//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 A odd helper // Story: Red Winter // by Bronycommander //------------------------------// Chapter 6: An odd helper Cold. Fletcher could fell nothing. Only the cold Dying of exposure Was this his fate and those of his friends? Had it been in vain? Slowly, he felt warmth, struggling to open his eyes, feeling rather stiff. “Ugh…” “F-F-Fletch?” Dinky said weakly, awaking too with her three friends. They all four saw a campfire in the middle, warming them up. “We’re…alive?” Lily wondered. “Yes, you are.” An unknown voice said, startling them. “Looks like I just came in time.” They looked around and then noticed, the voice came from the fire, strangely having the form of a pony, being set aflame, lying on the ground. “W-what?” Blau was lost for words, just staring in confusion at it. “Who…What are you?” Fletcher demanded to know, sounding suspicious. “I mean no harm I am here to help. Call me the Ifrit, or just Ifrit if you want.” The flaming pony replied. “I am…a spirit, here to assist you, Fletcher Fray.” As they looked closer, Dinky noticed that the spirit was wearing armor and she connected the dots. “Wait, are you…” “Yes, Dinky, I am the Royal Guard you saw in Italy from time to time. Back then, I was still learning how I could help you.” Fletcher, while being also surprised and confused, could swear that Ifrit was familiar to him. The speech pattered was similar to a certain pony he knew once and could see a horn, meaning the spirit was a unicorn, having seen it before but he couldn’t really put a hoof on it. Then the sound of engines greeted their ears. “Help! Over there!” The children called out in an attempt to signal whoever was driving outside, hoping they would be heard. They heard the sounds of brakes, followed by footsteps, a light shining in their direction. “You’re alive! Thank god, I feared the worst!” It was Alexander, happy to see them. The children were overjoyed to see him too, turning to Casp who had his head lowered, leaning against the wall. “Casp, we are saved!” They exclaimed but he did not respond. “Casp?” Lily asked and managed to walk over, tapping his shoulder. He fell over, staying lifeless. It took her and her friends only seconds to realize. “No…No…” She started to cry, Dinky and the siblings did too. Fletcher hugged them for comfort, seeing how the ghostly stallion lowered his head. “I am afraid any help came too late for him.” “Damn it.” Alexander mourned his fellow soldier. “He was a good friend and soldier. But he knew the risks, children, you hadn’t made it without him.” Dinky sniffed. “At least…he’s in a better place now.” She then told the officer what had happened after he had moved out from the abandoned camp. “I see. Sounds like the She-Bear isn’t so merciless at it seems. But I’ll make sure Casp gets a proper burial. It’s the least I can do. Come, I take you to the nearest base. Fray waved a hoof. “Thank you, but it would be better I get them home right now.” “As you wish. Fletcher Fray, right?” The pony nodded. “It was nice to meet you. Have a safe journey home.” He saluted and grabbed Casp’s body, carrying it outside. After a short moment, Katja asked, “How are we gonna get home?” “Don’t worry. After our experience with the Veil, Luna created a spell that gets us right back home if something goes wrong, or if I am too weak to cast the normal spell. As sort of a safety to ensure nobody can use us again.” Fletcher explained and lit up his horn. It only sparked and he stumbled before Ifrit caught him. “You are still weakened. Let me help.” Despite being transparent, Fletcher could feel the warmth from his body and the touch but was not burned at all. And despite the flames, he could still recognize a helmet and face behind it. Then his horn lit up, blinking like a Morse code and a short moment after, a white light engulfed all. Lily couldn’t tell how long she was out before a faint beeping sound echoed in her ears as she slowly managed to open her eyes. The filly had to blink a few times for her vision to become clear. He was in a hospital room, white walls and beds. In the beds next to her were her friends, heart-lung machines warming them, EKGs showing their heart rates. She let out a sigh of relief, happy it was over now. “Lily!” Her parents ran in, hugged her with tears of joy, she returned it. “We were so worried!” Pine Marten exclaimed. “I have seen ponies on life-support before, but my own daughter…” Pin Cushion shivered. “Mama…Papa… missed you!” With slight groans, the others awoke too, with the parents looking grateful at Fletcher. "Thank you for saving our daughter, we owe you something, Mr. Fray.” Marten said and he waved a hoof. “I did only my duty.” Just then, the parents of the other children walked in and hugged them, Midnight, Wolf, Wagensroll, Patch and Luna followed after, looking at the stallion with relieved expressions. “Fletch, you’re awake…I feared you would never wake up.” Wolf told him. “But I did. How long were we out?” “A few weeks. When Luna teleported you here, you were very weak and strongly subcooled.” Wagensroll explained with a hint of fear in his voice. “I know you have been through a lot but seeing you on life-support was…terrifying to see.” “Still, what happened?” Luna asked as her sister brought the other foals in and Lily started to tremble. “Y-you shouldn’t see this…” Her three friends nodded before Luna walked up. “Shh…It’s alright,” She spoke in a comforting voice and lit up her horn, touching Lily’s forehead and again, everyone was transparent. “That was very nice of him,” Derpy commented with a smile as she saw how Casp helped