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[Splint]

Updates for the update god. Updates that make me jelly.

Quite a good read, from all of you.

[Telgin]

Thanks!  If you're still interested in claiming a military pony at some time, hopefully that will happen within the next couple of updates.  I turned migrants off to finish setting up housing for what I've got, and I'm getting close to finishing that.

[Splint]

I wouldn't mind it, but I doubt I can keep up with the quality of story you guys have going here. Best I can give for a comparison is Limulid and that's only got me doing everything because even the people who claimed dwarves just kinda sat back and watched instead of doing anything to make it... More I guess.

I'll take all bets I'll be the first soldier to die.

[Kryptid]

Case Study's Journal - 18th Granite, 270

Today was one of those rare days where I had to treat an animal. The pet of one Mr. Redhat, a wolf at that, suffered injury at the hooves of a strange intruder when it went on the offensive. The bleeding was copious and my expectations for the animal's heath dwindled with time. Ultimately, I was forced to resort to a magical cure in the form of a potion I purchased from zebras earlier. "New Dawn", I believe they called it. It seemed to work well, as the canine has stabilized and will likely recover with little more than a scar to show for it. However, I don't have an unlimited supply of the serum. I need to be very discerning when it comes to using it.

Mr. Redhat himself was also harmed, though not nearly so gravely. A dislocated hoof and a slashed flank were his only complaints. Frustratingly, I ran out of thread during the suturing process so I had to bind up the wound as best I could with gauze and bandages. Hopefully it won't become infected before I can finish closing it up. On an interesting side note, it turns out that Mr. Redhat is actually a Ms. Redhat. Where she got the magical hat that disguises her appearance, or why she is hiding her actual identity in the first place is not known to me. I think I may be the only party in the fort who is privy to this knowledge.

20th Granite, 270

I managed to convince Mr. Redat (I must refer to her as a "him" consistently, lest I slip up and reveal her secret in conversation) to get his injury fully sutured today. I had plenty of thread for the process and must take measures to make sure that I do not run out again.

14th Slate, 270

I delivered a foal today, the mother of whom is Ms. Dew. Apparently she is unmarried, but I don't intend to look into such personal matters. At any rate, the child is healthy and Ms. Dew made it through successfully (although she is tired, as expected). She has named the little one Mountain Dew.

On an unrelated note, I believe I've found the proper method to keep my special "guest" under control. It would certainly help not having to sneak into the woods every few nights to release its byproducts without being seen.

27th Slate, 270

So soon after delivering Morning Dew, another pregnancy came to term today. This time it was Ms. Heartfelt. Things went well once again, with the newborn being a pegasus filly christened Cumulus. I'm curious as to whether the same stallion who fathered Mountain Dew is also the responsible party here. Perhaps it's not my place to judge, but I'd rather this didn't become a pattern. I may be divorced, but I support the idea of a foal having both parents present to take care of it if at all possible. A mare raising a filly by herself can be quite stressful on both the mother and child.

20th Felsite, 270

Looks like there has been more fighting with intruders. Two of our brave warriors, Mr. Flamberge and Mr. Praetorian, were both injured in battle. In a rare turn of events, I was able to bring Mr. Praetorian into the hospital myself. He is in much worse shape than Mr. Flamberge and I knew immediately that I would have to use New Dawn to save his life. His skull is actually fractured and I'm concerned that he may have brain damage as well. Even with that magical potion, it's going to take quite a while for him to recover from all of this damage.

Mr. Flamberge absorbed an arrow with his leg during the round of combat, but that is the only problem he seems to have suffered from. We were able to patch it up without needing magic; Dr. Convalescence has been quite helpful and has helped improve the speed and efficiency of the treatment process.

2nd Hematite, 270

In a turn of good fortune, Mr. Flamberge has recovered well enough to release today. I wish the same could be said of Mr. Praetorian; we have needed to use more and more New Dawn to keep him from falling into deeper comatose states. At this point, the brew is nearly used up. It would be nice if a zebra caravan would stop by so that I could obtain more of it (or, preferably, a stronger concoction of similar function). I would like to learn how to create this substance myself, but I'm not exactly an alchemist.

[TheBronzePickle]

and (sorta)

Maize sits by the bed, tears slowly streaming from her cheeks as she closes her new diary. Beside her, Praetorian lies almost completely still on the bed, bandages wrapped around him. The mare leans over to his face, but hesitates to give him a kiss, afraid of hurting him. Her mind takes a moment to consider how backwards it feels for him to be the more fragile of the two as she moves back to her seat.

“Prae-prae...” She had thought of the nickname just yesterday, and had planned to ask Praetorian if he was okay with it this afternoon. Her mind’s eye pictured a little dinner together out in the field. The sharp contrast between it and here made her want to cry even more, but she held her tears. She had promised Case Study she wouldn’t make too much noise, since it would disturb the unconscious stallion.

A few minutes pass, empty minutes of her staring at the figure in the bed as her mind pounded out every single thing it could, finding every reason this was unfair, trying to discover every single thing Maize could have done to make sure this didn’t happen, filling to the brim with regrets and sorrows and even a bit of self-loathing, because it’s her fault, isn’t it?

No. It’s not her fault. Her father was wrong. He was always wrong. They were always wrong. They wanted her to suffer, they wanted to take everything away from her. They even wanted to take her. NO. They wouldn’t. Father wouldn’t win this time. She killed him once. She can do it again. And again and again and ag-

No, no. She doesn’t have to worry about that anymore. Praet... I mean, the other military ponies are here to protect her now. Even Praetorian will be okay soon, right? That’s what Case Study said, and he’s smart. He’s a lot smarter than her, at least. All she knows is plants. Plants are so much simpler than ponies.

Besides, she’s weak. She couldn’t hurt one of those... discordant ponies if she tried. I mean, she just got lucky that one time. Caught her father off-guard. I mean, it can’t be that hard to bash somepony’s skull open if she did it, right? Besides, he didn’t even have any armor, and those discordants are always armored.

Yeah... Just leave it to the better ponies... Everything would be okay... I mean, even if... Even if everypony died, Amug would just scoop them all up and bring them somewhere safe where they could be happy and such. Surely this place’s evil couldn’t stop Amug, the bringer of dawn and dusk. Maize smiled a little through the tears and bowed her head, saying a quick prayer before curling up in the chair. It wasn’t the most comfy spot, but Maize never really did care where she slept.

[Khenal]

(Its a Double Feature right here!  First scene is just after the party and got lost in the shuffle, I guess?  Next scene is set for just after Flamberge gets out of the hospital.)

 


Flamberge exits the party, with Cream Puff unconscious on his back, and heads to Cream Puff's room. He places the water on her nightstand and then puts her on the bed, under her covers, before heading back outside.

