• Published 5th Jun 2012
  • 3,984 Views, 171 Comments

Carolean - Symphony



A carolean soldier in Equestria

  • ...
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Reverence

This was it.


The warm embrace of the light was comfortable and I wanted to feel more of it. I walked toward the light so the warmth wouldn't escape me. It felt nice, I hadn't felt this nice in several months... I sighed as the warm feeling coaxed me to continue walking toward it.


This was my demise.


I have fought and suffered for far too long now, I deserve some rest... The light will give me the rest that I desire. It does not wish for me to hurt anyone, to kill... It just wants me to lay back and relax for once and pass the burden to someone else. The ponies never actually accepted me anyway... I saw the looks the townsponies gave me as I walked through town on errands.


But...


But I had found hope when princess Luna was able to take me to the dreamscape where I met my family again... If I move on into the light, I will lose all contact with my family. I... Can't do that. I started struggling against the light and the warmth. I turned my back to the light, closed my eyes and ran away from the light and the warmth, back to the darkness and the cold. I heard what sounded like muffled voices the closer I came to the dark


I collapsed.


(Perspective switch)


Applejack ran into Ponyville General Hospital, panting heavily. She took a few deep breaths to compose herself and walked to the reception. ”Howdy,” Redheart, who was behind the desk greeted back and smiled. ”Ah heard that...” She paused and thought of a good way to describe Gustafv. ”one of mah friends came in earlier t'day after fightin' a manticore?”


The nurse nodded. ”Oh, him. He's here, alright... Most of our doctors have been working on him to figure out his anatomy and which treatments that can work the best on him.” Redheart sighed.


”Do ya think ya can take me to his room, or maybe give me some directions?” Applejack tapped her hoof to the floor impatiently.


”His room is on the second floor, on the right wing. I'm pretty sure you will notice which one it is. Some of your friends have already arrived and are there right now.” Applejack thanked Redheart and started walking in the direction she had been informed about.


”Goin' off an' fightin' manticore... Yer stupid, that's what y'all are...” Applejack muttered and continued trotting down the halls. Before she had rushed to the hospital, she had been working the fields. Her plans for the day changed though as she heard about the fight from Rainbow Dash, who had zipped back to town as soon as she had delivered the news.


When she had reached the hall Redheart had mentioned, there were a single opened door. Applejack shrugged and walked toward it and looked inside the room. As she had suspected, all of her friends along with two doctors were in the room. On the bed with his entire torso wrapped in bandages, Gustafv was lying fast asleep.


”Hey y'all...” Applejack sat down beside Twilight Sparkle. ”How is he?”



Twilight sighed. ”We don't really know if he will make it or not... As a natural reaction when a manticore die, they eject most of their poison in a final defensive act. From what I was told, the manticore already had its stinger in his stomach before it died...” The room became silent.


”So... This could be it for him..?” Applejack almost hesitated to ask.


”It could be, but the doctors gave him a lot of antidote that should neutralize most of the venom in him.” Twilight answered with a shrug. Silence loomed over the room once again. The ponies jumped as a pitiful groan came from the bed.


Everything... Everything hurts... My arms hurt like never before, and it felt like something enormous had stepped on my back and broken it in the progress. I stretched my fingers and brought my right hand to my face and sighed. A horrid stench of some sort invaded my senses as I dropped my hand from my face and opened my eyes.


The first thing I saw was a white roof, I turned my head to the left and saw some strange contraptions with a white wall behind them. One of the machines were making a noise in a steady beat and were connected through some wires to my chest. I decided not to question it and looked to the right, where most of the ponies I had gotten to know were. Applejack seemed furious, though...



”How are you feeling, Gustafv?” Twilight asked. I ran a hand through my hair and sighed.



”I feel... Strange...” I confessed. ”Almost everything is hurting, but at least I was lucky to get out of it alive.” I shrugged. ”I am used to fighting on the brink of life and death, one mistake and you're gone and all that...”


A stallion wearing a white coat looked up from a clipboard and straight to me. ”Are you feeling any side effects of the quantity of antidote we were forced to give you?” Ah, a doctor...