her daughter, yet she and the others gasped at the dead bodies, Luna and Celestia used her wings to shield the other foals. “Oh dear…I have seen a lot but that…is scary…” Midnight commented at the sight. “Yeah…” Fletcher replied, slightly unsettled himself. “Quite an effective tactic, I give her that.” Wagensroll was slightly impressed at the tactics of Katyusha. “Yes, I have to agree,” Fletcher admitted before the interrogation was shown, causing everyone to startle slightly at the woman’s outburst. “Oh my… better not talk to her when she’s not in a good mood,” Wolf mumbled with unease, yet even she and Midnight had to look away at the executions, everyone else did too. “That’s….sick….” Patch could only shiver at this sight. “Yes,” Fletcher added, before the rest was shown and that they moved out. “It honors her.” The Doctor said with pride in his voice. “Yes, daddy, it does,” Dinky replied before she and her friends saw how Casp got grazed at the river, leaving a bloody trail in the snow. It made her, Lily and the siblings realize: His fate had been sealed, it hadn’t been their fault. “Who, who is that pony?” Midnight asked confused upon seeing Ifrit.” “I can’t really tell but someone, he is familiar,” Fray replied as they were back in the hospital. “What about this lab we discovered?” Katja asked into the round and Celestia stepped forward. “It’s hard to tell. The fact it's near Ponyville and has the design that was characteristic for my engineers during the civil war, hints it was built by my side. But I’d have known that and I couldn’t discover any documents from it. Maybe they were lost, it requires further investigations. But there are also suspicions that the Grye family could be involved…” After the lab had been discovered and that the children went missing, Celestia and Luna ordered Midnight and Wolf to investigate the house of the Grye family for anything useful, thinking they could have something to do with this. From the outside, it looked like a normal two-story building, very old, yet not out of place for a town like Ponyville. Still, the building was graying out in color, slightly in disrepair and the trees around it were dead. It looked like out of a horror movie Cloudy Quartz, Pinkie's mother, was from the last-living strand of the Grye family, thus she took the task of guiding the two knights and the parents of the missing children through the house. They looked in awe and fear at the house, as it was somehow terrifying. It was dimly-lit and the wallpaper's decaying along with most of the woodwork. There were no cushions or blankets or even carpets either as they came past a portrait of a mare. “Just through yonder hall and herein, we find...” Cloudy pointed ahead before there was a loud scream. “FREAKS!” Startled, Wolf stared up at the mare in the painting. “What the?!” It was clear from a glance the painting was old by how the mare was dressed. Her hoop-skirt, though dully colored slate and sepia, was ornate, fastened with black ribbon and smoky lace. Her cinereous mane was bundled high over her head, curled into funnels sloping over her scalp, pinned with great needles tipped with jet. But if it was possible for a mare to look as if she'd been brought back from the dead without actually having died, they were looking at the proof right now. Her ash-grey skin didn't look so much wrinkled as frayed like rotting parchment. Her eyes were so sunken they looked as though they were disappearing into the wall behind. Her hooves were cracked and mangy-looking, her back was twisted and creaky. And her face would be seen forever in the nightmares of any foal who beheld it and even possibly a few grown mares and stallions. “Witches! Heretics! Foul-Breeds! How dare you besmirch the house of my forefathers with your filth!!!” It yelled with an anger expression Cloudy Quartz in response, sighed. “My good ponies. Mayhaps thoust not yet hadst acquainted with my...grandmother;” She pointed upwards at the portrait. “The Grandama Mrs Mesothelae Grye and mother of my own mother, Mormoria, by her cousin Mordstreick Grye III.” “You! You bring the filth to our hallowed halls! Blood-Traitor! Apostate! Abomination! Hooves Of The Old Blood curse you and break your very bones!” It yelled at her. “Has she...always been like that?” Midnight asked surprised. Cloudy Quartz lowered her head, a weary expression. “Verily so. About your question regarding teleport and dimension jumps, it is very likely. They did such experiments in the past, but little information about it still exists today. We will probably have to search every room for any information about those past experiments.” “It is still undergoing if they were involved with this. Still, I am more curious about that Ifrit.” Celestia explained. “I am still here.” They heard a voice and turned around, seeing that the spirit was behind them, still being a pony aflame. “I have returned to serve you once again, your Highness.” He bowed respectfully. All others could only stare in surprise, but Celestia’s expression became surprised, as if she knew him. “How...how is it possible?” “I've had...a lot of time to think... In war, the first casualty is truth. Always. And I want to atone for my sins.” Ifrit explained with guilt in his voice, head slightly lowered before Celestia pulled him into a hug. ”Shh…It’s over…I am happy too to see you again…” Despite the awkwardness, everyone smiled slightly at the heartwarming scene. None of them could tell who Ifrit was. A Royal Guard Celestia had been close? A good friend? Not that they would ever knew. But Dinky could already tell one thing. I am sure his assistance will come in handy.