Flamberge then returns to the party and looks around for Crosshair, not finding her he then checks his room, and then the fields where she sometimes slept. Still not finding her he looks up to the sky and sees a lone cloud had been, it seemed, pulled away from the herd and was resting directly above the spot Crosshair liked to sleep.

Flamberge with all the grace of a drunken pig, takes off into the sky toward the cloud.

When he got closer, a sad, Sad sob with cries could be heard coming from the cloud, it almost sounded scary until he recognize that it’s the sound of Crosshair. He never heard her cry before, but somehow, he just knew.

Flamberge makes his way up and lands on the edge of the cloud, "Crosshair?" he says, reaching out a hoof towards her.

The poor mare shivered when he touched her and scooted away from his touch. Crying harder.

Flamberge retracts his hoof sadly as she moves away from him, “Crosshair? Wha’...What’s wrong? Are ya hurt?” he asks concerned.

“It.. It hurts..” She whimpered out between her cries.

“What hurts?” he asks, “Do...do you need to see Case Study? I could move the cloud down to his office...”

“My.. My heart...” She sobbed. “You hurt me..”

"I...I did...I," it dawns on Flamberge what she must have seen, "Crosshair, if this is about Cream Puff, I swear it wasn't what it looks like! I...I'm sorry."

“I saw you suckle on the mouth of my best friend! Tell me what it’s supposed to look like then!” She nearly screamed at him with anger and sadness.

"I...She... she kissed me, Crosshair. I, I was just surprised, and drunk, and...and maybe I should have pushed her away sooner, but, I didn't...I didn't want to hurt you Crosshair. I love you." stammers out Flamberge trying to find the right words.

The little mare just sobs, although not crying as hard as she were now. “What about her?”

"What about her?" he asks, "Look, she was upset, she was drunk, and looked about ready to cry into her mug. I tried to cheer her up and she kissed me, and then she passed out. I'd bet a million bits she won't even remember it in the morning, and she'd have never done it sober. It was a mistake Crosshair, an innocent mistake."

Crosshair rubs her eyes with her forelegs, wiping some of her tears away. “R-Really?” she asked shakily, trying not to sobs so much anymore.

Flamberge nods and forces a smile, “Yes, really.”

She finally let out a relieved sigh, tired from all the crying, she rests her head down onto the clouds.. “I’m.. I’m sorry.. for running off to come here and cry like this..”

Flamberge shakes his head, "No, don't apologize. You did nothing wrong. I mean...if I walked in and saw another stallion kissing you...well that isn't important. Just, Crosshair, believe me when I say, you can trust me, I'd never intentionally hurt you like that."

She nodded softly, finally smiling again as she laid there on the cloud. “I trust you..” she murmurs

Flamberge slowly approaches Crosshair, “I’m glad.” he says as he lays down beside her, he reaches over slowly and when she doesn’t object embraces her, they fall asleep cuddling together under the stars.






Puff actually doesn’t mind doing dishes, oddly enough.  She can just go on autopilot and think about other stuff, like what to cook tomorrow.  She hums to herself as she finishes cleaning the dinner dishes.

The door to the kitchen opens, a bell rings to announce it has done so. Through the entranceway steps a slightly weary looking Commander Flamberge, he has a large, but clean bandage wrapped around his lower right foreleg, but he seems not to be overly troubled by it as he makes his way inside. He looks around and as he spies Cream Puff, his weariness seems to melt away slightly and he smiles.

Puff dries her hooves as she turns, and she gives Flamberge a happy smile as she spots him.  “Flamberge!  You’re up and about!”

“I am.” he says proudly as he holds up his injured leg, “It was only a scratch though, Praetorian is the real hero, but anyway, I came here to check up on you, are you alright? I’m told there were quite a lot of discordians about.”

Cream Puff waves a hoof dismissively.  “Yeah, I’m fine.  Thanks to you four, I don’t think any of them even got past the safety ditch moat thing.”

“They didn’t? That’s good.” replies Flamberge, as he moves up next to Cream Puff.

“So, injury aside, how are you doing?”  Puff tries to be a little more detached than normal, in an effort to take Serenity’s advice.

"I'm okay," he says, "Crosshair pulled the night patrol and won't be back for a few hours, so I thought the two of us might go for a little moonlight walk, and chat about whatever comes up." This was, of course, a bold faced lie, as there was no drawing for patrols, they were all assigned by Flamberge, and he had chosen Crosshair for this one, just for this purpose.

Fortunately for him, Puff has no idea how patrols are assigned.  That little voice of responsibility tells her to politely decline, but her heart is telling her to go go go!  “That sounds nice, ‘Berge!  A little cool walk outside instead of sitting around in the hot kitchen, and getting to spend it with a good friend.”

Flamberge rests a hoof on Cream Puff's back and says, "Do you need to finish up anything here, or are you ready to go now?"

Puff fights down the butterflies in her stomach so she can think.  “I... I’m ready now.”
Flamberge nods and takes a step back, his hoof 'accidentally' brushing over her flank and tail as he does so while removing it from her. He then gestures for her to lead the way. "Ladies first."

She fights a blush as she heads out first and holds the door for him.  “Where should we walk?  Or maybe fly?”

Flamberge looks thoughtful then says, “Let's walk, it's easier to talk that way, less wind in our faces."

Flamberge and Cream Puff set out together near the edge of the town, Flamberge sticks very close to Cream Puff as they go.

Cream Puff is strangely quiet as they walk.  She’s too busy arguing with herself to bring up any topics of conversation.

"So, Creamy," begins Flamberge, "Crosshair told me she set you up with Temperance, how did that go?"

She giggles.  “It went well enough, heh.  I don’t think Temperance and I are destined to be anything more than friends, though.”

Flamberge merely replies, "Good," and can not manage to hide a smile as he says it.

Puff quirks an eyebrow at him.  “Good?”

"Hmm, well, Temperance is a decent stallion, but he's a bit soft, and I couldn't really see you being happy with him, not long term at least," he replies, "No, you need a better stallion, someone stronger, someone who can take care of you, protect you." He pauses before adding, "Tell me, is there anypony in town that has caught your eye?"

He doesn’t know... right?  He can’t know!  “Uh... n-no... not really...”

"Nopony?" he says questioningly, as they approach the trench on one side of the town.

Puff blushes and avoids his eyes.  “Nope.”

As they reach the trench proper, Flamberge looks up and notices the moon just rising over a distant hill. He takes a seat by the bank.

"Why don't we sit and watch the moonrise?" he says, which though phrased as a question, Flamberge's voice had a way of making certain requests sound more like commands, to Puff's ears.

Puff can’t help but acquiesce.  How can she resist spending time with somepony her heart desires so?

While they sit, Flamberge moves close to Cream Puff so that they are touching.

Puff fights a blush and butterflies as Flamberge sits close to her.  He’s just being friendly... right?