”Not really... But I have this strange tingling feeling by my spine...” The doctor glanced at another pony in a white coat, but that pony was a mare. The stallion's horn glowed momentarily as he lifted the cover off my legs.


”Move your legs for us.” The female doctor instructed. I did as she to-..


Well, this was... This was alarming... I can't seem to... My eyes widened as the panic settled in. ”I... I can't move my legs... I can't move my damn legs!” I caught the male doctor's collar and brought him to my face. ”What. Happened.” I hissed. The doctor stuttered and glanced to his companion, who sighed heavily.


”It's possible that the poison from the manticore, which works to attack your nerve systems and incapacitate you had spread to your lower area before we were able to start treating you with the antidote.” She sat down next to the bed


”And..?”


She looked straight into my eyes, and I could see the pity behind her facade. ”I am so, so sorry, but even when we did all we could... You will probably never walk again...” My grip on the doctor's collar softened, and he dropped to the ground in a heap.


My mouth hung open in shock as my mind progressed the implications of what she had said. To never be able to walk again... I balled my hand to fists and clenched them shut. The knuckles started turning into white as I spoke. ”Get out.” I hissed to the ponies, who all were taken aback of my words. ”I said, get. Out!” I roared and the doctors walked out of the room, but the girls were still inside. ”You girls as well, get out before I do something I will regret...” The ponies filed out of the room one by one, but Applejack stayed behind. ”Please, just go...” Applejack sighed and finally relented. She closed the door, leaving me to lay on the bed on my lonesome.


It felt so... Unreal. I glanced down at my no longer functioning appendages and sighed heavily as I rubbed my hands to my thighs. I slumped back on the bed and closed my eyes. I just feel so tired... I need to sleep some more...


(Perspective switch)
Four days later...


Princess Celestia walked along a hallway in the Ponyville General Hospital with her sister and a doctor. She had heard about the accident in a letter from Twilight Sparkle, and read rapports from the guards present at the day of the accident. At the same time she also got to know of the repercussions of the manticore's venom to Gustafv.


”...and after he woke up, an associate and I tried to make a routine checkup on him. But...” The doctor bit his lip. ”But apparently he had lost all function in his legs as an effect from the poison injected in him. We have tried everything we know to attempt to make his legs function properly, but sadly we have had no progress... To be honest though, I don't think his legs are the worst issue at the moment...”


”What in Equestria could be worse than that?” Princess Luna arched an eyebrow. ”From what I have learned from Gustafv is that he's stubborn and prideful. Very, very, very stubborn, though...” She said as the group of ponies rounded a corner to the hall where Gustafvs room were.


The doctor stopped next to the door and took a deep breath and pushed the door open. ”His mental state...”


The princesses glanced into the room and saw him sitting next to the window in a wheelchair that appeared to have been modified for his use. The room was dark, and the blinds were only open by one window, namely the window he was sitting by. Gustafv sat with his shoulders slumped and his head tilting forward slightly. His skin was a sickly pale hue and his hair was a mess and greasy. He wasn't wearing a coat, nor his trademark tricorne. The aforementioned clothing laid tossed away in the corner of the room.


”You have two very special guests today, Gustafv!” The doctor said happily. He didn't even acknowledge him. ”The princesses have come to visit you, isn't that good?” He attempted to coax him, but Gustafv's head only sunk deeper.


Celestia placed a hoof on the doctor's shoulder and shook her head. ”May we have some privacy with him?”


”Of course, princess. Just call a nurse and I'll get here as soon as I can.” He walked out of the room and closed the door behind him. Celestia turned to Gustafv.


”What you did was very brave...” Celestia walked toward him. ”The town of Ponyville would have been partially destroyed if you wouldn't have intercepted the manticore and taken it down.” Celestia stood next to Gustafv and looked out the window beside him. ”You are a hero to these ponies, Gustafv.”


Gustafv sighed, but didn't say anything.


