Into The Fire

Chapters

Chapter one: Early Mornings
Chapter two: Patrol
Chapter three: Escape
Chapter four: Fatigue
Chapter five: Urgency
Chapter six: Haste
Chapter seven: Waste
Chapter eight: Exodus
Chapter nine: Evergreen
Chapter ten: Getting Acquainted

Chapter one: Early Mornings

Chapter one: Discovery

The sun shone brightly over the northern reaches of Equestria on a clear winter day. A gentle breeze carried the crisp and clean air through the Crystal Empire. The Crystal Empire was a gleaming jewel of green grass and warmer air in the middle of a vast snow-covered tundra. Peaceful days like that day didn't come around all too often, so ponies were out in force. Children ran and played, laughter rising up from the crystal streets. The adult ponies went about their business, going into stores, tending their homes, chasing after a runaway filly, and some even joining in the children's activities.

However nice this day was, it was not such a peaceful time for the Equestrian Army. There had been some increased security out patrolling the empire. An uprising in Changeling controlled territory to the west had increased security measures in place as a precaution. Guards watched over the Empire silently, watching for signs of a possible infiltration by the foreign, love consuming creatures. Patrols regularly scanned the perimeter of the empire's territory. Several groups set out throughout the day, and the last of these groups that day was headed by Coal Dust.

Coal Dust was a Pegasus from an upstanding family, one with a reputation for being Coal Dust stood slightly taller than many of the other ponies and was, as the name implies, dark bodied with white splotches on his mane. You could describe him as a workaholic, for he often blew off friends and family whenever he was needed for some sort of job. He had graduated from school in the middle of his class, and worked in a mine for a short time. Soon, though, he left the mine to join the Equestrian Army. He excelled in basic training, and soon went into officer school. Now ranked at a lieutenant, he was out leading patrols multiple times a week.

Coal Dust's patrol was slated to set out at dusk and patrol into the night. The patrol was headed for the northwestern sector of the empire. They left in a column with Coal Dust on point and the other four following behind. The other stallions in the group, some still quite inexperienced, had a light hearted and easy attitude toward the mission itself. They often lost track of the task at hand, only to be snapped back into place by their leader. The group hadn't gone half of a mile from the gates of the empire when the grunts began cutting up.

"Watch this," whispered Flash Point, a unicorn, to Gust, an earth pony.

Flash silently picked up a hunk of snow with his magic and hurled it at Greenfield, another earth pony. The snowball struck him in the right shoulder.

"What the hell?!" yelled Greenfield. "That had ice in it you idiot!" exclaimed Greenfield as he balled up some snow to throw back.

Coal Dust just shook his head. "Knock it off, soldier."

Greenfield chunked a snowball at Flash, but missed him and hit Gust in the nose.

"Ah!" Gust yelped. "It's on now, buddy!"

Gust hurled a snowball at Greenfield, missing him by an inch.

For a moment, all of the soldiers were still, suspense mounting. Suddenly Flash rocketed a snowball at Gust. Snowballs flew. The three grunts all began throwing snow, laughing and whooping it up. Fire Chaser, the fourth grunt, stood idly by. He looked disgracefully at the other three, muttering under his breath. Coal Dust was already fed up with their antics.

"I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!" he boomed. The three troublemakers tensed up and stood at attention. "Now there's nothing wrong with having a little fun here and there, but I will not tolerate you three cutting up at every turn! Get your heads in the game, we have work to do. Move out!"

The other four just nodded in unison, almost robotically. One stallion muttered, "Killjoy."

The group trudged on through the snow for about another uneventful hour.

Darkness had fallen by the time the patrol reached their designated sector, so the two unicorns in the group used light spells when searching rocky outcroppings and the like.

The area was a rolling landscape, with ridges and valleys spreading out generally from southwest to northeast. An ankle deep layer of snow on the ground made travel that much more difficult. The group was on the crest of a ridge when Coal Dust noticed a greenish glow off to the west.

"Kill those lights men, I see something up ahead," said Coal Dust. He squinted to try to see the light better, but to not much success.

"What do you think it is?" said Gust.

"We're gonna find out. I said kill those lights Flash Point!" Coal Dust kept his gaze fixed on the distant glow. Flash Point still hadn't aborted his light spell, but now did so quite quickly.

"Keep it tight, I don't want to lose anyone out here," said Coal Dust, his gruff voice sounding tense.

The patrol moved down the ridge and across a small frozen stream in the valley floor. When they had climbed to the top of the next ridge, the glow had become brighter and larger. A light snow had begun falling; the green light illuminated the distant falling snow, making it glow much higher into the night sky.

Coal Dust motioned to the group to continue forward. They wordlessly pressed through the next valley and up to the next ridge. The green glow was bright enough to be visible as a faint illumination on the snow-packed ground.

Coal Dust continued pressing forward into the next valley. At the bottom of the fairly deep depression in the ground, held his team up. The green lights had disappeared behind the last ridge, so before the patrol took action, they formulated a plan on what they were to do. Greenfield, crouching down, was the first to speak.

"What do you think it is?"

"It can't be a little tea party sitting there," said Gust sarcastically.

"Okay game plan, ladies," said Coal Dust. His voice was tense. "I don't have a good feeling about this. There usually aren't just big green glowing areas out here. You all know how to be stealthy, and that we don't get our cover blown is of the utmost importance. We are gonna sneak up that hill. Fan out with about ten feet between you just before the summit. Use any cover you can when you get to the crest. Everyone stay low, only expose enough of yourself to see what the threat is. Stay alert, stay focused, and tread lightly. There may be anything over that ridge." He looked back at his team, "Are you ready?"

They all nodded to acknowledge that they were ready.

