//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: Tomorrow // Story: A Life, for A Life // by Zinnia //------------------------------// A few hours later.. Silence. Twilight, Fizzlepop, Valkyrie and myself, sat in complete silence in the waiting room of the infirmary in chairs. The room, having a wallpaper of the clear blue skies, with a white and pink tile floor. The silence only broken by an occasional sigh, or a sniffle from Fizzlepop, laying her head in my lap. I tried my best to comfort her, giving her pets and scratches even in these circumstances. She seemed to appreciate it though, leaning in further into my hand. I wasn't doing too good myself either. I was terrified, and in this silence, my mind was racing at break neck speeds, trying to figure out how and why this had happened. First the Ursa Major, and now this.. On the next day even. Sure, during the prior incident no one was hurt, but this time.. at least half a dozen of Celestia's guards have lost their lives. I never knew who they were, and now I won't ever get the chance to know. Regardless if I knew them or not, I still felt remorseful for it. I looked up at Twilight, who herself wasn't looking any better. She probably has a lot on her mind too. Of course she does... Starlight and Luna were taken, and my friends were hurt and burned badly. Twilight had to use some sort of gizmo to lower the sun and raise the moon in the princess's absence, to avoid causing a panic. Celestia was in stable condition, so was Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Spike. But Rainbow Dash, Apple Jack, and even Rarity were far worse. They must have been trying to protect the others... I figured as I thought of the generous mare. Twilight noticed my gaze and stood up, walking up to me. "Twilight..?" I asked the approaching mare. "Are you..." I was cut off as Twilight wrapped her hooves around my barrel, taking in Fizzlepop along with the embrace. I guess that answers my question then. I returned the embrace, my arms wrapping around both Twilight and Fizzy. I felt an extra pair of gray hooves come from behind me, coming into my vision. I turned slightly to see Valkyrie, with a sad frown on her face. We all sat like that for a while, just enjoying the comfort of the embrace. The sound of a door opening could be heard to my left, the door where our friends were waiting behind. We all looked up to see Nurse Snowheart, one of the few nurses that worked here in the castle's infirmary. She had a coat that was a pale yellow, much like Fluttershy's I noted, with a blue mane and tail with gray streaks. She wore a nurses cap that had red cross etched into it. She walked towards us at a brisk pace, smiling. "Hello there," She began, sounding relieved about something. "I'd like to inform you that all of your friends will be fine." All of us sighed in relief at the news. "it'll take a couple days to fully recover some of the burns, but rest and proper hygiene should clear those up in no time." Twilight and Valkyrie stepped away from me, and Fizzlepop stood up. "Can we go see them?" I asked, hopeful. Nurse Snowheart nodded, turning around back to the door she came from. "Follow me." Snowheart said. We all followed behind her into the room. Medical beds lines the walls, 5 on each side. Various equipment lied scattered across the room, indicating the work it took to keep these ponies breathing. Celestia, Pinkie Pie, Spike and Fluttershy lay on the beds on one side of the room, while Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity and one of the guards that managed to hold out. It was a male pony, neither pegasus or unicorn. Dark blue coat with a blue mane and tail. looking far worse than I could have imagined. He had several burns across his barrel, across his right cheek, and on his left flank. Some of his coat had to be shaved off either because it was too damaged to grow back correctly, or the doctors had to get rid of some damaged skin. They were still asleep, but otherwise fine. I walked towards Celestia, taking a seat near the edge of the mattress. I looked down at her form with distant eyes. Her once pristine white coat, was now tattered and marred. Although her mane, still flowing through some unknown force was the same as it ever was. It was a beautiful sight. I took my hand and brushed aside some of the mane that was covering her face. And I broke. I couldn't hold it in anymore. It started off as a sniffle, and then tears began falling. Leaning over, I wrapped my arms around her barrel, put my head under her neck, and I wept. At that moment, I was crying for multiple reasons. I was afraid. Afraid of losing my friends, afraid of them getting hurt.. and afraid that they might just slip away. I was sympathetic. Starlight, along with Celestia's own sister Luna was taken away, probably hurt, and most likely scared themselves. I tried not to think about what could have happened to them, but my mind betrays me, making my cries louder. I sat like that for a little while, numbly aware of Fizzlepop and the others presence around me. I felt a hoof caress my side with care, calming me down a little. My cries died down to sobs and sniffles, still