The inside of Ponyville's local hospital was generally quite relaxed and quiet. But when a patient with Timberwolf bite marks, mass amounts of blood loss and has lost all consciousness comes in, the whole area becomes as loud as a rampaging elephant and as fast as cheetah.
"Get him into the ICU now, priority one!" Yelled a tall stallion with light brown fur wearing white trench coat with a black shirt and trousers to a smaller woman in a nurse's outfit. "Get 50mL of morphine and the multi-species antidote for Timberwolf poisoning on the double! It's a race against time to save this young colt's life."
In a portable bed laid the prone body of said patient, a young colt who wasn't exactly a pony. The bed beginning to fill and soak with the blood from his arm wounds and on his face was an oxygen mask to hopefully lengthen his short, ragged breathing. Without any questions, the doctors and nurses wheeled the patient away into the emergency wing of the hospital.
"Sis...h-he's gon' be alright, right?" Cried a weak Apple Bloom, gripping on her elder sister's bloody shirt as if she would lose her too.
Applejack sighed heavily and stroked a hand through Apple Bloom's red hair. "Ah honestly don't know sugarcube, only time will tell." She said sadly. The mood between the two sisters was soon ruined by an elongated groan from behind them.
"Would somepony mind telling us what the hay is going on? And who was that guy? He looked like us but he certainly wasn't no pony." Whined a blue furred woman. Her eyes were a deep magenta and her scraggly hair and tail were filled with the colours of the rainbow. Her clothes sporting a black tank top shirt with matching demon shorts. Sprouting from her back were two, arm-length, blue wings. Wings that she was using to hover above the ground.
Next to the floating girl were four others, all girls as well. The oldest looking one wore a silk gown and a couple of bracelets, her curvy hair and tail were a deep shade of indigo contrasting her ocean blue eyes and snow white fur. On the left of her was a rather shy, yellow furred girl in demeanour. The long, wavy pink hair covering half of her saddened face and a tail of the same degree to match. Her clothing comprised of a long yellow sweater jumper that went down to her knees. Next to her was essentially her polar opposite: this girl was as hyper as a five-year-old who had their first cup of coffee. Her bubbly rosy hair and tail looked reminiscent to an Afro with bed hair and her clothes comprised of the same clothes Apple Bloom was wearing; blue overalls and a yellow shirt.
Right beside the flying tomboy however, was a another woman who had purple fur, a horn sprouting from her forehead and clothes similar to a school uniform: a short-sleeved shirt with a waistcoat, tie and a purple skirt. Looking to the flyer, she said, "Calm down Rainbow Dash, we all have questions that we want answered but I definitely can agree with you. He had the body structure of one of us but his body had barely any hair on it, his face was flat and he had no hooves. What exactly is he? Hmmm, maybe one of my books might have something. Maybe he's part of a completely new race to Equestria! I need to study him and then tell Princess Celestia about him and I'll be rewarded and-" her studious rant was interrupted by Applejack's hand forcibly closing her lips shut.
"Twahlight, calm down." She said bemusedly. "Alright you three, care to explain what happened in full detail? And Ah swear, if y'all lie to us, it won't be pretty." Said Applejack with a very stern tone, and being the Element of Honesty, she could tell when they were lying and that she was completely serious.
The three little fillies debated amongst each other, pointing fingers at who should go first. In favour of 2:1, Scootaloo went first. She was the one who came up with the idea of going to Zecora's in the first place. "We were trying to find out our cutiemarks again today after school, and I got the idea of potion brewing. So we all figured we should go to Zecora's and get her help with it since none of us actually knew how to make a potion. We were just about there when a pack of timberwolves showed up and surrounded us, we thought we were goners....but then he showed up. He just jumped out of the bushes and protected us by k-killing a timberwolf that pounced at us." She said shakily from the last sentence, the word 'kill' infiltrated and filled her tiny mind with explicit, bloody detailed images. Her orange body shivered from the thought.
