//------------------------------//
// 26 - Coup d'état, Part 6 of 9 
// Story: The Last Cutie Mark Crusader 
// by Jatheus 
//------------------------------//

Cloud Blazer knew that more soldiers had arrived by the echo of pounding hooves spreading out through the hallway. It sounded like they were searching room to room. He lay in his bed, facing the door and pretending to sleep. The others were hiding on the floor behind the beds, so at least they wouldn't be seen from the corridor. His breath became shallow as the soldiers drew closer and closer. He still couldn't see them, but they couldn't be more than a room or two away. Banging noise from above signaled that solders were searching several floors.

The stallion tried to swallow, difficult as his throat was parched. His heart pounded against his ribcage as two unicorns came up to the door. They turned on the light, effectively stopping time for a moment. Cloud Blazer was blinded by the brightness, and started to sit halfway up, squinting at them. One of them took a few steps forward just when shouting came from the hallway.

"We found her! Let's go!" a soldier cried out.

The two unicorns darted away, leaving the light on in their haste as they charged down the length of the hospital. Cloud Blazer laid back down, and everypony in the room sighed in collective relief.

...

Pixyglitter had no intention of complying, no matter what they said.

"Madam mayor, open this door right now!" a soldier shouted.

"There's been an attack, and we have orders to bring you to the castle for your own safety," the soldier said.

"There is no mayor in here," Pixyglitter shouted, her voice full of fear.

She had managed to find a vase in the room and shatter it, taking up one of the larger shards to use as a knife. It wouldn't be long now. It sounded like the one was now joined by several others. They began ramming the door.

Leaving her wheelchair to block the door, Pixyglitter rolled up one of the bedsheets to use it as a rope. She quickly tied off one end to a door stop, and the other to a cabinet handle on the other side. It wasn't strong, but it should be enough to trip the first one that came in. This task was difficult without the use of her eyes. They pounded again and the door cracked. Pixyglitter crawled to sit near the opening and waited; her thoughts were only on the battle ahead. They would be wearing armor, so her best bet would be to go for the throat.

They pounded again and again, but eventually the door broke open. She heard one of the soldiers yelp as he stumbled on the bed sheet, and his heavy body fell on her with full force. Not wasting the opportunity, she jammed the broken shard of vase up into him, hearing a metallic scrape, and then she was covered in the warm effusion that followed. She had hit her mark.

"By Celestia! Stand down!" a soldier shouted.

Pixyglitter groped on the body of the dying soldier and found his knife. There was some fight still in him, and he began struggling against her. She pulled it from the sheath and held it forward.

"Back away or I swear I'll kill you all!" she screamed viscously.

"Put the knife down; we're not going to hurt you," the soldier spoke in a forced calm.

"Then why beat in the door?" she said, her voice quivering from the adrenaline surge.

She heard the light click on and then collective gasp.

"You let a blind girl take your knife?" one soldier asked.

Another snorted. Pixyglitter groaned at the callous description.

"We don't have time for this," another said.

Pixyglitter heard the action of a crossbow being loaded.

"I'm not going to ask again. Put that knife down," a soldier said. 

The tone in his voice let Pixyglitter know that he would kill her if she didn't comply. Her resolve failed, and she heard the knife clatter to the floor. There was some scrambling, and she was soon restrained.

"Medic!" one of the soldiers shouted down the corridor.

"Nah, I'm fine," another said. "She only skewered my canteen; I'm not hurt."

The soldiers moved about, finally placing her back in her hospital bed. It didn't take them long to finish their search of the room. They talked quietly among themselves before walking away and leaving her there. Pixyglitter felt the bandages over her eyes become soaked with tears. She was just a useless blind girl. She had become helpless and she knew it.