Chapter 10
Starlight filled your vision. Not from the bear’s hide, but that dream again. Was it a dream? Eh, didn’t matter.
You hoped Discord wasn’t going to show up again. His brand of bullshit wasn’t something you were in the mood for right now.
You weren’t sure if you were going to wake up again. If you were being honest with yourself, you weren’t sure if you wanted to. Why would you? What did you have left? A world that has gone out of its way to show you it hated your guts. The residents, the animals, even the weather itself have taken shots at you. In a way, you were impressed you had made it this long.
Out of everything, a sad, sorry, and sweet unicorn named Amber Gaze was the ONLY thing that had gone right. Even if she had trouble grasping the fact that you weren’t what she thought you were.
And now…Was she even still alive…? Without her, was there any point in trying to go on…?
You saw a light. Your life was nothing if not cliché, it seemed. Oh well, whatever. Not like it mattered…
But what if Amber’s alright? A voice echoed around you.
Was that Discord? No, it was softer. Kinder. Concerned.
You tried to find the voices’ source, but you saw nothing. The question it posed hung in the air like a fog, causing you to pause.
If Amber was okay or at least had a chance of recovering, didn’t you owe it to her to be there? She got hurt trying to help you, and if you just abandoned her like this that’d make you kind of a douchebag.
With that thought, you felt your felt yourself being jerked away from the light, hurdling through the starry expanse into seeming nothingness…
You woke with a start in a…strange place.
You found yourself laying on a bed. Sure, it was made of straw and it poked you in several places, but it was the most comfortable thing you’ve laid on since getting here. Hell, it was probably better than that old mattress you’d had back home.
Speaking of ‘home,’ you wondered who’s you were in right now.
Various masks covered the wooden walls, giving the place a slightly creepy feel. You shifted slightly and winced against the waves of pain that shot through your body in protest.
Oh, right…Broken bones, probably internal bleeding. Movement is not my friend right now…you scolded yourself.
A raspy breath drew your attention to the other side of the room. There was another bed in a nook similar to yours, with a form covered in bandages.
Amber.
To hell with the fucking bones.
You forced yourself to move against the pain and managed to move out of the bed. Sadly, you didn’t manage to get your feet under you, and you hit the floor hard. It felt like your entire body was on fire and almost passed out again. Somehow, you successfully fought to stay conscious.
“Okay, not the best start…” you wheezed “Just to get over…”
You stopped as you realized the task you had before you. To get to Amber, you had to cross the width of the hut. Normally that wouldn’t be a problem. Unfortunately, despite your best efforts, you couldn’t seem to get your legs to work with you.
Wouldn’t it just be my luck to get paralyzed. I wonder if Horseyland has wheelchairs.
Minutes passed like hours as you crawled across the floor. Several times the pain became too intense and forced you to stop and rest. You surprised yourself with the progress you had made. Either you had more stamina than you had thought, or you were just insanely stubborn. Or stupid. Or both.
Whatever the reason, you had to get to Amber. You had to know if she was alright.
You had made it about a fourth of the way across the room when you heard the sound of hooves hitting the dirt outside.
You froze and briefly considered trying to make it back to the bed. Although, not like you could. It had taken a considerable amount of time and effort to make it this far, and there was no way you could make it back anytime soon.
The wooden door swung open, revealing the hooded figure that had saved you from the Ursa Minor. It seemed to stare at you, and as best as you could tell it was surprised at the scene. Slowly it raised a hoof and lowered its hood.
It was a zebra. With a mohawk, and with a LOT of gold rings on its neck and forelegs. It looked like a stereotype that would get you kicked off Twitter in an instant.
“Awake already, I am surprised. I thought it would be days before you finally rised.” It intoned in a sing-song rhyme that could not have been an accident. It dropped a saddlebag it was carrying and move towards you. Unsure of its intentions you tried to move away, but you were stopped by an intense wave of pain.
“Your will is admirable, that much is true, but I don’t think this is a smart thing to do.” It remarked as picked you up as gently as it could. The strength displayed by a relatively small creature surprised you. Despite your apprehension, you didn’t have the strength to fight against being moved back to the bed. You were helped to lay down and began mashing some plants in a bowl with a hoof.
“Who ARE you?” you forced between labored breaths.
“My name is Zecora, of fair Everfree.” She replied as she raised the bowl to your lips. “Drink this, you’ll feel better, you’ll see!”
