The Cutie Mark Huntersby Subject 19ChaptersAmnesiaThere It Is...First PatientSunny SkiesAmnesiaAn orange pegasus pony opened his eyes slowly. The pony looked around the room, taking in his surroundings. He was in a bed surrounded by various medical equipment. A hospital. That must be where he was. In a hospital. But why? What happened? Was he hurt? He didn’t feel any pain. He ran a hoof through his black and red mane, trying to remember anything from before he woke up. “Oh good, you’re awake,” a mare said, entering the room. The mare had a white body and was wearing a nurse’s hat on her pink mane. “What happened? What am I doing here?” the confused pegasus asked. “You were found in the edge of the Everfree Forest by another pony. She brought you here, fearing you might be injured. Thankfully it looks like you were just malnourished. Can you tell me your name?” “Subject 19.” He didn’t even have to think. The words seemed to come out on their own. The nurse gave 19 a questioning look for a moment. “Ok. Can you tell me what you were doing in the Everfree?” “I… I… I can’t remember,” 19 confessed, desperately trying to remember something, anything. But he couldn’t remember a single thing. He didn’t know who he was. “I can’t remember anything! Wha- what’s happening? Why can’t I remember anything?” Subject 19’s breathing started to pick up as he began to panic. “Sir, please calm down. It’ll be ok,” the nurse promised as she rushed over to the bed, making sure her patient didn’t do anything to hurt himself. The stallion looked the nurse in the eyes. Deep red eyes looked up to crystal blue ones. “Who am I?” he asked before passing out. “How are you feeling today, Subject?” “I feel fine, Redheart,” 19 replied as stood by the window, looking out at the town of Ponyville. “Any improvements?” Redheart asked as she trotted over to the pegasus. “I can read, write, do math, even fly,” he listed, even giving his wings a good flap to prove his point. “But I can’t remember anything about me,” Subject 19 said, his eyes fixed on a nonexistent object out beyond the window. “Just give it time,” the nurse told him, putting a hoof on 19’s shoulder reassuringly. “I’m sure it will all come back.” “But what if it doesn’t? No pony has come to see me since I got here five days ago. Did I even live here? Or was living somewhere else? And you said that no pony has reported another pony matching my description missing in all of Equestria. How is that even possible? Did I not know anypony before this?” “So what will you do once you’re out of here?” The question was one 19 hadn’t even contemplated yet. He had been so focused on trying to remember that he didn’t even think of what he would do once he was out of the hospital. “I don’t know. I suppose I’ll have to find work and a house.” A pink earth pony wearing glasses with red hair and an aqua streak running through it, walked into Sugarcube Corner. On her flank she had a waterfall as her cutie mark. As she was getting in line to order, she bumped into somepony and dropped all her research on the floor. "Damn it! I just put them in order!" she yelled. As she went towards her last papers to pick them up, she saw another hoof. The pink pony looked up and saw a new orange pony she had never seen before. She stared into his red eyes, wanting to know who he was and what he was doing here. “And you are?” “I’m Subject 19,” the orange pegasus answered. “That's a unique name for a pony.” “I suppose it is. What’s your name?” “Dr. Aqua Light,” she proudly stated. “Doctor? Doctor of what?” 19 questioned curiously. “I’m a doctor of psychology. I like helping ponies. So Mr. 19, what are you doing here in Ponyville? Do you live here?” “Honestly, I don’t know. I just got released from the hospital just a few hours ago. I can’t remember anything but my name.” “I can help with that. You can come to my new office with me after I get something to eat.” “Sounds like a plan, I could go for a fresh pot of coffee anyway,” 19 said with a smile. The two ponies ordered their breakfast and brought it to an empty table. 19 took an entire pot of coffee with an empty cup. “You’re not seriously going to drink an entire pot of coffee are you?” Aqua asked. “No, I just brought the entire pot with me because I thought it would make an excellent table decoration,” 19 sarcastically replied as he sat down at the table with Aqua. “Of course I’m gonna drink it all.” After having poured some coffee into his cup, he spoke up again. “So how long have you lived here in Ponyville?” “I just moved here actually. I’m trying to get my business set up still,” she answered sheepishly. “Do you know what you’ll be specializing in for your business?” When all 19 got was an unsure shrug he gave a soft chuckle. “You don’t even know what you’ll be specializing in,” he realized. “Well I don’t see you coming up with any ideas!” “I’m not the doctor,” 19 shot back. “You’re a real smart ass, aren’t you?” “Smarter than you anyway.” “Hey!” “Ok, I’ve had my fun,” 19 said with a satisfied grin. “We can come up with ideas later. As selfish as it may sound, I’m more concerned about finding out who I am right now.” The two quickly finished their breakfast, Subject 19 downing the entire pot of the super delicious hot beverage scarily fast. Aqua figured it was best not to even question him and just drop the whole coffee thing. Subject 19 and Aqua Light walked into her office. It was noticeably barren save for a couch, a padded chair and a desk. 19 looked around, as if searching for some redeeming quality that was hidden away. “This is it? When you said you had an office I expected, well… something more than this,” the orange stallion commented. “More like what?” the doctor asked. “More than three pieces of furniture. Maybe even a water fountain,” 19 commented. “A water fountain?” “I hear the sound of running water is very relaxing.” “Where did you hear that? You have amnesia!” “Thanks, I forgot about that,” he said sarcastically, venturing up the staircase just past the desk. “Do you at least have a bed?” 19 hollered, turning his head to look at Aqua. “We have three actually!” a male voice replied excitedly. 19 whipped his head around and was face to face with another pony. “What the hell!” he shouted, nearly jumping through the roof. “Who’s this joker!?” 