//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 - In a Giving Mood // Story: The Equestrian Odyssey - A Tale of Two Worlds // by Kamahido //------------------------------// Dinky slowly opens her eyes as the early morning light shines into her face. A searing pain wracks her body causing her to gasp in pain. She instinctively puts a hoof to her side. Feeling bandages wrapped around her she looks around again. “Where… am I…?” Looking around the sparsely furnished room Dinky sees only the bed she is laying on, a table, chair, and a cabinet in the corner. As she tries to get up, she accidently moves wrong. Screaming out in pain she drops back down onto the bed which elicits more pain and cries. A unicorn mare hurries into the room. “You’re awake already! Can you understand what I’m saying?” “Y-yes.” “Amazing recovery time!” Dinky gasps. “Where… where are my friends?” “In the rooms next to yours recovering.” “Recovering? From… what?” “You don’t remember?” “No…” “One of our patrols heard cries and decided to investigate. They found you and two fillies next to two monsters. One alive, one dead.” “I remember… the snake.” “It was dead when they arrived. The other beast however was still breathing.” Dinky gasps. “S-Sereb?” “Oh? Is he your pet?” “Where… is he…?” “Tied up outside.” “WHAT?!” Dinky jumps out of the bed. However her hooves give way and she crashes to the floor. “Please be careful, little one! You’ll pop all those stitches!” “I need to… Sereb!” The mare picks Dinky up carefully with her magic and levitates her back to the bed. “If you promise to calm down, I’ll get a wheelchair and we can go see your pet.” Dinky nods. The doctor leaves the room but returns momentarily with a wheelchair. Gently picking Dinky up she puts her in the seat and slowly walks out of the room. Looking around Dinky sees a hallway with numerous doors on her side, one on the opposite, and one at the end. “Where… are we?” “Safe Haven. Oh, and my name’s Doctor Lighthoof. What’s your name?” “D-Dinky.” They reach the door at the end of the hallway. Opening it with her magic the doctor squints momentarily before pushing the wheelchair outside. Dinky sees a number of mares and stallions slowly walking around. All of them appear extremely tired. Sereb lies in the shade of a large tree, his paws bound and a muzzle over his mouth. “Let him go!” “But…” Dinky looks up at her, pleadingly. “Please. He’s… my dad’s friend.” Lighthoof sighs. “Very well. Just let me call some of the guards just in case.” “Just help me up. I can undo his muzzle if you help me over there.” “Are you certain he won’t bite you?” “Very.” Lighthoof helps Dinky over to Sereb. Reaching forward, Dinky removes the muzzle and puts a hoof on Sereb’s head. “Sereb? Can you hear me?” The wolf grunts and slowly raises his head. “Dinky?” “I’m right here.” “Are you… okay?” “Kinda.” Sereb attempts to stand, but feels his binds tightening. “Why am I restrained?” “The villagers were scared of you.” She turns to Lighthoof “Now can we untie him?” “I… um…” Lighthoof looks to Sereb. “You’re not going to come after me if I let you go, are you?” Sereb shakes his head. “No, ma’am. But I think I can help ease your mind.” His horn aglow, Sereb returns to his Cub Form and steps out of his bindings. Limping forward, he walks to Dinky. “You appear to be injured.” “So do you. Doctor Lighthoof hasn’t actually told me much though.” Lighthoof nods. “Yes, well… why don’t we go see the other two fillies? I can explain everything there.” She helps Dinky back into the wheelchair before carefully lifting Sereb into her lap. Returning to the clinic, Lighthoof wheels them into another room. Apple Bloom lies on the bed, but sits up as she spots Dinky. “Hey, Din… ow!” “Take it easy, little one. You need to heal like the others.” Apple Bloom looks around. “Where’s Sweetie Belle?!” “I’m here.” Sweetie Belle limps into the room as Lighthoof gasps. “You shouldn’t be up yet!” “But I missed my friends.” Dinky grins. “Now that we’re all together, can you tell us where we are, Doctor Lighthoof?” “As I said before, you’re in the town of Safe Haven. A patrol found all of you near a giant dead snake and brought you to me. All of you had been stabbed by its barbs.” Apple Bloom appears confused. “Barbs?” Doctor Lighthoof nods and levitates a surgical tray from a nearby cabinet. In its center lies a giant boney looking object with spines sticking out in all directions. “I removed one of these from each of you. Well, two from your… pet.” Sweetie Belle gasps. “That was inside of us?!” “Yes. You see, that variety of snake uses it to paralyze its victims before slowly releasing an enzyme to aid in digestion.” Dinky grits her teeth as she puts a hoof to her bandages. “After it hit me I did feel like something inside me was burning.” Apple Bloom gasps. “Are we going to be okay?!” “Yes. I was able to remove them and administer the antidote before any permanent damage was done to you. But now I have a question for all of you.” Dinky appears nervous. “What is it?” “How did three fillies and their pet get this deep into the Hayseed Forest?! Sweetie Belle looks away. “We were… looking for somepony.” “Who?” “My