Cloud Blazer was on point leading Twilight Sparkle's squad into the denseness of the Everfree Forest. It was the middle of a bright day, the sunlight blocked only by the forest canopy above. They trudged silently through snow drifts that were all over the ground, piled up against the north side of the trees. He was on edge, ready for action, but all he got was endless walking through the snow with no sign of anything eventful. The frosty dreariness seemed to continue endlessly.
A giant timberwolf, larger than a house, rumbled by pushing the trees aside as he passed. They bent easily out of his way and stood back in place after it. Cloud Blazer halted the squad, and they waited as it continued lazily on its way. Pibs sighed wistfully, drawing the stallion’s attention.
"Still?"
Nimba and Scootaloo shook their heads. Sparklefly snorted.
"I can't help it!" Pibs cried out in her own defense.
"Not to worry," Twilight said.
Regal Masquerade nudged her playfully. Cloud Blazer looked around, but he didn't see Nitro anywhere.
"Where's Nitro gone?" he asked.
"Beat's me," Lightning Dasher replied.
It began snowing again. Cloud Blazer shivered from the cold. It seemed to cut deep, all the way to his core. He shook his coat and flapped his wings to ward off the frigid numbness that was penetrating them.
"We can't stop for him. We need to keep moving," the princess insisted.
Cloud Blazer began walking again, and the squad followed in formation. As they continued deeper into the forest, it began getting much darker. The snow began falling thicker, impeding their progress. They finally had to stop when they came to a sheer rock face rising up from the middle of the forest.
"Pibs, Brownie, scout ahead. We'll wait here while you check out the top of that cliff," Scootaloo ordered.
Extending their wings, the pair took flight. Leaving the darkness of the forest behind, they circled higher and higher. The stone formation seemed to reach up without end. After a few minutes, Cloud Blazer could see the entire forest, all the way to Ponyville. They continued upward through the clouds and climbed higher still. After they passed a second level of clouds, they finally made it to the top. Landing softly, the first thing that Cloud Blazer noticed was the complete lack of snow. It was still bitterly cold, and an icy wind chilled him to the bone. Pibs pointed off into the distance, and as he looked up, he saw the abandoned castle of the two sisters. It looked exactly like Princess Twilight's castle from Ponyville, but he didn't notice the oddity of this discrepancy.
"That's it," Pibs said, her breath fogging the air as she spoke.
"We'd best go get the others," he answered, his words similarly visible.
As he turned about, there were three young fillies behind them. It was Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo, but they looked as they had when Cloud Blazer first met them almost a decade before.
"Who's your new friend?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Hi there," Pibs said in greeting.
"Hey, Scoot, this is Pibs."
"You think?" Scootaloo replied; she was older now and wearing her armor.
"We're going on an adventure!" Apple Bloom said.
"I found this great armor, and we're going to save the princess!" Scootaloo added.
"From some deplorable evil!" Sweetie Belle chimed in.
As Cloud Blazer turned to face the castle, it was no longer in the distance, but it loomed above them only a few yards away. The cold seemed to be at its most bitter here. It was almost as if the castle itself were made of ice. It wasn't day anymore, but the full moon lit up the castle. It seemed to be sitting directly on top of the highest spire.
"That's where we have to go," Pibs said.
"To the top?" Cloud Blazer asked.
"Y'all have it all wrong," Apple Bloom said.
"You have to take us where they are!" Sweetie Belle insisted.
Cloud Blazer followed Pibs through the door, and as they entered, they were in the woods again, in a clearing that looked all too familiar. The rest of the squad was around them.
"Keep low," Regal Masquerade whispered.
"I know," Nimba said. "I can feel it."
"Feel what?" Cloud Blazer asked.
"The energy," Twilight replied.
Cloud Blazer was shivering uncontrollably now, ”I can only feel the cold.”
"That's why we have to release it," Pibs said.
Sparklefly added, ”We have to set them free.”
"Look out!" Lightning Dasher yelled as a horde of timberwolves burst into the clearing.
"Contact front! Defend this ground with your lives!" Scootaloo roared as the timberwolves crashed into them.
Cloud Blazer struck down several, and then a large one came right at him. He smashed it aside, and it swung away as if tethered to a rope that was attached to a tree branch above. As it returned he bludgeoned it again and again. This continued until Cloud Blazer realized he was striking a piñata. The cries of battle had become the cheers of his friends. They were all there, even his friends from Cloudsdale that he hadn't seen since he had moved away as a colt. They cheered him on as he unleashed all of his fury, breaking open the effigy of a timberwolf. Instead of candy, energy flowed out in sparks, dancing all over the room. Everypony was pleased by this and began dancing around Cloud Blazer. The sparks began hitting him and burning into his coat. It felt good against how cold he was.