Celestia and Luna glanced at eachother and Luna cleared her throat. ”What do you think Johannes would say now when he would see you like this?” Gustafv balled his hands into fists. ”Or what about your wife? What do you think she would say when she sees her husband degraded into this?” Luna stepped closer. ”What happened to the fearless Carolean who charged headfirst into battle to fight for glory?”


”...He died when he lost control of his own body...” Gustafv rasped and lowered his head. Luna sighed and walked out of the room, followed by Celestia.


Once outside of the room with the door closed, Luna rubbed her temples. ”What can we do to pull him together, sister?”


”...Perhaps we should look for help from somepony else?” Celestia suggested. ”I have a feeling that... he would be able to help us with Gustafv...” Celestia winced at the idea of asking that creature with help with something like this.


”You can't possibly be serious...” Luna deadpanned. Her jaw dropped at her sister's serious demeanor. ”You are serious...” Luna's ear splayed back ”This cannot, and probably will not end well.”


Approximately ten minutes later, the princesses stood on the roof of the hospital. ”Is this really necessary, Tia?” Luna asked as she glanced down the roof.


”You saw just how broken Gustafv was...” Celestia sighed. ”At this point, I'm willing to do anything in my prowess to bring him back to his old self.” The regal alicorn spread her wings and focused her magic to make a projection spell. ”Including involving him...”


”I wish the way to summon him wasn't this silly...” Luna facehoofed as she looked up to the sky to see a projection of what looked like a bat with the head of a grinning goat, along with two mismatched horns attached to the head.


A distant chanting was heard with the wind, and a sudden golden flash appeared next to Celestia. In his own mismatched glory, Discord stood next to the princess whilst striking a heroic pose, dressed as the Batmare. ”Hold your affections to yourselves, ladies...” Discord grinned as the princesses facehoofed.


”We have to ask you to be serious this time, Discord,” Celestia said ”we have a friend downstairs in the hospital who's going through a very rough time after he fought a manticore.”


”Oooh, that human thing I've heard so much about?” Discord snapped a claw and the disguise vanished.


”Yes, him...” Luna spoke. ”Sadly, after the fight he was hospitalized after being poisoned after successfully killing the manticore. However, the damage he recieved was so extensive that he became paralyzed from his waist and down. He cannot walk, and he appears to have become broken mentally afterward...” Discord turned his head away from the princesses.


”So you want me to see if I can help him walk again?” The princesses nodded. ”I don't know if I can do that... It is very advanced magic and I'm afraid that I could make it worse if I would do something wrong. He's a human, when this spell was originally meant for ponies and other native species.” Discord ran a claw through his beard. ”Unless...”


”Unless what?” Celestia pressed.


”This is what I can do, however...” Discord took a deep breath as he started explaining. ”If I may so bold but to suggest that we alter him physically, so the doctors will have a much better chance at restoring him if he would become injured again?” Discord shrugged. ”If I were to change him to a pony, I would also be able to make the spell to piece him back together much easier.”


The princesses glanced at eachother. Luna bit her lip. ”I... I guess so, but we should ask Gustafv for his permission before we do it. I wouldn't feel right to do it against his will.” Celestia nodded in agreement with her sister.


”Well then. Follow us, Discord.” Celestia spread her wings and flew down to the entrance of the hospital, followed by Luna and Discord. ”I hope this will work...” Celestia sighed as they ascended the stairs to the broken human's room. After a short walk, they arrived to the room. Celestia turned to Discord. ”Wait here for a minute, Luna and I will talk to him.” Discord nodded in understanding and crossed his arms and leaned to the wall behind him.


When inside the room, they noticed that he hadn't moved from the spot and was still sitting next to the window. The only new addition to the room was an untouched meal on the desk by the bed. Celestia placed her hoof on his shoulder. ”Gustafv, we may have a way for you to walk again...”


He turned to her with wide eyes. ”R-really?” He rasped and coughed. Luna levitated a cup of water from the tray and gave it to him. He drank it in a few quick gulps. ”How?”


Celestia turned her head from him and lowered her head. ”It... would require a lot from you physically. The only way we could think of to have you walking again would be if we... would turn you into a pony through very advanced magic and heal you as a pony with our full knowledge at our disposal.”


