//------------------------------// // 05 - Rude Awakenings // Story: Final Solution // by Luna-tic Scientist //------------------------------// Days of Wasp and Spider, Part II: Final Solution by Luna-tic Scientist === Chapter 05: Rude Awakenings === I am Five. I know this because that's what is growing in the fur of each of my hips. It's a large and curvy symbol, a dirty white that contrasts with the deep orange of the rest of my coat. At the moment I'm curled up on the bare floor, hooves tucked up under my belly and the end of my muzzle resting on the slightly yielding surface. The light is dim and uniform; through sleepy eyes I stare at the white wall that encircles me at one bodylength's distance. Not quite circular, the chamber is vaguely wedge-shaped, with a large circular screen at the narrow end. The floor is a dark grid of soft tiles that vanishes under the wall but does not touch it. Around the perimeter of the room is a shadowed gap, perhaps two hooves high. The lights brighten gradually and a soft chime rings once. I climb to my hooves and arch my back while yawning mightily; the big muscles wrapped around my midsection move and flex, making the odd little bony stumps just behind my withers waggle. Careful of the thick collar that attaches to the flesh at back of my skull by a coil of fine cable, I twist my head to look at them. For a moment I see big fans of stiff, yet flexible... things... attached to long jointed limbs, then the memory fades and I am left with those short stumps, the ends bare of any fur. I wonder what they were for? I think, then shake my head and yawn again, tongue lolling. A gentle breeze starts playing from the direction of the screen, bringing with it the scent of food and a faint hint of others like me. Staring at the screen, I reach up for the short hose that dangles from the ceiling, wrapping my lips around the soft teat at its tip. Absently, I drink deeply, my empty stomach rumbling after the night's sleep, but it's the smell of other ponies that brings the most comfort. Perhaps today is the day I'll finally meet them? Feeling hopeful, despite never yet being able to catch up with the herd somewhere ahead, I start forward at a steady ground-eating trot. The wall never gets any closer; as the floor tiles emerge from the gap in front of my muzzle, they vanish under the wall behind my tail. Before long, a small pile of brown pellets appears in the gap, right in my path. Warm, but not yet breathing deeply, I stop and lower my head to eat. The taste is vaguely pleasant without actually being identifiable and it isn't long before I'm finished. Hunger nowhere near sated I trot on, waiting for the next few mouthfuls of food. The routine is familiar, but today I decide to make a real effort. When the next pile comes under the wall I ignore it, instead I wheel sharply and extend my gait, stretching into a canter towards the left side of the wedge-shaped room. As with when I trot towards the herd, those unknown Others, the wall gets no closer. Over the pounding of my hooves I can hear a faint whine, a sound that grows louder as my canter accelerates into a gallop. I haven't tried this before -- there are always a few little periods of running, marked out by quiet chimes -- so I exert myself, galloping until my sides run with sweat and are flecked with foam. Heart pounding and excitement building, I stretch out my neck, the tip of my muzzle only a hair's-breadth from the wall, but then it recedes again. No! I must-- My strength starts to fade but I push on further, to the point where my legs tangle and I stumble. There is a moment of awful clarity, of time stretching into infinity, as I trip. A seemingly endless period of flight, long enough that I can feel the bony stumps behind my shoulders move with some unknown reflex, then the floor comes up and strikes me across the head, shoulder and flank. The impact knocks the air from my lungs, but the floor itself actually subsided when I struck it. Stunned though I am, I can see that all the black tiles, previously separated from their neighbours by hair-fine cracks, have come apart. Gasping, I lie at the bottom of a shallow crater on what was previously a flat floor. Heart hammering, I get shakily to my hooves, the world seeming to tilt and twitch even while I'm standing still. I shake my head to clear my senses but realise my mistake; it isn't me, it is the floor that is shifting. Fascinated, I watch the individual tiles gently move, lifting upwards until the floor is flat once more. One of the tiles is no longer a perfect square; when I fell, my horn must have gouged out some of the soft material, clipping off one of the corners. The chime sounds once more and I turn my nose into the breeze, limping into a ragged trot and heading towards the smell of ponies. Presently, more food arrives. === Exercise and time helps ease my aching leg -- the muscles are still tender where I struck the floor a few darks ago -- but I slow to a walk, then pause, one foreleg half raised. When did I fall over? Was it last dark, or the one before that? The time between the darks is monotonous, filled only with a regimen of exercise and food, with only occasional breaks for the real work the Masters want me to do. What it is, they won't tell me... in fact, after my initial training, I've not spoken to another living soul for as long as I can remember. I used to get lonely, spending countless kiloseconds huddled at the centre of this odd room, but then the taste of the food changed. I don't get so lonely anymore. There it is again. This time I'm certain that I have not imagined it; one of the tiles has a small piece taken out of a corner. I pause, even though there is no food, and stare at it, trying to fathom what it means. Is this where I fell, all those darks ago? How long is impossible to say; time telescopes here, with the only measure the slow change in the Others, although that is scarcely an accurate guide. Still wondering, I decide to try an experiment. Bending my head, I jab the tip of my horn into the pliant material, making a small mark. Satisfied, I trot off, keeping my eyes on the ground. It is a woefully short time before I see the mark again. It cannot be the same one, can it? I sink to my knees and run my muzzle over the mark to confirm what my eyes are telling me. Yes, this is the scar I've just made. I look over my shoulder, as if trying to see the real mark, the one that must be only a few strides