Drinking a seemingly random assortment of plants made by a weird rhyming (seriously what was with that?) zebra wasn’t something you were eager to trust. On the other hand, you’d been unconscious in her home for God knows how long. She if she was going to off you, she could have done it much earlier. You took a tentative sip and almost gagged. It was probably the most bitter thing you’d ever had the misfortune of having in your mouth.
Zecora frowned and lick a bit of leftover paste from her hoof.
“Strange, to me it seems fine. Though I guess all are different, so drink up, try not to whine.” She remarked and forced the bowl back into your mouth. You wanted nothing more than to not drink the foul brew, but it was that or drown in the stuff. And you were NOT going down like that after everything you’d survived thus far. It was an ordeal, but you made it through. Somehow.
“See now, that wasn’t so bad. Now just let the brew do its work, and soon you’ll be glad.” The zebra chirped.
As you waited for…something, you let your eyes wander. Seriously, what was with all the masks here? Creepy-ass witch-doctor rhyming zebra interior decoration. You hoped it wouldn’t spook Amber to bad when she-
“AMBER!” you shrieked as you bolted upright. “Is she okay?”
Zecora locked eyes with you, her gaze serious, and filled with concern.
“I can do much, but I have limits, I’m afraid.” She looked over to Amber’s still form and sighed. “Her wounds are too great. She needs medical aid.”
“Oh great. And I guess there’s no doctor anywhere near here, right? Just my luck.”
The zebra cocked her head.
“…No? There’s one nearby, with excellent facilities. I’m sure they can help your friend with all their abilities.”
“Oh…Wait then why’s she still here? Why haven’t you taken her there?”
She poked your head with her hoof, which threatened to knock you over.
“That is why. I cannot leave you alone. Leaving one so weak by themselves I cannot condone. When I found you, I cared not how you look. But ponies’ nerves are easily shook. So, until you are well, here we shall stay. Do not argue, I’ll not change my way.”
She paused to look you over.
“Although with how quickly your pain’s been relieved, that time may be sooner than I had conceived.”
After a moment you realized what she’d meant. You were sitting upright in the bed when the simple act of moving had been nearly overwhelming minutes before. There was still pain, but far less than before. Despite that and a general sense of weariness, you felt leagues better than you had when you’d woken up.
“What…was that…?”
“The forest has herbs that help heal, but that doesn’t mean that you’re through your ordeal. The herbs ease pain, but your bones have not set. Don’t push too far, you will lose that bet.”
“Huh…” you say as you eased back into the bed. You studied your impromptu doctor for a long moment. “You…really don’t care about how I look? Like, you’re not afraid of me?”
Zecora shook her head.
“I am not one to judge by appearance or creed, at least not without cause. Although I admit you did give me pause.”
“I don’t blame you.” You hacked a laugh “Believe it or not, I’m not even from this world. Some asshat ripped me across space and time, and he even got it wrong. He wanted a demon to kick off some grand takeover scheme, but he got me…a human. A powerless, worthless human…”
The zebra studied you for a moment.
“I know nothing of humans, I’ve not seen one before.” She laughed “But it is a stretch to believe you’re such a creature of yore.”
You looked over your bandaged friend.
“Yeah…I’m not sure why she stays with me. I’ve brought her nothing but trouble. And now…I almost got her killed. Maybe it would’ve been better if I’d never got here…”
Zecora didn’t reply. She stared into space, deep in thought. After a while, she opened her eyes.
“When I found her, her back was scarred badly. And I think I recognize the shapes, sadly.”
She placed a hoof on your shoulder.
“You saved her from a cruel master’s lash. That means a lot to her, don’t be so rash.”
“Yeah...Things were kinda shitty for her when I got here…And if she’d wanted to leave, she could’ve at any time.”
As she trotted toward the door, Zecora smiled.
“Don’t make more problems, it will make you feel even worse.” After a pause, she smirked, “Although, perhaps not as bad as an Ursa Major would, of course.”
“Ursa…Major…?”
“Oh yes, Minor’s are the young of its kind. Had you met a Major, its mother, there wouldn’t be much to find.”
“Huh…”
“Wait, that thing was a baby!?”
For once, you knew how long it had been since you got somewhere. A perk of being above ground and having contact with someone with an actual schedule. You first woke up in Zecora’s hut three days ago. Your pain had decreased by wide margins, whatever that paste Zecora fed you was a thing miracle. The stuff that would make you rich before it regulated to hell and back, stolen through ‘fair’ means or foul, then sold by a corporation at quadruple the price. Minimum.
