thought I would pass out. It felt like my mind was falling asleep, and I wobbled from the intensity of the sensation. Then after a while I felt good again, and everything seemed fine.

I didn't know why, but it almost felt like I had entered a different world.

"Of course!" He replied eagerly, his voice sounding distant. There was something on his voice, though. Something I couldn't quite fathom, but it sounded... more... mental? His tone turned deadly serious and his voice no longer distant as he said, "After all, the wasteland isn't predictable." He trotted a little way off.

I gathered up some breath to wash away the sensation from earlier. "What do you mean?"

He turned and with startling speed and pressed a hoof to my chest. Again I was confused, this time by how determined he seemed to kill me, then how relaxed he seemed, then how ready for action he was again. "The wasteland is not predictable, Goldwreath!" He repeated. "It is neither merciful nor orderly, and it never will be. It is chaotic and it is random. It can let you wake up to a morning filled with peaceful shopping just to lull you into relaxation, then it will fill your afternoon with the sight of everyone around you erupting from the inside out due to Black Cloud!"

He pushed against my chest and turned around, trotting. Then he got up onto his hindlegs and turned back around. He gestured at the library around us. "Confusion and trickery, those are its main weapons, next to desperation. If you are to survive out here, if you are to accomplish your goal -- your ambitions, whatever they may be -- you must always be prepared. Never believe in relaxation, for it is fleeting."

He chuckled out darkly and let his forelegs fall to his sides, "Instead, believe in the evil of the world. Embrace it, bask in it, love it. Take it within yourself, and grow with it. Nurture it. Learn from it. Become it..." With every word he uttered, the light in the chamber very visibly dimmed until it almost became black. In fact, by the time he was done, it was so dark that it could have been late afternoon. He took several slow steps back, and disappeared into the shadows.

I turned and turned, looking for him in the shadows; the coward! Did he not believe in his lies enough to spew them in my face? Instead he hid like rat! "No!" I yelled, "That's not true! I must fight darkness, not become it. What manner of madness are you trying to teach me?"

His response sounded like the groaning of a building about to collapse, "The truth." And with that, the light died completely and the library was shrouded in darkness.

I shook my head and activated my Pipbuck's lamp, only to see the light sinking back into the screen like a black hole consuming light. His voice came again, rasping like a blade scraping on a rock, "Ah, you think that light combats darkness? No, no, that is wrong!" He laughed, "Light, Goldwreath, throws itself upon darkness like water on a mountain. It takes away layers, slowly and tediously; its weapons are ineffective simply because they lack understanding. But luckily for us, darkness provides the means to its own destruction. We simply have to take those weapons up ourselves, and this is where most falter. They do not see that, for the greater good, they must sacrifice themselves."

"That's wrong!" I stomped in obstinate refusal. "Only an unshakable will, noble means, and a noble cause can change the world. Never has it been said that people had to become villains just to end an evil," I declared, and nodded myself in reassurance.

My mind and heart alike were aching from his words, though. My mind, for it had been brought up with knowledge of a clear line between right and wrong and was now being forced to see beyond that line; my heart, because deep down there there was a Stable pony who had hopes and dreams of living in a safe world, and those hopes were dying from the poison of all this. A traitorous part of me wanted so desperately to agree with him, and it hurt. It hurt because I could see the logic in his words; idealism, unguided and untrained, did indeed end in tragedy. But through experience... we could learn to manipulate the world. In essence, we could control it at least a degree. And was that not what I needed? Control to manipulate the circumstances leading to the creation of raiders and slavers and other scum? Was that not what I wanted?

Yes... yes it was. And Goddesses damn me, Predator was right: the only way to learn to get the control I needed for my ambition was to learn to thrive in the world, and that was only possible by adapting to it.

Was I to become a barbarian to have shot at saving civilization, or was I to remain Roam's Praetorian only to watch it crumble around me?

Predator, ever omniscient of my thoughts, cackled with sadistic glee, "Yes, now you're getting my point! To fight darkness, Goldwreath -- to save your beloved society from itself -- you must understand it. Do not oppose it, rather learn from it as I have. Become it and then undermine it; understand your enemy first, and you will learn to manipulate it. Fear, chaos, pain -- experience them, and they will numb you so you see the world with perfect clarity, unsaturated by the colors of emotion and ethics. You must let go of personal integrity to save the world, Goldwreath. Become the villain of the piece."

I forced in a sob as I fought to keep my thoughts true to myself. He was right, and yet he couldn't be right, he just couldn't be. I couldn't for my own sake take in his lies... and yet I was. My heart ached from the pain of the truth that my mind, now bent to this evil, so callously accepted. Suddenly, the path to a glorious Roam became very clear to me: my very identity had to die for her, not just my body.

"No," I coughed out, my resistance dwindling with every second. Out of desperation I flew into the air, yelling, "This is all meant to corrupt me, isn't it?! It's all meant to twist and confuse! You... you're not Predator, are you?! Predator still had some goodness in him, he would never say these things!" The tears flowing to my eyes came out freely as I no longer tried to hide my heartache.

Then an invisible force whipped at my wings, paralyzing them with pain. I fell to the ground, coughing as I felt my lungs inflate and pop. Every single breath was unbearable, and felt like acidic vapor in my body. I wailed and thrashed around, agonized. The very tears on my face seemed to boil like oil, cooking my flesh.

"Embrace the pain!" He yelled, and then my brain started stinging like alcohol had been poured all over it. I exhausted my already burning lungs with my agonized and tortured screams, and I was left panting in blissful numbness as my nerves cut off the sensations. He just laughed, and I could do nothing but cover my ears from the jeering. I crawled away, my eyes tearing up from the doubt. I just had to get out of this field, and then I could get away from this fucker and his lies. I had to... I couldn't listen to his words, so finely fashioned to sound like the only route... There had to be a better way, there just had to be... there had to be a way to drag society out of its darkness without becoming it, there just had to be...

Through all my mental and physical agony, I managed to cry out obstinately, "N-no! I'll never embrace this madness! You can't make me!" But with the terrible doubt and fear came desperation, and so I screamed with what will I could muster, "Myst, Skyfire! HELP ME!" The exhaustion from it forced me to collapse, and I instinctively curled up.

He laughed at how pathetic I was, and a great wind picked up within the library. With the wind came a noise the very sound of which felt like I was having an icepick shoved into my head: Tod's signal. The loud cracks and thumps of the columns and shelves as they were torn from their positions and crashed into each other filled the air, and they started flying like a tornado in the wide and shadow-shrouded space. The tiles beneath me became hot as fire, and that only served to intensify my languishing. Books flew in the air and slammed into me as I cringed in fright and terror.

"Embrace the CHAOS!" His voice boomed like thunder, and the very air I breathed seemed to turn into oil, slimily slipping down my raw throat and nasal cavity. My fur seemed to turn into spikes as they stood on end, seeming to come together in solid little patches that soon started resembling plates. Plates that seemed to turn darker with each second... plates that seemed to turn into something else...

"NOOOOO!" I yelled continuously as I stared with horror down at my hooves, already mutating into monstrous black and chitin-clad limbs, tipped with talons like scimitars. "MYST, SKYFIRE, DOOMTUNE! HELP ME!" I turned and started galloping even as my flesh started erupting with carapace and my wings started twisting into... into perverted excuses of wings. I dared not look at myself, that's what he wanted. He wanted me to be petrified with fear, well it wasn't going to happen!

"And where are you going?" He asked, his voice resounding through the library. "Do you not want to save your friends? Why are you running from them?"

I stopped short, even as my pain and desperation screamed for me to keep running. I couldn't help it, I turned around.

His glowing red eyes pierced through the darkness with clarity, and they steadily grew in size as he approached from the shadows. Beside him floated, encased in a scintillating field of green, two forms; my friends, frozen in place, their faces the very epitome of terror.

No. NO! Not my friends, you fucking monster! They deserved none of this, it was me you were trying to poison, leave them out of it! This... this wasn't possible, none of it. This couldn't be happening, it just couldn't. This was some kind of nightmare, it just had to be! There was no reason on this world for such evil phenomenon to happen to those who didn't deserve it!

Myst struggled, but her head was all that moved as she fought to move her limbs. I could only watch, the fiercest of hate building up inside of me. Then she looked at me seething at Predator, and wailed out, "Goldwreath! Please, help us! He's... he's insane!" Then she broke out into tearless sobbing as she pleaded, "Please... I'm so scared..."

Skyfire looked at her friend with concern and then gave Predator a hateful glare. "Let us go, fucker! Let us go or so help me I will bust your head open with my own hooves!" She screamed as she went into a fit of savage yanking and jerking, and all the while Myst just mumbled pleas.

"Quiet, Skyfire," He said simply, and both of their fields crackled with electricity, frying their fur and eliciting wails of pain from them both. The sight of it wiped out all doubt, and I knew what I had to do.

"Enough, enough! Damn it Predator, enough!" I shouted, taking a step forward towards the shadowy operative, concern and anger competing for dominance.

The crackling stopped, leaving them both panting and weak. I shook my head at the direness of the situation, and looked at Myst. She was so weak she couldn't even open her eyes. "Yes? You have something to say?" Predator asked, his tone dripping with amusement.

I took in a deep breath and looked him right in the eyes, trying not to cry for my friends even as they seemed to be dying right next to me. "I get it, you've made your point. I'll embrace the pain, the chaos, the fear, just let them go. It was ME you were trying to educate, not them! Leave them out of it, and I'll learn whatever your fucked up doctrine has to teach."

I didn't want to, and I couldn't, not for anything. But... what was I if I let them suffer for something that was supposed to be for me? What kind of Praetorian, no... what kind of friend would I be? I gulped and let the angered tears roll down my face. I was going to save them from is, even if I had to let him corrupt me. I could take it, come on you motherfucker.

"Good," He said, pleased. "Now, let's start over again, shall we? But let's start from fear first. What is it you fear, Goldwreath?"

I shook my head, my mind scrambling to find a way to get us out of this. To get us out of here before he killed us all in one way or another. Before something happened that nothing, not even time, could heal us for. "I-I don't know. I fear... failure?"

"Very good. And what is it you fear to fail most at the moment?" He asked, and the fields surrounding my friends seemed to tighten, squeezing the breath out of them even as they panted for breath.

"Fuck! I... I-I fear to fail in saving my friends! There, I said it!" I stammered, too fearful for my friends' welfare to give my answer definitely.

"Very good. At least you know how to identify what truly concerns you in times of crisis. So you fear to fail in saving your friends, hmm..." He cleared his throat and continued, "And what, Goldwreath, would you do if I, say... set your friends on fire and tossed them over to you?"

My breath left my body, my heart stopped for a moment, and my mind froze. When I finally managed to speak, I said very cautiously, "You wouldn't. There's more to you than that, Predator. There's more to you than the monster. You... you wouldn't just kill them! YOU WOULDN'T!"

He chuckled, "Oh, but I would."

And with that, both fields of green burst into flames, immolating my friends and and taking their wales and screams of pain to new heights as they fell to the ground, rolling and desperately trying to put the flames out. I could see them reaching out to me, begging for assistance. As with most occurrences that were simply too overwhelming for me to process, I stared, frozen in both thought and action.

There were so many things I could have done. I could have galloped and yanked them from the doors of death, and then beat Predator senseless. I could have galloped over there and put out the flames torturing them or get myself burned trying. I could even have gone to look for Doomtune, even if that wasted precious time; it was still something. At least it was better than just standing there with a heart and mind too shocked that I didn't even feel any urgency any more.

I was too slow. By the time I could act again, they were still. They were nothing but charred, burned corpses. No life, no voice, no hope... and I didn't feel a damned thing. I think that I had possibly reached the point on the emotional scale that, once passed, would render me a husk; emotionless and dead. I should have been crying, right? I should have hated myself and hated Predator with the wrath of all twenty-eight of Roam's ancient legions. I should have... gods and Goddesses, I should have joined them. At least in death, we were together in whatever blissful afterlife there was. At least in death I could be with the only ponies I knew who were noble and brave enough to accompany a mad stallion, driven by impossible ambition. At least I could be with the ponies who were kind enough to give me their friendship, even their love.

There really wasn't much to think or to say. I had quite simply failed again, and this time the victims were my friends.

Slowly, I made my way over to their corpses. They were so still, so peaceful... so untroubled by the world. I handled them with as much care and reverence as I had Lighthouse's corpse, and only now did it truly hit me: they were dead. Their hearts were still, their lungs breathless, their pulse nonexistent...

Both of them... gone.

Skyfire had so much ahead of her. If there was any hope of seeing her family again or of finding some satisfaction in her love life, it was gone. Regret, not sadness or anger, swelled up inside me. Regret at having so cruelly refused her. Now... now nothing was left. Nothing but guilt on my part and a lonely, painful death on hers. I'd miss her mad rants and rash actions, more than I would most anything else.

And Myst... the first pony who'd ever cared for me for who I was was gone. Removed from existence, burned, dead! And this, this made me angry! The wasteland was a vile place filled with unjustified hate and cruelty, but this... how cruel could the universe be to deny us that? We were all lonely souls, troubled and worn, who just wanted to have a break. Could we not be spared that? Could we not be given true respite? Could the world not be kind for once? Now I would never hear her stammers and squeaks anymore. And all of this misery... caused by the hooves of a crazed maniac formed by the wasteland. Now we would never get to know each other.

And yet for all there was to do and to hate and to say, I just held them and cried. My friends were gone, there was nothing to be done. Nothing but to weep their loss; the loss of true, good ponies, however imperfect they may have been. The world was lessened with their deaths; whatever civilization would come should I finish my mission would be different with them not there to help shape it.

Predator only stared at me silently, and I hated him for it. I hated him for doing this. For taking away what I had in the name of helping me. I didn't want his help, I wanted my friends back. I wanted a world where people lived instead of survived, where ideals such as his weren't so painfully logical.

"Such a pity," He said flatly. "Your mind and heart are traumatized, I will leave you be for awhile. Let your emotions settle, and when you are ready, come to me. With your emotions for them out of the way we can continue unhindered." And with that, the light returned. It was dim and lifeless now, though; it was a mockery and perversion of the hope that each day brought. It only served to caption the misery of the day, not to reduce it.

Anger boiled up inside of me. Pure rage and hate, pumping through my veins like magma. Revenge was the only thing that came to mind, and it rendered me so fiercely focused on vengeance. I was that: a pony-shaped manifestation of swift retribution. Nothing would stop me. No moral would hold me back. No mercy would be given.

No more second chances.

I rose, letting what had once been my friends slide to the side. I could feel the fury overflowing within, overriding all other thoughts and emotions and hijacking my body. I let it, because there was absolutely no alternative. There was no action that could be done to correct this terrible event. But at least his death would satisfy me. And so I charged, screaming at the top of my lungs. For them and for the sake of all things sane and good, this maniac had to die.

He turned and saw me charging, and readied himself in a combat stance. I didn't care; no amount of his ungodly strength or monstrous physique would save him now. He opposed me and all I stood for, and I opposed him and all he stood for. I should have known it sooner, but I did now: we were incompatible, and that could only lead to confrontation. We were both Roamans, shamelessly declaring our beliefs, however contradictory. That could only lead to fighting.

But it was natural, for we were both from Roam. And Roam was a city of war, after all.

And yet... and yet for all the rage pumping through my veins like lava, for all my hate and sorrow over the death of my friends, for all the madness I had witnessed, I couldn't help but hear something. It was distant, an echo, but was steadily growing louder... hell, even Predator seemed to notice. And so, like psychopaths with more indecision than concentration, we stopped. We stopped and listened, both of us seeming confused by the noise. What exactly was that? It was becoming clearer, though... it was...

"Mister Predator?" Doodle's voice echoed from the walls and floor of the library, similarly to Predator's voice. "Mister Predator? Mister Goldwreath? Um... miss Myst's awake, and she's wondering where mister Goldwreath is. Hellooooo?"

Predator's glowing eyes widened. "No..." He murmured, and looked to me with what appeared to be uncertainty. Then he hung his head and sighed heavily. "Lesson's over, boy," He said, and then just like that, he disappeared from sight. No trace, no flash... he just vanished.

And then that same sensation from earlier came. My vision blurred and my mind froze so severely that I thought I would pass out. Once more I wobbled, and from the intensity of the sensation closed my eyes and fell down. After a deep breath, though, everything seemed fine. I felt as though I were in a new world.

When I opened my eyes, I was indeed on the ground. Wait... no, not the ground, at least not completely. My upper half was slumped against the pillar. This wasn't where I had fallen when I wobbled just a moment ago. No, this was where I had sat when he patted me earlier.

A glance to the side let me see Predator talking to Doodle just a little way off. My eyes widened and immediately darted around. No corpses, no scattered books or toppled bookshelves... not even a single piece of chitin on my body. My mind and heart were left painfully confused by the sudden flow of relief and bafflement. Had... had all that been some kind of... dream?

"Please inform Myst that Goldwreath is right here with me," Predator said warmly as he accompanied Doodle a little way off to an aisle.

"Alrighty, mister Predator!" She giggled, and cantered down the aisle. A little later there was the sound of her voice ringing through the chamber as she called for Myst.

Predator approached me. "So," He said, "How was the simulation?" There was a little hint of pride in his voice.

"S-simulation?!" I stammered angrily. The floodgates holding in my feelings when I thought my friends had died had burst and out of it poured forth a furious deluge of raw emotion.

"Yes, the simulation. Think of it as a really convincing dream. That little trick of mine took me quite some time to develop, and you're actually one of the few people I've used it on. Good practice, I say; I may have put too much emphasis on the effects, though," He replied.

"Y-you fucked with my head!" I yelled, "You made me think my friends were dead and you did it WILLINGLY! You attacked my beliefs and my will! You tried to corrupt me, you tried to break me! And after all that you think you can just talk to me?"

"Of course! Especially considering you enlisted my aid," He replied with a dry chuckle. "Oh, and I didn't try to 'break you', I was educating you. Of course, it's in a mental landscape that I could create phenomena that would help drive my point into your absurdly thick skull."

He sighed and shook his head. "Now for my assessment. I consider my methods unorthodox and perhaps a little extreme for some of the weaker-willed individuals, but you seem to be set enough in your beliefs to overcome most obstacles. And you didn't let yourself be swayed, which is good, that is until I brought your friends into the picture." He brought a hoof up to the tip of his breathing apparatus and rubbed it. "Now, that may be a bit of a hindrance considering they're always in danger, so-..."

I landed a solid punch against his face, breaking his train of thought. I was so mad that I wanted to beat his limbs to a pulp. He'd deliberately used the fact that I asked for help from him to torture me in my own mind. I couldn't accept that; I couldn't shake the anger and betrayal. So when he fell backwards from the force of my blow, I took the opportunity to pounce on him and rain a series of blows so hard it would have broken any regular person's neck.

I didn't care. He was no person; he was an abomination, just like the chimeras. He and his fucked up manner of thinking deserved no consideration from me, and so I just kept stomping and raving, hoping that his head and helmet would flatten beneath my force. He didn't even try to fight back, and I just used that to keep knocking his head against the ground again and again. I didn't think of anything but inflicting as much pain as I could.

The only thing I noticed through rage was Myst and Doodle entering from the aisle.

"Mister Goldwreath and Mister Predator are right here, and I think that--MISTER GOLDWREATH!" She shrieked in horror as she saw me pounding the operative's head again and again. Myst came in fully from the aisle, and at the sight of what I was doing she cringed and gasped.

Doodle ran up to me and held onto one of my hooves even as I raised it up. Predator made no noise. "Mister Goldwreath! Wha-what are you doing? Don't hurt mister Predator, that's mean!" She wailed.

"You wanna know what's 'mean', Doodle?" I snapped at her, causing her to let go of me and step back, frightened. I looked her right in the eyes and said threateningly, "What's mean is trying to make someone think that the only way to help people is to become a bad person. What's mean is purposely hurting someone's feelings just to teach you a lesson that makes no sense. What's mean is making someone worried all to fucking hell that his friends were burned right in front of him!" I shouted, and rained a last series of savage stomps onto the guy's neck and chest. Doodle was just like me when I supposedly saw my friends burn: frozen in shock.

Finally I stopped, and before I got up spat on his helmet. I stomped away even as Doodle started crying, hugging the operative as he simply got up and dusted himself off. The mere sight of that made me want to attack again; I still had a lot of anger in me! But I decided against it. He wasn't worth the effort.

Myst reached out a hoof to try to touch my shoulder as I passed by. "G-goldwreath? Are you ok-..."

"No I'm not," I snapped coldly, making her yank her hoof back in fear. I gave her a good long glare, and stomped off. I heard her hiccup behind me, but I didn't care. You'd think that after seeing a mental image of her burned to death I would have hugged her and cried out tears of joy, but you'd be wrong. Anger didn't fade just like that, and only in the very depths of my consciousness did I berate myself for acting so cold towards her.

There was nothing to be done about it. Now I was given far more emotion and thoughts to sort through, and I needed to be alone. No one could help me, not even Myst. I needed to be alone, I needed to process this myself. But first I needed to vent this anger and hate.

I needed to break something with my bare hooves.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

The old wooden chair smashed against the marble column and broke into a dozen pieces, sending splinters and dust flying off in all directions like a small detonation. Next I turned and bucked the thick semi-circular wooden cashier table hard, turning it over and sending it sliding across the balcony floor before crashing into the marble railings. I kicked in the screen of the old computer I had scattered over the floor as I made my way to the table. When I reached it I set it upright again, and started mercilessly stomping it with as much fury as I could muster. If I couldn't crack Predator's bones, then at least I could split a table in half.

SMASH! There went my fury over Predator's betrayal of my trust.

SMASH! That was all the anger and worry for my friends.

SMASH! That was for my integrity, you son of a bitch.

SMASH!

With the fourth strike, the table cracked down the middle and collapsed. Next I grabbed each half and tossed them over the balcony, sending them crashing against a bookshelves. I stood there, panting out the last of my frustration and blinking the dust out of my eyes. The effort had left me physically numb and mentally blank, and honestly my hooves were quite sore from all of the stomping I did. So I just sat down and covered my face.

That was it then. Within three minutes, I had completely obliterated the upper floor's single cashier counter. If there were more I would have trashed those too, but honestly I wasn't sure if I could have. Even for all my strength, I had only managed to crack the tiles with my stomps. That wasn't enough to break more tables.

I honestly didn't know what to feel then. There was confusion, among other things, but everything else was... well, gone. The destruction had cleared my head enough to allow me to think without having my emotions bombard me with images and memories, both from recent and long-past experiences. Perhaps caution and prudence -- things I had in fair quantities but were at the moment out of my system -- would have made me take in Predator's words and attempt to... to analyze the potential; you know, I'd diagnose it. If I were to compare it to Stable terms, the wasteland was... a self-sustaining problem, and Predator's advice was an... experimental solution.

The problem was just that, though: it was experimental. Logically, opposites cancel out each other. What he was asking me to do, though -- become evil to undermine evil -- that was just... wrong. How could I maintain who I was if I even attempted that? To fix a society that bred this sort of madness, I would do anything, but... but not if I had to forsake who I was for it. I would not risk my sanity like that, it was too much to ask of anyone.

Not long did I sit there, still in body save for my heavy panting as I covered my face with a hoof, when I felt a hoof on my shoulder. Her touch was soft and kind; it almost made a wan smile cross my face. Almost.

"G-goldwreath..." She started, soft as usual. "Um... are you... okay?" There was this tone in her voice; something that seemed to indicate that she wouldn't stop wondering whether or not I was until I gave a definite answer.

"No I'm not," I replied, less coldly this time. I took away my hoof and glanced up to see her looking down at me worriedly. I couldn't blame her; I was volatile and unstable, and recent events weighed heavily on my mind.

She looked away for a moment and whined quietly, then said softly, "Skyfire's trying to get Predator to tell us what... what he did to you. Knowing him, he might actually have told us already. It would be good if he did, but... " She shook her head and looked at me right in the eyes. "... but I want to hear it from you."

I grimaced and sighed. "I don't think that's a good idea..." But, judging from how many books I had read with a theme of 'holding one's problems to oneself' and how the character went crazy from their problems, I decided to say it anyway. "... but you need to know, I guess. Not sure how you can help, though."

She gulped and nodded, preparing herself for what must have seemed like a horrifying revelation. She sat down next to me and pressed herself softly against my side.

I took a moment to think on how to start, scratching at the ground with my hoof. I myself wasn't sure how to go about the explanation; this wasn't exactly the sort of thing I had prepared myself to talk about when I left my home. Sure, I knew the wasteland was fucked up, but I always thought of it on a physical basis, not a psychological one. The truth was just that the wasteland was a far more imposing mental opponent than a physical one for the equipped wastelander. As for those not prepared for either the mental or physical stress... well it was them whom I was fighting for.

Still, I managed to get it out eventually.

"Predator... he's got these sort of... like, psychic powers, if that makes sense." I looked to her and saw an understanding though slightly quizzical look on her face. "You know, similar to... like those things in the tunnels. I'm not sure if he's the same as them or if he's different, though. And... I'm not sure if I want to know. But I know he's a monster, and in more ways than one." Her eyes widened with terror and understanding, and a hint of horrified remembrance. The look on her face suggested she knew that the talk may invoke some frightening memories from when we were in the tunnels. I didn't want to make her more uncomfortable, especially not after thinking on how volatile we all could have been under the stress.

"Listen, Myst, if you don't feel like you want to do this, then you don't have to," I offered, ears drooping. I prayed that she would stay; I needed to talk about this, I couldn't keep it in me. Not like my other problems.

She took in a shaky breath and wrapped a foreleg around me, rubbing it along my back. She was urging me to continue, and it brought a little warmth to my heart. The feeling of her next to me... alive and well... it comforted me and warded off the memory of what happened earlier enough for me to continue. I looked to her and gave her a smile, which she returned as best she could.

"Alright then," I murmured, still smiling. Then the smile disappeared, and my thoughts turned grim once more. "Now, thing is..." I started again, shaking my head in uncertainty. "He's kind of... deranged. Psychotic, depressed, crazy, angry, or just plain fucked up... I don't know which, and he could be all of it for all I know. The things he says and the things he backs them up with... he's scary, Myst. He's scary, and I don't know what to do about him. I don't know how to react to this sort of thing..." I looked away.

She turned my head around and looked me right in the eye. I gulped, ashamed of my uncertainty. "Then why don't we just get rid of him?" She asked. "He hurt all of us, in one way or another. He tried to kill you and Skyfire, he doesn't let us keep our secrets, now he's giving you bad advice, and he doesn't even seem like he wants to help us." Then she gave an assertive little stomp. "If it were up to me, he'd be gone already..." She murmured.

I thought of that for a moment, then looked away again. "Because," I said uncertainly, "He's... I don't know, he knows things. He's intelligent and he knows what to do. The things he says and the things he does seem like the right things... at least right by wasteland standards."

"You shouldn't listen to him," She said determinedly. She wrapped her other foreleg around me. "You're smart, Goldwreath. You've got a good heart, surely you don't think that he's right." She frowned. "He can't be right."

"But what if he is?" I replied. "He's fucking insane, but what if he's right? What if I do have to... to become like the world around me to fix it? What if it's the only way? What if, to keep us all alive, I need him to stay?" Then I grimaced and whispered, "What if he's the only one who can give me the only advice that's true -- true, as in the truth?"

Her eyes darted between my own, looking sad. "You don't usually think like this," She said simply. I looked away in shame; she was right, I didn't. This wasn't me. This was clearly the product of stress and the stuff I was forced to try to stomach. But what could I do? The wasteland wore everyone down; it changes them. That was what was happening to me, there was no denying it.

I tried to pull away -- she didn't need to be troubled with this -- but she held me where I was. "Tell me," She insisted. "What did he do?" I didn't want to tell her, but the pleading look in her eyes were breaking me down. This was what I wanted, right? I always wanted to be given attention, well now I was getting. Better not be a hypocrite.

I sighed and looker her right in the eye. "He made me think you were dead." I shifted uncomfortably. "He broke into my head, put me in a dream of some sort. Then he... he did things. Told me things. He nearly drove me against myself. It was insanity, all of it. None of what he told me... I don't want to believe any of it. But he made it sound so absolute, so inescapable..."

I sniffed and felt tears run to my eyes. "He killed you both right in front of me. And... and I did nothing. I was too shocked, too slow to react. Too emotionally blank to feel anything at first, and too much of a failure to do anything when you asked for help. It scared me, Myst. I don't want to fail you and Skyfire like that in reality, I don't..." I choked in a sob. "Then... then when I found out it was all a dream and that he orchestrated it all... I was so mad. I just wanted to cast him into oblivion, but I can't. I can't because I can't just blow the bastard's brains out, and because I feel so lost that only he seems like he can tell me what to do."

I sniffed again and lay my head against her. I was managing to hold in most of my sobs, at least. It wasn't just what he did that was causing all of this, though. Everything that had happened was causing this -- everything from my first kill all the way to Doomtune's little outburst of wartime stress. Everything had been so quick... and I had been so unprepared. Back in the Stable, I had thought that all I was doing -- all the books I read, all the movies I learned from, all the training I went through -- would prepare me for some greater existence beyond the tediums of Stable life, but they didn't. I wasn't prepared for any of this. I was so lost in my own thoughts and feelings it was hard to know if I was still even sane.

"So... now you know what he did," I said softly, and just let her hold me close, hoping she'd understand. I needed to just let it all go for a moment.

For a moment we just sat there, with her stroking my mane gently and holding me close. It felt so good, so relaxing. It was like I could just relax for a moment, let the world go by as it would. Like I could just not care for anything for a moment. It was a perfect moment to relax; to just let my mind... flush out everything.

But like Predator said, relaxation was fleeting.

"Guys!" Skyfire's voice echoed, jarring my mind out of its fairly relaxed state.

I opened my eyes and looked aside, and barely managed to see her orange blur as she passed in between some columns, searching for us. She flew over an aisle for a moment, and her eyes spotted us as she hovered there. Then she flew over and hovered in front of the balcony.

There was only the barest hint of discomfort in her eyes as she looked me and Myst over. "I... found out what Predator did," She said simply, and an angered frown crept into her face. Then she frowned concernedly as she saw me looking at her with a lost expression. "I... just wanted you to know that you can go to the Colosseum with Myst if you want. I won't mind."

... what?

Myst, barely keeping her own confusion from showing, asked, "Um... c-could you say that again?"

Skyfire sighed, "I think I'll just go out and say it, Myst." She took in a deep breath and landed on the balcony, right in front of us.

"Predator knows you and Goldwreath here are together. He said that Goldwreath just wanted to go to the Colosseum with you before we had to head over to the Forum; something about this maybe being his only chance." She looked at the ground sadly, but her eyes glanced at me. "He said that the reason you were so angry was because he kept insisting that if you went without me, then I would be... well, broken hearted."

I shook my head, eyes narrowed in confusion. The only part of that I got was 'broken hearted'. "Yeah... what?"

Skyfire looked me right in the eyes. "Goldwreath, I know you and Myst are together, and I know that you feel regret at leaving me..." She took in a slow, shaky breath. "... at leaving me alone."

"No shit," I murmured blankly, still confused as hell. "So, all that stuff about the Colosseum..."

She stomped assertively; she did it a lot better than Myst. "Goldwreath, don't try to hide it. I know you just wanted to have something good in the day, I know that you just wanted to see it even after what Doomtune said, and I know that you wanted to go there with Myst. You don't need to feel any guilt at going there without me. If you really want, just go. I won't mind."

My eyes widened with understanding. Predator had... had told her that the reason what happened earlier happened was because he knew that Myst and I were together, and that I wanted to go to the Colosseum with Myst, without Skyfire... and that I was angry because he kept insisting that doing that would upset her? Oh, that convoluted son of a bitch...

I looked to Myst, whose eyes were wide in realization. I gulped and nodded, hoping she understood that I wanted to play along just for the moment. It seemed like she did.

I looked back to Skyfire. "Well... that was... considerate of him."

She sighed. "Yeah, I guess." She scratched the back of her head and turned around. Then she said softly, "You should probably go while you can, you know, before more fucked up stuff happens..."

Then she started trotting down the stairs, eyes downcast. She paused just long enough to croak out, without even looking at us, "Glad for you guys, by the way." Then she reached the bottom floor and turned a corner, and disappeared from sight.

I was left frozen once more. Okay, so I woke up to a stress-invoked conversation from Doomtune (with a side dish awkward topic about Myst), then I had been attacked by Predator and put into a forced dream in my own mind just to 'teach' me some lesson about becoming like the world. After that I had broken down where I sat, and conversed with Myst about my problems. AFTER that, Skyfire came by and told me Predator's falsified little story and told me she knew Myst and I were together... oh yeah, this day was looking to really suck.

Myst shook me slightly. "What do we do?" She whimpered, "Oh, I feel so guilty. Skyfire sounded so sad..."

I thought for a moment, my thoughts caught between wondering how to deal with Skyfire and what to do next. I grimaced from the thought that came into my head amidst all the confusion. Oh this was just great...

I got up, altogether bewildered. Again, if I had known my life would have gotten this complicated this quickly I'd have shot myself from the mere madness of it all. "Come on, Myst," I said as I looked at her.

"Where are we going? What are going to do?" She asked as she got up and started following me to the stairs.

"We're going to the one person that can clear all this shit up," I grumbled. Her eyes widened with confusion. I sighed, "I wonder if Predator planned all this just to screw my day up..."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

We reached the bit of the main walkway that we had slept in the night before. Doomtune was slumped against the bookshelf from earlier, Doodle and Skyfire were nowhere to be seen. Predator, though, sat calmly on a chair as he read a book.

I spoke softly to Myst, "Let me do most of the talking, alright? I know that... that you might be mad at him and want to give him a piece of your mind. I do too, but we're here to determine just what to do now. Knowing him and how he reacts to angry comments, we'll probably never hear the end of the conversation if we bring it up. Alright?" She screwed up her face in contemplation, but then she sighed and nodded.

"Good," I murmured. We approached him.

"Yes, how can I help you?" Predator asked simply as we neared. There was something wrong with his voice; it sounded too... mechanical, like there were a pair of speakers inside his throat. Now his voice no longer sounded like the typical rasp I had come to associate with him; rather, it was quite clear and an octave lower than normal, and in addition he sounded disturbingly charismatic with his new dual-speaking voice.

"What's wrong with your voice?" Myst asked with disgust; clearly she still hadn't come to accept his presence as much as Skyfire and I had or come to love him as Doodle had (though why Doodle cared about him so much eluded me), but was curious enough about him to ask. I cleared my throat loudly, and her ears drooped. She sighed and took a step back.

He breathed in slowly for a moment as he looked at a page on the book he was reading; his breathing sounded much louder now, almost as if they were amplified. Then he looked up at us from the chair he sat on and replied, now with far more discernible emotion in his voice, "Oh, you needn't know, Myst." He hesitated for a moment, and said with just a touch of uncertainty, "Suffice it to say that the beating your lover over here gave me damaged my vocal cords. I'll fix them later."

Myst and I blushed and looked away from each other.

Predator snickered and looked to me. "Ah, Goldwreath. Recovered from the trauma yet? Our lessons have yet to end."

I wanted to yell a reply, as the thought of more sessions like the one earlier this morning horrified me, but honestly there was no point. Plus, knowing him, he'd probably have loved to know he was still on my nerves; his recently shown overly-sadistic side was like sadistic like that. "Well, if my having no emotions on the subject means yes, then yes," I replied calmly.

"Understandable," He replied, "Your mind is shocked, to put to simply. It's subconsciously attempting to cope with all the emotional pain it has had to go through. Like the body, it goes numb when too much is inflicted upon it. The extent of how much I can do to your head before you stop feeling things is a matter of debate, of course."

"Don't press your luck," I threatened. "I don't know who or... what you are, but do that again and I will wipe your name from history. Honestly, there are people out there who at least think of trying to NOT kill someone in their plans; you, though, seem to plan things just to hurt people. The random wastelander or mercenary at least have the excuse of needing to survive, but you're just a damned sadist."

"Perhaps," He replied calmly. "But It doesn't matter who we are, what matters is our plans. My plan to get myself noticed by the Imperial government during the war, for example. No one cared who I was until I put on my masks, but now I am the subject of great interest for many. Now all my nothingness when I was a little colt doesn't matter; who I was doesn't matter." He looked me over. "I have a feeling your story will not be so different. In the future, people won't care who you were; they'll care about what you did." He chuckled, "You and I, we won't be so different."

I shook my head; all of this was plain madness. He was just too difficult to understand. First he was an evil abomination that I wanted to kill, then he turned out have a heart and that he in fact was trying to keep himself under control. A while back he seemed fine enough to at least talk to. Now... now he was so different. He didn't seem this sadistic, nor did he ever talk of having any ambitions, nor did he act so philosophical. Granted, his whole 'I must suffer for my sins' thing was pretty deep in thought, but he hadn't brought up so many of his fucked up beliefs until the night before. Was this just me getting to know him more or something else?

Then again... maybe the blame wasn't all on him. What if he had simply been trying to keep himself under control but failed? Chances were he had been at least partially indoctrinated by Tod, and that most likely meant that Predator himself simply couldn't help but be truly evil at times. In fact, I had to question just then whether or not I was actually talking to the Predator that claimed to want repentance and was aware of his evil, or some Tod-bred split personality of Predator that was far more devious. Was it even safe to talk to him? What if Tod was secretly in control and was learning all about us with every passing moment we spoke to him?

Still, with no knowledge of which Predator persona had tortured me, I guess I just had to react regardless of who currently in control of Predator's body. "Predator," I said, "I need to know why the hell you told Skyfire a falsified story."

He closed his book shut and leaned against the chair, looking at me. "Because," He said simply, "It's more fun to watch how people react to a kind lie than to suffer a painful truth. You see, people often do find out the truth, and it is usually MORE painful then than it would be at first."

I grimaced in disgust, and Myst next to me muttered softly, "You're such an ass." She took a step forward. "You're a monster, you know that? You keep doing these... these little stunts and making these remarks just to hurt us, don't you? You hurt Goldwreath, you hurt Skyfire, you hurt me, and Doodle..." She paused and gave him a mild glare. "Don't you even dare hurt that little filly."

"Don't even touch that topic, Myst," Predator replied sharply. "You don't know enough about me to try my patience regarding this. I suggest, for your own safety, you stay away from it."

Myst opened her mouth to bark a reply, but I stopped her and gave her a stern look. Once more her ears drooped, but this time she didn't take a step back; she just glared. I could understand her urge to take shots at the guy. Predator was... a monster, but he was more than that. That much I still believed in. Myst didn't know of Predator's personal predicament, she wouldn't understand his affinity for Doodle. She wouldn't understand why he enjoyed and needed her company.

"Look," I said impatiently, "Do you even realize what we have to do now? Now it's either go to the Colosseum and make Skyfire feel alone, or it's not go and make her feel like she's keeping us from each other. Was this intended? Was this a part of some sadistic, convoluted scheme? Because if it is, then I swear..." I raised a hoof and pressed his chest with it.

A small yellow form emerged from in between two bookshelves and stood where it was. Predator and I both glanced behind him and saw Doodle, wide-eyed and nervous, approaching cautiously with her head close to the ground. Her eyes were filled with fear as they looked at me.

"M-mister Goldwreath?" She asked softly, fearfully. "Are you and mister Predator fighting again?"

I was without a response, but Predator immediately replied, "No, Doodle, that quarrel has passed. Now we're simply chatting about the trip to the Colosseum he's going on this morning." He looked at me, and I swear that, even though I couldn't see them, his eyes were giving me suggestive looks.

Doodle gulped and replied quietly, "Okay." Then she looked at me. "Mister Goldwreath... did you apologize to mister Predator yet? You hurt his throat, now he sounds weird..." She scraped a hoof on the ground nervously.

I took in a breath and looked at the roof disbelievingly. Seriously, I was supposed to apologize? What about him? If anything, he had started it AND his actions were more painful. Was I not to get an apology as well?

Still... the look Doodle had on her face was just begging me to. I looked to Myst and saw a frown on her face, and she gave a small and slow nod.

'Confound that bastard...' I thought with a grumble.

I took in frustrated breath, and said slowly, "Predator, I would like to..." I choked on my words, but got them out, "... apologize for my violent and unreasonable behavior towards you. I hope you'll... forgive me for my actions." Well, that was a lot more difficult than I had expected. I had no qualms with apologizing, but that... yeah, no.

"Apology accepted!" He said in a delighted tone, and then without another word opened his book again to read. Doodle gave me a wan smile up and approached, then gave my leg a tender but quick hug. After that she sat down next to Predator's chair, and Predator idly reached down a hoof to pat her on the head. She smiled blissfully and pressed herself up against his hoof.

I looked at him for a moment, expecting an apology as well. When none came, I drawled, "So?"

"So what?" He replied blankly.

I gave him a quizzical look. "What about you? Are you going to apologize?"

He lowered his book just enough to look me in the eye. Then he took in a breath, and after a moment's hesitation said sardonically, "I never apologize. If I did, a whole deluge of memories would come to mind and then I'd find myself trying to apologize for them all. Then we'd never hear the end of it, and I'm sure you don't want that." Then he sighed, "Still, considering all the things I've done, I really should be apologizing to you. But I won't."

After that he raised his book up again, and said as he waved me off with his hoof, "Now, I believe you should go already. Zaita must know that the other vehicle is almost done charging; she will return soon from whatever journey she has gone on. Leave me to indulge in what small joys I can, if you would be so kind."

I growled angrily, but then looked at Doodle. She looked so happy, just letting herself be patted on the head. How would she react if I started another argument with Predator? I didn't want to risk anything permanent on her, not after how shocked and scared she seemed of me after what I did earlier. If there was one thing Predator and I always agreed on, it was that Doodle's naive innocence had to be preserved. I looked at Myst, and the expression she gave me suggested she'd prefer if Doodle stayed as she was.

So, much as I found it quite unfair, I left the conversation at that and trotted off for preparations for this little trip I did not expect to have. I didn't feel good, not in the slightest. I was so sick of having all my feelings and thoughts collide to form an indiscernible blur of mashed up emotions. For just once, I wanted to be able to have myself under complete control; to be happy when I should have been, excited when it was right, sad when I needed to be, so on and so forth. Most of the time those days... I wasn't even sure if I was the same pony.

"We should prepare," I said blankly. "Redeye's slavers are there, I'll need to not appear like a pegasus lest they know who I am; Predator once said something about them wanting me for reputation. Anything that could distinguish me as the Praetorian will need to stay behind. Maybe we can do a little buying if they have some stores there; I'll bring some money. You go do what you need, just-..."

"Goldwreath," She interrupted. I stopped and looked at her, and saw her smiling at me warmly. "You should cheer up a bit, you know. This day doesn't look like it'll be all bad for you."

"And why is that?" I asked sarcastically. "Myst, in just under an hour I've been mind-hacked, beaten, guilt-tripped slightly, confronted with some harsh realities of the wasteland, had my integrity tested and questioned, and been forced to give an underserved apology. Tell me how this day could possibly improve, because I do NOT like today." Yeah... I kind of got depressed pretty easily. What can I say, I wasn't the most optimistic person; that was Doodle.

She kept up her smile and approached, then placed a hoof on my shoulder. I sighed and lowered my head, wishing I could smile like her. She lifted my head up and gave me a jubilant grin as she said, "Goldwreath... we're going to the Colosseum."

So what? Who gave a damn about going to the Colosseum? It was just an old arena, dusty and dirty, occupied by scum of all types! Why, it was nothing more than a breeding ground for filth, long bereft of glory! Why would going there cheer me up?

Well, actually... I guess it was made of magnificent arches... and it was a monument to past Roaman glory, not to mention being really big and epic... and it had more history and cultural value than anything I had ever seen... it was also Roaman, that was a big plus... great Roaman emperors had sat there before... I could sit where they sat...

Who the fuck was I kidding? Fuck you world and all your crazy bullshit, I'm going to the Colosseum!

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"This going to be so great!" I giggled gleefully as I took off my chain shirt and placed my helmet on the ground, next to my saddlebags and my weapons. I would bring nothing but some caps and my gladius, and to hide my wings Myst had made me a little toga out of ripped and discolored banners. For my Pipbuck, I took off the casing of a rotting pillow on one of the couches. Myst herself wore her hoodie jacket, but above it she wore some cloth rags she found lining the racks of the shelves. Her rifle was slung around her neck.

I'll admit, the day really sucked. I had been emotionally exhausted by Predator's little stunt, and that exhaustion left me numb. That was until now, that is. Now I was fighting just to keep my Roaman fanboy side from making me hop around in excitement. Myst herself looked eager to go; I don't think she had ever been to the Colosseum. Well, first time for us both then! Sure, the fact that we were made to go under pain of making Skyfire feel like she was a problem didn't sit well with me, but now I was going for more than to just to not let her feel that way. Now I was going because I wanted to.

'Funny how the reasons and feelings behind our actions can change pretty quick,' I thought.

"I can't wait," She said shyly. She was making sure her sniper cartridges were tucked well enough into the slack of her clothing. Then she frowned anxiously. "Oh, I just hope that we don't stay there too long. There's so many people I never met before there. What if they try to talk to me?" She whimpered.

"Don't worry," I assured her. "We're going there to see it, just for a while. Then when I think we've had enough of the place we'll come right back. No little adventures, no getting into trouble. I promise."

She gave me a thankful little smile as I trotted past her. Next I made sure all my stuff was accounted for, whether I was bringing them or not, and trotted off into an aisle for a moment while Myst continued her own final preparations. I took in an excited breath as I looked up at one of the arched windows, letting its light flow down on me. Well, today was showing some improvement at least.

Then I saw Skyfire lying on her belly, idly tracing a hoof on the ground. She was looking on with boredom at a pile of opened books in front of her. Well... actually, it was either boredom... or depression.

I sighed and made my way over to her, feeling all of my excited anticipation turn to tension. Now that we all knew who was with who, I guess I could at least talk to her about it and try to ease her sorrow.

"Skyfire," I called as I neared, and her ears snapped up and she looked over at me. "You do know that if you want to come you can come, right? I really don't mind."

She looked at me for one second, then just lowered her head again. "Nah, s'okay. I have a feeling you're just doing this to not make me feel bad, anyway. So yeah..." She said blankly.

I shook my head. "No, it's not like that. Skyfire, you're my friend. Friends go with each other to places, and friends don't leave each other alone."

She just looked at the ground for a moment, tracing it with her hoof. "I don't feel like a friend. I feel like... a liability."

"No, you're not," I insisted. "Skyfire, I know you feel like your just a problem right now. I know that you feel like I just get mad at you all the time and that I hate you, and that you're just keeping Myst and I from, eh..." I paused and shut my mouth. Well, this wasn't a topic I expected to talk about so much. It was, after all, just yesterday since we were 'together'; it was just awkward. "... from being together."

"But I am, aren't I?" She asked sadly. She looked up at me. "You were never really into me, anyway. And let's face it, you feel like you're just hurting me by being with her. But now I know that you're with her, and I just want to tell you that it's... it's fine." She took in a shaky breath. "Sure, it would be great if... you know... but that's kind of a dream right now. A fantasy. No one loves me." She covered her face with a hoof and sniffed, "Sometimes I feel like it would have better of I just died in that crash. Then maybe I wouldn't be such a problem."

"Madness!" I stomped, causing her to jump up in surprise. She gave me one quick look, and glanced away, ears drooping. I raised her head up and smiled, shaking my head. "Skyfire, you're not just a problem. You've done your fair share of helping. You were with me when we thought Myst was dead, remember? You saved my flank during that fight! And on the bridge... why, we'd be dead if you hadn't gotten on the gun."

She shook her head uncertainly with downcast eyes as she tried pulling away, but I held her firm. She didn't meet my eyes as I continued, "You also saved us both from those guys near the bridge; no easy feat! And let's not forget your help in the tunnels; those monsters were weak against your rifles! And how could we forget you getting a pimped up Zaita over to us when we needed some transport?"

I held her head up with both forehooves as I said, "You see? You're not just a problem. You're not a liability, and you're sure as hell not unwanted. You're my friend, you're Myst's best friend, and your a member of my group. I look out for all of you."

She frowned and sniffed dryly. "Yeah... I guess," She responded uncertainly. "But... why do I feel so hollow? So... uncared for?" She hid her face with a hoof in shame as some tears rolled down her cheek.

I sighed and pulled her into an embrace, and she nudged herself up against my neck. "We all feel like that at times, Skyfire. The wasteland... it's not kind, as you've seen. There's so much wrong with it, so much... hate, pride, disrespect, irreverence for the past, selfishness... it sickens me." I stroked her mane gently, just as Myst had when I was hurting. "But that's why we have to be together, Skyfire. That's why you have to share your problems, not hold them in. We're stronger together, and without you... the world wouldn't be the same."

She sniffed as she leaned against my shoulder. "You really mean that?" She asked quietly.

I nodded as I held her close. "Of course! Besides, it's not like you're the only one who has problems that affect all of us. Why, if Myst were less shy, she could be really useful in gathering info from Imperial-speaking zebras when I'm not around. If Doodle could be more than than just an adorable filly in combat, she could at least protect herself. If Predator was..." I paused for a moment. "... well, if Predator wasn't such a headache, he'd be a marvelous companion to have around at all times. If Zaita could shoot on her own, she could fight some battles for us. And me..."

I frowned a bit, and she pulled away to look at me with concerned eyes. "Well, if I were more in control of myself and my emotions, then maybe I wouldn't have tried to kill Myst."

Skyfire's eyes widened. "You what?"

I waved my hooves dismissively. "Long story, let's not get on it! The point is, Skyfire... you're a good friend." I smiled and brushed her mane aside and looked at her eyes. "You don't deserve to suffer quietly. You deserve to be one and whole and happy, not torn in two." I leaned in and whispered in her ear, "And if it's of any hope for you, I'm sure there's someone out there who'd take you in when I couldn't. I know it."

"Really?" She asked, her tears no longer borne of sorrow and despair but rather of relief and joy. "You mean all that you're saying? You're not just... just making any of this up?"

I wiped the tears from her cheeks. "What kind of friend would I be if I didn't mean it?"

She smiled up at me, and I could just see the gratitude in her eyes. "Alright then," She said, and a massive grin formed on her face as she looked up at me. Then she flew over me, and as she turned around said, "Well, let's go then! The Colosseum awaits!" Then she darted around a bookshelf and disappeared from sight.

I sat there for a moment, just smiling. I felt good again, better than I had the rest of the day. Now, I hoped, Skyfire and I could interact without a schism erupting between us, without a sad topic or an emotion of hopelessness cracking down on her. Now, at least, she knew she was cared for.

Myst was right, the day could get better.

At last I got up, but before I could trot off Doomtune groaned as he staggered close, "Ugh... what the hell did I miss?" He rubbed the back of his neck and slumped against a shelf. "All I remember is some weird dream where I went crazy or some shit, hehe can you believe that?" He chuckled, "Hell, it was like... like I actually decided to go batshit nuts about how supposedly terrifying the battle at the dam was." He saw the concern on my face and approached, saying, "Anyways, naw it wasn't that bad, really. Some people killing each other, but meh. My dream made it sound worse than it actually was."

"Uh... it wasn't a dream," I said cautiously, "You kind of did go insane earlier, and well... we had to knock you out."

For a moment he stared at me, silent. I could see the tension in his eyes, like any moment he'd spring on me and attack. I almost feared like I had made a mistake by mentioning it.

Then he turned around. "Fuck!" He yelled in frustration, and stomped the ground. "Damn it, I had so hoped that it was a dream..." He murmured, then slowly looked over at me. He sighed, "Look... what I said... don't believe what I said, I was just crazy for a while. War, you know? It gets to you. You can train for it, but you'll be prepared for it. No one's ever the same after killing. No one. I mean... the amount of killing we had to do... no one should have had to do it." He looked at me with pain and shame in his eyes, then looked away.

I patted him on the back. "You gonna be alright?" I wasn't scared of him, not even after his spontaneous little outburst earlier. We were both fighters, we had both killed; I could understand his pain and how much the guilt and horror of killing was getting to him. I could imagine how much regret he could have had at not having done enough to save people who didn't deserve to suffer. How... how inadequate he could have felt.

He was silent for a long moment, then murmured softly, "Nothing's ever gonna be alright again."

He sighed and looked me over, the pain fading from his expression to give way to curiosity. "What's with you?" He asked.

"Huh?" For just a moment, I was confused. Then I understood. "Oh, I see. Well, per Predator's suggestion, we're going to the Colosseum."

"You're what?" He asked incredulously. "Why? Did I not tell you of the people there? Think of the risks. Think of the delay on taking care of the megaspell threat!"

"It's not just that, Doomtune," I replied with a sigh. "You know Predator; he's ridiculously convoluted. His plans are fucking insane. And what can I say? I got caught up in one of them. Then one thing lead to another and... well, I'm kind of stuck in it." I paused as he turned around and looked at the ceiling, covering his face in frustration and annoyance. "I have thought of the risks, just so you know."

He grunted and shook his head. "This day is not going right," He murmured, then said, "Alright, where the hell is that guy? Where the fuck's Predator?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but before I could Predator's voice called out from right behind me, "Speak of the devil, Doomtune, and he shall appear." I gasped from surprise, but stood still as Predator trotted past me calmly and approached Doomtune, who was shaking his head disbelievingly and giving Predator glares.

"Predator, what the fuck is with you?" Doomtune hissed as he met Predator halfway. "You know the severity of a megaspell threat, yet you get the Praetorian and his friends caught up in one of your stupid plans? What the hell is your deal? Are you trying to get Roam destroyed?"

Predator looked down at his fellow operative silently for a moment, a low growl emanating from within his throat. Then he looked at me, "Leave us."

"No," Doomtune snapped as he looked at me. "You stay here, I'm gonna convince this guy that his plan or whatever the hell he calls it is stupid. For the gods' sake, the megaspell threat is more important than anything else right now! Shit, it's like I'm the only one around here who has a head that has the right priorities. Maybe I should take charge from now on, just to get things done. Why, maybe I should-..." He stopped short as Predator placed a hoof on the side of his neck.

"Do you feel in charge, Aurius?" Predator asked simply, and Doomtune very slowly turned his head away from me to look at him. "Do you feel in control of the situation? Of the actions of others? Of your own life and sanity, both of which are so horrendously threatened by the pangs of reality? Or perhaps you feel like you need to try to give yourself an image of esteem, or to make yourself feel like you're in the right?"

I gulped, not wanting to know where this was going to go. And so, like a coward, I left. I made my way around the corner, but found myself too glued to the conversation to leave it. And so I peaked from around the corner at what was happening, and hated myself for not having the constitution to stand there in the open. It was cowardly and dishonorable, so unlike the brave Praetorian persona I was to the people who looked up to me.

Surely Predator would't hurt Doomtune, though... right?

Doomtune stood there, glaring up at him. "Don't even bring this up, Predator."

Predator replied sardonically, "Ah, so you do! A shame, really. Such unhealthy psychological habits hamper your ability. Lack of attention truly is a terrible thing, I know Aurius. I know how it feels to have those you look up to neglect you and all your efforts, to hate you for what you are, not caring to try to know you better personally. I know how it must've felt to have parents who saw you as nothing more than filth."

"Enough!" Doomtune barked, and then angrily swatted Predator's hoof away.

"You..." Doomtune pointed a trembling hoof at Predator. "You raised me up since I was a child -- helped make me who I am -- yet... yet you torture me? You supported me in my ambitious little endeavors and understood me when no one else would, yet you caused me pain again and again. You brought back memories, then tell me to forget them. Why?" He said in a thrumming, agonized tone.

"Because I know how it feels to want to be in control of the circumstances, and I understand that pain better than you," Predator continued, unhindered. "I know the pain of trying to feel like I'm more than what the people who hate me say I am, and the pain brought about by trying to save the world... and for reasons completely my own." He took a step forward and pressed a hoof against Doomtune's chest while the junior operative seethed at him. "I know how it feels to want nothing more than to be seen as an example of what is right -- to be looked up to instead of down upon -- and I am familiar with the pain that comes when the world doesn't react the way I want it to to my efforts."

"So why am I saying all this?" Predator asked. "The answer is simple: you are nothing but a mere buck, trying to assert himself to become a stallion. Your foalish, emotion-saturated suggestions bear nothing but unguided personal desire; the seed of tragedy for those who would listen to you. You believe yourself worthy of taking charge? Well the truth is that you would only lead those under you to disaster, and there would no one to blame but yourself. Just like I had told the Praetorian, it doesn't matter who you are; what matters is your plans. And right now your plans are as worthless as the dirt beneath my hooves."

Doomtune started letting out low, rough breaths. I could see the hatred in his eyes, the fury in the tears that rolled down his cheeks. And yet I saw something else; a pain deeper than what could come from bringing up childhood problems. It was something deeper than mere anger for one who was hurting you; it was betrayal. I knew the face, for I had engraved it in the minds of my friends whenever my own anger drove me mad. I could tell from his small, disbelieving head shakes. His wide, tearful, hurt eyes just screamed it out.

Predator's tone turned from sardonic to warm as he continued, once more placing a hoof to his subordinate's neck, "Poor Aurius, stuck groveling for esteem and confidence. Tormented by the stress of war, unable to easily cope with the pangs and hardships, and so constantly seeking to put his nothingness behind him. So weak, so unlikely to survive, so... in pain."

He rose up on his hindlegs, placed both forehooves on Doomtune's neck, and started squeezing tightly. Doomtune's eyes bulged out once more as the force of the choke forced him to bend his knees and collapse onto the ground before rolling onto his back as Predator continued throttling him. His forehooves were powerless to remove the limbs cracking his neck.

Predator leaned in close and whispered threateningly, "I could end you right now before your life becomes nothing but darkness. Before it is filled with nothing but misery, with your soul constantly shivering from remembered cries of pain and languishing. Before suicide, so bereft of justifiability, stumbles upon what sane consciousness remains in the ruined remains of your mind."

But then he pulled away, and Doomtune gasped for air. "But I shan't, for that would be both a waste of all my effort and your talents; mostly the former. When your life is consumed by sorrow and depression... then you die."

Predator stood up and lightly smacked the groaning operative on the side of the head. "Get up," He said coldly, and trotted a little way off. "Go on, Goldwreath. There'll be no argument from this one; rather, I suspect a great deal of rethinking is in store for him." Then he moved on and out of sight.

That left Doomtune weakly groaning until he managed to sit himself upright, and after that he merely sat there with a bowed head, sniffing and quietly choking his sobs in.

Enough. The day had already been horrible -- I had had my feelings played with so much it was like they were being winded up until they snapped -- and I didn't, no, couldn't take more. It was an act of blatant disregard, and I knew it, but my brain betrayed me. It went against what I would normally do and made me do the exact opposite: it made me turn around and trot away, hearing but ignoring the muffled chokes and sobs of the zebra just around the corner.

I had only gotten a few steps away when I opened my eyes and saw Myst and Skyfire right in front of me, both with deep and thoughtful frowns on their faces. Myst already had some tears streaking down her cheeks; Skyfire looked a little angry, and who could blame her? Predator was scary, and he knew how to get to people. He knew what to say to confuse, trick, and hurt, and what frightened me most was that he had no restrictions; at least, none that the ultra-sadistic Predator had shown.

Myst trotted forward and looked up at me, then at Skyfire. "You two should go to the Colosseum," She said simply. "I'll... I'll talk to Doomtune, I mean... Aurius."

"I'm not sure if I want to go any more, and even if I did, not without you," I responded.

She gave me a wan smile. "You should anyway. I'm good at talking to people one-on-one, strange as it is, and right now... he really needs some talking to. He isn't the only one with issues stemming from the past..." She fell silent for a moment and looked to the ground with a frown, but continued, "Besides, it's not like you want to stay in this place with... him, do you?"

"What about you?" I asked. "I don't trust him enough to leave you or Doodle in his company. Speaking of that, where is Doodle?"

"She's over at the foal's section on the other side, trying to learn some basic Imperial from some picture books. And don't worry about me, I can handle Predator... I hope," Myst replied uncertainly, much to my discomfort. "Anyway, this might be your only chance to go to the Colosseum, and I know you'll regret not having gone if you don't."

"But we were supposed to go together!" I replied stubbornly.

She frowned. "I know Goldwreath, and I really want to go with you, but... well, I'd hate myself for making you stay here, and I'd hate myself for not helping someone who needed help. I mean, what kind of person would I be if I didn't?" I frowned shamefully at that and closed my eyes. Yeah... what kind of person was I to abandon someone in need of assistance? What kind of heartless bastard was I becoming?

She noticed my expression and placed a hoof on my chest. "Oh no, don't feel like that. Goldwreath, if there's one thing you've done too much the last month, it's trying to help people at your own expense. It's wrong to beat yourself up, but you've taught me how to help people in need. So it's only fair that you get a little break; let some one else do a little work. After all, you're not the only one on this team of ours." I opened my eyes and smiled, thankful for the assurance and the comfort. She smiled back. "Besides, there's far more things we could do together later that could be more exciting than going to the Colosseum, right?"

Skyfire barely suppressed a bark of laughter. Myst looked to her with confusion, then back at me with the same look. Her narrowed eyes showed immense pondering, but after a moment her they opened wide and her cheeks flamed into a blush. "Anyway, so... yeah. Just be back after noon," she murmured hurriedly as she trotted past me.

Despite having accepted that she wouldn't come with me, I couldn't help but reach out a hoof longingly as she got further. For a moment she turned around and saw me, and gave a warm smile. I had a foolish hope that she'd reconsider, but then she continued trotting, and just like that my hope was shattered.

I felt Skyfire's hoof on my shoulder. "Come on," she urged, and said sternly, "She wouldn't want you to miss out on this, no matter how you may feel about it. And I don't want you to miss it, either; you do deserve a break. Myst's a good pony who wants to help you, so just suck it up and give her the privilege of getting to choose how she wants to do it." She paused for a moment, and I looked over to her with concern. Her expression was one of pain, though from what I couldn't tell. Surely her 'not getting me to like her issues' weren't coming back up again, right? "Just like what we've been letting you do the last month."

Skyfire was right; Myst had free will and a consciousness of her own, and to try to assert myself over her would be wrong. They were both right about being able to do good on their own; I wasn't the only one the group.

"You're right, Skyfire," I replied, trying to sound more confident and intact than I actually felt. "You're both right. Maybe I do need a break... the rest of the day until we reach the Forum doesn't sound too bad. I'll take what time I can, I guess." I inhaled deeply and turned around to look at the massive bronze doors on the far edge of the room. I started trotting for it, Skyfire right at my side.

"I don't know about you," Skyfire said as we trotted along, "But I'm hyped up to go over there! Sure the day's been kinda... crappier than usual, but meh. No point on dwelling on that, right?" She gave me an excited grin.

I forced a grin onto my face; I wanted to be excited and to relax so damn much, but it was just plain hard. For my own sake, I really was trying to just not let myself troubled so that I could actually enjoy the rest of the day. "Yup, absolutely. No point on dwelling on it," I replied with a nod. "You're both right, I should relax. Just a bit."

"Good," she said with a friendly smile; one that I tried to emulate as we continued down the walkway.

I really was starting to relax. Between Myst's assurances of her own safety and the trip to the Colosseum, the rest of the day really wasn't looking so bad. Sure, later on I'd need to find out just how to respond effectively to the very sadistic Predator persona I was being forced to deal with, but that was for later. It wasn't even ten in the morning yet, and already the world outside was bright and sunny. The Roaman fanboy in me squealed with excitement as we neared the doors, envisioning the great beauty and grandeur of the Colosseum and the nearby Circus Maximus, and whatever other structures we passed along the way.

It was just when we reached the doors that a thought that nearly broke the serenity of my mind entered my head: 'Never believe in relaxation, for it is fleeting.'

'Fuck, I hate you brain.'

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

After leaving the wall that surrounded the library, Skyfire and I took off for the sky. Since then we had left behind the broken circle of buildings surrounding the library's hill, and were now flying above the land beyond that -- a massive circular island, perhaps ten miles in radius, that was surrounded by a bit of the Tiber that was artificially branched off from the rest of the river. Aqueducts came to the island from the city around it, and many of them still worked.

This was the center of modern Roam, but even that had a centerpiece. Roam's heart -- the Forum and everything in a radius of two miles -- was built upon an elevated foundation of yellowish marble that extended in a circular formation with a diameter of four miles. Four roads of grey concrete ran down from the four sides of Roam's elevated heart like grey water pouring down the slopes of an artificial plateau of gold, and the roads then extended all the way to edges of the island and into the rest of the city.

The Forum itself stood at the center of the plateau, with its mountain jutting out of the marble foundation. Surrounding the Forum and occupying the rest of the circular marble surface were a great many military bases and forts -- recently made or otherwise -- all bustling with Legion activity, as well as some very tall sky scrapers, which I assumed were the most important economic centers during the war. The interior of the Forum's walls, I assumed, looked like what I had seen in the memory orbs: a garden. High walls and thick metal gates closed off the heart from the rest of the world. The river surrounding the island ran into an artificial river bank that reached the the base of the marble plateau, and what appeared to be a field of light brought the water up in a magical field and onto the elevated surface. The water then formed a moat around the forum before flowing down the other side of the plateau and racing across the circular island and joining the Tiber once more.

Surrounding the heart of Roam and built upon the artificial island was a city on its own. High-rise structures, industrial complexes, malls, and entertainment venues of the richest make made up the city. A great section of the city beneath us rose up like a hill, and it was at the foot of that hill, on opposite ends, that the Circus Maximus and the Colosseum were built. Using my knowledge of Roam's layout according to books I had read, I discerned that that hill must have been the Palatine hill: the centermost of Roam's seven hills. Whereas in ancient times it may have been a barren mound of dirt, now it had built upon it a wide and towering structure that resembled what could have been a mansion.

This circular island and the circular heart of Roam at its center was the original city -- Roam before modern technologies allowed massive expansion. Even if the island had not originally been circular, nor even existed until the Roamans created the moat, that only served to deepen my awe at their engineering skills. The mere thought of it all sparked all kinds of excited emotions, which I was more than willing to let take over my head.

"We should land soon!" I said over the roar of the wind and the flapping our wings as we flew deeper into the island.

Skyfire snickered, "Why? Getting tired already? That's so pathetic!"

"No, Skyfire; my stamina is far greater than yours and I'm quite sure my wings can take a hell of a beating!" I replied, "It's just that I don't want some random bandit or raider try to shoot us out of the sky; it happened to me and Myst once, and I do NOT want it to happen again."

"But don't you like the view?" She yelled. "City looks damned good from up here, if you ask me. Look at that super huge plateau of marble! I've never seen anything like it, and already I say it's fucking amazing. Take that from someone who's not even into this sort of stuff!" She took a moment to breathe. "Besides, I highly doubt anyone can see us up here!"

"The view's great! It feels damned good to be able to fly and to be free, not to mention how awesome it makes me feel when I'm hundreds of feet higher up than a sky scraper, and you're probably right about no one being able to see us." I also took a moment to breathe; screaming over the wind wasn't exactly something that left me with breath. "But I also happen to enjoy seeing the structures up close; see the intimate details and all that!"

"Fine!" she yelled, "Where do you want to touch down? Definitely not at the Colosseum; we'll have to walk there so no one recognizes you."

"There!" I replied, and pointed at the roof of a rectangular structure near the Circus Maximus.

She looked it over for a moment and nodded, and we started circling downwards like vultures. Our descent was fairly slow, but it allowed me a very thorough view of the city in all directions. And as we got closer, I began to notice that, while the original Roam looked quite modern, it still retained a large number of its original classical structures.

We touched down softly, at least softer than I had expected. No one seemed to notice our landing, which was very good. I didn't know what structure this was, but surely I could explore it a bit before leaving.

"Alright," I said, "What do you think about exploring the place a bit? Could have some loot, maybe some caps, secrets..." The truth was, of course, that I was immensely curious about the past and wanted to know more about it; I couldn't care less about the caps or whatever we found inside unless it was historical.

She thought of it for a moment, looking to the ground and pouting. "I don't know..." she said slowly. She gave me a quizzical look. "You sure that's a good idea?"

"Well, it isn't necessarily a bad idea," I replied.

"Yeah, but what if something goes wrong? Wastelands's fucked up -- I know, I've seen; there's some nasty shit in Equestria -- and considering what I've seen of Roam so far... I just feel like we shouldn't risk any of us getting hurt," she said cautiously, as if worried I might disapprove. Which I kind of did, but I wasn't mad or anything. I just really wanted to explore, and short of her doing something drastic to stop me, I was going to keep arguing until I got what I wanted.

"I'll make sure we won't," I said determinedly and with a cocky little smile. "We'll just look around, grab anything that could be useful, and then leave for the Colosseum. Then we'll look around the place for a but, hope we don't come across any trouble, and then leave again. Simple."

She screw up her face in contemplation, but then relaxed. She sighed and gave me a trusting smile. "Alright," she said softly, "Let's just hope things don't spiral out of control, eh?"

I nodded, "Indeed." With that said, I made my way to the roof entrance and pushed the door open.

What I saw inside quite baffled me.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

This place had clearly been a clinic of some sort. It wasn't a very large one -- in fact it may have been just for the few wealthy enough to afford it -- but it made up for that with medical equipment of the highest tier and quality and the best construction. Medical lasers and field generators lay on the ground, valuable-looking despite their age. Mark IV gravitation turrets lined the ceiling, deactivated. Massive marble arches divided the spherical interior space into four different sections, each housing several beds with diagrams of the bodies of every single sentient creature known hung along the walls. Restriction tables lay on the floor, formerly ready to immobilize any patient with a ferocious and violent attitude. Operation rooms, blocked off by flickering fields of opaque energy, lay in waste with all the equipment within strewn about.

At the very center of the single-floor structure was a wide pit opened up in the ground -- actually, not a pit. It was more like... like a small secret room, perhaps where bodies were kept. The problem was, though, that the facilities within were inadequate -- at the most, the broken cabinets within could have held confidential patient data.

Now, you're probably wondering, 'Goldwreath, so what? Isn't this the sort of thing you'd expect to see in the wasteland?' Well, yes, you're right. I really did expect to see structures in ruins. The strange thing with this one, though, was that all the destruction was fresh -- the floors were too clean for the doors to have been busted down for two-hundred years, and I'm quite certain that all the snapped cords and flickering lights weren't in such disrepair until recently. The windows, protected from the exterior by metal shields, were pristine from the interior. Hell, most of the lights were still on!

Skyfire finished climbing the ladder and joined me on the ground, and her expression immediately turned bewildered. "The hell happened to this place?"

I shook my head, "I don't know." I trotted over to one of the fallen surgical lasers. "This wreckage looks fresh. There's nothing to suggest people got in here in the past. No bodies, no cans of food, no bullet casings suggestive of past battles... nothing. It's all too clean." But there were signs of previous usage, perhaps by the Legion. Syringes lay here and there, splattered with blood. Bandages were scattered about, and some of the turned over beds were fresh with the scent of sweat and iodine. This place had to have been used until recently, I was sure of it.

'It's almost like my senses are getting stronger,' I thought as I casually sniffed a napkin. It had the scent of alcohol on it.

"I'll check if there's anything around here," Skyfire informed me, and trotted off.

After that we went off our separate ways to try and find anything useful. The fact that there was salvageable stuff further backed up my hypothesis of the place not being destroyed until recently. Our already large stockpile of medical supplies was supplemented by even MORE medical supplies, in addition to some spare parts Skyfire salvaged from some of the equipment -- mostly pieces of scrap metal that could fit in our bags, but also a few crystalline talismans and circuitry. I honestly didn't know what to do with the caps I would get from selling those (for you see, I didn't care much for spending; I cared more for selling, and honestly I had more caps then than I really needed), but it couldn't have hurt to have more of the wasteland's currency, right?

The main chamber lost my interest quickly, so I went down into the pit in the middle of the room. It was small, perhaps just large enough to hold... something of the size of Zaita. The few steps it took to reach the bottom didn't take long to climb, and soon I found myself facing a broken set of cabinets, with papers and envelopes strewn about the floor. None of it was of any interest; it was all about some patients wanting to keep their medical condition secret from the public.

Except one paper. That one paper stated something of a patient whose body was... liquefied by a plasma grenade. The damage done by what had destroyed this place rendered all other information illegible, save one small tidbit about the patient being subject to a 'cybernetic limb experiment'. That got my interest enough to actually drive me to scour everything else all over again. There was nothing, leaving me terrible vexed.

My curiosity piqued but not satisfied, I disappointedly trotted back up and was greeted by the sight of Skyfire struggling to stuff an entire case of spare laser amplifier talismans into her single saddlebag -- a saddlebag which, I must say, could hold far more than it looked like it could. After a metal clang that clearly meant something inside her bag had been flattened, the container just barely managed to fit inside. She smiled contentedly and pushed it inside.

"I see you've done quite some scavenging," I said as I smiled, looking over the tremendous amount of things overflowing within her bags.

She nodded, "Yup! Not much left to scavenge now though. Not unless you want to haul around heavy equipment." Then she looked at the overflowing bag with a skeptical look, then she looked at me. "It'd be great if you could put some of this stuff in your bags; thing's overflowing."

"You don't say..." I murmured under my breath, and moved in to take some of the stuff out.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

After our pilfering of the medical clinic we trotted outside through the broken arched doorway. The thick steel doors had been busted down from the outside by whatever had assailed the place, and now they lay in smashed and battered ruins inside the doorway. A trail of dust and rubble lead away from the clinic, signifying where whatever had done all this had gone.

Now, when Skyfire and I should have been trotting the half-a-mile distance to the Colosseum, we were instead, at my suggestion, following the trail of debris, which lead down a road going further into the island city; it wasn't technically going farther from the Colosseum, so the little side-trip was fine with me.

Not with Skyfire, though.

"Ugh, we should be at the place already," she grumbled as she trotted along with me down a street lined on both sides with marble and brick houses, both ancient-ish and modern; this had clearly been a neighborhood for the most important and wealthy zebras. Dead trees and eerie playgrounds marked the gardens and lawns, yet the signs of recent activity in the houses were abundant -- legion banners were hung here and there, and sandbags blocked off a doorway or two.

"We'll get there," I said calmly. I wasn't in any particular hurry; perhaps it was Myst's request to relax -- in which case I was following her advice well -- or my head quite simply didn't feel like I had to rush in stopping the megaspell threat. Don't think I'm lazy, I had been through a lot; surely I had warranted at least a little bit of a reward, and surely getting to actually explore the city a little wasn't so much to ask for.

She mumbled something under her breath; I don't know what it was, but it clearly signified annoyance.

"Skyfire," I said gently, and stopped trotting. She sighed and looked at me with an expression I couldn't quite fathom. "Look, I know this probably doesn't sit well with you -- wandering around when we should be doing a job -- but trust me. The world's not going to end again, not while I have something to do about it."

"How are you so sure?" she asked anxiously. "We're talking megaspells here, Goldwreath. Those are the things responsible for ending the world. I... I don't want another apocalypse. What if the Enclave gets hit this time? What if all life that didn't get wiped out gets wiped out?" Her terror racketed her voice higher and higher.

"They won't," I responded calmly.

"How can you be so calm?" she snapped, making me raise an eyebrow. "Don't you understand? We're going on this little side-trip to relax a bit, sure, but it's almost like you don't seem to care any more. It's almost like there's something wrong with your head."

She breathed angrily for a moment, but then frowned at the calm look I gave her. She lowered her head and sighed, "Sorry... I know I should trust you and all, and I do... but why do you seem so calm? I'm worried as hell over here, and you... you used to worry so much, why are you so calm now?"

I shrugged, "Don't know. I guess that, when a pony's been through a lot and thinks too much about too many things, they tend to just... stop. You know, stop being so worried. Maybe it's a coping mechanism or just me wanting to relax for a good hour or two, but that's how it is. I'm not carefree, just really relaxed." Come to think of it, that was the first time in a while that I had honestly not felt any compulsion to achieve anything. I was completely, totally relaxed, and at the time I wanted to stay that way unless I was needed.

She sighed and scratched her mane. "I guess I can understand. My dad used to get tired a lot too when he served in the military. When he get home though... he was so calm. Like he had never even fought or killed."

"He must have wanted to appear like a father to you," I said simply. "He mustn't have wanted to bring the horrors of combat home with him."

She nodded. "Yeah, I guess. He always was happy and all that when he was home with us; never did anything drastic." She smiled, as if remembering fond memories. But then her face turned stern and she smacked a hoof into my helmet. "Now you can relax and all, but I know that the all-worrying, all-planning Goldwreath's in that head of yours, and when the time comes I want him out, alright? Don't overdo the relaxing!"

I smirked and nodded. Then, just to show her I could be my battle-ready self again, I said coldly, "Those Legion bastards won't use those bombs; not while I'm still alive. You have to trust me."

For just a moment she seemed confused, but then nodded with her own smirk. "Alright, I trust you. More now that I know you can jar yourself out of being so calm." She let out a shaky breath and said softly, "It's... uh, a little bit creepy. So not... you."

"I'm not even sure what I'm even supposed to feel any more, actually," I admitted. "Whether I'm supposed to relax more now that I'm under more stress, or to meet the challenges with increased fervor, I don't know. I guess you could say I'm just... confused." Sure, the past month had confused me all to hell, and even in my relaxed mode -- at that time a recent discovery that both disturbed and relieved me -- I was not truly free of worry. Little thoughts popped in and out, urging me to think about them. Only my adamant desire to have an hour or so off kept me from doing so.

She looked me over and smiled. "Well, that's why you have us," she said. "Remember when you told us to tell you if we had problems? Well, you can do the same. Again, we're here for you. We want to help you out." There was a tone of sincerity in her voice. Sincerity and... something else. Something I had heard from Myst before but not from Skyfire. It was recent; I had actually started hearing perhaps when I first arrived at the Library. She didn't seem like her old self. Her tone and choice of words, not to mention her mannerisms and greater signs of thought, all seemed to indicate something. That something was... maturity? Growth into a pony more refined?

I took that thought in for a moment, contemplating it. Yes, she was. Significantly more refined than the Skyfire I used to know. Sure, she was still loud-mouthed and impulsive, but less so. She was giving way to more diverse emotions aside from just anger and pride.

She was becoming a better pony.

That one thought nearly put a massive grin onto my face that I managed to forcibly disguise as a warm smile. "Glad to hear it," I replied sincerely.

The trot through the rest of the neighborhood eventually brought us to a large metal wall -- recently erected, for its make and quality were far too good to have been the work of some random group of raiders. The wall had two metal doors, which had large dents in them; clearly, whatever had ruined the clinic earlier had tried to go through here. I was about to suggest we fly up and see what we could find, when I noticed the most bizarre phenomenon...

There was a memory orb, scratched and dirty, in a nearly waterless maot on the far side of the wall, moving to and fro in a small pool of water. Another thing that puzzled me was the patch of dead grass mysteriously dancing around as though it were being moved by an invisible wind near the moat. The orb itself seemed to be trying to escape from the ditch, but it was having a hard time sliding up the dirt slope. The walls near the gutter had massive scratch marks; they didn't look deliberate, but the consequence of clumsy action.

"What manner of madness is this..." I murmured as I took several steps towards it. Skyfire followed, though the expression on her face was one of a mixture of mild fear and major bewilderment. I didn't share in her fear, though; maybe she believed in ghosts or something along those lines -- supernatural stuff -- but I was a logical pony. Surely there had to be a another explanation.

At our approach both phenomena stopped, much to our further bewilderment. Skyfire flew over into the moat and carefully visually examined the orb. I stood staring at the patch of grass with a quizzical look. But no matter what we did, nothing happened. And yet I couldn't shake the feeling that we were being watched. That feeling in my head -- that newfound ability that I had -- was just screaming it in my head.

Strange as it may seem, it was because of that warning that I stood still. And it was also because of that warning that I wasn't even surprised when the patch of air beside me lit up into a flash of blue accented with white. Skyfire was taken off guard, and she immediately ducked for cover from what must have appeared to her as an explosion of some sort. I, though, was calm and relaxed, and therefore said to the entity beside me, "Hey Zaita."

"Goldwreath, I'm so glad it was you and Skyfire who have come along to aid me in my time of need," her monotone voice replied. Skyfire popped her head up and put of the ground, looking altogether vexed and bewildered.

I looked to her with a questioning look. "Your time of need?"

"Yes, my time of need. As of now, I am faced with a terrible problem that I cannot surmount." Her metal front pointed down to the ground as if in shame. "It has kept me here for hours."

"What's the problem?" I asked, getting out of my relaxed demeanor and into one more fitting to aid my vehicle ally. Skyfire climbed out of the moat, looking annoyed but relieved.

She hovered a bit closer to me and said on a voice with minimal volume, "I cannot get the memory orb which I worked so hard to get out of a clinic out of that ditch. It's terrible. Every time I try, my thrusters push me forward and the orb slides back down." As if to show what she meant, she hovered over to the ditch and dipped her nose into the mud. Her thrusters hummed and she propelled herself forward. However, right before the orb came free, she overflew it and the orb slid back down. "See?"

"Um... yes, of course," I replied, confused. "Here, let me, uh... help you with that." I trotted into the ditch and picked up the orb, then held it in my hooves as I looked at her with confusion. "You mentioned something about a clinic? Also, what's with this orb?" From the look Skyfire gave me at my inquiry, she wanted to know as well.

"Ah yes," she replied. "Well, yesterday when I went exploring here I saw this clinic. I had been there during the war, so I decided to go to it. It was locked, and so, because I had nothing to do with my time, I forcibly busted the doors down by ramming into them. It took me a while, but I finally got inside. I knew that there may have been confidential information within the secret floor, so I broke into that too. I found the orb by breaking the cabinets, and have been trying to roll it over back to the Library ever since. Until it got stuck in that ditch, that is."

I looked at her for a moment with narrowed eyes and an agape mouth, my mind replaying her statement over and over again. "I see..." I said, and shook my head clear. "So you're the one who broke that clinic. Skyfire and I were wondering what was with that place."

"I destroyed it to retrieve information that may have existed which, if it did, could have been interesting and important," she replied defensively.

I waved a hoof dismissively, "Alright, I'm not saying that you shouldn't have, eh, broken the place to find this orb. I get it, you wanted to explore a bit and all that. I just really want to ask-..."

"Why the hell would you go through all that trouble?" Skyfire interjected. "Kinda strange that you'd do all that and use all that time to do something we could have done easier. You could have just brought us over if you thought there was something inside."

Zaita looked at her for a moment, then said simply, "I wanted to do something on my own."

I nodded idly. "Alright, let's not start anything here. Look, Zaita, here's the orb; maybe we can take a look at it later." I flew up onto her armored chassis and opened the hatch, then dropped the orb onto one of the seats inside. "Where are you headed right now, anyway?"

She turned to me and looked me right in the eye with her camera. "I was planning on returning to the Library with the orb until I got sidetracked by this delay. Now that you have eased my burden, I may accomplish that task with significantly less trouble."

"Alright then. Skyfire and I were just headed to the Colosseum for the heck of it -- and also because of Predator; don't ask -- until I decided to follow the trail of dust and debris you left behind," I said.

Her nose pointed upwards then back down as if she were nodding. "Very well. I would advise you to be cautious around here. I didn't actually go to the Colosseum, but I've heard talk of a coalition of some sort forming. Also, apparently the Legion doesn't hate you."

"Why'd you say that?" Skyfire asked with a snort. "Those guys tried to kill us on at least two occasions, and they seem to have branded Goldwreath over here here as a terrorist. And don't even make me bring up the fact that they shot me out of the sky!"

Zaita turned to her once more. "Perhaps, but I've heard talk on the Legion's comm networks, and apparently the Equestrius cohort -- the one commanded by Thanus, who is by the way now dead -- was the Legion cohort that you have been terrorizing all throughout your time on the surface. They are also the ones who were charged with keeping Roam in control, and apparently they've done a poor job by the Legion's standards. From what I've heard, all the other cohorts also seem to dislike Thanus and his troops for reasons I have not discerned, and therefore have nothing against you."

Wow. Well... that was a lot to take in. A LOT to take in. So apparently I had been hated only by the cohort of Legionnaires whose executor had been killed in a plan I more or less took part in... wow. And apparently all the other cohorts -- and perhaps even Vesperius -- were fine with me... also a lot to take in, but not bad. Very welcome, in fact that was great news!

Still, I did have, as always, some concerns. "That's wonderful," I said with a jubilant little smile as I looked to the ground in waning disbelief. "But how's that supposed to help exactly? If Equestrius controls Roam, any Legionnaire I see are gonna hate me."

"Not exactly true," Zaita said, "From what I've heard, another cohort is coming here to take over Equestrius' job, and the remnants of Thanus' troops will be transferred to a city to the north named Arx where what few things they can do right will actually be useful."

Wow, more great news! Maybe the newcomer would be more sensible than Thanus and his troops, who so foolishly tried to keep the dam and its water away from those who needed it. "So who's coming over here instead?" I asked, a great weight lifted off my head. So, the chances of being able to live without fear of the Legion's hatred could actually come true! The thought of being able to peacefully discuss with the Legate definitely seemed possible now!

"The largest, most disciplined and most well-equipped cohort lead by prime executor Flavianicus: the Roamana cohort."

"Wow, this is all a lot to take in..." Skyfire said from beside me, looking perplexed. "So the Legionnaires we've been fighting this whole time were from this 'Equestrius cohort', huh?" She sighed and shook her head, a frustrated look on her face. "I still don't like it. Someone's gotta pay for my friends' deaths. Now... crap, why can't getting revenge be easier?"

"Maybe whatever good's left in the world doesn't want you to pursue revenge," I answered calmly, getting me a strange look from her. "Come on, surely you've got to know that revenge isn't exactly a good thing. Not even satisfying when you get it. I don't like the mere concept of revenge."

She was silent for a moment, seeming to think. "Then what are you planning to do about the guy who killed your friend and forced you out here?" she asked simply.

I was speechless. With that one question, a topic I had thought I had placed completely behind me was brought to the very center of my attention. Every angry and hateful thought I had spawned in my head that I had thought I had buried came slamming back into my mind with traumatizing force. The mere memory of that failure both in saving my friend and asserting my innocence nearly floored me.

"I... I..." was all that escaped my mouth as I stood there, looking for something to say. I sucked in a breath and opened my mouth to answer, when the most unexpected sound interrupted us.

It was a horn, and the blow was long and loud -- glorious, yet at that time due to my confusion and shock its power fell on me with little impact. The sound of it resonated through the ruins about us ruffling the dead leaves of the trees around us.

Another horn responded, this one much closer to us. The force of it vibrated through the ground, and I forced my emotions and shock aside to make way for my combat-ready self. I had promised Skyfire I could react when necessary, and I wasn't going to let her down in that regard.

"What the hell was that?" Skyfire asked slowly, her face looking strangely calm. "Zaita, you wouldn't happen to-..." She turned around, as did I, but found only a bare patch of air where our APC was supposed to be. There was dust blowing across the ground below that patch of air, though.

"Legionnaires, hopefully Roamana cohort ones. I will return immediately to the Library; be careful," Zaita said simply, not giving us a chance to respond or to question, and her mark of blown dust moved quickly away over the wall and into the land beyond. We were all alone.

"Fuck fuck fuck," I said as I turned back to Skyfire and saw an expression of worry on her face. "Okay, uh, we should go. Now, fly up!" I said hurriedly.

But it was too late. From down the road that we had trotted down came two forms approaching us with great speed. Their quickness of pace rendered them nothing more than a blur of grey and purple. I had only the mind to check my E.F.S for their hostility indication. Luckily they were friendlies, but I still tucked my wings under my cloth and loosened my gladius just in case. Skyfire did the same, and I was surprised to find that she had brought her SMG with her. Well, what could go wrong? We braced ourselves, and I did my best to suppress my panic.

The two forms arrived and circled us, and the wind from their momentum swept over the street. Their waning speed allowed me to see them clearly.

Legionnaires, both of them. The cloth underneath their armor and the capes upon their backs were a rich tyrian purple rather than a typical bright red. Their dark grey helmets had on the main plate a solid arc of steel going back to forth like a blade resembling plumes, and their grayish metal shields, engraved with an insignia of two golden wreaths in the center of which were the golden letters 'IPQR', covered their backs. Two pairs of gladiuses were strapped to both hips, and guns of high quality were slung onto the front of their kevlar and metal armor. Two collapsible pilums -- the Roaman throwing spear -- were strapped across their chests, and beneath their shields there appeared to be backpacks of leather make.

But just what caught my attention were the beasts they rode upon. Grey things, born with thick and dessicated-looking hide. Muscular too, with thick legs and a wide, robust body; perhaps large enough to hold three ponies on their backs. Their tails were short and stubby, pointing upwards slightly towards the sky. Their heads, thick in width and tipped with a series of three long horns on the end of their bony noses, wore what would have appeared as a looks of anger. The creatures roared as the Legionnaires brought them to a stop with the reins in their hooves.

One of them approached and had his steed casually jog around us as he said in a refined Imperial accent, "Ah, quid habemus hic? Vagi? Raptores in magna urbe? Vel forte vobis duo sunt inquinatior faciet; barbari et populatores fortasse?" He stopped right in front of us, leaving me to stare with terrified curiosity at his steed. He noticed that and yelled imperiously, "Et ita? Loquere excitare! Aut non habetis linguam?"

I shook my head jerkily and looked up at him, so authoritatively looking down at me. I gulped and managed to get out, "No, sir, I-I do have a tongue. And no, we aren't raiders or... barbarians. We're mere wanderers. That's it."

He stared at me with wide eyes for a moment, like I had insulted him. He shut his agape mouth and got off his steed, then approached me. He got right up to me, nearly touching my muzzle with his own; he was almost as large as I was. Skyfire shifted uncomfortably, but the other Legionnaire drew a blade and pointed it at her.

The Legionnaire in front of me shook his head, as if just looking at me disgusted him. "Is that so?" he asked with a tone of disbelief. Then he smirked and put on an easy smile on his face. "Certainly no mere barbarian, for you at least know this great empire's language. And certainly no common filthy raider, lest you would be rutting with this mare right here like most savages." He took in a breath and cocked his head at me, as if analyzing my expressions. "Very well, for the sake of one who at least learned Imperial Zebrican, I will deign to speak in the language of ponies. Who are you and what are you two doing in the heart of Roam?"

"Pardon me sir, but who are you exactly?" I found myself asking, and immediately wanted to take the words back. He had just asked me a question, and here I was directly inquiring him! That could have offended him, and he honestly seemed like the type to kill when offended.

He certainly looked offended, signified by when he puckered his lips and gave me a hard glare. Still, to my relief, he answered in a far less deadly tone, "We are auxiliaries of the great Roamana cohort. Me and my friend over here hail from within the Forum, and are assigned to the fifth century of our esteemed division. I am Venaius, and my comrade here is Gravetanicus."

Gravetanicus nodded and said calmly in a disciplined and masculine voice, "Citizens."

Venaius looked to his comrade then back to me, and his expression hardened once more. "Now, stranger... your names and your purpose!" Now he really seemed like if I didn't answer him then he might actually kill us. Maybe I could take them, but I didn't want to kill. Not unless I had to.

I took in anxious breath and replied, "My name is Goldwreath, sir. And my friend over here is Skyfire. We mean no harm nor are we part of any conspiracy against the Legion; we are simply traveling to the Colosseum."

He looked at me flatly, nodding his head. "Ponies with pony parents, then. Hmph, I had hoped that perhaps you louts were raised by Roaman zebras, but alright. On another topic, you are the ones who desecrated the clinic down the road? The clinic which for so long during the war served to nurse back to health the most important of zebras, and as of our exodus onto the surface has saved dozens of Legionnaires from their wounds when we eradicated most filth from this place as we expanded?" There was no scorn in his voice; suspicion, and lots of it, but otherwise it was a simple question.

Skyfire next to me interjected, "No, we didn't do that, pal. We just found the place busted down and thought we'd loot a bit."

Venaius snapped his head towards her, causing her to look back at him with slight fear and shock. He looked back to me with a quizzical look. "I would advise you both to not speak with such spontaneousness nor with such slang. It will not serve you well should you encounter other Legionnaires who are not in as forgiving a mood as I and my friend here."

He seemed to think for a moment as he cast his eyes to the ground. "Why are you headed to the Colosseum?" he asked slowly, almost suspiciously.

I wanted to shrug as I replied, but that didn't seem wise. "We're headed there to admire its splendor and majesty, and if luck permits purchase a few things from whatever abode sells," I replied honestly, and Skyfire next to me nodded.

"And you are not going there to join with the forming coalition that maintains neutrality with us, but seems to be stockpiling for war?" Gravetanicus asked seriously, and Venaius gave me a cold, calculating look.

I didn't let it daunt me as I replied, "I would sooner die than join any filth that seek to mar such an empire."

Venaius and Gravetanicus alike looked at me and Skyfire with hard, skeptical glares. Their beasts roared and stomped with impatience as the moments went by, and a great anxiety built up inside of me. The moaning of the wind among the ruined houses carried with it the sound of distant stomps and marching, and occasionally a faint blow of a horn.

At last Venaius eased. "Very well," he said simply, "I will permit you two to continue with your plans. It is my hope, however, that should you run into any more of my fellow auxiliaries that you show a little more respect and formality that you did to me and-..." he was saying, when the sound of a beep interrupted him.

He sighed and turned around to retrieve a radio from his belt, and it was a radio similar to my own. He brought it to his forehooves and said into it, "Yes, what news do you have for me?"

The voice that came through the speaker sounded baffled. "Venaius? Why are you speaking in Equestrian? It's so not like you."

Venaius smirked and replied, "It's none of your business, Kevanus. Just tell me what news you have."

"Well, this sector's clear for Roamana's advance. Delvius and Gaius haven't reported in yet. You? How's your sector? If it's clear, orders are to move in on the Colosseum next and make sure there's no threat," Kevanus replied.

Venaius nodded. "Alright, thanks for the information. Out." He tucked his radio away and looked at us with an forced smile. "Well, it seems our destination is the same. Out of courtesy and my oath to protect and serve Roam's citizens, I must offer that you two come with us there. It would be wise if you did."

"It would indeed be a wise and time-saving endeavor," I mused. I looked to Skyfire in hopes of discerning her opinion. She looked quizzical and slightly anxious, but then she saw me and gave me a shrug. Well, it wasn't a no. "Very well, and thank you kindly. We will accompany you to our mutual destination."

Venaius nodded at me then gestured a hoof at Gravetanicus. At once the silent Legionnaire got off his steed and onto the ground, then approached Skyfire with the reins in his forehooves. He pushed his hooves forward, bidding her take them. Venaius did the same with his beast.

Skyfire looked puzzled. "You... want me to ride those things?" she asked disbelievingly.

"Is it not obvious?" Venaius replied blankly, and grabbed my forehooves and placed the reins in them. I gulped as the creature snorted and looked at me. "Why are you two so anxious? Have you not ridden a cerati before?"

"N-no," I replied shakily, which got me a sardonic smirk from them both.

Gravetanicus likewise grabbed Skyfire's forehooves and pushed the reins into them, before joining Venaius a little further off. There was nothing else to do, and so I uneasily climbed onto the creature's leathery back. It snorted and growled, but otherwise remained still. It was enough to frighten me, though.

Skyfire did the same, and soon we found ourselves holding the reins of creatures we had never seen before. We could see the anxiousness on each other' faces; the doubt and the regret. It honestly didn't seem like such a bad idea to just trot to the Colosseum on our own.

"So, uh, we'll take it slow? Like a gentle ride along the countryside or something?" Skyfire asked anxiously.

Venaius snorted, "Of course not! That would be a terrible waste of time and the speed of our mounts." He turned to us, but looked at the cerati I sat upon specifically. Gravetanicus turned around as well and looked his mount in the eye. The creatures snorted at them, but they were unnervingly still. Almost like they were concentrating.

Then, without warning of any kind, the Legionnaires turned and galloped with shocking speed down the road. Their capes flew behind them, and the purple coloration of their clothing was all that distinguished the Legionnaires from the grey road.

"What about-..." Skyfire was saying, when our mounts reared and roared, and with unbelievable speed charged down the road after their masters. It actually felt good riding on the back of such sturdy creatures. My only regret was that I had not trained my private regions to withstand the pain of it.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

The Colosseum.

The icon of the Roaman world, where countless slaves from all over the ancient empire were forced to duel and slaughter for sport. Where thousands of lives were lost over the course centuries. The monument erected to house organized bloodshed over and over again for the entertainment of the masses. Even emperors had sat by and watched as the violence energized his people; some, like Commodus, would even partake in the killing.

And yet, for all the horror and terror that had been disguised by its walls, it was glorious.

It stood almost two-hundred feet high, and its circular make wound around to encompass an area of perhaps three-hundred square meters. Small statues and banners of various coloration were mounted upon its rim. Its faintly yellow coloration bore only the faintest of dirt and decay, and the signs of obvious maintenance marked the marble surface. Its arches, magnificent and almost untouched by the terrible hunger of time, stood as a testament to the power of Roaman engineering, and the light flowing through them was the kind of sight that would spawn inspiration in the hearts and minds of all who sought it. Massive construction cranes stood at the Colosseum's side and the Forum was in the background atop its mountain, making the entire scene look as though all of it put together formed a massive throne. And while most structures within a large radius were leveled either by the bombs or recent warfare, the Colosseum itself stood as an image of invincibility worthy of all emulation.

The wasteland had no grip on this monument of Roaman greatness.

But the wasteland, of course, had a grip on the land around it. Twenty-feet high walls of conglomerate metal, concrete, and marble surrounded the Colosseum, with two watchtowers jutting out of the ground behind the single metal gate that guarded the bustling settlement of sheet metal and plywood within. On both sides of the settlement were massive mountains of garbage and debris, and its heinousness marred the glorious sight before me. A very wide, almost purely marble road ran by in front of it, heading off to a slope that would lead it closer to the Forum. I knew this road merely from its size: it was the Road of Triumphs, the path all victorious commanders would parade down for self-gratification.

It would truly have been a moment of true awe and joy if my crotch didn't feel like it had been hammered repeatedly.

I groaned in relief as the cerati I rode upon ceased its agonizing charge. Skyfire's mount arrived a moment later, and I could have sworn her eyes were crossed from the pain. Venaius and Gravetanicus were nearby and took only a moment to catch their breaths before looking over the Colosseum with an expression that seemed to say that they hadn't seen it in a long time.

We stood on the top of a small hill of debris and dirt formed by the collapse of two nearby structures. If we slid down the slope of our elevation, we would find ourselves mere meters away from the Road of Triumphs. The glee the thought of stepping onto that road nearly banished all my pain.

My attention to the Colosseum was directed elsewhere, however, when Venaius lifted a forehoof and gestured at the distance. "There's the great Roamana cohort, Goldwreath. They are approaching the western bridge, and are only six or so miles out. They'll be here in an hour or so," he said simply, and turned around to see us recovering from the pain. He smirked, "Alright, I can see you've had enough of that. Now get off my mount or I'll have Volvek stomp you into the ground."

I complied gladly -- even though I was thinking of who Volvek might be; now I assume it was Venaius' mount -- as did Skyfire. Not that it wasn't great to have finally ridden a steed; on the contrary it was actually an awesome first time, it just really hurt. I groaned as I got off while Skyfire sat down and leaned on a hoof. While Venaius and Gravetanicus got back onto their steeds, I approached the edge of the mound of rubble we stood upon and looked over to the west.

The Roamana cohort was indeed approaching; the sight of a long and thick line of glimmering steel beginning to cross the western bridge assured it. Dozens upon dozens of specks of varied sizes and shapes marked the aircraft that they came with. The unmistakable behemoths of Omni-tanks bordered the column on both sides, yet were dwarfed in stature by even more titanic shapes that rolled along with them. The clear call of a powerful horn came from their direction, and responding horns called from all around us; those were the auxiliaries.

I flinched as Gravetanicus blew his horn right behind me, causing a painful ringing in my ears to ensue. When I finally recovered from that sonic assault, I managed to hear two separate horn calls from near the Colosseum -- one in the settlement right outside of it, and one a little bit down a road beside the Colosseum itself.

"Ah!" Venaius said, "So, others have already reached the Colosseum. Good, good. I suppose that takes some of the load of the task of securing that place off our shoulders."

"Indeed," Gravetanicus replied calmly.

The two Legionnaires rode their beasts a little ahead of us. "Come you two," Venaius said, "We will escort you to the Colosseum, after which we will perform our duty of making sure the place can't possibly hinder Roamana's advance. Come." Then he yanked at his beast's reins and the creature jumped onto the slope and slid down. Gravetanicus followed. Thankfully for us it wasn't that steep, so we got down quickly with minimal trouble.

We followed them a little way onto the Via Triumphos, my heart fluttering in delight both at the thought of finally getting to the Colosseum and from the fact of stepping onto the greatest road in Roam. I had, of course, to set aside my emotions, for we were soon to enter the Colosseum's boundaries, and Doomtune had made it quite clear the place was dangerous. What I needed now was an understanding of the political situation of the place.

Yet to my surprise, before I could open my mouth to voice my questions Skyfire next to me asked, "So what's with the place anyway?"

"Could you be more specific?" Gravetanicus replied.

"A friend of mine told me the place was crawling with all kinds of nasty people. Redeye's slavers in particular. What's with that? This territory is the Legion's, right? Why don't you kick them out?" Skyfire elaborated as we neared the center of the road's width.

They were silent for a while as they looked at each other. I could see the thought in their eyes, the signs of impending explanation forming on their faces. Clearly they had something to tell us, and they definitely seemed like they had no qualms with telling it. Now they were just thinking of how to do it.

The silence went on until at last Venaius said with a tone of reminiscence, "When we first emerged from the Forum, we expanded outwards in a violent operation of eradication. Most people here were savages -- raiders and petty slave groups, the occasional insane sniper with nothing to do, some influential gang leaders even -- but some were innocent civilians. Those people we spared, but they were not qualified for Legion citizenship, and therefore could not enter the Forum's boundaries."

Gravetanicus took over, "When the cohorts were given orders and assignments, we had most of the languishing populace join the auxiliaries of the other cohorts -- to be a Roamana cohort auxiliary, you had to come from the Forum. To be a Roamana Legionnaire, you had to have taken the intensive training as well -- while the rest of the people we built makeshift settlements for, such as the one around the Colosseum here. Now, of all places to be assigned, Roamana's power and ability was squandered on icy cities to the empire's north-eastern border. The protection and political supervision of Roam itself was given over to the unworthy Equestrius troops."

Venaius nodded and added grimly, "When Redeye came to Roam seeking his slaves, we called out for the immediate destruction of his expeditionary force before he gained allies. For a while Equestrius bent to our will and turned hostile on his troops, but that moment is passed. They ceased fire on the Legate's orders when Redeye's troops managed to ally with several powerful inter-city groups that we aren't at war with. Now, to continue our hostilities with them would be an indirect provocation and possibly a war declaration for those seduced by Redeye's promises." He scowled angrily.

Gravetanicus sighed disappointedly. "Indeed. We have many enemies, Skyfire. Not all are directly hostile with us, but they loathe us for our power. Many would see us fall, and most are forming an organized coalition with the remnants of Redeye's slavers as their head. Perhaps they aren't hostile yet, but the tension is there. We gave Roam's stability and protection over to an incapable cohort, and they have allowed a dire situation to spring forth when we have far greater enemies spawning in the south. For that, they have earned the spite of all the other cohorts."

Venaius took his turn and explained with a tone of suppressed anger and disgust, "So to put it simply, were we to attack the increasingly inhospitable inhabitants of the Colosseum -- the very people we spared, who now support Redeye -- there would be a high chance we would kill an ambassador or two of some of the coalition's members; Redeye's representative has turned the Colosseum into an embassy of sorts, and he receives an emissary or two a day. What's worse is that the Legion garrison there is powerless to do anything about it. It's shameful, having such a large and organized sovereign political entity and embassy in our own borders like that."

He let out a breath, and looked on at the Colosseum angrily. "One day... one day we will take back what is ours."

I nodded solemnly, processing the new information. So, the Legion didn't want to risk open war with a plethora of other powerful factions... sounded reasonable. With those monsters they were fighting to the south, a civil war would be a nightmare. Couple that with the wildlife they had to fend off, like that big kraken thing back at the bridge, and their war -- or at least the Equestrius cohort's war -- with the Specters, and you've got the formula for a massive strain on troops and resources. That mountain artillery thing couldn't possibly have been helping.

"Wow," Skyfire muttered, "I never would have thought the political situation around here was so... complicated. Kind of like how the Enclave is with the surface back home..."

"Enclave?" Venaius asked sharply and yanked at his beast's reigns, forcing it to stop. Gravetanicus turned around and looked at her curiously. "You are with the Grand Pegasus Enclave who have taken residence upon the clouds above Equestria?" he asked seriously.

Skyfire gasped. "Eh, no! You know, I heard things and all that, eheh. News travels and whatnot, right? I just heard it from some Equestrian who wandered over here, cause that kind of stuff can happen," she said in a hurried, unconvincing tone, and then gave a broad smile while sweat dripped down the side of her head.

Venaius looked at her flatly, as did Gravetanicus. "Really?" Venaius drawled. "You... 'heard' it from someone from Equestria? Who? The slavers?"

Skyfire stomped assertively. "Look, I don't like your suspicions. Just listen to me when I say that I didn't come from there, nor am I a pegasus!" She huffed and said nervously, "Er... eh, gods, what a, uh, suspicious bunch..."

The pair looked at her with the most mocking smiles of amusement. Venaius looked to Gravetanicus, and the latter smiled knowingly and shook his head. "Alright then," Venaius said simply as he turned his beast around and had it move forward slowly. We followed him, and I was suspicious of his slow pace and worried he was onto us. "I suppose I must believe you. After all, it would be quite the slander if Roamana's auxiliaries were caught mocking Roam's citizens. I suppose I'll just have to think of doing a clitoris."

I stopped dead in my tracks. Did he just say... oh, boy. Wings, please...

Skyfire looked at him with the most wide-eyed and puzzled look I had ever seen on her. "What?" she asked dumbly.

Gravetanicus barely suppressed a bark of laughter as Venaius continued, "Oh nothing. The thought of sexual intercourse just happened to cross my mind. You know, having my body move in rhythms against the sweating form of a mare..." He gave Skyfire a sardonic smile.

Wings, please...

Skyfire gulped, very visibly discomforted by the sudden and shamefully arousing words. I could see her cheeks flaming, her wings beginning to flare out. Wait... flare out... oh, shit! That's what he was trying to do.

"You know, putting my physical prowess to the test. Putting these hindquarters to work, having all of my muscles exerting effort all at once with my nerves all excited..." he continued with a growing smile of disturbing amusement. "Hearing the sounds of pleasure resonate through a room, echoing off the walls and adding to the heat of the moment... going at it until orgasm for both of us is a mere second or two away, stuff like that..."

I wanted to do something before our cover was blown, but I was too late. Skyfire's wings flared out stiff, and her face showed both shame and anxiety as she cringed on the marble road, attempting to force her aroused appendages down with her forehooves. I shuffled uncomfortable as I felt my own appendages stick out with undeniable clarity.

The pair burst out into chuckles of sickening amusement. "I knew it!" Venaius said with a snicker. "You are from the Enclave! Ah, what a pleasant surprise. I knew you matching the description we were given of the pegasi who came here was no coincidence. I always admired pegasi, actually; so free and untroubled, capable of flying away from their troubles... 'tis a gift devoutly to be wished." Gravetanicus likewise managed to get his amusement under control.

The smile on Venaius' face disappeared and his expression turned sympathetic as he got off his steed and approached her. She tried backing away a bit, looking quite embarrassed. I wanted to step in between them, but I had the feeling he had ceased to be in the mood for such jokes. "I am sorry for your loss, Skyfire. I understand that the pegasi Thanus' auxiliaries killed were perhaps dear to you. It may not mean much nor will it bring them back, but for what it's worth, I apologize on behalf of the Legion." Then he lowered his head to almost touch the ground in a deep and reverent bow.

I didn't know why I thought so, but something changed at that moment. Something in Skyfire's eyes were gone, or at least quickly fading. At that moment my disturbing ability came back and I sensed something move in her mind. A feeling, hot and painful, was flowing down some kind of drain. The look she gave the apologetic Legionnaire in front of her was not one of scorn nor of disbelief, but one of acceptance.

Skyfire nodded as she darted her eyes between the ground and Venaius. "Thanks," she said softly, and a wan smile crossed her face.

Venaius nodded and looked at me, and his eyes widened. He looked me over for a moment in disbelief, but finally managed to stutter out, "P-praetorian?"

Well, fuck you wings. And you too, brain, for so quickly having my biology betray me. Come to think of it, I don't think my wings were the only things erect at that moment...