He then puts one foreleg around her, pulling her close, while watching the moon.

Puff sighs softly, wishing this could be more than just a friendly get together.  He’s just so... sure and strong.  Crosshair is so lucky...

"Well, Creamy, whatever pony you do fall for, they will have my envy. You are a lovely mare, that any stallion would be lucky to call their own." speaks Flamberge.

She snuggles slightly into him, smiling.  “Aw, thanks ‘Berge.”

"Cream Puff, do you remember the night of the party? The one after the tavern was first completed?" he asks, still holding onto her.

“No?  Well, not entirely.  I... hit the drink pretty hard that night.”

"I didn't think you would." he smiles, "but I don't think I'll ever forget it."

She gives him a confused look.  “Why?”

Flamberge looks pensive for a moment, then says, "Perhaps it would be better to show you what you missed, then." he then leans in to kiss her.

Time almost seems to slow down for Puff as her hearthrob leans in to kiss her.  She wants this... oh how she wants this!  Is it really so wrong to want just a little happiness?  To be loved?  She leans forward slightly to meet him and kiss back.

After a long and passionate kiss, the two ponies separate a bit. "I love you Cream Puff." Flamberge says, still holding the mare.

“But... Crosshair?”  Puff asks, almost breathless.

Flamberge moves away a bit and sighs, "I don't... I don't know, Puff. I...I do love Crosshair, but, I love you too, I don't want to hurt her, but...I don't want to let you fall into somepony else's hooves."

“You don’t get to have both, Flamberge.”

"And why not?" he asks, "Why would that be so wrong?"

Puff gives him a flat look.  “Greed and Lust are pretty big turn-offs, ‘Berge.”

Flamberge looks almost insulted, "And why can't it be love? Why must it be greed or lust? Besides, I've seen the way Crosshair looks at you, when she thinks nopony is looking, she wants you as bad as I do, I can tell it, we could all three be happy...together. If you were willing to try. Nopony's feelings have to be hurt here Creamy."

“It’s not going to work, Flamberge.  I’ve never seen anything like that work, except is cheesy stories.  This is life.”

Flamberge stands up and looks over to Duskfields, his eyes glaze over as he seems to be looking past the town, "Look Cream Puff, I'm not saying it would easy, but what I'm suggesting is hardly unprecedented. Great ponies throughout history have taken multiple lovers, and how often does that lead to problems for them?" he pauses for just a moment before continuing, "One day, I will be a great pony, a king among stallions, and I want both you and Crosshair by my side when that day comes, let me give you that chance."

Puff sighs and shakes her head.  “Lovers does not mean loves, Flamberge.  Every last historical figure I can think of with multiple lovers was just exhibiting Lust and Greed.  And the ones with multiple actual loves are always destroyed by it.”

"Then I'll be better than all of them, Cream Puff. I'll make it work." Flamberge states as easily if he were declaring he would take care of some mundane chore.

“Heh, you’re still a pony, Flamberge.”

"Maybe, but why should I let that limit me?" replies Flamberge, "Are not we ponies the pinnacle of life on this world. Is it not the fact that we can grab nature by the horns and make it obey us, that makes us ponies. That we can take a worthless stone and make this." he draws his sword and sticks it in the dirt. "Why then should we let something as petty, and flimsy as tradition hold us back, from what we want. Why shouldn’t we be together, and why do you doubt our ability to overcome any challenges we might face along the way?"

She sighs and shakes her head.  “Look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair...”

Flamberge smiles, “And after all these centuries we still know his name, and his words, better than any other pony of his time.”

“For his hubris.  Is that what you want to be remembered for?”

“Better than being forgotten...” Flamberge sits down.

“So you’d rather be on object lesson than simply have a happy life?”  Puff takes a few steps away from him.  “I’d rather simply do what I can to improve the lives of other ponies.  That’s my happiness.  I don’t think we would work, Flamberge...”

Flamberge doesn’t respond, his head hangs toward the ground.

Puff starts to slowly walk to her room.  “I’m sorry Flamberge...”

Flamberge rolls over onto his back and curses, after he is sure Cream Puff has reached her home, he heads home as well, to wait for Crosshair to come back.

[Impending Doom]

Serenity leans back in her seat, peering over the desk at the pegasus mare seated before her. “So. How have you been doing since we last spoke?”

Puff reclines and sighs.  “Well... I’m not hung up on Flamberge any more.”

Serenity allows a small smile to brighten her face. “Well, that’s good. How did you manage to get over him?” She leans forward. “...Are you seeing somepony?”

“Well, mostly over him.  And no, I’m still single.  He... tried to put the moves on me, but I told him he couldn’t have me and Crosshair.”  She gives a slightly bitter chuckle.  “I think the term is megalomania.”

Serenity recoils slightly. “That sounds very uncharacteristic for him. Or for what I’ve seen of him, at least. What did he say, exactly?”

“He’ll be a king one day, he’s awesome enough to love me and Crosshair, he’s totally not being greedy or lustful, he’s the best pony ever, and so on.  I think that’s megalomania, right?”

She nods. “It’s pretty much in line with every case I’ve ever seen, yes.” Serenity sighs heavily. “What you’re telling me is... troubling, to say the least. While you may be over Flamberge, if what you’re saying is true... he may not be over you.”

Puff waives a hoof dismissively.  “I’m sure he’ll get over it eventually.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure of that. If he really does think he’s so great... he may believe he is entitled to you.”

Cream Puff starts to say something like she’d kick his flank, but he’s the Military Commander!  She probably would be able to make it difficult, but she’s unsure if she could stop him if he tried to force it.  “...What should I do?”

Serenity takes a large book from the shelf, opens it, and begins to write. “Well, I would try to avoid him as much as you realistically can. And if you do have to interact with him, try not to say anything that might set him off. Also...” she finishes and shuts the book, “I’d like your consent to tell all this to Temperance. I’m worried this kind of attitude might begin to influence his actions as commander. And if that happens...”

She looks uneasy, but can see Serenity’s concern.  “Well, if you think it requires his attention, I guess so?”

“Thank you.” Serenity considers ending their session and going to speak to Temperance immediately, but decides responding to the matter too urgently may distress Cream Puff. Instead, she settles back down into her seat. “Now... did you have anything else you’d like to discuss?”

Puff considers asking about Maize, but figures it’s probably doctor/patient confidential stuff.  “Uh... Crosshair and Praetorian set me and Temperance up on a blind date?”

This takes Serenity a bit off-guard, but she recovers quickly. “I’m assuming since you said you weren’t seeing anypony, it didn’t go quite as planned?”

Puff giggles.  “It wasn’t a disaster, heh.  Temperance is a good stallion, and any mare would be lucky to be with him, but I just didn’t feel that spark I’m expecting, you know?  Still, it was an enjoyable meal with a friend.  And I got a new recipe for salad out of the deal.”