Cloud Blazer awoke from his dream to find his condition basically the same as before. Still in pain, still unable to move, still only aware of his surroundings in the most vague sense, he lay there. The only change he could perceive now was how cold he was, so bitterly cold.
...
Scootaloo’s heart began racing at Sweetie Belle’s sudden shift in demeanor.
"He's burning up!" the unicorn cried in alarm.
The pegasus sprang to her hooves, ”What's wrong with him?"
"I don't know. Either one of his wounds got infected or maybe he got sick," Sweetie Belle said more thoughtfully. "I'm not sure. We've got to get his temperature down."
Scootaloo looked back to Cloud Blazer. Sweetie Belle had been cleaning off the old medicine to apply more when she realized he was running a fever. His coat was soaked with sweat, and he was shivering slightly. Sweetie Belle's horn glowed with blue magical light as she renewed the immobilizing spell on him, a necessary step to make certain that his bones were mending properly. The unicorn wobbled slightly as she completed the spell, almost looking dizzy for a moment before she recovered.
"I've got to go get Zecora," Sweetie Belle said to Scootaloo. "Just make sure he doesn't stop breathing. Call the nurse if..." she didn't need to finish.
"Go," Scootaloo said.
Sweetie Belle sped away as quickly as she could through the hospital. Scootaloo stood next to the bed, the sheets now damp. Most of the swelling seemed to have gone down, but the lacerations all over Cloud Blazer’s body still made him look rather grotesque. She was very worried for him, that he might not recover. If he died, she didn't know how she would be able to forgive herself. Everyone said that what had happened was not her fault, but the entire squad was trusting her judgement to keep them safe. Regal Masquerade and Nimba had been killed; Cloud Blazer very nearly died with them. Then there was Pibs. Scootaloo felt as if she'd failed all of them. Tears began silently falling as the emotions overwhelmed her. She didn't try to stop them.
"Look, lieutenant," Clyde began softly.
"Shut up," Scootaloo said.
“I am sorry about your friend."
"Shut up!" her voice croaked as she screamed back at him, not turning around. "You don't say anything to me."
"Yes ma'am," he replied, standing back.
Scootaloo wished desperately at this moment that there was something that she could do to help. As it was, she was even afraid to touch him for fear of making his injuries worse. She stood there silently for quite a while, helplessly watching him breathe.
"Not yet," she said softly to him after a while. "You can't go yet. The fight isn't over. We have to go win the war, remember? You and me...”
Her vision blurred, and she wiped away the tears with her bandaged hoof. A nurse walked up just then.
"Is everything alright?" she asked. It was Nurse Redheart, a white mare with blue eyes and a pink mane and tail. She had a red cross for her cutie mark.
Sweetie Belle pushed past the others, putting a cold pack on Cloud Blazer's head. "Nurse Redheart, he's got a high fever."
"Where's Zecora?"
Sweetie Belle placed more packs of ice under his shoulders and at the groin as she replied, ”I can't find her. She might have gone back to the forest to find some herbs.”
"I'll get Doctor Horse. Good thinking with those ice packs," Nurse Redheart said as she left the room.
"Thanks," Sweetie Belle said.
She turned back to face Cloud Blazer, concern was carving deep lines in her face.
Looking for some way to pass this moment, Scootaloo said, "It looks like Zecora has taught you a lot."
"Only a little about medicine. Mostly I was studying zebra magic," Sweetie Belle said absently. Her attention was still focused on her patient.
"I'm sorry we haven't had time to catch up," Scootaloo said, everything felt awkward.
“Later,” Sweetie Belle replied, her focus unwavering.
She gently began stroking Cloud Blazer's mane as Scootaloo watched. Her touch was supremely gentle. Scootaloo turned her head to face Sweetie Belle, who was holding back tears of her own. Her green eyes focused on Cloud Blazer, as if there was nothing else in the world that mattered. She looked exhausted and much thinner than she should. Nopony was getting enough to eat these days, but Sweetie Belle seemed to be suffering from the effects of hunger far more than the others.
"Are you alright?" Scootaloo heard herself ask, her own voice sounding hollow.
"Yes, I'm fine," came an empty reply.
"When did you eat last?"
"What?" Sweetie Belle asked, turning to Scootaloo.
"You look horrible. When was the last time you ate?"
"Oh, I... I, can't really remember."
"Sweetie Belle...”
“I’ll be fine. He's hurt, and he needed it more than I did," she said defensively, turning back to face Cloud Blazer.
That did explain where the amount of food paste they had been giving to him came from. They must have been making it by combining his and Sweetie Belle’s rations. Scootaloo was going to press further on this, but Doctor Horse and Nurse Redheart entered just then. Doctor Horse was a tan colored unicorn with a dark brown mane and tail. He had dark blue eyes, and a cutie mark that looked like a heart monitor readout. They gently pushed passed Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle and got right to Cloud Blazer.
