//------------------------------// // Ch.3: Fractured // Story: Revenge is Bittersweet // by P-Berry //------------------------------// Chapter 3: Fractured An eternity seemed to pass until I finally got conscious again. Even though my perceptions still were blurred, I suddenly noticed something; something that definitely hadn’t been there before: a thrilling annoyance; a sound that broke the silence every once in a while. Weakly straining my ears, I could identify it as an artificial noise - a monotone bleep, repeating over and over again. As my audible range slowly expanded, the sound of muffled voices suddenly came to my ears and I started an attempt to open my eyes, but the exhaustion quickly got the better of me and my eyelids relaxed again. A couple of seconds later, my olfaction seemed to re-awaken and a keen smell flooded my nostrils. I had to reflect for a second, for I was sure that I knew that scent: I remembered to have smelled it day in, day out after I’ve had a serious accident in my foalhood. But I didn’t manage to define it; I didn’t manage to think at all: my brain seemed to be switched off; my mind felt like it was caught in an eternal blizzard. I sniffed weakly: the strength flooded my sinuses once again; the wanted term suddenly popped up in my mind: that was the strength of pure alcohol; of disinfecting agent. My eyes shot open: sanitizer always spelled trouble! It took a few seconds for me to adapt to the light suddenly flooding my eyes, but finally, I had clear vision to what was in front of me: a plain, bluish wall with a telephone attached to it presented next to me; an electrocardiogram was standing right next to my head and emitted the monotone sounds. From the soft underground cushioning my back, I concluded that I was lying in a bed and, under efforts, finally managed to move my head and look throughout the room: I was lying in a small hospital room; my body was connected to the ECG with multiple cables on my chest, while most of my fur was covered by a green hospital grown. I tried to remember what had happened, but my fractured memory only provided me with blurred pictures and short flicks of the past events, leaving me completely clueless. I felt a sharp pain coming from my sides and carefully moved my head to look at my wings: they were stretched out, directed into unnatural angles; multiple feathers were missing, making them look like a dead tree during fall. Instinctively, I folded them - as a response, I got overwhelmed by a wave of agony and involuntarily let out a groaned scream of pain; the ECG speeded up drastically as a load of adrenaline shot through my veins. Taking a deep breath, I tried to calm down and re-focus on remembering what had happened, but my attention suddenly got attracted by the sound of an opening door. I hastily lifted my head and looked towards the entrance of the small room: a white mare with rose hair and a nurse-cap hastily entered the room and -after seeing that I was fine- gave me a relived look. “Finally you’re awake.” she noticed with a soft voice. Under efforts, I could bring out some mumbled words: “Where … where am I?” “You’re at the Ponyville hospital. You’ve been taken here yesterday by a-“ “What happened to me? Why the hell am I in Ponyville!?” I cut her off, instantly feeling wide-awake; the quickening sounds of the ECG filled the room once again. She made an apologizing, but clueless gesture and answered: “I’m so sorry, but I don’t know. The mare that brought you here said that you’ve been falling from the sky. According to the radiographs, this might even be right: you got some serious bruises on your wings. They aren’t broken fortunately, but it will take some time until they are healed completely … and, to be honest, I don’t think that you’ll ever be able to fly like you were before your crash. If you really fell to the ground from a cloud, we can thank Celestia that you’re still alive.” Something popped up in my head and I hesitantly asked: “Wait! May … may you repeat that part with where I came from?” The nurse nodded understanding: “Of course. The pony that brought you here said that you’d have been falling from the sky and landed in her pigpen. If you ask me, that doesn’t really-“ “From the sky?” I interrupted her and hastily sat up in my bed, feeling the pain in my wings once again. She nodded again: “Yes … she may have meant Cloudsdale.” I stiffened: that word unleashed something in my head; the ECG seemed to wack out as my mind got overwhelmed by a sudden avalanche of memories and I -desperately trying to remember what happened in Cloudsdale- held my head with both of my hooves and leaned forward, turning my head to the side. My glance fell on a small white envelope lying on a side table next to my bed and I hesitated. Raising an eyebrow, I skeptically asked: “What’s that?” The white mare shrugged shrugged: “I don’t know. It came with the mail a couple of hours ago.” My curiosity had been aroused and I leaned towards the table, reaching out my shaky hoof to grab the letter. I noticed the sun shining through a big window next to my bed and asked: “How long am I here already?” While I hastily opened the envelope, the nurse gave me a pitying look: “You arrived here about 18 hours ago. … You’ve been comatose for multiple hours.” Giving her an unbelieving look, I said: “You’ve gotta be kidding me!” as she didn’t react, I added,”18 hours? Really!?” She soberly nodded. I silently swore and took an official-looking paper out of the envelope, quickly reading the short text on it. To Fippo, former citizen of the city of Cloudsdale. Dear