"Okay, move out." At the command, the group began their ascent. The climb took a few minutes longer than a normal one, in order to maintain stealth.

The patrol neared the top, and the noise of buzzing wings was quite apparent now. All five ponies knew what was over that ridge by now, and only curiosity as to exactly how large it was what made them go all the way to the top.

The five ponies fanned out before reaching the top, stopping at the crest of the ridge and hiding behind a few boulders scattered around the summit.

When they reached the top, not one soldier had his mouth closed for what was below them.

Stretched out in the small valley below was a swarm of changelings. Changelings had attacked the Empire before, but that had been a small army of around three thousand. This swarm was well over fifty thousand. As far as the eye could see were black, twisted, fanged, insect like bodies moving about on the valley floor. Strange cocoon like structures were piled around in a sort of chaotic organization. The swarm was so big that it could barely fit into the valley. After a minute of shock, the patrol sunk back down below the crest of the ridge.

"Oh sweet Faust, I've never even heard of a Changeling swarm that big!" whispered Greenfield.

"Do you think they are moving towards the Empire?" Flash said.

"What do we do?" asked Gust, in a surprisingly calm manner.

Fire Chaser started crawling back toward the group, unwittingly knocking loose a small group of rocks that started tumbling down the hill.

"We need to high tail it back! We have to warn the King!" said Greenfield.

Coal Dust started to say,"We stay calm, we move quietly, and when we get far enough away, we spr-",

"SCREEEEEEEECH!!!!"

The harsh, hissing shriek rang out in the cold arctic air. A changeling sentry had sounded the alarm above, charging its twisted horn up to attack, the horn glowing green.

"RUN!" Yelled Coal Dust.

Flash yelled, "I'll hold them off, you all run for it! I'll catch up! GO!"

Flash Point jumped up and fired his horn at the changeling, hitting it center mass. The sentry fell to the ground dead. The scream had alerted the swarm, and there were two more to replace it in a second. Flash shot those two down, but they were replaced by even more buzzing, hissing creatures. Flash could no longer keep the swarm away and turned to run and catch up with the rest of the squad. Before he could get more than a few steps, a changeling's beam found it's mark.

Flash was hit in his hind leg, and he fell forward. His leg was horribly injured. In seconds he was covered in changelings, and his screams were muffled out by the beating of insect like wings. The squad watched over their shoulders as their comrade was torn to shreds only a hundred feet behind.

"Flash!" Gust yelled.

"Keep moving!" Coal Dust yelled.

The remaining four ponies shut their eyes and turned away as they ran. The green beams from the gnarled horns of the swarm continually flew past the four remaining ponies, hitting the ground and showering snow and sparks over the squad.

"Keep moving. Faster!" yelled Coal Dust. His voice had panic in it.

The remaining ponies reached the bottom of the ridge and immediately started running up the next rise. The changelings continued firing, their shots becoming more focused.

A beam hit Greenfield in the back of the head. He yelled out sharply, but was dead before he hit the ground.

Three left. The rest of the ponies continued running, hooves stinging and lungs burning. Not five seconds after Greenfield went down, Fire Chaser was tackled by a changeling that flew ahead of the pack. He went down shooting his horn, but soon he was completely engulfed. The swarm came down on him like a ton of bricks, biting and kicking at his head. One changeling bit into his neck, severing the jugular. His yells for help slowly faded into the distance and were drowned out by the frantic buzzing of wings.

Two left. The ridge gave way to another valley. Coal Dust felt solid ice under his hooves. They had just crossed the stream. Coal Dust yelled to Gust, "I think we can make it! Just a little farther!"

The buzzing of hundreds of Changelings was a roar behind the two remaining soldiers. Green beams stopped raining down while the pursuers ascended the ridge, blocking their shot at the fleeing ponies.

"We're losing them! Yes!" shouted Gust triumphantly.

What Gust didn't see was a single Changeling split off from the group and fly ahead to the left side. It was one of the faster creatures in the swarm, flying up alongside of the remaining soldiers. It charged it's dark, gruesome horn.

Gust started to shout, "Go! We're gonna mak- Aaaagh!"

The beam came in from the left, ripping into Gust's side. He stumbled, almost falling. Blood spilled from the hit. Once the changeling knew it had hit its target, it came soaring in, landing on Gust's back and beating him mercilessly. Coal Dust heard the scene happening behind him and leapt at the Changeling. He knocked it from Gust's back, pinning it against the ground. He grabbed its head with his hooves, twisting its head and snapping the neck all in one smooth motion. Gust was barely on his feet a short distance away.

Coal Dust yelled,"I'm going to have to try to fly us out! It's the only way! Get on my shoulders! Hurry!"

The buzzing was quickly growing louder as the swarm began closing the gap. Shots began raining down again as the swarm crested the ridge behind them.

He gingerly yet hurriedly lifted Gust onto his shoulders. Gust gritted his teeth as he was hoisted up onto Coal Dust's broad back. It was quite awkward, as having a pony draped over your back is not a comfortable thing. With Gust spread over him, Coal Dust spread his broad black wings.

"Ready?" he asked.

Gust nodded. "Go," he weakly gasped.

The black Pegasus started into a gallop, taking care to keep shocks to his passenger at a minimum. He flapped frantically, lifting off for a second before coming back to the ground. Struggling to get off of the ground, Coal Dust flapped again, shakily lifting off. He soon stabilized himself and climbed to a more comfortable height. His wings were being pushed hard, but not quite to the breaking point. Once in the sky, momentum was much easier to maintain.

