The Stallion Who Can Never Die

He came to consciousness with a pained groan, his head was pounding as he heard a beeping sound next to him. He opened his eyes, but everything around him was blurry, a shape moved in front of him and he blinked.

"H-hello?" He said as he began rubbing his eyes.

"Take it easy," a motherly voice spoke to him. "How are you feeling?"

"My head hurts like nobodies business..." He answered, he saw the blurry form in front of him move and he felt something soft push against his chest ever so gently.

"Lie back down, it's just the medication."

He nodded and allowed himself to be gently pushed back down onto the soft pillow. "W-where am I?"

"You're in the Vanhoover General Hospital." The voice answered.

He blinked when he noticed his vision clearing up. He was in a small room with white walls and a white ceiling, a heart monitor stood next to him, beeping calmly and the form before him- he sucked in a breath- she was an earth pony with a bright yellow coat and a mane of a dark brown hair tied up in an adorable bun. Her big blue eyes sparkled and she smiled at him. "Good morning. Glad to see you awake."

He blinked in stunned silence, this woman was gorgeous! He quickly shook his head, forgetting all about his headache. "H-hello..."

She chuckled lightly. "Hello to you too, my name is Wisp, I've been watching over you for the last few hours."

"W-what happened to me?"

She maintained the smile, but the sparkle in her eyes seemed to dissipate a little. "You were found on the street after some kind of explosion sounded, a pegasus who saw you brought you here. She didn't know you though, so could you please tell me your name?"

"Uh..." He tried to think back, but all he saw was a murky cloud, not just recently, but all of his memories were shrouded, gone. His eyes widened. "I-I don't remember..."

Her eyes filled her concern. "You don't remember your name?"

"None of it, not my name, not what happened, or any part of my life... it's all just blank." He looked away from Wisp and stared ahead, trying to sift through the cloud, but failing to.

"Oh dear..." Wisp muttered as she placed a hoof on her chin in thinking. "Well, I'm afraid we don't have any medical records of you here, and we've inquired to some other sources, but so far we've found nothing on you."

"Nothing?" He looked at her in surprise and she nodded sadly.

"I'm sorry, we can't even understand your cutie mark to help figure you out..."

He blinked and stared at her. "My what?"

She gestured to her flank, which his eyes immediately fell on, happy for the excuse, and pointed at the medical symbol on it. "Everypony has a special talent, when they discover it, a symbol representing it appears on their flanks, proudly displaying their talent for all to see." She pointed a hoof to him, and he looked down to see an infinity symbol on his silver fur. "We don't know what your mark means, I'm afraid. I'm sorry."

He shrugged, and looked back at the beautiful mare, smiling. "Don't worry about it, it's not like it's the end of the world for me to not remember."

She returned the smile and nodded. "I guess you're right."

Wisp then moved next to him and unhooked the machine from him, and he cleared his throat. "So uh... What's going to happen now?"

"Somepony is on their way from Canterlot to see you, hopefully they'll have found something on you that can help you get back to your life."

"And if they don't...?"

Wisp looked at him and placed a comforting hoof on his shoulder. "The pony is a representative of the Equestrian kingdom, they will have something on you, at least a birth certificate that can point you to your hometown, where no doubt there will be somepony there who knows you."

He nodded, hoping that she was right.

"In the meantime," she said. "I'll get you some breakfast and then you can wait in the lobby until the pony from Canterlot arrives, which should be soon."

"Thanks."

Wisp turned to leave but stopped just short of the door, she turned. "Oh, I almost forgot, you were found with some clothes and items, we had kept them safe for you but they were confiscated by some police ponies."

The stallion blinked. "Really? How come?"

"Something about them carrying hazardous magical properties and they needed to be sterilized. Don't worry, I'm sure you'll be able to pick them up soon, maybe they'll have something about who you are there."

He nodded. "I hope so."

She smiled to him, before turning and leaving. With him now alone, he leaned back in his bed and sighed, lifting his left forehoof and staring at it, examining the silver fur that almost seemed to shine. Well that's one way to wake up... no memory of who you are, where you're from, what you do... Not even a name to give you a clue... Wait, did I just make a rhyme?

He sat back up from the bed and brought his hooves to the white tiled floor, hearing them clop lightly. It all felt... unfamiliar. Cautiously, he took a few steps forward, his steps were awkward and he felt extremely clumsy as he walked. Glad that the nurse wasn't around to see him, he began to walk in a circle, trying to get used to his legs once again, when he noticed a mirror on the wall next to him, giving him a perfect view of himself. His mane was a little spiky and a dark gray colour, and his eyes had a certain... allure to them that he quite liked. But it was the wings that caught his attention, they gave him a very angelic look that made him look incredibly attractive.

"Damn, I'm hot..." He muttered as he stretched one wing out and examined the feathers, a smile forming on his lips. "Not bad, not bad at all."

