It began with the intrusion of a quiet, but insistent, growl. That growl became a roar, a roar that grew in volume until it filled her whole consciousness. Her mind sluggishly realized that, to pinpoint the source of this unholy sound, she had to open her eyes. This was no simple task, as her stubborn eyelids seemed to fight the very notion of opening, but at length, she succeeded. Her eyes were met with a blaze of blue-white light. She wanted to shut her eyes against the painful brightness, but after the struggle she went through just to get them open, she felt it wasn’t worth the effort. She endured the light until her eyes adjusted to its glow.
By now she had become aware of a new sound, a steady rhythmic thumping in her ears and in her chest. She was relieved to realize this was her heart. Slowly she became reacquainted with the sounds of her own body, the roar of blood in her ears, the gurgle of her stomach, and even the faint ringing of her own nervous system. In that moment, a truly alien sound breached her ears, like a muted trumpet blaring the same monotonous tone over and over again. It was coming from outside. Outside what? Outside this… tank? Realization slowly dawned on her as she began to grasp her predicament. She was enclosed in a metal tank with a sheet of glass between her and the outside world.
She reached out to push against the glass. Or so she thought. However, no hand came into view.
She tried again. Still no hand. She looked down at the offending limb resting peacefully at her side.
She strained, yet it stayed immobile. It was now that panic began to set in.
She couldn’t move.
She was trapped in a metal tank and she couldn’t move.
She was trapped, naked, in a metal tank, and she could not move!
The thumping of her heart accelerated, deepening the roar of the blood in her ears. She strained against her paralysis in vain, her lungs working harder and harder as she pushed and pulled with her will to no avail. But something was wrong with her lungs! Something didn’t feel right. They were heavier than she remembered, and they didn’t move like she felt they should. As if to multiply her distress, she felt something rushing over her coat. It was liquid. She had been submerged this whole time, and had been breathing in a liquid. And now that liquid was draining out of the tank!
She felt her head clear the draining liquid, her next attempt to breathe sent her into weak spasms of coughing as her lungs forced the liquid out. And oh the pain! The raw fiery sensation as cold air tore into her lungs, scraping at her insides! It was like an icy flame was burning in her chest! She would have doubled over if she wasn’t paralyzed.
Without warning, the glass before her opened outwards and she felt herself lurch forward out of the tank. The ground rose to meet her, and without any way of moving, she prepared herself for the impact that was sure to follow. But it didn’t. Instead, she stopped short, caught in the arms of another pony. And in this pony’s arms she remained, coughing, gagging, crying, and feebly screaming as her body adjusted to sensations she should have already been accustomed to, and the friendly arms held her tight through it all. After what felt like hours, she managed to reign her body in enough to speak cohesively. In a raspy, froggy voice, she addressed the mysterious pony who held her.
“W-who are y-you?”
“My name is Rosebud,” the soft, soothing, feminine voice replied.
“Where—” her question was cut short as another bout of painful coughs wracked her body. The arms held her firmly, but gently.
“You’re in Canterlot, and have awoken from stasis; suddenly, I'll add. You weren’t supposed to wake up as quickly as you did.”
“Why c-can’t I move?”
“Muscular atrophy. Your skeletal muscles have degenerated due to being unused for so long. Don’t worry, though. This kind of damage is not permanent, and we have the means to rebuild them. It will just take some time and patience.”
“C-clothes?” This got a laugh out of the good Rosebud; a friendly, melodious laughter.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t laugh, but it’s odd to hear modesty so high on your priority list. Don’t worry, dear. I’ll have a gown brought in as soon as possible. But first thing's first. I’m going to carry you from here to a place where we can begin the process of rebuilding your muscles. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” the patient croaked. By Selene! The pain was still terrific. It felt as if her lungs and throat had just been scraped raw with sandpaper. Then another sensation washed over her. This one she knew from past experience. It was the strange flip-flop you get in your gut when you've eaten rotten food.