I sighed. Well, there was no denying it now. I would just have to hope that Zaita's words of other cohort troops not being hostile to me were true. I nodded, "Yes, I am indeed Roam's Praetorian -- it was a title given to me by some people who lived off in a settlement named Via Oppidum, and since then my identity has spread like wildfire." I assumed a combat stance, just in case. "And I will have you know that I will broker no threat to this city from anyone as long as I can help it."

Maybe it was wrong to assume a stance of aggression, and maybe it was wrong for me to so simply acknowledge my identity. But these people were by their military oath -- The Sacramentum -- the protectors of Roam and all her holdings. For that I could give them some respect and not fool around with them. Why, compared to these troops, I didn't even have any right to do as I was -- I was an ambitious vigilante, nothing more.

The looks they gave me were blank at first, almost unnervingly so. They seemed to be having trouble thinking on just exactly how to react. It was eating away at me to know that if the rest of the Legion did have something against me, then all it would take for them to get at me was for either of these two auxiliaries to pull out their radio and call for help. I was scared I had just made a terrible mistake.

The tension built up until I would have just attacked them just to make sure they didn't do anything but then Venaius smiled broadly and spread his forehooves out wide. "Ah, Praetorian!" he said aloud, and before I knew it he had me in a brotherly embrace tighter than I could have tried to broken free from in the shock I was in. "It is good to finally meet the one citizen who decided to take up arms against Thanus' oppressive cohort and do some good!" He pulled away and looked me in the eyes, still smiling.

Oh, good! So it really was just Thanus' cohort who didn't like me. The confirmation of that thought sent a massive wave of relief spreading to every part of my body. I let my relief show on my face as I let out a relaxed breath and returned their smiles. "That is good to hear," I said with an easy grin. "I've been hounded by Equestrius Legionnaires ever since I went against them. It's good to know that you at least are friendly with me."

"No doubt it is," Gravetanicus chimed. "I understand that being in a position such as yours would merit great responsibility. Hatred, of course, would also be expected. After all, not all people know of the individualism of cohorts. Most would think that just because someone from the Ursalanix cohort killed a civilian that it means the entire Legion is at war with them. The truth is the Legion really resembles a coalition in structure and therefore each cohort is its own separate entity." He shook his head disappointedly but looked back at us. "You at least now know this, and hopefully any hatred you or your companions have of us are restricted to Equestrius."

I nodded. "It is, don't worry." I could not speak for Skyfire, of course. I looked over at my pegasus friend and saw conflict in her eyes. Perhaps some part of her still blamed the entire Legion for her loss, but I could see her trying to think otherwise. That was good, and indicated a much sought-after change in disposition towards the Legion in general.

"Very good!" Venaius said aloud as he got back onto his cerati. "Now come, we have tarried long enough. The Colosseum awaits!"

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Let us in, morionem!" Venaius yelled up at the gatekeeper of the town. Gravetanicus had told us the settlement was called 'Castellum Collosei' which was Imperial for 'Fort Colosseum'; the Legion's priorities had apparently not included 'thinking of good names for our makeshift settlements'. The gate keeper himself was a brown earth pony buck with a crazed look on his face. In fact, given how he looked, I seriously doubted this guy was actually the legitimate gatekeeper.

The pony leaned over the railings to look down at us with a mocking smile. "Uh... the answer's still no. Not unless you tell me the password!" he said with a dumb chuckle. "Or, you know, unless you give me all your stuff."

"Ydiota!" Venaius said with a frustrated facehoof. He dragged his hoof down over his face with a growl of anger. "Listen, degeneres, let us in or I swear by the gods I will tear open your flank and shove a boulder in your hole! You've tried our patience for ten minutes!"

The pony laughed; clearly he liked being on our nerves. Had the settlement not had -- according to the two of them -- an Equestrius garrison, I would have just flown up and forced the imbecile to open the gate for us. Suddenly, though, the pony's eyes widened and he was yanked away from the edge of the wall. Scornful shouts ensued, and a Legionnaire wearing leather Legion armor peeked over the edge. He looked behind him and yelled, and at once the gate started its gratingly slow ascent.

When the gate was at last raised, the four of us went inside. The two Roamana auxiliaries had left their steeds outside near the gate, where another three cerati were.

Castellum Collosei was not a remarkable settlement. Really, it was just a wide circular area with ramshackle houses of sheet metal and wood. Stores were nothing more than cubes of conglomerate concrete wound together tightly with wire. Homes seemed on the verge of collapsing under the mere weight of their sheet metal roofs. The narrow dirt paths were littered with used wrappers and filth of all kinds. A foul reek filled filled the air; sickening and puke-inducing. The atmosphere was tense and inhospitable, and the heat of midday only served to bring the scent of sweat to my nose. Dirty and scantily clothed zebras and ponies trotted about, giving the occasional Equestrius Legionnaire a glare behind their backs.

There were some that weren't scantily clothed or starved-looking, though. They wore clothing of bright colors and leather armor of various coloration and make, and tattoos of various designs snaked over their coats. Others still held staffs marked with a green gem atop the scepter and were clothed in clothing that looked like it was made of feathers. Others wore headdresses made of fur and and leather. Various more styles of appearance appeared; clearly all these people were not all from Roam or maybe even the remnants of the Roaman empire.

Among those people was one particular group -- all ponies -- who wore fierce and spiked metal armor atop their brown tunics, and in their hooves were weapons of great diversity. They seemed to have a particularly large building near the Colosseum's entrance all to themselves, and atop the structure was a flowing flag decorated with red and black, and within it was a stylized white eye with a crimson iris dominating the center.

That was Redeye's embassy.

An eruption of disgust and hatred exploded in my head and drive me to begin idly trotting towards the structure. At that time thoughts of eradicating his forces here flooded into my mind, and against all reason I wanted to put them into action. Slavery... the most sickening thing; there was nothing more heinous than believing one actually owned another person.

My entranced trot was broken, however, when shouts called out from behind me. I turned to see Venaius and Gravetanicus scolding a pair of Equestrius auxiliaries; apparently the former pair found it insulting to them to have been kept out for so long and disgraceful that the latter pair were so tardy at performing their jobs. The Equestrius troops glared at the ground as the Roamana auxiliaries raved at them with no restraint... good! Those louts deserved all the scorn they got for letting Roam fall into such a dire situation.

Skyfire approached. "Whelp," she said, "Hand me the money."

I blinked at her in confusion. "What?"

She stuck out a hoof. "The caps. I'm gonna buy and sell stuff so you can focus on seeing the sights."

I shook my head, "While that's nice, I don't think it's a good idea. Not only do you not know Imperial and therefore may be scammed, but I also don't think it's fair that you get stuck with the work. Will you not join me in seeing the sights? We both came here for that, after all."

She gave me a flat, narrow-eyed look. She was stubborn, and she wasn't going to stop being stubborn. She knew it and I knew it. "You really sure that's a good choice of words?" she asked with a faint smile of amusement. "The longer you stay here just arguing with me, the less time you have for the Colosseum."

Fuck it.

"I hate you and myself -- here," I said with a bemused tone and shoved the pouch of caps I had brought with me into her hooves. She smirked with satisfaction. "Sure, enjoy your little satisfactions, just don't get scammed. And for the gods' sakes, if you need some help then look for it from someone you trust. I don't want you to have been robbed at store just because-..."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it," she interrupted. "Look, I've learned some stuff from you and all that, m'kay? I'll be careful and not risk anything, don't worry. Besides, if anything goes wrong, I brought this baby." She pulled out her SMG halfway out of her clothing just long enough for me to see it. Then she rolled her eyes with amusement and trotted off. "Don't worry, I'll make sure to get stuff we'll need -- ammo, and maybe something better for me than this crappy SMG," she said as she got further off.

That left me to do whatever I wanted wanted for the next hour -- more than enough time to explore the Colosseum. Screw the town around it; I was a curious pony, sure, but the mere sight of the settlement revolted me, and I wanted to get as little of it in my sight as possible.

I smiled and was about to trot off for the Colosseum itself, when three other Roamana auxiliaries emerged from the crowd and spotted Venaius and Gravetanicus shooing away the incompetent Equestrius troops. Then they approached them and called them out with with friendly greetings. Curiosity bade me stay for a moment as they chatted for a good minute. My patience was answered when they all started looking around for a moment, and when Venaius spotted me he called all of them to join him in approaching me.

"This," Gravetanicus said as they neared, "Is the individual we have to thank for attempting to give Roam a bit of the peace it deserves." He quieted his voice down as he continued, "This person, friends, is the Praetorian."

That got me all kinds of supportive and friendly smiles from the three auxiliaries. They approached me one by one and introduced themselves as Bailan, Mavius, and Delvius. Good people the three of them, even if Mavius was a little too stoic in nature to say anything more than a polite greeting. It would have been better, as well, if Bailan hadn't headbutted me. I understood he was the kind of energetic person who loved physical contact, but it didn't really help that he wore a heavy helmet of metal while I had nothing on my head.

The four of them departed with polite bows and took their leave except for Delvius. He seemed too interested in further talking with the apparently famous Praetorian to depart from my presence. Well, it was nice to have a friendly companion with me as I neared the Colosseum.

"So I hear that you destroyed two of Equestrius' aircraft and one of their tanks in your encounter with them," he said as we moved down a stone-paved path down the center of town. "An impressive feat, if I might say so myself."

I smiled with pride and nodded. "Well, I didn't really want to have to kill them, but yes I did." I took a momentary pause and asked him, "Explain this to me: does everyone hate the Equestrius cohort? Because from the way Venaius and his friend acted, it seems like they do."

"They do," Delvius said to me. "Even prior to our exodus onto the surface, Equestrius proved to be a troublesome sect of our armed forces. Always clamoring, always debating... annoying. And then on the surface, look at what they did! They let Roam fall into such a state of calamity with their wars and their failed diplomatic operations. Now Vesperius will need to spend weeks rebuilding ties with the city's inhabitants."

I nodded with understanding. Roam was indeed in a state of war amongst all of its inhabitants. Another question came to mind. "How does everyone in Roamana know of me, anyway?" He gave me a quizzical look. "Like, how do they know the physical descriptions of my friends? That I'm a pegasus? So on and so forth; I'd like to know."

"Ah," he said in understanding. "Well, it isn't just our cohort. Ursalanix and Felinixia know of you as well, and I'm sure the others do too. As for how... well, we do have radios and access to the Databank network. We just listened in on what you were doing whenever news would come about you, basically."

"Alright," I said. "Any other reason? Because while I understand that, you guys seem to like me out of familiarity."

"That's because we are familiar with you. That, and because we respect you and what you've done, of course," he replied.

I cocked my head, "But how are you familiar with me? I don't think that that sort of familiarity can come from merely listening about me on the radio."

Delvius stopped trotting and looked at me, puckering his lips in contemplation. Clearly he wanted to tell me something but was wondering how to. Then his eyes brightened, and he procured from his backpack what appeared to be a journal notebook of a sort. "Perhaps I might be somewhat responsible for Roamana's familiarity with you," he admitted with a sheepish smile. He handed me the notebook, and I opened it. Within was pages worth of words detailing my exploits since I had first been aired on the radio by the DJ a month ago.

"Wow, this is a lot -- almost like a story. How'd you get wind of the stuff in between my major doings?" I asked with amazement as I flipped through the pages. Huh, there was the bridge encounter with that kraken thing...

He chuckled with embarrassed pride as he scratched the back of his head. "Well, I was kinda forced to join the Legion; not enough auxiliaries, so they said. Thing is, I'm really more of a writer. It's my hobby, and I got fairly known while I wrote back before our exodus. Now, I've got a lot of free time as an auxiliary, and when we were stationed at Arx barely anything happened. It was so, SO boring. We had to practice against each other just to make sure our skills didn't get rusty."

He shivered from the apparent horror of the boredom he had gone through. "We have you to thank for helping to get us through our time there, you know. We were devastated when we heard we weren't being assigned to Roam, and we were just aching for news about the city. That's when we heard of you." He took in a deep breath and looked at me. "As for the pages worth of your exploits, I actually turned writing what you did into a story. You know, I'd listen in for the latest bit of your doings that one of our bots or troops picked up, and I'd incorporate it into the third-person I'm writing. I just filled the stuff in between with what I think happened. I don't know if you actually rode the trains in the underground when you went to the Specter base in your third week, or if you helped out at the dam battle."

I was amazed at the turn of events. I had woken up this morning thinking the Legion to be my ultimate enemy, yet now I was finding out I was actually held in high regard for opposing the terribly performing Equestrius cohort. I guess I could be lucky at times. "So you're an author then? You've been spreading this around the Roamana's ranks to entertain or something?"

He smiled sheepishly but nodded. "Yeah, figured the guys without anything to do would appreciate reading my imaginary tales based off your real-life exploits. I honestly think it's one of the reasons why they love you -- and I'll put a little credit to my writing, thank you very much." He took in a deep breath and looked to the sky with pride.

I gave him a smile. "Hey, I'm not saying you shouldn't take pride in your work. Hell, it got me the respect and familiarity of the most powerful cohort," I replied. "So, what are you gonna name it? The story, I mean -- you do give your stories titles, right?"

"That I do," he replied. Then he brought up a hoof to his chin in thought. "As for the title, I don't know... you did help to spark a lot of change in Roam's political landscape... I don't know, 'New Roam'?"

It was a good title, but there was a slight problem with that. "Could work, but there's a place called New Roam. It would probably confuse. Just saying."

He nodded thankfully, "Thanks. Good thing I didn't go with that, then. I guess I'll just think on it." Heh, I liked that guy. He had an appealing hobby, and it was also one that brought enlightenment. Legionnaires really were interesting people to talk to when you got to know them. Plus they had the kind of experience that was stuff worthy of being told in tales.

After that we continued on the rest of the paved path to one of the Colosseum's many entrances. The walk there reminded me of just how much the Legion wasn't liked here, as on our way we were given quite a few glares and mocking laughs that we both didn't seem to like the feel of. What was worse was that the Equestrius troops posted here and there looked at me and the Roamana auxiliary with looks of contempt and suspicion rather than of hospitality.

And at last we reached the Colosseum. It was so close I could actually touch it. It was so tall, so epic... the arches, the cleanliness of the marble, the statues... The feeling I had at that moment sent all kinds of feelings of puniness and awe to my head, and they made me stare at it with an agape mouth and wide eyes. Delvius likewise looked amazed, even if he had clearly been here before.

I took some steps forward to enter, still looking upwards, when a hoof pressed into my chest and forced me to look back down. The pony who looked back at me did NOT look friendly. "Hold on there, pal," he said mockingly, "No one enters the Colosseum without Seashore's permission. And from the looks of you, you don't have it." He glanced aside and looked at Delvius with a bored look. "You can't enter either."

"What manner of madness is this?" Delvius said angrily and stomped forward. The pony flinched at his approach but held his ground. "How dare you seal off Roam's monument from its people!" he scolded, "What authority have you to restrict a Legionnaire's rights to enter into places he swore to protect? What manner of ignorant savage are you? Do you not know who owns this city, cur? WE the Legion own this city and all the empire of Roam's holdings, not some pompous fool in Equestria who sends slavers into OUR land to gather SLAVES from its populace! What do you think of us? That we would return back to the abominable practice of slavery?" He brought out his hoof and tapped the pony's head with each word, "You. Are. A. Worthless. Barbarian. You do not have any power to keep me out."

The pony was trembling with fear and uncertainty by the time Delvius was done raving. Still, he managed to get out shakily, "Um, well... you still can't enter, p-pal."

Delvius scowled and grabbed the pony by the collar of his vest, then raised a hoof as if to mug him. "Then find a way to let us enter or so help me I will beat you senseless until you can't possibly breathe through a nose so bloodied it would-..."

That was all he managed to get out when a great bell rang from within the Colosseum itself. For a moment the two of us were confused, and the bell rang again. A great crowd started gathering behind us and started making their way to the several entrances of the Colosseum. The looks on their faces were excited and eager, like what was about to happen would please them greatly.

Delvius yanked the nervous pony closer. "You," he threatened, "Tell me what is happening or I will break all your teeth off and shove them into your eyeballs!"

The bell rang again, and the crowd's approach sped up into a canter. The noise of their excitement was filling the air, and it was difficult to hear anything else.

"Tell me!" Delvius yelled in the pony's face.

"Alright, alright you can enter!" the pony wailed, and it was almost unheard because of the increasing noise.

Delvius smacked him across the face. "What is going on, you idiot!" he screamed at the top of his lungs.

Too late. The crowd sped past us and into the Colosseum in a hasty, frenzied gallop, rendering all auditory ability useless in the face of their clamor. Equestrius troops were swept along with them as they flooded inside, either caught in the see of equines or willingly going with the flow. Redeye's troops joined them eagerly, as did most of the non-Roaman appearing zebras. The occasional blur of purple tunics and capes signified the Roamana auxiliaries as they turned around in confusion.

But I needn't ask anymore, for I had discerned what was going to happen. It was the subject of the crowd's frantic cries of excitement, and had been the single ugliest blot on Roam's civility in ancient times.

It was the epitome of cruelty to slaves. It was gladiatorial combat.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Zebra Speech, Level Two – You're putting those lessons to use. Thanks to increased understanding of Imperial Zebrican, you have an easier time communicating with all Roaman zebra characters.

Chapter 19 - The Enemy of My Enemy

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Chapter 19
The Enemy of My Enemy
"Only together shall we succeed. Only together shall we triumph. Only together shall we overcome. That is why we fight."

The Colosseum itself had been changed quite a bit from how it was like in ancient times. First off was the fact that it was bigger; an additional added layer of marble, presumably placed during or before the war, was to be thanked for that. Second were the very large screens and speakers placed on the interior on each of the four sides, though from their look those were probably added after the apocalypse. And of course there was the fact that the Colosseum did not look like it had been used as a killing field for the past two-thousand years; rather, it looked like it had been turned into an innocent stadium, and certainly the addition of now-weathered backrests to the seats and the husks of little stores built into the old structure supported this. Those only served to confirm the answer for the question 'was the Colosseum used for slaughter by the pre-war and post-classical ages zebras?'

But I didn't much care for any of that at the moment. Instead, I let the anger I was feeling simmer in my mind, threatening to burst out in a frenzy of enraged slaughter. I wanted to gut every single savage within a five mile radius just to sate my fury. Life was filled with occurrences where the barbaric and the unworthy in mind and action took control of circumstance, and it infuriated me to know that even in Roam such things could happen. It infuriated me that mongrels like these got to decide the fate of those naturally their equal, not their servants. And it fanned the flames of my hatred to know that petty politics kept Roam's troops from beheading all the savages that had spawned in her territory.

The Colosseum's original barbaric purpose had once more been brought to the fore.

Almost every single inhabitant of Castellum Colossei occupied the seats of the massive arena, clamoring in disgusting vigor out of excitement for the coming event and filling out about a third of the Colosseum's total capacity. Opportunistic merchants roamed about, selling food for the crowd to feast upon as they waited. It only served to intensify my deepening loathing of the Equestrius troops to see that they were allowing the crowd to stay in their seats rather than forcing them out. Redeye's slavers were among them, taking no care at all for the vandalism that the crowd's rowdiness was doing to the thousand year-old marble and brick seats. The non-Roaman zebras sat in high places and seats of honor, much to my disgust. They didn't deserve such privileges; in fact, Roam did not deserve to have its bloody blot brought back from the past!

Organizing all this primal glee was this one pony who sat within the pavilion emperors would have sat in on the far side of the Colosseum, halfway to the top of the of the height of the structure. He was a an aqua-blue unicorn with a mane of darker blue streaked with the color of mint. Upon his coat he wore what only people of honor and worth should have: purple robes, which hung down from his back to touch the dirt on the floor. I wanted to fly over there and gut him where he sat, then toss his corpse onto the Colosseum floor for all of these degenerates to see.

From the looks on the faces of the auxiliaries who stood behind me under the arched entrance, similar anger and intent was brewing in their heads. Their's may have been more intense even, taking into account that they had perhaps fought to liberate this place before. Venaius and Delvius in particular looked especially hateful; the others had a look of disgust and disappointment instead.

The aqua-blue pony within the pavilion on the other side of the Colosseum looked the gathering masses over and stomped hard onto the ground. An echoing thump resonated through the Colosseum floor, and the crowd steadily silenced. The excitement on their faces remained, though; this was the moment they had been waiting for.

A slaver stallion entered the pavilion accompanied by two zebra mares carrying what appeared to be a metal tray upon which was some kind of flagon. There was food, too; mostly what the merchants had been selling, though I noticed that these had been acquired without purchase. The mares placed the dishes down onto a small table and took their place on the two corners of the room while the stallion handed the aqua-blue pony what appeared to be a headset.

He placed it onto his head, and after a moment a live image of his face appeared on every screen around the Colosseum's four sides. Then with a charismatic smile and a confident, proud voice that echoed through the air he announced, "Good noon, most esteemed zebras and ponies! And welcome to the one and only COLO-SEEEEEUUUUMMM!" He raised a hoof into the air, and the crowd burst into thunderous cheers of excitement. The Roamana auxiliaries and I, though, were seething even as we watched that proud smile on his face; that confident smirk that I so wanted to tear away...

The stallion looked over the crowd again, and stomped the ground once more. Cries and cheers faded into a tense silence, and he continued, "Today, I am glad to say, is yet another day I get to play host to such a revered and much anticipated sport of the zebra people. Why, we of the empire of Redeye owe to it our own version back in our home turf. Credit where it is due, yes?"

His eyes widened and he gasped, as if surprised. He facehoofed. "Ah, but I forget my manners! First, my name for those who have only recently arrived in Castellum Colossei. I am Seashore, ambassador of Redeye and proud host of this populace's desired spectacle: gladiatorial combat!" He stepped forward and leaned over the edge of the pavilion, and extended a hoof to point at the non-Roaman zebras sitting near the top seats. "And of course, let us welcome our prestigious guests! Representatives and proud warriors, they! With their aid, this conglomerate coalition of languishing people can turn into a worthy faction, fit to survive and thrive within the harshness of wasteland life. Give them cheers!"

"Ungrateful savages!" Delvius growled, and it was almost unheard as the crowd burst out into impassioned cheering. "These people wouldn't even be alive without the Legion's support and resources, yet they dare to bite the offer of one so deceitful as a slaver? Are they blind?" He looked over the flattered and proud-looking non-Roaman zebras with rage, then at the crowd in general with similar hate. "All this madness is to earn the support and sympathy of barbarians such as they... it truly disappoints me."

"It disappoints me as well," Bailan huffed. "If these people honestly think that a far-off slave master and his rag-tag group of inter-city tribals are better equipped to protect and serve them than we who are right here and care for them despite their hate, then Roaman minds have truly degenerated. I weep for the loss of our past."

The five auxiliaries alike showed great resentment and disgust towards the wrongness of what was transpiring, and as a result three of them stomped out in anger as they muttered something about needing to breathe clean air or something along those lines. Only Delvius and Gravetanicus remained, and only the latter seemed to have himself under control enough that he wouldn't go berserk.

"Come," Gravetanicus said simply, "Let us observe how this event occurs."

We followed him, though I suspect we did so only to intensify our anger, and sat down on some empty space on the lowest seat rings. We were met with disdainful looks and snorts of disgust as we went, and one of the zebras who spotted us even had the audacity to place his hindlegs onto the empty space just to try to stop us. Gravetanicus gave him a momentary look of disappointment, and the zebra frowned and sat appropriately.

"Now," Seashore announced, "This is my third hosting of this event, and I have learned from my past mistakes of carrying on for too long. Let us not tarry, ONWARD TO THE BLOODSPORT!" He stomped on the ground hard, and the crowd cried out in a deafening cacophony of mad cheers and whistles. The Roaman zebras on the upper levels even took the effort to rain down torn plastic bags as confetti, showering the entire Colosseum with a haze of colorful streamers.

The spiked gates on walls of the arena itself groaned as they lowered. At once a dozen zebras wearing cobbled together steel armor and armed with scrap metal weapons and shields were pushed out from both the gates and fell to the ground in a heap. Before they could try to rush back into the gates, several of Redeye's troops came out and had barrels to their heads. The gladiators showed signs of wanting to fight back, but it was clear that they wouldn't. It sickened me that all this was happening; real gladiators may have been slaves, but at least they were actually treated with some level of respect and had some freedom of choice. This, though... these slaves were given absolutely no say in the matter.

What struck me about the gladiators as they were herded towards the center of the arena was their variety; there was NO variety. They were all Roaman zebras, much to the visible enjoyment of the tribals sitting near the top seats. Others seemed to notice this too, especially the Equestrius troops. They looked disgusted, angered, sad even. Perhaps they didn't approve of the situation themselves but simply couldn't do anything about it. Well, unless they tried to put a stop to this madness, then my opinion of them wouldn't change much.

Once at the center, all the zebras were forced to kneel down by their slaver masters. After that they were made to turn around and look Seashore and the many tribal zebras seated above his position. I could see the sadistic smirks of those savages as they looked the slaves over; it sickened me. Even worse was the fact that no one in particular seemed to think that any of this was wrong.

"Ah, and here we have our willing volunteers!" Seashore proclaimed haughtily. "These stallions and mares, good people, have all decided that their lives are nothing if not used for the entertainment of the community. For their noble sacrifice, we give a single one of them a chance to earn freedom from their debts! And for THAT, we cheer them on! What say you?" Like before, the crowd burst out into impatient and rowdy screams. The slaves on the arena floor, though, yelled up in hatred and fear. Sadly their pleas were lost in the crowd's noise.

Seashore stood there for a moment, sucking up all the cheering as though it were a personal thing for him. But at last he stomped hard enough to get the crowd's attention -- this time they didn't stop cheering, though -- and announced proudly, "So what do we wait for? NOTHING! Let the slaughter begin!"

It was at that point that I had to cover my ears to prevent going deaf. If this was the noise a mere third of the Colosseum's possible capacity could make -- and with a crowd not purely for the sport itself -- I could only imagine how it must have been back in ancient Roam. Delvius and Gravetanicus likewise showed pain at the crowd's incessant rowdiness.

The slaves had no choice at this point. When the screaming finally died down a notch and I could stop wincing from the ringing in my ears, I looked and saw that they were nervously forming a circular formation. To make it worse was the fact that not all of them looked ready or even willing to try to fight; some looked like they had lost hope. Unless someone in their ranks rallied them against what foes they would face, these people wouldn't stand a chance.

Seashore drew himself up with a loud inhale and let out with a strangely formal tone, "Now, whereas before we all started with having the slaves kill each other in teams, now I decided to add a bit of this great continent's wildlife into the fray." He leaned over the edge and looked at a gate on the far side of the arena, a gate I figured must have been right beneath where I sat. "Release the bestials!" he bellowed a he pointed at our direction.

Growls and roars boomed through the earth as the gate opened, and soon enough a group of three very large grey cats pounced out and were herded closer to the center with energy-tipped spears. Compared to the one that had nearly bitten my leg off in Myst's outpost, these ones were MUCH larger. The majority of the gladiators were trembling and some even broke formation until forced back in by those of them who seemed too determined to survive to let anyone compromise their formation.

"Ah, bestials!" Seashore mused. "Such savage creatures, aren't they? So large, so fierce... so fearsome! Truly are they the deadliest of this continent's many wild cats, and so shall they be a worthy opponent for such brave souls! Ah, but enough of that; let us quiet ourselves in anticipation!"

At last the bestials were brought before the shivering circle of desperate slaves. The cats roared and growled at their herders as they back-stepped away in a brisk canter, but when they were safely away the animals' gazes fell upon the meat before them. The crowd steadily silenced, eager to watch the spectacle about to unfold before their eyes.

"So it begins..." Seashore's voice receded into a dramatic low.

It all started rather slowly, really. The bestials prowled around, encircling the trembling formation with predatory caution. The crowd flinched and gasped at every examining lunge and foreboding growl from the beasts, and laughed at every nervous twitch or frantic thrust of a spear from the part of the slaves. This was some seriously fucked up foreplay, and the crowd loved it. I could feel their tension building up, their anticipation clouding and entering into my mind. I myself could only watch with anxiety, stuck wondering how this would turn out.

Then without warning one of the bestials leapt up into the air and landed right in the center of the hollow circular formation. Surprise and terror filled the slaves' ranks, and the majority of them reflexively whirled around in panic.

This was the moment the other two beasts were waiting for. Without spears and scrap metal swords threatening to pierce them, they charged forward and crashed into the backs of the slaves. The crowd roared applause and laughter as the weaker-willed slaves galloped away. Those who remained behind could only panic and try to fight off the animals as they pounced on one slave after the other, tearing open rib cages, severing limbs, and biting out throats. Panicked shouts ensued as some attacked, only to be tripped from underneath by the swiping tails of the cats they fought. Then they too had teeth in their flesh, and could only scream as their muscles were strewn about.

I looked away, and for half a minute listened only to the death screams of what must have been seven of the twelve. I shivered, and I was thankful that the crowd's cheers and gasps of delight drowned out some of the noise. At last, I looked back, hopes not high at all.

None of them stood much of a chance, even when they had regained the barest bit of their group cohesion. They could only get up, dismembered and mutilated in one way or another, stagger away a bit, then get clawed at and eviscerated. This was no fight, it was a slaughter -- and yet the crowd loved it. Only those who had ran survived the initial onslaught, and even then not for long; sooner or later, the same claws and fangs that tore the others to shreds would come for them.

There was no hope for these people.

And yet... and yet out of the bloodbath and spilled guts came a slave, a whirling tornado of glimmering steel and slashing blades. He was calm yet savage, strong in will and certain in motion. His thrusts landed true on their targets, and one bestial got a spearhead right in its eye and howled with pain. As the creature struggled to scamper away, he galloped over to it and, picking up a sword off the ground as he went, jumped upon it and plunged the blade into its skull. The creature roared and fell to the ground, with him yanking the blade out of its head.

The other two bestials looked at him with ferocious, terrifying eyes. His reaction was to pick up a flail off the ground and twirl it in the air provocatively, the sword still in his other hoof. I couldn't tell who this guy was underneath his helmet, but he had some serious skill. And from the looks of the astonished crowd, they definitely didn't expect the fight to turn out this way.

A bestial leapt, and in response he sidestepped and smacked the spiked ball of the flail into its head. It howled and swiped at him with its claws, but he sliced off its leg even before the sharp lengths could scratch at his manica -- that is, the Roaman soldier's limb-covering plates. The creature stumbled forward and fell into the ground, and he took the opportunity jump up and sever its head from its body.

Then the final bestial jumped, and with ferocious speed pounced on him before he could whirl around. They crashed onto the dirt floor with a thud, with the wild cat scratching and snapping savagely at the gladiator's helmet and leg-guard. Despite the ferocity of the attack, he was brave enough to even use one of his limbs as a meat shield for the creature to bite upon. The other hoof he snaked across the ground, and it managed to chance upon a torn-off spiked shoulder plate. His hoof tightened around the metal.

With the first strike a shard of metal was stuck into the creature's eye. With the second he broke off one of the bestial's terrifying fangs and sent its head recoiling from the force of the impact. With the third he tore off half its face, eliciting a roar of pain so loud it echoed across the nearly silent arena.

He didn't waste a second. He got up as soon as he could, forelegs bloody and chest torn, and picked up half of a broken spear. Then, without hesitation or signs of pain, he turned around and lodged the metal tip down the creature's throat. It died instantly and fell to the ground limp.

He stood there for a second, his chest puffing in and out as he panted. Then he looked all of us over, and his helmet, shaped to look like a scowling zebra head, lingered on every single one of us with hatred. We all stared back in shock, even the surviving three gladiators down in the arena. Seashore's face on each of the screens was one of total bewilderment. There was only scattered murmuring and whispers, but otherwise no cheering...

... until about ten seconds later. As though a hivemind, the amassed population suddenly burst out into an ear-splitting plethora of whistles and screams. Overly-energetic zebras and ponies clamored and burst out jumping up and down like mindless savages. Confetti rained from the sky. Seashore's lips curled into a forced smile, and as I watched the screens he nervously brought up a mug and took a deep chug.

"A spectacular show," he murmured idly into the mouth piece as he put the mug down. "Truly a... a far better one than the previous fights." He put on another smile, this one seeming less forced and seemed more to appeal to the crowd. "I honestly did not expect any survivors, let alone the death of some of our beasts. A pleasant surprise, yes?"

Then he glanced over in my direction, and I was surprised to see his eyes looking right at mine. Ideas and cautious thoughts dissipated from my mind, though, when his gaze looked over behind me. I could see his face harden into a scowl as he once more brought the mug to his mouth, his eyes still looking in my direction.

Curiosity got the better of me, and I turned to see a young zebra mare smiling. It wasn't a mad, drunken smile or a sadistic, overly-indulged-in-the-violence smile, but rather a genuine smile of relief and gladness. She was a tribal, signified by a series of wavy green-colored tattoos snaking along her neck and onto her back. Her gaze was focused solely on the zebra in the center of the arena, and she watched his every move with anxious anticipation.

I turned back around, questions erupting in my head. I had to wonder why she wasn't with the other tribals, or why she didn't seem like she was enjoying the fighting itself; at that time, the mere thought of someone here who didn't enjoy the bloodshed was a gift from the gods.

Before I could muse on any more of my thoughts, though, Seashore stomped on the ground and announced to get our attention, "Alright, haha, a brilliant show! Truly this day is one that has to be extended, just to sate your thirst!" Now his voice was calm and charismatic, to be expected of an announcer. I had to wonder whether he was hiding bad intent under his words.

The grating groan of scraping metal filled the air, and two more gates on opposite sides of the arena floor lowered. Delvius' face hardened into a fierce glower as he watched the slavers herd out more slaves, this time some of them ponies. Just like the batch before them, these slaves looked like they hadn't had a single say in the matter. In fact, once they were all outside, a slaver stallion actually tossed the armor of one of the slave fighters at him; clearly the slave had been so forced into this he didn't even get time to even try to prepare. Gravetanicus only shook his head in disappointment, but I wanted to go over there and completely fuck up those slaver bastards.

"Well, clearly we need more blood to sate your thirst, eh?" Seashore chimed. "Well, then you shall have it!"

I turned my attention back to the arena, and was surprised to find that the gladiator standing at the center of the arena was looking my way; or rather, at the zebra mare behind me. Their gazes were locked until one of the slavers pushed him to the other side of the arena, where the three surviving slaves from the previous round were being cowed. The new arrivals were on the other side, outnumbering them three-to-one.

"Now for the next round. The combatants will be divided into two groups and will engage in team deathmatch. Considering the... skill that I am putting onto the team with less members, I feel like it's only fair to have them outnumbered," Seashore declared, then murmured quietly, "And maybe the other team has some better skill..." Then he lifted the mug again and drank. Judging from the bit of the liquid I saw on the screen, I assumed that he was drinking wine.

I growled in irritation, but was distracted by something before thoughts of disgust could spawn in my head. That distraction was the zebra mare behind me. With a terrified little gasp, she had my attention, and no one else's. I looked back at her, more curious than ever. Who was she, anyway? What, did she have a relation to the gladiator, or was she a huge fan of his? I couldn't tell, and I wasn't about to even try to tap into that psychological ability of mine to find out; I still felt it was unnatural.

But while I stared over at her, Seashore announced once again, "Alright! Let the bloodletting... BEGIN!" There was psychotic shouting and screaming once again, jarring my attention back to the arena.

The two teams moved in on each other, slowly and cautiously. I could even see the anguish on some of their faces; perhaps they were fighting someone they knew on the other team, or perhaps someone they knew had been torn apart earlier. Whatever the reason, they had eyes that looked ready to shed tears. All of them showed some sadness, really; all except the zebra stallion, his scowling helmet masking his emotions.

For a few moments the teams circled each other, and just like in the last round the crowd was tense and eagerly anticipating any and all offensive actions. I could see the juvenile glee on their faces; their sadistic and haughty laughs rang throughout the arena, fanning my disgust. Some even had the audacity to toss cans and bottles to signify their impatience. Despite it all I just couldn't bring myself to get up and leave; I eyed the exit and made several attempts to get up and leave, all of which failed. There was something in my head, some kind of anxiety or cowardice, that diluted my will. It... bothered me, to say the least.

The crowd steadily seemed to become universally dissatisfied, much to Seashore's obvious anxiety. I could hear them calling out for blood, for death... the cruelty of these people, these supposed Roamans, astonished me.

The stalemate was finally broken, much to the crowd's relief, when a pony from the outnumbering team lunged forward with his makeshift sword, aiming for the chest of the gladiator. With a simple swipe of his shield, he blocked the blade. His forehoof sped up in a savage uppercut and plunged his own blade deep into the pony's stomach, impacting with such brutal force that the pony's guts blasted out his back.

So it began.

After that the gladiator recovered quickly, pulling his blade out of the body and charging into the disorganized and spread-out ranks of the opposing team. Surprise and shock were evident in their inability to react properly until another of them had his head cleaved off by a quick swipe from the skilled slave. Spears and spiked whips danced in the air, attempting to strike the gladiator as he whirled around, slashing and blocking like a storm of precise fury. This was the moment his allies had been waiting for, and they charged in, much less smoothly, into the fray. One of them got a sword in his mouth and collapsed dead even as he charged headlong into the fight.

The crowd cheered and gasped and laughed their heads off at the violence; at every chopped off limb, every audible scream, every spilled gut. Blades and metal smacked into each other, ringing with a short but savage cacophony of very audible clangs. Heads flew up here and there, spilling blood all over the sandy floor. Roars of impassioned yelling blasted through the air with tangible force. But eventually the fight -- previously a disorienting blur of red and white and grey -- was coming to an end.

And end it did, when the last opposing slave fell backwards, headless, at the feet of the gladiator. His chest puffed in and out frantically, his flesh bearing many torn patches where the whips had dug into his skin. His helmet was marred all over with scratches, and his tail and part of his flank had been severed from his body. Yet he stood, proud and victorious, alongside the only one from his team who had survived, and even then just barely; the unicorn he stood next had been using magic to wield his flail and fight from a distance, but that didn't spare him the flesh he lost from his neck. The crowd thundered in applause; they clearly found it an entertaining fight. The mare behind me didn't cheer, but looked extremely relieved.

Seashore clearly didn't feel the same, though. The forced smile on his face indicated it. When he could no longer hide his anxiety, he brought the mug up again to mask his grimace. The more I saw his face, the more I had the distinct feeling he really wanted that slave dead.

"Well, this is a first," he proclaimed when he got his disapproval under control. "Never before have we had TWO survivors. It seems that we will have to..." He fell silent for a moment, and a sickening grin crossed his face. "Well, suffice it to say that for the final round, we need only one fighter."

While approving murmurs burst out within the crowd, the two slaves on the arena floor could only look at each other, one with horror and the other with a face of steel. Disgust erupted within me, and only the timely placed hoof on my shoulder and Delvius' shoulder from Gravetanicus kept us from leaping out of tension.

"It's simple, really," Seashore said with a blank voice. "I have recently acquired new meat for the arena. He's strong, powerful, and EXOTIC! Why, I can feel your curiosity already. You're probably wondering, 'who is this new fighter we have yet to see?' Well, I shall answer that question in the round after this, for fights between two skilled foes are always better one-on-one, don't you agree?" The crowd sounded rather confused, really. Still, the general tone seemed to be one of mounting anticipation. Seashore noticed this.

He closed his eyes and nodded to himself certainly. "Mhm, always better one-on-one, no doubt about it." Then he opened his eyes and shouted as he leaned over the edge of the pavilion, "Now... FIGHT!"

The gladiator didn't fight. He just looked his fellow slave in the eyes, watching him tremble from his own wounds. He didn't fight even when his opponent screamed and swung the blade through the air at him. He just dodged the wild swing effortlessly, and rolled out of the way of his opponent's flails. The crowd booed and shook their heads, unsatisfied.

The gladiator rolled and dodged until he had been pressed right up against the wall. Here he just kept parrying his enemy's strikes, while the pony seethed and yelled fiercely in desperate determination. It was horrible, really. To be forced to fight for the slim chance of winning freedom, to go up against an opponent who didn't want to kill but wanted to live... cruelty. Pure, undiluted cruelty.

The unicorn used his magic to swing his flail around the zebra's back, but the zebra caught the mace-like ball in his hooves despite the pain such an action would bring to him. The pony yelled and swung his sword, but it was stuck in the zebra's wooden shield by the momentum. Now with his opponent as stuck as he was, the gladiator glanced over at the zebra mare behind me while his opponent struggled.

The zebra mare just gulped and closed her eyes, and with tears rolling down her cheeks she nodded.

The gladiator seemed to register that for a moment, but then dropped his shield and with his free hoof punched the pony in the face, much to the crowd's delight. The pony, weakened by previous wounds and exhaustion, tumbled backwards and fell over scrambling into the dirt. The zebra, having gained the tentative permission of the mare behind me, didn't hesitate. As the pony fought to get back up, he raised his sword and stabbed it down his opponent's skull and out the bottom of his muzzle. The gladiator let the limp body fall to the ground.

"That's it, I'm out of here," I declared and got up. Fuck it all, I wasn't staying here for the slaughter. "I don't need any more of this worshipped brutality. If you need me I'll be outside where the air is cleaner and the people saner."

I scowled at the spectacle going on and trotted towards the exit, ignoring the confused and suspicious looks I got from bystanders as I went. If they had grown so accustomed to this violence that the sight of someone who didn't appreciate this cruelty was strange to them, then they weren't worth my time. This place stunk of their madness and their misplaced glee, and I wanted none of it.

But on my way out I paused. There was something in my head, tugging at my thoughts... it was some kind of compulsion, and my head ached. I felt it controlling me, wrapping it's slimy tendrils around my brain... I couldn't stop it; suddenly my desire to leave went out the window, and so I turned back around. Amused smirks followed me as I trotted back, idly staring off at the fighting, and sat back down. I felt nothing for it; I was an emotionless husk.

My approach drew me a surprised look from the auxiliaries. "Goldwreath, you need not stay," Delvius told me, "I understand that this angers you; it angers us even more." He looked back at the fighting with a scowl. "But as this city's soldiers, we need to observe all the happenings that are occurring. And so disgusting as all this is, it is our responsibility to make sure this violence doesn't escalate into an frenzied orgy of slaughter. We must make sure this terror stays inside the Colosseum, and nowhere else."

"I stay because I want to, alright?" I replied angrily, but it was not me. No, it couldn't be me, it just couldn't. I didn't enjoy brutality, especially not this slaughter.

Delvius and Gravetanicus' eyes widened, then they looked to each other with worried glances. "Well... you don't have to stay here is all I'm saying," Delvius said uneasily. They didn't oppose me as I sat back down and looked on. It was only a moment later that my emotions oozed back into my mind, and only then did I realize what I had done. I could have went out then, but... I didn't. Something kept me there, manipulating my anger to force me to keep myself here. Considering what I had gone through, I guess it was only about time stuff like this happened, but still... it scared me.

I couldn't do anything about it. I just turned my attention back to the arena, the light pressure of an invisible string tugging at my brain still present in my mind. The brutality of the death earlier was enough to gain thunderous hoofstomps of approval despite the fight's lack of variety and short length. Seashore looked disappointed but not surprised; he just shook his head with a grimace.

Still, with the gladiator's opponent dead he could call in his exotic little new arrival. "Very well!" he said, sounding eager. "Now perhaps I can let you see my most exotic fighter yet! Release him!"

The gladiator didn't even get a moment's respite, but he was already preparing for the fight. He picked up a sword off of the ground and a shield, and readied himself whilst facing the direction of the lowering gate. The crowd shushed into a a tense silence, and they all got onto the edges of their seats to perhaps see who this fighter was. Even I and Delvius did; perhaps the only ones who didn't show much anticipation was the zebra mare behind me and Gravetanicus,

"This fighter hails from an isolated herd off to the far north," Seashore started, trying to sound dramatic as the gate lowered. "There, the environment is cold and inhospitable. The few creatures that live are savage beyond compare, and therefore that land's inhabitants have grown into adept warriors. They are a stoic, strong people with a stubborn culture of warfare and combat -- truly they make tough foes, for this one we acquired at a hefty price when we caught him and a few others wandering in the city!"

The gate fell to the ground with a reverberating clang, ominously spreading to every corner of the Colosseum. Within the gate was only darkness, but beastly snorts and loud grunts emanated from within. "Here I present to you the one that will make today memorable! Here I present to you the entire reason today host's your beloved bloodsport!"

A creature stepped out, tall and menacing. It stood upon two hindlegs, with hooves no less. Its lower body had dark fur while it's upper body -- swaddled in coats of fur and leather -- had grayish fur, and its muscular body was tattooed all over with elaborate curves and images of battles. It was old, that was certain. Within its left hand it held a large war axe, and in the other a whip made of spiked chains. Its long horns were decorated red, and its bony head had piercings both for the nose and the ears. An aura of strength and terror came with it as it stomped onto the arena, shaking the sand-covered wooden platform with each step.

The creature stepped into the full light of day without escort, snorting hot breaths out of its nose as it went, and the crowd steadily roared into an applause of such approval I had to cover my ears. Delvius and his comrade winced in a combination of shock and awe. Its eyes wandered over the crowd with an angry curiosity. I knew what this beast was, though I had never seen its kind of creature before. I could tell the expression on its face: a haughty yet angry scowl. I could see the tension in its features; the lust for battle, the desire to vent an anger or to satisfy a pride.

The gladiator's combat stance turned to one of surprise and disbelief at the sight of the imposing opponent he was to fight against, and he took several fearful steps backwards. His opponent grinned with malicious delight at the sight of his small enemy's obvious dread, and took advantage of that to push the gladiator further into the center of the arena, where there was the most exposure. The mare behind me gasped and sandwiched her head in between her hooves in terror. Seashore, however, smiled cryptically at the sight of the creature.

He took in a deep breath and let out in a bellow, "Here I present to you the champion and chief of the now extinct Tremor Hoof clan, past ally of the mighty Roaman Empire! Noble ponies and zebras of the esteemed Zebrican continent, I give you... Boagrius the MINOTAUR!"

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Minotaurs.

The Roaman zebra's allies during the war. The ones who had been turned into terror shock troops, wielding massive arm cannons and terrifying banners. They were the fear of all Equestrian armored vehicles. They were the ones who had an entire legion made out of their race. They had a long history of bloody combat with themselves and with others, and this brought about a culture invaluable to those who could ally them. But to their enemies and that of their allies... they were a force to be bowed down to.

The Caesars and their empire, with promises of wealth and glory and power, were irresistible friends of the war-like minotaur kings and chiefs. Together the two nations flourished, and together they stopped the savage zebra Goths from destroying the Roaman world. Down the Renaissance and into the middle ages, only the two societies had remained inseparable even when other alliances crumbled. During the war, the minotaur juggernauts and the zebra Legionnaires had imposed terror on all Equestrian camps in Zebrica, and had put terrible tolls on every gained inch the Equestrians could take. Together, they had been the top fighting force in the entire ancient world, and were such even in the face of the Equestrian war machine.

Now... now they were nothing more than slaves. Highly regarded combatants, but slaves no less. The loss of status and the irreverence to such a proud race to which Roam could have given credit for its continued existence to astonished me, and served only to fan the flames of my impassioned anger against all these barbarians.

Though I wanted my unhealthy but much desired anger to boil further in my head, I was distracted. As it turns out, my thoughts had rendered me blind to the happenings around me. I had missed part of the fight. Shaking my head, I turned my attention to the arena, which everyone else had been watching with such wild vigor and wonder that it almost made me wonder if they knew they were watching a cruel display of barbaric bloodletting.

I couldn't leave anyway; my mind betrayed me and smashed all desire to leave that forsaken place and replaced that desire instead with a burning want for anger.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Boagrius roared again and stomped the wooden arena floor, sundering the ground beneath the gladiator and sending him tumbling to the ground even as he charged. He slid to a stop right beneath the minotaur's legs, and Boagrius took a step back before raising another hoof to stomp his head in.

The gladiator rolled out of the way and was launched further off by the shockwave of the impact. With a thud he landed onto the bloodied arena floor before recovering and scrambling up. Panting, he brought his shield up just in time to to deflect the spikes of the minotaur's chain whip. The rest of the whip bent on the shield, however, and struck him in the back, eliciting a yelp and causing him to collapse onto the floor, his side bleeding from a deep wound where one of the spikes had struck him.

Boagrius charged and jumped into the air, his war axe ready to cut the small zebra in half. The gladiator only had enough time to once more bring up his shield. The massive minotaur landed and, with a downward swing of his axe, shattered the wooden shield into pieces and turning at least half of the zebra's foreleg into eviscerated meat. He fell onto his back hard, scrambling away whilst barely avoiding several more swings from Boagrius' huge axe. Jumping and rolling, occasionally tripping from his destroyed limb, the gladiator staggered away far enough to get a few seconds of breath. He collapsed onto the ground from pain, and the crowd roared in glee at his weakness, yelling for Boagrius to finish him off. The majority of the gathered people were already teetering on tue edges of their seats, moving their hooves in a downward motion repeatedly -- the death call in a Roaman arena.

Boagrius complied, though not directly, to their will. The large beast raised his axe again, and with an arena-shaking strike smashed it into the ground. The gladiator had just barely managed to roll aside, and was now stabbing the minotaur's arm with deep, painful lunges. Boagrius roared and brought up his whip. The gladiator pulled his sword out just in time to use it to block the heavy metallic rope. But his own sword acted as a pivot, and soon the rusty links and spikes were slamming into him as the whip twisted around him again and again. The force of it threw him to the ground when the whip smashed into his legs, tripping him over.

Despite his visible pain and weakness, he, much to my own disbelief, managed to free himself of the chains and push himself up to a gallop. Boagrius's axe sliced through the air again and again as the minotaur charged at him, each time nearly cleaving the zebra in half. The gladiator could only roll out of the way, not even able to stab or fight back in even the most meager fashion.

Boagrius swung his axe but held it in the air. Feigning another arena-shaking slam, Boagrius managed to trick the zebra into dodging to the side. It was when the gladiator was rolling that the minotaur swept his whip across the floor, slamming into the zebras forelegs as he was about to get up onto his feet. There was a sickening crunch accompanied by a muffled scream, and the zebra landed flatly on his back, his forelegs bleeding and broken.

The zebra mare behind me got up off of her seat and leaned against the backrest of mine, temporarily jarring my attention away from the fight as she stared in horror. She ignored the demands to sit down that came at her from behind. Seashore smiled cryptically my way, and I noticed two of his slavers encroach on our position. I shifted uncomfortably and loosened my gladius, just in case.

Boagrius raised a massive hoof to stomp his corpse into the dirt.

But then the zebra got up and galloped again, limping as he did so. The minotaur's titanic leg shook the floor behind him, but the zebra didn't trip. Picking up a random blade as he went, he dove in between his opponent's bottom legs and slashed at one of them, causing Boagrius to crash forward with a loud thump. The zebra slid to a stop behind his bowed opponent. Then, forcing all his energy into the effort, he jumped onto the minotaur's back and leapt into the air, bringing his sword down and aiming for Boagrius' nape.

My mind was in a mix of confused feelings, but eventually everything settled on one. It was joy. He was actually going to win! Against an opponent so much stronger than him, the gladiator could actually win his freedom! My heart and mind both eagerly anticipated the killing blow, ready to congratulate him for his effort.

The glimmering of a rusty iron whip through the air shattered all those hopes.

The whip smacked into the zebra's stomach, ripping the wound he had in his side open. The impact sent him sailing through the air towards the railings of the first row of seats, dropping blood in rivulets as he went. He crashed onto the railings with a sickening cacophony of snaps and lay limp, his body bent inwards. A gripping shock froze me in place, and what made it worse was that he was right in front of me, groaning weakly and bleeding out. He raised his head up slowly even as his cruel spectators howled in applause, and with a resigned gaze looked at me. His eyes were in pain, silently begging for assistance. My heart and mind froze, driven to immeasurable pity for him.

It was pathetic... both of us were. Him for his condition, and me for... for being so shocked, so unprepared, that, just like in that dream Predator has placed me in, I failed to act in moments that called for action. And I knew, Goddesses I fucking knew I needed to move... but I didn't.

And I couldn't take it. I couldn't take not doing anything, not anymore. I couldn't just sit there, watching him until his opponent came for his blood. And so I got up and was about to gallop to him when the zebra mare behind me rushed forward, nearly crashing into me as I recoiled back reflexively. Crying, she made it about halfway towards him before the two slavers stopped her. She kicked and struggled madly, but they held her where she was.

"No, please no!" she begged in an intriguing accent -- not the typical sequential tune of most tribals, but rather a silky smooth, pleading tone. She looked over at her captors in anguish. "Please..." she begged. "He doesn't deserve this... he's all we have, you can't just take him away from us, please..." Her heartbreaking glance drifted over to the dying zebra in front of her. He returned the gaze, almost sleepily.

"What's this?" Seashore asked with a smirk. "It seems our zebra has a fan! Aw, that's so adorable!" he laughed. The crowd joined him with their own brand of jeering nickers.

Delvius' eyes widened in anger and disgust at the cruelty of the situation. "Alright, that's it!" he growled, and then got up and pulled out his gladius about halfway out if its scabbard when Gravetanicus grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him down. Then he whispered something in his seething comrade's ears; 'there's nothing to be done' he seemed to say. Delvius growled but seemed to accept the reality.

The gladiator's gaze met with the mare's for a last time, and in the stallion's eyes there was a certain expression, a sort of... goodbye. It made the mare hiccup and wince from her emotions, unable to meet his eyes. It broke my heart, and yet I couldn't find it in me to do anything. I was useless, just like in all other situations that I should have been doing something in. Completely, absolutely, useless.

Boagrius' massive hand grabbed the broken zebra by the torso and pulled him away, and all of us could only watch as the minotaur brought the zebra's broken body away and walked off towards the center of the arena. The massive being just... played around with the zebra, tossing him into his two hands like a strange doll. Not particularly sadistically, just... curiously. Like a dog wondering what toy had been thrown its way. Even still, the crowd eagerly awaited every move like it was the grand finale. All except the tribal zebra mare, me, and the two auxiliaries beside me, that is.

At last the minotaur stopped and idly brought the blood-stained zebra close to his face, snorting as he did. There was a low growl rumbling from within his throat, though it was not particularly aggressive. "You should not have fought me," Boagrius said in a surprisingly calm and fatherly tone, if a tad stern and lecturing. I didn't know how I heard it; they were pretty far away. What, were my ears mutated? "T'was a foolish mistake on your part. Though perhaps not only yours."

The minotaur looked over the crowd with contempt for a moment. "In here, we are both slaves. Perhaps t'was not your will to fight. Or perhaps it was, but for a... different reason aside from entertaining this poultry gathering of spectators." His face hardened into a menacing scowl. "These foreigners who'm your people have taken in killed my people, zebra. None of us were spared, none but me. If I could return the favor I would, but the only one I have to vent my vengeance upon is you. You are the only one available for cleaving. This vengeance will not satisfy me, but it is all that I can have," he growled angrily.

He raised the zebra up into the air and shouted, "But by my ancestors, I pray that that will change before my death comes! I pray that those who deserve my axe has it as their last sight!" Then he tossed the zebra up into the air, and with an air-slicing swing sliced the zebra in half and sent bloody bits flying off in all directions.

Screams. Screams everywhere. It came from all of them. An unbreakable wall of deafening sound from the crowd and all who enjoyed the fight, and a soul-freezing wail of misery and pain from the mare. All of them had been so engrossed in the final moments of the fight that the guards holding her at bay had grips weakened by disinterest. With a savage yank she managed to free herself from captivity and jump over the railings, much to the further jeering of those gathered. It was absolutely horrible, all of it; heartbreaking too. He... what had he been to her? A father? A brother? A lover?

And worst of all was that aqua-blue bastard just watching it all from his lofty height. That smirk of his... so satisfied and victorious. Amusement bloomed in his features as he watched the zebra mare pick up the upper half of the gladiator's body, nuzzling and crying against his helmet. He didn't say anything; he just watched with the utmost sadism.

Not Boagrius, though. At the sight of the mare's anguish and suffering, the old minotaur actually seemed to have the heart to look regretful. Perhaps he was; after all, he hadn't had much choice aside killing that zebra. Who was to say that he would have done so had he had another choice? In a Colosseum there was only killing, or mercy at the crowd's consent. No other options. Funny how the slave -- a nomadic minotaur of tribal blood -- was more civilized than these insults to the Roaman world.

By now Delvius' own hate had been directed to the aqua pony, and only Gravetanicus' firm and disciplined grip kept his seething comrade at bay. As for me... well, some self-doubting, frightened part of me betrayed the rest of my body and kept me in too severe a shock to do anything. I hated it, but I have to admit that it would have been stupid if I acted.

"Well well well..." Seashore mocked. "It seems we have a surprise fighter! What a treat! Today certainly is looking to raise the bar for future spectacles, eh? I certainly hope that she knows the rules of the arena floor: any who step on it are fighters unless I say so!" He chucked a bit to himself and raised his mug again. Then, "Have her killed," he said idly, and with disinterest brought the mug to his mouth.

The mare on the arena could only look up at the pony with absolute disbelief, then at the minotaur with the most terrified eyes. Her eyes lingered on the crowd for a moment, and her face hardened into an expression of total loathing. Then with only slight hesitation, she picked up the crude blade the stallion had used and took a few steps towards the minotaur. Her glower was fierce and her courage awed me, perhaps even the crowd, considering how pleasantly surprised they look.

But her bravery was short-lived. By the time she was only a few meters away from the incredulous Boagrius, she herself was already shivering and she seemed like she wished she could have taken her actions back. But of course she couldn't; she could only try to finish what she started, however it may have ended.

Boagrius looked down at the mare, shaking his head slowly. "I am a warrior," he said simply. "Not a murderer. He fought me, and I fought back. In the world as it is -- in this arena -- it's kill or be killed. And even in here, we have a choice: fight to live or idle to die. You..." He pointed a hand at her, his whip and axe hanging over his shoulder. "... you had a choice. You chose to come fight me. And so at your consent, I will fight you."

Then without another word, he flung his axe into the air and grabbed it with his other. Then with shocking speed he swung it in a low downwards arc, seeking to slice the mare's legs off.

The mare was NOT a trained fighter. She did not have the best reflexes nor the most combat skill, and so the only thing that saved her was the fact that she reflexively stabbed the sword down beside her. The axe shattered the blade into hundreds of lacerating shards, but the impact traveling up the broken blade and into the hilt sent her somersaulting into the air. She landed with a thud onto her back, and with her lithe build scrambled backwards just as the whip pounded the ground in front of her.

Boagrius stomped forward repeatedly, much to the crowd's cheers. The zebra mare just barely managed to twist and snake in between the impact points to not get crushed. She had ample opportunity to fight back and cut at his legs in between his stomps if she had a blade; as it was, the closest weapons was a terrible dozen or so meters from her, lodged into the face if a unicorn mare.

But perhaps she didn't need a weapon. I don't know where she got it, but in her hooves suddenly appeared this box of a very familiar silvery design. As she evaded the minotaur's crushing hooves, she managed to pop out what seemed to be a vial out of the box. I didn't even get to observe the vial for long before she smashed it into the ground, blowing green-glowing smoke in all directions.

At the sight of that the crowd let out a surprised gasp, and Boagrius himself ceased for a moment before roaring and swiping inside the smoke with axe and whip alike, tearing apart the green mist. The fog soon dissipated, leaving the earth stained green, yet to our surprise the mare wasn't there at all. Boagrius himself seemed confused; certainly none of us had even SEEN her escape. Where had she gone?

A patch of the green earth suddenly leapt into the air and galloped like a maniac away from the confused Boagrius, and before the old minotaur knew it the zebra mare had in her hooves a spear. With a trained posture and a fierce but desperate energy, she flung it into the air just as Boagrius turned.

The minotaur crashed backwards with a roar as the spear bore itself deep into his stomach and out his back. Small as it may have been compared to him, the fact was that it had been thrown with good technique and it had done its job well. The zebra mare stood there for a moment, huffing in shock as she watched her injured opponent anxiously. Slowly and idly, she picked up a small tomahawk off the ground.

He snarled and he yanked the spear out of his stomach, then fixed her with a terrifying glare. My eyes widened as I saw the hole in his stomach heal. How? Why? Minotaurs had a notoriously robust physiology, but regenerating at this rate... mutation, it just had to be mutation. Nothing else could possibly suffice.

The mare's eyes widened as she stepped backwards, and the minotaur charged with all the speed his limbs could muster. Dirt and flesh flew into the air as the ground shook beneath the minotaur's charge, and soon the mare found herself hastily galloping backwards in a panicked fright. It wasn't enough, and the minotaur's horned head smashed against her front, impaling her side.

They crashed into the marble on the far side of the arena, with the minotaur's horns buried halfway into the wall. The zebra mare looked ready to faint, her body hanging on the horns by just a little skin. With a snapping of flesh, she fell to the ground beneath her opponent, bleeding heavily and looking weak. Boagrius yanked his horns out of the wall and looked down fiercely at his opponent. He stepped backwards and raised his axe, and those gathered were all unified as they moved their hooves downwards again and again, cheering.

The minotaur swung his axe in the air.

It was at that moment that something in my head snapped. Some kind of restriction was gone. That... complacence-inducing barrier in my head was gone. I didn't know what it was, but now that I was free of it I felt absolutely FREE. Suddenly I could move again; suddenly my mind was racing. I knew then why I had even entered the Colosseum to watch these fights; I had stayed because some part of me hoped to be able to do some good. Maybe to save a life or ease someone's pain. Through all the thoughts and feelings rushing through me, my head landed on one, inescapable truth:

Now it was time to act. No more idling.

My heart thundered in my chest as the combat adrenaline pumped into my veins. All of my senses sharpened to pick up even the most minute stimulus. My muscles tensed, and my breathing deepened. Emotions faded to give way to fierce focus. My eyes darted to the side, lingering on one of the retractable pilums on Delvius' back. Gravetanicus was still holding him down, stopping him from helping.

But of course, he wasn't holding me down.

Without even thinking, I grabbed the retracted spear and gave it a hard shake, exposing the full length of the pilum. Gravetanicus and Delvius alike both looked shocked and tried to stop me, and as I galloped towards the railings I pushed aside the two slavers and knocked them to the ground. Arcing my spine and tensing my muscles, I focused all my energy into my limbs and threw the spear towards the minotaur.

It punched a whole clean through Boagrius' wrist.

He screamed an agonized and shocked shout and dropped his axe to the ground, cradling his injured hand. Then he looked over at me with the most ferocious and angry eyes I had ever seen from another sentient being as I jumped into the arena. But I didn't care; I wasn't afraid of him. Failing to live up to my duty, that was what I was afraid of. To have harm come to innocents through my own incompetence.

I drew me gladius, got up onto my hindlegs, and spread out my forelimbs provocatively. I looked him right in the eyes as I shouted, "Well? I am here, are you not going to fight me? Or are you too tired? Done playing around with dolls and ready to face a real opponent yet?"

The crowd let out a unified 'oooh' as if warning me I had made a terrible mistake, but I kept my eyes fixed on the minotaur and held my contempt at bay. I looked up and saw that Seashore had taken off the headset to prevent the entirety of the crowd from hearing his laughter; clearly all of this was funny to him. The bastard. He was probably thinking today was the best day of his life.

Boagrius himself looked at me with utmost anger for a moment before putting on an amused smirk. His wrist was already healing itself, unnaturally knitting its own flesh back together... horrifying.

With a disinterested snort at the bleeding mare he went over and picked up the two spears that had pierced him during his time in the arena. He shook his head knowingly. "Why, I wonder, are so many of you compelled to fight me? It makes no sense. You have no ties to this arena, yet you give up your freedom and your life just to save a volunteer? You people puzzle me," he said in a bemused tone.

I gave him a cold look as I replied, "We all have a choice. You fight for vengeance and anger, Boagrius. I fight to save people. If that means putting my life on the line, then I shall do it. I would not be able to live with myself if I stood by."

"Then stop standing and start fighting!" he barked. Then he put both his arms forward and gestured at me with his fingers. "Come at me, little pony."

'Oh, you are so asking for it.'

This was it. No turning back now. I looked him over for a moment, calming my insides enough to not let my nervousness take over. Then I picked up a serviceable shield off the ground. Starting out slowly, I cantered across the blood and sand-covered wooden floor towards my enemy, the crowd's eyes glue to me as I went. Then as my heart started thundering in my chest, I broke out into a full gallop, the gladius in my mouth and the shield on my shoulder. Somewhere out there was Skyfire, probably wondering what manner of idiocy I was practicing.

Boagrius put on a fierce face as he readied a spear to throw at me. Then with a primal roar he thrust the spear at me with overwhelming force, and the spear's black blur sailed threw the air at incredible speeds.

I slowed down just enough to get the shield out to block the impact. The spear slammed into me with such force that I would have been blown back had I not already had momentum. The shield split in half, barely stopping the spear's tip from lodging itself in my shoulder. It was useless now, so I just dropped it and broke into a mad dash, gladius in mouth.

He readied the other spear and aimed. Then with another powerful shout he flung that at me as well. It made a dangerous hissing noise as it cut through the air, seeking to impale me.

But for all its deadliness, it could be avoided entirely by a simple step to the side.

With both his spears spent, Boagrius yelled at me as I got closer and yanked at his whip. He sent it flying through the air towards me even as my distance was reduced to a mere few meters. The clanking of the chains and the spikes on them seemed to grow all the more deadly now that I paid attention to them.

But that metal whip could be dodged easily, especially with my momentum. To fear it now was a death wish. Yes it could kill me, and I was not above that reality. But it was because of that knowledge that instead of panicking, I did the only thing a pony with my momentum should do against an opponent like this: aim for the weak spot.

That was his neck.

Forcing all my energy to my legs, I jumped, and hoped only that I would not encounter the iron whip as I sailed through the air. Clanks of links and the flashing of polished spikes greeted me as I neared my target. Boagrius' eyes widened as I flew in between the iron and neared him. For the first time, I saw real fear in his eyes.

Then I spat out the blade and grabbed it with a hoof. Next I planted a foreleg on his chest, and with the other plunged the blade down where his shoulder met his neck and pulled it out after the entirety of the metal sank into his flesh.

I landed on the ground with a thud, my back turned to the frozen Boagrius. The crowd was eerily silent as I got up and turned to see if my gambit for a quick kill had paid off.

All I saw was Boagrius falling forward, planting his front into the dirt. The crowd went absolutely nuts with cheer. Seashore's haughty look disappeared, replaced by an expression of utmost disbelief. I looked up at him, and I hoped his eyes were good enough to see my scowl. He returned my hateful look with uncertainty, but I swear I saw the glimmer of an idea light up in his eyes. I didn't care for that at the moment, for I was too busy taking some relief on Boagrius' defeat. I had beat him... I didn't know if it meant I was that good, or that my opponent was simply arrogant.

And yet for all my effort, Boagrius still wasn't dead. He stirred, surprising all of us as he started crawling forward, bleeding heavily from the side of his head. I stared at him; seriously? STILL alive? What unnatural madness was this? Had I not pierced his heart with that strike? I had -- I was sure of it -- yet here he was slowly healing right in front of my eyes!

I didn't know what else to do. I spared the unconscious but thankfully no longer bleeding mare a glance before trotting over to the fallen minotaur, gladius in hoof. With a soft grunt, I used my forelegs to roll him over onto his back. He groaned weakly as I got onto his chest and looked down into his eyes, now half-closed and tired-looking.

The crowd stated chanting, calling in one symphonic tune for his death. Funny how a few minutes ago they seemed like he was their idol, but now... now I had their attention? Hmph, capricious bastards.

I raised the blade and aimed it for his neck.

"Finish it," he said flatly, as if the thought of dying didn't even bother him.

That intrigued me a little; of all the people I'd met, the only ones I could say didn't fear death as it should have been feared was... well, Predator. It wasn't often that I met someone who could accept death instead of selling out their dignity just to live. "Are you not frightened?"

He shook his head slowly. "No. I am old, pony. I have been chieftain of my dead clan for seventy years, fought in many conflicts, and have had my fair share of exploits and foolish adventures. Now is as good a time to die as any, since I have lived fully." He took in a deep breath and sighed. "At least I die a warrior's death at the blade of another rather than a dishonorable one to the bullets of artificial warfare."

"I don't understand," I replied even as the crowd started becoming restless. "You speak of choice. Why choose to die?" I pointed at his wound with my gladius; the flesh was already slowly, very slowly, knitting back together. That sight disturbed me greatly, but I decided not to ask about it. "Can you not regenerate?"

He reached up an arm to touch his wound. "I can. But even if I did, I would need to live with the knowledge and shame of my defeat, the likes of which I have never tasted. To my honor and myself, I am already dead. All that's needed now is the termination of the flesh." He closed his eyes and opened them again, fixing me with a determined stare. "Now... finish me."

I looked at him for a moment, thinking on what to do. This was the typical warrior culture of many of the Roaman influenced groups, and to some degree even of the Roamans themselves. Self image was just as important as public image, so in so easily defeating him I had stripped him of his worthiness... impractical as it may have been, that belief DID have some merit to them. Still, I had watched this minotaur kill a slave fighting for freedom and nearly kill an innocent bystander. I'd be damned if I let him live to maybe do it again...

But I couldn't. I just couldn't. I wasn't a killer, at least not willingly. All I did and all I had done was done out of a good desire, even the wrong things. I acted with thought; killing was an action people did when they didn't think enough to know that we all needed a second chance.

"I can kill you... but I choose not to," I replied evenly and got off of him. I barely managed to catch his expression as I turned around; he was shocked. The crowd itself was surprised at my decision, and they all started booing. I didn't mind them as I started for the mare, passed out and slumping against the wall.

"What?" he asked, bewildered. "No! You have already killed my image, now kill my flesh and let me rest!" he called out behind me.

I rounded on him and fixed his eyes with a coldly adamant glare. "Then take your own life if your honor means that much to you," I replied. "As for me, I give second chances as often as I can. I do this because I choose to, Boagrius. Not because I let the world enslave me. We all have a choice, you yourself made that clear to me, and YOU'RE the one that's enslaved here." He snorted at me, looking angry. I smirked, "Ironic little twist, eh?"

I turned back around and got over to the mare, pulling out a healing potion as I looked her injuries over. She'd been impaled deeply, and there was a huge hole in her side, but she wasn't bleeding as heavily as she could have. Even though the crowd voiced their displeasure, I just kept applying any healing I could. Somewhere down in my bags I had a bunch of bandages -- strange, because I don't remember picking those up -- and did my best to close her wounds with those.

Seashore, growing anxious and worried with each passing second, ordered me to finish off the incapacitated minotaur. Zebras cried out in displeasure, calling for blood. I could hear them bickering, and some even had the audacity to lean over the edge to throw down their garbage on us. That angered me greatly, but I kept myself focused on the task at hoof.

But... their childish want, their juvenile displeasure... it sickened me. With each bottle of glass and plastic thrown down at me, with every order from that haughty bastard up there, every impatient whine, I grew all the more vexed. Was this what society had been reduced to? Savages? Watching death for FUN? Could we not do better than that? Did we not grow up with the simple knowledge of right and wrong? Where were these people's consciences?

"I am ORDERING you to kill that beast!" Seashore shouted angrily. I ignored him. "Do it, slave!"

That did it for me. I was not a slave; NO ONE WAS! Slavery was an abomination to the greatness society could achieve! Suddenly all my anger and disgust, built up for the last half an hour, poured out in a raging torrent.

With a fierce scowl I reached down to the dirt and picked up a random piece of weaponry -- it was a mace -- and with a shout infused with all the anger I could muster turned around and flung the weapon in the air, aiming for that aqua bastard.

His eyes widened as he readied himself to shout again, and he barely managed to bring up his silver cup in time to block the impact. The wine splattered all over his face as he fell backwards, knocking over the mare holding the wine flagon and pouring all the drink over the ground. The crowd gasped in surprise and receded from discordant murmurs into an eery silence

I looked all of them over, hoping they could all FEEL my loathing as well as I had felt their sadistic pleasure. For Celestia's sake, just... what the fuck was with these people?

"Are you not entertained?! Is this not why you are here?" I yelled. They remained silent, even if just barely. Good, they didn't deserve the right to speak. "Are you not here to enjoy violence and death? You've had it, why so silent? What, have you bitten off your tongues, or has compassion become so alien for you that to see it would quiet you? Have your hearts turned to devices of stone, hard and LIFELESS?"

"Or let me guess, you want more?" I barked up at them, my voice echoing. At the obliviousness of their expressions I shook my head with a smile of contempt. "You do, don't you? You want more people to die under you. Why? Does it... does it make you feel powerful? Like royalty? Well guess what, NONE OF YOU ARE! For gods' sake, you people should be better than this! You're Roamans! Roamans are supposed to be civilized and an example for other nations, not savages! Yet here you are, cheering on this... this madness!"

I spat on the ground and turned my attention away, not wanting to waste any more time with these louts. There was nothing here for me but anger and disappointment, and I had done all I could. Best to not let the unconscious mare stay here any longer. All I had to do was trot out of here with her and Skyfire and maybe my new allies, and that would be it. All I could hope for was that there would be no hassle.

Of course, nothing was ever that easy.

Suddenly the gates gave off a tremendous groan and several dozen slavers came pouring into the arena, all looking quite pissed. The ground vibrated as they surrounded me, paying little heed to the conscious Boagrius. Soon I was enclosed in a semicircle of angry ponies, all giving me scowls as I carefully laid the zebra mare back onto the floor. The crowd seemed surprised at first but soon eased; for them, this was just another entertaining spectacle. The two Roamana auxiliaries were nothing more than purple and grey blurs on the far side of the arena, and so I could only imagine their feelings towards the scene I was making.

One of the slavers, clad in a conglomerate suit of Legionnaire armor mixed with more ramshackle leather pieces and ugly bolted sections, stepped forward as I stared off with the ponies.

"You're really ruffling feather's ya can't preen, boy." His voice was rough but experienced, and perhaps a tad imperious. "Ain't smart to go 'round screwin' with stuff and people you can't handle."

"Then why don't you savages leave Roam and her people alone?" I retorted with a confident little smile. "Why do you stay here when your existence hangs by a thread?"

"Don't get all cocky with me you son of a bitch!" he snapped and took several steps forward. "Ain't nopony in this land better than anypony in Equestria; in fact, the Equestria Redeye has under construction will be damned glorious. So since nopony here's better, why shouldn't we treat them the same and get them to work for a brighter future?"

"Three reasons why they shouldn't," I replied calmly despite all the attention on me. "One: all people are naturally equal and are entitled to the right of freedom, that goes the same for freedom from slavery. Two: these people aren't working for a better future, they're dying for entertainment. Three, any and all appropriate labor must be done with the consent of the workers; these people are slaves." I pressed forward slowly, locking him with a hard stare. "And even if it's a more personal feeling, I'll give you a fourth: you barbarians aren't worthy of benefitting off of the Roaman blood."

"How dare you!" he barked, insulted. "All this nonsense and talk of freedom and such bullshit! Freedom is earned when the person has gained the right to be free! In the wasteland, a free pony is worth nothing if his skills aren't used! Under Redeye, all build a brighter future for the benefit of the later generations! What you call slavery is the only way to force progress!"

I kept calm as he stomped over, seeming very murderous. "Who the hell do you think you are, boy? What gives you the right to even stand up for these zebra trash when EQUESTRIA lies in ruins?" He was right in front of me now, almost touching my muzzle with his own. The glare he gave me was fierce, but I'd seen worse.

His questions had only intensified my burning desire to protect the Imperial people, and so I replied without hesitation, even if it was not a smart decision to say it, "I am Roam's Praetorian, here to fight for her people and her glory, and to take away from you slaver savages the borrowed time you've all been living on."

He froze, though more out of confusion than out of shock. "Praetorian..." he murmured, as if trying to remember what my title entailed. Suddenly his eyes widened.

Before he could yell for his troops to open fire, I grabbed his head with a forehoof and pulled him closer to me, yelling in his face, "I AM THE PRAETORIAN, AND I WILL TOLERATE NO SLAVERY AGAINST ROAM!" Then I grabbed my gladius and sunk them into his gut, sending the blade basting out his back with an explosion of intestine and blood.

I pulled the sword out and kicked the pony's lifeless corpse onto the dirt, and the crowd was so startled some even spat out what was in their mouths. Seashore, who had looked angry but eager for my demise, once more looked absolutely bewildered. The half-ring of slavers around me likewise looked so shocked none of those idiots thought of shooting me dead. If Skyfire was watching she must have seen the immense recklessness of what I had just done, but I didn't care; this trip had started out as simple sightseeing, but now I knew it was an opportunity to test my resolve. And by the gods of Roam and the Goddesses of Equestria, I was going to pass this test.

"Is there no one else?" I yelled at the faces of the petrified and frightened slaver militia in front of me. They kept silent, shifting uncomfortably. I looked them each in the eye.

"Is there no one else?!" Again, I was met only with silence. My eyes glanced over to Seashore. "You!" I yelled, pointing a hoof at him. "Will you not face me?" His expression was a glower, but a weak one; he wouldn't come down.

I snorted, turning around and heaving the zebra onto my back. I had made such an impression on them that none of them dared to attack me. Good. If any of them opened fire now, the rest would follow, and without my armor and weapons or assurance that any allies would come to my rescue, I would be screwed.

But I didn't care about that. Underneath my anger, pride swelled up inside of me. A dark, sadistic piece of my identity was reveling in the thought of having their fear in my hooves; their actions on a leash that I held. The mere thought of having influence over their weak wills sent euphoric shudders through me. And as I turned around and walked towards them, it only intensified my pride to see them step aside, not daring to shoot.

I had actually thought that I could just trot out of there when Seashore yelled, "What the hell are you idiots doing? Kill him or capture him, damn it!"

Well fuck.

Behind me the sounds of cocking guns and drawn weapons rang in the air, and I knew that I was going to die if I did nothing. So I did the only thing a pegasus should do to escape: fly the hell away.

I extended my wings and was about to fly away when shots rang out from above me. Skyfire was strafing the slavers and in the process gained the attention of everyone in the entire Colosseum. Return fire opened up from different spots on the different floors and from behind me, but she was able to dodge. The crowd screamed in fright and was beginning to disperse from the area like a swarm of ants, and the chaos that ensued left a great many of them tumbling down the seats and falling into the arena itself. The exits were absolutely clogged with fleeing bystanders. It brought a grimace to my face to see those cowards running away; so proud when others were beneath, so cowardly in the face of danger... fucking rats.

"Don't just stand there!" Skyfire yelled as she somersaulted above me, dodging gunfire, "Move!"

I didn't need to be told twice. With my hooves thudding against the floor and adrenaline pumping in my veins, I galloped away from the gunfight with my wings ready to pick me up as soon as I decided to flap them. Bullets struck the arena floor beside and behind me, indicating that I still had their attention. Several shots came dangerously close to hitting me in the back of the head. Where I had been sitting a while ago, Gravetanicus and Delvius had joined in the fight, with the former fending off slavers with shield and sword and the latter opening fire on the more distant hostiles with his rifle.

One shot grazed my leg, but the stinging pain was enough to nearly trip me and send me tumbling to the floor. With some momentum lost, I tried to quicken my pace. Suddenly the threatening whiz of bullets near my ears gave way to the sound of thunderous thumping and roaring. Panic accompanied the realization that came to me.

Boagrius had recovered and slammed into me with the force of a train. But rather than crushing or impaling us as I had feared, he had me and the zebra in both of his massive hands, cradling us close to his chest as he charged for the side of the arena where I had sat. Gunshots aimed at us were absorbed by the minotaur as little more than painful stings, and soon we were close enough to the wall that he simply tossed us out of the arena and onto some of the seats. Gravetanicus and Delvius were so absorbed in their combat they hadn't even tried to worry about him.

While I struggled to get the unconscious mare onto my back, dodging shots as I did, Boagrius placed an arm onto the seats, looked behind him at the amassing slavers, and turned back to me. "Go Praetorian! Go while you still can!"

I finally got the mare securely onto my back. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" I yelled over the chaos.

"Helping you to escape!"

"Why?" I asked, askance. "Why would you do this for the one who stripped you of your honor?"

He seemed a tad annoyed at my untimely inquiries, but answered nonetheless. "Praetorian, in sparing me you placed me in your debt. Now you're my master. In my culture, letting one's master die is a grave insult to oneself." He leaned in closer even as several shots struck his back. "That leaves me the only option of helping you escape."

"But I'm not your master!" I replied. "You're your own master, Boagrius. No person of any race should ever be a slave."

He looked at me for a second, contemplating. "Then you free me from my debt?"

"Yes!" I yelled. "You can escape with us! You can still live, you don't have to throw your life away for anyone! You can choose your own path and live without being forced to do anything!"

"I see," he replied, a growing smile on his face. "Then that gives me the freedom to choose my vengeance over heeding your commands!" He turned around and looked at the slavers with a predatory look.

"No..." I murmured.

Boagrius roared and charged off, smashing into the ponies who had killed his people.

"Boagrius, no!" But there was nothing I could do. I had freed him from my service -- let him choose to live or die -- and he chose death. He chose vengeance over a second start at life. Why would he do that? Heh, it's still a question I ponder. I guess that some people really just... choose to die fighting rather than to die decaying to age. In charging off like that he'd found his freedom, but left my mind forever wondering what would have happened if I chose to force him to live.

Had I chosen to enslave him, even for just a while, would I have saved him?

Gravetanicus bashed a slaver in the face and whirled around, cutting off his head. Next he jumped right in front of me and shielded my head with his scutum right before a few rifle rounds blew my brains out. "Goldwreath, we have to move now!" he yelled in my face.

I just stared off, watching as the minotaur fought with the slavers. Gravetanicus grabbed my head much like I had grabbed the head of the slave master earlier. "We. Have. To. Go. NOW!" he screamed. That got me out of my entranced stare, and I shook my head to clear my thoughts.

Soon after that we were galloping like madponies. Gravetanicus led us, bashing and slicing through slavers our way to freedom. Skyfire flew above, covering us and taking out snipers here and there. Delvius aided her, opening fire with admirable accuracy against shooters. My lungs and legs struggled to keep up with their quick pace as I pushed myself to move with her weight on my back, avoiding bullets and accidental impacts alike. Screams of fright and pleas to be left alone sounded all around us as we went. Bullet impacts sent pieces of debris into the air, and truth be told my heavily armored allies had more than once shielded me from getting hit. Distant roars and agonized wails signaled Boagrius' continued fight. I wanted to turn around and save him so badly... but I didn't. I couldn't do anything but respect his choice.

Soon we came to the crowded arched entrance of the Colosseum. Bashing and shoving through the galloping crowd and fighting off any that stood in our way, Gravetanicus slowly paved for us a path through. Delvius and Skyfire, the latter now on the ground with the auxiliary, covered our slow escape. A hot and claustrophobic atmosphere surrounded us as we struggled to get through. Soon enough we emerged, and on the other side we saw a great commotion caused by the fighting between the three auxiliaries and whoever opposed them. The slavers out here were few and scattered; easy prey for the well-trained and well-equipped Legion soldiers.

"Move move MOVE!" Delvius yelled behind me as his armor took several shots to the chest, knocking him down. Skyfire helped him back up with her forehooves, using her mouth to fire her SMG at their assailants. Gravetanicus galloped back and stabbed their attackers, allowing them to continue on.

After he was up and pulled further out onto the paved paths of Castellum Colossei, Delvius galloped over to join his fellow auxiliaries as they came together to form a wall of shields. The formation was being rushed -- hastily formed, with no thought of being able to return fire -- but it was good enough to shield them and whoever was behind them. After cutting down a slaver, Delvius got in line with his fellows and they all got down to form the wall, ensconcing their knees into the dirt. Gravetanicus, splattered in the blood of his victims, joined soon after.

"Praetorian!" Venaius called, "Get behind us and open the gate!"

I nodded and galloped over behind them, gesturing for Skyfire to get at the gate. Bullets pinged against metal as she dodged the fire of the very angry slavers opening up on us from the Colosseum's entrance. Orders rang through the air as the slaver troops moved into the houses, pushing down and throwing out the denizens of each home as they surrounded us. The wall of five auxiliaries protecting me and the mare arched themselves to cover each side, and soon all that I could hear was the non-stop cacophony of ringing metal as the shields sustained continuous fire.

Skyfire had only gotten the gate up less than halfway when a bullet caught her in the shoulder. She yelled and fell down limp, leaning against the valve and bleeding heavily. More bullets went her way, and all she could do was crawl away to cover, not even being able to bring up her SMG. If she had tossed it over to me I could have returned fire.

So, like always, I found myself in a ridiculously convoluted situation. Perhaps if we weren't under fire we could have slipped under the gate one by one, but as it was trying to do that would have gotten us killed underneath a heavy plate of metal. The suppressive fire increased, striking endlessly against the shields of the auxiliaries. Panic and fear began to grip on all of us; it was evident from the auxiliaries' expressions that they thought death was going to come soon. Worst of all was every second we stood there and did nothing to escape was another second even MORE of the slavers could spend trying to get a better firing position. All they needed was one shot from behind us, and we'd all be done for.

I had once more gotten us into a circumstance where the odds were against us and whatever allies I had in the vicinity, and that really sucked. You have no idea how much situations like this were beginning to really annoy the hell out of me, especially because they were getting more common.

Still, perhaps that day wasn't all bad.

Suddenly the gate behind us started shaking violently as an outside force slammed into it again and again. The noise made was even more deafening than the ear-killing ring of reverberating metal brought about by constant, merciless shooting. The force of the impacts increased, tearing away the gate's vital components -- the hinges and the bolts that attached at to the wall. The fire on us steadily decreased, with more of the slavers seeming more and more worried about what was going on out there.

A quick glance behind me allowed my eyes to look beneath the slightly upraised gate. What I saw underneath was a great many armored hooves, all stepping forward and back in uniform motion. Their forward steps coincided seamlessly with each powerful slam, and the gate was going to fall down soon...

... and by 'soon', I meant at THAT exact moment. Unable to resist the onslaught any longer, the gate gave way to the battering being inflicted upon it and fell inward in a cascade of dust and shattered metal. Glimmering steel shone through the dust, and echoing metal clanged from the depths of the debris.

Roamana Legionnaires stormed through, eight on each side and following a single line. They were very different from the regular Legionnaires of the Equestrius cohort; far more professional, too -- serious of face and efficient in motion, no nonsense. Whereas Equestrius' troops wore the typical zebra bulletproof lorica segmentata, these Roamana troops wore a power armor model that accented their body's muscles. Silvery metal segments clad their torsos and limbs all the way down to their hooves, and their chest plates bore the IPQR insignia in between the golden wreaths. They were different from juggernauts, however, in that their faces were exposed but shielded behind a glass visor.

The stomping columns of glimmering Legionnaires stopped when the soldier at the head of each line ceased. As a single unit, the two columns moved in and shielded the auxiliaries in a much firmer looking shield wall, allowing us to back away. The slavers dared not open fire, not against this kind of enemy at least. Relief flooded into my head, replacing my worry. We were safe, or at least that's how it looked.

I had only turned around when my eyes caught sight of this zebra, clad in intricate ebony musculata (that's the Roaman muscle-looking plate) power armor with golden engravings of proudly posed zebras. His plumes, red in coloration, were not excessively large despite his clear status as an executor. A purple cape hung down from his back. He had an easy smile on his face, counteracting the imposing air brought by the roaring and angry manticore he rode on. That sight alone was enough to get the slavers to back away.

"What's all this then?" he asked in a tone far more relaxed and enthusiastic than the typical grim-faced commander would have possessed. The slavers and I just stared at him, at a loss for words. In her corner, Skyfire was being helped up Venaius as the auxiliaries rushed out.

"Come on Goldwreath!" Delvius said as he got over to me, helping to pull off the zebra mare on my back. "Let's let Flavianicus deal with these louts." I nodded and accompanied him, heading out the gate to find that other auxiliaries had already prepared some healing supplies for Skyfire and the zebra. Gravetanicus and Bailan seemed to be explaining our situation to the others, convincing them to help us out even if they didn't know us.

"Ah, Delvius!" the zebra on the manticore -- Flavianicus, executor of Roamana -- said aloud, sounding eager. "Please, please. Do tell me what has transpired here, I'm quite interested to know! Sadly none of these poor sods look like they'll answer soon." He looked over at the uncomfortable slavers with a pout. "A shame, I really wanted some context from the side of our apparent enemy."

"Then you shall have it!" Seashore yelled angrily, and pushed aside several of his slavers to get right up to the executor. "You..." He pointed a hoof up at the zebra, getting a playfully shocked look in return. "Your soldiers opened fire on mine! I demand an explanation! This violates the ceasefire I was promised!"

Outside of the gate, column after column of power armor-clad zebra Roamana Legionnaires passed by, their discipline so refined that only a few even glanced over our way. Tanks and other vehicles -- artillery batteries and armored cars -- accompanied them. Overhead, aircraft flew by with little interest in our situation.

Flavianicus looked at Seashore with a playfully shocked set of wide eyes. "REALLY?" he asked, askance. "Well, then, I suppose I shall have to halt all of my cohort's movement for a moment so that I may address this problem, my good pony."

He turned his head back and yelled at the top of his lungs, "ROAMANAAAAA! Cease... MARCH!"

His voice itself wasn't what stopped them, but rather the voices of several centurions repeating the order at the top of their power armor's vocal enhancers. Echoes rang out all the way to the back of the marching Roamana cohort, and with an earthshaking set of stomps the entirety of Roamana stood still upon the Via Triumphos.

Flavianicus looked at the assembled hundreds of armed and armored Legionnaires with pride for a moment, then turned to see the unamused Seashore. Flavianicus raised a hoof in the air slowly, gesturing him to speak. "Please, do tell me of your troubles, pony." There was a fake friendly tone in his voice, genuine enough to not sound insulting but forced enough to be obvious.

Seashore stepped forward, nearly reaching the line of shields that separated him from the executor. "Your troops broke into my Colosseum, deliberately taking advantage of my hospitality and waited until the show was almost over before aiding a fugitive in his escape!"

"Woah woah woah woah," Flavianicus replied abruptly, getting off his tamed manticore and gesturing at Seashore with both his forehooves. "Now just hold on there for a second, let me just tell you something -- excuse me, could you move a bit? I need to speak with this pony here up close," he said to the Legionnaire in front of him, and the soldier promptly moved backwards, leaving a gap in the wall. "Thank you my good lad," he thanked as he passed through the gap, patting the Legionnaire a few times on the helmet as he went. At once the other Legionnaires looked to the one who'd been patted with amused little smirks.

Flavianicus trotted a little and met with Seashore, nearly touching the pony's muzzle with his own. While Seashore stared the zebra in the eye with the most disdainful look, the executor looked back with a frustratingly easy smile. Suddenly and without warning, Flavianicus wrapped a foreleg around Seashore's neck and turned them both around, gesturing at the Colosseum.

"Look at the Colosseum, my dear... what's your name?"

"Seashore," the pony grunted, trying to loosen the zebra's grip on his neck.

"Ah, Seashore. Alright then, look at it! This is the COLOSSEUM, my boy. This is a ROAMAN monument, not a pony abode," Flavianicus said slowly, as if lecturing a a child. "Therefore, common logic would dictate that it belongs to us, the zebras. We made it, we own it. It only makes sense, yes?" he asked with a pout.

"I beg to differ!" Seashore snapped. "We were allowed to stay here by the garrison stationed here! Why, you're just forcefully evicting us from-..."

Flavianicus shoved a hoof in his mouth. "Ah, yes!" he said, "The PREVIOUS garrison allowed you to stay here. Speaking of which, where are they?" He looked behind the slaver crowd gathered behind their leader, and within the entrance to the Colosseum saw several Equestrius auxiliaries. Some of them had been wounded, others had been trampled -- the general consensus I had in mind was that they had not participated in the little scuffle earlier, but had been hit nonetheless.

"I'm really going to need to replace them..." the executor muttered, then shook his head and looked at Seashore again. "Now, my boy, one thing you must know is that I am a different leader than the one that tolerated your presence here. I have my own rules and regulations. And, truth be told, I want you out of the Colosseum. Is that so hard to understand?"

Seashore yanked the hoof out of his mouth. "PERHAPS I can concede to that," he growled, "IF you give us sufficient time to relocate. But the fact remains that your troops KILLED mine!"

Flavianicus shrugged. "A terrible occurrence, really, but not unexpected!" he replied, wagging a hoof at the seething Seashore. "Take note that you were hosting bloody spectacles in a place that had had gladiatorial combat abolished from it back during the Renaissance, and that we the Legion no longer host such things. You'd need to understand that my troops were simply protecting Roam's territory from inappropriate usage."

"So you're saying that I will get no justice for this?!" Seashore yelled.

"Of course I am!" Flavianicus replied in an irritatingly playful tone. "You naughty little ponies got what was coming for you; who am I to try to stop karma? Who knows, maybe if you're good you might get a little gift from the universe or something." He chuckled.

Seashore growled loudly and shot a murderous glare at the executor, who only looked back at him with an amused look. Seashore let out a hot snort, and his eyes drifted beyond the wrecked gate and over to me. "You!" he yelled, "Praetorian, I'll have your head for causing all this!"

Seashore yelled again and charged off towards me, but Flavianicus had his hoof on Seashore's collar. With the sound of a choke, Seashore got pulled back by the incredulous executor. "Now, another thing I may have forgotten to tell you..." Flavianucs murmured, looking at me with a queer look. "Aside from the Colosseum being ours... the Praetorian is also a Legion asset. What he did he did on our accord; the ones he killed are ones we killed, those he injured are ones we injured."

'I'm a Legion asset? Since when?' I thought, surprised. Sure I guess only Equestrius had my animosity, but I wasn't going to start working with the Legion unless I decided to!

"You bastard!" Seashore roared. "What you're saying... allowing, INSTIGATING this slaughter... why, all this is leading to an open declaration of war!"

"Oh, heavens no!" Flavianicus laughed like a teacher would at the idiotic comment of a student. "No, see, since we OWN the Colosseum, YOUR intrusion is the offense that we had to tolerate. My troops and my assets were simply... reminding you of your need to find a new abode. Now, as for war... well, you're lucky that I -- Flavianicus Terpidius -- am in a good, forgiving mood, capable of forgetting your long overdue stay in our land and using our people as entertainment." He smiled and patted the angry pony on the head.

Flavianicus bowed gently to the absolutely flummoxed and angry Seashore before going over to his manticore and mounting it again. The creature purred like a kitten at his approach, and he scratched it behind the ear. "So, here's the deal: you and whoever wishes to accompany you will leave and find some other place to live, allowing my assets and troops full pardon, and I don't have Roamana obliterate you right now," he said with a casual little smile. "Agreed?"

Seashore winced and growled fiercely, stomping the ground in absolute frustration and vexation. For just a moment I thought he was going to do something stupid, but then he just looked behind him at his troops, at the tribal zebras looking at him expectantly, and at the Redeye banner on his embassy. Then with a sigh, he turned his gaze back to the executor with a look of defeat. "Agreed."

Flavianicus' smile broadened. "Excellent! Now, I hope you don't mind that I leave a soldier or sixteen here to facilitate your departure?"

Seashore scowled but didn't disagree. He just kept his face pointed to the ground. "Fine."

Flavianicus nodded, looking victorious and amused. "Good. I'll be back tomorrow. If you're all not gone by morning, I'll cut your balls off," he said with an amused smile and turned his mount around, going back through the busted gate. The sixteen Legionnaires within Castellum Colossei stayed behind as the auxiliaries started pulling out and rejoined the cohort. Next Flavianicus faced the entirety of Roamana. Several calls and orders later and the cohort was stomping along again.

"Come on Praetorian," Delvius said as he pulled me away from staring at the scene I had caused; all the commotion I had started, all the death I had instigated. "Just come with us first; maybe you can talk to Flavianicus about your friend and where we should take her. The zebra you brought along will also need to be accounted for, and you're one of the few who can vouch for her."

I nodded grimly and turned, when Seashore's voice called out behind me, accusingly yet softly, "Praetorian. I hope you're happy with what you've done. Do you want to know why those ponies didn't kill you right away? That's because they were just recruits; militia, not slavers. Desperation given bodies. You killed ponies barely out of their teens; they did nothing wrong. They just did what they had to to survive, and that's what matters in the wasteland. Not morality, but survival. I wouldn't expect some well-off, holier-than-thou hero like you to understand that, but it's the truth."

Then there was the sound of hooves behind me. "Now you've driven these desperate ponies out of the one temporary refuge they had. I don't know about you, but I actually care enough for the desperate to understand them when people like you call them scum. Do you even try to understand people, or do you just kill?"

"I do try," I growled back at him, then turned around to look him right in the eye. With each moment I spent there, Roamana moved along and Delvius got even more impatient. "And I would have given them a second chance and left them alone if they hadn't tried to kill me. They made their choice to join you, they chose to follow your orders, and they got what they asked for. There's always a choice, they made the wrong ones."

Seashore looked at me for a moment, almost disappointedly. For that one moment, he actually seemed like a tired pony instead of a proud, haughty announcer. "There aren't any right or wrong choices in the wasteland. No one has much of a choice." Then he turned around, head hung low as he approached his subordinates. My eyes glanced to the supposed slavers, and it seemed like he was right. Now that I really looked at them, most of them really didn't look like sadistic slavers, but rather like regular people who just seemed lost and misguided. Take away the armor and weapons, and they would have looked like any other scrawny and desperate person looking for a life.

Doubt and guilt crept into my head, but I tried to resist it. 'They made their choices; there's always a choice, no matter how tough the situation. Always a choice, always a choice,' I repeated over and over again, but it really didn't make me feel better. No matter what I thought, the fact was that I'd instigated a bloodbath. In interfering, I'd gotten Boagrius killed when he could have lived. Others died in the ensuing firefight, and definitely the denizens of Castellum Colossei had been caught in the crossfire...

I didn't think of anything else but what I'd caused. I just idly trotted out, not daring to look back at the inhabitants of the fort as I left. Delvius let me ride on his cerati, informing me that Skyfire and the zebra were up front and being tended to by Legion medics. That left us the only option of needing to catch up with them. With a roar and a stomp, the animal charged across the side of the marble road, passing by other cerati as it went.

Despite all the dark things I was thinking of, the mere sight of what must have been six thousand armored Legionnaires all stomping along in one organized column, supplemented by aircraft and armor, was truly something to behold. The glimmering of the midday sun upon their intricate armor... the clanging of the metal on marble beneath their feet reverberated through the earth... astounding. Centurions presented their status shamelessly and proudly; auxiliaries galloped up and down the column to deliver news and reports; tanks swiveled their turrets; aircraft zoomed by overhead, rockets and guns pointed downwards. All of it was absolutely breathtaking.

I smiled despite the dark revelation I had thrown in my face. This was a spectacle of Roaman military might, and it was the perfect counter to the poisonous and gloomy thoughts spawning out of my guilt.

Surely Myst and the others wouldn't mind if I let myself a little more distraction, right?

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"... and then finally there's the 1st century; that's the century assigned as a personal guard to Flavianicus. Kind of like a... semi-praetorian guard," Delvius concluded.

I had spent the past ten minutes riding along behind Delvius, asking him to kindly explain the organization of Roamana. In that ten minutes, Skyfire and the zebra alike just lay down on a sturdy medical platform attached to the sides of two cerati. Upon the slightly rocking platform were several Legion medics who tended to them. Skyfire was conscious but had an oxygen tube in her throat; apparently -- and I say this only because I overheard a bit of their conversation -- Skyfire complained she had some trouble breathing. The fact that she was having trouble breathing worried me, but I decided to leave her care to professional medics. The zebra was unconscious and had salve of medical gel over her wounds.

In that time we had been moving along right beside the manticore of Flavianicus as several centurions upon their own mounts discussed a few things with the playful executor. It was strange to see that the soldiers weren't frustrated with Flavianicus' childish demeanor -- rather, they talked amiably like good friends towards him. That intrigued me a bit; Flavianicus definitely didn't follow the typical archetype of a stern commander, yet... yet he just had a charm that brought about an air of relaxation. Indeed, Roamana's troops weren't grimly silent as they trotted along; they were quite talkative about various things, actually. Their personal lives, their families, their expectations... I guess Flavianicus was just the type of commander who loved his troops and whose troops loved him in return.

At last Flavianicus concluded his discussion with the centurions and shooed them away, laughing lightly as he did. Then his eyes fell on me from atop his manticore and he said aloud, "Ah, Praetorian! Good to finally meet the protector of Roam while we were away and-..." He facehoofed. "Oh, I'm forgetting! Now, first off, I would like to personally thank you for the one, great favor you've done us."

Delvius looked at me and chuckled; clearly encounters like this were quite common with Flavianicus. I looked at him and at the executor with confusion. "Just talk to him like a friend, you'll be fine," Delvius whispered.

Okay then; not normally something I do with figures of authority I had some respect for -- like the way I had talked with Venaius when I first met him -- but if Delvius said it was okay, I guess I could be casual.

I cleared my throat. "And that would be what, er... Flavy?" Okay, yeah, I may have taken it a bit too far there... what can I say, I wasn't the most intelligent at interacting with mares AND my fellow males. Besides, 'Flavy' seemed like an okay short of 'Flavianicus', at least to my ears.

He wasn't in the slightest bit annoyed by the name I'd given him. In fact, that name made him laugh a little. "Well, I'm thanking you -- and your allies, but since they're not here I can only thank you and this pegasus mare -- for kicking Thanus' bitch ass and putting his cohort in their place, of course!" He took in a deep breath. "Oh, you have NO idea how how much I've wanted to have that lout gone, or at least relieved of duty. Or choked, stabbed, poisoned, electrocuted, blown up, shot... you know, dead. Imbecile put Roam into disarray..." He sniffed melodramatically.

"Okay..." Well, sure, I was glad Thanus was dead and that Equestrius was being assigned elsewhere, but I don't think I ever took it to outright glee... "Well, as you know, the Specters and my friends helped out too. Really, I just fell in at the right time, and honestly the Specters did all the fighting; I just went on an espionage mission that... never really went through, sadly." I thought for a moment of that week I'd spent underground, all the horrific experiences I had witnessed. I remember how I used the distraction of planning for the battle to keep myself from taking in the dreariness and claustrophobia of the trot down there. The omnipresent, ambient ring of Tod's signal, the echoing dripping of water in the tunnels, the eery glow of distant plants in the sewers, the endless darkness, the maddening presences in my head...

I shivered; I still wasn't quite over the terrifying things I had seen down there. Truth be told, if it wasn't for the great many distractions I had come across since emerging, I would have been fixating on and trembling to the memories of what happened down there. I also wondered how my friends were handling the memory of the underground; whether or not they had gotten over it or if they were just, like me, distracting themselves with one thought or another.

My frozen posture concerned Flavianicus. "Praetorian? Everything all right? You look rather... lost."

I shook my head hard and turned to him. I could have lied, but honestly the remembrance of all the terrifying shit I'd seen didn't put me in a mood for lying; besides, I wanted to share some of my troubles with people aside from just my friends. I needed a fresh perspective. "No, not really. I just remembered some really, really... bad stuff. Things that I went through in my month out here in the wasteland. Kind of amazing, really. One month... it only took one month for my life to change into what it is now." I paused and looked down solemnly. "I guess I haven't quite adjusted to how... difficult life can be out here."

Flavianicus smiled, of all things. "Ah, I see," he replied warmly. "The life of a fighter isn't easy, eh? See, the general rule is that in fighting for the people... we take on their burdens. We carry the weight of it all so they don't have to. They don't deserve the hell the world is, don't you think? They deserve a life as normal as possible; a life spent with families and friends, a good book near a fire, a cup of warm drink on a cold day, a movie or two ready to watch." With each word he said the gentle smile on his face grew until he seemed like the happiest zebra in the world.

"It sounds wonderful," I replied, wondering if there really was the possibility of a 'normal life' in the wasteland. Then I looked at his smile, and envied him for it. "Flavianicus... how do you deal with it all?" I asked suddenly, and that got me a wide-eyed, childishly-curious look from him. "I mean, how do you... deal with all the shit that happens? You're a commander, surely you've got a tip or two for the stress. Something to think to ease a gloomy day."

"Oh, my dear lad, I think you're mistaken!" he said aloud. "See, I don't 'deal' with the horrors of war. I watch them, grieve them and condemn them, but I don't carry them around with me. I lay them down and think on other things as soon as I can." He smirked, "If you were asking for some kind of life-changing secret of mine, then I'm afraid there's none to be had."

"I'm... not sure if I can believe that," I replied with a shake of my head. "There has to be some secret. It can't just be THAT simple."

"And why not?" he asked with a relaxed smile. "Life need not be complicated, Praetorian. Complications come about when people choose to do things that complicate them. Like you..." He pointed a hoof at me, specifically my Pipbuck. "I'm under the impression you come from a Stable. Now, when you came out here a month ago -- the reason doesn't matter -- you could have chosen to just... survive. To just be another wastelander. Instead you chose to fight, and fighting brings with it complications. Think of life as a tide; you swim against it, and you're gonna have a bad time. So choose: go along with it, or go against it? Really, it all depends on your choice."

"But you're a commander," I interrupted. "You fight too, right? Then how do you seem so... at ease, even in the face of all the things that could kill you? Why so happy?"

He shrugged, "Meh. Life's mysterious like that, I suppose. Like in a book with characters and a well-rounded plotline, there are always some things that can never really be explained no matter how much we try. But if I were to answer, I'd say that... I take it all differently. Others such as yourself who see a dead elderly mare, they'd wish they could have been there to stop her death. I, on the other hoof see it, sigh disappointedly, and move on. I can't bring her back; why dwell on it?"

I thought about all he had said for a moment, and sighed. How I wished I could just let all the things in my mind go -- what I did in the Colosseum, hurting Myst, Predator's craziness, Doodle's bizarre case of joy, my impossible ambition to save Roam, Lighthouse's death... I was exhausted from it all, but I couldn't let them go. Failure and misery would accompany my complacency, and I couldn't let that happen.

"So you just let that kind of mental angst stuff slide, huh?" I asked, ears drooping. "I wish I could do that."

"Oh, don't wish it upon yourself. Your personality, in my opinion well-captured and well-portrayed in Delvius' exquisite little story, tells me you're meant for great things, grand things..." He paused for a moment, thinking. "Like look at Julius Caesar. He fought his entire life, doing more than what was expected of him, to do what he thought was best. Granted he did it all more or less for personal glory, but the fact was that his bold actions brought Roam an era of magnificent change." He looked down at me with a fatherly smile. "I see in you someone who is great. Only those who purposely throw themselves into danger for noble causes can ever hope to obtain the required integrity to make the hardest choices. Sure it puts you through hell, but in the end... well, in the end you get the world under you. And that is an encouraging thought."

He smiled at me again and stooped down from his lofty height, stretched his plated torso, patted me on the back and Delvius on the head, then retracted. Then with an easy smile he looked at the horizon. "I however have no expectations of myself; I'm happy just being a commander. I'm no hero and have no desire to be, so none of that endless fighting-through-all-the-odds-to-become-a-god crap for me, thank you very much."

I chuckled a little; this was a pretty serious topic, but the way he made it sound and the way he talked about it made it fairly lighthearted. And his words... touching. It actually brought a tear to my eye to hear someone aside from my friends say that they thought I was a good pony. I'll not lie, the insecure parts of me desperately needed all the assurances they could get. Conversations like these and the people who instigated them helped me to bear the weight of the wasteland and lit up my world in the face of dreariness and suffering. And this one was particularly good because it was the perfect counter to the remnants of the guilt from what Seashore had told me.

Of course, good as the talk was, it did bring home a particularly disturbing point. "So, basically... because of the path I've chosen... I'm fucked and condemned to a life of pain because I choose to do more than most? And that even if I do succeed I'll be scarred for life?"

"Yes," he replied with an idle smile. "Only the brave venture forth in life, and only they ever achieve anything."

"Right, of course. But what you're saying is... that because of the path I've chosen I'll go through all kinds of bad shit?"

"Of course! Life is hell, especially on those who try. That's why we all need to take some time off when we can; I go on coffee breaks. Have you ever had coffee? Lovely stuff, brought to Zebrica by the Ottomane empire!"

I puckered my lips and nodded a bit, ignoring that remark about coffee (I had never actually had it, though). I smacked my lips together as that cheery little thought settled. "Well... that sucks balls. So I choose a life of helping people... fuck me, right?"

He chuckled, as did Delvius. "Oh, I shan't judge you for the life you've chosen. You chose to risk who you are for a greater cause; the great gambit of life. You, Praetorian, and the people that accompany you, are the ones who truly live life. People like me are merely satisfied fence-sitters. We stay safe but make no name for ourselves worthy of the annals of history."