"He killed a timberwolf?!" Yelled all the mares, all except the yellow mare who began to cry. The word 'kill' was a taboo to her among her friends, and now that she had heard herself that an animal, the creatures she loved most, was killed...it broke her heart. Twilight moved close to Fluttershy and embraced her lovingly, like an older sister. After a moment she looked back to the fillies and said "But that's impossible, timberwolves can't be killed, they just explode into sticks and even then they aren't truly dead. So how'd he do it?" She asked.
Scootaloo still looked uneasy, so Apple Bloom decided to take the reigns this time. "We don't know. He just cut its head off with his sword and it died, technically. After he did, he walked in front of us and said that he wouldn't let the rest o' the timberwolves hurt us and that'd they die by his blade if they tried unless they retreated."
"He was giving the timberwolves a chance to escape? Why?"
Apple Bloom just shrugged. "I dunno but them timberwolves didn't listen and transformed into one monster-sized timberwolf. It roared at us and blew us all away into some bushes but that guy flew into a tree. Next thing we know, his eyes were glowing and his sword was covered in blue fire. He said somethin' but I can't remember what he said."
"Beccata di Rondine." Answered Sweetie Belle
"Thanks." Said her friend, recieving a curt nod in response. "Anyway, after he said that, his arm was moving so fast Ah could barely see it and the sword in his hand just kept hitting the giant timberwolf again and again until it was completely covered in the same blue fire. We saw him stop his attack but it seemed like he was in pain after using it because he was grippin' his arm mighty tightly. After that, he walked up to the big ol' timberwolf's burnt body and apologised to it."
"First he gives them mercy and then he apologises for killing it? What's up with this guy, is he nuts or somethin'? And what's up with this blue fire they said he had?" Questioned a befuddled Applejack looking to her mare friends for any sort of answer.
"M-maybe he didn't want to fight them at all?" Said a quiet voice from the back of the group. Looking back, only to see Fluttershy with her face free from her past tears. Once all eyes were on her though, she shrunk away, attempting at hiding behind Twilight. "W-what I m-mean is that...e-even though he had a weapon and hurt those poor creatures, m-maybe he truly didn't want to do it. Why else would he apologise or give them a chance to leave?" She stuttered, creeping away from peering eyes more and more.
Rainbow just shot her old friend a look that said ‘you're not serious are you?’. "You're kidding right Flutters? Whoever or whatever that guy is, he killed those timberwolves. He's dangerous. He's probably some kind of spy from another country outside of Equestria." She said, cracking her furry knuckles.
"Y'all think everypony who you don't know is a spy Dash." Said an exasperated Applejack rolling her eyes. The elder Apple's words almost caused a brawl with Rainbow Dash within the confines of the hospital. Almost. All because the bubbly pink mare appeared in between the two to-be-fighters in a the blink of an eye surprising yet not surprising everybody in the room.
"Ooh, I'm so excited! A completely new pony who isn't a pony has arrived and get to throw him, or her, is it a him? I'm pretty sure it's a him by the way the body looked and by what Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle told us but maybe mares of his race have the same bodies? Either way, I get to throw it a 'WelcometoPonyvillethanksforsavingthecrusadersandsorryforgettingpoisonedalongtheway' party!!" She yelled happily, somehow managing all that in one breath, shooting streamers and confetti out of nowhere from her body.
"But Pinkie Pie, what if he..err, she-it doesn't like parties?" Said the purple mare.
"Doesn't like parties?! Never!"
"Hang on, Apple Bloom, did that thing ever give you its name?"
"Mmhmm, he said his name was Alex."
"His name is ‘Alex’? Now we know that that thing is definitely not a pony, because I've looked through all the history books and every census of Equestrian history and there has never been a name such as ‘Alex’. So it begs the most important question, who and what is he?"
-----
Under the many machines trying to preserve my lifeless body, my mind and soul were elsewhere entirely. Deep within the farthest reaches of my being lied a vast landscape consisting of open skies and ever cumulative clouds of different sizes and shapes. In the middle of this outlandish landscape were two figures: myself, looking as fresh as an Apple in the market and my new mystery friend. I stare him down slightly so he doesn't notice until he opened his mouth and spoke first.
