//------------------------------// // 20-Path of the Earth // Story: A Changeling Queen Under the Griffon's Crown // by DungeonMiner //------------------------------// Chapter 20 A long time ago, in the Earth Pony Homelands of Terratur, now modern-day Bitland, a noble family ruled over the fiefdom of Manzascon. This family, the Manzana clan, was indeed a powerful family, with many of its ponies taking high-ranking positions in the Earthen Army. Amongst them, there was one pony in particular. Red Apple of the Manzana clan, son of Scarlet Akane. He was a giant of a pony, massive and immovable. His hooves could crush skulls and small stone with ease. Son of an Elder, Red Apple had easily developed a love for farming. However, the Army kept him on a tight leash, keeping him in line and in power, and unable to pursue his dream of owning his own apple orchard. While the story of Red Apple is a long one, we will focus simply on two facts. The first, was that Red was always looking for a way out. He had been searching for a new home and an escape from the almost daily death he was forced to witness. The second, was that he was in love. If he wanted to, he could run away and never be heard of again. It wouldn’t be so hard, rather easy, actually. However, the one thing that held him back was a young, golden mare of the name of Honey Smith. Her caramel brown mane and large, blue eyes stole his heart the second he laid eyes on her. Her gentle, kind smile could stop a charging brigade of unicorns, and her simple, soft words could stop a whole battlefield. She doomed him. He would never be able to leave without her. He’d never be able to run away. He needed her with him, but she would never run away with him. She had let him court her, let him marry her, but would not let him dishonor his name and run. It seemed that Red would never be able to leave. And then...then he heard about Equestria. The recently discovered land, claimed by the three tribes as a land of harmony and peace, was the perfect opportunity. He spent three days and three nights begging to be sent there, using every excuse and obscure duty he could find to convince the Manzana elders to let him go. It took three years, but finally they said yes. Red Apple left, and never returned. It took less than a week of living in Equestria before he changed his clan name to Apple. Red Apple was a draft pony, bred for the field. Both battle and farm. In many ways, he was like his great, great, great grandson… <<<|Ω|>>> Big Macintosh strode forward, moving ahead of Fluttershy as Thomas Aquilas walked behind them, “prodding” them with his spear. The changeling, however, continued to lead them, glancing back every now and then. “They will be in good health, won’t they?” Thomas asked. “This One believes so.” “No one hurt?” “This One believes so.” “Is that a guarantee?” The changeling sent a rather nasty glare at the griffon. “No.” Thomas growled. The changeling moved forward. Big Mac sent a look over to Fluttershy. She nodded. She had a plan. As Big Mac turned forward, though, she silently prayed her plan would work. She really hoped her plan would work. Thomas kept moving them forward. Another changeling joined the first, stepping down from the walls. “The Pendragon is not one of them,” the new changeling noted. “This One knows. This One hopes we can use them, though.” “Bait for a trap?” the second changeling asked. “That is the plan.” The second changeling nodded. “Possible, there could be merit in the plan.” “There is, however, another issue,” the first one said. “What?” “The griffon wants an exchange.” The new changeling blinked, before sending a glare backwards. “This One understands…” The changelings went silent, continuing to move forward. Thomas gulped, before gently prodding his prisoners along. Another changeling descended the wall, watching them go by before dropping down to the floor and following. Then another two joined in the tail guard. Another two joined the van. Within moments, the two ponies and griffon were quickly surrounded. Big Mac looked back to Fluttershy. She nodded. She had a plan. Oh, please let this plan work! Thomas continued to goad the ponies on, sweat just beginning to form on his brow. The small group opened up into a large, domed room. Cells lined the walls and griffon mothers looked silently on as the two ponies entered the room. In the center of the room sat a small mountain of green pods, where a couple of changelings seemed to be feeding, their fangs biting into the pods. Thomas’ eyes went straight to the cells, searching for the black-furred lioness. Big Mac’s eyes went straight to the pods, the hatchlings just visible through the thick mucus membranes. He snorted, his eye twitching. “Which one is yours, griffon?” the first changeling asked. Thomas lowered his spear, turning his back for a second as he began to call out. “Anja! Anja are you here?” “Thomas?” a voice called out. “Thomas is that you?”