19 demanded, pointing at the grey pegasus in front of him. He also noticed the pegasus' messy black and red mane, and his bright red eyes. “That’s my brother, Dark Light,”Aqua happily answered. “Also, I need you to cancel my other appointments for today please!” “You don’t have any appointments, stupid head!” he yelled at her. “I do so! I have Twilight at three, Applejack at five and Rainbow Dash at six! So cancel them!” “Yeah, and I’ve got dinner with the princesses at eight!” Dark retorted. “You little shit!” Subject 19 just gave Aqua a deadpan expression. “You don’t have any clients.” “I do so! My LITTLE brother is not canceling them for me!” she yelled very loudly. “Ugh! Fine!” he shouted back, finally giving in. “Little brothers can be a pain in the ass sometimes.” 19 flew down to Aqua. “I’ll take your word for it.” “But now that you’re here, let’s figure out what’s wrong with you!” Aqua squealed as she rushed her patient over to the couch. She grabbed a pen and notepad as 19 sat down on the couch. “So 19, where did you live before this?” “No, I don’t remember anything before waking up in the hospital.” “Hmmm, okay” Aqua writes down on her notepad. “I could use hypnosis to try and help you remember.” “At this point I’m willing to do whatever it takes to remember. Go for it, doc.” Aqua went towards her desk to grab a pocket watch. “Since earth ponies can’t use magic like unicorns, we have to use enchanted items. For me, I like a pocket watch!” she said as she skipped over to where Subject 19 was. Aqua went in front of 19, dangled the watch in front of his face and whispered into his ear. “Focus on my watch and let your breathing slow down.” 19 took a deep breath in and listened to Aqua’s instructions as she slowly brought him into a relaxed state. She kept this going until she was sure he was in a trance before continuing. “Think of what you first remember at the hospital and go before that,” she said swinging the watch back and forth. “What do you see?” “I see a lab,” Subject 19 quietly said. “Where is this lab?” “Beneath Canterlot.” “What else is in the lab with you?” “Other… other test subjects.” “How many?” “Dozens. They all look like me. What… what’s going on?” 19’s breathing started picking up. “It’s ok, 19, I need you to relax,” Aqua said, trying to get her patient back under control. Subject 19 jolted up from the couch, panting heavily. “Holy hell. I was there,” he whispered, making eye contact with Aqua. “I need to find that lab.” “No, you can’t go!” “And why not? The answers are in Canterlot. I’m leaving to get those answers. You coming, doc?” ‘This is why I don’t move around all the time,’ Aqua thought to herself. “Ugh fine. There’s a train that leaves in two hours. We can catch that one.” There It Is...19 was stuck in a large cylinder filled with a strange orange liquid. His muzzle was covered by a breathing mask of some sort. Through the glass he could see distorted figures of ponies wearing lab coats. Subject 19 saw a patch on the shoulder of the coat that read ‘Division 516’ on it. “Subject 19 has responded well to the serum,” one of the doctors announced to her fellow colleagues. She was holding a clipboard with a bunch of writing on it. The only thing 19 could make out was Project: Fire Whirl. “He’ll be faster and stronger than any pegasus in all of Equestria.” “Doctor Paradise Lost, if he was created in this lab, why does he have a cutie mark?” one of the other mares asked. “We know how we all get our marks. It’s from discovering our destiny. However, we know little about the science behind them. Why we even have our cutie marks in the first place. If the mark itself has an effect on a pony, or if it is more of an identifier than a definer. More research will need to be done on Subject 19 before we can determine why a cutie mark manifested on him. For now, we need to get ready for the general to arrive.” Subject 19 jolted up in a cold sweat, panting heavily. He instantly knew what had happened. That wasn’t a dream, that was a memory. But it brought up even more questions than it answered. Who was Paradise Lost? Did she find out the meaning of his mark? What was Project: Fire Whirl? Aqua looked over to him on the opposite side of the train couch. “Are you alright? Looks like you had a pretty nasty nightmare.” 19 shook his head. “It wasn’t a nightmare. It was a memory. I was back in that lab.” “Okay tell me about the memory.” “There were scientists in the lab. One of them was called Paradise Lost. I couldn’t see her that well. She was wearing a lab coat, I think it said Division 516 on it. And her clipboard said Project: Fire Whirl. That’s all I could remember.” “Fire Whirl? Hmm. I think I’m gonna call you that now!” “You can’t be serious,” 19 deadpanned. “Yes I am serious. It’s suits you.” “I suppose it’s better than a number.” “Well ya you got that right. Also, what’s the deal with your cutie mark?” Looking down at it, 19 just gave a shrug. “I honestly don’t know. I’m hoping this Dr. Paradise Lost will know.” “Well we will find out when we get there, alright?” “Sounds like a plan.” The rest of the train ride was mostly silent, as was the walk through Canterlot once they arrived. The city shined bright through the dark night sky above. Celestia’s sun had fallen a few hours ago and Luna’s moon stood proudly in it’s place. Everything was just so big to 19. The buildings, the hoof traffic was slightly overwhelming considering all he knew was Ponyville. As they traveled through the busy city, the duo ran into something strange. “Do you even know where you’re going, Fire?” Aqua asked her orange companion. “Not a clue. But I figure there has to be an entrance to the tunel system somewhere,” 19, or Fire Whirl as Aqua was now calling him. “Hey, what’s up with all these guards?” she questioned, pointing them out to 19. As they trotted over, they soon realised the reason. The ground had collapsed and destroyed what was probably one of Canterlot’s many cave systems. The collapsed encompassed an entire acre, causing the numerous buildings around it to collapse with the ground, debris scattered everywhere. “What happened here?” Subject 19 asked one of the royal guards. “One of the cave systems collapsed,” the alabaster pegasus answered. “This area is still very unstable sir, so I’m going to have to ask that you step back.” “Do you know what caused it?” “We don’t know what happened. Now please get back.” 19 gave Aqua a suspicious look, but they both stepped away as instructed. “That can’t be a coincidence. That lab was underground and I’m willing to bet that it’s beneath that wreck.” “You found the lab, well what’s left of it anyways, so now what?” Aqua asked 19. “We find Paradise Lost.” “You don’t even know what she looks like. How