"Let's see what we have here," Doctor Horse said.
Nurse Redheart began by taking his temperature as Doctor Horse began checking him from hooves to head and mane to tail. They put the ice packs aside while they made their initial examination, during which they cleaned off many of the remedies that Zecora had applied. They paid special attention to his wings, which even Scootaloo could tell were swollen. Some parts had been stripped of feathers, and the color of the underlying flesh was dark as if it were all bruised. Cloud Blazer seemed to be awake, and his face contorted every time they touched his wings. Doctor Horse and Nurse Redheart would speak softly to each other in a kind of jargon that Scootaloo didn't understand. She was about to ask what they were saying when Sweetie Belle spun around.
"Zecora!" she cried out, practically running to the door. "He's burning up! I got some ice, but you weren't here and I didn't know what to do!"
"Calm yourself, young Sweetie Belle; by using ice, you have done well," Zecora calmly replied.
Looking up, Doctor Horse said, "Ah, welcome back, Miss Zecora. I must say, I'm rather impressed with the work you've done here. For this patient to have made it this far is nothing short of miraculous."
"We had the right medicines for a start, but this one survives by strength of heart," she replied.
Doctor Horse nodded, "Yes, the will to survive is a powerful thing after a traumatic injury. Nevertheless, we have a serious problem here."
Scootaloo felt her heart stop for a beat when he said it. Zecora walked over to the bed.
"See his wings, here? Everything below the upper wing has suffered vascular damage, presumably from that fall. The constriction, which I'm sure has been very painful for the patient, has also reduced blood flow. We might have been able to manage that, but look at this. There is foreign material that has caused a secondary infection that is spreading into the muscle tissue here. We'll have to remove it, all of it."
Zecora nodded at him without saying anything.
"Nurse Redheart, please prepare an operating room. We'll need to get him into surgery, stat."
“I don’t understand. What are you going to do to him?" Scootaloo asked, not even sure how to feel anymore.
"The amount of damage to his wings is, well, catastrophic. The tissue beyond the first joint is basically already dead, and the muscle tissue is infected,” Doctor Horse said in a dry tone. Becoming more grave, he continued, "If we don't amputate immediately, he will die."
Sweetie Belle starting crying. Everypony else was silent as the world stopped.
"No," Scootaloo said. Her rage was beginning to burn hot again. Her breaths became short and fast. All she perceived now was a threat. "Get away from him!" she screamed loudly, startling everyone else in the room.
Scootaloo moved directly in, pushing Doctor Horse back with her body. Everypony else backed away toward the door.
"Don't touch him!" she commanded.
Scootaloo was now standing between Cloud Blazer and everypony else. Sweetie Belle was still crying.
Zecora spoke first, "One thing I know for sure, this must be done for his cure."
"No!” Scootaloo shouted. A combination of things, hunger, lack of sleep, frustration with Diamond Tiara and who knows what else had melted into a blind rage that was burning her up inside. She felt powerful, like she was on fire, like she might explode at any second. "The only thing he ever cared about is flying. I can't let you take that away from him." Scootaloo crouched into a combat stance, prepared to kill anything that threatened her friend.
"Do something," Doctor Horse said to Clyde.
"Not my problem," Clyde shrugged, unmoving. "My orders are to keep her in the hospital."
Scootaloo's eyes darted back and forth wildly at them; she was ready to strike.
"We don't want to hurt him," Nurse Redheart said into the tension that filled the room. She took a small step forward, “but he is hurting now. We want to help him, but we can't if you don't let us."
"Stay back!" Scootaloo screamed.
"We're not coming any closer," Nurse Redheart said serenely, stopping where she was. "We know you care about him."
Scootaloo felt completely confused at this moment. She knew that what they were saying made sense, but she just couldn't allow it. No more injuries, no more deaths; she’d had enough.
"I'm going to get security," Doctor Horse said softly.
Scootaloo tensed up.
"You'll do no such thing!" Nurse Redheart snapped, freezing him in place. "Nopony will lay a hoof on her! This is not a matter for security." She paused a moment in thought. "Doctor Horse, surely there are other patients you can attend to just now?"
"Why, yes, I suppose there are," he said awkwardly.
"Then by all means, go attend them," Nurse Redheart said stiffly. "And you, EUP, wait in the hall," she said to Clyde as Doctor Horse exited.
"This the only door in this room?" he asked.
"Of course it is," she replied flatly.
Clyde walked out into the hallway, followed closely by Zecora. Sweetie Belle was somewhat recovered, but she was still sobbing quietly. Scootaloo held her ground in front of Cloud Blazer. Nurse Redheart turned back to face her.
She began speaking in a soothing tone, "Nopony will touch him without your permission, okay?"
Scootaloo nodded slowly, untrusting.