Three agonizing days of waiting. Not because of anything physical, WonderPaste (was that a good name?) had that covered. No, you were worried about Amber. She still hadn’t woken up. Every so often she twitched or moaned in her sleep, and every time a little spark of hope appeared, only to be swiftly snuffed out.
You’d lost count of the times you’d argued with Zecora that you were well enough to fend for yourself for a few hours and to get Amber the help she needed. But she was adamant that the forest was too dangerous, and you were still too easy a target.
The striped bitch.
No, that was too harsh. She’d taken you in, fed you, and tended to your broken bones. And it was nice to talk to someone seeing as how you had literally nothing else to do. The constant rhyming was still slightly annoying, but whatever. The zebra was doing her best to care for the both of you in a pretty shitty situation, so the least you could do was cut her some slack. You knew she wasn’t a bitch, you were just getting frustrated. For all you knew Amber was slipping away, and all you could do here was sit and watch.
Yeah, fuck that.
You had had an idea. A very, extremely, incredibly stupid idea, but an idea nonetheless. At some point in between arguments, you’d managed to glean the general direction of the nearby town Zecora had mentioned. Whenever you had time (which was a lot) you practiced walking around. If Zecora was watching you, you took it easy. If she was out, you maybe, possibly, hypothetically pushed yourself possibly a tiny bit more than you should.
If Zecora wasn’t going to take Amber to town, you would.
You knew this was idiotic. Zecora’s plan made sense: Wait until you could not die without her, then she takes Amber to a hospital. It made sense, and Zecora was certain that Amber wasn’t in immediate danger and was stable but needed medical professionals to made her better.
Despite the sense it made, it just…wasn’t good enough. Amber had suffered too much already in her life; she didn’t deserve to lie there broken and unconscious. Because of you. You had to do something. Anything.
It was a little after sunset. Zecora had just left to gather some new herb or whatever. Apparently, whatever she was going for only bloomed at night. She never left for long, but it was enough. Additionally, she’d neglected to wedge the door shut, in place of having an actual lock. This was your chance.
You stood over Amber, preparing for the task ahead. Your hand drifted behind her ear and began tenderly scratching. Amber sighed, which brought a smile to your face. You hoped she could feel it, she needed the comfort.
Your face hardened. It was time. No more waiting.
Gently you slid your arms under her, careful to not move her too much. There was no way to tell exactly what was broken, so you had to do your best to not make anything worse. Thankfully, you didn’t think you felt anything shift when you picked her up. Good start. You shuffled over to the door, bumped it open, and headed off into the trees.
It was slow going. Half because you didn’t want to jostle Amber too much, and half because you didn’t want to push yourself too far. The herb paste had done well enough to dull your pain at rest, but it was steadily getting worse as you trudged along. Amber may have been a small horse, but she was still a horse. And horses, apparently, were mostly muscle, even the slightly malnourished unicorns. You’d never be stupid enough to say it to her face, but she was heavy. And as you went on, she only seemed to get heavier.
You took a chance and picked up the pace. No telling how much longer you’d last.
That last dose of WonderPaste was wearing off. The pain was coming back.
As the shadows grew, so did the sounds of the forest. It was…unsettling, to say the least. You were a stranger in this world, and the more dangerous wildlife had not been shy to introduce themselves beforehand. The prospect of meeting more wasn’t something that filled you with joy.
You pressed on.
The pain was getting worse.
Why were you doing this? Putting your life on the line for a talking horse that would have made this trek with someone in better condition only a few days later, likely during the day? As much as you tried, you couldn’t think of an answer. But whenever you thought about the chance of losing her…well, the shattered ribs weren’t the only burning feeling in your chest. What the feeling meant was something to figure out later.
When did your vision begin to blur? Not a good sign. Nor was the fact your limbs trembled with every step, or that the pain had been replaced with an odd numb feeling. You felt like you were going to pass out, or maybe should have long ago.
The chatters on chirps of the forest grew quiet, leaving a cacophonous roar of complete silence. Was something following you? You didn’t dare check. It felt like if you stopped, you would get going again. You could see an open field ahead as you neared the edge of the forest.
A lumbering figure appeared in front of you. It was vaguely canine, only the size of a car, and made of a haphazard mess of leaves and wood.
God dammit. You thought.