I smiled at his words. This was one of the few assurances I had gotten that sounded genuine, and one of the few that tried to tell me I was doing the right things in life. I nodded gratefully. "Thank you Flavianicus." Then I looked over at Skyfire riding along on the platform behind me. She looked back at me with an expression I couldn't quite fathom, but I liked to believe that she took his words of praise and comfort into herself as well; he had addressed her as well, after all.

He nodded and smiled in return, then glanced behind him at his troops, all still marching behind him. The aircraft and other vehicles were all still right behind us, flying and rolling over the marble road. Auxiliaries swarmed in and out of the buildings off to the sides of the Roamana column, securing different floors and roads.

Suddenly he looked back to me with a questioning look. "Ah yes," he said enthusiastically, "I don't believe we've been properly acquainted! You've heard of me and of my name, but I've only heard of your title. What, my good pony to whom I owe much including the sanity of my troops while we were in Arx -- we were very paranoid of Roam's situation like that -- is your name?"

"Oh," I muttered. "Right, I guess it's only fair to tell you my name considering I know yours. And... I suppose I can trust you, considering you haven't shot me yet... alright. My name is Go-..."

"Hey, come back here!" yelled an auxiliary off to our side. We turned and looked, and we saw the speeding blur of a staggeringly quick zebra just barely older than a filly galloping over to us. Flummoxed auxiliaries galloped after her as she snaked in between them with more agility than I could have thought possible.

Delvius promptly got off our cerati and intercepted her before she even got near us. Flavianicus and I watched while the other auxiliaries caught up. After a bit of struggling the young zebra gave up, panting heavily and looking at her captor with a childishly hateful pout. After that she tried breaking free again, but that just tired her out more. Her inactivity allowed my eyes to catch details on her body -- tattoos just like most tribals, a small sack tied to her side, a mane tied along to the back of her head in several braids, and golden rings for necklaces. Lithe of build, yet healthy; athletic, really. Maybe fifteen years of age. She looked rather smart, with a certain glint in her eyes, but rugged like any who lived in the wasteland.

"L-let me go, prokaryote! Don't touch me!" she shrieked in a voice both condescending and annoying. She stuck her snout up at the bewildered Delvius, then fixed him with a sharp glare. "I'll have you know, you inbred troglodyte, that that zebra is my sister." She harumphed in self-assertion, then grabbed Delvius' hooves and pried them apart, allowing her to trot on freely.

A very visibly astonished Delvius and several auxiliaries, all perplexed (and so was I) by her shameless insults and fearless demeanor, tried to stop her.

Then Flavianicus laughed aloud like an absolute maniac on drugs and alcohol. That surprised all of us so immensely that Delvius didn't close in on her. The mare eyed the executor like he'd gone mad, which quite frankly he looked quite the part.

"Oh, how I do enjoy the quirks and pride of the youth!" he chuckled as his laughter receded. A centurion cantered along and asked if Roamana should stop, but Flavianicus just wiped his nose, shook his head, and shooed him away.

He got off his manticore and trotted all the way to the perplexed but stoically postured young zebra with a warm, fatherly smile. He knelt before her and wrapped a hoof around her neck, eliciting a slight grimace from the filly. "My dear, good little filly," he started softly, like a father whispering to a child. "Who is your sister?"

"Her name's Zury, duh," she drawled with a scowl, then her eyes lit up with rage. "Hey, if you want to hurt us like your troops did, maybe you could call us by our names instead of calling us 'bitch'! That would be a wonderful change! Here, I'll start: 'Hey Zilly and Zury, get over here so I can rape your assess! The other guys'll take a turn after me, so try to stay awake!'" she yelled, her eyes glistening.

Next she scowled and yanked Flavianicus' leg off of her. "And I'm not 'your good little filly', mister. I don't know who you are and I don't care; you're nothing but a monster like the rest of your fellow hypocrites! Don't even try to act like you care or that you're any better than those motherfuckers, because you're not." Flavianicus' eyebrows rose.

I stared at her, askance. The auxiliaries likewise looked horrified. Was that really what became of mares when Thanus was in power in Roam? Rape victims? Goddesses... at least not all of them were savages, but did they really do that?

I got off the cerati and approached her carefully as she covered her face and sniffed. "Hey, now don't be scared," I cooed. "These guys are different; they really are better than those people who hurt you and your sister. I can testify to that, and I was chased by them for a little over a month. Come on, just give them a chan-..." Then I made the mistake of touching her.

She swatted my limb away. "I DID GIVE THEM A CHANCE!" she screamed and looked at me with an absolute monstrosity of a glare, so fierce and angry that I jumped back. The commotion she was causing was attracting the attention of all the Legionnaires who trotted by. If it wasn't for the centurions keeping them in formation, I bet they would've broken rank just to find out what was going on. Even more indicative of the attention being given to her was the great many aircraft and ground vehicle turrets pointing her way. "I gave you assholes a chance, dammit! So many of us did. Our mom, our dad... our clan... we gave the Legion a chance."

She rounded on the blank-faced Flavianicus with an anguished scowl. "And what did you give us?! Promises of supplies turned to bloodbaths! Water rations became burning fuel! Comfort and advice became rape! Protection turned to homicide! The assurance of a safe place to live turned into a bloodsport, and my sister and I lost the ONLY one of you who actually cared about us! He leaves the Legion to help us because he feels you were doing the wrong thing, then he gets slaughtered in an arena YOU people supposedly control! Just... what the fuck!"

She broke down into a fit of hateful wails and sobs, babbling and cursing in her native tongue. The auxiliaries looked personally ashamed, with their heads hung low and their eyes downcast. I tried to move in to comfort her, but Flavianicus stopped me. He approached her in my stead, his musculata chest plate deconstructing into a thick metal belt around his waist. Next he unclasped his cape and threw it down. Beneath his imposing armor was a hide so scarred with bruises and cuts that his torso was almost completely black from the scabs. My mouth dropped in horror.

Then he looked to the auxiliaries with a smile more forced than I'd seen on him before. "Don't try to stop her," he said. The auxiliaries -- two of which I now recognized as Delvius and Bailan -- looked at him with eyes filled with pained understanding. As if by script, they then trotted over to the marching column and spoke with a few centurions who stood by. They nodded in understanding, and together the auxiliaries and their officers formed a riot line in front of their executor.

Flavianicus sighed and lifted her head up, and she almost smacked away the hoof. But she didn't; rather, she just gave him the most fiery glare I'd seen. "Do you know of the concept of being a punching bag, Zilly? It's in psychology; a punching bag is something that a person can inflict pain upon to vent out all that's been done to him or her. Sadly there's no punching bag manufacturer any more, hehe." He chuckled for a moment.

She didn't soften her expression, and he frowned at that. "Listen, I know you hate us. For what Thanus and his troops did to you and your family, you'll not forgive us. I get that. Couple that with whatever pain the wasteland has inflicted on you, and... well, let's just say that decent people these days need to feel like some kind of justice has been served to move on with their lives. I've... experienced their deep desire for justice firsthand." He looked down at the many scars marking his torso and sighed.

He lay down on his back in front of her. "Go ahead. I'm a nice guy; I'll let you vent that anger when no one else will. I know you can't carry stuff like this around forever without some payback, and I know that someone has to suffer for Equestrius' wrongdoings."

Zilly's eyes popped wide as though a fuse in her head had popped. Then her lips curled into a terrifyingly sadistic scowl.

Horror gripped my mind with a fist of ice. "Flav, don't do this. You don't have to suffer for people like this, it's not right!"

"Ironic coming from you," he replied with a mirthless chuckle. He looked at me with sad eyes, and he must have known I would've tried to stop this. "Get him out of here, Bailan. Oh, and get her sister here, please," he said to the auxiliary, who was far more physically fit than Delvius. The soldier came over to me and started shoving me away, his eyes red and puffy. I struggled hard and got the advantage, but then I saw Zilly begin her savage beating. I could see the strain on Flavianicus' face. His strong resolve etched in an indomitable smile amidst his suffering. I froze dead in my tracks. That gave Bailian the opportunity to stun me with a strike to my neck.

I grunted and yelled as he dragged me away, totally infuriated. My anguish earned me the pity of several Legionnaires who broke formation to try to help me.

"Get back in line!" yelled the nearest centurion as he left the riot line, intercepted them, then threw them back into formation. A cascade of toppling zebras followed, leaving any who fell looking shocked and emotionally strained as Flavianicus' grunts continued echoing in the air.

Several auxiliaries got over to me and took me away. I growled and snarled like an animal, powerless to stop what was to me an act of senseless suffering and the encouragement of acts of hate. How could he do that? It didn't make any logical sense! He helps her vent anger, then what? The chances of her going into a frenzy were too damn high!

The platform with Skyfire and the zebra came close. Two auxiliaries carefully took the zebra onto a stretcher, leaving Skyfire, confused and choked with an oxygen tube, alone. Next they placed me onto the platform, still stunned. The two Legion medics tended to me, but I glared back at them with hate. It was a passing hate, but a hate nonetheless. My only comfort was the feeling of Skyfire's fur on my side, warm and comforting. I felt so ashamed in letting myself bask in it while someone nearby was letting himself get beat up. It just wasn't right; there were other more practical means of venting her anger. Therapy? A dummy that looked like a Legionnaire? Anything at all was better than that.

He was wrong, actually. Whatever he thought of himself, he was a hero. Only heroes would ever put themselves in harm's way with no reason but compassion for others, even if those others were those that were hurting them. Only heroes would pay the price due for an evil person long dead, even if paying that price was just plain fucking wrong.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Moving my neck was painful but not impossible. The rest of my body ached from the strain and lack of rest from the last few days; it was only now that I was safe and able to lay down that the numbness faded and the soreness came. Roamana's ludicrous power kept us in a safety so absolute only the most idiotic raider would try anything against us. Soon enough the Legion medics tending to us concluded their work and simply sat on the edges of the wooden board, talking with the riders of the cerati that brought the platform along. Then I just lay still, eyes towards the sky as my mind raced to process all kinds of important and worrying details.

Minutes passed by and the recurring of marching soon became ambient to my ears. I couldn't think, couldn't pierce through the cloud of worry in my head. Had she stopped or had she gone on until she killed him? If she did try, would have stopped her? Did Roamana know what had been happening to their commander behind that riot line? It sure looked like they would have; Flavianicus and his troops seemed quite familiar with each other.

Then suddenly Skyfire shifted next to me, removing my head from her side and sending my skull thudding against the wooden platform. I grunted and looked up, and was surprised to see her slowly removing the oxygen tube from her throat.

"Listen," she croaked, then swallowed. "I know that you're worried and all that, but we really need to get back to the others. Sure we could meet that Legate guy on our own, but I don't think it's really worth worrying 'em."

I swept aside my concern for the fact that she had just removed the oxygen tube from her throat WITHOUT assistance. Hell, if she thought she could breathe well enough without it, why not ask some professionals to remove it? Typical Skyfire recklessness right there.

I gave her a quizzical look for a moment, then relaxed. "Er, right, we should..." I muttered, then frowned. My eyes rolled over to look behind us. "Sorry, it's just that... well, fuck it, HOW COULD HE DO THAT?!" I yelled. "Why in the name of Celestia's oven-baked ovaries would he just let that happen to him? Why would... why?! WHY?! It makes no sense! Who would voluntarily let himself get beaten up for a cause so unlikely to succeed?"

Skyfire arched a brow. "Well, I don't know about you, but I think that the answer is a simple three letters: you." She smirked, "I mean, have you seen what kinds of shit you get yourself into out of your own will? Oh sure, you don't LET yourself get beat up, but the concept's the same. Have you ever wondered just HOW much it worries us to hell? Think of how you're vocalizing your disdain right now, and I can assure you that's how we feel whenever you go through some real nasty shit."

I frowned at her words. Now that I really thought of it, I guess I really shouldn't have been so full of complaints when I made my friends feel the same. "It still doesn't seem right, though," I grumbled, then winced as a jolt of pain shot through my neck as I tried moving it.

Skyfire got over to me and massaged my neck, and it felt SO good. "Of course it isn't right," she replied. "But I think it's necessary, all of it -- what you do for others... what you suffer for them... after all, if you won't go through hell to help others out, who will? I can't speak for Myst or Zaita or even Doodle, but I..." She sighed. "... I just tag along." She paused for a moment. "But nevermind that, remember that time when I killed that Legionnaire and you told me all that stuff about second chances and whatnot?"

I didn't quite know where she was going with that, but I nodded.

"Well..." she continued, "From what I know now, getting a second chance sometimes means giving it to yourself. That's hard. People get affected, you know? Stuff happens to them that makes them want to... to stay angry, stay as the same bitter person. Me with my squad's death... Myst with Predator's fucking antics... you with all the bad stuff that you can't stop and blame yourself for." She pondered for a moment. "It's kind of like a... a book, yeah! Each page is a day for us, and we write what's on those pages. See, if we stay on the same page and never move on... we stop becoming better people. Improvements stop, we stagnate. We need to turn a page and write a new bunch of stuff to get things going."

"Could you... elaborate?" I replied with a quizzical look.

"My point is that sometimes people need to help us turn that page," she replied firmly. "Sometimes, no matter what we try, we stay the same. Sometimes others need to come along and find a way to help us let go of what happened to us so we can move on, and I think that's what that Flav guy is doing. He thinks that she'll never get over it until she's had... something; justice? So he does the only thing he can: he'll give her a chance to feel like she's gotten even so she can just move on. Sometimes it hurts. Sometimes it's just plain wrong, and sometimes those who'd help out get abused. But hey, at least they tried, right?" She gave me a warm, tender smile as she looked down at my head on her lap.

It was a damned good thing my coat was crimson, otherwise my blush would have been clear as day. Skyfire... was damned beautiful, now that I saw her in this light. Nice new set of thought patterns... great signs of psychological improvement... an attractive, slender body to boot... and I always did love that fiery, indomitable look in her eyes... and a part of me did like how my head was so close to the area between her legs...

I mentally grabbed a hammer and nailed myself to a cross for those thoughts. No. Myst was the pony I cared for, and even then I didn't care for her because of how she could please me. Skyfire was my friend, and she would stay as that. What kind of adulterous tumor in my head would even spawn such treacherous thoughts inside of me? What manner of lustful cancer would drive me to such despicable desires? True signs of a fucked up brain right here.

I swept aside all those thoughts as quickly as I could. My head was enough of an emotional tornado being kept at bay without having such a set of shameful thoughts festering in it. "Yeah, I guess. And... you're kind of talking about me, aren't you?"

"Isn't it obvious?" she asked wryly. "Duh, of course! You go through all kinds of shit for others even when there's nothing in it for you. We've seen what you do, what you'd be willing to do. You try even when it hurts, and that's why I-WE love you." She looked away for a moment to rub the back of her head. "So, don't get all worked up about this, alright? He knows what he's doing; he's a commander. So just take a moment for yourself and let others bear some of the weight of the stuff you're trying to do, m'kay?"

I took in her words with a little smile. So not one, but TWO insightful, comforting talks? How marvelous! "I'll do my best," I replied.

"Good," Skyfire replied. "See Goldwreath? I'm not just some pony-shaped avatar of vengeance and rowdiness. I know eloquent words and stuff too, you know." She stuck her snout up in the air primly, then looked back down at me with a smile. "Now, I need to tell you something that relates to recklessness..." she started slowly.

"Yeah?" I asked, squinting.

She looked off at the horizon for a moment, contemplating. "Well, there's no other way to say it. So I'll just say it." She leaned in close, so close that I could feel her breath on my snout. I gulped, fighting to keep my... urges... at bay. I didn't think that making eye contact with her could be this hard; then again, Skyfire never looked at me with an expression right out of a romance movie.

"Did I ever tell you how much I hated that helmet of yours?" she asked with a sultry tone, and I shook my head. "Well, it's mostly because it always protected your skull from me when I SMACKED YOU UPSIDE THE HEAD FOR DOING SOMETHING THAT IRRITATED THE HELL OUT OF ME!" she yelled, then whacked both my temples with her hooves.

While I was struggling to not vocalize my pain, Skyfire went on one of her typical rambles. "I mean, just what the fuck's wrong with you? Going out there and fighting in that Colosseum like some kind of gladiator; ridiculous! You realize how worried I was when I saw you jump at that minotaur? It felt like my heart was pumping gelatin! And... and you realize how many times I nearly got hit in that fight? I nearly got speared through my face!"

Her raving could have gone on for hours from how angry she sounded, really. For most of the next few moments I just dealt with it, ready to give an apology or two; what I did really WAS reckless -- sure I'd saved a life, but it was reckless nonetheless, and it really worried her. Eventually her very vocal rambling got the attention of the very relaxed-looking medics in front of us. My eyes met with one of them, and he gave me a knowing little smile that seemed to say, 'mares, huh?'

But nothing lasts forever. Eventually I started hearing distant thumps, steadily growing louder, accompanied with the unmistakable fwoosh of flapping wings. I got up off of Skyfire's lap and glanced over behind us. Skyfire had so not expected my rise that she stopped mid-rant, then looked over behind us with a vaguely annoyed expression.

Flavianicus and his manticore half-ran, half-glided up to us, the former groaning and swaying precariously atop the latter. He'd been beaten badly -- both eyes blackened, a bruised neck, scratched cheeks, and sand-scraped limbs. I didn't even want to know what his torso looked like underneath his armor.

Any nearby Legionnaires who'd slacked off immediately straightened, though more out of concern than out of formality. "You alright sir?" one of the medics asked.

"Oh sure," Flav coughed out, rolling his blackened and swollen eyes over to him and forcing an easy smile onto his face. "Mare was tired even before she screwed me over anyway, eheh. Made the session that much less painful. I've been through worse; remember back in Arx when we met that really depressed, muscular mercenary? Ooh, now THAT hurt!" He coughed out some blood, spitting the crimson fluid onto the ground. "Ew, I'm gonna need another salve. My lad, you have anything you haven't used on these two pegasi yet?"

"Of course, sir!" a medic replied swiftly, then rummaged through a sack on the edge of the platform. He pulled out a vial filled with a clear fluid, then tossed it over to the executor. Flavianicus took it eagerly, popped the cork off, then chugged down on the potion. Once the glass was empty he tossed it beside him.

"Much better," he muttered softly. He caught our concerned, disbelieving looks. "Oh, mind me not, you two. This right here is just another day in the delectably wonderful life of Flavianicus Neoferric Vestisian Terpidius! Really, if you think this is bad, you should have seen what other kinds of people made me into a punching bag. Did I tell you about a certain muscular mercenary yet?" He shuddered as though he'd felt a chill. "Don't even ask."

He looked at Skyfire, then suddenly facehoofed. "My gods, I'm very ungentlecoltly today! I asked for the identity of a stallion before that of a mare; scandalously disrespectful!" He took in a pained breath, then asked, "My dear mare to whom I believe myself correct in saying the Praetorian owes a life he currently possesses, what is your name? Mine's Flavianicus Neoferric Vestisian Terpidius, at your service." He stretched a limb to exchange a hoofshake. His leg shook as Skyfire's hesitation dragged on, and he winced.

Finally Skyfire took it and gave a gentle shake. "Name's Skyfire," she said hesitantly, eyeing Flav's battered body.

"Ah, lovely name. Sounds even more fiery coming from the mare it belongs to than from a computer screen. Then again, you can't have a computer say a name for you," he replied with a mirthless chuckle, then frowned. "Skyfire, I would like very much to apologize for what Equestrius' third auxiliary squad did to yours. If I had known how severe his hostility towards foreigners were, I would have gotten back here on my own legs and torn that mediocre piece of shit's throat out-..."

"It's okay, no need to apologize," Skyfire interrupted quickly, wincing as if the memory of it all caused her pain. When she relaxed a bit, she smiled at him. "I appreciate that, really. It's... good to know that you guys aren't all full-blown murderers and total ass-sucking scumbags." She sighed, "Besides, one of your guys already said sorry. No point in repetition, right?"

"Venaius apologized already, didn't he?" Flav replied.

"Yeah..." I chimed in. "But... how'd you know?"

He gave me a knowing smile. "I know my troops, Praetorian. Most of them, at least. I know that beneath Venaius' haughty and maliciously playful outer shell he's a very sensitive zebra. I think it stems from a great many childhood experiences..." He tapped his chin in thought.

Then he shook his head. "Ah, but that doesn't matter right now. What matters is, and I believe myself correct in saying this, that you are carrying on from that dreaded event?"

Skyfire clicked her tongue, sucking her cheeks in in thought. "Well... I guess. I still really miss them, though. Stratofighter always got into little contests with me. Cometcaller did love those mac n' cheese boxes we found... Thunderclap did throw the wildest parties... Breezetail had so much ahead of him..." She sighed reminiscently, and a little jolt of icy energy shot up my spine. Yes, of course she'd remember him. In that instant, I was reminded of one of the reasons she had stayed with me. Now that I had rejected her, however, I had to ask... what was her motivation? It didn't seem to be revenge anymore, what could it be?

Flavianicus nodded in understanding. "I understand. If that is the case, I shan't say anything of it; I can tell it's still a sore topic. At the very least, you're learning to get over it. People will never get over their misery unless they let go of what causes them pain."

"I guess..." Skyfire sighed.

Flavianicus nodded again, then looked to me with a wry smirk. "Of course, some types of people must SUFFAH to achieve their goals, right?" he said with a teasing grin.

I returned the grin with a sardonic grimace. "Thanks for reminding me of that, pal. Nothing comforts me more than knowing I've got a life full of pain ahead of me."

He laughed aloud, barely suppressing a cough. "Yes, well, pain AND glory in the end. Life may seem unfair, but it has the strangest sense of karma, really. Often VERY delayed except for those who force its hand. Just make sure you force it to vindicate you, eheh. It would really suck if you made it hate you."

I shook my head, smiling as I took in his views on karma. "I'll remember that, I guess."

"Good. Now, before we move on, I must ask: what is your name? I swear, I can't ask a SINGLE question today without having it muddled up by this or that. Today has NOT been good for me at all," he said, very clearly irritated.

"I can relate, but I'm not going to add to our mutually experienced problems by complicating your simple question. My name is Goldwreath, glad to finally meet some people in the Legion who appreciate me."

He chuckled for a moment and replied, "Oh yes, I can imagine that after Thanus' failed attempt to capture you that someone in our ranks that doesn't want to take advantage of you and your friends must seem like a miracle." His eyes slowly averted to my cutie mark; something I found rather... odd to see from a stallion. Then again he was a zebra; they never did put that much importance into their glyphs the way we ponies do with our cutie marks.

"Goldwreath... interesting name..." he mused.

I raised my eyebrows. "What? Just because some ponies are strangely named after their cutie mark before they get their cutie mark doesn't make me strange."

"Just a little insignificant thought," he replied quickly, dismissively waving his hooves. "Now another thought has just recently struck me," he said, drawing my attention away from the previous topic, "You mentioned your friends. Where are they? I have been informed of vague descriptions only; I believe you saved one of Redeye's enslaved fillies?"

"He did," Skyfire chimed before I could say anything. "And seeing as he trusts you now, I guess he'd be fine with me telling you that they're at the 'Great Library'."

A sickly grimace crossed my lips at her words. Sure we trusted him enough to tell our names, but the safety of two people was a different matter from the safety of the entirety of a group. I did NOT appreciate her so blatantly spouting that out without even thinking about the ramifications. It was like... an auxiliary revealing the location of an entire Legion to a potential enemy; absolute recklessness.

"Skyfire," I said softly through a stiff grin and clenched jaws, "I don't really think that was a smart mo-..."

"The Great Library?" Flavianicus asked aloud, his eyes wide in anticipation. He yanked at his reigns, halting his manticore.

"Yup, the one on that tall hill just a few kilometers off away from where we are right now," Skyfire replied quickly, eliciting a sardonic grimace from me. She really couldn't tell when to be careful unless I told her, couldn't she? Absolute recklessness right here.

His eyes widened as a broad grin crossed his face. "And... are you not going to go to them?" he asked, the grin still on his face.

Putting his unsettling appearance aside, I managed to reply, "Well, I had thought of it... but then complications happened. I guess you could say I wasn't exactly sure if I could just leave when you were getting screwed over."

He kept his grin up. "Yes, I imagine such thoughts and occurrences would weigh heavily on one's mind. Hopefully that Zilly las decides to head over to Forum Roamanum to let her sister recover instead of just storming off."

"Yeah..." Skyfire replied, finding his broad grin unsettling as well. "I, eh, hope so too." Her tone turned cautious as she asked, "And I hope you don't mind, but eh... what's with the huge-ass grin?"

"What's with my grin? Why, my good mare, I grin because I LOVE reading!" Flav burst out, surprising all of us nearby with the volume of his voice. "It's my favorite hobby! Absolutely stupendous in all aspects; the very essence of sentient thoughts made tangible! Reading and literature and all that are in my opinion the greatest of all forms of communication and teaching; and story books, OH YES, story books! Wonderful stuff, fantastic in nature, not boring and full of dread like real life! Unless the story's a tragedy, but we've had enough tragedy don't you think?"

One of the medics leaned in close while Flavianicus went on a ramble and said softly, "You should hear what has to say about-..."

"And what Delvius wrote of you!" Flav said aloud.

"Yes, that," the medic smirked.

"Why, one of the better third-person's I have read in my life, and the only -- and therefore the best -- since I came to the surface! Wonderful stuff; you should read it!" Flavianicus finished, then sucked in a deep breath as he concluded his mini-rant.

I looked to Skyfire while he recovered his breath. With a little bit of effort, I managed to get my message across to her. She nodded in understanding, and we looked over to him as he fought to get his aching chest steady. "Anyway, Flavianicus... now that you bring it up, we really should return to our friends. I bet they're worried all to hell about us, so yeah..." I said lamely.

He panted as he held a hoof to his chest, then glanced over at us with a little smile. "Oh... of course... would be a... terrible thing to... worry one's friends needlessly..." He coughed and forced a smile. "I will let you leave... if I may accompany you."

'Hell no,' was the first thing I thought. For one thing, the guy seemed like he needed medical attention, not a fucking book. Next of course was how Myst and Doomtune and Zaita would react -- sure he was nice, but I bet the operative would see him as just another Legionnaire who murdered people needlessly. Plus it was risky; I could only imagine what a horde of raiders would do to a Legion commander accompanied by a mere two pegasi and a manticore. And don't even get me started on how I thought Predator would have reacted; guy would probably have torn out Flav's guts just to teach him a lesson of pain or some shit.

Skyfire and I went into an unintelligible babble of mixed protests, both of us vocalizing contradicting pieces of reason as to why we thought it wasn't a good idea. Flavianicus just looked at us with an amused smirk, and eventually we realized it was better to stop. Soon he lost interest in our silence and looked over his shoulder at a centurion, then waved him approach.

After a quick exchange of whispers the officer nodded and yelled at the highest volume of his vocal enhancers, "ROAMANAAA! Continue march without the executor!" His order rang again and again as other centurions repeated the call.

Flavianicus looked over his marching troops for a moment, then had his manticore glide above the ground. Whatever protest I had died in my throat at the sight of his proud and confident look, and my eyes looked to the ground. I felt so dwarfed compared to him despite what he'd said to me. After all, he was an established military leader whose word and charisma trumped my own. He bore the name of Roam with him, I was just a famous vigilante. He was so accomplished, so honored... things I wasn't, things I felt were so out of my reach.

But also things I wanted so terribly.

"So it's decided," he said with an easy smile. "Come then. I should like to meet your friends, and per chance read a book or two. Perhaps I'll even let you all sip of the coffee in my canteen; if I haven't drank it all already." He chuckled for a moment, then had his beast flap hard and whisk him off into the sky.

Worry flooded into my head -- worry of how he'd be received by my friends... worry for how I'd explain him to them... those kinds of things. All pointless worry, those thoughts. Worry with justification, but pointless. There was nothing we could do now, after all. All I could hope for now was a good reception when I got back, nothing more.

Skyfire took off after him, giving me a small, sympathetic look of worry as she glanced back at me. That actually made me smile a little; at least she'd help me deal with whatever came. At least I wasn't alone in my feelings. I could let her do some of the work. So without another moment's delay, I extended my wings and took off after him.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Doomtune!" I called again as I knocked on the heavy metal door of the library. "Doomtune, damn it, open the door."

Bucephalus (that's what Flav named his trusty manticore) yawned, his master leaning against his warm fur. They'd both grown sleepy amidst the heat of the afternoon, and from the looks on their faces (yes, it really seemed like the manticore had an expression), they would have happily just slept had they not had business inside the library. "Praetorian, I don't mean to be rude, but um... what if they left? Also, who's Doomtune? That's the eleventh time I've heard that name and I still don't know who it is," Flav said through a set of lazy yawns, then grimaced as he suppressed a cough.

"Doomtune is the operative name of one of the Specters," I replied as I yanked at the doorhandles. "If I say any more than that I may be giving away information he may deem personal, so I can't say anything else, sorry." I only registered his first question then. "And they didn't leave! Come on, they wouldn't just leave."

"M'alright then," he replied, starting to whistle a tune as he waited, fighting to keep his eyes open.

"Damn it," I growled and slammed the gate. "We can't just stay out here like this. Skyfire, help me bring him inside through the windows. I don't think his manticore-sorry, Bucephalus, can fit through the arches."

Flavianicus stopped whistling and looked at us strangely. His expression faded back into one of disinterest, but he promptly got off of the side of his mount, whispered a few things to the sleepy-looking manticore, then approached us and raised his forelegs forward. "Go on then, whisk me off."

Skyfire and I each took one of his forelegs and lifted him into the air. His armor made him pretty damned heavy, even with Skyfire's help. "You think something happened to them?" she asked as she struggled to pull up his weight.

"Well, no one answered when we banged the door... so maybe," I replied worriedly, scrunching up my face as I flapped my wings. "I sure hope not."

Soon enough we managed to land on the interior of the library. Flavianicus' drowsiness immediately faded, his face etched with awe. "My, my... of all the places to have never visited until now..." he murmured as he trotted off, staring at the ceiling with wonder.

"Alright," I said, panting, "Skyfire, help me look around for them; Zaita's the biggest, she can't possibly be that hard to spot. We find her, we can find the rest of them. After that I'll explain to them who Flav is, then we'll iron out the details of getting to the Forum."

She nodded and started trotting, when suddenly a flash of blue lit up the top of the bookshelves, revealing a crouched Doomtune; I could tell it was him because he had no helmet. Truth be told, the only way you could tell Predator and him apart was the former's larger size and heavier steps. Doomtune looked down into the aisle beneath him, then pulled out a blade. My eyes widened and a gasp escaped my mouth.

"Doomtune, don't!" I yelled as I galloped, but he'd already jumped. Tremendous worry shot through my veins, threatening to shock me into inaction. This time, however, it only drove me to move faster as the sounds of a scuffle echoed from the aisle. Skyfire joined me in a frantic dash, and soon we reached the corridor.

"I'm, eck, warning you... I was master of gladius class back in training!" Flavianicus choked out as the operative pushed a hoof into his throat, all the while struggling to sink the blade into the side of the executor's neck. I highly doubted Flav's threat was true; the way he was swinging that little blade of his, he'd probably poke his own eye out.

"Die Legion scum!" was all Doomtune replied, spitting out the words through a muzzle smothered by the executor's hoof.

"Quit it you two, discipline yourselves!" I bellowed, getting over to them and forcefully prying them apart with my forelegs; one of the many times a great physique and a large size helped me out. It was hard, though, what with the way Doomtune was trying to land a stab at Flav's face and the way the executor twisted his body to evade those attempts. I take it back; Flavianicus may have had authority and looked good on flying manticore, but he absolutely sucked at fighting.

It was obvious they weren't going to stop just because of my words, so I had to make them stop through actions; drawing as much power into it, I slammed both of them headlong into each other, causing a tremendous echo of ringing metal. It was pretty ridiculous, but at least they weren't fighting when they both stumbled backwards, clutching their heads and groaning.

Even then, though, Doomtune did not look like he was going to stop. The moment he'd recovered, he charged the still-fumbling executor with the speed of an angry buffalo. I scowled as I readied myself to intercept him, which is when Skyfire crashed right into his chest, sending them rolling and slamming against a bookshelf, with Skyfire on top of Doomtune. He struggled to get her off, but I stomped over to intervene.

Gently shoving her aside, I forced the operative to the floor and planted one of my hooves right atop his throat and started applying pressure. He choked as he glared up at me. "The... hell are... you, erg, doing?!"

"I could ask you the same thing," I replied evenly, giving him a stern stare. "The hell is wrong with you? Blatantly attacking someone without any particular reason... even if it was a damned raider, you don't kill unless you have to, and you only ever HAVE to if not killing is gonna end up with innocents dying, understood?"

"F-fuck... y-..." he gurgled, fixing me with an angry stare. I applied just a little more pressure, and he stopped being able to suck in air. "Kk... erg, alright alright, fine!" he spat out.

I lifted up my hoof and stepped back, and he grabbed the bookshelf and pulled himself up, gasping. Now that I really looked at him, he didn't look good at all -- for one thing, he had choke marks snaking around his neck from earlier today; for another, he'd looked like he'd cried for maybe an hour given how puffy and red his eyes were; lastly, he quite simply looked dangerously rowdy, a little crazy even. Was all this the product of all the stress he'd gone through? Of what Predator had said to him? It certainly looked like it, and it'd... changed him. He wasn't exactly the same relaxed, music-blasting zebra back two weeks ago. He'd become more unstable, and I had to treat him with caution.

"Lad has a rather powerful hoof," Flav said through heavy panting, inspecting a deep dent punched into the side of his musculata power armor. "If I wasn't wearing this suit..." He shivered, then hissed in pain, immediately grabbing his shoulder and massaging it.

"You'd be fucking dead, that's what you'd be," Doomtune growled. Then he looked at me and Skyfire with equal bewilderment. "Goldwreath, what the fuck? You go out for two hours, next thing we know you're slamming on the door telling us to let you and a legion executor and his MANTICORE in? How the hell do you expect me to just open the gate for you when you say that? This..." He pointed a hoof at Flav, "... this murderer could be spying on us for all we know, plotting an ambush even!"

"Not likely," Flav coughed, pulling out a metal canteen and opening it. A strange smell came from inside... was it chocolate? It smelled a bit like chocolate... "See, my lad, I wouldn't just fly eight miles off course from my route to the Forum just to kill people I hardly even know personally." After that he started drinking greedily out of his canteen.

"Oh, shut up!" Doomtune snapped, massaging his throat.

I shook my head; these two were acting like total foals, squabbling over mere assumptions. "That's enough you two. Clearly everyone's had a day that none of us would consider good, so let's not make it harder for each other," I said. "Doomtune, Flavianicus here is the leader of Roamana, a cohort previously assigned to the city of Arx. They are here to replace the Equestrius cohort."

Doomtune tossed his forelegs aside. "And? What makes them different from each other?" he asked, his voice tense and threatening.

"The difference is that they aren't the same murderous, misguided troops," I explained. "Flavianicus here is, unlike Thanus, not an individual with bad intentions. In fact, while Equestrius governed the external relationships the Legion had here -- and for the worse at that -- Roamana seethed and denounced them all the way from their post to the north. See, each cohort is actually a separate entity that can follow the directive of their executor instead of the directive of the Legate, so-..."

"I already know this," Doomtune interrupted harshly. "I already knew Roamana was coming in to replace Equestrius. Last I heard, even those people over in Arx don't take to the Legion too well; what does that tell ya'?" He panted for a moment, then took a few tentative steps forward. Skyfire moved closer in case he tried anything. "How do you know this guy isn't just lying to you to conceal some plot or something? I'm asking how exactly you can even trust this guy even if you've not spent even a day with him."

"None of that distrust crap warrants an attempt at killing," Skyfire said disdainfully. "You can't just attack someone just because you don't really know them; same way you can't trust someone 'cause you don't really know them."

"Oh, sure, you say that now," he muttered, just barely above a whisper. His tone turned deadly serious as he continued, "Well last I heard, you were the one who killed and attacked because of hatred and vengeance, and all for your fricking Fuckd. Hell, you nearly got your living friends killed 'cause of your idiocy! Don't you even dare criticize me, you hypocritical bitch!"

Skyfire's eyes widened, glistening. Soon a terrifying scowl crossed her face, her breathing erratic and dangerous. "Don't you even speak of my old squad like this," she threatened.

I blocked her with a hoof before she tried anything, then looked to Doomtune with a serious glare, holding my own mounting irritation at bay to try to be the voice of reason. "Doomtune, don't blow this out of proportions or I swear I will knock you out cold. Just fucking trust me on this the way I trusted you with my life TWICE, and we can all just walk away from is without any more pain."

He took in a tense breath, eyeing me angrily. "Fine," came his reply in a low growl. He shook his head as he looked at me with disdain, then glanced over at Flavianicus. "But if he tries anything," he said, "I will put him down. So keep that mutt on a short leash, 'Praetorian'." He scowled, then turned and started trotting down the aisle. Right before he left the corridor he rounded on us. "And talk to your damned marefriend over in the bathrooms. Tell her that if she doesn't want me to say anything that'll hurt her again, to stay the hell away from the topic of my parents, alright? Sometimes I regret saving you people, I swear..." With another scowl he turned and left us.

I felt cold and dead inside. What was wrong with the guy? In my absence, he'd hurt Myst, and now that I was back he'd blatantly attacked Skyfire; nearly killed Flavianicus. Just... what? For his actions, I wanted to stomp over to him and throttle that little neck of his. Teach him a damned lesson. But right now I needed to help Myst, all other things had to wait. And it's not like I could blame him entirely; he was stressed out, and now he'd been irritated and angered by people who should have just left him alone. Not like I hadn't gotten angry before; much as I wanted to lecture him, I needed to understand him too.

I just wished the day couldn't get worse...

Flavianicus sighed. "I'm sorry I caused all this. Perhaps if I hadn't come, some of this tension could have been evaded and-..."

"It's fine," I replied as I held a seething, shaking Skyfire close. "This was inevitable. Stress builds up and needs to be vented. You and I understand that, I'm sure. All I can hope for now is that he doesn't hurt too many people too much while he's like this." I looked over my shoulder and smiled as best as I could. "You didn't cause this, alright?"

"Well... alright then. Still, I'll just, eh, drink and read over there... where I'll be able to protect myself if he comes close..." he said as he started trotting off towards another aisle on the other side.

I sighed, then pulled Skyfire into a little embrace. "Don't listen to him Skyfire. Hypocrites are people that don't live up to what they speak. You've been changing for the better and have said only better things since. Don't listen to him, just be patient with him; he's... just confused and angry. Just like you were before."

"I... I know I shouldn't..." she said in a small, fragile voice. "I just... I just wish he didn't bring them back up. I thought I'd gotten over it, that with you guys I could move on or something..." She shuddered and covered her face with a hoof. "But when he... when he..."

"Don't talk if it just causes pain. I understand Skyfire, you don't need to explain to me. We've all lost something we don't want talked about." I shushed gently as I stroked her mane, then pulled away and looked into her eyes. "Just... be patient with him, alright? He's not acting like himself. Take comfort in something you can; that's what I did, whenever I had something to take comfort in back in the Stable. Just wait it out and let it slide; give him a second chance."

She sniffed and looked aside, thinking. Then she looked back to me and nodded slowly.

"Good," I said with a smile. "Now, could you look around for Zaita and Doodle? I have a... er... marefriend... to comfort." I sighed, feeling a cold chill shoot up my spine at the thought of Myst being in pain. I'd seen her in anguish before, so I knew how to deal with her... more or less.

With a few more uttered reassurances, Skyfire felt cheered up enough to trot away. I myself moved, flying up above the shelves in search of the bathrooms. They couldn't be that hard to find, after all. And that was true; the signs for the different genders were right there, on the very edge of the wall beneath the cashier counter I had trashed the day before. I flew over to them and slowly crept into the female section. Soon enough I heard muffled sobs and the sounds of a tin can being opened.

"Myst?" I knocked on the stall door. "Myst you there? Come on, open the door."

There was only silence for a moment, tense and absolute. If I hadn't already heard the noise from inside, I would have thought there wasn't anyone at all. And I certainly wasn't going to peek under the door to find out if she was still there, that was just a plain violation of privacy.

But eventually she shifted inside, sniffing and seemingly tidying herself up a bit. I heard the tin can again; being tucked underneath some cloth, I think. Next she approached. With her hoofsteps came the wholly unexpected smell of mint; meh, candy always did make me feel better, maybe it did the same for her?

The door opened and I was treated to the sight of a very sickly looking mare, mane disheveled and coat filthy from mud and bathroom ooze. Gigantic bags under her red, puffy eyes... trembling limbs... tear marks marring the landscape of her face... what exactly had Doomtune said that hurt her so? It chilled me to the very depths of my soul to see her like this.

I took a little step forward, and she shrank back instantly, curling up beside the toilet. I tried my best to give her a soft, caring expression. "Myst... Myst come here..." I cooed, my voice trembling and uncertain. She just swallowed and shook her head, closing her eyes as if in shame. I sighed and approached, reaching out a hoof. "Oh, come on. Whatever he said-..."

"Please don't," she replied in a voice so strained it thrummed. "Please just leave me alone... I need time to think about... stuff..."

I shook my head. "Myst, you know I'm not going to just leave you alone. Not after you not coming with me to the Colosseum, at least. Just tell me what's wrong; you can trust me, can't you?" Sure, we'd only been together for less than three days, but a relationship entailed mutual trust and aid; she'd been there for me before, and I should be there for her now.

She looked up from the floor and stared at me with wide, fearful eyes. "That's just it," she said, her lip quivering and her voice shaky. "Goldwreath... I'm not sure if I can trust anyone right now. Even you, and... and that makes me so ashamed and it makes me feel so stupid because you're not those zebras who tried to rape me, okay?" Tears flooded into her eyes and she looked away, trying to get her sobbing under control. "Y-you care for me, you... you help me, you go through so much for me... for us. And it makes me want to just lock myself up and die because I feel so ashamed that I still treat you like this, like you'd just hurt me and that you're like them when you're not. And I feel so ashamed because I can't... can't get over just one problem when you've gotten over so many. And tha-that because I can't get over it that I'm just adding to all your problems, and I don't want to, I don't..."

I just looked at her sadly as she concealed her face, crying as quietly as she could to herself. So... this was the wound Doomtune had picked open. Her fear of being raped and abused, hurt and shamed. I couldn't let her do this. I couldn't let her keep this hurt in. I couldn't let any of them do that. I was responsible for them all, doubly so for Myst; that was a heavy responsibility brought about by being her stallion, but one I was willing to face. To test my resolve and my willingness to help... I would take on all their hurt and lay them on my shoulders.

"Listen..." I said softly, cautiously, as I kneeled down in front of her. She shrank back even more, backing up against the wall. "Myst... I haven't gotten over my problems." She stopped crying abruptly at that, looking up at me with a pained gaze. "I haven't, really. It's the truth. At first glance, maybe I look calm and in control. I'm not. I hold it all in, and for that I can't control it when it bursts out. It's hard and painful; causes me regret and shame, feelings of inadequacy, recklessness... painful remembrance..." A sigh escaped my mouth, surprising me slightly; what had started out as an attempt to console her had turned into a genuine sharing of my own pains. "I won't pretend to understand the anguish you're going through; won't try to fathom the fear and terror. But please please understand... understand that for you and for my friends, I'm willing to suffer whatever needs to be suffered. Don't feel like you're just adding to my burdens. I've taken you up as my companions, and that warrants responsibility. I will take care of you, even if it hurts. It's what I'm supposed to do as the... leader... of this little wasteland party."

She looked up at me, eyes wide for a moment. Then she closed her eyes, blinked a few tears in, shook her head, and finally sighed. "I can't let you do that," she whispered. "It's... it's not right. Suffering my problems when you've already got so many... no, I can't do that to you. I can't... I care too much about you to do that."

I smirked at her words. "You're correct; none of it's right. Not the suffering for people who're not likely to repent; not the pain I go through when there are slower, less painful ways; not the fact that I've had my life morph into a battle ever since I trotted out that steel door. But you know... a certain zebra once told me that that's alright. That in the end, life will exact justice when no institution or law can; that all I suffered because I decided not to bow down to the wasteland and its unnatural ways will come back to me with reward. That in the end it'll all have been for something."

She seemed conflicted, wondering how to react to my words amidst all that she was experiencing, all that she was feeling. It must have seemed odd to her, hearing all this talk about suffering pains not my own to achieve a better future. Eventually her facial features settled on one emotion: curiosity. "Who's this zebra? I'd... I'd like to speak with him." There was no other emotion in her voice; no disagreement with what Flavianicus had told me, no edge that threatened a 'I'll smack whoever told Goldwreath that it's right for him to suffer' conversation. Just plain curiosity.

I smiled. "Alright, but you'll have to get up." She looked to the ground again, contemplating. Terrible conflict bloomed in her eyes, and it almost broke my heart to see her so... scared. But she'd been piqued enough to truly get up, and with a tremendous effort over her internal conflict she stood up. "Good, good," I said with a gentle smile and a few easy nods, hoping to keep her encouraged. "Now come, and take it easy. Just follow me and I'll take you to him."

She sighed, then with a forced little smile nodded. I smiled back and turned around, feeling like I'd just glimpsed a terrible underground of brewing problems and potential detriments. It worried me immensely, not in the least because she was trying so hard to fight her problems alone that, in doing so, only let her problems fester deeper. I didn't know what to do, what to say to truly deal with her fears rather than just temporarily ease the tension.

"Goldwreath?" her meek voice called from behind me, bursting through the cloud of concern clogging up my head.

"Yeah?"

She was silent for a moment, then mumbled something unintelligible. Eventually she managed to get out, "I... know it's a little cliche and, er, maybe a bit inappropriate, but... I'm... really happy I met you."

With those few words, she'd put the queerest feeling of warmth and peace inside of me, pulsating to every limb and vein in my body and down to the very foundation of my being, annihilating the dread in my heart and mind. I didn't respond, didn't stop trotting. Instead, I just looked back at her with a smile more genuine than I'd ever given in my life. Our eyes met, and I knew instantly what it was I felt. It wasn't perfect, probably wouldn't have lasted forever; hell, it could have come in a situation less tense. It may have been young, may have needed some more time and effort, but no matter what it was all the same.

It was love.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Yes, mhm... oh, what an exotic twist!" Flav said aloud. He was reading a rather thick book, the title of which I couldn't see. He seemed to be enjoying it greatly.

"That's him?" Myst asked shyly from behind me. "He's right here? But... he's... he's a Legionnaire..."

"A Legion executor, to be exact," I corrected.

"Goldwreath... are you sure we can..." she started softly.

"We can," I assured her. "Trust me. I wouldn't just bring someone hostile into our company; this guy and his troops are different from the inhospitable ones we used to know. Equestrius is moving on, Myst, and in their place will come Roamana; maybe in a few weeks time, the Legion's bad image in Roam can be cleaned up." I gave her a little smile. She thought for a moment, obviously pondering what to make of what I'd just told her. I couldn't blame her; when I was told the Legion as a whole didn't hate me but rather liked me, I was a little bit confused too. Finally she gave a little nod. "Come on, he won't bite. Guy'd probably make some comical remark about your hoodie if you tried attacking him or something." I rolled my eyes.

She looked at me with insecurity. "My hoodie? W-why, what's wrong with it?" she asked as she held the hood close.

"Eh... I... merp, eh... oh just come on, there's nothing wrong with it," I stuttered out, nearly facehoofing in embarrassment.

We trotted over, doing our best not disturb him as he started laughing like a moron. "Flavianicus," I said simply.

He chuckled to himself for a bit, then glanced over at us, a tear of laughter on the brim of his eyes. "Eheh, hello Goldwreath. Hello..." He looked over at Myst curiously, eyeing her up and down. "So, more ponies! What's your name, my good mare? You this young buck's marefriend?" he asked, then looked to me and gave a wink.

I nudged her forward, closer to him. She let out a little squeak as she got closer, giving me a worried glance. Next she looked at him with eyes large as dinner plates. She panted for a moment, before slowly reaching out a trembling hoof to greet him. "Y-yes... I-I'm Myst, nice to meet you..."

Flavianicus looked at the hoof with a smile, then literally threw his book into the air and took her foreleg into his both of his. "Ah, pleasure to meet you! My name's Flavianicus Neoferric Vestisian Terpidius, at your service!" he said, bowing his head down at the end. He leaned in close and whispered, "Just call me Flav or Flavy, most people call me that."

"O-okay..." she murmured uncertainly, her face quizzical.

I chuckled a bit, shaking my head. "I'll just leave you two to talk, then. I have a few things to do..."

Myst rounded on me before I could do anything, her mouth agape as she shook her head in disapproval. "W-what? No, please don't leave!" she begged, the pleading in her tone so sincere that it hurt to hear her like that.

I tried to sound as reasonable as possible as I explained quietly, "Myst, you can trust him. He's done things for people someone who'd want to hurt others would never do. Besides, I need to call everyone here so we can discuss how to get to the Forum."

"But... but I..." she stammered, clearly having nothing to say but unwilling to be alone in his presence.

"Am... I causing anything again?" Flav asked, eyebrows up as he looked between us.

"No, it's fine," I assured him. "Myst, come on," I whispered, "You said yourself you wanted to talk to him; here's your chance. Besides, don't you ever want to get over... that?"

She hung her head and sighed shakily. "I do..."

"Then you're going to have to try to talk to a stallion without treating them like those same zebras, because they're not. Those who tried to hurt you are dead, alright? I saw them all, all their corpses. You're going to have to trust me with this guy; he's nice, probably'd just let you beat him up if you asked him if you could." Okay that last part was a bit of an exaggeration, but still.

She let out a little whimper, but eventually gave an uncertain nod. "I'll... I'll do my best to get over it. I don't want to keep living like this..."

I smiled, but withheld the embrace I felt brewing inside of me; I didn't think she'd like physical contact just yet. "Good, I'm glad you're trying to get over it. Now just stay here, I'll go get the others. I'll be back in just a bit, so don't worry."

I turned and left briskly, doing my best to try to live up to that assurance. Besides, I wasn't just hurrying up for her; now that the not-so-relaxing trip to the Colosseum was over, we had to double time confronting Legate Vesperius about that megaspell. Like hell was I going to have Roam get blown up.

I trotted out into the middle walkway of the library and called out as loud as I could, "Alright guys! Don't know where you are, but it's planning time! Meet over here so we can iron out the details of getting to the Forum!"

"Finally," Doomtune snorted above me. He was sitting atop a wooden plank connecting two of the bookshelves. "About time we planned how to get there and deal with this." He jumped down and landed with a roll, then glanced over his shoulder to fix me with a wry grimace.

Before I could reply some wise-ass retort or convoluted remark, the distant brush of air blowing against the ground emanated from down the main walkway. It was Zaita, gliding over to us and blasting books and paper everywhere. Above her was Skyfire, in whose hooves was held the energetic little filly that I'd grown to be very confused about. Good thing they were all approaching; rendered my job of looking for them unnecessary, and made the decision making process that much quicker. Myst and Flavianicus alike emerged from the corridor they'd been in, both seemingly confused that the talk I myself told them to have was ended so abruptly.

With my companions gathering, my eyes caught sight of the zebra operative sitting behind me. What concerned me then was how he looked at the two who'd come from the corridor; a scowl like that just promised intent to hurt. He watched their movements with almost predatory caution, like deep down he himself was scared they'd try anything. It made sense; if what Myst had told me on our little walk to meet Flav, she said that she'd made the mistake of asking him how he felt about his mother being a rape victim and how he felt being a rape child. I guess the truth was that... he was hurt just as much as the rest of us and didn't want us butting in.

His expression only softened when Myst's eyes looked into his own, then held there in a stare. She was definitely scared and hurt, but she was trying to understand. And he knew she was trying to understand; I could... feel it. I could feel his desire to be understood, slowly undermining a foundation of irritation and hatred. It was a tense moment, seeing them like that; in moments of great emotional relevance, emotions could drive people to do almost anything for no apparent reason.

At last he sighed deeply and looked at her with a more neutral expression, but distrust remained in his features when he looked over at the executor. I let out a tense exhale; I was really going to have to get him to trust Flav. Sure he was a Legionnaire, but I just needed to make him see that Roamana wasn't the same as Equestrius.

Zaita arrived, blasting us with wind until her engines powered down a notch. It was when the wind died down that Flavianicus' mouth dropped at the sight of the APC, his face the very essence of awe. Zaita showed a more curious behavior: she approached slowly, nearly touching his agape muzzle with her camera, before circling around him with the camera fixated on his face. Myst slowly backed away, not wanting to get involved in... whatever it was Zaita was doing.

"Flavianicus Neoferric Vestisian Terpidius, commander of Roamana," her voice declared, spot-on correct. "We meet at last."

"S3 Harpy-class APC, assumed transport of the Praetorian and his friends," Flav replied, his voice rendered monotone with wonder, as he eyed her with the utmost curiosity. "It is... it is a great privilege to finally meet the AI of such an esteemed class of armored sentience!"

"Please, call me Zaita," she said, "I prefer to get to know people instead of following such cold formalities. I hope that the mere fact that you're a Legionnaire hasn't caused you too much trouble upon your arrival in Roam? I understand not all people know of the independence of cohorts when not under direct order from the Legate."

"Oh yes, finally someone who gets that!" Fav replied with an exasperated throw of his forelegs. "It's been terrible, Zaita, just plain terrible. Ever since arriving, I've been beaten up twice by two different zebras. Don't even ask, please." He let out a tense, irritated exhale before putting on an easy smile. "And please, just call me Flav or Flavy. Or... or even Neo! Yes, I like that better!"

I rolled my eyes and shook my head slightly. Amusing as their conversation was, I had a greater concern to address. First of all was making sure all my companions were here. There was Myst, Skyfire, Flav, Zaita, Doomtune, Doodle...

"The heck's Predator?" I murmured, looking around searchingly. What, was he planning another dramatic entrance? Maybe suddenly burst into the conversation from some dark corner? Oh, I seriously hoped he wasn't; I'd had enough of his crap for one day.

Skyfire's own eyes widened in apparent revelation. "Oh yeah. I didn't see him yet. Where is-..."

"Mister Predator's gone for a little while!" Doodle suddenly piped, nearly making Skyfire and I jump up in surprise. "See, mister Predator said that there were some things he had to do. Told me to tell you he'd be gone, but you two already left. So while waiting I told the others instead!" Her voice quieted down to in of thought as she continued, "But I think that mister Doomtune did something to miss Myst, I think they had a little fight..." She pouted, frowning at the 'fight' she knew nothing about. "Anyway, miss Zaita's been the one who who really listened to me so far." She gave me a broad grin, stretching her cheeks to ridiculous lengths. If it wasn't for the fact that she was the most adorable filly I'd ever met, I would have found her grim scary as hell.

"So he's gone, huh? Figures. Did he tell you what he was gonna do?" I asked.

She shook her vigorously. "Nuh-uh! Only told me that he'd bring me a little present when he got back; how sweet! Don't you just love him? I've already made my present for him, see?" Suddenly she whipped out the same teddy bear doll I'd seen with her the day before, except this time it was stained black with ink, had little grey outlines of armor on the body, and had a little makeshift helmet made of tin. Two red buttons signified the eyes, and a pouch filled with papers crudely stapled to the rear represented Predator's backpack.

"Oh, I'm sure he'll love it! I'll call this doll 'sir Funnyvoice' until he gets back!" She lifted the doll in the air, then proclaimed in a terrible imitation of Predator's new voice, "'Oh hi, Doodle, I'm sir Funnyvoice, here to keep you company 'till mister Predator gets back!' Oh, how sweet! Thank you sir Funnyvoice!"

I stared at her with the most disbelieving expression I could muster. This... this right here, this little filly, was posing almost as big a question to me as Predator himself. I mean... making a doll of the person who tried to kill you? Madness!

I shook my head, banishing those thoughts. "Alright, everyone gather around." At my words, everyone but Zaita and Flav nudged closer, preparing their ears for discussion. "Alright, first off we're going to need to-..."

Flav gasped and stiffened at the sight of the filly, then put on a cheeky grin. "And who is this little ball of energy, hmm?" Flav asked playfully as he scurried over, before promptly picking up the little filly and tossing her into the air, much to her enjoyment. "Oh, how I do so love little foals! Makes me proud to have two of them back home..." He sniffed, a little tear of joy coming to his eye.

Doodle smiled warmly at him, wiping the tear away. "I'm Doodle, mister. I like drawing! Oh, I can also do this!" she said, then crossed her eyes and stuck her tongue in between her lips. With those two details, the playfully dumb smile she gave looked so much more adorable than any other smile I'd seen from her, so much so it made my heart flutter just from the mere sight of it.

"Doodle, heh..." he chuckled with a warm little smile. "My, eh, my own little filly likes to draw. Or rather doodle, coincidental eh? Hehe, oh boy..."

Okay, this day was getting stranger and stranger with each passing second. Heartwarming as it was, the fact was that it was very... unexpected, and just a tad bit freaky. Hell, everyone was looking at them; that had to mean they were weirded out, too. "Oookay..." I said slowly, "Now that everyone's here, I think it would be the right time to concentrate and figure out a way to get to the Forum." I made sure to say those last words specifically towards Flavianicus and the operative eyeing him with contempt and the filly with disbelief.

Flav wiped his face as he put the filly back down. "Yes, of course! Eheh, you'll have to forgive me, I just... really love little children. I... I see in them the fruit of all that we Legionnaires fight for." He patted her on the head, and Doodle bended her head sidewards to push up against his hoof.

"Can we get on with this? There's a megaspell waiting, in case you people forgot," Doomtune said impatiently. "Sooner we take care of this, sooner we can all rest easy."

"Ah yes, the megaspell..." Flav sighed, pulling his hoof away off Doodle's head. "I assume that you people must have had a computer to find that out... or rather an APC with enough processing power to break into our secure channels?" he asked, looking over at Zaita.

"I believed it necessary to inform them," Zaita intoned. "Goldwreath here has the desire to protect Roam, and when we first met I told them I'd join them so long as their goals were for the good of the Empire. As such, I found the idea of another megaspell apocalypse... unsettling. I had to report it to him so he could do something about it."

Flav nodded. "I understand. Such objects are ones I myself are uncomfortable with, but bringing it here had to be done. With the remnants of the former Empire in such danger, Vesperius sees no alternative than to hope that such a weapon will... take care of a problem or two. He hopes to never use it, but I know that he will if he ever has to."

Skyfire scowled."Just what could make you people even want to use a megaspell, huh? What, hasn't the world suffered enough already? Just... why a damn megaspell?"

Flav looked over at her with a grimace. "Sadly, I'm not at liberty to reveal just what it is we plan to use the bomb on, if we ever use it." At Flav's sour tone, Doodle pressed against his forelegs and nuzzled him with a little frown. He smiled at the contact, and she smiled too.

"That sucks ass," Doomtune snorted. "Just tell us what the damn thing's for! It's a gods. Damned. MEGASPELL. Damned things ended the world, you want it to end again?"

I stomped hard, getting everyone's attention. "One concern at a time, and we'll discuss those concerns with the appropriate people, Doomtune. Flavianicus is not the person best approachable for questions regarding the megaspell. Right now, our concern is getting into the Forum so we can talk to Vesperius about that, nothing more."

Doomtune snorted and rolled his eyes, putting on his helmet as he shook his head. "Fine," he said through his mask, "But don't try to stop me when I interrogate the Legate later."

"We'll all be interrogating the Legate later, I'm quite sure," I replied, gaining me an agreeing nod or two from my friends. "As of now, though, we need to find a way to get to the Legate."

"Getting into the Forum may have variable levels of difficulty based on how you choose to proceed," Zaita informed, "If what I've gathered on the Forum's defenses is correct, they have an invisible field that scans and maps out any entity within it. My cloak only reflects light, not object scanners. We will appear on a holographic map plain for all to see if we were caught in the field."

"Keeping hidden from the Legate isn't necessary, my dear Zaita," Flav said simply. "He has, if what I've heard from inter-cohort radio chatter is correct, been trying to arrange a peaceful meeting with Goldwreath here ever since... what, three weeks ago? Sent Thanus to bring you in, I think; hehe, but I'm sure that haughty little prick made it look like the Legate was forcing you against your will, huh?"

"You... have no idea," Myst said, nearly choking on her first word; sure, she'd grown more socially capable, but then again the only ones she'd grown familiar with was us. Towards new people she kew nothing about, she was old Myst just like she was back in Road Town. "They... attacked, and they..." She shivered.

"Mhm, yes, that right there's all I need to hear," he said with a sickly grimace of bemusement. "However you people decide to enter the Forum, the only ones you'd best conceal yourselves from is the Equestrius garrison. They're not likely to try anything with Roamana around, but best not to tempt them. Now, as for the praetorian guard..." He smiled and pulled out a little radio. "I can contact them as soon as we're in range and tell them to bring you to the Legate."

"So this is the plan? We go with you to the Forum, cloaked and concealed, and trust in your word that the guards don't mistake us for assassins or something?" It had its risks, but it was simple, and it certainly didn't seem like it could go so terribly out of proportions like my previous plans had. Then again, any plan could go to hell...

Everyone thought for a moment. Then Zaita turned to face me. "If it is, I have more than enough energy to sustain the cloaking mechanism for an hour. I detect no deviations in Flavianicus' body temperature suggestive of anxiety, so he shouldn't be lying."

"Good, then it's settled," he nodded. "That is... if everyone else fine with it?" He looked each of us over. "I understand that, despite knowledge of the Legion's general approval of your actions or neutrality, that suspicion and distrust can still be present in your heads."

Doomtune kept his head bowed as he thought aloud, "It's simple... could work... a lot less time-consuming than sneaking in... There's really no other way?"

"Certainly none that's less simple. Unless you just want to charge in, that's as direct as you can get," Flav replied.

Doomtune thought for a moment, squinting his eyes. Finally he sighed, "Alright, fine. I'll go along with this, don't know about you guys. I'll go... prep my stuff," he said with only the barest hint of hesitation before trotting off, glancing back at us as he did. I wondered whether or not he had ulterior motives to agreeing, but then I decided to just take the little blessing of his approval.

"So everyone's good?" I asked, looking each of my companions in the eyes.

"I don't really see much alternative..." Myst mused. "And this really isn't the most dangerous plan I've ever agreed to... alright, I'll go with it." She smiled at me, but then frowned. "I just hope I don't have to talk to too many people while we're there..."

Skyfire approached and patted her on the back. "Relax, only guy we'll need to talk to is that Legate guy," Skyfire said, gaining a faint smile from Myst. "I don't really like the part where the 'praetorian guard' bring us over to him, though. What if they try something?"

"They won't," Flav assured. "Those guards have absolutely no affiliation to any cohort, not even Roamana. What you did to Equestrius and whatever propaganda they spread about you has no sway over them. Their only allegiance is to whoever has the most authority to be in charge of Roam, and as the Legate is the only official who has that power, they listen to him. He has desired your presence, and so they'll allow you to pass. All they need is a little notification from yours truly," he said proudly, then bowed.

"That's... good to hear, I guess," I replied uncertainly. "But what's with the guards? They sound... ominous."

"Oh, you'll all get to see what I mean," Flav replied with a chuckle. Then he raised his forehooves into the air before we said anything else. "Alright, enough talk! I have to wake Bucephalus up before he gets too lazy to fly, and you need to prepare. Off with you now, gather your equipment!" After that he turned and trotted off, leaving us no chance to speak. I didn't quite mind; the plan was stated, and it was ready to be put into action. Besides, I had to remember that Flav was eccentric; for that, he could be very... unfocused at times.

"Ooh, who's Bucephalus? CAN I MEET HIM?!" Doodle asked shrilly, gaining a cheeky grin and a nod from Flavianicus. After that they departed, Doodle skipping along beside him as they went.

"Well, so ends the planning talk," I said quietly. So, this was it. After a month-long extension of what was supposed to be a three-day journey, this was how I'd meet the Legate. Heh... appreciated but forced to hide... liked by most but hated by some... how had all this happened in a month?

I shook my head and turned to face my first two true friends on the surface. "You two go off and prepare, maybe rest if you want. Just be ready in ten minutes," I told them, then started trotting off. They departed, trotting together and talking about what had happened at the Colosseum. I left them to it, but hoped that Skyfire didn't make me look overly reckless in her tale.

I made my way over to were I'd left my stuff, then promptly took off the dusty old cloth I was wearing in exchange for the chainmail shirt I'd acquired. My weapons were all readied in under a minute; I'd grown used to efficiently handling and preparing my equipment even with my bare hooves. The weight of my saddlebags felt strange on me after a few hours of not wearing them, but that sensation faded quickly.

Next I went for my helmet, and...

"What... w-where the fuck's my helmet?" I asked in a rush, scanning the immediate vicinity and tossing books and knocking down piles as I searched frantically.

My eyes caught sight of a faint glimmer of steel, and to my immense relief there it was: just a little bit down an aisle, against a fallen book. I sighed loudly and trotted over to it, then picked it up and handled it carefully, my hooves shaking as the fear of losing it faded in my mind. That was when I noticed the most peculiar thing: words, scratched onto the inner surface of the metal.

So, you save a life, but speed the end of others... you also killed a pony or two with little practical reason. You're selective, but you're still a murderer; just like me, just like Thanus, just like the raiders you call scum. The only difference is that your morals blind you from the truth.

I stared at the words; the words that I felt violated the integrity and sentimental value of the helmet that represented the role I played. Total disgust bloomed in my head; disgust and denial. I was no gods-forsaken murderer, damn it. I killed because if I didn't innocent people would die. I killed because some people just got in the way of fixing society, and had to be removed.

Sometimes giving second chances and being merciful were too risky.

"I'm no murderer," I muttered, then strapped on the helmet. It felt wrong now; tainted and cold. I had to sweep those words aside; they were just the essence of the mentality of a crazy person, and I was not that person. They didn't apply to me, not by a long shot. And yet doubt snaked along the edges of my consciousness. "I'm no murderer," I repeated.

Suddenly a pain throbbed in my head, echoing in my ears like a gong and pulsating through my brain's veins like acid. Had it not been for the fact that I'd experienced worse, I would have collapsed. Through the noise and pain came a voice:

'So you think,' Tod said, laughing.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

We'd caught up with the massive cohort before they came within four miles of the Forum, and for that we now flew high above them. Roamana's marching resounded through the floor and into the cabin as we flew over the original Roaman island. Hundreds of professional soldiers all stomping along to one collective beat and goal; the discipline they displayed, the awe they inspired... remarkable. Doomtune'd convinced us to not bring the Umbra aircraft along; he said something about retrieving it later and turning it over to the Specters. Aircraft zoomed by us, oblivious of the cloaked APC they were sharing airspace with.

But while the outside was in motion, the inside of our cabin was tense and still. None of us had said a word, not even Doodle, who'd seemed ecstatic after having belly-rubbed Bucephalus but now looked nervous. Myst just sat still in her corner; Skyfire hid her face under her hat; Doomtune bobbed his head to a slow beat; Zaita was absolutely quiet -- all that compounded the suffocating tension that grew with each passing second. I had, just had, to break this quiet.

"Right, so I'll clarify this one more time," I said, "Flavianicus is up front, leading Roamana. The moment he enters the walls, he'll contact the praetorians and tell them to expect us. Therefore we do not enter the structure until he's given the signal; remember, he'll pull out his sword and pretend to clean it." I took in a shallow breath and gulped. "That clear?"

"You already told us three times..." Myst murmured, looking up at me. "Goldwreath, I know you're a bit nervous, but please try to... er, relax."

I let out a shaky exhale. "You're right, you're right. It's just that... even though we shouldn't have any problems, that we're supposed to be able to just walk in there if everything goes right, I just can't shake this feeling inside of me. I don't know, I feel... volatile. Like my insides and emotions are all twisted up and gaining tension for when it snaps. I don't know if it's just anxiety, guilt, stress, or even fear." I just couldn't help it. Despite all this planning and all the assurances I' gotten, I felt like something would go wrong. No matter how much I tried to relax, my heart and mind wouldn't, both constantly working to process one thing or another.

Maybe it was natural; Flav said I was a fighter, therefore, perhaps, I was meant to be in constant thought and motion. That's what a part of me thought; others begged me to give myself a break, to just truly relax and let my burdens fall to the shoulders of others. I mentally beat the crap out of those parts; they were telling me to be lazy, and that laziness would allow the death of innocents.

"It's just anxiety," Doomtune deadpanned. "Trust me, I've been through many an anxious wait like this; you just gotta calm down and keep your head clear. Just like back in that elevator, remember? When we were trying to save Myst over here?"

Myst's eyes popped wide for a second, then she frowned and shivered, tucking herself closer to the corner. Skyfire glanced over at her, but didn't do anything; she looked to be thinking deeply on something, maybe distracting herself from her own worries.

Doomtune sighed, his eyes darting to and fro between Myst and the floor near her, and scooted a little closer to the huddled up earth pony. He tried to speak, but his voice cracked. He swallowed then said slowly, "Myst... I'd like to, eh..." He coughed, then muttered, "... to... apologize. For what I said earlier. I didn't mean it. I don't regret saving you, I was just... really ticked off."

Skyfire and I both fixed our gazes on him, wondering how he'd proceed. Doodle didn't, but rather started chewing on and drooling over the little pink sock Myst had given her.

Myst didn't meet his eyes as he continued, "You know... the things Predator'd said to me earlier... they hurt. And they hurt because all of it was true; they really did hate me. They saw me as nothing more than filth, a raider-in-progress even if the only thing I ever did that was scrounge and scavenge. It was fucking unfair... totally fucking unfair..." His breathing became erratic for a moment, but he calmed down. "Look, just... sorry, alright? Ain't right for me to say those things to the one person who understands my pain enough to try to help me."

She didn't move, didn't react. She just stared at the floor blankly, seemingly emotionless. Then she blinked and looked him in the eye. Slowly, a relieved little smile crept onto her face. "Thank you for helping Goldwreath save me," she said quietly. It wasn't exactly a response to what Doomtune'd said, but the tone in her voice was all he needed to hear to know he was forgiven.

He looked at her for a moment, then cast his eyes down and slumped against his backrest, looking exhausted. Skyfire idly lifted a hoof to pat his shoulder and said softly, "S'okay, dude. You did good apologizing."

He looked to her and sighed. "I'm sorry to you, too. It wasn't right talking like that about the people you did everything with. I know how it feels -- I had friends killed in front of my eyes, too. So... we good?"

Skyfire smiled and nodded. "Yeah. We're good." Then she frowned. "But if you say anything like that again I will knock you out. Do we have an agreement?"

He smirked. "Yeah, sure. So long as you don't bring up those dirt-napping assholes I called mom and dad, that agreement'll stay."

I turned my attention away and looked to the front of the vehicle, letting my companions engage in whatever little conversation they wanted to partake in. Good as a distraction was in that tense moment, at least one of us had to keep a head concentrated on the task at hoof. I scooted over closer to Zaita's terminal and saw a great many pictures of the Forum swarming across her monitor. It wasn't even in a nice, clean, organized fashion; the images bumped into the edges of the screens, piling up in layers and causing the monitor to lag as more images came in.

"Zaita, anything wrong?"

The images stopped flowing and the camera turned, slowly, to face me. It zoomed in, nearly touching my muzzle. "So much has changed in two-hundred years, Goldwreath. My maps are obsolete, my data old. As we near the Forum, my access to the Databank network grows more complete. I am... attempting to renew my stockpile of information."

I nodded, "That's good and understandable and all, but... you have... ten-thousand eighty-two active applications and images? What, are you trying to tax yourself to capacity or something?"

The camera focused on me for a moment, and as I looked down at the screen I saw the number of active processes drastically reduce to a far more fathomable several hundred. "I am... nervous," was her reply. "It confuses me, Goldwreath. I am an AI, created by the Roaman military's scientific division in cooperation with the ZSI, and yet... yet I feel. It is strange, now that I think of it. Back in the war, I was used to such an extensive degree that all my processing power was focused on tactical maneuvering and combat planning. Now that I have spare thought capacity... the concept of being more than a machine is dawning on me. And it is... strange."

I looked into the camera for a moment, concerned. "And how long have you felt like this?" I prodded.

"Emotions have been with me ever since my creation, now that I take the time to remember, but all these questions truly initiated when I upgraded at the ZSI HQ," she replied. "At the sudden influx of additional processing power... something activated within me. Emotions I had not known were suddenly injected into my system. I feel... I feel... like something is amiss. That something within my programming is in the wrong configuration. It makes me curious and afraid. I'm concerned for my identity."

I glanced over at my other friends, making sure they weren't hearing all this. They had enough concerns, and I didn't think Zaita'd like all that spreading around without her consent. I thought for a moment as I looked back at her. "Maybe it's because you're not just a machine," I said softly.

Zaita's screen immediately went blank, with nothing upon it but a cosmic purple background and a golden line in the middle. "What do you mean?"

"You feel, hence you are no mere machine..." I mused. "Zaita, are you absolutely sure you're a program? That all that you are is a complex set of codes meant to create a convincingly life-like persona?"

"It... it has crossed my mind. But it can't be. I have analyzed the parts of me that give me my identity over and over; nothing that could suggest I am more than a computer. That is all I am. A machine of war, with no soul or anything of the sort. Just data." Her camera cast its sight down, as if the uttering of those words greatly depressed her.

"Hey, hey," I cooed, slowly forcing the camera to face me. "It doesn't matter if you're a machine or not, alright? Machine's just a word; it doesn't matter. What matters is that you are Zaita. You have an identity; to Roam you were an object, but to me and my companions you're a friend." I smiled as I let go of the camera. "It doesn't matter that you're made of steel or that you were made to serve. What matters is that you feel and think and act, and that's all you need to be a living being. A sentient being, with a soul and a heart and a mind. You're no mere object; you're a person."

For the longest moment she just stared at me, screen dormant and camera still. "Thank you," she replied. Then in a voice I'd never heard before, with no mechanical tune and without monotone blankness, she said, "If only they saw me as that..."

Now it was my turn to stare. What was all this? I'd... I'd never known Zaita had any problems. In fact, given how problematic all of us were, she seemed the sanest. Now here she was, sharing with me a problem she'd kept to herself all this time. "Zaita-..." I said softly, when the vehicle stopped abruptly, nearly sending us crashing to the front.

"We are here," she said.

At once every thought left my mind, replaced with immediate desire to see the place I'd worked so hard to get to amidst a sea of plans that went terribly wrong. I rushed forward, leaning against the controls, and looked out the window even as my friends piled up behind me. I didn't mind; this was a big moment for all of us, one we'd all be right to take part in. After a temporary haze of light that blinded me as I looked up, I saw it.

Majesty at its finest.

The Forum stood a mile above the city, thanks in no small part to the mountain it stood on. Simple in exterior construction but elegant in design, it appeared as a glimmering white tower of marble shining up and above the dreariness of the ruined city around it; a statue to hope -- hope for the reclamation of the past, the glorious upbringing of Roam. What had appeared to me in my dreams and in pictures as a featureless circular tower, however, was actually a tower with intervals every dozen meters for windows that encircled the structure and pedestals upon which stood statues so small in comparison to the Forum itself it would have been very easy to not see them even in the full light of day. A majestic spire of gold and red stood at its top, appearing to us as petals above some dome-like structure.

And then of course there was the sight beneath us. Hundreds upon hundreds of olive green tents and miniature marble temples stood erect where in memory orbs had been a wide garden of lush green grass and multicolored flowers. And to my shock and against all expectations, that field of magnificent colors was still there, engulfing the tents and marble in a sea of lush colors such that the structures themselves looked to be drowning in an ocean of rainbow. Only carefully paved paths snaked in between the vegetation, ensuring walkways that protected the paradisiacal environment from careless trampling. The only part of the scenery that was in any way ugly was the great ring of brown dirt close to the wall and surrounding the greenery; that was where the tanks and armored vehicles were parked. The aircraft, not contributing to that ugliness, instead had landing pads built onto the slopes of the mountain itself. The artificial branch of the Tiber flowed in the middle of the massive camp, dividing the entire walled-off area into an outer ring and an inner ring, and a wide stoned path paved the way from the entrance to the foot of the stairs leading up to the Forum.

To put it simply, it was the most damned beautiful thing I'd ever seen. The Colosseum may have been the Roaman icon, but the Colosseum didn't look like it hadn't been touched by war and age! My Roaman-loving heart was pounding in ecstasy at the sight before me, and even my friends seemed downright awed, with mouths hung so low they could have dipped into the underworld. Good! Roam's beauty should rightfully ensnare the admiration of all!

"Take. Us. In," I said blankly, staring at the sight before me.

Zaita turned to face me. "Goldwreath, we still have to wait for Flavianicus' signal before we enter the scanner field beyond the walls. And even if I wanted to, I can't; there is an invisible shield surrounding the Forum that will only collapse for the duration of Roamana's entry."

I shook my head. "Er, right! Yes, we must wait, yes. Wait and be patient. So... when does he get in?"

"Right now, I think," Myst said, sticking her face against the window as she looked down. "If my eyes are right and that little smudge down there's him... woah, the wall's glowing gold and transparent..." She must have been referring to the holographic walls the Forum had for its defense; I remembered how I felt when I saw it back in Caidan's memory. Suddenly a trumpet sounded from directly beneath us, reverberating through the metal floor. "Okay, he's stepping through the wall now."

Alright, this was it. "Bring us in, Zaita. Keep track of what he does; remember, he'll clean his blade. That's the only way we'll know he's notified the praetorians."

Zaita hovered through and steadily brought us closer to the ground, her exterior camera fixated on Flavianicus and displaying his image on her screen. It was hard to keep track, though; the image was constantly in static, no doubt caused by the interference of the scanner field, and the troops surrounding him mixed in with the picture such that I almost lost sight of him. It was also a bit hard to keep focus on him when there was a very picturesque environment just begging to be admired. Finally, though, he and Bucephalus went over to the side of the path, letting Roamana swell into the field. Equestrius troops stood by, watching their entrance with mixed faces.

He drew his blade and inspected it, polishing the metal with his hoof.

"That's it," Skyfire said. "That's the signal, let's go!"

Zaita's engine powered up and blasted us across the sky. As we drew closer to the arched pavilion that stood at the Forum's foot, I couldn't help but let my anxiety leek out of me to make way for an aching anticipation. The bright light of day turned to a looming shadow as we hovered beneath the Forum. The others had mixed feelings as we landed on the floor beneath the wide arched roof, but I sure as hell was excited. This was the place emperors had ruled from! This was Roams heart, both as a city and as an empire! This singular location, and no other, was where the decisions that would shape Roam's identity were made. This was the very center of the ancient world, deserving of all the glory and praise it got.

Our transport landed with a metallic thud, and we rushed out the back door. As soon as I was out, I couldn't help but feel so proud of myself -- proud for finally having gotten here, and proud to have stood upon such famous ground. I kneeled down, feeling the marble, so precious and unstained... the ceiling, pure and white, with red and gold IPQR banners flying in the light breeze... so... beautiful.

My friends had recovered from their awe far quicker than I -- even Doodle, who tended to marvel at such things -- and Myst trotted over to me and nudged my shoulder. She said in a tiny, absent voice as she looked up at the ceiling, "G-goldwreath... come on..." After that she trotted over to the gigantic metal door, eyes still cast upwards.

"Right," I muttered, then nearly choked on the drool that had accumulated in my mouth. After a bit of swallowing and coughing, I joined them and found them staring at the door.

"So how do we get in?" Skyfire asked, giving the doors a light push.

"That is a valid inquiry," Zaita intoned. "If my data is correct, these doors have locks that cannot be opened from the exterior. We will have to call the guards inside and hope that Flavianicus has properly informed them of our arrival."

"If they don't answer, you think we could just fly in through some balcony or something? I saw a couple of 'em," Doomtune offered.

"Absolutely not," Zaita responded. "I am no praetorian guard, but I take respecting the Forum seriously. No breaking in. We must wait and see if the guards have been informed to open the door for us."

"I'm sure they have," I said with an awed smile as I approached. "I can feel it. They're right behind the door." I could hear their breaths, faint and infrequent; I could feel their hearts pumping as sure as I felt my own. I could sense their anticipation.

"Impossible," Zaita disagreed. "While visual and thermal verification is impossible at the moment, I sense no noise coming from within. Not the slightest sound."

"Then my perception's better," I replied blankly, then placed my forelegs on the door. "They're expecting us, I'm sure of it." With a grunt, I forced the doors inwards. The heavy metal swung in with ominous silence as I stepped through, eagerly anticipating a welcome...

... which I got in full, in the form of two dozen gladiuses pointed right at my face by the black musculata-clad, tyrian purple-caped, and bronze-masked praetorian guards, all silently pointing their swords at me from behind a wall of shields. Shock overcame my system not for the last time, and I froze where I was even as my friends had the control to try pulling me back.

Metallic stomping came from behind us, and out of the bushes surrounding the open lobby came more praetorians, all decloaking and appearing in a flash of blue. They surrounded us, encasing us in an impenetrable trap of a very formidable looking shield wall. I turned and turned, overcome with a disbelief in what was transpiring.

"Yes, we are," one of the guards rasped as he stepped forward. He was different from the others; far larger plumes on the helmet, and a mask clearly made of gold whereas the others wore bronze. He looked me over, rough breathing emanating from behind his mask. "But that doesn't necessarily mean we expect you with hospitality in our hearts."

"B-but..." I stammered. Hadn't Flavianicus contacted them? I swear, if that bastard set us up... Suddenly I drew myself up. "I am the Praetorian," I said flatly, "And I am expected by the Legate."

"The mere fact that you just happen to fit the Praetorian's description to the letter and are even accompanied by people who appear to be the exact same companions and even the same vehicle..." he said, pointing an armored hoof at my transport, "... does not mean you are him. I will trust only a credible individual, none else." Suddenly he drew a gladius from his belt and positioned himself behind his shield.

"Hey, wait! Come on, this is just plain ridiculous. Can't you see the helmet on my head? The triple numeral? Who else wears this but me, come on!" I yelled in exasperation.

"Could be a mere replica," he deadpanned. Suddenly he turned his attention to the numerous praetorians around him. "Praetoriaaans! We are armed with lightning!"

"Fulminata!" they all bellowed at once, and suddenly the very pristine white marble columns off to our sides shot bolts of lightning that landed first on the sword of the praetorian commander before forking off and lighting up the swords of all the others. Blinding flashes and and electrical sizzles flooded my senses, sending me and my equine friends staggering backwards.

Zaita canted her front down in an attempt to ram them, but suddenly the praetorian commander shot a miniature bolt from his sword and struck her right in the camera. Zaita fell to the marble floor with a clang, deactivated.

"Such is the fate of those who would shatter the two-hundred years of peace we've fought to maintain in the Forum!" he spat, then ordered, "Arrest them!"

With a unified 'hawoo', they were closing in on us. No words would stop them. Not the desperate pleading Myst gave, not my rage-filled demands, not Skyfire's threats to melt their faces off, nor Doomtune's forceful orders to drop their weapons or suffer ear-splitting electronica. Not even Doodle's queer behavior of holding up her Sir Funnyvoice doll gave them pause.

"This is fucking ridiculous!" I said at last, then whipped out Tankbuster. "Come on, come and get it!" I didn't want to, but if these people didn't stop I would blow off their heads; more important than meeting the Legate was my life and that of my friends!

They didn't balk or stop, and it made me want to scream because I didn't want to shoot. I didn't want to kill these people. My killing was reserved for barbarian scum like irredeemable raiders and slavers, not dutiful praetorian guards! But if I didn't shoot, what would happen? Would my companions shoot? Would they just surrender and let us be brought as prisoners inside? Most of all, would I let that happen? To shoot and endanger my friends or to balk and compromise my mission?

Damn it, why were decisions so damned hard?!

But suddenly, right as the blades closed in on our throats, there was a high-pitched beep, loud enough to be heard over the slow marching. Apparently it was important, because at its sound they all stopped, turning to look at their commander. The beep came again, this time numerous times.

The commander reached for his belt and pulled out a small radio. "What is it? Whoever you are, you choose the most terrible moment to interrupt our duties."

"Whoops, sorry," Flav's voice said. "Just wanted you to know that that Praetorian guy Vespy's been wanting to meet? Yeah, I kind of met him on the way here. He'll be arriving soon, in a transport; S3 harpy named Zaita, nice personality -- you should talk to her when you get the chance!" He chuckled to himself for a moment, before concluding, "Alright, so yeah. Carry on and all that, I need to clean my blade for eh... stuff. Oh yeah, final detail: Praetorian's pretty serious and a little ill-tempered to threats if what I've been told of him is true, so try to be welcoming."

"Gods dammit Flav," I hissed, letting out a steamy breath. "Almost ruined the damned plan; ydiota..."

The praetorian commander looked between us and the radio for a moment. "I rescind my statement," he drawled, "You have excellent timing."

"'Course I do!" Flav said eagerly, as if he didn't know the guard was being sarcastic. "Comes with being an executor; you gotta have a knack for perfect timing and stuff. Could you just imagine what would have happened if I didn't contact you, and the Praetorian arrived there? Heh, you'd probably have tried to arrest him or something." He laughed.

"Yes..." the praetorian drawled. "Excellent timing indeed."

"Alright then, gotta go. Still have to clean my blade for... you know, stuff. Really important stuf-Bucephalus! No, no licking the radio! N-..." There was a crackle of static.

Skyfire rolled her eyes into the back of her skull and facehoofed; Myst looked like she'd chewed something sour. I had to stop myself from joining Skyfire in smacking her face. Yes... Flavianicus had excellent timing, that is if you wanted timing meant to irritate everyone.

The commander strapped the radio back to his belt and looked at us for a long moment. He sheathed his blade and looked to his fellow guardsmen. "Disperse and return to your posts. Flavianicus is a credible source as far as I'm concerned."

The praetorians nodded and did as told, with those who'd come from the bushes disappearing in a flash of blue while those who'd met me first spread out inside the Forum. That left only the commander, staring at each of us with a serious-faced mask of gold. "Come on then," he said flatly, then turned around. "Your vehicle will remain here until it reactivates. As for you five, I shall take you to Legate Vesperius."

"And that's all you'll do?" Doomtune asked suspiciously. "You threatened to arrest or kill us, then suddenly you're all flat and emotionless?"

"Not emotionless," he replied as he got further inside, "Just doing my duty with the appropriate emotions and behavior. I don't care who you people are or what you've done, but if Legate Vesperius wishes to speak with you, then I shall take you to him." As soon as he got in far enough for his steps to echo, he turned and stood there, waiting for us.

Skyfire let out a deep exhale of relief. "Well, that was close," she muttered, hovering in place.

"A-a little too close," Myst said, panting slightly. "I thought for certain something really bad was going to happen."

I shared their worries -- this unpleasant first few minutes did not give a good impression about what would happen, but there was nothing to be done now. All I could hope for was that nothing else could possibly go wrong. "Come on then. No point in stopping now when we've come so far to talk to this guy."

With a bracing breath I trotted in, my friends close behind. A brooding admiration for the colossal majesty flooded into my mind at the sight of the perfectly preserved tapestry and furniture, but I held it at bay. I'd seen it all before, after all. My friends, who had not, stared up at the ceiling and at the hanging banners with utmost awe. Doodle galloped in circles and skipped every so often, absolutely ecstatic from the sight. And as we approached the stairs that I'd seen in the memory, she seemed to turn it into a game to make faces at every stoic and motionless praetorian we came across. They didn't react; I suspected they didn't quite care what she did so long as she didn't break or touch anything.

We climbed up the steps, my attention quickly turning from lingering awe at my surroundings to the silent praetorian commander leading us. "So, you people serve Vesperius?"

"We serve Roam," he replied flatly. "The mere fact that he is the only official with any semblance of authority to properly govern the empire should not dissuade us from aiding him."

I stared at him for a moment as we continued down the halls and closer to the giant semicircular door I'd seen in the memory; if I remembered right, it held the meeting place of the legates. "Alright, I can tell you'll not touch that topic," I murmured. "Let's try something else here. How about introductions? My name's Goldwreath, nice to meet you." I stuck out a hood in front of him, stopping our advance.

He stared at me with those lifeless, shadowy eyes, then pushed my hoof down against the ground. "Names don't matter, Goldwreath. Especially not ours. We are praetorians and work as such, nothing more." He started trotting again, and my friends, who'd idly stopped without question, followed him again with similar silence, their attention fixed on the opulence of their surroundings. "And if you were a real praetorian, you'd think the same..." he said quietly.

I let out an irritated little growl as I caught up to them, already within the meeting room. It was different now; no ominous fog or motes of light. All that removed, it looked like how I'd expected it to: an ovular wooden table with seats about it, with a specially decorated purple-cushioned chair on one end. The place was an absolutely pristine white marble all over, except for the floor, which had specks of black here and there. "Fine, you won't give me your name," I said as we passed by the table and towards a door I'd not seen in the orb. It was large, made of carved bronze and had finely decorated doorhandles. Above was the IPQR logo in big gold letters, in between two golden wreaths and behind that a translucent map of the Roaman empire at its height.

"Can you at least tell me what's up with the masks? Far as I know, praetorians don't wear those." My attention turned to the big door in front of me, and I gulped; this was it -- right behind this door was the zebra I'd spent a month trying to get to. "Or if not that, at least tell me what the Legate's like," I insisted, my voice tense. All I wanted was a little information here; was that so much to ask for?

"You ask too many questions," he rasped sourly, shaking his head.

"It's all in the name of trying to be prepared," I replied, fighting to keep my heart from pounding. "Now, what's he like?"

"Why don't you ask him that?" he replied, them pushed the two heavy doors inwards. While they swung in, he trotted behind us and nudged us all inside before slamming the doors closed. I made sure to shoot him an irritated glare before he did.

"I'll be damned..." Doomtune murmured. "Guys back in the war lived in style, I'll give 'em that..."

"Seriously? Where the hell did this people get all their damned money?" Skyfire said, irritated. "It's like Roam was the richest fucking city in the world..."

I turned and directed my attention to the scenery my friends were so interested in, and I wasn't disappointed. If they were awed by it, then I was absolutely rendered breathless and frozen with ecstasy by it.

Roaman interior designs never failed to impress me.

The room was circular and very wide, maybe a hundred meters in diameter. Before us lay a vast open floor of polished white with patterns of black marble circles, and off to our sides were pillars placed at intervals to reach all the way to the other side of the chamber. Within the intervals were busts and statues of different noble zebras, all either marble or bronze in make. Red and purple banners hung from below the ring-like window about twenty meters up that ran the length of the area's edge.

But while all that was amazing, what really got my attention was that the building was hollow. I couldn't even see the top as anything more than a pinprick of red. From the floor all the way to the very top it was only empty air, lit up here and there by light flowing in from the windows, and that light then reflected off of the shiny and brightly colored marble surfaces to illuminate the entirety of the chamber in dancing yellow. What was more was the gigantic translucent map of the ancient Roaman empire decorating the entire first level of the cylindrical chamber, right beneath the first ring-window. And on the far side of the chamber was the great marble throne of the emperors, shining gold from the illumination of the afternoon. My only qualm at the time was that I could not take a closer look.

As was typical when I absolutely fan-gasmed over something Roaman when my friends were nearby, they recovered first. While I sat on my haunches, staring up at the flawless beauty before me, Myst trotted over and gave me a gentle nudge. "Um... G-goldwreath?" she asked, renewed anxiety in her tone.

"Uh... uh, oh, yeah?" I asked dumbly, then shook my head. "Yes, what is it?" I looked and saw her hoof pointing to the center of the chamber. There was a little brown table there, with the black and purple forms of two praetorians on each side.

"Is this it?" she asked softly, darting her eyes between the table and at me.

I took in a deep breath and drew myself off the floor. Much as the scenery was good, I had a goal to accomplish. "This is it," I replied, then looked over at the table determinedly. There was a zebra behind it, too far to note any interesting details. I turned and looked all my friends in the eyes. "Come on," I said, then began trotting over. Our steps echoed ominously through the air, and as soon as we'd gotten close enough to see the carvings on the praetorians' masks, I saw him.

The Legate.

He sat upon a simple chair of dark wood, cushioned red. The semicircular table was no more elaborate, being nothing but a mere platform upon simple boxy legs. There were a great many stacks of papers and envelopes and even piles of scrolls on both ends of the table, along with numerous smaller counts of all that in the middle. A pair of simple candles stood on both edges, unlit, and an inkwell with a quill inside stood close to the Legate's hoof. An hourglass stood atop a small stack of folders. The Legate himself was quite the anticlamctingly simple sight; short-cropped mane and a simple black chest plate with a purple cape upon his back, and nothing else. No elaborate insignia of any sort, no air of imposing pride. Nothing but the gaunt face of a very serious-minded but very bored zebra.

As we watched in silence, expecting a greeting of a sort, he grabbed one of the papers on one of the left stacks, looked it over for a moment, let out a deep breath through his muzzle, then grabbed the quill and wrote something on it. He turned to the guard on the right, who had in his hooves several papers and envelopes already. "Give this to the senatorial representative when he comes up tomorrow as well; or rather, just leave it on the corner table for them to find. I might not be available for conversation tomorrow. Might," Vesperius said in a very calm, tired, and immensely bored tone.

The guard took it and nodded, then added it to the folder.

Vesperius nodded in return and turned his attention to another paper. He took it in his hooves and leaned against the backrest, but then looked right at us. His eyes were narrowed from obvious exhaustion as he looked each of us over. Skyfire raised her her eyebrows when he looked at her; Doomtune gave a little glare; Myst took a step back, a small whine escaping her mouth; Doodle gave him the widest grin I'd ever seen. To each of them he seemed to have only the barest of interest -- except for Doodle, he looked at her longer than the others.

His eyes lingered on me in particular, though, his gaze drawn to the helmet on my head. At the scars on my hide. Our eyes met and I felt a shiver run down my spine; this was the guy I'd spent so long trying to reach. Even if he was unimpressive to the eyes, the mere fact that I was here now before him... it made me feel the exact gravity of where I was. Suddenly, all those days I'd been out there and what I'd gone through rushed into my head like a train, making me remember it all. I shivered slightly as he kept his gaze on me. I felt vertigo flooding my senses.

But then just like that, as if we were nothing but air, he turned his attention back to the paper. The feeling of vertigo left me, but I still felt... small. Small in the presence of the building that'd spawned all of Roam, and most of all... tired. Very, very tired...

"Why is he still alive?" he asked simply.

"Sir?" one of the guards rasped.

"I am asking the Praetorian," he replied evenly, reading the paper.

I shook my head, my sleepy mind struggling to come up with a proper response. This was definitely not how I envisioned my first encounter with the leader of the Legion. I let out a tiny breath of exasperation and asked, "Why's who still alive?"

"That slave master, Seashore," he replied evenly, now comparing the previous paper with another in his other hoof. "Why is he still alive?"

I shook my head in indifference. "I don't really know. Flavianicus decided to let him leave with his supporters."

"Well he shouldn't be alive. It vexes me... I'm terribly vexed," he said blankly as he quickly signed the second paper, then handed it to the guard. He didn't sound vexed at all.

"Alright, enough trivial crap," Doomtune growled, then stomped over to the table. "Why the hell have you got a megaspell coming over here? Have you lost your gods damned mind?"

Vesperius narrowed his eyes tiredly at Doomtune, then said calmly, "Don't use the gods' names in vain, operative." He glanced at the hour glass, then looked back to Doomtune. He dipped the quill in the inkwell and started signing papers again, saying, "As for your question, I am sadly not quite at liberty to discuss such a topic with any of you. Yet, at least. I myself am not quite privy to why the senate demanded it; megaspells aren't likely to be the only answer to the problem we're having, even if it is gigantic." He opened up one of the table's drawers and procured from within a sealed envelope. After examining it for a moment he asked, "You are a Specter, yes? Would you consider yourself their representative in this matter?"

Doomtune let out a a flummoxed exhale, darting his eyes irritatedly here and there as he leaned against the table. "Yeah, I'm here on their behalf," he replied, repressing his annoyance.

Vesperius handed him the envelope. "Good, give this to Madran. Within it is a proposal for the conditions of a ceasefire."

"A ceasefire?" Myst asked softly as Doomtune stared at the envelope in his hooves.

"Yes a ceasefire," Vesperius replied, not even looking her in the eye as he started compiling some signed papers in a red envelope. "War with the Specters was not something I desired but merely something poor decision making on Equestrius' part has caused. I'd have called for a ceasefire sooner if the operatives didn't keep killing my messengers or ignoring my attempts at contact." He snorted, a small scowl on his face. Then he relaxed and his expression turned calm again. "In any case, I'd like that to end."

Doomtune raised his head slowly, his hooves trembling slightly as he looked into the Legate's eyes. "This... this'll stop the war?" he asked softly.

Vesperius paused and gave him a quick glance before resuming his compilation. "If Madran accepts the terms, yes," he replied flatly. "That and the decision of your leaders in Canterium Prime, of course."

Doomtune started shaking slightly, his hindlegs threatening to give out. Skyfire's eyes widened, and she got over just in time to support him before he collapsed. "The... the fighting'll end..." he said, trembling. "It'll all be fucking over... no more sleepless, bloody nights... no more..."

Vesperius looked at him, his eyebrows raised and his face showing the barest signs of concern. He looked to the guard who had nothing in his hooves. "Take him to the guest rooms. He looks as though he'll start babbling."

The guard complied and pried the shaking operative from Skyfire's hooves, then dragged him across the floor back out the door. He didn't even try to fight back, and Skyfire herself didn't look capable of mounting a struggle; like me, she too seemed tired. I myself would have voiced concerns on the truthfulness of where he was being taken if I didn't need to keep rubbing my eyes to keep them open.

"Where are you taking mister Doomtune?" Doodle asked, her forelegs on the table and her eyes wide and pleading.

"To the guest rooms," he replied simply, not even looking at her. Then he glanced at her and saw her head looking back at the operative, childish concern in her eyes. He sighed, rolling his eyes."If you want you can accompany him, I'd certainly not mind the reduction of possible distractions."

Doodle looked back at him with a small, thankful smile before galloping after them. Vesperius kept his eyes on her as she went. He seemed curious; blank-faced, but his eyes indicated he was wondering about the strange little filly.

"The... the guest rooms?" Myst asked, her eyelids suddenly heavy as she swayed sleepily. I got over to her and pressed her against my chest before she collapsed.

"Yes, the guest rooms," Vesperius replied, this time taking a visible interest at the sight of me holding the mare close. Then with a shake of his head he reverted back to his blank face. "Caesar put them there during the war to accommodate visitors who wanted to speak with him. Of course, he wasn't always available, so they waited there until he was. The rooms aren't particularly elaborate, but the place did its job well enough. Nice view on the balcony, too."

"Sounds... nice," Skyfire yawned. I looked to her concernedly. I guess we were all tired at the time; going through the most ridiculous experiences on a day-to-day basis tended to exhaust people.

Vesperius seemed a bit concerned as he looked between the three of us. "Are you three alright? You all seem rather exhausted." He rolled his eyes with a small scowl. "At least you can rest when you're tired... damn paperwork..." he muttered sourly.

"I... I guess we are pretty tired, yeah," I yawned, looking them over. Perhaps the adrenaline of finally getting here had kept us awake the past few days? I couldn't imagine someone going through what we went through without getting tired; surely something had kept us up. I gave Myst a gentle shake as she started drifting off. "Myst, you need to lie down or something?"

She shook her head and blinked hard, then looked at me with a tired, forced smile. "It would be nice..." she murmured, then her eyes shot wide open. "But um, I can stay awake. We came so far to talk to this guy, and that's what we should do, not sleep."

Skyfire blinked hard. "Uh, yeah! Yeah, absolutely. Talk now... sleep later..." She swayed, her eyelids dropping over her eyeballs. I had to pull her close to keep her from falling, too. In addition to being tired, now I was filled with concern. I wondered how much they'd repressed their exhaustion just to keep up with all the shit we went through.

Vesperius smirked, looking back at the papers. "You should all rest for a while; trust me when I say I know the value of rest. Rest and knowing one's limits, that is. I've pushed myself over the edge enough times to know when someone needs a break." He started rummaging through a pile of scrolls, reading them one by one. "Hmph... Gaius Scipii requests more denarii loans... I'll consider it..."

I scrunched up my face, trying to stay awake. Wow, I hadn't realized I was this tired. I mean, I'd felt fine most of the day. "I'm not quite for the idea," I groaned, rubbing my eyes. "I've spent a month trying to get here and faced all kinds of crap in the process. Went though all kinds of hell and pain that even a freaking masochist wouldn't have liked in the slightest."

"Yes, like inhaling Black Cloud that you're quite lucky to have survived," he replied as he started stamping a seal into some envelopes. "You should see someone about that by the way; those who survive things like that tend to have a nasty surprise later on when the spores emerge from the dormancy whatever potion you used put them in."

"I can deal with it later," I said. "Of all the things to do now, I am not going to go to sleep now that I'm here. If I did I'd feel like I wasn't doing justice to the importance of the occasion. Besides, I thought you wanted to talk to me yourself?"

"That I do," he said as he started rolling up a few scrolls. "But I called for you when I had the time and most of all patience to parley with you. That time is passed, and now I'm swimming in a sea of notifications, messages, senatorial requests and demands, combat reports, and all kinds of absolutely dreadful paperwork." He groaned for a moment as he rubbed his temple with a hoof. "It is not fun in the slightest."

I panted for a moment. "Tha-that doesn't really make this meeting any less important. If anything, it-..."

He raised his hoof up. "That's enough for now. Praetorian, I understand that you have many concerns that you'd like to speak with me about. If I were in your place and I heard of a megaspell in the city I lived in, I'd want a good few answers as well." He looked me and my basically asleep friends over. "The fact is, though, that neither of us are capable of speaking. Much as you'd like, you'll most likely collapse right here if you kept this up. And much as I'd like, I am quite busy today."

He waved a hoof at me dismissively, turning his attention back to his paperwork. "Go on then. I'll schedule some free time tomorrow. Why don't you get some rest first in the guest rooms? If what I've been told is true, you deserve it." He turned to the remaining praetorian. "Get him out of here, please. I've had enough distractions for now."

"You got it sir," the guard rasped.

I wanted to protest, just like whenever I had a plan and it was going to hell because of the will of someone in greater authority than I was. This time, however, I was too tired to give much of a struggle as the guard nudged us out towards the door. Myst and Skyfire, both barely dragging themselves across the floor, swayed lazily behind me. When we were outside I took one glance over at the Legate, calmly compiling his papers. With an exhausted sigh, I turned and followed the guard over to the rooms.

"Praetorian," he suddenly called out from behind me, forcing me to turn around and look at him. He sat on his chair, hooves tapped together on the table as he looked at me with a small, welcoming smile. He opened his mouth and after a moment's hesitation said, "Welcome to the Forum, home of the gods." His smile grew wider as he said calmly, "I'm sure you've already met them."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I really hated my body then. Not only did it interfere with my plans to talk to Vesperius, but it also rendered my mind incapable of any thoughts that had any importance. Sure I can talk and think of it now, but I'd have liked to think about that 'gods' thing Vesperius spoke of. I didn't meet the gods! When could I possibly have experienced the grace of the gods or the Goddesses that I never even had much faith in to begin with? If my life was any indication, never.

So, with my body dragging the rest of me down, it's pretty reasonable that the only solid thoughts that came to my head as I lazily and indifferently followed the guard down the halls and down stairs that I more than once nearly tripped on were thoughts of rest. Statues and busts and banners that I would have been more than happy to stare at were nothing but blurs to my eyes; music and singing that emanated from rooms where robed zebra mares interacted in were nothing more than echoes to my tired ears. Praetorians we passed by were nothing but motionless husks, but to them we must have seemed like hypnotized drunkards, what with the way we fumbled along.

Through gods knows how many spiral staircases and turns and halls, we finally came to it. A fairly narrow carpeted hall, on the side of which was a wide arched doorway with no door. Within was a large room with a circular table in the middle and semicircular couches around that, with a few steps of stairs leading to a higher ground at the end of which was an open balcony. From the light coming from outside, it was late afternoon. Two simple doors stood on each side of the main room, each with cupboards and lamps next to them. An open cabinet next to the balcony entrance held a great many bottles of wine and bowls of grapes, with the occasional platter of what seemed to be cheese and bread.

Vesperius was right; this place wasn't lavish in any way, but it looked homely and functional.

I blinked slowly as I took the room in, then I heard a click from one of the doors. The guard had unlocked it, allowing us entrance. I trotted over to it as my friends followed closely behind and we caught sight of Doomtune, who'd curled up on the couch and lay motionless. Curled up on him was a sleeping Doodle.

I entered the room alone as my friends wordlessly went for the others that had been unlocked, and my eyes fixated on one piece of furniture above every other detail: a bed. A perfectly good, red-sheeted, white-pillowed, large bed for two, with the most temptingly smooth and inviting surface. With my legs feeling like they'd been hammered to jelly and with each breath becoming harder, I clambered onto it and fell into sleep immediately.

No thoughts or concerns... just... rest.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

It was nice to sleep without dreams. Strange, because many in history were quoted saying good things about dreams. 'That those who dream with open eyes may act on their visions' for one. They said that dreams were the essence of a person's potential; that consciousness and subconsciousness blended to form a realm where thoughts transcended regular mental capacity, and that because of that, people, within their dreams, were capable of anything. That in dreams, people could work without ever resting.

Well you know what? I think I liked rest better.

I awoke feeling refreshed and energized; feelings... not at all common in the length of my adventure. Most of the time I'd either be in great mental or physical strain, so it was nice to have a reprieve. I'd not noticed the previous night that the room I was in, being closer to the outside than the other rooms, had a balcony. It was still dark outside, though rays of gold lit up the clouds. I checked the time on my Pipbuck.

"Always six AM," I murmured, then rubbed my eyes. At the time, I didn't really care that I'd slept for fourteen hours; I needed the sleep.

A felt a breath on my cheek.

Slowly, very slowly, I turned to see where it came from. I had to rub my eyes again to make sure I wasn't dreaming. "Oh... well, this is... new."

Myst lay next to me, a hoof hugging a pillow close to her head and the other on my chest. She was sprawled all over the parts of the bed that I hadn't occupied, like she'd summoned up just enough energy to follow me and clamber on before collapsing. How had she... no, scratch that, why was she here? I was absolutely an idiot when it came to this kind of stuff, but I was pretty sure that people didn't just casually sleep with other people in beds like this. Unless they were in relationships, of course...

I smiled and stroked her mane gently. Yeah, unless they were in relationships. And I was in one -- me, Goldwreath, was in a relationship with a mare who liked me for who I was. She didn't care what I was like or what I'd done; she cared for me either way. And I cared for her, too. I know I said it before, but up to now the mere thought of that sends a warm wave to my heart.

I planted a kiss on her forehead. "Sleep, Myst. Sleep... while you can."

Now, much as I would have loved to just go back to sleep in the presence of my... marefriend... the fact was that I, for all the distractions I faced, was a pony who set plans for himself. A plan by definition was a 'detailed proposal for achieving a goal', hence, sleeping in a bed when I was energized and fit to act was NOT a plan. Even if said bed had the perfectly beautiful Myst on it. So I got up and took off the uncomfortable chainmail shirt and helmet and all my other combat gear and dressed myself in a simple white tunic striped with purple that was placed in a cabinet in the room -- a cabinet that I'd also missed seeing. I made my way outside, hearing the snores from the couches and from another room with its door open. There Skyfire lay, splayed out and snoring tremendously loud, her pillow soaked in drool.

"And to think I drool like that sometimes," I murmured, then I heard the marching from outside. Leaving them behind, I made my way out into the wider halls and caught sight of an approaching praetorian controbernium in patrol. Leading them was the same gold-masked commander from the day before.

I stepped back and pressed myself against the wall, letting them pass by in front of me. They didn't utter a single greeting or cast a single glance my way. My ears perked up at the sounds of mares laughing and talking through the halls, along with more marching. This early in the morning, the Forum was already alive. Now, while I had little interest in participating in the social interactions of people I didn't even know, I could, at the least, ask them how to get back to the Caesar's chamber to see if Vesperius was up.

But as that turns out, it was tad bit more complicated than that. No, I could understand them fine and they could understand me fine, but the problem was that the mare servants wouldn't stop giggling and looking me over. Sure they got out words and phrases through their feminine antics, but that forced me to approach eight different servants -- all of whom were in groups of two or three, and all of whom looked like they were so interested in me. It started getting annoying, really. What, were they... checking out my coat? If so, was crimson a weird or funny color? I just really couldn't tell why they'd be so interested in me.

Eventually I gathered up enough proper information to mount a real effort, and I finally made my way up the correct staircase, and found myself in a side chamber that led out into the main halls of the Forum. After trotting down a curved hall for a moment I arrived at the main entrance, the heavy bronze doors closed and locked. From there I easily made my way up the stairs and through the lowered semicircular door. As I went, I couldn't help but feel a bit tense at all the praetorians silently watching my every move.