"Honey, I know you've been through a lot these last few days. Everypony's been talking about your mission into the Everfree forest."
"That has nothing to do with this," Scootaloo defended.
Undeterred, Nurse Redheart continued, "I can't imagine the horrible things you went though out there. I know this isn't worth much, but thank you."
Caught a little off guard, Scootaloo shook her head slightly, "What?"
"I know you lost some friends in there and more saving Ponyville. I can’t imagine how horrible that is. But you saved my life, and the lives of my family and friends. Thank you," she said again.
"What does that have to do with anything?" Scootaloo asked; the rage was subsiding, and she was standing upright again.
"The point is, I owe you my life. I owe every EUP soldier that came to save us, and I want to repay that debt, even if it's only in a small way."
Scootaloo was still uncertain, but she couldn't deny what Doctor Horse had said. If they don't operate, Cloud Blazer will die. This thought was ringing in her head louder and louder.
"I want to save Cloud Blazer's life," Nurse Redheart said. "And I know you do too."
Scootaloo still didn't move. She stood frozen there. She glanced over at Sweetie Belle, who was now looking up at her with tear-filled emerald eyes. They were pleading with her, and in that moment, the two friends communicated as clearly as if they had spoken to each other. Scootaloo felt her heart melt, and her knees became weak as she slid down to a seated position, hardly realizing that she had begun crying as well.
Looking back up at Nurse Redheart, Scootaloo said, "Do what you have to do. Just save Cloud Blazer."
Scootaloo's vision blurred and she sank to the floor. She had suffered far too much loss in too short a time, and she couldn't take any more right now. Nimba, Regal Masquerade, Pibs, and very possibly Cloud Blazer as well. Sweetie Belle was with her only a moment later, fore-legs wrapped around her. They cried together as the orderlies came with a stretcher and carried Cloud Blazer off to an operating room.
...
Swiftlight stowed his weapons in order to ensure that he did not offend his escort. After the way they had taken down that changeling, he didn't think he’d last too long if there were a misunderstanding. Of course, he no longer feared that they intended him any harm, but the one was always behind him. The deserted city was littered with bodies of timberwolves and changelings as the unlikely group worked their way inward. A dull noise that was like many voices talking could be heard as they approached a structure that had been named the citadel, which was near the center of the city. As they drew close, they began passing several checkpoints of zebras that were arrayed in a strong defensive posture. There were also unicorns on the rooftops, and a large CAP securing the sky. As the citadel came into view, Swiftlight was dumbfounded to see a large force of crystal ponies as well. They had the look of having arrived not long ago.
He was scanned at the first unicorn checkpoint. Zuberi and his squad left him there without any ceremony beyond a nod and rejoined their own ranks. In addition to the zebras and crystal ponies, Swiftlight was pleased to see that his own corps had survived the night. Once past all of the ponies on alert, most of the rest were milling about, waiting. That was a situation with which the captain was only all too familiar. Hurry up, and wait.
"So, he lives?" a voice said.
Turning to face it, Swiftlight was a little surprised to see Colonel Greymane standing beside him. Aside from exhaustion and a rather immense amount of dirt covering him, he still looked to be in good health.
"I could say the same," Swiftlight replied.
The colonel snorted, “I saw you go up the side of that building as we were pulling out. What in the wide world of Equestria were you thinking?”
The stallion shrugged, “I got cut off, so I thought I’d do something about those snipers.”
“Trust me, I noticed when they stopped firing. I’m going to recommend you for a medal. There had to be what, ten to fifteen of them in there?”
Swiftlight felt himself grin, no need to say exactly how many there were. It was nice for his deeds to be recognized.
“Well, not more than I could handle. I wasn’t sure if we were going to survive the night the way they were hammering us.”
Greymane replied, ”Truly, it's a wonder any of us made it out of there. I do believe our General is looking for you."
"Thanks," Swiftlight said.
He continued on in the direction that Colonel Greymane had indicated. The captain was allowed entrance into the citadel. It was crammed full of the citizens and the EUP force that was stationed in Las Pegasus. Everypony seemed calm but tired. Colts and fillies played under the watchful gaze of their parents. They wore the now ubiquitous hungry look that Swiftlight had come to recognize everywhere in Equestria that he travelled. The citadel was a massive structure that had been composed of a ring of larger buildings. Stone had been added between them to cut off the streets and make it a more defensible area. The top was as open as the rest of the city, but unicorn magic made it as secure as any rooftop would be. It took Swiftlight about fifteen minutes to reach CIC once he was inside. It was incredibly noisy as commanders of various ranks were receiving reports from scouts and sending orders out to the field. There were zebras decorated with large feathers and crystal ponies of high rank in addition to Las Pegasus officers and Mane Crusher's corps commanders. It was another five minutes of wandering through CIC before Swiftlight located the general.