back, but there is only the rear wall of the room. Slightly giddy, I stay on the floor. I'd always thought this place was a strange kind of protective covering that moved with me as I walked or trotted over this yielding surface, but that's not true. I am not moving; the floor is. As soon as the tiles vanish under the wall they somehow move to appear at my front, placing themselves under my hooves with such precision that it feels like I really am travelling. It is now obvious that I will never reach the distant herd; the idea drains all the strength from my limbs and I lie there until hunger finally forces me on. === Her pillow moved and light flared, stabbing painfully into eyes she'd half opened while still in the hinterlands of sleep. Spiral hissed with displeasure, then sighed when a soft muzzle worked its way down her neck, teeth gently nibbling at the junction of throat and shoulder. "Got to get up, Spiral," Trocar said, his mouth full of hair. "Don't want to," Spiral murmured, then tensed at the idea of this betrayal and the pain it should have brought. There was nothing; she relaxed again, then slowly rolled over to look back at Trocar. He smiled, yellow eyes fringed with blue fur twinkling in the early morning sunlight, then winced slightly in sympathy. "Come on, I've got a bit of time before I need to be at the hub hospital. Let me help you with somepony -- Plasma, perhaps?" Spiral opened her mouth to reply, then her face froze for an instant in panic. Not ready, he'll-- She relaxed, keeping her tone light. "Thank you, but no. You'll have a full day's work when you get in; you've got to be fresh for the Masters, especially after you helped last evening." His face fell, ears and wings drooping. "I'm on another late prison shift today, so it will be a long one," he said softly, "but these are friends and family... I hate--" It was his turn to twitch, and Spiral leant forward to wrap her wings around her mate's neck. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. If you still have anything left when you get off shift, come and find me then." She rolled upright, gathering her hooves under her and standing with one flank pressed against Trocar. "Come on, off you go." He took one last opportunity to lay his head against hers, then walked out from under the shelter's canopy and sprang into the air. Spiral followed his path until he disappeared into the clouds, then made her way to the infirmary. She could tell there was something different about the building the moment she stepped inside. The first thing she noticed was the sound. All the little whimpers ponies in fugue made, even when drugged into insensibility, were gone. A breath told her that the very air was different; partly the lack of sour-sweat smell, but mostly a change in attitude. There was always a depressed feel to the place, a pall of misery, of failure. It had gone. Spiral stood in the middle of the infirmary corridor and turned a slow circle, her hooves making tentative tapping noises on the fused stone floor. What has happened here? she thought, a sudden sinking feeling making her knees tremble. Switching to shadow sight, she poked her head into Redshift's stall and sagged against the door-frame. "No," Spiral moaned, the world starting to spin. "Lilac, what have you done?" Hoping that she'd been wrong, the mare stepped closer and sank to her belly next to the stallion, using her magic to carry out a detailed inspection. There was no active magic in his head, no trace of the Blessing at all. Unable to quite believe what she was seeing, Spiral staggered back, jumping to the next stall and the next and the next. All of the ponies who she'd sedated to help them through a night of fugue were sleeping peacefully, with none of the twitches and little noises that might be expected. At the base of every horn was a small dark spot, no bigger than an apple pip. === "What have you done? I told you not to try anything!" Lilac awoke to the rough grip of magic about his head and a sudden hard shake that left him dazed. The voice was a harsh whisper, full of anger and fear. Struggling to focus, he stared up at the green mare's head, her ears fully back and her eyes wild. "B-but I didn't experiment on myself!" he said, shrinking back from her anger. "What's wrong? I didn't hurt anypony." "You've stripped the Blessing from half the ponies in the infirmary! What do you think is going to happen if Security comes back? I've already had to kill--" Spiral broke off, breathing hard, before continuing in more measured tones, each word clipped and precise, as if it was being released under great pressure. "Why do you think we went through all that with Packet?" "It's not the same! Packet never went through the Maker's Test, but all these ponies have... and so have I. I never felt anything that hurt so much." Lilac shivered, the memory of that awful pain, triggered by only a frown from the police Master, derailing his thoughts. "But that’s the plan, isn't it? To free everypony and let them make their own choices -- I heard Fusion and Gravity talking about it." That's what they said, I'm sure of it! Lilac wracked his memory for details of that long and convoluted discussion. The youngster started to feel sick. "If I've done something wrong, I'm sorry, Spiral. I didn't mean any harm, it's just... I could feel them hurting, and I knew I could fix it." Ears drooping, he stared up at the mare. Spiral closed her eyes and appeared to be muttering something under her breath, the words too faint and garbled to make out. She opened her eyes again and stared down at him for what seemed like a kilosecond, long enough that the silence became uncomfortable. Lilac opened his mouth to say something else, but the words wouldn't come; instead he waited, falling back on the hard-learned habit of keeping quiet when his Masters had been angry about some aspect of their research. Finally, Spiral's features smoothed, her ears returning to a more relaxed position. "Probably for the best," she muttered, then reached in and lifted him out in a haze of green magic. "I don't suppose I could have resisted the urge to do something, either. Show me exactly what you did." Slightly clumsily, Lilac copied the way Fusion had shared with him that first night, letting Spiral direct the memories. When complete, both ponies were lying together on the stone floor of stall eleven; Spiral still had her eyes closed and was doing something that was sweeping the