Rosebud must have read what was coming on her face, because she gently and deftly shifted the poor mare over, using her knee to help support her as she pulled the patient’s dark mane aside. Just in time too, as a bellyful of – whatever that fluid in the tank was – came spewing from her mouth as her stomach heaved, rejecting and ejecting the stuff in short painful spasms. Rosebud’s voice is a soothing sound in her left ear. “It’s okay darling, let it out. I know it hurts, but the worst is almost over.” A new voice, a gruff stallion's voice, called from the doorway.
“Rosebud! What in Atarsia’s name are you doing? I’ve told you time and time again not to mess with—”
“Patch, now is not the time! Patient Zero is awake. I need a gurney bed prepped, the NMES room readied ASAP, and a call placed through to the Grand Counselors. With Patient Zero awake, they will want to know.” The room was dead silent for a moment, save for the ragged gasps of Patient Zero.
“Right! Of course! Right away!” The stallion said, and his footsteps retreated out of the room, accompanied shortly by muffled shouting in the hallway outside. Rosebud waited for the heaves to stop before gently rolling Patient Zero over again, cradling her against her chest. Tears of pain and confusion still flowed from her eyes, though she was grateful for the comforting warmth of the other pony’s embrace. Rosebud spoke again at length.
“Do you remember your name? It would be rather silly of me to keep calling you ‘Patient Zero’ now that you’re awake.” Name? Right, a name. Her name. Yes, she had a name. She just hadn’t thought about it until just then.
“Eos.” It felt wonderful to say aloud. “My name is Eos.” And with that, her world went black again.
* * *
When her eyes next flickered open, she was surrounded by ponies in white jackets, and some were pointing or waving strange devices at her which flickered and glowed with an array of neon colors. It took a moment for her brain to process this, but at length, a terrifying realization dawned on her. Even though she didn’t know what the devices did, she recognized the technology, and her eyes widened in fear.
“T-traitors! Murderers!” she cried, weakly, internally cursing her inability to move. The ponies looked at each other and shrugged collectively, continuing to use the devices despite her cries.
“Heart rate is elevating; she appears to be having difficulty breathing,” one of them said, passing his device close to her chest.
“K-keep that away from me!” she gasped. The stallion ignored her.
“Are you in any pain?” another one asked. “Any soreness or tenderness that you notice?" There was a pause. "How about now?”
Oh spirits, they’re going to torture me! She thought to herself, expecting sudden pain to erupt somewhere. Only it didn’t… yet.
“Her breathing and heart rate are still accelerated, but still within safety margins,” the first pony reported.
“Any discomfort? Any unusual sensations in your breasts or genitals?” another asked. She blushed furiously in response to the intrusive question, and even a couple of the other ponies looked at him oddly. “What? I’m just eliminating possibilities. We’ve never seen a patient in this condition before,” he explained defensively.
“I highly doubt the effects of long-term suspension would specifically affect her genitals, Wild,” one of the mares said, flatly.
“You don’t know that for sure…” he muttered, shoving his glowing device towards Eos’ head. She had barely enough strength to turn her head away from it, squeezing her eyes shut, waiting for the – whatever it was going to do – to happen. But still, nothing happened, despite the device whirring eerily next to her ear.
“If you’re going to kill me, just do it already,” Eos demanded, feebly.
“We’re not going to kill you,” one of the mares replied.
“I’m not telling you anything.”
“You’re only making this harder on yourself,” she answered back. “We can’t do our job properly if you don’t help us.”
“I will never help you,” Eos said firmly, though she could hear the fear in her own voice.
A commotion arose from outside Eos’ field of view. “What are you fools doing?” The voice that spoke belonged to Rosebud.
“Rosebud, her breathing is labored and her heart rate is—”
“Of course it’s labored, you idiot! She’s terrified! Did you not listen when I briefed you on her file?”
“But we thought—”
“No, you didn’t. Get that away from her. Everypony, all of you, clear out, now! I’m personally taking over this fiasco until the Counselors arrive.” Eos opened her eyes slowly, in time to watch several of the white-clad ponies shuffling hastily away. Rosebud's sand-colored face appeared above her with an apologetic smile. “I’m so sorry about that, Eos. I promise you, they weren’t going to hurt you.”