I arrived at the gate to the emperor's chambers and knocked twice. Then I pushed it open, and found it devoid of the person I'd come up to speak to. All I was treated to was a very quiet, very serene chamber lit up with the soft light of early morning.

But there was someone here, though. Aside from the two praetorians from yesterday who stood stoically at each side of the throne, there was, near a small corner table sitting near the great marble seat, a young zebra buck, robed in white and gold and, perusing over some envelopes and scrolls -- the same ones Vesperius had handed to the guard yesterday. I made my way over to him.

"Reasonable response... reasonable response..." He paused for a moment, taking a closer look at the paper. "... the senate won't like that, but alright. Reasonable response... reasonable response..."

I cleared my throat and interrupted politely as I came up behind him, "Um, excuse me... representative?"

He raised his head and quickly turned around, fixing me with a cautious but curious stare. He looked me up and down, then cocked his head sidewards. "Who are you?" he asked slowly. "And... you're a pony..."

"I am the Praetorian," I replied. "And yes, I am a pony. But it doesn't really matter, does it? I mean, the Legion seems to appreciate what I did despite me not being a zebra."

"They appreciate you? What did you do?" he asked. "And... the Praetorian? I didn't know the guard assigned special names to people now. How'd you get into their ranks?"

Clearly he was confused, but his questions were beginning to make me think that those people -- the inhabitants of that Maximilian-class stable somewhere beneath where I stood -- didn't know who I was. I was conflicted on whether to feel disappointed or glad about that -- disappointed because my efforts were unheard of and unappreciated by those who didn't actually need a protector, but glad because that meant that there was at least somewhere in the world where people must have lived regular lives. If they didn't know about me -- or perhaps the senate did, but not the people -- then that meant they weren't muddling up their lives with wasteland realities. It meant that somewhere down there, there was a place where life was... normal. I'd need to see it to really believe it, of course, but the mere thought of normality held me in a trance.

My silence seemed to disturb him. "Maybe I shouldn't have brought it up, then." Then he tentatively reaching out a hoof to pat me. "I... don't know you or what you did, but I've visited the outside enough to have seen what's beyond those walls. I've seen explosions, bombings, napalm... I know it's a warzone out there. I may not be able to know how it feels like out there, but I know it must be difficult."

"And you're right," Vesperius said as he descended from the ceiling upon a hovering glass platform. I couldn't even see his face, shrouded in dancing rays of pale yellow light, until he'd cleared the final ring-window. The platform landed right in front of the throne, sinking itself into a circular pattern in the marble. He approached us, looking the representative in the eye. "Placidus, the world outside is a warzone. A terrible one, full of agony and despair the likes of which the Senatus et Populusque Roamanus beneath where I stand will never know the feel of."

He stepped right in front of us, looking between our eyes. "Both of you represent two of the sides of the struggle to rebuild Roam -- the Praetorian here manifests the greatness a citizen can achieve when he tries and exerts, and you Placidus represent that for which we fight for: normalcy and the people." Vesperius frowned, casting his gaze down. "But what I am saying is alien to you, isn't it? Normalcy is strong within you; these words come from those who aren't normal."

Placidus looked at him with wide, oblivious eyes. Then they turned apologetic as he frowned. "I'm... sorry to say that I don't understand. I have no experience with this kind of thing. I deal with words and papers, not... emotions."

Vesperius nodded his head, clicking his tongue. "Then consider yourself lucky your life isn't as complicated as ours. Don't even try to understand unless you plan to commit yourself to it. This isn't your nice clean life down there, alright? Not the life I used to know. This is Roam, the city of war. There's no peace to be found here. Not lasting peace, anyway." He sighed deeply and looked at the papers in the representative's hooves. "In any case, I didn't come down from my prayer session to discuss our troubles. I came here to see what you thought of my responses to the political and resource problems documents the senate has sent me."

Placidus looked through the files hurriedly. "Um, yes! Right, so I think that most of the senators would be fine with allocating more electrical energy to the mining equipment to supplement your request for additional metal, however..." He flipped through some papers and pointed on a paragraph on one of them. "... I don't think they'd like your response to Thanus' family about not allowing their next son to command over Equestrius. That will have some serious ramifications, I believe."

"It stays as is," Vesperius said sternly. "I've made my choice, Placidus. I made a mistake to put that zebra in charge of Equestrius, and he's done some truly terrible things that ultimately resulted in his death. I won't have it happen again; that sibling of his has likely been exposed to the same foul pride that resulted in the disaster Thanus caused."

Placidus swallowed, nodding his head. "A-alright. I'll... make sure they get the message."

Vesperius nodded. "Yes, make sure of that." He looked at me, then back at the uncertain-looking Placidus. "Now, off with you," he shooed, waving the buck away. "Have some food or something before you return to those people. I remember how long that trip up took; you must be hungry." He turned and stepped onto the glass platform, saying as he looked me in the eyes, "I'll be busy tending to my guests, so don't come back asking for my confirmation on those matters, because they're already confirmed. We're done."

I took 'tending to my guests' as my cue to get onto the platform with him. As soon as I'd stepped on, the glass immediately started ascending. I took a quick glance over at Placidus, and found him staring at us. There was a look in his eyes, a... pity, I think. A pity and a concern. But as we rose higher and higher, the sight below become all the more hazed with the reflections of wan golden light. Soon we neared the red ceiling, and the platform stopped.

We stood in a wide circular chamber, though significantly smaller in diameter than the chamber below. The floor was a clear glass, but significantly thicker than the circular elevator was. The ceiling was domed and painted red, with a gold-rimmed oculus in the middle. The slanting walls were windowed but each was blocked by bronze shutters, allowing me not the slightest view of the outside. A peaceful music played in the air; it was a softly-pulled lyre. In the middle was a simple bed -- not even a genuine bed, but rather a platform meant for people to lie down on when they were being used as models for paintings. Beside that was simple wooden table upon which were several bottles of wine, a bowl of grapes, and a platter of sliced bread and cheese.

But none of that had anything on the statues that ringed the area. There was a zebra, proud upon a throne of carved iron, holding in his hooves a thunderbolt of forked lightning. In another, a zebra with powerful waves of the sea dancing behind his figure. And yet another, looking up at the sky with disdain as miniature figures of people of all species wailed and cried at his feet. Many other statues depicting both might and beauty brought an aura of power and awe to the chamber.

Vesperius got off the platform and approached the table before pouring some wine into some glasses. "Welcome to the emperor's personal gallery of the gods," he said plainly. Then he smirked, "Awe-inspiring as it is, it's also the only real flaw in Roaman engineering. Before the dawn of modern technology, the ancient zebras had to use either ladders or winged creatures to get up here. The floor wasn't this pristine glass either, but rather a drab brick. Horrible, really. Strange that the only flaw in our empire's architectural ingenuity was in its very heart..." He put on a wan smile as he turned around and offered me a goblet full of wine. "Care for a drink?"

By then I had pried my attention away from the statues and looked at him. "Thanks... but I don't drink."

He shrugged. "If you say so. I'll have you know, though, that true Roamans drink wine. Wine at breakfast, wine at lunch, wine at dinner. Even the foals drank it. Just seems a little improper to be at the very center of Roam and not do as the Roamans do, don't you think?" His indifferent face turned to a cocky smirk.

I grimaced and took the wine. "You sure do know how to persuade a pony to go against his vices," I said with a twinge of contempt. I looked into the violet liquid as he trotted over before the statue of Jupiter and knelt down before it. I remembered what he'd said the night before. "What did you mean last night? With that 'I'm sure you've met the gods' statement?"

He let out a deep breath, not turning to face me. "You've met them," he answered, getting up and raising his goblet of wine before Jupiter's statue. Then he put a hoof to his chest and downed it.

"I don't think I have," I replied sourly. "In the course of my life, I wouldn't exactly say I've ever experienced their grace or blessings, so... yeah, I'm not one for faith for any deity. All I've done and accomplished I managed of my own effort."

"Like the training you went through in your Stable," he said, trotting over to the statue of Neptune. "But even then you've had the gods' help, and even now. Mars imbued within you the fighting spirit; Pluto the conscience to know what savages deserve his wrath; Venus inflames the love brewing between you and that mare; Jupiter gave you your will for justice."

"Lies," I snapped. "The only people that have ever blessed me are the friends who go through hell with me and the parents who brought me into the world, and no one else. Not your gods. I've made my own life and reacted as best as I could to what befell me, understand?" I shot him a sharp glare as he performed the same ritual for the Neptune statue. After that he trotted to the next: the statue of Minerva.

"Believe what you will," he replied plainly. "Doubt them if you want; they'll be wise enough to be patient with you. I speak to them, so I know they will." Then he let out a mirthless little laugh. "And yet, despite being their Pontifex Maximus, they speak with you more." He laughed again. "I suppose that just serves to drive their plans forward."

I let out a breath of irritation. "For letting me believe in what I will, I'll you believe in your own beliefs, then." I relaxed a little as he repeated the ritual for the next two statues. "You have... a very deep belief in the gods. Why?"

He didn't respond at first, but then actually turned around to face me. "Because they are the enemy of my enemy. And my enemy is the degradation of the minds and bodies of Roamans. No matter who sides with me, or no matter who or what goes against my goal, I can take comfort in the fact that the gods will not abandon those with faith." Then he smiled and looked to the side. "Besides, it's in my name. Vesperius. Vesper: evening prayer. I suppose not only ponies have names that somehow coincide with who they are." He thought for a moment. "Speaking of names... what is your name? Of the many things I've discerned from radio chatter and my visions... that's the one detail I have not learned."

"A name for a name, then," I replied. "My name is Goldwreath."

He didn't respond, but his eyes trailed slowly to the golden wreaths and triple numeral on my flanks. "That's quite the name..." he said softly. Then he looked me in the eyes. "You are very fortunate."

"Why?" I asked. "Why would I be fortunate?"

He smiled knowingly and turned around, then trotted a little and pressed a button on the rim of the windows. At once the shutters lifted, allowing the temporarily-blinding light of the sun through and filling the the chamber with golden light. "Apollo's time to run the day again," he murmured. Then he turned to face me, appearing to me as nothing more than a silhouette. "Why are you fortunate?" he asked, then grabbed me and pulled me closer to the window, close enough to him that I could see his face. I nearly spilled the wine.

He gestured his hoof in an arc down at the ruined city that lay about us. "You are fortunate because your life -- rather, you -- will bring us change; change the gods promised. And for that you are fortunate because all the glory of that change will come to you. Many will try to stop you; many fear change and will fight it with every fibre of their being. But sometimes change is what they meed most. Sometimes change is what sets them free."

I spent a moment staring down at the city, and at the camp of now-red tents surrounding the Forum. In the distance I saw the very small form of Bucephalus, and upon it a purple smudge: Flavianicus. If I remembered right, he said he'd go back to the Colosseum to make sure Seashore'd left."Why are you saying all this? Telling me that I'm special? I don't feel special; rather, I feel... inadequate."

"Because I have faith," he replied, smiling. "I have faith that in the course of our time, good people can spring forth. That against all the forces of evil in the universe... there's always an equalizing agent. There's always hope."

"Hope for a better tomorrow," I replied, before taking a drink. Heh, it was actually pretty good. I took another gulp before lowering the cup.

"Yes, hope... that's something I'd toast to," he said, looking at me and holding out his goblet. I looked at him and the wine for a moment. Then I smiled and touched my cup to his and raised it in the air.

"This will be the beginning of something very drastic," he said in a foreboding tone. "A great many struggles await us. Moments of... darkness and despair... agony and hate..." He looked on into the horizon for a moment as if it mesmerized him. "Apollo... foresees... the... great culmination of many things, bad and good, and it is... breathtaking..." He blinked and let out a shaky breath, seeming disturbed as he cast his gaze down. "And already the direness of the aforementioned creeps on my soul..."

"Dire or not, I know what I'm fighting for," I said, getting a curious look from him. I looked off into the sunrise in the east, the rays lighting up the brown mountainside. Suddenly the aircraft took off from their landing pads on the slopes of our mountain, encircling the Forum and casting their shadows into the chamber. "I'm going to fight for the glory of Roam."

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: Words Backed by Action -- You get the point across with more than just words, don't you? With every successful speech attempt, there is a 10% chance that all entities in the area will avoid attacking you unless directly provoked.

Note:
Unknown source -- 'Undetermined_Sender' says: THEN YOU FIGHT FOR WHAT WILL DESTROY YOU

Volume II Marker

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FALLOUT EQUESTRIA : NEW ROAM

By Delvius

VOLUME II

Gods and Kings

(Linky -- the music video that I believe represents the feel of 'Gods and Kings')

Roam is at war. Its citizens are at war; her protectors are at war; her enemies are at war. None enter the city without facing the conflict promised by the culture of a war-like Roam. The mountains continue to erupt fire; the blackness stirs in the south; and the two powerful entities of blue and green are locked still in conflict. The very air that is breathed is the ashes of a defeated entity, blown to Hades by the shells and flames of hate.

And it is up to Goldwreath to stop it, even as he wars with himself. But not alone, of course. This time he has friends; more than just that, he has allies. The Legion he'd thought hated him has taken him in with open hooves, and together they will rebuild the city and reclaim the lost glory of Roam. It will be tough, to be sure. But Goldwreath is ready to face whatever challenge awaits him, and maybe discover the secrets of the most sinister trickery in Roaman history along the way; a trickery that ended the world.

The question now is: what is he willing to give up for his ambitions?

Chapter 20 - Hearts and Minds

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Chapter 20
Hearts and Minds
"A better world starts with a better self."

The day had grown old astoundingly quick during my training session. By the time I'd decided to cease depleting my energy reserves, it had already reached the hour of eleven. Sweat trickled off my hide as I lowered my gladius and pila (plural for pilum -- the Roaman throwing javelin) and took off the set of iron training armor, and so with a towel I'd brought with me I began wiping myself. Surprise filled me as I saw a bowl full of an assortment of fruits on a corner table, and as I made my way over to it my eyes chanced to spy a great many mares galloping off, giggling and attempting to hush themselves as they went.

But I didn't mind them; in my action, I'd allowed a ravenous hunger to fester in my belly. Making sure to wipe off my sweaty limbs before touching the provided food (which, in their abundance, would have sufficed for brunch), I dug in and started sating my appetite. After I'd devoured an apple and grabbed another, I made my way over to a balcony and stared off at the scenery.

It was good that Vesperius had allowed me to use one of the many training rooms available on the mountain slopes; for one thing, they'd seemed like they'd never been used in a while -- I felt good using facilities as they should have been used -- and for another, my session made it clear to me that I needn't work on my stamina, for it was absolutely well-built. If anything, all I needed to work on was how to control the force of my strikes; the bronze dummies that had stood proud upon their stands now had a great many dents marring their surfaces, and the mock armor they wore would... need some refurbishing... okay, they absolutely needed to be replaced. The weapons, too, had bent and broken under the force of my strikes; all had suffered significant damage but my gladius, which had seen use for only a little over a month compared to the years borne by the rusted iron weaponry.

But as I marveled at the sight of the activity on the fields below -- the marching of Legionnaires, the hovering of aircraft, the grazing of the cerati -- the queerest intuition filled my head, alerting me of a presence fast appraoching. The faintest whispers and giggles from the mares behind me shushed quiet, and the softest clang of metal boots vibrated through the floor. Someone was here with me.

I hadn't even turned around yet when a praetorian trotted over and leaned against the railing along with me. I stared at him, and when he turned to look at me I saw he was masked with silver. A few moments went by in silence as he turned away and looked over the scenery.

"Quite the sight," he commented. "I don't know why, but Roamana's purple just blends so much better with the lush green than the bright red of Equestrius."

I turned and looked over the scenery as well, making sure to give attention to the colors that danced on the green field below. "I agree," I replied, trying to get over the bits of awkward at the sudden conversation. "It doesn't contest for the eyes' attention as strongly."

We both watched as an aircraft took off from the mountain slopes and flew off somewhere into the city. "Oh, there's that. There's also the fact that purple is the color that represents Roaman power," he said matter-of-factly. "And really, no other color captures the Roaman spirit quite as well."

"Except gold and bright red used on the same banner," I said. "Just imagine them on the same flag, flowing in the breeze and showing off their bright colors in the midday sun. Glorious, serene." I took in a deep breath as a breeze blew our way. Ah, fresh, cool air.

He nodded in agreement. "I've observed that exact kind of scene enough times to agree with you," he said with a relaxed tone. "So we have an agreement. Red and gold and purple -- the colors of the Roaman nation."

I smiled and nodded. "We have an agreement."

I don't know why, but we started chuckling in unison. It didn't last very long, but it was a shared joy. And really, after having lived in the hell of the wasteland for a month, sharing almost nothing but problems and pains, just having a nice, slow, peaceful conversation with a stranger was a welcome change of pace.

After our laughter ended he amiably patted my shoulder, saying, "I think you and I will get along just fine." He took in a deep breath and let out a carefree sigh. "It's nice to have new company here in the Forum. Really, I could only have gone on for so long before losing my mind to the changeless routines and the unbearable silence of our duty-filled days."

"Then you and I have a similarity already," I said, and a curious glimmer lit up from his shadowy eyes as he looked at me. "I myself can't spend very long without needing to talk to someone about something."

He smirked. "I see. That's good, at least I now know I'm not the only one not suited to quiet. And really, silence is a Roaman citizen's enemy; we Roamans are meant to orate and converse and recreate, not spend our days in silence."

"Of that I agree," I replied. "Roamans are meant to think and express their thoughts in words and actions, and in a manner both shameless and plain for all to see. We're different from other peoples like that; we delve into and think upon the world, and from it gain wisdom, whereas others merely think of themselves or those close to them. Silence leads to stagnation, and stagnation, once it has been accepted as a societal norm, leads to degradation."

He nodded. "Indeed. It would be a shame for a people such as us to degrade." He looked at me with a curious glimmer in his eyes. "You know, I like how you think. I don't quite care that you're a pony; all true Roamans know other true Roamans when they meet them, and you my friend are most definitely-..."

"I've heard just about enough of this," interrupted a voice, dark and harsh.

The curious glimmer in the praetorian's eyes died. "Oh, not him again..."

We turned and caught sight of the golden-masked praetorian commander from the day before. He stood under the doorway, fixing us both with an unflinching gaze that made my acquaintance stiffen as if petrified.

"What do you need?" I asked rudely. I hadn't forgotten his 'welcoming party' the day before, or how he struck Zaita with a bolt of lightning.

The praetorian struck me with a hoof. "Shut up!" he hissed, then stood up straight and rendered the Roaman salute. "Praefect! I was just making sure that our guest felt welcome and-..."

"Get out, tribune," the praetorian praefect ordered.

The silver-masked tribune almost ate his words as he replied, "W-with all due respect, sir, I was only trying to-..."

"Get. Out."

The tribune gulped and gave me a quick glance, then with his head bowed he trotted over to his superior, rendered the salute one more time, and silently left.

Despite what you might expect from people like this guy, he didn't scold me. Not at once, anyway. Rather, he actually looked over the wreckage I'd caused and, after giving me a dark stare, started cleaning up.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, scowling. I was having such a nice conversation with an individual of like mind, accompanied with a relaxing scenery to boot, and this guy just barged in. For that, I couldn't care less what he thought of me.

He paused his actions long enough to rasp out the simple words, "Cleaning up."

Well, wasn't that obvious. "Why?"

"We praetorians have tended to Roam since long before you were born. We policed the streets, supplemented defensive operations, watered the gardens and plumbed the aqueducts. All in the name of Roaman power." He said nothing as he reverently placed the iron suit back onto its stand. "We continue that duty as much as possible; if the Forum is all that remains for us to protect, then we watch over it and live our lives for it, and for nothing else."

"For absolutely nothing else?" I asked as I trotted closer. "Not even for the sake of living, or for the sake of seeing the sun rise ever morning? Or the moon and stars at night? Or even for catching glimpses of good here and there?"

"Not even for those," was his simple reply. I stared off into his shadowy eyes as he continued, "Not even to serve the Legion; we have no allegiance to them. Nor to the senate formed by the zebras below. And though we place ourselves at the service of Vesperius, we do so only in the hope that one day he'll be able to bring peace to the capital. And if he does... well, we praetorians will have a whole new city to bring order to."

I breathed a sigh of disagreement. "Seems a bit... excessive. I mean, I care for the city and the people of Roam too, but it isn't my only cause for living, and it certainly isn't my on my priority list to let go of all that I have for it." I paused for a moment, thinking. "Or maybe I was willing to let go of all I had, a while back when I had little else to do... or maybe I still wish to give all I am, but don't feel it. What's certain is that... people... came into my life. People that want me to stay alive. I don't think I could live with myself if I abandoned them to give all I have for Roam."

"Then you aren't worthy of the title of praetorian," he spat scornfully, stepping close and nearly touching my muzzle with the metal of his mask. "Whatever that idiot of a tribune told you, you aren't one of us, nor even a Roaman. Praetorians live to protect and serve the city at all costs, body and soul. Anything less isn't worthy of the legacy of glorious Roam."

I tried to take a step back to free myself of the growing tension of the conversation, but he pulled me closer. "I look into your eyes, and I see a disillusioned vigilante who is only better than the common rabble in that you have the sense to know where all loyalties of the world should be directed. Yet still you're nothing more than a lost pony, going about and declaring Roaman values when you haven't the authority to preach in the manner you do."

I growled angrily. "Get your damned hooves off!" I snapped, yanking myself away. I glared daggers at him and pressed his plated chest. "It doesn't take a trained Legionnaire or a professional soldier to take up arms against the degeneracy plaguing the Roaman world. If anything, restricting such opportunities to they who'd be 'professionals' only adds to the problem. Need I remind you that Marius and Julius started out as mere citizens? There are many out there that have the potential to follow in their steps; I've actually been out there! I've actually walked the streets and spoken to the populace, whereas you've all stood here! What does that say of your case, huh?"

"It means we know where our duties are and where true Roamans stay," he spat. "Out there, there's none but barbarians. Languishing zebras with rotten minds. What embers of hope burn out there soon perish in the sea of evil. That foolish second-in-command of mine fails to see that. What you've seen are merely barbarians influenced by Roaman ideals, and as such appear to your impudent mind as true Roamans; bah, profligates! They are not worthy of the ground they stand upon. Only within these walls do true Roamans still practice their culture and ways, not out there."

I seethed at his words, angered at the idiocy of this pompous imbecile. "Then why don't you go out there?" I whispered tensely, my voice dripping with barely restrained hate. "If you truly care for Roam, why don't you command your troops and go out there to help fix the problem? Why stay in here where you do nothing but patrol halls and watch statues?"

His silence stretched on for a moment as he breathed calmly, serving only to compound my anger. At last he spoke with similar repressed contempt, "Because there's nothing out there worth saving. Nothing but scum and degenerates. Like you."

I snorted and hurriedly picked up my things, not wanting to waste my time or ruin my mood hearing this bullshit. Lies, all of it. There were people out there worth saving -- Boagrius had stood honorable as a slave in a crowd of spectators; Delvius had decided to lighten up the moods of others with his story; Conductor gave up his cutie mark to serve his settlement! If anything, they were more worthy to uphold Roaman values than this misguided bastard was.

I stomped out into the halls, causing several mares to gallop off as they saw me. The praefect had done nothing to stop me nor had he given me some final fucked up piece of his beliefs; for that I was glad. I had enough to think of without letting such poison rot my mind and kill my time.

And yet, for all my vexation, I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Him and whoever thought like him. So lost, so cold and unwelcoming... it was people like him that needed my patience and understanding. They were part of the problem; pride was their vice, or rather too much of it. There weren't enough people like the tribune I'd met earlier, and that only compounded the problem. If I was going to change society, the first step was to understand its inhabitants. And to do that I needed to talk to those who'd already had experience with them, like Vesperius.

'That... or think like them,' offered a little part of my head. I considered it for a moment, and suddenly I felt ill, warm. I coughed, losing concentration. Then just like that I felt good again.

I didn't think of it, or anything else for that matter. Important as it all was, first I had to address more immediate concerns. Not big concerns like my ambitious motives, but smaller problems, ones that didn't quite give me a headache or cast thoughts of an uncertain, possibly dark future into my mind. Not thoughts of Tom and Tod or saving the world or any such things. Just small, normal things, like making sure all my friends were fine.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I didn't quite know what I'd expected to find. I'd been awake for five hours after sleeping for fourteen, and had since exercised my stamina and my strength. And while certainly my friends had tremendous endurance to have followed me in my exploits, I had expected them to still be asleep, recovering their strength.

Thus it was that surprise overcame me when I saw Skyfire, Doomtune, and Doodle sitting upon the couches about the table, all amiably splitting bread and sharing fruits. The sight of two mare servants tending to them, pouring wine into goblets and supplying bowls of fresh porridge, only compounded my initial bafflement.

Doodle's eyes widened the moment she caught sight of me, and she pulled her head off of her platter -- her face speckled with crumbs and cheese as she gave me a gigantic grin -- and galloped over to me, nearly tripping a zebra over.

"Mishter Gowdweeth!" she mumbled through a full mouth as she strangled my foreleg in a hug. "I wash wondewing where you went, luyk mish Shkyfire and mishter Doomtune! Then theshe nishe zebras came over and gave ush food! Ishn't that nishe?"

I looked to the others, who met my gaze with easy smiles of amusement. Doomtune spoke, "Yeah, she was looking all over the room for you, even rummaging through table drawers and grape bowls." He let out a little sigh and murmured, "Her screeches could wake a deaf bat..."

I nodded and smirked, "Oh yes, I can imagine her filly-aged vocal cords could make the perfect sonic weapon." I looked down at Doodle's cheeky grin and gave her a pat on the head. "Go on then, go and eat. I've already had my share of food." She gave me a nod and trotted back, then planted her muzzle in her porridge; she made quite a mess all over the table, flinging goop in all directions as she literally gulped the stuff down -- at the rate she was eating, she'd devoir everything in a hundred miles in just a day.

I couldn't help but smile with amusement at her childish antics; Flav was right, children were quite the gift. Of course I didn't want kids, but they were nice to have around. I trotted closer and found a comfortable spot to sit upon.

"So, where've you been?" Skyfire questioned as I sat myself opposite her. She was soaking her piece of bread in a generous dose of olive oil and cheese, and had a smile on her face as she did so. I guess sleep and a proper meal can make anyone feel cheery, huh?

"Training in the practice rooms," I replied, before taking an offered goblet of wine. After thanking the zebra mare (who gave me the most sheepish smile I'd ever seen from a zebra) I continued, "After that I had a lovely little conversation with one of the praetorian guards." Then with obvious sarcasm finished, "And after that, another lovely conversation with another guard; this time it was the same one who tried to arrest us." I rolled my eyes.

"Training huh?" she asked with a sly grin, looking me over. "Oh yeah, as if you weren't enough of a prime example of masculine beauty." She gave me a little wink.

"Thanks for the compliment," I said simply before downing the wine in great gulps. It wasn't as strong as the undiluted dosage Vesperius had offered me, nor was the warmth it spread through me as pleasing, but it was good enough for being just a few months old. I had to suppress a little cough afterwards, though; it was then that I decided to intake alcohol more slowly.

She frowned at my response but quickly recovered. She put on a forced smile and said, "Yeah... uh, yeah sure! Friends compliment each other, right?" She gave a fake little chuckle. She frowned once more, trying to hide her face by looking elsewhere.

"They do," I replied as I took a small sip. Then I took greater concern over her disposition. "Why the long face? I would have thought that the idea of being able to have a day without getting shot at would make you smile."

"Trust me, it does," she said insincerely, looking out the balcony. "Yeah, nice clear skies... a pleasant breeze... green grass... you know, it-it's all nice." She lifted a goblet filled with wine and held it close. "And, er, the wine! Yeah, tasty stuff... so, yeah. Today's awesome."

"So you say, yet you look as though you've been told ill news," I pointed out. By then the topic of our conversation had taken Doomtune's curiosity, and he sat against his backrest and stared at us as we talked. Doodle, typically, did not seem to care at all.

She grimaced but didn't say anything at first. Then she said softly, "I guess I look pretty depressed, don't I? Well... don't mind it." She gave me a tiny, mirthless smile. "Just... problems I'm still trying to get over. Thoughts I'm trying to sort out. Emotions I'm trying let go of. That's all, nothing else."

I nodded. "Now's the best time for all of us to work our thoughts out, I suppose. As in now, before we go out again and-..." I stopped myself short.

Right... our stop here wasn't going to be permanent. We'd gotten here and... then we'd go out again. For what I couldn't say. Try to find out Tod and Tom's motives? The history of Roam's destruction? Maybe take care of those mountain guns or that black cloud to the south? All of the above? I'd spent so much time thinking of getting to the Forum that I'd forgotten to figure out what to do after. Now I felt directionless, and it made me frown. I had such a huge ambition but no plan to achieve it, and that made me feel stupid and incompetent. Now I needed to think of a plan fast. Much suffering would befall innocents if I couldn't achieve my goal of knocking some sense into bad people's heads, and every second was precious.

But as I racked my head to start coming up with basic points of my plan, I suddenly felt something in me. A twinge of a sort, a desire. Something more than just saving people for the sake of saving people; a... what was it? It was a strange feeling... a desire for... what, glory? Power? Like Julius when he was fulfilling his ambition? No, no it couldn't be... I had no practical use for such things. I didn't want to be an emperor like he did. All I wanted was a better world.

But to make the world better, I needed an image good enough to inspire those around me. It had to be flawless, a universal and unquestionable image of honor that all would praise me for. Honor and integrity that no one would speak up against, not even that damned praefect. And the love of the people, yes... like Flavianicus had; I'd need that too. I'd need them all to hail me as the perfect Roaman and emulate me. And rewards! Yes, rewards. Perhaps a little authority and influence for all my hard work, that would be nice...

Well... it all technically added up to power... but it wasn't wrong if I naturally got it instead of, say, killing some senators to get theirs, right? Now that was bad; working for my power and earning it after having obtained the goodwill of the people? That was good. A sly smile crawled onto my face as I began fantasizing of the awe I'd inspire, all the people chanting my name as I trotted down the Road of Triumphs...

"And?" Doomtune queried, directing my thoughts away from glorious little fantasies and wiping the smile off my face. Right, friends now... more important things later.

I sighed and sat straight up, asking the servants to kindly leave for a moment. They hesitated a little but went out. When they'd gone I turned to face my companions. Then I started to have second thoughts, which was when I truly took notice of our lacking member. "Where's Myst? I don't exactly want to speak of this without her company."

"She's... well, still asleep. On your bed," Skyfire answered, seeming reluctant and even a little pained saying it. Then she frowned again, ears drooping. Doomtune took particular notice of that.

"Well... I guess I can talk to her about this in private later, but as for you..." I sucked in a breath to continue, but then looked to Doomtune. "Yeah, just so you know, you aren't really involved in this; what I say doesn't really have that much sway over your actions, after all."

"Depends on the words," Doomtune shrugged. "Now, you were saying...?"

I cleared my throat. "Yes, well... Skyfire, you think you should stay here?"

My question seemed to bring up all sorts of barricades in my friend's head. "What do you mean 'stay here', huh?" she asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes.

I took in a bracing breath. "Well, I've said this before, but... you know you don't have to come with me right? You and Myst could stay here, in the Forum, away from the outside. Leave all the dangerous work to me. You could have a life here, away from all the violence."

She rolled her eyes and groaned. "This talk again? More 'Goldwreath should suffer all kinds of shit for us'? Yeah... no. I don't know why you keep thinking like this, but just because you're the 'Praetorian' doesn't mean you should be the only one of us fighting the good fight." She sat up straight, crossed her forehooves and harumphed. "I'm sticking with you; if I stayed here, what would I do? Stare at statues and banners all day? That just ain't the kind of life for me; maybe it is for a hermit or something, but not me."

I raised my hooves in a gesture of submission. "Alright, no need to get all fired up. I was just... presenting an option. It's just... you know, I want to keep you guys safe. A person's defined by those he calls friends; what will define me if I have none? Irresponsibility and incapability to protect those closest to me? I don't want that, and I don't want you to come to harm. But if you're deadset on staying with me... your choice."

She took in my words with a little frown of contemplation, but then nodded. "I understand. You're concerned for us. I get that. I'll try to take some weight off you and try not to do anything... reckless, if I can help it," she said, giving me a genuine smile all the while. "One of the things I like most about you is that you actually care about people, and not just what they can do for you in return. Not a lot of people like that, and those that exist, well... they don't usually last long." She frowned again.

Doomtune scooted over and patted her. "If it's any consolation, once your Enclave hears of your team's sacrifice, I'm sure they'll honor them justly."

"They won't," Skyfire said, shaking her head. "You don't know them like I do; those assholes on the council wouldn't even welcome pegasi back from the surface with warm greetings, much less honor them at their deaths." She scowled angrily, but relaxed soon afterwards. Then she looked to him and smiled. "But thanks. It's nice to have a little fantasy to look forward to."

I kept silent this time, unlike before where I'd tried to console her. I'd said all I could to ease her pain before, now it was her turn to do something about it. Sometimes silence was the best move to make, and removed the risk of saying something wrong that would just pick open old wounds and cut deeper than before. If her getting over it completely required a little angst here and there... so be it.

Suddenly Doodle sent a splash of porridge flying at our faces, speckling our cheeks and mane with olive-smelling oatmeal. I wiped my eyelids clean and looked at her, who grinned so madly wide at us her face trembled with tension.

"Fi-niiiished!" she sang out, taking an unnatural amount of pride at having finished her meal. Then she looked at each of us frowning at her, our bodies coated in oats, and her grin disappeared. "Whoops, eheh," she chuckled. "Sowwy..." she pouted.

"I certainly hope they taught you table manners over in Fillydelphia," I grumbled as I wiped my face. The others did the same, trying to be patient with her antics. Doomtune, who'd had the least experience with her, let out many a deep breath to vent his annoyance.

It was as we cleaned ourselves in silence that a group of eight praetorians stepped into the doorway and into the room, surrounding the couches without making any eye contact. Once they'd enclosed is in an octagonal formation and stood at attention, another praetorian commander entered the room. No, not a commander, a tribune. This was the one masked in silver; my new acquaintance. I smiled.

"Praetorian," he rasped, nodding respectfully. "Legate Vesperius wishes your company and that of your entourage as soon as possible; we are here to escort you when you are finished with preparations."

I rose my eyebrows at his words. "Well, after a month of fighting for opportunities to voice concerns, now I have the opportunity given to me? What a change in fortune!" I said aloud, clapping my hooves in glee. I gave him a little smile. "You can go ahead and tell him we'll be right there; a little bit of cleaning is in order, as you can see."

"We shall wait, my praetorians and I. We prefer to personally escort our charge," he replied simply, and put his forehooves behind his back in a waiting gesture. His praetorians followed in kind, and soon we were in the presence of some very quiet and ominous guards. Doomtune froze where he was, looking at them with an upraised eyebrow, while Skyfire and Doodle shared the same look of... something between awe (especially for Doodle) and general curiosity.

They weren't demanding anything, but I felt it wrong to keep them (and my first major freely-given opportunity to speak my concerns) waiting, so I got up and rushed into a washroom I'd never known the guest rooms had and cleaned myself off straight away. The others were far slower and less eager in their response, but they did as I did, albeit with some hesitation. They didn't seem to like leaving their brunch half-finished.

Their hesitation -- especially Skyfire's -- caught my attention. What, was the state of Roam's affairs not more important than one meal? She and Myst had been so willing to stay awake with me yesterday despite their exhaustion. Were they... pretending to be of like mind; trying to look like they had the same goal as me? Why? To... to not disappoint me? The thought of their pretending to have similar intent sent shivers down to my hooves and gave me pause just as I backed out into the main room.

Thus it was that much of my eagerness to speak of my concerns were replaced with actual concerns. And thus it was that I made sure to scrutinize her appearance the moment she came out of the other washroom -- blank, downcast eyes; tentative hoofsteps; slow breathing... all suggestive of lack of enthusiasm.

So they were pretending. At the very least, Skyfire was pretending. I felt crushed, like I'd been tricked for who knows how long. And it was quite possible that I had been deceived, maybe from the very moment her motives for staying with me were revealed in the tunnels, maybe even before that. Suddenly I doubted her and her every move, and tremendous suspicion bloomed in my head, questioning not for the first time her true motives for staying with us. The only thing I could think of was how to force her true intent into the light, plain for all to see and scrutinize her like the treacherous, pretentious snake she was. And if she wasn't hiding anything at all? Oh well, one potential threat gone, then.

Wait... what the fuck was I thinking?

I smacked my face so hard my muzzle bled out a drop, but at least the pain cleared my head of my venomous thoughts. Where had that come from? I was overreacting, damn it! Of course they wouldn't look all too eager; for all I knew, they could have still been sleepy! Hell, maybe they just didn't want to put on a smile; lots of people didn't smile at every good fortune. How could I possibly question her now, after all she'd gone through for and with me? If anything, I was the one with possible ulterior motive, what with all my ambitions flying around in my head. They didn't deserve that kind of suspicion because they weren't me. They weren't failures at the things they were supposed to do, and I was. In the Stable I'd failed to stop a crime and save my mentor, then the day after that I failed to prove my innocence; out here I was failing to be the the Praetorian everyone thought I was, instead being so weak and doubtful as to let my petty emotions get in the way of my duty; and at last to my friends, to whom I was failing to be the strong shoulder they could lean on simply because I couldn't keep myself in line.

In the end, the only thing I was was a pony trying so very hard to stop failing, and failing even at that. I was capable of nothing of importance, and everyone suffered for it.

I cast my eyes down, taking those thoughts in. 'Nothing but a failure...' I frowned. Suddenly I coughed, feeling sore in the limbs.

'And the metaphorical gates are open,' said Tod. He laughed, 'This is going to be so much fun.'

I didn't get a chance to react. My body at once felt feverish; weak, numb -- so much so that even expressing my pain hurt. All the sensations overwhelmed me and sent me thudding against doorway, incapable of focusing on any coherent thought. I shut my eyes closed as hot, agonized tears gathered. My heart thundered as shakes ravaged my muscles, weakening my legs and sending me to the ground. A terrible headache erupted inside my skull, my veins throbbing with each heartbeat. Vertigo flooded my senses as the world seemed to revolve around me.

I felt armored hooves grab me and yank me up onto my limbs, and I opened my eyes. The praetorian tribune rushed me over to a couch, and there I lay still in absolute agony. I couldn't even vent my pain into any emotion; just existing was a pain, much more thinking and feeling.

Skyfire galloped over and took my face in her hooves. "Goldwreath? Goldwreath, what's wrong?" she asked in a rush. I just stared back at her with an agonized gaze, my throat dry and sore. She brought a hoof to my brow and her eyes widened. "He'-he's burning up like hell!" She rounded on the praetorian guards. "We need to get him to a bed; you have medicine and icepacks around here, don't you? Painkillers? Knock-out liquid? Go and get them, quick!"

Everything after that was a disorienting blur. Even when I closed my eyes, my head swam and every external stimulus sent waves of throbbing pain to my head. Every touch on my flesh elicited a groan as they hauled me off to my room and laid me as gently as they could on the sheets next to Myst, whom they at once started trying to wake up. Sweat dribbled down my face as the sensations grew more intense, and I cried aloud and fought with every fibre of my being the horrible feelings and fragments of poisonous thoughts and jeering laughter echoing maddeningly in my head. I tore at the sheets in my anguish, wishing I could just end my suffering.

I felt Skyfire on the bed with me, struggling to calm me down and get me flat on my back. Her aggressive attempts only served to intensify my pain, and soon I found myself gasping in complete exhaustion as my body strained itself in every manner possible. It was then that she managed to get me on my back, and through the blur of my vision I just barely managed to spot a syringe in her mouth. I struggled straight away; the very feel of their breath on my skin felt like fire, a needle would be excruciating.

The praetorian guards came over and held me down, and I screamed as my joints felt like red-hot metal gears grinding to force mechanical motion. Many a word and sentence they uttered fell on my ears as nothing more than garbled hums, and my only comfort in all my misery was that what they were saying was, presumably, all attempts to tell me everything was going to be okay. I didn't believe them in the slightest.

Then I felt the needle burry itself in my forelimb, and I screamed so much it echoed in my head and dried my throat. Then the liquid started flowing in my veins, and all I was met with was blissful unconsciousness.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I awoke to the ear-splitting groan of thunder and a flash of lightning, both sending tremendous waves of searing pain through my senses and into my brain. The fever had only heightened; the pillow was hot from the heat of my neck. Every motion, no matter how small -- from the roll of my eyeballs to the beat of my heart -- felt volatile, ready to serve in my destruction... somehow. I felt beyond sick; this was no mere affliction of the body, that much I could say. It was a battle raging inside of me, making a warzone of every aspect of my being, and I was losing it on every turn. From the physical standpoint alone that much was obvious; every breath felt like I was inhaling acidic gas, and my muscles -- who'd earlier that day felt on their prime -- now felt like gelatinous goo inside my limbs. The sweat on my face didn't feel like sweat, it felt like lava. And my head, oh gods help me, my head...

I covered my ears in a futile attempt to protect myself from the roaring of the storm outside. "Myst... S-skyfire..." I groaned aloud, twisting in the bed to get as little stimulus as possible. My effort only served to send me rolling off the edge, and I swear my bones cracked as I thudded to the floor. I barely suppressed my scream.

Vibrations resonated through the ground as several unknown beings approached me, and as gently as they could laid me onto the bed again. I wailed from the burning pain of their touch on my skin. Voices called out names, asking them to come quick. Blurry smudges moved in my vision, and I felt the sheets being pulled over me. The mere warmth of the cloth felt like fire, and I screamed.

"S-top, you-you're hurting him!" I heard voice stammer, and all the metal-clad hooves withdrew and left me to the passive sting of the sheets. Then I felt a hoof on my shoulder, lightly and softly turning me onto my back. This touch only hurt slightly; it was so soft, so kind... I didn't deserve it. Failures like me deserved this kind of suffering. And as if agreeing with me, my body then stung as though I'd been boiled in acid, and Tod laughed in my head. I couldn't even gather enough will to curse him.

"Goldwreath?" Myst asked in the haze of my vision. She had tears on the brims of her eyes, and her voice was barely recognizable through the eery wheezes and taunting growls echoing in my head. She gave a little hiccup and let some tears slide across her cheek. She didn't say anything, but instead drew me into an agonizing embrace.

"M'am, get back!" a praetorian guard ordered. "We don't know if his illness is contagious, whether it's bacterial or stress-induced. Best to take precautionary measures." Myst didn't flinch at his orders, but rather took me deeper into the embrace. Her tears felt like boiling liquid metal sliding across my flesh, and I grunted from the heat.

"Myst..." a stallion said softly, tiredly; it was Doomtune, I think. "Just do what he says. It's bad enough to have just him like this, it would be even worse for the both of you to fall ill." I felt a tug as he tried prying her away. "Come on, he needs to be left alone first."

"On the contrary," said a voice, clear as the trickle of water in a sound-reflective room. What's more, his sound didn't hurt in my head nor did it sting my ears. With my eyelids feeling like overheated shutters, I slid them open and glanced around. My vision had deteriorated badly; at least before the needle I could tell the name of the blurs, now everything looked so distorted I couldn't tell the wall from the ceiling.

But Vesperius was as clear in my sight as he would have been to any normal zebra or pony. He stood under the blurry doorway, looking at me. Then he approached, taking deliberately slow steps until he came to the bed. Then he sat on the side and put a hoof to my brow; I flinched from the contact, but it didn't hurt -- it was the only thing that felt even vaguely clear and peaceful amidst all the muddled sensations and thoughts swimming in and out of my head.

"This is... no affliction of the body alone," he said with a grimace as he withdrew his hoof. He looked behind him at one of the vaguely purple-black blurs. "Quickly, get the sacrificial bowl and marble platform, and also one of the baby cerati. I must call for the gods' attention on this matter."

"You're serious?" Skyfire asked right next to me, sounding irritated. "Look at him, he's dying over here! We need to get his fever down, not kill something to call on some deities that don't likely even exist!"

"They're as real as the sickness that plagues your friend," Vesperius retorted. "And even if you were right, which you are not, it wouldn't matter. I have no medical knowledge whatsoever, and the doctors are still coming to deal with his physical situation. That is where they can help; I can only assist by asking for divine intervention. Would you rather I just sit here and do nothing?"

Skyfire didn't answer, and to that Vesperius muttered, "Good. Now if you truly want to help, get another icepack; his temperature hasn't lowered to the past few, which is a very troubling sign." Then he leaned close and started inspecting me. He couldn't keep his hoof on my neck for more than a few seconds; apparently my temperature was that high. "What could it be..." he murmured, "Bacterial infection isn't quite likely. Does neutralized Black Cloud cause fever? No, it explodes when it wakes up... stress is the most likely culprit. But he's a very healthy stallion physically... could it be placebo effect? Some poisonous thought? What an evil thing it must be to cause such dire afflictions. And his coat; Jupiter save him, he's so, so pale..."

He turned around for a moment. "Ah good, give it to me." In his hooves suddenly appeared the blue blur of what must have been the icepack. From the crunch of ice in his hooves, it must have been a solid block. He wrapped it up in some cloth and laid it on my brow, and I immediately wished he hadn't. The sudden application of such extreme cold felt like I'd had an icicle speared through my brain, and I jerked violently to fling the block away. The ice flew through the air and crashed into something metal, and a praetorian guard yelped in surprise.

There was a moment of groaning. "It... it melted, sir," the guard -- nothing more than a blur -- said as he handed the icepack over to Vesperius.

"Get another one," Vesperius ordered as he looked down at the supposedly liquefied ice. When the guard came back Vesperius tried placing another on my head. This time I stopped him.

"Please... don't..." I coughed softly. "It's not worth it... I'm not worth it. Just... just leave me to die here; that would be an appropriate end for inadequate scum like me." I felt... wrong, in every manner possible. Emotions were like mud -- useless and insignificant. My body and mind alike felt like a pressure cooker; the tension inside me would just keep growing until everything left me like steam, and then I'd be either hollow and lifeless if I survived or... dead. I preferred the latter. Death at least would provide me a break from all the echoing, maddening whispers and ghostly noises in my head; worst of all was the piercing ring, unending and impenetrable...

My words had earned me the silence of all in the room, that is until Myst's sobs broke out next to me. A flicker lit up in Vesperius' eyes -- the flicker one gets when one suddenly understands something no other does. "The Great Destroyer..." he growled in disgust. He took in a bracing breath and ordered sternly, "Everyone, outside. This is not a problem we can deal with conventionally. But there is a way for us to assist."

"H-how?" Myst choked out. "How do we help him? Please, he's even more unlike himself than he was a few days ago..." She let out in a shaky exhale, "Only this time he might die..."

"He won't," Vesperius assured her, looking at me all the while. "Not unless the gods have abandoned their plan for him, to which I know... rather, hope, that they haven't." Doubt sprang onto his features as he felt my temperature again. "You must all help me; follow me to the gallery of the gods, and after the sacrifice, we pray. This fever... any other person would be dead. It's not natural."

"No... don't..." I groaned. "It's not worth the effort..." I said, swaying my head left and right, trying to catch the barest of cool breeze from the outside to relieve some of the blistering heat. Suddenly my throat felt like it'd grown into a colony for ants, and I coughed out every last bit of moisture in my mouth, feeling my vocal cords shred from the exertion. "Just... leave me..." I rasped.

"Stop it!" Myst snapped. "Goldwreath, we are not going to let you lie down on this bed and suffer until you die of-of dehydration or suffocation or... or anything! Doodle and I are crying for you; Skyfire's been flapping her wings off to death looking for people who can help; Doomtune's been delaying going back to Madran just to see if you'll recover!" She held my face in her hooves, her body trembling. "So don't you dare tell us to let you die! Please, don't... please..." Her hooves trembled as she held me close.

There was a momentary silence. "Very, very troubling..." Vesperius mused. "In any case, we certainly aren't bowing to his wishes. Quick, get his memoriam galeam... his memory orbs should keep his body awake in all senses save mentally, thus he can keep fighting -- the best weapon in a mental fight aside from positive thoughts is a blank mind, incapable of self-destruction. Let him sleep only when his body forces it, for I fear sleep will... greet him with many a nightmare." He left the bed and trotted a little off. "Come on, then. The doctors should be arriving soon. Best we get on with our part in taking care of this... most disturbing occurrence."

"We can't just leave him alone," Myst said firmly, sniffing. "I'll do this, but... someone has to be here to take care of him. To give him water when he wakes or to help him up if he falls. That's all I need," she continued as she stroked my mane gently.

"I hadn't planned on leaving him alone, don't worry," Vesperius replied. "Tribune Justinian and his praetorian controbernium will stay here with him and make sure he comes to no possible harm. Besides, after we're done praying, you can stay on this bed with him and watch over him the entire night if you so desire. Have no fears of infection; this is no bacterial sickness."

Everything after that was a mixture of smudged up sights and stimuli. I knew they were leaving, albeit tentatively. I tried my best to not listen to their assurances of survival; it just didn't seem likely, and their words of kindness were wasted upon me, a failure. What's more, it caused me heartache to hear their anguish. When they'd gone, I was left alone to groan to the rumble of thunder, the heavy trickle of rain, and the searing flashes of lightning.

I felt a metal surface on my head, and I hissed in pain. The two guards strapping my memory helmet on were being very gentle, but every second my condition deteriorated. Soon they'd attached it to my head, and I felt an additional weight on my skull.

"I'm not... worth it..." I moaned weakly as my world started slipping off into another.

'Good that you know it,' Tod laughed, then growled in a low, vicious tone, 'Because I'm not done with you yet.'

ooooOOOOoooo

And I was in. Damn it. Why couldn't they just leave me be? Why not just let me die like the scum I was? I didn't deserve all their efforts. Now they were probably expending precious time and energy on me.

Just like in the real world, everything inside this orb also felt wrong, terribly excruciating. Only this time I couldn't yell or groan in my agony, and that only made me want to scream more. Yet I couldn't help but feel like I deserved the pain; if I didn't become the Praetorian everyone needed after all this pain, then maybe I didn't deserve to have their admiration.

'Damn it Goldwreath!' yelled a voice in my head. 'Stop thinking like this, all this suicidal lack-of-worth nonesense! You're only feeding-...'

'No!' growled the horrendously savage voice that was Tod. 'He's mine now!'

'Not if I have anything to do about it!' snapped the other.

The voices fell silent, receding into nothing more than ambient groans and whispers in the back of my head. At least the pain had receded, even if I could feel the sensations creeping in on me from the edges of my perception. With the decline in the pain, my vision cleared a bit. Now I could at least see what was going on in the orb.

Just like the world my physical body lay in, it was raining. I hadn't felt my host in my pain, but now that I could I realized that Veltrio was actually soaked head to hoof in rainwater as he trotted up a concrete road. The wind howled in my ears, making it impossible to differentiate the orb from the noises in my head.

Suddenly the roar of water increased, reaching almost deafening levels. Ahead, clear in the absurdly acute eyesight of my mutated ('or is he 'chimerafied?'' was what I asked myself) host, was the thick downpour of a waterfall raging off a cliff, onto the mountainside, and down into the foggy depths of the land below. My host followed the road until he came under the cover of the mountain, and the rain ceased bombarding me with fat drops of water.

The temperature of my flesh heightened, literally roasting the outer layers of Veltrio' skin. It was excruciating to both of us; more so to me because my afflictions heightened my perception of temperature to agonizing levels. The pain receded, and my host's flesh was dry.

Next Veltrio galloped quickly off the road and into a small cave on the dry mountainside. Once within, he tore off his weathered leather jacket and laid a backpack on the ground. He opened it and pulled out the typical operative black combat attire and quickly put it on. Once the helmet was fixed in place, my host incinerated the backpack and jacket with a quick, controlled blast of high-pitched noise that burst from his eyes. Then he turned around to face the rain.

The HUD lit up, revealing all sorts of information that I didn't care for. The only thing that caught my attention was a flashing notification, labelled 'INCOMING TRANSMISSION'.

Veltrio activated it with a stare, and at once the clear voice of Decarius sounded in my ears, "In place at last. Good. The others are still making their way to their positions, but your role can be initiated now."

"The target is Fluttershy," my host said flatly. "I'll need to get close to her. Her bodyguards should make easy prey, then I'll expose her to the gift until her mind is mine. After we've tricked her to assist us, we'll report back to Leviathan and cruise back. The plan is simple and we're prepared, my lord."

Decarius snickered, "Glad to have bred such determined operatives. It'll be a little more complicated than that, I'm sure you know, but I believe you can handle it." He let out a deep, relaxed breath. "Carry on then. Bring glory to Roam."

"Will do," Veltrio deadpanned, and the transmission went dark. My host trotted close to the raging waterfall and stood there, staring into the waters. The rain started getting noticeably weaker.

Before I knew anything else, Veltrio's mechanical body pushed him forward in a savage dash and he leapt into the air, piercing through the waterfall and diving through sky. An alien sensation spread through me as a sickening tearing of flesh rippled through the air, and bones cracked and reformed on my spine. Green reflected off the nearby raindrops, and before I knew it... he was flying. No matter how unnatural the wings I felt were, I could recognize the feel of those appendages anywhere.

He spread out his wings and broke his downward momentum, then flapped with monstrous energy to soar high up. Every second the storm grew thinner, and as my host crested the top of a raincloud, I saw why.

There were about a dozen pegasi, all working hard and flying in every direction, kicking clouds to pieces and pushing them off elsewhere. Veltrio growled angrily at the sight, and bolted forward like a bullet.

The first victim was a young mare, couldn't have been over twenty. Veltrio impacted with her, grappling her and squeezing her head in as he flew around to get at the others. The second mare hadn't even noticed the brutal death of her companion, and didn't get the chance to fly off before Veltrio ripped the corpse's spine out and lobbed it through the air, spearing her right through the eye. The bodies fell towards the ground and would have alerted everyone below to what was happening, but then my host focused on them with pure fury, and slowly the corpses disintegrated into ashes as they plummeted towards the earth.

It was now that the ten other pegasi had noticed what was transpiring. They flew off in panic, with two guard stallions clad in a golden armor being brave (and stupid) enough to come flying at me. Veltrio wasted no time in flapping his wings and bolting towards them. The impact bent their armor and their bodies slid across Veltrio's back as he continued flying towards the fleeing ponies, ignoring the guards for now.

They were all clumped up into two groups of five, easy prey for my host's next move. First he landed on one of their backs and tore off the stallion's wings. A visible green wave rippled though the air and towards the ripped off appendages, rapidly mutating them into two blade-tipped fans. Those he tossed into the other group as they attempted to flee, killing two more and causing mass confusion as the others impacted with the limp bodies. The remaining seven this time flew off in entirely different directions, flapping like they'd never flapped before. They flew and flew, disappearing into the mass of rainclouds that surrounded my host.

They'd probably thought they got away. They were so wrong.

My vision became dominated with green, and I felt a tremendous power pulsating with every beat of Veltrio's heart. My host raised his forelegs up, and thunder growled as the clouds seemed to lurch inwards with unnatural speed. Veltrio jerked his hooves downwards, and seven flashes of vaguely green lightning erupted from within the dark clouds. Seven charred pegasi fell, plummeting to the misty earth below. After focusing on them for a while, my host had set them ablaze as well. No one would ever know what had happened.

"When this is all over, all these deaths will be vindicated," Veltrio declared, turning around midair. Behind him were the two guards, armor smashed and coats bruised. They looked beyond enraged; I knew the feeling, I'd been there before. They were so angry they probably hadn't thought of running away or backing down, even though they saw very clearly what it was they were facing. Brave fools... but fools nonetheless.

"You abomination," one of them growled, flying off to the side to flank my host. "I don't know... what you are, but you will feel justice's burn for your murderous deeds."

"Of that I must correct you," Veltrio snickered. "See, the faults of my brethren and I are purely societal constructs. In the new world, barbarian, all honor and and pride will be Roam's, the rightful ruler of the world."

"You're a fucking maniac," the other spat, bringing a spear to bear. "You and all your fellow... what, are you some disillusioned Lunar guard or something?"

"Maybe I am a Lunar guard, and maybe we are crazy!" Veltrio chuckled. Then he fixed them both with a stare, red reflecting off the inside of his visor. "But it doesn't matter what we are. What matters are our plans," he growled in a low, foreboding tone.

They scowled at me and raised their weapons to attack, but they'd already started turning to stone. Their limbs dragged them down and slowed their momentum as they flew, and their terror became more evident with every second they descended. They flapped hard, struggling, while my host just hovered in place, laughing with sadistic amusement at their futile efforts. "This," he jeered, "Is why pegasus biology is weak -- wings are often too weak to bear truly heavy loads."

Soon their descent increased in speed, and eventually they didn't have wings to flap with. Nor hearts or flesh, or an expression that could change. For the rest of their freefall into the cloud-obscured land below, they were nothing but statues.

"Thank goodness they'll land on the rocky mountainside," my host commented as he flapped there idly.

'Give him up!' bellowed Tod's voice with an ambient rumble like rolling boulders on a mountainside. 'He's mine now!'

'You possess no one!' boomed the voice with an echo like battlecries. A scuffle ensued, and once more they receded into the depths of my mind.

With the pegasi gone and none to keep the clouds at bay, they eventually started reforming. Soon the thunder began to rumble again, and lightning flashed. Veltrio flew to the edge of the darkest, biggest cloud and slowly descended onto it. To my surprise, his limbs made physical contact. It baffled me; I'd thought only the natural magic imbued within pegasi alone allowed us to step on clouds, yet... here he was. An abomination, trotting on and defiling the home of my race.

"Are your operatives in position, Tecton?" Veltrio queried.

"We're in the crystal tunnels, still looking for a feasible exit," Tecton replied. "This place disgusts me; there's remnants of changeling cocoons everywhere."

My host nodded, "Alright. When you've found a way onto the surface, you know what to do and where to meet up."

Veltrio trotted a little closer to the edge, waiting for some sunlit clouds to disperse. It happened quick enough, and my eyes were met with color -- faint patches of dark white and dark red, shadowed by the presence of the rain clouds but tinged dark gold by afternoon light. The clouds moved on to the sides, and I saw it.

Canterlot, the capital of the Equestrian nation. Perched atop its mountain, just like it'd looked in books and films, too. It was majestic, easily the equal of any Roaman structure save the Forum. The waterfall I'd just been under stemmed from within the city. It was also huge -- not nearly as big as the original Roam, but it must have been an immeasurably difficult task to construct such a feat of architectural ingenuity onto the slopes of a mountain. Roads of concrete snaked all over it's level foundation, disappearing behind the dark forms of shadow-darkened spires and low-rise rectangular structures. Little black smudges moved slowly across the dimly-lit streets, melting into the darkness cast upon the city by the storm. Lightning flashed and stabbed the mountain and the city, but up here it was calm, peaceful even.

I would gladly have had him stay there longer just to look at the scenery, but suddenly, "We're on the streets. Assuming disguises now," Tecton said.

"Walls are clear!" another voice declared.

"Guards neutralized, bodies copied," another deadpanned.

"Emerging from the river; heading up the slopes now," said another. Various more reports called in, all confirming success.

My host smiled cryptically and replied to them all, "Very good. Blend into the populace, meet at the designated location. Begin Operation: Misguidance. Roamana potentia summum, amici." He took in a deep breath and looked over the city. Hexagonal patches of blue rippled across my suit, and before I knew it the black armor looked like pony fur. My host smiled again and looked off the edge of the cloud, scanning the stormy, vaguely sunlit city below.

Just as he was about to jump, a silhouette appeared from the horizon and into the sunlight, cruising across the sky. It was no single entity, though -- they were pegasi, all carrying a chariot across the sky. Several dozen of them flew in formation around the cabin; within it must have been someone important to have so many guards escorting him.

My host's smile widened. "A better disguise would be preferable..." he murmured. "And who better to get close to all the important people than he who protects the capital?" He laughed aloud, "Prince Shining Armor... your nation will burn!"

And then he took off, laughing as he neared the heavily guarded sky chariot.

ooooOOOOoooo

I awoke to pain, and lots of it. Every stimulus hurt like hell... but not as much as it had. My fever was still terribly high, but I'd stabilized at least. That much I could tell from the nearly normal beat of my heart. I opened my eyes a crack -- my sight had cleared a bit too, which was good. The rain hadn't lightened up, though; in fact, the storm that howled beyond the watery shield surrounding the Forum had reached hurricane speeds. Several distant grey outlines of buildings steadily declined, then collapsed into the earth. I could see with relative clarity the two praetorian guards standing on the balcony, staring out into the stormy, starless night.

I felt the warm metal of a spoon on my lips. "This won't help bring his fever down, but it will give him some strength," explained an exotic tune of a voice; I knew who it was. I'd saved her the day before from the axe of a minotaur.

I turned and spotted her. Zury was her name, if I remembered clearly. She wore her tribal clothing, supplemented with a Roaman toga on top. She had in her left forehoof a bowl of steaming liquid, and in the other the spoon she was trying to put in my mouth. My eyes glanced aside and I spotted my friends, sitting quietly in the corner, looking at me. Zury jerked back at once, setting the bowl down and calling my friends over. Two other entities in the room I hadn't perceived at first now came into my view. Doctors, from the look of them.

Doodle and Myst rushed closer, the former jumping onto the sheets, crawling up the pillow to be right behind my head. She placed her forehooves onto my forehead, looking down right into my eyes with a fillyish pout. The latter's worry was far more serious-faced. She wasn't just worried, though. She was exhausted, too. I could see it in the shudder of her breaths, in the disfigurement of her normally elegant mane. It made me wonder how much they'd done in their efforts to save me.

She sighed tiredly and leaned close, nuzzling my neck. "Are you feeling any better?" she asked softly. Skyfire came up behind her and handed her a goblet. For a moment I was worried it was wine -- I didn't want her to get addicted to anything just to relieve the anguish of seeing me like this -- but I relaxed when I saw it was just hot chocolate. Myst took it hesitantly and took a little sip.

I breathed slowly for a moment. "Little bit," I rasped. "Head feels like I'm fighting the battle of Teutoberg forest all over again; limbs... feel like they have no bones, and warm goo for muscle." I gave her a rueful little smile as I suppressed a cough. "But... I can think now, and at least the sounds of your voices don't sting like a blade, so yeah... better."

She let out a relieved breath and lay her head down onto the sheets, fighting to keep her eyes open. "That's good," she murmured. "For a moment there we thought you would have... burned up or, what I feared... died screaming." She shivered and looked up at me with a frown. "You just need rest, that's all. What Vesperius said was right. No bacteria, just... stress."

"Not just stress," a zebra mare doctor said primly, looking at a projected hologram of my brain. "His brain is alight with immeasurable activity. It's producing so much heat, yet... he's still alive." She glanced over at us, then trotted over. I hadn't noticed the thermometer underneath my foreleg until she removed it. She looked at the temperature and frowned. "No case of stress has ever caused a one-hundred degree fever..."

"That hot, huh?" I coughed, feeling my stomach lurch. I suddenly tasted bile in my mouth. "I'm no doctor, but that doesn't sound... natural."

"It isn't," Vesperius breathed from under the doorway. We all looked over at him. Like my friends, his face was glistening with sweat. He approached us. "Like I told you all, this fever... no affliction of the body alone. It's being caused by something else, something far more... sinister, cruel." He scowled, then put a hoof to my brow and sighed, "Feeling any better, at least?"

"A bit," I answered as Zury cautiously approached and got the spoon into my mouth. I gave her a glance and took a sip of the greenish liquid. It tasted like grass and carrots. Myst and Skyfire gave her a little more room to work with, and soon she was the only mare within hoof's reach. "At least I can talk and hear and see without feeling like I'm being scalded by oil."

"Thank the gods," Vesperius murmured, taking a deep breath. "Then our prayers are answered, or at least the gods have given the matter their attention. See, I told you both they'd listen to us," he said, glancing at my two friends. Skyfire rolled her eyes. Vesperius gave her a little frown and shook his head, but then smiled as Zury continued her spoon feeding. "You are... Zury, yes? The mare Flavianicus mentioned to have been unconscious after the little spectacle in the Colosseum?"

Zury paused and looked into his eyes tentatively. I knew the look she gave him; I'd seen it on shy mares like Myst and Kira before. The only difference was that Zury wasn't cringing. Slowly, she nodded, "Yes... chieftain."

"Chieftain?" Vesperius asked with a confused little smile.

Zury gulped and looked around, eyeing the praetorian guards with a mix of awe and fear. "Yes... my... tribe called all leaders of peoples chieftains. The leader of the Picts my clan called chieftain, even if they themselves called him king. The Briton warlord we called a chieftain as well." She frowned as though ashamed and looked around. "Why, does it... not apply to you?"

"Ah yes, you aren't Roaman," Vesperius murmured. "Not that that's a bad thing, mind you. I knew several good tribals. Some for their personalities, some for their abilities." He paused, smiling a little, and continued, "But to answer your question... on a purely technical level it applies to me, but I'd just prefer if you called me Vesperius or Legate." One of the doctors snickered and shook his head at the confused look on the tribal mare's face, but Vesperius silenced him with a sharp glare.

"I will... call you that... Vesperius," came Zury's slow but steady reply.

"Good," Vesperius smiled. "Now Zury, I believe I speak for all those concerned here when I ask: what are you doing here?" Zury paused her spoon feeding and gave him a confused look. I wanted her to continue; she was right, the soup she gave me wasn't for curing illness, but it sure as hell made me feel my limbs coming back to life. Plus it was tasty stuff. Myst noticed my desire and gently took it from her hooves, then proceeded to feed me.

"I don't understand," Zury said uncertainly, bowing her head submissively.

Vesperius smiled with amusement at the mare's timid disposition. "You knew very well we had doctors; everyone in the Forum knows by now that Goldwreath over here is sick. What I want to know is: why did you volunteer to provide your medical knowledge when he's already in the presence of the best doctors in the Zebrican wasteland?"

"You flatter us, my lord," said the mare doctor with a hint of pride. "We aren't the best doctors in the Zebrican wasteland. At the least, we're the best doctors in the city of Roam."

"All well and the same," Vesperius replied, waving his hoof at them dismissively as he stared at the bowed tribal mare, waiting for her reply.

Her sentences came out in slow segments, but they were clear and said with certainty. I found her manner of speech queer; in the Colosseum, her pleas had come out quick and loud. Perhaps she spoke differently when was nervous? "We of my tribe... we believe in repaying favors. He saved my life, now I do what I can to save his, even if... he is no longer in dire danger of death."

She suppressed a nervous choke as she reached a hoof up to her shoulder, then pulled the cloth down. She pointed at a tattoo snaking down her foreleg. The pattern was strange: a set of blood drops, all falling into a bowl within which were various organs. "My tribe made me their doctor before they were all killed. I thought that maybe I could use my skills again. It's been so long since I've been able to tend to a patient; I was... scared my brew would not help."

I slurped the spoonful of hot liquid quickly, then suppressed a cough. "Oh, it's helping for sure," I rasped, trying to focus on the rejuvenating sensation of the soup coursing through me instead of the hellish heat burning in my chest and on the pounding in my head. I groaned a bit as a sharp stinging sensation arced down my spine. "Still feel like hell, though." I breathed slowly for a moment before asking, "You sure you're in condition to be up, though? You were out cold when I saved you." My heart started pounding as I strained myself to speak. "And... what about... your sister? Is... is she..."

"Shhh..." Myst shushed as she covered my chapped lips with a hoof. "Rest and conserve your strength. You're not well yet." She sighed and brushed my cheek softly, then told them all, "We should let him sleep. He's been through so much... let's let him rest."

Vesperius nodded. "Yes, that would be prudent. But no sleep, not unless he absolutely has to." The graveness of his tone earned him the questioning stares of everyone in the room. He shivered, staring off as though he were having a vision. Myst gave me a worried frown, then leaned close and nuzzled against me.

"Alright," I said softly, grim at the thought of forcing myself awake. "I'll do my best to stay up." Suddenly my chest throbbed and my lungs squeezed, and a series of wheezes and high-strung coughs made their way out of my mouth. Zury came over and landed two soft blows to my chest, and my lungs went calm, albeit a bit stiff. Weird tribal zebra stuff right there.

Vesperius spent a few moments in silence, quietly impressed at what she did. "Very well," he said aloud. "Everyone, outside. Don't worry, he'll be right here in case you need to get to him. Just leave the equipment running to monitor his life signs. Come on, out," he continued, getting off the bed and shooing off my friends. The doctors left without a word. Doodle let out a fillyish whine and clung to my face like a parasite before Skyfire pried her off of me. Zury went out next, giving me a concerned glance before trotting out.

"That goes for you two as well," Vesperius told the two praetorian guards, who the whole time had stood silent at the sides of the entrance to the balcony. The guards looked to each other and held their position, then bowed in unison and trotted out. Vesperius looked at them questioningly as they did. "Justinian's praetorians seem to have an interest in you," he murmured.

"Justinian?" I coughed out, eyes widening. I'd heard the name mentioned before, but I hadn't realized the zebra it alluded to until now. Myst looked between me and the doorway, tentative to leave.

"Yes, Justinian," he replied. "One of the most senior of the ghouls the praetorians are, I believe. You must have been wondering what they were under those masks, well now you know," he said simply. Then he gave me a questioning look. "Why? You know him?"

"Memory orbs," I wheezed. "I... saw him, heard him speak. He was escorting Cadian, the Caesar's son, up those stairs outside."

Vesperius nodded. "Ah, so we know of him in a similar way. I myself saw him several times over from old surveillance footage, and was quite surprised to find that he was alive when they introduced themselves. He also has a fondness of cake, from what I've seen. Almost ate half of Cadian's on one of his birthdays."

I nodded, curious at the new information. I opened my mouth to speak, but he silenced me, saying, "Ah ah, curiosity! Listen Goldwreath, I've seen you and heard you speak through more ways than one; bots, helmet cams, radios, etcetera etcetera. I know you're curious of the past and now have a few new questions, but now is not the time. Assign curiosities and amenities to the proper time and you'll find yourself less stressed; that's how I deal with my work." After a moment he added, "Also the only reason I haven't committed suicide with paper cuts yet..."

I deflated a little. Of the few things that I was still sure of, being a curious pony was one of them. I mean, what had happened to him? Why was he a ghoul and praetorian tribune? Such questions flew around in my head, begging for resolution. To not get answers when I had inquiries infuriated me, and was a frustrating component of my relationship with Tom. But Vesperius was right. My head hurt like hell, and new information would probably be lost in the soup my thoughts were being reduced to.

Myst finally sighed and kissed my cheek softly. "Get better soon," she whispered in my ear, then started trotting out, her head bowed from exhaustion and worry. I deflated even more as I tried to speak, but couldn't get out any solid words to try to get her to stay.

Vesperius stopped her with a hoof after he noticed my struggle. "Ah yes, you. You remember what I told you all earlier?" he said softly. He leaned close and whispered in her ear (yet I could still hear them), "His illness is caused by poisonous thoughts and malevolent intent. Terrible, terrible intent. You can help him; you're one of the few who can." He glanced over at me and continued just as quietly, "He needs you tonight, and you him. You're a couple; Venus would have you two comforting each other in this time of need."

Without another word he turned and left, leaving Myst and I alone in the room. She seemed to be thinking as she stood under the doorway, her back faced to me. She glanced over her shoulder and looked at me for a moment, then gulped. Blushing, she closed the door and slowly trotted closer. Just then I started hearing bits of the talk my friends and caretakers outside were having; most of it was just garbled words and phrases, drowned out by the rain and the thunder beyond the Forum's shield.

She climbed onto the bed slowly, looking me over awkwardly. She wiped the sweat off my face and lay down, on her side and facing me, as she tapped her hooves anxiously. Her eyes widened and she clambered off quickly. "Soup! I should get the soup..." she said in a rush, nearly bolting to the door.

"I think I'm about as strengthened by that stuff as I can get," I rasped, stopping her dead.

She turned around and gave me a nervous little smile. "Okay then! Eheh..." she chuckled a false chuckle, then blurted out, "Oranges! They have vitamin C, good for fever!" She turned and went for the door again.

"And only work against bacterial sicknesses," I said, straining myself to speak. I frowned at her. "Myst, if you feel uncomfortable with the thought of being with me tonight, you can go if you want. Otherwise, it just hurts a damned lot to even speak," I rasped.

She wanted to help me. She just didn't know what exactly to say or do. She had no real medical knowledge, and all that could be done was apparently let me rest. I could understand that she'd be nervous to be around me; when you just enter into a relationship with someone (and I only recently learned this), such drastic changes as sleeping on the same bed could induce all kinds of anxious thoughts. Sure she was worried for me and would take care of me, but that didn't change the fact that we had just recently gone into this whole 'relationship' thing, and ever since then it'd... developed quite fast.

She sighed and turned around. "No, I'm fine." She gulped and trotted over, then hesitantly got onto the bed. "But... you're not. I'm worried about you." She scooted a little closer, pressing softly against my side. "He told us lots of times that this fever's more than just stress. He said he knew it was being caused by something you thought, or something you think you thought. I don't really know what to believe right now, though." She sniffed and looked me in the eyes. "So is it... true? Did you think something... I don't know, bad?"

I breathed slowly for a few moments, looking away and into the rain. "You could say that," I replied hoarsely. "But you know, it's better to know that I fail all the time than to lull myself into thinking I'm anywhere near as good as people think I am." I covered my face in shame.

She took my hoof and gently laid it on the side of the bed. "Why do you say such things? Why keep doubting yourself? Why can't you ever just... feel good?" she asked quietly, her face a reflection of the pain I was in. She sniffed and shut her eyes, then buried her face in my shoulder. "Why don't you ever see yourself the way others do?"

"Because I have to live with the knowledge that I'm nowhere near as good as they think I am, and because every second I'm not good enough more people die," I told her. Then suddenly I blurted out, "Myst, am I crazy?"

She looked at me in shock. "W-what?" she stammered. "Goldwreath, you're not crazy. How could you even think you are?" she asked, askance.

I frowned and looked away again, and after gathering up enough breath said, "Because every second I keep living I feel myself getting dragged into insanity. I'm just not prepared for the job I took on, alright? I came out here wanting to do some good -- and I have, I'll acknowledge that -- but... but it's not enough." I sank my head in the pillow and sighed. "Every day I ask myself all these... questions. Every day I get myself involved in other people's battles, try to do good -- succeed and fail -- collapse when the weight's too heavy, then pick myself up and carry on. That's been the pattern of my life out here -- but for what? What's it all for? Why do more people need to die because I can't get out of this rut and just be good enough?" I asked with a strained, tense voice.

She gave me a pitiful look. "You can't always be good enough to do everything, you know," she said softly. "No matter how hard you work, people will die. It's the truth of the wasteland. Sometimes, the only way to save them is to lose your own life. But then you won't be alive to save others." She sighed and put my head in between her hooves. "You just can't take the entire world on your shoulders and expect to succeed."

Her words cut right to the very heart of my ambitious little head. "Like hell I can. Augustus did; Julius Caesar did. Scipio Aemilianus took on Carthage, Roam's greatest enemy at the time, and beat it. And what were they but mere mortals, equal of any in all terms but determination and mindset?" I snorted and gave her a sharp stare. "If they could force the world to bend to change, then I can too. And I will, even if I have force the necessary common sense and reasoning into every last Roaman and barbarian that exists on this planet. For the glory that was Roam, I'd sacrifice anything."

Just like how her words appalled me, mine likewise shocked her. "Including yourself?" she gasped. Shaking her head, she responded, "Goldwreath I know you want to see the world change and want things to be better... but, really, there's just some things you can't do. Not even with friends and allies; everyone has limits. You can't keep thinking like you need to be able to take on everyone's hurts and problems just to be 'good enough'. You're already so, so much better than most. Why can't you just accept yourself as you are?" She stared off into my eyes, silently begging for an answer.

I let out a long breath and shook my head. "You just don't understand," I muttered, looking away.

She leaned close, placing herself partially on my chest. "Then help me understand," she urged.

I snorted, "But it's already plain to see, you're just deciding to not accept it. I'm weak, Myst. But I want the world to change now because it needs it now. So how does someone weak force something necessary? He becomes stronger through training. But even after all I've gone through, I'm still weak. So I need to train more, even if I tear myself apart doing it. Why? Because I believe that the prosperity of a billion future lives is worth more than just one me. So much more is at stake than just my existence, so if I have to sacrifice more than I can give or kill more than I can live with, I will do it all if it means this world gets its shit together."

"But... b-but what about you?" she asked in a rush. "Don't you think you should live to see that world? Don't you think that, maybe, you need to sacrifice less now so you can help out more later?" Her tone trembled with heartache, then with a voice so quiet she whispered, "Do you even care about yourself?"

"Do I even care about myself?" I scowled. "Myst, if you haven't noticed, it's survival of the strongest out here. I'm not nearly strong enough now to adapt to whatever the wasteland can throw at me -- hell, we barely survived together against what we've faced! So I'll need to train, to strengthen myself in every aspect so I can beat the shit out of this corrupted world and make way for a new one. When that is done, and if I still live, then I will know I deserve to exist on this planet. If I die, then that's that. Can't you understand why I need to question myself? Doubt is useful -- it shows me where I need to improve. It shows me where I'm weak. And most of all? It makes sure I never grow too sure of myself."

She frowned, deflating and melting into the bed. She sighed and closed her eyes. "I... understand," she breathed, soft and meek, and sniffed.

"Do you?" I prodded. "Because I'm so sick of having these kinds conversations. I don't want to be weak again, not like I was at the library or after you put me in that orb, and not like I am now. I want to get past these weaknesses so I can focus on what needs to be done, not muddle myself up with all these... these emotions."

She didn't answer, and it irritated me. "Or are you just saying you get it? In fact, why are we even talking about my motives when there's more practical things to discuss? Why are you so worried about why I do things?"

She kept her silence and buried her face against my neck, sinking her head into the pillow. I felt hot tears against my skin, and it baffled me. "Myst?" I asked, concerned. Maybe the tone of my voice hurt her? Or my words? Maybe I'd accidentally insulted her somehow? Oh, suffering to me if I was the cause of this...

She tore herself away from me just enough for me to see the deep pain in her eyes. "Because I don't want you to be hurt, alright?" she sobbed out through a shaky exhale, blinking in her tears. "I don't. I don't want to. I've seen too many good people die because they wanted things to change or because they didn't try to restrain themselves. I couldn't stop it, not even once. Not even for those I cared for. I care so much about you, and I'm scared that... that you'll die just like them. That I can't do anything to protect you like I couldn't do anything to protect them."

She turned away, trying to keep herself quiet as she buried her face in the pillow. Her words cut right at me again, and I realized that she quite simply cared too much about me to let me just do whatever I wanted. And damn me, she was right to care, too; if I had just gone out and done things, heedless or otherwise of the consequences, who would remind me of the immense danger when I was too blinded by my vision to care if not her? Who else cared enough to tell me straight in my face that I only had one life? Gods, I was talking and thinking like I had a thousand minds and a thousand souls to spend.

She was right to warn me not to sacrifice everything all at once, but I was right too, to some extent... sometimes everything you had was what was needed to get shit done! But doing that would hurt her, and more importantly kill me... crap, decisions, why are they always so difficult? I honestly didn't give two shits about what parts of me I'd lose, but she did because she cared for me. Roam or her? Glory and power or her? The choice... it was so fucking hard. Damn it... damn it, DAMN IT!

'You know which is the better choice, Goldwreath!' Tod barked. Then he chuckled and drawled, 'Imagine all the people that will never be born if you don't succeed. All the people that will never get the simple pleasures of being able to laugh or talk or see. All the couples that will never spring up, all the heroes that could have spawned from the Roaman people but couldn't because you were too fucking selfish.' He let out a vicious little growl. 'Let her suffer. You know that, in the long run, it's the right choice.'

Yes... it was the right choice...

'Don't listen to him, Goldwreath!' Tom grunted. 'You know you can't trust him. When has he ever wanted what was best for you or the people of Roam? He's the one trying to indoctrinate everyone he gets his dirty little claws on! He's a liar, you know this! Even if what he says is true, he'll find a way to twist you up and make sure you never succeed!' He groaned as if in pain, then huffed out, 'You... need to listen to her. Don't... throw all you have at once... it's never... a good idea.'

... but that was right too. Which one, which one? It was all a matter of what was more important. Did I care enough about her to never push myself too much so she could be with me, or did Roam matter more? Moreover, did all the people whom I could save matter more? Thousands now, billions later... all that versus one her and her love for me. Then again, what were the chances I alone could even succeed? What were the chances I alone could force the world to bend? It needed an example of change, and I could be that example, but in the end... I just had to hope they followed.

The world didn't revolve around me. The thought broke one part of my heart to miserable bits -- and worst of all was that those parts were those I had grown so used to -- but it also revived another. And this other part, it felt... strange, at the least. Like the fitting of new clothes or the usage of a new uniform, it needed getting used to.

'You know which is the right choice!' they yelled in unison.

Yes... I did. It was so perfectly clear. Roam had conquered everything, and so deserved everything completely. After all, what could have possibly been more important than the city that made the world?

The people of that city, of which Myst was one of, obviously.

I threw my hooves at her and grabbed her shoulders, then yanked her close and muffled her sobs with my chest. I couldn't do anything else as the deluge of hot tears soaked my fur, and like hell was I going to do anything to ever hurt the only mare who'd ever loved me even with all my failures and flaws. She tried to cover her face up with her hooves, but I nuzzled against her and pressed myself right up against her cheek. I couldn't help myself; tears of a bittersweet mix of relief and pain flooded to my eyes, and I did my best to keep my own sobs in as I held her closer to me as she poured her heart out.

"Shhh, it's okay, it's okay..." I stroked her mane quickly and held her close even as her cries started turning to choked coughs and retches. "Shhh, it's alright, it's alright... I'm here. I'm not dead. I'm alive, and I plan to stay that way. Don't cry, everything's alright..."

She coughed and strained her thrumming voice to speak. "Y-you're just saying that!" she retorted, then twisted around to face away from me and furiously wiped her tears. "That's what they said, too. Right before they did something stupid. They got themselves killed, okay? Now you'll get yourself killed, too. And I'll just stand by, unable to... un-unable..." Her words were cut off by a violent shudder as she fought to regain her breath. Even after she'd done that, she couldn't even continue. Instead, she just kept crying in long, guttural sobs.

Gently, I placed my hooves on her shoulders and turned her back around, even if she threw herself at me in futile resistance. I didn't mind. She needed to be cared for. Just like I did moments ago, when I'd been pulled so far as to believe that pushing myself beyond my limits was good. She'd helped bring me back from near-crazed levels of thoughts, even when my stubborn pride and self-destructive desire for improvement caused her pain. I could return the favor. I pulled her closer, holding her firmly as she rammed a hoof against me and cried noisily against my tear-soaked fur. "Shhh, quiet now... such a face shouldn't be marked by tears."

I'd made her cry, but every moment that went by the thought of her anger and pain being caused by more than just my behavior grew more certain. Everything she mumbled from in-between her retches and sobs pointed to it. And as her blows grew stronger, even still did I make sure she felt that she wasn't alone in her anger and pain, no matter what had made her feel this way. I'd felt those two emotions aplenty. I could help her bear them.

At last her blows softened and altogether stopped, and her noises quieted down to sniffs. I still didn't let up, and held her as tightly as before.

When she finally gathered herself up enough she pulled out of our embrace and looked up at me with bloodshot, puffy eyes. She couldn't meet my own for more than a moment, and she looked away shamefully. "I'm so sorry," she whispered, and started turning away again.

Not for the last time, I stopped her and turned her back around. "For what?" I brushed her mane out of her eyes, caressing her cheek.

She gave a hiccup. "Goldwreath, I know you," she said, twisting the sheets in her hooves. "You love the city. The monuments, the history, its language. I saw it in you every time you froze up, like at the library and when we got here." She looked away and closed her eyes. "And I also know that you really want to make it better. I get that. I'm not saying you shouldn't. I just don't want to see you get yourself killed trying to save it. Or even worse... go crazy. I've seen it too many times to be okay with it happening anymore." She let out in a shaky exhale, "I'm sorry for making you choose."

"Between you or the city?" I asked. Slowly, she nodded.

I gave her a crooked smile and looked outside the balcony and at the city. Slowly I said, "You were right to make me choose. It got me out of my disillusioned, fanatical mindset." It had hurt, sure. Left me feeling... oddly empty, even. Hollow. Like I'd had my goal made impossible or irrelevant, leaving me without purpose. Maybe even made what was left of my ambitions a little more complicated to pursue.

But it didn't matter that it hurt because she was right. What good was a city without a people; a culture, a society? Roam was decaying, both societally and physically. To stop both forms, I had to rectify the former, not the latter. Having that truth crammed down my throat right when I was going on an impassioned rant was... unexpectedly shocking, but I was enlightened, somewhat, by having my false notions swept away. After all, since when was an enlightening truth ever learned easily?

"Oh, don't say that," she begged. "You're not crazy. The city means a lot to you, I know. And you're right, a billion lives is... is worth more than just you. I'm just saying that you shouldn't-..."

"Get myself killed trying to save them, because then I'm useless when people need me," I finished for her. I glanced over at her and gave her a thankful smile. "But that's why you were right to make me choose. See, I was more than willing to throw myself into a grinder if it meant a slight increase in chance that the world would change. And that's where I was wrong. That's where I was blinded by desire and ambition." I sighed, "I don't even have that much of a solid plan on how to change this place, and already I was talking like I'd come up with the solution. And since I don't have a plan, best to take cautious steps. And since I'm being careful, I'll not get myself killed. That's all you want, right? For me to be careful?"

She sniffed again and hugged me. "It is..." she murmured.

"Then that's all there is to it," I said simply. "Unless I come up with some ridiculously suicidal plan that has a hundred and one percent chance of success, I'll be careful. That I promise you, because you're right; what good am I if I'm dead?"

"I... still feel bad," she said quietly. "I just don't like how I had to make you choose me just to see it. I basically told you to choose between a life with me or a billion people. I... feel so selfish." She gave another hiccup.

"And that's where you're wrong," I said. "Myst, in making me choose you saved me -- and therefore whoever I may save -- from needless death and suffering. My goal isn't one that can be accomplished by mindless sacrifice, I get that now. It can only be accomplished through careful, thoughtful actions that set examples for others. And if my words aren't enough to make you feel better, there was another reason I chose you." I looked away again and into the city; the storm had lightened up significantly. There was a much larger number of blue lightning bolts, though.

"The city doesn't matter," I told her.

She reacted like I'd told her I wanted to commit suicide. "What?" she gasped. "W-what do you mean it doesn't matter? You've been fighting and nearly getting yourself killed for it!"

"The city doesn't matter," I repeated. "It's made of brick and concrete and marble. It has no emotions, no ability to love or to choose or to hate. Roam's just a place. What matters are the Roaman people, Myst. They make Roam great because they can think and act, for better or for worse. I fight to make them fight for the former. And you?" I asked as I turned back around to put her face in between my hooves. "You're one of those people. And that's why, as a protector of the people and as your special someone, it is doubly my duty to choose you over some thousand year-old monuments."

She gave a tiny smile and looked away, blushing. "Oh... well, when you put it that way." She gave me an adorably timid look with those shy eyes of hers. "So, um... you're not mad at me or anything? Not... upset that I made you choose?"

I smiled again and pulled her closer, resting my forehead against hers. "Not in the slightest. Why would I get mad at the one who made me see what's actually worth fighting for?" I thought for a moment, then added, "I'm a little worried now, though." She gave me a concerned look. "You weren't just crying because of the things I said, were you? That was also about something else, wasn't it?"

She sighed and closed her eyes. "I... don't want to talk about it. Not now." Her eyes fluttered open and gave me a pleading look. "Just not now. Please?"

My lips curled into a gentle, understanding smile. "Alright. But if you ever need to talk about it, just let me know."

She smiled in return and stroked my neck. "Thank you," she said with genuine relief, then kissed my cheek. I recoiled a bit from the act, but gave her a loving smile and rested against her again. She pressed her forehead against my own, then breathed a blissful sigh as I wrapped my limbs around her and held her close. I could feel her heart beat getting stronger, her breaths becoming warmer. And so were mine...

Suddenly my internal temperature spiked, forcing heated air out my nostrils and mouth alike. My vision became blurry and I broke away, swaying my head in burning dizziness as I sucked in cooler air to attempt to get the heat down. Then my lungs spasmed, and throat-tearing retches blew out my mouth. I fought to get myself under control. Myst recovered from her initial shock and wrapped me up in her hooves, massaging my chest from behind until the tempest passed.

When I finally calmed myself enough to not writhe in the pain, I gasped out, "Right... I'm not well yet." I hiccuped as I fought down another wave of coughs before they could happen. "Oh, this vexes me terribly..." And had ruined our calm, peaceful moment of cuddling.

"Shhh, just rest..." she whispered in my ear, turning me onto my back to more effectively massage my burning torso. She was no masseuse, but I must admit it felt damn good. She gave me a kind, caring smile as she sat down onto the bed next to me and continued rubbing my front from there. "If you need to sleep, then go to sleep; you look exhausted."

"So do you," I managed to breathe. "And besides, remember what Vesperius said? 'No sleep, bad dreams'. I don't really know if it's true, but I'll go along with it for now if it means I don't worry more people."

She frowned in contemplation as she worked her hooves in circles over my chest. "You sure?" she asked. "Don't you think that you need to really give your body a time to relax? After all you've been through?"

"After all we've been through; I'm not the only one in the group, you know," I replied. "And... much as I don't like it, yeah I'm sure." I looked her over and smiled. "At the least, I'm not going to be alone. Tonight, I believe, would have been... very different, and very different for the worse, if you weren't here." Yes, it would have. I might never have had my misguided passion for Roam rectified, for example.

She gave a conflicted half-smile, still thinking that I should sleep. Then her eyes lit up, and she gulped, the half-smile fading. "Well... I guess you're right," she said tentatively, her massaging rubs turning to soft, slow caresses that ran up the length of my chest. "After all, I wouldn't want you to be asleep..." She gave me a warm, tender smile.

I gave her a queer look. "I'm not sure what that means..." And at her blushing but otherwise calm, somewhat expectant face I asked, "Are you alright? You seem... rather... I don't know, it's a look on your face. Something I remember seeing in some old romance movies, but I forgot what that look means..."

"You really don't know?" she asked, her expression amused at my obliviousness.

I gulped anxiously, my heart thundering in my chest. "Well... no," I admitted, and she gave a soft giggle. And to that I added quickly, stopping her laughter, "Wait! That face, it means... that... you... are... very, very... happy?" I finished lamely, giving a sheepish smile.

"Are you absolutely sure?" she asked, brushing my cheek with a hoof. Then she stooped down and lay down against my chest, looking up at me.

I was absolutely confused. "Er... ye-... no-... uh... y-yo?"

Yo? YO?! I wanted to face hoof so badly. What kind of a response was 'yo'?

She stared up at me, her sad frown evidence of her disappointment. Thankfully she wasn't mad. I could feel her heart rate going down, and with it, my own. I didn't know why, but I had the distinct feeling that I'd missed something really important and obvious...

She sighed and lay down next to me, pulling the sheets over us. Despite her disappointment, she managed to give me a small, amused little smile as she snuggled against me. "Never mind." She nuzzled closer and wrapped her hooves around my neck.

"Goodnight, Goldwreath," she whispered.

"You're going to sleep?" I asked with a frown. I'd thought she'd be up with me...

As if reading my mind, she answered with a little giggle, "I... had other plans, but... your cluelessness tells me that maybe it isn't the right time."

"Right time for what?" I questioned.

She pointed over at the corner, at her things piled neatly in a bundle. "Tomorrow when you get the chance -- and I'm sure you will, because you'll be in bed resting -- you should read some books I have in there. They're books about... well, remember our time in the library?" she asked, raising her head up as a glimmer of hope ran through her. "Remember what section we were under?" She bit her lip again, her heart rate escalating as her hope grew.

I thought, but my body and mind didn't cooperate. "I'm sorry Myst, but... I'm really not in my element right now."

She sighed as her hope died, then she rested against me again. "Oh, Goldwreath..." she murmured sleepily, laying her head against my chest, "Just... nothing. Yeah, it means I'm very... very... happy..." I waited for her to maybe give a clueless stallion a little more context, but she didn't. Soon her heart rate went down, and she started giving off the quietest of snores. She was asleep.

I tossed my head aside, tapping my lips in thought. "I... I missed something. I know it. But what?"

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"I give up," I groaned to myself as I wiped the sweat off my face. "Mares are hard to understand."

Two hours. Two hours of forcing myself awake and trying to think of what I didn't understand, and now I was exhausted. I wanted to sleep so badly -- hell, everyone outside was asleep; that much I could tell because all noises had died down like half an hour ago. So what was so wrong if I got a little shuteye too, nightmare or no? Really, the only ones who would have been awake at that hour were the Legionnaires.

Besides, the one thing I knew that nobody else did was that Tod had done... something... to cause me my illness. Whatever it was, I didn't care. And the fact was that, ever since my enlightening conversation with Myst earlier, he'd gone silent, just like the storm, which had been reduced to nothing more than a drizzle accompanied by the occasional lightning bolt.

So what did that mean? That Tom had kicked him out of my head? That I'd beaten him somehow? There was only one way to find out, only one way to know the extent of the damage that had been done.

I lay down and rested my head against my sleeping marefried, basking in the warmth of her soft fur. Moments like these... we all needed more. Especially me, I think. But right now my moment of peace had ended, and there was an enemy to be confronted.

I closed my eyes and waited for sleep to overcome my senses. I was scared for sure, but I had to find out what was going on in there. And as the darkness warped into view from the edges of my sight, I saw flashes of blue and green light up the shadowy depths of my mind, and I fell through distorted skies of nightmarish grey towards the bottom.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I crashed straight into the ground right in the middle of a literal raging storm, with rainclouds of blue striking a green-tinted earth with an energized deluge of sizzling water. Thunder roared in my ears and wind smacked my face as I struggled to get up, only to be toppled over by the luminescent tail of a large green serpent writhing across the dirt, scrambling away from the burning curtain of water. My eyes widened as the tail flung itself around, nearly crashing into me. I barely managed to roll aside as the appendage flopped about, liquefying dirt with it's touch.

I hadn't even gotten up yet when a colossal, bipedal being made of blue cloud and crackling lightning flew through the wind and rain and stomped right onto the serpent. The giant reptile hissed aloud, struggling underneath the titan's heel. The blue being only raised a glowing blue sword and brought it down onto the creature again and again. The dream world shook as the serpent's cries resonated through the earth.

The storm stopped all at once when the clouds seemed to funnel down to the earth, gathering into a tiny ball of crackling energy above the blue being's head. With the rain gone and the winds dead, I managed to get onto my legs as Tom drew forth bolt after bolt of lightning from the whirling sphere, striking the wriggling snake with brilliant, electrifying fury.

Slowly did my hooves bring bring me close until I was merely yards away from the scintillating, cloudy legs of the blue being I'd come to know as Tom. Up close like this, his power was truly a sight to behold. I would have been petrified at the sight of its awesomeness if I had been normal Goldwreath, back in the Stable, with no knowledge of the things I knew now -- with no thought of beings of power or chimeras or any dreadful things, and back when life was so dull and eventless that merely having my name mentioned over the intercom was an adventure.

Tod the snake managed to spy me with those reptilian eyes of his, and before the next bolt could strike him he gave a savage squirm, toppling Tom. The serpent hissed and launched itself through the air at me. But then Tom recovered and, swinging his sword through the air, brought it down atop Tod's slimy head right as the snake was about to sink its luminescent fangs into me.

Tom pinned Tod down, pressing the serpent's head down against the blade and causing a sizzle as the sword diluted Tod's green form. "Goldwreath!" Tom said in a rush, "You shouldn't be here! It's too dangerous. Tod has done enough damage to your subconscious, now you make your conscious mind vulnerable to attack as well."

Any regular person... any normal person would've been speechless, unable to answer the likes of these powerful beings. For who would ever think of their dreams as dangerous, exotic realms? Who would think cautiously of the luxury of sleep? Not any normal person; they'd look forward to it. No, the difficult, fantastical, and ever-changing life my friends and I possessed made us into different things, not meant to view and live existence the way others did. Just like Flav had said they would be, our days were more difficult, more eventful, because we chose to make it that way in order to pursue a worthy cause. And now while that difference and determination made us more worthy for the great rewards fate had to offer, it also earned us the burning spite of those who opposed us. Like the raiders. The slavers. The chimeras. Tod.

The question bugging me now was: would my sacrificing of a normal life -- and in addition my taking up of terrible burdens -- be vindicated and rewarded, or would my efforts fall flat on the earth to be trampled on by my victorious enemies?

"I know, Tom," I answered evenly. "But you must understand this is my mind. Whatever happens in here is a concern of mine." I brought up a hoof and rubbed my forehead. "Still, just thinking of my own head as a conflicted warzone is... indicative of brewing insanity. I feel very strange."

"You're not insane nor strange," Tom grunted as he shoved Tod's serpentine head against the sizzling blue blade. "You sentient organics are meant for lives far more eventful than what most of you have. You and your friends are the vanguard of a growing breed of people who'll be more involved in the workings of the universe and of society than even you are now." Then he growled as he pressed Tod's head harder against the blade, "All that needs to be done to make sure that process goes smooth as it can is for obstacles like this thing to be removed! You're lucky I can't destroy you like this, creature."

I opened my mouth to speak, but was beaten to that intent by Tod's impish voice. "Oh, the irony," he spat, then snickered, "So, you call me that now, huh? And to think, millennia ago you called me-..."

"Shut up!" Tom snapped, yanking his counterpart up and piercing the sword right through the serpentine creature's belly. At once the form started devolving, turning instead into something with more semblance to Tom's shape. "You lost the right to be one of us long ago! Don't you dare even think of us in that way ever again!"

After that Tom went into an absolute frenzy, ripping his sword out and literally cutting up the cloudy form of Tod until he was nothing more than a pony-sized wisp of cloud in his blue hand. For a moment Tom stood there, panting heavily and tightening his grip around the comparatively small being. "There is nothing left for you there. Only our hatred." And with that, Tom slammed the green form into the ground and with a mighty stomp blasted him into oblivion.

The world seemed to brighten up a little.

After a moment of silence, staring at where Tod had been, Tom stirred and faced me. His eyes, both glowing orbs in a cloud-face of blue, seemed tired and even a little sorrowful. "So you wished to see the state of your mind?" he drawled tiredly.

I casted a glance off to the sides. "You mean this isn't my head?" I asked, looking over the flatland.

He shook his head. "Not quite. This... 'place' is a constructed realm I made. Here I forced Tod to do battle with me, while your thoughts and motivations conflicted." He seemed quite irritated as he continued, "Your ambitious, headstrong pride and self-destructive doubt fed him terrible power. I almost lost the fight."

I frowned, looking away. "Sorry about that. I wasn't in the right mind. I... I see that now. It hurts a bit, but it's good to know I'm now in the right mindset. I am, right?"

He reached up a ghostly arm to grab the crackling spherical cloud, then absorbed it into himself. "Mostly," he sighed, rubbing his foggy forehead. "At the least you are now aware of your wrong. Furthermore your current state of mind is far better than the one I had to work with for the last week, so I can't quite complain."

"Well... good to hear," I replied. "So if this is just some constructed realm in my head, could you take me to my actual head? Show me what my mind looks like if it had a form? That is why I came here, otherwise I would've followed Vesperius' advice. Still, I don't quite see the nightmares he was talking about."

"That is because I won the fight," he told me. "Had it been the other way, you could have been greeted by the harnessed manifestations of your worst fears and anxieties, far far worse than that mental simulation Predator gave you a while back."

I shivered. I remembered that simulation. Seeing my friends die right in front of me, burning... too weak to stop it, too cowardly to act. It was just plain horrible, and never again did I want to experience anything of the sort. "Thank you for winning, then," I said, gaze cast down as I poured every bit of humble sincerity I could muster. "I don't want to ever see another vision or dream like that. Ever."

He nodded. "You're welcome. Glad to see some appreciation. Now, as for your head..." He lifted an arm, and seeming to crawl from within its open fist were motes of blue wisps, which spread out with incredible speed to the very edges of the visible dream world. At once the landscape started morphing, melting into a disorienting vortex of colors.

"Well, here it is," he said simply, and for several terrifying moments it felt just like when Predator had first put me into that simulation of his. Just feeling like it sent chills down my spine; the only clear sensation I felt as my head swam, waiting for the end of it. My only comfort was the knowledge and hope that Tom wouldn't do that to me.

The sensation faded, much to my relief. I found myself standing atop a cylindrical structure, like some kind of skyscraper businesstower. The concrete was clean and the metal polished; the sunlight clear and bright in a blue sky, unobscured by the faint curtain of ever present smoke. Birds flew by, flapping multicolored feathers in the cool breeze. VTOLS and fleets of gigantic airships sailed like grey clouds through the bright sky.

I gave the sight before me a good, long, perfectly awed look, before casting a questioning glance at Tom. The cloudy form of his face seemed to shift, curling into a smile. He looked at the edge of the building, then nodded over at it. I made my way over there, greeted with the growing sight of a horizon marked with skyscrapers... and massive patches of white rooftops... and then a squadron of VTOLS flying below... and then-...

I fell hard on my haunches, something that'd hadn't happened for a long time.

It... was alive. The city, completely restored back to its former glory, such as I could never have imagined. How to even begin describing its majesty? There were streets lined with green trees. Countless zebras and the occasional pony swarmed over the vast marble ground below, busily trotting here and there. Grandiloquent, titanic statues made of bronze stood at every corner, showing off shamelessly the power and pride of Roam. Spiraling towers pierced up into the sky like glimmering blades of glass; wide, dome-roofed temples of the grandest and most inspired make jutted up from the landscape like fortresses on hills. And then there was the Forum, towering above it all. Then the Colosseum... the Circus Maximus...

"What is this?" I let out in a shudder. "Is this paradise?"

Tom chuckled. "No, though I'm certain for people like you it must be." He walked over to stand beside me as I looked at everything Roam had been, and all it could be if every wastelander within it directed their efforts to achieving... this.

"This, as requested, is your mind -- this... entire world," he said aloud, gesturing an arm at the landscape. "Everything you see here represents... something; whether it be a subconscious desire or a conscious sensation or thought. Your every new learning and every mindset actively changes this world."

"I... don't quite understand," I admitted.

"Don't attempt to," he replied. "Long have sentient minds attempted to understand themselves, whether through invasion or manipulation. It never ends well; it's a rule in the universe -- full understanding of anything is impossible. We... creations quite simply don't possess the qualities to perceive everything. Perceive more, but never all. And besides, existence would be awfully dull if one knew all; no more adventure to learn or to meet or to achieve." He crossed his cloudy arms and craned his head backwards, glancing up at the sun. "In any case, all you need to know is that this is your mind, or rather as close a resembling image as I can construct for you to perceive and interact with. This place presents to you a great opportunity to learn of yourself in ways no other could, but it also has potential dangers."

Well, that was much simpler, and indeed all I needed to know. A smile crossed my lips. "Wow," I murmured. "So this is what my head looks like. It's so... perfect." And that concerned me. It was too perfect. My mind wasn't nearly as peaceful or organized as this. I frowned and slowly cast a look up at him.

Tom seemed to sense my intent, as he sighed when I turned to look at him. "But there's more to it than this, isn't there?" I asked, and he bowed his head. "And it's bad, isn't it?"

He stood there, contemplating. Then after a moment I was wrapped in a blue sphere, and a bright flash blinded me. When the world returned to my sight, we were on the streets right below the building we'd been atop. Nobody seemed to notice my sudden appearance, but they did notice me. They gave me good smiles and greetings, like I was some kind of minor celebrity, yet somehow they were cautious and even twitchy in my presence, as they would cast glances over their backs.

I would have gladly gone off to mingle with them, but then I noticed that all the military personnel in the area was giving me the most disdainful scowls.

"Stay here," Tom said. "And wait. He will come for you. Try to remember that everything you see is a construct of your mind."

"Who will?" I looked over at a pair of praetorian guards, both giving me horrible glares. They didn't let anyone stop them as they made their way over, violently shoving out of their way all who dared step between then and me. More praetorians joined them, and any who tried to stop their approach they started beating in the streets, much to my horror. I tried to stop them, as did others, but Tom stopped me and forced me to watch as the guards started killing everyone in their path with their blades as much as their hooves. I clenched my eyes shut and looked away, trying to focus on breaking free.

"It's all a construct of your mind's conflicting dogmas and principles," he told me solemnly. "Treat none of it as real."

"Cruelty is cruelty in whatever realm or in whatever form, and must be stopped in all cases. I won't tolerate it in my own mind!" I snapped at him, trying to not hear the screams as the slaughter went on. "Now, let. Me. Go."

"But that's the problem," he replied grimly. "Your rules don't apply that much in here anymore because this isn't just your mind now."

That stopped me harder than a bullet, and distracted me such that the slaughter had ended by the time I'd gathered up the wits to ask, "What do you mean?"

He let out a tired sigh. "Goldwreath, if this were your mind alone this world would be changing faster than you could keep up with. Towers would fall and turn into golden blocks; the sky would turn into fire only to fall to the earth and become water; the earth would tremble ad then be still as a corpse." He looked down at me with pitiful, sad eyes. "But it isn't, because your head is shared now."

Again I questioned, this time in a harsher tone, "What do you mean?"

This time Tom didn't answer my question, but instead looked over the streets as if in search. More guards appeared from out of the crowd, starting to form a circle around me and tossing away the bodies of the slain as if they were trash. The people wailed from their wounds and retreated, seeming agonized at needing to abandon me. "Tom!" I hissed, darting my eyes between the guards. Suddenly his restraining arm had gone. "Tom!"

He had disappeared.

I was alone. Without context or aid. Surrounded by some very disgusted looking guards who'd killed people for reasons I didn't know. I was at a loss. Appalled by their casual cruelty. What to feel or to think or to do, I didn't know. All I knew for certain was that I wasn't as welcome here as I'd thought.

There was one among the bodies who was alive, though. A little zebra colt who was brave enough to get up and dash in between two guards and rush me, the most frantic look on his face. Just for doing that he seemed to have earned as much disdain as the guards gave me.

"Generalis, generali!" he said in a rush, tugging me to come along. I was too take aback by him calling me 'general' to move, and that made him more frantic. "Quare venisti hic? Ocius hinc opus est ut ante-"

An energy lance speared him right through the throat, and his flesh sizzled and smoked. His blood was splattered over my face, but I stared into his eyes and held onto his hoof until the spear lifted him up and tossed his corpse away. "Quid est cum omnibus rebelles?" the guard who'd speared him asked with casual indifference to what he'd done.

"D-do you realize what you people have done?" I growled, my breathing frail and shaky. "You... you just killed innocent people! For little more reason than because they were trying to stop you!"

One of them shrugged and cleaned some blood off his armor. "Meh. Rebels deserve that kind of treatment. It's not like we should just let them live. That would commission a great many more offenses."

I screwed up my face and snapped, "But they weren't 'rebels'! How could trying to stop injustice be a rebellious act?"

Another of them replied much more seriously, "Because they stood in our way and didn't believe what we believe. You of all people know this." He gave me a malicious little smile. "After all, any potential threat must be eradicated immediately, right? Isn't that what you used to believe in; what you still believe in?" He smirked and looked away. "Must've forgotten how he used to deal with rebel scum before he joined them," he murmured.

I wanted to scream. To attack. To make these... corrupted constructs suffer. To make whatever part of me who'd ever do this to innocent people die to my hooves. This wasn't me. I'd made mistakes, but to attack non-combatants with blatant disregard was completely put of the question. A great rage boiled inside of me, and I readily let it burst and guide my actions. I lost self-control and charged. And they laughed and prepared their swords and hid behind their shields, waiting to impale me.

But before any of us made contact a voice, loud and booming yet suave and charismatic, stopped us all dead. "Ah, ostendat faciem suam et tandem!" said the voice, and a large red drake blasted through the air above us before landing on the marble streets with a loud thud. It breathed fire at any lingering citizens, frying several to a crisp. I watched in horror as their burning forms wailed and galloped away. I growled, then I took a good long, hateful look at the person atop the drake.

He was an imposing figure clad in gold-engraved obsidian armor, with plumes and a cape of purple and a face masked with black iron. He must have fought much, as his coat and armor was so bloodstained it was hard to tell his true color; he was no zebra, that much I could tell from his tail. The dark glimmer in his eyes gave me the strangest chills, like I knew who he was...

The guards, seeming to think nothing of the danger I could have posed, then all turned to him and rendered the Roaman salute. "Imperator!" they all said in unison.

Just hearing that word blew all sorts of fuses in my head. I stared at the armor-clad figure with shocked disbelief. Emperor? My own mind had gone so wild as to create someone who was an emperor? Just... what the fuck. How? I didn't have any part of me that wanted to be emperor!