holding Celestia in my arms. However, I felt movement underneath me, and felt the sensation of lips landing upon my forehead. Looking up, slightly alarmed, I saw Celestia looking right back at me, a sad smile on her face. Sniffling, I brought an arm up to my face, rubbing away the tears. "Celestia.." we breathed in unison. She took her hoof, and placed it on my head. "I'm okay.." She said with a warm smile. Rubbing away the last of my tears, I sat up. "I'm right here." I managed to get a hint of a smile on my face, but it faded just as soon as it came. "Welcome back.." I said, my voice cracking a bit. Taking her hoof in hand, I held it up to my chest. Celestia sat up right slightly, taking in her new environment. She hummed in thought, looking back towards me. "Where is Luna?" She asked, cocking her head to the side. "Don't tell me Luna was asleep during the whole thing, I swear she misses every.." She went silent when she saw the painful looks on our faces. She chuckled nervously, a smile still on her face. But her eyes betrayed her smile, showing shear dread. "My sister she's.. she's around here.. r-right..?" I looked downcast, my heart twisting and turning in my chest. Twilight put her hoof up to say something, but no words came to her. Valkyrie stood a little ways away from us, and expressionless. I steeled myself, looking back up to Celestia. My hands were starting to tremble, and I held her hoof a little tighter. "Both Starlight and Luna.. they.." I began, trying with all my will power to not look away. "..They were taken away." Celestia, still hopeful, cocked her head the other way. "Taken where?" She asked, taking her other hoof and placing it on my hands. Slowly, I shook my head. "We don't know.." I responded, looking down again. "When we got back from the city, it was already too late. You guys were hurt, and.. they were gone." "Something or someone took them and fled.." Twilight clarified, stepping closer to us. "I saw it when I came running to see what the commotion was about." Celestia sat in silence, a flat line replacing her smile. I put my hands down on the bed, still holding her hooves. Celestia looked down at them, her mane now covering her face. She was silent for a few moments, before she let out a low growl of frustration. "Why am I so damn weak.." She seethed, looking back up to me. "Why couldn't it have been me!? She has been through enough torment, why couldn't it have been me.. why.." She trailed off, words failing her as tears fell down her face. I sat there for a moment as she leaned over, crying over my shoulder. I didn't know what I could say then. "..Princess Luna didn't give in.." A voice said from behind us. We all turned to face the unfamiliar voice. It was the royal guard, and he was still lying down, eyes open. "After you went down, she ran to your side, guarding you with her life." He continued. "When she did, she looked me right in the eyes, and told me to tell you.." The monster let out a torrent of flames and spells, which scattered across the room in all directions. Luna came in into the room, the doors slamming against the walls. She saw Celestia, holding a shield up to protect herself. But it didn't last for much longer. Her magic spent, She took the force of the blow. "Tia!!" Luna shouted, rushing over to her side. Rarity took the carpet in her magic that led up to the throne and used it as a temporary shield to block the rest of the spells. Luna looked frantically around, desperate. She spotted a lone guard, fending off the monster with Applejack, his fellow guards in a heap of flames. He was knocked back, but he caught himself after sliding away a few feet. Standing up, his eyes met Luna's gaze. "..Please.." She began, looking pleadingly into his eyes. "Tell my sister that.. "..That it's not your fault, and she is proud to be the one that protected you." He finished, sitting up a little. He winced slightly as the burns became agitated, but he sobered up quickly. Celestia stared at him for a moment, before sighing, and letting me go. "Thank you.." She said, still sniffling a little. I took my hand and brought it up to her cheek, wiping away her tears with a thumb. Retracting my hand, I turned to face the stallion. "..What's your name?" I asked after a moment. "Carbon." He responded. "Carbon Fiber." I nodded in thanks. "I'm Isaiah. Call me Zale if you want.." I said, smiling. "..And thank you." He smiled back, nodding. ~ ~ ~ ~ > > < < ~ ~ ~ ~ None of us notice that Nurse Snowheart left the room, and she soon came back with trays of food for us all, telling us it was on the house. Twilight, Fizzlepop and I took a seat on the empty beds that was next to Carbon, digging into our meals. It was mostly carrots and broccoli, not that I minded. Fizzlepop elected to sit next to me, leaning on my side while her plate lied on the other side. "Oooh.." I heard a familiar voice groan. "Oh my.. wha..?" It was Rarity. "Where am- OW ow ow ow ow.." She cut herself off with a series of pained noises as she tried to get up. "Careful now," Nurse Snowheart said, approaching the fashionista. "You're in no condition right now to-" "MIRROR!!" She shouted, her eyes frantically