are we going to find her in this city? How do we even know she wasn’t in the lab when it collapsed?” “Because no two ponies have the same name. We go to the library and find the records. Search for her name and we’ll get an address.” As they entered the library they went towards the bookshelf at the back right corner. The library was deserted due to the fact that it was closing in less than half an hour. Aside from the staff, Aqua and 19 were the only ones there. Once they found the book they were looking for, they laid it down on one of the tables and started searching for Paradise Lost. “I don’t think we will find it, Fire.” “It has to be here. This is the only clue we have,” 19 began frantically searching. For minutes he searched through books, tossing every one aside, unable to find Paradise Lost anywhere. “Is there any other names you can remember?” Aqua asked him, putting a hoof to his shoulder. “Lost said something about a general arriving,” he recalled hazily. “I never made out a name though.” “It could be General United Front.” “Who the hell is that?” “There was a ceremony not too long after the Sombra War where the princesses made United Front General of the Equestrian Armies. He’s in charge of all our military, only second to Luna and Celestia.” 19 thought for moment, thinking over his options carefully. “I need a way to get him to meet me alone.” “Well there’s the old castle in the Everfree. No pony ever goes there anymore,” the pink pony suggested. “That might do nicely. I’ll need to look it over first though. Logic would dictate that if United Front was a part of my creation, knowing I’m running freely won’t sit well for him. I’ll contact him once I’m ready, for now I have to scope out this location. If things go south with our meeting, I’ll need to know my escape routes.” The black maned pegasus searched through the books he had until he found United Front’s address. After tearing the page out he turned to Aqua. “Alright we’re done here. Let’s head back to Ponyville.” Author's Note Chapter two is done! Let me know if you spot any errors and I'll be sure to get them fixed! Also thanks so much for love this story has been getting! You ponies are the greatest! First Patient“So we can’t find this Paradise Lost, right?” Aqua asked. “She’s a dead end at this point. But we do have the lead with this United Front character,” Fire Whirl stated, running a hoof through his mane. “I need you to take me to the old castle you mentioned last night. If he does know who I am and agrees to meet, I need to have as much of an advantage as I can get. There’s no telling how he’ll react to this.” The chime to the door rang, bringing the two ponies attention to a new face. “Hey jackass, did you not see the sign? We’re busy!” Fire shouted at the newcomer. “Uh, there was no sign anywhere,” he replied hesitantly. Fire slowly turned his head toward Aqua, giving her an annoyed look. “We are in the middle of something big and you don’t put up a closed sign? Or even lock the damn door?” “Oh shut up,” Aqua hissed. “I could use a client who isn’t an ass like you.” Fire gave a soft chuckle. Something about that mare just felt right. They had a weird dynamic, but they fit well together. “Fine, I’ll go pester your brother or something while you deal with him.” “Or you could stay and help me. Consider it payment for me helping you.” Fire Whirl let out a long groan. “Fine,” he said, conceding to her request. They walked over together to formally greet the potential client. “Hi, I’m Dr. Aqua Light and this is Fire Whirl,” the doctor introduced pointing towards the pony sitting on the chair by her desk. Fire gave the pony a nod, looking completely disinterested. “Uh, yeah hi. I’m Shadow Rift and I was wondering if you could help me.” Aqua’s eyes lit up like a filly opening her presents on Hearth’s Warming. “Of course we can help you! What do you need help with?” “Well, I’ve been having a bit of a slump lately. You see, my parents… well they died when I was just colt. It just seems that with everything that’s happened to me in the past year, I just can’t stop thinking about them. It’s wearing me down mentally.” “Do you think you’re depressed?” Aqua questioned him. “Ding ding ding! How very perceptive of you doctor!” Fire teased. “Fire, would you stop! That's very rude,” she glared at the orange pegasus. “Ugh, fine,” he groaned. Shadow shifted, obviously a little uncomfortable with the bickering going on. “Is he a doctor too?” “No, he’s another client I’m helping. Part of his recovery involves helping other ponies, so he’ll be helping me help you!” Aqua explained. “Oh, uhm ok I guess,” Shadow mumbled. “Here, take a seat over on the sofa and I will be right with you.” “Alright,” he said, slowly trotting over to sofa and lying down. “Would you like some coffee or tea or water while you wait?” “Some water would be nice,” Shadow replied timidly. “Just give me the whole pot!” Fire hollered at her. “No, you had too much coffee already!” “I’ve only had two pots, I’m due for my third,” the black haired pegasus countered. “First off, I think you have a serious problem and second, I didn't ask you, I asked Shadow! Now shut it!” “You say problem, I say insatiable thirst.” The doctor looked over at Fire and shook her head as she walked away. She walked in the kitchen to grab a glass of water for Shadow. “So, Shadow, while we wait for the dear doctor, tell me a bit about yourself,” Fire insisted, merely trying to pass the boredom. “Well I won the best young flyers competition a couple years ago and not too long ago I won the Iron Pegasus Gauntlet.” Aqua walked into the room. “You were in the Iron Pegasus Gauntlet?” she asked, handing him a glass of water. “Yeah! Got first place in it!” “That’s awesome!” “Yes, very impressive,” Fire Whirl said dismissively. “Now how about we get to the part where he tells us what’s wrong with him?” “You're being an asshat, now say you're sorry!” Aqua ordered. “I don’t apologize.” “You know what, just ignore him. Now what seems to be the problem, Shadow?” “Well, you see… my parents died when I was very young. I was just five years old. There was this accident at the Cloudsdale weather station.” Aqua walked towards the chair in front of Shadow and sat down as she took out her notepad and black pen to take notes. “Hmm okay, so were you placed in foster care?” “Yeah I was up there until I turned 18 and could live on my own.” “Did you like your foster parents?” “They did the best they could with what they had. I was one of