Shadow Spark began to awake from his deep unconsciousness. He didn't remember what happened, why he was in pain, or where he was. He was still exhausted, so he kept his eyes shut. Attempting to move his front legs, he realized that, he was not able to move them. His eyes shot open to see why, and the first thing his tired and worried eyes saw, was Hydregarn, reading a book not four feet from him.
Shadow immediately froze, in both shock and fear. Hydregarn still had not noticed that he was awake, so he took this time to examine him. He was heavily bandaged, the same as he was. And for some reason, he was completely at ease.
"So, you have woken up faster than I anticipated." The General said, not even glancing up from his book.
Shadow Spark just sat there, dumbfounded.
He finally looked up and said, "I can see you are confused. Let me explain why you are still breathing. During the final spell I cast, I summoned the spirit of a dragon I knew a very long time ago. I've used her to decide the fate of a few others I was not too sure about. She decided whether or not my last attack killed you or not."
"So, how many has she deemed worthy of living?" Shadow Spark asked with uncertainty.
"None."
Shadow Spark let loose a small gasp.
"The one I summoned was cold, heartless. When she was alive, if she thought you were not worth her time, there was little hope of even crawling away alive. I was surprised that she let you live."
"So, I was the first?"
"Yes. And I have been thinking about something the few days you have been out cold."
"What is it?" Shadow Spark was terrified. In his condition, he was nothing to Hydregarn, so on a whim, he could kill him with ease.
"Since you were spared, I am going to give you an opportunity."
"What kind of opportunity?"
"You seem to have the qualities of a good soul. You were just raised in the wrong fashion. And I can relate to that more than you know."
"You don't know anything about that! Judging from what I heard about you, you were raised by powerful parents, who turned you into the perfect warrior. I do not see anything to complain about."
Hydregarn put his hand on Shadow Spark's head, and he shared his memory of something.
When he was done, he said, "I have not told a single being that in all my time here, but I want you to keep that a secret. It stays between you and me."
Shadow Spark couldn't think what to say for a few minutes. All he could say was, "I had no idea..."
"Now you see. But on to my proposition. I will give you a chance to join the guard here in Canterlot. Or not, but you will get a second chance at putting things right. You will still serve under Princess Celestia's rule."
"Why in Hell would I ever even consider this offer?"
"Because, if you don't, when you recover, we will fight once more. And this time, you wont come out alive. I will show no mercy."
"Well you certainly make a strong point...."
"You have until you recover. When you do, you will have exactly ten minutes to give an answer. if I do not get one, you will be fighting for your life."
And with that he stepped out. Leaving a very confused and angry Shadow Spark to one simple decision: go against what he believed his entire life, or have his life ended? He had much to think about. And this would be a very hard decision, could he turn his back on all he had worked for? After his entire life of twenty-five years, he had done so much. He didn't know what he could or would do. Let the thinking begin....
Meanwhile, Hydregarn was making his way through Canterlot medical center. Each step causing him some discomfort. The bandages he had were constricting him, and he was still in pain from the stab wounds in his shoulders, one in his hip, and the gashes in his chest. But the wounds were healing well, and due to his bloodline, he was healing at a faster rate. A few of the patients greeted him, but not many. Even though he risked his life to keep them safe, he still got plenty of suspicious looks.
He had overheard a conversation once, and one of the reasons he had heard was that his eyes caused quite a level of suspicion. At first he thought they were guessing the truth, but there was no way anyone could. He was sure he had managed to keep it hidden.
"Hey General! How's it going?" Tempest Feather had made her first appearance.
"Tempest! What took you so long to come by?"
"Well, with you out of commission for the time being, all the other guards have at least double the normal work we have to do. As you can imagine, I was very busy."
"That is still no excuse, I run the ENTIRE guard and I still make time for visits when my associates are in the hospital. And it is normally within the next twelve hours of my knowing of the incident."
"Most of us have other things we need to take care of."
"I'm just teasing you Tempest, don't get too angry."
"I'm not angry, just annoyed."
"Whatever Tempest, and thank you for stopping by, so far nopony has came in, you are the first." He ruffled her hair as he walked away.
"HEY! It took me ten minutes to do my mane!" Tempest Feather complained.
"Not my problem. Anyway, I will see you later, I need to go get my bandages changed."
"Alright, see you in a bit."
Hydregarn started the long walk to the other side of the medical center. And once again, the voice returned.
"That was kind of rude, don't you think?"
"I wasn't lying when I said I needed to get my bandages changed."
"Still, you could have at least talked to her a bit more. She is quite a cutie..."
"Judging from you looked like, its not hard to be better looking."
"Well that's just mean! Still, you have to admit she is rather pretty."