. The griffon dropped his spear completely, and took a flying leap over to the cell. “Anja? Anja!” A changeling stepped closer to Big Mac. “Don’t make any sudden movements, understand?” Fluttershy shifted around Big Mac, standing opposite the threatening changeling. “Thomas, Thomas, they have Titus.” “Sh, I know. I know. We’re going to get him out of here. It’s going to be okay.” “No,” one of the changelings said with a smirk. “No, it won’t be okay.” Thomas turned to look at the changeling who spoke. “What do you mean?” “Did you really think that there was an exchange plan, griffon? Turn in one prisoner, get one free?” The others laughed. The other lionesses in the cells gasped, devolving into a panicked mumble. Thomas turned, staring down the changelings as he stood between them and his wife’s cage. “You’ve lied to us?” “All of you,” the lead changeling replied with a smug snarl. “And now, This One is afraid that you are all going to die.” Half the group of changelings began to move forward, closing around the griffon. Thomas growled. “Don’t feel bad, griffon,” the lead changeling said, “We’ll make sure that your family will join you soon.” <<<|Ω|>>> Not yet. Fluttershy’s wings fluttered, and she gnawed on her lower lip. Not yet. Her left forehoof rested on Big Mac’s leg. Not yet. The small swarm of changelings had split up into two groups, one advancing on Thomas, and one holding Mac back. She’d take care of them. But not yet. They were closing in on Thomas. There wasn’t much time left. Just one more moment. She slowly stepped around Big Macintosh. She knew she wouldn’t be able to hold them long, but she’d hold them long enough. The small swarm of changelings got into her line of sight, and she stared at them. They froze. And then she released Big Mac. <<<|Ω|>>> Big Mac was a draft pony. He was born for two things. Farming was the first one, and he excelled at it. Nopony in the apple family could buck as many trees, haul as many apples, or plow as many fields as Big Macintosh. He had a gift for growing things. He had talent in farming. It was one of the things he was born for. War was the second thing. His hooves sounded like thunder, and his eyes glinted with rage. He could swear he heard the cry of warhorns, the clash of ancient battles ringing in his ears. He slammed forward, smashing into the rear of the changelings that were encroaching on Thomas. His armored body flashed like lightning, and his blow struck like runaway trains. Nothing was going to stop him. This was what he was born for. <<<|Ω|>>> Thomas leapt over the sudden skirmish, flying over Big Mac to land next to the pods. He hoped the distraction would keep the changelings from detonating the pods, and so far, his luck held out. His claw punched through the first pod, green fluid spilling out of the breach before Thomas grabbed and pulled. A young lion came gasping out of the pod, breathing in air for the first time in a long time. Thomas threw the boy to side, out of the pod and onto dry land before moving to the next one. His closed fist slammed through another pod, and he quickly pulled out another griffon, this time a young lioness, no older than twelve. As he moved to the next pod, however, Fluttershy had her hooves full. Her Stare was holding thirteen changelings in place, but she wouldn’t be able to hold them much longer. Even now, they were beginning to break her influence. She stared a little bit harder. She had to hold them. She had to hold them until Big Mac was done. One of the changelings on the left was trying to move. Another on the right was just trying to blink. She wouldn’t last much longer. “Big Mac, hurry!” The large earth pony did not respond. Whether he heard her or not, Fluttershy did not know, but she did know that the draft pony was certainly working on it. A powerful hoof sent a changeling flying backwards, into one of the cells. It shook his head, and was about to jump back into the fray, when it was suddenly grabbed from behind. One of the griffon