The beast lunged, its wooden-stake teeth bared and ready to tear. Somehow you managed to duck and roll under it, clutching Amber to your chest and hoping you didn’t break her or yourself in the process. You glance over your shoulder as the wood wolf crashed to the ground behind you, smashing into a million pieces. Before you could even feel relief, the pieces floated into the air and reformed into the monster once more.
It raised its head and let loose a bone-chilling howl. Glowing eyes appeared in the distance behind the beast. It had friends.
God fucking DAMMIT.
Adrenaline and desperation drove you forward out of the tree line. You didn’t know how that would help, but your thoughts were consumed by a singular thought: Save Amber.
Your heart was pounding in your ears as you stumble-ran across the field. The wolves pursued at a seemly leisurely pace, likely able to outrun you even if you could sprint.
A massive force hit you from behind as a wolf batted you with a paw. You hit the ground, and you lost your grip on Amber. She flopped limply on the ground.
Another paw hit your gut, knocking what little wind was left from your lungs. Another struck your side. Then another. And another.
They were playing with you.
This can’t be the end. You thought desperately, Dying as some Maple Mutt’s chew toy? This can’t be-
A flash of purple light blazed across the sky and struck the wolf above you, rendering one leg a charred stump. Another blast carved a hole in another beast’s side. The pack scattered, whimpering and whining as they retreating to the safety of the forest.
Blurry figures approached you. It sounded like they had hooves, so maybe they were helpful. You heard hushed whispers and snarling voices but couldn’t make out what they were saying. It didn’t matter. Only one thing mattered as the darkness came to claim you once more.
“Save her.” You wheezed. “Please.”
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Shook
Or just human :)
10494762
the answer is of course all of the above
The main character performed a poorly thought-out action that had negative repercussions for himself and his friends, and as a result I feel quite grumpy having read it.
10494753
How the hell did I miss that? Thanks, fixed.
A year or so ago, they fed all the chemical reactions into an AI, then gave it an anticancer drug. Supposedly, without mentioning which ones, it came up with a list of less than a dozen common chemicals, threw them in a cauldron over an open fire, stirred for half an hour, and the result was better than 90% yeild. Of course I havent heard Anything else about all the other compounds they were supposed to be working on etc. Or even that compound.
Thats a heck of a mark up.
All over his front, back, Dashs hoof in his face because hey, weird freaky monky spy kidnapping pony after abusing her.
Awfully stupid of him.
At least Zecora was nice zeeb. How much you wanna bet she made morphine?
If one thing can be said about the us humans, it's that we are insanely stubborn.
See?
10494873
Don't be throwing around racial slurs such as "zeeb" like that. Check your privilege, bruh.
Great story definently looking forward to more 😁
Pony place has a lot of dangerous stuff just wandering about
like that thing *points at twilight* ... terrifying
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/IdiotBall
Seriously, in what possible world does what anybody's doing here make sense? It's so dangerous in the woods that Zecora won't even leave him alone in her hut for a couple hours, and so he decides to grab Amber and take her into that forest on broken bones? So that he can go an uncertain distance looking for a town he only knows the "general direction" of? He even says it's stupid. Why is he doing this?
Meanwhile, what is Zecora thinking? She apparently routinely leaves him alone to go collect more herbs, so why can't she leave him to go deal with Amber? If he's strong enough to carry a pony into the woods, seems to me like he should be strong enough to lay in bed for several hours without dying.
If you really need this to happen to advance the plot, it would be far more palatable for him to be delerious from the medication, or to mistake Zecora's intentions and think she only saved them to cook them up in that giant pot of hers. Or for that matter...have the entire encounter with Zecora not happen in the first place.
Think about it. Why does this chapter even exist? They were already in bad shape, stranded out in the woods. Whatever it is that's going to conveniently show up to save them now could have conveniently shown up without any of this happening at all. Instead of having the encounter with the ursa conclude with a random convenient rescue followed by him being stupid enough to go back into the woods to set himself up for yet another random convenient rescue...you could have simply skipped it and had whatever random newcomer is set to appear in chapter 11 show up after the ursa instead of Zecora.
It looks like you have your character being stupid for the sole purpose of resetting the clock to the previous chapter.
10494962
Man, y'all just don't know dem zeebs, takin' up welfare and speakin' in gobbledigook rhymes.
I took a large risk posting this comment, I do not condone racial discrimination in any way shape or form. I abhor it the same way I abhor the French
Nice
See! Trixie was not the only one who misunderstood that!