"Off you go, on the double," General Mane Crusher barked at a pegasus scout. "Swiftlight!" he said with a tone that was either cheerful or relief. "You still in one piece?"
"As much as can be expected," Swiftlight answered, turning to show the hole that had been burned through his armor. His neck was still stiff also. He’d been trying to stretch it out without much success.
"After we're done here you will report to the infirmary to get patched up. I can't spend all my time training a replacement," Mane Crusher said lightly.
"Affirmative."
"I've just sent scouts to assess the train. We got reports that it came into the city empty this morning."
"That report is accurate," Swiftlight began. "I was near the mill when the train came in this morning, so I went to join forces with our divisions that were inbound. After the train didn't stop, I boarded it, worked my way up to the engine and applied the brake. There was no sign of a struggle, and no pony on board."
Mane Crusher tilted his head in thought, "A disturbing discovery. Why would they abandon the train without a fight?"
Swiftlight shrugged, unsure how to answer that question. He’d been hoping somepony else might have a reasonable explanation.
“We’ve also sent scouts north up the tracks to see if there are any other signs of the missing divisions,” Mane Crusher said. "I heard you made a good accounting of yourself with Greymane's regiment."
"I was with them. I put their left flank back together a couple of times and took out a sniper nest.”
"You were one of the fortunate ones, then. They suffered nearly ninety percent casualties fighting over that mill. Eighty percent dead, and the other ten will either die or be discharged from injury.”
Swiftlight took a breath as he cringed at that news. Sixteen-hundred dead. Another two-hundred dying. Luck, it seemed, had spared him.
Mane Crusher continued, "The rest of us fared much better. Reports seem to conclude that we suffered thirty percent casualties overall. About half of that will be back to duty eventually.”
"Did the timberwolves give up the attack? Why is it so quiet now?"
"Funny thing, Greymane figured out how to get through the shielding on that mill, and once he discovered it was empty, he took his regiment and fought their way back to a stronger position. Within an hour there was no sight nor sound of timberwolves or changelings, and it's been quiet since then. We also had reports of Queen Chrysalis sightings.”
“Yes, sir, I saw her,” the captain said as his mind recalled the moment. “I shot at her, but missed the mark. She let out a blast of magic that ripped through an entire street. I’m not sure how many of ours she took out with it, twenty or thirty.”
Mane Crusher nodded, “By all accounts, she got away.”
Swiftlight sighed at that, but then asked, "How did the Las Pegasus defense forces fare?"
"They were hit pretty hard," the general said, furrowing his brow. "I don't have a report on their losses, but they managed to hold the citadel until we arrived. They also held off the attack until the citizens could get inside. Fine work, all around I'd say."
"Affirmative," Swiftlight agreed.
Quite unexpectedly, the room began to fall silent. Turning to face the entrance, Swiftlight saw Prince Shining Armor standing in the doorway, flanked on either side by royal guards. He was a white unicorn with a blue mane and eyes. Everypony parted as they walked into the room. His armor was the most impressive gilded metal that Swiftlight had ever seen, and his red undergarment had a tall collar on it. He had somehow expected the prince to be taller. For the moment, he was the supreme leader of Equestria. The prince walked around the room slowly, looking at the various officers and maps as he passed by. When he made his way to them, he stopped in front of Mane Crusher.
Turning to face the others, Shining Armor said, "Give us the room." His tone was far too serious for Swiftlight's liking.
The room cleared without another word spoken. The eerie silence as everypony exited was incredibly uncomfortable. Then the sound of their hooves making a dull thudding noise against the thin carpet was gone, and CIC stood empty but for Swiftlight, Mane Crusher, Prince Shining Armor, and his guards.
"What are you doing here?" the prince asked directly.
“Your Majesty?” Mane Crusher asked.
"What are you doing here?" Shining Armor repeated.
"Las Pegasus called for aid. We answered."
"So your SAR was successful and the princesses have been found?" The prince paused for a moment; his voice was ice. "I gave you specific orders to stay in Ponyville."
"The situation here was out of control when we arrived. The defense force had been driven back to the citadel, the timberwolves had occupied the entire city. We drove them out. I'd call that winning a decisive victory for you, your majesty." Swiftlight could tell that Mane Crusher was caught off guard by Shining Armor's level of hostility, but he was trying to be respectful.
Shining Armor snorted, "They left, because they chose to leave. Do you know why they attacked Las Pegasus in the first place?"
Mane Crusher tilted his head in thought. "Perhaps they knew our strength was weak here. We are at war; nowhere is safe."
"They attacked us here, because I led them here. We sent out a false report that we had managed to stockpile enough grain to ease the rationing. They went straight for that mill with everything they had."
"Tactically sound," the general observed.