Serenity smiles. “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself, at least. And please don’t feel discouraged by the outcome, I’m sure a fine stallion will come along and sweep you off your hooves someday.”

Puff looks uncertain.  “I dunno, Serenity.  It’s just starting to feel like I’m doomed to a life of spinsterhood, you know?”

“I don’t believe that at all. You have a lot of very desirable traits. You’re very sweet and affectionate towards those you care about - and of course, you care about everypony. You’re a master chef - you wouldn’t believe how easy it is to charm a stallion with good food! And it certainly doesn’t hurt that you’re... quite pleasing to the eyes.”

“I’m also loud an in-your-face, heh.  I’ve scared off a lot of stallions, too.”

“You are quite... energetic, yes. But some ponies like that in a mare.”

She giggles at that.  “If you say so, Serenity.  So far, Flamberge is the only stallion who could stand up to my mouth, and you know how well that worked.  Ah well, maybe once there’s room for more ponies, I’ll find one.”

Serenity smiles warmly. “There, you see? Be optimistic.”

[TALLPANZER]

SmoothBlock approached Serenity as she ate in the tavern. The bulky mare placed a tray of samiches on the table “Anypony sitting here?”

Serenity looked up from her large, thick textbook and plate of food. “Oh, no, you’re welcome to have a seat.”

“Thanks toots.” SmoothBlock pulled up a stool and took a bite of a tomato juice sandwich “Nice to meet you, I’m SmoothBlock. Soon to be unemployed miner.”

“Dr. Serenity. I’m pleased to meet you as well. I must ask, did you lose your job, or are you quitting?”

“Works going to run out, and we can’t seem to get through the aquifer. Doctor, I thought case was our sawbones.” Smooth pulled out a bottle of whisky and poured it into her mug. “want some?” she asked.

She held up a hoof. “Oh, no thank you. And I’m not that kind of doctor. I’m actually a psychiatrist.”

“That’s good, everypony here is crazy, Ha-ha!” Smooth took a drink “So, I bet you talk to Maize often.”

Serenity managed a smile. “Yes, actually. She and I become quite close.”

“That’s some good news. You must be good, think you can help RedHat next?” SmoothBlock chuckled and took out a cigar.

Serenity lifted her own mug of juice, taking a sip. “He and I have spoken, yes.”

“Well, the first step is admitting your a jackass and looking for help.” Smooth tapped her cigar on the table “Do you smoke?”

She shook her head. “No, I don’t.”

“It’s like I’m the only one in the fort.” SmoothBlock lit her cigar “What do you do for fun?”

“Well, I used to take walks in the woods, before the Discordians started showing up. I took up fencing back home, but I haven’t found anypony else into the sport here. Now I mostly just talk with my friends.”

“Only thing I know how to swing is a pick. I spend most of my ever expanding free time, at the ‘Brewery’.” SmoothBlock took a long drag and breathed smoke rings off to one side.

Serenity shies away from the clouds of condensed carcinogen. “Oh, you brew spirits?”

“Yup, well I try, mostly I just make swamp Whisky. I think I made tomato vodka once.” SmoothBlock rubbed her chin.

Serenity nodded. “Well, that’s a nice hobby to have.”

SmoothBlock casually chewed a sandwich before speaking again. “So, am I sane, Doc?” She smiled at Serenity.

Serenity chuckled softly. “Yes, you sound perfectly sane to me. Were you afraid that you weren’t?”

“I’m not exactly the ideal mare, you know, not so ‘Ladylike’.” SmoothBlock scratched her belly.

“Well, that’s to be expected, I suppose. You have to be quite... hardened... to survive long out on the frontier.” She grinned sheepishly. “To be honest, I wouldn’t even be out here if I hadn’t been asked.”

“Yeah. These new freaky ponies, I think we need a wall.... and another two archers.” SmoothBlock took a puff from her cigar. “Is there a type of juice you like? I make juice with Puff sometimes.”

Serenity considered this for a moment. “Well... I haven’t had pear juice in a while. If you ever get your hooves on some pears, that would be nice.”

“I’ll keep my eyes open, will soft cider be ok? I make a mean cider.” SmoothBlock grinned.

Serenity nodded. “That would be lovely.”

SmoothBlock nodded “I did notice one thing, Doc.”

“Oh? What’s that?”


The husky mare looked up and too the side. “Ponies around here don’t laugh much.” She blew out a puff of smoke.

Serenity pondered this for a minute. “You’re right. I’ve heard the odd chuckle here, but overall ponies here seem to be a solemn bunch.”

“The most laughs I heard was at WoodChip’s party, and I think it was mostly me.” SmoothBlock tapped the ash off her Cigar “Or maybe at me. It’s hard to tell.”
“Maybe it’s just the nature of a frontier town. When ponies get settled in a little better, and feel a little safer, there will be more time for merriment.”

“Could be just that. Thanks for chatting, by the way.” SmoothBlock finished her samich.

Serenity smiled. “Not a problem. I enjoy getting to know ponies.”

Then they finished their lunches and went on their way.

[TheBronzePickle]

and

Maize looks at the floor around her chair and wonders if that much hair falling off in a week is normal or if she’s shedding or something.

Serenity pokes her head through the hospital door, scanning the main room. As she lays eyes on Maize, she enters and quietly approaches. “...I thought I’d find you here.”

Maize looks up from her dreary mental slog, taking a moment to recognize the pony before her. “Oh... hi, Serenity.” She doesn’t sound very enthusiastic... or necessarily healthy, for that matter.

Serenity sits beside Maize, watching the sleeping stallion. “So... how is he doing?”

Maize’s head droops a little. “Sometimes, he wakes up, and I get really excited, but then he just babbles until he falls back asleep. He’s... been doing it more and more often, I think... maybe. I haven’t really kept track of time.”

Serenity nods. “Case Study says he’ll recover in a few more days. He’s a good doctor, and I trust his judgement.” She looks up at Maize. “And... how are you doing?”

Maize looks up. “I... don’t know. I’ve been eating, because of Cream Puff, and I think I’ve been getting enough sleep, maybe, and sometimes Morning Dew asks me for help in the farm and I go help her, but... I feel bad. About what happened to Praetorian. I... feel like maybe it might be my fault.”

Serenity stifles a gasp. “Maize... why would you ever think that?”

“Because...” Maize thinks about how to put her words, before just giving up. “B-because, I’m a discordant pony... and I think the others can sense me... maybe. I don’t know.” She lowers her head, literally looking up at Serenity. “But... it makes sense, doesn’t it?”

Serenity shakes her head. “No, it doesn’t. Not at all. If you’re a discordant, why are they only coming for you now? When your father hurt you, why didn’t they come to protect one of their own?”

