Those Thirty Days

"The higher ups agreed, a welcome change from the usual, to giving the subject a little something special to eat today for lunch. We ordered his favorite dish and included a glass of his favorite refreshment. It won't be so much an atonement for misdeed committed against his person, but more so a way we can put ourselves in a bit of a better light in our own conscience. We lost seven other good ponies, which now means we are running on a skeleton crew that has been on a diet for thirteen years. We are understaffed, severely underpaid for what we are going through, and are treated as foals if we complain. I, unlike others, have no qualms about the moral implications of this experiment, after all he did sign the papers when we were forthcoming and asked him if he wished to be sealed in a solitary confinement chamber, a prospect, I must remind everypony here, he seemed more than excited about; deserters have said that the memory spell use on him afterwards causes the contract to be void, but really, in any court of law, it's sound as a rock, especially with the voice confirmation he provided us with. With all these facts considered, the one thing I have certain qualms about, certain complaints about, is the fact that we are so poorly paid for what we deal with. The subject is basically getting thirty free meals while we get paid only a small fraction above minimum wage. The point is is that we should all get a raise, not just me. The ponies here are now working double and triple duty to keep up with the demand, so it only seems fair that we get a corresponding increase in the size of our check, and that doesn't mean the size of the paper they write it on. At any rate, this is the end of morning researcher notes, switching to in room audio."

  "She certainly can be long winded at times." Lode stone remarked as the audio gave a brief click before the sound of movement in the cushioned chamber filled the speakers. Keen nodded, though she wasn't paying attention to what was happening, she was more focused on the rage she felt towards that researcher pony. She had subjected a pony to eighteen days of living Tartarus, and considered it freeloading, while she complained about how much she was being paid for torturing the pony.

  Keen broke away from her thoughts, deciding to focus on the recording for once as the sounds of movement in the chamber told her that something of note would happen that day, or that somepony had allowed less vital, or interesting information onto the tapes. The slight sound of the food being teleported into the room was the slightest bit audible. As she listen, the sounds of the pony eating took over until a deathly silence took over the room, only to be shattered with the sound of shattering glass, which caused Keen and Lodestone to look up at each other in shock before focusing their gazes on the machine once more as the sound of the cutting of something wet could be heard. After a few moment, a thud echoed throughout the chamber before the sound of something falling from the ceiling and the voice of several ponies told Keen that something was seriously wrong. The sound cut out once again, replaced by the researcher mare sighing in exasperation before beginning to talk.

  "That was a huge mistake on our part, I'll admit it. The glass we provided the pony with was shattered within a few moments of entering the room. The pony cut his own foreleg open, dipping a stem of parsley in the open wound, which he used as paint to make the crude portrait of a pony. Sanitation crew was about to clean it up, but I stopped them. That pony had the guts to cut himself and paint that image in his own blood, a feet I'm sure none of us would be willing to undergo, I think he deserves to keep it, at least for now. He is in medical bay getting fixed up. On the bright side, we now know that the sub-dermal injection system works and is quite reliable in knocking the pony out as cold as stone. We almost lost a score of days of research because of this pony's irrational behavior, and I don't want to try and go through this again. This morning I said I have no qualms about the morality of this experiment, but that was before this poor stallion's deteriorated state drove him to self mutilation. I don't want to even think about what he might do if released into the public without proper treatment, much less... I can't finish this recording. Hey, somepony, get over here and finish the log, I'm going to check on the patient!" With that the mic went silent for a few moments, only the sound of hooves and the murmur of distant conversation telling Keen that it hadn't already ended. Eventually a pony did come up to the mic, recounting what few details the other had not before ending the nineteenth day of the now more disturbing experiment.

  "I take back what I said about stopping the F.R.I's experiments," Lodestone said in a low, threatening tone, "If I get the chance, I'll level that buildings and incinerate the rubble." He said through gritted teeth. Keen nodded slowly, more so caught up in her own thoughts than paying any real attention.

Risk woke up in his cell, much as he had for all those days previous. He immediately remembered what had happened, and looked at his foreleg, surprised it to be healed, with no trace of the wound. Looking to the wall, his cheeks flushed slightly as he looked upon the most beautiful unicorn mare he had ever seen looking back at him. Her coat was a deep crimson, while her mane was a bright red. From his angle, he couldn't see her cutie mark, but he honestly didn't care, he had company for the first time since his arrival in the box.

  "W-who are you?" He asked dumbly as he stared it stupefied admiration of the mare's beauty and grace. Her long flowing mane, her thin frame, that wasn't so thin to be unhealthy, but simply slender, and her eyes, a gentle tan, that gave a motherly vibe. "What's your name?" Risk asked again, looking the mare over subconsciously, which caused her to shy away with a smile, a lighter patch of fur on her cheek telling him she was blushing. "How did you get in here?" He tried again.