mothers had it by the throat, and with a vicious growl, she dug her talons between the protective plates. “Threaten my child, and your life is forfeit,” she whispered into the dying changeling’s ear. One less to worry about. Thomas, now joined by the first young griffon he freed, was now ripping the pods open, the cries and cheers from the mothers in the cages egging them both on. “Save my baby, please!” “The one on the right! The right!” “Hurry! Hurry, please!” Thomas answered these calls by slamming into more pods and opening them. Things were going well for a moment or two. Then the changelings on the other side of Fluttershy’s stare broke free. <<<|Ω|>>> Titus Eaglespirit sighed. This...it was just too much… First he received honors at his school, then he was accepted into the royal guard with a heavy implication of succeeding the Captain of the Guard, and then the most beautiful lioness in school suddenly needed his attention. And yet… He dug into his fourth plate of mutton that day, and sighed again. It...it felt so empty. It was like something was missing. He sighed again. “Something wrong, son?” His father called from the living room. “No, not really,” Titus said. Thomas entered the room, a slight frown on his face. “That doesn’t sound like there’s nothing wrong. What’s the matter?” “I...I just...everything’s going my way but...but I don’t feel happy, you know?” Thomas frowned. “You know what, Titus? I have just the solution for that.” “You do?” “Yeah, let’s you and me take a camping trip.” Titus’ heart jumped at the thought. “A camping trip!? We haven’t had one of those in forever!” “Yeah! I think you deserve one, don’t you?” Titus laughed, jumping up and down at the thought of a good camping trip with his dad. Oh, this was so awesome! He laughed, joy filling his heart. Oh this was going to be so— He felt something grab him by the neck. Titus fell to the floor, clutching at his throat. “Son, son are you alright?” There was something there, grabbing him. There was nothing there to pry off. “Son? Son are you okay?” Titus rolled around, trying to wrestle the unseen, intangible assailant. “Titus? Answer me Titus!” The world went green. And then air filled his lungs. “Titus! Titus, answer me!” “D-Dad?” the young lion asked, sputtering a foul-tasting liquid from his beak. “Oh, thank you, Ancestors,” he sighed, before hugging the confused boy. The sounds of battle reached Titus’ ears. His confused, dazed eyes tried desperately to take in what he was seeing, there was a shape flying through the air, followed by a bunch of black things. A large red thing stood not far away, and it was sending more of the black things flying. “Titus, Titus, listen to me,” His father said, his face slowly coming into focus. “I need your help, son.” <<<|Ω|>>> Fluttershy was flying around the room, desperately trying to keep ahead of the changelings chasing her. Five of them had broken off to chase her while the remainder was now latching to Big Macintosh’s back. The draft pony, however, was making his ancestors proud. The natural weapons of the changelings, their fangs, horns and sharp holes in their legs served only to anger the large pony. He stood, his armor covered in dents and blood seeping out of the joints where they pierced through. His eyes flashed wildly as he threw another changeling from his back as the clear gore of the changelings ran down his sides, and his red blood ran invisible against his coat. Thomas just finished opening the last pod, his son and the first griffon helping, the young lioness, however, was already working on opening the cages, releasing the lionesses. These changelings chasing her though, they could be a problem. She banked a corner, silently wishing she was Rainbow Dash (again), and hoping she could keep ahead of them long enough to get out of this room alive. She rolled in the air, before finding the perfect way to lose her pursuers.The pegasus dove suddenly, heading straight for the large red pony. Now, Fluttershy was not necessarily the best flier. However, during the war she spent a lot of time flying in tight spaces, squeezing between fighters as she searched for injured ponies. What this meant, was that while flying under Big Macintosh was going to be hard, it wasn’t impossible. She dove, doing her best to flatten herself to fit in the space between Big Mac’s hooves. She almost didn’t make it, she hit the ground, before jumping off of it and back into the air. The changelings