Shipwrecked

by VashTheStampede

Chapter IV

“Tavi! Tavi! Come on, wake up, wake up…” Vinyl had her hooves on Octavia’s shoulders, and was about to pick her up and shake her – and remembered something. Despite her current career as a DJ, she had actually been a medical student for two years, at her parents urging. One immediate thing came to her – The most important thing when dealing with a neck or spinal injury is keeping the patient immobile, she remembered, with startling clarity given the current situation. Unfortunately, given the thick, putrid smoke beginning to fill the cave from the charred corpse of what might have, at one point, been a Manticore. Another memory from her Canterlot medical school years came back to her, a spell designed to essentially create a magical stretcher, one that could keep a pony completely immobilized while still moving them. She quickly cast the spell, lifting Octavia a few inches off the ground and hustling her out of the cave, eyes and nose burning from the scent of singed hair and flesh. Setting her comatose patient down in the clearing just outside of the cave, Vinyl began to think, struggling to remember any healing or examination spells she had been taught at school.

Come on, Vinyl… the reason you were there in the first place was because you’re smart. Think. You know this, you know what to do… RIGHT! That diagnosis spell! How did I… right, compare the body of the patient to the body of a healthy pony of the same sex. Lucky I’m a mare... Vinyl closed her eyes, holding her breath in concentration, thoughts of her own body flowing from herself and from Octavia, forming an image in her mind of what was wrong with her friend.

Ok, let’s see… cuts and gashes on her left side and flank… ouch, four broken ribs… and… oh, oh no… Vinyl collapsed as the last part of the diagnosis came through. Octavia’s spine was broken. Thank Celestia not severely, the nerves were still connected, but the bones that kept them safe were horribly mangled, a small shard of bone embedded in the delicate nerve tissue.

I can do this. I can fix this. Mostly. Ok… first, disinfect the wound and stop the bleeding externally, right? Yeah, that sounds right… wait, shit, I don't have a disinfectant… the water from the lake? No, won’t do… Gah… Seawater. I remember that. It’s not ideal, but Professor Transfusion always said that in a pinch, salty seawater could work as a disinfectant.

Vinyl looked at Octavia, and through the woods towards the beach, and back to Octavia.

“I’m so sorry… but you need this. I’ll be right back,” Vinyl said as she dashed into the woods, tears starting to form in her eyes. She reached the beach in record time, magically grabbed far more seawater than was necessary, and sprinted back to the cave, as though afraid that Octavia would be gone. She was, however, right where Vinyl had left her, chest rising and falling irregularly, ragged breaths escaping her lips.

Vinyl brought the seawater over to Octavia’s flank and engulfed her wounds with it, magically stirring the water slightly to more effectively clean the gashes. Octavia’s face made slight twitches, wincing just a tiny bit with every magical stroke in the suspended salt water. Satisfied that the injury was treated as best as it could be for now, and concerned at how red the water was growing in her magical grasp, Vinyl released her grip and let the bloodstained water soak into the earth, giving herself just a moments rest before going to work to fix as much of Octavia’s body as she could. Vinyl Scratch was no miracle worker, but the more she focused on healing the gashes, the more she could remember from her professors. While most of what she remembered of surgical magic was primarily the basic theories, Vinyl was desperate enough to hope that theory would carry into execution this time. She remembered one lecture, just before she had dropped out, that she had been planning on skipping but decided not to. The content of that lecture, namely how to repair and set bones properly, healing injuries that would normally take months to recover from in minutes, was refusing to come back to her.

Oh Celestia, why did I go to a party the night before… I was so hung-over that lecture… I’m shocked I can even remember what it was about… ugh, think… think… wait. It wasn’t medicine. But it might work. Oh Celestia this isn’t the time to be experimenting with medical procedures I’ve never even read about, and that aren’t even medical procedures… but… I love this mare. There. I can say that. Or think it at least. I am willing to give my life for hers. I’m willing to try this. Anything to keep her alive.

