//------------------------------// // 17: Climax of a Scuffle // Story: To Err is Equine // by RLYoshi //------------------------------// [Perspective: Arrell] You know, being used as a pincushion is usually supposed to hurt a lot. Yet I seemed to be doing...moderately well. While having several arrows stuck in my body did keep me from flying or moving around much, I was able to bear the pain and keep using my voice attack to keep ponies from getting too close. I could tell that their numbers were going down, though I began to doubt that I'd be able to stay up long enough to finish the job. "Arrell!" Looking towards the voice, I saw Risk and Nimble charging towards me. Seeing that he had my attention, Risk threw something at me. It fell right at my hooves, and I got a better look at it. The Fine Rock. I quickly scooped it up, instantly feeling something in my brain. Part of it was a pull towards somewhere, but I ignored it in favour of the other feeling. A feeling of power. Acting purely on instinct, I turned around in time to see one pony charging at me with a knife. I opened my mouth, but instead of shouting, I let out an icy breath, literally freezing him in his tracks. I didn't know if he was alive or dead, but at that moment...I didn't care. The pain from the arrows was gone, even though they remained in my body. A flash in my brain warned me of another arrow coming from the side, and I ducked to avoid it. I felt as though I could sense everything. I let myself float into the air, the Fine Rock slowly moving from my hoof to float over my body. I barely noticed as the ponies around me stopped fighting, destroying, or even moving as they stared up at me. The few that hadn't been focusing on me before sure were now. Even those that had bows and arrows weren't trying anything, though whether that was because I had the Fine Rock or because they knew arrows wouldn't work, I didn't know. The Fine Rock felt sort of like a point of focus – like if I concentrated hard enough, I could transfer energy through it. Energy of what kind, though? Ice? Fire? Magic? ...wait. A realization hit me. I suddenly knew what to do with this gem once Smooth Grove was safe – assuming they'd let me keep it. But for now, I had ponies to fight. I expanded my weird sensing abilities all around Smooth Grove. Everypony who was still alive was staring up at me, and everypony who was dead was...well, dead. I expanded my sensing further, off into the forest. I found a few prone bodies – one of which was False's. My blood ran cold as I felt the pain running through her. She must have gotten into a fight and been injured, poisoned, or both. I did not like that. At that moment, the Fine Rock's power seemed to dim, though not fade. My Spider-Sense ripoff disappeared and the pain of the arrows returned, but I felt strong again. It was as though the gem had healed me... What were Risk and Nimble talking about? They said the Fine Rock...something about me being the next one to "receive" it? Maybe when I got it, it connected with me or something, and it healed me...kind of like regeneration in Doctor Who, except I didn't die. And I still look the same. I hope. An arrow flew by me, reminding me of the current situation. Oh yeah, giant battle. Better get back to that. "Risk! Nimble!" I yelled at my companions, who still stood right near where I had been lying. "Go help False! I'll hold down the fort until you get back!" ...or whatever's left of the fort, anyway. They nodded and ran off. A couple of the ponies tried to chase after them, but acting on instinct, I thrust one front hoof in their direction. Several giant icicles – were they icicles, or just icy daggers? Either one works – flew out from my hoof and stuck in the ground in front of the chasing ponies. Obviously this didn't make much of a barrier, but it directed their attention back to me and away from Risk and Nimble. "Ignore them, fellas. I'm getting lonely over here. Are you gonna try and shoot me or not?" I grinned. This time, I had a plan. [Perspective: Risk Reward] Nimble and I made it back to where False was, and I saw that she wasn't alone. The mare that we freed earlier was also unconscious and leaning against the same tree False was up against. Nearby was another pony, whom I assumed had been the attacker – or one of them, anyway. "Nimble, get that guy out of here," I ordered, gesturing to the unconscious attacker. "Where should I bring him?" Nimble asked. "Anywhere far away from here where he can get lost. If you can dump him in a patch of Poison Joke or something, all the better." He nodded and ran off while I focused on False. Aside from the fact that she was poisoned, I didn't know anything about her condition. Even if I did know anything, I wouldn't know how to cure it, and the hospital back in town was out of the question. Taking a poisoned, injured, unconscious pony into the middle of a battle was just begging for trouble. I turned to the mare beside False and began shaking her, trying to wake her up. Her eyes opened after a moment, but it was clear she was still tired. "Listen, miss...didn't get your name, but we'll worry about that later. My friend here is poisoned and possibly injured in other ways, and honestly, I have no idea what to do." I looked her right in the eyes, which were now wide open. "If you have any first-aid knowledge – whether from professional training, watching somepony else, or even something from a comic book – please help!" The pegasus slowly got to her hooves and took a few tentative steps, as though she wasn't sure she could walk properly. She managed, and stood over False. She looked her over, then her attention turned to a deep cut in False's front leg. "Look around for anything that could have made this cut," she told me. I nodded and began searching for any weapons that the attacker may have left behind. The darkness made it difficult to see, but I soon found a knife, lying discarded beside False. I mentally kicked myself for not seeing it before, then passed it to the pegasus mare. Picking the knife up, the mare looked over it. How she could see so well in the dark, I didn't know, nor did I