infirmary building with magic. Lilac fidgeted, waiting for her to finish, recognising the arcane sensations of a detailed examination. Finally, she opened her eyes and met his nervous gaze, before nodding slowly. "Your work was clean; I can find no complications," she said grudgingly, her expression stern, then her tone took on a distant, lecturing quality. "But you really should not have done that. Everything else aside, working on the thaumically active organs has a very real risk of causing severe damage, especially that close to the horn bed. Quite frankly, I'm surprised Fusion didn't maim Gravity when she did it that first time." Her expression changed, softening a little and she smiled. "Deadening the horn bed's peripheral nerves was a nice touch, although you didn't need to influence quite so large an area." Tension bled away from Lilac and he released the breath he hadn't known he was holding. "Everything will be okay? I was sure I'd done it correctly -- nopony has been hurt?" "Magically they will be fine, if anything you did a better job than Fusion did. My real fear is what happens next. I can keep all those ponies drugged for now..." Spiral tailed off, then sighed again. "Nothing for it, we'll just have to see what happens." She picked him up again, starting to carefully exercise his back legs; getting the hint, Lilac windmilled his forelegs and wings, wincing as the cramped muscles protested. "Take it easy," Spiral said, watching him critically. "Lilac, I think we need to set some rules. I thought this would be obvious, but I guess you have not had anything like the upbringing of a normal pony." "Okay, Spiral," Lilac said, wishing he could look away from the mare's penetrating stare. "First, do not perform magic on anypony without that pony's agree--" "But that's what a veterinarian does!" Spiral closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out in a long sigh. "Yes, Lilac... and when you have two gigaseconds of experience in medicine, you can do the same. Use some judgement, my little pony. If you are doing it to save a life, fair enough. If not, then you need to be very sure that what you want to do is the right thing." Lilac nodded dumbly, stretching his left wing out to its full extension, clipped feathers fanned. "I underst--" The green mare flicked her own wings, cutting him off. "Second, you will do nothing to draw attention to yourself or us. If another pony finds you, we are all in big trouble." One big, green primary feather jabbed him on the end of the muzzle, making it twitch. "Security has killed ponies just because they might have lost their Blessings." The feather withdrew. "Now you may say it." "I understand, Spiral. I-I didn't think about what it might mean for the future." Lilac's ears drooped. "Will everything be okay?" "I think we can fix it. If nothing else, there are a bunch of ponies here who will want to hug you when they wake up. Come on, I'll help you use the dispose-all, then I need to start work." There's precious little need for that, Lilac thought. His empty stomach had long since stopped sending urgent messages of hunger to his brain; instead there was only a nagging hollow feeling. The youngster nodded, trying to hide his embarrassment at being assisted to the toilet like a newborn foal. Spiral watched him with defocused eyes, mind obviously on her magic. What's she looking at? Lilac thought, examining the spell as a way to take his mind off the faintly humiliating process. Immaterial tendrils of power moved through his body, concentrating into a knot of spellstuff in his aortic arch. The taste of the magic was familiar, something akin to the analysis machines his Masters had used on him. "A little ketosis, but nothing too bad," Spiral said absently, "nothing inconsistent with a few days of fasting. We'll get you fixed before any of the secondary metabolic problems become serious." Her eyes refocused on his face and she smiled. "This is the beauty of me training you; if you are a quick study you'll get to do all the work yourself... are you alright with that?" Her smile faded, replaced with an expression of concern. Lilac's mouth twitched into a brief grin of his own. "I've had plenty of practice," he said, "it'll be nice to eat something solid again." "I'll bet." The awkward process over with, Spiral placed him back in his refuge with a fresh supply of water, then moved around to the front of the infirmary to start the slow process of healing the many ponies under her charge. === Fusion awoke to something sharp jabbing her in the ribs. Momentarily confused, she looked uncomprehendingly around the small room, the perfectly smooth wooden walls reflecting pastel greens and pinks from some diffuse source. The something moved again, digging into the soft skin under one foreleg and jolting her to complete wakefulness. Careful application of magic lifted Gravity's head, shifting the sharp tip of her horn away from the white mare's flank. Rubbing the sore spot with one wing elbow, Fusion stood up, lowering Gravity back down on to the bed of pine boughs. The other mare didn't wake, and Fusion poked her muzzle through the improvised barricade covering the entrance and inhaled deeply. Cold forest air tickled her nostrils, the sharp scent of evergreens -- so different from the broad-leafed orchards around the corral -- clearing the last remnants of haze from her mind. It was still dark under the trees, but she could feel the sun fast approaching the limb of the world. "So much to do, so little time," she muttered, flicking an ear in greeting when Gravity stepped into the opening beside her. "What do you want to do first?" the mare said, her words distorted by a yawn. I want you to talk to me, Fusion thought. The events of the night -- really only a score of kiloseconds ago -- flooded back and she lowered her head, leaning against Gravity for support. "Packet will be fine, you heard Spiral," Gravity murmured, touching the white mare's cheek with the tip of her muzzle. Fusion shivered. "How many more are going to react like him? I'd hoped that if he would have just listened..." Gravity rested her head against Fusion's. "We couldn't keep him prisoner, and the alternative was far worse. Hard choices, remember?" "I'm beginning to understand how hard..." Fusion tailed off and turned to look at her sister. Gravity twitched, her ears lowering at the scrutiny. "What aren't you showing me, Grav? What happened in the tunnels?" Gravity's