scanning her bandaged arms. "GET ME A MIRROR!" Nurse Snowheart reeled back, but reluctantly picked up a nearby mirror that was on a tray, and held it up to Rarity. Even though Instinctively plugged my ears with my finger tips, It did nothing to prepare me for the high pitched scream that came afterwards. The glass of water Twilight had in her magic shattered into pieces, but as skilled in magic as she was, reversed the damage with little to no trouble. At this point, everyone else that was still asleep in the room, shot up from their position, eyes wide. "Huh!? Who'sit what now!?" Applejack blurted out, looking around the room with half lidded and tired eyes. Rainbow Dash fell out of the bed with a shout of alarm, grunting on impact followed by a cry of pain. Snowheart helped her up back on the bed. "Ouch! What the hay?" Rainbow turned back to see that her wings were bandaged up, preventing her from flight. "Shoot.." Fluttershy just hid under the sheets, shivering. Spike just groaned from his position, falling back down into bed, pulling his sheets over him. "Five more minutes.." he pleaded in a muffled voice. I hit the side of my head with my palm, trying to get the ringing out of my ears. "Uh.. morning Rarity." I greeted flatly. She was currently hyperventilating, looking at her reflection in horror and disgust. "I-- my.. my mane.. and my coat.." Rarity's coat was just as bad as Carbon's, if not worse. Her mane now has burnt and uneven ends, and her tail was practically incinerated into nothingness, only a purple stub in it's place. I couldn't help but feel bad for the poor thing. "I-It'll grow back. I'm sure you'll be able to do something with it." I said, trying to cheer her up. Rarity gave me a flat look. Then, it turned into a thoughtful one. "Hmm.. maybe you're right," She said, looking at herself again. "My mane did look something like this before, but my coat.. I'll figure something out!" She stated proudly. Looking around the room, I noticed that there was something missing. My eyes widened in realization and concern. "Hey, where's Pinkie-" The one entrance and exit to the room suddenly burst open, Revealing Pinkie Pie strolling in with a plate of cupcakes. She had bandages across her forehead and right hoof, but it looks like there wasn't a scratch on her. As she walked in, everyone in the room, including me, stared at her, confused and slightly concerned. Pinkie gave us bewildered looks. "What?" She asked, her mouth stuffed with a cupcake. I sighed, shaking my head. "Never mind." I relaxed, plopping a broccoli in my mouth and chewing. My mood fell again, and the room was in silence once more. "So, to update you to what happened girls.." I began after a moment. "both Starlight and Luna were kidnapped by.. something. After you were attacked." Everyone froze in place, looking at me in disbelief. Pinkie's mane deflated significantly. "Wh.. What?" She breathed, walking up to me. "What do you mean?" Rainbow asked while she works on getting the bandages off her wings. "It's exactly what it sounds like." Celestia chimed in, a grimace on her face. "They were taken by an unknown enemy, and we have no idea where or why." I sighed, looking down at my plate, losing my appetite. I placed it on a nearby tray, pushing it away slightly. There was a question that was hanging in the back of my mind, gnawing away at my being. "So.." I began, a bit reluctantly. "..What do we do now?" I asked no one in particular. "What do you mean 'What do we do now'?" Rainbow echoed. "We go find em'!" Celestia shook her head, eyes narrowing. "No. At least.. not for a few days at least, week at most." Rainbow Dash gawked at the princess like she was insane. "Wha- What do you mean!?" Rainbow Dash squawked. "Ah' mean, think about it Rainbow." Applejack chimed in. "We're lookin' more beat up than a bowl of eggs. What're we supposed to do in our condition?" "I mean- I just.. grrr..." Rainbow let out a growl of frustration, but relented. "Yeah.. I get your point. But.." Rainbow's ears drooped, looking crestfallen. "I'm worried about them, you know?" Rarity let out a sigh, nodding in understanding. "We all are Rainbow Dash," Rarity began. "But there's simply nothing we can do right now except recover. We'll just have to have faith in Starlight and Luna and.. hope for the best." After that, the room fell in an ominous silence. I looked around at everyone for a few moments, just taking in the scene before me. I looked down at my hands, palms open and trembling slightly. I thought back to the night I dropped in this world.. the very first pony I've met, that became my friend and.. who saved my life. I closed my fists, a burning flame in my heart, yearning to repay a debt that I owed to that individual. "I'll go." I said with finality. After a moment, I looked back up. Everyone just looked at me, and then Celestia shook her head in disapproval. "It's too dangerous for you. If it took down all of us, half a dozen of my guards and managed to get away capturing Starlight and Luna.. I'm afraid your chances of survival are slim to none if you should encounter it." I shook my head in defiance, looking into Celestia's eyes with