  "You painted me." She said with a light giggle that made his heart flutter in excitement. Not only was she beautiful, but her voice was lovely, more lovely than any other voice he had ever heard.

  "I... painted you?" He echoed in disbelief. He had occasionally dabbled in painting, but he had never made something so beautiful. "What's your name?" e asked again.

  "I don't know." She admitted with a blush as she hid behind her mane, something Risk found exceptionally cute. "I never had a name before."

  "How about... Brushstroke?" He offered hopefully. The mare looked back to him, her eyes glowing at the name.

  "I love it. Brushstroke." She said the name to herself, smiling more as the name rolled off hr tongue. Risk couldn't help but smile too, this beautiful mare had just complemented his naming skills, had just complimented HIM, something no other mare besides his mother ever did. "What's your name?"

  "Calculated Risk." He replied automatically.

  "I like it, it sounds adventurous." She commented. "Where are we?" She asked, looking at the whiteness around them. Risk didn't reply, simply gazing upon the new found beauty that inhabited the room with him. "Are you alright?" She asked, looking at the dumbfounded stallion.

  "I've been alone for so long, it's nice to have somepony in here with me finally." He admitted. "I lost count how many days have passed a while ago." He added, looking downcast as he stared at the floor in front of him, the white seeming to not b quite as painful any more, a welcome relief. "I can't remember the last time I saw a pony before you."

  "It'll be alright. Even if we can't get out, at least we have each other to keep company with. Neither of us will have to be alone ever again." Brushstroke stated firmly, a smile spreading across her face. Risk nodded, returning the smile gratefully.

Keen and Lodestone began to set up camp for the night amongst the cacti once again. Keen wasn't much in the mood to do anything, though she did try and help by cutting up some cacti, skinning them from some food. Lodestone was tasked with building a fire out of their meager resources, as well as finding anything else to be used as food. As the sun slowly began to inch behind the horizon, the sounds of a great wind began to fill the area as a sandstorm rolled in,  something Lodestone noted as odd.

  "The wild magics of this area can get wild at times, but I have yet to see a sandstorm as powerful as that sounds get this far out of the shifting sands." He noted, looking around for any sigh of where the wall of crystalline soil might be, only to freeze as he spotted something else. "Keen, we need to get out of here." He whispered. "But we can't panic and we can't gallop as fast as possible, we just need to move."

  "I thought we were bedding down so we can have enough energy to do just that." Keen countered as she took a look at the fire that was starting to give a bit of warmth now that it wasn't struggling to survive, only to watch as Lodestone shoved sand over it, killing it without a second of hesitation. "H-hey, what about staving off the cool of the nighttime desert?" She asked, only to have a hoof slammed into her mouth as Lodestone motioned with his nose towards the sky. Above them a gigantic black mass moved as one, looking much  like a cloud, which Keen mistook it for when she looked at it, only to look again as the glint of something shinny within caught her eye.

  "I had hoped they were patrolling farther to the south of their territory at this time, but it seems we aren't as lucky as I had hoped for." Lodestone muttered as he moved his hoof back to the ground with a sigh. "We need to work fast to get hidden." He stated. "Get the cloth fencing from my bag, I have an idea." Keen quickly complied, getting the cloth fence from his pack.

  "What... who are they?" Keen asked as she made sure she had gotten all of it out of his bag. Lodestone didn't reply for several moments as he got things together, making Keen think he hadn't heard. "Lodestone?" Keen whispered.

  "This desert, for as bad as it might seen, is ripe of opportunity for some creatures. Stymphalian Bandits just so happen to be one of those groups. Let me tell you, they aren't nice to anyone or anything that isn't them." Keen looked up at the now glittering swarm as it drew nearer and nearer.

  "What are they, where do they come from?" Keen asked, still unable to make out individuals. "Are they griffins?" Lodestone shook his head.

  "They are a type of bird, a killing type to be exact. They used to live elsewhere, though nopony has even been able to tell where. What we do know is that they were forced out by a pack of Diamond Dogs. They live in a swamp farther south currently. Some ponies have tried to get at their nest, but between the sentinels and the fact the ground won't support anything more than a feather, nopony has made any progress." Lodestone explained as he took the cloth and threw it over the bags before covering it with sand. "They don't go far into the plains since the Saddle Arabians have enough resources to take them out should they, but they still terrorize the lands between the cacti forests and the lower plains."

  "They are just birds right? Even if they were smart, how would they be a problem for anypony except farmers?" Keen asked as he set up some of the cloth fences to form a box.