behind her, however, only ran into the living wall that was Big Macintosh. He answered their charge with a hoof to their collective faces. Now that she as free, however, she could now finally recover her poisoned wingblades. She spun around, slowly arching back to the entrance, and quickly found the small wing-mounted daggers. Big Mac, however, was now surrounded, and while his armor was holding, there was no guarantee that it would hold for long. And then the lionesses came. The griffon mothers, after weeks of being locked up, poorly fed, and watching their children begin to turn into emotionless husks, now struck the remaining changelings with all the fury and power of Tartarus itself. They rushed the changelings from behind, taking them even as they swarmed the draft pony. Two-to-one they pounced, one pinning the changeling while the other went straight for the throat. By the end of their surprise attack, only two remained. The survivors quickly turned and ran, their advantage of numbers lost to the prisoners. The lionesses dove for them trying to exact all the revenge they could. Talons grasped and reached, but no matter how hard they tried, the changelings somehow managed to escape. They quickly flew out of the room, retreating into the hallway and out of sight. “They’ll be back with reinforcements,” Thomas said. “We don’t have a lot of time.” Big Mac took a quick look around. Now that the changelings had been repelled, the mothers had instantly turned to their children. Their chances against a larger force were probably not good. They needed to get out of here. The large pony looked up at Fluttershy and gave her a nod. She nodded, her train of thought following his. Her face hardened as she began to slip back into being a general. “Aquilas, get these griffons out of here. We’ll hold them off.” Thomas only managed to blink. “Now, soldier!” she yelled. “Ma’am! Yes Ma’am!” he said before turning to the lionesses and yelling at them to move towards him. “If...you wouldn’t mind…” she added quietly, her voice unheard in the hubbub of all of the leaving griffons. Big Macintosh smirked. The last lioness was out, leaving only the two ponies and Thomas. “Will…” the griffon asked, “will you be alright?” Big Mac nodded. “Eeyup.” Thomas hesitated, before following the lionesses out. Fluttershy landed next to the large pony. “Are you alright, Big Mac?” “Just a couple of scratches,” he said. “It looks worse than it is.” The pegasus bit her lip, watching as blood slowly seeped out of the armor around his joints. “Are you sure?” “Eeyup.” Fluttershy wasn’t exactly sold on it. “Well, ya know what they say,” Big Mac said with a smirk. “the best defense is a good offense.” <<<|Ω|>>> A swarm of six changelings crawled down another one of the thousands of identical hallways of the Onyx Keep. They moved in silence, none of them speaking as they scurried down the hallway. Another quickly entered the hall, coming from an intersecting hallway. “What is the report?” the new changeling asked. “We have captured two of Pendragon’s friends. We are going to put them in pods and use their forms against the others.” The new changeling smiled. “It is a good plan.” The lead changeling of the small swarm gave a predatory smirk. “A classic.” The two shared a dark chuckle when suddenly, two more changelings approached. They were both breathing heavily, and they looked ragged. “What happened?” the leader asked. “The ponies escaped,” one of them panted. “They released the griffons.” “What!?” the leader shrieked. “The big one fights like a monster,” the beaten changeling explained, "and the small one...she has some kind of magic…” “Unicorn?” “No, a pegasus.” “A pegasus with magic?” “We should expect no less from the Pendragon’s friends,” one of the changelings noted. Another nodded. “We should be careful.” “Yes,” another one said, “we should probably…” he trailed off, as the small flap of chitinous skin that served as their ears twitched. “Do any of you hear that?” The thundering of hooves was the only warning they got, and by then, it was far too late. The changelings saw him before he saw them, their low-light vision revealing him through the darkness. Even so, there was no stopping him. Galloping through the darkness of the hallway came the massive, armored stallion. Big Mac slammed into them sending at least one flying while scattering the others. The broken line of changelings tried to regroup, and one of them was tensing for a pounce onto