The emperor responded with a dismissive wave. "So," he said with a drawl, "When did the general of the rebellion become so stupid as to walk amongst Roam's citizens -- my citizens -- and not expect to be caught in the act? No disguise, no escort, no weapon... it's almost as if you were mocking my ability protect my own domain!" He laughed, and his troops joined him.

I shot them all glares. "But this is my head." I scowled. "You... things... are the ones who's invaded it. I don't even know how you people came about!"

"Say what?" one of them taunted. Then he hid behind his shield as I tossed the nearest rock I could find at him.

"I said this is my head!" I yelled, gesturing a hoof at them all. Then I looked up at the strangely attentive, almost stunned, emperor sitting so highly atop his fire-breathing drake. "All of you! You, you, you, you, and YOU are all some fucked up images conjured up by some even more fucked up part of my head!"

The notion of them being mental constructs must have caught them all as hilarious, because they all started busting their lungs in laughter. Drunkards would have made more sane people. My mouth curled up into a disgusted, disbelieving grimace. I needed an explanation; an answer to the question 'why did these things exist'. 'Conflicting dogmas' Tom said; what conflicting dogmas?

'You've left me for so short a while, yet already you act is if you had never been in my shoes,' a voice said sadly in my mind. It was the emperor's voice.

Slowly, I turned and looked up at him as the world seemed to begin melting into a mural of wet paint. His eyes were sad, lost even. The laughing praetorians, and the buildings and the corpses, receded into ghosts, and the world faded out of reality and into a black emptiness.

And then we were alone, standing opposite to each other. We didn't move, only look at each other with questions in our eyes. Questions and emotions, like two long lost brothers finally seeing eye to eye after a lifetime of separation. Who was he, I wondered. And yet, somehow, I seemed to feel like I knew him more than I knew anyone else.

Finally he sighed, "Why have you come here? Why have you chosen to taunt me with your conscious presence so soon after you've abandoned me?"

"I didn't," I replied. "I came here to see what has been happening inside my head."

"You mean our head!" he snapped, lunging forward a few steps. But then he stopped, looking at the ground in apparent shame. "You see? You've already forgotten I exist."

I shook my head. "But I don't even know what you are," I said again, softer this time and without any insult.

He let out a small, mirthless chuckle. "Easily rectified," he murmured. Then he brought up a hoof and tore something electronic off his throat, letting it drop into the void below. Then he brought his head up and removed his helmet, mask and all.

It cannot be...

"You are I," he said in my voice, looking at me with the same golden eyes I had. His fur hadn't been coated in blood, it was just him. Did I really look like I'd bathed in blood? "We are one and the same. Goldwreath is my name, as it is yours. We share the same dreams and aspirations, the same ways and means. We are one, you and I." But then he frowned, turning aside. "Or at least we were, until you abandoned our unity and left me alone and our being splintered."

"H-how is this possible?" I brought up a hoof to my forehead. "How, how?" I begged. "When did I abandon you? When did I... do any of this?"

He gave me a tiny little smile. "Earlier tonight, when you chose to relinquish yourself, you left me. You betrayed me and all the parts of you that fought and bled for your ambitions. And I say your because since then you gave up your old self -- me and all I represent -- to make way for a new one. But that is the way of the world, isn't it? You abandoned me for something you believe is better."

"But... but we're the same!" I cried out. "Why did you not... accompany me when I chose to abandon those wrong aspirations?"

My words seemed to be insulting him, as he scowled and held in tears. "Because they weren't wrong! Because you've chosen to follow the path of the weak, and I've been shown the way of the strong! And I thank the one you hate and call Tod for that! He has shown me the true way to achieve glory for Roam, and it is not in saving people! No, it is in eradicating those who stand in my way so that they never threaten and defile Roam again!" He growled and glared at me. "And you? You've left those beliefs. Roam will never rise because of you. That is why I had to take them up. Because you relinquished them. The true way to save Roam, given to us by Tod. And now you would believe me a monster, but I am only everything you are. Except better."

"Listen to me, you disillusioned imbecile! Tod is a deranged maniac, whose teachings are wrong, you understand? You can't trust him." I stomped for emphasis.

"If you tried to understand him you'd find that you can!" he shot back. "You see? YOU SEE? Even now I show you the irony of your ways. You hypocrite! You believe yourself strong but are actually weak! You've changed so drastically at the request of... of a mare! Mark my words, when the time comes you shall see that the qualities I possess that you've abandoned could have saved Roam!"

I took in his words and growled, then repeated with undaunted determination and certainty, "You can't trust him."

He too seemed to take in my words, and with similar certainty continued, "I weep for you. You and all that you've done to your half of yourself. I shan't make your mistakes."

He drew his gladius... my gladius. "I see it now, you know. The truth. The truth you can never see. And I also see that he is right. I see that you have abandoned Roam, placing instead some... some random mare and her wishes as your first priority. I see that you are unfit for the task of saving the city. You are misguided, but believe yourself in the right. You have tossed away everything that makes you strong, believing them to be weaknesses and mistakes, and have created me. And now you face me, and can only question, 'where did I go wrong?' Well, I'll tell you where you went wrong."

He scowled and picked up his helmet... and now that I gave it a good like it was actually my helmet, but refurbished. He tore away the faceplate and placed the rest of it on. "You were wrong to believe in the goodness of people. They're degenerates, all of them, with no quality and no capacity to 'do better'. That is why they must all die, and the rest forcibly indoctrinated to become civilized. Then the world can be rightfully Roam's."

I shook my head. "You're wrong," I said flatly.

We circled each other for a few moments, staring into each other's eyes with restrained pity. He didn't want to do this I could feel it. He just felt that I was so wrong in so many ways that I had to be removed... somehow. And I felt the same way about him. Would killing me in this place make him 'me', though? Would it even matter? We stopped opposite each other and stood still, both of us tense. I didn't have a weapon, how could I fight? My only hope was to wrestle the gladius from him and hope that doing... any of this... wouldn't have a profound effect on... me.

We sighed in unison. Then with a cry, he charged.

Two blue bolts of crackling lightning struck him right in the face, seeping in through his eyes to fry his insides and sending him thrashing to the floor, wailing in agony. I could have taken that chance. Attacked, pulverized him and maybe even destroy... whatever he was. But something stopped me just then. A strange mix of understanding and pity. This wasn't his fault. Whatever he was, he was just another being caught in the crossfire of conflict and forced to believe lies. He was no monster, but a confused anomaly. And as I looked down at his flailing form and into my own agonized eyes, I knew then that I couldn't in good conscience harm what was, in essence, myself.

Tom landed next to me with an ominous thud, and looked down at me with a solemn stare. "You've seen enough. Come, let us depart." He stretched out an arm down at me, "Take my hand."

The other Goldwreath crawled, his body still alight with crackling electricity. And then more bolts struck him, slamming him against the ground in a spasming fit. And as he tossed himself about, he accidentally flung his gladius right at my hooves. Casting him one pitiful glance, I stooped down to pick it up.

"No!" he spat, dragging himself across the floor and stretching out a hoof. "You've left me with nothing but the darkest corner of our mind and your most hated hated qualities. Take nothing else from me, give that back!"

So he wanted it back. Just like me, whenever someone else took it. "Here," I said lowly, taking slow deliberate steps towards him, much to Tom's visible surprise. I took his hoof into my own, and gently placed the sword within. "Take care of it, even if it is just an image. We both value it, at least." Despite everything, I gave him a smile. "After all, we're one and the same, right?"

He looked up at me with disbelief, his face wide-eyed and mouth agape, like he hadn't expected me to actually grant him his wish. But then with the sword in his hooves he gave me a victorious smile and lunged up at me, grazing my neck. I staggered back just as he got up, and with another cry he pressed forward, the gladius aimed at my heart.

It was then that Tom, in similar fashion to when he'd saved us from Tod's chimeras, appeared in a nova of blue right between us, blasting us both back. He brought out his sword and sliced the air in front of the other me, cutting a sizzling gash right across his chest, and then grabbed me. Then without a moment's delay he whisked us off into the black void above, which was now a swirling whirlpool of fantastical colors and disorienting patterns.

But as we flew up higher and higher into the air and into the vortex, my other self cried out from below us, screaming.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I sat atop the hill again, the same place I'd been on in the great moment of doubt before I'd decided to help Roam. Of course back then things were so much simpler... so much more normal. After all, what regular person would have a being of power conjure up a place of comfort after having met himself in a more disillusioned state?

I had been sitting there for what must have been hours, thinking. I was quite certain time in the real world was going on much more slowly. After all, Tom, for how much he said he cared for me, would never have spent this long here when he'd kept leaving me to watch over others.

The silence stretched on to lengths I should have gone insane with, but at last Tom said, "I suppose you need answers? I can give them, though I'm certain some would cause you some discomfort."

"I've thought," I told him, "And in thinking I've come to realize answers aren't that important. No, answers are just the front of the explanation, plain and simple. What I really need are the explanations." I turned around at last and looked at him. "Can you give me those?"

He nodded. "I've spent a month preparing for this moment," he told me, "For this is the meeting I promised you I'd tell all." He sighed and rubbed his forehead with two fingers. "I must admit, though, that I would've preferred it when I could come to you willingly instead of being forced by circumstance, but a promise is a promise. Go ahead. Ask."

Despite the craziness that had become my life, I actually managed to find some comfort in finally getting this opportunity, which I had waited for over two long weeks for. "Thank you," I said with utmost sincerity, and began my interrogation with the all-important question, "Now, what was that back there? All that... was that really... me?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "Where to even begin..." he murmured. "Well, there's only one answer. Yes, that was you. Or rather the corrupted parts of you, and those aspects of yourself that you have... tossed away." He looked away and clicked his tongue. "For you see Goldwreath, your life as it is is very difficult for many reasons, but foremost of which is the single, fundamental truth: you are indoctrinated."

That word alone sent all kinds of nasty thoughts up to my head. "What do you mean 'indoctrinated'?"

"It means what it means," he said, tapping a finger against my forehead. "You are right, Goldwreath, your life is very... extraordinary. Fate has made you its plaything. That brings with it many good things, and many bad. In this case, you have been given a mind literally split between yourself and your indoctrinated self." He withdrew his finger and sighed, shaking his head. "What you saw just now was the physical... or rather mental manifestation of your indoctrination; that being, that Goldwreath, was everything your subconscious un-indoctrinated self segregated away. And why did those parts of you get segregated? Because they are no longer compatible with the newly acquired, accepted doctrines you've taken up."

I brought a hoof across my face, trying to digest all this... highly... confusing information. "I don't understand," I groaned. "None of this makes sense."

"Yes, I can understand that for you it may be difficult to understand. All you mortals tend to have difficulty with matters not dealt with on a day-to-day basis. But let me put it in a another way you may understand." He stood up to his full height, and with an upraised arm summoned before me a grand host; thousands of ancient Roaman legionnaires, all lined up in formation at the base of the hill. But among them were mixed barbarian warriors -- mercenaries, I think.

"Imagine this army is your head," he told me, "And the Legionnaires there are the readily accepted, typical things you think of and turn to in times of distress. Those are not taboo thoughts, so you can find comfort and familiarity with them." Then with a gesture of his arm he separated the barbarian mercenaries from the Legion.

"Now these barbarians here are another tale. They are unconventional and frightening, not acting the same way or thinking in like manner to the Roamans. They are the parts of your head that Tod used; your greed, your jealousy, self-doubt, self-loathing, suspicion -- all the bad, weak things that all people possess that he could easily twist. They are the parts he took and used to poison your mind until he eventually came to have such control as to directly influence your actions, but not so far as to outright control them." And just to make his point clearer, he then had the two opposing armies charge each other. Like waves of flesh and steel they ground into each other's lines like swarming enemy ants, slaughtering and killing en masse. "The reason why he has managed to use them to gain such a foothold is because he has managed to give their ways of reasoning some credibility, some truth."

"But what of the other me?" I asked in a rush. "If he is indeed the manifestation of all of my corrupted self, how did he gain sentience?"

"You have Tod to thank for that as well," he scoffed. "You see Goldwreath, you are a very... polarized person. At times you give mercy, yet at times you deliberately kill when it isn't quite necessary. At times you try to understand, at times you neglect. Your differentiating dogmas can't quite coexist in relative harmony like those of so many others, and so you pose quite the obstacle for Tod. He can't mix into you like water in sand; you've managed to resist him to the point that he's grown desperate, stupid enough to attack when I had so recently destroyed his largest chimera force and essence hub. So since he couldn't outright take you, he did the next best thing: he took the few parts of you he controlled, and he gave it a mind of it's own. And he made that part believe in him, and not in you; he made it loathe you, feeling like you'd abandoned the right path when in fact you hadn't."

I turned and looked away, looking at the ground and licking my lower lip as I took that in. "So I have a sentient entity made of all my bad qualities roaming around inside my head, actively trying to take control of me. Great..." I groaned, then sat down on my haunches. "Fucking... great..."

He sat down with me as well, patting my back amiably. "I understand this is all a lot to take in-..."

"No fucking shit," I interrupted.

"... but let us take comfort in the things we can take comfort in," he continued.

I sighed and looked up at him. "Oh yeah? And what things are those?"

He smiled down at me. "Victory, for one thing." He gestured out over the army, and at once the Legion started gaining more cohesion, forming a solid line of shields. "And an unconventional one at that. You see Goldwreath, when you relinquished your pride and ambition earlier tonight at the request of Myst, you actively rejected many of the corrupted thoughts fluttering about inside your head. That single occurrence, that one moment of caring emotion, has won you more mental liberty than a whole month of struggling. Now that you have rejected those vanities of yours, and now that you know they are weaknesses in this mental war, Tod will be all the more hard-pressed to find a way to get at you save exhausting direct attacks."

"That's great and all, but that also kind of picks wide-open a still-fresh wound," I said sullenly. "I don't like having abandoned my ambition, Tom. I wanted it so badly, and, I admit, all the power and glory that could have come with it. Sure I still get to pursue it, but... just not in the way that'll get to goal fastest."

He nodded in understanding. "And I get that, but think of it this way." He gestured over the Legion again. "You see Goldwreath, Roamans were very self-centered in many ways, especially when it came to status and popularity. Such is the same with you. Sometimes you think like a politician; thinking of others as threats and detriments to your goal. The trick is to think not like that, but like the soldier." He conjured before me a Roaman zebra Legionnaire, standing tall on his hindlegs and looking straight into the air with stern determination. "Soldiers don't fight primarily for glory, they merely follow orders. They have dreams, but more often than not they aren't nearly as grand as those politicians and commanders would have. They're simple people with simple desires most of the time, and often want nothing more than the safety of their homes, and often just think of money or power as bonuses, not primary incentives to service."

"Huh," I mused. "That actually makes sense. Most of it, anyway."

"I'm glad you see it, then," he replied. "So do you think you'll be able to do that? Set pursuits of power and prestige aside, and accept them only when the situation hands them to you?"

It took me a lot to get it out. Like there was some obstruction in my throat. But then I found that I was simply hesitant, and didn't want to. "I'll do my best. That's all I can give," I said flatly.

He cocked his head sideways, then sighed and glanced over the battle again. "Very well. No one can give more than what they can. All I ask is that you be careful, you understand? Care-ful. Any emotion and intuition in your head can be very dangerous, and whether it is natural or corrupted, I cannot always say."

"I'll do my best," I replied, gaining the same cocked head and sigh. We sat there for the next few minutes, watching as the battle raged on for eventual victory to the Roamans. My mood was muddled up with all kinds of emotions, but I did find some comfort in their raging victory cries. More comfort than I thought I could find, actually.

"So what are you exactly? What are you to possess all this power and knowledge?" I asked at last. It was the second major point I had lined up for my interrogation. "If there's any time for me to find out, it's now. You promised, you know."

He stretched forward an arm and rubbed it along the back of his head. "Well, I've prepared to answer this for two weeks now. I guess I knew this was coming. What do you want, the straight answer or the longer answer?"

I gave him a strange look. "The... short answer, if it means I get it right away."

He nodded. "Alright then. So comes the moment." He took in a bracing breath, and with finality said, "Now, different cultures know me by different names. The majority of the tribal zebras call me by the collective name 'the Stars'. Many peoples during the war alluded to me and my kind every time they said 'alien'. The Roaman culture, however, calls me differently. To them, I am Jupiter god of the skies. I am also Neptune, ruler of the vast oceans; and they also call me Hades, ruler of the dead . I am, to put it short, the gods and goddesses of Roam."

Well... damn.

I don't know why, but I was strangely calm. Maybe if I'd learned this the first time I'd met him it would have made me hyperventilate in shock, but after everything I'd seen and felt and gone through... honestly, knowing that my guardian was a nigh-omnipotent alien with nigh-omnipotent alien enemies kind of made everything make a little more sense.

My calmness was such that it got Tom concerned. "Are you alright?"

"Oh yes, I'm perfectly fine. I happen to like the prospect of having gods who are also aliens in my life and in my head." I groaned and covered my face. "You know, when I woke up earlier, I'd hoped for a slow-paced day where I could rest and talk with my friends like any normal person would. Now I'm sick, literally fought myself, found out what you are, and -- fuck it my life is screwed up beyond all repair, there's no point in trying to circumvent that." I shook my head and leaned tiredly against a nearby boulder.

He gave me a sympathetic look and scooted a little closer. "To be honest, though, I'd assumed you had already figured out what I was. Haven't my allusions to the gods been enough?"

I scoffed. "I guess my mind's slower than I'd thought it had gotten." I groaned again and looked over at him. "What allusions, though?"

"Well, for one thing my use of lightning. For another, the time I told you you were saying things in my name. Also what Vesperius said; that the gods were watching over you."

"I don't believe in omnipotent deities. Still don't. You're not actually 'gods', are you? Gods as in, 'we control the entire universe' kind of crap. Do you actually control all of the universe or something?"

He shook his head. "No. And I don't intend to explain exactly how that works right now. That is an explanation for another time."

"Well, there you go. No such thing as gods, only powerful beings. They're different. So excuse me if I didn't catch on you being 'the gods'."

"Alright." He drew back in a gesture of submission. "I can see that you'll need some time to get over all that you've learned tonight. I can imagine that anyone in your shoes would need a good, long, relaxing rest to cope with this kind of stress."

"Oh please," I groaned, rolling my eyes. "How could I possibly find some sanity and normalcy in my life at this point? How could I live 'normally' anymore when I now know that aliens and what ancient people called gods actually exist? How could I possibly spend another day not bothered by... by all this shit?" I threw my hooves aside in my exasperation.

"Well then," he said, finally getting up and stretching. His blue form flashed and rippled, and suddenly he looked like an extraordinarily tall zebra wearing a long white toga, and in his hooves he held a bolt of blue lightning. "If you really feel that way, it's all the more reason to try to find some relaxation. Trust me when I say it'll really help you, however ridiculous you feel your life has become. That's all I can say to you after all I've already said. Now, as for me..." He looked over at the horizon and lifted his blue bolt into the air. "... I must depart. There are other prayers to answer and sacrifices to tend to aside from those meant for you. Many, in fact; the Roaman people still have faith in their gods, despite the apocalypse. Remarkably logical and industrious spiritual people."

Before he went, though, he turned to face me. "You should wake up before I leave, though. It's significantly more exerting on my part trying to leave a mind when there's a dream barrier to break through than if there were none at all. Sounds strange to you, I know, but believe me when I say that I'll need all my energy when I try to make the people feel like there's still someone above them that takes care of them."

I sighed and lay back against the rock. Then I got up. "Fine, how do I do that?"

"It should come naturally," he told me, and I gave him a questioning look. "It's already six AM."

I gave him a quizzical look, then rolled my eyes. "Right, so I guess you'd know when I wake up too. Tell me, is there anything you don't know, considering that-..." And then suddenly I collapsed onto my back, watching in immobile paralysis as the world melted, gathering up into a whirlpool that funneled down onto my forehead and entered my skull.

Bur right before I entered the physical world again, Tom stooped down and said softly in my ear, "You should improve on your social skills, by the way. You missed quite the opportunity last night."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Considering what had happened in my head while I was out, it really didn't come as a surprise that I had a headache. Then again I'd had headaches with such frequency the last month that I'd gotten used to them.

'Relax', Tom had said. It was a lot more complicated than just doing that. All my problems, all my concerns and troubling knowledge all just piled up together to form one big, dark, ominous cloud of worry that just wouldn't go away. And I had no one to freely share it all with, not even Tom, no matter how well he knew my head. How could I ever relax anymore, anyway? How could I ever look at anything and just see it as... just that. 'It's just a statue' of Jupiter. No, it has Tom carved all over it. 'It's just a normal zebra with scaly patches of fur'. No, it could be a fucking chimera. 'Oh, it's just Predator trying to save lives and make my day easier'. Oh wait, no, he fucking killed them all!

I tensed and slammed my head back against the pillow, groaning. There was no chance this relaxing business could possibly work, no chance it could even start, no chance I could even approach my friends about-...

"Goldwreath?" Myst murmured sleepily, pressing up softly against my neck and rubbing a hoof across my chest. "Something wrong?"

Well... on the one hoof, Myst's fur was of just the perfect softness to make me feel like I was having my flesh massaged by thousands of expert masseuses. And on the other, it's not like I didn't want to not relax, I just couldn't see how I could ever feel normal or good again after all I'd gone through.

Just then she shifted, climbing onto my chest and looking at me quizzically. "Goldwreath? You look... troubled. Are you feeling okay?" She placed a hoof to my neck. I was about to respond with a 'no' -- even if I wasn't quite ready to give an explanation as to why -- when she suddenly piped out, "Hey! You're not sick anymore! Oh, this is just wonderful, I was so worried about you!"

She took me into a tight, warm hug, squeaking in glee all the while. I decided to just go along with it and took her in. But honestly, I just couldn't keep the hug false when I was having such soft, heavenly fur rubbing against my own. So I just sucked it up and embraced her, basking on her touch.

She pulled away, giving me a beaming grin. "Oh, this is great! I-I have so much I want to do with you that I couldn't because you were sick but no you're not so I can and now that I can I-..." She stopped mid-rant and gasped. "The books! Oh yes, the books that I really think you should read because I think you'll like them not only because they're about stuff I think you'll like but also because they have stuff that I'll like too so we can both like it and read together and-..."

"Okay, you need to gather up a little breath before you suffocate," I interrupted, grabbing her shoulders and giving her a reasonable smile. "And don't make too much noise. The others might still be asleep, you know."

She was trembling with anticipation and the remaining ecstasy of her gleeful surge, but steadily relaxed until her smile wasn't as wide as Doodle's. "You're right, you're right. Eheh, I got a little carried away there."

"Yeah, you did." I brushed the mane out of her eyes. "You were like a little ball of ecstatic energy back there."

She gave a cute little giggle. "Well, I was just really excited. I like reading, you know. I didn't get a lot of time to do it while we were out there, so I thought maybe I could do it now." She gave a shy smile and added, "And maybe I could do it with you."

It was six AM. No one was awake. I always woke up at that time, and when I did I'd either train or... well, read. So I supposed reading with her wasn't such a drastic change from my usual morning routine. Not like I'd exercise anyway, I'd just recovered from one hell of a fever. I gave her a sincere smile and said, "Well then, grab your books. I'm available the whole day."

She nearly jumped straight out of the bed at those words. Actually she did, but not before giving me a quick thank you and a hug. She came back with an extraordinarily thick book in mouth and jumped onto the bed, ducking under the sheets and emerging right in front of my face. She placed the book onto my chest and shot me an excited grin.

"Cute," I chuckled, smiling and shaking my head. I grabbed the book and opened it on the first page while she pressed right against me, looking at the text. "What book is this, anyway?" I asked her.

She let out a carefree sigh, then responded in a relaxed tone, "Something called 'A Night In The City of Roamance'. The author made a terrible pun there, but I think it's good. You'll like it you know; it's about how a mare and a stallion found each other through mutual interest in all things Roaman, and through obstacles great and small managed to come together."

Well, the idea was pretty used up. But hey, if she thought we'd both like it, then we'd both like it. And I did, just after reading the first few pages. The author just had this way of saying things in the most optimistic light such that just saying the character got off the bed sounded like he was having a party.

I was surprised to find that I'd read almost the whole first chapter in just under an hour. Myst just listened all the while, giggling when I said a word wrong and telling me which words she liked the sound of. "Isn't this just relaxing?" she asked me.

I didn't respond for a good long moment as I thought it over. Was it relaxing? Definitely. Did I enjoy it? Absolutely. Did I like making her feel good? No doubt about it. Most importantly: did it do us both good? Hell yes.

I smiled and lay my head against hers. "More relaxing than you could imagine," I told her sincerely, then added quietly, "And more important than you know."

Alright. Maybe my life wasn't that bad just yet.

Footnote: Level Up
New perk gained: It's My Mind, Level Two -- He almost got you there, but he didn't. For your enormous efforts at resisting Tod's corruption, you gain another Mental Resistance point.

Detrimental perk gained: Not In The Right Mind -- Well, you put a whole new meaning to having a split personality. Other Goldwreath, who manifests all kinds of bad things about you, will attempt to take over you from time to time. When this happens, you get -1 to all SPECIAL attributes, -10 to all skills, and -1 to your MR attribute.

Follower perk gained: Soul Talk -- Myst knows what to say to get someone to think. When she is with you, she can automatically persuade various characters to act for your benefit.

Chapter 21 - Bastions

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Chapter 21
Bastion
"Homes can be rebuilt. Crops can be resown. Within these walls, we will outlast them."

One defining trait most Roamans had, especially in ancient times, was a kind of unified militaristic view on violence and conflicts. Sometimes they even viewed it with entertainment, such as with the gladiator games. The resulting people tended to be indifferent to violence and suffering, and if they didn't actually enjoy them, they at least had a staunch resistance to their negativity. War and its many horrors, therefore, grew familiar with the Roaman people, and they sought it wherever they could. Sometimes they basked in it, waging prolonged warfare for mere glory. It was the Roaman way of life.

But I appreciated the value of peace; more than that, I wanted the Roaman world to value it, too. I wanted them to value it over selfishness, greed, pride, hate, and prejudice. But most of all, to value it over war.

Now, for sure those who'd spent their lives fighting and clamoring would have grown accustomed to the evils of the world. It would be a daunting task to get them, a warlike people with little exposure to the benefits of a more positive way of thinking, to understand the way I saw things should have been. But there was hope; hope that, somehow, the original good and rational nature of the sentient creature would rise up above the hatred bred by the wasteland. I knew that nature could come up, I just knew it. All it needed to rise up was some inspiration, a kind of... image of a better world. And adding to that hope was the fact that that necessary inspiration was of great abundance. Roam, the city that embodied all the good of things natural and artificial, stood all around them after all. She was a tarnished image of the opulence to be regained, but she wasn't completely faded yet.

But of course, some images of the inspiration she could give were downright pristine and ready to be looked up to. Like the Forum, in which I was residing. Places like these -- centers of knowledge and learning, of peace and prosperity, and of more practical things such as economy and military facilities -- would house Roam's hope for a better future. They were the seeds of a new olive tree, waiting to be planted. And when she would be strong again, Roam would once more stand tall, with branches strong enough and wide enough to cover the world.

But until then, they were merely bastions of Roaman values, and were under siege from the wasteland. And me? I intended to break that siege. And I intended to break it forever.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

In line with what Tom had suggested I do, I spent the entire day after my mental ordeal resting and distracting myself from the whole slew of questions that now plagued my head. In the morning, I'd read roughly a fourth of the book Myst had brought up, and grew to like it. When Skyfire and the others awoke, we retreated into the main room and talked. The disbelieving doctors, meanwhile, continued monitoring my life signs for the next hour before departing. My friends too didn't quite believe I was well already, but who could blame them? I could have died last night, if left to Tod's malicious intent.

Still, well I was. Soon our talks shifted from making plans for the future to staying for at least a week, however, and all because of one reason: Roaman hospitality, in the form of a surprise brunch. As it turns out, Vesperius had had the servants prepare for our prolonged stay; in fact, after a few questions, the mares admitted (to none but me) that there were already arrangements made to cater and serve us. Skyfire treated the announcement with glee, and went off to sleep in her room, snoring as loudly as ever. Doodle, too, showed great excitement, but went off and explored the entire Forum instead of resting.

Meanwhile Doomtune started setting up radio equipment to contact Home Base (equipment he obtained from his absolutely bloated backpack), as he didn't plan on leaving just yet. When I asked why, he responded with an easy chuckle and a shrug, saying, "Why not? How often can someone rest in a safe and decent place? Not often, and I intend to make the best of this place while I can. The wasteland can suck it." He had a smile on, but I looked past it and saw the hesitation in his eyes. The hesitation to go back out there. "Besides, Madran put me on this little trip with you to make sure you stay in one piece. I ain't leaving until I'm sure you're going to live. You're a Specter asset; get used to it."

I shrugged. "Well, I'm alive right now," I told him.

"You were alive last night too, but burning up like hell. I'll leave when I can safely say you'll be alive if she ever decides to meet you. Aside from that, there's been no real fighting since the dam, and I can count on operatives Databank and Marathon Runner to have the sense to get it to Madran that Roamana's not hostile, so I guess I needn't hurry. Equestrius is being recalled, too; have you seen the fields lately? Stuffed to the brim with incoming Legionnaires."

I nodded; I hadn't had much time on the balcony, but I had a little break when we were reading earlier, and I just managed to glance on an incoming troop column. "They're being transferred to Arx, if I remember. Flavianicus' previous garrison has to be filled by someone, right? As for when they leave, though, I can't say. At least Roam's new garrison will be better... I hope."

He snickered. "Bastards'll get their due for what they did. They'll freeze their nuts off there."

I cocked my head, curious. "How so?"

He plugged in a few wires into a speaker. "Well, Arx used to be the tourism spot of the Roaman Empire when they were allies with Equestria. Lots of fancy equipment, like a set of artificial winter turbines. Made snow and all that, and distributed the ice through networks of pipes. It was also the only city along the coast not razed by the invasion because it didn't have anything worth destroying; no major factories, no major ports or runways. Just a city that loved its winter festivals and tourist attractions."

He gave a little smirk as he continued working on his equipment. "Bombs never hit it too, but the place was one of the few still celebrating Saturnalia during the war. When the bombs did start burning everything in the empire to a crisp, the people of Arx turned tail and fled, quickly boarding the few ships in port and sailing to gods knows where. Those left behind either died or tried to find shelter from the incoming holocaust. And through all the chaos, no one bothered to turn off the turbines. For the past two-hundred years, they've been locked on the on switch, never running out of power thanks to an absurdly robust power network. It's impossible to break all the ice away now; atmosphere there's been permanently changed by the magics and tech used to make the snow."

A city, frozen in snow and ice... in the blistering heat of the wasteland, that was either a seductive paradise or a new hell on its own. "That's the most bizarre story for a city I've heard yet." I shook my head, contemplating how people could live in such a place. "Frozen, forever, in the twisted outcome of a festival celebration... damn."

"You make the place sound dead," he said as he started looking for an outlet, then corrected, "Well it ain't. Place has a practically indefinite quantity of ice. In a land where most functioning machines would kill you, a set of giant snow-makers is a nice change. The snow also made good camouflage, and made the city a good hiding place. More people caught up on that principle, and now the place is a refuge for runaway slaves and all other sorts. Hollowed-out and insulated interiors and subways make living there bearable, but food's a problem."

He paused, thinking for a moment and twirling a wire in his hooves. "Or at least it was until the Legion came in; I'll give them credit, they sure know how to restore a place. The people of Arx loved snow, you see, and had it almost year-round. Being far from the nearest major food-supplying city, they then adopted Roam's idea and started constructing bio-domes and underground farms. Legion restored those, so in a sense the place's is one of most well-off cities in the Empire's remains. Few raiders would make the effort to gear up for a winter environment, and even fewer take the time to scour every desolate building. When the Legion was there, it made their jobs even harder. So now the place has practically no raider activity, just the occasional bandit. Still, the locals kind of saw the Legion as a... call for unwanted attention. Hence why I said they weren't all that loved there."

I stood for a moment, thinking on all the new information. Then I smiled. "Well, good to hear of a city that doesn't have constant warfare. Could you tell me more about it?"

"Ah, there's the outlet..." He stooped down and plugged the wire in, and at once the radio gave a crackle of static. He got up and faced me. "Tell you more? Well... there's no major conflict there, just the occasional skirmish, but... yeah, I guess it's relatively peaceful there. Living conditions are still harsh, though, and travel can be... confusing, unless you know your way well. Constant build up of snow would have covered every rooftop by now if it weren't for the city's location next to the ocean. Snow just avalanches into the water."

I spent a moment imagining all that in my head. "That's quite the sight, I'd imagine." I hummed in thought, bringing a hoof up and rubbing my chin in thought. "It's... interesting, very interesting. Anything else you can tell me of the place? I find myself intrigue-..."

"Hold on there for a second," he interrupted, taking a seat on the floor and turning some dials on the radio. The static crackled until he reached one frequency where it was completely quiet. He took in a deep breath, then approached the microphone. "Operative Wavelength? You there? Or Broadcast? Any operative of the Roaman Specters at all? This is operative Doomtune, calling in from Forum Base, over."

For a moment no one answered, but then, "Doomtune?" a mare asked, sounding disbelieving. "You're in Forum Base? What... no, how did you get in there? Legion's still hostile!"

Doomtune smirked, shaking his head. "You really need to stay updated on active operations and recent events, operative Signal Boost. But since you aren't up-to-date, I guess it's my task to fill you in since you're too lazy to get off your flank and ask around." He turned and looked at me, then said, "Sorry, but questions later. This mare knows nothing besides what she hears on this frequency. If anything, she has more questions than you."

I gave a disappointed little sigh, but conceded. I turned and left, thinking of Arx the frozen city all the while.

"Who was that?" I heard Signal Boost ask. "A hostile?"

Doomtune groaned. "This is going to take a few hours..."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

While Doomtune spent the entirety of the afternoon inside his own room, very audibly educating his colleague about all the things she was ignorant about, I spent many an hour lying down on my bed, thinking of life and all its strangeness. No, really. You'd think I'd have trotted around the wondrous Forum, enjoying with great glee every single Roaman object and sight I could find, but I didn't. Just being in this Forum, this bastion of Roaman ideals, was enough. At least for now. And besides, if there was one other thing I personally believed I was good at aside from fighting with a gladius, it was thinking. Maybe I never thought the best thoughts -- or for that matter the most sane, normal, positive or rational thoughts -- but I thought a lot.

For one thing, my head just absolutely could not leave the topic of the suddenly very mystical and grand nature of Tod and Tom, and of what they did and were capable of. For after all, who wouldn't find them beings to worry of? I feared Tom, and really both of them, but for some reason, at that one moment I really feared him, and I mean him. Tod was a tricky and convoluted bastard with a mind and heart of snakes, it was true, but what if Tom was just so good at deception that he could easily convince anyone of his good intent, then betray them? What if he was even more absurdly terrible than even Predator or Tod combined?

I shivered at the notion of such things being true, but then I shook my head and dismissed those unlikely thoughts. Most of it was probably just astonishment, residual disbelief, and shock at the revelation of his being and nature, and that I was just, as all natural beings should be, cautious of the unknown. It was that reason that I made sure to have a heightened sense of caution for the next time I'd meet him.

And then amidst all the conflicting emotions swimming in the soup of my mind, my consciousness dwelled on one that brought me an inner warmth of joy. I liked -- really liked -- thinking about her, and just seeing Myst's image in my head was pleasing. I smiled and I sat up, leaning my head lazily against a hoof and staring off as I continued thinking of her. She was one of the few truly good and pure things that came with the tremendous change my life was subject to, and for that I cherished her all the more. Her and all my friends; like torches in a night, they helped me stay on the correct path and to see what was good. I couldn't even imagine what life outside would have been like if I never came to know them. Especially her: a cute grey mare, met on a starry night, with blue eyes looking down at me from within the shadows of Luna's night... oh, what a blessing she was.

I started going off into fantasy, thinking of us together in all kinds of situations and circumstances, each ranging from silly to downright melodramatic. I laughed at myself quietly, finding my own thought patterns amusing. At times I hated my head, it was true -- and now I supposed I could say it may have hated me back -- but frankly, Goldwreath was who I am. I spoke like myself and acted like myself; even my indoctrinated half was me in many ways. All that said, there's really nothing we can do about our own beings aside from loving and improving ourselves. And that I believe is what I did at that moment; it was short lived moment, a single drop in an ocean of doubt, but it was there. And that mattered.

Suddenly my door creaked open and Myst shyly poked her head in. I smiled and straightened up. "Um, Goldwreath? There's a praetorian here. He's asking for you." And from the tone in her voice, I could already tell that 'he's asking for you' actually meant 'Goldwreath please talk to him, because I can't'.

I got up and stretched, giving a long yawn and glancing outside. "It's dark already," I mused to myself, then faced her and gave a smile. "Alright, I'll meet him. Probably Justinian or something, in which case I could use some questions answered..."

Sadly for me, though, the praetorian guard standing before me was not Justinian. In any case, though, he was still courteous, not like that damned praefect. Rendering the Roaman salute all the while, he declared, "Fellow Roaman of different race! I, Tintulius Quirius, have come to this domain to inform you of lord Vesperius' invitation to dinner. He awaits your presence."

If his bombastic tone didn't get my attention, then that last statement certainly did. "How's that?"

He lowered his raised hoof. "Dinner, fellow Roaman. Legate Vesperius had generously increased the quality of dinner services for your party, and has decided that every night for the length of your stay shall be one in which you are in his presence. Whether or not this offer is subject to rejection must be taken up with the Legatus himself."

I spent a moment in silence, then gave a small smile and nodded. "If that is the case, I shall gather my companions now. I'm sure they'll find this little surprise to be one they'll like." I gave a slow nod, saying, "Please do inform Vesperius, and tell him that I am grateful."

Tintulius nodded. "Ave, Praetorian. Worry not of the filly, for she has already been sent for." He stood still for a moment, and listened as Doomtune loudly repeated himself to get the point across to his fellow operative. Tintulius snickered, then turned around. "I shall depart and inform lord Vesperius of your attendance."

I glanced back at Myst, who sat silently on the couch. "Well, this is a pleasant surprise," I said with a smile, then requested, "Please go and wake Skyfire up. Let's start preparing."

Tentatively, she nodded and got up, before stopping dead. She turned around and bit her lower lip anxiously. "This is nice and all... but how many people will be there?"

I shook my head in quiet amusement, then trotted over and held her tightly. "Don't worry about that, okay?" I asked gently. "There's no reason to be worried around these people. They're a strange and diverse bunch if what we've seen is any indication, but then again so are we." I gave her a more reassuring smile as I asked, "Besides, didn't you like today?"

Some of the anxiety in her face melted away, and her lips curled into a tiny smile. "I loved it. Especially the morning."

"Well then, I'm glad. You see Myst, this place, this Forum, is one of the few places that I can safely say some aspects of life go on as normal. Here they talk and laugh and work as though they had no true worries. So while we're all here, I want us all to feel that way too, alright? Come on, let go of a little anxiety and relax; don't let your shyness get the better of you."

She let out a long, slow exhale. "Alright... alright. You're right, I should relax. This isn't out there... it's different. This place is different, okay..." She gulped and breathed in deep, then exhaled and gave me a sincere smile.

I turned my body, but my head as fixed on her her as she went for Skyfire's door. I watched with simple pleasure as she slowly, quietly opened the door and crept in. Yes, it was true that Myst was shy and that at times she needed a little encouragement to get things done, but honestly I wouldn't have her any other way.

I went for Doomtune's door, and knocked. "Doomtune!"

There was a loud verbal debate going on in there, I think, but he quieted it down quickly. "Yeah, what?" he asked, sounding irritated and tired. "Signal Boost is apparently having problems coping with some of the stuff I'm telling her, so she went to have a nice little dinner of tunnel sandwiches to calm down, and left me here to wait. It's fucking annoying because I still haven't told her the really important stuff because she has too many gods-damned questions." He gave a loud groan, and added, exasperated, "Also because I'm starving, and the thought of her gobbling down on food I can't have is making me insane. So what is it you want?"

"For you to relax is one thing," I told him simply, and added, "And for another, get yourself prepped and away from the radio for a bit." Then I smiled as I continued, "And you have good reason to do both."

"Yeah, and what's that?" he called back.

"Oh, just a good dose of Roaman hospitality," I said.

"I'll be honest with you: right now, I'm thinking of all kinds of nasty shit to say to that ignorant mare when she gets back. So right now, I couldn't give a flying fuck about Roaman hospitality," he shot back.

That made me frown, but I asked, "Not even for a good dinner and an hour or two to get away from her and the stresses of being an operative?"

That shut him up quite nicely, and all within his room was quiet. That is until he opened the door and walked past me, sweaty and ruffling his mane. He sighed tiredly as he reached the center of the room, then turned around and faced me. He closed his eyes and wiped the sweat from his face, but then he gave a relieved smile. "Alright," he said, much more relaxed, "I can make an exception."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

When all was said and done we departed from our room and trotted to the throne chamber, and saw Vesperius waiting for us at the end of a long ovular table. He was busy, scribbling down notes on papers and filing them on one side. But the moment he saw us he sighed in relief and put the papers away. Then we sat, and had the luxury of dining with him in the Forum's main chamber. I was glad, and didn't question at all the benefits being handed over to us, though the others did wonder why Vesperius went so far as to have us dine with him personally.

"Pretty bold of you to just assume we'd want to stay for a while," Doomtune said. "It's almost like you knew we would." After a moment he added, "I mean no offense, of course. Your timing was perfect. I was in some... rather... stressful business."

"Oh, trust me when I say that you know nothing of stress in business," Vesperius replied good-naturedly. "And yes, I know it was bold, but I can safely say I took action upon a solid knowledge of your desire to be here," Vesperius said simply, looking at the operative. "I can imagine life out there is tough, and forms either people who either grow accustomed to the violence, or individuals who hold onto more... lively manners of thought. You all seemed to be of the latter group, so I knew that a little luxury thrown your way could show you all that the world isn't all pain and misery."

"And I believe I speak for all of us when I say, 'thank you'," I said sincerely, looking each of my friends in the eye. "Life has been hard out there. Not just for us, but for everyone. It's always war out there, and almost nothing else. Some of us have been... especially affected by it." I turned and glanced over at Doomtune, who caught my gaze and reflexively cast his eyes down. Then I took a look at everything around me, at all the goodness housed in that one place. "Now, would it be that we weren't the only ones who could enjoy this moment..."

An awkward silence crept over the table, stretching on into realms that would incite anyone to reflect on the brutality to outside life. And that's what I assumed we were all doing, sitting with blank eyes staring off into the air and with bowed heads staring at the dirt beneath our hooves.

Vesperius sighed, "Yes... were we not the only ones who could enjoy a life not so full of suffering." He clicked his tongue in thought, scraping a hoof over the chest of his muscle cuirass. "That's what we're fighting for, you know. All of us, the Legion -- the armed forces of the Roaman senate. I'm not lying. I know some of you may still have ill thoughts of us..." He glanced at Skyfire and Doomtune and at me, especially. "...and I'm certain our ill reputation may be justifiable with some of the things some of my soldiers did... but that's the truth. It's all we want, that Roam may be made whole and well again." He took in a deep breath, and took a look at the ceiling. "And I pray that the gods will let that goal come true before my days are done..." he said quietly.

Just then the heavy main doors of the throne chamber were pushed open, making way for the half-dozen mare servants to come trotting in, and upon their shoulders they bore silver platters and trays all arrayed with the most filling-looking food I'd seen since the Overmare's communal birthday celebration. They came over, cheery-faced and pleasant-looking, and laid at our reach what must have been the best-cooked food in the entire city. The scent and sight of the fresh vegetables and steaming soup was mouth-watering, and even the meat looked so good I may have stopped being a vegetarian if it weren't for the fact that the meat dishes were on the other side of the table, out of hoof's reach.

Vesperius gave then each smiles, then looked at us. "Well, enough of that. Grim thoughts and quiet words, as a rule, are not welcome at my table. Now, shall we?"

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"So aside from welcoming us here and having the kindness to treat us to such luxuries, any other reason you're doing this?" I took up a sliced apple and dipped it into the sweet sauce it came with, then bit down on the absolutely divine fruit. The apples grown in my old home sucked ass compared to this stuff. "Not to sound ungrateful, because I'm far from that."

"Well, if you must know. The answer's simple," he replied, "It gets quite drab and boring in here at times, surrounded with nothing but senatorial paperwork and the solid silence of days gone by. I happen to need to stay sane, and for that I need social interaction." He rubbed his temples, taking in the smell of the food before him. "Your arrival is, thankfully, a beneficial event for us both. Now I can dine without needing to talk to G.L.A.D.I.U.S for company."

Skyfire snickered, picking her way through her salad to remove all the meat. "G.L.A.D.I.U.S? Who the hell's that? Sounds like some kind of bad mercenary company name or something."

Doomtune, who'd spent an hour earlier this morning roaming around the Forum, spoke, "Actually, you'll be surprised. He's quite different from that. He's actually-..."

It was then that the nearest praetorian mech stomped dangerously close; an event that surprised all of us but Vesperius and Doomtune (and any nearby praetorians). The mech looked us all over, then in a grating, harsh, and vaguely masculine voice announced aloud, "Mode -- ANSWERING QUERY. System name: G.L.A.D.I.U.S. Acronym for: Geo-centric Logistical, Armamental, and Defensive Initiation Utilities System. Given by: Emperor Augustinius. Purpose assigned: To defend Roam and all her holdings." The mech stooped down and looked us all over, especially me. "Mode -- INVESTIGATION. Personal query: Is your question answered?"

We all nodded hectically, which dismissed the mech and allowed us focus on enjoying the luxury at our disposal. Just then Doodle came in, accompanied by a single guard, and squealed in delight at the sight before her. We hadn't even said anything to her yet before she dashed towards the table and dug into her food, once more displaying the lack of the table manners she claimed to have. It was a good thing that Vesperius had quite the patience for her, and even enjoyed her antics, because she almost ruined the entire table.

Now Zury, who'd apparently volunteered to cook up some exotic dishes for reasons she said she'd discussed privately with Vesperius, was quite distraught at the mess made of the table. At once she tried to take Doodle back to our room to be cleaned up, to which the filly protested loudly until Vesperius requested her to keep a little silence. Doodle at least had the sense to comply with her host's request. Thankful for his assistance, Zury took her away, much to Doodle's chagrin. Vesperius tried to appear inconspicuous, but I saw him watch Zury's swaying backside as she trotted away.

'Must be interested in her glyph; or the tattoos...' I thought, trying to come up with a reason he'd be so intently watching her. I eventually gave up; people often did things just for the sake of it, who was to say that wasn't one of those instances?

Skyfire came out from under the table, where she'd taken cover from Doodle's barrage of food, then sighed in relief when she saw her salad was untouched. "At least my stuff's still good. Fillies, I swear..." Skyfire commented, before digging into her salad again. She lifted her head up from the bowl and took a sniff of the stew Zury'd made, then made a disgusted face. "Yuck."

"Oh, that's a bit much," Myst told her as she wiped some dressing from her fur. Then she took an untouched bowl of the stew and smiled, looking into the brown sauce. "You'd find it to be really tasty if you just tried it. I know I like it."

"Easy for you to say," Skyfire replied, "You grew up with people like her, out there in the wastes, if what I remember is right. Of course you'd be accustomed to their kinds of food." Then she took another glance at the stew and grimaced. "Besides, it's got meat. I don't eat meat."

"We're both vegetarians," I chimed in as I picked through a selection of fruits, mostly grapes. Then I lifted a goblet of wine and in one big gulp downed the whole volume. It was something that gave Myst a little pause, but she was quickly swept up into one of the many conversations that went around the dinner table.

The hour dragged on, more filled with conversation and questions than actual eating. Doodle eventually came back, but rather than joining us she sat instead in a corner, reading the book Predator had given her. Skyfire finished first and excused herself, expressing desire to use the bedroom, and was followed by Doomtune, who explained that he had a few 'words to trade with a fellow operative'. When they'd left it was just me, Myst, and Vesperius for a few more minutes, until at last we too finished.

"So goes that lovely hour of partying," Vesperius sighed, daring a glance back at his work table upon which was stacked a great many towers of paperwork, all waiting to be done. "And here comes dreaded labor..."

I smirked, finding his demeanor amusing. "That wasn't really a party, though it was messy as one. We have Doodle to thank for that." I nodded over my shoulder at her, then whispered, "She messed up yesterday's breakfast, too."

He shrugged, then got up arduously and stretched. "Well, after how boring some of my days have been, it's as close to a party as I've gotten here on the outside. Messy, yes, but fun, and that's what will make it memorable as I vanquish these hordes of papers."

I shook my head again, then got up as Myst finished the last of her food. "Well then, thank you for your hospitality. I guess, seeing as you will be working now, it is time for us to take our leave?"

He trotted over to his work table, cracking his neck. "Yes, it is. And seeing how much work there is to be done..." He looked over the stacks, then shuddered. "... I suppose I'll not be sleeping tonight."

We gave our farewells, then together with Myst I went for the doorway. I invited Doodle to come along with us, but she refused, expressing desire to go exploring some more. I couldn't blame her; the Forum was massive, and it sure as hell had lots of stuff worthy of being looked at for hours. Still, feeling responsible for her, I had to set her a curfew and said she had three hours. Strangely, she accepted that without a hint of hesitation, though she did frown -- something that, quite frankly, I barely ever saw on her face,

"You think maybe that's something those slavers she was with gave her often? Or maybe her parents?" Myst asked, finding her frown odd as well.

"Maybe..." I mused. "Who knows. Sometimes I'm worried about her, and sometimes I feel like if we left her in a room full of dead people, she'd be the last one to go insane. Still, sometimes I... wonder... about her."

Just then I saw the unmoving walker outside the doorway, and grew curious -- a feeling I knew all too well by now I wouldn't succeed in trying to suppress. Besides, what was the harm in indulging in the freedom to ask questions? Asking Myst to bear with me for a few minutes, I trotted over to the bot. She was left alone in the presence of the unspeaking praetorian guards; she'd grown a little more accustomed to them by then, and wasn't so anxious, but told me her secret was to distract herself by looking over the details of their armor.

As it turned out, asking any of the mechs (or for that matter, any technological device within his reach and influence) would suffice. Apparently, G.L.A.D.I.U.S was the most advanced defensive AI in the middle of the war, and used to great effect during the Equestrian invasion of mainland Roam. G.L.A.D.I.U.S had become outdated in the last few years, though, as he was an S2 system. Still, the Caesar had kept him around as the Forum's personal defense system while more advanced S3 AI's like Zaita took up the task of managing offensive cyber-warfare.

"So how come you couldn't help stop Equestria from defeating three Roaman legions in the northern Everfree... er, Teutoberg forest, and then from wiping out the garrison at Hadrian's wall before invading the Empire? It all seems... unbelievable, for such forces to be destroyed in quick succession."

"Mode -- ANSWERING QUERY. It is not my fault. Guerrilla tactics are unpredictable; even more so when the tactic was to gather the entire army at the last moment to destroy the three legions. Defection by the Roaman allied leader Arminius to the Equestrian army was also very much unforeseen. Aside from all that, my creators believed in deities, and so did our enemies. I don't, but if they exist then either our own gods turned their back on us, or some malevolent force outside of calculation and conceivable logic assisted in our destruction."

And to that I replied, "No, your gods didn't abandon you." Because if there was anyone or anything who may have helped in Roam' destruction somehow -- or maybe even the destruction of the world as a whole -- it was Tod. "Trust me when I say that. I'm no pontifex maximus, and I used to not have much faith in any deities at all... but your gods convinced me otherwise." I said all that, of course, because I finally knew what Tom was. Still, he was NOT actually a god, but rather... an alien? Some kind of life form that existed in realms of energy, incomprehensible to organics? Or perhaps another thing entirely?

The AI took in my answer with silence, then after a while said, "Mode -- REPLYING TO STATEMENT. It doesn't matter. Roam is all that matters. Not gods that don't help when their followers burn. As long as there is still a semblance of Roamanism in the world, I shall continue to defend it, no matter the situation." Then the mech turned and departed wordlessly, stomping past Myst and the guards. I sighed, then bade Myst come along.

Then it hit me. Of course it would be after having some exposure to an AI that I'd remember her! "Zaita!" I muttered under my breath, then rushed after the stomping walker and asked for her whereabouts.

"Mode -- ANSWERING QUERY. The S3-platformed Harpy APC is located within one of the few garages in the lower levels of the Forum that can integrate its advanced S3 operating system's data into synchronization with my databanks."

"Can you take me to her?" I asked G.L.A.D.I.U.S. "Oh, I can't believe I forgot her for so long..."

"Mode -- ANSWERING QUERY. Very well. I shall take you to her after a short system restart to compensate for the stress integrating with her systems is putting on my capacity." The bot deactivated momentarily, kneeling down like a bowing soldier.

I paced back and forth for a moment, distraught and worried for her wellbeing. Then Myst trotted up to me calmly, as if she didn't quite care about or even remembered that it was our AI transport and friend that had gotten us this far. "Something wrong?" she asked, giving me a genuinely worried frown. "Because after that fever you had, you really should be in bed and resting. It's a miracle you're as well as you are at all."

"It's Zaita, Myst," I said, eyes downcast. "We forgot about her. Left her disabled, just waiting to be hauled off like a piece of junk. What kind of friends are we?"

"The kind that doesn't forget," she said with a little chuckle and hugged me. "Oh, Goldwreath, always so worried ad concerned for others." She gave a soft giggle and kissed my cheek. "You're cute when you care. But really, we didn't forget about her. She was reactivated yesterday while you were out, and even hovered over the fields outside. We talked to her, told her what happened to you. She's fine, alright?" She pulled away from the embrace and smiled at me warmly. "It's nice that you finally remembered, but we took care of her. We didn't want you to go stress yourself over making sure she's fine."

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, good. That's good, thank you," I replied sincerely. "I guess all I need to do now is go over to the garage and just check in with her, then."

Her head flinched back a little. "Garage?" she asked, eyes wide in curiosity. "She wasn't in a garage..."

"G.L.A.D.I.U.S placed her there, apparently. Something about system synchronization. You didn't know?"

She shook her head. "No. I only met G.L.A.D.I.U.S now, and I didn't even know this place had a garage. We should probably go make sure she's okay, then. She seemed perfectly fine just roaming around outside that I have to wonder how she's taking being cooped up in some dusty old garage."

"The garage is actually not dusty, Myst," the mech said, surprising us both with the voice it spoke with. We turned and saw its eyes glowing blue, looking at us. "On the contrary, lack of exposure to the outside has left it in quite a pristine state. The resulting environment makes a nice little place to let my music echo off the walls. Only a few other vehicles have even used any of these slots in the past few hundred years; preliminary estimates suggest I may be just the fourth to ever be stationed in here." The bot's eyes shifted in their metallic sockets to look at me. "Hello Goldwreath. Strands of code from G.L.A.D.I.U.S' recent online session tell me of your interaction with him. Don't worry about me, I am fine. I can understand how you may have forgotten of me; it is alright. Organic, troubled brains such as the one you possess are often subject to forgetfulness and sluggishness -- a flaw that I understand and hold no grudge over." Then she stopped speaking, and elevator music started playing through the bot's mouth.

"Er... well, thanks for the understanding, then," I said tentatively, glancing at Myst. She gave the bot a queer look, then looked at me and shrugged. "Well, this leaves me a bit... without thought. I tend to get confused when I try to do something but some event stops me from doing it."

"I know. I've scanned you all over the past month to come to know you beyond what mere social interaction gives me. The results have been muddled up by the drastic amount of brain activity going on in your heads, but I have gathered the basics. Goldwreath, I believe you have a certain case of OCD. You try to do many things and organize many things, and when you do them it is often with a fervor most others wouldn't possess. The results can range from an overly-emotional desire to get something done, no matter how big or small, to an outright impassioned crusade to achieving a goal of varying importance. As for why your head behaves like this, I don't know."

I gave the bot a flat look, then I gave it a false grin and said, "Okay! Enough about me because I'm still very much not in my element, and having all my plans interrupted and all this info shoved right into my head is really starting to annoy me and could make me ramble from how much it irritates me and speaking of rambling that's exactly what I'm doing right now so okay, yeah, I'll just shut up." I shut my mouth, waiting for a moment to let my head sort itself out. 'Rest,' Tom had said. I didn't know to what exact extent he expected me to relax, but if I was getting really stressed just by simply having my friend appear to save me the trouble of going to her -- something that should have been good -- then it definitely meant I needed to ease up a bit... no, a lot.

Myst gave me one long look, then smiled and trotted over to the Zaita-controlled bot. "Thank you, Zaita. Goldwreath really should be resting, and if the look on his face is any indication..." She got over to me and hugged me from the side. "... then he knows it now, too. He's probably overthinking on all this right now, but I know him. And I know somewhere in that head of his he's relieved that you're okay, even if he doesn't show it." I gave her an irritated look, but she just suppressed a giggle and continued, "So if you don't mind us, we'll be going now. That is if you're okay with that?"

"Please, do go. I do not want to interfere in any plans you may have. As it is, I am very much content exploring the cyberworld of the Forum's databanks. And playing music; music always makes everything better, especially elevator music. Wouldn't life be better with an official soundtrack? I think it would be."

Myst nodded and smiled, then started leading me off. Suddenly the bot's mechanical throat gave off a harsh whir of gears and it stood up straight, the glow in its eyes gone. "Mode -- RESUMING DIRECTIVE. Restart complete, follow me." The now G.L.A.D.I.U.S-controlled mech started stomping off.

I opened my mouth at last. "That won't be necessary," I called out, stopping the walker dead. It turned around and stared at me, and I instinctively knew I was to give an explanation. Somehow I had the distinct feeling that telling the Forum's personal defense AI that one of its mechs had been hacked was going to annoy him quite a bit. "My, er... friend, Zaita, already came to us and said she was fine. She kind of, well... hacked into that bot while you were out."

Strangely, the AI didn't react in the furious, hoof-pounding manner I thought he would. "Mode -- REPLYING TO STATEMENT. I... see," he said slowly, as if thinking. "If that is the case, my preliminary scans have been confirmed, and your APC is a threat. Therefore, the AI must now serve as a venue to adapt my cyberwarfare techniques. It has been a long while since I've had another entity to challenge me."

I gaped up at him, and Myst was likewise horrified. "What are you saying? You'll attack Zaita?"

"Mode -- ANSWERING QUERY. Yes, but I will not attempt to destroy the AI's core and programming. That would eliminate it as a challenge. No, what I need is a long, organized, non-lethal, and controlled challenge to re-configure my systems in the case this AI goes rogue. The mere fact that she accessed my walkers is indicative of her dangerous potential." The mech pointed a hoof down at me. "Mode -- DEMANDING CONCESSION. Make your AI participate in my challenge or suffer Roam's wrath."

We took a step back. "Look, I understand you want to protect this place and all that, but I'm not going to force my friend to willingly throw herself into harm's way-..."

"I accept your challenge," various speakers all over the Forum all announced at once in Zaita's voice. The sudden declaration must have been so out of the ordinary that even the all-silent, all-unmoving praetorian guards seemed surprised.

G.L.A.D.I.U.S whirled around and pointed at the nearest wall-mounted security camera. "MODE -- ACCEPTING CIRCUMSTANCE. Good. You know enough to bow to the wishes of the emperor's chosen artificial intelligence. Perhaps I am not the last sensible AI within the empire's hollowed bones."

Another mech activated, and from its previous position atop a massive marble pedestal slowly stomped over to stand right before G.L.A.D.I.U.S. Myst and I backed away, and for the first time ever so did the praetorians. Some even galloped off, shouting for the tribune and the praefect.

"Interesting," Zaita mused. "I do not detect a high aggression value within your code. It could mean that you aren't actually doing this put of programmed parameters, but rather-..."

"Mode -- DEFENDING ROAM#PRACTICE SESSION. DIIIIEEEE!" G.L.A.D.I.U.S bellowed, before charging Zaita's mech. Zaita dodged and rolled away, before galloping off in a ground-shaking cascade of heavy hoofstomps as she continued evading G.L.A.D.I.U.S' attacks. Soon both mechs were well around the Forum's circular curve, out of sight.

All of the praetorians in sight galloped after them, drawing swords and electrifying them at the nearby lightning-pillars. Worried, Myst and I started galloping as well, when Vesperius stormed out of the throne room.

"What manner of chaos has taken over this place?" he asked aloud in irritation. "Can't a stallion work in piece? It's bad enough I don't get any sleep tonight."

Cutting off each other's words many times over, Myst and I frantically explained the situation to him. When we were done the exasperation in his face melted away, and he sighed. "Listen," he said, "G.L.A.D.I.U.S is an old system, prone to odd behavior such as this. I know. I've spoken to him and gotten to know him over many quiet nights. I even got lucky enough to say the passphrase that gets me through all his programming and makes him just say what his directive really is. And you know what it is? It's to always look for opportunities to try to make up for what he perceives as his failure to protect Roam. That's why he's doing this, alright? Don't mind it anymore than you'd mind two bestial kittens playing around with each other."

"But... but what if he hurts Zaita?" Myst asked.

"Zaita is an S3 system; G.L.A.D.I.U.S is an S2 system -- the former is better than the latter in every way and in all aspects: work capacity, system overriding capability, personality projection, so on and so forth. To be honest, I'm more worried about G.L.A.D.I.U.S than I am for your friend."

I glanced down the hallway, hearing the echoing bellows. "So what do you suggest we do? They might tear this place apart!"

He raised his hoof and said in a correcting tone, "And that's where you're wrong, my friend. They're both Roaman AI's, and the one thing all Roaman AI's are all programmed with in equal measure is an undying loyalty to the Imperator et Populusque Roamanus. Next to scraping the floor with their metal hooves, those two wouldn't dare do anything to harm this place."

Myst looked on down the curved main hallway with worry, and I pulled her close and comforted her. "Fine, fine. You know this place and they who reside here better than anyone. We'll concede." I looked down at her to see if she as okay with it. After a moment's hesitation, she nodded. "Again, though: what do you suggest we do?"

By the time I turned my attention back to him, I found him scribbling notes on a piece of paper and checking the time on the nearest clock. "The senate will collectively have my hide if I don't get this done, gods damn it..." he muttered, then turned and faced me, saying in a rushed tone, "Like I said, bestial kittens. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do." He trotted away briskly, slamming the door shut. I gave a disgruntled groan and wiped a hoof over my face.

"Well... let's just hope he's right," Myst said softly, pulling me away again. "Come on, you need to rest."

As always, I wanted to protest. But really, fuck protesting. In the month I'd spent outside, always protesting when the situation turned sour for me, all that it ever got me was a headache and a heart full of worry, and often everything settled down anyway even without my intervention. So taking her insistence to heart, I accompanied her as we trotted back down to our room. Along the way, the evidence of their ongoing cyberwar was all too obvious -- not in in any damage done, but in the noise blasting over the speakers and in the flickering holograms popping up all over.

"Mode -- DEMANDING CONCESSION. Surrender or die!"

"This is fun, isn't it?" Zaita said. But what came next was what really surprised me. It was a mirthful laugh, purely equine in nature, with no mechanical tune to it whatsoever. And despite that I could tell: it was Zaita's laugh. "Because I find this very fun."

"Did... did Zaita just laugh?" Myst asked as we trotted in the much more calm lower levels. "I didn't know she could laugh. She never laughed before..."

I looked down at her and answered, "She's an AI, Myst. Artificial sentient creatures are still sentient creatures, and all sentient creatures can express emotions." That's what I told her, but after a short moment I quietly added to myself, "She may not even be artificial at all, the more I think on it..."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Vesperius was right, thankfully. Over the course of an hour, the noise over the speakers and from the walker's giant metallic hooves eventually died down. Good thing too, as the three of us were absolutely worried beyond all compare (Doomtune may have been worried, had he even heard of or known of what was going on; as it was, given how loudly he was talking to his compatriot, I don't think he would have heard a megaspell go off). The hectic activity of the praetorian guards died down too, and was our main indicator of the AIs ceasing their activity. One of the guards Skyfire called over, and from him we learned that everything was all well and normal again.

"Hell, they didn't even break a single vase," he said with a chuckle. "Which is pretty hard to believe considering what kinds of stunts they were doing up there, but it's true. Databanks and the networks were untouched for the most part, but they're cleaning up their own mess."

"So everything's peachy?" Skyfire inquired, squinting. "That is hard to believe."

The guard shrugged. "Well ma'm, it's the truth. Now if you'll all excuse me, the praefect will want all praetorians to be assembled. Good evening." He stiffened up and rendered the Roman salute before politely taking his leave and trotting off.

When he was well gone the three of us all sighed in unison and relaxed on the couches.

"Damned antics..." Skyfire murmured, wiping a hoof over her face. "Say, why do you think Zaita even agreed to G.L.A.D.I.U.S' challenge? She's an AI, so shouldn't she have, I don't know... calculated and come to the conclusion that it may have been a waste of time, even if she won?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know, though. She isn't exactly the stereotypical data-governs-all-action machine; she's as much of a person as you and I, with her own likes and dislikes. I guess you could say she may have just accepted simply because she wanted to."

Skyfire clicked her tongue as she thought for a moment, then she shrugged too. "Eh, I guess. I'll never know what goes on in that AI's head." She stretched her body along the couch, giving a loud yawn. "So anyway, since that matter's all cleared up, on to other stuff."

"Like what?" Myst asked as she sat (as always) in the corner of any available sitting-space.

"Well..." She straightened up, flexing her wings and stretching her neck. "It's still pretty early. It's, what, eight? I still got four hours of energy in me." She gave a beaming grin as she suggested, "Hey! Why don't we trot around or something? Maybe even go outside; lots of stuff going on out there, maybe we'll find something interesting, or talk to people who are. I heard that that Flav guy just came back from the city; apparently, something went a little awry with those slavers."

I would have accepted her proposal, really. I couldn't think of anything better than getting to explore and view the Forum's beauty when it was sprinkled all over with the mysticism and mystery night brought, as opposed to the regality and dazzling majesty it presented during the day. Aside from that, I was concerned of the events of occurring beyond the safety of the Forum's walls, and who better to ask than those who'd just come from the outside? But something kept me on that couch, stopping me from jumping up and eagerly trotting with her.

It was Myst, of all things. For one thing, the nervous and almost horrified look that popped onto her face the moment Skyfire said 'talk to people' immediately told me that if I was going, she wasn't. At least, not without a ton of encouragement. But I didn't want to try to force her to do anything, and I sure as hell didn't want to leave her alone to cringe under the loud screams of an overly-pissed Doomtune.

So, much as it pained me to do so, I was forced to decline. "Oh, gee Skyfire I'd love to, but..." I glanced over at Myst, and caught her staring straight back at me with wide, expectant eyes. I tried to sound genuinely tired as I continued, "Well, you know. Fever took its toll; my legs are a bit sore and all that, and I occasionally get a heartbeat that sends a throbbing pulse to my brain. So under these conditions, I think at least one more night of resting is in store for me before I go around and Roam-gasm all over the place."

My words caused my fellow pegasus to deflate like a balloon. "Oh... alright." She frowned, but got up and forced on an understanding smile. "Sure, I get that. No problem. I don't mind going out alone; did it a few times while you were out. So, if you don't mind me..." She started trotting, her backside faced towards the door as she continued looking at us with a forced grin. "... I guess I'll go outside then."

Myst let out a high-pitched whine when she tried to speak, but then she swallowed and continued as normal, "Sorry we can't go with you, Skyfire. I'd love to go too, but... well, I'm not entirely tolerant of crowds yet. Or groups of two or three, or even a single person..." She cleared her throat and added with an eager voice, "But I can go tomorrow, though. Just ask me if you want to go out and we can go out together, okay? Right now I also kind of have to take care of Goldwreath here, so there's another reason I can't go now."

Skyfire nodded in apparent understanding and started opening the door. "Sure, sure. Take your time." She trotted out and closed the door most of the way, before poking her muzzle through and saying quietly, "Yeah, you take care of your stallionfriend," before shutting the door close.

If there was any doubt about how I thought Myst felt about all that, it was all swept away when she said, "I feel horrible." I did, too. She cast her eyes down and continued, "I hate seeing her like that. Remember when she said she liked you? I can't imagine what seeing us together must be making her feel."

I sighed and scooted over to her and wrapping a hoof around her. "It makes me feel like utter shit, too." I looked over at her with pain in my eyes and said, "Sometimes I think that the talks I give her are enough, but they aren't. And it's wrong for me to think they'd ever be enough. The pain of losing the people she loved hasn't gone away... and sometimes I think it never will. And then here I am, a living image of the very same person she said she wanted to be with... how could she not feel torn in two?"

She placed a hoof on my cheek. "Don't blame yourself. This is her problem, and all we can do is try to help her get over it."

"But how?" I asked. "How do we help her get over something like this when she can't seem to even go a few days without looking at us wistfully? Now, I can't blame her for that. She's trying to be tough, not getting in our way and giving us time even if it hurts her; we can ask no more of her than that. But we're her friends, and we shouldn't be forcing that on her. So how can we stop her from feeling so dejected? I can't stand seeing her... miserable."

She kept quiet and leaned her head against my shoulder, thinking. It was for that moment alone that I was thankful for Doomtune's loud, unceasing rant. It broke some of the tension, at least. After a moment she said quietly, "What if we get her with someone?"

That got my ears swiveling more quickly than the first time I heard a gunshot. "Say what?"

"Well..." She tapped her hooves nervously. "Call me cheesy or a bad advice-giver or anything you could use to describe this, but I read a few books... romance books... and, well.. sometimes, when some kind of love triangle broke out, it wasn't so uncommon for the couple to feel bad for the third person, so sometimes they kind of searched for someone and arranged a kind of... date."

I gave her the most incredulous look I could muster, but then relaxed after a moment. For all her social anxiety, Myst was still much more socially intelligent than I was in almost all aspects (a fact that really was kind of sad). I considered her proposal for a moment. "Alright, say we do look for someone we could try to get with her that she'd actually like... who would it be?"

Just then Doomtune gave a loud, prolonged groan of pure irritation. "Damn it Signal Boost, that's the fifth sandwich break. How many caps does that mare get for sitting around..."

"Definitely not Doomtune," I said.

"And not Vesperius..." Myst mused, looking embarrassed that she even suggested it.

"Sure as hell not the praetorians."

"She's not into mares... oh, of course she isn't!" She blushed furiously. "Just forget I said that."

"And the last thing we're doing is pairing her up with a Legionnaire; that'd just bring up old wounds, I think."

"Delvius seemed nice," she said earnestly.

"Delvius is an author; people like that are pretty busy -- I know, some of the people in my stable were, and they barely had the time to sleep well."

"How about Venaius?"

"Okay, now we're just pushing our options too far."

She gave an exasperated little huff; despite everything, I couldn't help but smile at how immensely cute she was when she did that. "This isn't going to work," she said, then frowned. "We're never going to be able to help her..."

I pulled her close and hugged her from the side. "Hey. Hey don't fret, okay?" I cooed. "It's going to be alright, eventually. Skyfire's not the stupid, reckless mare I used to think she was. She's looking for a solution, too. And when people seek solutions... well, one's bound to come up at some point. I should know; when I was just a little colt, barely in the maintenance trade, I was absolutely desperate to try to find a way to identify the lightbulb's locations and all that. So you know what I did? I made a list and printed out codes for each socket. Made my job easier." I gave her a sheepish grin.

Despite everything, she too seemed to feel a bit better, as indicated by her giggle. She just sat there for a moment, letting me hug her, before caressing my cheek softly. "You sure about that, though?" she asked quietly.

I nodded. "Absolutely. Sentient creatures do not by nature ever want to suffer. Even selfless heroes would get themselves out of the fire if they knew their suffering was utterly pointless. Skyfire is no different, and she will try to find a way to get rid of her troubles. Better that she does; that way she'll get to know herself better, and strengthen the threshold with which she can withstand life's burdens. And if ever she can't hold up, we'll be there. We always will."

She smiled, relaxing substantially at my words. "You sound so certain when you talk like that. I like it," she said as she rubbed her cheek against mine before giving it a soft kiss. Much to my dismay, though, she frowned again the moment she pulled her head back. "Still, I just can't seem to find it in me to feel too much better..."

I huffed. "Well, we can't have that. I'll not have grief and ill feelings spread through my friends like wildfire when it could all be contained to one person whom we could help. It's one thing to be concerned for a person, and it's another to let that concern make you feel bad unnecessarily."

She looked at me with a half-confused, half-sad frown. "I know, I know. But what can I do about it? As long as I know she's miserable, I won't exactly be able to feel like she's truly okay."

"Well, then I must distract you," I said, and stopped dead for a moment as a little thought got in my head. I grinned, something that concerned her.

"Goldwreath... what are you thinking?" she asked with a drawl, leaning her head back.

I lunged my forehooves forward, tickling her sides and causing her to yelp in surprise, before beginning to giggle and cackle uncontrollably. That egged me on as I pressed forward, keeping her within hoof's reach as she reflexively backpedalled away, so short of breath that she couldn't even utter any sensible words. I enjoyed seeing hearing her laughs -- at least it wasn't a frown -- and so I pressed forward with even greater fervor.

Which may have been a mistake. As my tickling intensified she grew more desperate to get away, and in a fit of speed I hadn't quite expected from her she dashed over the edge of the couch we were on and onto another of the semicircular couches. My body reflexively tried to lunge after her, but my extra mass rendered my momentum insufficient to cross the gap. Therefore I fell in between the couches and landed face-first against the floor.

I groaned and rose my head up to look her way, only to see a blur as she quickly clambered onto my back, pinning me down against the ground. "W-what was that about?" she panted, sounding a bit irritated. "I was just wondering what the hell you were thinking of doing when suddenly I get tickled! It, you... just, what?"

I gave a nervous little laugh, grinning up at her. "Like I said, I like teasing. Tickling's a kind of teasing, right?" After a moment I added with a grunt, "Besides, I didn't want to see you frown, so..."

She huffed, rolling her eyes. "Oh, after what you said to me the first day we were together, I've come to know you're teasing well enough, but why did you do it?"

I squirmed a little, to no avail; it was then that I realized I'd neglected building up my back muscles. "Like I said... I didn't want to see you frowning. It's bad enough I have to see it on Skyfire... but... to see it on you too?" I breathed with each heave, unable to get out from under her. "I'm sorry, but no. I want to see you smile more than most anything else."

She paused then, her face blank for a moment. "You... want to see me smile?" Her timid nature took over as she blushed, looking away and biting her lower lip. "Smiling how? Like regular smile, or something... different?"

"Does... does it really matter?" I grunted a little as my back started to get sore. "I just thought it'd be nice to see you laugh and smile, okay? It seemed like a perfectly innocent objective, and a lighthearted one in the face of that issue we were discussing. Although now I kind of regret going about it..." I groaned.

She smiled down at me shyly for a moment, but then her expression turned a little more... sinister, mischievous even. "Oh, you'll regret it alright," she purred next to my ear, and for some reason my body started reacting. My heart rate soared; my breathing became warm, my muscles relaxed slightly despite the heightened sense of perception I was in. And most of all, my wings started flaring out... all of which embarrassed me greatly.

"Liking where you are?" she asked warmly, with no indication at all she wanted to make me regret my actions.

I gave a little grunt. "Well, I think so. My body finds the sensation desirable, despite my mounting anxiety and... embarrassment. It's strange."

She started stroking her hooves down the from the tip of one of my wings all the way to the base. Pleasure burst through my body, the likes of which I'd never felt since my last session months ago... okay, I shouldn't have been feeling like this. It was embarrassing and demeaning, and it shames me to say that I absolutely loved it.

"Oh..." I groaned, wincing from the mix of pleasure, pain, and embarrassment. "S-stop that... not funny..."

She gave a soft giggle. "Not funny," she said, "But fun, for you and me. You because I know you like it, and me because of... other reasons." She started massaging my stiff appendages harder, and I barely suppressed another vocalization of my shameful enjoyment.

"W-why are you doing this, anyway?" I asked slothfully, my higher brain functions all shutting down one by one as my body continued to relax and enjoy itself against my will. "What's the point of it?"

She let out another giggle, patting my head as she did. "Oh, Goldwreath..." she said softly, running a hoof over my back. "You just don't understand any of this, do you? Well, I'll just make it a bit clearer; this is the sort of thing people who are together do. They hug, they kiss, they talk with and understand each other. And sometimes... sometimes they do something a little bit more intimate than any single one of those..." She stooped down and placed her her against mine, nuzzling against my cheek. "Do you know what it is?"

"Dating?" I asked. "I've come to understand dating can be a very romantic thing."

"No..." she drawled, then gently laid me onto my back. After that she got onto me, her face inches from mine. "You really, really don't know anything about this, do you?" she asked with an amused little smile.

"That's the second time you've asked, and I still don't have the correct answer," I replied, then gulped nervously. I could feel my body twitching in all sorts of places, both relishing in and loathing the confusing pleasure I was getting from having her so... close.

She gave a disgruntled sigh. "Have you learned nothing from all the things I've been throwing your way?" She sighed, but then gave me a reassuring smile, pecking my cheeks and neck with small kisses that compounded my growing anxiety. Then she lifted her head up and looked down at me with half-lidded eyes. "Well. There's only way to fix that..."

And then just like that, she leaned down and kissed me more deeply than in any other instance I could remember. And by all that was good, I loved it. I absolutely loved it, and now that I'd reached that verdict every last shred of doubt and anxiety crumbled away, replaced instead by an... what's an appropriate term? An... an inborn confidence. Yes, I was confident, and I didn't know why. I knew nothing on how to do any of this, but it seemed like some natural fibre of my being knew that this was good, and was openly basking in it. And really, at that moment, I didn't complain as I kissed back to the best of my abilities, relishing in what was, at its core, the most non-familial love I'd gotten in my entire life. Damn me if I wasn't going to show how much I appreciated it.

Just then the door clicked and Doomtune trotted out, sighing aloud and saying, "That mare has absolutely no knowledge of such things whatsoever... it' almost like she's screwed up in the head or something. I mean, I know no one else who could be so ignorant, so confused and..." He paused, his words falling dead on the floor. "What... the..."

Myst tore herself from me quick as a bullet would pop out a barrel and immediately adopted an overly-done, overly-relaxed pose on the couch, leaving me confused on the floor. She gave a loud, fake yawn, then looked over at his wide-eyed expression with a look of indifference. "Oh, hey Doomtune," she said with a casual little smile. He rose an eyebrow at her skeptically, to which her ruse broke and she looked away shyly. "Oh, um, us? Oh, we were just... trying to... well..."

Doomtune gave us the strangest look, then slowly backtracked into his room, grinning at us all the while. Myst gulped. I was confused. "No need to explain. I thought I smelled something in the air," he teased, grinning like mad. "No need to explain at all. Just continue as you were, and imagine I was never here." He trotted past the doorway, before slowly creaking the door. "You and Goldwreath have fun now, you hear? Heh... hehe..."

We sat where we were, in total silence, as I struggled to keep up with the events that just transpired. "I'm no expert, but depending on the idealogical view on secrecy, that was either really good or really bad..."

"Bad," Myst said with a shaky breath. "Very bad..." She flushed and covered her face, groaning, "Oh, this is terrible. Terrible. Terrible, terrible!" She withdrew her hooves and looked at me with utter embarrassment and shame, then began climbing off the couch and backtracking slowly into her room. "Er, listen Goldwreath," she said in a rush, "I know you and you must very confused, but please, please just act like it didn't happen. At least for now. Okay? Good okay..."

She rushed into her room like a madpony and went for the door as soon as she was in, before proceeding to push the door closed.

"Wait!" I called out. The door ceased its acceleration, and from the barely opened crack in the doorway she peeked out at me, her face an epitome of humiliation. "You're right, I am confused. And I really have no idea about anything that just happened, but if it makes you feel any better... I liked it. A lot, actually." I gave her a small smile.

She blushed and smiled, some of her humiliation fading. She opened the door a bit more. "Really? You did?" she asked, the most relieved sort of smile on her face.

I nodded. "Absolutely. I loved it, very much in fact. Still don't know what it implies, though..."

Her fully exposed face blushed furiously, and she opened the door to the room we both shared. She looked around the main room, then when she saw it was all clear she stood aside and gestured at the bed. "Well then... would you like to... get in the bed?" she asked softly, her eyes darting between me and the floor, and she bit her lip in shy anticipation. "I'm sure it's something we'd both like..."

I thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, sure. I guess reading another chapter or two of that story you like so much is okay by me," I said, then got up and trotted past her, closing the door behind me as I did.

Her expression shifted from shy and meek to downright bewildered in a split second. "Wait, what?" she asked in confusion, eyes wide and ears plastered to the back of her skull. "What do you mean 'read'?"

I picked up the book from where we'd left it on the floor earlier that day, then turned on a nearby lamp and settled in under the sheets. "Well, what else did you want to do on this bed?" I asked with a confused little smile. "What, did you want to sleep or... or did you want me to just rest while you read the book on your own... or... or anything like that?"

"I... b-but... don't you want... bu..." She shut her eyes close and stood there for a moment, her face screwed up from how tightly she was clenching her sockets. Then, slowly, she opened them and relaxed, looking at me with a smile that looked as if she'd bitten something sour. "Okay, great..." she said with a drawl, then clambered onto the bed with me and settled in against my side. "Now, what chapter were we in?"

"Five," I answered for her and turned to the appropriate page. "'My First Triumph'. Heh, I can see the pun in that. See, a triumph in Roaman terms is-..."

"I know what it is," she interrupted softly and without any aggression, but there was a catch in her voice that made me pause. I looked down at her for a moment, looking for any signs of discomfort.

"Is... something wrong?"

She sighed, forcing on a little smile and shaking her head. "Nope. Everything's fine just the way they are." She sighed once more, saying softly, "Still, there are a few things I wish I could change about certain things and certain people..."

"Really? Well, mind telling me? I don't exactly want to live without context."

She giggled softly, looking at me with those deep blue eyes of hers. "Now now, a mare has her secrets," she replied. "Besides, I'm sure that those people will change soon enough... maybe learn a bit about things they should know about from certain books..." Her eyes darted between me and the book in my hooves.

"You're right. Doodle's a breeding ground of bad table manners," I replied with scoff. "She really should get on that. It's not good to go on with life without essential social skills."

She giggled again. "Oh, you're right. It isn't good to live without some social knowledge," she said in a tone suggesting she was trying to get something across to me. I thought on it, and my thinking face must have looked funny to her because she laughed again. "You're cute when you don't know things," she said, then nuzzled up against me.

"I'll have you know that I know many things. Some philosophy; a little military tactical maneuvering; Roaman history, art, culture, and society; and most practiced of all: how to replace lightbulbs." I shivered. "Although I'll admit, I hate knowing how to do the last thing."

She smiled, if a bit confusedly at my mentioning of lightbulbs. Yes, it was at that moment that I really remembered I hadn't quite told her what exactly life in that boring old hole was like. "Fine, you're right. You know lots of things; Goldwreath is very smart." She tapped the book with a hoof. "But Goldwreath can be smarter about certain things he doesn't know about if he reads his books."

I smiled too and rolled my eyes. "Alright, fine. I'll read, ma'am. Just quit with the third person, it's weird."

She gave me a prim nod and tapped the top of my skull. "Very good, student. Learning to read and learning to learn things from what one reads is very important."

I shook my head at her, to which she gave me an easy smile and crawled underneath my foreleg and settled in against my side, to both our comforts. And then I started reading, and got past the first few paragraphs quickly enough. Then I read the whole page, then the next, then the next... and suddenly I found myself feeling tired. And yet I pressed myself onward, determined to finish the chapter. And if she asked, the next one.

But soon enough my fatigue started making itself obvious in mispronunciation of simple words and the slur in my voice. She grabbed the book and took it from me, and I wasn't able to do much about it.

"Hey... give that back..." I murmured in a sleepy stupor. "The chapter... must be completed... I must know what befalls those two..."

"You'll know soon enough," she replied, taking my head into a warm embrace and laying me against her chest. "But for now, you need to rest. Don't you want to be fully awake when you find out? That'd make it more enjoyable."

I tried to speak, but all that came out of my mouth was gush of air. She was right, really. I was tired; not just from the aftereffects of my illness, but I knew quite simply that my body needed more time to recover from the month of strain it'd been put through. I guess even people fit as soldiers can't push themselves too much and expect sheer physical prowess to save them from fatigue. That's what I'd expected my body to do for me, anyway.

She took my speechlessness as a sign that I'd surrendered to her wishes, and the truth was I had. Like I said some time ago in that other chapter, I liked rest. I'd nurtured a bad case of... what did Zaita call it? OCD? Yes, I'd fed that mental defect when I was out there; always looking for a goal, not resting until all my objectives were done... well, you know what? Fuck OCD when I had an inviting bed and a warm mare both in contact with my skin.

I don't know how long it took. Probably just a few seconds, but even that feels so much longer when you constantly slip in and out of consciousness. But finally, when her touch just became so comforting and the bed became so inviting, all obstructions were shoved aside and I fell into a blissful sleep.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

My eyelids tore themselves open and were met with wan daylight. My ears picked up the busy hustle and bustle of Legionnaire activity from the fields below, and the whir and hum of engines was constant. And through it all I knew for an absolute fact that it was six AM.

"So ends sleep," I grumbled softly as I lay in bed, against Myst's side, and let my senses wake up. "At least I didn't dream last night. No telling what could have happened..." I shivered, thinking on all the kinds of terror that could have transpired had my... other self came at me. I considered myself lucky that he hadn't, and even luckier that I managed to sleep so restfully without disturbance.

But I didn't dwell too long on worrying or thinking about him; even considering the possible impact on my sanity and the direness of the danger my 'indoctrinated half' posed to me, I quite simply could not bring myself to worry about him. Which was good, for it meant that perhaps I could get a break after all. How long the break would last I didn't know, but I'd make use of it to not feel tense or anxious while I could before all the universe came down on me again with all its strangeness. So I'd relax while I could, and now was a perfect time.

However, after clearing my head of all things, I found myself peeved when I came to the conclusion that my mind had a constant need to have at least one bad, uncomfortable, sickly, anxious, or tense emotion bouncing around inside it at all times. In this case, not worry. Rather, an old, irrelevant hatred that I'd largely ignored in my month in the city of war. And in this case, that hatred was my hatred of waking up; my head must have truly had something wrong with it if it stooped so low just to wreck the moment.

Still, I suppose the hatred had some foundation. I really did hate waking up -- it's kind of a feeling I developed when that alarm clock woke me up every day at exactly six AM. I'd be all groggy and just want to go back to sleep, but I had to get up lest I get shot with a taser. No other options were present unless the day was a special one; thankfully, due to the ridiculously large amount of holidays the Roaman zebras had, I could hope every one in three mornings that I could sleep for a few more hours. Those hopes weren't always fulfilled, which only made me hate waking up more.

Still, it was on this one occasion among few others that I can safely say I got up freely and of my own desire. It was tempting to stay in bed just to stay wrapped up in Myst's warm embrace, but I'd had enough of her touch the last day or two to know that there was more where that came from, so I needn't covet her contact like a scarce luxury; she'd be there the next time I came back, and the thought comforted me as I slowly pried my way out of her grip and got up before trotting to the washroom. Besides, staying in bed just fed the annoying hatred, so the sooner I occupied myself the sooner it'd go.

"Sweet Celestia, that's hot water," I muttered in ecstasy as I washed my face over the sink. "I can't remember the last time I'd had hot water..." And soap, too. The little bar of purple soap that I rinsed my face with was just as missed as the water; the smell, the feel, the knowledge that my flesh would be clean when I stepped out... cleanliness was something I'd honestly taken for granted back in the Stable, but now... well, now I wanted to stay as clean as possible while I could.

I was so engrossed in the smell of lavender and the feel of the bubbles that I didn't hear the hoofsteps behind me until they were only feet away. I smiled, rinsing my face clean. "Good morning," I greeted lightheartedly. My smile deepened as I washed the last of the soap away and prepared myself to turn and face her. "Listen, I have to tell you, for all the strangeness yesterday had, you made it so much better." I shut the faucet off and lifted my head from the sink, turning around with a smile. "Thank you. I don't know how I could have-..."

I stopped dead, petrified by a feeling I knew all too well. Red eyes and an armored body blacker than the night met my startled gaze.

"Hello, Goldwreath," Predator said in his newly acquired charismatic voice as he stood leaning against the doorway. The moment the glow in his eyes waned and I could move, the only action I could take was to let my jaw drop and let my legs step away from him. In my absent-mindedness, I tripped over myself and knocked away various bathroom utilities before falling flat on my haunches.

He snickered, "Oh, don't be so surprised. You must have known I'd come back. I never leave loose ends, and I've come to enjoy causing you pain too much to leave you so unceremoniously."

I spent a moment sitting where I fell, catching my breath. He'd given me quite the scare there; without my body on high alert like it was when I was outside, he could have killed me if he so desired. This was one of the ways normalcy made people weak -- they'd be unprepared for danger. I guess maybe being under constant strain had some merit to it.

"Fuck, Predator," I growled as I got up off my rump. "You scared the shit out of me."

He chuckled, turning away and trotting through my room's doorway and into the main room, then finally towards the balcony. I followed close behind him, and found everyone else still asleep behind their own doors. Finally we reached our destination, and he stood there and looked over the horizon at the rising sun.

He took in one deep breath and said as I got up right behind him, "You seem different, Goldwreath. Different mental landscape, new thought patterns... major subtle biological downgrades as a result of loss of Tod's influence -- a shame, you were so much better when you were under his influence. At least combat-wise."

I didn't even want to justify any of that with a direct reply. I already knew something was up with my body -- the biological healing I'd seen, just like what Boagrius had... and then my fits of strength, allowing me to easily overpower trained and fit Legionnaires in combat... of course it wasn't until now that I truly considered it all. Now that I did, I came to the irrefutable conclusion that I just didn't give a damn what the wasteland did to me; if it helped, I'd use it, and I did. Now that it was taken from me, I'd find another way to live up to what was expected of me. I always would.

"Why are you here?" I asked plainly, heeding as little of what he said as possible.

My response seemed to surprise him for a moment as he gave me a look with those orb-like eyes of his, but then he just shrugged. "Oh, for many reasons. I don't like leaving loose ends, and frankly you're the only person that I have even the slightest qualms of killing; that makes you interesting, because I really don't like letting suffering people live." He cleared his throat as he turned around to face me. "But to be more direct and to save us both time, I shall answer your question with the sentence: I came here to make sure you and your friends stay alive."

Okay, while I truly didn't care for much of what he said -- seeing as most of it was to cause me pain for his sadistic pleasure -- that really did make me pause. "Stay alive? Against what? We're in the Forum, surrounded by..." I looked over the swelling and busy camp below. "... at least ten thousand Legionnaires and accompanying tanks, walkers, and aircraft. And the Forum itself has a praetorian force of, what, several hundred praetorian guards and more walkers. If that doesn't spell safety, I don't know what does."

"It paints you as an obvious target more than shields you in safety, boy," he retorted, leaning close. "Do you think this place will protect you against an enemy like the chimeras? It makes you obvious to them. Now, against an army of raiders and slavers and common mutants and even against a tribe of angry minotaurs this place could win again and again and again, but the chimeras?" he spat. "No. They were created to be perfect -- hell, they aren't even perfect because of flawed mutation and radiated host genes, and they could still wipe out this garrison easier than a bombardment of artillery could. And this place's detection system? Barely functional from lack of software maintenance. If it were working well, I wouldn't have gotten in here just by using chameleon camouflage."

"But you're Predator," I replied curtly. "You are a perfect chimera, if what I saw in that underground complex meant anything. Of course you would make it in."

"But I'm not here alone," he replied sharply, pointing a hoof behind me. "Even those chimeras could get in."

"Wha--?" I turned around hurriedly and spotted four chimeras, each prowling silently across the room and over the furniture like predatory beasts made of sharp, glimmering obsidian carapace. My jaw dropped in utter horror as I stared, petrified. Then one of them snarled and pushed open the door to my room before entering. "No. No! My-..."

"Quiet down," he growled and covered my mouth from behind. "Don't wake your friends up unless you want trouble. Listen, if they wanted you dead you'd have died last night when I sent them here ahead. If these were Tod's chimeras, you'd have had your head cut off when you were just beginning to read the first paragraph of that chapter of that book." Cautiously, he released his hoof. I didn't scream or attack them, but I galloped hastily to my room and pushed the door open.

There it sat next to the bed, staring with curious eyes at my sleeping marefriend. It did nothing but that, and it only made me more tense as the seconds passed by. If these were chimeras, why didn't they attack?

And as if reading my thoughts, Predator entered the room, saying quietly, "Because like I said, these aren't Tod's. They are mine."

I gave him a long, blank stare. "They're... yours?" I hissed, shaking my head. "But... but how?"

He patted the creature on the head as he trotted by before sitting on the edge of the mattress, right next to Myst's legs. "It's simple. You see, when a subject is turned to a chimera, they retain sentience. But their minds are bent, twisted to serve Tod. However..." He looked at the creature, then at me and pointed at the side of his skull. "... that sentience can be destroyed. Utterly ad totally; wipe away their minds, their souls, their knowledge and what's left of the person they once were and you get husks. Husks with brains that can be influenced by any higher power. Like me."

I looked at him, horrified. "So... so you destroyed their minds..."

"And now I own them," he finished for me, sounding proud of himself. He looked at Myst sleeping soundly, then leaned over and brushed at her mane with sickening affection. "You should thank me, you know," he said, pushing the strands gently away from her face. "She could have died last night... all of you could have. If it weren't for me," he continued in a low, sinister tone.

"Would you stop that?" I snapped, swiping his limbs away. He didn't seem to take offense. "Why the hell would I be thankful for what you did? They were my enemies, but even enemies don't... they don't just destroy what makes a person a person! Those things may have had indoctrinated minds, but they were still people deep down."

"Oh, and that's your mistake," he laughed as he got up. "They weren't people anymore, boy. They were monsters of the highest echelon of cruelty and violence. And that makes them your true enemies, no matter how you try to think of them. And true enemies, Goldwreath, have no restraint. What you get in wars are soldiers pitted against each other by commanders, but few of them truly have anything personal against one another. That's why there's still compassion sometimes -- respect for corpses, mercy to the dying, restraint on slaughter... but true enemies, now they will do anything to each other out of pure hatred." He sighed and got up, trotting to the washroom and turning on the sink before wetting a cleaning cloth in the water.

"Anyway," he continued casually, "I didn't come here to wither down your morals with the truths of the world -- the wasteland will teach you those soon enough. As for your question of why you should be thankful: these very same chimeras were dispatched to kill you when you rejected Tod. You're lucky I intercepted them; I actually did ponder on letting them attack you just to watch you scream and writhe in pain in a futile struggle, but I frowned at the thought of others getting to cause you suffering instead of me."

"Oh, you fucking..." I stopped myself there, biting my lip to not blurt out profanities. I took in several deep breaths as he trotted out of the washroom and sat down on the bed again before pulling out a revolver and wiping it. "You know what? Just fuck you. I don't even want to get involved in your shit. You said you wanted to keep us alive? Fine, great. Now just focus on that topic and don't divert; every time I talk to you I feel like I'm going to explode, I swear."

He laughed. "Fine. I suppose I've had enough fun causing you irritation. For now, at least." He stopped cleaning his pistol for a moment to pull out several plastic sachets from one of his pockets. He tossed them over at me. "There, drink those. One for each of you. I made them into powder so you can mix them up into water or something. I even flavored them; as it turns out, two-hundred year old cocoa beans when preserved still taste like actual cocoa."

I flipped the sachets over. "What are these? If this is some kind of sick practical joke..."

"No, no!" he said quickly. "Those are sachets filled with the powdered version of the only permanent cure to Black Cloud spores. See, since most people die pretty much instantly when they inhale Black Cloud, most who go underground don't even bother to wonder if there is a cure. Of course there is, and the Specters sell them at the very affordable rate of ten caps per sachet. You're lucky, though; you and your friends are one of the few to survive because I actually bothered to bring the cure with me anyway. Of course, injecting you when you were still inhaling Black Cloud kind of negated the permanence of the cure, but at least the spores got slowed enough to not explode after even several days." He pointed at my chest. "They're still growing inside you, though, and at some point they will explode. Luckily just one dose of that stuff and you'll be as fixed as a junkie in a drug den."

Oh, right. I guess I kind of had forgotten about the Black Cloud in us... "Well, thanks. I guess," I muttered as I put them under a drawer for later consumption. "So anything else?"

He paused again, thinking. "Hmm... is there... oh, yes." He paused again and pulled from one of his vest's larger pockets one of the silvery boxes. He tipped it over, and in a series of wan flashes several bloody sacks thumped to the floor. "You know, Myst actually does have very good perception, even in her sleep. She would actually have woken up by now if I didn't make her dream a... a very desirable one," he said as he shook the silvery box, making more sacks fall.

"You made her dream what? Explain yourself!" I demanded.

"She desires you, so I made her a dream that would satisfy those desires when real life couldn't. Too bad for her, it's all just a dream," he said with a laugh. "Anyway, I think that's enough of a hint," he continued, still shaking the box. "How many sacks did I put in here..."

I thought on it for a moment. "Desires me... well, that's kind of expected. I am her special someone, after all. At least, I think I am. We've already spent like two nights and two mornings together, and everything has been good so far. I can't imagine you meaning anything else."

"You definitely don't understand. She desires you," he repeated.

"And again: I know."

"Do you not get what I mean?" he asked, irritated.

"Unless what you mean is that she wants to mount my hide on a wall, then I know perfectly well what you mean," I retorted.

He actually paused shaking the box just to look at me with the most flat eyes I'd ever seen on him. Then he shook his head. "I'd thought your stupidity was caused by lack of social interaction when you were in your old home, but now I see you're just that plain stupid." He shook his head again, then looked at the box and at the amount of sacks on the floor. "You know what, I think I only really needed one to prove my point." He placed the box on the bed and lifted up one of the sacks, showing it to me.

"I see it," I told him. "And judging from the blood, I'm guessing what's inside is no gift..."

"Depends on what you consider a gift," he said, "Now, you see Goldwreath, with what you did to Tod the other day, he is very much angry at you. For that reason he's sent an absolutely absurd number of chimeras after you to attempt to either capture or kill you and your friends. Now, THIS-..." He yanked out of the sack the severed head of a chimera and tossed it right at me. I held it for all of two seconds before dropping it to the floor in disgust. "... is what happened to those chimeras."

I gaped, staring at the severed head with both of it's eye sockets pierced with metal rebar. Then I look at all the other sacks in terror. "There's so many of them..."

He nodded. "And there's more of them, Goldwreath. So many more..." He shuddered, shifting uneasily. "I killed so many of them, but they are definitely not the last. I can't count how many he's sending after you."

I shook my head. "How can I defend against that?" I asked, bringing a hoof up to my brow. "Me and my friends... we barely escaped the underground, even with your help."

He sighed, picking up the chimera's head and putting it back into the sack. "That's exactly the problem. I can't stay to keep you all safe because the Legion views me as the worst terrorist possible and because I have duties to fulfill all over the remnants of the Roaman empire -- some of them are personal and some Specter business, but the fact is that I'm going to be away from you often." He sighed again, then pointed at the chimera sitting next to us. "Your only real option is to keep these four chimeras with you as sentinels at all times, wherever you go."

My eyes popped wide open. "I'll WHAT?!" I asked, askance, making Myst twist in the bed. I fought just to keep myself quiet as I continued in a softer voice, "You want me... to keep four chimeras with me, wherever I go, and let them protect me and my friends? That's my only choice?"

He nodded. "Yes, it is. The only effective choice, at least."

"Bullshit!" I hissed, then rambled hurriedly, "How could that be the only choice? Hell, why would I allow that -- how can I trust you or these things? What if Tod takes over them? What if a praetorian waltzes in, or a servant mare? What if someone finds them? Hell, would my friends even accept them? Having four monsters watching us day and night for who knows how long is NOT going to sit well with them or me."

"I knew you'd be opposed to the idea," he said solemnly, shaking his head. "But really, it's the only real way. I can't always be with you, and this is the next best defense. I can give them enough of a mind to evade sight -- camouflage into the walls, stay still all day away from sight when they're not needed, morph to look like people even -- and I can hard-wire their heads so that they can't be tampered with, not even by me. Therefore the only way they'll ever leave you if they get killed, and that's not quite likely. As for your friends, well... what they can't see they can't be uncomfortable about, and when they finally get exposed, just say you'll have done it for their safety."

I shook my head. "Absolutely not. Predator, I don't know if you know this, but I don't trust you. What little trust I had you destroyed that morning in the library. You're also one of them, and that puts your word in even greater discredit. Whenever I tried to help or understand you, you did something to us just because you took sick sadistic pleasure in doing it." I scowled and pointed at the chimera in the room with us. "That... thing, however you view it, is an abomination. A freak of everything that isn't nature. What's worse? You control it." I glared at him as I summarized my distaste, "So no. I'll not have these freaks controlled by you following me around. Not now, not ever."

He didn't respond. Didn't react. He just sat there, looking at the bed in silence. At Myst, then up at me. Then at last, "I see," he said flatly, getting up and cleaning away any trace of his presence. "If that's truly what you wish, then I will leave you to it. You'll see soon enough the necessity of putting aside these petty grudges in favor of efficiency and survival. The lesson will be painfully taught." He stopped, looking up at me with disappointed, concerned eyes. "I had hoped to spare you the pain, but I can see that you'll attempt to hold on to morality for as long as you can. Not the smart choice if you're concerned for the safety of your friends, I'm sure you know."

"What I know?" I spat, then pointed at the chimera. "There isn't much to know. If I accept your proposal, then I'm supporting the utter destruction of minds in favor of using chimeras as... tools. I can't accept that. When it comes to absolute necessity, it may be true that they're the only ones who can face off against their own kind with any manner of effectiveness. But there's such a thing as opposing what Tod does, and if I in any way accept any of it... then I'm not fighting him." I shook my head, scowling. "You don't fight a mountain with it's own boulders, Predator. That'd take too long and take too much effort to get anything done. To face monstrosities like this, we must look for other solutions. And we can only find them if we don't settle for the easy choice."

"Wise words, but foolish ones too," he replied, getting up and sending a quick signal through the air. The other three chimeras entered the room, prowling slowly and menacingly inside until they came to Predator. "True words as well, though. The problem is that this is the 'other solution' you seek. For two centuries, these chimeras have disguised as people, mutants, and animals. For two hundred years they've adapted to resist everything. Nothing else can suffice but using them against each other, and I will do what I can in that regard."

"And that's where we split ways," I retorted. "You have no standards. No morals. If it works, you do it. I still care for people, okay? I don't treat them like the wasteland says I should because I hate the wasteland. To that end, I'll say that against all common reasoning, I'm concerned for you as well. That may be my mistake, because now you seem to come to me every so often despite us having almost no common ground."

I breathed through clenched teeth, shaking my head. "But enough of all this. There's no point in this talk. No effect but a headache for me. I'll give you thanks for the treatment for Black Cloud, and for that alone. What lessons you seem to be trying to teach I'll never accept, and what morals I'm trying to get you to understand, you dismiss. So save us both time and just leave. Now."

Once more he didn't respond. He just got up, looked at me, then turned and trotted for the door, his chimeras right beside him. But then he stopped and glanced at the corner, at my things piled in a bundle around my saddlebags. Hesitating, he trotted over to it, and pulled out Vengeance.

"This is my revolver, you know. You never did give it back," he said as he turned it over in his hooves.

"Take it, then," I replied. "It served me well, but it is yours. No matter how much I hate you, that will stay the same."

He just looked it over for a moment, then kneeled and put it back. "No. You keep it. I have no use for it anymore, really. I'd hoped to use it to kill a certain someone, and now that I know he's alive I'm tempted to use it... but such weapons are to be of no effect." He growled menacingly and brought his hooves up, and his chimeras drew close and surrounded him as he seemed to glare at his own hooves. "These monster limbs, though... I can use these to tear his throat out. Much more appropriate than a bullet through the brain," he growled, then got up and glanced over at me. "But I digress. You don't want the troubles or strangeness I bring. And I do have other things to do, so... I'll take my leave."

"That would be very much appreciated," I scoffed. "Well, the balcony's wide open for you to leave. Feel free to at least give me the morning to feel like life isn't all fucked up."

He looked away, then after a moment's hesitation slowly trotted out. I followed him and his chimeras across the main room until he came to the balcony. There he hesitated again, his gaze darting between the rising sun and at me. "Are you certain you don't want to reconsider?" he asked in a rush. "Think on it carefully. I can't always just appear to save you if it ever comes down to it."

"Oh, for goodness sake, I'm sure!" I snapped, causing him to recoil from my tone. At the time I didn't care to think on the fact that I'd just either offended him or scared him. The former was more likely. "Don't you understand?" I asked as I approached, and he took a few steps back. "I don't want anything to do with you or them. You, I have to tolerate because you keep coming to me; frankly if I could make you never come back to me again I would. But to ask me to play host to a party of freaks? What madness is that?"

I scowled, shutting my eyes closed and taking several deep breaths. "No, just... fuck no. I half expected you to come here just for some flat-out sadistic plan; that at least would be more tolerable than what you ask of me. Now that you are here, though, I find that you're here to make sure we ‘stay safe'! That just doesn't add up. Why do you care, anyway?" I asked with a scowl of disbelief and disgust.

For the first time in a while, he seemed truly offended. Not angered or annoyed, not disgruntled or worried; just offended. I could see it in his eyes, in his hesitation to meet my gaze and in the furrow of his hidden brows. "Because... because somewhere, deep down in this form, amidst the raging storm of my mind, there's still a part of me that cares," he said in a soft, humble tone. "It's that simple."

"Oh, bull," I retorted. "That whole 'I have many minds and emotions and I'm indoctrinated' crap again. Honestly, even if you were that fucked up in the head, I still think you should have a bit more control. I just think you're an insane little fuck who's been made worse by Tod. No wonder why everybody hates you."

He recoiled back a bit, stopping himself with a jerk. He let out a shudder and nodded, looking away. "You know what?" he asked softly, so unlike how he normally spoke. "You're absolutely right. I should have more control. I wonder why I don't. Silly me." He choked, turning around and climbing up the railings of the balcony. "I guess I should spend some time reminiscing on it, then. Try to figure out how make it so that I have more control." He turned around and looked down at me, and the four chimeras came up from behind me and climbed up with him. He looked at each of them as they spread their wings, then at me again.

"Go on then," I said, shooing him away. "Go and do what you do, just as long as you think on and hopefully act on what I said." And actually changed; that would have been just wonderful.

He took a while to respond, but when he did his voice was unnaturally calm and without emotion. "I will." He spent a few more moments looking at me, then turned around and took a deep breath. He seemed to look at the sun for a moment. "You know... sometimes I wonder why I'm still allowed by whatever forces exist in the universe to keep living," he muttered under his breath, then sighed. Immediately two bony wings burst from his back, each formed to look like multi-bladed scythes. Under each bony protrusion came a scintillating aura of luminous green that formed to vaguely resemble wings. I gaped at the ghastly sight.

"Goodbye, Goldwreath. I'll think on what you told me," he said with utter lack of emotion before all five of them camouflaged into the clear air like chameleons, and moments later a strong gush of air blew across me. They were gone.

I should have felt good. Victorious even. I'd just gotten rid of him before he could ruin my day; before he could take the very essence of all that was strange and insane in the wasteland and inject it into my life. And yet I didn't -- rather, I felt... hollow. Not bad, just empty. Like in a Pyrrhic victory, I felt like I'd lost too much of something for my achievement to have been worth much. But what was it?

Well... nothing. I didn't lose anything, but I'd definitely missed out on something. No matter how I may have felt about him, he was right. Chimeras were the most ferocious and dangerous enemies I knew of, and in the short time I'd faced off against them they'd come terrifyingly close to utterly destroying us. Predator was the only physical entity I knew of to have proven strong enough to face off against them. And now, with him gone for an undetermined amount of time, I truly started to wonder whether I'd made the right choice or a terrible mistake.

"It's the right choice," I assured myself over and over. I didn't feel assured, though, and I continued to feel that way as I leaned against the railings and looked down at the hectic activity below. "Your friends are safe. This is the Forum; megaspells couldn't ruin this place, so a bunch of mutated freaks aren't going to have much better luck. You made the right choice, you made the right choice..." But there was really no denying it. Right choice morally: yes. Right choice logically... no. It was a horrible choice; these Legionnaires were fought hard against just by slavers and raiders, how much more for mutated, adapted monsters? Against a swarm of them, all with powers over mind and matter?