"I must say, I didn't expect to see you here this quickly." he said amused to a slight degree.
I ease my tension, I don't know why but while this guy is a complete stranger, I feel easy around him like I would with my friends. "Well I'm kind of poisoned at the moment and I need to sleep it off, or at least that's what the nurse said. I must say though, even though she isn't exactly human, that's one hot nurse." I jokingly said to him, to which we both shared a bit of a giggle.
"I can testify to that. So, I suppose you have questions for me?"
"No shit. Alright, first question: who the hell are you? Second question: where the bloody hell are we?"
"My creator and former master gave me the name Tengoku Terra." he said giving a small bow as he introduced himself. I thought that was possibly the strangest name I've ever heard aside from that redhead kid's name, one name is Japanese and the other is Latin.
Cocking my head slightly to my right, I fold my arms and ask: "Your name is 'Heaven Earth'?"
My spiritual friend simply nodded. "Correct, I am also the spirit of the blade you wield. As for where we are, this place is your inner world. An endless area where only we can converse together. I was even surprised by the form of your inner world, an open sky with no walls, no ceiling and no restrictions. Just like an aloof cloud." he said looking around, but he still smirked at me.
"Well I do enjoy my freedom just like anybody else, and clouds have more freedom than anything in the entire world. It's also quite ironic how I'm afraid of heights and yet here I am." I said, embarrassingly rubbing my neck.
"Valid point Alexander."
"Thank you, but we are getting off topic. Back in the forest, you said that you chose me to save the world. What does that even mean? What do I have to save an entire world for? I'm only sixteen, I should be in school with all of my friends and chilling at home with my mum and brother. Why have I been taken away from my families?!" I yelled sadly at him, tears beginning to brim in my eyes. I'm way too confused, I just want to know what's going on and why. Tengoku just looked away like he was ashamed of something and didn't say a word to me.
After a minute, he looked back at me, dead straight into my eyes. "I'm afraid I cannot answer that question. For the answer to that, you must seek out the sister princesses of this land. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna." said Tengoku.
"Okay, but still, why did you choose me? What qualities do I possess like you said?"
"Like the zodiac sign of the ox, you are honest, patient, strong willed, a natural leader, cautious and your sense of justice is second to none. And like your spirit of the wolf, you are strong, quick, value friends and family above yourself, you're loyal, passionate and devoted. It is for these qualities that I have chosen you as the protector of this world and as my new master." Making a slow b-line towards me, Terra just began explaining his mystic things to me. I say mystic because no one has ever known this much about me, I didn't even know the things he just said until now. Next thing I know, he gets down on both of his knee and bows to me.
"Woahwoahwoahwoah! Back up. Master?" I asked confused.
"Yes, you are the second master of the blade of legend, and I was created to help and serve whoever wielded me."
I'm just baffled by this guy. First he helps me beat those wooden wolves and now he's calling me his master. All I can do is just scratch my head as I process this info. "Look, Tengoku, I'm not going to be your master, but I will be your friend, if that counts. Stuff like 'master' isn't me, I'm not cut out for it."
I thought I gave the most stupid answer in the world because all Terra just did was laugh. He didn't stop laughing for at least two minutes, I really must've said something stupid. "Ahh, there's another reason why I chose you Alexander. Your humility. You never see yourself as anyone higher, you just see yourself as yourself and nothing more. I'm glad I made the right choice."
"I can't guarantee that completely man. Now, where exactly are those two you mentioned? Those Celestia and Luna chicks?"
"Do you know that castle you saw upon your awakening?"
I put the pieces together and when they joined, I give my best 'are you kidding me?' face. "Really? They live there?"
"Yes."
"Why the hell would you build a castle on the side of a bloody mountain? Seriously, a few blocks of C4 and the whole place will fall to the ground." I said, giving off a few chuckles as to how stupid that plan was. Even my friend joined in. "Okay, another question. Well, two actually but they tie together. Where am I physically? Everyone I've seen so far look human but they aren't entirely, so where am I?" I asked.
