//------------------------------// // The Medic (Part 1) // Story: Returning Heroes // by Axel IV //------------------------------// Only the dead have seen the end of war - George Santayana "THEY'VE BROKEN PAST THE TRENCH! PULL BACK!" a voice shouted as the beams of magic erupted from the skies, tearing up the earth. Sounds of yelling, screaming, and explosions were blanked out as Dr. Whooves was knocked onto his back, a nearby explosion sending him from his feet and into the mix of mud and blood. There was a sharp pain in his side, and it somehow became very hard to breathe. The skies were a dull grey, and it looked as though the clouds were crying. "Unicorns! Advance!" The voice of Shining Armor was loud and clear, and for an instant that was all Dr. Whooves could hear, "We're not done here, ponies! We can go on! This isn't over!" Dr. Whooves felt inspiration fill his heart, the stallion getting himself to his hooves. He wore a green helmet like most of the other stallions, but his had a large red cross painted onto it. In his saddlebags he held all the medical supplies he could, and he needed to keep those clean no matter what. "MEDIC!" A voice called from the left, "I NEED A MEDIC OVER HERE!" Dr. Whooves immediately galloped to the sound of the voice, the explosions starting to block off his hearing. To his left and right, stallions were gathering themselves for an assault. The unicorns wore special helmets so that their horns were exposed, showing off their main weapons. The Pegasi were in the air, fighting all the airborne changelings. At first, it seemed that all of the changelings had wings, but they were the only ones that had attacked the palace with their queen. There were bigger, stronger changelings on the ground, and the earth ponies were their main enemies. "UNICORNS! FIRE!" Shining armor cried out, and power beams shot from the horns of the powerful ponies. There was a loud explosion off in the distance where they fired. Dr. Whooves couldn't see over the trenches, but he knew that the unicorns had hit their mark. "MEDIC!" The voice cried out again, "I NEED A MEDIC HERE!" Dr. Whooves finally found his patient, and his hope had dropped. The pony that he needed to work on was being held by his comrade, and there was a huge gash on his chest. Doctor Hooves recognized him immediately as a resident of Ponyville, along with his friend who was cradling him in his fore-hooves. He was an earth pony, while his friend was a pegasus. Biting his lip, Dr. Whooves quickly opened up his saddle back. He would not give up here. He would NOT. "Give it pressure! We need to stop the bleeding!" The medic yelled, pulling out some healing powder and a large white bandage. The unicorn was applying pressure with his hooves, his eyes tearing up as the patient began to cough, blood seeping from his lips. "Stay with me, colt!" Dr. Whooves cried out, emptying the powder onto the wound as he took out the bandage. There was a nearby explosion, and screams engulfed the large trench. Dr. Whooves covered his patient with his body, rocks flying into his back. Ignoring the pain, the doctor quickly wrapped the cloth around the patient as he looked into his eyes. "Come on, sonny...." Whooves said, "You'll be okay...don't give up...don't give up! No! Stay with me!" The earth pony glanced up at him, his eyes red and teary. He was trying to speak, his breathing erratic and broken up. "Doctor..." The pony spoke, his hoof trembling as he reached into his saddlebag. He pulled out something and slammed it into the doctor's chest, his voice shaking and breaking up. "T-t-t-ake...it....my....w-w-w-wife......" "No!" Whooves yelled out, his eyes wide as he shouted at the stallion, "You do it! LIVE! Don't give up! You CAN'T!" The stallion was already gone. As Whooves stared at the colt, cries and explosions were hitting into the trenches. The unicorn was hugging his dead friend, screaming as tears rolled down his cheeks. Dr. Whooves almost couldn't hear the cries for help behind him. "Medic! I NEED A MEDIC OVER HERE!" "DOCTOR! DOCTOR!" "WHERE THE HELL'S THE MEDIC?!" "PLEASE! SOMEBODY HELP HIM! MEDIC!" Dr. Whooves turned around, gritting his teeth as he ran to the sources of the voices. Another stallion would return home in a box. It had been a few weeks since the doctor found himself back in Ponyville in the comforts of his own home. His bed was just as soft as he remembered it, the mares just as beautiful and the small town just as peaceful. The sun was still breathtaking, and the early morning birds were making wonderful music. The doctor rose from his bed, his eyes looking out of the window and onto the streets. The ponies were opening up their shops, smiles and laughter being heard from his thin walls. Everything was pleasant here, and everything was exactly how he left it. He got up from his bed, making his way over to the bathroom. The shower was just as warm and soothing as it had been two years ago. When he was done, he made his way to the kitchen. His breakfast was just as energizing as it had always been for him two years ago. And when he stepped outside, the sunlight was just as awesome as he had remembered it. Nothing had changed here at all. "Morning Dr. Whooves!" A small unicorn filly cried out, smiling up at the stallion, "Have you seen Applejack or Scootaloo? They were supposed to meet me here!" "Sorry, Sweetie Belle." Dr. Whooves smiled, "I haven't yet." He walked away, and the small filly watched him. She noticed that he wasn't as talkative, and his smiles just weren't as warm as they had