face went blank and she took a step back. Something akin to panic flashed through Fusion and she opened her mouth to speak, but Gravity had already turned away, pushing through the barricade and out into the cleared area. "Please?" she said, her voice thin and wavering in the still air. The blue mare froze, so still that she even stopped breathing, then sighed and let her wings droop. "How many have I killed, Fusion? Not counting the ones I crushed under a thousand tonnes of rock, or burned in their vehicles? I’m starting to accept that what I did was necessary… but I laughed when the first tank blew." Gravity wheeled to face Fusion and advanced on the mare, her voice rising and moisture glittering in her eyes. "How many died when I threw metal rods through their guts or smashed their heads like rotten apples? How many?" Ears flat back, Gravity halted in front of Fusion, glaring at the white mare. “And you know the worst thing? The only one I really care about was Parapet, and I killed her by accident.” Fusion swallowed hard, resisting the urge to step back. Parapet? That's not a gryphon name, who… oh. Five ponies were with Security at the start and only four left. Instead, she stepped forwards and wrapped her wings around Gravity, feeling the tense muscles through the soft fur. The other mare started to pull back, then froze like a statue in her embrace. "One is too many," Fusion murmured. "I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for you, but you’re not alone anymore." Gravity’s iron control finally faltered and she sagged, leaning into Fusion. "Is this what it was like for you, after we left the Institute that first time?" Gravity said at last, her voice rough and holding a note of pleading. "I remember what happened when we were resting on that cloud..." Tell me I'm not a monster... tell me I'm not going mad. Fusion nodded, then buried her muzzle in Gravity's mane. "I knew you were having trouble with your wing, so I called a halt -- I wanted to talk to you, tell you everything... but I couldn't.” The mare shivered, then squeezed her eyes tight shut. “I knew the thing in your head would torture you until you gave me up. I had to lie... I had to hurt... had to experiment on ponies to find out how it worked.” Voice becoming distant, Fusion opened her eyes and stared through the wisps of Gravity’s mane, trying to follow the little lights that swam in its unaccountable depths. “There were so many ponies in that aid station when I got out -- how many never made it out at all? My fault; should have found another way." "I thought you said the Maker-thing got inside your head and gave you the magic to do that?" "It did, but I wanted it. At that moment I wanted to hurt them, hurt them so they couldn't hurt anypony else. I deliberately picked the spell and let the power build, I just didn't understand how much." Fusion felt tears well up in her own eyes, but didn't stop talking. "There was a pony doing something in the accelerator tunnel, even while the thing was running; the radiation--" Fusion broke off, breathing fast, then took a deep breath. "Was he trapped in the tunnel? The whole place flooded with nitrogen when the superconductors let go, I'll-I'll never know what happened to him." "I didn't know," Gravity said quietly, pulling her head back so she could look Fusion in the eye. "I feel so selfish--" "No! Don't you ever say that, don't you ever think that!" Fusion said, slamming one forehoof down hard enough to make the wooden floor creak alarmingly. "I'm not telling you this to belittle your pain, but so that you know you are not alone... you are not some kind of special monster, an evil thing fit only for causing destruction and suffering." "Spiral said the same things, said you would understand, but I didn't want to add to your burden. Done enough damage already." Gravity broke eye contact, turning her head away. "Any debt you had, you've repaid in full. When it really mattered you came through, making the choices I failed to make in time." Fusion bent forward, nudging Gravity's head around with the end of one wing. "Really," she said, eyes searching the blue mare's face for any sign of comprehension, "without you I would be dead twice over by now. I only hope I can be as strong for you some day." Gravity's lips curved into a small, twisted smile. "Sounds strange when you put it that way." "A little, I guess... Gravity, in the beam chamber we promised each other that we'd share everything. I think Spiral knows more about what happened to you than I do." Letting the veterinarian have access to both their memories had been essential to helping her to understand, but it had been a one way process; all Fusion could feel were some of the emotions coming back from Spiral. "Show me what you've been through, Gravity. Please?" Conflicting emotions washed over the other mare's face, then she nodded slowly. "I did say that, didn't I? The full story, from both of us." "Do you want me to start at the beginning?" At Gravity's nod, Fusion formed the sharing pattern and built a chamber full of hulking machines, at the centre of which stood a white coated, pink haired pony, pinned by a ring of high-intensity spotlights. "Academician Vanca had been training me for several megaseconds before she decided I was ready for the first real experiment..." As the kiloseconds progressed, Fusion stepped through her story, leaving nothing out and laying herself bare to Gravity's mind. In time, hesitantly at first, then with greater confidence when she realised that Fusion wasn't judging her for what she'd done, Gravity did the same. === The sun was half way towards the zenith when the mares finally finished sharing their experiences. The conversation had changed from a raw emotional release to a more measured analysis some time after the eighth kilosecond. They were walking through a memory of the transit hub, the high-ceilinged chamber frozen like a lightning-lit forest, looking up at an armoured vehicle with a heavy metal shaft the length of a pony protruding from vents on the mid-deck. The view as a whole was not nearly so complete; large segments of the cavernous chamber were shot through with patches of neutral grey where objects were blocked from Gravity's sight. The mare had filled them with what she thought was there, but removed the colour to show it was all guesswork. "So when you teleported in... could you feel the antimagic field around this thing? You were very