Concentrating on the diagnosis image she had created earlier, Vinyl narrowed the image down to Octavia’s, and her own, ribcages. Picturing her unbroken ribs, she formed the mental image of an intact ribcage, and began to shift the fragmented bones back to their original positions. She opened one eye for just a moment to see if it was working, and nearly threw up at the unnatural movements Octavia’s chest displayed. Forcing herself to continue, the mental image of Octavia’s ribs began to work it’s way back to a proper, unbroken system of bones, the movements in the cellist’s chest ceasing. She coughed a couple times before her breathing smoothed out, no longer ragged and grating. Vinyl sighed in relief as she let the magic pass out of her body.

I… thank Celestia. I’d have been fucked if my magic was still broken… ok, not done yet. Got to fix her spine… well, at least that art trick I learned seemed to work on her ribs… ok, time for her spine… Oh Celestia, please let me not fuck this up…

Once again, the magic ebbed at her strength as she pulled up an image of her own spine, and began to reform the shattered bones. Carefully extracting the fragment buried in Octavia’s spinal cord, Vinyl let out a silent prayer that there would be no lasting damage. She could fix the bones. Nerves? Not so much. The best she could do was repair the damage to the vertebrae and hope for the best when Octavia awoke. The magic was taking its toll on Vinyl, and she felt herself losing consciousness. She cast a quick immobilization spell on the reforming bones and slapped herself across the face with a hoof, forcing herself awake to finish the spell. As the last pieces fused together, Vinyl collapsed, totally spent. She pulled herself over to Octavia and put a hoof over her, curling up against her like the past two nights. Octavia’s breathing was much steadier now, thanks to her reconstructed ribcage – the ragged, rasping sighs of air were gone, replaced by a smooth, if shallow, rise and fall of her chest. Vinyl sighed, her stamina completely drained, and began to fall asleep.

“When I said I’d never let you go… I meant that with all my heart…”

***

Vinyl slept like the dead. No dreams, no movement, just pure rest. When she finally awoke, she felt extremely well rested – and also extremely hungry. She looked up, trying to locate the sun. She found it – far lower in the sky than she expected, and nearing the wrong horizon.

Shit, I couldn’t have been out for… for more than a day, could I? Almost as if on cue, her stomach growled loudly and she realized just how hungry she was. No way… I’ve never slept that long before. Wait, oh shit, Octavia!

Vinyl frantically looked around before realizing she was still holding the gray mare, who hadn’t moved since Vinyl had last seen her, apparently more than a day ago. She quickly tried to cast the diagnosis spell again, but almost collapsed under the intense pain that filled her chest when she did.

Oh, Celestia that was painful. I’ve never heard of anything like that happening… A pain similar to the one in her chest arose in her stomach, as well. Damn I’m hungry. I should go looking for… something… but I can’t leave Tavi here, and I can’t bring her along. Oh well, another couple hours without food won’t hurt, right? Besides, she’s totally defenseless right now! Anypony could do… anything to her… Vinyl blushed a little and banished the perverted thought from her mind. That’s NOT ok. Vinyl. At all. That is NEVER acceptable. Ugh… damn, I am really hungry. What was that spell I taught myself when I was broke? Extracting nutrition out of plants, right… Vinyl scrunched up her face in concentration, only for the searing pain in her chest to lurch forward again, up into her head and to the base of her horn. She cried out in agony and clutched her skull, mind blank as she wordlessly mouthed prayers to Celestia for the pain to go away. After several minutes of agonized whimpering, Vinyl finally managed to stagger to her hooves and start walking around a little.

“Oh, Celestia… looks like magic is out of the question,” she thought aloud, and shambled over to a tree, making sure she could see Octavia at all times. Carefully, she reached up with her mouth and pulled a large clump of leaves off of a low-hanging branch. Munching down on them softly, Vinyl cringed at the taste, but relished the feeling of having food in her stomach. Swallowing another mouthful from the tree, Vinyl looked around to see if any of those berries that Octavia had found the other night were growing nearby. Unsurprisingly, there weren’t any. Octavia’s smart. She would have picked all the ones nearby. Vinyl settled for eating as many of the rather gross leaves as she could force down, until the taste overpowered the desire to fill her stomach. Returning to the side of her unconscious love, Vinyl sat and simply stared.