The door clicked open, and Wisp entered carrying a tray of different grains in her mouth. Upon seeing him, her eyes widened and a blush came on her face, she quickly placed the tray on a nearby table and kept her eyes away from him. "I-I'm sorry."

"About what?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"W-well, even though I'm an Earth Pony, I know a lot about Pegasi body language and it's usually inappropriate to look when they're preening."

"Oh, I wasn't preening, I was just looking at my wings, and myself in general."

The Stallion folded his wing back to his side and Wisp turned to face him, a hopeful look on her face. "Did seeing how you looked bring back any memories?"

He shook his head and looked at himself in the mirror. "No. While I really like the way I look, it doesn't seem... familiar."

"Oh, I'm sorry." She replied with a sad look.

In reply, he smiled confidently. "Don't worry about it, it'll all come back, I'm sure."

She nodded. "I guess so, if you need anything, I'll be right outside."

With that, she left, closing the door behind her, and leaving him alone with his thoughts. The meal of assorted grains went through quickly, tasting quite bland but feeling very filling. He exited his room feeling content with the meal and found Wisp speaking to another stallion, a unicorn whose curly mane was a bright white and coat a light brown, though his chest was covered in a black suit and red tie. Upon hearing the door open, both he and Wisp turned to see the stallion. The pair walked up to him and the suited stallion smiled and lifted his hoof to him.

"So you're the mysterious stallion I've been hearing about." He said. "My name is White Stripe, I work for the Equestria Internal Affairs, on behalf of our majesties Princess Luna and Princess Celestia."

Upon hearing his introduction, he took White's hoof and shook it, rather unsteadily.

"Nurse Wisp tells me you don't remember anything about yourself, is that so?"

The stallion nodded and White Stripe took a deep breath. "Well, this just got a little complicated then."

"What do you mean?" Wisp asked.

"Well, you see, after I was informed of the situation, I looked into all the government records based on this stallion's description, unfortunately I have found nothing. Absolutely nothing, no medical or dental records, nothing from the educational archives, none from the police and guard archives, nothing."

The Stallion blinked. "A-are you serious?"

White nodded with a sad, yet perplexed expression. "I'm afraid so, you don't seem to exist. And we keep track of foreign visitors from outside the kingdom, but you never came through our Foreign Affairs agency."

The Stallion blinked. "Maybe I," he gulped. "I snuck in..."

White shook his head. "That wouldn't make sense, it's not like we try to keep ponies or other species outside, and if you were some kind of criminal then whatever land you came from would've informed us and we would work to apprehend and return you to wherever you came from."

Wisp looked between White and the Stallion. "So what is going to happen now?"

White rubbed the back of his head. "Well, we have no name, no form of identification, nothing. I guess the best we can hope for is to find you a place to stay and wait for somepony who may know you to contact you, somepony like a friend or family member."

"How are we going to find a place for me?"

"I represent the Kingdom of Equestria, and as that representative, I can assure you that you will be provided a salary given by the kingdom that will allow you to live comfortably. You can consider yourself a ward of the state."

The Stallion blinked. "Wow... that's... that's very generous of you."

White Stripe smiled. "Think nothing of it, the princesses wish for every one of their subjects to live as happily and peacefully as possible." He turned to face Wisp. "If it is alright with you, I will take our friend and help find a place for him and get him adjusted."

Wisp nodded and White gestured for the Stallion to follow, as he passed her, she smiled. "Take care, and don't be afraid to contact me, I'd like to see you around sometime."

With that, she turned and went the opposite direction. Is it just me? He asked himself as he stared at her. Or is she swaying her hips a little more then needed. He stared at her flank as she walked down the hall, before he heard White clear his throat. Quickly, the Stallion turned and followed White Stripe out of the hospital.

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He took a large bite out of the hay burger that he held in his hooves, enjoying the flavour immensely. A light breeze blew across his mane as he sat on his flank in front of a mushroom table, where a shake and hayfries sat ready to be eaten. Across from the table, White Stripe searched through his bag. As he took another bite from his burger, he gazed at the city, enjoying the sights and the smells of the ocean the winds carried. He liked Vanhoover, it was a nice place to think as his mind processed all the information he had learned from White Stripe over the next few hours, some questions that were simply common knowledge to anypony else, such as who the Princesses were and what Equestria was. Unfortunately, none of the information jogged his memory in the slightest. It was odd, considering he could speak perfectly, and walk (relatively) well, and knew some things that everypony else knew, like don't put your hoof on hot stuff etc etc.  And then there was the manner of how he was found...

"So," he said, his mouth full of burger. "White Stripe, I've been wondering..."

"Hold on a minute..." White muttered as he dug deeper in his bag. "Come on, I know it's in here... Ah hah! Here it is."

With a victorious smile, White levitated a large piece of folded parchment. As he began unfolding the parchment, the Stallion forced to move his lunch off the table to make room for it, he looked down intently on it, realizing it was a map of the country.