“B-because... he was a discordant. He’s where I got it from, I think.” She thinks for a few moments. “I don’t think mama was, though... so maybe I’m just half-blood... maybe they want to kill me...” Maize seems to be surprisingly calm at this thought.

Serenity is silent for a long moment, letting that revelation sink in. Eventually, she speaks up. “...Even if that’s true... there are a lot of ponies here who would fight to protect you. Who /have/ fought to protect you.”

Maize shakes her head. “That’s not what I want. I don’t want anypony to get hurt because of me.” She shakily tries to stand, instead stumbling and falling off the chair as her sleeping legs fail her.

Serenity steps in, helping Maize to her feet with a smile. “It isn’t like you can stop us from trying. We’ll protect you... because we love you.”

“N-no... I love you all, too...” The mare starts tearing up. “I... I can run away... lead them off... so they won’t bother you... I don’t want ponies getting hurt...”

“You could...” Serenity leans against Maize. “But I know at least two ponies who would follow you.”

Maize looks at the mare snuggled against her for a moment before wrapping a hoof around her, holding her tightly. “You shouldn’t... m-maybe... I shouldn’t either...” She puts her head against Serenity. “A-after all, what happens if I’m wrong? That would be... just one less pony to help keep this place safe, I... I guess.”

Serenity doesn’t answer. She just puts her hooves around Maize and holds her silently.

Maize holds Serenity back for a few minutes before her legs start to get tired. She slowly pulls away. “Thanks... I feel a bit better now.”

“You’re always welcome, Maize. Now, how long has it been since you ate today?”

Maize looks down to her stomach, which grumbles a little. “I don’t really know, but I suppose I should eat something...”

Serenity puts a hoof on Maize’s back. “Come on, let’s go see what Cream Puff has cooked up.”

Maize nods and follows Serenity to the door, glancing back at the bed for a moment before finally stepping out.

[Fr0stByt3]

Steel Rivet's "Journal"
20th Felsite, 270
More intruders. Finally finished tools. I feel useless. More ponies are getting hurt and I just sit here. Plans. But need quality metal. Not this shit the Discordians have. Two foals born recently. This is good. Also, saw griffin as getting lunch. Will talk to him later.

[Impending Doom]

Redhat sighed and looked down at the ground. Even after the fields outside town were cleared of the guts and corpses, the earth still had a faint stench of death as well as a few splatters of blood here and there. This honestly wasn’t the idea place for a pony to spend there free time, but right now the pegasus was just sitting on a stump, doing nothing in particular as his pet just sat next to him.

Serenity happened to trot by, on her way back to the office. Noticing Redhat looking forlorn on his little stump, she headed over to see what was the matter. “Redhat? Is everything alright?”

The pony “ughed” and turned around to see Serenity was there. “oh... hi...”

“Hello. I was just on my way back to work, and noticed you here. Are you feeling alright?”

“Well, I certainly certainly could be better...” he sighed, the pony honestly looked like he felt horrid.

Serenity pawed the ground nervously. “Would you... like to talk about it?”

“I ‘spose” he said, seeming rather dejected.

She came over and sat down beside him, opposite the big shaggy dog. “So, what’s gotten you in a funk?”

The dog whimpered, before moving over and giving Serenity a little nuzzle. “Hmmm... Well, can’t you smell it in the air?”

Serenity briefly rubbed Bonnet’s head, turning up her nose and sniffing the air. “Not really... wait. Something metallic, rather like copper...”

“Oh, well that’s the stench of blood.” He leaned sighed again and looked down. “which, is part of the plethora of death’s scents.”

Serenity’s pupils shrank, then she mentally bucked herself for forgetting that this was the site of the battle mere hours ago. She took a moment to regain her composure. “S-Sorry... I’ve never actually smelt blood before. Why are you out here, then?”

The pony shrugged. “because something disgusting happened here, and I personally and quite depressed about it.”

“You mean what happened to Praetorian?”

“That’s part of it but, how many ponies died today?” he gave her an odd look, and stroked his wolf a little.

It didn’t take a genius to realize he wasn’t talking about the guard. “...You’re ashamed of killing the discordants?”

“Oh never. In fact, a pony in my profession should show a certain level of decency, and respect when you take the life of another, to be ashamed of your job to be a shameful pony.” He grinned for a moment before frowning again. “but... regardless, I find the the act of murder to essentially  eat away at one’s soul.”

“Then, you fear the nature of your profession may be harming your mental and emotional wellbeing?”

“Oh, well... Not exactly. I just would prefer not to be one of those idiots who convince themselves that justify the act of slaying another via nationalism, or glory, or some other means. That’s just delusion of reality.” He then sighed and looked to the ground. “and yes, I fear killing will harm my mind unless I lie to myself.”

Serenity noded, listening intently. “I see.” She looked up at Redhat. “You know, you don’t have to justify their deaths in the way that you mean in order to accept that they were necessary.”

He gave a rather disheartened look. “Oh yes. Twas necessary, now wasn’t it.” He now was sporting an angry look. “This is the world where murder is indeed a necessary part of our continued existence. We kill them they’ll kill us. It’s funny how that only makes everything worse.” He then looked down again. “I can’t tell, if this world was always this big of a hell hole, or if it’s just decaying and withering into one.”

The pegasus then got up for a moment. “but, regardless none of that matters if we all die in the end.”

“If you really believe all that... why be a soldier? Why put yourself in a position where you have to kill, again and again?”

“Because I’m fearful... I’m afraid of something a lot more frightening than a group of discordants, and a spear at my side gives me a sense of protection and honestly, if I’m not out here killing, and being conscious of how disgusting my act is, odds are you’ll just have another dumb ass with a wavy sword charging in head first, losing himself to primal rage and delusions of honor and glory, when all he’s really doing is spilling the guts on another pony, and being proud of it. It don’t see the distinction between that in a bloody serial killer. The longer I keep this job the less likely you’ll get another mindless moron who does this shit with smile from ear to ear.

Serenity had a pretty good idea who Redhat  was talking about. “...I can assure you, ponies like him are thankfully quite rare.”

“No... I personally know there are a many ponies like him, conditioned by society to be brainwashed by personal visions of self worth brought about the senseless killings of others. I personally know that all the foals in my class as a child loved to play soldier, and talk about the heroic efforts of war heros in their story books. Why it’s foals like them who become the butchers of masses.”

“You misunderstand. He’s... something else entirely.”

“what makes you say that?”

“...Nothing. Anyhow, I need to head off to work.”

“Oh... well thanks for making everything better.” he was clearly being sarcastic.

Serenity stood and left in a bit too much of a hurry, considering the circumstances.

[Telgin]

and

“...And then we made a little small talk, to take her mind off it. I didn’t want her to become too distressed. And then she left..” Serenity sighs,  slumping a bit in her seat.

