In the Hive Chrysalis was more angry than normal.
She was getting sick of every-ling mumbling, talking, and whispering about 'friends' and trying to work out how the ponies escaped when the soldiers were given strict orders to catch them and kill any-ling that was helping them in the process.
After she found the cells empty and told the Solider Changelings to find them, Chrysalis went to her private quarters and destroyed everything not attached to the walls in sight.
She had just finished and calmed down a bit, when a quick knock came to the door.
"Enter," she said seeing the four guards that came to her at the cells bow in front of her all looking worried.
"Well?" Chrysalis asked her horn starting to turn green.
"We... We can't find the prisoners my Queen..."
"We searched through the whole Hive..."
"No one seemed to of been helping them..."
"But their not here anymore..."
They all explained the story not getting up from their bows.
"Wrong answer!" Chrysalis said leaning forward eying each of them and then with a swish of her horn, Chrysalis took the lives of the four Changelings before her their lifeless bodies falling to the ground.
Then straightening her crown and making sure she looked presentable, called out mentally... "All free cleaners are to come to my quarters, and ask no questions when they get here." With that she went back to the Hives prison ward to try and work out for herself, what happened to the ponies.
Up in the sky above Ghastly Gorge, Rainbow Dash was doing her best clearing the skies for the Earth Ponies to try and find the machine in question.
But they weren't having much luck.
After blowing away her sixteenth storm cloud and getting hit with lightning for the seventh time, Rainbow flew back down and ask if they found anything.
"We can't find anything Rainbow Dash," one of them said as soon as Rainbow asked the question.
"We have to keep trying," another said nearly falling into the gorge because she was looking up instead of in front of her.
"No," Rainbow said looking at all of the cold tired faces in front of her. "You guys go back to Appleloosa, and get warm. I'll stay here and keep looking. If I can't find anything within half an hour I'll come back too..." and with that she took off to the air again and started looking above the cloud layers for the machine.
On the other side of Appleloosa, near Dodge Junction, things weren't going any better. Because Nurse 516 was not meant to leave the Hive, she was not taught any fighting skills or how to do the jobs of the ponies she was formed into at the moment.
It didn't help that she didn't know what kind of cloud was what, or when Chrysalis's voice rang in her head about 'cleaners to come to my quarters', nearly knocking her out of the sky.
It also did not help that Changelings were cold-blooded creatures and got weaker the colder it was. In the end Nurse 516 was so weak her disguise was stripped away from her and she started to fall out of the sky.
Luckily a group of stallions aided by Pinkie and her Pinkie Sense caught the shivering Changeling and wrapped her up in blankets Rarity conjured up and, after admitting defeat, they all went back to Appleloosa to warm her up.
In Appleloosa, Applejack used a lasso which Twilight put a 'cloud catching' spell on to bring the clouds to the ground for the others to stomp out of existence.
They had just done their tenth one when both parties came back with their news.
"You sure it wasn't by Dodge Junction?" Twilight asked first getting shaking heads in response as howling winds just deafened every-ponies ears.
"AND RAINBOW'S STILL LOOKING OVER GHASTLY GORGE?" she asked the other one who nodded shivering against the cold. After saying they can get warm Twilight turned to her group and said. "WE'VE WORKED OUT IT'S EITHER OVER US OR GHASTLY GORGE!"
But because of the winds it came out as ...
"We... out.. her ...ass... gorge," Making some ponies get confused looks and rub their ears to unblock them.
A few seconds and a 'BANG' followed by colored sky later, Rainbow Dash showed up and said she hadn't found anything in or over the Gorge.
"Which means it must be in Appleloosa," Twilight said looking up and searching the sky then seeing a rather odd looking shaped cloud said "Rainbow. Take a look at that one."
Looking up to see which one Twilight was pointing at, Rainbow kicked off and made her way into the could.
In the town hall Little Strong Heart was telling the children Buffalo stories to try and keep them happy and entertained.
"...Just as the Chief was about to stomp his hoof on the stallions neck, the tribes Princess dived out of the crowd and laid herself over him stopping the Chief just in time.
She said looking into her father's eyes 'If you kill him, you're going to have to kill me too..."
Many gasps came from the children at hearing this.
"Did he Miss Strong Heart?" one of them asked putting her hoof in the air.
"What kind of story would it be if he did Dummy?" another said rolling his eyes.
"Hey! Don't call her a Dummy, Dummy..." a third one said in return.
"Why don't we let Strong Heart finish the story and find out?" Braeburn said cutting the kids off before a fight broke out.
"Sorry..." all three said looking up at the Buffalo Princess.
"It's ok," Strong Heart said trying to remember where she was "Oh yeah... Then the Chief said 'Daughter, step back.'
'I won't. I love him Father....' the Princess said shocking the two tribes but most of all her father. 'Look around you. This is where the path of Hatred has brought us! This is the path I choose Father. What will yours be?'