The changeling swarm came across the limp body of their comrade, finding also that the trail went cold. Because of both ponies being dark colored, they blended into the night sky as they flew away. Coal Dust now focused on his flying as he and the gravely wounded Gust sped back toward the Empire.

Chapter two: Patrol

Chapter two: Wounds

Snow is usually a gentle and beautiful thing when it falls. However, this was not the case for Coal Dust. The light and clean flakes made it difficult to see, and they stung his face with cold as they landed on him. With a wounded earth pony draped over his shoulders, flying was not such an easy task. Landscape was as if on a conveyor belt beneath them, appearing in front and disappearing behind. Now that they had lost their pursuers, Coal Dust and Gust descended to the ground to rest for a moment.

Coal dust gradually took it down, coming in at a very slight angle so as to be gentle to his passenger. His hooves cut through the snow before hitting the ground with a thud. He hit the ground running, slowing himself to a walk gradually.

"Gust, I'm going to get you down now," he said softly. Coal Dust crouched down until Gust's feet could touch the ground. Gust gritted his teeth as Coal Dust slid out from underneath him and lay over on his side.

Coal Dust shook the snow from himself and folded his wings. He immediately came over to Gust's side.

"How are you?" Coal Dust asked.

"Oh, I've had better days," Gust said with a weak laugh. His eyes were slightly glazed over and his face was pale.

"I'm certain of that," Coal Dust said with a small smile. "Here, let me see the hit."

"Don't worry, I'm fine," Gust said quietly.

"I wasn't asking, kid."

"Yes sir," Gust sighed. His breaths were fast and shallow.

"Never mind the sir. We don't need to be formal at a time like this." He looked at the wound. "Oh no..."

"How is it?" Gust asked through gritted teeth.

Coal Dust was speechless. The beam had hit just behind the left shoulder. When the beam struck, it blew a large part of Gust's side away, leaving a sizeable chunk of him missing. The heat from the beam had cauterized much of the area affected, so blood was only oozing slowly from a few areas. In addition, the beam had left a puncture akin to a gunshot that continued on deeper.

Coal Dust's eyes were wide. Fear filled his expression. Gust could tell from looking at the Pegasus that he was frightened by the hit. The pain also clued him in to how dire the situation was. Every snowflake that fell into the gash felt like a kick to the ribs with a red hot boot.

Coal Dust turned away and opened his saddle bag. After a small bit of rummaging through it, he pulled out a first aid kit. He set the kit down on the snow and opened it up. He grabbed a large gauze pad and a roll of medical wrap.

"Let's get you on your hooves," Coal Dust said. He grabbed Gust's hoof and helped him shakily get upright. It took some time to get Gust up, as he was barely able to stand without support. Once Gust was standing, Coal Dust went back over and retrieved the gauze and wrap. He unwrapped the gauze quickly. "This is gonna sting." he muttered as he lightly pressed the gauze into the hit.

Gust could not contain a scream due to the horrible pain. His eyes watered as he steeled himself for any more pain to come. Coal Dust laid the wrap over his back and started unrolling it around Gust's midsection. The roll only made it around Gust's torso four times before it ran out, but it would have to make do until they returned to the Empire.

Gust shut his eyes hard trying not to think about his injuries. He felt very dizzy, and Coal Dust's voice sounded far off.

"Let's get moving," Coal Dust said as he put the first aid kit back into the saddlebag. He gently crouched underneath Gust and lifted him onto his shoulders. The black Pegasus spread his wings again.

Coal Dust looked back over his shoulder, checking that his wings were ready to go and that Gust was positioned so that he would not slip.

"Coal Dust?" said a weak voice. Coal Dust turned. Gust smiled and said, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it, kid."

Coal Dust started a walk which gave way to a trot. He slowly sped to a gallop, flapping his wings. He lifted off slowly, taking care to adjust for a passenger. His wings struggled, but slowly caught up and built the momentum needed to stay aloft. The snowflakes once again bounced off of Coal Dust's face, stinging as they collided with him. He found a wind current which allowed him to relax his flapping and just coast for awhile.

The two flew in silence. Gust focused on breathing. "Even the simplest and most mundane things are difficult when you're hurt," he thought to himself. Every wing beat jolted him slightly, aggravating the wound. Gust continually passed in and out of consciousness over the next forty-five minutes of flight.

Coal Dust's wings burned. His muscles were pushed to the limit. Once while Gust was passed out, he stopped for a moment to rest. His mind buzzed with the same message:Keep flapping. The only way to keep himself on track was to follow the hoofprints his team had left below only an hour or so before. The tracks meandered up and down the terrain, occasionally splitting off where the group had gone off to search other areas. The snow had lightened, just a light flurry now.

Keep flapping. The cold air stung at his eyes, and the injured stallion on his back made flight vastly more difficult. Coal Dust looked down, noticing that the tracks were becoming harder to see. New snowfall was starting to cover them up. He put on an extra burst of speed, trying to get back before the tracks below were erased.

Keep flapping. Harder. He gritted his teeth and focused all of his energy on flight. The tracks were almost invisible now, just small imprints in the snow pack. Fear gripped at Coal Dust. What if we get lost out here? What will happen to Gust if he doesn't get to a hospital? He shook the thoughts from his head, again focusing on keeping his wings beating.

Coal Dust noticed a faint white glow off to his left side. His eyes lit up, and he immediately turned toward the glow. His heart raced. Almost there! Gust stirred on his back, groaning quietly. He ached all over, but did not stop. His wings felt like they were on fire. His face was numb from the bitter cold.

"We're almost there! Gust, we made it!" shouted Coal Dust with glee. Gust was silent. Coal Dust looked over his shoulder, noting that Gust was quite pale. He turned to the growing light and pushed his already exhausted wings even harder. The top of the Crystal Castle was now visible over the horizon. The castle grew up on the horizon, eventually revealing the beautiful city that rested at its base.