Mr. Fippo You certainly know that your actions yesterday -interrupting the ceremony of the flight test and attacking a fellow civilian and employee of the Cloudsdale stadium- will not stay unpunished. On the orders of the government of Cloudsdale and with approval of Princess Celestia, I hereby declare your banishment from Cloudsdale. Your job at the weather patrol has been cancelled and your property -including your house and everything in it- has been seized by the government; you can see yourself as home-and stateless. I officially warn you: if you should ever enter Cloudsdale again -no matter what the circumstances- you will be led off, imprisoned, and punished appropriately without a further warning. Respectfully: Spitfire, mayor of Cloudsdale. My eyes widened as the memory suddenly returned: Cloudsdale, the flying test, Firespark! Forget about my citizenship, I had to find my daughter! Stiffening, I shouted: “They took my daughter!” The nurse looked at me confused: “Excuse me?” I jumped to my hooves and yelled into her face: “THOSE MOTHERBUCKERS FOALNAPPED MY DAUGHTER!” “Please get back to bed, you’re still way too weak to stand on your own hooves!” she summoned me gently, but determined. Ignoring her order, I shoved her aside and tore the cables off my chest while stumbling towards the exit. Just when I was about to pass the door, I felt a sharp pain coming from my legs and abruptly stopped, leaning to the doorframe and letting out a pained groan. “Please stay here!” the nurse shouted, now sounding much harsher. I gave her a quick glance over my shoulder. Clenching my teeth, I yelled: “No way! My daughter’s somewhere out there and I have to find her! And then I’m gonna let those motherbuckers pay for abducting her!” Without awaiting a further comment, I took a deep breath and left the room, hurrying through the monotone, white hallways and passing several confused nurses and doctors while I searched for an exit. After a few moments, I noticed my pace slowing down and inevitably stopped. Stiffly looking into the distance, I slowly realized what had happened: “They banished me. They took my house, my property, just everything…” I mumbled to myself and leaned against a wall in order not to fall over from a sudden qualm, “My life in Cloudsdale … is over.” Despite my attempts to find purchase on the green wallpaper, I numbly slid downward and landed on my back. I sighed deeply and stared at the opposite wall, searching for a solution in its white pattern. “What now?” I craned my neck and looked at the ceiling, ”… I might risk it. I might risk my life and approach Spitfire to ask for a reprieve. If I’m really gentle, I might even manage to restore my old life … but…” I sighed deeply, “NO! As long as Firespark is somewhere out there, my life can wait!” I smashed my hoof onto the ground in determination. “Find her, then think about how you’ll get by!” I yelled and jumped up. “You won’t let that ban dismay you! You’re stronger than the system!” I motivated myself and continued my run through the hospital while hastily getting rid of the green grown, “Everything will be like it was before! Everything will be fine! No doubt about that!” Secretly, I knew that things would never be like they were before: Firespark had been abducted; I had been banned from Cloudsdale – there was no way those things could be undone. But I oppressed those thoughts: skepticism wouldn’t help me find Firespark; self-assurance and confidence would. A couple of minutes later, I finally found an exit and rushed through the door, stretching my wings in order to lift off as soon as possible. Just as I had passed the glass gate, I wanted to take off, but all I got as a response for flapping my wings was a sharp pain and a sobering jump, but not the expected flight. Having difficulties to keep my balance and not fall over, I swore at the top of my voice and tried to flap my wings again. The agony overcame me once more, being almost stunning this time, and involuntarily made me fold my wings and abstain from starting another attempt to take off. I swore again, but reluctantly accepted my incapability of flying properly; the hopes to find Firespark began to fade. I slowed down and hastily shook my head: “Maybe they don’t detain her in Cloudsdale? Maybe they brought her to the ground?” I asked aloud, “Yes. Yes, they must have brought her to the ground. There’s no other place they could bring her. She definitely is at the ground. Why should they detain her in Cloudsdale after all?” I rushed, “No. No, keeping her in Cloudsdale would be ridiculous. She is somewhere at the ground, no doubt about that!” I told myself and clung to this thought, preventing myself from thinking about that topic further - I feared to realize how ridiculous this assumption actually was. Blocking every further thought about Firespark’s actual whereabouts, I continued my run along the single road leading away from the hospital and tried to ignore my hurting legs and wings. The thought that one of the nurses or doctors may follow me made me look over my shoulder and check the exit of the hospital for other ponies - everything was empty. Just when I wanted to turn my head back, I felt my body crash into something massive and fell backward, landing hard on my back. I hastily looked up: I seemed to have crashed into another pony. The orange mare had her blonde hair tied back with a red hair band; even though half of her face was hidden in the shade of her brown Stetson, I managed to spot multiple freckles and a pair of green eyes, reminding me to those of Firespark. Looking down