Experiment: GENESIS

by Typographical Error

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

His body hit the floor with a muffled smack. Dual pulled Twilight out of the way, the fur on his back standing straight out, along with his wings. A low growl escaped his lips as he looked down at the unconscious body of Orange.

Orange looked terrible. As the water from his fur and feathers spread, so did blood. His right ear was turn at the top, and he had a gash under his right wing. Blood trickled from his nose, and one leg was bent at a strange angle. Patches of fur and several feathers were missing from each wing. His breathing was shallow and laborious, barely heard over the rain.

Twilight tried to run over to him, but she was held back by Dual. “What are you doing?!” he snarled at her, pure hatred in his eyes.

“I am trying to help him!” she replied, struggling to get out of his grasp. “Look at him! He could die!”

“And we would all be better off!” Dual yelled back. “He ruined our lives, Twilight. Maybe it was time somepony ruined his.”

Twilight looked at him in disgust. She raised her hoof and twisted his wing, so that the back of the wing was touching his spine. He let out a sharp yell of pain, releasing her at the same time. She ducked under his arm and galloped over to Orange. She knelt down next to his body and flipped him over onto his back. Twilight sucked in a deep breath, as he looked even worse from that angle.

Gashes and cuts ran across his chest. Patches of fur had been ripped out, leaving the follicles to produce tiny rubies of blood. His coat shined, but Dual could not tell which liquid caused it to shine more.

Twilight began to inspect his body, hooves slowly turning a deep red. As she did, she grew more panicked, eyes growing wider. She looked at them, fear rising.

“This is bad. Really bad. We have to help him.” she said, her breathing fast and erratic.

“And why should we do that?” Dual asked again. “He deserves what he is getting.” he turned away from them, looking out the window. Twilight got up and stalked over to him. She grabbed him by the shoulder, spinning him around to face her. Then she punched him straight in the face. He fell to the floor, holding his muzzle and looking up at her, surprised. A spot of blood on his white fur showed where she hit him

“This is my child!!” she yelled, standing over him. “And you have no bucking right to tell me what I can and can’t do with him!!” Blue had never seen Dual so afraid of somepony. He just stared up at her, unable to respond. Twilight’s breathing slowed, and she walked back over to Orange.

“He has so many injuries, and I am not that kind of doctor.” she said, lightly running her hoof over his body again. “I won't be able to help him at all.” She started to pace around his body, a small red spot appeared every fourth step. “We can’t take him to a real doctor, that would blow our cover.” She closed her eyes, face screwed up in concentration. It was a few moments before anypony spoke.

Finally, Twilight’s eyes flashed open. “Fluttershy!” she exclaimed, rushing over to Orange’s body. “Fluttershy can help us!” She looked up at the others. “I need you to fly over to her house. It is on the edge of the Everfree forest. Small cottage, you can’t miss it.”

“And what are you going to do?” Blue asked, emotions set on high.

“I am going to have to teleport him there. Shouldn’t take a minute.” Twilight responded, looking down at his body. She didn’t feel comfortable teleporting somepony who was this hurt, but she didn’t have a choice. She pointed at the door, which was still open. “Go! I will be there in a second!” They all looked at Dual, whom nodded. One by one, they flew out into the rain. Dual was the last to leave, looking down at Twilight.

“If anything happens to them, I am holding you responsible.” he said, eyes narrowed. Twilight looked back at him, expression blank.

“Is that a threat?” she asked, a small, steel edge in her voice.

“It might be.” Dual said, then he spread his wings and flew into the rain. She stared after him, completely disgusted by this new pony. She shook her head, then looked down at Orange. Some of the bleeding had stopped, but it was still flowing at a steady pace. She had to act now, or risk losing him.

She closed her eyes, focusing on Fluttershy’s house. She pictured it perfectly in her mind. Eyes still closed, she reached out and touched Orange’s hoof. She felt the familiar tingling sensation at the base of her neck. Then, nothing.

Then, with a loud bag, she felt the floor reappear under her, followed by a shriek. She opened her eyes, seeing the inside of Fluttershy’s house. She looked around, but could not find the source of the noise. Then she heard a small voice.

