The Black Hours

“There we are, honey. Good as new,” a periwinkle-blue mare said sweetly, making final adjustments to the bandage around Rock Rush’s withers. She flicked her hot-pink mane out of her eyes as she stepped back to admire her work, before giving him a gentle pat on the shoulder. “You took quite a beating, didn’t you?”

Rock shrugged with an amused grin. “Can’t say I didn’t throw myself into it.” He cast Rainbow Dash a mischievous look, who hovered a few feet above them with her own bandage strapped neatly around her back to cover her scratches.

“If I know you at all, Rock,” the rainbow-haired pegasus said, “I reckon you were more than willing to throw yourself into it.”

She took a moment to observe her bandaged back, a grateful smile forming on her lips. Only faint blotches of blood were visible under the material, and her wound had stopped stinging a long time ago. “Thanks for patching us up, Beryl.”

“It’s no problem, darling,” Beryl Sky replied, adopting her familiar motherly tone. “Looks like I need to be around more often if you two are going to take so much damage.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way, Beryl,” Rock commented with a grin, earning an embarrassed blush from the older mare.

Beryl Sky was older than the majority of Rainbow Dash’s team, as well as being unusually stylish for a medic pony. It was her kind and giving personality, however, that made her such an asset to the group. Whenever they felt low, undermined, or needed a gentle mare’s touch to heal both their physical and emotional wounds, Beryl would be there.

It was pleasing for Rainbow Dash to see Rock recovering so well; Beryl was even able to get him back on his feet after a few painful groans. She looked around to study the city. It was much less clouded with ash than before, her throat no longer feeling itchy from dust, and the atmosphere was considerably calmer, though of course, not completely recuperated.

Beryl had done her magic throughout the group of remaining ponies, reassuring both scouts and residents alike, sometimes helping split families to be reunited. Still, despite the improvement in conditions, to see the grand city Manehattan – the place she had fond memories of with her friends – torn apart and scrunched up like a piece of paper, sent sad shudders across Rainbow Dash’s body. Would she ever see it again as it once was? It was possible, but somehow, she doubted it.

“Rainbow Dash, sweetheart.” Beryl’s soft voice snapped the pegasus out of her thoughts. “You look completely worn out. Don’t burden yourself with any more trouble today. Petal and I will take care of the last few casualties. Why don’t you and Rock have some rest while your injuries heal?”

The kind sparkle in Beryl’s eyes was enough to make her feel a complete sense of trust in the lilac mare. “Sure,” she replied with a smile. “Thanks, Beryl.”

The pretty earth pony returned her beam, reaching a hoof out to affectionately rub under her chin. “You may be a war patrol captain, Rainbow, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t look out for you. You’ve done brilliantly today, no matter what anypony thinks – including yourself.”

Leaving Rainbow Dash with a warm feeling in her chest, Beryl made her way off, approaching a unicorn mare curled up nearby with a foal beside her. Rainbow felt Rock Rush walk to her side as she stared admirably at the medic pony.

“I’m glad we’ve got her on our side,” the stallion murmured.

“Me too,” Rainbow Dash agreed with a nod. “She’s a really kind pony – reminds me a little of Fluttershy.”

“Sorry, of who?”

Rainbow Dash turned her head to meet Rock’s confused expression, a twinge of sadness pinching her stomach. “Oh… she’s just a friend of mine from back home. Not important.”

She averted his gaze, wrapping her tail despondently around her haunches. It was conversations like these that made her feel downhearted; the memories she had of the times before the present, and the thought of knowing that she may not have the joy of those times again. At least, not for a long time.

Rock sensed her discomfort, stepping forward to lay a hoof on his captain’s shoulder. “Rainbow, I know you miss your friends. It’s hard for all of us to be away from home. But I’m telling you now: it'll all be over some day, and we won’t have to live through this anymore. We just have to fight through these last few battles, then everypony will be safe. We’ll be home again. Isn’t that worth it?”

Rainbow Dash let out the breath she had been holding with a gentle wisp of air, seemingly more relaxed. Rock waited patiently for her to reply, knowing that she would often take quiet moments to compose herself during times like these. After a few seconds, she turned to him with a smile. “I know it’ll be worth it.”