his back, when it suddenly felt a slight nick at its neck. It turned its head just in time to see a pale yellow pegasus with a pink mane holding a wingdagger in each—This One is tired… Big Mac started throwing kicks again, slamming changelings against the walls of the hallways. He snorted, air escaping his nostrils as thick, angry steam. One of the changelings charged him, trying to impale Big Mac with its horn. The horn almost pierced the armor, but that’s about as far as the changeling got before a massive hoof came down on its head. Six of them jumped the large pony, while the last one turned and ran back up the hall. “This One will get help!” The other six jumped on the draft pony, trying to cut and beat him into submission. Fluttershy dove on them from above, trying to get her knife into the spaces between the plates of their armor. Big Mac defended himself from below, smashing the changelings as they tried to attack. One of the changelings tried to latch itself onto his face, grabbing onto his shoulders. It hissed, and moved to bite into Mac’s face. A flutter of yellow feathers, and the attacking changeling was suddenly snoring on Big Mac’s face. The draft pony threw the changeling off him, and smashed another on the back swing. In the matter of a few seconds, the passage went quiet, and the changelings were either dead or asleep. Big Mac turned to Fluttershy. “You alright?” “Yes,” she said, nodding. Her eyes traced over the slowly seeping blood. “You?” she asked. “Eeyup,” he said simply before he began to gallop down the hall. Fluttershy followed hesitantly. <<<|Ω|>>> “They’re coming!” the changeling cried, as he and his brothers braced the door. Big Mac slammed into the other side of the door, his shoulder playing the part of a battering ram. The door thudded, and the changeling cursed. They weren’t going to be able to hold it long. “Some of you get back!” the leading changeling ordered. “We need strength to hold him back!” Half of the changelings jumped backwards, and the door almost gave way. This was not going to end well. The door shook again, nearly coming off its hinges as the draft pony rammed it again. They were all going to die. And with that, the door was blown loose, and the changeling thought no more. <<<|Ω|>>> Fluttershy fluttered nervously, watching as Big Macintosh ripped through changeling lines. He...she had always known him as such a gentle pony...this...well… She took a moment to look at the wing blade in her feathers. Then again...she had thought she was a gentle pony too. But still, watching Big Mac tear through them like a pony possessed...it scared her. She could swear that he ripped an exoskeleton open once, but she was sure that was just her seeing something. She dove into the fight, pricking another changeling’s neck, and sending him to sleep. Another one opened up his jaws to bite down on Big Mac’s neck. She sent a stare his way, freezing him in place. She held it for a moment. The changeling sheepishly backed off. She dove at it, nicking his neck to keep any ideas from getting into his head. They were doing well, they might even be able to empty the roo— Pain shot through her side. A changeling gave a snickering laugh as it watched her blood dripped down its horn. Her wing blade came down on it, but only managed to smack it in its armored head. With no plates to get between, all she could do was flutter uselessly. Her vision swam, and the room began to spin. Her wings flapped, slowly going out of sync as blood poured out her side. The changeling ripped itself out of the wound, causing more of her precious life to spill. She fell. <<<|Ω|>>> His heart stopped. The world seemed to freeze around him as he watched her tumble through the air, the open wound in her side telling him far more than he needed to know. She was hurt. She was dying. A changeling leapt on his neck and bit down, sending a bolt of pain down his neck, and resuming the flow of time. “Get off o’ me!” he roared, throwing the changeling off. “Fluttershy!” She slammed into the ground. “Fluttershy!” The changelings pounced on him again. “Ah said, git!” he roared again, before delivering a powerful buck to the face of the slowest one to pounce. The changelings grabbed at him, trying desperately to bring him down. Big Mac shook them off, only to take one more step forward before being stopped by the changelings again. He tried to reach her, only for the mass of chitin beneath him to hold him back. He had to help