at me, she gave me a relieved look and said: “Oh, it’s you. Finally you’re awake.” Ignoring her greeting, I jumped up, grabbed her shoulders with my hooves and shouted: “Ha- have you seen my daughter!?” The relief in her eyes vanished as she raised an eyebrow in confusion: “Your daughter? Sorry, but no. Ah just saw you falling from-“ “Then do you know of a place where pegasus-foals who failed their flight tests are taken? Can you tell me where it is? Is it on the ground? In Cloudsdale? Answer me already!” I desperately yelled at her while forcefully shaking her body. She attempted to look pitying, but couldn’t hide her confusion: “Ah’m sorry to tell ya, but … as you can see, Ah’m an earth pony, Ah have no idea of yer pegasi’s rituals, nor do Ah know anything about Cloudsdale.” She wanted to continue, but I shoved her aside and shouted: “Then get outta my way! I have to find her! She counts on her daddy!” Without waiting for a comment, I continued my run along the lonely road the mare came from and left her standing in front of the hospital confused. Hurrying along the dusty path, I kept my eyes open for anything suspicious, but -needless to say- didn’t find anything, not even other ponies to ask about Firespark; the area around the path was a textbook example for a wasteland: apart from single trees or one or two lakes, there was nothing but green plains around the road. As I noticed that the pain in my wings had vanished, I started another attempt to fly; I managed to lift my body by about three feet, but quickly got overwhelmed by the pain and reluctantly cancelled my flight-attempt. Oppressing another curse, I clenched my teeth to overcome the ache and continued my run, slowly remembering that the road I was on led to Ponyville. I gave the so-called ‘embassy’ of the New Lunar Republic, a small fort with two floors, dark blue walls and a round path on top, appearing next to the road ahead of me a quick glance. Asking the guards about Firespark would be pointless: none of them would even talk to me properly; in their eyes, I was just another supporter of the tyrannical Princess, just another submissive subject. So I passed the embassy without giving it a further look and kept my eyes open for other ponies -preferentially pegasi- but the road was deserted. After approaching Ponyville a couple of minutes later, I stopped in the middle of the abandoned market. I searched the area for other ponies, but didn’t find even one: the square was emptied. I couldn’t hold back a pitying sigh: I used to be in Ponyville one or two times before the conflict; this place used to be so full of life: there was a smiling face at every corner, and now? The market stalls were abandoned; most of the houses were empty and moldering, even the town hall seemed to be unoccupied. While slowly trotting through the decaying city, I spotted a single pony in the distance; my pulse speeded up and I ran into her direction. As I came closer, I saw that she was a pegasus: she had grey fur, a light blonde mane and yellow eyes, directed into unnatural angles; a brown mail bag hung around her waist. I stopped next to her and approached her hastily: “Hey! Hey, can you help me?” She looked at me slightly confused and answered: “Erm, sure. What’s the matter?” I stepped even closer to her and desperately asked: “Do you know where foals who failed their flight tests are taken? You know: that exam at the end of flight school in Cloudsdale! Do you know what happens to those who didn’t pass? Where they end up?” She suddenly stiffened and her eyes widened in horror: “No! Nonono! You’re one of them?” tears of fear flooded her eyes, “Please, leave me alone!” Her voice broke as she turned around and launched into taking off; I quickly grabbed her by her bag and pinned her to the ground. “I need your help! They took my daughter and I have no idea where they brought her!” I yelled, my voice quavering from my desperation. She forcefully tore her bag away from my grip and hastily departed towards the clouds, squealing: “Please go away! I don’t want to have anything to do with the factory!” Again, I tried to take off to follow her, but I still didn’t get higher than a few meters before dropping to the ground again in exhaustion. I sighed in desperation as I saw the grey mare disappear in the clouds: what did I say that unsettled her that much? And what did she mean with ‘the factory’? As I helplessly let my glance wander over the moldering houses in front of me, my attention got attracted by a nearby building in the middle of the ruins: a mid-size house that looked like it was made completely out of sweets. I came closer and noticed a dusty ‘open’-sign hanging in one of the windows; it seemed to be something like a store. The thought that the waiter may have some further information about that ‘factory’ sparked my hopes and I hurried towards the entrance. Fortunately, the pain in my legs slowly ceased. I entered the store and looked around: they actually seemed to sell sweets, or at least used to do so: the room was decorated with old party-supplies and plastic sweets; the air was filled with a stale strength of cakes. I spotted a bluish mare with rose hair leaning towards a glass counter next to the door and looking to the ground dully; according to a small name badge, her name was ‘Mrs. Cup Cake’. When she heard me entering, her appearance brightened slightly. She looked up and forced out a smile, saying: “Oh, a costumer! Welcome to Sugarcube corner! How can I help you?” I opened my mouth to say something as she quickly added: “We have every kind of pastries and