care. After a minute or so, she looked to me. "This is 'deadly recluse'...a very rare type of poison," she said with mild surprise. "It's extremely hard to brew, so almost nopony uses it, to the point where the recipe doesn't appear in any books – the only way to make it is to figure it out yourself, or learn it from somepony else." My eyebrows were raised by this point. This mare was maybe Arrell's age – assuming pony years and Windigo years were the same – and yet she knew about one of the most unknown poisons in Equestria. "How did the gang figure out about it?" I asked. She shifted uncomfortably. "Well...when they kidnapped me, they found out about my abilities, and...well, from there, they learned that I knew how to make deadly recluse, and it went downhill from there." "And how did you find out about it?!" "I'll explain later." She turned back to False. "Deadly recluse is known for working fast to knock out its victims, but it doesn't actually start killing them for about an hour. It's a strange delayed effect, but once it starts working, it works fast. Within five seconds, it begins pumping itself into the heart and melting right through it. You can guess what happens from there." Something told me I didn't want to guess. Nor did I want to find out. "How do we cure it?" "It's simple, really...in theory, at least. Deadly recluse only starts to kill if the victim is unconscious, so if we can wake your friend up before it kicks in, she'll be fine...so long as she stays awake until she gets the poison out." "So we just have to wake her up?" I began to feel a surge of hope. "Yes, but it's not as easy as you'd think. The unconsciousness brought on by deadly recluse is akin to coma. I've seen it used many times, and only once has the victim been woken up and cured." "How did they get woken up?" "He was kicked in the groin by five ponies at once." I slowly looked at False. "Yeah...I don't think that's gonna work for her." [Perspective: Arrell] I panted for air as I looked around, standing on all four hooves once more on the dirty ground. Literally every gang member who came at me was now knocked out or dead. I felt especially guilty about the latter, as I had never meant to kill any of them – either my icicles went a bit too high, or I went too long with my ice breath, or my voice attack ended up smashing them through a house that didn't have as many support beams remaining as I thought. But hey, at least Smooth Grove was saved...well, what remained of it. Every building had sustained some form of damage, and at least three were completely destroyed. The fires had been put out, but it was clear they had done some damage. The ponies hiding inside their homes were mostly unharmed, but there had been a few casualties before I arrived. I won...so why do I feel like I lost? A stomp sounded behind me, and I turned quickly. A giant earth pony stood behind me. Black with brown markings, red mane and tail, axe dripping blood as his cutie mark...I didn't need to be a genius to know this guy wasn't on my side. The threatening way he held an actual axe in his mouth only supported this claim. "So...you are Arrell," he said quietly through his axe. How he talked perfectly with that in his mouth, I didn't and still don't know. "Yeah. Who the hell are you?" I growled. "My name is Bloodbath, leader of the Bloodshed Brigade. I came to this town looking for two things: the Fine Rock, and you." He smiled. "And now I found them both." "What do you want from me?" This wasn't a snarky remark; it was a genuine question. "The Fine Rock I understand, but...me? Aren't there, like, fifty million other guys you could go after? Like Griffin? Or Knightmare?" He shook his head. "They are far too strong, and besides, they are useless to us. You are the new controller of the Fine Rock. You are the only one it will respond to, now that you have it." He smirked. "And now, we have you." I laughed. "'We'? Who's 'we', Bathy?" I gestured around with a hoof. "Look at your so-called Brigade! If they aren't knocked out and ready for arrest, they're dead! You're the only one left! I took down...what, twenty? Thirty? What's one more?" He glared. "Do not underestimate me, puny Windigo!" I acted scared. "Ooh, you're bigger than me! Ooh, you have an axe! Ooh, you have a name like Bloodbath – which I gotta say is a pretty cool name, kudos to you for getting an awesome name like that. But getting back on track, look at me. What do you see?" "I see a pint-sized fool just getting in my way!" he roared, slamming his axe blade-first into the ground. "Yeah yeah, enough insults. Seriously though, without being angry, sarcastic, or funny, tell me. What do you see when you look at me? Literally, what do you see?" He seemed confused, but he stared right at me and answered. "I...I see a Windigo." "Go on." "A Windigo with the Fine Rock hovering over him...a Windigo that I am trying to capture." I nodded like a satisfied teacher. "Very good. Now, let me tell you what I see when I look at you." I began to walk forward slowly. "I see a giant earth pony, ready to kill...but at the same time, ready to die. Willing to do anything for his followers, but at the same time, willing to sacrifice them all to achieve one goal. Wielding an axe to battle with, but judging by this is the first time I've seen you during the fight, you haven't swung it yet since you got to Smooth Grove." I smirked. "You haven't been fighting. You've been waiting for me. Waiting to fight me...to capture or kill me. For you, either one works, because if you kill me, you'll just go look for the Fine Rock's next receiver." "What are you saying?" Bloodbath asked, honestly confused. "I'm saying that you don't know who I am...but I know who you are." My smirk vanished, and suddenly, Bloodbath realized that I was right in his face. I punched him hard in the muzzle, following up with a loud voice attack that sent him flying backwards. He recovered quickly, but it was clear I had caught him off guard. "YOU! ARE! MY! ENEMY!" I screamed at him, rising up into the air as the energy from the Fine Rock began to flow through me again, fueling my power. "AND I AM YOURS!"