close," Fusion said, floating in the air next to an image of a hovering Gravity as if she was standing on solid ground. The mare was studying the stricken airtank with interest, peering into the wide opening of the damaged main laser mirror. Not sure what you expect to see in there, Gravity thought, sighing inside. As much as it had been a relief to finally show Fusion everything, the other mare's constant theorising on scant data was starting to become tiresome. "No, not a thing. I can only assume the jump would fail if the destination is interdicted. You'd have to try it -- not in person, obviously." "So much to learn," Fusion muttered to herself, "there's no time. The fields the soldiers use are nothing like the one created by that thaumic suppression vehicle of theirs... we've both tried to get through the personal fields, and it is possible. Perhaps there's a way to--" "You'd have to try it," Gravity said loudly, "there's no way to tell. Listen, I don't think we're going to get any more out of this -- perhaps we should start on the more practical side of things? We must to due to check in on Spiral and Lilac by now." Fusion nodded and Gravity dismantled the sharing environment, blinking in the sunlight streaming in through a gap in the tree canopy. Rolling away from her sister, Gravity got to her hooves and shook the leaf litter from her fur, stretching each wing to work some life back into muscles stiff from too little movement. "I'll contact them," Fusion said, her eyes closing and a faint glow kindling around her horn. We never did have a chance to test this properly; it should work, but the distance... Half of Gravity wanted the spell to fail; any excuse to visit in person and see with her own eyes what was going on. She shifted her weight from hoof to hoof, nearly dancing on the spot with impatience. Finally the taste of Fusion's magic changed, subtle feedback altering the pattern as the distant enchanted crystal responded to her touch. A shiver of fear stole down Gravity's spine when Fusion's eyes flashed open again and the mare flinched as if struck. No, please no, don't let-- The blue mare didn't finish the thought, just forced her way into Fusion's link to Spiral and joined the sharing. === # The pony Random Walk DP2114 and the other foals from corral twenty-seven have been released from Security custody. Due to the unusual level of initiative shown by the ponies, they are receiving special care and training at the Naraka Institute for Biology. DP2114 will be returned to corral twenty-seven when this is complete. # The message arrived with a standard notification chime, as if it was one of any number of other routine orders she'd received over the gigaseconds of her life. Spiral froze, half way along the path from stall eleven to the rest of the infirmary, one hoof off the ground and he mouth open in shock. Everypony with a foal at the training centre must have received one of these... Tears welled up in the mare's eyes and she leaned heavily against the wall. It's taken you this long to decide something so obvious as the innocence of foals. That's good, isn't it? Lilac thought. Spiral jerked slightly, then relaxed, drying her eyes on her forelegs. For a moment I'd forgotten... I suppose it is. They're no longer being held at the whim of that mad Agent, but the waiting sent more than a dozen ponies into fugue, with all that entails. She nodded meaningfully, even though the youngster was still hidden in the storage compartment. I saw Fusion's memories of the Security Hub... won't it be much easier to rescue them from this Naraka place? Yes, I'd expect so. Spiral started to walk again, trying to suppress the feeling of dread that was fighting with her relief. The only problem is that I know what Naraka is... it's the main Eugenics Board facility for this sector. There was a sense of confusion from the stallion, and Spiral sighed. It reduces the immediate pressure to act, but... being the subject of research is not a good thing, Lilac. === Spiral let Lilac sit in the back of her mind as she worked, keeping up a running commentary and switching between normal and shadow sight as the situation demanded. The first few kiloseconds were occupied by detailed scans of everypony present, to make sure nopony's condition had worsened overnight -- the sensors under the floor of each stall would alert her of any drastic changes, but anything more subtle required the personal touch. Moving from stall to stall with her medical kit panniers, Spiral topped up the pain medication of those that needed it. Many of her patients were being kept in blissful sleep in an attempt to reduce the risk of fugue, always more of a problem for the pony unable to work and having too much time to think. This next one is particularly unfortunate, she thought to Lilac, nosing open the door to stall seven. The smell of burnt fur and feathers, though faint, was pervasive and only kept under control by the negative pressure air handling system designed to minimise pheromonal cues disturbing adjacent patients. Lilac seemed to waver slightly in her head, the second-paw odour making him lose concentration. It only lasted a moment, though, and Spiral nodded to herself as the youngster calmed his emotions. That's good, Lilac. If you are to really develop your medical skills you will need to block out your natural instincts and maintain focus. What happened? he thought. This is Laminate; his duties included controlling a molecular beam epitaxy unit. It's delicate work, by all accounts, while also requiring significant levels of power. She looked down at the pony, tracing the terrible burns in his shoulder and flank. He swore he was okay and, like a fool, I believed him. He lost control during a high energy phase and this is the result. She pulled a bottle from her panniers and sprayed a gentle mist over both wounds. One of a family of drugs similar to trauma spray; it will prevent the damaged muscle from scarring before I can complete his treatment, she thought absently. The medication was returned to her panniers, a curl of magic brushing the small crystal tucked between two of the straps. Still no sign of life; where are you, Fusion? A trace of guilt filtered back from Lilac and she shook her head. Sorry. This is the most important lesson, Lilac. Ponies will lie to you when they think you might keep them away from their work. So take nothing on trust? Absolutely not. Now, you've obviously had some experience