“You… You work for them?” Eos asked, betrayal in her tone. Rosebud sighed and pulled a stool over to the side of the bed Eos was resting on.
“It’s complicated, Eos. Explaining it at this point would be overwhelming for you.” She took Eos’ limp hand in hers, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “But you have to trust me. Everypony here wants to see you get better.”
“But, you’re Technists. Why would you want to help me?” Again, Rosebud sighed, though with a smile this time.
“Like I said, it’s complicated. At least for you, it will be. I really can’t explain any more to you, right now. Not so soon after waking up. But you can trust me. We’re all doctors here.”
“Where is here?” Eos asked, looking around the room for the first time. The room was a sterile white with dark blue accents. She was lying on one of many floating beds in this room, though all of them were empty. A wide window occupied the wall opposite her, revealing several of the ponies that had been ‘tormenting’ her were still lurking outside, looking in and talking among themselves.
“This is the Grand Marquise Hospital in Canterlot. A place of healing. No pony here will bring any harm to you. I promise.” Eos eyed Rosebud suspiciously for a few moments. She didn't recognize either name, but did that really matter? Her expression gradually softened.
“Alright. I guess I don’t have much choice but to trust you, do I?”
“Honestly, no. Normally, you would have some say in things, but you’re a special case. So we have orders to make you better, whether you like it or not.” Rosebud gave Eos a wry smile, earning a feeble one in return. “There we go,” she said, patting Eos’ hand. “That’s better. Now, your recovery is going to require that I use some of our machines; machines you seem to fear. But I promise, they’re healing machines, not machines of war.”
Eos did her best to nod. Rosebud returned the stool to its former place and took hold of the bar by Eos’ head, pushing the hovering gurney out of the door and past the huddle of doctors still lingering nearby. “I’m sorry about them, by the way,” Rosebud intoned quietly. “I told them not to crowd you. I actually read your file, unlike them.”
“Read my file?”
“You were left in the hospital’s care with a document detailing where you’re from and what to do, and what not to do, when you woke up. Technically, you were this hospital’s first patient, which is why I called you Patient Zero. It was the only thing we could call you, since the file didn’t leave us with a name.”
“How—” Eos paused to swallow, wincing as her throat still felt raw. “How long was I asleep?” Rosebud did not reply, simply going quiet. Eos looked up at her. “Rose?”
“Hm?”
“How long was I in that… thing I was in?” she repeated.
“I can’t answer that, Eos,” Rosebud replied, avoiding eye contact.
“You don’t know?”
“I know the answer, Eos,” she confessed, “But I’m not allowed to tell you.”
“Was that in the document, too?” Rosebud nodded in answer. “I see.”
“It will all make sense in time, Eos, but we’re all under special orders now that you’re awake. There are things we can’t tell you, but there are ponies coming that can explain things to you properly.”
“The counselors?” Eos asked, remembering that term being used more than once. Rose looked down at her in pleased surprise.
“Yes. Good to know you’re retaining memories. How much do you remember from before you fell asleep?”
“A little. I know there was a war. We were losing to you; to the Technists. I remember… the temple. We were holed up there.” Her brows furrowed slightly with the strain of trying to remember. “We had lost the walls. She was coming for us.” A note of fear and panic crept into her tone. “She was at the door. She was going to kill us all! I had to protect everypony!”
“Easy! Easy, Eos!” She felt Rosebud’s hand on her shoulder. “Relax, it’s all over. Everypony there survived. The document says that you managed to defend everypony in the end.” The relief that washed over Eos was probably visible to Rose, as she smiled kindly. “You were apparently very brave.”
“I was terrified. I remember that. But at the same time… a lot of it is hazy. Faces and names are missing and…” She squinted blankly at the ceiling tiles as they passed, “And I can’t seem to remember much from before that last moment.”
“For someone in your condition, it’s not surprising. Hopefully, the Counselors can help you recover some of that. They’d be much better at it than any of us because—” Here Rosebud cut herself off. “For reasons,” she concluded. Eos chose not to press the matter any further. She already had a lot of thinking to do, and it seemed that they had arrived at their destination.