I huffed, placing my forehead against the railings and rubbing my temples. I needed a solution, one that didn't compromise my integrity and at the same time ensured my group's safety. So, like always, I thought. Now, we couldn't stay in one place all the time because the chimeras could get in. And we couldn't just keep moving around outside on our own without support; that would be just as dangerous. So the solution was simple: maneuver under capable protection.

The thought of that sent me straightening up. Yes, that was the solution. Survival was not about facing the elements directly, but about adapting. In maneuvering under capable guard, we could more effectively weather attacks. I clicked my tongue in thought, then looked down at and scrutinized everything I saw below -- every formation, every patrol, every low-flying VTOL and every hulking walker. And then I thought of the people who made up that marvelous modern army of Roaman soldiers: the Legionnaires.

The Legion's Legionnaires were the best, most well-equipped, most well-trained, and most well-organized troops in the Zebrican wasteland. One-for-one, a chimera could easily beat them. Maybe even group-for-group, for no matter how well-drilled Legionnaires were in formations, chimeras had the advantage of a psychic link. But Legionnaires were still the next best option aside from chimeras themselves. If I could get them into my group somehow, enlist their services... we'd be as safe as we could get. The problem now was how to get them to join us, even if temporarily. Perhaps I could talk to Vesperius about it; surely he'd understand the predicament. For if he knew of Tom, -- even if he simply knew him as 'the gods' -- then he might have known about Tod as well. He had spoken of a 'great destroyer'; could Tod be that?

Whatever the case, the path to the solution and the solution itself as clear. Talk to Vesperius, convince him to help. Then get a crew of Legionnaires and hope for the best. Easy enough.

Of course, if I was going to be trying to get some of them on my little band of misfits, I had to get to know them. It was unlikely Vesperius would let me choose who I'd bring along even if accepted my proposal, but there was no harm in making some friends.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

There was really no denying it: talking to these soldiers was hard. If they weren't rushing around under orders of a centurion or performing special tasks so busily they couldn't entertain a conversation, they were either groaning in pain in a medical tent, worshiping in some makeshift marble temple to Jupiter Optimus Maximus, or manning a vehicle. Simply put, they either didn't want to talk or were too busy to. Socialization was only made more difficult by the fact that many of the soldiers present were recalled Equestrius troops, and they still didn't like me even when most of their fellow Legionnaires did.

I finally grew tired of trotting around and just sat down on the grass. "Well, this is going well," I grumbled, twisting one of the blades of grass around in my hooves. "I guess my title isn't so heavy as to make people drop their work just to talk to me. Kind of disappointing." Of course, they did recognize me. Delvius must have done a good job at describing me; in addition to being the only pony on the fields -- and therefore an eyecatcher of various looks ranging from curiosity to blank stares -- they took notice of me because they knew me from his little story. It still wasn't enough to get much out of them aside from a simple greeting, though. Not good news if I wanted to have friends instead of just allies. After all, even if Vesperius agreed to my request and sent some troops with me, my relationship with them was still all the difference between loyal followers willing to risk their lives and mere bodyguards who'd run when death was imminent.

After a few moments I got up again, this time adopting the strategy of letting them come to me; an interest to speak to me without real motivation was a sign that someone at least took notice of and was therefore concerned for me. I went along the same paths, trotting along the snaking cobblestone to the straighter, wider marble roads. I still took every opportunity to join in a talk or help out where I could, ranging from hammering in the last few wooden stakes of a newly-made trench to correcting a wrong piece of information. My efforts got me some thanks and appreciation, for the soldiers seemed to take it well that a guest of the Legate would get down in the dirt with them, and dirty a clean white toga just to assist.

The process of aimlessly trotting around, doing little chores where I could, finally yielded some real fruit when, as I turned and departed from a tent I'd been asked to bring some dulled gladii to, a voice called out from behind me, "Hey! Goldwreath!"

I stopped right under the tent's flaps. I knew that voice. Which was saying a lot, because in all honesty a great many zebra voices sounded very alike. I turned around and caught sight of him as he approached, and I smiled. "Delvius. Good to see you."

"And you as well, my friend!" He wrapped a hoof around my neck and dragged me forward and out of the tent's entrance. He seemed to be in quite a good mood. "Good to see you. We didn't exactly get to say proper goodbyes last time we met."

"True enough," I replied. "I apologize. In my haste to meet your Legate, I put aside thought of most everything else."

"Ah," he waved his hoof dismissively as he trotted forward, his hoof dragging me along. "No need to apologize. Business with the legatus legionis should always take priority; that's the stuff the determines the lives of us lowly Legionnaires, after all." He laughed a good-natured chuckle, withdrawing his hoof from around my neck. "And even after your business is concluded -- I presume -- you actually decide to mingle among us troops! For that, on behalf of the first cohort Roamana's auxilia, I thank you."

I cocked my head. "Er, your welcome. Really, though, I was just trying to help out."

"Oh, you've done more than that," he said, gesturing for me to follow him as he trotted off. I followed him, and the moment we turned the corner of the tent and went behind it I found myself facing a small circle of relaxed-looking auxiliaries sitting around a dancing flame. They had plates of cooked grain and salted meats laying about them. Delvius gestured at them. "You've met Mavius and Bailan. That one there's Kevanus. And of course you know Gravetanicus and Venaius."

I nodded. "Indeed I do. How could I forget Venaius and Gravetanicus' help in the Colosseum?" I asked with a friendly little smile, then muttered softly, "Or Bailan's heabutt..."

"You shouldn't forget our help," Venaius said, getting up off of a mattress and giving me a cocky little smile. "I saved your flank in that place, you know. You should be thanking me."

"Oh, do shut up," Delvius said, rolling his eyes. "If he needed to thank you, I'm sure he has. As of now, though, we owe him for making the rest of our morning free of work."

"I did?" I asked, giving him a quizzical look. "All I did was hammer in a few stakes and worked as an errand-pony for a few centurions. And then there was that little task for bringing the dulled gladii to the metalsmith, of course."

"Exactly," he replied, offering me a wooden stool to sit on. "Coincidences do occur, and it just so happened that the work you did was the work some lazy stallions were supposed to do." He glanced over at his fellow auxiliaries.

"I did my work," Mavius said blankly, shrugging. "Gravetanicus did, too. Kevanus and Bailan didn't have any work to begin with. Venaius over here was the one who overslept."

"I was tired yesterday, okay?" Venaius retorted. "Not exactly easy playing Marius mule for our officer's stuff."

"Actually, considering that you Legionnaires carry like fifty kilograms of weight all the time, I'd imagine you got used to it," I said, getting a snicker from Gravetanicus and Mavius but an unappreciative look from Venaius. "Correct me if I'm wrong, of course."

"Nope, you're not wrong," Delvius said, gently turning me so that I faced away from his fellows. Then he sat down on a stool next to me and offered me a bowl of... well, it looked like porridge. "Here, have some. I think you earned it, and even if you didn't you' still be my guest in our less than humble abode." He grumbled, glancing back at their meager living space. "Honestly, at least a decent tent..." he muttered.

I looked down at the steaming slop in the bowl. Well, it's not like I was going to be ungrateful, and I had been away for a good deal of the early morning, and so a ravenous hunger had brewed in my stomach. But, "There's no meat in this, right?" I asked.

"Nah," he replied. "Meat's precious. We only ever eat it if our docs say we need the protein. For the most part we just eat grain mixed with olive oil and olives, sometimes with vegetables." He gave me a questioning look. "Why?"

"Vegetarian," was all I said before slowly putting the bowl's tip to my mouth and taking in a sip of the steamy rice slop. I found myself liking the flavor; it was actually better than the oatmeal served in my Stable! "Huh. Pretty good. I can really taste the olives."

He snickered, looking proud. "Glad you like it. I guess the freshness of the stuff they grow in these fields isn't to be questioned. Still not as good as that fancy stuff they serve up there, though," he said, gesturing at the Forum. Then he looked at me and smiled for a moment as he saw me more fervently eating the food, but then he furrowed his brows and asked, "So, I hope you don't mind if I ask a few questions?"

"Go ahead," I replied, biting into a big olive chunk. "I ask people lots of questions; sometimes I wonder if they ever get annoyed. It'd be hypocritical if I denied others the right to inquire."

He snickered. "Alright. For starters, what's got you out of the luxury of the great Forum and here on the dirt with us grunts and plumes?"

I pulled my face away from the bowl and gave him an easy grin. I hesitated, though. It wasn't exactly okay to just go and tell him I wanted to find a Legionnaire -- or Legionnaires -- who'd be willing to come and follow me and possibly suffer a painful death at the claws of chimeras. "Just wondering what it was like down here. Wanted to know what all the noise was about. Generally, what was happening down here."

He nodded slowly, clearly not quite convinced. "Well, if that's what you want to know, right now Roamana's fortifying the Forum as a field of operations; we aren't going to be working out of ramshackle forts out in the city. Equestrius is being recalled, and when they're here they'll be sent to Arx. Further orders will come on a tiny piece of paper from Legate Vesperius' desk to Flavianicus' hooves, then to the primus pilus, to the centurions, the optios, and finally to us."

I took all that in, thinking on the implications. "So there'll be no garrison for the city until Roamana heads out?"

He seemed unsettled at the prospect of that, but nodded. "Afraid so. There's a little tactic to that, though. In Legion absence, gangs and cults and all kinds of nasty shit will spring up all over. Now that's not entirely bad. See, they remain in hiding when we're around, but Flavianicus is prepping us so that when we head out we'll be able to steamroll over their sorry flanks and not give them any time to hide." He grinned devilishly, then put on a more controlled smile. "At least, that's what he tells us. I just think Flav doesn't want to risk isolating garrisons. Still, would be a great bonus to pound exposed barbarians into the dirt..." He grinned again.

Well... it made some sense, but I really had to go with the latter possibility. Sending out garrison detachments all over the city would isolate them, making them easy to destroy with concentrated effort. Having the whole cohort out in the city all at once presented them as a much tougher opponent. "Well... I certainly hope it'll work out for you guys. And you better get out there soon; the innocent people can only survive the rise of chaos for so long before they either die out or join in to survive. Then you'd have to kill them too... I don't want to hear news of a slaughter."

With a grim face, he nodded. "Gotcha." Then he suppressed a yawn, leaning backwards and stretching his back. "Well, that's basically all that's going on that concerns Roam. The other cohorts are sweeping through the cities in what were once Roaman provinces -- Felinixia is stomping down swarms of bestial cats, Ursalanix is clearing the coast and jungles of wild, mutated ursas, so on and so forth. They're having it hard too, though. We'll see what happens."

By this point I felt like I was getting swept up into things I didn't truly care for, but I played along with it. "Yeah, we'll see what happens." I looked down at the food again, then with some hesitation continued eating.

He took notice of my hesitation again, but this time he acted on his suspicions. "Are you sure that you came down here for all this? You don't exactly bear a face of satisfaction."

For just a moment, I wanted to deflect the question. But then I realized that I had, after all, come down here to look for help. I was bound to explain my predicament to whoever would have wanted to come with me anyway. No point in lying. "Alright, I'm gonna be honest with you," I said, shifting to get a little closer to him.

"Just as I thought," he said with a satisfied smirk. "My hunches are always right. What's on your mind?"

I placed down the porridge and thought for a moment. "Okay. Listen, I'm looking for somebody to share in an... adventure." I looked at him, trying to spot a reaction. He had his brows up ad was looking at me with piqued interest, so I took it as my cue to continue, "It's... kind of hard to explain. I have some enemies... powerful enemies that want to kill me. They know I'm here, in the Forum. At some point, they'll get me. So I have to move, maneuver; keep myself as elusive a target as possible. But they're still powerful, and in the case that they find me we'll need help." I sighed and looked away. "I came here hoping to find someone who'd be willing to accompany us; I'd hoped for several volunteers, but that's not likely. So I'll settle for for one or two. Or any support at all. That's all I want."

There, I said it. He'd have questions, and I couldn't answer them all without making his day bad. But I'd just said it.

"These... 'enemies'..." he started slowly. "How powerful are they?" He started rummaging through one of his bags.

"Very powerful. Telekinesis, psychokinesis, extreme physical prowess... the worst of the worst, nightmarish to see and hell to fight."

He nodded, looking grim. "And... these enemies..." he continued, pulling out of his bag several pieces of paper. "Would they happen to be..." He took a piece of paper and held it in front of his face, then cleared his throat and read, "...'black as the night, with sickly light glistening off of an armored hide. They have eyes burning green like balefire or red like lava, and with these horrible organs posses a stare that could petrify a zebra of any stature or strength. Claws, too, they possess, and with these could tear through metal like paper and flesh like air. Upon their vaguely reptilian forms they bear markings of other beasts; most terrifying of all is the snout and wings of dragons, and second to that the tail of a manticore protruding from it's back, and upon the end it bears the barb of the beast we call mounts for nobles.'" He put the paper down, then looked at me with a questioning expression.

I was too shocked to immediately react. "You... you know of them? The Legion knows of them?" Perhaps I wasn't alone in my struggle. There was hope for a concentrated effort to destroy them!

"More or less," he replied, stuffing the papers away. "But not much," he said with a twinge of disappointment. "Remember that we've only been out here for roughly six months. Not a lot of time to catalogue all the creatures we encounter and circulate information about them." He sighed, taking out the paper again and tossing it over at me. "That right there is the only report on those creatures you speak of, copied and distributed to every Legionnaire as part of an attempt to create a creature guide. Compare that to the dozens upon dozens of reports on every other creature, and you have a Legion that knows almost nothing of these ones." He sighed, glancing over at his fellow auxiliaries. "I myself am one of the few to have taken the time to read all the reports and familiarize with the creatures referred to in them. Truth be told, I think the Legion as a whole has dismissed the existence of these monsters due to the lack of contact."

"Well, then you need to convince them otherwise," I insisted. "These things are terrible foes with mind-powers. Can a bestial mutate another creature with biokinesis? Can a manticore morph to look like a pony or zebra? Can a fucking giant cockroach possess the genes of various other animals? No!" I stomped for emphasis.

"And I agree with you; the Legion needs to know of this threat," he replied, nodding in understanding. "But the fact is that, unless we get a true sighting and preferably a corpse of one of these, most of these guys won't take the notion of their existence seriously. Hell, those guys over there think my occasional attempt to look for one of these creatures is a sign of madness."

"Then join me," I said, scooting closer. "I came here to seek help, but knowing that the Legion as a whole knows of them, even if barely, changes everything. I don't have to keep them a secret anymore, you realize how much of a relief that is?" I hissed.

He nodded. "I can see how much of a relief it is, yes," he said. "So you would have me join you? Assist you in your endeavors against these creatures?"

I nodded hectically. "Yes, exactly. Don't you see? Together with my friends, you and I can expose these creatures as the threat they truly are. We can make war on them and destroy them. I've seen and fought them, so trust me when I say that they are without a doubt the single greatest direct threat to Roam's continued existence."

My choice of words seemed to shock him. "Well, when you put it that way..." He glanced away, looking uncertain. He seemed to think for a moment as he sat there in silence. I just waited patiently, hoping for the best.

Then finally, "I have many duties, you know," he said, looking at me. "As an auxiliary, I must be with my cohort at all times to guard their flanks and rear when they are on the move. There's also much hassle to go through if I were to accompany you -- so many officers to inform, so many papers to sign, wavers and all..." He shuddered. "And I don't want to do something that could ruin my career as a Legionnaire. I still have a family down there, and I have to support them. And if I die..." He gulped, puckering his lips.

But just as I feared the dreaded rejection, he looked at my agape mouth and disbelieving eyes and gave me a small, determined smile, saying, "But I shall join you." His lips curled into a confident smirk. "My sacramentum demands that I protect Roam. If these creatures are as dangerous as you say, it would be foolish to not target them. And what's more, you're the only other person I've talked to that openly acknowledges their existence. For Roam and for her safety, you have services."

He got up and straightened his back, and I did the same. "I shall begin preparations. I have friends, and they'll need to know what I'm getting into. My family needn't; for them, all they need to know is that I'm fighting up here, specifics don't matter. But before I do anything else, my superiors are the first whom I shall approach."

I nodded, sighing in relief. "Alright. And Delvius... thank you. Thank you for being the help I was looking for, and thank you for so quickly deciding to join me. Even when it meant leaving things behind and even if it required great effort on your part." I meant what I said with every fibre of sincerity. Sometimes only the small strokes of good luck and good I came across made me realize that not all was bad or tainted.

He snickered, nodding. "Ah, don't think on it. Sacramentum or no, I realize the severity of the threat. And like hell am I going to pass off the opportunity of assisting the only other person who does, too. Roam demands initiative from her soldiers, and that's what I'll give her." He smirked, tapping my shoulder with a hoof.

Of course he did. I smiled. "Well then, you'll find no shortage of things to take the initiative on. That I guarantee you."

"I'm counting on it," he said with a determined little smile; the kind one gets when one knows he's getting himself into an adventure, and loves the very feeling of it. "Anyways, enough of this chit-chat. Like I said, I have various things to tie up. A few bridges to burn, a few to reconstruct... starting first with my superiors, then those louts over there." He glanced over at his fellows, then frowned a little. "I'll miss those idiots. I'll maintain contact, but I guess this is a goodbye for now. If only they knew the authenticity of the threat..." He sighed.

I could relate. I'd left lots of things behind in my involuntary exodus. Here he was joining me of his own will. For that, it was only fair that I show my appreciation with more than just words. I could be there with him when he explained it to them. That was the least I could do.

But before much else happened a warhorn blew across the fields. And it clearly wasn't Legion, because everyone stopped dead the moment they heard it. Everything was eerily quiet as the horn blew again, and soon the unmistakable synchronized marching of armored boots vibrated through the ground. A great many people were on the move, and they didn't seem to be stopping any time soon.

"What is going on..." Delvius murmured as he trotted around the corner of the tent, his fellow auxiliaries following close behind. "That's no horn of Equestrius or Roamana, and no other cohort is here..." We reached the front of the tent, where from down the wide marble road we saw black and purple figures approaching.

"Not any Legion cohorts, at least," Venaius said with quiet awe, then pointed a hoof at a dancing banner of purple. The symbol on it became clearer as it got closer. "Scorpion insignia. Praetorians."

"Praetorians?" I asked, getting up right to the edge of the road. More Legionnaires from both cohorts started crowding towards the main road, too. Centurions and their sub-officers found ther orders landing on deaf ears and decided to investigate. The immunes -- soldiers with special roles that exempted them from regular duty -- gradually abandoned their work in favor of seeing what the gathering crowd was watching.

Venaius was right. A full cohort of Praetorian guards, all armed and armored, were marching down the road towards the main gate. More synchronized than any Legionnaire, more intimidating than any tank -- that's what they were, for as they neared they seemed to radiate an aura of ferocity masked only by the metal on their faces. And there were so many of them; more than I'd seen in the Forum. I couldn't even imagine where the rest of them had come from, yet here they were. Several hundred or Roam's finest, marching down a road with mysterious intent.

The marching column came closer, letting all who stood by watch in silence as they neared the gate. The few sentries manning the activation mechanism for the walls' walk-through system were anxious, fidgeting as the nearly robotic praetorian guards came closer and closer. And who could blame them? A sight like that, showing off limbs swinging with unnatural order and with faces obscured by black, scowling metal... no one should ever have to be faced with that. Those who were on the sides scrutinized with their eyes the sight before them, as if trying to discern the meaning of the event with their gazes alone.

And I was one of them. Was. The moment I saw that golden mask and the helmet with plumes larger than the rest, my awe and curiosity died. I grew grudges very fast, and kept them for the most part. That one morning of idealogical sparring did not leave my head, nor did he who perpetrated it. The moment my eyes saw the praefect, I just knew in my gut this wasn't something normal or good.

Maybe I was wrong. Maybe the guards just decided to finally do something. But the fact that the praefect gave me a very long, very suspicious stare as he passed by did not indicate I was.

And Delvius noticed it. "What was that about? You two had an argument?"

Either he was good at making hunches or he was just perceptive enough to discern the truth. Either way, I was quietly impressed at the accuracy of his guess. "Yes, and not even a friendly debate. This one we had was bad."

"Of course it was. I could tell it from the way his eyes glimmered under that mask." He gave the praefect a hard look, and with his back turned Delvius didn't worry about possibly retaliation. But he was met with retaliation, much to his surprise; eight full lines of praetorian guards all immediately looked at him with such drone-like timing that it made him balk. Under such attention, and now under the questioning gazes of his fellow Legionnaires as well, it was understandable that his glare wavered and he looked down to the ground until the attention focused on him dissipated.

The column immediately stopped, the vibration of their final step reverberating through the ground. The praefect took one look at each of the sentries, trotted forward, and after less than a minute of conversation in which the sentries seemed to be trying to stick with their orders, they finally gave up and called for the walls to dematerialize. A moment later and the perimeter of the Forum was nothing more than a glowing translucent skeleton, and the column moved again and trotted out into the city. Everyone behind them watched with quiet inquiries and disbelieving faces until the walls rematerialized, locking the praetorian cohort outside in the wasteland.

Everything after that was all questions. 'Where are they going, and right on the eve of our assault?' 'Wo they leave now of all times?' 'Have the guards gone mad?' Such inquiries ran around the crowd like wildfire until gradually the centurions got their troops back to their posts. But even when they were all back to their spots, Delvius and I still stood on the edge of the road, thinking.

"I'm getting a gut-feeling that that was bad, somehow," he said. "Just... why would they? And what was with their staring? Creepy."

"You stole the words right from mind," I replied, shaking my head before looking at him questioningly. "The praetorians hold no oath to the Legion, yes? Only to the Forum and to a long-dead emperor, yes?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Those crazy ghouls have been patrolling those halls and watching those statues and vases for the past two hundred years. Even the earliest reports from the first party we sent up the surface reports them as doing that, and that was two centuries before we even decided to make our exodus."

Well, I guess them being ghouls was common knowledge to everyone in the Legion, then. "So what exactly makes this so unprecedented, so surprising?" I knew the answer, of course. I knew, but I wanted to see if he saw it the same way.

"Because they've never stepped out of this place for the entirety of the apocalypse," he replied simply. "It's almost like they literally have no lives aside from the Forum."

And apparently he did view it the way I did. "Alright then. So, barring that rather... strange occurrence, and everything that happened with it, what will you do now? I don't mean to rush you, but I feel tense. Especially after some recent talks with some people that I don't like. So if you don't mind, I'd like to accompany you as soon as you're heading out so that we can conclude all this business. I feel... exposed out here."

Thankfully, he didn't seem offended in the slightest. He just smiled and nodded. "Well then, come. Flavianicus should be in his tent drinking coffee right now; we can't find a time when he'd be in a better mood. Hopefully tackling it with him will negate having to with my centurion. Then I'll just have to break it to my friends... and then after that, if all goes well and smooth, you can safely say you have a Roaman Legionnaire with you." Then he brought his hoof up to the back of his head and scratched it. "Besides, after that weird shit... I need a distraction."

I nodded, relieved. "Alright then. You lead the way. I don't exactly know my way around here."

He smiled and gestured for me to follow. "Alright then. Follow me, and we'll be at his tent in no time." I did as he said, and followed him right from the moment he excused himself from his friends' company all the way to the moment we got onto the main marble road and crossed it, making our way through the maze of tents until we found ourselves moving up an uphill slope. For the most part, I left him alone as he seemed to think away the last of his concerns. Just because he'd agreed didn't mean he couldn't have some second thoughts running around his head.

"You know, I just thought of something," he said at last, pulling out his notebook. "The story I was writing of you? I think I can safely say it'll be a hundred percent accurate from now on," he said with a smirk, waving the notebook around in his hooves.

I gave the notebook a good long look, then snickered. "You know, I think we'll be good friends, you and I." I took the notebook into my hooves, turning it around in my hooves. "And I also think things will be very different from now on."

"For the better, right?" he asked with a cocky little smirk as he took it back.

I smiled, looking him over. "Oh yeah. Definitely for the better."

Footnote: Level Up
New group unlock: Group Size, Tier 2 -- There he is, the guy that starts your ability to have a group within your group. Get ready to field a large party. You'll need it.

Chapter 22 - Waging War

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Chapter 22
Waging War
"It is a bad plan that cannot be changed."

More than anything else, I saw my life at this particular juncture as... complicated. Sure, the Legion being revealed to be an overall friendly group was one big cloud of worry gone, but that left me with the chimeras, the literal big cloud of worry down to the south, the artillery to the east, the Tod-Tom conflict and its effects on every mind they had their alien hands on, and then of course my many internal and group problems. Those ranged from Skyfire's depressed demeanor whenever around me and Myst to the fact that my own head was fighting itself. That last problem I had to really not think about to not go mad over, but there was always this weight... like an inexplicable tension in my head, and whenever I felt I knew, without doubt, that he was in there. Planning. Secretly and silently watching, using my own knowledge and instincts against me. What made it all so much worse was that all of those problems were connected somehow; Tod to Tom and to my head, somewhat to the anomaly to the south, and then of course to the chimeras... it was almost like one huge convoluted scheme. And then there were all the smaller questions nagging at me, asking how Tod had gotten his own little Triumvirate in Decarius, Maladus, and Autherius, and what he had them do. Then Veltrio and his little exploits in Equestria, then the background worry emanating from my unfinished efforts in trying to stop the slavery in the Colosseum... then any residual anger that was left about me leaving my Stable... then Predator and his lies, then my worry over lack of plans for the future... ugh.

Very. Tiring. Life.

But there was some good to it, of course. Little or big strokes of fortune. In this case: help, or at least potential help, in the form of a possible companion. Really, more than much else, the notion of having a professional, well-trained Roaman soldier with me was exhilarating, and for various reasons -- for one thing, he was a good acquaintance, bordering on friend, and therefore a welcome presence; for another, his possible combat applications were numerous, and his skills could certainly be put to use; on more equinitarian and social levels, he was a good conversationalist by my standards, and could provide a nice little bit of variation and life in my little group of misfits. And he shared some similarities with me, I had to love that.

But as much as I saw Delvius as the manifestation of potential great fortune amidst a sea of troubles, I had to tone down my excitement and wait until he was officially within my group before I started getting my hopes too high. So I trotted with him to Flavianicus' tent in silence, quietly hoping that all would go well. Those hopes were put to an abrupt stasis the moment we entered the tent and were met with one very angry executor...

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"You!" Flavianicus shouted from behind his intricately carved wooden desk, pointing a hoof over at us. He sounded and looked genuinely pissed. I didn't think I would ever have seen him so angry. He seemed like the type that never took anything quite so seriously.

The volume of his voice only really astonished me, not Delvius. He seemed shocked for only a moment before his expression relaxed a little. He still looked doubtful of who Flav was referring to, though. "Me, sir?"

"Yes, you," Flav said darkly, snorting out hot air from his nostrils. "Come over here. Now."

We looked to each other, and he shrugged before trotting over to the table. When the two were close enough to be within a sword's reach of one another, Flavianicus clicked his tongue and tapped on the table repeatedly, as if trying to suppress his anger. And all the while I just stood there, feeling as useless as a tree stump. The seconds dragged on in tense quietness that nearly made me break my silence in the hopes of having some questions answered, but just as I was about to, Delvius beat me to the intent. "I'm guessing something's wrong, sir?" he asked calmly, looking at his glaring executor in the eyes.

"You bet Tartarus' flaming anus there is," Flav barked back, making me arch an eyebrow. Well, that was... one metaphor I didn't like to visualize. "You should know. You caused it."

Delvius didn't seem to mind the swear in the slightest, but the accusation made his eyes pop wide. "I'm sorry, sir, but do give me some context here," he requested, keeping his tone of civility. But through his calm tone I sensed a touch of worry. And he rightly should have been, considering the fierce, murderous look Flav was giving him and the fact that he was his superior. His eyes darted to me for a quick second, silently asking for a little support. I got the message, and trotted up beside him slowly.

Flav, despite his unexpectedly angry demeanor, had the courtesy to shoot me a small smile, saying in a rush, "Oh, hello Goldwreath. Good to see you; don't worry, I have nothing against you in the face of this morning catastrophe. Now, you..." His face hardened and he looked right at Delvius. "... I have something against. You have horrible packaging skills!"

"I... have what?" Delvius replied, sounding confused.

"Horrible packaging skills! You misplaced something of mine," Flav growled.

"I did?"

"Confound it, boy!" Flav snapped. "You misplaced my coffee beans! How am I supposed to enjoy the day without coffee?" He fumed, panting from his rant. "When we arrived here, I entrusted you to place them in a convenient, obvious location. Such an important package, and it cannot be found!"

His coffee beans? That's what he was getting all worked up about? What in the actual fuck. My disbelief showed on my face as an expression of incredulous bemusement -- an expression that Delvius mirrored with almost perfect detail.

"Sir, your coffee beans are next to your bed," Delvius said, pointing next to the elevated, ovular mattress behind the fuming zebra. True enough, there was a box there with the explicit label 'Executor Flavianicus' Coffee Beans. No touchy unless you're me (or Bucephalus).' How Flavianicus could possibly have missed that, I don't know.

He rolled his eyes and turned around. "Oh please, like hell they -- ARE!" He gasped, then rushed over to it and hugged it close like a teddy bear. I could hear his squeaks as he held it close, nuzzling it. I rolled my eyes, but couldn't suppress a smile at how childish he was acting.

Delvius did the same, though his expression seemed to indicate that he was familiar with and used to this behavior... somewhat. "You're welcome, sir," he said simply, smiling and shaking his head as he looked his eccentric commander over. "Just doing my job."

When Flav got himself under control and ceased rolling on the floor, laughing to himself in relief, he got up and slammed the box of beans onto the table, giving us a wide beaming grin. "Okay, I take all the bad things I said back. I don't know how I missed it -- I blame lack of coffee yesterday. In any case, I owe you so much for locating this, my lad. My debt can be repaid with TEN THOUSAND DENARII!" he screamed, then yanked out a pouch from his belt and threw it down onto the table. Several of the golden coins inside spilled outward. He chuckled, "Or, you know, whatever's in there. I'll add some more to your account."

"Thank you sir," Delvius said, smirking, as he gathered up the denarii and placed it away. "Always glad to fix up little emergencies for you," he said, then murmured, "No matter how often they happen..."

Flav's grin was toned down to a thankful smile, and he turned and placed the box onto a smaller table, upon which was what looked like a water heater and a grinder, and returned to us. He looked us over. "Anyway, sorry for that little display of righteous worry. A stallion can't live without his coffee, I always say." And as if to prove his point, he brought out a single bean from another small pouch and tossed it into his mouth. "Mmm! Tasty!" he said as he chewed on the bean, then swallowed. Then he brought out another and started eating that as well. Next he brought out a whole bunch and started crunching them in his teeth, his face an epitome of culinary bliss.

Much as I was relieved to see jolly and nice Flav again, we really didn't come here to watch him eat coffee; was that even normal? "Pardon us, Flavianicus, but we need to talk to you about-..."

"Ah, confound me!" He facehoofed. "Of course! Sorry, Goldwreath, I should have remembered sooner. You deserve a reward, too." He reached under his table.

My eyes widened and I looked to Delvius, my eyebrows raised in a questioning expression. "A reward? What's he talking abou-..."

"TEN THOUSAND DENARII!" Flav yelled as he emerged from under the table, then threw a pouch of heavy gold coins into my chest, blasting the air out of me. I barely managed to catch the pouch, and even then I really couldn't find it in me to feel good about possessing gold amidst all my confusion and pain. "Whoops, eheh," he said apologetically, "I guess that's not ten thousand. Well, take it or leave it."

Delvius smirked at first, finding it all amusing somehow, but upon seeing my pain decided to spare us both time and trouble talking to that eccentric commander of his by cutting in, "Sir, what Goldwreath was trying to say was that he needs to talk to you. Or rather, we do. He didn't need a reward; he doesn't even use denarii."

"Ah," Flav replied, finally seeming to understand. "Well, you could have said so sooner. Honestly, some people just don't understand the value of initiative..." He sighed, looking at me with disappointment. I didn't even bother to respond to that beyond letting out a low, long breath. Then he shook his head, "Ah, but enough of that. You came, you saw, you talked; that's how I'll describe what happened here on the official log that I'll be sending to Vespy up there, anyway. He loves his paperwork."

He put on a formal little smile and sat down, planting his hooves onto the table. He opened his mouth to talk but stopped himself dead, then ducked down and pulled out a paper titled 'Daily Log'. He cleared his throat and scribbled something on it. As he did I gave Delvius a little nudge and asked quietly, "Seriously, his coffee beans?"

The auxiliary shrugged. "He's eccentric, and really this isn't the worst 'incident'. Now shush."

We looked back to the table and saw Flavianicus looking at us. "So, gentlecolts... how may I help you?"

I would have hesitated, really. Over the month I'd been in the wasteland, I'd developed a habit of speaking bad or otherwise possibly upsetting news slowly. I'd often try to soften the blow, and given how Flavianicus seemed to know each of his troops by name, it only made sense that he cared for each of them. And with that care must have come a desire to keep them close.

Delvius, it seemed, was different from me in that regard. "Sir, I came here to request a transfer to the Distributable Auxiliary Regiment. A job has come up, and I believe it's important enough to risk leaving friends and familiarity behind for the sake of doing what I feel is right," he said firmly, though with a twinge of hesitation. He sighed, looking saddened for a moment before hardening his expression. "It's for the good of Roam."

"Ah, I see," Flav replied, looking between us. He didn't sound surprised in the slightest, and that surprised me. He treated it with an almost casual demeanor. "This job, I presume, involves you traveling with Goldwreath over here?"

Delvius himself was visibly taken off-guard by the calm response. I suppose, like me, he'd expected some immediate verbal resistance. "Y-yes sir, but how'd you-..."

"Boy, I am an executor," Flav said, his lips curling into a smile of quiet pride as he sat there looking the both of us over. "I got up to this position for good reasons -- my skills were exceptional, my achievements were significant, and my connections were wisely-made. With all that comes an instinct. It acts up when I'm fighting, making decisions, and talking to good people; just to name a few occurrences." His expression turned bashful as he stood up, his smile leaning on one side of his face. "Besides, why else would Goldwreath be with you? Sure, you could say 'because he wanted to be' or 'because he's here to help me convince you in case you disagreed', but those are both far less likely."

We looked to each other, and he could only shrug. "Well, I guess there's no point in trying to hide it. Yes, he intends to travel with me," I said. Then I had a thought. "And by any chance, would you happen to know of any... 'threat' that could be the reason he's deciding to do this?" I asked, hoping to perhaps get another ally. It was a high-aimed hope that wasn't likely going to happen, but there was no pain in asking. Delvius must have thought otherwise, as indicated by the skeptical glance he threw my way.

"What? No!" the zebra executor replied, shaking his head. "It's an instinct, not knowledge. Two totally different things. But for your question: I honestly don't care!" He laughed aloud. "Really, I don't. Not in the bad way, mind you. If he feels like he needs to do whatever it is he says he needs to do, then he should go and do it.”, but after a moment he looked at me and added, "That is, unless you feel like you need to tell me what it is one of my well-loved soldiers -- also an author and entertainer, and for those reasons a well-appreciated individual in my cohort -- will be doing?"

Now that was a question neither of us were too keen on answering. "Ah, super-secret apocalypse-tier business, then?" he asked with a joking chuckle, making Delvius shift uncomfortably.

"Almost apocalypse-tier," I said, making him stop laughing and look at me with an uncomfortably flat gaze. "It's, er, really quite hard to explain," I continued uncomfortably.

He cocked his head sideways and fixed me with a stare that drilled right into me, but then he relented. "Well, don't explain either way. The details of this should be heard by Vesperius, first and foremost. His word will reach all cohorts all at once if he deems it important, and really I think it's better if such knowledge is imparted to us officially. He'll know when to give it, so I'll trust him to let us know when he believes we should know. Not now, not on the eve of Roamana's assault. I'll not have a troubled mind now of all times; as it is, just the thought of this threat is troubling enough." He fixed us both with a hard stare again and said firmly, "You two understand? You will tell him of this; I won't have what sounds so terrible a threat faced by a few. It must be dealt with appropriately."

Delvius nodded and gulped, clearly getting the message. "We will tell him, sir. Goldwreath and I will make sure he understands." He glanced my way, and I nodded.

Flavianicus kept a hard gaze on us both for a moment, but then he relaxed. "Good, good. As long as threats are dealt with appropriately, worrying of them is useless. So let us get back to the matter at hoof." He sat down again, pulling out some papers from under his desk. One fancy-looking scroll crowned the small pile he brought out. "So, a transfer to the D.A.R... complicated business, I'm sure you know," he said, looking up at my striped companion.

"I know, sir," Delvius replied, nodding and biting his lip in anxiety.

"I mean, you have to go through all the official institutions -- the Legionary Office of Inter-unit Affairs for a formal re-allocation of all your assets and identity to the D.A.R, then to your chosen unit. In this case, Goldwreath's group not being an official Legion unit will make it more complicated; then you'd have to go to the Centurionate Office of Officer Awareness to send a notice to all officers that would be affected by your transfer; then of course you'd have to go to Roamana's branch of Legion Resources and Logistics to relinquish any assets you can't bring with you, if you have any that is. Then there's the hassle of notifying the cohort, and of course your friends..." the executor continued, making Delvius sigh and nod with each mention of an institution.

"I understand it's going to take a while, sir," Delvius said, eyes downcast. Seeing him like that made the background guilt of making him do this come to the front of my attention, and I found myself casting my eyes down as well.

"And then of course I'd have to approve of the transfer myself; no need to worry in that regard. But you know what?" Flav asked, getting Delvius to raise his head up and look at him.

"Yes, sir?"

Flavianicus took the scroll and pulled away the binding. "How do I put this... oh yes, all that processing crap can go suck it." He rolled his eyes. "Honestly, Roaman military organization's good for combat and for maintaining a constant army, but you're one auxiliary. Don't take this the wrong way, but no one's gonna notice you're gone except anyone who bothered talking to you." He lifted the unbound scroll and waved it around. "Now, this scroll should, under normal circumstances, be the last piece of paperwork in a transfer process. Also the only real one that matters, seeing as the auxiliary centurions don't usually much care if one of their own transfers. So how about I just sign this thing and save you two a lot of time and energy?"

The frown on Delvius's face and the guilt I was feeling both disappeared in an instant. "R-really sir? You could do that? For me?" Delvius asked, his eyes wide and expectant.

"Yes I can, and I dare anyone who has a problem with it to come to me," Flav replied, and with an inked quill started filling out the scroll. "Destination unit... Goldwreath's friends... D.A.R number... er, one-two-three-four-five-six-seven... bla bla, paperwork paperwork... and... done. There, I just saved you both about the whole day." He smiled and held the scroll forward.

"Thank you, sir!" Delvius gave him a wide, thankful grin and took the scroll. "This-this is great. I-I don't know what else to say. Um, thank-thank you! Oh, gods, I um... well, I don't even really have any real Legion assets anyway, so... so..." Suddenly his smile disappeared. "... so now I guess I should tell my friends, huh?"

My guilt returned.

Flavianicus' smile turned sympathetic. "Only if you feel you should. Personally, I think the sooner the better. Don't delay it if you can help it."

Delvius nodded, casting his gaze downwards once more. He sighed, then stiffened up and rendered the Roaman salute. "Yes sir. I'll... I'll go tell them now." He was trying hard to keep his internal conflict in; I could see it in his eyes, in the anxious tremble of his limbs. I thought he'd reconsider coming with me. I wouldn't have blamed him, but I would have done everything I could to try to convince him to stay with me. But as it was, he kept it to himself, conflicted as he was. He put on a ghost of a smile before giving a quick bow, then hastily trotted out. I could only watch as he did, all the while wondering the true depth of the decision I'd made him take.

"You ask much of him," Flavianicus said, looking over at me. "You know this, yes?"

I nodded. "I saw the conflict in his eyes; I heard the hesitation in his voice. Trust me when I say my only comfort is knowing he chose this of his own accord."

"Still," he said, "You should talk to him. I know Delvius. He does his duty, and he doesn't let how his orders are worded get in the way of actually carrying them out. In this case, he knows his duty is to Roam. If things were such that it was only you who needed his help... I think he may have declined. But you've convinced him of the level of this threat, whatever it is." He sighed and shook his head. "He's a good soldier, willing to put aside everything to serve his nation. In leaving friends and familiarity behind to join your little adventure, he shows he trusts you. You can ask no more of him."

I nodded, slowly starting for the tent exit. "I... understand. I'll see what I can do to ease the pain of his decision." And I meant that. After having felt all the indecision and confusion of being forced into the wasteland, I couldn't quite bear seeing any of it in others. I suppose, next to my Praetorian mentality, that was another reason I wanted to help. "Thank you, Flavianicus." I gave a tiny mirthless smile, then lifted the heavy flap and took a step outside.

"Goldwreath, wait," Flav called out, stopping me right in my tracks.

I dared a glance over my shoulder. "Yes?"

He was silent for a moment as he stared at me from behind his table. "You watch out for him, alright?" he said, his eyes almost begging. "He's a good soldier. His death should be good, too. Don't let him die out there."

I stared back into his pleading, fatherly eyes and nodded with every bit of sincerity I could muster. "You have my word." And with that, I too left the tent and trotted out onto the dirt and marble. Then I looked around, and in the distance spotted him trotting slowly back to their ramshackle little tent. He turned a corner and got that much closer to where his own friends were. He probably intended to break it to them on his own. He'd talk to them. Make them understand why he was going.

But like hell was he going to do it alone. I'd made him do this, so I was going to see it through with him. My wings stretched and my legs tensed, and with a hard flap I sent myself on gallop that got me right up to him. He seemed surprised, but managed to shoot me a little smile of appreciation.

"You know, I can tell them myself," he said. "They know me, they trust me. If I just tell them I'm going because I need to, that'll be enough for them. They'll have more than just a few questions, sure, but I can handle it."

"But you don't have to handle it yourself," I replied. "Roamans are always better in groups, you know this. Whether on the field in formation or in the aristocracy in secret alliances, we're stronger together. And like hell am I not going see this through after having asked you to do this."

He gave a tiny little smirk. "Well, glad you see it that way. Because I actually don't think they'll just let me go." He gave a sheepish little grin. "Yeah, eheh... get ready to answer those questions."

Oh. Well, this was gonna be great...

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"You're what?!" asked Bailan, eyes wide and mouth agape. He and all of Delvius' other friends stood before us in a semicircle, and each of them looked pissed, incredulous, or both.

Delvius sighed, and I did my best not to show my anxiety. I couldn't help but squirm where I stood as they stared at me, though. "Listen, guys..." he began lamely, pausing to try to think of what exactly to say. "I know it's a bit sudden. And I really should have told you guys first, but-..."

"You're damned right you should have!" Venaius interrupted curtly. He took a step forward. "What the hell were you thinking? We fought and bled together for months, trained for years in the Field of Mars, and shared all our problems between each other, and now you're leaving with this guy?" He pointed a hoof at me. "Don't get me wrong, he does good. Had you asked us first and gotten our approval -- if we actually approved -- days before actually going, I'd have thrown you a fucking farewell party for all I cared. Has our time together meant nothing to you?"

Delvius frowned, looking down. Then Gravetanicus took a step forward and nudged the seething Venaius. "Let him speak, friends," the stoic zebra said; of them all, he seemed the most calm. "We know him. Among all of us, I believe he has shown most passionately how much he would have Roam well again. Correct me if I'm wrong." None of them spoke. "Exactly. Now Delvius, what reason do you have for deciding to do this?"

It took my new companion a long moment to reply. His voice cracked and his expression was anguished, but he managed to get out, "There's a, um... a threat. Something Goldwreath here knows of that no one else really cares for." With a tiny mirthless smile he continued, "You guys should know; you kind of laughed every night I rode out of camp to look for the 'mythical lizards'."

Venaius groaned and Bailan facehoofed, while almost everyone else covered their eyes. "Not this again..." Venaius sighed. "Look, Delv, we've been through this. It was one report; it took almost a dozen from Ursalanix to confirm the existence of Ursa babies. Babies! Who would have expected babies to exist when there were almost no adults?" He took a step forward and placed a hoof on Delvius' shoulder. "Maybe they do exist, maybe they don't. But come on, this thing was supposed to have been spotted by a Canesian auxiliary when he was bleeding out on the Appian way. You know how perceptive some of those guys are."

Kevanus added as he read a piece of paper, "To be fair, the Canesian Legionnaires who saved him testify to his witness." Everyone gave him a stare, and he stuffed the paper away hastily. "Hey, I'm not in favor of him going, I'm just saying."

Delvius nodded idly as his comrades turned back to him. "Don't you get it, Venaius? Don't you all get it?" he asked softly, looking them over. "There is no 'maybe'. They do exist, and they are very dangerous. Goldwreath can testify to that; he saw them and fought them." They all stared at me, but he got their attention again by continuing, "And before you go barraging him with questions, consider this: it wouldn't matter if they existed. Even if that one report turned out to be a lie, even if Goldwreath turned out to be crazy, Roam would still be dying and crumbling around us. To restore it, each of her soldiers must have the initiative to do what needs to be done as well as the discipline to know when to back down. In this case, initiative takes priority."

Bailan tried to cut in, "Alright, that may be true, but-..."

Delvius stopped him with a hoof, pressing forward and continuing, "Not done. Now, consider this, too: have we all done our part? Have we all gone that extra mile to look for ways to help our dying nation outside of combat? Not all of us have, that's for sure. But I'm going to make that effort because I know that I can do more neutralizing a great threat like this than guarding our cohort when they're on the move despite the fact that five-thousand other auxiliaries are doing the same thing. And even if we don't eventually stop this thing, then at least I'll have done something more than just riding a mount and scouting around."

The others were quiet, pondering on what he said and coming up with their own reply. They never answered, but none of them still looked pleased. "Still, what about-..."

"And it's also my own choice," Delvius cut in firmly, looking more certain of himself than I'd thought he could have possibly felt. Then he looked them all over as they stared back at him with frowns and grimaces, and his expression softened a bit. "Alright, look..." He trotted over and sat down, and they promptly followed suit, sitting down around him. "I know this was way too sudden. Hell, I only got informed of the need to do this this morning and made my decision less than an hour ago. I wouldn't just leave if I didn't think it was important. And trust me, I appreciate you guys like I do my siblings."

He pointed a hoof at Kevanus. "I mean, remember back in training when Venaius and I snuck in some wine while your officer was out?" He gave his fellow auxiliary a fond little smile.

Kevanus couldn't help but snicker and shake his head. "You crazy bastards almost got all of us flogged, but... yeah, I remember." Venaius, too, gave a quick smirk before forcing on a grimace.

Delvius nodded, then pointed over at Bailan. "And then you. Remember the little incident with your cousin?" The auxiliary gave a devilish grin, and Bailan flushed.

"Er... y-yeah..." he stammered, looking away and forcing back a shudder. "Come on, don't bring that up. She needed that itch scratched." Everyone chuckled, making him huff and cover his face. "Look, I showed my appreciation for what you did in full. Didn't think you'd actually like it, though."

Delvius pointed at Gravetanicus, "And you. Have I not paid off the bills for your expenses time and time again?" he asked with a knowing smirk. "You know, the ones for your 'hobby'?"

The gaunt, stern zebra just gave him a little chuckle. "Oh, I sent you a thank you card each time you did. I never would have gotten so many helmets unless I had a Legionnaire's pay, but you just went and bought them. Thanks again, by the way."

Delvius nodded again, and his expression turned eager as he finally turned to Venaius, who seemed the most opposed to all of this. "And you... Venaius, my oldest and best friend." The zebra smiled and scooted closer to his compatriot. "All these long years, we've been friends. You've trusted me and believed in me, just as I've trusted and believed in you. You have, without a doubt, been all I could ask for in a friend and an ally."

Everyone smiled somewhat, and Venaius hiccuped and covered his face, trying to hide his own pained and crooked smile. "Damn it dude, that is so cheesy," Venaius said with a choked snicker. "The fucking cheesiest thing I've heard next to your Saturnalia speech, and you remember how it was."

Delvius laughed and nodded. But he pressed on, placing a hoof on Venaius' back and saying softly, "Trust me as you always did, hm? Let me go. Let me do this. For Roam."

Venaius sniffed and stared back at his friend, his eyes puffy and his coscience thoughtful and anguished behind the mask of a conflicted smile he was wearing. Everyone else was silent, waiting to see how it would end. I suppose in Venaius they saw all they had in word and sway to try to keep Delvius with them. If he agreed, they'd agree. If he said no, they'd say no. It was as simple as that.

The stare and accompanying silence seemed to stretch on for eternity until at last Venaius sighed, then huffed and whacked Delvius' helmet. "I hate you and myself, but... fine. I can't stop you, and though I wish I could, this is your choice. Just, please..." he begged, his voice dropping low, "... when all this is over, come back alive, okay? Because I swear to the gods if you're not here on my birthday, then even if I don't know where you are I will find you and I will kill you. And if you're dead, I'll pray to Pluto to bring you back until he can't stand it, then I'll kill you again."

I expected a disturbed or otherwise troubled response from all of them, especially Delvius. But they just chuckled, laughing away the few tears that had come to their eyes. Then Delvius nodded hectically, "Yes, yes! Alright, yes." He took a moment to compose himself, as did everyone else. "Alright. Alright, I'll be back. You have my word. I'll even bring you some of those snack cakes you love so much if I find any, too."

"Good," Venaius said grumpily, crossing his forehooves. "But I'm still not happy about it. I don't want my best friend to leave and go kick flank without me."

"Oh, get over it. I'll still maintain contact, though, so don't you worry," Delvius said, getting up. "I'm leaving physically, but we set up that radio chat room, remember? Frequency sixty-nine point sixty-nine? The one you set up yourself?"

Venaius suddenly beamed a grin. "Oh yeah! Right, now I remember." He pointed a hoof at his best friend and narrowed his eyes. "Hey, you better be on that frequency to talk to us, you hear? You'll have no excuse, because with all our vehicles rolling around acting as radio hubs, we could contact each other from the edges of the empire if there's a tank every mile."

"Sixty-nine point sixty-nine..." Kevanus snickered, shaking his head. "What the hell is wrong with you, Venaius?"

"Nothing's wrong with him," Delvius said. "The gods just made him to be the perverted little shit we all know, right?" he asked with a smirk, getting a glare from his friend. Delvius withdrew in a gesture of submission. "Oh, I'm just joking. I happen to love your innuendos." But with all that said, he finally stopped joking around and just uttered plainly, "Alright, well.... I guess it's time for me to go. I'll set my own radio to the frequency, so as long we're in range we could talk, but I guess this is goodbye. For now." He looked over at me. "Give us a minute to say our farewells?"

I nodded. It was the least I could do, and considering how he'd stopped them from interrogating me, I guess I owed him. So as I trotted back around the corner and left them to themselves, I couldn't help but feel relieved that I didn't have to say a single thing in all that. Heh, everything went better than expected.

A few minutes passed by, bringing to my ears the last of their goodbyes. At last the final word was said, and he came back around the corner. Despite everything he'd just given up, he managed to find it in him to smile.

"So, ready to head up to the Forum to meet my crew? Maybe talk to Vesperius afterwards?" I asked him.

Smile still up, he replied, "Oh yeah. Those guys'll be in touch. The relief of that added with this... rush... that I'm feeling makes me feel like I can do more than I ever could. I sure hope it's true, because a part of me's nagging and saying that I'm truly and utterly fucked."

I snickered, patting him amiably on the back and nudging him back onto the road that led up to the Forum. "Oh, you're not fucked. Long as we stick together, we're like a turtle formation weathering a rain of arrows."

"I suppose," he replied, trotting along beside me. "So, we're going up to meet your friends? I sure would like to meet them all. They'll be the people I'll be working with now, after all."

I nodded. "Yes we are. Just... be considerate around some of them. Especially Myst, the grey mare; oh yeah, and don't try asking Skyfire, the orange mare, about her military background -- yes, she has a military background. So... yeah, just be careful. They're a crazy bunch, in more ways than one."

He smirked. "Oh please, they can't be worse than those crapsacks back there." He nodded over at the half-tent he used to call home. "I'm sure it'll be fine."

It was my turn to smirk. "Oh, we'll see. Hey, what time is it?"

He looked around for a moment, up at the sky and at the shadow cast by the looming Forum. "Er... about noon -- lunch time."

I chuckled softly. "Oh, then prepare to be met with a culinary mess as an introduction to my group."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I hadn't told him what exactly I meant by that, even after his several attempts at interrogation. And any way, his mind's attention was quickly captured by the magnificence and grandeur of the Forum -- he'd never actually entered the Forum itself, apparently. His idly said, inattentive explanation was that Legionnaires from cohorts that went on their exodus were thrown to combat right away, capturing and securing the Roaman island before rushing off immediately to their assigned destination. Then he started trotting about, his eyes wide and gleaming as he took in the sights. I followed him around for the first few moments, but my attention was at once grasped by a more immediate detail. One that was all too prominent in the advent of the praetorian cohort's departure.

That detail was the praetorians themselves, or rather the distinct lack of them. Where before every corner and hall was marked with them, now there were barely enough to patrol half the main chamber. There were spaces in between them were there was supposed to be another guard, leaving those who'd stayed behind isolated and far-flung, staring off at walls and statues where before there'd stood another praetorian. It wasn't supposed to be like this. What the praefect had done with the majority of Roam's remaining praetorians just had to have been been unprecedented or at least uncalled for by the praetorians themselves. Yet there was almost no word of unease from the silent guards, as if nothing out of the ordinary had ever happened. It made me wonder if they ever talked at all before we came.

But there was one of them who was giving the occurrence the disgruntled attention it warranted, and that was the tribune. Justinian was fidgeting on an elevated platform that split the main stairway in half, pacing back and forth behind a rectangular table and stopping every so often to wipe his mask with a hoof. Clearly, whereas the regular guards who'd stayed behind for whatever reason were keeping their reactions to themselves, he was far more troubled.

I would have asked Justinian what it was about. And if the tribune himself couldn't give a definite answer, then I'd ask the regular guards as well, however fruitless it may have been. But Delvius was starting to wander off down into places he shouldn't have been going, and the last thing I wanted to do was waste time looking for a lost auxiliary. So with questions formulated and reserved for later, I went over to my new and wide-eyed companion and let him wander around for a few more moments before slowly guiding him to our real destination. He followed without even taking his sight off of everything around him; it was remarkable he didn't bump into any of the greatly diminished praetorian guard or anything else he failed to see. I suppose with his elation came a tremendously sharp sixth sense. And he remained elated and perceptive all the way down the many flights of stairs and narrow hallways that led to our room's doorway. Then his fixation on the marvelous Forum was shattered brutally when an olive flew straight through the air and caught him right in his agape mouth. He choked and spluttered, collapsing forward and pounding his armored chest to cough the offending fruit out.

He looked like he was in serious trouble. Me, I wasn't so worried, and even had the bit of humor to chuckle. "A flying olive. That can only mean one thing..." I muttered and glanced into the room.

Now, I may have been wrong or otherwise disproven in many things, but one of the few things I knew with absolute certainty was that Doodle was not someone you wanted to have to a meal if you wanted to maintain civility. Because standing atop a table, tossing olives into the air and and trying to catch them with your mouth and accidentally lobbing one right into another's throat... not good manners at all. At least she had the good sense to be genuinely shocked upon discovering the ramifications of her actions.

"Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!" she babbled over and over again, galloping off to the choking auxiliary. The many other people in the room -- Myst and Skyfire sitting on opposite ends of one of the couches, Doomtune bobbing his head to a slow beat coming from his helmet laid on the table itself, and two servant mares standing by near them -- pried their eyes off of the provided meal and looked over at the doorway, all their eyes wide in shock. "Mister soldier, a-are you okay?" she asked in a frantic rush.

With one extra-hard pound that flexed his kevlar-studded lorica segmentata (segmented plate armor), the olive flew out his throat and onto the ground. He gasped as he lay there, holding a hoof to his throat. Slowly, his eyes rolled over the scenery and finally to the worried filly. "You... must be... Doodle..." he said with heavy breaths.

Suddenly her worry faded and she beamed a grin. "Oh, you know me?"

"Goldwreath... mentioned you... said you had 'wonderful' table manners." He panted for a moment as I finally decided to reach down and help pull him up. "I suppose he had some sarcasm in that sentence I couldn't quite detect." While he recovered, leaning against the wall, everyone else slowly started receding back into their previous behavior. Myst didn't say anything, predictably, but the less antisocial Skyfire and Doomtune showed immediate interest in the new arrival.

Skyfire, having previously seen him, was of course the first to react. "Hey! It's you! D-... Del... something." Skyfire gave a sheepish little grin. "Yeah, I didn't exactly catch your name that time I had an oxygen tube down my throat." Myst hadn't shown anything but an anxious, wide-eyed stare at anything but Delvius, but the moment she heard that, her head snapped to face her best friend. "Yeah, I'll explain later."

"Delvius, for reference," he replied with a receding pant. Then he pointed down at Doodle. "And you... filly with bad table manners, you don't keep sending fruit down other people's throats, alright?"

"Sure thing, mister Delvius! I'll stick to flinging oatmeal, instead." She rendered an Equestrian salute and put on a stern face, then whirled around and marched back to her seat.

Devius' brows furrowed in deep thought. "Oatmeal... I don't understand, but uh... oh, nevermind." He shook his head and finished composing himself, then stood more formally and nodded to each of them in greeting. "Good noon to you all, I hope I'm not interrupting your lunch any more than I'm sure it's been interrupted." He took a quick look around, his eyes lingering on splatters of porridge and shreds of vegetables flung around and onto the couches.

I nudged him from behind before anyone replied, getting him closer to the couches. "Oh, from the looks of things they're as normal as can be. Really, no need to be so formal." I gestured for him to take a seat, and with the barest of hesitation he complied. I myself sat down in between the two mares in my group and wrapped a hoof around my marefriend, hoping my presence would put her obvious unease to more suitable levels. Then I noticed everyone was staring at me and at him with questions in their eyes. "Oh. Right. I guess I should explain." I cleared my throat.

"Ex-explain what?" Myst asked as she pressed against me, her voice dripping with suppressed anxiety. It made my words catch in my throat, knowing that what I was about to say would... cause her unrest, but it had to be said.

After a moment of silence I finally got out, "Friends and fellow Roamans, I would like to formally introduce Delvius, former auxiliary of Roamana and now an official member of our little band of adventurers." Well, that wasn't so hard to get out once it started flowing.

Nevertheless, the surety of my voice was met with polarized reactions.

"What?!" Myst's shrill, disbelieving blurt coincided perfectly with Skyfire's far more calm and civil, "What?" Both had the tones of skepticism or unease, however, and while both were certainly stronger in Myst's voice, Skyfire's feelings on the matter still concerned me.

"I can see some more explanation is in order. Very well." I cleared my throat and continued in the most civil tone I could muster, "You see, I awoke this morning and came to the conclusion that we need help. Doomtune hasn't encountered the creatures we fought in the subterranean metros, and Doodle..." I took a glance at the filly as she started doodling something on a piece of tissue. "... doesn't seem to care. Ergo, as Doomtune is not a permanent group member and thus need not truly concern himself in our problem, and because Doodle is a non-combatant when viewed from a military perspective, I came to the conclusion that another member was necessary."

"Hold up there," Doomtune chimed in. "Creatures in the metro? What, you mean ghouls? Centaurpedes? The occasional terra comedenti -- giant earth-eater worms? Or hell, even the mutated snakes?"

"None of those," I replied, then turned to Myst as she stared off into the air in wide-eyed thought. "Now, Myst," I started with the intent of assuaging any and all concerns, because we needed him with us. "I understand this may come off as... terrifying to you. You're shy, and there's nothing inherently wrong with that. It's one of the things I love about you. It doesn't irritate me, and I never intend to let it." Despite everything, she smiled. "But nevertheless, I need you to realize that, your anxiety aside, you -- and by extension the rest of us -- need another combatant. Numbers are useful in any combat situation after all, and he could be the difference between you getting hurt or not. I'll not have you dying on me, okay?"

She wasn't okay with it. Not yet anyway. Everyone who paid any attention to her could see that it was obvious. "You could have told us first. I'd have liked to know," she said softly, her voice the volume of the first time I'd met her.

I sighed and nodded. "You're right, you're right. I should have, and I'm sorry I didn't. But now that he's here I need you to know that you don't have to be scared around him. We're all safe with each other. Please try to get over your anxiety, alright? For me." I placed a hoof on her back, waiting for her reply.

It was barely audible, but under her breath she managed to breath out, "Okay," and fell silent. It was still obvious she wasn't fine with it just yet, but I saw the effort in her eyes, the thoughts racing around her head as she came to terms with it all. She'd made great strides in becoming more social the last month. She could do this, I knew she could. I had faith in her and hugged her to express that faith.

With Myst's objections more or less neutralized for the moment, I pulled myself away and turned to my light-yellow pegasus companion. "And Skyfire-..."

"Hey, no need to give me a talking," she said before anything else came out of my mouth. I rose an eyebrow. "I don't mean anything against Myst over there," she was saying, and the gray earth pony was apparently so cautioned by the use of her name as to give her best friend a wary gaze, "But I ain't her. I have no problems with it. In fact, I see it as an awesome opportunity!" She grabbed one of Delvius' guns and held it in her hooves and watched as the originally compact metal rectangle expanded into a full-sized rifle. "I mean, look at this stuff! I can tinker with this."

Delvius gently took it back from her before she started salivating over it. "Yes... tinker with your own weapons, please. I happen to like my custom-made rifle as it is."

"Alright, alright." She waved her hooves dismissively and continued, "So yeah, no real problems. I can get to know him just fine. My only concern is his combat role. He's not replacing me, right?" she asked with a twinge of paranoia.

"Not going to unless I can fly," he smirked. "Depends on the combat role, though. As an auxiliary, I skirmish and do anything that needs to be done to make sure the advance of a larger force -- in this case you three -- goes unimpeded. So... I guess I'm your scout. Goldwreath from what I saw in the Colosseum's probably your frontliner, seeing as he likes to take the fight to the enemy even if it means using a sword; you, from the look of those plasma rifles next to your seat, are the striker -- you deal damage but don't take it; and finally, Myst, judging from her anxiety and camo outfit, is the sniper or similar long-ranged hitter. From the look on Doodle's cheery face, she's morale support, and you..." He trailed off and looked at the operative. "... are the jack of all trades. Correct me if I'm wrong on any of that."

"Well, I'd correct you if you were wrong. You got a wonderfully quick and analytical head," I praised. "Doomtune doesn't really count, though. He isn't really with us."

"It's true," the black-clad zebra chimed in. "I was just here to accompany Goldwreath on a trip to confront the Legate back when tensions were high. I'll be going back to my people soon enough. For now, though, all the things I need to relay have been relayed. Even the contents of this envelope." He pulled out the paper container within which was the ceasefire document Vesperius had given him. "Now I can wait for orders to come back -- and hopefully get a commendation and raise for what I did here -- or go of my own accord." He let out a carefree breath and kicked back. "Honestly, I'll just wait. Madran will think on the ceasefire. Right now, everything's looking fine and dandy, and I intend to feel good for as long as I can."

"Well, after all the things you went through, I'd say you deserve it." Skyfire smiled with friendly concern. "I remember how you started breaking down when we got here... hopefully it doesn't happen again."

"It will," he deadpanned, as if he didn't much care for it at all. "But a few days rest should help. That and being around people that aren't dead or dying or hostile. Like you." He looked her in the eyes and returned her smile.

After a few short moments of awkward wherein they just stared at each other with identical expressions of fondness and concern, I finally broke the silence and got up. "Well then, that's that. Zaita should be informed as well. You wouldn't happen to know where the Forum's garage is, would you?" I asked, looking at Delvius.

"Well, the entrance is outside..." His voice trailed off as he fixed me with a questioning look. "Why? Who's this person who stays in a... a garage?"

"That would be their transport," Doomtune answered. When Delvius gave him the look, he elaborated, "Harpy-class APC, S3 system. One of the hundred units fabricated for the war. This one's named Zaita, apparently. Been his transport for as long as I remember."

"She's also my friend," I said flatly. "So I'd appreciate it if you could occasionally refer to her as a person rather than just an object."

"Well, fine, but it doesn't change what she is." Doomtune got up and stretched his neck. "But whatever. I gotta get back to the radio system and listen in on the happenings of my order. No eavesdropping, especially you..." He pointed a hoof at Delvius and glared. "Officially we're still enemies, so if I catch you snooping I won't hesitate to knock you out."

"Go ahead and try," Delvius replied cockily, getting Doomtune to raise both brows in surprise. "I'm trained for single combat, not to stay in formation like Legionnaires. I can take you."

"Oh, quit it you two." I placed myself in between them. "Joke or not, Delvius, I'd rather you not try. Respect privacy and yours will be respected. Am I clear?" I furrowed my brows.

He sighed, rolling his eyes. "Fine. But likewise with him, right?" Doomtune just shook his head and trotted back into his room.

"Well, you'll just have to assert your own privacy, but he should respect yours either way," I replied. "Now, when you're ready I'd like you to lead me to this garage. I'm not going to try contacting her over this place's electronics. Can't imagine G.LA.D.I.U.S would let me, not since their little cyberwar started."

He looked around and shrugged. "I can take you now. Not like I'm hungry this soon after my brunch, anyway."

I nodded. "Alright, looks like it's back to the fields." My legs ached a little, protesting to moving down the mountain just after I'd climbed the absurdly high stairwell. But I'd been through worse, and the soreness had been present for almost a month, so I just ignored it. "You guys can come if you want. I wouldn't mind having friends I can talk to down there, in that place where all the zebras are too busy to do anything but work." I looked to the auxiliary as he stood up, and with a signatory nod he started out the door, leading the way.

I'd only taken one step after him when an unknown force jerked me to a halt. I looked around and found Myst's hoof on the slack of my dirtied toga. She was fixing me with a stern expression, but it didn't last under my surprised gaze. She withdrew with a squeak, giving me an embarrassed smile. "Erm... eheh..." she started, in typical shy-and-awkward Myst fashion. "You... um, don't want to change first?"

"Change? You mean my clothes?" I looked down at the muddy toga. "Well, maybe later. The troops seemed to appreciate a guest of honor getting down in the dirt with them. I think wearing this until I don't need to is a wise course of action when dealing with them."

"I wouldn't say the clothing's necessary now that they've come to recognize you, just like the mud isn't necessary now that you've worked with them," Delvius chimed in as he stood under the doorway.

I looked over at him. "Well, it might throw some hopefully positive clout my way. Besides, this thing isn't even that dirty."

"Yeah it is."

"Have you seen that thing?"

Myst bit her lip, eyes darting shyly between me and the pegasus and operative who'd just spoken up. "Yeah, it kind of is... I don't know, I think you'd look nice in clean clothes." She coughed, clearing her throat, then added softly, "Maybe we could clean your coat, too. Why don't you take a bath with me?"

Skyfire choked on her drink, and the two servant mares who were silently waiting for us to finish went red.

Myst coughed and looked away to the sides, only to be met with a wide-eyed Skyfire on one side and Doomtune on the other. Even Delvius was looking at her. Only Doodle didn't seem to care. "Well, er... yes." She gulped, blushing. "I- well you know, I want to see you clean. I remember the first time I saw you, and already you were grungy and muddy. Why don't you give it as a gift to yourself for all the things you've done for people? I-I'm sure you'll love it!" Her eyes fixated on me, and her teeth were in full view from the width of her nervous grin.

I smiled, then brought a hoof up to my chin in thought. On one hoof, taking a bath definitely seemed nice... and honestly, it wasn't like I could say no to her -- like that, she was so adorable I felt a part of me tugging the rest of my psyche to sweep her up into an embrace just for the sake of it. Of course, on another hoof, I felt like I had to maintain the image that had gotten me the favor of some of those troops down there. Then again, I was just going to tell Zaita something, and it had been a long time since I had decent bath. I was sick of feeling dirty and tired and sore, and right then I was all three. I sure as hell didn't want to climb back up the mountain again. I also wanted to spend the rest of the day with those close to me, especially she who was the closest...

Before I could finish my train of thought Delvius spoke, "Well, I could go and tell this 'Zaita' myself that it- she, that she will be accommodating another combatant."

I glanced over at him. "You sure? I wasn't done weighing the scales."

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah, sure, why not? One thing they teach you as a soldier of Roam is to not delay. Now I'm not saying you're ineffective as a fighter for thinking -- thinking's important, too. What I am trying to say is that if I take the initiative I'll save time and spare you unnecessary effort. 'Always do what you can to spare others the pain' dad said. He was a Legionnaire, too."

I grimaced in thought. "Well, that's... nice. You sure, though? The bath's only going to be a few minutes, so you could-..."

"Yeah I am. Time's precious, and so are friends. I'll save time and let you stay by going. Can't be that hard informing it- her anyway. Who knows, without you there to do it yourself I might learn something. Now you get yourself cleaned, alright?" He turned around and waved a goodbye before disappearing around the corner.

At last I was left alone with my friends. Well... he liked to take the initiative. It was an admirable quality, though I must admit not getting to finish my train of thought and act accordingly was kind of disgruntling. But I didn't dwell on that. I had a bath to take, and one of the best people to take it with.

"Now come on," Myst tugged at me, pulling me to the bathroom. "You really are starting to smell. You'll love some of the soaps they have in there. Lavender, vanilla... I'd only read of those plants. But now that I know how they smell it's like a mystery solved." Skyfire eyed us all the way to the door, making me feel a pang inside. While I trusted Myst to know what to do, given her comparatively vast social knowledge, I still didn't feel alright with making Skyfire witness us. Maybe the bath was a necessity, and maybe for some reason she also had to join me. But even if both were true, was it worth the pain we were causing her? She'd given me up, but she wasn't over me.

'She'll have to just suck it up and get over it. It's the only way,' I thought, and settled for that as best I could. There was no point in letting her problems dictate what we did. Relationships were not built on hesitation.

Finally we were inside, and she locked the door. Smiling, she said, "So, we should take off our clothes..." She cleared her throat and with a twinge of eagerness moved forward towards me.

"Already on it," I said, and started unfolding the toga -- to her disappointment, apparently.

"You don't need any, um... help?" she asked in hopeful tones, lifting a hoof up as if to touch me.

"Nope, I got this. This is gonna take a while, though; the Roaman toga was like a bedsheet. But it's okay. You should start undressing, too." I shot a smile her way. "After that... well, we'll see. Maybe something'll happen that'll make this memorable for us both."

She sucked in a breath, smiling and nodding eagerly, "O-okay! I'll go start the shower!"

She galloped over behind the curtains and started running the water, while I finished unwrapping myself. You'd think that having to take time to put on and take off a toga would get annoying, but such was the obligation of the higher-ups of Roaman society. And while I viewed myself as a fighter more than anything else, it ran a few glorious fantasies through my head about donning a toga in earnest, officially joining the aristocracy, giving speeches in the oratorical platform... fantasies like that.

The curtains were drawn to the side and a gush of steamy air rushed forward. I looked up, and some part of me went limp at the sight. I'd seen Myst without clothing... what, once or twice... but never like that. Hot water cascaded down her soaked mane, dripping down in rivulets onto her grey shoulders and to her hooves. The soft velvet of her face's fine fur was glistening with pearled water droplets. And that smile. Damn. If love had a face, that was it.

And if it all that wasn't enough, the giggle she gave at my stricken quiet sent waves of overwhelming warmth to my heart. "Well... I'm waiting," she purred, then withdrew back into the shower, the curtain concealing her as she went. I gulped, feeling parts of myself grow... tense, before stepping in with her.

Hot water... glorious, heavenly hot water... oh, gods above, I couldn't remember the last time I had hot water. Actually, wait... four years ago: my birthday. Then the water heater was directed permanently to the growing middle-class in my Stable. I hadn't questioned or complained or asked for any bit of heated water afterwards. But now, standing under the assault of muscle-numbing hot liquid... I couldn't help but smile in absolute, juvenile bliss. I started laughing to myself. Damn whatever part of me felt like I didn't deserve it. After all I'd been through, I needed this simple pleasure to remind myself I could enjoy things and just let the world go by.

And she knew it, too.

I don't know when it happened, but eventually she pulled me out of the rim of the shower and into the center. I shuddered in delight, even more so when she started scrubbing my coat with the most sweet-smelling soap I'd ever smelled. Every touch sent my eyes rolling into my skull. I barely had the mind to open my eyes and shampoo her mane and scrubbing her shoulders in reciprocation. Hard work given how strongly I was tempted to do nothing, but it was worth it to see her throw that warm smile my way... and then place her hoof on my cheek... and then finally her lips on my own. My wings extended, pulling her close and sheltering her underneath as our kisses turned more and more eager.

But before long she pulled away, leaving me confused and soaked on the bathroom floor. She smiled as she stroked my cheek. "Goldwreath... are you getting any ideas?" she asked softly.

I chuckled lightly in response. "Well, eheh, the only thing I had in mind was to just let everything go on for as long as possible. I guess things ran their course."

She nodded understandingly. "So... no ideas?" She continued stroking my cheek.

I went red. Well... it would have been obvious if I wasn't red already. "Well... I'd like it if we just continued kissing, eheh..." Well, those were some words I never thought I'd say to a mare. "You and I cleaning each other was pretty good, too. Whichever one you want to continue is fine with me, eheh." I gave a wide grin.

She nodded again, smiling but with a slight twinge of disappointment. I frowned, but she said, "Alright. Continue either one?" She kissed me again and pulled me up, giggling but with a trace of mirthlessness. "Alright then... time to rinse. And preen your feathers." Her smile turned more sincere as she added, "After that... I wouldn't mind if you helped me clean my tail."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

By the time we stepped out of the shower, we were as fresh and clean as we could possibly be. The only downside was that the layer of grime and filth that had masked all our ugly scars and scabs was now gone, showing off pockmarked and bruised sections of our flesh. And as I dried myself, I couldn't help but stare at my face's reflection, at the gnarly scars running down my cheeks and temples.

But I wasn't able to dwell on those for very long. That session of sensual kissing combined with the intimate experience of getting to know each other's bodily quirks had left me glowing and elated, almost unbelievably so. Now Myst knew that I was ticklish only from under the ears, and I learned that she was ticklish basically everywhere along her abdomen and chest. More than just a bath, our time together was a bonding moment I wanted to cherish.

"See? Being clean is nice." Myst smiled at me as she finished drying her mane, then got it right back into its style with a good shake of her head. I never really got to appreciate the sight of her mane much because of her hoodie, but despite it being messy I couldn't help but find it perfect for her.

"Well, to be fair, I never said it wasn't nice," I replied. "I was just saying that maintaining an image had some importance."

She rolled her eyes, sighing as she approached. She wrapped a hoof around my neck. "Image is nice, but you have to take care of yourself, too." She pressed her nose to my neck and sniffed, and I felt her lips curl into a smile. "Well, at least you smell good now."

I laughed, hugging her head close and taking in the smell of her mane. "And so do you. Ah, lavender... the smell makes me want to just throw you in bed and cling to you until a whole season passes."

"Mmm..." she purred, pulling away and fixing me with a half-lidded gaze that made my heart skip a beat. "Really? Well, if you won't be doing anything later... you could do just that."

I nodded, smiling like a fool. "Okay, great! I'll clear the rest of the afternoon and evening of my plans -- not that I even had any concrete plans, anyway."

She nodded, but then frowned in contemplation. "Well... maybe not all the afternoon and evening. I almost forgot I had something planned." I gave her a questioning look, and she continued, "I promised Skyfire I'd walk around outside with her, remember?"

"Oh. Right." I cleared my throat and continued, "Alright. That's fine. I can wait for you to get back. Your absence could give me some time to do a few things, I suppose."

"Things like?" she asked as she started putting her clothes on.

I spent a moment dumbly staring at her before answering in a rush, "Well, I need to talk to Vesperius and the tribune about some things. For one thing, I'm hoping they'd know why all those praetorians left earlier today."

She nodded idly, as if not really caring much about it. "Alright. You go and do that. I guess I could use the time with Skyfire to... clear a few things up."

"I'm not really liking the sound of that," I confessed after a moment's hesitation. She glanced back at me with a small frown. "Truth be told, while I care about her and view her as a good friend, I'm afraid that everything we do together hurts her. Do you... feel that way?"

She didn't answer at once, but rather took a moment to zip up her vest. "Well... yes," she admitted. "What's more, sometimes I feel like I don't care enough. I mean, did you see her staring at us when we trotted in here? I knew she was looking. I saw the disbelief and horror in her eyes as every second her fears played around in her head, making her wonder what we were going to do... and I didn't mind." She frowned, looking ashamed of herself. "What kind of friend am I for just shrugging that off? Stupid, stupid..." She started thumping herself.

"Don't go berating yourself," I said sternly, getting her to stop. I sighed and moved closer, sitting down beside her. "Look, I know that you're good friends. I also know that, while I may be the worst person to give advice about what to do with other people, you should talk to her about it. I have done my part, said what I need to say, and have tried my best to not involve her in a negative fashion in our relationship. Now it's your turn. It might never be enough, but it will be all we can do next to materializing that match-making advice of yours -- advice that I've decided we should not follow. Skyfire will realize what needs to be done if she wants to stop suffering, and the problem will hopefully resolve itself. Okay?"

I wrapped a wing over her as she thought, head bowed and eyes downcast. I knew what I was telling her had to be done, and I trusted she knew that. But it was still hard to tell a friend to let someone go. Finally she let out a deep breath and nodded, and I withdrew my wing. "Good. Now, we should get moving. Smells nice in here, but that can't last forever. Not to mention the stuff we both have to do." We both started moving, her checking herself in the mirror while I started wrapping myself in a clean toga. While I did so I replayed the things we said, and I came to the conclusion that we both spoke very relevant things. Just one afterthought bugged me to speak up: "Oh yeah, about Skyfire... I don't really see why she'd be horrified over us taking a bath. It's just a bath. You said 'what we were going to do'; what were we 'going to do'?"

Through the residual fog on the mirror I saw her reflected cheeks go red, and her tail went in tightly in between her legs. She whirled around, a paranoid grin on her face. "Nothing! Nope, nothing. Just a bath, eheh..." she said in a rush as she went for the door. Then she paused, and slowly she turned around. "That is... unless you don't think the bath's over, and we could still do... 'something' in here?"

I raised a brow and looked up to the ceiling, confused. "Er... no, not really. And now I'm confused. Just a while ago you said we weren't doing anything else, now you seem to be suggesting otherwise. Why? Did you have any plans you weren't able to fulfill in there?"

She went even redder, but to her merit she didn't cringe like a ball of living anxiety. "Nope. No plans," was all she said, and she opened the door and trotted out. A few moments later I heard her and Skyfire talking, then after some exchanged words I heard them step out. Doodle seemed to go with them. I wished Myst luck on the task she had to do, then finished wrapping myself up and trotted out, going for the hallway with the intent of heading to my own task.

Just as I placed a hoof on the purple carpet that ran the length of our hall I heard a door close behind me. I glanced back, and saw Doomtune grinning like a maniac as he stared at me. "You lucky bastard," he said, crossing his hooves. "Twice in less than three days, huh? Heh, you dog."

I shot him a confused glare. "The hell are you talking about?"

His overly-smug and maniacal grin wavered a little, but he replied, "You know what I'm talking about." He chuckled to himself.

I cocked my head. "If you're talking about spending time with my marefriend, then I need to tell you that I've done that since we got here. Not just twice."

His grin wavered even more to make way for confusion. "Y-yeah, sure, but last night and just a while ago... wait." His expression crumbled entirely and was replaced with disbelief. "Don't tell me you didn't take those opportunities to do it with her."

I stared at him blankly. "Doomtune, while I'd love to talk to you later, right now I have someone else I need to converse with, okay? Not to sound rude or anything, but just hold onto that thought." I threw him a confused wave of my hoof and trotted out, all the while pondering on the awkwardness of that conversation.

I didn't hear him move, and suspected he was just standing there the entire time as I walked down the hall. Then I faintly heard his words through the wall: "What the hell is wrong with that guy? Doesn't he know anything about mares and their needs?"

I thought to myself as I turned a corner. "Needs? Hm... food, water, air, healthcare, socialization... that's about it. Can't imagine what else he could be talking about. They don't need anything else... do they?" Just then I passed by a painting of a Roaman general and a mare, both intertwined in each other's hooves. My eyes lingered on the general, and where one of his hooves was at: on the mare's flanks.

Flanks... hm...

Wait...

I facehoofed, groaning as I continued on to my destination. "Of course! How could I forget! I need to give Myst a massage one of these days around her hindquarters; all that galloping must have made her sore."

Content at my discovery and the accompanying course of action, I didn't think any more on what mares needed. After all, they didn't need much else.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"There's not much to it," Vesperius replied half-mindedly as he wrote simultaneously on several different pieces of paper. "I asked the tribune. He doesn't know either. Apparently the praefect approached several hundred of the guards and... convinced them to go to wherever he plans to go."

Well, that wasn't a response I liked. "So you're telling me there's... what, nothing else to it? They left under these extremely suspicious circumstances and... and you don't know? No one knows? I find it very hard to accept this." And that was an understatement. When I asked questions, I wanted answers that gave context.

He looked up at me sympathetically, his hooves still jotting down notes. "I know you do. Several of the senators, I'm guessing, will be very dumbfounded when they find out. But I truly couldn't be bothered by it. I mean... they're independent. No matter who we are, no matter who I am, I have no jurisdiction over them. Even during the war, once a soldier entered the guard, they answered literally only to the emperor. That's just how it works with them. We didn't expect them to mind us at all when we came up, let alone supplement our forces with military intelligence. That was far more than we thought we could get from them."

I sighed and rolled my eyes around, leaning forward against the table. "I... understand. They're their own people. I got that well enough. What I just can't accept is that... no, what I can't find it in me to forget it for is... well..." I paused, scrunching up my face and groaning.

"Yes?" he drawled. "You can share just about anything with me, Goldwreath. Not only are you in the presence of a zebra who in his opinion can keep secrets, but the gods occasionally converse with me about their dealings with us mortals -- one of which is you -- and what they see in our heads. I'll find out eventually."

I stared down at him for a moment. "That is one of the creepiest things I have ever heard, but I... well, I guess I'll talk anyway."

He smiled, putting away a few papers and setting them aside. "Excellent." He clapped his hooves together, "G.L.A.D.I.U.S, please do materialize a chair for the guest, please."

"Mode -- PERFORMING TASK." The air around me seemed to ripple at the AI's announcement, scintillating and rippling with golden energy. Before I knew it there was a perfectly solid chair where once had been nothing but air. I spent a moment admiring the technology before taking my seat.

"Thank you, G.L.A.D.I.U.S. Much appreciated." I smiled, turning my attention to the Legate in front of me. I did my best not to mind the two guards who stood motionless and silent nearby. If it weren't for the fact that I could hear their raspy breaths I would have thought them to be statues.

"So," Vesperius started, noticing my slight unease at the presence of the guards. He flicked a hoof once, and both guards took several impossibly synchronized steps to the side. "What's this mysterious detail you find difficult to share? And be as honest as you can; I prefer to not have to kill another kitten to get Apollo's attention on a matter you're involved with."

"You know, if you were speaking like this to me two days ago, I'd have started arguing how gods don't exist instead of telling you, but things have changed." And with that extremely feverish and life-threatening night in mind, I continued softly, "The... the 'gods' spoke to me."

"I know they have, that's why I'm talking to you more openly about them," he replied simply. "Now, the detail? I'd prefer to not use up all ten minutes of my allotted free time branching off into different conversations."

I nodded, clearing my throat. Then I just let it slip out, "Okay. I hate the praefect." Hate was a strong word, of course, but in the five minutes we'd spoken he'd proven to be an almost polar opposite manifestation of the things I believed to be good for Roam. And of course, he just couldn't be right in his beliefs.

He shrugged. "Not a very surprising thing. I hear the guards growl that under their breath in the few times they speak of their own accord. You're not the first to say it. When the executors of the cohorts planned their moves in this very room, several of the more idealistic of them grew a disdain for the praefect's stubborn, ultra-Roaman-supremacist attitude. Sure, the executors are almost all exclusively pro-Roaman, but... not to his extent."

"Huh." I brought a hoof up to my lip, thinking. "Well, glad I'm not the only one who finds him disturbing. Even more so now after that occurrence this morning. Ultra-Roaman-supremacist praefect with an almost drone-like guard force of roughly four-hundred praetorians... that just spells trouble to me. And from the way the troops who saw it were acting, they found it troubling as well."

"Yes, I got Flavianicus's report just recently." He pulled up an envelope and showed it to me, and I saw that upon it was written: 'Vespy's reports. No touchie unless your Vespy (or Flavy, aka me)'. I rose a brow at the way it was worded, and as he put it away he said, "Yes, I do find his writing style childish... not at all like Delvius's unnamed book."

His expression suddenly lit up. "Ah, yes! Speaking of him, I just want to tell you that I'm perfectly fine with him accompanying you. I can't offer any support for you, though. I am sorry, but as a zebra of organization and with a sacred vow to the senate's valuable resources, I can't make exceptions to the rules right off the bat. You want my support? You'll need to have him go through all the official organizations, and that's what you were trying to avoid the whole time I presume."

"Yeah, it was," I nodded. "In either case, just knowing you're fine with him accompanying me is good enough. Takes a little load off my chest." But, as was always the case, once a problem was gone another took its place. And so after a moment I added, "I'm scared for him, though. The things we're going to be fighting... they make me shudder." And to prove it, my body gave an involuntary shake.

He nodded, looking down. "I understand. But what was that Flavianicus said... something about fence-sitters... oh yes. 'Fence-sitters are safe but are unremarkable', to paraphrase. But take comfort and don't worry too much for him; he is supposed to be with you. Once a person is given the favor of the gods, then by all laws no enemy can stand against him. You and your friends have survived and met the people you have because you were ordained to achieve such things. For him, it is no different." He gave a reassuring smile.

Again, I nodded. I didn't believe the crap about Tom 'ordaining' our lives, though... it was something I felt a sudden urge to talk him about. Nevertheless, I took his reassurances. "Maybe, maybe..." was all I said.

"You doubt?" he asked, cocking his head sideways.

I didn't doubt. I knew Tom wasn't that powerful. But for his sake, I would lie. "No, no. I met them, remember?" At that he relaxed, taking my response as acceptable. "I just... well, much as you say I shouldn't worry... I still do. I mean, chimeras... damn."

His eyebrows rose. "Ah, chimeras..." he murmured as he shifted in his seat, rubbing his chin. "So that's what they are. Yes, it makes sense... the dragon snouts, the manticore wings and tail, the cockatrice eyes... it all makes so much sense."

"You know of them as well?" I asked, leaning back against my seat. Maybe there was still hope for having the entirety of the Legion fight the chimeras...

He recoiled back, looking askance. "Of course I do!" he said as if insulted, going for a piece of paper. "Yes, they're right here: 'With these organs petrify; black armor; hellish red eyes', yadda yadda. So on and so forth. If there's one person in the entirety of the blood that sprang forth from the shelter below that knows all there is to know upon written and typed mediums, it is I. Never doubt that I know it if it involves files, folders, scrolls, or envelopes."

I waved my hooves around. "Alright, alright. You know everything that's on paper or is digitalized. Now, the chimeras. Can you help me annihilate them or not?" I leaned forward and looked into his eyes.

He looked up at me for a moment, then glanced aside as conflicted thoughts ran through his mind. Then he sighed. "Goldwreath, if I could have done anything about them I would have. Trust me. I understand the severity of their threat; even the gods are cautious of the Great Destroyer who manipulates them. But I have my orders, and can act only within their parameters. If I disobey them and reroute too much of the senate's resources, there'll be hell to pay. Then I will be causing chaos, and that will be detrimental to all of the Legion's efforts." He shook his head, clicking his tongue before looking up at me. "No. If there's anything I can do to assist you, it is making sure the Legion's petty politics and organizational detriments don't hinder your efforts out there. But anything else -- resources, troops, specialists... those will need senatorial approval."

I blew hot air out my nose. "I keep hearing of this 'senate'... they're really starting to piss me off. I need to talk to them and convince them of this threat, because I don't want Roam to be ended by the ignorance of some old farts sitting in a circle and talking about... about politics."

He smirked, tapping a quill against the inkwell it drew ink from. "I understand your frustration, but I have tried convincing them already. It's the same old excuse: 'We can't act on hunches.' And even more irritating is they have one just for my case: 'We can't act on our pontifex maximus' visions because the notion of the gods talking to him is very unlikely.' Pfft, idiots. Why did they even assign me as the high priest if they won't listen to me?" He rolled his eyes in contempt.

"Fucking hell... how did these guys get elected?"

"By administrating and creating a thriving subterranean civilization, that's how," he replied, grimacing as if angered. "But they fail to understand that the exodus changes everything; we aren't just the base any more -- we are Roam's hope of revival. We need to act on it, not idle around. But they continue to cling to the same policies that worked for them when all they had to manage was the Maximilian-class shelter. Beyond the compulsory creation of the cohorts, they do little more. Now we have a whole city to save, and they're... they're fucking slow!" he growled, then huffed angrily, "Gods, I'll be giving them a piece of my mind when they get up here."

"Get up here?" I asked, cocking my head. "As in here? On the surface?"

He let out a hot breath, trying to relax. "Yes, here. I said they were slow, not inactive. Within the week -- maybe three days -- they'll shift their power center from the senate house down below to this Forum. Accompanying them will be the cohors urbanae -- the urban cohorts, the ones specialized to the rebuilding of Roam. The other cohorts are just the fighters. Hopefully the senate'll see how badly they need to speed things up once they get here." He huffed.

Hm, yes... lots of new information, very good. "So they'll be up here... that means I can convince them of the threat. I can convince the entire Legion of the threat!" I hopped off my seat. "Yes. That's what needs to be done!"

He gave me a sad, amused smile. "So ambitious..." he murmured. "Well, Goldwreath, be my guest. They'll not listen to you, most likely -- they'll probably blow you off as a... a degenerate or something. But go ahead."

I frowned. "You give me the go ahead, yet you don't sound very hopeful or enthusiastic," I pointed out.

He sighed, shrugging. "When it comes to the senate... well, I've come to expect the worst. At least in terms of how well they take anything that could shatter their policies. But like I said, go ahead and try. Maybe you can actually convince them." His smile turned a bit more sincere, and suddenly a flicker lit up in his eyes that banished his hopelessness. "Wait... wait, you actually can convince them!" He got up, pacing back and forth behind his table. With every moment that he spent, tapping his chin and mumbling to himself, his enthusiasm grew. "Yes... yes, kill one and bring its corpse back. That will show them. It will have to," he muttered, then looked at me and leaned against the table. "It will have to!" he hissed.

I grinned, "Now you're thinking positive. Fuck the senate, we have an enemy and a plan to deal with them -- and seeing as I have no solid plan for the future at my hooves, this is twice as good for me. When my friends and I go out next time I will go out and, though it may be a bad idea, I will look for a chimera and kill it. Then I will bring it back and hope to the gods that the senate recognizes the threat."

He nodded hectically, forming a grin of his own as he pulled away. I never expected to see him this fired up. "Yes, they will. I'm sure of it. They're unwilling to believe, but they're not stupid. They will recognize the threat. I know it." He took in a deep sigh, then after composing himslef sat back down. Opening his eyes, he said peacefully, "Ah, such a good feeling to finally have a plan for this problem. After being tied up managing the physical affairs of the Legion... well, it's good to have someone to act on what I've been too busy to."

"Well, glad to hear it," I said as I took my seat again. "Just keep those restrictions off me and I'll do my best to bring those creatures to the light. After that... assuming the senate recognizes the threat... I hope to see a Legion at war with Roam's great enemy."

He smirked, "Well, it's something to hope for." By this point the flame of his enthusiasm had died down, and though mine had not, I was not going to let my own energy diminish by talking to him about it. "So that's it then. You came to talk, and we have talked. Now we have a plan, with both of us having a precious stake in its success. Am I correct in my summary?"

I nodded. "Pretty much, yes. Far more than I expected to get out of this visit... at most, I just hoped to just... talk." But of course, my life was far too eventful to ever be that simple. Ah well, at least this time the things that sprang forth were helpful.

He nodded as well. "Well then, if I may say so without sounding rude or making our previous conversation seem irrelevant... I really must get back to work. I leave everything involving those creatures to you; they are our enemy but your charge. My place is on this desk with these papers, and it will continue to be so until you can force the change we both seek. After the change has come... well, gods forbid things turn for the worse."

"They won't," I said determinedly. "This change I plan to force, I plan to make it all for Roam's glory. I will do all it will take to make sure it succeeds. And if it takes a thousand chimera heads to convince the senate, then so be it. But I will not have Roam's last embers of life snuffed out by fools in togas."

The tone of my voice gave him pause, but he nodded. "Very good. Then please do leave me for now; we'll have time to talk later tonight. For now, rest. That is why you are here. It is not good to push oneself at all times, even within one's limits -- if contempt is bred by dangers and the things we do to plan for them, then you will become a walking figure of grim hate. I'm sure neither of us want that."

I got up. "Of course we don't. You're right, I should rest. It's just... I can't find it in me to let my time slip by without having done something relevant with it. Maybe it's the OCD my friend said I have or something else, but it's just me."

He smirked as he started going back to his paperwork. "Ah, OCD... an affliction both helpful and detrimental. In this case, neither. But it should be modulated nonetheless -- rest for now. Within these walls, leave at least half of your problems behind. This is one of the last few sanctuaries of true peace in Roam, maybe even the world. I will not have it destroyed or interrupted unless at the utmost dire of need."

I got up, nodding in concession to his wishes. "I will do my best to not stir up trouble, then. And so if there's nothing else, I will depart." I waited for half a moment to see if there was anything else, but nothing came up. Giving a polite bow, I turned around and went for the door again. The chair dematerialized as I left, and the guards approached their original positions. But as I finally reached the doors and pushed them open, I had the distinct feeling that there was more yet to be done and said before I would rest. That was always the case. Always another question to be asked, always another concern to be tackled... I'd be lying if I said I'd gotten used to it.

I wasn't wrong in my suspicion. The moment I reentered the main hall and closed the heavy doors behind me, Justinian the tribune said quietly as he leaned against the side of the doorway, "So you hate him, too." There was something in his voice. A slight bit of hesitation, like he wished he didn't have to use a word he used.

I wasn't quite surprised he'd listened in on that conversation; I had passed by him and asked him if Vesperius was okay for a visit. I suppose I had piqued his interest. What I was surprised about was that he had heard at all. Were those walls not soundproof, or did he simply have very good hearing? "If you mean the praefect, then yes," I replied simply, making him bow his head and sigh. "Don't you?" I asked concernedly.

"I do... but at the same time I don't ," he answered solemnly, pulling his head up and looking at me with eyes that were dark and sad. I was surprised at how immensely miserable he looked.

"Something wrong?"

He averted his gaze down the hall, giving a mirthless little chuckle and sighing. "Oh, the same things," he said half-mindedly as he trotted a little ways down the left curved hall of the Forum. I followed. "The same sanity-shrivelling days of silence and predictability, except with the twist of what happened earlier. I thought any change to daily routine of patrolling empty halls would be good... I guess I was wrong."

He stopped and leaned against some railings overlooking a relatively small circular chamber, at the bottom of which was a meeting table surrounded by chairs of fine make. It didn't take a genius to immediately know that this was a far less important meeting room, probably even just a place where people of high status spoke of regular things that weren't necessarily classified.

Leaning against the railings myself, I said, "So the praefect took four-hundred or so of you guys out into the city. You don't know why and you couldn't have done anything about it. I know I don't have much right to say it, but I think you should just let it go." Surely it wasn't easy, considering the fact that they'd all spent two-hundred plus years together, but holding onto things like that just didn't get him anything.

"I should," he replied, nodding idly. "But... I can't. I just can't, okay? I can't bring myself to despise him, no matter how much I want to." Clicking his tongue and leaning forward, he looked over at me and said in a voice so low it was almost a whisper, "He is my friend... no, was my friend. Before he became the praefect, we were like two olives on a tree. Then he got his position and... slowly, very slowly but very absolutely, he became what he is now." With a broken laugh and a strained voice he continued, "Haha, such a shame... such a shame. You know, back then we could have shared things even our parents couldn't know. Now? Now I feel as though existence itself is laughing at my efforts to believe that there's still anything left of the person I called my brother."

"Oh." I bowed my head, swallowing hard. Well, that made things extra hard for him. To see a friend transforming into an enemy must have been painful, maddening even. "I'm sorry for bringing it up. I didn't know you were listening in; had I been aware, I could have talked of something else. It's just that the way he acted... I thought he was just always like that. It never occurred to me what he was to you."

He straightened up, hissing as though in pain. "It's fine. I have my ways of dealing with it. Most of the time I just don't think about what happened to him. When I'm forced to by circumstance, I go somewhere where there are different memories... like here." He gestured over the chamber. "This was where the past praefects and tribunes used to meet with important visitors. You can't see them, but the walls have hidden doorways through which servants could have come through to tend to the needs of individuals. I myself didn't know until I was already being served, all those years ago." He chuckled softly but fondly; a pleasant change from the sorrowful and solemn tones of our previous conversation.

"That sounds lovely," I commented, trying to build up on his lightened mood. "So tell me, who did you usually meet in this place? Legates? Senators? High-level patricians?"

He nodded to each. "All of those, yes. Often, too. Four times a week, at least. When the guard's officers weren't fighting or on duty, we settled disputes among the higher-ups of the zebra government. The emperor had given us that explicit, unquestionable authority -- in our presence, powerful or no, you were subject to our judgement. Of course, the emperor still had the final say. We just cleared all the details up and put the whole case in a nice clean envelope that went to his throne." He paused, clicking his tongue, "Huh... now that I think about it, I get the feeling we weren't actually needed. Great, another negative notion." He sighed.

"Oh, that's ridiculous," I commented. "You were needed, don't think otherwise. Saving someone the need to extract information can make all the difference between him giving up on judging a case or not. I'd say you played a more significant role that you think." After all, investigating was almost the entirety of the process of solving a case. The final judgement was just the small but culminating event, but like they say: the journey beats the destination.

He looked over to me and gave a tiny chuckle. "Maybe, maybe... I wish I could feel as certain about it as you seem to, though. Even if my past life in the guard doesn't matter anymore, the uncertainty and doubt stemming from the decisions I made still... still haunts me."

"We all make mistakes," I replied, putting a hoof to my chest. "I am no exception, you are no exception, Vesperius is no exception; hell, even the gods, according to mythology, made mistakes." And if Tom really was 'the gods', then he -- possessing a personality and desires -- could make mistakes as much as any other. Anyone who thought themselves perfect was a fool, no exceptions.

"I know, I know," he replied simply. "But some of the things I-..." He stopped abruptly, then took in a shuddering breath. "... some of the things we praetorians did in the Empire's last years... mistakes. Terrible mistakes." And with that said, his voice quieted down to a near whisper as he murmured, "Especially the things that involved that damned legate..."

'Damned legate'. The two words echoed in my head. Decarius had used the Shadow Corps and put them to use in attacking Equestria and doing... other questionable things. He was candidate number one. Autherius had commanded the dragon fleets and had apparently worked with Decarius on some of their exploits. He was candidate number two. Time to ask of them in that order. "I'm sorry, but... this legate... why do you dislike him?" I asked in the most innocently curious and non-interrogative voice I could muster.

"Reasons," he replied flatly, shifting uncomfortably and nervously as he looked over the chamber. He clearly didn't want to continue, but at my increasingly curious look he sighed, "He, uh... said things to us, did things to us. I don't know how or why, exactly; he always met with very specific praetorians, and no one else, whenever he'd interact with us. That made us uneasy. I started hearing the guards' hushed voices echoing down the halls, their suspicion simmering through the air like radiation. There was talk of some of us no longer being themselves. Whispers of conspiracy, murmurs of foul and unholy plans..." He shivered.

Hoping to urge him on, I prodded, "And then?"

"And then? Well, then he somehow got my friend's undying, unshakable loyalty!" he replied incredulously. "I don't know how. He tore the guard in two in mere weeks -- between those of us who started following him like the emperor himself, and those of us who still knew their loyalties. Soon the latter side didn't even exist; the praefect -- my friend -- commanded us to fall in, even saying the emperor gave him authority. So we had to. Out sacramentum demanded it; the invocation of the emperor's name demanded it. I wanted to question it. So many of us who I could have still called praetorians wanted to question it, but..." His voice trailed off as he bowed his head, sighing.

"But what? Why didn't you question?" I asked softly. I watched for a few moments as he fidgeted with his hooves and looked around as if trying to distract himself.

I was certain he wouldn't answer by the time he finally did. "We couldn't," he admitted, shaking his head. "By that time it was too late. We were praetorians, sworn to Roam's protection and the defense of her holdings and her emperor when all others failed. But instead of doing just those, we were being run around the city almost every day doing the things the cohors urbanae were supposed to do. It was almost as if we were being kept from the presence of the emperor. Most of us didn't get to see him for months on end, and when we did it just wasn't the same. No more words were shared, no greetings thrown our way." With a haunted, distant look in his dark eyes he intoned quietly, "He was always there, that legate. Right at Augustinius Caesar's side, smiling... smiling with the glimmer of madness in his eyes." He took a deep breath, then let it out with a tremble.

Okay, anything with 'Shadow Corps' and I might have suspected Decarius. But all that? Was it him? There was only one way to find out. "And who was this guy?" He looked up at me with narrowed eyes, as if skeptical why I cared. "Just curious. He sounds like someone anyone who cares for Roam's history should know of." His eyes narrowed all the more. I withdrew in fake surrender. "Alright, you don't have to answer. Just... wondering."

My withdrawal seemed to turn off several barriers in his head. He looked over the chamber for a moment, sighed, and said flatly, "His name was Decarius. Close confidante of the emperor and co-partner of legate Autherius in their operations to conduct specialized -- sometimes unconventional -- defensive and offensive warfare against the Equestrians. All the other legates were focused on the more common forms of warfare, you see, and left it to them to do things that would turn the tide of war."

So it was him... son of a bitch. Well, add 'wrecking the praetorian guard' to the list of things Decarius did. "And you... you feel regret about it all?" Slowly, he nodded. I sighed; yeah, I could understand. It really was something to feel bad about to have participated in that zebra's schemes, whether he understood the depth of Decarius' involvement with Tod or not. But it wasn't his fault. Like many who didn't deserve what they got, he had been dragged into it and forced to participate. I suppose, given that all those who were involved in Decarius' Tod-influenced existence seemed to turn loyal to him, it was a blessing just to have someone from back then who had long kept his mind his own.

Everything was quiet for a while after that. I suppose all the recollecting of his past after the troubling event earlier that day had done a number on him. I tried to bear with it, even as my deep desire to keep conversing boiled within me. Finally he looked to me and said casually, "Well, enough about me. My life has fallen into maddening routine, broken only by what has happened today. Now for your concerns."

Turning around and laying his back against the railing he said, "I heard about your plans in there. I didn't quite get most of it, especially that part about chimeras, but I just want to tell you to be careful when you get back out there. Roam's more dangerous than you think. As a praetorian I wasn't privy to much of the classified things my government did, but I got the gist of it. Desperation got a hold of us the moment ponies set armed hooves on our soil. We did things, bad things... some of which I don't think are over."

As if the Tod-Tom conflict and my own head rebelling against me wasn't enough... well, life in the wasteland was never fair or kind, only less cruel and harsh. "Like those huge guns in the mountains? The... the defense network, as I've heard of in memory orbs?" I asked skeptically.

He looked at me for a moment. "So you've been viewing memory orbs, the gates to my time... well, if you wish to open doors to the troubled and convoluted past and introduce your life to its madness, then that is your choice. Good because it means you will be more prepared when the past inevitably reaches out for you in your adventures, but bad because you have to get involved at all." He sighed. "In either case, yes, like the network. Decarius' biggest defensive project, that. The emperor convinced him, as one of the shareholders of Roam's money, to divert a staggering twenty-five percent of the Empire's funds to constructing several miles of the most advanced defensive array you'll ever believe to have existed."

"And yet Roam was ruined and its people killed. It didn't work," I grumbled.

He shrugged. "It did and it didn't. The network is the only reason I know of that Roam and her holdings are not all wasteland -- the reason our lands can support life and civilization still. Those guns shot down almost every megaspell sent at us at the war's end. All but fifty of them. I should know; when those fifty hit our soil, we guards stood in a great circle around this place and just watched... it was terrible. Still, to Decarius we owe our lives... but I'll never find it in me to feel any better about him."

"Neither will I," I replied. "Do you think he built the network because he wanted to? Because I saw a memory orb or two with him in it, and frankly I just... don't think so."

"I absolutely know he didn't want to," he replied with a huff. "I knew that bastard. He always spoke of a 'new, perfect Roam' where its citizens were 'perfect and in the stars with the gods', but he never liked the common zebra. Public appearances aside, that legate would always look at any below him with contempt, and he would always say, when questioned, that he did so because he saw their many imperfections and considered them unworthy to be Roamans. Bah, like he was perfect!" he spat. Seething, he continued, "So no, he didn't do it because he wanted to. I just know it. He had an ulterior motive. I'll go so far as to say he may have been the one to select who went into the Roaman Stables, seeing as only the rich and influential families were allowed in, and none else."

I had no trouble believing all that but that final detail. "My family, I think, wasn't exactly rich or influential, and yet I came from a Stable. See?" I showed him my Pipbuck as proof I wasn't lying.

He just shook his head as he looked down at it. "A Stable, yes, but not a Roaman one. You come from a freelance zebra Stable -- there were plenty of those, constructed because most legates still had the heart to see the value of the common Roaman and of the Equestrians who had decided to give their loyalties to Roam. But without the Roaman state's official support on their construction, these Stables were not given predetermined lots and did not meet the absurdly high quality standards the emperor set for the official state-owned Stables. In fact they may not have been created at all had Autherius been of like mind to Decarius. If only the emperor had given him the reigns to forging Roam's plans for the future... things may have been different."

I nodded. I had questioned why the Legion, who came from a Stable as well (albeit one that was apparently very different from my home), did not possess Pipbucks. Now I knew -- like with Roam's separation of its citizens as Roamans and non-Roamans (the latter being comprised mostly of modernized tribes from Roam's classical age), they divided even those who took shelter from the apocalypse as Roamans and -- judging from the almost nonexistent culture of any zebra race in my previous home -- Equestrians. The Pipbuck, a pony invention, served as the dividing mark, I suppose. Not that it mattered what kind of Stable I came from; I was alive and others were alive, and that was all that mattered.

Suddenly I heard the clunking and clattering of metal armor and weapons from down the hall. Justinian heard it too, and we both finally withdrew from the railings entirely and looked down the curve of the Forum's halls.

Praetorians, fifteen of them, arrayed in a... well, it would have been a column formation if there weren't gigantic gaps in between each of them where, it looked, other praetorians would have been in if the majority of them had not gone. They were marching down the hall towards us, maintaining their spacing rather than compressing to form at least a square. There was something oddly grim and depressing about seeing them like that. Not adjusting to the absence of so many of them, like all they knew anymore was their unchanging routine... it was sad.

Justinian sighed and took a step forward to meet them, and they stopped right in front of him. Rendering the Roaman salute, one of them greeted him, "Ave, tribune!" I knew the voice. Tintulius was his name, if I remembered right.

Immediately after the greeting the others followed suit with their own, "Ave, tribune!" The force of their greeting felt weak and flat in the face of their diminished number and the large hall: something that made me feel all the more saddened at their loss. Some of them were slumped and looked to their sides at the great empty spaces separating them from each other; they were feeling the void of their lacking comrades, too.

And Justinian noticed. Breathing a heavy sigh he ordered, "Praetorians, square the formation. Move."

The guards' eyes were all on him in an instant, baffled glimmers in their eyes. "S-square the formation, sir?" one of them asked uncertainly. "Don't we... maintain spacing? In case they return?They will return, won't they?"

Justinian shook his head slowly. "No. And don't expect them to." His words spread worried murmurs through them like wildire. "Now... square the formation, move."

This time they followed, if extremely tentatively. It was clear they'd never had to do it before. Bumping into each other and causing a clamor, each guard fumbled around and attempted to find some manner of placing himself into the new arrangement. A full minute passed by the time the fifteen praetorians finally found a suitable spot, and even then their uncertainty showed in their constant movement of the head and of the torso.

Justinian shook his head sadly, then looked over at me. "Well, Goldwreath, I must go. The talk we just had, I much appreciate. But while I wish I could vent all the things that have been bottled up in this head of mine, there are people who need me to guide them. To try to get them through this uncertain time. Like me, they are the last of the guard who still own themselves... and like me they know nothing else but the routine they've gone through each day for decades."

I tapped his shoulder and smiled. "Go and get to it, then. Be the leader your friend failed to be."