“Twilight?” a frightened mare’s voice asked. Looking around, Twilight finally found the source of the voice. Fluttershy was hiding under her coffee table, her eyes wide and her breathing deep. Part of her mane was covering her face, and she was looking out at Twilight through the gap.

”Oh, thank Celestia you are here!” Twilight exclaimed, rushing over to her. She helped pulled Fluttershy, Who was blushing, out from under the table. “I really need your help.”

“What do you need?” Her eyes wandered over to the body on the ground, and she screamed again, shrinking back against the wall. “Who is that?!” she asked, panicked.

“That is the problem.” Twilight responded. “He is hurt, really bad. And we can’t take him to a hospital.” She said the last part while looking directly at Twilight.

“...Me?” Fluttershy realized. “Oh...my...ummm.... Twilight I....” she stammered. “Oh...so much blood.” She started to look a little pale. Twilight walked up and took her front hooves in her own. She peeled Fluttershy off the wall, placing her back down on all fours.

“Please, Fluttershy. He is one of mine, and I couldn’t bear if he died.” Her eyes had started to shimmer, and she turned away. “Please.” Fluttershy turned back and forth between the body and Twilight.

“OK.” she said in the smallest voice. Twilight turned back and almost tackled her.

“You will?! Oh, thank you, thank you!” She let go of Fluttershy and took a step back. Is there anything you will need?”

“Ummm...no, I have everything here.” she said, turning to a cabinet on the wall. “I just need--” she was interrupted by a knock on the door. Twilight walked over, opening it to the rain stained face of Dual. He stared down at her, then brushed past her into the house. he saw Oranges body on the floor, then walked to the furthest point in the house. Blue just watched him, then walked over to Fluttershy.

“If there is anything we can do to help, just ask.” she said, smiling. Fluttershy nodded.

“Umm....thank you.” She looked over at Twilight. Can you help me get him up on the
table?” twilight nodded, walking over and placing her hooves under Oranges armpits. Fluttershy grabbed his legs. Together, they lifted him up onto the table. Now that the body was gone, Blue could see a puddle of maroon on the floor.

“Lets go to the kitchen.” she said, pulling Red and Yellow along with her. “Maybe we can get some food.” Twilight nodded at her, thanking her for her gesture. When they were out of the room, Twilight looked back at Fluttershy.

“How bad is it?” she asked.

“Very. He has lost major amounts of blood, and this bone is broken.” she said, pointing at the one bent at a strange angle. “I can set it, but I can’t be sure if it will be right.”

“You can’t doubt yourself. You are our best chance.” Twilight said, eyes wide and trusting. Fluttershy nodded, looking down at Orange.

“OK...I am going to need gauze, a needle, stitches, and a lot of bandages.” she said, going into nurse mode. Twilight and the others obliged, getting everything she needed. But Dual stood off to the side, watching the whole scene out of his black eyes.

Slowly, the blood puddle on the table grew, spilling over the side at one point. But then it let up as the stitches and bandages fell of his skin. Slowly, the blood puddle stopped spreading, only laying on the table. Oranges breathing had become even more shallow, but it had bottomed out, staying at a steady pace.

Finally, Fluttershy backed away from his body. His blood coated her hooves and chest, and it had even gotten in her mane. She took a couple deep breaths, then looked up at Twilight.

“Ok...I have done everything I can.”

“Do you think he will make it?” Twilight asked. Her anxiety was escaping her.

“He should. They heal strangely fast. So he should be awake by, maybe, tomorrow afternoon.” she replied. Twilight smiled, tensions being lifted.

“I can’t thank you enough.” she said, hugging her. “I will always remember this.”

“It was no problem. Now...ummm.. I kinda want to get washed up.” she said, looking down at her fur. Twilight nodded, then Fluttershy left the room. A second later, she felt a rough hoof grab her shoulder. She looked up to see Dual standing next to her.

“We need to talk. Outside.” he said.

“In the rain?” twilight said, feigning innocence. Dual just looked at her. “Fine.” she said, annoyed. She walked through the door, out into the pouring rain.

“OK, what?!” she said, turning to face Dual. The rain had caused his mane to fall next to his head, giving him the look of a child lost.

“You said we were all made the same, so why is he different?”

Twilight sighed. “It would take too long to explain.”

“Then give me the short story.” Dual snarled, stalking up to her. Twilight just stared into his face.

