//------------------------------//
// Deaf 
// Story: Book 1 - The Behemoth came to Canterlot 
// by Equimorto 
//------------------------------//

"Is that thing flying?"
"Sure looks like it."
"I didn't think they could fly."
"Weren't supposed to, as far as I know. Never saw a flying one. Must be a recent development."
"What do you mean a recent development? Where did this thing even come from?"
The soldier clenched his teeth for a moment. "This thing used to be one of my comrades," he explained. "I'd have ended up not much different if I hadn't been saved."
They'd met up with a couple more ponies after Pinkie had started to lead the way. At that moment, the small group was busy hiding behind a particularly large pile of rubble, occasionally peeking out of cover to look at a mutated pony flying in circles over the area up ahead.
"Well I'm... sorry to hear that," the guard who'd asked said. He looked to the ground then, silently chewing on nothing.
"When is it going to fly away?" the other guard asked, looking at the creature again. "Can't we just go another way if it stays here?"
"I've got a feeling this is the right direction," said Pinkie, also looking at the creature. "I'm not sure how much longer we might have to wait though."
"Maybe we should just run," the first guard offered. "Maybe we can make it past without it noticing us."
"Maybe," the soldier said. "But do you want to risk it? I don't think it's worth it. Not given what'll happen if it does see us."
"Well, you got a better plan than standing here, waiting for something to happen?"
"No, but I do think it's a better plan than running out there hoping things will go well. Survival is what's important right now, we're in no real rush to get anywhere. If we're safe here, we may as well stay here for hours, I think boredom still beats the risk of death."
"We could try to distract it," the femal guard said. "Throw something and see if it catches notice of that, and if it does maybe try to sneak past it then."
"We risk revealing our position if we do that," said the other guard. "If we throw a rock and it sees where it was thrown from, and it's smart enough, it's going to come for us straight away. I think that's even more dangerous."
"I don't think it's very intelligent, for what it's worth," the soldier said. "They never seem to be. I think something gets lost in the conversion process, I imagine that still applies even in these circumstances. But it should have keen senses. We should all be glad the wind is blowing our way and not the opposite way, it might have sniffed us out already otherwise."
Pinkie looked out again, humming to herself but keeping it quiet, to avoid being heard by anything other than the ponies there. "What are the odds stun potions won't work on it? I've still got a few."
"Too high to run the risk of putting you out there," said the soldier. "And honestly too high to try it in general, even if we find another way."
"Bummer," Pinkie said. "I suppose we might have to wait a little longer."