"You are on the continent of Equestria, in a small country town called Ponyville I believe. You're a long way from home, I'm afraid. This world is inhabited by ponies, but there are also other races of ponies which are called pegasi and unicorns, like those two girls you saved today."
"We saved today. I could never have done that without your help man, I would've just been flailing the sword angrily without any actual skill. So if this place is inhabited by pegasi and unicorns, then what about that other girl who had neither and you who has both?"
"The race of ponies who have neither wings nor horns are called earth ponies and while it may seem a disadvantage for them, compared to unicorns who can use magic and pegasi who can fly and control the weather, earth ponies are more physically strong and have a strong connection to the earth itself. That is why it is common for earth ponies to be farmers and such. My race however, is extremely rare. I'm of a race of ponies called 'Alicorns', we are a mixture of all three pony races. The magic of a unicorn, the strength of an earth pony and the flight and agility of a pegasus. Everypony in my race are royalty. However, one can also become an alicorn and thus, royalty through a series of trials, and if he or she is worthy at the end of it all, then they are granted with all the aspects and abilities of an alicorn."
"Huh, sweet." Feels like being back at school again, only about magic and pony-human hybrids.
School...how I miss that place. For five years I dreaded that place, I didn't like school, only the people. The one place where I could see all my friends in one place. I hope everybody's okay. Heh, I bet they're running around like headless chooks right now.
"This is also a curse, being an alicorn." My sad daydreaming was instantly cut off and I looked to Terra, only to see his face looking even sadder than my own. "We alicorns, along with our strength and dexterity, are granted with immortality. We can never die. Celestia and Luna are the same as I, they too are alicorns and have lived for over a thousand years. I cannot begin to imagine how much pain they have gone through these many years because of their immortality. I am only a spirit, I cannot walk among mortals like yourself."
Immortality? That truly exists? My mind is racing just from trying to process this massive hurdle of knowledge. For a long time as a kid, I thought that the idea of living forever was awesome and amazing..but as I grew up, I figured out what it truly meant to be immortal: to sacrifice anything, everything and everybody you've ever know. Why someone would have that forced unto them since birth, I have no idea.
I struggle to find a response to the alicorn, but I find my words after scruff ing my hair. "To grow old, to live and see your friends and family make families of their own so that you can make memories with them for all the years to come. That's my viewpoint on living, and neither you nor those two princesses were given that option. I am so sorry you all had to live through that pain."
"Thank you Alex, you have made this old stallion feel at ease. Now, I would suggest you to get some sleep, we have to awake early if we wish to get to Canterlot."
I slowly nod to my new friend, and I let sleep take over both my mind and body, and let me say, that was the best sleep I've had in years. But there's one last thing I have to do before I truly fall asleep, I have one last message to give.
-----
"Nurse Redheart!" Yelled a panicked Apple Bloom as she saw the trusted nurse. This mare was equally as tall as Applejack, standing at around six or seven hoofs tall with a white coat of fur and a light pink mane and tail. Her clothes were a standard dull white nurse's outfit and a small cap with the Red Cross emblem. "How is he? Is he gon' be okay? He didn't die, did he?" She asked hurriedly and scared, scared for not only her life but also her savior's.
The nurse just looked down and smiled warmly. "It's okay Apple Bloom, he's perfectly fine. His life is not in danger." She said joyously, but her face soon turned stone cold as she knelt down the little filly. "There is something I need to confirm with you though."
"Y-yes?" Said the nervous Apple, scared she was in trouble again.
"How long did it take you all to get out of the Everfree forest and how long he had been walking since the bite?" She asked.
Scootaloo chirped in after finally getting over her uneasiness. "About fifteen minutes at most to get out and he was walking for the whole time until the last minute or two. Why?"
Redheart's eyes widened to dinner plates for the slightest of moments before they were closed shut. "He's really strong willed if he can make fifteen minutes being poisoned by a timberwolf." She said, standing up tall once more.
"Why's that Nurse Redheart? Is something wrong?"
