The Wild Man

by Luckless

Chapter 11

Author's Note:

Moved to my phone for this one. Keeps deleting any progress I save if I turn it off. Wrote this one five times before I got it all in and published. Hope you enjoy!😁

Midnight

I couldn't find him. I couldn't find Brian. No matter how far I looked, no matter how much I listened to the others talking, but no one had spotted him.

I was searching near one of the bars, when I heard singing, a depressing song, about giving up and dying. It sounded like Brian, so close. I nosed open the door to get a look at the speaker. There he was, hunched over the bar with no shirt, smiling, was the one and only human, Brian. "Wha cud make ya feel suh bad? *HIC!*" Berry Punch asked through her tears.

"All the crap that happens to me. That's what. Sometimes I want to say fuck it and kill myself. But I always remember that death is not an option. It's a cowardly way of surrendering, of losing. And I sure as hell hate to lose. Living on is a great big middle finger to the world, and I'm keeping that one finger salute erect as long as possible." The bartender, a mare I didn't know the name of, poured him another full glass of some liquid, likely alcohol. "Cheers."

"B-Brian?" He turned around to look at me, and I saw the glossiness in his small, intense eyes. He squinted, and I realized he was concentrating as much as his alcohol riddled mind could manage.

"Eh! Midnight! How you doing?" He proclaimed in sincere cheer, spinning around... with a bleeding wound in his belly, a small hint of a blood red shirt peeking out.

"Brian! What happened to you?" I rushed over to his side, and examined the wound. It was very clean, not made by wood. Something sharp, like... ice, "Did you get this when you jumped out that window?"

He nodded, "Yep." He drank some more of that liquid.

"What are you doing here in a bar? You need help!"

He stopped smiling. He nodded, sighing, "I survived a bunch of shit Midnight. This... I'm not sure I can kick it. Ah, who am I kidding, let's kick my ass! Wait, no, that's not right. No, let's patch me up! That's it, let's go." And he stood. He was a bit smaller than me, but by Celestia, he had a presence. Drunk, and bleeding, he stood upright on two legs straight as can be with such sureness, it amazed me he had actually been wounded. He took a few uneasy steps, turned to the bartender, and said, "I WILL, pay you back. Even if it kills me."

"That's right. You'll pay him back. But we need to get you to the hospital so you can do that. Ok? Ok, great." Isound so patronizing right now.

I get him maybe five steps down the road, and already I get discovered.

"There it is! Midnight wounded it!" Somepony yelled, and we were swarmed by an angry mob of ponies.

"Hey Midnight, why didn't you kill it? You already hurt it, can't be that hard?"

I scowled, "First off, I didn't hurt him. Second, he's a really nice guy. Do you know why I was so skinny for so long?"

They looked to each other, not knowing the answer even though it wasn't a secret. Finally, one of them spoke up, "Because you weren't eating enough?"

I scowled a little bit more, "Easy Midnight, that scowl doesn't look good on you." Brian chuckled weakly.

I smiled sadly at him, nuzzling his shoulder a little, "Close. Being half thestral, my diet requires high levels of protein which can't be found in the food ponies normally eat. And all of you look down on eating meat. There isn't any other good way to get what I need to be healthy.

"Then I met Brian. That's his name, by the way. He'd recently gotten, as he would say-"

"Got my ass kicked so bad I should have died."

"Right, that. He had every right to hate me and all ponies for what happened to him. All he knew was that he was attacked for no reason, But he gave me a chance. He fed me food that I needed to get healthy again. He let me eat as much as I wanted, and cooked it for me too. Might I remind you that he lives in the Everfree? In there, any and all food is both difficult, and very dangerous to get. Food that he needs just as much as I do, and he shared. He is no monster. He's my friend, and I'm taking my friend to the hospital, whether you like it or not. Now if you'll be so kind as to pull your heads out of your flanks and get out of the way, we'd be much obliged."

Most of the ponies looked ashamed, and stepped out of the way, except for one burley stallion who worked in the blacksmiths shop.

"So he fed you, huh? What was it? Ponies?!!?"

Brian took the lead with this one without a hint of the alcohol that must have been flooding his system, "You ponies always go to the worst possibility. We ate moose and deer, you dumbass. If something can talk to me, or used to, I don't eat it. I'd be more than happy to talk to them if they're willing to do the same. Eating an intelligent creature is like cannabilism to me, and that's just disgusting and not right. I've heard your rumors, and they're all bullshit! I never have, and never will, eat a foal OR children. Now look, this is the second instance of you ponies hurting me so bad that I'm staying alive by the skin of my teeth, and I'm bleeding out here. I've been beaten up enough in life, and I don't need you adding to it. You've said your piece, even though it's full of shit, now leave me be damn it. The shirt I used to stop the bleeding is only prolonging my bleed out, and the alcohol killing the pain won't last forever."

The stallion, lost for words, stepped out of the way, letting us pass. We continued on our journey to the hospital, other ponies joining the crowd and being filled in by those already here.

I grew increasingly worried about Brian. His strong disposition started wavering halfway there. His head sagged, his eyes had a blank, distant look, and even though he was leaning so heavily against me he might as well be riding me, he still stumbled. Despite his assurances that he was fine, I kept worrying about him, and tried to increase our pace to go as fast as he could go.

When we reached the hospital, the nurse on duty at the desk gave me a pleasant surprise when she yelled for some orderlies to bring a gurney.

