//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: Fluorescence of a Tide // by Johnjohns //------------------------------// Fluorescence of a Tide By: Johnjohns2 Prologue Twilight Sparkle was lying in her hospital bed in room 317 on the third floor of Ponyville's hospital asleep. She was tucked under the covers, and had three pillows supporting her head. The continuous beep of her heart monitor filled the room with an ominous echo. An IV filled with a clear liquid was connected to her by a clear plastic tube to a receptacle in her right foreleg, and an oxygen mask covered her face. The clock on the wall read 11:41 PM, and the blinds on the windows were closed. Sitting on the table was a vase, filled with various types of flowers, which provided the room with a sweet fragrance. The newest book in the Daring Doo series sat next to the vase, a bookmark dwelling only a few pages from the book's end. Kneeling at the side of the bed, resting her head on her forelegs was a butter yellow pegasus mare with a pink mane. The look on her face was that of a mix of confusion and sadness. She had tear-stains running from her eyes to her chin. Her gaze was fixed upon the violet unicorn’s face, whose expression was one of ease and content. The image of Twilight’s peaceful smile had burned itself into the mind of Fluttershy. She wasn't absolutely sure, but she felt as though her friend had accepted her condition, and did not fear the dire situation that she was currently encapsulated in. This brought a slight ease to Fluttershy’s warring emotions, but not completely so. The door to the room opened quietly. “Excuse me, Fluttershy, but may I speak with you for a minute?” asked one of the nurses. Fluttershy nodded and leaned over to give Twilight a kiss on the forehead, before turning to walk out of the room. She closed the door behind her as silently as she could. The inside of the hallway was quiet. The normal hustle and bustle of the hospital was completely absent. There were only a few medical ponies behind the main desk sorting out paperwork. Occasionally a medical assistant would enter or leave one of the rooms in the hallway to check in on the patients. A grey-coated stallion with a light-brown mane and tail exited the elevator at the end of the hall and walked over to a janitor’s closet, opened the door, and disappeared inside. One of the fluorescent lights in the panel above Fluttershy's head flickered, its days of giving off light soon coming to a close, at which point it would be replaced by another brand-new gas-filled tube. “What is it?” Fluttershy asked in her usual quiet tone, her sense of worry increasing. “Well... it’s about Twilight,” started the nurse. “We went through all of her medical records. She has had no health problems in the past. We have... well... we still have no idea of what’s wrong with her. I feel that all we can do is wait for the blood results to get here tomorrow, so we can get a better idea of what’s going on inside her.” Fluttershy felt a wave of agony course through her veins. “Oh no,” she whimpered. “Have we heard anything from... from the others?” she asked while choking back a tear. “Yes,” said the nurse. “We contacted each of them, and they each said that they are on they’re way.” “Oh, well I hope that they come. I feel that we should all be by Twilight’s side, so that we can help her... help her get through this.” Fluttershy, suddenly unable to will back the tears, began to cry. The nurse hugged Fluttershy in a warm embrace. “Fluttershy, listen to me. We are doing everything we can to help her. Twilight is going to be alright,” said the nurse in the most sincere voice, trying to comfort the yellow pegasus. “But what if she’s not going to be alright? I never even got to say goodbye, and...” Fluttershy lost herself in her tears. “Hey! Don’t start thinking like that. You have to be strong, for your friend, and for yourself. Do you understand me?” the nurse asked in a powerful voice. “Yes,” Fluttershy was slowly starting to stop crying. “I understand. Thank you for...” Fluttershy was suddenly cut off by an alarm coming from a speaker next to an illuminated red light on the wall above Twilight’s door. The nurse hesitated for only a fraction of a second before galloping over to the door and slamming it open, along with two medical assistants. The nurse began to shout out orders. “She has gone into cardiac arrest,” stated the nurse. “Somepony get me a syringe of epinephrine now!” The medical assistants got busy, and listened to the pink-maned nurse in charge. Her cutie mark was the same as the hospital's logo. “The defibrillator is charged, Nurse Redheart!” stated the medical assistant. “Alright!” said nurse Redheart as she stuck the syringe into the same vein in Twilight’s right foreleg as the IV tube, and then withdrew, at the same time removing the sheets covering Twilight Sparkle. “Ok, give her a charge at fifty percent.” The first assistant brought over the two paddles, while the second assistant stuffed a wad of gauze into the unicorn's mouth. The nurse took the two paddles from the assistant, rubbed them together, and then placed the paddles of life against Twilight’s violet chest. “Clear!” Twilight Sparkle’s body lurched upwards, as all of the muscles in her body clenched up. After a second her body fell back onto the bed, the alarm from her heart monitor still wailing. “Get me another shot, and get ready to give her another jolt!” ordered the nurse. During all of this Fluttershy was watching from the doorway of the room, tears of sadness running down her face. Here she was; watching her friend die, and she couldn't do anything to stop it. Where were the others? What was taking them so long? Is Twilight going to be alright? All of these questions swarmed throughout the matrix of thought that was Fluttershy’s mind; all the while she was watching nurse Redheart desperately try to save Twilight from this immediate threat to her life. “Hold on Twilight," wept Fluttershy. “Just hold on.”