I need to get her some water. But… I can’t leave her alone… Oh! I have an idea. Vinyl set to work, collecting a couple exceptionally straight and rigid branches, a couple low-hanging vines, and a nice, fully spread palm frond.

Wait, palm frond? Vinyl looked up. Dear Princess Celestia, I am a fucking idiot.

Above her in the trees hung coconuts. She trotted over to the tree and wrapped her hooves around it, shimmying up on her stomach. Eventually she looked down, noticing that she was a good fifteen feet off the ground. Swallowing heavily, she convinced herself that not looking down was the best option, and continued shimmying up the trunk. When she reached the top, she tentatively stretched out a leg and poked at the coconuts. They swayed slightly, but refused to fall from the tree. Winding up and giving them a much harder hit, she succeeded in dislodging the coconuts – and herself – from the tree. Vinyl fell hard and landed on her stomach, her diaphragm spasming as her lungs refused to operate properly. Her body entirely occupied with trying and failing to gasp for air, Vinyl could only register the pain of a coconut landing on her horn in her mind, unable to scream or cry. After a few more terrifying seconds, her lungs began to move regularly again and she promptly emptied them in a scream of pure agony.

Vinyl lay there bawling for at least ten minutes, before her eyes had no more tears to give and she could function again despite the throbbing pain in her head. Locating a nearby rock, she brought it over to one of the coconuts and gave it a solid thwack. Much to her delight, the coconut cracked but didn’t split open. Giving it another, slightly lighter hit, and pulling it apart, Vinyl managed to split the fruit apart. She brought the white, fleshy bowl to her mouth and happily drank down half of the milk, before scraping the flesh of the coconut from it’s rind with her teeth, relishing in the cool, sweet flavor that filled her mouth. She brought the other half over to Octavia and gently parted her lips, and slowly poured the milk into the unconscious mare’s mouth. Much to Vinyl’s surprise and delight, Octavia unconsciously swallowed the white liquid instead of coughing it up. Vinyl repeated this process two more times before she herself was full and figured that Octavia had had enough to drink. Content that she had done what she could for now, she settled down next to Octavia and draped a hoof over the mare’s chest, dozing off for a nap.

***

When Vinyl awoke, the sun had already partially set, keying Vinyl in to just how long she’d been asleep.

Damn, I need to… but I can’t move her, I don’t know if her spine has healed properly… Shit, looks like rain. Vinyl looked over at the comatose mare next to her, a smile spreading to her face.

She saved my life. She pushed me out of the way and saved my life. It should be me, lying here, right now. Not her. She didn’t deserve this at all. This… though… this is why I love this mare. Everything she does is just… wonderful, even if… just look at her. She’s in a freaking coma, but she’s so peaceful, so beautiful…

Vinyl saw the dark spots on Octavia’s coat forming before she realized it was raining. That’s why there was water falling down her cheeks, coming from the corners of her eyes. It was raining.

“Oh… who am I kidding…” Vinyl sniffed, trying to keep the sobs back, “I’m crying. Like a little filly…” Vinyl sniffed once again, before completely losing control, “Wake up, Tavi! Wake up! Please! I don’t want to… no, I can’t do this without you! I need you here, with me… Octavia, please, wake up! I need you… I love you. I don’t know if you can hear me, but I love you. I’ve loved you since I first saw you. You were… you still are… gorgeous, talented, famous, rich… everything I'd ever wanted to be or to have. Just please… come back to me…” Vinyl’s voice trailed off as she bent her head over the sleeping mare, praying to Celestia she would respond, somehow. Vinyl’s muzzle was inches from Octavia’s now.