Temperance looks quite troubled.  “I... this doesn’t... I mean, I never thought he was like that,” he says, slightly dumbstruck.  “He’s really after her too, not just Crosshair?  And Cream Puff thinks that he might, ah, keep pushing this?”

Serenity puts a hoof to her forehead. “She didn’t... but I do. I’ve seen this many times before, Temperance. Once a pony like that decides they want somepony...”

Temperance looks even more troubled.  He’s silent for a brief period.  “That... uh, worries me a bit.  No... more than a bit.  I’ve seen how he can get in a fight.”  He looks Serenity in the eyes.  “Do you think he might hurt Cream Puff?”

“...That’s a very real possibility.”

That’s what Temperance was expecting to hear, but really wished he didn’t.  “Gasis preserve her,” he mutters under his breath.  “Wh-what do you think we should do?  I, uh, I guess I could talk to him, if you think it would make a difference.”  What the hay was he going to say to the stallion though?

Serenity looks off into the distance. “I’m not so sure that’s a good idea. If you say anything to upset him... he’s the strongest soldier in town, and we have so few others...”

“Right,” Temperance sighs.  “Praetorian is still in the hospital, and even if he was back on his hooves, I’m not sure he, Crosshair and Redhat together could really oppose Flamberge.  If they even wanted to... I mean, these are pretty big allegations, and they seem so sudden.”

He shakes his head slowly.  “Actually... have you spoken to anypony else about this?  I can’t imagine why she would, but could Cream Puff be trying to mislead us about him?  Maybe she’s trying to damage his reputation?”

Serenity shakes her head. “No, I haven’t mentioned it to anypony else. I was afraid of it getting back to him. But why would she want to harm his image like that?”

“I don’t know,” he answers truthfully.  “If she was interested in him but things went sour... I don’t know, I thought it made as much sense as him seemingly turning on her like this.  I guess you just don’t really know ponies when you think you do, sometimes...”  He lets out a drawn out breath.  “For what it’s worth, I believe you and her.  I just wish I knew what to do about it.”

“I do agree that this may not be what it appears on the surface. Before we do anything, we need to find out what’s really going on.” Serenity sighs, “If you have any ideas that don’t involve spying on Cream Puff, I’d love to hear them.”

Temperance taps a hoof a few times on his desk as he thinks.  “I certainly don’t like the idea of spying on her, but she’s going to be our best source of information.  I would say that we should talk with her friends about it so that they’re aware of what’s going on, and could report strange things to us... but as you said we don’t want word of this getting around.”

He brings his hoof up to his chin and says, “At this point I don’t think there really is anything we can do.  I won’t tolerate him hurting her, but I’m mostly powerless.”  After a moment, he adds, “For now, I guess the best we can do is to keep a close eye on them.  I’ll try to do that much at least.”  And maybe when he got a chance, send a letter to Coupledye asking for more ponies who knew a thing or two about law and enforcing it.

Serenity nods. “Thank you. I really  hope this isn’t as big a deal as it looks, but I’m glad somepony is doing something about it.”

“I hope so too,” he says, slumping back into his seat.  “I’ll do everything I can.  I just wish there was more I could do.”

Serenity stands and turns to go, but hesitates. “...And could you, uh... keep an eye on Crosshair as well? If he’s been behaving oddly, she’d be the first one to see it.”

The thought that Crosshair might factor into this too was also a bit unsettling, but Temperance nods.  “I’ll do that.  And of course, if you see or hear anything alarming, let me know immediately.”  He hesitates himself, wondering just how much danger Serenity might be putting herself in.  “...and be careful.”

[Dsarker]

and Morning Dew and

Puff hums to herself as she gets ready to cook lunch, when she hears a slight tapping, repeating itself. Almost like hooves, but too quiet for a pony. Tap, tap, tap.  She frowns slightly in confusion as she looks around.  Is there a big bug in here somewhere?

Tap, tap, tap. It’s getting closer towards her.

Puff grabs her chef’s knife, wondering if maybe it’s a discordian, or maybe another diamond dog?  “Stay back!”

There’s a little giggle as the tapping stops, and then starts again. It seems to be coming from above Cream Puff.

Giggles?  Discordians don’t giggle, and neither do diamond dogs.  Puff looks upward, confused.

Mountain Dew, the old new foal in the fort, is walking around on the roof above Cream Puff, apparently suspended in her magic. As she giggles, her magic fizzles away, and she drops onto Cream Puff’s face.

Puff spits the knife out as the foal falls, then takes the little pony off her face.  “What do you think you’re doing, little one?”

“Ub bub ba!” says the little foal, as she tries to get back on the funny pegasus’ face.

Cream Puff giggles at the little filly.  “No, my face is not a jungle-gym, Mountain Dew.  Did you escape your mamma again?”

“Bub ub ba ba,” confesses the little foal. “Ba ubba ba.” She does her best to look at least somewhat contrite.

She giggles again and boops the little one’s nose.  “Maybe you’d sneak off less often if I stopped feeding you sweets whenever you sneak in here.”  She transfers the foal to her back as she digs through her stash of candies.  It’s basically limited to toffees right now, but Puff is certain she’ll be able to make a wider variety of candies once more crops are grown.  She pulls out one and gives it to the foal.  “I am a bad influence, heh.”

Mountain Dew’s eyes light up at the toffee, and starts sucking on it like a sugar--coated pacifier. “Blub bluh bluh,” she says through the little sweet, drooling a little as she does so.

Puff giggles at the adorable filly, then heads off to search for Morning Dew, carrying Mountain Dew on her back.  “Lets go find your momma.”

“Bluh, bluh, bluh, “ agrees Mountain Dew, and she continues to suck on her sweet.

Bundle of joy on her back, Cream Puff heads for Morning Dew’s apartment and gives it a knock.  “Morning Dew?  You there?”

There’s a long wait, and it doesn’t look like there’s any response.

“Huh... must be out in the fields then.”  Puff shrugs and heads that way.

Morning Dew doesn’t appear to be out in the fields either. Mountain Dew says “Bluh bluh bluh,” with a slight shrug.

“Hmm...”  Puff paces, wondering just where Morning Dew got to.  Well... she should be showing up for lunch at least.  “Think you could behave for me while I get lunch going?  There’ll be more toffee in it for you if you can.”

Mountain Dew nods her head up and down rapidly. “Bluh blub blub!” she says, before going back to sucking on her lolly.

“Atta girl!”  Puff hums and skips a little as she heads back for the tavern, confident she’ll see Morning Dew come in for lunch so she can return the little filly.

The filly does her best to behave through the rush of lunch, and as the crowds start to thin, there is still no sign of Morning Dew. Just as it seems like she isn’t coming, Mountain Dew perks her head up, and starts running over to a shadow near the door.