The sleeping empire shone brightly at night even as the Crystal ponies slept. The Castle stood out as a beacon to lead Coal Dust in to warmth and safety.

As he approached, he slowed his pace. Coal Dust began his descent. He used the same strategy of coming in at a very slight angle to keep his landing smooth. He touched down on the road that ran under the gates. He slowed and stopped just under the floating crystal arch.

"WHO GOES THERE?" A guard was running towards them, weapon drawn. He looked as though he would kill without a second thought. When he came close enough to recognize the captain of his unit, he quickly sheathed his sword. "Lieutenant! What happened?" He asked as he noticed the wounded soldier.

"I don't have time to explain. I need you to do something for me. Go to the castle and find a way to get Sombra down to the hospital. I need to see him there." Coal Dust started trotting down the road. "Time is of the essence. Go now! Hurry!" He yelled over his shoulder. The guard watched him run down the road and slowly grow smaller before disappearing around a corner. A small trail of dripping blood lay behind where he had just run.

The street lights whizzed by, the light growing and shrinking as each one went by and the next one came up. He ran as fast as his legs would allow while keeping Gust steady. The hospital came into sight, being somewhat taller than many of the other buildings in the Empire. He did not break stride as he came up to the front doors.

Coal Dust burst through the door to the emergency room. It wasn't a very big room, a few chairs sat on one side, all vacant at the moment. The reception desk sat across from the chairs, decorated with a potted plant. Two nurses were seated at the desk, busily sorting through paperwork. A doctor stood behind them, also handling paperwork, probably patient's charts,over a filing cabinet. He turned when the bell over the door rang. The doctor's eyes widened when he saw thr pale, limp, lifeless form draped over a black Pegasus' shoulders.

He tapped the nurses on the side, "Bucky, go get room three ready, hurry." Remaining calm,he turned to Coal Dust and asked, "What happened?"

"Long story. He's in really bad shape." said Coal Dust. "He lost a lot of blood on the way over here."

"Okay, follow me." The doctor dropped his paperwork and came out from the desk. He turned down the hallway on the side of the desk. Coal Dust followed. They walked around a corner and into a small room with a stretcher and several pieces of medical equipment in a corner.

"Lay him on the stretcher." Coal Dust gingerly set Gust onto the table, shrugging his shoulder and laying the wounded stallion on the stretcher the rest of the way. An immense sense of relief flooded through Coal Dust's body as the weight he had bore for so long was finally lifted. He sat down where he was and took a deep breath while the doctor unwrapped the wound. He pulled the soaked gauze pad out of the hole and immediately went to work disinfecting the site.

"NURSE! NOTIFY THE O.R. THAT WE HAVE AN EMERGENCY CASE COMING IN!" he turned to Coal Dust. "Sir, I'll have a nurse take you back to an exam room and patch you up. We need room to work here, so I apologize if I sound pushy, but we can't waste any time. This stallion is in much worse shape than I thought."

"What? I didn't get injured," Coal Dust stammered.

"Look at your hind leg. You need to have that treated," the doctor said somewhat impatiently.

Coal Dust looked at his hind leg and there was indeed a fairly deep laceration there. He hadn't even noticed.

"As for those other cuts and scrapes, I don't think they will be a problem." A small tan unicorn mare with a tidy red mane walked in.

"You needed me, doctor?"

"Yes, Rose. I need you to take this stallion back to an exam room for treatment. Just some minor cuts and scrapes."

"Sure." Rose turned to Coal Dust. "Sir, would you come with me please?" She started out the door. Coal Dust followed suit. As they exited, two more assistants wearing paper masks came galloping down the hall. They went straight into the room and rushed around the stretcher. Coal Dust watched over his shoulder as Gust was wheeled out of the room and down another hallway.

"What's your name?" She asked.

"Coal Dust."

"That's an interesting one. I don't think I've ever heard of somepony named Coal Dust before!" She smiled, but could tell that he wasn't in any place to do the same.

"Yeah," He said glumly. His eyes were laden with heavy bags, and his legs felt like they had weights attached to them.

"You sure aren't much of a talker, are you?"

"Yeah." He was barely listening to her.

They turned down another hallway and went into a small room. An exam table sat on the far side of the room, and a row of cabinets made up a counter with a sink on one end. Various medical supplies lay on top of the counter.

"Just hop up on the table and and ill be right with you," She said as she dug around one of the cabinets.

Coal Dust climbed up on the table, feeling the paper on the table crinkle and crunch beneath him. She walked over to the table with a few alcohol swabs and several adhesive bandages.

"So, how did all this happen?" She asked.

"I'm not at liberty to discuss it."

"Fair enough. This may sting a little," she said as she swabbed an alcohol patch over a scrape on his foreleg. "Turn around so I can see your back, please." He obeyed. Rose did not seem like one to put up with nonsense, he thought. "Okay, do you mind if I ask what you did to your wings?"

"What?" he asked as he tried to turn and look at his back.

"Your wings aren't closing right. It looks like you pulled a few muscles."

Only once she said that did Coal Dust realize what kind of strain he had put on his wings. Pain slowly started creeping in, starting at the base of his wings and slowly radiating out through the rest of his body.

"Okay, let's see that cut on your leg." He turned over and presented his hind leg. "Dear Celestia, you sure had one heck of a night.!" She went back to the cabinet, went through a few things and retrieved a needle and thread.

Coal Dust felt butterflies form in his stomach. Ever since he could remember, needles had been something that could make even a brave stallion like himself unnerved. His eyes darted back and forth between the needle and a medical diagram on the wall.