"Yes, and predictable. Queen Chrysalis was here. I put together a special Taskforce as soon as I heard she was involved. We’ve been working to track her movements day and night. At the same time, we were able to begin imbuing armor with magical resistance in the Crystal Empire. We arrived with five-thousand armored crystal ponies and almost fifty-thousand zebras to catch them by surprise and capture their queen."
Mane Crusher was silent. Swiftlight suddenly felt ill.
Shining Armor continued, "The mill and the city were bait, and they fell for it. Had you stayed in Ponyville, we could have captured the queen this morning. The war might have ended today, but instead, the queen escaped and knows that the zebras are on our side. That is your fault."
"With respect, had you informed your senior commanders of this plan-"
Shouting, Shining Armor cut him off, "Have you heard a single word I've said? They already have intelligence as to where our food stores are! It took them less than a week from the time we sent out that information to launch a full scale assault on this city! We couldn't risk the changelings knowing our plans." He began to calm a little, but there was a fire in Shining Armor's eyes, "Every other commander had enough sense to stay put as ordered; I ask again, why are you here?"
"I only sought to honor you and to defend Equestria. Forgive me," the general said, lowering his head as a sign of submission.
"The next time you want to honor me, do as I command," Shining Armor said with a stern tone of finality. Mane Crusher was about to say something, but the prince cut him off, "Take your corps and return to Ponyville immediately. Continue the SAR in the Everfree forest until you locate the princesses. Find my wife; find my sister; find Celestia, and Luna, and Discord, and Hope’s Glimmer. Dismissed."
General Mane Crusher turned and marched stiffly to the exit. Swiftlight followed behind him in step. They exited CIC and were greeted by wide eyes from all of the other commanders. They had apparently heard the shouting. Everypony quickly began dispersing. Many went back into CIC to continue their work, but others went different directions. The hallway was a little less crowded now. It looked as if the civilians were being permitted to leave the citadel. As they worked their way farther from CIC, a pegasus commander approached them alone. It seemed a little odd to see a high ranking officer with no aides. He was yellow with a green eyes, mane, and tail.
"General Mane Crusher," he said.
"Glad to see you still live, old friend," came the reply.
"How are you?"
"I'll live. I need to get my corps back to Ponyville. Any word about my divisions that had come on the train?"
"Nothing yet from my SAR teams. We should know something soon."
"Much thanks," Mane Crusher said.
"I for one am glad that you came last night," the commander said cautiously. He looked back and forth as if to ensure that nopony else was listening. "Just know that you have many friends that support you.”
Without another word, the commander walked away. Swiftlight wasn't sure how to process what he'd just heard. Initially, he didn't think much of it, but it was a strange thing to say.
"Swiftlight."
Snapping out of his thoughts, he replied, "Sir?"
"Get our corps together. I want everypony that is fit to travel headed back to Ponyville within the hour. We've got some paperwork to do for those too wounded to travel."
"Affirmative, I'm on it," he said as he trotted down the corridor. There was quite a lot to do to get their corps ready to leave Las Pegasus.
...
"See you later," Sparklefly said as she parted from Apple Bloom and Java Chip. They were on their way to make bail for Applejack. They’d had to pool some resources, but getting her out of the jail was a necessary first step. The unmistakeable scent of illness covered over with industrial cleaner hit Sparklefly as she entered the Ponyville Hospital. This building had become old news to her since she'd been reporting here frequently to be evaluated. The last time she had come in, the doctor had told her that she could probably begin flying again in a week or two. The impacts that had hurt her wings hadn't broken anything, but the bruising was pretty painful. That had been quite a relief. She wasn't here to see the doctor today. The others had decided that someone should tell Scootaloo what's going on. Lightning Dasher and LD stayed on the farm to help out there. Big McIntosh had begun mobilizing the others to start clearing the rest of the orchard in preparation for planting season. They all had the look of exhaustion from the hard work the night before, but somehow they found the strength to keep going. Sparklefly could already tell that they were all going to sleep well tonight.
The mare walked past the nurses’ station, up a flight of stairs, and found the hallway that led to Cloud Blazer's room. She suspected that it would where she’d find Scootaloo. There were still many injured here, but it was much quieter than it had been only a few days before. The Ponyville doctors seemed to really know their remedies. As she rounded the corner into Cloud Blazer's room, confusion was the first thing she felt. The bed was empty, and while Scootaloo was indeed here, she was curled up on the floor, sleeping at the foot of the bed. Clyde was reading a magazine, sitting in a chair nearby. Sweetie Belle was pacing nervously back and forth.
"What's going on?" Sparklefly asked.
Sweetie Belle spun to face her, "It's horrible!"
"What's horrible? Is Cloud Blazer..." she couldn't finish as her stomach sank.
"No, he's alive," Clyde said nonchalantly, still reading his magazine. "The doctor seemed to think his chances are looking good. They took him for surgery."
"What do you mean? Sweetie Belle, what's happening?"