“Octavia, please wake up. I love you and I want to tell you. I love you…”

Vinyl gently pressed her lips against Octavia’s.

Gray eyelids fluttered open in surprise. Vinyl pulled away from Octavia’s face and opened her own eyes, and found herself staring into two lavender pools of perfection.

“OH MY CELESTIA YOU’RE AWAKE OH THANK CELESTIA OCTAVIA I’M SO GLAD!” Vinyl practically screamed as she grabbed Octavia in a crushing hug. A moment later she released the cellist and kicked her in the leg.

“Ow, Vinyl, why did yo-?” Octavia flinched back in pain, and saw Vinyl collapse to the ground, sobbing, muttering “It worked, oh thank Celestia it worked…” over and over when she could breath.

“Vinyl…”

The white unicorn immediately stopped crying and stood up, a gigantic smile adorning her face.

“Vinyl… what happened?”

The smile lost a little intensity, but Vinyl began to explain nonetheless, “Well, I’m not entirely sure. After… after it hit you, I just… I can’t explain it. My magic started working again. I ran at the Manticore and… well, I wouldn’t say impaled, but I definitely pierced it’s skin with my horn. And then I just… I unloaded magic into it.”

“I thought your magic didn’t work?” Octavia interrupted.

“It didn’t. But this felt like… a kick-start almost. Like I tapped into a new reservoir of energy I’d never known before. I don’t know. All I know is that I used magic last night, and now, if I try, it hurts like hell. Anyway, when I magicked the Manticore, it just kind of exploded. And then I ran over to you. And… and I… I fixed you. Or I’d hoped I did.”

“How?”

“I… kinda went to med school for a couple years before I could find a steady job as a DJ. My parents knew my calling was music, but they wanted me to have a backup plan if I couldn’t ever get something to work out. Anyway, I didn’t really remember the spell that was actually designed to fix bones…”

“Fix… bones?”

Octavia was rewarded with what she would have interpreted as an annoyed look if Vinyl didn’t still have a goofy smile plastered on her face.

“Yeah. Fix bones. I did remember the diagnosis spell. You had four broken ribs, the scratches you see on your flank, which at the time had been massive gashes, and… well, several of the lower vertebrae of your spine were shattered, and there was a piece of bone wedged in your spinal chord,” Octavia’s jaw dropped as she realized just how much she should have been dead, “I remembered the simple spell for fixing cuts. Well, most of it. I was able to heal the gashes on your flank, but it left some nasty scarring… I’m so sorry about your cutie mark,” Vinyl said, wincing a little as Octavia turned to examine the damage. Four jagged scars, almost the same color as the treble clef that should have been the only thing on her flank. She was about to chastise Vinyl for the mistake, but thought better of criticizing the only reason she was alive. Vinyl began to explain further.

“So I fixed it using a spell I remembered from art class-”

“Art class?” Octavia deadpanned.

Another “annoyed” look from Vinyl.

“Sorry.”

“So yeah, basically, I pictured a proper ribcage and a proper spine, and the spell let me make them. It’s…” Vinyl started to weep again, “It’s a miracle you’re walking Tavi. I’m so happy.” The unicorn launched herself at the cellist again, pulling her into a tight hug.

“Hey, Vinyl?”

“Yes, Tavi?” Vinyl took a step back, still wearing a huge smile.

“Did you mean it?”

Vinyl’s smile disappeared. Her face changed from white to red in a split second.

“Mean… mean what?”

“I must admit… I was awake, for a little while, before you kissed me.”

Vinyl passed out.

Octavia caught her before she hit the ground, shaking her to wake her up. Vinyl mumbled something indecipherable before she fully returned to the land of the waking.

“Hey! Are you ok? You kinda passed out there.”

“I… how much did you hear?”

“I woke up somewhere around ‘I can’t do this without you,’” Octavia said, blushing heavily.