dad.” Apple Bloom nods. ”He’s Equestria’s Hero of Light. Did he come through here recently?” “I’m not sure. Hero of Light?” Sweetie Belle raises an eyebrow, confused. “Appointed by the princesses? Nation’s greatest warrior? Full authority to act on the princesses’ behalf?” Dinky looks to the doctor. “You’ve never heard of him?” Lighthoof shakes her head. “I’ve never left the village. And we don’t have any contact with the rest of the country.” Sweetie Belle sighs. “So no strangers in town now or recently?” Lighthoof shakes her head. “You’re the first in many years.” Dinky groans. “Great. Back to square one in our search. Let’s get moving everypony.” Sereb grunts. “You should rest, Dinky.” Lighthoof gasps and steps forward. “Please! All of you are still very badly injured!” Sweetie Belle groans as she holds her side. “I think we all need to get some rest.” Dinky looks to the doctor. “Like everypony outside?” “Huh?” “They all looked so tired.” Apple Bloom gasps. “Are they sick?” Lighthoof shakes her head. “No. There’s just a food shortage. Nopony’s eating regularly.” Sereb frowns. “Are crops not growing?” “Oh, they grow all right. But something comes after them in the night. Even with guards watching the fields we can’t always chase them away.” Dinky sighs. “Beasts from the forest?” “Close. We suspect it’s thieves from Knothole Village.” Apple Bloom appears hopeful. “There’s another town out here?!” “A dozen or so miles away, but yes.” Sweetie Belle raises an eyebrow. “What makes you think it’s them?” “They’re the only settlement around that we know of. That and the amount of food taken would be enough to feed their assumed population.” Sereb frowns. “And you’ve seen them make off with crops?” “No. But like I said, who else could it be?” Dinky puts a hoof to her chin thoughtfully. “We might be able to help with the immediate problem. Tell me, Doctor Lighthoof. What happened to our saddlebags?” “The patrol went back and recovered everything they could. What was found is in my quarters across the hall.” “Can we have our things back?” Lighthoof sighs. “As long as you don’t try to run off while still injured, yes. I’ll be right back.” The doctor leaves the room but returns a short time later levitating Sereb’s saddlebags and Arc’s knife. She sets them down in front of Dinky. “Thanks.” “You’re welcome. But… where did you four come from exactly?” Apple Bloom smiles. “Ponyville.” Sweetie Belle nods. “Same here.” Lighthoof sighs. “Not sure why I asked. As I’ve already told you I’ve never left this place.” Dinky pulls out the sack from Wiseman. “Do you have a really big pot around here somewhere?” “I believe our chief does. What do you need it for?” Dinky gives Lighthoof the bag. “You can use these to make soup.” Opening the bag, Lighthoof looks at the contents, wide-eyed. “Where… did you get all of this?!” Apple Bloom giggles. “We traded for it with somepony in our travels.” Sweetie Belle nods. “Yeah. But I think you need it more than we do.” “Thank you very much! I’ll bring this to our chief right away! Please stay here!” She runs out of the room with the sack as Sweetie Belle looks to Dinky. “As hungry as you say they looked, I don’t mind sharing. But you just gave away all our food.” Apple Bloom nods. “We could always teleport back to Ponyville and get more though, right?” “That was my plan. But we need to get healed up before doing anything else.” Sereb carefully lies down on the floor. “Indeed.” Meanwhile, Arc opens his eyes to the sounds of birdsong. Turning his head, he looks at Snowflake sleeping peacefully next to him. Feeling something warm on the other side, Arc turns to see Sunshine next to him as he muses to himself. “Forgot she was there.” Sitting up slowly, he carefully pulls aside her tail and looks at her genitals. Even in the dim morning light Arc can see the physical trauma to them and the surrounding flesh. Getting up, he quietly leaves the barn and heads for the house. Grabbing a thermal bulb and the jar from the other day, he heads to the back of the barn and fills the washtub. Sighing, he drops the bulb into the water. “I’m sure everyone has their own… um… kinks, and all. But that just looks like torture.” As the water begins to steam Arc returns to the barn. Putting a hand over Sunshine’s mouth he gently shakes her. Opening her eyes, she looks up to Arc as he motions for her to stay quiet. Carefully picking her up, he carries the injured mare behind the barn and carefully lowers her into the hot tub. She sighs contentedly. “Thank you very much.” “No problem. I, uh… saw the damage when I woke up and thought you’d need this for your body to recover.” Sunshine sighs. “That I do. But I do hope I get pregnant soon. I’m not sure how much more of this my backside can take!” Arc frowns. “Wait a second. I thought you LIKED what Shadow was doing to you!” “Kinda. I mean, I do LOVE the feeling of… you know. But he’s so drunk by the time he gets done with foreplay that it takes forever for him to ejaculate. You see, the alcohol lowers blood flow to his…” Arc blushes as her interrupts her. “Yeah, I get it.” “Don’t misunderstand. I do love my husband… and the sex. He’s just… different