”Think about this long and hard, this is not a decision to take lightly.” Luna warned.


Gustafv looked away from the princesses and to the floor beside him. To change his last trait which makes him an individual, to be healed and be able to walk again. To avoid the imminent paranoia of being shunned from society just because of him being so much different from the ponies... He sighed and moved the wheelchair toward the pile of clothing in the far end of the room. He cast an inspecting glance down to the hat lying there. Gustafv closed his eyes and concentrated just like Celestia taught him and imagined picking up the tricorne. He opened his eyes to see the hat slowly and shakily levitate to his lap.


He placed the hat on his head and ran a finger across the edge of the hat and turned to the princesses with his trademark confident smirk. ”Very well, princesses... Let us do it...”


Celestia nodded with a small smile. ”Discord?” She called. The door opened and the spirit himself strode inside with his head held high and a grin on his face. Gustafv visibly tensed and gripped the armrests on the wheelchair tighter. Celestia noticed this and calmed him down. ”Discord is the one with enough power to perform the spell without any issues.”


Thaaat's right, my lanky, hairless friend!” Discord exclaimed. ”Now, you might want to get on the bed for this. It can be quite the experience. Here, allow me to help you...” Discord levitated Gustafv from the wheelchair. The human flailed his arms because of the unusual feeling of floating mid-air. Gustafv touched down on the bed unscathed and made himself comfortable.


”Well then. The first thing that is going to happen is that I will sedate you. You wouldn't want to be awake as your body morphs to the shape of a pony. Bones cracking and shifting shapes and all that...” Discord rolled a talon nonchalantly. Gustafv gulped, but nodded nonetheless.


”I am ready, start whenever you are.” Gustafv closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths.


”Princesses, if you may leave the room for this. I need absolute concentration which can only be achieved by having as little magical traffic around you as possible.” Discord turned to the royals, who nodded and walked out. Discord turned back to Gustafv and cracked his talons, then his neck and rolled his shoulders. Discord's eagle talon started glowing a faint golden hue as he laid it on the Carolean's forehead.


Gustafv felt himself slowly slip into unconsciousness, but this time he didn't resist and allowed the darkness to take over control. When the human was fast asleep and out of action, Discord's talon started glowing as he went to work to rebuild the body of the human. Several ardous hours of hard work awaited him, so it was best to get it done as soon as possible.


(Perspective switch)
Next day...


As I slowly regained my bearings after being put under the spell of the snake-goat, the first thing I noticed was a new, heightened sense of smell. I wrinkled my nose and lifted a hand to...


To...


Well... Would you look at that... I glanced at what had once been my arm to have been replaced with a foreleg and a hoof... The colour of the coat was a bit yellow-ish in tint, but actually a bit more pale. I sighed and slumped back. So... this was it. I was no longer human... The realization stung, but it was a decision I had to make so I could have a somewhat normal life in Equestria as another Equestrian pony.


I attempted to lift my right... Hindleg, to have it answer to my commands without issues. I smiled. It was a small victory, but a needed one nonetheless. But... Here came the main issue; I wanted to walk.


I slid my left hindleg off the bed slowly, closely followed by my right. I scooted toward the edge of the bed and...


*THUMP*


...Promptly fell right on my face... Ow... I felt a sharp, stabbing pain which escalated into a strong headache. I brought my right hoof to my head and felt a lump... No, that's not a lump... It... It was a horn... So, I'm a unicorn, huh... Well, it could have been worse. I could have become a pony with wings. I really don't like heights... I placed both of my forelegs on the floor and pushed, slowly bringing myself to a standing position. I was able to place my hindlegs properly as well, but as soon as I stood upright, my legs started shaking. I fought against the natural reaction to just fall over and bent my legs slightly in an attempt to shift my weight a bit. My legs still shaked a bit, though.


The door opened, and I strained to look up just to meet the purple gaze of Twilight Sparkle. I attempted to lift my neck and head to straighten my posture ”Well? Are you just gonna stand there, or are you going to help me a little?” I asked, slightly annoyed at her staring. She shook her head and walked toward me.