The Chief stepped back, thinking about what his daughter had said looking at his tribe, then to the one the stallion was from. Everyone who heard her started to loosen their weapons waiting for the Chief's answer.
'My daughter speaks with the wisdom beyond her years. We've all come here with anger in our hearts, but she comes with courage and understanding. From this day forward, if there is to be more killing, it will not start with me.' Then the Chief turned to one of his men and said 'Release him.'
But as the stallion and the Princess embraced at being together again, the leader of the stallion's tribe said. 'Now's our chance. Attack.'"
Getting even more gasps and questions. All through the story Meep had been listening, feeling the emotions that came with the story. It almost felt like she was there, watching it all happen.
"One of the stallion's friends turned to his leader and said 'No.'
'What was that?'
'They let him go,' another said.
'They don't want to fight,' a third said dropping his weapon to the ground the rows behind him doing the same agreeing with them.
Unsure what to do, thinking the Buffalo's were tricking them the leader quickly picked one of the weapons and took aim.
The stallion first to realize jumped out of the Princesses arms and pushed the Chief out of the way, but was not fast enough to doge the shot himself.
This shocked everyone the ponies on the ground quickly took the weapon away from their leader, and tied him up, while the Buffalo's on the hill swarmed around the stallion to see if he was alright.
"Was he?" all three of the children asked their eyes wide with wonder.
"Yes," Strong Heart said continuing with her story "But it came at a cost... 'A few days later as the ponies were packing up their airship to go home one of the stallions friends said they'll loose the wind if the did not go soon. But the stallion said for them to wait a few more minutes.
Suddenly out of the trees came the Princess and her whole village bearing gifts for the brave stallion that saved their Chief. The Chief himself actually came up and gave his thanks to the stallion, and said that they would always be brothers, giving the stallion his cloak.
The Princess said her good byes, knowing it was better for the stallion to go back to get the right medicine for his wounds.
'Come with me?' he asked.
The Princess looked between the two tribes... The one she'd always know, and the one she had just met. Then to her father.
'You must choose your own path' he said smiling.
Then the Princess turned back to the stallion. 'I'm needed here,' she said.
'Then.. I'll stay here with you.' he said breathing deeply.
'No,' she said, 'You have to go back.'
'But I'll miss you,' he said holding her hoof.
'So will I' she replied. 'But no matter what happens, I'll always be with you. Forever...'
After they said good bye, the stallion's friends took him onto the airship and slid off the mountain making them start heading home.
All of the Buffalo tribe watched it leave, knowing they would miss their new friends, but always remembering, as long as you let them live in your hearts by remembering them, and what they did... they will always be with you."
As Little Strong Heart came to the end of her story, the doors flung open and everyone who went out earlier came back in, one of them carrying a wrapped up shivering Nurse 516 on his back.
Fluttershy and Meep ran over as they laid her on the ground and placed more blankets over her trying to warm her up.
Braeburn came up to his sister. "Find the machine sis?" he asked getting death glances from every-pony.
"Does it look like we found it Braeburn?" Apple Fritter said eying him the most pointing out the window to the mix between rain, hail, and now snow.
"Er..." Braeburn said looking around at the mares and stallions, all being given blankets and warm cider by Fluttershy.
As that was going on one of the children asked, "Miss Strong Heart... Was that a true story?"
"And if it was, who were they?" another said.
"Well, yes it is a true story," Little Strong Heart said rubbing the back of her head a bit. "But I don't know who they were. It's a very old story, I might gotten things wrong, but the base line is easy enough to remember."
Feeling something coming off of Little Strong Heart, Meep looked up, and had an idea.
"Braeburn, Little Strong Heart!" she buzzed up in the air to get noticed, "Please everyone Nurse 516 is ill, please let out your love for those you do so she can get better.... Please, she was the only 'friend' I had back in the Hive, I don't want to lose her." she said purple tears starting to roll down her cheeks as no one stepped forward.
Then Fluttershy stepped out of the crowd and went over to lie down in front of Nurse 516 and thought of all her animals back home, of her boyfriend, friends, new friends and what Nurse 516 did for her when she was in the Hive.
Slowly the warmth of Fluttershy's emotions made their way to the older Changeling, but it wasn't enough, so Strong Heart and Braeburn came up and joined in, shedding love for each other, and their family's and friends.
Slowly, one by one, the Appleloosains came forward and helped, thinking of the ones they loved, their friends and what they did for them. And slowly bit by tiny bit Nurse 516 began to shiver less and some black was coming back to her skin.
Then after ten minutes, Nurse 516 opened her eyes and smiled as Meep greeted her like a kitten and her mother. Then she looked up at all the ponies around her all smiling and sighing in relief. Turning her attention to Fluttershy, she only said two words...
"Thank you," before closing her eyes again and going to sleep.