"I know, but I cant risk infection on wounds this serious."
"Oh shut up, because of the blood that runs in you, you are nearly immune to infection, and poisons for that matter! And those are just petty wounds!"
"You can never be too careful."
"Quit making pathetic excuses! Get back over there and talk to her!"
"You are in no place to make demands. I'm not the one who is a disembodied spirit, I still have a body."
"You're impossible!"
"Well, you should have not done what you did, and maybe none of this would have happened."
"But if I didn't, you would not be alive, and this world might have fallen."
"I assure you, I have not seen Celestia's real power, but I am certain she is much more powerful than I am."
"Are you so sure? If you embrace who you really are once more, the blood that's gives you real power..."
"I am fine without that! I am not that person anymore, and I'm not going back. I left that life after I was given a second chance. Nobody here knew me, nobody knew what I had done...And nobody knew what a monster I was...."
"You were never a monster, you were a man who was given the gift of power. Why cant you..."
"BE SILENT!!! YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I HAVE BEEN THROUGH!!!" Hydregarn roared.
The voice was then silenced. But when Hydregarn looked around, he noticed that when he yelled, he did it out loud. Every pony in the room was looking at him in confusion.
"Sorry everyone. I... I need to go...." He quickly apologized and hurried out the front door, eager for solitude.
After Hydregarn left, he made quick strides until he reached the central park a few blocks down. This was the one area in the city where he could draw a bit of peace in his spare time, if SHE kept her mouth shut. Ever since he arrived in Equestria, the amount she talked increased drastically, she normally never spoke to him. This troubled him, he had no idea why she kept trying to get him to do all these types things, all of which he knew would end badly.
When he reached to park, he walked toward the center where his favorite bench was. It was under a large oak tree, and it was well shaded. Hydregarn like sunlight, but this time he wanted to stay as less noticeable as possible for the moment.
After Hydregarn had been sitting down in the shade for awhile, he saw that a few foals were also in the park playing in pretty much everywhere they could fit. He envied them. He wished he could have such a peaceful, carefree life just like them, he wanted that more than anything else. That, or one other thing...
He closed his eyes and tried to imagine it, but to no avail. After a few minutes of attempting again and again, he gave up. When he opened his serpentine sapphire eyes again, two of the foals that he saw with the group had snuck up on him and were sitting in the grass in front of him. After about thirty seconds of silence, Hydregarn was the first to speak.
"Uh, hello." He said with hesitation.
The colt immediately responded, "Hi there!" The filly was a bit more nervous and gave a quiet "Hello..."
"Is there anything you need?"
Again the colt answered, "Nope. but my sister wanted to say something."
"Well then, say what you want. I am eager to hear it. But first, what are your names?"
"I'm Bravado!"
"That explains your temperament..." Hydregarn said with a small amount of amusement.
The filly spoke up, "Just call me Lilly."
"Now let me introduce myself before we continue. I'm Hydregarn. Oh and Feather, your brother said you wanted to say something to me?"
She reached back behind her wings and pulled out a small flower and handed it to him. He took it and thanked her. He said it was very pretty, he hadn't seen this type of flower around.
One question came to his mind.
"Why did you give me this flower little one?" He asked.
"Uhh, you just seemed sad, so I thought that if I gave you that it would cheer you up a bit...." She looked away in nervousness.
"Well, it does warm my heart that you would take time from your day to worry about someone like me. Thank you. Now, I think I need to get back to the hospital, and your friends seem to be waiting for you."
Both waved goodbye as Hydregarn walked away. Again, the voice came back.
"Awww, isn't that adorable."
"Oh damn, you again...."
"I just wanted to ask, why do you seem so envious of all the residents here? You are far above them, and have no reason to feel this way, so why?"
"They have things I don't."
"What is that?"
"They have no cares, they have others who care for them....Family...."
"You have a family!"
"Correction, I had two who birthed me, but not an actual family."
"That isn't true! You know deep down at least one of them cared..."
"My father might have, but the other I am sure did not care."
"Why can't you just call her your mother?"
"She is NOT my mother. Nor are you."
"How could you say something so cruel?"
The voice seemed to be distressed, and its tone was quivering,
"I guess I learned more about cruelty from them then I realize."
The voice fell silent, as if refusing any further conversation from him.
"Finally, some peace."
He started his walk back to the hospital, thoughts that he didn't want plagued his mind.
When he reached the medical center and walked inside, the nurse who had been assigned to keep watch on him was waiting for him.
"Hi Hydregarn! Did you enjoy your outing?" Orchid asked in her usual kind tone.
"No.... I didn't...." He replied in a somber tone.
"Why? Did something happen? Was somepony pestering you?"