She stood toward my right side and pressed slightly toward it. ”Okay, now lean a bit to me...” She said. I did as she had told me and shifted my weight a bit. ”Good, now take your first step forward with your left foreleg.” She took a step, and I mimicked her. ”Very good, now take another step, but this time with your right hindleg.” I nodded and once again mimicked her. ”Now you try walking around on your own...” She moved away from me and I shifted my weight back like I had it before she helped me.


Okay now, let's see... Right foreleg, left hindleg... Left foreleg, right hindleg... I think I'm learning. I turned my head to Twilight with a smile. She nodded. I walked in a circle, but this time I increased my speed a bit. As I turned back to her, she was looking at my head, specifically my horn. ”Anything wrong?” I asked.


”No, no...” She shook her head. ”It's just... You have a horn... You're a unicorn which means that you can use magic, any magic you want to learn...” She analyzed me some more. ”And physically you are actually a quite tall pony... Not quite as tall as Big Macintosh, but still tall...” She tapped a hoof to her chin.


I looked down at my legs, and then to my behind and tail. ”I do not seem to have a mark on my behind...” I muttered ”Oh well, I presume that it is not a big deal...”


”It isn't a big deal, but some ponies would think that it's strange that an adult pony doesn't have a cutiemark. But I am quite sure that you will find your special talent in good time.” She said with a smile. ”Now, how about we go to Sugarcube Corner and eat some lunch. I presume that you haven't eaten anything yet?”


The answer she needed came as my stomach rumbled ferociously. I chuckled sheepishly as I walked unsteadily to where my tricorne was lying. I approached it and thought for a moment how I would be able to pick it up... I had seen Applejack picking up things before with just her hooves, so I presumed I just had to do that.


I placed my left forehoof on the rim of the hat and lifted it. To my own amazement, the hat lifted along with the hoof... I would have to ask how that worked later on... I placed my trusted tricorne on my head and adjusted it. Twilight levitated my now oversized coat to some bags that were hanging along her sides. She also picked up my hirschfängare and levitated it beside her.


Hmm... If I would learn how to levitate things as a pony, combat with the sword would be a lot easier as I would be able to twirl and twist it in normally impossible angles... Oh, it would be marvellous!


Due to my still inexperienced way of walking as a pony, I gathered quite a few stares as Twilight and I walked through the reception of the hospital. I had to stop by the desk and sign a few papers, but due to my... Inability, Twilight wrote them for me with ease. I took a deep breath as I exited the hospital for the first time in days and breathed out slowly. Twilight snickered beside me as we walked dow the path to town. I presume that a few of the ponies recognized me, because some of them waved and thanked me.


Twilight trotted ahead of me as we came closer to the confectionary, making me struggle to keep up with her. She walked inside and I followed her to a booth near the back, where I saw the telltale mane belonging to Rarity, along with the hat I had seen for about three months on end.


”Hi girls!” Twilight smiled. The mares turned to Twilight and I, but Rarity's eyes widened as she spotted the tricorne I was wearing. Rarity stood up and walked toward me. I took a cautious step back as she walked a clear circle around me, scrutinizing a few details. She finally stopped right in front of me and looked straight into my eyes.


”Gustafv..?” She finally said. I gave her a stiff nod and her jaw dropped. ”Well... I-I never really expected you to look like.. well, this! after I heard about the spell...” Rarity held her foreleg to the barrel of my chest. ”Look at you! Tall, and are these muscles I feel?” She cooed. I took another step back and gave a silent plead of help to the other ponies sitting by the table. Applejack coughed and stood up.


”Now now, Rares... Give 'im some privacy.” She pushed away Rarity from me, and me away from Rarity. She paused though and turned to me. ”Well wouldya look at that, ya do have some muscle in this lanky frame'a yours...” She chuckled. I rolled my eyes.


