The Beast of Everfree

“There, there, dear...It’s alright..”

The voice was far, far, away, fuzzy and distant...echoing. I let out a tiny moan to let whoever spoke know I was alive. A chilled, damp cloth was placed under my mane. I tried to move, but my limbs were held down, immobilized, crushed, by the pressure that weighed on my entire body, full fatigue had overcome me and I had succumb to it. The thin cover above me was stuck to my body, covered in sweat.

“It’s alright dear..”the soothing voice repeated, “Just rest now, you’ve suffered quite the ordeal…” as my mind slowly creaked back to life, the voice became focused and my ears perked up a bit.

“There...it’s all alright.”

“No..”I croaked hoarsely, “I-it...it isn’t..”

“Oh, but it is. It is alright. You aren’t in any danger, all is well.”

“No it isn’t. It’s not and it never will be..until I destroy the beast.”

“But, my dear, there is no beast.” the female’s sugar-coated voice was becoming painfully nauseating. She thinks it’s all alright, doesn't she? I thought bitterly, ‘everything is fine dear, there is no beast’ well there is! There is and I’ve gotta kill it.

“There is a b-”

“No beast. You’ve just been through a traumatic experience so all we need from you now is to relax and stop rambling about this...beast.”

Deciding my attempts to talk about the beast were futile, I nestled into my pillow and sighed.

“Fine.” I snapped, “I’ll stop talking about the beast and nap for a bit.”

“That’s good, dear, you do that now.”

I heard the clop of hooves and a door close before I finally shift to the side and try to fall asleep despite my throbbing head. After a long while, I finally drifted away into the land of dreams….

The aroma of food caused me to stir. I opened my eyes wearily and tried to gain control of my surroundings. A bland plastic tray filled with a green mush was on my lap. Shoving it away hastily, I scrambled to the farest corner of the bed and looked around. Uncontaminated white walls with pictures of golden meadows surrounded me. My mane….my cool, sleek looking, maroon mane..all crumpled...destroyed. The only other time my mane looked like that….

The ground! I nearly threw myself over the bed railing in my panic. The hospital! I concluded, staring deep into the tiled floor.

“Nurse!” I called, “Nurse?”

A few moments later a white earth pony strode in.

“Yes, dear?” she asked. It’s that nurse…. I mentally groaned

“Ummm...can I please have my belongings and be on my way?”

“Oh, don’t be silly. You’re in no fit condition to travel, just look at your wing.”

“My...my wing?” I asked urgently, panic steadily rising in my voice. My eyes sharply averted their attention to my right wing. My blood turned to hard, solid, stone and my heart skipped a beat.

A few pieces of shredded flesh and sinew flimsily clinging to bits of shattered bone were all that was left of my once fully-operational, strong, smoky grey wing.

No.

No….

NO!