'Okay, lie still." Rose filled a syringe with a clear liquid.

"What's that gonna do?" he asked nervously.

"This is gonna numb that cut so I can stich it up without you going through the roof," Rose said wryly. "Be still." She injected the numbing agent. "Okay, let that set for a minute and I'll get to work on it."

He relaxed a bit. She brought the needle and thread up with her horn, and he instantly tensed up again. To try to take his mind off of the stitching going on, he turned to the diagram on the wall and tried to read it. He got about halfway through the chart before he heard "All done!" behind him.

"Hop down off of that table, I'll take your vitals and then we can go back to the waiting room." She performed all of the standard procedure to take one's vital signs in what must have been a record time. It was barely a minute later when they exited the room and turned left down the hallway. They turned by the room Gust had just been in and went out into the reception area. They passed through another set of doors that led to the waiting room.

The waiting room was a fair sized one, a good bit larger than the reception area. The walls were all lined with chairs and benches. Coal Dust eyes the benches hungrily.

"You look like you've been beaten, Coal Dust. I think you should go lie down over there on a bench and get some rest. I'll come and get you when he gets out of surgery."

"Thank you," He replied. He trotted over to one of the benches, climbing onto it as though he hadn't slept in a week. Rose chuckled to herself and walked back out of the waiting room. He felt like he had been hit by a train. His wings were dreadfully sore, his legs were ready to give out, and his head throbbed like it had been hit by a hammer. Even through all of this soreness, he almost instantly fell asleep.

Chapter three: Escape

Chapter three: Awakening

Gust had not been awake for much of the trip back to the Crystal Empire. When he was awake, the pain was like nothing he had ever endured. Being in a state of limbo, he only remembered small bits and pieces of the journey. The makeshift bandage was thoroughly soaked with blood, now dripping down his side. He felt lightheaded, like he would not be able to stand on his own. The pain was to the point that it all blurred together and numbness set in. Compared to what he had been feeling, this new numbness was blissful.

Coal Dust's flapping wings and the rush of the cold air were suddenly replaced by a semi-soft stretcher bed. He started coming out of his trance as the doctor looked him over. His eyes lay half open, and his breathing was burdened.

Voices echoed far away, almost inaudible and definitely not understandable. In fact, they were standing over him. He felt a slight jolt as the stretcher began moving. The fog had lifted a bit, enough that he could see lights sailing past above him and a greenish stallion's face looking down at him.

"Where am I?" He weakly gasped.

"Don't worry, you're in good hooves," Said one of the voices.

The lights continued rushing past in a steady rhythm. The numbness had worn off largely, and the pain came back with a vengeance. Gust's eyes watered, and he bit back the urge to moan. The stretcher must have had a flat spot in the wheel, the slight bumps it made as it went down the hallway agitated the pain. The procession went through a set of double doors, down another hall, around a few more turns, through another set of double doors, and stopped under a large and very bright light. Gust looked around the room. There were lots of machines with strange implements attached to them. Several ponies stood around a small table in the center of the room, right next to the stretcher.

Hooves grabbed him on "Ready? One, two three!"

The words sounded far off, almost inaudible to the wounded stallion. Hooves lifted Gust up to the operating table. The hard metal felt cold under his back. The attendants, wearing surgeon's masks and protective clothes, circled around. Gust felt them attaching things to his chest, but didn't bother to look at their work. His side was hurting too much for him to think about much else.

"Son, would you lift your head up for a minute?" said a distant voice. Gust did as he was asked. A mask with a tube running from it was fitted onto his muzzle. "Okay, you can relax now." He did note that the mask smelled of cotton candy. In addition to the smell of candy, he noticed that his hearing was really trailing off now. He could barely hear anything happening around him, and anything he noticed seemed to echo. His vision started acting up too now. Ripples formed at the edges of his eyes, gradually working their way into the center of his gaze until he could barely see anything.

"That's funny. I've never seen ripples in my eyes before," he thought. Now he noticed that he couldn't feel his extremities anymore, and the pain was now dull and distant.

"Shimmer, would you hand me the anesthetic-thetic-thetic?" resonated a very distant voice. A dull burning sensation raced up Gust's foreleg, and then black.

***

A beep echoed through Gust's head. He cracked open his eyelids just enough to see a little bit of light and a few fuzzy shapes. The light strained his eyes, so he decided to shut them for the time being. He quickly drifted back off to sleep.

A few minutes later, he awoke again. There's that damn beeping again. He shifted his body a bit and opened his eyes, groaning at how heavy all of his limbs felt. An attendant came walking over when he started moving.

"How are you feeling?" The attendant had a cheerful note in her voice, and her orange hair bounced a little when she spoke. Gust just glanced over at her.

"Where am I?" he asked weakly.

"You are in the hospital!" she exclaimed. Her enthusiasm was refreshing, but still seemed out of place in a hospital. "Well, to be more specific, the recovery room. You just had surgery!"

Geez, I never thought you could be so happy about a hospital. He smiled at her.

"Well, now that you're awake, we can take you down to your room!" she said a bit too excitedly. Her smile seemed oddly large, almost as if it hurt her to grin so widely.

Gust sighed. He felt like he had been run over by a train, and his brain was in the middle of a fog bank. He sank down into the pillow as the overly joyous nurse wheeled him down the hallway. The lights on the ceiling rolled past in rhythm again. Okay, you're in the hospital. Tough luck. Focus on the positives. This bed was much more comfortable than the stretcher he was on earlier. No thumping from a bad wheel was another plus. Also, his wound was not overly painful now. Gust smiled a little, chuckling at the thought of how commonly he was giving himself little mental pep talks these days.