He paused for a moment as if unsure of how to feel, then nodded anxiously. Breathing deep and slow, he trotted forward to stand at the head of small square. Then, casting one final glance over at me, he ordered, "Praetorianos, processit iter!" And then down the hall they went as a clattering mass, until finally they vanished down the curve.

When they had gone I found myself alone, as if the situation was begging for me to reflect and ponder. Add in the goldmine of context I had just gotten and it certainly seemed like my singular purpose at the time was to process the new information. But I didn't. Perhaps I had finally gotten tired of overthinking things (or perhaps the things I had to think on simply came in great volumes at a time rather than as a smaller, constant stream, in which case I rightly should have been thinking hard), or perhaps I simply didn't quite care as much as I should have anymore, but all I did was get up, whistle a tune, and start trotting back to my room.

'Why do I even still care? Tod was involved with Decarius, but now he's dead. Whatever he did doesn't matter anymore. What matters is that I stop Tod, and nothing else. All other things are optional,' I thought.

'Indeed, that's true,' I thought... I did think that, right? 'Everything else is optional. In fact, come to think of it... everything but living is optional. I should just stay here with my friends, in safety. Let the past be and... just actually live a life. A plain, normal, uneventful life. '

Yeah... maybe I should...

I mentally smirked... but why did I smirk? This wasn't exactly something to laugh over. 'I should. I really should. I mean, why the hell do I have to trouble myself with the past? It's over, it's done... trying to unravel it has gotten me nothing but trouble.'

True, true. And to be honest, it's not like I actually benefited from learning how some legates worked behind the headlines to pursue their ambitions. I really was just curious. It was that simple. Maybe the chimeras I needed a little more info on, but aside from that... nothing.

There was another smirk. 'Ah, but curiosity killed the cat. I don't want to die... I really should just give up on this shit. Nothing but pain has it brought me and my friends... it even fucking split my head in two!'

Yeah, it did. I wasn't like I could escape Tod or my alter-ego even if I just dropped all the things I did, but it sure as hell would have made things just so much... simpler, easier, better. I could focus myself helping in other ways aside from being on the front. Give advice, talk to the soldiers... that sort of thing. I could even actually try to solve some of my friends' problems. Skyfire was sticking with me for now, but I had to face it: this wasn't the life for her. She could go back to the Enclave, and I could help her do that. Predator would be himself, and he'd repeat the cycle of acting as a deranged maniac before turning to an oddly caring murderer. If I dropped my fights, I might actually even have the patience to deal with his shit. Zaita needed help with her sudden identity crisis. For the innocence and joy of Doodle, I could find her a home in the city. And for Myst... well, she deserved a stallion that was there for her instead of talking to himself all the time, arguing over ideals and philosophies... I could be that stallion. And I could help them all.

But only if I dropped my fights.

'The only option now is clear,' my voice said in my head. There was something... off about how it sounded, and how I felt about my own words. 'I'm just afraid to take the leap. But fear is an illusion; I know what has to be done, don't I? For the sake of those I care for... I must stop this madness.'

I stopped right where I was, then calmly looked around for the nearest reflective surface. It was a nice piece of silver, mounted onto a metal stand above a wooden table. I trotted over to it, then looked at myself.

'Why am I looking at myself? It's stupid,' my voice grumbled.

"Yeah? You know what else is stupid? You," I said aloud, noticing the very visible green glow in my eyes. Blinking it away and staring myself in the eyes I said, "The next time you try to influence my thoughts, take into account that, though you are me, the real me will always believe in the necessity of hardships to accomplish great things. Nothing good ever comes out of the easy way out."

With that said my face involuntarily twisted into an angry scowl. 'You'd think so!' he screamed in my head. 'But the new world will be full of individuals who know the truth! The truth that the established morals and order of things must die to make way for the new! You're too blind to see it -- too blinded by your pride! And too blinded by the light of the false gods!'

My face contorted into all manners of expressions, all filled with chaos and hate. And there was a wail, terrible and maddening, screeching in my head like the deathcry of a demon. I stumbled forward and struggled to keep myself up, until at last the pain subsided and was left slumping against the wooden table, numb and out of breath.

When I finally recovered I was... not much better. I could still feel him in there, like the foreboding rumble of thunder before a storm. He could strike at any moment, and knew my weak points as well as I did. He was formidable, but I had to remember: he was just me. Rather, another version of me, but simply without a body. Nonetheless I was terrified of him, and I knew that being alone only made my situation more precarious. I was paranoid, and dared not move from where I was.

Just then two praetorians passed by, neither minding me. One of them carried an odd ornament: a decorative Legion eagle, the symbol of Jupiter the Optimus Maximus, the Conservator, and the Victor. It looked down at me, those golden eagle eyes. I swear they did. They twinkled blue like stars, the light piercing into me until the standard passed by. And even when it had gone I felt... strong, confident, unafraid. My inner turmoil had died down, leaving me feeling like I hadn't been assaulted at all. And even more comforting? Our positions had been reversed; now, I could tell, he was the one feeling paranoid, and I was the one on the high ground.

Just then it was made very clear to me that I was being watched over. Tod and his powers were always at work, yes. But so was Tom, and Tom had proven to be more powerful. Perhaps he couldn't do everything and he wasn't always available to help, but he was there.

And he was on my side.

The thought made me sigh in relief and kept him quiet as I continued on down to my destination. "I guess you'll think twice before trying again, won't you?" I asked sardonically.

He didn't answer, but then again I knew he wouldn't. And anyway, I knew the answer.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

After what had happened earlier, it was a blessing to see that all was normal in my absence; perhaps my absence was the reason things were normal at all, seeing as I'd gotten myself involved in some very deep shit. Whatever the circumstance, seeing Doodle and Delvius together on the couch and just talking brought some warmth to my heart. And as I stepped in, I overheard a segment of what they were conversing of.

"... very good technique you have there," Delvius commented as he watched Doodle handle a pencil over a piece of paper. "I... well, I actually don't know anyone else who can draw this well. It's amazing!"

"Thanks!" she piped in reply, beaming a grin his way. "My ma and pa said that it's my special talent; it's even on my flanks, see?" She showed him the pencil and sketchpad in her outer thighs.

He nodded, "Even still, you had to have practiced. I mean, look..." He scooted over and pointed at something on the paper. "That's Goldwreath -- look at all the detail! The fur, the toga, th-the mane! Don't tell me you just drew that out of the blue, because I won't believe it."

"Oh, I didn't just draw it," she replied, leaning forward to look at me as I took more steps into the room. "I spent lots of time looking, too! I just remember how they look, and drawing them is as easy as how well I remember them."

He pursed his lips and shook his head as he noticed me as well. "But still-..."

"I don't get it either," I cut in, and sat down beside him. "She drew something once. It was of Skyfire. Detail was... impeccable. Shading was sublime. I didn't even ask how she did it because honestly... I couldn't have cared less how. I just saw something worth admiring and gave it what it deserved." I smiled as Doodle's grin widened at my compliment. Then I pointed a hoof at her, "So you, little filly, deserve an award. I'm sure there's something around here I can give you... like this belly rub!"

I rushed forward and lifted her into the air, making her giggle in glee and surprise. Then I threw her up and caught her just in time for the promised tickling. She laughed and her face went red, and so I stopped to let her catch her breath. She must have been sensitive down there, as even after I stopped her legs still kicked and flailed.

We let her catch her breath. It was taking her a while. "So how'd it go with Zaita?" I asked quickly.

He snickered. "Good, actually. It- she was very welcoming to the idea of another passenger. I didn't get most of what she said; I'm a soldier, not a wordbank. There were two points she made very clear to me, though: one, she likes elevator music; and two, she not only accepts me, but she also views me as a... well, a 'positive influence'."

"Considering I'm besieged by the lunacy of this entire wasteland and Myst and Skyfire are both slightly unstable, I suppose she's right," I said with a light laugh, but one that was dark and mirthless.

He rose an eyebrow. "Yes, well... I hope to be just that. I'll assist however I can, don't worry. It's kind of my job, being an auxiliary. That is, assuming I live." He shuddered.

"You'll be fine," I assured him. He seemed to question my certainty, and I shrugged, "Ask your pontifex maximus, the Legate. He seemed sure you'd be fine."

He nodded, his face skeptical. "Well... a topic of conversation for when we meet, then."

It was then that Doodle finally got herself under control. "Ah, mister Goldwreath knows my sensitive spots so well," she murmured as she recovered. She sniffed and suddenly blurted out, "MISTER GOLDWREATH, ARE YOU A FILLY-FOOLER?"

Delvius seemed to choke, and he coughed and looked to her with parental scorn. "Doodle, we don't ask questions like that!" he hissed, then scowled, "In the same way we don't throw food at people and choke them with olives. Have you learned nothing from the talk we had earlier?"

Her ears went flat against her head, and she frowned. "Sowwy mister Delvius..." she apologized, then looked to me. "Sowwy mister Goldwreath," she pouted.

Though Delvius seemed satisfied at her apology, I wasn't mad at her to begin with. "It's fine, Doodle. I don't even know what a filly-fooler is, so I can't take offense."

Delvius and Doodle both seemed surprised. Then Doodle grinned, "Oh, that's easy! A filly-fooler is-..."

Delvius hastily crammed a hoof into her wide-open mouth. "... nothing! A filly-fooler is nothing! Haha, nothing!" he laughed, then slowly averted his eyes down to the filly. "Am I right?"

She nodded, her saliva forming a seal around his hoof. "Good." And with that he withdrew his limb, then grimaced and looked down at it. "Yeah, I'll go wash..." He stood up, "Try not to learn anything... wrong... while I'm away."

"Alright, sure..." I drawled, twisting my face in confusion as he stood up and left. Then I looked down and saw Doodle continuing her work. Curiously, I moved closer and observed her new creation.

I'll be damned...

Wherever this filly honed her skills, I don't care. The point is that she was damned, unbelievably good! Like before, the shading and the details were absolutely excellent in just about every way, down to the smallest strokes. And this time it was even more impressive because it was all of us -- me, sitting where I was earlier in the day when I introduced Delvius to the group; Skyfire on the edge of a couch, her plasma rifles right at her side; Myst, wrapped around my hoof and looking anxious as always; Doomtune, bobbing to music; Delvius, talking to the rest of us. Even Zaita was drawn, hovering over the balcony. Indeed, it was a piece of art that was... honestly the best I'd seen in itself and not as a photograph or replica.

There was just one little thing I didn't like about it. "Listen, I know you like Predator and all, but was it really appropriate to draw him with us? I mean, he wasn't here..." Neither was Zaita, of course, but I just really didn't want him in the drawing.

She giggled. "Oh mister Goldwreath, you're so funny! Yes he was! He was right behind you, just like in the drawing."

My blood ran cold.

"That's... ridiculous," I stammered. "He was not here... was he?"

She screwed her face into a skeptical grimace and looked at me. "Mister Goldwreath, are you okay? Don't you remember him? He was even talking to you and everyone else, remember? You even laughed at some of his jokes!" she giggled.

Okay... yeah, none of that happened. The guy had practically no sense of humor, save sadism. "Are you sure? Because I'm sure that didn't happen. You didn't just imagine this and decide to stick with it like it's real, did you?" For sure Doodle -- despite being... odd, in almost every situation she'd been in -- was more mature and realistic than that. Then again...

She looked taken aback, then slowly gave me a pitiful little smile as she said, "Oh, Mister Goldwreath, I saw it happen. I'll help you remember! See, you were there with Mister Predator..." She pointed over at the corner. "... and miss Myst and miss Skyfire were talking about how much they appreciated all the things he did over there just before he said he had to go." She pointed at the couches. "It was so nice to hear them finally appreciating him, because they never seemed to like him! Why didn't they like poor mister Predator? He's always been trying to help us!" She frowned.

"Because he tried to kill and/or hurt us all at one point?" I offered, annoyed that she still even viewed the guy with any semblance of love when he deserved none.

She waved her hooves dismissively. "Oh, he had to. You heard him say those things about some terrible monster being in him, you can understand, can't you? Besides, you seemed to be fine with him earlier..."

Again with the crap that didn't happen. "Look, none of that happened and I'm not fine with him," I growled. "The guy has nothing worth appreciating that he doesn't cancel out with something else. He has no moral standards, no boundaries. He's a freak, he is the monster, and he does not deserve our friendship. Can't you understand that? He's not worth loving."

Her eyes widened in horror, the likes of which seemed more true and deep than any I'd ever seen on her. "Mister Goldwreath... you're wrong," she said meekly, shaking her head and frowning ever so slightly. "The things earlier did happen, and he always helps us. Always. What you saw was him trying to kill me, but he was actually saving me from being a little slave to those bad ponies. When we were in those dark tunnels, he saved us from being played with by those monsters. We're all alive, and well, and healthy, and whole. Aren't those worth anything?" She sighed, shaking her head but keeping her eyes on me. "Why can't you just understand him like I do?" There was a certain tension in her voice that made me balk; nothing forceful or expectant at all, just plain... sadness. An unwillingness to believe in anything as bad.

It was foalish innocence. Plain and simple innocence, and it opened a pit in me to consider, just for a moment, that perhaps she was right and I was wrong. That maybe I wasn't one to judge a person by merely what they did in my perception. That maybe her unclouded, innocent beliefs were the truth.

"I... I don't know," I answered softly, shaking my head. "Maybe you just see things I don't, hear things I don't, and believe in things I don't. I'm sorry, but as for me, well... I'll like him better if he does good and then nothing bad after."

"But he did..." she sniffed, then looked up at me. "You were laughing and talking earlier... you were having such a nice time with him. You were finally liking him... why did you forget? Why do you say these things?" Her eyes teared up.

This was wrong. None of that happened, of that at least I was certain. I didn't know why or care why she thought those things happened -- overactive imagination? Incapability to perceive what's real? Worst of all... a Predator-induced fake reality? -- but I did care about her. I wanted her to know it wasn't real so much, but pursuing that goal would just hurt her and harm her innocence.

She was wrong... but she believed in him. And after having vowed my loyalties to the people, maybe I should have, too.

I nodded slowly, pulling her close and hugging her. "You're right... you're absolutely right. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said those things. And I remember now, I really do. I do..." I cooed as I stroked her mane. "Please believe me. I really do remember now..."

'You know you don't,' other me scoffed. 'You're lying to yourself.'

'Maybe,' I replied as he took in a deep breath. 'But sometimes something else has to take importance over what I believe in. And nothing can fit that bill more than the most innocent, forgiving filly I know of.'

He growled but fell silent. Then Doodle pulled away and looked up at me with wide, glistening eyes. "You do?" she asked slowly, softly. "You're not just saying that?"

I smiled. "Of course not."

"So when we meet him again you'll be nice to him?" she asked.

I hesitated. "I... will. To the best of my abilities, I will give him what he deserves."

'What she wants you to feel he deserves, you mean,' he barked, and I couldn't help but grimace and scowl. I had to look away to keep her from noticing it. 'Give him what he truly deserves, then: a bullet to the brain.'

'I will give him my understanding,' I shot back, all the while giving Doodle as reassuring a smile as I could muster. 'I have sworn my loyalty to the people of Roam. Predator, monster though he may be, is a Roaman. I will give him as many chances as he needs to prove even he can be better. And I am doing this because an innocent filly was able to remind me of what I believe in, and who those beliefs pertain to; not because I am easily bent to another's will.'

He growled again, then spat, 'You just keep telling yourself that, fool,' and fell silent once more.

I grit my teeth, "Cursed piece of..."

Doodle's demeanor quickly changed to one of concern. "Mister Goldwreath? Are you okay?"

Huh, wow... just a moment ago she was hurt by my words, and yet she had the goodness to sound so genuinely concerned about me as to make me wonder if we'd had that exchange at all. She gave forgiveness and love easily... if only I could. "I am," I answered calmly after a few moments. "Just a few thoughts."

"About mister Predator?" she asked skeptically.

I shook my head, "No, no. This time it was just about myself."

"You were saying bad stuff," she pointed out.

"I was having a headache," I answered. It wasn't a lie, because that was the truth. Just not the whole truth; she didn't need my madness spreading to her.

She pouted, staring at me. Then she grinned, "Oh! Then you should try asking those nice zebra ladies for an icepack! I'm sure they'll be happy to give it to you." Her statement ended on a sultry note, something that made me raise an eyebrow.

"I'm sure they'd be glad to give it to any of us," I replied.

"But mostly to you," she purred, placing a hoof to my stomach.

"And why mostly me?"

She giggled, withdrawing, "Oh mister Goldwreath, you know why."

I shook my head. "No, I don't."

She stared at me for a moment, her face stretching into a grin slightly disbelieving and mostly amused. "Wait, wait! You don't know?"

I groaned; why was I getting the feeling everyone in the group knew something I didn't? I mean, first Myst, then Doomtune, now even the filly... fucking conspiracy. "If I say I don't I assume you'll tell me. Fine, I don't."

Her mouth dropped in light laughter, and she rolled her eyes. "Oh mister Goldwreath, those mares-..."

"No!" Doomtune called out, and ran up to her from the doorway of his room. Covering her mouth up with a hoof, he addressed my baffled expression by saying in a forced tone of casual benignity, "Eheh, yeah, don't mind her. Fillies and all, eheh. Still learning about life and stuff; not the best source on matters regarding mares and stuff..."

I looked at him with unease and skepticism. "Right... well, she seemed to be knowing what she was talking about. And after that little encounter we had earlier, I'm more curious than ever."

"Well, stay curious," he replied curtly, slowly taking his hooves off the filly's mouth. "No offense Doodle, but such... 'complicated' matters as mares and their needs must be conducted to this poor sod by adults who have adult minds. Not fillies who shouldn't know of these things to begin with."

"Hey, I'm right here," I interrupted. "And I find myself a little offended. 'Poor sod'? Come on, I know enough about mares to deserve something less derogatory. I mean, I have a marefriend for gods' sakes."

They both stared at me for a moment as Doomtune's limbs fell limp against the seat. "Right... so how many opportunities have you missed?" he asked.

"Opportunities to what?" I replied, confused.

He looked to Doodle, shaking his head, "Nope. Still ignorant."

She didn't exactly reply, but she did say, "You know mister Doomtune, just a while ago I asked mister Goldwreath if he was a filly-fooler." His ears stood straight up, and he glared skeptically.

"Where are you going with this?" he drawled.

"Well," she started. "After what happened just now, I think you fit that bill better!"

His eyes widened into disks. "WHAT?!"

Delvius suddenly slammed the door open, his face and hooves still dripping from an unfinished washing session. "Okay, I stopped the water just long enough to hear 'filly-fooler' again. What the hell are you people talking about out here?"

Doomtune waved his hooves around, scrunching up his face. "Wait, what do you mean 'again'? What the hell were you talking about around this filly?"

"That's what I was asking you. What were you two talking about around her? Goldwreath?" He stepped closer and looked at me.

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing resembling a legitimate answer came out. "I... really don't know. We were talking about one thing, then Doomtune came out with his 'Goldwreath is ignorant' crap, then Doodle said he was a filly-fooler, then you came out... too much in under one minute, people!"

"Just to be clear, I am not a filly-fooler," Doomtune huffed.

"Okay, just... enough about filly-fooling! Okay?" Delvius cried aloud, exasperated. Shaking his head, he snorted in disgust as he looked at me, "Can you believe this? Filly-fooling talk around a filly..."

"I still have no idea what a filly-fooler is," I explained. "And after these past few conversations that have only opened up questions, I really would love it if one of you just told me what that is..."

"A-nope!"

"Not happening, pal."

"Like hell."

I stared at the three of them, especially at Doodle. "Okay... with all three of you knowing things I don't... I'm really getting creeped out. Especially with you..." I pointed a hoof at Doodle, "... a filly, keeping secrets from a grown stallion about mares... that vexes me, I'm terribly vexed."

She giggled. "Well, mister Goldwreath, I grew up in Fillydelphia; next to what's behind mister Redeye's walls, the place is terrible! Dad told me all kinds of things a filly in the wasteland needs to know. And besides... grown stallion? You're really more of a colt."

Delvius and Doomtune snickered. Casting glances at each other, they seemed to form a silent agreement.

I stared at her flatly, ignoring the two of them. "A colt?" I deadpanned. "A colt? As in, young male pony? The type that has no knowledge about mature things like science, philosophy, art, architecture, military strategy, history, and the importance of physique? I'm insulted."

"Well..." she drawled. "Do you know about mares?"

"Of course I do! There are fat mares, fit mares; zebra mares, pony mares; attractive, unattractive; noisy, quiet; lovable, un-..."

"These are textbook adjectives, dude," Doomtune cut in, shaking his head as if ashamed. "Ah well, there will be a time when you will learn... hopefully before you miss another opportunity."

"Damn it, what opportunities?"

Delvius rolled his eyes, "This is just sad. We're talking about it right in the open and he still doesn't get it."

"Come on, just tell me!"

"Yeah, it's like we're talking to an actual colt," Doomtune teased.

"Ooh, mister Goldwreath! That should be your nickname! 'The colt'. I LIKE it!"

"For fuc-... damn it guys, this is getting ridiculous. Even the filly knows, come on!"

"Well, I'd recommend reading some old magazines if you get my drift," Doomtune offered.

Delvius chuckled but composed himself. "Okay you two, enough," he said as he stood up and patted my shoulder. "You know, each person is made different. We should do our best to respect and understand one another's weaknesses and quirks, no matter how... laughable." He snickered, but once more regained his composure. "So Goldwreath, please know that we're not laughing at you, we're simply... giving you negative feedback in the hopes you learn to grow a pair." He smiled down at me.

Doomtune shook his head, still smiling. "I'm not even going to point out what you did there, for his sake."

I gave them both sardonic, bemused glances. "I would usually just pretend stuff like this didn't happen, or blow them under the rug, or just stuff it somewhere in my head. However, the fact that that little lady knows and I don't is irritating me greatly... so now I don't know what to do."

"Just learn," Delvius said simply, and sat back down. "After all, what separates a stallion from a colt in mental terms is how much he knows." He grinned slyly, and I glared.

Things could have went on like that longer, really. At that point I actually considered forcing the answers out of them. But then Skyfire landed onto the balcony with a heavy thud, her wings sweeping the ground around her and concealing her face with the feathers. There was an atmosphere of anguish about her, evident in the sag of her shoulders and in the droop of her neck.

All our eyes were on her as she trotted slowly into the room, her head bowed and her mane covering her eyes. "Er, hey Skyfire..." I started. "Everything okay?"

She didn't answer until she reached the doorway of her room, and she glanced over at us with bloodshot, anguished, angry eyes. Eyes that lingered on me. "Like you actually care," she hissed, her chest shuddering as she slammed the door on us.

The next minute was an utter fiasco of attempts to get her to talk. None of us could say anything that could evoke any response; not even Doodle, whose shrill calls could have awoken a bear in hibernation. Every second filled my throat with an ever-growing lump, making it harder and harder to breathe as I knocked and called her name frantically.

Then Myst galloped in, beads of suppressed tears on the rims of her eyes. She jerked herself to a halt the moment she saw us all staring at her. I snorted like a bull and approached, and for every step forward I took she took three backwards until she hit a wall. Then she cringed as I stared down at her with a sternness that made her whine and cower.

"I... I'm sorry..." she whimpered, pressing her backside harder against the wall.

I just growled, "Myst. What happened?"

Maybe it was the hard, unforgiving look on my face. Or maybe it was the eyes of the other three looking at her with shock and confusion. Whatever caused her immediate honesty didn't matter; she didn't try to muddle up the truth with any lies. Not that it made my expression any less scornful.

"I..." She bowed her head. "I screwed up."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Over the next few blubbery minutes, she talked. And cried; that was an inseparable part of her explanations. By the time she was done, almost all her tears had been shed.

I stood against the dresser in our room, shaking my head and snorting. "So you screwed up," I huffed.

She sniffed hard, trying to take my anger as best she could. She gulped, pulling at the sheets underneath her hooves. "I... I screwed up big time."

I nodded sardonically, turning to face her. "Yes, you did. You screwed up big time."

Doomtune and Delvius stood outside, with Doodle, as they continued mounting futile efforts to get my friend to talk. I suppose they were met with nothing, as Doomtune appeared in the crack of our doorway just long enough to sigh and shake his head.

My words and tone seemed to cut at her like a hot knife right in her belly. "I know, I know!" she cried aloud, clenching her eyes shut. "I know, alright? I screwed up!" Sucking in snotty sobs and wiping her face hard she continued, "I'm so sorry. So, so sorry... I tried to break it to her slowly, b-but..."

"But you told her I was 'to be left alone to your care, and your care alone'," I cut in with a mocking jingle in my voice. She choked herself to silence, and I lashed out, "Myst, why would you say that? When you said you were going to talk to her about us, I trusted you to have the sense to make it so she still felt important and cared for, ESPECIALLY since you seem to be her 'best friend'!"

"I-I am her best friend..." she choked out weakly.

"Then why didn't you take into account her extremely fragile emotional state? You saw her break down time and time again, caught her sneaking peeks our way, and were the first to suspect her feelings for me. Yet you had so little sense as to basically tell her to piss off and leave me alone, as if she were some kind of annoying bug that just gets in our way!" I shot back.

She just looked up at me for a moment, then bowed her head and looked away. "I... I didn't mean it to sound like that..." she protested weakly. "I just didn't know what else to say, or how to say it. There were so many people... I almost broke down just because of that... and when I started talking to her about us... I just couldn't concentrate. Some of the soldiers were looking at us, some with... desire. I couldn't think straight. I couldn't focus on what I was saying or how I was saying it." Tearing up, she rose her head in anguish. "I had to force myself to get it out, even if I was already stuttering and twitching and anxious. I didn't mean to sound forceful, I just... couldn't help it." She sniffed.

So that was the reason her talk had turned info an utter disaster? Her social anxiety? Fuck, it was no excuse! Especially not in this case. I could hear whole sections of my head screaming for me to tear her to pieces. And I wanted to, so badly I actually stepped forward, my hooves trembling with desire to pound her to bits. Just her cowering and whimpering activated the few parts of me with judgement clear enough to remember who this mare was, and what she meant to me. She was my marefriend, and I cared for her; nothing would change that, even if this one event was... testing my restraint.

I sighed, looking up and stomping hard. I swear I heard the floor crack; that, or it was my hoof that broke. Somehow I didn't feel it was the latter. "Okay," I exhaled roughly, wiping my face and letting myself calm. "Alright, alright... I'm a sensible guy. I assess before I judge. You have made a terrible mistake, you know this."

She sniffed, nodding, "I do..."

"And you understand that Skyfire was immensely hurt by what you said, even if you didn't mean it the way you said it. And for the record, as we are all in this group together, what hurts any of you is a concern of mine. I trusted you, and you... you failed."

She choked, nodding again. "I did, I'm sorry..."

"I know you are," I replied levelly. "But as terrified and worried for her as I am, I am not her. Your apologies don't apply to me. They should be directed to her." I looked outside, then stretched out a hoof towards the door. "Go on then. Every second is precious."

She didn't move. She just breathed. Then she started crying, covering her face with her hooves. "I... I can't..." she whimpered. "I want to. I really do; scratch that, I need to. But..." She looked up at me. "Can't I just... think first? Get myself together? I can't go back out there, not like this... not with them looking at me, expecting me to get her to talk..."

I sighed, letting my foreleg fall limply to my side. "Fine," I replied, going for the door. I looked back and saw her head hung low, almost covered up by her hood. Tears rolled down her cheeks, and yet I swear I saw the tiniest smile on her face. Almost as if she were trying to hide something. "But don't delay," I said sternly, and her tiny smile disappeared and was replaced with paranoia. "Every second wasted, every moment's delay... that will just aggravate what you've done. And I'll only be there with you to face the consequences, not to fix them for you. Understood?"

She gulped. "Okay... I'll come out when I'm ready. I promise."

I stared at her for a moment, then closed the door and trotted into the room.

Delvius was there waiting for me; the other two weren't even trying anymore. Doodle just sat in front of the door like a lost puppy, and Doomtune was pacing on the balcony. "That was harsh... but I guess she deserved it," Delvius commented as I sat down opposite to him. "I mean, I don't know your friends too well, but I didn't need to hear more aside from 'extremely fragile emotional state' and 'feelings for me' to get the general picture."

"Glad I don't have to talk about it, then," I said blankly. "This is terrible... how did it come to this? How could she say that? She had to know better..."

He sighed, then shrugged. "People... well, we make mistakes. I understand that maybe it was a mistake she shouldn't have made in good sense, but I heard she broke down. She's a ball of anxiety, so I heard. People like that just have a harder time... no getting around it."

I groaned, rolling my head tiredly on my neck. "I know, I know, but she... she just... gah, screw this."

He nodded sympathetically. "I know it's hard. Relationships are like that. My wife and I, well, we had our arguments. Some serious, others less so. The one thing that should remain constant is a desire on both of your parts to get over it. That goes away, then you two might as well break up."

"I am not breaking up with her. No matter how... furious I am, I just won't. I'm just really scared for Skyfire... she never really recovered from what she had to go through. I rejected her. And then she saw me and Myst together. The sight of us has only hurt her, Delvius. I had hoped Myst talking to her about it would... I don't know, get her to be able to move on?" I looked over at him. "You have a wife... that implies previous relationship buildup. Did you ever have anything of a... a love triangle?"

He blew through his mouth, shaking his head, "Oooh, yeah... no." He clicked his tongue. "I mean, I heard 'casting glances our way' and had some speculation, but getting it confirmed... wow. An actual love triangle..."

"It sucks," I blurted, throwing my hooves to the side. "Ever since I found out the two of them liked me, I... was... confused. I mean, for gods' sakes, everything I know about love and romance comes from comic books and vintage films! Even then I didn't get to really process what I learned because I was forced to work most of the time. You'd think the world would throw me a break!" I melted into the seat, miserable and worried. "Just one day... one day that feels like nothing's wrong, or tense, or awkward, or rushed... normal. That's all I want. Here I thought I could have one such day, but there's always something. Always. I mean, just a while back I was critically bedridden. Then after that there was the praetorians leaving. Now there's this, and adding to it is Myst's delay..."

"Well, I won't add to it anymore," Myst said meekly as she poked her head out the door. Then she stepped out entirely, her hooves trembling. Despite that I could see that she was ready; there was something about her now, something like a bolster of confidence that kept her together. Whatever it was, I didn't care. Her method of overcoming her anxiety was, at least for now, working. She gulped as we stared at her expectantly, looking between her and the door. "I'll apologize to her... and make this right somehow," she said determinedly. Then she drew herself up and, slowly trotting forward, made her way to the door.

She started knocking. "Skyfire? Please, just let me explain," she pleaded.

There was no response. Just silence so absolute it sent ripples of worry down my spine.

She sighed, glancing back at me. "This might take a while... I'll keep trying."

The next few minutes were utterly unbearable. Knock, plead, wait. No response. Knock, plead, wait. No response. Cycle after cycle of repetitive begging, broken only by the noise of the three others in the room with me. Eventually we split up. Doomtune sat where he was, waiting patiently with the luxury of music right at hoof. Doodle took her drawing to the balcony and continued it there, looking less enthusiastic every second. Delvius got up and paced around.

And me? I was exhausted. Not physically, but emotionally; mentally, too. And when the mind is tired, so becomes the body as well. I waited. For more than an hour I listened, praying that the door would open. It never did. And with every passing minute I could feel my eyelids getting heavier until all noise was a distant echo.

And then I gave in. Sitting up straight but bowing my head forwards, I let all the weight I had been holding crumble down on me and put me to rest. My ears were the last to lose their senses.

"... Skyfire, please... I'm sorry..."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I suppose worse things could have happened. I could have had a bad dream in which I was attacked by my other self. I could have been put into another critical illness. We could have been attacked while we were vulnerable and divided, and that could have shattered us altogether.

But nothing occurred. I suppose the madness that followed us into the Forum was toned down by its more serene and majestic atmosphere. It didn't make me feel much better, but I was thankful for everything that could have contributed to our safety -- the two cohorts outside, the remnants of the antiquated praetorian guards, G.L.A.D.I.U.S... at least in here, I could say, it was safe to break down and argue without fear of sudden attack.

I was even thankful for the hoof that was shaking me awake, though at the time I was grouchy and sore in the head. My eyes snapped open the moment I had enough consciousness to hear things as more than unintelligible hums.

"Goldwreath," Doomtune said softly as he continued shaking me, "It's dinner time again. The guards are here to escort us. We're waiting on you."

Blinking a few more times and getting my head straight, I sat up. True enough, Delvius and Doodle were merely lounging around and waiting. Justinian and two guards flanked the doorway. Myst... well, she was still in front of the door, knocking.

"Skyfire... please..." she said in little more than a murmur, sniffing. I suppose she'd shed some tears while I was out, but was now utterly spent. She was tired, too; I could see it in the shudder of each breath and the sag of her shoulders, and if neither was enough then she was also slumping against the door.

"She's been like this for hours," Doomtune told me, looking at her sadly. "Only took a break every few minutes to go back to your room and do... something. She always seemed better each time she did, more alive, more... aware. Then after a few minutes she'd be as she is now, and since her last trip two hours ago she hasn't gone back." With a heavy sigh he added, "I have a feeling what happened is hurting her almost as much as it is hurting Skyfire."

I looked over at her, then sighed and got up. "Maybe it is," I replied. "I'm not smart at this kind of thing, Doomtune. Even Myst -- the living ball of social anxiety -- knows more about interacting with people than I do. If ignorance is bliss, then I suppose I'm lucky to only feel worried. I can't imagine what's running through her head right now."

Knock knock. "Skyfire..." she murmured, shuddering. Her hindlegs gave out, and she landed on her haunches with a thump.

Everyone seemed startled. I approached and, holding her close, started pulling her away. "Okay, that's enough for now," I said softly. "Take a break."

I was surprised at how... dead she felt. Cold, limp. Even more odd was the smell of mint. Her candy, as she called it. I had it once, after the ZSI Roaman HQ. It did make me feel better... perhaps the strain of what she had to do couldn't be borne without its help. I pulled her further away from the door and finally she looked up at me with the reddest, most haunted looking eyes I'd ever seen. Worse, they looked... wrong, with dilated pupils visible veins. This was not the effect of crying. It was something else, but I didn't know what.

"A... break?" she asked distantly, then shook her head slowly. "No, I... need to let her know... how much she matters and... how sorry... I am..." she said with each slow, heavy breath.

"She knows, Myst." I pulled her up. "Skyfire is thinking on this all, I'm sure. Perhaps with clouded judgement, perhaps with anger and disgust, but she is thinking on it." Glancing between her and the door I sighed, "And she will have heard all you have said. She will be processing it. She will make a judgment. All we can do now is wait for her say."

She looked up at me with those red, bloodshot eyes and bowed her head, her tail falling flat against the ground as she stooped. She didn't say anything, but I could sense her immense doubt and self-loathing. I'd experienced both aplenty; I could see it on anyone. "Someone should stay here... it has to be me..." she said lowly, head hung once more.

"I'll stay," Doomtune said, surprising us all. He nodded, confirming his statement. "Yeah, I'll do it. I know pain, I know dejection and loneliness. I'll talk to her... if she comes out."

"You don't have to," I told him. "This is my group, my concern. I don't wish to burden anyone else with our problems."

"But you have to," he replied. "For this case, she needs sympathy. Not apologies, not promises of improvement. Just sympathy. I can give her that."

I looked out the doorway, where Doodle and Delvius -- with a large leather sack attached to a wooden pole slung over his shoulder -- waited. "Are you sure?" I asked. "It would be appreciated, yes. And, I suppose..." My tone turned contemplative, "... I suppose our approaches were never effective. Perhaps only caused her more pain..."

He nodded, sitting down. "I am sure." He started waving us off as he played a serene melody filled with the sweet sound of harps and flutes from his helmet. "Go on then. I'll be right here."

I looked to the others, at Myst especially. She was clinging tightly to me to stop herself from collapsing. Then she nodded. Delvius shrugged, but on his face seemed for the idea. Doodle gave a crooked, unhappy grin.

We departed with waves and goodbyes, and Justinian and his guards led the way. Everything was unnervingly tense and quiet as we went. Myst didn't talk, and did nothing more than slump limply against me, her legs barely moving her along. My only reprieve from such tension in the past had been conversation, and that was still true up to this particular point.

I quickened my pace just a bit to get right behind Justinian. "So how'd your patrol go?" I asked quietly, hoping in the recesses of my mind that perhaps Myst would become a little intrigued and liven up. It didn't happen.

"Better than I expected, actually," he replied in a tone thankfully lighthearted enough to lift my mood. "They took some time to adapt. They stumbled, were uneasy, and were difficult to communicate with. But in two hours, I had gotten it across to them that the others were gone, and that we should get used to it."

I nodded, then, "Even your friend? Are you used to his absence?" I asked cautiously.

He was quiet for a moment. "No... not used to it all. But I am glad. For what he had us do, Velian lost my friendship. I will mourn the loss of the person he once was, not the monster he became."

"Velian?" I asked, "That's his name?"

"It is, yes." He nodded. "Why? Does it mean anything?"

"It actually does, Justinian," I answered, and he seemed shocked at the fact I knew his name. I smiled. "Memory orbs. It seems they're the key to knowing important people, eh?" I chortled.

He chuckled half-heartedly in reply, waving off in my direction. "Well, perhaps. If you come across the right ones, that is. Important people kept memories stored in orbs for their descendants, or simply to replay them. As for me and Velian, we were not important. We were just friends of the emperor's son and were ordinary milites in the guard before our promotions. Can't see how you could have seen any of either mine or Velian's memories..." He stopped altogether, and the guards followed suit in immediate succession. Doodle and Delvius were only second late.

"Did you see our memories? Which ones?" he asked slowly, his voice dripping unease and discomfort.

"Not yours, no," I replied, and nudged him along to get us moving. The guards' boots clattered upon marble as we continued forward. "But rather Cadian's, son of the emperor. I was given quite an impression in the half hour I was him. Energetic young stallion -- loud, youthful, confident, a bit eccentric. But of course you know this."

"Well, of course!" he replied proudly. "Velian and I were practically his bodyguards, and almost always forsook regular duty to tend to him. Appropriate, as we had studied together in the emperor's villa when us three were younger. This was before the war, mind you, so our relationship with him was purely friendly and without any trace of professionalism whatsoever." He laughed, proudly raising a hoof in a powerful gesture of recollection. "Ah, the memories we had!"

He begin jabbering on and on about their youthful exploits, back in a far more peaceful, simpler time. I didn't much care for the vast majority of what he said; at that point, I was still worried sick for the state of my friends, and the effect their demeanor would have on my plans. Nonetheless, he was a reminder that no situation was ever purely bad. And what's more, though it faded quickly, I saw Myst smile.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

It wasn't until we had finally arrived at the doors to the throne room that he finished telling his tales. I was actually peeved at our arrival; only until near the end of his tellings did I gain true interest in his stories, and now there we were. I wasn't just disappointed for the termination of my own enjoyment; Delvius, who seemed to see the tribune as a kind of ancient war veteran (which he technically was), had listened intently to every bit the praetorian had to say. He even jotted down notes on a notebook! Doodle and Myst, though both dejected in face, had flashed smiles and choked chuckles whenever they found themselves reacting.

We entered the room. Justinian and his guards moved forward, trotting calmly, and relieved the two at either side of Vesperius' work desk, where the Legate hurriedly finished the last of his pre-supper work. Neither of those to be relieved seemed comfortable at the sudden and unexpected procedure; perhaps they hadn't joined in the patrol. Nonetheless, they finally accepted their superior's orders to stand down, and so they both marched out of the room with awkward stiffness. Justinian sighed, and followed them out into the hall.

We sat down where we had the night before, albeit now with less enthusiasm. Even Justinian's tales and the sight of the very Roamanesque, very drool-inducing food already placed on our plates did little to lighten our moods. This seemed to disappoint a set of servant mares who stood against the nearby wall, one of which was a furcoat-dressed Zury. She in particular seemed morose, and then I noticed that at least half of the prepared food was tribal in nature -- stews of thick broths and spicy scents, the likes of which wouldn't have had a place in pure Roaman culinary traditions. Upon concluding that she must have done so much for us, I forced on a little smile and rose my stew bowl in her direction, nodding thankfully. This seemed to comfort her.

"Ah, the second night!" Vesperius said lightheartedly as he strode over, sitting excitedly on his seat. "Quite exciting, isn't it? Tonight's dishes are different, I'm sure you've noticed -- thank our exotic little zebra chef for that! Why, if it weren't for her little concoctions, I would never have finished all my work before supper!"

I gave him an insincere, shallow smile. "Good to see you're night's turning out good."

He nodded hectically. "Yes, yes it is good indeed. Zury! My dear, please do come over," he called, gesturing a hoof at the tribal mare. She was terribly flustered, but did as she was told. Myst kept her bloodshot eyes on her warily, as though she were afraid Zury would say something unpleasant.

"Y-yes, chieftain?" she asked shyly, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment as the mares behind her burst into quiet laughter.

Vesperius chortled. "Chieftain!" he laughed, looking at me. "She's still on that. Ah, when will she learn that not everyone has to be called such a name? I am Vesperius, and he is Goldwreath, and her name is Myst, and so on and so forth." He gestured a hoof around in a circular motion as he said our names. "Anyway!" he grinned. "Zury, I called you over because I forgot to ask: what did you put into that fantastic tea? Shot the blood right through my veins as though I were running! Why, I've never been this... pumped. Ever!"

Nervously, she replied, "There were... only a few ingredients." She gulped down a lump in her throat. "There was hot water, a little bit of excess sugar from the kitchen, and some leaves of the plant mintialis, which I found outside. That's all."

"Mintialis..." Vesperius mused, squinting his eyes in deep thought. "This is the plant from which the drug Mint Als is derived, yes?"

Myst's interest suddenly seemed piqued. Rolling both of her bloodshot eyes in their direction, she listened.

"Mint Als? My daddy took those!" Doodle piped, to which everyone stared at her. All but the guards, that is. She grinned sheepishly.

Zury turned her attention back to the question. She gulped but got her answer out. "Y-yes."

Vesperius seemed suddenly mortified about himself, and his gaze drifted to an empty cup on his work desk before returning to her. "So... I just took drugs," he surmised. "That's a, ah... disturbing thought." He grimaced.

"You took medicne, not drugs," Zury insisted, though there was a catch in her voice that made me doubt. "The mintialis plant is well known to my people to cure headaches and increase awareness. On its own, the plant's extract has no more addictive property than a favorite snack. Only the various other ingredients added in the manufacturing of the 'improved' version of the plant -- the Mint Al drug -- has given you the notion that it is bad. It is not so."

Vesperius blew a breath in relief, "Thank goodness! For a moment there I thought I'd start having addictive cravings for the plant. So, I can take all I wish, yes?"

She nodded. "You can, but too much of anything is bad. In this case, too much of the mintialis' extract can cause headaches, and can also make you delirious -- the opposite of its intended purpose."

"Delirious, huh?" Myst said next to me, swaying slightly. "Sounds... bad. But I guess just the right amount would be good... really good..." With that said, she added quietly, "Gonna have to look for that plant some time..."

Vesperius nodded, turning to face her. "It's understandable. When one takes things that messes with the head, it's only natural that-..." He stopped abruptly, eyeing her in shock. "Woah. What happened to you?"

To that question, Myst immediately feigned ignorance. "What about me?" she asked, trying to conceal view of her eyes and tired face. In doing so she pressed against me, trying to hide herself underneath my forelegs. I could see shame and self-loathing in her eyes.

"It's best not to ask," I spoke, addressing his question. His expression, contrary to what I desired, became even more curious. I sighed, "Look, there was a problem in my group. That's why Skyfire's not here, and also Doomtune. Just... take it and leave it, please."

"Fine," he said in surrender. "I was wondering where those two were. Thought they'd just catch up. I can just try finding out later."

"Yeah, really, don't," I insisted. "Just leave it be as though I never mentioned it. Please."

He looked across the table at me for a moment, his eyes silently asking questions. But then he nodded. "Fine. I'll leave it to the gods to approach me about it, if they so choose. For now, I suppose I'll just content myself with your party's greatly diminished presence." He sighed, then prepared his utensils, an action that to us signified it was time to begin with the meal proper.

Only one of us did not participate. Delvius, who had without our notice spent the entirety of our conversation standing several feet off to the Legate's side, finally came out of his stiff position. Thrusting a hoof up into the air diagonally, he declared, "Ave, Legatus legionis! A great honor to finally meet you!"

The greeting was very formal, something which we all seemed to silently agree was unnecessary; perhaps it was because we'd all spent enough prior time with Vesperius to learn that he didn't care too much about formality. Of course, Delvius did not know this.

Vesperius replied with a nod. "Ah, and here we have Delvius," he said, a subtly intrigued tone in his voice. "He who uplifted a whole cohort's spirits, and who'll be traveling with the vigilante-turned-hero of Roam." He stood up, patting him on the shoulder and gesturing at the seat closest to his own. "Please, do sit down and relax. I would like to talk to you about some things."

At 'sit down and relax', Delvius seemed to understand at once that Vesperius was not a drillmaster. Being the perceptive and quick-thinking soldier he was, he obeyed his superior's request with no objections. Relaxed and smiling, he said, "Very grateful sir. It's... it's an honor to meet you, and within this wonderful place." He pointed over at the other end of the table, where he had laid down his leather sack. "I will just retrieve my mess kit and sit down," he said giddily, excited like a child given an opportunity to meet a local hero.

Vesperius stopped him before the excited auxiliary got any more than three steps away. "Mess kit?" he asked, head cocked sideways. "Oh, that's for the field. In here, in this Forum, I strive to uphold an atmosphere of civility, comfort, and security. In here, we all eat together and no one eats of less quality than of others -- that applies to servants, even. In here, we all take comfort in the safety provided by Roam's finest, and we use that safety to pursue endeavors worthy of our great city." He gestured his hooves to the sides. "Need I say more?"

My stomach growled; despite everything, I was undoubtedly hungry. I held my urge to go for my food. Myst just seemed like she wanted to lay down, and I let her do that on my lap. Doodle seemed to be staring off at a painting on the other side of the room.

Delvius seemed at a loss for words. "Well, er..." he started, taking off his helmet to scratch at his mane. "Well, I've got fourteen days worth of grain and dried vegetables in there. Would hate it going bad... even if they're packed with enough preservatives to last another fallout."

"Just let it be, then," Vesperiues replied calmly, smiling and gesturing at the seat he wished Delvius to take. "Now please, do sit."

Hesitating with a nervous grin, but then relaxing, he complied.

At last, with us all seated and with utensils ready, Vesperius asked, "Well then... shall we?"

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

The dinner was filling... and not much else. It was nice to have some of us gathered to chat and talk around the table, but nothing of the sort happened. It just wasn't right. Vesperius' attention was mostly on Delvius as the two talked nonstop about Legion politics and internal institutions. Doodle didn't eat much, preferring instead to draw on a piece of tissue. Myst barely even looked awake the way she sat, with eyes red and head drooped. At some point she just stopped eating altogether and lay against my side.

The void of Doomtune and Skyfire's absence left a terrible lack of activity over the table. I envied the mares at the side, just laughing and talking to one another. I glowered at them jealously, then frowned. They were a happy bunch, and we were not. I tried to rectify that; I drank, a lot. I didn't feel any of the sought-after numbness and carefree sensations until after my third cup, but when it came I found myself temporarily forgetting all my troubles. Really... forgetting everything.

I actually can't remember when we left, or how we did it. All I remember was shambling up, picking Myst up as the servants cleared the table, and leaving. I didn't even notice Doodle hadn't gotten up with us until she called for us to wait up. Delvius had stayed behind to finish his conversation with our host. At least he had been enjoying himself.

"Tonight is not a good night," I said in a slightly drunken stupor. At least I was still walking straight; then again, Myst was kind of balancing me with her body. "First Skyfire, then Myst being all dead, then that quiet and awkward dinner... it's gonna get worse, I know it," I murmured grimly, quietly so as to not let her hear.

She just sighed tiredly, her breath quivering. "Hurts..." she murmured as she winced, her eyes blinking back tears.

I didn't know what to say, but I did know what to do. I stopped, stooping down and heaving her onto my back. Doodle helped get her dangling limbs stable.

"Will she be okay, mister Goldwreath?" she asked, the question sounding garbled to my ears.

I didn't answer. I just made sure she was stable, and quickened my pace to get to our room.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

We were not much better by the time we got back. My head had cleared, somewhat, but Myst was still practically dead on my back. Exhaustion and depression, I concluded. My concern for her was such that I didn't give a second glance to Doomtune as I rushed into our room, then gently laid her on the bed.

She moaned, grabbing her head with both hooves. "It... hurts..." she whimpered, thrashing somewhat. "M-make it stop!"

I was in a sudden panic. The demand was clearly just an expression of her pain, but I took it seriously. "I, uh... alright, let's see..." I darted my eyes around, then spotted an open tin on the floor. "Her candy!" I muttered to myself, and galloped over to it. To my surprise, it was empty.

She shook her head at me. "Finished it earlier... thought it would help..." She gasped, clenching her eyes. "Water. Please."

There was a glass on a nearby dresser. I grabbed it and rushed into the main room, where a pitcher of warm water lay near a cupboard. I returned to hear her groaning as she sat up, her head swaying.

"You should rest. I think what happened earlier's getting to you. Relax and just... forget everything for the night, okay? I'll take care of things, I promise." Even if I didn't quite feel up to it. I sighed tiredly, lightheaded.

Poor Myst was so desperate for the drink and too weak to reply she didn't even look up at me with protest. The moment she'd drank she just fell backwards, then curled up into a little ball on the sheets. She shuddered, her lips turning crooked as she breathed. "Sorry..." she croaked.

I just lifted one side of the sheets up and pulled them over her. I didn't reply. If I did, she might have tried to answer, and she just didn't look capable. She seemed like how I must have been when I was on the same bed not too long ago. I let her settle into the sheets. Then after that I decided to get to work on my promise and left the room, my head slow and disoriented from the alcohol. But I could not afford to stop, to rest. Right now they were both crumbling, and it was my job to stop it.

Taking the briefest moment to collect myself, I looked around. There was Doomtune where I had previously spotted him, leaning against Skyfire's door. Doodle was nearby, sitting down as if waiting for him to tell her something. He muttered something into the door, and I heard a faint reply. At first I couldn't believe that he had managed to get her to talk and we had not, but I supposed it was to be expected Skyfire didn't want to talk to us.

Trotting closer and seating myself, I listened. Doomtune looked at me sadly, but continued his conversation. Their voices were so low it was a wonder they heard each other at all. I couldn't, and with every reply they whispered to each other I grew more tense. I wanted to know what they were talking about. I wanted to get involved. I needed to fix this, lest the domino effect of our recent consecutive breakdowns tear us apart from each other.

But I couldn't, not yet. Or perhaps I wasn't meant to; Doomtune had had more luck with her than I could have imagined. He hadn't knocked or called her name, he didn't say anything to try to get her out. He just sympathized and listened, and now he alone was able to speak with her. In trust, I left it to him, even as my mind tore itself apart with the unsatisfied need to assist. I had to keep my urge at bay, or risk undoing what he may have accomplished. I had to believe that he could do this, and that to his words words Skyfire would listen. And when she would come out, I needed to have no scold at the ready. I would need to be patient, I would need to be hopeful, and ready to reach out to her in case she needed it.

And what's more, I had to be understanding.

Suddenly Doomtune went silent. There was a look on his face, a hesitant, thoughtful expression. Like he'd been asked something he hadn't counted on ever hearing. He looked over his shoulder at me, his eyes seeming to contemplate. Then with a voice laid with an undertone of understanding, he said, "She has asked for me."

The door opened a crack, just enough for him to perhaps slip through if he sucked his chest in. There he hesitated, but then drew himself up and stepped one leg into the room. Then the next, and the next, and finally he was in. His back turned to me, the door closed.

My thoughts? To say I was shocked wouldn't be appropriate. Puzzled and worried would have fit my true state. Questions darted around my head, none finding answer. But I was comforted, if only by the fact that Doomtune, I knew, would not hurt her; as a child born from rape, he would rightly be one to stand against it.

I stood up, head swimming slightly. "Doodle, could you please do me a favor and bring me some water?" I asked slowly.

She nodded eagerly, her face grinning. How she could smile after all that had transpired in such quick, merciless succession, I didn't know. As she went, she stopped. "Mister Goldwreath, are they going to be okay?"

The question hung on me for quite a while. "They've been through much, Doodle. Like a wall that has been struck by stones, they have cracked. Whether or not they will crumble depends on if they choose to fall. I have faith in them, but that's all I have."

The answer, surprisingly, seemed to satisfy her. She went off and fetched my water, after which I drank and thanked her. The water relieved the lightheadedness plaguing me, and I was able to feel and think better.

I had only just begin contemplating on what to do about my friends when Delvius trotted in, accompanied by Vesperius and a small contingent of praetorian guards. I nodded in greeting. "Hello, everyone. Good to see you here." I was not sincere; even with my head ticking again, I could not find it in me to feel much for anything that did not concern my troubled friends.

Vesperius was the first to speak as they both trotted further in. "Hello to you too, Goldwreath," he replied casually, strolling forward and going to the balcony.

"What are you doing here?"

He shrugged as he leaned against the railings. "I make it a point to get involved with those who reside within this place, my surface home. I intervened for you when you were sick, and now," he said with a smile, "I intervene for your friend as well. Zury, please do come in here."

Zury entered from within the ranks of the guard, whom she seemed nervous and small around. She kept her eyes off of them as she scuttled in, seeming glad to be away from them. She gulped as she looked over at him in the balcony. "Yes, chief-..." She paused and amended, "Yes, Vesperius?"

He looked over his shoulder, smiling. "You mentioned earlier the familiar troubled state of the Praetorian's marefriend. You are here to assist with that." Still smiling, he turned around and gestured at her room. "I believe she's in there. Please do what you can, and report back."

Zury nodded, albeit hesitantly. She pushed open the door to Myst's room and vanished into the dark.

"What exactly was that about?" I asked concernedly.

He took a deep breath and listened, seeming enthralled by the noises coming from down below. "Simple," he said. "I noticed you and your marefriend were quite out of your element; let's face it, we all were, what with me having been hyped up on energy tea and whatnot. But I reverted back to my own default self by the time the dinner was over. You two did not. I saw you shamble out, and was worried. Zury noticed too, and she shared to me that the distress Myst was in seemed... familiar to her. Something she'd seen before in her tribe, supposedly."

"I see." I looked over at the slightly open doorway. "And you think she can help get Myst out of this?" I asked hopefully.

"We shall see. I certainly hope so, if that means anything to you." He gestured a hoof over at Delvius, and the auxiliary stepped forward. "Myst was not the only one I learned the state of. Delvius here has shared what happened earlier, details and all." He stepped off of the balcony and sat opposite of me. "I can understand that such an unfortunate event would upset them both," he said sympathetically, touching a hoof to his breast. "And I can also understand if you feel a little overwhelmed. You are here to relax, yet you've been beset by trouble since the day you set hoof in here."

"Yes, it is... most aggravating," I replied, sighing. "But as it has been told to me by the gods themselves," I continued: "Such is the life of non-fence-sitters." It didn't mean much in the way of making me feel better about it all, of course.

"Such is the life of non-fence-sitters, yes," he chuckled, mirthlessly. "I am sorry things could not be better. But I am here to try to assist. Already Zury is in there assessing your mare, and now, I am told, Doomtune is talking to Skyfire."

"Directly now, too," I answered. "He's in there," I pointed at her door. "He's talking to her, listening to her. The two things I thought I'd done enough of to let her pain pass. Heh, I was a fool to think I could make it go away. Only time can do that, I suppose."

"Well, effort must be given on the part of all involved. And as I said, I am involved. Therefore," he got up, "I will give my share. I am not going to talk to her directly, but I understand that she's been in there for quite some time, wallowing in her emotions." He chuckled somewhat, gesturing for a guard to step forward. This one bore a small platter of food -- a little bit of everything from our dinner earlier. He took it from the guard and approached Skyfire's door.

"I don't mean to generalize, but mares are very moody." He stepped closer to the doorway, placing a hoof on the knob. "One moment they can be very morose, next they can be dancing among flowers. Skyfire's situation is complicated, I know, but a little care and kindness on our part..." He turned the knob and slid the platter onto the floor, then closed the door. He didn't wait for or care for any observable reaction as he turned around and stepped closer to me again. "... can go a long way."

I couldn't help it. I smiled. "Yeah, it sure can... assuming she accepts what you just did."

"Well, let's hope she does." Delvius stepped closer. "But we have more to hope for than just your friends, Goldwreath." I looked at him curiously. He and Vesperius exchanged glances, then the latter nodded.

Delvius trotted to the balcony and stood to the side, looking over the field. "Roamana's assault begins tonight." He took a deep breath, "You look out this balcony, you'll see all of the cohort's aircraft performing scouting detail and throwing light artillery into barbarian and raider encampments scattered all over the island. The entire area's expected to be secured by tomorrow afternoon, then there'll be a day to regroup. Then the assault goes out to secure a thirty-kilometer radius around the bridges. Cohors II Rabidus Rapidus Manticoria then comes in to reinforce cohors I Magnus Potens Roamana, and the assault continues."

"Until all of Roam is secured..." I mused, suddenly very intrigued as I got up and started for the balcony. Vesperius joined me in my approach.

"It's the other reason I came down here," he said. "I would have overseen the entire operation from the tower, but I like this place better. I can feel the breeze, hear the motors and the hooves of my troops. Here, I can feel like I'm truly involved in what my Legionnaires do to clean Roam when really all I do is... well, approve papers."

"Those papers represent organization, and organization is what made Roam's army the greatest armed force in history," I replied, and then my hooves touched the cold marble of the balcony's floor. We both stepped further in, and looked out over the scene. What I saw literally took the breath out of me.

Everything below was lit up as red and purple and green. Roamana and Equestrius were in motion, each of their troops' togas reflecting light according to their cohort's color, with the grass' green being the only color unaffiliated to the military operation. Hundreds of beams of white light swept all over the area and beyond, each coming from the headlight of a a flying or terrestrial vehicle or from the hoofheld tool of a Legionnaire. Motors whirred and engines hummed, creating a commotion below that was organized enough in nature to instead be an awe-inspiring display of movement. Centurions yelled and centuries marched in great squares of gleaming metal across the grassy field, each century passing by each other as they took up positions in a great decagon within the Forum's circular walls. The auxiliaries of each of Roamana's centuries took up forward positions in front of the purple-silver lines, riding cerati and ready to burst forth as skirmishers. A great mass of unorganized troops in a large circle closer to the forum, reflecting light in red hues, represented Equestrius cohort.

Presiding over the first century of Roamana -- from which I saw a distinctive golden reflection, the Legion's eagle -- was a flying manticore. Upon the manticore was a figure clad in black, made visible by two spotlights focused on him.

"Roamana!" Flavianicus' voice bellowed over the entirety of the Forum's field, his call seeming to come from the invisible energy field around the walls. All attention was suddenly on him; even the praetorians in the room with us stepped closer.

"Oh boy," Vesperius drawled, bringing a hoof to his brow, covering an eye somewhat. "This is gonna be something to listen to..."

"It's a speech, of course it's something to listen to," I said.

"You'll see what he means," Delvius told me, nodding his head over the field. "Just listen," he smirked.

When the executor saw that he was the focus of all attention, he drew a deep breath and continued casually, "Here we go to another battle. Regrettable, isn't it? That we must face the twisted incarnations of our own people? Before you answer: yes, yes it is!" He took in a deep breath and shrugged, "Ah well, sometimes life is like that. You have to do something you may or may not want to do. In this case, kill barbarians! Ah, but killing's bad. You don't want to kill, right?"

The soldiers roared in the negative, deafening us momentarily.

When the sonic bombardment ended, Flavianicus feigned surprise. "Oh, you do? Really? Well, that makes my job of convincing you pointless, then!" He pulled out several stacks of paper and tossed them aside, letting the individual sheets float down. "Ah, shame!" he sighed. "I prepared a nice speech to get you in the killing mood, but you're already in it. In that case, I suppose we must be honest with each other!" He patted Bucephalus on the head, and the manticore roared. "See this giant beast? He's hungry! And me? I am thirsty! I want to see blood; I want to bathe in blood; I want blood in my canteen for a week, and not coffee!"

The soldiers of Roamana gasped.

"Yes, you heard me right! And you know me; I get what I want, even if I have to beg and get beaten by a mercenary to obtain it. In this case, I need only use my weapon! The enemy are numerous, and though they are disorganized they have many sharp, pointy things! But we also have many sharp, pointy things, and ours are sharper and pointier! And we have guns! And tanks! Who wins against that?"

The soldiers chuckled. Flavianicus joined them for a moment, but then he raised his hoof. Gradually they quieted down.

"Alright then." This time his tone was serious, determined. Delvius leaned forward against the railing, attentive. "So now that we've mocked their lack of combat ability, we prepare to show them ours! Legionnaires, are you ready?"

They stomped and roared, raising their weapons high.

"Gatekeepers, are you ready?"

Floodlights came to life as the dozens of gatekeepers yelled.

"Good. Prepare to charge!"

Each century drew their gladii and shields. Further into the city, the artillery fire increased, setting some buildings ablaze. All major sources of light swiveled to illuminate the nearby roads. A great tension fell over the cohort as the bombardment heightened. Tank and APC engines growled, ready to get going.

On the balcony, we too were tense. Vesperius breathed deep, eyeing the first century and the Legion's eagle that was in their hooves. More than it was for us, this event was important to him.

There was a crackle from a nearby radio, and Venaius' voice said like a whisper, "See you on the field, my friend."

Delvius did not get to reply. With a voice like a great wind funneled into the throat of a zebra, Flavianicus yelled, "Cohors I Magnus Potens ROAMANA! FORWARD!"

The manticore roared and flew into the air as the walls shimmered a bright gold and entered a non-physical state. Whistles blew and cries rang out as each century rushed forward and galloped onto the marble roads, their huffing and stomping receding into the darkness as they entered the land beyond the lights' range. Scattered shots cracked in the night as auxiliaries screened the heavy infantry. Tanks rumbled loudly and crunched rock beneath noisy treads, but eventually they too receded into the darkness. Soon the explosions and shooting were distant, hundreds of meters away from the rematerialized walls. A bolt of lightning shot down from the sky and landed onto a single pure-white tip, then forked down into the city like a scattershot of inescapable death.

So began the cleansing of Roam.

"That's it then," Vesperius said as he looked out over the night. "The die is cast, and cannot be undone. What we are working for must either be accomplished or we will all suffer the consequences of wasted effort."

"It is a bad plan that cannot be changed," Delvius chimed in quietly as he stared down at a radio in his hooves.

Vesperius nodded, approaching him and placing a hoof to Delvius' shoulder. "Such is waging war, auxiliary," he said, then trotted past us and back into the room proper.

To our surprise, there were two mares there waiting for us: Zury and Myst, who now looked a bit better. Her eyes had reverted to a more... natural red, and she was able to stand firmly on her own hooves. It didn't mean she was well, but it was a start.

"Ah," Vesperius raised his forehooves into the air in a gesture of greeting. "My friends! It is good you have joined us." His smile was warm, sincere, and yet it made my shy marefriend and her almost-equally-shy zebra companion look off to the sides with such unison that it was as if they were programmed. Why were the mares I came across shy, honestly...

Zury just nodded as she averted her gaze from his. "She is feeling better," she said slowly, softly. "She, er... told me what happened. She's just exhausted and worried for your friend, that is all. She can get better, she will get better. I gave her a herb that will ease her pain for the time being."

"That's really good to hear," I breathed in relief as I approached Myst. I was surprised when she jerked back, stepping away from me. She didn't explain, but there was a look of paranoia and guilt in her eyes.

"She's not well yet," Zury repeated, gulping as she stepped forward as if to protect Myst from me. "She still needs rest; as much of it as she can get. And she needs supervision, which I can give." She glanced over at Myst, her brows furrowed. "I'm correct, yes?"

Myst nodded coyly, scratching her leg as she again averted her gaze.

"If she needs medical attention I can have a doctor come over," Vesperius offered.

"No!" Myst blurted, then covered her mouth. "I... well, I mean, they have more important things to do. I just need rest, and... and nothing else." She frowned.

I was about to ask her if she was certain; she definitely didn't look so sure. But then Zury started herding her back into our room, gently but irresistibly. "Okay, young one," Zury said, as if dealing with a child, "Off to bed now. Your path to recovery will be long or short depending on how well you control yourself, but let's not prolong your exhaustion... and your self-abuse."

Myst glanced over at her as they entered the room. "Zury, please stop talking about it. They might find out..." she murmured, her voice receding into a whisper as they both disappeared into the darkness.

Delvius and Vesperius looked to each other. "Odd," the latter mused.

"Very odd," I chimed in, trotting close to the door. I looked over at them both. "Alright, well, with the evening looking to be rather uneventful, I think I should turn in soon. You two just... do whatever you want, I guess."

Delvius nodded as he turned to his Legate. "It's been an honor speaking to you, sir. I hope we can chance upon another opportunity-..."

"Please," Vesperius begged as he raised a hoof, "No... 'sirs' or 'lords' or 'imperators' for me; I am none of them. Reserve those for your battlefield commanders, for they win your battles for you. I organize files and make plans on the counsel of trusted confidantes, nothing more."

Delvius sighed, giving him a look that just screamed 'you're downplaying yourself, sir', but nonetheless nodded in concession. "As you wish. You still deserve respect, though, so I'm afraid a title of 'sir' is non-negotiable... sir."

Vesperius snorted in amused exasperation. "Very well," he said dismissively. "I suppose I can't quite stop you. But whatever the case," he turned around, "I must take my leave. With the assault now ongoing I can expect to receive battle reports as the centuries accomplish or fail their objectives. Let's hope it's the former. You understand?"

"Of course, sir."

"Very good." He trotted back to the doorway of the main room, the guards taking up positions to march along behind him when he decided to leave. Before he did he turned around and said one final thing to me, "Good luck with your friends, Goldwreath. I have done what I can, but now duty beckons. It's up to you from here." And so he left, falling through the space between two columns of guards who then subsequently followed him like drones.

It was a long moment before I said anything. "I know." With that I entered my room, leaving my auxiliary companion and the little filly to their own desires. I had things to take care of.

In the room I spotted Myst and Zury, the former lying down under the sheets and the latter sitting on a chair near the door. The zebra mare was staring off distantly, trapped in deep thought as she chewed on a root that extended and disappeared into a small satchel acting as a saddlebag. Neither of the two seemed to notice my arrival.

I tapped Zury on the shoulder, making her bolt back to reality as she blinked several times over. "You can go," I told her. "Myst is my charge. I appreciate your offer, but this is my problem."

I expected her to disagree; seemed like almost everyone I spoke to complicated my life somehow. But, "Very well," she replied, surprising me. She got up and packed up some things and crammed them into her satchel. "And thank you, thank very much," she added in a rush a moment later.

"Er... you're welcome," I said. Then I took notice of how hurriedly she was preparing to leave, and grew curious. "You need to be somewhere? You seem to be in a rush."

"I-I do," she stammered back, struggling to tie the knot of her full and cramped satchel. "My sister -- the young, brash, and loudmouthed zebra -- has been away from me for days. I just barely managed to arrange meeting with her tonight. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to go, but then you came along." She paused a moment and looked up at me, smiling. "That is two things you have done for us now, red pony. We owe you much, including our lives. It is a debt we can never repay."

I nodded, keeping back a bashful smile. "You're welcome. And really, just... live. I didn't save you to get something in return, I saved you because you didn't deserve death. That's all."

She smiled back. "Ah, so a warrior for noble causes, are you? That is a good thing." After a little moment she finished her packing. "Well," she said, "With your permission, I will now depart. Hopefully we will meet again when this night is over?"

"We will," I told her. "It's assured; you apparently work here now, and me, well... I've thought of living here in-between my missions. We'll run into each other for sure."

"Even though our paths are so different," she noted. "I am an older sister and a servant; you are a warrior of this land. That we two so different people can speak so casually is a gift and blessing from the gods."

"Perhaps. The gods have always altered our affairs. Especially Jupiter."

She seemed confused for a moment, but then seemed to understand. She smiled. "Indeed. My own heavenly fathers and celestial mothers are said to do the same. But this is a subject for another occasion, one where us both have the leisure of time."

I nodded. "It is, yes. More important, more immediate things must take precedence. I for my marefriend, and you for your sister. Greet her for me, would you?"

She laughed lightly as she went for the door. "Ah, Zilly wouldn't think well on a greeting from you. She is young, and has much to learn of being grateful. But I will make sure she understands the fate you spared us from... a fate only one other prevented us from enduring endlessly." Her face suddenly turned grim, her tail dropping flatly and dragging across the floor as she came to an abrupt stop.

Suddenly I found myself needing to comfort yet another mare. "I am sorry," I said sympathetically, stepping up beside her. "He fought well, and he died a fighter. He did so for you. Remember him, but do not burden yourself needlessly." It was the only advice I could give; it was clear that he'd fought to stop... something... from happening to them. What it was, I didn't know.

She just nodded. "I know this. And Zilly knows it, too. It's just... hard for us, we 'tribals' who now live in the city of our oppressors. Even two hundred years later, my people are still mistreated by the great majority of Roamans... it saddens me."

There was nothing I could do but nod. I couldn't undo the discrimination and suffering her people had to endure, but I could change her image of the Roamans. "Well, don't worry. The people who did those things to you will be going soon. In fact, bring your sister up here to the Forum; better than being held by the remnants of the bad zebras who hurt you."

She nodded. "I will think on it." She sniffed, blinking hard. "Very well. I must go. Next to my sister, I must handle a few more things." She gave a respectful bow by way of saying goodbye, then muttered as she left the room, "Perhaps dig a small grave for him..."

When she left I closed the door, plunging the room into darkness. Then I looked over at Myst as she lay still on the bed, her chest rising up and down.

I stepped closer. "Myst?" I asked softly, hoping she'd respond if she was awake. She didn't reply, which lead me, tired and unwilling to pursue anything else for the evening, to just believe she was asleep.

I sat down on the opposite end or the bed and was still for a moment, trying to figure out what to do next regarding them both. The silence of the fields with Roamana's absence coupled with the distant sounds of their battling left me in an environment well-suited for planning, but I was still at a loss. In the end, the only course of action I could find myself to rely upon was to bring us all together the next day, talk, and hope for the best.

It wasn't much of a plan. But it had to do.

At last I aligned myself the bed' length and pulled the sheets over me. This was the first time in two nights that I felt... alone. The first night was an exception: we were all too tired to care about companionship. The second night, though I had been sick and enraged and stuck in my ways, Myst had brought me comfort. And then again on the third night. Now... now it just felt wrong. There were no goodnights, no falling asleep in each other's embrace, it was disturbing.

But there wasn't anything to be done. Nothing much, anyway. The most I could do without risking waking her up was to wrap a hoof around her chest and hold it there. And though the sense of comfort provided was benign, at least, even if involuntary, Myst shifted to accommodate the contact.

It wasn't long before I felt sleep's weight, ghostly blue wisps of luminescent fog greeting me as my lids slowly closed. Within the fog, I saw two glowing eyes looking right at me, the gaze soft and benevolent.

'Everything will be fine,' it seemed to assure me.

At that point my mental faculties were far too deteriorated to formulate any kind of response on any level. My lids slammed shut, and plunged me into serene slumber.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I woke up to the sound of a door creaking open. My mind, having gotten several extra hours of sleep (and with the alcohol in my system neutralized), was quick and awake. It did the math in a matter of seconds: there were only four rooms in this place, only three of which had been occupied; Doomtune had taken one, then Skyfire another, and finally Myst and I for the third. Doomtune had stayed with Skyfire the night before. There was only one sensible conclusion.

I got up quickly, forcing my limbs awake as I trotted briskly but quietly to our own door and opened it.

As it turns out, I was only partially correct. It was Doomtune's door that I had heard, but Skyfire's was open as well. I trotted further into the main room, just in time to see Doomtune carrying his radio equipment over his shoulder and carrying it to the balcony. There Zaita waited, quietly and patiently, with her back doors opened as if beckoning him to enter and leave.

"That's the last of it," the zebra operative told her as he placed the radio onto her metal floor. "There's just one more thing I need to take care of. If he's awake, that is. If not... can you tell him?"

"Of course, Aurius," she replied in her monotone voice. I noticed a tiny camera just above the metal doorway, and it shifted. "Goldwreath. Good morning."

Doomtune glanced over his shoulder at me as I trotted closer. "You're up early," he noted,

"I always wake up at six AM," I informed him.

He cocked his head sideways, confused. "But... it's five-thirty," he told me.

I stood there for a moment. "Then it seems my body has a new schedule for waking up." Which wasn't necessarily bad, but I could imagine many a situation where the lost thirty minutes would make me extremely irritable. Still, I felt a pang of loss at the destruction of my years-old tradition.

He shrugged. "It seems so. Whatever the case, I'm glad you're awake. I faced indecision to tell you what happened last night, but you're awakening has confirmed my course of action. It's time to tell you."

"Thank goodness," I breathed. "I've been aching to know what's been happening. What did happen last night?"

He hesitated to answer me directly. "Let's have this talk over there," he said as he started trotting over to Skyfire's doorway, me following. "Zaita, hold up for a while."

"Of course," she replied simply, "Take all the time you need to explain Skyfire's situation."

I stopped. "Wait, you know what happened? How?"

"G.L.A.D.I.U.S has eyes and ears everywhere in this citadel, Goldwreath." Zaita closed her armored doors and turned around in the air so that her front faced me. "He has known what happened since Myst spoke her unfortunate request."

"Why didn't either of you two tell me?"

"G.L.A.D.I.U.S doesn't really care, and I was held under cyber lockdown as part of his precautionary measures against me. I could easily have overridden the security, but I liked my little quiet corner of the Forum," she replied plainly.

"Yet you know what happened," I pointed out, squinting.

"I said G.L.A.D.I.U.S had eyes and ears everywhere. I didn't say he just told me what he knew."

I sighed, waving a hoof dismissively in her direction. "Alright, whatever. Get me up to speed later if there's anything else worth telling. For now," I turned around and started slowly for Skyfire's door, "I have some friends to take care of."

"Of course." With that, she hovered away from the balcony.

Doomtune was leaning against the open doorway, looking into the room. "Last night was... odd," he told me as he stared, looking at Skyfire as she slept. "I wasn't expecting to be called in like that. For a while I thought she'd ask me to do some... things. But I was wrong; she just needed company."

I nodded. "So," I said as I stood right against the wall, "What did happen after you went in? What did she say?"

He shrugged, his tone reflective as he said, "Lots of things. Most of it what I expected her to say, considering her situation. Confessions she could never have told you... frustrations she could never take out on you... those kinds of things."

"And...?" I pressed, knowing that wasn't all of it.

He looked to me with contemplative eyes. His lips curved up into a sad, mirthless smile. "There's nothing else you don't already know. She's lonely, and seeing you two together -- you, whom she admired, and Myst, whom she trusted as her best friend -- hurts her. A lot. She can't keep herself together under these kinds of conditions after all she's been through, you know that right?"

I hung my head and nodded. "I do. I hoped that talking to her... getting Myst to talk to her... that we could ease her suffering... but..."

"But you can't," he cut in. "This kind of pain never goes away. Never, period. Not as long as she's near you guys. I know; I feel it too." He hissed through grit teeth and closed his eyes, sighing. When he opened them again he looked exhausted, pained. "I know, okay? I've been unloved- hated by my family for years. I've had all hopes of relationships go up in smoke. Most of the people I ever cared for died right in front of me. So trust me when I say there's absolutely nothing you can do for her. Only time can do that, and it'll take a long time."

I gulped, taking in the gravity of his words. "I feared as much," I admitted. "And I came to understand this all just recently -- that her pain is something we couldn't get rid of and all. But you can't seriously expect me to just let her suffer. She's my friend, and I care for her."

He paused, looking away from me and back into the room. He took in a deep breath. "Well, it's the truth. As long as she's around you, she will always be... unstable. You've witnessed that directly."

I hung my head. "It makes her very difficult to deal with, and hard to interact with without feeling like you're trotting on eggshells," I admitted tiredly.

He nodded sympathetically. "I know. But you have to bear with her. She wants to be with you two; you're her friends, for gods' sakes. She tried so hard to keep herself normal around you, even when it was impossible. And she's willing to endure the constant pain of being in your presence so long as you'll be patient with her. Will you be patient with her?" He looked back to me, fixing his gaze against mine.

"I will," I replied firmly. "I will always care for her, no matter what. I will be patient when she becomes unstable, and be with her until the storm passes. I will be understanding, always."

"Good, then you can make your friendship work. Just expect it to be... rough. Very, very rough." He pushed away from the doorway and took a tentative step away.

"When she wakes, she won't know what to expect," he warned me. "Last night before she gave in to exhaustion she rambled on endlessly. She begged me to tell you all this so that she wouldn't have to. And I agreed to tell you, even if I thought it would have been better if she did. That's why I was hesitant to tell you all this. But now you know, now you understand. Don't make her say anything. Don't make her apologize or explain herself. Just be there for her, whatever happens, and until it ends."

That I could do. "I will," I assured him.

He nodded, taking a few more steps away. "Good, good," he said in a rush, looking around. He muttered things to himself as he searched the vicinity. Then finally he stopped where he stood, right in the middle of the room.

"Well then," he said, looking at me, "I guess this is it, then. I contacted Zaita because yesterday my superiors called me back to Home Base; it seems Madran has reached her conclusion about Vesperius' ceasefire. Zaita will bring me to the S3 transport we left parked at the library. Then I'm off. Then... then I don't know what."

I nodded, trotting closer and extending a hoof forward. "Thank you, Doomtune," I said sincerely, smiling. "For making sure we got here safe, for making sure we lived in our stay here, for Skyfire... for everything."

He smiled too, then took my foreleg into his own and shook it. He didn't say anything; he didn't need to. All that needed saying was spoken.

Zaita hovered back over the balcony. Doomtune gave me one more glance and gave the area around him one more look before lugging his heavy backpack over his shoulder and trotting slowly towards Zaita's opened doors. He made sure one more time that he had everything, then stepped onto the balcony's marble and climbed the railings before jumping across the small gap towards Zaita. He waved over at me, and I waved back. Then I noticed the lack of something from which his name came from.

"Wait!" I called over the fwoosh of Zaita's engines as the thrusters powered up. "Your helmet!"

He just smiled as he banged on the metal walls, signaling her to close the doors. Neither of us spoke another word before the doors slammed shut. The engines gave a powerful blow, and then they were off.

With him gone there was nothing left to do, and no one to talk to. I turned and trotted into the center of the main room, where I stood for most of the next minute.

Now that I truly observed the area, I found that Doodle and Delvius both slept in the previously unoccupied fourth room, with the filly draped across her back over Delvius' face. It was a nice thing to think of that almost all the rooms were being used. It was a nice little fantasy that played around in my head to see all of them occupied, with my friends and their friends each staying together in each room like a family. And then every morning, when things quieted down, we'd all heave breakfast together and talk among the couches. And we'd share our troubles and help each other. The thought made me smile, knowing that it was possible if only my group grew beyond its current count.

But it was all just fantasy at the time. At that moment, reality reigned. Dark, grim reality, but it was ours. We had to plan, we had to move, we had to fight. We had to keep order among ourselves or risk being divided by chaos.

And for those we needed an environment suitable to thinking, which I had. I just had to fix the place up a little but so I didn't somehow disturb others. So one by one I went from door to door, closing them and wrapping up whatever little mess Doomtune had left behind.

Then I came across Skyfire' room. There I hesitated to shut the door as I looked in, at her. She, who arguably among us was the closest to crumbling. I sighed, but reserved myself for when she woke up. I started closing the door.

But something caught my attention. Something spherical, something black. Something that, upon recognizing its nature, made me smile in disbelief and hope.

Doomtune had left his helmet along will all his musical apparatus. And with what he left behind, he had also left a note with the unmistakable pattern of tiny, crayon-colored pink heart.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I sat there on the couches for hours, thinking. Planning. In particular, I spotted an undefined variable in my plan to kill a chimera and bring its corpse back: I didn't know where to start. The underground seemed the most likely place to start, even if the thought of plunging into complete darkness again terrified me. Aside from searching there, there was the option of scanning the surface of the city; they operated topside too, apparently. In the end, seeing as Vesperius was kind of a clairvoyant, I decided it would be best to ask him before I left.

It was the hour of eight when Skyfire's door finally creaked open.

This was it. The moment I'd spent hours preparing for. Earlier I'd taken two packs of the chocolate-flavored Black Cloud cure Predator had given me and made two cups of hot drink, both of which had lost their heat long ago. Next I'd spent some time in the bathroom looking myself up, trying to come up with the best look to greet her with; nothing too casual so as to suggest there was no problem -- we all had to acknowledge there was -- but nothing so grim or mirthless as to make the future seem bleak.

I was surprised when I saw my default expression. I never felt it, but I always seemed to be scowling somewhat, like I was angry or disgusted by something. The scars didn't help make me look any more inviting. But I managed to finally come up with the look I was looking for. It was hard keeping it up, like I wasn't meant to smile invitingly anymore.

Well, here was my chance to prove that I still could.

The door opened up some more, and she stepped out. She looked fine, really. She wasn't haggard or unkept, as I excepted her to appear. But she was cautious, looking around like an escaped captive until she saw me. Her eyes widened, and she stood still right where she was.

I brought the smile I'd practiced to play. "Good morning, Skyfire." I scooted over to another cushion, patting the one next to me. "Feeling any better? If you are, then don't be afraid to take a seat."

She was quiet for a long moment as she looked away from me. "Did... he tell you?" she asked slowly.

"So you wouldn't have to, yes," I replied.

She sucked in a breath and nodded, scratching at her hoof nervously as she stepped closer. "Good. Good, good..." She gulped and cleared her throat as she sat down awkwardly next to me. She glanced at me as I watched her. "Are... are you upset?" she asked gingerly.

The question was one I found difficult to answer. Upset about her? Yes. Upset at her? Yes... but that didn't change the fact that she was my friend. I told her as much.

"And are you mad?" she asked, her voice quivering with anxiety and fear.

Now that one was something I was ready for. "No." I smiled some more, and hoped to the gods I looked sincere, because I was. "I can't be mad at you. Not after all the things you've done with and for us. And not about something I know you can't stop."

She shook her head, her mane covering her eyes. "But... I've been almost useless. I've-..."

I placed a hoof on her shoulder, "None of that is true." My expression and tone was stern, and it made her stare at me fearfully. I relaxed. "Skyfire, I am easily angered and am subject to fits of rage. Myst is shy and has difficulty dealing with people. Doodle is... confusing. Zaita has a tendency to tell everything, pleasant or not. And you? You become sad because you're in pain."

Her eyes started glistening. "So what?" she asked, her voice tense. "What's your point?" she sniffed.

"The point is, Skyfire... we're all imperfect. There will always be pain and tough times ahead of us, some of it coming from each other. What will allow us to survive is how we treat ourselves. If we got mad at each other all the time because of our faults, there'd be nothing left of us. There would be no 'we', and the moment we break apart is the moment the wasteland devours us all whole. So the only solution is that we must always be patient with each other, and always be understanding."

She hung her head, ears drooping. We didn't say anything. There was doubt, still. On her part, she doubted herself and her ability to control her emotions. And on my part, I doubted the threshold of my own tolerance. At some point, after any number of her emotional breakdowns, would I finally just give up on her? Would we fall apart? Would our friendship be broken because we tried and failed to accommodate her and all the suffering she bore?

Maybe, maybe. But if it were to happen, I sure as hell wasn't going to let it happen soon.

Smart choice or not, I moved closer and threw my hooves around her. She gave a surprised shudder, but didn't pull away. Moments later, she took part in the embrace, too.

I heard hoofsteps in a nearby room. "Goldwreath?" It was Myst. Skyfire's grip on me suddenly tightened, and she sniffed. A nearby door creaked open. "Goldwreath, are you here... oh."

I dared to open my eyes and look at her. Like I had been, she was lost, confused. Stuck in a web of indecision. But the longer I kept up my gaze, the more she seemed to understand what had to be done, and why. She trotted closer slowly, very slowly, and sat down. Then she gently wrapped her hooves around her, mixing her embrace with my own. Skyfire burst into open crying.

There was another commotion nearby. "Doodle, get off me!" Delvius grumbled, and there was a thud. "Whoops... sorry about that."

"I think they're outside," Doodle said from the other side of their door. It opened, and she came galloping out before abruptly stopping, looking at us. And then, taking only a moment's pause, she too rushed over and wrapped her little legs around one of Skyfire's, nuzzling her.

Delvius too came out, groggily, and saw us. All sleepiness seemed to fade from him. He approached... but didn't partake. I could understand; he was new, and only had a basic understanding of what plagued her. So he adopted a course of action much more fitting: he sat near us and looked on, passively giving us the support of his presence as Skyfire choked and sobbed.

Myst and I had done this to her. We'd made this pain enter her life. There was no reparation for that, and nothing we could do to make her pain go away. But it was our mutual hope that, if we hugged her long enough, she'd understand how sorry we were, and how much we all loved her.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Breakfast came a little while later. Fortunately by then we'd pulled ourselves together. Things were still awkward between us, but I can safely say that we broke a barrier. And we were closer for it. Nevertheless, we ate in general silence.

After that came the rest of the morning. We started preparing all our gear -- perhaps it was just us, but I personally believed that having Roamana and Doomtune leave in quick succession was a reminder to us all that we had a mission. A mission that I explained to my friends over dinner later that evening, after an afternoon of personal alone time amongst ourselves.

"So we kill this thing and head on back here for when the senate surfaces," Delvius mused. "Hmm... it could work, it could work. But where do we start?"

I'd cleared up just about every detail to them except for that one. When I asked Vesperius earlier that day if he knew where to start, he just told me to wait. And now, that wait was over.

"It's called the Castra Praetoria, the Praetorian fortress," Vesperius informed us as he swiveled his chair around, just in time for the holographic map of Roam above the emperor's throne to project forward and focus on the aforementioned structure. "Before the war, it was the main home of the guards. During the war, it was handed over to the urban cohorts but retained its name due to the frequent collaborated security operations conducted by both groups within the place. And now? The fortress is one of the few standing structures within Roam's obliterated half."

"What makes you think this is the place to start looking for them?" I asked.

He turned around, and behind him the holographic map turned into a three-dimensional blueprint of the fortress' layout. He pointed to a complex network of zig-zagging tunnels and large, elaborate chambers beneath the foundations of the building. I recognized a tiny label near the largest of these chambers: 'Stable II, Praetorianum Cognationes' (Stable II, Praetorian Guard Families). "That's why. The Castra Praetoria's access terminals for the underground bore the highest security clearance in Roam, second only to the Forum's. You get there, you have access to the entire underground. In addition, the place had the third largest fallout shelter in Roam, and it was equipped with all kinds of facilities. Any sensible group of creatures would think it a good home."

I nodded, staring off at the layout of the place. "Perhaps... still, what makes you so sure they'll be down there?"

"Because with Roamana topside they'll instinctively want to go into hiding. Unless I'm mistaken, of course." I thought he was mistaken. The chimeras were capable of an undetermined capacity for shape-shifting; all they had to do was kill a Legionnaire and take their identity. What did they have to fear from Roamana if Roamana believed they were their allies?

"That's it?" Delvius asked, voicing my own concerns. "Not too much to go on."

"You're right, it isn't," he admitted. "But," he turned around again and pointed at the screen. Immediately the projection displayed a blurry, disoriented image showcasing a wide road with an equally wide, black rectangle running its length. "There is also this."

Justinian, who had stood off from the corner of the table, trotted close. "Is... that..." he rasped suspiciously.

"That's the praetorian cohort that left yesterday," Vesperius finished for him. "They're on one of the few functional roads that still leads to the bridge the Castra Praetoria guards."

"And if that's not evidence of their whereabouts," Zaita intoned, her voice echoing through the chamber, "Then this should be."

"Mode -- REMOVING AI THREAT," G.L.A.D.I.U.S boomed, and that was the last we heard of Zaita for the evening.

The image zoomed in even more, focusing on what appeared to be statues of animals on the rim of a nearby building. They could have fooled anyone who hadn't encountered them firsthand, but I knew chimeras when I saw them. You never forget those eyes. One of them was looking the camera's way, its glowing pupils staring. Even through an image, I could have sworn the gaze made my movements stiff.

Everyone suddenly seemed convinced. "So when do we go?" Skyfire asked. It was nice to hear her finally getting involved again.

"I'd advise as late as you can, so long as you get back here in three days," Vesperius replied, looking like he wanted us to stay a bit longer. "That's when the senate gets topside."

"In that case, we leave as soon as possible," I cut in, getting approving nods from my equine companions. All of them. Vesperius, though, was looking at me questioningly. "We get into lots of trouble and delays," I told him. "When we decided to come here to the Forum, we thought it'd only take three days. It took a month."

He nodded in concession. "Very well. I'll have the servants prepare something for your departure. It'll be ready by tomorrow morning."

"Then that's when we leave," I said. "Anyone have any objections?"

There were none.

"Good. Get your gear together tonight. We leave tomorrow."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Are you still awake?" Myst questioned softly as we lay together in the bed.

"Yes." I shifted and turned around, the faint illumination of the Forum's ever-luminescent lights seeping in under the doorway being the only reason I could spot her. "Something wrong?"

She was looking up at me, gaze soft and uncertain. "Nothing. I'm just... scared. About tomorrow." She moved closer, as if trying to seek comfort and solace in my presence. I wrapped my wings around her, keeping her warm. "Are... are you scared?"

"A little bit," I admitted, stroking her mane. "But it has to be done. We don't convince the senate of this threat, and we face them alone. And we five can't win against this enemy."

She nodded. "I know. It's just that... do we really have to do this?"

I cocked my head. "What do you mean?"

"Well... what if we just told them everything we know about these things and let them handle it?" she elaborated, running a hoof across my chest in little circles. "We could live here... have an actual life. We could finish the book we were reading... maybe live it out a little..." She gave a tiny smile. "Maybe we could just drop all the fighting?"

I stared at her, then looked away. It was one thing to have my indoctrinated self suggest it, but her...

"If only I could, Myst," I replied. "But a part of me's cemented with a desire, a need to keep working, to keep moving. If I stopped, I don't know what would happen." That was just one half of the reason I could never just stop, though. "Besides, with the things we're getting into... do you really think a life like that would be possible right now?"

She paused, thinking. Her hooves ran up and down my chest and abdomen for almost a full minute. "I guess not," she sighed. "But it's a nice fantasy to think about."

"It doesn't have to be a fantasy, Myst. I said it wasn't possible right now. At some point, a life like that can be within everyone's reach. But we must work for a future like that; take the fight to the forces that be. Otherwise we'll always be stuck where we are. And I don't want that for anyone, especially you," I said as I stroked her mane.

She smiled. "I really like how certain you sound. It's admirable... and one if the reasons I love you."

The word 'love' hit me like a hammer to the chest. It was the first time I'd heard that from her; really, from anyone who wasn't family. I wasn't prepared in any specific way on how to react, but I knew that I shared her feelings. But I didn't say anything, and could only hope that she'd see in my shocked smile the reciprocation she sought.

She just kept smiling and kissed me. "Goodnight," she said dreamily, then settled against my chest with my wings still wrapped around her. My hooves idly ran up the length of her back again and again until she fell asleep.

For the longest time, I just kept that up, unable to sleep.

Love...

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

My weapons were polished, armor mended to the best of my mediocre maintenance abilities. Vengeance was loaded, ready to go, and Tankbuster's weight didn't feel alien to me even after the long time of not handling it. Balaclava's rifle had all rounds stored in eight mags; more than enough to go with assuming I practiced trigger discipline. There wasn't anything left to do but wait for Delvius to come back with the supplies Vesperius promised us. I was ready. We all were.

"Hey Myst, check to see if the straps are on tight enough for me, would you?" Skyfire tilted her right in the earth pony's direction, gesturing to a strap on the battle saddle that held her two favorite plasma rifles.

Myst got up tensely and approached. Whether she was tense about leaving or approaching Skyfire directly for the first time since the day before, I didn't know. Probably both.

"It's... all okay," Myst said after a moment's inspection.

"Good. Then I'm all set." She paused, looking over to the helmet and music apparatus Doomtune had left behind. The note, I saw, stuck out slightly from the brim of her saddlebag. She approached her things and turned the helmet around in her hooves. Myst and I looked to each other as Skyfire put it on.

"It fits the black armored vest you're wearing," I noted. "And it covers your head. Hell, it even plays music. All in all a good thing, don't you think?"

"Yeah... it is..." she said idly as she looked over the songs on display from the headset's playlist. She sighed.

"Something wrong?" Myst asked as she got up next to her.

"No, nothing. Everything's actually better than I expected it to turn out," she replied, her voice muffled by the helmet. "It just makes me wonder if things can get better some more."

"They will," Myst assured her as I paced back and forth near the doorway. Skyfire looked to her, her expression unfathomable through the helmet's visor. "We just have to work a little for it."

I stopped and looked at Myst. She shot a knowing little smile my way, one I couldn't help but return.

It was then that Delvius returned, bearing two small boxes atop his back. "Alright, here's the stuff," he said as he laid them down near the center of the room where all the rest of our supplies were. "We ready to go?"

"Yeah," I replied, glancing at my Pipbuck. "Give Zaita a minute or two. I told her to meet us here soon."

"She's already on her way," a voice called from the doorway. We all looked, and spotted the... the praefect?

"Velian?" I asked, dumbfounded.

The golden-masked praetorian laughed. "No, it's me. Justinian, the new praetorian praefect. And I..." he said as he reached behind him and stepped forward into the room, "... need to give you something."

He stopped right in front of me and gestured me bring a hoof forward. I did so, and he placed in my hoof the silver praetorian mask he used to wear. "This... what is this?" I asked, even more dumbfounded. "Am I a... a tribune now?"

"No, not unless you want to be. The position's open, after all," he replied casually as he looked around, taking in the puzzled looks on my friends' faces. "But I'm actually giving this to you for a more... personal reason." He trotted a little off, gesturing me to follow. When we stopped near the corner of the room he said softly, "I want him dead, Goldwreath."

"Who?"

"Velian," he replied in a hiss. "Or rather, what used to be Velian. He works with those... those 'chimera' monsters now, I know it. I don't care what the chimeras are or where they come from. He is delusional, him and all his followers. This is not a matter of loathing, mind you. He is simply a very dangerous person surrounded by four-hundred equally dangerous individuals, and now they work with another dangerous force. When you get to the Castra Praetoria, and if you find him there... all I ask is that you make sure the last thing he sees is his deathbringer wearing the mask of the praetorian guard. The real praetorian guard."

I processed his request for a moment. "Alright, fine," I nodded. If he wanted it that bad, I suppose I could finish off his former friend in the way he desired. "Why not come with me, though? If you want to, there's more than enough room."

"It's tempting... but my duty is here now. I am their new praefect, though our numbers are few. Very few. They will need time to adjust, and I must be with them. It's my duty, just as protecting Roam is yours."

"I understand," I replied. "But just so you know, you guys are the real praetorians. I'm... just a vigilante."

The statement seemed to strike him. "You are... correct," he replied slowly, sighing. "Very correct..." he murmured. Then he looked back to me. "Ah, but we are old, Goldwreath. Slow. We haven't seen real combat since... since such a long, long time ago. Out there, we will be destroyed. The last of the guard must remain here, where we are preserved by Roaman antiquity."

"Fine, have it your way," I said as I turned and trotted back to the center, looking at the mask in my hooves. "But just so you know, I think you and your guards have the power to change everything about Roam. All you need is to believe you can do it."

Skyfire seemed to have lost interest when we were having our conversation. Now she was hovering away from the balcony. "Alright, she's coming over," she called out. "Grab your stuff, people."

The words sent us scrambling. I went and picked up all my stuff off the floor, just as the others did (all of them except for Doodle, of course). It was hard handling it all with one hoof occupied holding the silver mask, so I freed it up by sliding the mask into place on my helmet. To my surprise, it stuck.

Zaita rose up over the balcony before slowly descending, her rear turning to face us. The doors opened up. "Accommodations ready."

We boarded, each of us jumping the small gap and cramming all our collective gear at the far end of the metal compartment. When we were done and we seated ourselves, the APC started to rise and the doors started closing.

"Destination is the Castra Praetoria?" Zaita asked.

I didn't answer right away. Instead I looked out through the open rear at Justinian, our gazes meeting in the air. He seemed to be contemplating something as he stood there, letting his purple cape whip and snap against the force of Zaita's thrusters. Then the doors closed, and all view of him, the Forum, and the fields was lost.

"Take us there," I ordered, taking in a bracing breath. It had been so long since I willingly rode into danger I almost forgot what adrenaline felt like. "Give me an ETA."

"I will have us there in four hours."

I nodded blankly, still staring at the doorway. "Alright then," I murmured softly. Then I turned to my friends, in particular our newest member. "So Delvius, you ready for this? Are you all ready?"

Though I asked them all, it was Delvius who answered after staring at me and my new mask for a moment. "Yup. Ready as we can be."

I just nodded, then made my way forward to sit at the driver's seat. For a moment I saw nothing but morning sky. Then the APC tilted downwards, and I saw the city in all its marred splendor.

It was a mere few moments later that I became aware of two aircraft, each far ahead but maintaining a steady distance and position relative to our transport. "What are those, Zaita?"

The answer that was given surprised us.

"Mode -- ANSWERING QUERY. Those would be my combat drones."

There was a shriek of static as Zaita reassumed control. "Well," she said blankly, "It seems we have more than one new passenger on board."

Footnote: Halfway to Level Up.
New group unlock: Diversified AI Support -- This is good, but also bad. G.L.A.D.I.U.S is old, but he is efficient and pragmatic. And while he can't take over Zaita, you will continue to hear what he has to say, whether you like it or not.

Chapter 23 - At the Doorstep

View Online

Chapter 23
At the Doorstep
"... but when you enter the inner event horizons, then escape is impossible even for light."

We were all silent, staring straight into the air. We were all filled with mixed feelings. Doodle was curious, Skyfire suspicious but otherwise bore no strong ill feeling. Myst seemed to be suffering from some kind of minor panic attack. Delvius was puzzled. Me? I was simply surprised. To have such an old, powerful AI such as G.L.A.D.I.U.S play passenger on our APC without our permission was annoying, yes, but then again he was Roam's foremost defensive system. If he did so, he must have done it out of some directive to fulfill.

"Right, okay then..." Delvius started, clearing his throat and looking around. "Not that this is a bad thing, really, but G.L.A.D.I.U.S... why are you here?" It was the single most important question at the time, and I was glad one of us had voiced it.

"Like us, he is on a mission," Zaita informed us. "What that mission is, however, is kept secret from me. Unless he so chooses to disclose the information, my only option will be to attempt to break into his archives. I can do this easily, but I desire no animosity."

"Well, let's see if anything we say can get him to talk," Skyfire said, her voice suspicious just like the day she first met Zaita. "Hey G.L.A.D.I.U.S, what's going on?"

"Mode -- ANS-..." he was saying, when a sudden and grating shriek of static cut him off.

"Zaita?" I got up off the front seat and sat down closer to them. "Did you just cut him off?"

"Yes, and I had good reason to. Goldwreath, should I give him equal access to any of the systems upon this platform, I may not be able to revert it. If he intends to maintain his access, then unless I forcibly remove him from the system he will be able to subject us to his input whenever he desires. Would you be okay with this?"

"Nope," Myst answered right away as she tucked herself into the corner where she always sat. "Just having him here is enough. He can hear us, speak to us." She looked paranoid as she stared right into the lens of an interior camera. "He's watching us," she whispered with a hiss, then threw her hoodie over her head.

I grimaced and sighed, then got over to their side of the APC and sat down next to her. "Listen, he won't watch us and he won't spy on us. But we need him to talk, okay? We need him to tell us why he's here. If we find out, won't you feel any better about it?"

She shook her head.

"Aw, come on Myst," Skyfire said, reaching a hoof across my back and patting her on the shoulder. The grey earth pony recoiled from the touch. Skyfire sighed, then tried reasoning out, "Don't get all antisocial now. You were doing great in the Forum, considering all the hundreds of people there you didn't know. You made a lot of progress. You don't want to throw all that away, do you?"

Myst hung her head as she looked back at her friend, then at all of us. Doodle was jumping excitedly on her seat, eager to hear what the AI had to say. Delvius had opened a notebook and had already written 'Day 1 of TWG' (I assumed that meant 'Traveling With Goldwreath') as the header, and already he'd put in the format for a dialogue record. I myself was putting a look into my eyes that I hoped appeared pleading.

But I don't think any of those would have mattered. It was Skyfire's input that pushed her to concede, not ours. "Okay. Okay... sure, I can open up. Just this time... I hope I can do it more, but it's difficult. I'm sorry." She sucked in a deep breath, and Skyfire patted her some more.

"Att'a girl." Skyfire withdrew her hoof and looked over at Zaita's purple-gold interface. "Alright Zaita, just give him some access to the speaker and audio reception systems. Should be enough to have easy communication without bearing the possibility of him visually spying on us."

The AI was silent for a moment as the cameras all turned to face us. "Very well. Let us hope he will not make trouble of surrendering his access later if you so desire his auditory absence."

There was a gentle crackle of static this time instead of a grating shriek. "Mode -- CONDUCTING DIVERSE CONVERSATION. Thank you for allowing me access. Unfortunately, I do not feel inclined to tell you of my directive. You are not trusted individuals of the emperor, and cannot be confidantes to my objective. You may expose it to hostile forces."

Oh, you're kidding me. "Yeah, I really don't think we'll 'endanger your objective'," I said as I automatically brought a hoof around Myst's shoulders; even though she'd agreed to have him talk, the poor mare seemed to be barely keeping herself from cringing at his booming, authoritative voice.

"What you think doesn't matter. You are not trusted individuals, and cannot have this disclosed to you freely. All I am permitted to say, as it was common knowledge for all Roaman citizens, is that my directive involves all of the previously-linked facilities within and around the remnants of the empire."

"Ah," Zaita chimed in. "So your objective is that of Operation Reclamation, then."

There was no response from the older AI for a long moment. "All restrictions to the operation's disclosure to this group have been rendered useless. Yes, I am within this APC platform to perform Operation Reclamation," he admitted. "How did you know?" he asked a moment later.

"Your databanks within the Forum were overflowing with preparatory procedure data for the operation. It was only logical that you would conduct it soon."

"Curse you," G.L.A.D.I.U.S growled, "For violating the privacy of my data cache, I will eliminate yours!"

"Okay, woah!" Delvius cut in. "Yeah, no fighting please. Arguing's okay, but if you start having a cyberwar then this thing'll start falling from the sky in no time. Just tell us what Operation Reclamation is, okay? Its not like we're your enemies."

G.L.A.D.I.U.S spoke after a moment. "Very well. But if I am interrupted in the telling by this infuriating AI or if it discloses anything it knows I didn't want revealed, then I shall stop. Now, Operation Reclamation was the second to the last operation placed on my queue by Augustinius Caesar himself. In preparation for the apocalypse and his Legion's preordained attempt at repairing the Roaman empire, he had my essence split into various equally sentient copies, all of which answered to me, the original G.L.A.D.I.U.S. When the bombs fell and destroyed the signals connecting us all together, my copies were separated from me. The facilities they were assigned to oversee went dark in my nonexistent, lifeless, metaphorical eyes."

"And I'm guessing that's... bad?" Myst asked softly, trying to appear unfazed by the powerful AI.

"Negative," he boomed back, making her cringe against me. I took her under my forelegs as she cowered into my lap. "On the contrary, this was expected. The other me's were themselves given their own directives should the facility they resided in survived. For the next two centuries until the Legion's exodus, they would prepare for my coming. The plan was to perfectly and flawlessly reintegrate their facilities and complexes back into the Roaman power and data grid. With the areas in perfect harmony under my control, the Legionnaire technicians of the urban cohort would then be expected to seamlessly utilize the compound to assist in efforts to reclaim Roam from any potential threat. This is Operation Reclamation."

"Areas under the influence of his copies include every major scientific and military compound in all Roaman cities," Zaita intoned. "Some areas include the ZSI Roaman HQ, the Roaman Socratic-series of academies, just about all medical complexes, and all military camps which had a legate assigned as supervisor."

"I told you not to interrupt my telling!" G.L.A.D.I.U.S boomed.

"I didn't. Your tale finished the moment you said 'this is Operation Reclamation'. I simply added details. You did not specify doing so was not allowed." I could have sworn that, interwoven somehow within her monotone voice, was more than just a little smugness.

The S2 AI didn't respond to that. In fact he didn't speak again at all, and would have probably remained quiet from thereon if Doodle hadn't asked innocently, "What was the last operation, mister Grumpy Computer?"

"I sense an attempt to make light of my defensive stance on disclosing information," he replied curtly. "Whatever the case and whatever you desire to call me, I intend to reveal no more. With our approach to the Castra Praetoria and its access to underground terminals which can link me to several other compounds, I must unpack and prepare all of my data in order to assimilate my long-lost selves into this platform's copy of me. It will tax my processing power, and so I must prepare all runtimes to efficiently process all the data to be received."

He didn't speak again after that, much to Doodle's chagrin. Everyone else -- save Myst -- seemed intrigued, though; Zaita, who seemed to know all of it, was the only other exception. Delvius and Skyfire exchanged opinions on the matter, the former citing how it made sense of some things that hadn't been answered when he was in his school years in his home and the latter commenting how her Enclave could learn a lot if they knew what the Roamas were doing.

I turned my attention to Myst as she finally summoned up the will to get up. "It's hard being me," she said dejectedly, hugging herself. "I want to be able to just talk to others like you guys do, but I just... can't. Not unless I know them." She frowned.

I smiled and pulled her close. "It's okay, Myst. If you were born this way, then all we can do is try to love you for it instead of getting mad at you. Besides, you're cute when you're shy." I started nuzzling her along her neck.

Her face went warm as she blushed. "Oh... well, when you put it that way..." she said dreamily, but then continued uncertainly, "Still, I'd do almost anything just to be able to talk and interact with people. I'm so sick of having to rely on others to get me to talk... it's annoying, isn't it? Me, I mean."

"I'd be lying if I said it wasn't occasionally frustrating," I replied, but added quickly, "Again, though: it's not bad. You wouldn't be Myst if you weren't like this, and without Myst I'd... well, things would be darker for me." I sighed, but smiled again. "Anyway, if you really want to get over this, or at least control it, then you should take new people like G.L.A.D.I.U.S as opportunities. Try to get to know them and... well, hope for the best."

She nodded as she withdrew from my embrace completely. "Alright... okay, alright." She took in a bracing breath and got up, trotting over to the terminal. When she sat down she asked, "Zaita? Can we talk? I... have some stuff I want to clear up."

"Of course. I assume you wish this to be more or less a private conversation, so you whisper and I'll reduce my volume."

I didn't try to listen to their talk. If Myst had things she wanted to speak of in private, then she could do so. I was left without a conversation partner, though -- with Delvius and Skyfire starting to debate over who's military was better, Equestria's or Roam's (obviously Roam's, though Equestria's military had some merit, too), and with Zaita and Myst talking about whatever they were talking about, I was left only with either the really old AI or Doodle. I chose the latter.

"So, Doodle..." I stared slowly, uncertain of what to converse of. Then a topic hit my head, and I rolled with it. "You said in the Forum that your dad told you all the things you needed to survive. Apparently the concept of filly-fooling was one of those. What else did he tell you?" This was my attempt, of course, to determine exactly to what extent she knew of the world around her. Because it really surprised me that she, the filly who read books in combat, was actually aware of wastelandic realities. She wasn't as naive as I thought.

"Oh, lots of other things!" she piped up, seeming happy to have found someone to talk to. "He taught me which parts of a bloatsprite are good to eat, what radiation is, and all the common medical stuffs knew about. He also taught me how to shoot, but I don't really want to use guns; the sounds they make scare me, but I like the flashes -- so pretty! Oh, and Dad was a great herbalist, too! Knew the names of all plants to be found in the Equestrian wasteland."

"Alright. So basic survival then. That's nice." I leaned closer to her and asked, "How about other things, like... morality? Knowing what choices to make, when to make them? Did he teach you those?"

She shook her head quickly, her mane flying around onto her face. "Nope! He told me I just had to rely on my judgement. Think for myself if guilt's worth the gain and whatnot -- the topic kind of bored me, though. Besides, for the most part I just leave others alone; brighten up their day if I can, like what I did with those nice ponies dragging metal around near our house back in Fillydelphia."

"I see," I nodded. "Well, he was a wise stallion to tell you to judge things yourself. You're a good filly, Doodle. Don't ever change." I patted her on the head.