with healing muscular injuries, and I know you can work at some range. Another little pulse of guilt and Spiral smiled gently. Do you want to help me with Lam? Yes, please! Spiral's grin widened at his enthusiasm. Excellent. It's not quite the same as what you are used to; Laminate has actually lost muscle mass, so it's not just a matter of rejoining the fibres. What you have to do is detach the still living tissue and move it to reshape the muscle; this will make sure that, as he recovers, he will be able to rebuild his strength normally... and not be left misshapen. The pattern is a derivative of the one you've already used on yourself, so if you follow along... The green mare's thoughts tailed off as her magic started to make living muscle cells in Laminate's shoulder move to new locations. Worms of green light were joined by those of a pale purple, at first hesitantly and then with growing confidence, until the purple danced at the same speed as the green. Patient followed patient and, by the time the sun was only halfway towards the zenith, Lilac was already starting to feel the strain. He'd learnt more in the last ten kiloseconds than in all of the medic courses his old Masters had put him through. Physically exhausted despite not having moved a muscle, he gamely tried to keep up with Spiral. Finally the mare relented, allowing him to take a purely observational role as she worked her way through the ponies under her care, while still keeping up a constant stream of information, tips and shortcuts hard learned over her long life. Thoughts turning inwards towards his own injuries, Lilac could already see what he'd need to do to repair his gut; in a very real sense it was easier than skeletal muscle, as there was no requirement to get the shapes exactly right. In fact, there is very little actually missing, all I need to do is reattach each fused end and-- Something glittered at the edge of his shadow sight, a new presence rapidly blooming up out of the darkness to swirl through the infirmary. The taste of the magic was familiar, and Spiral stopped her own medical manipulations to tickle the disembodied pattern with her power. === The distant crystal was a tiny point of light that expanded rapidly as she reached for it. The fact that this was possible at all still delighted her; despite their quick test from the night before, long range clairvoyance wasn't something she'd really trained for. The shapes of the infirmary formed themselves from mist, quickly becoming solid and gaining their familiar pale colours. Her point of view was somewhere close to a plane of green fuzz that stretched up and away to a sharp ridge of long, white fibres. Fusion applied a gentle pressure and moved her locus higher up, away from the middle of Spiral's back. The other mare was deep in the middle of some magical operation, little points of light creeping their way over the still body of a tan stallion. Everything appeared to be normal; no screams or galloping hooves, no roar of jet engines or hammer of gunfire. Fusion reached out to the mare, enfolding the pony with her sharing. The connection wavered, then became firm, the tell-tale trickle of emotion from the Spiral filtering into Fusion's mind. It was strange; an odd mixture of satisfaction and a rapidly rising tension. Behind her, obviously linked through their own sharing, was Lilac. Hello, Spiral. How is-- Fusion, Lilac has removed the Blessing from fourteen ponies. Spiral's words ran through her like an electric shock and she felt her distant body twitch. Suddenly, Gravity was there, a hard presence breaking into the link even without the normal arcane invitation. Lilac's emotions spiked, a sudden surge of fear and guilt, in time with her own panic. Fusion sent her immaterial eye roving through the infirmary, past the rows of drugged ponies and out to look at the corral. Everything looked normal; no sign of Security or any suspicious behaviour on the part of the ponies not on shift. Fusion's panic flipped to a sudden anger, the gentle swirl of her projected mind becoming all edges and spines. Why would you do such a thing?! After all I went through to keep us a secret, you go and-- I couldn't just-- Of course you could! Do you know what's waiting for anypony they even suspect of being in contact with-- This time it was Gravity who cut her off, throwing up an image of a young stallion cowering in some small storage space. Fusion paused to get her frantic breathing under control, tasting her sister's own emotions -- not anger, like her own, but curiosity blended with a touch of admiration. Should have known you'd approve of this insanity! Fusion thought bitterly, shielding this as best she could from the others. Why those ponies, Lilac? Gravity thought, her own mental voice calm. What made you do it? They were undergoing the Maker's Test. Ah, that makes perfect sense. Fusion opened her eye and glared at Gravity "It does? Perhaps you could explain it to me, then?" she said out loud, coupled to the thoughts in the sharing. The fury had gone, replaced with cold sarcasm. You've never experienced the Test, have you? Fusion didn't reply, so Gravity continued. I have, and so has Lilac, I think. It hurts, Fusion, hurts so bad that you just want to die. It was after I was shot, I-I can't really remember too much, but I think it was worse than the laser. All over, inside and out... I-- The image of Lilac in his hiding place seemed to shrink, clipped wings coming up to cover his head. All those other ponies... I just couldn't do nothing. I'm sorry, I thought that the plan was to remove the Blessing from everypony... It is, Lilac, it is. Perhaps not quite so... unplanned, though. Gravity sounded distant, the distracted tone of a mind thinking of other things. Spiral? How many of those ponies would have died? It varies with the age of the individual and their condition... I could keep them alive with drugs and intravenous fluids as long as I'm allowed to, but that won't be forever. If a pony doesn't pull out of fugue within the first couple of kiloseconds by themselves, it normally doesn't end well. This lot... Spiral was silent for a long time, her magic flicking over the ponies Lilac had freed. That said, half were only here because of low level symptoms -- those should have recovered by themselves. I'd have euthanized a quarter within a few days. The rest... it's hard to tell. Fusion's anger drained away at the youngster's obvious distress