Iron Gal

Iris groaned as she woke up, once again, in considerable pain. To say Gilda had gone easy on her would be an absolute lie. Iris was certain she'd soon see bruises develop all over her body. It was strange though. The pain was strangely numbed. She was still aware of it and it still hurt, but it wasn't as bad as she'd thought it would be.

It was then that Iris realized she wasn't alone. Someone else was moving in her cell nearby. Two someone's, for Iris could just about make two hushed voices speaking between each other. The movements she heard indicated that at least one of them was moving towards her.

"She is waking sister," said one of the voices, a voice that Iris knew was neither Diamond Dog nor Griffin. Female too and had the definite touches of a Germaney accent. It was kind as well; kind yet melancholy.

The other person in the room moved too and approached her sister and Iris. There were a few hushed words in Germane before Iris finally opened her eyes. She saw two, remarkably similar looking young woman. Identical, aides from the colour of their hair, one having light blue hair, the other bubblegum pink, though they shared the same pale skin, the same innocent expression and the same bright blue eyes. They were unclean though, dirty as if they had been through the same hell Iris had. One of the sisters, the pink haired one, had a cut on her left cheek that hadn't healed over all the way. Twins, Iris assumed.

"How do you feel?" asked the one without the cut, her expression soft and worried. Iris smiled at her obvious worry. Few every showed such genuine concern for her well being aside from her mother, Spitfire and Scoots.

"Okay I guess," Iris muttered, her voice croaky.

"She needs water," the other sister said quickly, rushing off to find some.

"Can you move?" the first sister asked. Iris lifted her arms and pushed herself upright.

"I guess so," Iris muttered. "Who are you?"

"I am Lotus," the pink haired woman said before turning to her sibling, "And that is my sister Aloe."

"Are you...?" Iris jerked her head to the security cameras.

"With them?" Lotus asked. Iris nodded. Lotus shook her head sadly. "We are prisoners much like you Miss Sparkle, forced to work to stay alive."

"We are doctors," Aloe explained, offering Iris a glass full of moderately cleaner water. "We came to Griffinfstan to help the wounded. Our dugout was attacked and... well..."

She gestured around her in indication of her current predicament. Iris nodded, showing she understood. She felt deeply sorry for these two. She knew she didn't need to ask why they had been kept alive. Two doctors were better than none, and she doubted anyone in the Emerald Dragons had even the most basic of medical training. Another question came to Iris' mind however.

"Did you guys do.... this?" Iris asked, gesturing to her chest. Both women nodded.

"We had to operate fast," Lotus explained. "It was a miracle you survived to be perfectly honest."

"Yeah speaking of operate I've been wondering, WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?" Iris cried, grabbing the cable that snaked udner her shirt.

Lotus' hands flew up to her face in a terrified gasp as Aloe tugged Iris' hands away from the cable, her face going slightly pale.

"Don't," she said firmly. "We did operate, but we were unable to remove all of the shrapnel from your chest. This-" Here she tapped Iris chest with one finger, "- Is an electromagnet, keeping the rest of the shrapnel from piercing your heart. We used them in the dugouts to keep wounds like this from claiming the lives of their victims until they could be transported back home."

The implications of the sentence hit Iris like a ton of bricks.

"This is what's keeping me alive?" she asked quietly. Aloe nodded. Iris looked at the car battery, then back at Aloe. "How long is that going to last?"

Aloe and Lotus shared a look.

"How long?" Iris asked again, her voice hard. Lotus cleared her throat.

"A week at most," she whispered.

Iris' eyes widened. A week? That was how long this electromagnet was going to last? Then by extension, that was how long she was going to last. She pressed her hands to her head and pulled at her hair. If any normal person had been told they had only a week to live they might have broken down instantly. Not Iris; she was made of tougher stuff.

"Okay," Iris muttered to herself. "So all I have to do, is weather the beating's for a week. Then I don't have to make them any weapons, and they loose their prisoner too."

"They still have plenty of your other weapons," Lotus said. "They would do much damage to this country if not Equestria even if you didn't help them."

Iris nodded, biting her lip.

"If you die, what would the world remember about you Iris Stark?" Lotus asked, harshly. "A woman who helped protect her country? Or a coward who took the easy way out, and let Equestria's own defences be turned on her?"

Iris looked at Lotus, her eyes flashing dangerously. She swung her legs off of the bed and got to her feet.

"I'll tell you what the world's gonna remember about me," she said, "It's gonna remember that Iris Stark was kidnapped by Griffinstan terrorists and held prisoner, only to return to Equestria, having not only escaped the grips of her captors, but totally disarming them as well!"

"What do you mean?" Aloe asked.

"I mean we're getting out of here," Iris answered. "All three of us."

"But, how?" Aloe whispered. "We are trapped in here."

"Yeah, but they want me to build weapons," Iris said with a dark smile. "So, I'll build them a weapon. Heck, I'll even demonstrate it for them."

Lotus' eyes widened in glee as she realised what Iris was getting at. "You intend to use their resources to create the medium for our escape?"

"Damn straight," Iris smirked. "Nobody messes with Iris Stark. Not unless they want their ass handed to them."