"Okay," White began. "This, here in the corner, is where we are, Vanhoover city. Here, near the center, is Canterlot, the capital of Equestria and where the princesses reside in. I'm telling you this because I'm considering requisitioning a place for you in that city, it would be very easy to contact you as it is the seat of government."

"Hmm..." The Stallion as he looked closely on the rather detailed drawing of a massive metropolis/palace. "It's built on the side of a mountain?"

"Don't worry, the city is a symbol of the unification of Equestria in more ways then one, it was constructed with all three of the pony tribes working together, the Unicorns planned out the design of the place, the Earth Ponies provided the materials and the heavy labour, and the Pegasi implemented weather magic to make the castle lighter then it normally would be. The city is very secure in its foundations, do not worry."

The Stallion stared at the map and thought for a moment, from the one drawing it certainly looked nice, and it probably had one hell of a view, but... White saw his expression and cleared his throat. "If you do not wish to live in a crowded city, perhaps somewhere smaller, more rustic perhaps?"

The unicorn's hoof pointed to another place on the map, very near to Canterlot. "Ponyville is a nice homely town, it's only a short train ride away from Canterlot, so getting to you wouldn't be too much of a hassle, and the population is very friendly. Why, when I was there not too long ago, I was given a 'Welcome to Ponyville' party by a very eccentric Earth Pony. Ah, I had such a lovely time there, I should think about spending a vacation in that town sometime soon."

The Stallion stared back at the map and continued thinking. "It sounds nice but... The place sounds a little too boring, if you ask me."

White shrugged. "Well, how about... Ah, how about Appleloosa? It's a fairly recent town, and there was recently a conflict between the ponies there and the native Buffalo tribe, I heard it was resolved in a... rather creative fashion. So that place definitely has the excitement. But, it is far to the south as you can see, a train ride from Canterlot would take almost a week. And since it is a new town, they need all the help they can get in keeping things running smoothly, so be expected to be put to work if you plan on living there."

The Stallion nodded but agreed with White that it was little far out of the way. White looked back down at the map. "You could try Las Pegasus, although technically a city (quite a large one), it does have a small village built underneath the cloud metropolis, and I hear that that village is no less exciting then the main cloud structures. Plenty of casinos, bars and some..." He blushed and pulled at his collar, clearing his throat. "...unique entertainment services. I can guarantee you won't be bored while over there. Just be sure to have money on you, as you will be spending a lot, I'm sure."

A smile came to the Stallion, so far Las Pegasus sounded like the place for him, especially the part with the 'unique entertainment services'. He frowned, however, when he noticed something. "It looks about as far down as Appleloosa, wouldn't it be a little far from the capital?"

"Well, yes, the city is about as far away as Appleloosa, but the trains use a completely advanced system that's used only between Canterlot and the city, those trains go at such incredible speeds that a week long trip only takes a day."

He nodded, it seemed like he found the winner. He looked up and around the city where he was, seeing the sea ahead and the port and a few large ships. Again, another breeze from the sea blew in, carrying its wonderful scent of the ocean. He liked this place. "What about this city, White Stripe?"

White blinked, surprised. "Vanhoover?" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, it's not a bad city by any means, but it's... Well, boring... and I know that from personal experience, nothing happens here, hay you're the most exciting thing that's happened since the museum burned down here twenty years ago."

"Yeah, but... I don't know." The Stallion looked around again, something about this place seemed for him, almost urging him to stay. "This place just seems... nice. And it's not too much trouble coming to check up on me here, is it?"

White shook his head. "No, it's not. It's about as long a train ride to here as taking one to the Crystal Emp-" His face brightened up. "Oh! What about the Crystal Empire? You thought Appleloosa's story was exciting? That's nothing compared to the Empire's. You see, a thousand years ago-"

"White Stripe." The Stallion interrupted in a polite tone, the unicorn immediately closed his mouth. The Stallion smiled. "Thank you, really, but I'll stay here, I already made a friend with Wisp," hopefully we'll become more then friends... "and I'm already here and I know I like this place, it's fine."

White stared at him for a moment. "A-are you sure you won't reconsider?"

"Positive." The pegasus answered with no hesitation in his voice.

White sighed and his ears drooped. "Very well, I will go book a hotel for you to stay in until an apartment can be requisitioned. Now, let's get to talking about which hotel to stay in..."

The Stallion listened with less interest, deciding that a hotel shouldn't be his choice, and simply nodded when the time was appropriate, noticing White's mood improving, though his ears remained down. Across the street from the two, hidden in the shadows of an alleyway, a cloaked form watched them with worried eyes, having heard the whole conversation. He was go to stay in the city, that can't be good. What if he remembered? What if he discovered what was going on? What if they lost him?

"Do not fear, Dark Cloud..." A voice whispered in his mind. "With him here, we will have no trouble keeping a very close eye on him without drawing suspicion. Besides, we have another issue that is worth worrying about..."

The form tilted its head in confusion, not understanding what the voice was meaning. When the voice answered, the form went rigidly still as fear gripped its heart.

"Her Highness approaches, Luna is on her way to the city..."