Nervously and quickly, Sweetie Belle answered, "We thought he was recovering completely, but he was getting worse. He got a fever, and he had an infection in his wings." Tears were filling her eyes.
"So they're fixing it?" Sparklefly asked, trying to remain calm.
"They're going to... amputate...” Sweetie Belle said as she was taken by an overwhelming fit of tears. She sank to the floor.
Sparklefly was mortified at the thought of it. To never be able to fly again would be a horrible handicap for a pegasus. She pushed the thought from her mind. There wasn’t any way to know how extensive the damage had been. She’d seen many pegasi with prosthetic wings that were able to fly and lead a normal life. That would be something discuss with the doctors after the surgery. Sweetie Belle was a complete mess. Sparklefly quickly decided that the unicorn’s state was the only problem before her that she could actually do anything with. She crossed over to Sweetie Belle and hugged her.
"Hey, now, that's not going to help anything," she said in a sweet and soft tone. “Brownie is strong. He'll get through this."
Sparklefly wasn't sure what more to do, so she just held Sweetie Belle for a while. This had always been her best bet when her sister, Glitterdust, had nightmares. They had started after the fall of Apple Loosa. In this case, Sparklefly might have liked to cry also, but she couldn't. She felt she had to remain strong for everypony else's sake. They sat there for a time while Sweetie Belle wept. Eventually, she began to quiet down.
"I failed him," Sweetie Belle said.
"What?"
"We failed him. We tried so hard to make him better, but he's going to be crippled, and it's my fault."
"No, not at all," Sparklefly replied. "If you hadn't done what you did, he'd have died a week ago. I saw that fall he took. Nopony could have done better for Cloud Blazer than you and Zecora did. Sometimes things are just too broken to fix. Lightning Dasher thought Brownie was as good as dead, but you got him this far. I've seen you here every minute of every day that you can be. None of this is your fault."
"If only he only could have jumped a second sooner that timberwolf never would have caught him, and he'd be fine," Sweetie Belle said with a sniffle.
"Perhaps," Sparklefly began thoughtfully, "but we'll never know. He might have gotten away from that and been killed later at the mirror pond or in Ponyville." She suddenly felt distant. It was almost as if she heard herself speaking but had no will or control over her words. "When we went to Canterlot to evacuate the city, our plans fell apart. The defense collapsed, and we had three-thousand cadets that had no one to lead them. I didn't know what to do, so I started barking orders, and I had them all follow me into a horde of timberwolves. Scootaloo, Pibs, and Cloud Blazer should have been with us, but we'd been separated only minutes before. There were seven of us: myself, Thunder Boomer, Cherry Blossom, Sky Burst, Flame Out, Treble Cleft, and Rain Dancer. They followed me without question. They didn't even hesitate when we flew down to that platform. They all died there. They were right next to me, and then they were gone. It could have been me, maybe it should have been. They didn't deserve to die any more than I deserved to be spared. I must have run through it in my mind a thousand times in the days after the battle. I just knew that there was another way to save everypony. Maybe I missed something in my haste to act. If I did, if I could have saved them, I'll never know now. You can only do the best you can with what's in front of you. After it is decided, it does no good to dwell on possibilities that could have been."
Silence filled the room and Sweetie Belle was breathing softly and regularly now. "I'm sorry you lost your friends."
Sparklefly nodded, still holding Sweetie Belle, "I'm sorry about Cloud Blazer."
Scootaloo half sat up, facing them. She had obviously been crying, and was as much a mess as Sweetie Belle. "Thank you for being here," she said to Sparklefly.
She nodded in reply. The situation seemed much more stable now, so Sparklefly let go of Sweetie Belle, and found a chair to sit in. She was so tired. Working the fields the night before and now dealing with everypony's emotional distress was draining. Her stomach growled as she rubbed her eye patch.
"I guess you heard I've been confined," Scootaloo said.
"Yeah; you're not the only one,” Sparklefly replied.
"Not Applejack?"
Sparklefly nodded. "The sheriff came to arrest her after you left. We had been called to the castle before it happened. Big McIntosh has already got some more ponies moving. They're still working on clearing the rest of the orchard.”
"What about Diamond Tiara?"
“I don't know. We haven’t seen her since this morning, but I found out something else. Mane Crusher’s entire corps left last night; they aren't here to do any planting anyway."
"Wait, where'd they go?" Scootaloo asked, looking a bit confused.
"I'm not sure. I overheard a rumor that Las Pegasus was under attack, but who knows if it's true." Sparklefly paused for a moment. "Scootaloo, I came here to fill you in on the plan."
Scootaloo snorted. ”We have a plan?"
"Yes, Applejack is going to run for mayor."
Both Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle blinked with disbelief. Clyde seemed to be ignoring them. He was still flipping through his magazine.