seven. They were kind ponies I’d say.” “Hmmmm interesting,” she mumbled, as she wrote some stuff down on her notepads. “I liked the part where his parents died. But he needs to work on the buildup. Make me feel something for his parents,” Fire whispered to Aqua, making sure Shadow couldn’t hear him. “Fire Whirl! That is very rude! Now say you're sorry!” she yelled at Fire “Say sorry for what?” Shadow asked, confused since he hadn’t heard Fire Whirl’s remark. “He said something very rude and now he needs to say sorry.” “clarifilteria” He mumbled to himself in his own personal language. “Sorry,” Fire sighed half heartedly. “It’s fine I suppose,” he said. “Do you want to know what he said” Aqua asked. “I will beat you to death with those glasses of yours if you tell him,” Fire quietly hissed at the doctor. “Well he has to know Fire!” “Shut up and just drop it.” “Fine i will drop it but this is not over yet,” she hissed at him. “Yes it is,” he growled back. Aqua glared back at him but didn't say another word. “So how can you two help me?” Shadow asked the doctor. “Well, I have a gift, and Fire, before you say anything, just shut it. I can communicate with ponies that have passed on.” Fire Whirl held back a fit of laughs, trying not to burst out at her claim. “Fire, I said shut it!” She yelled, throwing her notepad at him. Once her orange companion had stopped his laughing, she continued. “I just need something that belonged to them and I can try to get in touch with them.” Shadow nodded and dug into his bag to find a necklace of his mother and a pocket watch of his father's. “There you go. Will that work for you?” “This is perfect, thank you Shadow,” Aqua replied, taking the two items from him. “Pray tell doctor, how will you communicate with the dead? You’re not a unicorn, you have no spells or magic.” “All earth ponies have some magic inside of them. Most of the time this gives them superior strength or form of connection to the earth around them. For me though, my magic gives me certain psychic abilities!” Aqua gleefully replied with a big grin. “I’ll be right back, I need a fresh pot,” Fire told them as he trotted off to the kitchen. Aqua just glared at the back of Fire’s head as walked out of the room. “Fine we don’t need him anyway.” “I heard that!” “You were supposed to hear that, stupid!” Aqua turned back to face Shadow, who was still laying down on the couch. “So let’s see if I can get ahold of your parents shall we?” Aqua took the pocket watch and the necklace off the table as well as her crystal. She leaned over the table, held the crystal over the things that Shadow gave her, and whispered some words. She felt a cold wind come to her. “Shadow, did your parents have a black and red mane?” she looked at Shadow for a second then turn to look beside him. “My mother had the colors in her mane, why, what do you see?” he asked curiously. “I can see your mom standing beside you right now” “What about my father, Doctor? Is he here too?” Aqua looked at the other side of Shadow and saw his father sitting beside him on the couch and nodded. “Your mom and dad love you very much.” Aqua saw a tear rolling down his cheek. “Your mom says don’t cry, she hates when you cry.” Shadow nodded and wiped away his tears. “Mom, Dad I miss you.” He felt something on his shoulder, turned to Aqua. “Is one of them touching my shoulder, Aqua?” “Yes, your father put his hoof on your shoulder.” Shadow laid one of his hoof where he felt his father’s . “Thanks dad.” With that his parents disappeared. “And thank you for helping me, Doctor Aqua Light.” “You’re welcome, Shadow,” she said, leading him to the front door. Once Shadow had left, Fire Whirl entered the room. “Took you long enough. Now we can get back to work.” “Do you have to be mean to me?” “As long as it keeps being fun, yes.” “You’re an asshole you know that?” “I’m looking for answers. What you or anyone else thinks of me is not my concern.” “But it will be once you get your answers.” Fire simply grunted in response. “We’re leaving for the Castle of the Two Sisters tomorrow. Be prepared.” “Alright, let's get some sleep then.” Sunny Skies“How much farther is this place?” Fire Whirl asked his red maned companion. They had been walking through the Everfree Forest for a good hour now with no end in sight. “It should be right up here,” Aqua hollered back. The two approached a clearing through the dense forest. Before them stood the Castle of the Two Sisters. The stone castle was in complete disrepair owing to the battle between Nightmare Moon and Celestia, and thousands of years left to rot away. Aqua and Fire trotted over the wooden bridge to what was left of the main entrance. Even with the sun shining down on it, the castle gave off a very ominous aura. It was as if the dread and sorrow of the events that happened so long ago lingered on to this day. “Well… here we are,” Aqua announced with a slight shiver. Fire took note of Aqua’s unease but decided to pursue it. “Hard to imagine the two most powerful beings used to rule here,” he commented, walking through the entrance. They continued down the main hallway until the reached the throne room, still bearing the tapestries of both Celestia and Luna, although heavily torn. The sun’s rays beat through the collapsed ceiling, providing much needed light on the otherwise dark castle. Fire Whirl spent some time observing the throne room and all of the exits around in it, being sure to cover all possible ways to make an escape. Most of the corridors leading out of the throne room had collapsed and were completely inaccessible. However there were still a few that seemed to provide a viable, if slightly questionable means of escape should the need arise. “I must say, the damage this castle has sustained might work to my advantage, if I need to make a getaway,” Fire observed. “I think it’s time I let United Front know I’m very much alive.” “And I don’t know about you, but this place is kind of starting to give me the creeps,” Aqua said, a shiver running down her spine. “Yeah, I’ve seen what I needed, let’s get back to Ponyville.” “Okay let’s go then,” she said. The doctor pushed up her glasses as she wrote some notes for her other patient before she came. She never knew this job can get this hard. On the other hoof, she had met great friends because of this job. A strong knocking on the front door disrupted Aqua’s thoughts. “It opens!” She hollered. The door slowly opened and a nervous looking mare stepped in. Aqua looked up from her paperwork. “Hello