The bed turned again and entered a room, shifting to the side and coming to a stop. Gust lifted his head and sized the room up. It was small, just big enough to fit a small group of ponies. Windows with the blinds closed stood on his left side, and the door was on his right. Another door sat closer in on the right, probably a bathroom. A table sat next to the bed door contained a vase with some flowers in it. More machines sat in the corner between the window and the bed.

"Are you comfortable, hon?" said a new and southern sounding voice.

"Yeah, I'm doing fine. Thank you," he grumbled. His eyes felt like there were barbells hanging from the lids.

"Okay, we're just gonna get a few more things situated an we'll be out of yer hair." Some shifting around and a few beeps from a machine later, the two nurses walked to the door.

"If you need anything, there's a call button on the wall behind your head. Goodnight!" chimed the zealous nurse. The two nurses turned and walked out the door, shutting off the light and carefully closing the door behind them. It only took moments before Gust dove back into a slumber.

***

Pellets of sleet beat on Gust's face. The wind howled, and the clouds hung heavy and low. It was sharply cold. Gust looked at his other team members as they walked through the snow, all of them trying to protect their faces from the stinging sleet. Gust tried to keep trudging on until a scream rang out. It was the type of scream that sent shivers down your spine. A black cloud had descended on Flash Point, tearing him apart systematically. The cloud only spent a brief moment on top of Flash before it moved on to Greenfield. He kicked out one attacker before he too was overtaken and shredded. They ran, desperately fleeing the certain death coming in behind them. Fire Chaser went next, and then Coal Dust was torn to shreds only a few feet away. Gust ran until he couldn't breathe any more. He collapsed and looked to his fate, while the faces of hungry Changelings rushed in.

***

Gust broke from his nightmare in a cold sweat. He was shaking, from the cold of the dream that still felt so real and the terror of being killed by a mob of hungry Changelings. He rubbed his eyes and looked over at daylight streaking in through the windows. He felt stiff and achy all over, but above of all of it was the gentle sting still creeping from his side. A few birds chirped and flew by the window.

"Ugh." Gust sighed. He laid his head back into the pillow and stared at the ceiling. What am I gonna do now? I don't want to sit here in this damn hospital forever!

The latch clicked and the door swung open. "Mornin' sleepyhead!"

Gust turned and looked at the bright yellow mare standing in the doorway. She was slightly heavyset and had a few freckles on her nose, her face was warm and gentle, and her smile seemed to brighten the room. He yawned, "Good morning."

"How are ya feeling this mornin', hon?" She was carrying a tray with several items on it.

"Better I guess, but still like I got hit by a train."

"Aww, most of the time after a big surgery ya feel like that. Anyways, I'm Goldie Apple an I'm yer caregiver for today. Yer name was Gust right?"

"Yeah, yeah sure," he replied blankly as his gaze drifted to a bowl she was carrying. The smell of cinnamon and butter filled the room.

"Goodness, I bet you're famished! You've been eyeing that oatmeal since I walked in!" she said with a chuckle. She gave the bowl to Gust, who took it quickly. Usually, Gust was not a big oatmeal eater, but at this moment food was food, no matter what kind of mushy texture it had.

"Thank you."

"No trouble at all! I'll let you eat in peace," Goldie said as she walked to the door. "Be back in a few minutes, now."

He watched her close the door and then threw all etiquette to the wind. He stuck his nose into the bowl and wolfed down several big bites before he noticed that he was already getting full. What? I've never filled up this fast before! I'm only half done with this for crying out loud!

Gust pushed the bowl to the side and tried to roll over, but failed to do so with his side messed up. He groaned, pissed at the thought of not being able to sleep on his side now. The door opened again. The doctor stepped in.

"How are you doing, son?" he asked cheerfully, yet seriously at the same time.

"Good. As good as I can be!" Gust said sarcastically. Barely being able to eat what he usually could and being confined to laying on his back had quickly changed his mood.

"Glad to hear it," he doctor hadn't noticed his patient's sour disposition. "Now I just want to do a follow up exam after that surgery. It wont take long at all."

"Sure."

The doctor fumbled with a few things and produced a clipboard and a pen. "Okay, how would you rate your pain on a scale from one to ten?"

"Five or so." The doctor scribbled something on the clipboard.

"Do you feel lightheaded at all?

"No. Just a little sore."

"Good, that's all normal." The doctor lowered the clipboard to the table. "Can you turn over on your side for me, please?

"No, I already tried rolling over. It didn't turn out so well."

"Okay, can you at least lean a bit to the side? I need to check the bandage."

"I'll try." Gust pried up his left side just enough for the doctor to see the bandages. The doctor only needed a second or two to check the bandage.

"So doc, how long until I can get out of here?

"I'd say at least a week, maybe longer. Just depends on how fast that, uh, injury heals." The doctor was busy with his clipboard and didn't pay much attention to Gust's last question.

Gust recoiled at those words. "What?! I cant wait a week! I need to get out of here!" Gust yelled as he started struggling to sit up.

The doctor noticed Gust trying to move and snapped away from his charts. "The only place you'll be going if you move now is into the ICU, be still!"

"Come on, I can't sit in the hospital for a week! I'll go insane!"

"Well if you tried to get up now you wouldn't make it to your hooves!" The doctor was getting somewhat annoyed by Gust's frantic nature now.

"I'm fine! When can I get my discharge papers?" asked Gust.

The doctor, fed up with Gust's antics, ran a hoof down his face. "Gust, you have a large piece of your side missing. The shot penetrated almost all the way through you. It punctured one of your lungs and missed your heart by half an inch for Celestia's sake! You have to understand that you cannot try to move around for at least the next few days, you'll only hurt yourself and end up in here longer." Gust frowned and laid back, his pride somewhat hurt.