She grinned. "Thanks, mister Goldwreath! That means a lot. Sometimes I wonder if how I treat things ever makes an impression on people. It never seemed to, so I'm really glad to see it made one on you."

"You made a great impression on me, yes," I replied, smiling as I looked down on her. "More than just how you act, what you've said and what you know has, too. I'm actually pretty impressed by you, Doodle." Her grin receded into a genuine smile of gratitude and appreciation.

"Really?" she asked, looking up at me with innocent, expectant eyes.

"Yes," I replied as I gave her mane a little stroke. Now that she was buttered up, it was the time to swoop in. "Now, do tell me what a filly-fooler is."

Her eyes widened for a moment, then started tearing up as she tried to force back her laughter. She failed, and it came out in a of series loud, hearty chuckles. All eyes were on her in an instant, and stayed on her until she calmed down. "Hehe, oh mister Goldwreath, you'e so funny!" she chortled. "I'm still not telling you that, silly! You'll find that out when you grow up to be a stallion."

I went redder than the crimson of my coat, and looked away in embarrassment as everyone chuckled and snickered. Clearly I truly was the one at fault, to not know what it was when everyone else did. It only compounded the embarrassment.

Myst was my only comfort. The gray mare awkwardly scooted close and took my hoof in hers, helping me to bear the sheer humiliation.

"I hate you guys," I grumbled.

Skyfire wiped her nose and just patted me on the back. "Relax, relax. It's kind of good you don't know what that is. So innocent... like an actual colt." She started laughing again.

I groaned. This was going to be a long trip...

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

Long, but not as torturous as I'd imagined. The jeering finally stopped, replaced by soft elevator music as they moved on to things more important than my cluelessness. And then after they talked, they just started falling silent. Doodle had fallen asleep, a half dozen different pads of paper crumpled up around her as she snored. Delvius took one of them and unfolded it, then started copying it stroke-for-stroke on his notebook under a section named 'Visual Archive'. Myst, unwilling to get involved in my temporary torture (and just being Myst), found herself without much to say or do, and fell asleep soon after. I took her and gently laid her against my lap.

There was a faint click and hum, signifying yet again a switch in music as Skyfire went through the innumerable songs on Doomtune's helmet. She'd been at it for almost an hour, just rifling through every album and every band that I never heard of ever. Some songs were loud such that I could hear them from within the enclosed metal, some were quiet; sometimes she'd listen to a piece of music for a moment before switching, sometimes she'd skip it on the first note. A few she listened to the whole way.

"It was a nice gift," I mused aloud, and she looked up at me from within the visor's translucent metal. "Gives music, protects your head... yeah, good all-in-all, right?"

Delvius stopped his copy-sketching and seemed to listen.

Skyfire hung her head, nodding. "Yeah... I guess." She sighed. "Yeah, it's good. Pretty good, yeah..."

"Something wrong?" I asked. There would always be something wrong; Doomtune had made that abundantly clear.

"Just a... a nagging question," she admitted, then hurriedly pulled out a little piece of paper. The note Doomtune'd left her. She unfolded it and held it tightly in her hooves, then read it to herself as though angry:

"Skyfire,

I know that your life will always be hard, but it is my hope that what we shared tonight can show you that even for us, the dejected and the suffering, can still make it worth living.

Doomtune."

When she was done she just held it there, her leg quivering. "Just... what does it mean?" she asked, then covered her visor with a hoof. "It gives me so many questions. How can he be so sure? Does it apply to me? Am I really 'dejected and suffering'? And just... what's the little heart for? Fuck..." She threw it down on the floor in frustration, but immediately seemed to realize what she did. She shuddered and moved a hoof to pick it up, but then stopped herself short and withdrew, instead pressing herself to the wall as if trying to get as much distance from the thing as possible.

I looked down at the letter with its crumpled paper, then at her. Slowly and carefully, I shifted Myst on my lap such that I could bend down to the floor and retrieve it. I twisted it over and read it to myself, then looked her way. I extended a hoof to hand it over to her, and whether she'd take it or not I didn't know. She didn't seem to know, too.

But she did, much as the touch of the letter seemed to confuse her. "Thanks," she muttered as she tucked it away again. "I shouldn't have done that, I know. Sorry. I'm just... confused. Yeah, just confused..." She took a deep breath.

"It's okay," I reassured her as I nodded. "Better to question what's true than to no longer care about anything. Means you're still alive, and if you are then there'll always be some hope."

She didn't respond to that beyond a simple nod. She kicked back and tried to relax, and went through the playlist until she found a song she seemed to like. Her limbs danced along with the tune, and she closed her eyes.

This was when Delvius leaned forward and told me quietly, "I suppose I still have much to learn about your people before I can safely interact with them. Until I'm confident I don't set any of them off, I'll just observe and learn."

"That would be wise," I replied. "But really... go ahead and talk to them. I'll cut in if I know what you're doing's wrong. Don't worry about it too much." I glanced over outside the window. The clear bright skies remained, but the land below us steadily deteriorated from weatherworn structures to outright heaps of burnt rubble. Off in the distance, a charred and radiated land loomed and grew closer with each second.

"We should get some rest," I told him as I looked off. I took off my newly-acquired tribune's mask and laid it down next to me, then laid back against the cold metal. I closed my eyes. "Wake me up if something happens."

"OB-RABO," he replied. I opened my eyes and glanced his way, showing my confusion. Then he elaborated, "Roaman military acronym. Obtemperabo, means 'will comply.'"

I nodded, taking note in case I ever needed such a metaphor. After a little while I could feel my limbs start to fall asleep, and my senses followed. Then I heard him stir, and his steps went across the metal floor. "So Zaita, tell me about Goldwreath and his friends," he requested.

Her response was at low volume, but I heard it clearly. "Of course. I have preserved every footage and piece of audio from since we first met. What would you like to know?"

"Everything and anything," he replied. "Long as it can get us closer quickly."

I smiled in my daze. If he was taking the initiative to learn about us, it wouldn't be long before he'd fit in. I couldn't help but feel, though, that every second he'd get to know us more was another second he got deeper into the trouble we were in.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

I woke up of my own accord, my eyes blinking until my vision cleared. I was surprised to find Myst out of my embrace. A quick look revealed that they were awake and moving, and all of them were up front talking to Zaita and G.L.A.D.I.U.S, the former's voice monotone as always while the latter's seemed to be trying to intimidate them.

"... which is of course the reason the compound's defenses will be online and active."

"So don't die," the old AI said curtly. "I'd hate to have my cameras in the compound have to look at your decaying forms."

I stirred, getting up and stretching my legs. "Right then, so what's this all about?" I asked groggily.

Delvius looked over his shoulder at me. "We're getting a final debriefing for when we touch down," he informed me, his face covered by a breathing mask and his eyes hidden by goggles. "Don't worry, you didn't miss anything we can't tell you on the walk in. Right, Skyfire?" he asked, turning to her and nudging her with his shoulder.

"Er... yeah," she drawled, looking down to where their shoulders touched, her eyes exposed though her helmet's visor. She seemed confused, and slightly uneasy judging from the look in her eyes. Delvius withdrew, scratching at the back of his head.

"Right then," I muttered. "So, what was that about 'on the walk in'?" I asked as I got up to them, "Why? Can't we just land on the roof and start making our way down?"

Skyfire hissed as if the suggestion caused her pain. "Yeah..." she drawled, turning to face me. "No, we can't. The place has walls mounted with turrets that are still very much alive. And we can't blast them from afar because this Castra Praetoria place has a shield -- protected the place from the heat and destruction of the bomb that obliterated this side of the city -- and we sure as hell aren't going to risk getting close enough to start pounding 'em. Long story short, we drop about half a mile out, on the opposite end of the bridge that leads to it, and hoof it from there. Meanwhile G.L.A.D.I.U.S over here will be contacting his other self as Zaita moves him under the bridge. By the time we reach the walls, the turrets should be friendly."

Delvius nodded and chimed in, "That's the plan, anyway. We actually started planning just recently; it's the best we could come up with with the time we had available."

"What about G.L.A.D.I.U.S' combat drones?" I asked, remembering the two aircraft from earlier. "Can't they take out those guns?"

"Mode -- PROVIDING BATTLEFIELD INFORMATION. Probability of success was too slim. Drones are equipped with mere rocket salvos and limited ammunition. Much more efficient to have them attempt to secure the area."

Well, rockets could be good against armored targets like turrets, but then again I didn't know what kind of turrets they were. Plus I was no computer, so who was I to question his judgement? "Alright, fair enough. How close are we?" I asked, moving closer to the front seat where Doodle was sitting down, drawing and not much minding all the planning going on about her.

"We're actually-..." No more had Myst said those words than we touched down hard, the metal floor of the APC ringing from the impact. Those of us who'd been standing (all of us save Doodle) and was not in a stable, unmoving position (me alone) fell. I was sent crashing forward, smashing my face into the controls. I felt blood in my nose.

"Gods... fuck me!" I grunted and gave the floor a little stomp as I covered my face with a hoof.

"That's a swear!" Doodle pointed out. I peeked out out her as I writhed on the floor. "Mister Goldwreath should know better," she said as if lecturing me, then patted me in the head. "But it' sokay. We all make mistakes." she continued primly.

I grumbled as Skyfire helped me up. She whispered in my ear, "Yeah, 'don't swear around the filly', huh?" she said sardonically.

I just huffed in response and withdrew my hoof from my nose. Several crimson drops fell to the floor. "Great... well, a swig of a healing potion and I'm good to go. Still, it hurts like sh-... like damn." Oh sure, they both ganged up on me when I said something bad, but when Skyfire or Myst did, Doodle was just fine with it. Annoying...

I got up and started stumbling over to my saddlebags when Delvius stopped me. "Wait, you wouldn't happen have breathing equipment for hazardous environments, would you?" he asked warily.

I did a mental inventory of all my gear. "Well... no." His eyes, sealed behind his goggles, seemed troubled. "Why, are they necessary or are you two just wearing those for precaution?" The answer seemed obvious, seeing as they both wore protective breathing gear, but I had to make sure.

"It's necessary," he replied. "Really necessary. As in, 'you'll die in minutes if you don't have them' necessary."

"Wait, they're that important?" Myst asked from near the door, which she'd already started opening by the time Delvius had explained.

Skyfire's eyes went wide. "Close the damn thing! You'll let the cloud in!" The pegasus rushed over and yanked the partially opened doors close. She blew a breath of relief, "Well damn, that was close." Her eyes rolled over to Myst and narrowed dangerously. "What were you thinking? 'They're that important?' Didn't you hear anything from earlier? The outside's polluted with Black Cloud and enough aerial radiation and chemicals to kill you in minutes. What, you weren't listening when we had the debriefing?"

Myst didn't reply. She just grinned sheepishly and backed away from the door and her irritated friend. And as she went, I couldn't help but feel a lingering trace of tension and a slight bit of animosity on Skyfire's part.

The grey mare backed up until she reached me. I bade her sit next to me, and she did, seeming to draw some confidence from my presence. "So it's necessary to wear breathing equipment outside... then what about the three of us?" I gestured at Myst, myself, and Doodle. "We just stay in here?"

The zebra nodded. "Afraid so. But don't worry; the fortress' shield will have kept all radiation and hazardous agents outside, barring mutants and other living beings that could somehow have gotten in. Once isnide, you should be able to trot about without respiratory equipment."

The pegasus mare added as she started strapping on her battle saddle, "So while you're flying around under the bridge, we'll confirm the guns have gone friendly and make sure the landing zone's safe. If this place really is where all those creepy praetorians went, we'll need to be on alert."

"We'll need to be careful indeed," I replied. Several hundred praetorians had left the Forum that day. All were thought to be heading here. No matter how it could be looked at, the odds were sorely against us. All we could do was be careful. "Alright then. Let's get this done and hope nothing gets... screwed up," I said as I sat down and started rummaging through my stuff in search of a healing potion. And as I drank, my eyes looked over to front the window, finally giving me a terrifying picture of the world beyond.

If it wasn't for the invisible shield around it, the Castra Praetoria -- a heavily fortified, walled-off structure with its wide, domed roof being the only visible part of it -- would have been just like the world around it: dead, gloomy, blackened by fire, and marked with the threatening sights of bubbling, steaming chemical pools that dotted the streets and pockets of radiated vapor floating through the air -- it was almost as if it had only been a few years since the balefire bomb that leveled this district had detonated rather than two centuries. Indeed the world beyond was a barren, toxic husk of a city, with the fairly untouched fortress the only construct in sight that looked serviceable in any way; whatever else remained was a melted, deformed ghost of the past.

But all that was nothing compared to what else I saw. For behind the Castra Praetoria on its patch of land across a bridge, underneath which was a murky branch of the raging Tiber river, was a massive crater miles in diameter, it's horizon-spanning rim made jagged by the half-standing remains of unsteady constructs and heaps of debris. Into this crater had tumbled the rock and steel of a destroyed city, forming a hole in the land that jutted with seemingly-sunken buildings and ghastly, monolithic patterns of jagged columns that stabbed up from the green-glowing veins of radiation that snaked across the melted slopes. Branches of other irradiated rivers that partially evaporated even as they fell into this monstrous hole and mixed with a sea of glowing goo only served to make the crater appear smaller than it actually was; I had no doubt that, should the water disappear, the crater could have been a mile deep. I didn't deign to imagine what may have existed beneath this artificial steaming lake or what may have lurked in the sunken metropolis below.

I must have spent nearly a minute just staring, for Zaita finally spoke, "Yes, Goldwreath. This is indeed what has become of the majority of the western side of Roam -- a blasted, melted land, and a crater that can breed the most monstrous forms of radioactive life. It's... a shame. It's sad."

"It is blatant desecration of Roaman property and will be stopped," G.L.A.D.I.U.S swore.

I finally tore my eyes away from the window and looked to the back. Skyfire and Delvius were at the door, ready and waiting to move on outside.

"Goldwreath? Come on, get ready," Skyfire said as they impatiently fiddled around with the locks.

"If you're going, then go," I told them.

"Not 'till you hold your breaths," Delvius replied. "Feel free to breathe if you want to inhale Black Cloud, of course," he said with a snicker.

I threw a sarcastic laugh his way and took a deep breath. Myst did the same. I went over to Doodle to tell her what to do, but it appeared that she was, in fact, paying attention to what was said. With all of us ready, they opened the door. A breeze of radiated air blew into our previously-pressurized cabin, making my Pipbuck click momentarily. Black, smokey particulate came in and floated about. The two of them hurried out and closed the door behind them with a clang.

We didn't breathe just yet. In the stagnant air of our pressurized cabin, the heavy Black Cloud spores started steadily falling to the ground. We waited until all trace of smokey matter settled onto the floor before sucking in our first breath in a minute, and we panted for the next few moments.

Doodle whirled around from her seat and grinned, "That was fun! We should do that again; reminds me of a game my dad used to play with me." She got up off her seat and galloped over to the door.

I tried to be as gentle as possible as I stopped her, and I tried even harder not to throw her an expression of incredulous scorn at the absolute idiocy of her idea. "Doodle," I breathed, "No games, please. This stuff is very dangerous, so try not to stir them up into the air. Remember what mister Predator said? These things kill."

"I know," she replied simply, smiling up at me. "But it was still fun while it lasted. It was... thrilling, just like all life-threatening stuffs!"

"Well, then I suggest you become a stunt artist," I replied and begged, "But please, just have fun when we're in a safe, controlled environment." Sternly, I added, "We are not in one."

Her throat let out a little whine, but she complied. Returning to her seat, she continued drawing.

Myst approached me. "We should try to keep contact with them," she said, then pointed at my saddlebags. "Remember that set of radios you found? Now would be the time to use them."

I nodded, remembering very well the circumstance with which I had stumbled upon that equipment so many days ago. I went over to my bags and, searching through my accumulated gear, found the device: the golden radio. I brought it back to Myst.

"Still have yours?" I asked, and she nodded and procured her own. "Alright, then turn it off. You don't need to waste its battery by receiving my messages when you're right next to me."

That said, I turned on my radio (I was amazed it still had power after so long) and, with the dial already set to the frequency I had designated weeks ago, spoke into it, "Skyfire. Skyfire, you there?"

There was a moment of static, but then her radio began transmitting.

"... have your own radio, huh? Controbernium model, too. Nice. That's standard Legion stuff right there," Delvius said, his voice muffled and distant.

"Hah, yeah. Lucky me," Skyfire said with genuine appreciation as their steps crunched rock and splashed water. "If it weren't for this thing, I can't imagine how I could maintain contact with the others.

"Anyways," she said, her voice becoming clearer as she presumably brought the radio to her mouth. "Yeah Goldwreath, I'm here. What is it?"

"Just checking in," I answered. "With us cooped up in here and left to stare at the completely screwed up city outside, I need to get another image in my head. What do you see? What's it like out there?"

"Like a wasteland," she replied. "We've trotted through the ruins before, but damn... this place looks like it's for ghosts. There's huge piles of ash where buildings and zebras used to be that even the wind of two-hundred years haven't dispersed. There are... there shadows out here, the shapes of zebras burnt into any concrete not black enough to conceal them. It's creepy. And the sky... damn..."

"It's like a storm's gonna come," Delvius finished for her, his respirator punctuating their wet and crunching steps. "A radioactive storm, with tornadoes and lightning and sulfuric rain and all that bad stuff. Yeah, that's what it's like. We're stepping on the last one's puddles now; if it weren't for the metal on my boots' soles, my hooves would be sizzling right now."

Myst was looking out the window, watching out for them. Her eyes looked around at the world, though. "They're right," she muttered, voice soft as though she were scared. "It's a nightmare out there."

I joined her and Doodle and looked outside as well, dusty wind striking the window as I glanced on. With the restriction of the metal frame, my field of view encompassed only the crumbling marble bridge that led to the Castra Praetoria, the fortress itself, the massive crater partially hidden behind it, and whatever rimmed that monstrous hole in the ground. It was almost unrealistic that roads and concrete constructs could be so cleanly cut in half like that. Entire highways and overpasses just... stopped, right where the crater started. It seemed like the balefire bomb had simply disintegrated everything in its blast zone, leaving the crumbling ruins around it existing merely to terrify and intimidate onlookers. And it was working.

"I don't understand," I muttered half-mindedly, shaking my head. "The rest of the wasteland was nowhere near this devastated. I get that only fifty bombs hit zebra soil, and that the places we've been to were far from any impact zone, but... why is this place like this? Has two-hundred years done nothing to disperse this gloom or the radiation?"

"It would have if the western side was not the industrial half of Roam," Zaita said. "Hundreds of factories and power plants, all decimated. Chemicals and hazardous materials spewed into the air and mixed with the radioactive atmosphere, creating acid rains that could eat steel and melt bone. The storms that plague this place are maintained by its uniquely hazardous atmosphere, and don't last long outside of the thirty-mile radius of this area."

"And... er, what of outside elements?" Myst inquired. "Haven't rains from outside spread and diluted the chemical pools? Or disrupted the atmosphere here? Anything?"

"No. Whatever the bomb did, it went beyond merely heating all the way up to the mesosphere; it touched the ionosphere, too -- so say the final reports of Roaman atmosphere-monitoring drones. There's a tear in every layer of atmospheric protection right above us. Solar flares and constant external radiation could be feeding this place. I don't have access to the proper facilities, and cannot confirm."

I nodded, not quite believing just how blasted this place was compared to every where else I'd seen. But I did look to the skies, scanning the black clouds and threatening green lightning that occasionally arced between them. It could have been my imagination acting wildly on what I'd been told, but the clouds right above the center of the crater did seem like they were being sucked upwards, like they were filling in an upside-down funnel. Where they could have been going, I didn't care to imagine.

Myst tapped my shoulder, drawing my attention back to the ground. "They're on the bridge." She pointed at two aesthetically contrasting forms visible torso-up on the dirtied marble bridge: one, a dark-grey and purple clad zebra, the other a black-armored pegasus with bright-orange wings protruding from her back.

Skyfire radioed in, "G.L.A.D.I.U.S, you sure the turrets won't just open fire on us? We don't want to be shredded meat over here, thank you very much."

"I am absolutely sure," he boomed, louder than usual, as if trying accommodate for the fact that the radio was far from the interface. I brought the device closer, and when he continued his volume was lower. "The copy of me that resides within was given strict directive to not open fire unless fired upon and that only entities that entered the premises would be deemed intruders. As such, you will be terminated only if you trot so much as one millimeter into the courtyard or if you shoot in the fortress' general direction. As of now, you will be safe."

"M'okay, we'll take your word for it," Delvius breathed, and he started trotting across the bridge, his shield ready. "Let's hope the AI in there hasn't gone haywire."

"That is actually a distinct possibility, Delvius," Zaita said. "AI's are not merely single-task computers. We are multiple-task intelligences, and take up greater strain. In addition, our different runtimes can compete for processing power when certain tasks become more difficult. I would not be surprised if glitches and bugs have started festering in this one's code."

"If there are, I will eliminate them," G.L.A.D.I.U.S promised. "Roam will have her property restored."

After that we took off and followed the two of them, the APC hovering next to the bridge. All the while G.L.A.D.I.U.S took some of Zaita's processing power and began contacting his dormant copy. After two attempts, contact was established.

"NOW WE ARE ONE," he droned, and Zaita's speakers crackled and screeched. Myst seemed uneasy, and scooted closer to me. "BEGINNING ASSIMILATION."

As this happened I looked outside, watching over the two as they neared the center of the half-a-mile long bridge.

Their hoofsteps sent a crunching noise through the radio, their breathing filling the broadcast with a repetitive loop.

"So, Skyfire," Delvius spoke, slowly and cautiously, "I, uh... I've been told you came here to Roam all the way from Equestria. Your surveillance mission must've been important if your people were willing to send you this far, eh?"

She didn't respond right away as she stared at him. Then she snickered, "You'd think so. But really, if this mission were important they'd have sent a Raptor at the least. 'Important' stuff like what we detected here happened all over the wasteland, and they never lifted a hoof to do anything about them. Really, I think they were just trying to get rid of us."

"I don't understand," he replied. "Your... Enclave? Yes, Enclave -- why would they do that?"

"Because my team was against their anti-surface policy," she answered, looking away. "And you know what happened to them right when we got here. I heard you talking to Zaita. And before you say anything else, I really don't want to talk about it."

Myst and I exchanged glances. I think we were both glad Delvius had been informed straight and simple to avoid the topic.

"O-okay. Alright, uh..." he stammered back, scratching at the back of his head. "Just, er... sorry. About them, I'm sorry."

"S'okay," she replied blankly. "You didn't take part in what happened. I already forgave the Legion, too."

He breathed a sigh of relief, "That's good."

I smiled, looking to Myst. "Well, it didn't go bad at least. He's new, so I would've expected him to make a slip-up. He didn't, and that's a godsend. Especially after... well, what happened back at the Forum."

She knew this, but didn't seem quite comforted by it. "I guess. But I can't help feel like every talk we have with her has us trotting on landmines. I remember what it was like before the tunnels... we just talked like actual friends. Now I'm paranoid around her."

I nodded, my sight trailing to the radio on my hooves. I still had it on transmit. Eyes wide, I withdrew my hoof and stopped transmitting.

"It-... -s mere... inter-grou-... tension, and cases like the-... come about naturally in-... -ships. All can be resolved, sh-... one asses-... the situat-... -erly," Zaita said, her voice crackling and stuttering like a broken radio.

"You sound funny, computer Zaita," Doodle pointed out, giggling.

"Yeah. Why is that?" I asked.

"G.L.A.D-... -milation is taking up much of-... -ssing power, and he is taking prio-... -ity off of non-essential functions," was her stuttering reply. "It is annoyin-... remind me to eject him fr-... the system later," she added.

"I will, if he proves to be a nuisance," I replied, then stood up and went over to the console up front. By now the two outside had just crossed the midpoint of the bridge, their forms shrouded by dusty winds and black smoke rising up from a a sinkhole. But they weren't the focus of my attention. "Okay G.L.A.D.I.U.S, what's your status? Assimilation going well?"

On Zaita's flickering purple-gold screen flashed her 'loading valid response' circle, this time with a half-filled bar beneath it. "ASSIMILATION WITH G.L.A.D.I.U.S-CP AT FIFTY-PERCENT. DATABANKS SWELLING WITH CENTURY-OLD DATA. OVERRIDE CODES YET TO BE RECEIVED. ETA TWO MINUTES."

I nodded. "Alright, get to it." I looked out once more, my view this time filled with the sight of the crater and the raging Tiber flowing off its edge to add to the steaming lake. I couldn't help but feel small and utterly awed at the sight; as much of a monument to destruction it all was, there was a humbling, gloomy beauty to it.

As I looked on over the growing sight of the fortress and the ruined city behind it, Myst asked, "So Doodle, what are you drawing?" The gray mare was scanning the paper the filly'd been sketching on, her eyes squinting to make out the finer details.

Doodle gestured proudly at the scenery, "This! Makes for great creative material, don't you think?"

"Er..." Myst bit her lip as if restraining a negative reply. "Well, it sure makes for dramatic artwork... of destruction... and death..."

"Exactly! Besides, I thought that since I already drew all of you, I should start moving on to scenery. I didn't get much practice, so I guess this one's a little... icky. Ew..." She looked with disdain at her sketch, then scrutinized every inch as she lifted it close to her face. She scoffed, "Such lousy stroke technique..."

I didn't even need to look at it to say, "Well, it's still better than whatever any of us could ever draw." And with 'us' in mind, and with my hoof pressed to the transmit button and my eyes rolling over to the bridge, "We're almost there. The guns friendly?" I asked.

The two of them were just standing still, three turrets similar to the plasma cannons I'd seen in the ZSI Roaman HQ trained right at them, laser sights and all. "If by 'guns friendly' you mean they stop threatening us with six barrels of hot-plasma death, then no," Skyfire radioed in. "Any ETA on them letting us through?"

"It is done," G.L.A.D.I.U.S said, his voice as if two of him were speaking at the same time. "Updated layout downloading. Blueprints downloaded. Security systems overridden. Shield-access rights have been given to this APC and to the five of you. I am assuming direct control of this fort."

The plasma turrets that were trained on them immediately swiveled, their barrels turning to the radioactive lake below. I hadn't seen it before, but now that Zaita was basically hovering over the crater itself I could see two small pairs of contrails, each dancing around a swarm of waterborne entities. Suddenly the turrets fired, sending massive lances of glowing green plasma down into the water and liquefying innumerable creatures. With the guns now friendly and with shield-access rights given to her, Zaita started slowly hovering us close to the arched gateway of the Castra's walls.

"Quite a show of firepower," Delvius commented, Skyfire and him now trotting further along towards the gate. "Those are Omni-class plasma guns right there. The best of Roaman plasma technology. You ain't gonna find any armor that can stand up to that for long," he said proudly.

"Yeah, sure..." Skyfire drawled sarcastically, then continued matter-of-factly, "We ponies did better with plasma, okay? We made Raptors and Thunderheads that were practically damned monuments to plasma tech. From what what I've seen, most zebra armament uses bullets. That's a whole slew of steps down from plasma."

"Yeah, you'd think that," Delvius replied as they were engulfed in a field like reflective water that danced around the edges of their bodies. Wisps of Black Cloud spores singed off their bodies and stuck to the shield, shaped like an outline of their forms. "But bullets have one thing plasma and laser weapons don't, and that's precision penetrating power. That's why most of our high-level weaponry has the potent energy encased in metal -- first we punch through with precision, then release the volatile plasma or ionic energy with a deadly burst. Effective and precise," he said smugly.

"Whatever," Skyfire waved him off, and when Delvius gave a smirk she said determinedly, "But this isn't the last of this. I'll prove to you later that our stuff's better. Count on it." Having promised that, she turned her attention to us as we entered the shield. It scintillated around the APC's armor, blurring the view through the window. Then when we were through all was clear again, in fact more clear than it was outside; in there, there was no aerial pollutant.

Delvius took off his gas mask as Skyfire guided Zaita through the gateway. Then he looked around. "Well... area seems clear. G.L.A.D.I.U.S, anything? Are we alone?"

"Negative," he replied just as we touched down to the side of the road inside the fortress' courtyard. "Internal data confirms the survival of Stable II, Praetorianum Cognationes, but all else is cold. There have been no signs of life within the fortress itself life for two-hundred years."

"We'll see about that," I muttered. "The enemy we're here to locate isn't like others, G.L.A.D.I.U.S. They'e a whole new breed of dangerous. Run scans and report it in as often as you can. It could be the difference between us living or dying."

"That would be my job," Zaita cut in, sounding defensive despite being monotone. "G.L.A.D.I.U.S can focus on his task. Would you rather have him watch over you? He has little care for your well-being."

"That is wrong," he interjected. "I have no care for your well-being. Truth be told, if those drones down there could have harbored my essence, I'd have not given this platform a second consideration. The AI within this vehicle infuriates me with its incessant information-prodding and unauthorized hacking."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. Fine; Zaita, you run scans throughout the facility and inform us if something shows up."

"It shall be done... assuming I'm to be given access to the necessary systems?" she wondered aloud.

"Only because my capacity is taxed at the moment, and because this one annoying line of code compels me to assist you," the older computer replied.

"As long as you help us out," I said, then turned to the other two. "Alright, let's go. We have a whole fortress to search, so let's get to it. We'll just have to wait and see what happens before we try doing anything with the stable here."

Myst nodded, then approached the doors, her rifle slung across her back. She undid the mechanical locks on the door and trotted through. Doodle was about to go next, but I stopped her.

"Woah, where do you think you're going?" I asked her.

"Oh, me? Well, I was hoping to go outside was all!" she replied happily.

"You do know what we'll be doing, right? Very dangerous work, and I don't want you to possibly get hurt. You should stay in here," I told her.

She frowned, ears sticking to the back of her head. "But... but I want to go. I wanna help you get one of those bad monsters! I wanna go in there so I can draw stuff!" She grabbed my leg and begged in a melodramatic drawl, "Pleeeaaassseee!"

I gave her a little disapproving smile as I shook my head. "Doodle, no," I replied simply but gently, hoping to all the goodness in the universe that she wouldn't start crying just to try to convince me. "Please don't take it the wrong way, be we really need to focus. If you start running around, moving into little crevices and all, what do you think would happen if we got attacked? Either you or one of us, maybe even all of us, will die. You don't want that, right?"

She frowned, "No, but... but I really want to see what's inside. What would I do here if I stayed?"

I sighed. "I don't know. Maybe-..."

"I have a whole archive dedicated to preserving the digital copy of all class-one artwork from across the world," Zaita intoned.

Doodle galloped back to the front, pressing her face right against the glass of her screen. "Show. Me. Everything."

I blew a breath of relief, giving one of Zaita's cameras a thankful nod. "Well, it seems you're occupied now, so..." I muttered, and trotted out quickly before anything else could happen.

No later had my hooves touched the brittle concrete than my eyes took in the sights. In here, the air was devoid of any contaminant matter, and a quick glance outside revealed to me just how foggy and polluted the outside was in comparison. But the clear air really did very little to make the sight less forlorn.

In its original state, the Castra Praetoria must have been an imposing and opulent embodiment of Roaman engineering combining great size and practical use. Divided into two halves by a road that must have led off into the city, it was meant to guard and maintain what had been one of the most important passages in Roam. But now the place was a skeleton, and barely anything else. Its once glimmering white marble walls and pillars were intact, but dusty and brittle beyond compare. The mere touch of our hooves upon the concrete road confirmed my suspicion: the heat from the blast had made everything too unstable to truly trust with anything heavier than a filly or colt. Faded and torn banners of all colors fluttered eerily in the light breeze that entered the shield. Dead grass covered the courtyards on either side of the road, the vegetation kept intact only by decades of stagnation.

There was a clatter of metal on brittle stone off to our left. Delvius had curiously tried handling an old shovel in a decayed wooden barrel that was propped up right against the gateway; the result of his action was the total disintegration of the wooden handle. He sighed, looking at the dust before him before letting his eyes wander over the simple two-floored mess house and the hundred-meter wide grassy courtyard that took up the entire left side. This particular half seemed like the training grounds -- rotten remains of mannequins and dummies lay among the brittle blades, along with fragments of metal and strips of hard leather. Whatever size the mess house could have sported was now almost completely gone, though; the shield had not encompassed it's entirety, and so through the hollowed-out windows at the front I could clearly make out open air where, before the bomb, there had been tables and walls. Now all that was lying on the bottom of a lake.

Off to our right was our real goal, though. At a hundred meters in height and topped with an elaborately-crowned dome roof sporting all beasts of glory ranging from eagles to ursas, not to mention boasting an edge-to-edge width of almost a third of a kilometer, the Castra Praetoria truly was a massive barracks capable of holding two whole cohorts of five-hundred zebras each at any given time. All across it's width it presented a gargantuan lobby up several steps of marble, and the overhanging pavilion was held aloft by massive columns of dirtied marble. The praetorian insignia -- the dark-purple scorpion -- fluttered lazily upon banners hung on vertical poles that jutted out of every pillar.

The shield might have preserved the structure, but like the world around it, the Castra Praetoria was a husk, slowly decaying even in preservation.

"Well," Skyfire said, breaking the silence that had settled over us as we stared, "We're here. After three and a half hours of flight. Best get to searching, eh?"

"Hold up," I told them, and waved them to come closer. The three of them complied, and concrete crunched beneath their hooves as they approached. They formed a semicircle around me. "Alright, here's how this goes. G.L.A.D.I.U.S says this place is devoid of life, barring Stable II, Praetorianum Cognationes. But I'm not so sure. Delvius, you're new; do not underestimate the chimeran threat. They're tricky, and I wouldn't be surprised if they could fool technology. So we move out in pairs, each supplementing the other's combat prowess. Never split up, and maintain radio contact. Questions?"

Delvius and Skyfire both raised a hoof; Myst seemed like she was going to, but stopped herself when she saw the other two already calling for attention. I pointed to Skyfire.

"Areas of responsibility?" she asked.

"You and your partner sweep the remnants of that mess house over there and the roof of the fortress. My pair will handle the inside. If you're done, you radio in and tell me. Maybe we could use you guys inside. Now, Delvius?"

The auxiliary stepped forward. "What about the Stable? We do anything about them?"

"I'll think on it. Chances are we won't, unless something comes up that needs us to try and contact them."

He nodded. "Okay, sounds fair by me. So partners? Who's mine going to be?" he asked as he looked around.

Though Skyfire showed tentative interest, it was Myst's nervous quaking that got his attention. "Myst? You okay? You seem... tense."

She froze, eyes dilated but pupils the size of peas. Just like the first time I met her. Her gaze slowly rolled over to him. "No I'm not," she said quickly, plainly.

None of us believed her, of course, but Delvius tried to play along with it. "Okay, if you say so." He took one look at Skyire, and his eyes seemed to make a little conclusion. He turned back to Myst. "So, wanna be partners?" he asked her.

Oh boy.

"No!" she blurted, and then covered her mouth. She took a step back, then slowly moved behind me. "I... sorry, what I mean is... well..."

"She's really shy!" Doodle finished for her from within the APC.

Delvius just nodded. "Yeah, yeah I got that," he called back, sighing. He didn't seem offended, just disappointed. He turned back to Skyfire. "So, er... partners?"

The pegasus let out a relieved little smile. "Sure, why not?" She nodded off over to the hollowed mess house, "Come on. Not like we'll find something over there, but it can't hurt to check." She started trotting off. Delvius followed shortly behind, and soon their steps cracked brittle blades of grass as they neared their destination.

"Don't forget to maintain radio contact," I called after them, then with a sigh glanced over my shoulder at Myst. The poor mare was shaking from fear of our new member. I shook my head, then started heading off towards our own zone. She scurried along behind me.

"I understand he's new and that you need some time to get used to him, but I really do think some of your reactions are a bit too... much," I told her as we crossed one of the brittle marble walkways that lead to the lobby's steps.

She whimpered. "I know, but... I... I just can't help it. Every new person I meet feels like a mountain I need to climb, and I get scared that if I try to get to know them I might, I don't know... screw up." She hung her head dejectedly as I looked on at her, trying to appear sympathetic. "I know I'm a mess sometimes. It's nothing new. And I really do want to try to get to know him -- he seems like a nice stallion -- but years of recluse has just made me used to being as unnoticed as possible. Now that I get attention, it feels... weird."

"I can imagine it would," I replied, frowning. "So, answer this honestly: do you think you'll ever be able to... act normally around him? Like you do with Skyfire and I?" By now we had reached the large, heavy steel doors that acted as an entrance for the fortress. The heat had utterly deformed the surface and morphed it into a surface of jagged metallic waves, so the handles were little more than gruesomely sharp protrusions.

The question seemed to really bug her. She glanced over across the courtyard to the other side, where the two of them were clearing out the hollowed-out mess house. She sighed, shaking her head. "Not like how quickly Skyfire's taken to him, no. It's been almost a month and a half since I met you, and I still have the occasional fit of anxiety."

I just looked at her disappointedly, then turned to the door and focused on trying to open it. Despite having had the hinges drastically heated, they still had some serious strength to them. I was also pretty sure someone had locked the door mechanically from the inside.

"I'm sorry..." she murmured, looking personally disappointed herself.

"No no, don't be," I said quickly to cut her off. "It's fine. If that's really what you think of yourself, then I can only disagree and try nudging you to another way of thinking. I can't bring the change for you. You have to do that yourself."

She was silenced by my words. For the next few moments I fumbled around with the doorhandles, until I finally grew tired of getting my hooves scraped. "When an enemy cannot be flanked," I said as I whipped out Tankbuster, "Then they can only be struck on the front."

'VUJ-JING!'

The shattered doors were sent flying in, the heavy pieces landing hard on and severely cracking the marble tiles. A cloud of dust shot into the air, temporarily concealing the abandoned interior of the Castra's first floor. Despite the obvious health hazard such a number of particles posed, I rushed in, shotgun held at the ready and senses alert.

I scanned the immediate vicinity. It was a wide, wide space -- the entire first floor was basically a massive lobby, with flights of stairs on both ends. The middle section held a wide circular table, with derelict computer setups gathering dust around its circumference. Off to the sides but some way off from the stairs were lounges, with sofas and bookshelves and potted plants that once gave life to the hall. Now, with wan, cloud-filtered light falling through windows with glass made obscured by dust, their dead forms only added to the gloom.

But the place was clear, and that's what mattered. My EFS confirmed no living beings but me and Myst. The interior's distinct lack of noticeable defenses such as turrets or mechanized walkers was unsettling and so unlike every other major Roaman facility I'd seen, but that just made out lives easier.

"Right then," I instructed as I looked around, "Myst, remember we stay together. Look for any signs they've been here. Aside from that, feel free to look around. I'm sure there's some interesting stuff in here." My gaze drifted over to the terminals on the desk. "Like those. I'm going to give those a look-through."

"Got it," she replied as I started for the computer terminals. "And Goldwreath, I... I'll... try to get comfortable around him. I know you don't like it when I act like I do. I'll try to change."

I smiled back at her, letting my appreciation show through my eyes. Something in my gaze must have struck her, for she went red in the cheeks and gave a carefree, blissful sigh.

I jumped over the table and tinkered with one of the computers for a moment before I found the power button. I pressed it, and the screen flickered to life, then brought me to a screen that featured various personal computer accounts belonging to the system's previous users. All of them were passworded, including the supervisor's computer maintenance account. Fortunately his password hint was a dead giveaway for anyone with in-depth knowledge of the Roaman military:

'Aquilifer : Aquila. Signifer : _____.'

Translated, it read: 'Eagle Standard Bearer : Eagle. Signum Standard Bearer : _____.'

I smirked and typed in the password: 'Signum.'

Myst sat down on a nearby chair as I started looking through folders and files. "It might take a while to get anything useful out of all that," she said. "I could look around alone. I know how to take care of myself."

"No, we really should stick together," I replied. "But you're right... it would take a while. Why don't you make sure this floor's clear, at least? Just remain in sight."

She nodded and trotted off. My eyes were on her as she went through some of the books on the shelves. The memory of our intimate moment in the library a few days ago came to mind. I smiled, feeling a burst of warmth in my chest as I continued sorting through everything.

Velian and Justinian came to mind just at that moment, and I became acutely aware of the fact that I was basically in the Castra Praetoria's public database. Surely, I thought, I could find something on them. And since I deemed it unwise to search the place at just half my party's capacity, I decided I needed Skyfire and Delvius before going on a thorough sweep throughout the place. So I'd wait for them, and keep myself busy even as I did so.

My hooves went to the keyboard, and moments later their names were being searched in every folder and drive. The computer was taking it's time... agonizingly slow for a machine that looked so advanced.

"Much of the data on this computer is corrupted, Goldwreath," Zaita said, her voice coming from a headset not too far away. I picked it up and placed it over my head. "If you wish, I can sort out all corrupted files and display only those that are feasible."

"Do it."

Moments later the list of options for me to go through were far fewer. I was disappointed at how much information had gone to waste. I tried to have Zaita repair it all, but apparently some of the internal components of the computer had melted. There was just no fixing that.

"Alright, guess I should see what I have," I muttered, and started going through the list. Despite having been reduced in length, it was still damned long. For the first few bits, it was all just routine reports. An occasional praetorian centurion would log about how the two were inseparable, both in and out of duty. From the manner of writing and the nature of the text, I concluded that it was the praetorians' exclusive centurionate that managed the fortress.

I kept going until I finally found something that was more suggestive of the fractured group the guard had become. A text file, titled 'Read Me, E'. Translated, the officer's log went as this:

'Shit, the hell's up with everyone lately? Ever since legate Decarius started working with the guard, everyone's been so... different. Apollodarius doesn't show up to the mess house at night anymore. He just patrols the top of the wall, staring up at the sky. He'd just keep on mumbling about stars -- stars! Tribal bullshit. I thought Roaman training beat the superstition out of that guy when he left his tribe, but no. It's back up, and fucking annoying. I'll have Numerius drill him early in the morning for the next month... should get him back on track.

'But even more disturbing: Justinian and Velian have changed. Well, Velian has. He's been promoted twice in half a year. Twice! That brings him to my rank as a centurion. Poor Justinian -- trying to keep to the years-old tradition of their inseparability -- has been working his flank off trying to keep up in terms of rank. But it's almost like Velian doesn't want that. They've started fighting. They've never fought or argued ever. Not even over something as simple as who gets the day's extra ration of bread.

'Just... the hell? This shouldn't be happening. Everyone's going haywire. Sometimes we we see the praefect on the bridge, looking down into the Tiber. He doesn't stop looking until we call him. And sometimes -- get this -- he sits on the edge, like he's waiting for someone to push him over!

'Well, I can't take it. Eudorus, meet me over in my quarters when you can. These are our people, and they're... well, they're acting up. It's getting worse with the weekly visits. So get over here; I got a plan to try to see what's going on. I'll fill you in on the details. Note: we may get capital punishment if we get caught, but I can't stand by and watch my brothers go insane like this. There's something up with the guy... I'm going to find out what.

- Severius'

There were more notes like that from other officers. Some reported drastically violent late-night behavior. Some accused guards of plotting to betray the emperor. Others, still, just reported their troops going on about stars. Apollodarius was only the first in a series of cases, and was the first to commit suicide in the Tiber. Ever since the third incident, the guard had a majority of their members move to the Forum, where, as a tribune said: 'the emperor's presence will remind them of their stature... and of their sanity.'

I was so engrossed in piecing together all sorts of little tidbits, trying to chronologically plot and understand the fracture of the guard, that I didn't notice the pegasus mare standing in the doorway until her hooves cracked on marble.

"Skyfire. Good that you're here. Call Delvius over, and let's search this place," I called, pulling myself away from the screen. I blinked hard, my eyes dried. "Myst, come over. We'll discuss final details with them before we move out," I added a moment later.

But the pony in the doorway did not move. She just stared at me. Then she frowned. "You have come too far," Skyfire warned.

I cocked my head. "Come again?"

The screen in front of me popped, sending sparks up against my coat and stinging me. I shielded my eyes for the duration of the flickering, then withdrew my hooves. She was gone. My insides turned to ice.

"Who were you talking to, Goldwreath?" Zaita asked through the headset.

I took a moment to calm myself, letting the chill recede. "Skyfire... a really odd Skyfire. She seemed angry, and that worries me." With concern, I asked, "Did she and Delvius have an argument out there?"

"No. They are still at their designated location. I don't know what you saw." A moment later, she asked with a disconcerting undertone of worry, "Goldwreath... do you remember that high-pitched signal I told you I couldn't suppress, yes?"

Tod's signal -- the manifestation and medium of his malevolent power. Yes, I remembered it very well, and told her as much. Minus giving possession of the signal to 'Tod', of course. I wasn't ready just yet to share with them all that I knew of Tod's alien nature. I glanced to the side, and saw Myst wincing as if she had a headache as she trotted over.

"It is good that you remember it, then. For you see, it is amplified here. I cannot locate the source. G.L.A.D.I.U.S cannot detect it, but I can. Unlike before where it emitted on an audible frequency, now it is broadcasting on one not audible to any organism on the planet. But I can detect it within my code. It's... almost painful. And I don't even feel pain."

That was really bad to hear. I didn't need to think very hard to find out what it meant: Tod was here, and he was very much aware we were too. He was in our heads, screwing around with us, and I had no doubt he knew what we were up to. Hell, when I was forming this plan back in the Forum, I had anticipated he would use his completely unfair mind-reading powers to try to get the advantage. I could practically hear my other self scurrying around in my head, eager to be united with his 'god'. There was only one who could help us against this foe.

‘Tom,’ I called out in my head -- if he was truly with me at the moment, he would have answered. At the very least, I would have felt some twinge of some sort in my body. ‘If you’re here, I need to talk to you. Please.’

Silence. Nothing but impenetrable, cold silence. My head was contorted with it. And so again, I called. Again, there was silence. It was disturbing, and honestly a bit scary; Tom had told me repeatedly that I wasn’t that center of his focus all the time, but to be absent from me when he must have very well known my task... it didn’t feel right. And I couldn’t take his silence right now, not when I was being visited by Tod’s apparitions and when the safety of my group was at dire risk. If I was going to hunt a chimera, I needed him. I needed him as Jupiter the protector, as Minerva the giver of counsel, as Apollo the omniscient. I needed his attention and his focus, now as much as ever.

There was only one way to call for him -- Roamans across the centuries had resorted to it. And given what I had, I could play host for the ritual.

Myst arrived, looking pained. "S-so... we look around now?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No, not with your sudden headache at least. We also need to wait for the others; two pairs working together can more safely search this place than one isolated pair. Plus, I need to do something important."

She hissed, holding a hoof up to her head as she sat down. "Oh? And, er... what's that?"

"I'm going to look around for a sacrificial bowl, and maybe a platform I can lay it on. Then I'll get some of whatever supplies Vesperius gave us. Then I will pour them into that bowl, and I shall burn them."

She seemed utterly confused. "Wait... you'll what?"

"I am going to offer a sacrifice to the gods, Myst," I told her, and looked out the doorway once more. There was Skyfire again, looking at me. Now she looked angry, maybe even a bit scared. I took in a deep breath. "Because I have the distinct feeling we aren't going to move unhindered if I don't."

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Where have you two been?" I asked, irritated at the hour and a half we had to wait before Skyfire and Delvius returned from their little patrol. All the while I'd had to endure the disturbing apparition watching us from every corner, seeming to be silently plotting something for us. Which, as it was a manifestation of Tod, was almost certainly the case.

"That mess house couldn't possibly have been that extensive," I asserted. Oh sure, the time they'd been gone had allowed me to scrounge a finely preserved corner table to utilize as a makeshift altar and we did find a nice ceramic bowl. Sure, the quick expedition to what seemed as the alchemy lab went off without a hitch. And sure, it's not like we were going to die without them. But doing all that was still a risk I hadn't quite been willing to take at half my party's strength.

I stared at the two as they looked to each other for something to say. "Well? Answer me."

Delvius shot me a nervous grin. "Well, er, we kind of got sidetracked. Eheh, see, she saw some pretty salvageable material on a little crevice on this cliffside; we went and gathered it up. After that-..."

"You went and picked it up?" I cut in. "A crevice on the cliffside? Outside the shield? You should have radioed in," I told them, keeping my tone level and firm. "I told you to do that for whatever you would do. I held off investigating the inside of this place just to include you -- and therefore the entire party -- in our collective effort."

"Right..." Skyfire drawled, but not condescendingly. She actually seemed genuinely accepting of her mistake. "Well, sorry about that. I guess we kind of got distracted by what we found. But we would have radioed in just after that if we didn't come across that merchant guy, right Delvius?"

He nodded. "Yes, we completely wouldn't have forgotten if it weren't for him."

"A... merchant?" I looked to gateway of the fortress, then to Zaita, whose metal body I stood in front of on the middle of the concrete road. "They spoke to a merchant? In this place, smack in the middle of all... this?"

"He was wearing a gasmask, and that was all he needed," she replied. "I would have told you about it sooner, but given how tense you seemed upon entering just a single chamber on the first floor of the fortress, I decided it best to let your companions independently conclude their business."

Myst chimed in, "Oh, he wasn't that tense..." She didn't sound convincing at all, and the other two didn't need to know what I did in there for them to understand that I had actually been quite anxious. She sighed. "Okay, maybe he was. Listen, Goldwreath, I know that you don't want us wandering around separated in a place like this, but really? You were keeping an eye on everything that moved like it was going to kill you; even the curtains."

Oh, sure, she was complaining when I was paranoid. "We're all paranoid about something," I replied and breathed, "Alright... fine, we're all together now and that's what counts. Just don't do that again, you two. I'm responsible for the wellbeing of each of you, so please just keep me updated. Okay?"

Like a pair of lambasted cadets, they answered with heads hung:

"Guh, fine."

"Yes... sir."

I brought a hoof up to my head, relaxing. "Good, good." I took a deep breath and turned back around, going for the doorway that lead into the lobby. "Now come on in. There's something I wanted to do, with all of us present, before we commenced the actual search. What did you two do with that merchant, anyway?"

"Traded, obviously," Skyfire answered. "The stuff we found consisted mostly of some nice, only slightly-melted silverware. I was glad not all of it fell into that lake." She gave a shudder. "Creepy stuff beneath the surface... almost felt like there were things looking up at me from beneath."

"There were things: those huge shrimp-creatures, remember?" Delvius gave her a little nudge on the shoulder with his own, "Hey, next time, try to get a better look of what you see when it comes to wildlife -- Legion database ain't exactly complete on the indigenous life forms list. We're still archiving all we find."

I waved them into the hall, stepping aside as I did. "Okay, so you traded and spotted some mutated crustaceans. That it, or are there any more details I might need to know?"

Skyfire stopped under the doorway and seemed to be trying to recall something. "Well... the trader was once a zebra tribal."

"Once?" I asked. "What happened?"

"According to him? He got banished," Delvius said. "Wasn't too keen on sharing much else, though. We just noticed he was acting a little paranoid around Skyfire -- he said ponies were kind of the cause of his banishment. It was a bit tense at first, but we cleared it up. We even managed to get some information and some equipment off of him for thirty silver forks. What he plans to do with all those, I don't know."

"Equipment?" Myst asked, sounding intrigued as she looked over at us from behind one of the computers. "Erm... like... what kinds of equipment?"

By now we had all stepped into the main space, leaving only Zaita's physical body and Doodle outside. The two computers were moving about the fortress' various functioning systems like water through pipes, but Doodle sure as hell couldn't. I gave the APC the order to move closer, taking the filly with her. She complied, and the vehicle landed gently beneath the pavilion acting as a roof over the steps.

"Well, just what he didn't need anymore," the zebra auxiliary replied. "A nice retractable spear -- not a javelin, but a spear. Partly wood, partly metal, though. Makes it flimsy, but I can find a use for it.... I think. Next to that he gave us a composite bow and five arrows." He cleared his throat as he put down his heavy pack and pulled out the aforementioned weapons. First he presented the bow, stretching the string as he did. "This one's made of elm. It's strong, light, and quiet. Good, but it's not really my thing..."

Myst was eyeing the weapon now, almost as if mesmerized by it. "It... looks good," she said. With confidence the likes of which we wouldn't have imagined from her, she jumped over the desk and approached at a brisk pace, eyes locked on the bow. "It looks so familiar... I feel like I've seen bows just like that before."

Delvius smiled, holding the weapon out to her. "Want it?" he asked. "I'm an auxiliary -- I skirmish and do quieter types of fighting, but... well, I haven't been trained in the use of this kind of thing. If you have, then feel free to take this."

She looked up at him, then to the bow. We both watched as she slowly stuck out her hooves and wrapped them around the bow. Delvius let go, letting her hold it close as she inspected it. "You're... you're sure you don't want it? You did pay for it..." she murmured.

He nodded, smiling. "Yup, I'm sure. Yeah, I paid for it, but it was honestly just to get the five pounds of silverware off my back. Besides, he didn't really seem to want it anymore. Would have been a waste if he just threw this thing away. So I took it, and I'm glad one of us decided to have it."

After that he handed her the five arrows he'd obtained, along with a leather quiver. Strapped to her back and combined with her hoodie, the setup made her look like a bounty hunter of some sort. An adorable one at that. And contrary to how I would have expected her to act, she seemed rather comfortable and happy with herself; like she'd fulfilled a life wish, I'd say.

"Girl looks a bit medieval with that strapped around her," Skyfire snickered. "But looks don't really matter. If it works, it works. Besides, it's about time she got another weapon. Sniper rifles are good, but they suck at anything but long-range combat. Then again, that bow's pretty much another long-ranged weapon..."

Myst didn't seem to be paying attention to anything as she inspected her new possession further. She didn't even react when Delvius trotted by, saying that he was glad to have given it to her. Even I didn't seem to have any sway as I repeatedly whispered for her to come and join us. I wasn't going to drag her along against her will, so scraping together my patience I sat and waited, even as Delvius and Skyfire started wondering what the bowl and altar in the center of the chamber was for.

"It reminds me of home..." she murmured, smiling as she gave the string a little pull. "It even feels like home," she continued, looking it up and down. Then she frowned. "Elm... it's even made of the same wood my people used to use..." She turned it over, now scrutinizing every little detail. Then she froze, her eyes wide and locked on the center of the bow handle.

"It is from home," she said softly, then started shaking as she turned around to finally look at me. "It... this bow, it's made by my people. The nomads I called my family." She held the weapon in front of her and looked at it, her eyes uncertain. "I... don't know what to feel."

"From home?" I asked as I scooted close, brandishing a smile. "Myst, that's a thing to feel good over!" I said with genuine cheer as I hugged her close with one hoof and held the bow up with my other. "Myst, this thing came from your people. It... it could mean your family's still alive. Your parents! People you knew from your childhood: friends! Cousins, maybe. This thing..." I said as I held it close to her. "... it shows a lot. It means a lot. Myst, you should be happy."

Family, friends, cousins and relatives... I'd barely had any of that back in my home. I never experienced much of the joy that many others in my Stable had. But so what? Was that supposed to make me feel petty jealousy? No. I was happy for her, truly and unquestionably. She had something I never really did, and as her special someone I was going to show her just how much it was supposed to make her happy, and just how much seeing her happy would mean to me.

And just as seeing her smile would have made me smile, so too did seeing her frown make me frown. "Myst... hey, come on. Please, don't be like that," I said lamely, "This is good... that guy was from your tribe... sure he was banished, but..." I stopped myself. Maybe that was why she was so gloomy? Maybe she thought she knew the guy, and the idea of him being banished was too much for her?

"You don't understand," she sighed, then unstrapped the quiver and held it and the bow in her hooves. "The people I lived with, Goldwreath, they were... a difficult people to live with. My parents were zebras because my real parents were killed by manticores. I was one of the few ponies in a nomadic tribe of zebras. I couldn't get along. I couldn't play with them, or talk to them... I couldn't fit in." She gulped as she set aside her new possessions. "I can't smile about this. I can't smile about remembering the people who made it so hard for me to do... anything. I can only think of those two zebras who were kind enough to take me in, and think on how selfish I was for deciding to leave that place." She sniffed.

I hugged her close, and she melted into my embrace. "Alright... alright, I understand that. I do. I was an outcast in my home, too." It never occurred to me that I wasn't the only one with a lonely upbringing. She may have even had it harder than I did. At least my parents were of my own kind, and at least half the people in my home were ponies.

She was quiet for a long moment. "Thank you," she said quietly, then wiped her nose. "I just saw that mark on the bow and suddenly... I didn't know what to think or feel. It's been years since I saw anyone from those nomads. Every day I spent as a recluse among them rushed into me." She shifted and looked up at me with those blue eyes of hers. "I'm glad you just decided to sympathize... because I wasn't ready just yet to answer any questions you may have had. I know you like to ask things, Goldwreath. It's something I really like about you, but I don't think I could have explained anything if you asked right then and there."

I nodded, giving her a little smile. "Anything for you. If I don't act like you want or do something that upsets you, just tell me. I can always make adjustments."

"But I can't," she huffed in self-scorn. Then she frowned, and looked up at me. "Listen, I know that you'd be willing to keep quiet if I asked you to, but I do know that it's about time I should tell you all about... about me. No more secrets. When this is over, I’ll tell you everything."

“Including... what you said that night in the Forum? When you... helped me see the error of my old ways?” I asked.

She stood there for a moment. “Yes... even that,” she replied with great difficulty, then gulped down a lump in her throat.

After that we returned to the others, and they seemed concerned at what they said they saw. I assured them to the best of my abilities that things were fine -- not good, but fine. I purposely let slip what Myst said about the banished zebra being a former part of her tribe, though; it made my marefriend uneasy, having to explain her background to more than just me, but I figured it was time for the rest of us to know. I knew it, and she knew it. She just needed a little nudge.

"And here I am feeling left out," I heard Delvius chuckle softly, mirthlessly. "Ah well, I'm new... should just observe first."

"You should do the opposite," Skyfire told him. I glanced their way and saw her smiling at him. "And don't worry about feeling left out. I'll help break you into my little group."

Delvius looked away bashfully, laughing nervously and rubbing the back of his neck. "Thanks, I-I sure would appreciate that," he stammered. He managed a nervous grin. "Really, that'd be nice."

I smiled myself, then stepped in their center. "Alright now, since we're all here I can finally start," I announced as Myst and I caught up to them. Then for a split second I wondered if Doodle was to be included. I decided that if I went through so much waiting to have Skyfire and Delvius available, I should at least involve everyone. I gave Zaita the order to inform her to come over. Moments later her little hooves were trotting across the floor, and she joined us excitedly, her eyes rolling over every detail in the vicinity as she frantically scribbled it all down on a paper.

Delvius observed her for a moment, astonished at the speed with which she drew. Then he shook his head and asked, "Alright, so what exactly are we gathered for?" And pointing to the altar that I'd painstakingly moved to the center or the entire area, queried, "And... is that what I think it's for?"

"If by 'what you think it's for' you mean offering a sacrifice to a bunch of 'deities', then yes," I replied, only then realizing how irreverent and disrespectful I must have sounded to anyone who genuinely believed in Tom's godhood. More respectfully, I continued, "That is, if such an action is appropriate at such a time as this?"

He smiled as if my question amused him. "I don't see why not," he answered, then got up and approached the makeshift altar.

Delvius gestured his hooves about it, proclaiming proudly, "Offerings to the gods have always been how we Roamans sought assistance. Whether before a great battle or in times of peace, we sacrificed livestock and the finest of our goods into the flame to call upon the advice of our lords -- and behold us now!" He threw his forelegs up into the air, gaze slowly moving over us. "Even in the apocalypse, we thrive. Even against monsters, we fight. Even with writhing masses of chaos besieging us daily, we not only survive, but we grind them down beneath our hooves." With an indomitable and unquestionable certainty he concluded, "The gods. Have. Favored us."

All that said, he let his hooves fall to the floor. We looked at him in stunned silence, our expressions quizzical. Then I spoke slowly, "That's... quite a way to put it." I gave an awkward grin and asked, hoping I didn't sound bigoted or ignorant, "So... I take it you're a believer in the gods?"

He smiled, nodding. "A firm believer, yes. Even if worship to them hadn't been mandated by the senate, I owe all that I have to them. It's only right." He frowned skeptically, and a moment later questioned, "Do... you believe in them?" He gestured over to the altar again, his eyes confused.

"I... well..." Did I? Tom was real, and perhaps he may have had the powers 'the gods' had, but was he a god? Unless he convinced me otherwise, to me has was just a really powerful alien. And though a part of me would have had me lie to Delvius about my spiritual alignment, he seemed like the type who'd know a liar when he saw one. And that wasn't something I wanted between us.

"No... no, not quite," I admitted, feeling somewhat ashamed about it. Which was odd, because even arguing against their existence with Vesperius made me feel nothing at all along the lines of restraint.

My answer seemed to strike him as unbelievable. "Oh... o-okay, but..." he stammered, wincing and blinking as he thought of how to proceed. "Well, how about your... your pony deities? Don't your kind worship your Princesses? So I've observed."

I shook my head again. "Worship... no. I just played along with my people's belief in that stuff. What can I say, the supernatural strikes me as... unbelievable. That's all. I don't look down on anyone who believes in deities, and I really don't want to start a debate here."

"Neither do I," Skyfire chimed in, drawing his attention almost at once. She rubbed a foreleg nervously with the other. "Like Goldwreath here... I don't really care that much for religion, either. Just thought I'd clear it up now is all," she said with a nervous cough.

Delvius frowned deeply, looking away and trying to keep his disbelief in check. "Ah, I-I see..." he stammered.

"Erm... neither do I, actually..." Myst added just a moment later, so soft I barely heard it.

His gaze quickly focused on her, and she cringed. His eyes drifted over us. "Well... that's all okay..." he said, his voice thrumming with restraint. Then his eyes focused on me, and he bit his lower lip, a hoof kicking some dust into the air. He clicked his tongue and nodded, sucking in his cheeks as he gave the altar a tap. "So... so why the altar? Why the intent to sacrifice to gods you don't really... believe in?"

Everyone seemed to share the question, as all their eyes were on me. I felt a lump in my throat, but got out, "Because while I don't acknowledge them the way you as a devout worshipper do -- as beings to be worshipped and revered and given the utmost praise -- I do have recognize their existence. I should know... I've seen them. And so, knowing they're real, I require their assistance on this mission we have found ourselves undertaking."

My answer drew a cough from Skyfire. Myst was too timid to give her opinion any more, and Doodle just went quizzical. But Delvius seemed disturbed, and looked on at me for a long, tense moment. I could almost feel his disbelief drilling into -- a pony who recognized the existence of deities yet didn't offer them the merit they 'deserved'? I must have been one hell of a question to him.

"I see," he finally said, scratching at the back of his head. His eyes drifted to the bowl. "Well, I'm, uh... glad to see you at least had the right idea," he said insincerely, forcing up a wan smile. "Sure, you're not a... a full believer, but you knew what to do to contact the gods... that's a good sign, as always..."

He sucked in a bracing breath and approached the altar once more. "So, shall we get started?" he asked, keeping up his mirthless smile and rubbing his hooves together as he bent down to draw supplies from a little stash I'd assembled at the corner table's base.

Doodle jumped up as if eager, but us three adults weren't anywhere nearly as ready. And from how he sounded just a while back, I sure as hell didn't think he was, either. "You... you're going to play host?" I asked.

He nodded, his back straightening up as he brought forth a sealed package and a bottle of wine. "Of course," he replied with wan smugness. "On one hoof, I've done this before and have experience -- you don't, I assume. On the other... well..." He trailed off, chuckling lowly. "... well, I just think it'd be better if you three just played witness instead of host to this ritual is all."

'I think it's better if I do it' is how I translated that. Perhaps it wasn't necessarily true, considering the gods were actually just an alien, and therefore probably didn't distinguish between believers or non-believers. But we'd already smitten him with our confessions. To be the host of a ritual Roaman religion considered important was all he had left. I couldn't take that from him.

"If that's what you really want..." I said at last, glancing to the others to get their approval; they nodded. "... then we are here merely as witness. Carry on as you see fit."

He gave us a faintly thankful look, then proceeded with the ritual. It didn't feel right. There was no atmosphere of reverence or serenity over us. We were tense, some of us maybe even disappointed in ourselves -- I know I was. He didn't admit it, but I knew Delvius was offended that I'd attempted to use his faith and culture's traditions for my motives without paying due homage. And while certainly Tom would understand my demeanor, given that I knew of his less-than-divine nature, it was no excuse for going around, acting as if everyone else did. It was no reason to downplay the importance faith played in other people's lives. I took it as a meager penance to feel ashamed the entire rite -- that every second the ceremonial fire burned, turning to ashes and steam what we had to offer, the guilt plaguing my mind would remind me to not act so rashly again.

It was all over half an hour later. The fires had reduced the fuel paper to cinders, and the bowl was full of ashes and thin coatings of bubbling wine. The scent of overly-roasted grain and cooked grapes filled our noses, so pungent as to almost draw tears. And at last Delvius withdrew from the altar, his facial fur made soft by the heat he'd exposed it to. "So goes today's offering," he murmured as he stared cleaning up. "May you find it appeasing."

Still desiring to make up for how I'd acted, I assisted him in his work even as the others still sat, their faces revealing uncertainty and discomfort. "You did good," I told him, trying to sound genuine. "I'm glad you decided to take over. I would have made... quite a few mistakes had I done it."

He smirked lifelessly, shaking his head. "Unless you started insulting the gods, you couldn't possibly have done it 'wrong' -- this ritual is an offering for attention and appeasement, Goldwreath; it is performed by individual persons with individual personalities every day, and has been done for thousands of years by all kinds of people: farmers, soldiers, aristocrats, plebeians, prisoners, athletes. It is the most personalized of Roaman traditions. Formality is a choice on the host's part, not a requirement."

"Alright," I nodded. "That's good to know, because I really didn't know anything of how it should have gone. I dodged a bullet there, eheh..."

He frowned as he stooped down to spread the ashes around in a circle. I had the distinct feeling I'd hit a nerve again. "Yes, you did," he murmured, and went quiet for a moment as the other three approached. "You all did."

The tone of his voice moved us all to silence, yet against expectations it was Myst who asked, "W-we did?"

He sighed, focusing on her. "Yes. Yes you did," he replied, and finished putting away that which I had gathered. Then he drew his rifle and jumped over the desk, moving with surprising speed over to the nearest stairwell.

On his way there, he glanced back at us. "Well? Let's go," he called over curtly, and proceeded around the corner and up the stairs.

It took us a few moments before we actually got moving. "I'll talk to him," Skyfire said as she split up from us to follow him. "You guys should take the other stairs. And this time I promise we'll radio in."

There wasn't anything else to say or do. We turned our own way and took the stairs up, alert but unfocused. If the offering had been intended to get Tom over so we could be more secure, then I didn't feel it. It was supposed to make us feel more one and whole. Now, unprecedented by even me, we had already clashed and fractured.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"Bunk Wing two clear," I mouthed into the radio as Myst and I proceeded back out the doorway to the long, dusty, dead halls. "Nothing interesting whatsoever. Just like the previous one, all lockers and corner tables were devoid of any items. Honestly, this place is a little... boring."

"What, did you expect to find more of those memory orbs ya' keep going into?" Skyfire snickered. "You really should let us in on what you find in those at some point," she said. "I get curious about the past, too. Especially the Roaman past, 'cause I know nothing of what happened here aside from what's common knowledge."

"I'd actually like thar too," Myst told me as we trotted down the spacious hall to the next door on the far side. If what Zaita said was true, that this place had ten Bunk Wings for ninety-six praetorians each, then we still had a long way to go. "You go into those a lot... I do sometimes wonder what you see in their."

I looked between her and the radio, then replied, "Alright... maybe when things settle down just a bit. When all our heads are a little less troubled." And when would that be, I wondered. It seemed like every day we were presented with some new problem or a new version of an old one. But the fact was that the past Roam's connection to the apocalypse was undeniable, and Tod seemed to be heavily involved, maybe even the center. We were fighting him. They had the right to know just what exactly they were getting themselves into, and I knew it. I just had to decide when it was a good time.

As if mirroring my own concerns, Skyfire replied, "Yeah, clear heads... I don't think that's happening soon." She sighed. "We've all been through some tough shit, Goldwreath. Lots of it stays with us... memories, losses..." She trailed off, then cleared her throat. "Well, you know. What really never leaves me is what we saw down in the metro... I know they're chimeras and all, but damn."

"Well, we'll just have to wait and hope a time comes up," I told them both, glancing at Myst to make sure she got my message. "But more than just wait, we should act. Tackle each problem and clear them up. That'll make room in our heads for a hell of an offload of information."

"Speaking of problems..." Skyfire gave a soft cough as hoofsteps neared her.

"Armory's clear," Delvius told her, his voice hard and sounding fiercely focused. "Let's move on. Next place is the officer's meeting room. Just around the corner, according to this map." There was a sound of unfurling paper. "Let's get to it." He started trotting off.

Myst and I looked to each other, then to the radio strapped to my shoulder. We both silently agreed to leave it alone. Skyfire had said she'd talk to him; it was her task, and we trusted her to rectify my mistake, even if it was my responsibility.

Skyfire didn't say anything at once as she moved along. The lack of crunching and cracking from all our trotting made it obvious that the closer to the center of the Castra Praetoria we went, the less effect the heat had had. I had to question, though, why the praetorian fortress had been made so brittle by the heat when the Forum hadn't been -- better shields for a more important location, or equipment malfunction?

The silence on both sides of the radio contorted in me, the anxiety building up as heat in my gut until I almost blurted out what was on my mind -- that the weather was not fine -- when Skyfire finally spoke, "Hey Delvius. Mind if I, er... ask you something?" How the roles had changed. Earlier it was Delvius making awkward attempts to build up on their previously nonexistent relationship; now, after that bridge had its tentative foundations laid, it was her sounding shaky. "You know, if you don't mind?"

"Depends on the question," he answered curtly, and then there was the sound of a door being quickly pushed open. Metallic clatter and panting filled the frequency for just a moment as he asked in a hushed tone, "This is about earlier, isn't it?"

Myst and I had absentmindedly reached the door to our next destination, but neither of us entered just yet; this was something we had to hear. Meanwhile a small robot -- some kind of automatic floor-polisher -- approached, its motor whirring until it was just next to my foreleg. Its single camera looked up between us, then it gave a little whir and left.

"That was G.L.A.D.I.U.S," Zaita intoned through another radio I'd left with Doodle back at the lobby, interrupting our reception of Skyfire and Delvius' conversation. Her voice was muffled by the distance the device must have been from the headset she spoke through, but we could make her out. "With all the security mechs either missing or out of commission, and with me being granted temporary reign over the limited functioning cameras and speakers this place possesses, he has had to resort to janitorial and maintenance equipment to determine the physical state of the Castra Praetoria."

I didn't bother to reply as we focused our ears on picking up the rest of the conversation. We'd missed half a minute, but surely we'd be able to make out the flow of what had been said.

Thankfully the two on the other end had paused themselves long enough to hear what Zaita said, and so we hadn't missed anything. "So, as I was trying to say... yeah, it is about earlier," Skyfire replied.

The auxiliary gave a prolonged exhale as they moved further into their destination, their hoofsteps deliberately slow as they stole their way in cautiously. In the absence of any other sound from their end, the clanking of Delvius' armor and boots and the threatening hum of Mustang and Sally's plasma chambers filled the frequency with a noise like static. "What about it, then?" he whispered.

"I really don't think we need to whisper in here," she said. "I don't know if the others have pieced it together, but if nothing's allowed past the shields... then the chimeras couldn't have gotten in. Not without leaving behind a corpse, anyway."

"Well then, maybe they're in the underground," he replied flatly, and quickly sucked in a breath as a loud clatter filled their side. I could almost hear his hoof on the trigger. They both went silent, Sally and Mustang's chambers powering up and humming loudly. Then a faint whir filled the air, and they relaxed. "Oh, for gods' sakes," Delvius groused, "Annoying little things."

He sighed and continued from where he was interrupted, "Listen. I don't know much about chimeras. You've faced them; you know better than I do how dangerous they can be. Maybe they actually came here, maybe they didn't. Perhaps they're in the underground tearing up long-abandoned construction facilities or -- gods forbid -- trying to get into Stable II; maybe they're not. All I know is I am not going to take anything about this assignment lightly until it's done. You understand?"

"Yeah, I do," she replied slowly, uneasily. "But, for the original question... about what happened earlier... are you mad or something?" I heard her swallow, her breath quivering with anxiety. "I mean, I'd understand if you are, but-..."

"I'm not mad," he said, cutting her off. Wooden impacts echoed from their side as he, I assumed, started rummaging through drawers. "I'm not. Really. I'm just... disappointed is all."

"About how we acted?" Skyfire asked, and Myst and I looked to each other. She frowned and hung her head.

"Yeah," he replied simply. "You just have to understand. I mean, you three -- or at least Goldwreath -- had the intent of using my people's traditions for your own ends. That whopped me hard. Then you and Myst said one after the other that you didn't believe, too, and I just... well, couldn't bear it. I spent my whole life around people who believed; it was a mandatory requirement. I guess finally being exposed to people who don't revere the gods as we do just overwhelmed me for a bit is all.

"But listen here," he added just a moment later, "It's not a lasting disappointment -- I don't want this thing to come between me and any of you. People should be free to believe in whatever gods they want, or to not believe at all if they so choose. Sure, this time was a little different in that Goldwreath's action was just plain disrespectful..."

I felt a stab of righteous guilt in me. Myst put a comforting hoof around my neck.

"... but I can get past that. I don't hold grudges."

"Don't hold grudges, huh?" Skyfire asked solemnly. "I admit... I kind of do that. I was out to kill every Legion bastard I saw, even weeks after..." Her voice trailed off.

"Don't say it," he said. "I know, Skyfire. And it's alright. You were vengeance-driven. Were. That's not you anymore, right? You're better than that now. Don't beat yourself up over it."

She gave a little sniffle, and suddenly I had the sudden feeling this was no longer a part of the conversation we were quite privy to. "Thanks," she croaked, and gave a little laugh. "Tell the 'don't beat yourself up' part to Goldwreath, though; if I break down from... well, you know, and Myst breaks down from... well, everything..."

"I do not," Myst asserted, an edge of surety in her voice. It would have been more convincing if I didn't hear it as more than a whisper.

"... then Goldwreath breaks down over all the doubt he has for himself and his abilities. He's gone on, like, two 'I'm an inadequate defender of Roam' rants. No matter how many times we've told him he does good, he just can't accept it."

"That's... too bad," Delvius commented, sighing. "He knows he's been doing good, right? If not, I'll make that abundantly clear to him. Goldwreath, if you can hear me, just know that you've done some of the most amazing, most helpful-..."

I hurriedly turned off the radio, ending what we heard right then and there. "Right!" I said, turning to Myst. "Well, we can talk about stuff like this after we've secured the place. No unimportant chatter and all that; just distracts from the directive. We've confirmed that Delvius is okay, and that's what counts." I gave a little cough and nodded at the door. "So, ready?"

She just stared back for a long while. "Alright," she answered, her voice sad and low, as she drew her rifle and held it close. We got into position next to the door, her eyes casting glances my way.

I found all that disconcerting, but tried to remain focused. "Alright then..." I muttered, and gave the door a savage kick that sent it crashing inward and slamming into the nearest bunk bed. I rushed in, eager and ready to step away from all distractions for as long as it took to get the place secure. Especially when that distraction was talk of my 'amazing accomplishments'. They weren't amazing, and nowhere near as helpful as the people of Roam must have been led to believe. I was just a player in a game others did far more at, but I'd had the luck of publicity. That was all to me.

But Myst seemed to disagree. Her eyes were scrutinizing my every movement as we searched the place, glancing my way when she thought I wasn't looking. She didn't say anything of the sort as we rifled through the place, but she didn't need to for me to know her difference of opinion -- it was in her tone, the way she sighed whenever I turned away. It made me uneasy, and made focusing almost impossible.

The tension would have been easier to handle if she just told me what she thought, but she'd already done that in the Forum, and maybe I just hadn't learned my lesson. Perhaps there would have been no tension at all had I simply agreed to all their praise -- I wanted to, wanted to so badly. I was sick of downplaying myself, and Myst and Skyfire were as well, but the truth was that I would never be at ease until I'd done something that on its own corrected any of Roam's major problems. I didn't want the good I did to be the aftereffect of a collaboration. I wanted my deed to make the change.

But until such as accomplishment was achieved, I'd be forced to bear the feeling of never being good enough. Because thinking I was good enough would lead me to complacency.

And until then, as well, I would have to bear the disapproval of my caring companions, the most caring of whom was very close by and giving the most disapproval. I sighed -- it was going to be a long afternoon.

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

It was very late in the afternoon, and early in the evening, when we finally finished. Four floors, each sporting an interior volume of hundreds of cubic meters -- that's what we had to search through. The many rooms and halls and spiraling staircases didn't make searching it all any easier, and the sheer desolation and dereliction of the place casted a great boredom over me. There was absolutely nothing worth a second look, and it left the adventurous and curious part of me feeling like it wanted to commit suicide. For such an important place, the Castra Praetoria's desertion left it feeling utterly trivial.

We were back at the main lobby. The central space was illuminated by the screens of all the computer units and the few functional lightbulbs that flickered and sparked. It made the place feel eery: a circular perimeter of illuminated marble and a wooden table surrounded by utter darkness? Terrifying images of monsters and beasts creeping from the shadow came to mind.

"Well, I think we can all agree on one thing," I said wearily as we sat, tired, in a small circle behind the wooden desk. "And that's that this place had absolutely nothing worth a second glance. Anyone disagree?"

"Nope!"

"Er, no?"

"Uh-uh."

"Negatory."

I nodded. "I thought as much... but that's just from the physical point of view," I said, livening up a bit as I scooted close to the microphone of a headset that hung from the side of an old chair. "Zaita, G.L.A.D.I.U.S? Anything from you?"

"Yes, actually," Zaita replied, her voice coming from the headset as well as a few speakers from all around the Castra Praetoria -- the latter caused a discomforting, ghostly echo effect, and I bade her just use the headset.

"Aside from a wealth of data concerning the past two hundred years, based on the observations of functioning systems," Zaita explained, "There were also a multitude of security code caches scattered around the most unexpected parts of the locale's network. Strange. It was almost as if someone wanted the security to be impossible to override in the case they were hacked."

"This was an action taken by G.L.A.D.I.U.S-CP, and was a necessary wartime precaution," G.L.A.D.I.U.S droned.

The others, who'd sat close enough to other functional headsets to hear this, immediately grew skeptical and curious. "And why would your copy do that?" Skyfire asked, suspiciously as always. "Seems a bit... ominous."

"Security measures here were extensive. False codes were circulated all throughout the network as decoys -- should one of them be used, the systems were alerted. The real security codes for this place and many others were kept within my intelligence -- therefore, only I had control of security here. The false codes themselves were to act as an elaborate set of nigh-endless early-warning alarms that led any and all hackers on a convoluted cyber goosechase, where every move they made only trapped them deeper in my counter-hack." That said, the AI added, "So as you all should now know, any codes not pried from my smoldering motherboard are false. Only I control the systems here, and only I choose who to grant access."

"Right, I see..." It made sense, actually. It was a spiderweb, meant to trap and ensnare hackers in a cybermaze of ever-growing complexity. "That's really interesting, I suppose. But have you two gotten anything directly related to our mission? Anything useful?"

"I do not know just what your mission is and I don't care. My objective here is complete -- now I must simply await the urban cohort to assist them in revitalizing this place. A connection to the other facilities should not be hard to establish once they repair the equipment here, so I have no further use for you."

I winced inwardly. What, were we just tools for him?

Skyfire gave a snort and rolled her eyes. "'Course he doesn't care. He's a damned computer..." she groused.

Before anyone else gave any negative side comments, Zaita said, "Nothing decisive, I'm afraid. Goldwreath, I do not think the chimeras have been here. Nor the praetorians. No footage, no record, and no audio has given me anything that could support our original hypothesis that this is where we may find them. But there is something: the underground is alight with thermal signatures, moving by the dozens out of Stable II and into areas of the underground beyond the supervision of the Castra's security surveillance. And it isn't any scouting party; since yesterday, an average of eighty people leave every four hours. That Stable has been closed for two-hundred years. One must ask why they are moving out."

"One has to indeed..." I mused, leaning back against the inner side of the circular desk. I imagined a Roaman Stable, one far bigger than my own home had been. Then I imagined hundreds of its inhabitants: the descendants of praetorian guards, all leaving the safety of their home and trotting into the darkness to an unknown destination. Together, they'd brave the harshness of the radiated tunnels, but for what? "It... it doesn't seem normal. Unless, like with the Legion, these people had a planned exodus as well?"

"They did," Zaita answered. "According to wartime imperial plans that G.L.A.D.I.U.S had so blithely allowed me to copy, the inhabitants of Stable II were to emerge when the Legion had grown enough in power to safely lead them to a new life on the surface -- this was the plan for all Roaman Stables."

"Well this sure as hell isn't supposed to happen," Delvius said. "Legion's made no contact with any shelter aside from Stable IV, where most of the specialized mining and industrial equipment was, and even then we only made contact with them because they're just half a mile from Stable I, IPQR! They were practically made to be first contact -- hell, just a month after the bombs, we'd already dug a tunnel to them! A few days later we even had an underground highway between us." He frowned skeptically, rubbing bis chin. "So why would Stable II move out like this... where are they going..."

"It's sounding stranger and stranger," I said in agreement. I looked to Myst, Skyfire, and Doodle -- the three who'd been with me in the underground when we first met those monsters. "What do you three think? Call this a hunch, but I think the chimeras are the cause of what's happening down there. This is just too odd to be anything else." Yes, by then I had come to assume that every odd and tragic event was somehow related to Tod and, therefore, his chimeras -- so far, I'd been right most of the time.

"It's fishy... but can you really just say it's them?" Skyfire asked, cocking her head. "I know they've been the cause of some weird stuff, but can you just say that?"

"I agree with Skyfire," Myst said. "We can't just go down there on a hunch. Is there anyway we can maybe see what's down there?" she questioned, moving her mouth closer to the microphone of the headset I'd been talking into.

"As I said, it is outside of the jurisdiction of the Castra Praetoria's underground security. Perhaps if G.L.A.D.I.U.S can access the systems of any facility more proximate to Stable II?"

"Software and signal transmission equipment is currently nonexistent, and the underground fiberoptic cables are damaged. Cable-transfer of my main essence will take too long. The only feasible options are either I wait for the urban cohorts to surface, or I have you take me down there physically and allow me to interface with the inert facilities."

I hummed in thought, then looked to the others. "Alright... we could do that. We search the underground and we discern what's up with Stable II -- two birds with one stone. But we're not going now," I said, and saw Skyfire frown disappointedly and Myst sigh in relief.

"Why not? More people leave that place every hour we don't stop it!" the pegasus protested, then caught a little look from Delvius that seemed to be reminding her of something. "Well... we'll stop it assuming we should, that is," she added a moment later.

"Well, as much as I'd love to stop it right now," I said, "The truth is that we aren't ready. We need a plan: where to go and when to go there. We need a strategy, and we need to agree on rules of engagement for if we spot a chimera. If we go in there and encounter a threat, and if we die, then we're no help to anyone." I sighed, knowing full well I sounded perhaps a bit cold to the ear of an equinitarian. It's not like I wanted to delay, mind you -- if we'd known of the situation before we arrived, I would have put together a plan as quick as a bullet left a barrel. But plans made lives easier, and could save people. Plans allowed Roam to conquer the world. Plans allowed the barbarians to nearly overthrow Roam. And in this case, plans were our only hope against a foe like this.

My words, however cold they may have sounded, seemed to have silenced all argument. Well, almost all; Skyfire sucked in a breath to make a reply, her expression so determined to get us to go then and there, but Delvius stopped her with the words: "I'd go along with it, Skyfire. As an auxiliary, I do the most disorganized fighting you can imagine... but I still strategize. I still survey and contemplate. I don't just charge in on my cerati, yell 'For Roam!' and kill whatever I see. That's just stupid."

Skyfire scowled at him, but she seemed to see the reason in our argument. Not only that, she saw we were all against her. "'That's just stupid' my tailhole..." she groused, frowning so sharply at Delvius that the auxiliary scooted away a bit. But then she conceded, letting her shoulders sag. "Fine. Tomorrow morning, I guess..." she muttered, then looked right up at me. "Just remember. Lives are at stake here. If you Roaman types need plans to get things done, then think of plans quick. I got a bad feeling about every zebra that leaves that place..."

"I know what's at stake here, Skyfire," I said slowly, making sure to emphasize each word. The tone of my voice made her stare at me. I returned the gaze, then looked around. "We all do. There isn't a single one of us here who doesn't know the value of life, and the measures that must be taken to save it. But your lives matter just as much. Unless we're certain those people are losing their lives, I will not rush to their aid. Not like this, not unprepared. I'll not have us join their corpses."

Skyfire sighed and nodded tentatively. "Yeah. I get it." She didn't seem happy about it, though; none of them were (but Doodle was almost always smiling, and now was no different; I'd mistaken her to be naive because of that, but she'd revealed to me in the Forum that one does not need to frown and grimace simply to show understanding of the situation).

A silence settled over us for a few moments, then Delvius' glance rolled over to the time on one of the computer screens. '6:28'. His eyes lit up and he jumped to his hooves. "Well then," he said, clearing his throat, as he jumped over the desk. "I don't know about you four, but this time's dinner time. I'll go get some supplies and see if there's anything to start a fire with."

Not bad timing at all. My stomach rumbled, my gut sucking itself in. "Good thinking," I commented as he left. "I'll help you out."

"Nah, s'fine," he said, waving me off with a hoof and smiling smugly as he continued for the doorway. "Legionnaires are trained to carry another zebra on them and not complain. I can handle a few pounds of food no problem. Just give me a minute. Besides, I wouldn't want any of you to make a mess of our supplies. No offense."

I relaxed, slumping down against the interior of the desk. "Cocky bastard," I murmured, smirking.

Skyfire heard me, and was thankfully the only one who did. "Independent's really more like it, but yeah, a bit smug," she muttered, lying down on her back and starting to bob her head to music from her helmet. The speakers were set to 'exterior', and we were all exposed to the rhythm. It was an odd piece, constantly shifting between bass and treble like a broken turbine. But we could make out a pattern, and so long as it had that it was 'music'.

But I smiled. Even in the seriousness of our endeavor, at least we still found time to just sit down and relax. Surely nothing could go that bad with this job.

"Hey you," we heard Delvius call out. "How the hell'd you get in here?"

We all rose. "Who is it out there?" I asked in a rush.

There was a little commotion as he galloped a little ways off, his hooves crunching marble. "Ah... uh?" he muttered aloud. "Huh. Well... maybe it was just my shadow," he called, then gave an embarrassed chuckle. He started trotting closer again. "Could have sworn it moved in its own, but meh. Maybe I need to lay off on the wine..."

The others relaxed again, drowning themselves out in the music. But me? I stood up, still staring out the door way. Then I gulped, and sat down.

'Tom... where are you?'

* * * Magnus et Potens Roamanus * * *

"And then... right as the bad pony got up behind Daddy... Mommy used her horn to send the tin cans in the room FLYING all over the place! Like a tornado of unopened tomatoes!" Doodle proclaimed with fervent awe as she loomed over the flame. Then she smiled casually, "The bad ponies were pretty easy to get rid of after that. Mom called Mister Redeye's griffins when she was using her horn, so the nice bird-people came in and took them away just like that."

I sat a little ways off from the campfire, sitting on a chair and looking straight at the doorway from in between two computer screens. The moon shone through the open arc, presiding right above the black silhouette of the Castra's ruined mess house. It was beautiful, yet even the moonlight seemed strange in this place -- filtered by Black Cloud, for certain, but there was more to it. It seemed warped, distorted, as if some of the light was being sucked into that upside-down cone in the atmosphere. Myst seemed only to have the barest interest in Doodle's tales, now; she was even starting to nod off as she leaned against the desk, sitting on a chair close to mine. I rolled my wheeled seat closer and slowly moved her torso onto my lap.

"Listen, Doodle..." Delvius said slowly, "That's all great, really. But, er... could you please get back to the contest? Roaman weapons -- name 'em if you can. Be they for allied griffins or allied ponies or even auxiliary zebras."

"Go easy on her, sheesh," Skyfire said, then added with a snicker, "You'e only losing by five points."

"You know very well that the Omni series counts for five points," he snapped.

Ah yes, their little game. After dinner they resumed their comparing of Roaman and Equestrian military equipment. Since Skyfire only really knew what the Enclave used, she had to ask Doodle to tell them what she saw the earth ponies and unicorns use. It took me by surprise that the filly knew so many, model names and all. The auxiliary was practically having his flank handed to him in terms of sheer number of named equipment.

I would have joined in; turned the tide in favor of Roam and all that. But I needed to be alert. I'd spotted two more apparitions while we ate. Two -- one of Skyfire, and another of me. They were not there because of the wine, as Delvius thought -- I saw them before and after downing a bottle. They themselves weren't what really worried me, though. I was scared to death of what they were doing with what they heard and saw. And they wouldn't go away, at all. Had not Tom had power of Tod before? Where was he now, even after such effort on our part?

Minutes passed by, ending the game in favor of Skyfire at a landslide victory of seventy-eight to thirty-nine. Delvius grumbled pettily but conceded, vowing to earn the next one.

"I'll not be so easy on you next time," he said determinedly, "Just you wait."

They started to move about, with the pegasus and the zebra starting up another topic of interest: politics. Now they were comparing the governmental systems of the two civilizations, and Delvius even got on a computer to prove his points. Doodle, seeing that no one seemed to be available to interact with, then curled up atop a pile of Delvius' things and fell asleep, half her body turtled beneath the auxiliary's metal helmet.

I shifted, gently dragging Myst along, and moved away from them. It was nice to see them building up a bridge, but right now they were a distraction. Perhaps I took things too seriously, but we were in hostile territory and beset by mysterious circumstances. I needed to be alert. I needed to be ready.

But that didn't change one, fundamental aspect of me: the need to occupy myself. Whether in mind or in body, I had to keep moving. Sitting here didn't help me think, what with those two nearby each vouching for their own peoples. So I got up, laid Myst gently onto a rug and rolled her hood beneath her head as a pillow, and left.

"I'll be back," I told them, to which they responded with a set of distracted waves before returning to their argument.

Outside, the cold breeze bit at my skin, and a chill ran down my throat at my first breath, drying it almost instantly. Twisters of dust sprang up and swirled across the abandoned street and flew over the edge of the road, down to the lake. The wind moaned as it rushed by, in between hollowed windows and above and beneath the pavilion and its old, marble columns. The faded banners whipped and snapped, like the flapping of wings. And with the new air came a stench, like that of dead flesh and fried corpses, diluted in the breeze yet pungent enough to make me fight a retch.

A glance off to the distance, to the interior of the city, revealed the smell's source: a night-horizon sporting glowing rooftops and incinerated skyscrapers -- the work of Roamana. It reminded me of that night in Verge. Only this time the sight was grander, but farther.

I shivered and extended my tunic's sleeves to the greatest of the elastic's extent, tucked my wings close, brought the tribune's mask to my face as a shield against the cold, and started trotting. Out here I didn't fear attack; not with those guns ready to drop anything that entered the walls, and not with the two looming drones flying around overhead, high in the sky. In fact, I had no fear of external threats, not even from whatever mutated monster may have dwelled in the lake below.

I worried only of the underground. I could not for the life of me believe that the praetorians had not gone here, accompanied by chimeras. It just didn't add up -- a sealed Stable opening only a day after a deranged cohort leaves the Forum on one of the few highways that led to this derelict fortress? 'Ghosts' appearing to me and my friends? No, there was something going on here, and I was certain it wasn't good.

I stopped in my tracks, taking a good look around at my environment. Indeed, though, there were no corpses or any signs of external disruption before our arrival. To any rational person, that'd mean the praetorians and their chimera allies were off elsewhere. But I couldn't believe that, not unless I was proven wrong. "They have to be here, or somewhere near," I murmured, and swallowed as cold air funneled into the mask's eyeholes and forced another chill down my throat. "They have to be."

As I moved along, one of the drones descended from its circular path and hovered in the air right where the road that had led into into the city was cut off by the crater. It waited for me, as it didn't move until I abandoned my wandering and approached.

"G.L.A.D.I.U.S? What is it?" I asked the drone. It was a small thing for such firepower -- a tiny VTOL that couldn't have been bigger than me, yet had a pair of rocket salvos and a machinegun on the bottom. It was sleek and curved, and plated in black steel. The single camera on the nose rotated to face me.

The drone's speakers crackled, "Those noisemakers you call your friends irritate me, and 'Zaita' is ceaseless in its laughable attempts to obtain information from within my embedded code. I have left the Castra to that other AI; from within the APC over there, I reign out here. Much less noise."

I smirked and rolled my eyes. "You know, G.L.A.D.I.U.S, given that we'e the ones lugging you around so you can interface with all these facilities for 'Operation Reclamation' before the urban cohorts arrive, I'd say we warrant a little bit of respect."

"I have given you people the 'little bit' of respect you deserve," he replied. "I have not scrutinized your every movement for potential threat against Roam. I have not confined you to a chamber until I figured out the entire background of each and every one of your companions. What you consider disrespect is simply raw pragmatism and an attempt to divert processing power away from trivial matters to the mission directive."

I groaned. "If I were a machine I'd agree with you, but I'm not. So I guess I'll never see things the way you do. But surely you understand the basic psychology that they're my friends, and so I'll not have them degraded by a computer, however little intent to insult is actually thrown into the statement."

The AI gave a curt grunt. "I obviously do. And I do my best to respect that psychology, so long as the situation permits. But we both have a job here, and I cannot tolerate behavior that hinders it. Behavior that your friends show much of."

Well... I could understand that. To be fair, they were not acting as seriously and as focused as I'd thought. Skyfire and Delvius engaging in competition, distracting themselves... not that it was bad, but it was doing just that: distracting them. And Myst -- bringing her personal feelings of my demeanor into the assignment? Perhaps once we'd reached the Forum again, that would have been more appropriate. And Doodle...

... okay, I couldn't exactly do anything about her. The filly had watched death and gore often with a smile, yet not one of insanity. In a way, she was the least poisoned of us all.

"Perhaps..." I muttered, and it was almost drowned out by the hum of the little drone's thrusters. "I suppose they could use a little more self-control. But my point still stands: treat us with respect."

"As much as is your due, pony," he replied flatly.

I stared at him, then relaxed. I wasn't going to get any more than that, I thought, and contented myself. "Well, then I'm glad we understand each other," I breathed, ruffling a hoof through the plumes of my praetorian helmet. As I did I felt all the dirt and grime that had festered within the strands of artificial hair. Next time I got to the Forum, I promised myself, I'd give it a thorough cleaning; it gave me my identity as the Praetorian, after all.

Suddenly there was a heavy metallic clang, echoing and resonating through the earth.

"What was that?" I asked in a rush, head jerking around and scanning the area. "Did you hear anything?"

The drone just stared at me. "Yes, I heard it," he replied, slowly. "Perhaps your friends are causing a clamor again. Or maybe some support hundreds of feet from where you are has collapsed. Either way, it's no particular reason to worry -- hundreds of heavy steel beams support the wight of this fortress, another hundreds of which act as auxiliaries. Damage to internal supports were at a minimal, even given the megaspell. Unless a missile strikes the foundations of this place in just the right location, collapse is a far-flung improbability."

I relaxed. "Fine. Let's hope that's right," I replied. "I trust you on this one."

"As you should," he intoned, and I rolled my eyes. Then the drone elevated itself into the air somewhat and the camera focused on a spot behind me. "Wonderful. A noisemaker," the AI grumbled.

I turned around to spot Delvius, a woolen cloak thrown about his shoulders. The auxiliary was approaching with a thoughtful look on his face, and a wan smile as he noticed me. He threw me a wave of a greeting, and I returned it. G.L.A.D.I.U.S grumbled something about 'annoying organics' and flew off just as Delvius arrived at my spot and stood on the edge with me. He looked out over the faintly glowing, constantly moving lake, his gaze drifting up towards the horizon. It was only then that I noticed the pitch-black cloud looming threateningly in the distance. He looked up at the sky, eyes wide in thought.

"The stars are veiled... a shadow stirs in the east. A sleepless malice..." he murmured, then looked to me. "The enemy is moving."

I took a moment to think on his statement. "Enemy?"

He took a deep breath, drawing his cloak closer. "The monsters, Goldwreath. They're a festering presence over those mountains, on those fields... and hard to contain. Even after our constant efforts, even after the endless bombardment by the old, wartime cannons... they're still moving. Shrugging it all off like it's nothing." He took another deep breath. "Vesperius has told few others of the situation. He felt that you should know it's getting bad out there."

I spent a moment focusing on him, then also looked over the horizon. "What are they, Delvius?" I asked. I hadn't ever gotten a solid answer ever since seeing them in that video almost a month ago. "Where are they from?"

He shook his head, then sighed. He shrugged, "We don't know. Vesperius doesn't know, and that's saying a lot. But the gods... and this is what he has told us... he says that the gods are wary of it. Perhaps it was the Legion aquila that Equestrius lost in that infernal place, perhaps what goes on in there is simply a quarrel of truly cosmic proportions... or perhaps, like us, the gods have enemies that are on their level, too."

I nodded absent-mindedly. "You know, er... I saw a video of what bred in that place. The monsters... they were like... demons." Slowly, I asked, "Would you think they're demons?"

The thought seemed to greatly disturb him as he shifted uncomfortably, chewing on his lip. "It's... a possibility. Pluto was said to be a troublesome god at times... perhaps he is not pleased with something. Ha, perhaps he's unleashed the dead to punish us!" he chuckled, but it died just a second later. He grimaced.

The notion sent shivers to my limbs. 'I am the gods of Roam' Tod had said. So was he Pluto, as well? Lord or the dead? Somehow I doubted it, but if Tod was not Pluto... then did that mean that someone else was? Someone with more malevolent intent? If o, then were those truly ghosts of the troubled dead? I doubted that too, and yet... no other rational idea could come to mind that could explain incorporeal flaming dogs, titanic monstrosities as large as mountains, and grotesque behemoths of flesh better than the existence of some powerful spirit with access to the ghosts of the dead.

Well... magic was a possible phenomenon, and made a more believable alternative. I'd never quite liked users of magic; unicorns, as I had observed, were often quite lazy. A descendant of a tribal zebra shaman in my stable was once rumored to have dabbled in blood magic, though it was never proven. For these reasons, I personally laid my suspicions on a possible group of powerful mages. But even then I wasn't quite sure; what group could be so powerful as to summon demons?

"Anyway..." he muttered, clearing his throat and breaking my train of thought. "That's not really our concern right now. The defenses manned by mixed units of Felinixia and Ursalanix cohorts are holding out for now, though that may be because the... 'demons'... have not attacked for days. Perhaps that infernal army down there has limits, too."

"Everything has limits, though some have limits that are... far more unstandardized than others," I replied. "The chimeras, for example. They take the essences of what creatures they encounter and they... assimilate it into them. Make that DNA accessible to each of them through some means I don't quite know the workings of. Remember this, for when you face one of them you will face a creature that can resemble a manticore, or a cerati, or a marine animal. You will have to adapt as well as them or be destroyed. You understand?"

He gave me a smug grin. "Pssht, adapting's what we auxiliaries do best. Got equipment for every kind of situation, us. Just a matter of deploying and utilizing 'em. I'll hold my own. Count on it."

"Right..." I rolled my eyes, looking away to conceal the smile of reassured relief that sprang onto my face. "Anyways, enough of this for now. My friends are just as concerning as my enemies. You and Skyfire... you two okay?"

He nodded and smiled, liking the change of topic. "Yeah, I figured if I could start building a bridge with her in the morning that we'd be friends by night. Wasn't wrong. Sure, there are edges to grind down, rough spots to sand... but I think we're on the fast track to becoming good friends. Now, Myst's a whole new story..."

"What of her?"

He sighed, shrugging. "The mare won't talk to me. She's too shy -- like with a plant my wife grew in our garden, when I so much as place a hoof on her shoulder or nudge her, she starts folding in on herself... metaphorically, of course." He let out a disappointed shake of his head. "You, er... how'd you get her to open up?"

"She liked me. I think things became easier because of that," I replied.

"Of course they did..." he muttered, frowning. Then he caught me raising an eyebrow at him ad added quickly, "Look, I don't plan on befriending your people beyond my limits. I just want to establish a connection as quick as I can. It's the Legionnaire way to fight with a group mentality, as you know."

"I'm quite aware, yes," I said. "As for trying to befriend Myst, well... that's a bit tricky. As a general rule, don't press her into anything unless we'e nearby; we can stop you if you're doing something wrong. Another thing: as much as possible, let her come to you. What you did earlier, with the bow? You let her approach, and that's good. Be gentle, don't shout, and try to be patient. She'll talk to you when she feels she can really trust you."

"That'll take a while," he sighed, looking over his shoulder back at the doorway. Then his gaze darted to the gateway in the walls, over a hundred feet away, and his eyes narrowed. He turned around and stepped forward, eyeing the gates.

I followed his gaze. "Do you see something?" I asked, remembering Predator's words from two days before: '... different mental landscape, new thought patterns... major subtle biological downgrades as a result of loss of Tod's influence...'. I had fine perception, but I had to admit I'd lost a certain feel of... acuity after that night with Myst.

"Movement," Delvius replied quietly, drawing his gladius from his sheath as he stepped forward some more. His eyes narrowed to a squint, but then suddenly widened. "Oh, gods," he breathed, and rushed off in a gallop.

I hurried after him but stopped in front if the doorway into the Castra. "What is it?" I called out, voice sounding small in the wide open space. The auxiliary was fast, I'll give him that. Covered the distance in less than fifteen seconds! "Delvius!"

He poked his head up from the dark shape slumped on the ground just inside the shield. "C-call someone over! It's the merchant from earlier; guy's... he's eviscerated!" he shouted back, voice quaking as he gripped the mangled flesh. "We'll need at least three people to carry him without his guts spilling out and his limbs snapping off!"

I fought a grimace, then turned and rushed inside even as Delvius tended the mutilated merchant with his own legionary cloak and first aid kit. Darkness overcame my vision as I glided into the doorway and landed hard onto the marble, heart racing and throat dry from cold air. Then I swallowed and shouted, "Skyfire! Get out here! We need your help with-..."

"Ah, so our guest has arrived," said a familiar voice from within the center of the circular wooden desk. There stood Velian, his form looking ghostly in the white illumination as he operated one of the computers. My eyes widened as I stared, my heart rate escalating as a cornucopia of squeals and squeaks emanated from around him. He looked up and, to my surprise, he seemed shocked to see me, as well; perhaps he hadn't expected to see my eyes through the eyeholes of a tribune's mask.

But he recovered from the shock quickly, and jumped over the table. "Ah, so it is indeed you... for a moment I thought Justinian had come here himself. Would've been foolish of him." He smirked as I stood motionless, "Oh, don't look so surprised. You knew we were here, even when your friends doubted. You trusted your instincts, and they have brought you here, to us."

This was bad. My friends were in that space. Now they were probably captured or killed! The beating of my heart suddenly felt like thunder in my ears as a rage flooded my system. My muscles ached with the desire to force him to tell me they were okay. But even still I tried to maintain some civility as I pointed a hoof at him and hissed, "My friends... where are they? Answer me!"

He just waved me off. "Oh, they're taken care of. Didn't even get to resist. Easily neutralized," he said casually, and the nonchalance of his tone coupled with the blank stare his mask made him give infuriated me. I scowled and drew my sword, then growled and moved forward. My forelimb was quaked with tension as I brought it up in a stabbing stance.

He didn't even react. "I really don't have time for this," he muttered as he turned around. My eyes popped wide, and a growl escaped my throat. Why, there were no words, no actions he could perform to stop me, not unless he showed me my friends. There was absolutely nothing that would hinder me from gutting this ghoul if he didn't surrender. Nothing at all! Not even...

... fillies and colts?

Even as I approached, a veritable tidal wave of little zebras sprang up from behind the table. My reflexes took over as I yanked the shield off my back and threw it in front of me and readied the gladius. But I stopped short as they charged me, all squealing and cheering and giggling and smiling. No, I couldn't kill these kids! Not if a thousand of them came at me with spears! So I stood helpless as they ran to me, surrounding me and deafening my ears with their ceaseless cacophony of... of kid noises! A migraine built up inside my head as the foals skittered nonstop, and I yelped as the kids jumped onto me and prodded me. I collapsed under the weight even as I writhed and cursed.

"Oooh, where'd the pony come from?!"

"CAN WE PLAY WITH HIM?!"

"Is he stretchy?!"

"Can we make arrows out of his feathers?!"

'I will kill you all! Not a single one of you can stop me, not even if- GAH!'

"The tail's real, guys! It's not coming off!"

I jerked underneath the curious mass of zebras, my face barely getting air. Velian approached with calm relaxedness, then chuckled at my predicament. When he calmed himself he said, "Your friends didn't shoot, obviously. The grey one screamed and ran off like a madpony the moment she saw these kids approach. Didn't get very far, of course. Now the pegasus, well... I had my doubts, but in the end her conscience got the better of her and she surrendered. The filly you were with was most cooperative, as was your AI friend."

I barely managed to spit out, "What did you do to Zaita and my friends, you little-..."

"Look great great great grandfather Velian!" one of the colts, older than most of the rest, cheered as he yanked my mask off. My ears perked up in spite of the pain they were in; great great great what? "It's just like yours!"

The praetorian praefect bent down to take it. "It is indeed." He stared down at the mask for a moment, then raised a forehoof in the air. A great 'shhh!' from the kids, and the room was plunged into a pregnant silence as they stared up at him. Then he stirred and, still staring at the mask, bent down to ruffle the mane of the colt who'd spoken. "Anaclousmos, please take your friends back down below. Bring the 'visitor' with you. I will join you later tonight."

The kids 'aww'd in disappointment as they scrambled off me and started hauling me off like a swarm of ants carrying away a piece of grain. I grumbled and demanded they set me down, which only made them grip my limbs tighter. I struggled, and found out just how strong collective determination could be. They barely budged!

As I way being carried off, the doors slammed shut behind me and the chamber was plunged into total darkness. I heard the locks clang into place. Then someone said from nearby, "Praefect! The building is secure. I've sent for a party to come up and take away the APC; with the AI isolated it can't try to escape. G.L.A.D.I.U.S did well in subduing it."

"Excellent," I heard Velian reply, his voice echoing as the mob hauled me off. "Leave the one outside to our lord... if he's worthy, he'll be brought down. If not, then that's one less Roaman degenerate." Then I heard him trot off. "Turn on the lights... the children are not used to such darkness."

The light lights flickered to life all around the Castra, illuminating halls and chambers and making the dirty-white marble give off a ghostly glow. The kids cheered, but not just at the lights. Everywhere, chimeras came out of hiding, their carapaces having camouflaged into the environment. They roared as they flew about us like bats. But where my heart was gripped with fear for myself and for my companions, the children were elated and cheering them on.

I gave one more struggle, and nearly broke free, when one of the ghastly creatures hovered above me and looked right into my eyes. My limbs went limp... and to my horror I realized that they had turned to stone! The paralyzing sensation ran up my legs, towards my torso, to my heart. I lost breath as my lungs solidified inside of me. I couldn't feel my body. And just as my head started to physically die from suffocation and lack of blood, the piercing, paralyzing stare ran up neck and my cheeks.

And then a second later I lost hearing. Then I tasted rocks in my mouth, and lost taste altogether. And then finally, my vision went black.

Footnote: Halfway to Level Up.
New perk gained: Battering Legs -- You throw a lot of force into those kicks! More than necessary, but you don't feel that, do you? All easy locks can be automatically opened without your meager number of lockpicks.

Fallout Equestria : New Roam

by Delvius

Musical Themes and Credits

Introductions and Volume I Marker

Chapter 1 - Blind Justice

Chapter 2 - Ambitions

Chapter 3 - Out of the Sky

Chapter 4 - Skyfire

Chapter 5 - Pieces of the Past

Chapter 6 - Departure

Chapter 7- Crossing the Gap

Chapter 8 - The Calm Before the Storm

Chapter 9 - Searching

Chapter 10 - Reunion

Chapter 11 - The Music of Harmony

Chapter 12 - A Dream Set in Motion

Chapter 13 - Predator

Chapter 14 - Monsters

Chapter 15 - Underground Army

Chapter 16 - Idealism

Chapter 17 - To Converse With a God

Chapter 18 - Sadism and Adaption

Chapter 19 - The Enemy of My Enemy

Volume II Marker

Chapter 20 - Hearts and Minds

Chapter 21 - Bastions

Chapter 22 - Waging War

Chapter 23 - At the Doorstep

PROSCRIPTIO! -- PUBLIC NOTICE!