there, do you need help with anything?” “Uh… yes, you see I’m looking for somepony and…” mid sentence her bright red eyes landed on Fire Whirl. “Subject 19! You’re alive!” The red unicorn rushed up to Fire as he simply took in the mare’s nearly blinding features. Her flame yellow and orange hair complimented her red body surprisingly well. She looked like she was the daughter of Celestia’s own sun. “Who the hell are you?” Fire asked, taking a step back from the mare. “Oh, sorry. I’m Sunny Skies, I was one of the scientists that helped create you.” The pegasus raised a curious eyebrow. “Then you know Paradise Lost,” he said more as a statement rather than a question. “Where is she?” “Wow, I’m surprised you actually remember her, considering you were barely conscious before the accident.” “The memories aren’t very clear, but I remember bits and pieces. Now answer the question.” “I’m sorry, but I don’t know where she is. I was still at home when the accident happened. I wasn’t able to find her at her house and no pony else has seen her since the accident. I’m afraid she probably died down there in the lab.” “That’s not good enough for me. If she’s truly dead then I want to see her body.” “I’d assume the first place you went to was the lab, or what’s left of it.” When the orange pegasus nodded she continued. “Then you know that it’s going to weeks, maybe months, before the debris is cleared. I’m shocked that you managed to survive it.” “If I was able to survive whatever happened, then so could she.” “Well let’s say you’re right and Dr. Lost did survive the incident. Why hasn’t she made contact with anypony? Why hasn’t she let her colleagues know she’s alive? Why would she, of all ponies, want the world to think she was dead?” Fire Whirl frowned, knowing that Sunny raised very valid questions. “What could have caused the entire lab to be destroyed in the first place?” “I’ve been wondering that myself. We had countless safety measures in place so that something like this wouldn’t ever happen. My gut says that it must have been sabotage from someone in the lab.” “That’s a pretty heavy accusation to throw. Do you have anything to back that theory up?” “What we worked on down there was highly controversial, especially creating you. A few of our own scientists even voiced their concerns about what we were doing. I don’t even think the princesses knew exactly what went on in the lab.” “What?” Fire asked in disbelief. There was no way that Celestia and Luna weren’t kept in the loop on something as big as this. “Are you telling me, that you all kept information from your princesses?” Sunny shifted on her hooves nervously. “We may have been… uh… a bit selective with the information we shared.” “Did they know about me?” “...No. We kept your creation a secret from just about every pony except for the general. I was never told what his business there was, but he seemed really interested in you.” “I’m well aware of General United Front’s involvement with me. But why did Paradise keep information from the princesses? She reported to them after all, right?” “That’s the thing. I don’t know why exactly, but Dr. Lost resented having to report to Celestia and Luna. She made it very clear that you were not to be shared with anypony other than Front. Dr. Lost insisted that the princesses wouldn’t understand how great of a scientific breakthrough you’d be, and that they in their shortsighted thinking would shut it down. I, as well as most of the other scientists, agreed with her. What we were doing was decades ahead of all known science. Creating life to the extent we did with you is a rather grey area.” “So you deliberately went behind their backs all for the sake of creating me? Why? Why go to such lengths and probably risk charges just shy of treason?” “For science! You have no idea what your existence means to Equestria! You are the gateway to solving some of life’s greatest problems. Cancer, infection, disabilities, disease, maybe even death! Making you has brought us closer than we ever thought possible just a few years ago,” Sunny insisted, her eyes lighting up just thinking about the good that could be achieved. “So why would anypony be opposed to that if the benefits are as great as you claim them to be?” Sunny sighed and lowered her head. “Because others see you as the next evolution of ponykind. And that it would mean the very likely extinction of the obsolete race, which would be all of us. If science has taught us anything, it is that when a more evolved race comes in contact with a similar, less evolved one…” “They’re destroyed,” Fire finished. “They would see me as the first step towards their own demise.” “Exactly. So you can see why you fall into this grey area of science,” she said with a sigh. Fire ran a hoof through his red and black hair. Sunny had provided him with many answers to his questions, but there were still more that he had. Ones that could only be answered by Paradise Lost. If Division 516’s security and safety measures were as extensive as Sunny claimed, then the most likely cause for the accident was sabotage. Fire Whirl didn’t believe for a second that the doctor was dead. But he couldn’t deny that the mare in front of him raised a valid argument. If Paradise was alive, why wouldn’t she reach out to her colleagues and let them know she was ok? “Is it possible that Paradise was the one who destroyed the lab?” Fire asked Sunny. “I mean, it’s possible, yes. If anypony knew how cause a catastrophic failure in the lab, it would be her. But why would she? Do you have any idea how much data and research we lost down there? That was Paradise’s life work down there. She would willingly die before sacrificing so much as a single file of her research.” “A true scientist in that regard. Look, I’m not going to be satisfied until we find her. I don’t care how long it takes to do that. I will dig up that entire fucking lab if that’s what it takes just to find her corpse. But I figure that since Canterlot’s rescue crews are already doing just that, I can spend my time entertaining the possibility that she’s alive and somewhere in this kingdom.” Aqua looked to Fire then to Sunny. “Say, do you have a place to stay?” “I do actually. I’m staying at the hotel just down the street,” Sunny replied. “How much are you paying for that hotel?” “It’s only about fifty bits per night.” “No no no that won't do. You can stay with me!” Aqua said “Uh in what bed?” Fire asked. “She can have yours and you can take the couch!” Fire shot her a dirty