The doctor walked over to the door. "I just want you to relax. Read a book, take a nap, see if you can get some visitors in here. I'm sure that you can find something to keep yourself occupied. I will come back later to check up on you again. Just remember not to move that side too much." The doctor latched the door behind himself.

Gust turned and looked through the window. Outside, the residents of the Crystal Empire were going about their daily business, some working, some playing, some shopping. It was shaping up to be another wonderful day. The sun shone brightly, birds flew with the gentle breeze, and several carts rolled past on the road outside. Gust had been a part of this tradition since he transferred here from Baltimare two years ago. Since that transition, he found that he loved living in this beautiful city compared to the skidrow he had come from back in his hometown. Sure, the military barracks weren't all that great compared to the splendor of living in the Crystal Empire, but he couldn't complain about having a bed to sleep in and a roof over his head.

He sat there, gazing out that window for a good stretch of time until the door latch clicked.

A small tan mare stood in place of the door as it swung open. Her flowing red mane was tied up neatly into a ponytail.

Gust was surprised to say the least. "Rose?" Gust asked in a daze. "Is that you?"

She walked across the room and stood a few feet from the bed. "Gust," she whispered softly. Tears welled up in her eyes. She ran across the final few feet separating her from the bed. She wrapped her hooves around his neck gently, so as not to hurt his wound, and buried her face in his shoulder.

Gust was still in a bit of a daze. As Rose embraced him, he looked around confusedly for a moment before returning the gesture.

"Rose... It's okay."

She looked up at him. "Oh Gust, I've missed you!"

"I've missed you too," He said softly. "Where have you-"

She suddenly pushed away from his embrace. "You almost died!" She had tears streaming down her face, and she almost looked angry. "The doctor told me everything. Damnit Gust! You scared me to death!" As quickly as she had come in, she ran out of the room.

"Rose, wait!" he yelled after her. The latch clicked again, and she was gone. Gust looked up at the ceiling and shook his head. "What just happened?" he asked himself out loud. He had wanted to talk to her, but she ran out before he could even really get a word in. He laid his head back, wincing at the pain in his side. He shut his eyes, trying to clear his mind and get some rest, but to no avail. The latch clicked again. What now? A familiar black Pegasus stood in the door.

Chapter four: Fatigue

Chapter four: Waiting

A lone stallion hiked across the empty, white, featureless plain. He had a message to deliver, though he did not know what it was. All he knew was that it was of dire urgency that he get the letter in his saddlebag delivered as quickly as possible.

The snow fell densely, driven by the fierce and driving wind. The powdery flakes clung to him on one side, being glued in to his black fur by the howling winds. What stuck to him melted, bringing the cold ever deeper into his body with each gust. He knew that he could not continue like this for much longer.

A rocky outcropping appeared ahead, promising shelter from the blasting winds that relentlessly wore on the tired Pegasus. He broke his steady pace and galloped ahead to finally feel some relief.

A small alcove in the jutting rock face provided the shelter he needed. The draft zone it made caused the snow to not accumulate there. The snow instead formed a deep drift surrounding the hollow space. When he reached it, he dropped to his knees and slumped against the cold, brown stone.

Though the relief from the storm was heavenly, he knew that he must press on to reach the Empire. The Empire that lay somewhere out in this barren wilderness.

A few minutes passed like seconds, and he rose to his feet reluctantly. The blowing snow sprayed into his face as he turned to leave. He shuddered, braced himself and launched back into the cold white hell. He had to wade through the drift to reach shallower snow that was passable. When he reached the shallower snow, he broke into a trot, trying to speed up his heart rate to stay warm and speed up his journey as well.

He looked ahead, dreading the moment when he would break from this hill and be back into the full mercy of the wind. Before he reached the end of the rock face, he was snapped from his thoughts by a deafening screech. A Changeling had jumped out from behind a boulder just ahead. Its cerulean eyes were ablaze, almost seeming to fling fire out of the pupils. Blood coated its legs and chest.

The Changeling hissed and bore its fangs. Above, on the escarpment, six more changelings sat poised to strike. Ten more came running up from the behind, and seven on the left. Several others joined rank with the one in front of him.

The first Changeling charged up its horn and fired, but he was able to avoid it. A second beam whizzed by his head and a third grazed his flank.

Something grabbed at his legs, requiring a solid kick to dislodge it. It now was clear to him that the only way to have a chance at survival was to go airborne. The black Pegasus spread his wings and flapped as hard as he could, leaving the ground like a missile. He wasn't ten feet off of the ground before another beam came in, striking him in the wing. He fell like a stone, landing on his side. His wing that wasn't hit was pinned beneath him, and it hurt so badly that it must have been broken.

In an instant he was being tackled by a large group of the little monsters. Two Changelings held each limb to immobilize the Pegasus. The leader of the monsters drew a knife, gave a grisly smile, and brought the blade to the stallion's throat. The last thing the doomed soldier felt was the blade slicing through his neck.

***

The bench was warm and hard beneath Coal Dust's back. Cold sweat ran down his neck, and his heart raced. He brought a hoof to his neck, almost still able to feel the blade plunging into his neck. Though it was only a dream, it had felt like he had just been out on that icy plain, fighting for his life.

He squinted at the bright lights in the empty waiting room. The clock read three thirty-two in the morning. He groaned as he sat up and stretched his aching back. Though better, his wings still felt strained and were sharply sore.

The vivid nature of his dream had shaken all fatigue from his head. His heart was still racing, nearly pounding a hole into his chest. Looking for a way to calm himself down, he picked up a wrinkled old magazine from a nearby table.

