Outcast

Chapter 2 Morbid Memories

"Private Hash could you please tell Doc to keep up" Dark said "I don't want to have the only pony with the best medical experience getting lost or left behind." Hash only nodded to the general and slowed down her pace to match with Docs who was a good five meters behind from the group. Hash could already tell from the look of nervousness Doc had that the stallion was so on edge that he never noticed Hash trotting next to him.

"Hey, you alright? " Hash asked but Doc continued to trot as though no one had spoken to him. Hash was a little annoyed with this so she moved herself so her mouth was right next to Doc's ear and yelled "HEY DOC YOU ALRIGHT?!"

Doc responded with "OW OW MY BLOODY EARS, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?" Suppressed chuckles could be heard from the rest of the group that was ahead of them.

"The General wanted me to get you to keep up with the rest of us" Hash said to Doc as he was rubbing his ear.

"So you yell in my ear to get me to keep up?" He asked annoyed at the mare for causing the high pitched ringing in his ear.

"Well I tried talking to you normally but you kept walking as though I wasn't even here, you haven't been acting the same since we left the outpost what's the matter?" Hash asks with a concerned look. Doc stopped rubbing his ear and looks in his friends eyes before sighing in defeat.

"The last time I was out here I was a colt with my mother, we were looking for some flowers that could be used for medicine." Tears began to build up at the edges of his eyes. "We went inside a cave where the flowers grew but w-we didn't realize that there was something else inside the cave."

"What? what was inside?" Hash asked

"I-I don't know whatever it was, it was fast and stayed in the shadows I-I-It took my mother when we were at the mouth of the cave..." Tears streamed down his face "She didn't even scream, s-she was there one minute and then gone"

"There wasn't anything you could have done to save her" Hash jumped at hearing the general speak next to her.

"B-but if I-I had" Doc stammered

"If you had tried to save her you would be dead as well. You have a chance to save a ponies life but, you can't do that if you're in fear of being out here."

"He's right" Hash said, "It was something you couldn't have changed if you even tried. You can help another pony from sharing the same experience as you."

Doc thought hard on what the general and his friend was telling him. He wiped the tears from his face and inhaled deeply.

"Then I guess we shouldn't be standing around here should we?" Doc says with a slight grin.

Meanwhile

The stallion awoke from his unconscious slumber the sun was still in the sky, from what he could tell it was just about a hour since the emergency scroll was sent but, the rescue team hasn't arrived yet.

"Not good" he thought to himself.

He looked around to take account of his surroundings "Wrecked cart, Check, manticore corpse, Check and-"

Just then he felt something wriggle underneath his fore leg. When he looked down he saw the little unicorn filly asleep with her face buried into his fur. The stallion stared at the filly for a good minute before a smirk formed on his face.

"One brave kid, Check"

A surge of pain shot through the stallions body when he tried to move himself to get in a more comfortable position. He breathed deep and slow as to not wake the filly from his urge to yell profanities at the sky. When the pain went down to a more tolerable level the stallion let out a long sigh which unfortunately was louder than he had intended. The filly moaned before lifting her head off the stallion, she looked around at he surroundings before realizing where she was and the events that had transpired before she slept came crashing back to her like a train going off a cliff. After she spotted the dead manticore she looked at the stallion, her eyes on the brink of shedding tears.

The stallion gave her a warming smile and whispered "It's okay, I know it is hard to accept what you did, But you did the right thing at the time. If you didn't then most likely I wouldn't be here and possibly neither would you."

The stallion wrapped his unbroken leg around the fillies back and pulled her into a tight embrace, he could feel her tears soak his fur as she cried. They stayed like this for what felt like hours, after the filly had finished crying the stallion let go of her.

"Okay, now that we have that out of the way you need to go."

It took a moment for the filly to comprehend what the stallion just said. When she finally realized what she was just told her eyes widened and she shook her head furiously.

"Look I'm in no condition to move. The rescue team hasn't arrived yet and it will be dusk soon. I want you to take some of the food I have in my pack and head to the outpost down the trail."