look, mouthing the words, “fuck you.” “So it's settled you're staying here!” “Uh are you sure? I wouldn’t want to impose.” “ Yes I'm sure, you can take Fire’s bed! Follow me and I will show you where it is!” She jumped up from her seat. “Oh ok.” Sunny slowly followed Aqua upstairs, leaving Fire downstairs by himself. Fire Whirl looked up at the ceiling, deep in thought. With Sunny literally showing up on their doorstep, he finally had a chance of narrowing his search. She was also able to shed some much needed light on a number of his questions, even if there were still many remaining. “Just hope she’s as useful as she appears,” he whispered to himself before following the mares upstairs. Author's Note YES! The story lives! I am really really sorry for taking so long to get back to this story. Life has been kind of weird these past months, but I've finally found some balance to write again! I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter. And be on the look out for another one in a few weeks.
AmnesiaAn orange pegasus pony opened his eyes slowly. The pony looked around the room, taking in his surroundings. He was in a bed surrounded by various medical equipment. A hospital. That must be where he was. In a hospital. But why? What happened? Was he hurt? He didn’t feel any pain. He ran a hoof through his black and red mane, trying to remember anything from before he woke up. “Oh good, you’re awake,” a mare said, entering the room. The mare had a white body and was wearing a nurse’s hat on her pink mane. “What happened? What am I doing here?” the confused pegasus asked. “You were found in the edge of the Everfree Forest by another pony. She brought you here, fearing you might be injured. Thankfully it looks like you were just malnourished. Can you tell me your name?” “Subject 19.” He didn’t even have to think. The words seemed to come out on their own. The nurse gave 19 a questioning look for a moment. “Ok. Can you tell me what you were doing in the Everfree?” “I… I… I can’t remember,” 19 confessed, desperately trying to remember something, anything. But he couldn’t remember a single thing. He didn’t know who he was. “I can’t remember anything! Wha- what’s happening? Why can’t I remember anything?” Subject 19’s breathing started to pick up as he began to panic. “Sir, please calm down. It’ll be ok,” the nurse promised as she rushed over to the bed, making sure her patient didn’t do anything to hurt himself. The stallion looked the nurse in the eyes. Deep red eyes looked up to crystal blue ones. “Who am I?” he asked before passing out. “How are you feeling today, Subject?” “I feel fine, Redheart,” 19 replied as stood by the window, looking out at the town of Ponyville. “Any improvements?” Redheart asked as she trotted over to the pegasus. “I can read, write, do math, even fly,” he listed, even giving his wings a good flap to prove his point. “But I can’t remember anything about me,” Subject 19 said, his eyes fixed on a nonexistent object out beyond the window. “Just give it time,” the nurse told him, putting a hoof on 19’s shoulder reassuringly. “I’m sure it will all come back.” “But what if it doesn’t? No pony has come to see me since I got here five days ago. Did I even live here? Or was living somewhere else? And you said that no pony has reported another pony matching my description missing in all of Equestria. How is that even possible? Did I not know anypony before this?” “So what will you do once you’re out of here?” The question was one 19 hadn’t even contemplated yet. He had been so focused on trying to remember that he didn’t even think of what he would do once he was out of the hospital. “I don’t know. I suppose I’ll have to find work and a house.” A pink earth pony wearing glasses with red hair and an aqua streak running through it, walked into Sugarcube Corner. On her flank she had a waterfall as her cutie mark. As she was getting in line to order, she bumped into somepony and dropped all her research on the floor. "Damn it! I just put them in order!" she yelled. As she went towards her last papers to pick them up, she saw another hoof. The pink pony looked up and saw a new orange pony she had never seen before. She stared into his red eyes, wanting to know who he was and what he was doing here. “And you are?” “I’m Subject 19,” the orange pegasus answered. “That's a unique name for a pony.” “I suppose it is. What’s your name?” “Dr. Aqua Light,” she proudly stated. “Doctor? Doctor of what?” 19 questioned curiously. “I’m a doctor of psychology. I like helping ponies. So Mr. 19, what are you doing here in Ponyville? Do you live here?” “Honestly, I don’t know. I just got released from the hospital just a few hours ago. I can’t remember anything but my name.” “I can help with that. You can come to my new office with me after I get something to eat.” “Sounds like a plan, I could go for a fresh pot of coffee anyway,” 19 said with a smile. The two ponies ordered their breakfast and brought it to an empty table. 19 took an entire pot of coffee with an empty cup. “You’re not seriously going to drink an entire pot of coffee are you?” Aqua asked. “No, I just brought the entire pot with me because I thought it would make an excellent table decoration,” 19 sarcastically replied as he sat down at the table with Aqua. “Of course I’m gonna drink it all.” After having poured some coffee into his cup, he spoke up again. “So how long have you lived here in Ponyville?” “I just moved here actually. I’m trying to get my business set up still,” she answered sheepishly. “Do you know what you’ll be specializing in for your business?” When all 19 got was an unsure shrug he gave a soft chuckle. “You don’t even know what you’ll be specializing in,” he realized. “Well I don’t see you coming up with any ideas!” “I’m not the doctor,” 19 shot back. “You’re a real smart ass, aren’t you?” “Smarter than you anyway.” “Hey!” “Ok, I’ve had my fun,” 19 said with a satisfied grin. “We can come up with ideas later. As selfish as it may sound, I’m more concerned about finding out who I am right now.” The two quickly finished their breakfast, Subject 19 downing the entire pot of the super delicious hot beverage scarily fast. Aqua figured it was best not to even question him and just drop the whole coffee thing. Subject 19 and Aqua Light walked into her office. It was noticeably barren save for a couch, a padded chair and a desk. 19 looked around, as if searching for some redeeming quality that was hidden away. “This is it? When you said you had an office I expected, well… something more than this,” the orange stallion commented. “More like what?” the doctor asked. “More than three pieces of furniture. Maybe even a water fountain,” 19 commented. “A water fountain?” “I hear the sound of running water is very relaxing.” “Where did you hear that? You have amnesia!” “Thanks, I forgot about that,” he said sarcastically, venturing up the staircase just past the desk. “Do you at least have a bed?” 19 hollered, turning his head to look at Aqua. “We have three actually!” a male voice replied excitedly. 