//------------------------------// // Amnesia // Story: The Cutie Mark Hunters // by Subject 19 //------------------------------// An orange pegasus pony opened his eyes slowly. The pony looked around the room, taking in his surroundings. He was in a bed surrounded by various medical equipment. A hospital. That must be where he was. In a hospital. But why? What happened? Was he hurt? He didn’t feel any pain. He ran a hoof through his black and red mane, trying to remember anything from before he woke up. “Oh good, you’re awake,” a mare said, entering the room. The mare had a white body and was wearing a nurse’s hat on her pink mane. “What happened? What am I doing here?” the confused pegasus asked. “You were found in the edge of the Everfree Forest by another pony. She brought you here, fearing you might be injured. Thankfully it looks like you were just malnourished. Can you tell me your name?” “Subject 19.” He didn’t even have to think. The words seemed to come out on their own. The nurse gave 19 a questioning look for a moment. “Ok. Can you tell me what you were doing in the Everfree?” “I… I… I can’t remember,” 19 confessed, desperately trying to remember something, anything. But he couldn’t remember a single thing. He didn’t know who he was. “I can’t remember anything! Wha- what’s happening? Why can’t I remember anything?” Subject 19’s breathing started to pick up as he began to panic. “Sir, please calm down. It’ll be ok,” the nurse promised as she rushed over to the bed, making sure her patient didn’t do anything to hurt himself. The stallion looked the nurse in the eyes. Deep red eyes looked up to crystal blue ones. “Who am I?” he asked before passing out. “How are you feeling today, Subject?” “I feel fine, Redheart,” 19 replied as stood by the window, looking out at the town of Ponyville. “Any improvements?” Redheart asked as she trotted over to the pegasus. “I can read, write, do math, even fly,” he listed, even giving his wings a good flap to prove his point. “But I can’t remember anything about me,” Subject 19 said, his eyes fixed on a nonexistent object out beyond the window. “Just give it time,” the nurse told him, putting a hoof on 19’s shoulder reassuringly. “I’m sure it will all come back.” “But what if it doesn’t? No pony has come to see me since I got here five days ago. Did I even live here? Or was living somewhere else? And you said that no pony has reported another pony matching my description missing in all of Equestria. How is that even possible? Did I not know anypony before this?” “So what will you do once you’re out of here?” The question was one 19 hadn’t even contemplated yet. He had been so focused on trying to remember that he didn’t even think of what he would do once he was out of the hospital. “I don’t know. I suppose I’ll have to find work and a house.” A pink earth pony wearing glasses with red hair and an aqua streak running through it, walked into Sugarcube Corner. On her flank she had a waterfall as her cutie mark. As she was getting in line to order, she bumped into somepony and dropped all her research on the floor. "Damn it! I just put them in order!" she yelled. As she went towards her last papers to pick them up, she saw another hoof. The pink pony looked up and saw a new orange pony she had never seen before. She stared into his red eyes, wanting to know who he was and what he was doing here. “And you are?” “I’m Subject 19,” the orange pegasus answered. “That's a unique name for a pony.” “I suppose it is. What’s your name?” “Dr. Aqua Light,” she proudly stated. “Doctor? Doctor of what?” 19 questioned curiously. “I’m a doctor of psychology. I like helping ponies. So Mr. 19, what are you doing here in Ponyville? Do you live here?” “Honestly, I don’t know. I just got released from the hospital just a few hours ago. I can’t remember anything but my name.” “I can help with that. You can come to my new office with me after I get something to eat.” “Sounds like a plan, I could go for a fresh pot of coffee anyway,” 19 said with a smile. The two ponies ordered their breakfast and brought it to an empty table. 