Rosebud brought the gurney to a stop inside a small room next to the furthest of three identical machines from the door. Each machine, evenly spaced along the wall, was comprised of an upper and lower half that appeared to be designed to close together to seal whatever went inside, and from context, it appeared a pony was supposed to be sandwiched between the two halves. The rest of the room was pretty much identical to the room she had just come from, except for the complete lack of windows.
The doctor helped Eos out of the hospital gown and laid her out on the lower section of the machine, arranging Eos’ limbs carefully, then lowering the upper half until Eos was sealed inside, save for her head, which protruded from an opening in the machine, resting on a pillow. “I won’t bore you with how the machine works, but it will rapidly rebuild the muscles you can’t move anymore. It takes a fraction of the time of old therapy methods.”
“Will it hurt?”
“Not at all. Here, I’ll switch it on.” The machine thrummed to life at Rosebud's prompting, and Eos found herself experiencing a gentle floating sensation. It wasn’t unpleasant at all. Rosebud took a stool and sat next to Eos’ head. “I’ll keep you company for as long as I can. You’re my priority patient now, Eos, and just leaving you alone in this room doesn’t feel right.”
“How long will I be in this... machine?”
“Several days. At least long enough for you to be able to carry your own weight again. Then we’ll move to regular therapy; get you used to moving around once more. Until then, I’m afraid you’re stuck with me until the Counselors arrive.” She offered a self-effacing smile, and got a genuine one in return from Eos.
“You’re kind, for a Technist,” Eos said with a weak giggle. “As long as it’s you, I don’t think I’ll mind.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment. The others really aren’t as bad as they seemed. Just a little tactless.” The pair fell silent for a while, giving time for Eos to compose her thoughts to the tune of the machine's monotonous droning. All she knew so far was that she had survived the last attack and, according to Rosebud, had managed to save the rest of her people from the Technist assault; though how exactly she saved them, she couldn't recall. Now, she was in some kind of Technist healing center, completely paralyzed, but instead of killing her, the Technists were trying to heal her. It didn’t add up. Was she a hostage? A prisoner of war? The rebels were not known for their mercy, so what did they gain by taking her alive?
“That violet streak in your mane,” Rosebud began, breaking the silence. “Is it natural?”
“Yes. It grew in when I was about twelve or so, I think. At least that’s when it started,” Eos answered, uncertainly. “It’s so hard to remember now.”
“It’s very striking. There aren’t too many ponies with natural ones anymore.” Eos smiled appreciatively, at the very least for the small talk.
“Thank you. Your mane is very pretty, too. It fits your name,” she said, returning the compliment.
“How are you feeling, though,” Rosebud continued, accepting the compliment with a grateful nod. “The other doctors were right to ask questions, even if they did it the wrong way. We need to know if you feel anything is wrong.” Eos closed her eyes for a moment, calmed her thoughts and focused on herself.
“I feel… heavy. Obviously, I can’t move, but you said you’re trying to fix that.” Rosebud nodded in response, encouraging her to continue. “My memories are all vague, or fuzzy. They’re not clear, and I know I can’t remember some of the things I should. I just remember… that I don’t remember. Does that make sense?” Rosebud nodded again.
“Temporary, most likely. A lot of those memories should resurface in time.”
“I can feel when you hold my hand. So I haven’t gone numb or anything. I just… can’t move. It’s a little scary, actually.”
“And we’re fixing that as fast as we can,” Rosebud reassured her.
“I know. And I trust you, strangely. It doesn’t… feel like you’re lying to me.”
“You thought maybe I was?”
“Well, yes. I mean, you’re a Technist, and I’m a Magus. Usually, one of us would be dead by now. And let’s be honest, I have no way to fight back. So, even if you won’t tell me why, I trust you when you say you’re trying to heal me. Because, well, I’m not dead, so you must be telling the truth about at least that much.” A frown creased Rosebud's forehead in answer, and her mouth twisted slightly, as if in pain; but it faded as quickly as it appeared, replaced with that kindly smile.
“I understand. You’re just going to have to be patient, Eos. I promise, everything will be made clear in time.”