”Let's eat, I'm starved...” I said and moved to sit to the spot closest to the window. Twilight moved and allowed me to scoot further into the seat of the booth. I ordered a simple piece of apple pie and a beverage they called ”coffee”. I had no idea what it was, but I assumed that it was good. They just warned me to never give any to Pinkie Pie, no matter how much she pleads.


”So, Gustafv...” Rarity poked her food with her fork, glancing at me. ”I cannot help but to notice that you have a long mane...” I arched an eyebrow and lifted a hoof to my hair. ”Not that it's a bad thing, of course. Just a small detail...”


”I kept it long because I never had the time to just stop and get it cut on the field.” I shrugged. ”Usually when it got unmanageable I cut a bit off with a knife.” I resumed eating. After a few seconds silence, I looked up to see Rarity staring at me in horror.


”A... A knife?!” She shrieked. I winced and frowned.


”I never bothered to keep it nice. I had quite a few other things to worry about than my looks. Namely getting shot, stabbed, burned or targeted by grenadiers... ” I rolled my eyes. Rarity kept silent after that and all of us returned to our meals.


After eating and paying for it, I walked outside with Applejack. ”Now, because of ya just gettin' out of th' hospital, and when yer in a new body, Ah think it would be for th' best if ya wouldn't work for a few days, so ya can get settled and all.” She smiled as we made our way out of town and back to the farm.


”I can understand that. I still need to learn how to walk and run properly. And learn how to use magic as a pony...” To make my point clear, I accidentally stumbled. Applejack managed to catch me before I fell over though, I thanked her and she nodded.


As we reached the farm, I walked into the guest room and placed the sword in the closet, then laid down on the bed with a sigh. I lifted my forelegs slightly and bit my lip. I don't know if it was a mistake to go through with this yet, but... At least I could walk now... Nopony stared at me with hatred or confusion.


I was accepted... The ponies didn't care about my past, or what I did to live another day, they thought of me as another pony now. From what I learned from Twilight Sparkle, Equestria have not partaken a single war in centuries. Which meant that I probably would never be able to pick up arms again.


But, if the time would come, and Equestria would need my help... I would be ready to march into the fog of war without consideration for what would happen to me, as long as my enemies would fall by the dozens as the regular ponies wouldn't have to live through the horrors that is war.


Equestria is my home now, and those who would even dare threaten my home would face the consequences of their actions. My enemies would quickly get to know of the wrath of a Carolean who has nothing to lose. I smirked as I tipped my tricorne to cover my eyes from the intruding sun's rays.


”With Gods help... We want to FIGHT!”

Author's Note:

Sequel is maybe being planned/written... And by the way, Twilicorn never happened in this timeline which makes the story a bit AU. Look out for hints of what will come after this...

Comments ( 12 )

I'll definitely be awaiting the sequel. Gustafv is certainly an interesting character and I'd like to see what will happen to him later on in this planned sequel of yours.

This fic was very good, I'll be looking forward to a sequel :moustache:.

D48

This was good, and I am also looking forward to a sequel.

carn't say i like the ponyification, that seems to be the go to thing for healing a badly injured human in HIE's. and i mean what happened to the old gustafv, i believe you siad in a earlier comments section that his personality wasn't going to change dramatically, i mean going from MAGIC, HERESY and as soon as i've done helping applejack i'm gonna leave this place to this is my country i need to protect it, and turning him into the very thing that he was supposed to think is HERESY and going against everything that he was taught in his old world.

apart from that goos story

I, for one, thought you handled the ponificatiom fairly well. Great ending speech too.

Bravo!

In the name of myself, I dub this story awesome

WHYYYY this story was so good up until the ponification and can't they turn him back into a human they riding say that they couldn't and his whole will to live came from having a chance to see his family again. This story is being very hypocritical at first he hates magic, HERESY, and accepts it within a couple of minutes when back then that wouldn't happen. Also now in my mind this is no longer a human in Equestria fic but a story about a pony with human thoughts. But alas this is your story and you wright it how you want it.:fluttershysad:

3786571
Patience, I'm cooking up a sequel to this that might sate your need of good-old fashioned Carolean violence.

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