"Over the years, we've gotten quite a few incidents like this were ponies have gotten bitten by a timberwolf and we've found out that the poison shows in three different stages after the initial bite." Seeing a nod from Twilight and her friends, she continues her lecture, even the children who never pay attention did so. "The first stage is shortness of breath, the second is paralysation of the muscles where even twitching your fingers causes extreme pain, and the final stage is paralysation of the internal organs. Meaning as soon as one enters the third stage, they have approximately four minutes until their lungs and heart fail and they die. All this occurs in the span of two hours."
"That's fantastic knowledge for my studies but what does that have to do with that mysterious being?" Inquired the knowledgeable unicorn.
"The second stage begins only five minutes after the bite."
"Y-y-you mean that, he was in that much pain and yet he was walking around like nothing was wrong?!" Stammered a crying Sweetie Belle.
"Like I said, he has a strong will if he can pull off a feat like that. He must've not wanted you to worry about himself. If there was anything that could've pushed him through that torture, it was the will to live."
"That's right." Gasped Applejack, bringing her orange hand to her chin. "When Ah saw 'im wit' Apple Bloom and her friends, he grabbed me and said that he couldn't die. That musta been his will to live or somethin'."
The nurse nodded her head and agreed with the farm pony. "Now, the young colt is sleeping off the poison, so it'll be a while before he can be discharged. He should be awake in the morning though, you may come back and see him then." As the hoofsteps to the exit began to ring through the hall, the cream mare suddenly remembered an important detail. "Oh yes! I forgot. The colt left message for you all after the treatment." The walking immediately stopped and everypony's faces turned back to the medical mare. "He said, Do not blame those children for what's happened today. It's my own fault that I've turned out like this. So whoever those kids' families are, don't be too harsh on them, they're only young. And kids, don't worry about me. Stubborness runs in my genes and something like this won't keep me down. Who the hell do you think I am?"
And so, after smiling delightfully and thanking the nurse, everypony went back to their respective homes, but none got much sleep. They were all too caught up wondering about the mysterious being. Who was he? Where'd he come from? Why'd he save Apple Bloom and her friends? Is he dangerous or not? These questions plagued the minds of all of them, but none more so than Twilight Sparkle.
She indulged, nay, she revelled in her studies. It is her belief that she had to know everything that the world had to offer and then some. Now that an entirely new being has arrived in Equestria, she absolutely needed to know everything about him and where he was from. It was very hard to get her to leave the hospital. She kept on wailing "But what if he wakes up? I need to research him!". It took the strength of both Rainbow Dash and Applejack to literally drag her out of the hospital, it was actually quite funny how she acted like such a petulant child despite her usual maturity.
Finally, after many hours of tossing and turning in a reluctant sleep, morning came. The rays of the sun casting a gentle warmth over the people of Equestria, signalling a brand new day to feel refreshed and ready. Well, for most anyway. Everypony that went to the hospital in retrospect of seeing the new being from the day before, had dark rings under their eyes. Even Rarity, and while she couldn't really care about a mysterious pony who killed timberwolves all on his own, he saved her little sister. That's all that reasoned her to want to thank him and find out about him.
"Hey nurse Redheart. We're here to see the feller from yesterday, is he awake?" Beamed a happy but sleepy Apple Bloom, thanking Celestia it was the weekend and not a school day.
The pristine-white mare looked away from the group and adorned a sad look on her face. "About that, he's missing." She admitted.
"Missing?!" Yelled everypony in full synchronisation. At once, they all ran to the room that held, or once held their mystery friend, led by nurse Redheart (as none of them knew where he was being kept). Their journey reached them to the far west corner of the second floor and their eyes baffled them. What they saw was the nearby window open wide with the sheets of the patient's beds tied to one corner of said bed leading all the way outside the window, falling down to the ground. It was like a prison escape move.
"Spike, take a letter." Said a determined and stern Twilight Sparkle to her foalhood friend. Not even giving a word of reply, the young drake pulled a quill and parchment out of nowhere, ready to record his sister's words.