and Spiral's blunt admission of the ponies' likely fate. It was replaced with a deep weariness and she closed her eye in resignation, letting her muzzle rest on the pine needles that carpeted the forest floor. I didn't realise it was that bad, she thought. That puts a different spin on the matter. Lilac, you did the right thing and I'm sorry for shouting at you. Fusion? I've been thinking about this. Back when you freed me, I had an idea that I'd never have to euthanize another injured pony deemed not economic to help, that you could provide them sanctuary. Don't you think this could be an opportunity, rather than another problem? Back at their distant wilderness hiding place, Fusion opened her eye in shock, then jerked her head around to stare at Gravity. The blue mare was grinning openly, her eyes twinkling with sudden delight. Fusion slowly nodded back at her, then focused her attention at Spiral. I think you might have something there. How would you do it? The corral has been subjected to levels of stress that are unheard of -- I'll probably see more ponies with fugue in the coming days, as individuals work through their emotions; most will come to terms with it, but there are always a few who get trapped in a downward trajectory. I can fake the deaths of all these ponies, but I'll need something to replace them with. Like what? Fusion thought, already building a list of everything they'd need for another fourteen ponies. Shelter, food, something to hold the ones they couldn't trust... That last point stuck in her mind -- along with an immediate, horrible solution that would leave them alive, yet unable to cause any problems. Anything organic, I suppose, but it really should be mammalian to stand a chance of passing a chemical analysis... they've never asked for bodies before, but they might this time. Best if I'm super efficient with the disposal, I think. Spiral paused, her tone shifting to one of sadness. The presence of Slip should help. There's cattle from the farms, Fusion thought, tentatively, but I imagine they are all logged. We'll sort something out, Gravity thought, nudging Fusion with one hoof back in the real world. When do you want to do it? The white mare rolled her eye in her sister's direction and Gravity mouthed the words: "I know just the place." Today, it should be today. I won't do all of them at once, but you should be ready for half of them. The silence lengthened, then Spiral sighed. I'm not looking forward to telling all those friends and family members. It will only be for a short while, Gravity thought. When the time comes we'll have to be quick. The Ma-- Dogs won't give us time to be careful, not now. Do what you have to do; we'll call again at dusk. If... if things ever go badly wrong, destroy the clairvoyance anchor. Fusion found herself nodding, even though her assent would not translate through this crude sharing. Good idea, Grav. Spiral, we might not be able to watch you all the time, but loss of the crystal will be obvious. Just make sure you really mean it, okay? We'll assume your life is in danger. There was a pause, Spiral's presence seeming to waver slightly. When her mental voice came back, it was subdued. Understood. There's one more thing, but I'm not sure if it's good news or bad. I've just received a message on my communicator; Random and all her foals have been transferred from that Security place. The mare's tone sounded tense, and Fusion felt her body twitch back in the real world. Do you know where they've gone? Fear made her stomach clench and her wings flick in agitation. Naraka. That's the big Eugenics Board place, about four kiloseconds flight time to the south of the corral. The message was, and I quote: 'Due to the unusual level of initiative shown by the ponies, they are receiving special care and training at the Naraka Institute for Biology.' I know of it. Fusion's ears flattened, working through the implications. I know that I and every other foal in this sector was conceived there. Why there? What else goes on at that place? I'm under orders not to discuss anything the Board does with anypony except for another medic, at least I was. Spiral's mental voice trembled slightly when she continued. A certain amount of prenatal screening and treatment, training of those ponies who will become veterinarians, and so on... but there is a big section that is off limits to visiting ponies. Is it similar to what my Masters were doing? Lilac thought, in a faintly wistful tone that made Fusion's fur stand on end. I really don't know, but there were captive herds -- ponies and gryphons -- that we were not allowed to approach. There's only so much you can do with computer models and theories. I remember that pregnant mare from the Institute, the one with the shaved belly, Gravity thought, anger leaking in from her part of the sharing. I wish I could have saved her, too. If that's where our foals are, then that's where we shall go... if we can, we'll get everypony out, Fusion thought, there's no way I'm going to leave anypony in a place like that. Spiral, show me everything you remember about Naraka. The mares talked, studying Spiral's slightly fuzzy memories of the Eugenics Board site, until it was time for the veterinarian to get back to her duties. More planning followed, until Gravity finally prodded Fusion into motion, leading her sister out of the shelter and deep into the mountains. === "There... do you see them?" Gravity breathed the words so quietly that Fusion could barely hear them. Fusion had followed Gravity to this spot, flying for a two kiloseconds before her sister had signalled that they should land. Now the pair stood side by side, looking out through a gap in the dense pine canopy, staring down at a small clearing on the valley floor. The white mare squinted in the low sun, trying to see what it was that Gravity had found. About a kilolength away was a small band of brown shapes nosing through the tall vegetation on the border of the river. Not ponies, not even similar, really. About her size, but without wings, and with spindly, bifurcated horns that jutted out from two places on the tops of their heads. All were an even grey-brown, with pale undersides and large, sensitive-looking muzzles. Some were much smaller; the herd had a collection of... Are those foals? Is that the right word? Fusion started to get a sinking feeling as she understood Gravity's intentions. "I found them while scouting the area, waiting