"Vejovis,"I heard a voice calling to the god of health and healing."please hear me,
and heal these broken bodies."
The voice belonged to Corporal Iron Hide, then I realized I was being carried on a
stretcher, or at least a make-shift stretcher, I felt rough bark rubbing against my back as I was
moved through the forest. My head pounded with each hoof fall and my stretcher bounced up
and down in a steady rhythm making me feel all the more sick.
"Sarge,"Maximus said suddenly."Where are we?"
"Just north of the fort,"The Sarge responded."just a little more and we'll be there."
The short conversation stopped as I heard the Sarge trip and fall, I heard some
pony help him up then we were moving again, and with the movement my head started to
spin, my stomach threatened to make me throw up, but nothing came, just more rocking.
"There!"I heard Fire Ball yell, which set my head on fire."Its the fort."
At that I lost consciousness, falling into the world of dreams.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My eyes cracked open and let in the light that poured in through the window I was
facing, at first it hurt, then my eyes slowly adjusted to it and I could see the room I was
in, stone floors and white walls along with two long rows of beds told me I was in a
medical-ward, probably at Fort Brittle Stone.
The bed next to me was occupied by Swift Steel who was out cold, he had a
bandage rapped around his middle section, and his left rear leg was in a splint.
Turning my head to the right hurt but when I got it there I saw Ice Heart reading
a book, her left shoulder bandaged from where it was hit, but other then that she looked
fine.
I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out, instead I was awarded with a
wave of nausea, my head started pounding like a drum and everything started to spin.
I must have made some noise because Ice Heart looked up from her book and at
me.
"Doctor."She called down the hall, and a stallion in a white lab coat, over his white
coat came rushing down the hall.
"No no no Private,"He started."lay still and don't try to talk."He said as he started a
medical scanning spell on my head."You took quite the knock on your noggin."
I didn't try to argue with him, my head stopped hurting when I laid back down,
the doc seemed satisfied with that and left.
"Get back to sleep."Ice Heart ordered, not that she actually could, but I was not
going to try anything else, so I closed my eyes and let sleep grip me.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My senses came back as I awoke to something touching my face, my eyes shot
open, it was dark outside but the medical-ward was well lit, my eyes focused on the one
who had caused me to wake up, it was a nurse taking my head bandage off.
"Sorry,"She said."just changing your bandage."
"Thats OK."I whispered, sounding a little hoarse.
"Well,"She said as she started to rap my head in a new bandage."its good that you
have your voice back, the doctor said your would probably be unable to speak for a few
days."She finished as the bandage was firmly rapped and tied so it would say in place.
Then she took off down the hall the way the doc had came, then I looked to see
if my comrades were still here, Ice was gone but Swift Steel was still laying just to my left
in the same place he was the first time.
'Robigus, please have mercy on Swift Steel,'I prayed in my head.'bring him before
the counsel of the gods, and tell Vejovis about him, and me.'
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It took two more days before I was in condition to get out of the medical-
ward, and Swift was barely able to speak on day three, no one in my squad had died
in fact Swift had the worst of it, luck was on our side in the battle, those earth ponies
were very poorly trained and in the end thats what it all boiled down to, our skill against
theirs.
The days where hotter here then in my home land, normally the sky over the farm
was filled with clouds, but here it was clear all day long, just a rare drifter from time
to time, and it never seemed to rain like it did back home, it ether didn't rain, or it
poured for hours, never just drizzled.
Then on day four I get a letter in the mail from my folks, just the glad to hear
from you, hope your alright stuff that parents send, but I read every word twice, happy
to hear from them, apparently my brother had a marefriend and dad had some how got
a sickness that only foals get, but all-in-all things were fine.
By day five I was getting a little bored, I hadn't left the fort since I got there, and I
was just dieing for something like patrol duty, but no matter how bored I was at least
Swift Steel was getting better, he could now eat solid food instead of that stuff that was
all mushy, and I could use my magic again.
On day seven we where ordered back to Fort Sun Guard as soon as Swift was back
on his hooves. So on day eight we marched off toward the fort, finally getting out of
Fort Brittle Stone and on are way back to our post.