Yes, longer chapter, please and thank you.
Good part, looking forward to the next reading.
Good chapter. Now maybe he'll start getting some respect? I bet the one snarling is Rainbow Dash.
10495094
It may be "dumb" but it was all based in legitimate character motivations. The writing this chapter is sound in that aspect. Besides, stories where everyone always does the "smart" thing are usually quite dull.
I can't wrap my head around Zecora's logic of not taking Amber to the hospital. She's very clearly in much more serious condition than protagonist, having not regained consciousness for 3 days. I don't see how protagonist is going to suddenly keel over if she's gone for a few hours to make the trip, considering she's already leaving the hut everyday to go pick herbs and leaving protagonist alone to practice walking around and enacting poorly thought out plans anyway. Waiting to help the seriously injured and non-responsive patient until the one who just needs bed rest makes a full recovery is absolutely insane.
Unless there's some magical shenanigans where one of them would instantly die if they get too far apart, and Zecora is somehow aware of that, but doesn't want to mention it for some reason.
10495182
The forest is dangerous and he can't be left alone long without medication. He was in no condition to take her and it would have probably taken too long herself. She didn't want to make the choice of helping one and leaving the other to suffer needlessly. Pretty straightforward.
10494996
*Purple light blast at the end*
He's boned...
10495257
He can't take Amber, but how can he not give himself the medication? This really seems like something that they would just talk out.
Basically, what LordBucket said. Take this chapter back and try again. Maybe Zecora DID take Amber to the hospital and he doesn't believe her.
10495288
Based on the above I assumed that Zecora's presence, whether within or nearby, protects the place from attacks. Leaving him there would basically be leaving a tasty treat to the wild beasts that can probably smell him inside, and a trip to the hospital would be much further away than any herbs. And if Amber is stable, it's not insane to argue to leave her that way for a bit to ensure the safety of the group. Painfully utilitarian, but not without merit.
And then he changed his name to Gary Sue.
Ngl best Z rhyming I've seen in quite a bit.
Me coming back to read the latest chapter: 'ah yes now what happened in the last-BEAR BEAR BEAR OH SHIT OH FUCK BEARRRRR!!'
Uh oh...looks like instead of the pony hit-squad finding him, he found them!
10495418
Also yeah your Zecora rhymes really were top-notch. What he said!
There's stupid and then there's too dumb to live stupid. If he didn't have plot armor, he AND Amber would be dead. I hope it's just a result of concussion and morphine wrecking his head.
This Anon is 90% Heart and 10% Brain
She was stable so she might suffer but she would have survived.
That stunt almost killed her! If anything Anon start using his head before he get her killed.
10495322
Are the walls and door of the hut just for show? Seems kind of ridiculous to assume that Zecora's hut would be overrun by predators if not for some unstated aura that emanates from her body. If that were the case, monsters would be ransacking her house and going through her cabinets every time she went in to Ponyville to do some shopping.
And presumably she's not just standing right outside the hut when she leaves to gather herbs, because she was apparently far enough away to not spot protagonist attempting to make the trip himself. And it's not like it's an entire day's journey. We see characters in the show travel between Ponyville and her hut like it's a short jaunt. Twilight gallops there in a couple minutes to ask her about the parasprites.
There's just no good reason why Zecora can't take Amber into town and be back in like an hour, including time taken to check her in at the hospital. To think the risk of the protagonist somehow keeling over dead in that time frame when left alone in a house with medicine and a large stick is somehow worse than waiting a week to bring a severely injured and non-responsive person to the hospital is fucking insane.
10495327
Gary Stu not Gary Sue seriously if you're going to call out the trope call it out right it's Garry Stu for a guy and Mary Sue for a girl. While Mary Sue did originate the trope it's still Gary Stu for a guy
10495418
Thanks, they were painful to write!
10495288
Or you could get a life and stop taking it so seriously. The writer has license to write a story how they want. If you don't like the direction it goes, nobody is forcing you to read.
10495677
Ignore the haters. It is your story and not theirs. I personally am fine if you chose to force events a little to move the story along.
I'm left thinking of the movie Hacksaw Ridge. "One more. Let me get one more."
Good movie, highly recommend. I think it really fits with this scene.
10494962
dam people really got offended and disliked this lmao
10495711
My writing has been greatly improved by people telling me that something about it didn't make sense, and then my reacting to that by improving the writing rather than telling them to pound sand.