for you to return," Gravity said, still whispering. "They have incredible hearing; when I first encountered them they all scattered... I'm kind of surprised that I managed to find them again. I guess this is the best grazing for kilolengths, around this slow patch of water." She turned to Fusion and smiled sadly. "I think they are a kind of deer." She made an image of one from the withers up, expanding its head so Fusion could get a good look. "I suppose I should have guessed this would be the only way." Fusion's ears drooped and she stared at the rotating image. At this larger-than-life magnification, the head was obviously small and sleek, with nothing like the bulging braincase of a pony or a gryphon. The image's jaws champed rhythmically, a long plant stem disappearing into its muzzle. Big muscles and tendons flexed in the cheeks and around the top of the head, further highlighting the lack of space for a sophont's brain. "This is the only herd you've found?" "So far. I'm sure there are others, out there in the valleys." So many from a single herd; this could be a disaster for them. Fewer eyes to look for danger meant more chance of being picked off. "We'll have to avoid taking the mothers with fo-- ...fawns." Fusion stumbled over the word, then shook her head. This is hardly a difficult choice, considering everything else that's happened. "How do you want to do it?" Gravity pulled a long block of wood from one pannier, then split it in half to reveal two triangular slivers of some dark grey material, passing one of them to Fusion. It was quite weighty for its size; about half the length of her foreleg and as wide as her hoof at the base of the triangle, tapering to a fine point. Fusion moved it carefully, suddenly afraid of the thing. Its edges gleamed wetly, invisibly fine and perfect, and looked sharp enough to cut her even at this distance. Gravity held hers up, levelled like a spear, then made it flick forwards, invisibly fast. About a hundred paces away, a sturdy branch abruptly fell off a tree. The weapon was back almost before Fusion realised it was gone, hovering in front of its mistress' face and rotating slowly so she could inspect it. "It's cut from one of the larger plates on a gryphon's barding... some kind of metal-ceramic-fullerene composite, I think. It must have a tungsten matrix; it's too heavy for anything else." Fusion eyed Gravity's weapon and shivered slightly. Even after slicing through a respectable branch, there was little more than tree sap on the surface; the edge still looked as sharp as when the other mare had cut it with a force field. "Why like this?" Gravity wouldn't meet her gaze. "You need to practice, to know what it is like to end a life. Seeing it through my eyes doesn't really mean anything, and I helped you with Packet. It will also be quicker than trying to use a direct spell effect against a magically defended target." The mare gazed fixedly at the ground, making random patterns in the dirt with a forehoof. "Using a physical weapon means you can reach the Dog inside with one strike... I know these deer are just flesh and blood, and you could use anything to kill them, but this the best I can do. They won't feel it if you do it right." "I have had to do a few things, Gravity," Fusion said, "you don't need to be worried about me. You keep it; I was never as skilled as you at throwing things." She gently laid the over-sized knife on the leaf-litter, using a fallen branch to keep the edges off the ground. "Just trying to help," the mare mumbled, "don't want you to go through what I did without preparation." Fusion put the deer out of her mind and stepped close to nuzzle her sister. "I've been thinking about this for what seems like forever..." she whispered, her mouth close enough to Gravity's ear to make it twitch. "I decided that, if I had to, I could do whatever it takes to win. I don't want to do this, but we have little choice. In the end, this is going to be one of the easier decisions I'm going to have to make." You'd like to think that, wouldn't you, a little treasonous voice said, before Fusion pushed it away. What choice do I have? Gravity will fall apart if she has to do everything. The pattern built in her mind; a simple spell, one normally designed to heat grain and render it more digestible, but more than robust enough to take all the power she could push through it. As a foal, back during her Pathfinding lessons and a little before her Blessing, she'd experimented with her magic to see the limits of her young strength. This was encouraged by her teachers; there was that one memorable day when Backdraft had taken the class down to the training centre and... She'd come back home with more than a few patches of singed fur, and a smile that hadn't gone away for a whole day. Fusion turned her head to look at the deer and pushed. Her horn flashed, a brief surge of white-gold, and a pinpoint of white light materialised amid the herd and ran a brief zigzag path from one animal to the next. The motion was too fast to really resolve with the naked eye, and was only visible by the afterimages it left on the retina. The herd scattered, then a few seconds later there was a crackling roar of sound, like that of a lightning strike. Breathing heavily, not from the exertion but from the shocking ease of the action, Fusion killed the spell and stared down at the results. This is but a sample of what will happen next, she thought, ears drooping. Surely the Dogs will see sense and we can talk as equals? Suddenly desperately afraid of what was coming, the mare shook her head, trying to clear her mind of a much larger landscape rent with craters and dark gashes, above which towered plumes of fire and smoke. Is there anything I can do to stop this from happening? Transfixed by this vision, Fusion jumped when Gravity leaned against her. "You'll only be able to hit one protected target, I think... but I'm sorry I doubted you," the blue mare said, gazing at the distant clearing, "come on, let's get these somewhere safe... we still need to sort out how we're going to house all our guests before we talk to Spiral again." Gravity stepped away, then flicked open her wings and glided into the valley. Fusion watched her go, rooted to the spot by what she imagined she'd find, then forced herself into motion, her eyes fixed on Gravity's receding rump. Down amid the water, seven deer lay unmoving, thin plumes of smoke rising from their heads.