"We're nowhere near elections," Sweetie Belle observed.
"We've been looking into the Ponyville bylaws all morning. If we can get enough of the citizens to sign a petition, we can have a special recall election at any time."
"How many is enough?" Scootaloo asked.
“A third,” she replied. "But one problem at a time. First, we're bailing Applejack out of jail." Glancing up at a clock on the wall, she continued, "She may already be out by now. Then Applejack is going to study everything she can find out on Ponyville law, but we'll start the petition immediately. It might take a while to get all those signatures."
"You think?"
Sweetie Belle shushed her.
"If we can get all of the signed petition filed at the court house, the judge will set up a debate for one week later. Everypony in town is allowed to ask one question to either the mayor or the challenger, and then they talk about it. After everypony is finished asking questions, they place their votes."
A bit concerned, Scootaloo said, "Applejack's awesome and all, but do you think she can out-debate Diamond Tiara? That mare's been arguing since she was a filly."
"Well, that tantrum she threw in front of half the town this morning should give us an edge, at least initially," Sparklefly answered. "At any rate, this is the plan. Get the orchard ready for replanting the apple trees, get the mayor thrown out of office, and find some other land to go ahead and plant the oats and hay she wanted. If we can do all of that, we'll be able to save Sweet Apple Acres."
A feeling of optimism began swimming about the room. Sparklefly wasn't completely sure why, but saving the orchard was important to her. Perhaps it was because it reminded her of home. A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts. It was Captain Brax. Clyde, Scootaloo, and Sparklefly stood and saluted.
"I was told I'd find you here," he said to Scootaloo. "Dismissed," he said, looking at Clyde.
Clyde and Sweetie Belle exited the room, and Sparklefly followed them.
"Not you, Lieutenant; this concerns you as well."
Her mouth went dry, and she returned to stand by Scootaloo, both of them at attention.
"At ease," he said, causing them to relax their stance. "I'm sorry to hear about Cloud Blazer. A nurse at the front desk told me. In Canterlot, he gave me the impression that he knew how to handle himself."
"Thank you, sir," Scootaloo said, swallowing hard.
"Now, you are already under my command temporarily, but I have put in a request to make it permanent. This will be the only way I can help you. If it goes through, this is how things are going to play out. Scootaloo, you will be demoted back to sergeant, and you'll have thirty days of latrine duty. That way the mayor can't complain that you weren't punished."
Scootaloo groaned, “But we never touched the mayor.”
“Shut your mouth, sergeant, or it’ll be sixty days,” Brax said sternly before he continued. Sparklefly’s heart was pounding like a drum as the captain continued, "I have received word that we're going to get new recruits, nearly five-hundred of them out of Baltimare. I'm to organize a battalion that will be stationed here in Ponyville for defense of the city. They're giving us a drill sergeant, but I'll also be assigning the two of you to assist in the instruction of the recruits." Reading her expression, Brax asked Sparklefly, "Do you want to say something, lieutenant?"
"Permission to speak, sir?" she asked.
"Go ahead."
"Thank you, sir. I recognize and appreciate that you are trying to clean up our mess. I would only like to point out that we have no experience training recruits."
"True," Brax replied, "but you do have valuable field experience. More to the point, the events of today have shown me that you two need something constructive to do to stay out of trouble."
"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," Sparklefly replied, not wanting to push her luck.
"I'm going to put you in command of a platoon, and Scootaloo will be one of your sergeants. That means it will be your tail if she get’s out of line.” Brax looked behind himself as if to check that nopony was standing there, and then turned back to the pair. "The four of you, injured, really took out ten of the mayor's Ponyville Defense Force?" he asked. If Sparklefly wasn't mistaken, he had a slight grin on his face. It almost looked as if he were proud of them.
"Yes sir," Scootaloo replied.
The captain snorted and shook his head; the smile flashed across his face for only a moment before evaporating as he began walking out of the room. "I'll let you know if those orders go through. Until then, stay out of trouble."
"Yes sir," they both said together.
The old warhorse left. Sparklefly listened to him walk down the corridor. She let out a sigh of relief. Scootaloo made a noise that almost sounded like a growl. A little startled, Sparklefly stepped back and turned to face her.
"Latrine duty," Scootaloo said.
Sparklefly could see the anger in her eyes.
"Honestly, you'll be getting off easy if that's all that happens."
"I know!” Scootaloo practically shouted.
Sparklefly took a step back. For a moment, she was unsure whether Scootaloo might be about to do something rash.
"No, I..." Scootaloo began. She shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm just tired, and hungry. Just give me a minute.”
“It’s a small matter,” Sparklefly replied. Confidence returned that Scootaloo had checked her anger. "One thing's for certain. Our plans just got complicated."
Scootaloo snorted, “You mean more complicated?”
Sparklefly nodded slowly in reply.