“Oop!  Don’t go running off, Mountain!”  She flaps after the energetic little filly, not wanting to see her lost twice in one day.

Mountain Dew appears to have found her mother, and is now hugging Morning Dew’s left foreleg tightly as the mare still tries to remain hidden. “Oh. H-hello, Cream Puff. Was Mountain Dew bothering you?” she asks, in a quiet voice.

“Na, she wasn’t a bother.  How are you doing, Morning Dew?”

“Oh. I’m... okay,” says Morning Dew, without her voice getting any louder. “How are you?”

“Not bad, heh.  Mountain and I tried to find you earlier today, but couldn’t.  Hope you weren’t too worried.”

“Oh. Was that you knocking?” she asks.

“Yeah!  Why didn’t you answer?”  Puff gives her a slightly confused look.  Surely she noticed her filly was missing, right?

“I...I was scared,” she says, and hangs her head. A little glow starts opening Cream Puff’s stash of toffees, and one start floating up towards Morning Dew’s mouth, as Mountain Dew tries concentrating very hard.

Puff doesn’t notice the adorable little thief getting into her stash.  “Scared?  Of what?”

“Of...Of the other ponies. You’ve...You’ve heard what they’ve been s-saying about me, haven’t you?” she says, sadness creeping into her voice. “I...I just-” Whatever she does just is cut off, as the toffee finds its way into her mouth.

Puff looks confused at the floating candy, then sees it was little Mountain’s doing, and smiles.  “Don’t worry about what the others think, Morning.  Mountain just wants to make you happy, and I’d like to see you happy, too.”

Morning Dew puts a weak smile on her face as she capitulates to eating the toffee. “Bluh bluh bluh!” says Mountain Dew.

Puff giggles and smiles.  “Exactly!”

Morning Dew leans down and nuzzles her little foal, and smiles gratefully at Cream Puff. “I’m sorry for being such a bother,” she says after finally finishing the toffee.

“Heh, it’s no bother, Morning.  Have you tried talking to Serenity, though?  She’s actually trained for this kind of thing, you know.”

“I... I’ve said I have. But... I haven’t, really. I don’t go out of the home much anymore,” admits the mare.

“I think she could help you.  And I’d be happy to watch Mountain Dew whenever you have a session.”  Puff gives her a reassuring nudge and friendly smile.

“I... I feel like I’m just being selfish, though, if I do that... It was my fault...”

Puff gently starts leading her towards the office, hoping Serenity will be there and be available.  “Definitely sounds like you could use a talk with Serenity, Morning.  I’d be happy to listen to what’s really bothering you, but I really don’t know if I could actually help you.  Just give her a chance?  If she can help me with my anger, I’m sure she can help you.”

Morning Dew goes along with Puff with only a bit of reluctance. “If you say so...” Meanwhile, Mountain Dew sneaks her way to the collection of toffees...

[Dsarker]

, Morning Dew, and

Morning Dew was not feeling entirely happy. She had been persuaded by her friend, Cream Puff, to talk to Serenity, one of the mares in town, about her... her history. She screws her eyes shut as she begins to knock on the door. She couldn’t go back now, she’d have to go in.

From inside, Morning Dew hears a quiet gasp of surprise. “...Just a moment, please!” She hears a long, high rasp of metal on metal, then the door clicks open. “Oh, hello Morning Dew. How are you?”

“Um, I’m okay. I think. I... Cream Puff said I should talk to you,” she says, almost bowing her head in some embarrassment.

Serenity smiles. “Come on inside, make yourself comfortable.”

“Oh, thank you,” Morning Dew says and she walks in after Serenity.

Once she is assured that her patient is situated, Serenity takes her seat behind the desk. “...And how is little Mountain doing?”

“She’s doing okay. Cream Puff found her trying to sneak into the kitchen again just before she told me to come here,” replies Morning Dew.

“I’m glad to hear that. Now, I’m guessing you’re here to talk about her?”

“I... Sort of,” admits Morning Dew. “It was... was also...the other stuff involved with her. And... Well, you know.”

She nods. “I do. I’ll let you start.”

Morning Dew, put slightly on the spot, freezes up for a second, before forcing herself to be calm and speak. “I... I’m not married, as you know... And... I was pregnant. And I’ve had a foal. And... And the other ponies... I... I’ve heard them talking about me.”

“What sorts of things do they say?”

“They... They’re saying bad things.”

Serenity can guess what she means by that. “And are the things they say true?”

“...No, they aren’t,” she whispers.

“Then... what is the truth?”

“I... I loved somepony. Love him still,” she whispers. “But...I don’t know if he loves me...”

Serenity nods. “Who is he? Is he here in Duskfields?”

“Y-yes. I... I don’t want to tell you his name. Please,” said Morning Dew.

“Why? Why don’t you want ponies to know about him?”

“Because...because it wasn’t his fault. It was mine,” says Morning Dew.

Serenity raises an eyebrow. “What was your fault? The pregnancy?”

“I...Please, you can’t tell anypony this, please!” begs Morning Dew.

Serenity nods. “Everything you say here in this room is kept between us.”

“Okay...Okay.” Morning Dew breathes deeply, and tries to calm down. “I was... I was on a little date. With him. And we were having a little meal, and... And...” She stops, trying to breathe and calm down.

Serenity gets up from her seat, coming around to sit beside Morning Dew and provide whatever support she could. “...And?”

“And... And then... I... I found a little th-” Before Morning Dew can complete her word, there is a loud crack, and a little yellow ball drops onto her head. “Bub lu ba?” says the little foal, before she spots Serenity, and a great thing to swing on. She jumps up to try and grab onto Serenity’s horn.

She catches the little filly with her magic, gently setting her in Morning Dew’s hooves. That slight tingle of magic lingering in the air... surely this little foal hadn’t... “She... teleported here?”

“Is that unusual?” Morning Dew asks anxiously. Mountain Dew, meanwhile, is still on a sugar high from eating almost twice her weight in sugar. And so, she jumps up, and tries to find something else to play with. That silly unicorn is no fun. She spots the little desk, and a gleam in her eyes, she jumps up and onto the desk, and plays her new game, knocking all the paper off the desk!

Serenity tries her best to catch the papers as they fall. “Not at all. It’s a - Mountain, stop that! - a high-level spell that takes most unicorns years to master.”

“Um, is that good or bad?” asks Morning with a bit of apprehension. Mountain, having kicked off all the paper, tries to find something else to do. “Buh lubba.” She looks at the papers, and her horn glows, and the writing starts to dance up into the air, leaving the paper behind. Soon the writing is forming new things, not words but images, with two figures forming from the groups of words; Serenity and Mountain Dew. They seem to be playing games, but the images of Serenity soon become more and more unhappy, until the last which is a mere silhouette.