"Well, yes and no. What happened was....never mind. Oh yes, Orchid, I need my bandages changed. If you are not busy, could you help me?"
"Well, I am on break, but sure I can help! Why you askin me though, huh?" She said with a slight grin.
"You're the only one who doesn't seem uncomfortable around me. The others always seem to be uneasy while I'm around."
"I cant understand some of these ponies, you risk your life time and time again and they still cant get you are here to help through their heads! Seriously!"
"Calm down Orchid, it is alright. I am fine with them being uneasy. It is much better then outright hating me."
"Let's move our conversation to your room, we need to switch those wrappings for fresh ones."
As the two made their way down the halls, they got a few odd glances. Mainly The General got the looks, but a few of them were at both of them. Hydregarn couldn't imagine why, but he just shook it off like he always does. His mind shifted to his bandages again, he usually switches them himself, but for some reason he was driven to ask someone else for help.
He said to himself, "I must at last be able to trust another..."
"What was that Hydregarn?" Orchid asked, hearing his statement.
"It isn't anything important. Well, not for you anyway. I don't mean that offensively to you."
"Well, would you tell me what you said?"
"I finally think I am able to trust someone other than myself now."
"That's great! Although I'm not sure why it took you so long."
"Try going seven hundred years watching your back for people trying to end your life."
"No thank you, I like my career as a nurse. Anyway, take off your shirt. Let's get to work."
As he got out of his shirt, Orchid couldn't help but notice his bulk. Even for a human, she knew it was not possible to build that much muscle. It wasn't to the point of where he seemed out of proportion, but he was still pretty large. Not only did she notice that, she also realized how good he looked. Once you got past his permanent expression, his intimidating size,his giant armor, and massive weaponry, he was quite a sight to behold. As Orchid was thinking these things, she didn't notice she had a small blush on her face, as well as Hydregarn looking at her with an eyebrow raised.
"Take a picture, it might last longer." He teased.
"Just turn around and sit down."
She began to snip the bandage seals in order to remove them. when she started to rewrap the wounds, she saw that they were half the size they were when he came in, three days ago.
"Sweet Celestia! You heal fast!"
"I thought you knew that."
"Well, I have heard the rumors, but I had no idea that it was this quick."
"Five years and I still fascinate some of you, that's a surprise."
"I bet you still give quite the stir in the medical community, nothing has ever been recorded that healed as fast as you without magic involved."
"That's also a surprise, anyway, could you hurry? The breeze coming in is stinging the cuts."
"Don't be such a foal, I'm going as fast as I can without poking them."
About half way through the process, a second nurse came in.
"General sir, Shadow Spark just woke up, and, he is asking for you."
"Tell him I will be there shortly. And thank you for telling me."
"Not a problem, how are your wounds healing up?"
Orchid cut in, "I will tell you how its going! If everypony healed as fast as this guy we would be out of a job!"
"Okay, a little overkill with the response, but it makes sense."
"Oh be quiet Quick Stitch."
After Hydregarn was re-bandaged, he set off for Shadow Spark's room. He didn't know what to expect, but he was ready for anything. He would rather settle things by speaking, but he would fight if he needed to. Since he got here, his desire to fight had drained away considerably. Maybe the peaceful lifestyle he leads has made him softer.
He quickly pushed the thought from his head, he was still who he was, his preferences has just changed. But it was a possibility....
As Hydregarn walked into the room, one of the uneasy doctors was helping Shadow Spark get up from his bed. Hydregarn was impressed at his determination.
"You know you aren't supposed to be walking yet, right?" The doctor asked him.
Shadow replied with a "I know, but I want to at least take a walk outside. Three days without being out isn't very good either."
"I suppose you could go, but you will be monitored, your injuries were very severe."
"Thank you for understanding, I wont be very long." He then turned toward the door he saw The General.
"Greetings general."
"Hello Shadow Spark. Follow me, we will talk outside."
"Why?"
"Didn't you want to go out for a little while?"
"Good point. Lead the way."
As they got to the patio of the just outside, Shadow Spark had to narrow his eyes to the brightness.
"Darn, three days out-cold will mess with the lighting out here."
"You must know, you have actually been unconscious that long because I kept you like that."
"What? Why did you?"
"To make sure your mind settled down from the fight so you would not harm any of the medical staff. You did squirm quite a bit in your half awake state, so I put a sleep spell on you."
"I suppose I owe you a thank you."
"You don't owe me anything."
"I'm not very big on hurting innocent bystanders. I already have a bad name due to my past, I don't want it tarnished anymore than it is."
"I can empathize with you. You and I both share complicated pasts. But on to business. Why did you request to see me?"
Shadow Spark took a deep breath.
"I will join the royal guard and stand for Princess Celestia."