  "Well, no matter how stupid this sounds, they are a bit more than just birds. They are almost as big as swans, are fast, have bronze coated beaks, and feathers that are somehow sharp, and not just sharp, but as sharp as any sword you can find, if not more." Lodestone explained as he covered the box of cloth with sand. "Not only are they well versed in metallurgy, but know how to use it to deadly effect, and without any remorse. In a word, they're bad news." Keen nodded, looking back up to notice that she could start to make out a few of the birds farther away from the flock. "I suggest you get inside." Lodestone said, drawing her attention once more. He was lifting a flap to the box. "I need to finish out here, and I can't risk both of us out in the open. They are mostly colorblind, so if we can blend in to the area even slightly, we should be fine." Keen nodded in response, sliding inside the cramped space.

  After a few moments, Lodestone joined her inside the small shelter as the sound of wings beating above grew louder and louder to the point of being deafening. After a few deafening moments as the ponies held their hooves to their ears, the sound stopped except for the occasional rustle of feathers. Keen ignored the slight ringing in her ears as she tried to listen to the conversation that she could hear a bit through the sand and shelter.

  "They 'er righ' 'ere, Ah swar!" The first said defensively. "They mus' of 'indin 'emselves ner bah." The sound of something heavy jumping about on one of the cacti around them hold her that the bird was looking for them as best it could.

  "Ah'rn Feat'ers, 'ou 'ave ne'er been un tuh flaah's of fanceh, 'ut Ah cannut seh a singel poneh, er enetang fer t'at mahter, fer mahls." Another said as he rustled his feathers. "Yu shur yu shaw i' righ'? Cold it 'ave been a miragee?"

  "Naw, i' twer as real as me feat'ers Ah know t'at t'ey 'er righ' 'ere!" The first shot back. "Ah may be ol' bu' ah t'aint t'at ol' t'at Ah cannut tell a miragee ferm a poneh."

  "May'e t'ey moved an' 'er 'ere, jus' nut any'mer." A third offered. "Ah'rn Feat'ers t'is our greates' 'unter, Ah 'ave me doubts t'at he mistuk sometin fer sometin else. Teh day t'at 'appens is teh day we ne'd tuh give ourse'vs to teh Sheddle Ahadians." Keen tensed as something extremely heavy landed on her back.

  "Ey! T'ince 'en di' we 'ave dunes d'is far out ferm teh desert?" The bird on here back asked. The other birds fell silent. Suddenly a wing lashed through the cloth beside her, the razor sharp feathers making quick work of the cloth. Keen covered her mouth to ensure she would yelp as several of the birds let out squawks and whistles.  "T'is ainut ner dune! T'is a tent covered up in san'." Several more wings sliced through the cloth as if it was just air. Keen closed her eyes, trying to shut out her surroundings, to not notice the death.

  "STOP!" Lodestone shouted, rolling out of the cover to Keen's terror. "I give myself up!" He said, presenting himself to the birds, who stopped attacking the sand covered shelter. Keen could easily see him through a whole in the fabric, though she still couldn't make out any of the birds. "Don't hurt me, please." He pleaded.

  "Eh, t'is a flahin poneh!" One of the birds noted.

  "What ya doin' out 'ere, litteh poneh?" the one called Ah'rn... Iron Feathers asked. "Yer a long weh ferm yer citeh." He pointed out. Lodestone looked past Keen, towards the bird. "Are ya out 'ere to fahnd our nests, eh?"

  "No, I already know where your nests are." Lodestone replied. "They are farther south in a marsh. I'm currently trying to go out of my way to avoid going to it." The bird let out a squawking laugh in response.

  "Ya be righ' abou' t'where i' t'is, bu' yer wrong about ya avoidin' i'." Iron Feathers replied, almost mockingly. "Yer gonna ge' a gran tour of teh place, litteh poneh. Ah'm sure teh chicks will be 'appy to see ya." Suddenly another bird swooped down, grabbing Lodestone by the barrel before lifting off with a few swift beets of its wings. Keen had barely gotten the sight of it before it had left, though the brownish-orange beak which shot a shaft of light into her eyes told her that these birds did indeed coat their beaks with bronze. All at once, the flock of Stymphalian birds took off, shooting up into the sky in another deafening chorus. Keen crouched there for what seemed like an eternity with her hooves against her ears, only hoping that they be gone soon enough.

  The sound of wings beating finally faded out to the point where Keen once again could lower her hooves from her ears. All around her, the ground was, with no little surprise, dotted with bird excrement, though the pile of sand that concealed her and Lodestone's bags remained untouched. Keen lifted both bags onto her back, picking up the piece of cloth and stowing it away before looking up to the sky to see where the birds had flown to. Sure enough, it was to the south, towards the marsh. Keen took a breath in and charged in pursuit.