The orderlies themselves only showed concern over Brian's still bleeding wound as they helped him onto the gurney. I followed along, trying to assure Brian that he was going to be alright. I doubted he could hear any of it. His face looked emotionless with that dead stare of his. Only his steady breathing told me he was still alive.

Finally, we reached the operating room, where there were already doctors ready to operate. The orderlies gently used their magic to lift him up and deposite Brian onto the operating table.

"Ok, let's hook it up to a EKG and sedate him. Don't want him doing anything to mess up the surgery." The attached a few medical wires to his wrist, where his veins were easy to see, and one of the doctors inserted a needle with a dirty yellow liquid into Brian's neck. Once his eyes closed, they began.

First, they took out the shirt he'd stuffed inside himself. The first tugs made the EKG machine start beeping eradically.

"Let's hope that one good pull will take it out of him. I don't think his system can handle gentle tugging." And then the doctor used his magic to rip out the shirt, lifting Brian up off the table a little. The EKG machine made the closest sound of sputtering that a beep could make, and flattlined.

"NOO!"

"Shock him! Level one!" The doctor yelled. The unicorn on the other side of the table nodded, charged his horn, and blasted Brian in the chest. His body shuddered, the machine beeped once, and resumed the flatline.

"Again! Shock level two!"

"Charging!" The unicorn charged his horn again, taking a little longer than last time, but still sent that bolt of magic into Brian's chest. This made his body jerk, lifting him off the table a little. The machine beeped a few times, then flatlined again.

"Please don't die Brian." I whispered, a tear rolling down my cheek.

The doctor growled in frustration, "AGAIN! Shock level 5! I'm going to start patching him up while you charge. Red Heart, start CPR!"

A white earth pony nodded, "On it!" She got on her rear hooves, and started pressing down and left the chest rise repeatedly, occasionally breathing air into Brian while the surgeon used his magic to start healing the damage in his stomach.

"Please Brian, don't die!" I pleaded, a little louder this time.

"Ready!" The pony charging his horn said. The surgeon stopped mending Brian's wound, and Red Heart stopped CPR.

"CLEAR!" He shouted, and sent the bolt back into Brian's chest. This one was much more powerful than the others, and it made Brian jump violently. Again, the EKG beeped, a little longer this time, but it wasn't steady, and soon flatlined again.

The doctors tried again and again, eventually sealing the hole in him. But each time, the beeping only lasted for a few seconds. And each time, I grew a little louder.

Finally, the doctors, who were covered in sweat, stopped. They shook their heads, and put a sheet over his body, leaving only his head to be exposed.

Most of the staff left with their heads low to the ground, but one had the decency to come over to me.

"I'm sorry, but he lost too much blood. We tried our very best, but There was nothing more we could do for him. He's dead. We'll leave you to your grieving." With that, he turned tail, and walked out the door.

Tears were freely pouring down my face as I approached Brian's body. I stared down at his face. He looked so calm, so at peace. It was in stark contrast to how I'd first met him. He looked so... tortured when we first met. But after a few days, that had started to change. He'd slowly began to look happier, and he'd shown me a kindness no one other than my parents had ever shown me.

All the sweet memories we had together only made me cry harder. All the jokes we cracked, all the care we shared with each other, the hunt, the food he made for me. I was beginning to understand what I felt for him.

"Brian, please don't die. I love you!"

Brian

If I had to discribe what was going on, I'd say I was drifting in the middle of emptiness. No light, no feeling, nothing. Oddly, I felt at peace despite how I got here. For the most part. Something seemed to be missing, something wrong. I just couldn't place it.

Then, I heard a voice, "Brian, please don't die. I love you!"

A flash of pain erupted through my consciousness. Midnight? She's... she's standing over my... body. Did I die? I did. And she... loves me? Memories flowed through me from the moment I met her to the last moments. I regretted how abrasive I'd been when we first met, but now, I regretted putting her through this. Fuck it, for you Midnight, I'll do anything. I'll fight like no tomorrow. Now, LIVE DAMN IT! I mentally screamed, trying to fill my being with willpower to bring myself back.

But something, I didn't know what, was starting to pull me down.. Oh no you don't! I've got someone to live for, and I'm not going to die from some fucking glass! I was burned alive asswhipe! This is nothing! I screamed again, rage this time. I wasn't going to die like this.

I was no longer in that void. I was laying down in a solid piece of metal, under a thin blanket, and breathing.

I could hear too. And I didn't like the sounds that were being made. It was Midnight. And she was crying her eyes out.

"Brian!" She flayed out on top of me, wrapping me in an extremely tight hug, "Pkease don't die!"

I coughed, and wheezed out, "Can't... breathe!"

Midnight gasped, dropping me back down to the table a little roughly. I closed my eyes for a second, whining. When I opened them again, Midnight was over me, front hooves on either side of me. She was down at me, teary eyed, staring down at me with a stunned expression. To me, she looked a lot like an angel. The ceiling light shined down on her long, beautiful hair, her large, caring eyes glistening in the light, and glossy fur, somewhat dirtied with my blood.

Well, all angels are supposed to be warriors. "Damn you look hot."

I didn't think she could look anymore surprised, but her expression changed immediately to joyously crying. Again, she wrapped me up in a hug. Gentlier than her death grip, but this time, she let her weight down on me. She was heavy, just like... well, I don't know how long ago it was, but whenever it was that I carried her into town on my back. But I was no longer carrying her, just holding her as she cried into my shoulder.

"It's alright Midnight. I ain't leaving you. I love you too."

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