The magazine was one of the many tabloids that circulated around. For some strange reason he could never discern, mares just ate this stuff up. He eyed the cover warily.

"Twenty secrets to better please your very special somepony?" he read aloud. "What in the world are they letting them print these days?"

Curiosity got the better of him, and he cracked the magazine open. To his surprise, there were a few interesting articles hidden among the trash that flowed profusely from its pages. He found himself reading an article about new astronomical discoveries in recent years, including a planet named Earth that scientists believed may harbor intelligent species. "Sure, I bet there are some reallysmart things there," he muttered with a scoff.

The door swung open. "Coal Dust, you had better be in here if I came all the way down at this hour!" yelled a deep, powerful, and somewhat annoyed voice. It was unmistakable who was here.

Coal Dust tossed the magazine aside and jumped to his feet, "Ten-hut!"

"Oh, don't bother with that useless crap now. At ease!" Sombra grumbled as he walked through the door. At three in the morning, King Sombra did not look much like the King Sombra everyone knew. His mane was amiss, his eyes looked heavy, and a scowl decorated his face. He still looked like a formidable pony, but in a psychotic-killer way rather than a powerful ruler.

Coal Dust dropped his rigid stance, took a breath, and walked over to the obviously exhausted king. "King Sombra, sir, I have an important piece of news for you."

"Well, if it was important enough to wake me at this hour it must have been something big!

"It is, sir, and," Coal Dust looked around nervously, "I don't think that we should chance anypony overhearing us. We need to find a secluded place to talk."

"Sure, be my guest! The sooner we get this over with, the sooner I can get back to bed!" Sombra really could get cranky when he was tired.

The King and the soldier walked to the back of the waiting room, over near the closed cafeteria line. A refrigerator humming behind the closed window screen was the only sound in the room.

"Sombra," Coal Dust began, "this news I bring is very grim. It appears that our worst fears have been realized. My patrol that left last evening, well, we...uh... found a Changeling swarm."

With the end of that sentence, Sombra went from being annoyed and grouchy to looking almost worried. "What? Are you sure?

"Yes, I'm sure."

"How big was it?"

"Lets just say, you couldn't see one end of the swarm from the other. I don't know of any in recent years that could match it."

Sombra seemed to linger on those last few words. "I see." He took a long pause, running things through his head. "Okay, at daybreak we need to hold a council meeting. Hopefully there we can get a better course for action. I need you and your unit present at that meeting, will you all be ready for it?"

Coal Dust was thrown a major reality check by a simple question. "Well, uh... Sombra, sir. About that." It was very difficult to say these words, "We lost three stallions in our escape. The fourth is, as far as I know, fighting for his life right now."

Sombra was clearly not in the same mindset that he was when he had arrived. Now, learning that three of his soldiers were dead, did he finally understand what was developing. However badly he wanted to find out more, he needed to stay calm and collected.

"I think we need to get some rest now, no sense in making mistakes because we are exhausted. We can go back to the castle, there's a spare chamber you can use for tonight-"

"No," Coal Dust cut Sombra off, "I'm going to wait here for him. I think I owe it to him and to myself to stay."

Sombra frowned. "If that's what you want, so be it. I'm going back to my bed, but I will come back to get you for the meeting first thing in the morning." He walked to the door, pausing just before he exited. "Are you sure you want to stay here? You look like you really need a good night's sleep."

"I'm sure. I need to be there when he gets out of surgery, whenever that is."

Sombra smiled. "You know, I have yet to see any pony that can match you in how stubborn you can be. Goodnight, lieutenant."

"Goodnight, sir!" Coal Dust called out as Sombra walked through the door. The door swung closed and several sets of hoof steps walked away from the door. Sombra's royal guard had been there after all.

The black Pegasus climbed back up onto the same bench he had been on and closed his heavy eyes. I an instant the soft hands of sleep whisked him away to a slumber. This time, his sleep was dreamless.

***

"Sir? Sir, wake up!" Rose said, shaking his shoulder with her hoof.

"Huh, move the barrel over," He mumbled, still asleep.

"Sir, Gust is ready to see you," She said. The mention of Gust's name woke Coal Dust sharply.

"Nurse?" He said, sitting up quickly. He looked at the clock. Twenty-eight past seven. Coal Dust then looked at the nurse. She had obviously been crying. Her makeup was running a little, and her eyes were slightly red.

"He is doing well. Back to his old self almost." She began tearing up a bit.

"We can go and visit now?" Coal Dust rubbed his eyes and blinked hard a few times. He was stiff from sleeping on the hard bench, but all in all he felt much better than he did last night.

"Yes, we can. Follow me, I'll take you up to him," Rose said as she blinked the tears from her eyes. She led the way out of the door and into the reception area.

Rose and Coal Dust walked past the reception desk silently, and the two nurses working there didn't even look up from their work as they passed. Just beyond the desk was an open stairwell. Rose began her ascent with a quick step, nearly running up the stairwell. Coal Dust didn't need to move as quickly to keep up with her because of his longer legs. She passed the landing for the second floor and ascended the next flight a bit more slowly.

They reached the third floor and exited the stairwell, passing a few nurses and patients out in the wide main hallway. Rose passed a few doors and stopped at one only a short distance from the stairwell.

"He's in there. I'll leave you to it," Rose said shortly as she backed away from the door.

"Thank you, nurse."

"Yeah." She turned and trotted away quickly. She seemed wary of the room, almost anxious to get away from it. Something was obviously troubling her about Gust, but right now that wasn't the biggest problem he was faced with.

He looked up at the number 312, took a deep breath, pushed the latch down, and opened the door.

Chapter five: Urgency