Dear Princess Celestia, as I have told you from my last letter, Apple Bloom and her friends, the Cutiemark Crusaders were wandering across the Everfree Forest and came across a new, mysterious being to Equestria that went by the name of ‘Alex’. This morning, when we came to the hospital to check up on him and learn about him, he was gone.
It appears that in the early hours of the morning, he had climbed out of his window and run away. Taking into account that this being had defeated and killed not only one timberwolf but a large, alpha timberwolf, which is capable of running Ponyville to the ground alone, we have deemed him dangerous and a very possible threat to Equestria. With this new information of his disappearance, we have no idea what his intentions are nor where he was heading, it is very possible of my statement becoming a reality.
I hope this information serves you well, and alert me of his whereabouts immediately when you have found him and my we, the Elements of Harmony will deal with him. Please be careful.
Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.
Andjust like that, Spike the dragon rolled up the paper, tied a red ribbon on it and in a plume of emerald fire, sent its ashes to Canterlot where it would be restored and read by the princess.
"I just hope he's alright."
"Why're you worrying about him Red?" Inquired Rainbow, hovering next to her.
"Because he's still severely injured. The poison should have left his body just fine during the night but his body would still be in pain and needs more rest, especially his left arm." The white-dressed mare suddenly gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.
"What's wrong with his arm?" Asked Rarity, arching her eyebrow at the other white mare. "Miss Redheart, is there something you aren't telling us?"
Sighing in defeat, Nurse Redheart sat down at the bedside chair and put her hands in her mane, looking down at the ground and away from prying eyes. "I didn't want to tell you because it was shocking even to myself. His left arm, all the way from his wrist to his left pectoral and shoulder, his muscles and ligaments have stretched out to their maximum limit. If that technique he used was the cause of it then if he had used it for even three seconds longer," by now, tears had welled up and began to stain her cheeks without stopping. "all his muscles and ligaments would have been ripped apart. He would never have been able to use his left arm again. In all of my years as a nurse, this is the worst thing I've seen done to a colt so young, he's probably only as old as you girls, if not younger."
"S-so you mean, because he protected us, he will never be able to use his arm ever again?" Cried a saddened Apple Bloom, her friends distraught from the same guilt. But before any of their elders could comfort or ease them, Spike belched loudly and exuded a puff of smoke which reformed into a scroll. The princess had replied.
Twilight grabbed the scroll and began to read from it, clearing her throat in the process. "I thank you Twilight for bringing this information to my attention, however I'm sorry to say that it is un-needed. I say this because..." her words trailed off as what she read shocked and feared her, her eyes shrinking to pins.
"Because what? What's wrong dear, what did the princess say?" Asked a distressed Rarity, concerned why her friend just suddenly stopped reading.
"Because the young colt you speak of is with my sister and I right now."
Meanwhile, in the throne room of Canterlot Castle, the Royal Sisters were sitting right next to each other with slightly playful expressions and down on the ground sitting cross-legged was me, a happy-go-lucky look adorning my facial features too.
The larger, cream white woman on my left, looked back to me after sending a scroll, I think, to somebody else. "Forgive me young one, my student sent a letter concerning you, your disappearance and the threat you could possess to my little ponies." She told me.
"Nah it's alright, I have no right to stop you from writing to her. Preeetty sure I could be sent to jail if I did so anyway." I say jokingly, eliciting a giggle from both my watchers. "It's understandable actually. I did just leave like that without telling them anything about myself, plus like that letter she sent to you before, I also took out those timberwolves. So her unease is justified."
"You're very polite and understanding, aren't you?" Said the woman on my right, who I could only hazard a guess was Princess Luna. If her royal blue coat, navy blue dress and flowing night-like mane was anything to go by.
"Well that's because I was raised that way ma'am. Now," in the span of a second, I go from happy to deadly serious, like I'm extremely angry. "tell me about this destiny I'm supposed to be a part of. I want to know why I've been taken away from my world, and more importantly, my family and friends. It had better be good too, because if you think timberwolves are dangerous, you've never met a pissed-off human before." I said threateningly, poking an inch of my blade out from the guard with my thumb.