determination. "I know that. But I owe Starlight, Celestia. She was the first pony I've met in this world, my first friend, and she saved my life without even knowing who I am!" I stoop up, causing Fizzlepop to stumble slightly, but she caught herself. "I know how you feel Zale, trust me." Twilight said, approaching me. "But you've already been hurt once, and we can't have that happen again." I scoffed, pointing at the rest of the group with a thumb. "Well I'm in much better condition than them right now." I countered, crossing my arms. "And besides, who said I was going to leave right now and fight that thing anyway? I have to find clues or, something first if I'm going to know where to look, right?" Twilight raised a hoof as to protest, but she paused. Slowly, she put her hoof back down and looked up towards Celestia. "I'll go with him, Princess." Celestia's eyes shot up in surprise, but it was quickly replaced with a stern look. "Twilight I-" "Our friends are in danger." I cut Celestia off without thinking. "The pony I owe my life to is in danger, your own sister is in danger!" I pointed at everyone in the room in the hospital beds. "You may not be able to do anything right now, but I am." I turned to face Fizzlepop and Valkyrie, who have been silently watching the entire time. "My companions are too, and so is Twilight. It's not like we'll be alone." Celestia gave us an uncertain look, one by one. She eyed all of us carefully, as if searching for something in our expressions. After a few moments of silence, she sighed and managed to get a ghost of a smile on her face. "Alright. But you are not to go unprepared, and use at least the rest of today to find any clues or hints as to where they might have gone." Celestia's gaze drifted towards me. "Zale, Twilight." I cocked an eyebrow up curiously. I looked over at Twilight, and she looked at me as well, looking as confused as I was. I turned back to face the sun princess. "Yeah Celestia?" Celestia took one of her wings and made a gesture with them for us to come over. I wasn't sure what she wanted, but we nonetheless complied. When we got to her side, she used her wings in a swift motion to scoop both of us up into an embrace I was not at all prepared for. I stumbled a little, my head falling below her neck. I was confused, but I returned the embrace after re orientating myself. Twilight did much the same, looking up at her with a little blush on her cheeks. "P-Princess..?" "Be careful you two." She said softly. "I trust in you." She let us go, and we stood back up. I nodded with a smile, making a thumbs up. "You got it." Celestia gave me a bewildered look, and looked up at the ceiling. I tilted my head slightly in confusion, looking up as well. It was just the.. oh. I facepalmed, chuckling sheepishly. "This means something like 'Okay' or 'Great job' depending on the situation." I explained. Celestia looked back at me, and giggled herself. I turned to Fizzlepop, Valkyrie and Twilight, nodding. "Well, lets get to it." I said, walking towards the door. "We'll head back to the throne room and see if we can find anything. I'll let you know if we do before we leave. We'll see you all later." Twilight, Fizzlepop and Valkyrie followed behind, and I lead us out the exit doors of the infirmary, and we found ourselves in the hallways of Canterlot Castle once again. As we walked down the corridor on our way back to the throne room, I turn slightly to look at my two guards, more specifically Valkyrie. My eyebrow furrowed in concern. "Hey Val." I called. Valkyrie raised an eyebrow, looked behind her, and faced me again. "Um.. do you mean me, Zale?" I nodded in confirmation. She gave me a deadpan look and sighed, but didn't say anything. "You've been awfully quiet ever since we got back from the restaurant." I pointed out, giving her a curious look. "Anything got you worried? Not just about the situation we have right now, but anything that bothers you?" Her eyes widened in surprise, and Valkyrie seemed extremely uncomfortable now. "N-No sir, I'm fine." She said quickly. I was of course, unconvinced. I stared at her for a few moments, frowning slightly. I looked over at Twilight, who was also looking concerned. Upon noticing my gaze, she shrugged. I sighed, and continued to move forward. "If you say so." We rounded the corner, and made our way through the throne room doors past guards that were stationed there. As we entered, I scanned the room. The bodies of the guards were still there, but Twilight had cast a spell that eliminated the foul stench that they were emitting before. We did have to keep all the evidence in tact after all, and luckily no one else was able to enter the room, because of the guards that were outside. I put my hands on my hips and did another once over of the room."Alright, let's get to wor-" Bzzzt* Bzzzzt* I was cut off, and I froze. Twilight looked at me with confusion, and walked up to me. "Something wrong?" She asked. I put a finger up to cut her off. Bzzzt* Bzzzzt* There it is again. This time I felt the vibrating coming from my pocket, my blood running cold. Slowly, I took out the device, held it up and unlocked the screen. It was ringing.