19 whipped his head around and was face to face with another pony. “What the hell!” he shouted, nearly jumping through the roof. “Who’s this joker!?” 19 demanded, pointing at the grey pegasus in front of him. He also noticed the pegasus' messy black and red mane, and his bright red eyes. “That’s my brother, Dark Light,”Aqua happily answered. “Also, I need you to cancel my other appointments for today please!” “You don’t have any appointments, stupid head!” he yelled at her. “I do so! I have Twilight at three, Applejack at five and Rainbow Dash at six! So cancel them!” “Yeah, and I’ve got dinner with the princesses at eight!” Dark retorted. “You little shit!” Subject 19 just gave Aqua a deadpan expression. “You don’t have any clients.” “I do so! My LITTLE brother is not canceling them for me!” she yelled very loudly. “Ugh! Fine!” he shouted back, finally giving in. “Little brothers can be a pain in the ass sometimes.” 19 flew down to Aqua. “I’ll take your word for it.” “But now that you’re here, let’s figure out what’s wrong with you!” Aqua squealed as she rushed her patient over to the couch. She grabbed a pen and notepad as 19 sat down on the couch. “So 19, where did you live before this?” “No, I don’t remember anything before waking up in the hospital.” “Hmmm, okay” Aqua writes down on her notepad. “I could use hypnosis to try and help you remember.” “At this point I’m willing to do whatever it takes to remember. Go for it, doc.” Aqua went towards her desk to grab a pocket watch. “Since earth ponies can’t use magic like unicorns, we have to use enchanted items. For me, I like a pocket watch!” she said as she skipped over to where Subject 19 was. Aqua went in front of 19, dangled the watch in front of his face and whispered into his ear. “Focus on my watch and let your breathing slow down.” 19 took a deep breath in and listened to Aqua’s instructions as she slowly brought him into a relaxed state. She kept this going until she was sure he was in a trance before continuing. “Think of what you first remember at the hospital and go before that,” she said swinging the watch back and forth. “What do you see?” “I see a lab,” Subject 19 quietly said. “Where is this lab?” “Beneath Canterlot.” “What else is in the lab with you?” “Other… other test subjects.” “How many?” “Dozens. They all look like me. What… what’s going on?” 19’s breathing started picking up. “It’s ok, 19, I need you to relax,” Aqua said, trying to get her patient back under control. Subject 19 jolted up from the couch, panting heavily. “Holy hell. I was there,” he whispered, making eye contact with Aqua. “I need to find that lab.” “No, you can’t go!” “And why not? The answers are in Canterlot. I’m leaving to get those answers. You coming, doc?” ‘This is why I don’t move around all the time,’ Aqua thought to herself. “Ugh fine. There’s a train that leaves in two hours. We can catch that one.”
There It Is...19 was stuck in a large cylinder filled with a strange orange liquid. His muzzle was covered by a breathing mask of some sort. Through the glass he could see distorted figures of ponies wearing lab coats. Subject 19 saw a patch on the shoulder of the coat that read ‘Division 516’ on it. “Subject 19 has responded well to the serum,” one of the doctors announced to her fellow colleagues. She was holding a clipboard with a bunch of writing on it. The only thing 19 could make out was Project: Fire Whirl. “He’ll be faster and stronger than any pegasus in all of Equestria.” “Doctor Paradise Lost, if he was created in this lab, why does he have a cutie mark?” one of the other mares asked. “We know how we all get our marks. It’s from discovering our destiny. However, we know little about the science behind them. Why we even have our cutie marks in the first place. If the mark itself has an effect on a pony, or if it is more of an identifier than a definer. More research will need to be done on Subject 19 before we can determine why a cutie mark manifested on him. For now, we need to get ready for the general to arrive.” Subject 19 jolted up in a cold sweat, panting heavily. He instantly knew what had happened. That wasn’t a dream, that was a memory. But it brought up even more questions than it answered. Who was Paradise Lost? Did she find out the meaning of his mark? What was Project: Fire Whirl? Aqua looked over to him on the opposite side of the train couch. “Are you alright? Looks like you had a pretty nasty nightmare.” 19 shook his head. “It wasn’t a nightmare. It was a memory. I was back in that lab.” “Okay tell me about the memory.” “There were scientists in the lab. One of them was called Paradise Lost. I couldn’t see her that well. She was wearing a lab coat, I think it said Division 516 on it. And her clipboard said Project: Fire Whirl. That’s all I could remember.” “Fire Whirl? Hmm. I think I’m gonna call you that now!” “You can’t be serious,” 19 deadpanned. “Yes I am serious. It’s suits you.” “I suppose it’s better than a number.” “Well ya you got that right. Also, what’s the deal with your cutie mark?” Looking down at it, 19 just gave a shrug. “I honestly don’t know. I’m hoping this Dr. Paradise Lost will know.” “Well we will find out when we get there, alright?” “Sounds like a plan.” The rest of the train ride was mostly silent, as was the walk through Canterlot once they arrived. The city shined bright through the dark night sky above. Celestia’s sun had fallen a few hours ago and Luna’s moon stood proudly in it’s place. Everything was just so big to 19. The buildings, the hoof traffic was slightly overwhelming considering all he knew was Ponyville. As they traveled through the busy city, the duo ran into something strange. “Do you even know where you’re going, Fire?” Aqua asked her orange companion. “Not a clue. But I figure there has to be an entrance to the tunel system somewhere,” 19, or Fire Whirl as Aqua was now calling him. “Hey, what’s up with all these guards?” she questioned, pointing them