Rock chuckled, gently patting her hoof. “Let’s face it, Dash: we’re bound to be okay with an amazing pony like you leading the team.”
She could do nothing but smile – not out of shyness, but pride. “Gotta give credit where it’s due.”

Rock laughed more loudly, then tenderly pulled her closer to him, surprising Rainbow Dash with the sudden intimacy. “You make me laugh. I love that about you – and have I ever told you that your eyes are like beautiful rubies?”

“Only about a hundred times,” Rainbow Dash remarked sarcastically.

“And yet it never seems to convince you.” He raised his eyes playfully. “Maybe I can convince you in other ways.”

As soon as Rainbow realised that he was leaning in to try and kiss her, she came to her senses and quickly pushed him back. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. We’re not going there.”

“Are you sure?” Rock Rush asked with a smile, not seeming disappointed or deterred in any way.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Rainbow replied indignantly, though she couldn’t help returning his infectious grin. “Don’t get me wrong, Rock – you’re awesome, and I like you a lot – just not in that way.”

He nodded with acceptance, finally stepping away to give her space, but the mischievous look did not leave his face for one moment. “Well – we’ll just see where life takes us, won’t we?”

Rainbow Dash scoffed with amusement, quite astounded by his confident remarks, deciding not to say anything else.

Rock Rush was certainly unlike any pony she had met previously. He was smug, over-confident, witty, and yet had such a kind heart among all those qualities. This was what made him so likeable to Rainbow Dash, and why they had become near-inseparable since their first meeting.

She was never sure whether to take his flirting as a compliment or not, since Rock was the type of stallion who flirted with any mare he saw. But she had noticed the way he’d been looking at her from time to time – was it really just casual flirting? If not, it would make the situation uncomfortable for Rainbow Dash. She definitely liked him, and took his compliments on the chin without thinking much of it. But if he was looking for more than friendship… no. It couldn’t happen. Friendship was the only thing Rainbow Dash found comfort in, knowing that well enough from her time in Ponyville. Anything more than that would probably do more harm than good.

She bit her lip as she smiled at him, before suddenly realising how tired she felt. Rubbing her eyes, she said to him, “We should take Beryl’s advice and get some rest. We don’t know when we’ll need our strength again.”

Rock quickly agreed, beginning to lead them off in the direction of their base. But before they had even taken a few steps, a sudden movement caught Rainbow Dash’s eye. Stopping in her tracks, she looked to her right, where something out of place was moving among the rubble. It was a piece of pink fabric – most likely torn from bedding or clothing – draped between two pieces of shard. A hump was formed underneath the cloth, and it was the movement of this hump that had alerted Rainbow. She could also hear something: a whimpering; incoherent sounds of struggling, perhaps even sobs of pain. Was it another survivor that hadn’t been counted for?

Rainbow looked back at Rock Rush to see that he had noticed it too, staring at the movements underneath the fabric with perplexity. She raised a hoof at him. “Stay here,” she ordered calmly, before using her wings to flap steadily over to the sounds. As she landed beside it, the movement intensified, and the whimpering appeared to become panic-stricken as it sensed the pony nearby.

“Uhh… hello?” Rainbow Dash asked awkwardly. “Are you hurt?”

It said nothing, retreating more tightly into itself as the bundle in the fabric became smaller. Rainbow noticed a tremble reverberating along the material, suggesting that the casualty was shaking with fear. She considered calling Beryl Sky over, since she was usually the best at handling those with a nervous disposition, but she decided to handle this on her own.

“It’s... err... okay, buddy,” she said, trying to soothe the frightened pony.

Cautiously, she stepped forward, brought her hoof underneath the edge of the fabric, and gently lifted it up. But what she saw was, in fact, not a pony at all. Her eyes widened in shock, a gasp escaping her, and she felt a mixture of both fear and intense anger. It was one of the monstrosities that had attacked Manehattan only minutes ago. The creature that lay trembling under the cloth, its black body curled into a coil, its electric-blue eyes staring straight at her – was a changeling.