sweets, just take a look around and ask me if you’re looking for something special!” she let out an excited squeal, “Oh my, I haven’t had costumers for days now!” Trying to avoid eye contact, I looked away: “Actually, I was wondering whether you may help me.” She nodded hastily: “Of course! Do you need an advice about cakes?” I shook my head: “No, I wanted to know whether you know about a place where failu-“, I bit my tongue - I hate that word, “where pegasus-foals who failed their flight tests are taken?” The happiness in her eyes made way for confusion as she said: “Well, I’m sorry, but … I’ve never been to Cloudsdale … I don’t know anything about a flight test.” Giving her body a further glance, I noticed: “Of course … you’re an earth-pony …” I numbly dropped my head, losing every kind of motivation, “Alright, sorry for wasting your time” I turned around and drably shuffled towards the exit. “Why are you asking for such a place anyways?” Mrs. Cake asked after a few moments. I had approached the door, but hesitated. My voice quavering with bitterness, I explained: “They took my daughter” She gasped: “Really?” My look stiffly focused on her blue eyes, I dryly asked: “Do I look like I’m joking?” Her face turned pale: “Oh my! That’s just horrible!” I looked to the ground: “Indeed it is. Now, if you’d excuse me: I have to look for her.” I said, not making an effort to hide my lack of motivation. As I was about to open the exit door, she hesitantly said: “I-I know how it feels when somepony very important is taken away from you.” I rested and slowly turned around, giving her a doubting glance. “I-I’ve also lost somepony a few weeks ago,” She said and turned her head. Walking towards the counter, I could see that she looked at a monochrome picture of a bubbly-looking mare with very fluffy hair, happily smiling into the direction of the camera. I saw the sorrow coming over Mrs. Cake as she tearfully explained: “Her name is Pinkie Pie … she used to be our lodger, but with time … she- she’s become like a daughter for me.” Stepping closer to her, I carefully asked: “What happened?” She sobbed: “She- she died during one of the riots. … She wasn’t involved; heck, she didn’t even have something against Princess Celestia … but … she simply was at the wrong place at the wrong time!” the blue mare wiped away a tear as she bitterly continued, “Those royal guards just overran her, just like the other demonstrators!” she sobbed again; her voice was quavering, “After her death, even the last rest of happiness vanished from Ponyville. … Almost everypony left, most of them joined the Republic. I’m one of the few ones left.” “Don’t you have a family?” I asked her hesitantly. Slowly, she nodded, still trying to hold back tears: “Yes. Yes, I have a husband, but … he joined the army of the Republic. … He said he wanted to avenge Pinkie Pie.” “I’m sorry for that.” I said, trying to sound as empathetic as possible. Her reddish hair whipped slightly as she shook her head and wiped her eyes again: “It’s not your fault. It’s the fault of this damned war! We’ve had peace all along, and now?”, she sobbed again, “… I’m sorry. I guess I digressed. … You should leave now.” Nodding slowly, I approved: “I probably should.” I hesitantly added, “... My prayers go out to your husband.” She forced out a greatful smile: “Thank you. I hope that you’ll find your daughter!” I turned around and, before leaving the shop, whispered: “I know that I will.” Standing in front of the shop again, I looked around completely clueless: what should I do? Mrs. Cake had been right when she said that there was almost nopony left in Ponyville, so where else should I go? I still didn’t expect any kind of help from the embassy, and ‘bothering’ the royal lardass with my ‘laughable’ problems probably would result in a reprimand. Slowly lifting my head, I looked towards the sky: single streaks of clouds were floating above Ponyville; the weather patrol seemed to have a day off. Taking a deep breath, I decided to at least give it a try and looked for a good way upwards. After a few seconds, my glance fell on the high roof of the town hall and I quickly departed, trotting towards the white house as fast as possible. After a couple of seconds, I stopped in front of the high building and gave it an inspecting glance: from its roof, I should be able to reach a nearby cloud; I just hoped that I could depend on my strained wings. I carefully spread them: it still hurt, but the pain was more or less bearable. I took a deep breath and began to flap them; to my own surprise, I managed to take off without further issues. Trying to oppress the -once again upcoming- ache in my wings, I quickly reached the first tier and rested there for a few seconds. After catching a breath, I lifted myself into the air again and continued to head upwards, driven by the thought to Firespark. A couple of moments later, I finally landed on the roof of the hall and, breathing heavily, managed to crest the tip. It somehow amazed me that something as simple as climbing a building could be that exhausting, just because my wings were injured. Catching my breath for one moment, I realized that I was about to lose my balance and quickly flew up to a nearby, small cloud, bringing up the last rest of energy I had in my wings. The soft surface of the cloud broke my fall as I landed on it and instantly slumped. I winced from the pain coming from my sides: my wings definitely needed a break. I sighed exhausted; before even thinking about it, I noticed my eyes closing and my perceptions blur as I quickly fell asleep.