her. They began to swarm, covering Fluttershy as they descended on their kill. “No!” he roared. “Let her go!” They did not. His hooves hit something hard beneath him. He grabbed it, and quickly heaved it over his head. “Get away from her!” he roared, bringing whatever he had grabbed down blindly onto their heads. The swarming changelings were instantly crushed by the three hundred pound door that had once sat in the now-open arch. Big Mac swung again, smashing some more changeling skulls as the massive door came around. Another swing, and the next thing he knew, the room had been emptied. He dropped the door, his attention now held by the wounded pegasus. “Fluttershy! Fluttershy!” he cried aloud. He laid down near her, his eyes moving between the wound and her paling face. “Y-you’re going to be alright! Ah-Ah’ll...pu-put pressure on the wound! It’ll stop the bleeding! You’ll...you’re going to be fine!” Her cyan eyes fluttered open, and he gave the large stallion a look. “Big Mac?” her voice called weakly. “You’re going to be just fine!” the large pony said, panicked. “Ah’m gonna get you help! You’ll—” “Big Mac,” she called again, using all her strength to lift her hoof to his shoulder. He stared at her, as her lips began to move, singing a familiar tune. “If I were gone tomorrow, would you care? If I were gone tomorrow, would you sigh? If I were gone tomorrow, would you miss me at all? If I were gone tomorrow, would you cry?” Her voice, weak as it was, still carried the notes with purpose and clarity, letting the song and its words echo in Big Mac’s skull. “Ah…Ah…” Her hoof began to slip away. He grabbed at it, and looked into her half-lidded eyes. Big Mac’s father had always told him that words were not something to be wasted. A pony who spoke too much couldn’t stand by his words on the count that they had lost all meaning. But now… Now when he wanted all of the words in the world. Now when he wanted to sing it, shout it, tell it to the world in poems and songs, his words failed him. He didn’t know what to say. “Ah-Ah would do so much more than that.” Fluttershy smiled, before closing her eyes. There was silence for a second. “Fluttershy?” Big Mac called. “Fluttershy?” No answer. “F-Fluttershy?” he called again nudging her with the tip of his snout. Her body provided no resistance, as her breathing began to slow. The farmer’s eyes became wet with tears as he stared down at her peaceful face. “No...please, no.” Tears dropped onto the cold stone below him. “Celestia, no.” His right hoof gently traced her face, his left still over the oozing wound. “Please,” he said, looking up at the stone ceiling above as if it held the answer. “I’ll do anything!” he wailed. “Just, please, don’t take her! She doesn’t deserve it!” And then, Big Mac made a sound. The sound of a heart shattering as it lost the thing it held the most dear. <<<|Ω|>>> Thousands of years ago, before Celestia and Luna introduced themselves to ponykind, before Equestria was founded, even before the first tentative treaty between the three tribes, there was war. The kingdoms of Venkey, Terratur, and Montem Geinzah, today’s Bitaly, Bitland, and Prance respectively, were locked in a terrible conflict. The airborne forces of the pegasi rained stones and boulders down on the other ponies below. Unicorn mages, using the darkest forbidden magic ate the ground with darkness and hellfire. The Earth Ponies...well… The Earth Ponies had a secret weapon. A good bow could take both unicorn and pegasus at a distance, but it was not the key to their survival. The key was in fact the monks. All across Terratrur stood small monasteries, inhabited by the masters of Earth Pony magic who dedicated their lives to the Path of the Earth. And the unicorns were terrified of them. The pegasi could bring down rain, snow, and lightning, and the unicorns could withstand that. The unicorns themselves, masters of forces and energy, could be dealt with. But a monk? The touch of a monk could kill a fully grown minotaur, and then heal him in the same breath. The smallest contact and an acorn became a fully grown oak. Walking caused the ground behind them to spring to life. The hooves of a strong monk could easily outmatch the horns some of their strongest mages, and this scared the unicorns above all else. Their towers would crumble to the roots of trees, their magicks stopped forever with a single touch, the enemy forces nigh invincible as the monks continued to heal their wounds. All