than when I married him.” “Oh?” Sunshine smiles. “He used to be so loving and doting. Please keep this to yourself, but when we were first married he would often stop during sex to make sure I was okay.” “I can see that’s no longer the case.” Sunshine sighs. “That it isn’t.” “Look, I’m not trying to tell you what to do, but it just seems like he’s getting worse. Why stay with him?” “Because I know that deep down inside he still loves me.” “From what I saw last night, that wasn’t love. Is there anything I can do to help? Maybe I could try talking to him.” Sunshine shakes her head. “That wouldn’t work. He doesn’t remember anything the next morning. And I doubt he’d believe you, as you’re just our daughter’s pet.” She gasps before continuing. “I’m sorry. That was rude of me.” “It’s fine.” Sunshine puts a hoof to her chin thoughtfully. “But if you’re serious about wanting to do something, I do have an idea. But it involves you and Snowflake bringing me something very special.” Snowflake trots around the barn happily. “Good morning mom. Is Big Brother helping you take a bath?” “No, dear. He was just keeping me company. That and I was in the process of asking him to bring me something from your foraging expedition today.” “Oh? What did you need?” “As much Lobelica Root as you can find. You remember what it looks like, right?” Snowflake nods. “Yeah. But what for?” “I sold the last of it the other day.” “But there’s only a couple customers that use it. Why do we need so much?” “For some experiments I want to run. Now why don’t you see about getting us some breakfast?” “Okay, mom.” She trots off toward the house as Arc looks to her. “What’s Lobelica Root?” “It’s a powerful sleep aid. I have a few customers in town whom use it to treat their insomnia.” “You looking use it on Shadow?” Sunshine nods. “Yes. It’ll have to be a very small amount in his first drink for it to properly take effect.” “Is that… safe?” “It is as long as I properly dose it. Too much and it could probably stop his heart.” “I’m not sure this is such a good idea.” Sunshine sighs. “Well, I can’t actually force you to do this. But if you don’t, Shadow will just keep doing this to me.” Arc frowns as Sunshine rests her head on the edge of the tub. “Fine. Just be really careful with the dosing.” “I will. You can count on that.” Meanwhile, Twilight awakens next to Luna. She instinctively draws away, but remembers the situation and stops. Luna groans and raises her head. “Ugh. What… Twilight?” “S-sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.” Luna frowns. “Meant or not, I’m awake now and with nothing to do.” “We could watch the sun rise.” Luna narrows her eyes. “Twilight, please remember that you’re literally talking to the one whom, for the past year at least, was RESPONSIBLE for that very feat.” “I know. But you were just doing your job. Try to appreciate the moment as it happens.” Luna sighs. “Very well.” The pair stare out the window as the sun slowly rises. Luna turns to Twilight. “Um… I… I don’t really understand… what I’m supposed to be feeling right now.” “Sometimes you have to stop and just watch the clouds.” “But I thought we were looking at the sunrise.” “We are. It’s about the same thing though. Stopping to enjoy the little things in life.” Twilight sighs before continuing. “Arc taught me that.” “Did he now?” Twilight nods. “Yes. Recently when Auriel and I were attempting to test our artificial sun theory Arc did just that with Derpy and Dinky. Looking back, I wish I’d joined them. If only for a few minutes.” “Because you cared about him?” “Yes. After all, nopony really knows just how long we have in this life.” “That is a difficult matter for a princess.” “I suppose so. But the finite time should make us commoners appreciate what we do with it. Sadly, it often does the opposite. We find ourselves wasting time on frivolous matters when it could be spent with the ones we love. Luna raises an eyebrow. “How does that apply to me?” “Even eternal life must get boring, right?” Luna sighs. “Yes. However I am unsure how to change that. It would seem one would require a purpose to be, at the very least, entertained.” “Use what you have. Power, influence, magic… try to make the world a better place.” “That is no longer necessary. With the return of my sister, I have been relegated to my previous role of being merely a backup princess.” Twilight frowns. “You don’t have to change the entire world. Try something small. Like improving somepony else’s day.” “I suppose I could attempt to make somepony else happy. After all, it’s not like I have anything else to do. But where should I start?” “You told me you used to enter other’s dreams. Why not start there?” “While I haven’t done that in a while… it’s not something that…” Luna groans. “Such things are a bit unpleasant.” Twilight smiles. “What if I came with you?” “Dream riding?” “Is that what you call it?” Luna nods. “Yes. It may not be the best expression. But I was never able to come up with something better.” “So… can I come?” “If you would like, yes.” Twilight grins. “Thank you! Oh, this is going to be SO much fun!” Luna frowns. “I don’t believe you understand how this works.”