Serenity can only sit and gape at the otherworldly display of magical prowess. “That’s... that’s not possible...”

Morning Dew is getting more and more concerned about her baby apparently doing things that are impossible. “Not possible? What do you mean?” she asks anxiously. “There’s nothing wrong with her, right?” Mountain Dew, without any such apprehension or anxiety, lets the words fall back onto the paper in a jumble, and looks for more things to play with.

Swiftly, Serenity moves in and scoops the little filly up in her hooves. She tousles her mane for a moment before presenting her to Morning Dew. “Your daughter is... incredibly gifted.”

Morning Dew hugs her daughter tight. “You think so?” she asks Serenity. “I...She’s my first foal, I don’t really know that much...” Mountain Dew seems to be struggling to get out of Morning Dew’s hold on her.

Serenity nods. “She seems to be firmly in control of her magic, though she will of course need to be taught to use it responsibly.”

Morning Dew nods a bit, before Mountain Dew finally manages to slip out of her grip and jump onto Serenity’s face again. “Buh ubba!” Mountain Dew says as she dismisses the concept of ‘responsibility’ out of hoof.

Serenity catches the little filly as she dives at her face. She holds Mountain Dew to her chest as she tickles her lightly.

“Bluh buh ba!” cries Mountain Dew in excitement. This was even more fun than walking on the funny pegasus with the yummy things!

Serenity cannot help but giggle. “She’s a darling. even if she does like to get into mischief.” She looks up at Morning Dew. “And I’m sure, with her mother to guide her, she’ll grow into a beautiful mare some day.”

“I...I hope so,” Morning Dew says. “I hope so.”

[DVNO]

SmoothBlock was in the tavern drinking. She casually sipped her drink.

The tavern doors swing open and Max shuffles through them in a very unflattering pair of khaki pants. He saddles up next to Smoothblock.

“Hey, Max.” She refilled her mug “What yah drinkin?”

He opens his mouth, then thinks about it some more. It’s been quite a while since the last time he did some ‘social drinking’.  “Let me think . . . Uh, hard lemonade! that’s the one.” He gestures with his claws. “Make it a real tall glass.”


“....I have swap whisky, wheat beer, tomato vodka, or wild strawberry schnapps.” SmoothBlock tapped the barrels. “I’ll try to get some lemons from the Zebras.”

Max puts three fingers up. “Three then. Why not? I need something after what Temperance just put me through.” He shakes his head. Where has his manners gone? “But i’ll no doubt talk your ear off about that when I’m blind-drunk in due time. How about you? You’re name is?”

“SmoothBlock. I’m the miner, and sometimes brewer. I’ve seen you working on some walls around town.”

“Ha! SmoothBlock.” He rubs his chin. “You’re . . . Taller than everypony made you out to be.” 

“You mean I’m not as fat as they made you think.” SmoothBlock took another drink.

Max knows a touchy topic when he sees one. He Mr Miyagi's his way out of that one. “Who needs to be rail thin anyway?” He sneered at the status quo. “You’re bucking the trend. It works for you!” Wax on, wax off.

“Heh, nice save.” She poured a mug full of Vodka for Max “So what do you do when you’re not working?”

“Ah, very, very thanks much.” He grabs the glass. “Weelll . . .” Max is genuinely surprised any pony cares. “I try to do fun things. Mix it up a little.  I was going to serve Temperance and Cream Puff at their blind date yesterday! Holly mentioned it, I jumped on it, and the Praetorian shut me down hours before thing got started.” He leans back, hurt. “Do you know how hard it is to find a waiter’s bowtie in such a short amount of time? I was really looking forward to that!”

“Well damn, sounds like you put a lot of thought into that.” SmoothBlock took another drink then topped her mug up “I just drink and dig.”

Max shugs. “Eh, Actually you’re drinking with good company and digging a moat that keeps the thieves out. That’s a little more valuable than you’re giving it credit.”

“Thanks. I really hope we get more stone though, I kind of, can’t use my talent without it.” Smooth fidgeted with her mug and smiled.

He grins, closes his eyes and takes a swig. “I’m confidant Temperance will take care of it.” 

“Three layers of soil before we hit the aquifer, and then we need drain it.” SmoothBlock grumbled “I’m still working on that screw, pump thing. Seeing Woodchips about it.”

“He he heh, screw pumping Woodchips, huh?” Max laughed devilishly, thinking aloud. He looked back at his mug. Did he really say that aloud?

“Hugh hugh hugh ah hah! Nice one.” Smoothblock knocked her head back as she laughed. “Thanks for the laugh Max.”

 Max rubs the back of his neck. “Heh, yeah.” He changes the topic quickly. “I can’t believe Temperance is making me wear pants now? apparently nudity is frowned upon around this establishment!” Max gets modestly belligerent. “Thought you ponies were all ‘bout ‘living free’ and all that.” He gulps another pint.

SmoothBlock pores the clothed gryphon another mug full “I only wear coveralls to work. Usual I just walk about like this.” She looked at her tail. “Although, I really could use a dress.”

“whugh yuuu know I can probably hellp uuot with thhat, I can likee ‘ta think o’ me as . . . A Do’er.” Max said, thinking his words carried a lot more of wit, prose, and poignancy than rambling slurrs should.


“I think I will understand you better once I have had a glass of goat milk and sandwich. You want a sandwich, Max?” Smooth offered thinking she should slow down on the drinking just a bit.

His glass makes a loud -clank!- as he sets it down on the table. “Yeessss. I would. I should! I’ve’a been work’in up’a hunger puttin’ up logs.” He smiles wryly. “Youuu know, I’m holdin’ my liquor surprisingly well fer’ be’in sober for four years.”

“You’re still standing. Three may have a been bit much to start with.” SmoothBlock moved to the pile of egg sandwiches and took two, and two mugs of milk.

“Soo why you come here, SmoothBlock? Why you come to this humble little patch of nowhere? I’m trying to piece it together. Whhy you ponies are migratin’ here, I mean. ”

“Well, I was hoping to be the only mason in this fort. work stone, get nice big place out here. too bad I can’t find any stone. Oh well, digging the moat is good work. Yeah, mostly move here for the space and a chance to be more useful.” She drank her milk.

“Life, liberty and th’ produce of happiness . . .” Max gurgled. “How idyllic” Max grabs a sandwich. He tries to line it up with his beak as best as he can. He shoots and scores. “Mmm, Pretty good.” He says while spattering crumbs everywhere.

“Cream Puff is the best darn cook ever, making those. So convenient.” She took another bite of her own. “It was nice talking to you, Max.”

“euuehgh . . “ Max said with a mouth full of sandwich. He stops chewing for a moment. “Eugh too  . . .” He gulps it down fast.. ‘Speaking of Cream Puff . . .’ Max gets up. He was late for an important cake tasting. "See you around, SmoothBlock."