“They wanted something that could beat you, something, if you ever escaped, that could hunt you down. They picked Orange for that. They changed his DNA, which turned him into that. They made it seem like he died, like his DNA unraveled, but it didn’t. After, they trained him, to fight, to hunt, to find you.” Not once did she stop looking into his eyes.

“And you created him?” Dual asked, voice low. Twilight nodded.

“I was forced to. Anymore, I was property of the lab. I was unable to talk, unable to leave.”

“How long will he live?”

“What?!” she asked, caught off-guard.

“You said we all have life limits. Because of our DNA, we won't live as long. How long will he live.” He asked again, slowly.

“I don’t know. Not as long as you. I would guess maybe five more years, if that. Only time will tell.” Dual nodded

“Good.” he said. Twilight felt her anger flare at that word.

“He is your brother!” she yelled, pushing him back. “He is your sibling! One of the only six of your species! You should be sorry for him, apologizing to him for all the times you fought. But what are you doing!? You are hoping he will die!”

They had reached the front of the house. Twilight could see the others looking through the door at them. Most looked afraid, but Blue looked strong. She looked Twilight dead in the eyes and nodded.

“I can’t believe that would would be this cruel.” she said, low and deadly. “I thought, after what you had seen and been through, you would be more compassionate. But no, you are just like the people at the lab.” And with that, she teleported away, leaving Dual to stare at the spot where she had been standing. he turned slowly, head bowed. He trudged up to the door, walking in passed his siblings. They just stared at him, having nothing to say. Because they knew, Twilight was right.

*****

They all stayed at Fluttershy’s that night. They didn’t think they would sleep, but they did. Sometime during the night, Twilight returned. Dual found her curled up in a ball on the couch, her front legs around Yellow. He wanted to apologize, but he didn’t want to wake her. Instead, he went outside. The clouds had passed, leaving the sky bright and clear. The sun was slowly rising over the mountains, his shadow shrinking as it did. The soft sound of singing caught his attention. Turning, he saw Fluttershy floating from tree to tree. He watched her for a few moments, then turned back to the house. He knew he should thank her, but he couldn’t think of a way to express it.

He walked back into the house and saw that Twilight had woken up. Gently, she pushed Yellow away so that she could get up. She saw Dual, and their eyes met. In that second, a silent conversation passed between them, and Twilight nodded, understanding. They waited in silence for the others to wake. They stood on opposite sides of the room, still slightly uncomfortable with each other. But when the others woke up, they had to act normal.

Fluttershy returned with a breakfast of flowers and oats. She seemed happy, but Twilight knew she was haunted by what happened last night. Twilight was as well. She had almost lost one of her children, as she didn't think she could bear it if he had died. After the breakfast, the just stayed around the house. Dual and the others were still not allowed outside unless it was night, so just just played around in the house. Slowly, the mood changed from tense to happy.

But, by lunch, Orange had still not awoken. Twilight constantly stayed with him, watching to make sure he was still alive. His breathing had picked up over the night, and now it looked like he was simply asleep. Fluttershy brought in some treats from Sugarcube corner, which diverted her attention for a few moments.

“Did any of the others ask where I was today?” she asked Fluttershy, filling her mouth with cupcake.

“Yeah. I just told them that you had some business with the Princess.” Fluttershy replied. “I didn’t know if you wanted them to know just yet.”

“No, thank you. I didn’t want them to know. I will tell them.” After that, nopony spoke for a while. Twilight was about to leave to get something from her house, when she heard a groan from behind her. Her head snapped around so fast that she felt pain explode in her neck.

Orange was awake, trying to move, but the bandages kept him still. After a frozen second, Twilight and the others rushed over to him. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to think he was alone. Twilight looked around at the others, then touched his shoulder. His eyes flashed open, focusing on her face. He looked around, pupils dilated in panic. He opened his mouth a couple times trying to speak. Twilight removed her hoof, trying to calm him.

“It’s OK. You are safe.” she said, worried for his sanity. He just continued to stare at them. His mouth opened one last time.

“No, you aren’t. You have to leave now!” He said, trying to get off that table. “You have to get out!” Then his eyes rolled back into his head, and he passed out.

Comments

[Sky Spark]

Whats gonna happen now I am gonna have to what until the next chapter but the wait will make feel like this