The filly looked at the stallion for a long time before she grabbed his saddlebag and pulled out three apples and placed them in a small sack which she tied around her neck.

"Good, now just head down the trail until you reach the outpost"

The filly began trotting down the trail as she was instructed to but, she stopped and looked back at the stallion laying next to the tree.

"Don't you worry about me, no way I'm going to die out here. Not before I pay you back for saving my life." The stallion said giving a smile to the filly.

The filly returned his smile with one of her own and then she continued down the trail again as she was instructed to do. It was five minutes after the stallion lost sight of her before he let out a deep sigh.

"Well she's gone now" he said to himself.

The stallion just laid there next to the dead tree gazing at the clouds as the sun slowly descended. He stayed like this for what felt like an hour to him before he gave out another sigh.

"Ok so first things first I need to find someplace to bunker down until the rescue team arrives"

"You mean if they even bothered to come out here" The dark voice whispered inside the stallions head.

The stallion shook his head to silence the pest that was trying to send him into despair. When he finished his pointless attempt to silence what could not be silenced he noticed a small opening in the rocky mountain side.

"Must be where the manticore was living" the stallion said to himself. "I really need to stop talking to myself."

"Yah, don't want anypony thinking you're crazy"

"Shut it"

After two painful attempts to get on his hooves the stallion practically drag himself into the cave, stepping on old animal bones and what seemed to be a few pony skulls.

"Well not exactly a five star bed and breakfast but it'll have to do"

The stallion laid down in a dark corner clear of bones of previous victims of the manticore.

"Well time to get started I guess"

" This is going to suck isn't it?"

"Oh you know it" The stallion responded with right before he shoved a broken bone into his chest.

"Sir, how much further are we from the distress location?" one of the other guards asked.

Dark gave a huff of annoyance, "The scroll didn't give a exact location but, if we don't find those ponies in the next half hour we will head back to the outpost."

Hash looked up at the sun as it continued its slow decent. The guard that had spoken did the same.

"Hope so, we really don't want to be out here at night."

"All the more reason to continue the search" Dark responded.

It was then that Hash noticed something further ahead of the group. It was a purple unicorn filly. With a yell on "Over there!" Hash ran up to the filly who at the sight of the guards collapsed under her own weight from exhaustion.

"Let me take a look at her"

Hash moved aside so that Doc could begin his examination of the filly. Her fur was stained with dirt and dust, her hooves were chipped and cracked from walking non-stop down the trail. Tears began to stream down her face as she curled herself into the fetal position. Doc didn't need a medical license to tell the poor foal was traumatized but what got his and Hash's attention was the small specks of blood on her muzzle.

"I don't see any cuts on her so that does not belong to her." Hash stated.

"Indeed, not to mention the scroll stated that there were two ponies in distress" Dark added on. "Seeming how she came from further up the trail we can only assume that is where the other pony is."

"We could go up ahead to see but what about her?" Hash asked concerned for the young foal.

"You, Doc, and I will go further up the trail." Dark turned and pointed a hoof at the rest of their party. "The rest of you take the filly back to the outpost."

Nopony questioned the general, they only saluted. Flick placed the filly who had fallen asleep from crying on her back and the split group headed in their designated directions.

"I hope she will be alright" Hash said.

"I'm more concerned about that other pony, if that was their blood on her muzzle."

The stallion was in great pain but that was expected when you stab yourself with a bone. It was darker in the cave than it was before and he could feel something wet underneath him.

"Probably my blood" He winced when he got to his hooves. "Dam this is almost as bad as-"

Memories began to flash in his mind. Memories he had wanted to be forgotten. He shook his head to dispel the unwanted reminders of his past.

"Although as amusing as you being tormented is. You have more important matters to attend to."

Although he hated to agree with the pest in his head, the stallion knew it was right. With pained effort he began his journey to the entrance of the cave and the closer to the light he got he noticed the lightly mix of green and red blood ran down his chest.

"Better stitch this up with the sewing kit in my bags."

"Good idea that's totally not going to hurt like Tartarus."

Ignoring the voice the stallion pulled out the sewing needle and some medical grade stitching. He took a deep breath and drove himself into further agony.