19 took an entire pot of coffee with an empty cup. “You’re not seriously going to drink an entire pot of coffee are you?” Aqua asked. “No, I just brought the entire pot with me because I thought it would make an excellent table decoration,” 19 sarcastically replied as he sat down at the table with Aqua. “Of course I’m gonna drink it all.” After having poured some coffee into his cup, he spoke up again. “So how long have you lived here in Ponyville?” “I just moved here actually. I’m trying to get my business set up still,” she answered sheepishly. “Do you know what you’ll be specializing in for your business?” When all 19 got was an unsure shrug he gave a soft chuckle. “You don’t even know what you’ll be specializing in,” he realized. “Well I don’t see you coming up with any ideas!” “I’m not the doctor,” 19 shot back. “You’re a real smart ass, aren’t you?” “Smarter than you anyway.” “Hey!” “Ok, I’ve had my fun,” 19 said with a satisfied grin. “We can come up with ideas later. As selfish as it may sound, I’m more concerned about finding out who I am right now.” The two quickly finished their breakfast, Subject 19 downing the entire pot of the super delicious hot beverage scarily fast. Aqua figured it was best not to even question him and just drop the whole coffee thing. Subject 19 and Aqua Light walked into her office. It was noticeably barren save for a couch, a padded chair and a desk. 19 looked around, as if searching for some redeeming quality that was hidden away. “This is it? When you said you had an office I expected, well… something more than this,” the orange stallion commented. “More like what?” the doctor asked. “More than three pieces of furniture. Maybe even a water fountain,” 19 commented. “A water fountain?” “I hear the sound of running water is very relaxing.” “Where did you hear that? You have amnesia!” “Thanks, I forgot about that,” he said sarcastically, venturing up the staircase just past the desk. “Do you at least have a bed?” 19 hollered, turning his head to look at Aqua. “We have three actually!” a male voice replied excitedly. 19 whipped his head around and was face to face with another pony. “What the hell!” he shouted, nearly jumping through the roof. “Who’s this joker!?” 19 demanded, pointing at the grey pegasus in front of him. He also noticed the pegasus' messy black and red mane, and his bright red eyes. “That’s my brother, Dark Light,”Aqua happily answered. “Also, I need you to cancel my other appointments for today please!” “You don’t have any appointments, stupid head!” he yelled at her. “I do so! I have Twilight at three, Applejack at five and Rainbow Dash at six! So cancel them!” “Yeah, and I’ve got dinner with the princesses at eight!” Dark retorted. “You little shit!” Subject 19 just gave Aqua a deadpan expression. “You don’t have any clients.” “I do so! My LITTLE brother is not canceling them for me!” she yelled very loudly. “Ugh! Fine!” he shouted back, finally giving in. “Little brothers can be a pain in the ass sometimes.” 19 flew down to Aqua. “I’ll take your word for it.” “But now that you’re here, let’s figure out what’s wrong with you!” Aqua squealed as she rushed her patient over to the couch. She grabbed a pen and notepad as 19 sat down on the couch. “So 19, where did you live before this?” “No, I don’t remember anything before waking up in the hospital.” “Hmmm, okay” Aqua writes down on her notepad. “I could use hypnosis to try and help you remember.” “At this point I’m willing to do whatever it takes to remember. Go for it, doc.” Aqua went towards her desk to grab a pocket watch. “Since earth ponies can’t use magic like unicorns, we have to use enchanted items. For me, I like a pocket watch!” she said as she skipped over to where Subject 19 was. Aqua went in front of 19, dangled the watch in front of his face and whispered into his ear. “Focus on my watch and let your breathing slow down.” 19 took a deep breath in and listened to Aqua’s instructions as she slowly brought him into a relaxed state. She kept this going until she was sure he was in a trance before continuing. “Think of what you first remember at the hospital and go before that,” she said swinging the watch back and forth. “What do you see?” “I see a lab,” Subject 19 quietly said. “Where is this lab?” “Beneath Canterlot.” “What else is in the lab with you?” “Other… other test subjects.” “How many?” “Dozens. They all look like me. What… what’s going on?” 19’s breathing started picking up. “It’s ok, 19, I need you to relax,” Aqua said, trying to get her patient back under control. Subject 19 jolted up from the couch, panting heavily. “Holy hell. I was there,” he whispered, making eye contact with Aqua. “I need to find that lab.” “No, you can’t go!” “And why not? The answers are in Canterlot. I’m leaving to get those answers. You coming, doc?” ‘This is why I don’t move around all the time,’ Aqua thought to herself. “Ugh fine. There’s a train that leaves in two hours. We can catch that one.”