been before. She simply shrugged it off, thinking that he just needed to get used to Ponyville again. But it was much more then that. Doctor Whooves was wearing his saddlebag, and in it he had the item that a soldier had asked him to give to his wife. It was the same soldier he tried to save in the trenches, and the stallion's broken form haunted Dr. Whooves every time he closed his eyes. He needed to do this...he needed to give that stallion his last wish. He couldn't save the life of that young soldier...but maybe he could still help that stallion in a different way. As he was slowly trotting down the street, a certain building caught his eye. Sugarcube Corner. That was one of the most visited buildings in Ponyville, and business was booming as usual. Ponies were flooding in and out, and each of them had a smile on their face. He had spent many hours in there as well, speaking to his good friend Mr. Cake. For running a sweet shop, he had been one skinny pony. He was always happy taking care of his kids, being with his wife, and feeding Ponyville delicious cupcakes. But he couldn't do any of that anymore. Dr. Whooves caught a glance of Mrs. Cake in the window. She was smiling, bringing out wonderful sweets to the pony who had ordered it. She was at the counter, and to her left was the always energetic Pinkie Pie. Ever since Mr. Cake left, he had heard that Pinkie had stepped it up to help out. She was a good mare, and he was glad that Mrs. Cake had such a great helper. And he was happy that Pinkie was there for Mrs. Cake when she had gotten the news. He walked past the building, not wanting to think about it. He was afraid to show his face there. Too many memories of his friend, and he couldn't bear to see Mrs. Cake cry again. Her foals would never know their father. As he was heading down the streets, a big red stallion caught his eye. Big Macintosh was helping out his sister, picking up crates of apples and placing them into the cart. Their eyes met, and they gave each other a nod. They had an understanding of one another, and even though they served in different units they knew of each other. Big Mac had a scar over his right eye that had been slashed. Dr. Whooves thought it was rather cool, but he was afraid to ask the red stallion how he had gotten it. They almost never talked about their war stories anyway. When Big Mac looked away to speak to his sister, the former medic went on his way. "MEDIC!" Dr. Whooves snapped his head in the direction of the sound, his heartbeat quickening. His breaths came short, his muscles tense. "MEDIC!" He immediately galloped away, his feet slamming into the ground as he passed by all the other ponies. The buildings were suddenly replaced with a high trench wall, the sound of talking was swept away by explosions. He felt the weight of a helmet on his head once again, and he could feel the blood of his allies on his hooves. He heard screaming, and he turned a corner. "WHERE?! WHERE'S THE SOLDIER?!" He yelled out. Suddenly, his helmet was gone, and buildings of Ponyville was back. In the middle of the street were three young colts. and one of them was on his back and blinking. They were all wearing what looked to be bad war costumes with turtle shells as helmets. "Dr. Whooves! You wanna play with us?" One of them asked, "Is that why you came running?" "Um...sorry little ponies." Dr. Whooves breathed a sigh of relief, "I'll just be on my way." He turned away, back onto his main objective. "Why are you calling out for a medic?" "Because I got hit!" "Lame! Medics aren't cool! All they do is save people!" "Yeah! Medics probably have the easiest job in wars! They don't even fight!" Whooves froze and turned around to face the three young colts. Wait, no. They're just colts. No need to get upset. They don't know anything. Just leave...That's it. "Yeah! Soldiers are cool! Medics probably aren't even soldiers!" Leave. Now. "Yeah. And I bet that they don't even save ponies half of the time- "SHUT UP." The three colts turned their head towards Whooves. The doctor had never been seen like this. He had never been angry before. And unbeknown to him, the ponies in the streets stopped what they were doing and watched him. "Um..." One of the colts started to say, "Dr.- "You don't know anything..." Whooves growled, "Medics don't fight?....MEDICS DON'T FIGHT?!" He pressed in, "WE FIGHT TO KEEP SOLDIERS ALIVE! CAN YOU EVEN IMAGINE WHAT IT'S LIKE TO SEE THE LIFE OF SOMEONE YOU'RE TRYING TO SAVE PASS RIGHT BEFORE YOUR EYES WHILE THEY'RE BEGGING TO LIVE?! CAN YOU EVEN IMAGINE WHAT IT'S LIKE TO FEEL SO HELPLESS WHEN YOU KNOW YOU CAN'T SAVE A YOUNG STALLION?! CAN YOU EVEN IMAGINE WHAT IT'S LIKE TO SEE YOUR FRIENDS BEING CUT DOWN ALL AROUND YOU?!" The three colts backed down, their eyes wide. "We're...We're sorry..." Dr. Whooves was smacked back into reality, and he saw the tears well up in their eyes. "Oh...I'm.." The doctor glanced around, seeing the eyes of everypony on him. They weren't angry...they were sympathetic, sadness spreading amongst them all. This was exactly what Dr. Whooves had been afraid of. He didn't want to bring back the horrors of war...each of the ponies had their experience of it in one way or another even if they hadn't been involved themselves. Many of them had lost friends, family, loved ones...And Whooves sometimes felt that it was his fault. He couldn't save them. Maybe if he tried harder. Maybe if he was smarter, or stronger. Could he have made a difference? The colts began to start sobbing, and Whooves sighed. Way to go, doc. Way to go.