“I…” It would be pointless to deny it now, Vinyl thought, “Yes. I meant every word I said. I love you, Octavia, and I have for years. Meeting you, getting to room with you on a cruise, even for just a week… it was the high point of my life. And then… when I got to see a live performance from you, and you agreed to come to my club… I thought life couldn’t get any better. I guess I was right. Octavia… I…” her voice trailed off, and tears began to fall from her face again. Her breath caught in her throat as a hoof touched her cheek, bringing up her face. She opened her mouth to speak again, but soon found it occupied by Octavia.

The kiss was passionate, Octavia’s tongue taking full advantage of the fact that Vinyl’s mouth had been open from the start of the kiss. Working from years of unused passion, listening fully to the little voice in her head, Octavia engaged in her first make-out with vigor and enthusiasm, if no experience. The experience was nothing short of glorious, all emotions completely blocking out the light rain that had been falling since she had woken.

After what seemed like ages, Vinyl finally pulled away, breathing heavily. Blushing and smiling, a sudden pang of doubt entered her heart.

“Octavia… are you…”

“Shh. I don’t know if I can say I love you,” Vinyl looked crestfallen, “Yet. I’ve never had a marefriend, or even a coltfriend for that matter, but try as I did to convince myself I was straight, I couldn’t think of a time when I’d felt romantically, or even physically attracted to a stallion. Even so, I’ve never considered myself a fillyfooler. But I’ll be damned if I don’t give this a shot. Something’s been bugging me since I met you. I didn’t know what it was. The way you looked in your dress at my concert. The way my heart fluttered when you made an absolute fool of the both of us at the conclusion. The fact that you saved my life. I don’t know if I love you. But I want to find out, and,” she added with a giggle and a sultry glance, “I can’t think of anything better to do on this island, except possibly you.”

For the second time that night, Vinyl Scratch passed out, only to be woken up shortly thereafter by Octavia.

“You can’t go to sleep yet, silly. Sleeping is for afterwards,” she continued in as sexy a voice she could muster, thinking, I probably don’t need to do it like this, though it is fun… Vinyl has proven that she’d be more than willing to do anything for me.

Vinyl practically jumped the mare in front of her at that very moment. She tried to speak, but once again found Octavia taking advantage of her open mouth. This kiss was equally as passionate, and equally as inexperienced, but Vinyl didn’t care. She was on top of the world. She felt Octavia’s hooves wrap around her and begin to follow down the curves of her back as the two ponies continued to kiss. Vinyl took a step back as Octavia became more forceful with her kissing, and tripped on a small stone. Falling down with Octavia on top of her, Vinyl looked into the purple eyes so close to her own.

“Octavia… you can’t imagine how badly I’ve wanted this. And while I can hardly call these perfect circumstances, I can’t imagine a more perfect night. I love you.”

“I know you do.” Octavia stood, turned and began to walk towards the cave. Vinyl stared at her, confused.

“Where are you going? I thought we were –”

“We are, Vinyl. But you know what they say about the moon, right?”

“… No?”

“They say Luna can see everything that happens under it. And I don’t want her seeing this,” Octavia added with a wink, before disappearing into the cave for the night. That wonderful night, which didn’t end until just before dawn for the two mares.

Comments

[notnot]

“They say Luna can see everything that happens under it. And I don’t want her seeing this,” Octavia added with a wink, before disappearing into the cave for the night. That wonderful night, which didn’t end until just before dawn for the two mares.

Dayum.

[chaos2012]

Bow Chicka wow wow!

Amazing chapter added to an awesome story.

[rainbowcrasherloops]

Art class is the most practical way to save lives, or so I tell my teachers

[QuickFix]

AWWWWW YEAH!

I love how you brought Vinyl to the "I seem like a total train wreck but still have knowledge buried somewhere" out of her in this time of need.

I literally wanted to cry when I realized Octavia was really hurt. Thank Celestia that Vinyl was able to fix her!

[Faust Fan Five]

:) It was bound to happen eventually...

[ShadowBrony]

Excelent chapter. It had everything. You sir are now 20% cooler.