I am not hating; it is an act of friendship.
10495875
Lets look at it logically.
1. Zecora is a Zebra (related more to donkeys than anything), not an Earth pony. Her abilities are more shamanistic and slightly increased strength. Dead lifting an injured unicorn through the Everfree will be a long, slow, and dangerous journy even if she could carry her.
2. Amber is critically injured and any medical professional would advise against any attempt in moving until she was in stable condition.
3. He is the only one who can carry her like this but he needed to recover his strength. Had he listened and waited, he probably would have recovered his strength enough and had Zecora to back him up.
As someone who has dabbled in writing, constructive criticism is always welcome but nothing is more annoying in the comments than a backseat writer demanding the story should go a different direction because they personally would have written it differently...
10495759
Haters will hate. Ignore them.
10495322
I'd assume the herbs around the hut ward creatures.
10495021
Hons in baguette
10495957
Let's look at it REALLY logically.
1) If she can't treat her herself, Zecora is able to… go. get. help. Either bring doctors or a team of ponies with a cart.
2) If Amber is critically injured, then any medical professional would tell her to go. get. help.
3) see point 1.
It may be annoying to you that someone thinks that the story doesn't make sense, but think what it's like to have this nice story cooking along and then suddenly it stops making sense when with a minor tweak, it would make sense.
10495539
To a manticore or an ursa, yes. Yes they are.
Other than the murder forest that takes at least an hour to get through when you're not dragging an unconscious pony.
You also have to understand that leaving someone for half an hour is very different than leaving him for several hours, especially when, as we see in this chapter, said person isn't in a right state of mind.
Zecora said she was stable and not at risk of getting worse, so why take an unnecessary risk? Leaving to get herbs, however, was necessary as they were being used to treat him.
10495021
10495759
Yeah, that was pretty risky on my part. I realized that it was a bad joke about five minutes after posting it, but I've only ever deleted a comment twice for a better reason than cringe, so I decided to stick with it and deal with the backlash. Not as bad as I feared it was going to be, honestly.
I just hope people disliked it because it was a bad joke and not because they think I truly feel responsible for getting offended on behalf of a fictional character who doesn't exist in our reality, being referred to by a word that has seldom if ever been said, that few would consider a slur instead of a just shortening of "zebra," by a person who obviously meant no offense.
It's hard to get a break...
10496214
I figured as much, in a fandom full of pony-lovers all about friendship and putting differences aside and all that hooey, one shouldn't take stuff like this seriously when in areas like FiMfiction or /mlp/. Hope your day/night goes well, don't let a risky joke poking fun at someone gone wrong turn ya down. Some of us still enjoy 'em.
10496277
Thanks, buddy!
10496169
But it just makes no sense to think that a manticore or Ursa is going to come barreling through the walls the second she leaves (especially considering she's already leaving regularly to gather herbs). Presumably Zecora still sleeps, so whatever keeps monsters from crashing in normally, whether its' just an out of the way location, the walls, some kind of herbal repellent she puts down, whatever, will still be in place while she takes the not at all long trip into Ponyville. Protagonist doesn't need any active care beyond providing some medicine he can take himself.
I don't know what Zecora means by "stable". Not regaining consciousness for several days is not a good state. Any way you look at it, protagonist is in much better shape and can survive being indoors for an hour, considering he's regularly left alone everyday anyway. Thinking he's going to get eaten by a monster the second Zecora leaves is like me arguing I can't go to the grocery store because my cat might choke on something while I'm out. It's not strictly impossible, but it's a seriously warped sense of risk assessment.
10495957
Except donkeys (and horses and other similar equine species) are in fact really good at carrying weight. Hence their whole being used as beasts of burden specifically to carry things. I can't fathom how an upright human trying to carry a pony in his arms would have anywhere near an easier job than another equine carrying them across their back.
The rule about not moving an injured person is supposed to be about stopping untrained people from making the situation worse and waiting until an actual professional can arrive to move them safely, not just letting them lie there for days without calling said professionals. Zecora already carried both of them from an Ursa's cave back to her hut. I don't see why she can't carry Amber the rest of the way to Ponyville.
10496333
Again, he isn't in the right state of mind. You keep saying it'll fine to leave him for several hours, but she left for less than that and look what happened.
As for taking her to the hospital, like I said, they're in the middle of a murder forest. Dragging an unconscious pony through that is dangerous, as the chapter proves. It isn't a quick jaunt down the street.