these and more were the fears of the unicorns. The monks, however, acted only in defense. They stood on the battlefield as medics, saving their power for only the most dangerous of wounds. The unicorns did not care. And so they wiped them out. They massacred them all, stallions, mares, and foals. They erased them from history, so that no other monk would be created. They obliterated them. Almost all of them, anyway. A handful of refugees ran for the cities, hiding behind the great walls of the Earth Pony fortresses and fake lives and names. There they started new lives, reinventing themselves as carpenters, farmers, masons and more. One, in fact, had become a noble. Verde Manzana was his name. <<<|Ω|>>> Big Mac screamed, pain flooding his being as he stared at the dying pegasus before him. He sobbed, burying his face into her chest, weeping. “Please,” he whispered. “Please…I’ll do anything.” Her life was quickly slipping away, and there was nothing he could do about it. Still, he pressed his hoof on the wound. “Anything. Anything at all!” he wept. She’s a good as dead, Mac, a voice in his brain stated. “Shut up.” Let’s be honest, Mac, there’s nothing we can do. “Ah...Ah don’t…” She’s gone, Mac… Gone… She had saved his life twice, and now she was gone. Going, going… He brought his head up to wail at the sky, begging Faust to do something. Nothing happened. No alicorn angel to come and revive her. No Death coming to open the gates of Tartarus itself. Nothing. Just him, and her. “Please…” he cried again, to anyone who would listen. “Please.” He looked down at Fluttershy, before his eyes wandered around the rest of the room. The dead changelings stared back at him. So much death. These things that were once alive, now dead. Life… Such a precious thing… He had lived his whole life surrounded by it, and now, now all he had was death. Life. Death. The first, so important, the other, inevitable. Life was so easy to take, and now that he needed it, nearly impossible to give. What he would give to be able to give the gift of life. He sighed, lowering his head. She was gone. He’d never be able to hold her again. Well...hold her at all… She’d never be his. He shouldn’t have waited so long… He sighed. “I’m sorry Fluttershy, I’m sorry.” The body coughed and sputtered in front of him. Big Mac’s head snapped up as he watched Fluttershy struggle to breath. He pulled his hoof away to look down to the wound, only to find blood-stained fur, but whole flesh. It...it was healed. He blinked. That...that was… Fluttershy coughed again, and Big Mac quickly gave her all of his attention. “Fluttershy! Fluttershy, you...you’re going to be alright!” He said, grasping her by the withers. She put a shoulder to his chest. “S-slow down please, I’ve...I’ve lost a lot of blood, so I’m a little nauseous.” Big Mac nodded. “Sure! Yes!” he laughed. “You’re going to be alright!” “Yeah,” she agreed. “I’ll just need a few hours rest an—” She was suddenly interrupted by a pair of lips meeting hers. Her eyes went wide. Big Mac also opened his eyes before slowly pulling away, suddenly realizing what he had just done. “Ah...uh...Ah was worried ‘bout ya, ya see...and Ah…” Any other day, and Fluttershy would have been content to let him babble on, all the while muttering her own set of apologies. But not today. She had almost died just a second ago, almost died without letting him know. She wasn’t going to let that happen again. Also, her lack of blood may have been giving her some false courage. “Just shut up and kiss me,” she said weakly. Big Mac blinked. Before smiling, and doing what he was told, all the while thanking Faust for saving her life. Faust meanwhile, only smiled. “Don’t know why you’re thanking me. I didn’t do anything.” Of course, neither of the two ponies heard that. What they did hear, however was a very familiar southern voice. “Consarn it, Mac!” -------------------------------- “Hey Miner! There you are! Where you’ve been?” From the lowest dungeon to the highest peak I fought with the Writer’s Block. Until at last I threw down my enemy and smote his ruin upon the mountain side… “Coolio! You’re quoting Lord of the Rings! That means you’re back to normal! Whee!” It’s good to be back. Alright, Fillies and Gentlecolts, we’ve got some ground to cover. Next time we’ve got some SoarinXPie, and he does so love his pie. “Whee! I get a chapter again!” Be sure to comment, question, critique and all that, and we will see you next time. Bye!