out to 19. As they trotted over, they soon realised the reason. The ground had collapsed and destroyed what was probably one of Canterlot’s many cave systems. The collapsed encompassed an entire acre, causing the numerous buildings around it to collapse with the ground, debris scattered everywhere. “What happened here?” Subject 19 asked one of the royal guards. “One of the cave systems collapsed,” the alabaster pegasus answered. “This area is still very unstable sir, so I’m going to have to ask that you step back.” “Do you know what caused it?” “We don’t know what happened. Now please get back.” 19 gave Aqua a suspicious look, but they both stepped away as instructed. “That can’t be a coincidence. That lab was underground and I’m willing to bet that it’s beneath that wreck.” “You found the lab, well what’s left of it anyways, so now what?” Aqua asked 19. “We find Paradise Lost.” “You don’t even know what she looks like. How are we going to find her in this city? How do we even know she wasn’t in the lab when it collapsed?” “Because no two ponies have the same name. We go to the library and find the records. Search for her name and we’ll get an address.” As they entered the library they went towards the bookshelf at the back right corner. The library was deserted due to the fact that it was closing in less than half an hour. Aside from the staff, Aqua and 19 were the only ones there. Once they found the book they were looking for, they laid it down on one of the tables and started searching for Paradise Lost. “I don’t think we will find it, Fire.” “It has to be here. This is the only clue we have,” 19 began frantically searching. For minutes he searched through books, tossing every one aside, unable to find Paradise Lost anywhere. “Is there any other names you can remember?” Aqua asked him, putting a hoof to his shoulder. “Lost said something about a general arriving,” he recalled hazily. “I never made out a name though.” “It could be General United Front.” “Who the hell is that?” “There was a ceremony not too long after the Sombra War where the princesses made United Front General of the Equestrian Armies. He’s in charge of all our military, only second to Luna and Celestia.” 19 thought for moment, thinking over his options carefully. “I need a way to get him to meet me alone.” “Well there’s the old castle in the Everfree. No pony ever goes there anymore,” the pink pony suggested. “That might do nicely. I’ll need to look it over first though. Logic would dictate that if United Front was a part of my creation, knowing I’m running freely won’t sit well for him. I’ll contact him once I’m ready, for now I have to scope out this location. If things go south with our meeting, I’ll need to know my escape routes.” The black maned pegasus searched through the books he had until he found United Front’s address. After tearing the page out he turned to Aqua. “Alright we’re done here. Let’s head back to Ponyville.” Author's Note Chapter two is done! Let me know if you spot any errors and I'll be sure to get them fixed! Also thanks so much for love this story has been getting! You ponies are the greatest!
First Patient“So we can’t find this Paradise Lost, right?” Aqua asked. “She’s a dead end at this point. But we do have the lead with this United Front character,” Fire Whirl stated, running a hoof through his mane. “I need you to take me to the old castle you mentioned last night. If he does know who I am and agrees to meet, I need to have as much of an advantage as I can get. There’s no telling how he’ll react to this.” The chime to the door rang, bringing the two ponies attention to a new face. “Hey jackass, did you not see the sign? We’re busy!” Fire shouted at the newcomer. “Uh, there was no sign anywhere,” he replied hesitantly. Fire slowly turned his head toward Aqua, giving her an annoyed look. “We are in the middle of something big and you don’t put up a closed sign? Or even lock the damn door?” “Oh shut up,” Aqua hissed. “I could use a client who isn’t an ass like you.” Fire gave a soft chuckle. Something about that mare just felt right. They had a weird dynamic, but they fit well together. “Fine, I’ll go pester your brother or something while you deal with him.” “Or you could stay and help me. Consider it payment for me helping you.” Fire Whirl let out a long groan. “Fine,” he said, conceding to her request. They walked over together to formally greet the potential client. “Hi, I’m Dr. Aqua Light and this is Fire Whirl,” the doctor introduced pointing towards the pony sitting on the chair by her desk. Fire gave the pony a nod, looking completely disinterested. “Uh, yeah hi. I’m Shadow Rift and I was wondering if you could help me.” Aqua’s eyes lit up like a filly opening her presents on Hearth’s Warming. “Of course we can help you! What do you need help with?” “Well, I’ve been having a bit of a slump lately. You see, my parents… well they died when I was just colt. It just seems that with everything that’s happened to me in the past year, I just can’t stop thinking about them. It’s wearing me down mentally.” “Do you think you’re depressed?” Aqua questioned him. “Ding ding ding! How very perceptive of you doctor!” Fire teased. “Fire, would you stop! That's very rude,” she glared at the orange pegasus. “Ugh, fine,” he groaned. Shadow shifted, obviously a little uncomfortable with the bickering going on. “Is he a doctor too?” “No, he’s another client I’m helping. Part of his recovery involves helping other ponies, so he’ll be helping me help you!” Aqua explained. “Oh, uhm ok I guess,” Shadow mumbled. “Here, take a seat over on the sofa and I will be right with you.” “Alright,” he said, slowly trotting over to sofa and lying down. “Would you like some coffee or tea or water while you wait?” “Some water would be nice,” Shadow replied timidly. “Just give me the whole pot!” Fire hollered at her. “No, you had too much coffee already!” “I’ve only had two pots, I’m due for my third,” the black haired pegasus countered. “First off, I think you have a serious problem and second, I didn't ask you, I asked Shadow! Now shut it!” “You say problem, I say insatiable thirst.” The doctor looked over at Fire and shook her head as she walked away. She walked in the kitchen to grab a glass of water for Shadow. “So, Shadow, while we wait for the dear doctor, tell me a bit about yourself,” Fire insisted, merely trying to pass the boredom. “Well I won the best young flyers competition a couple years ago and not too long ago I won the Iron Pegasus Gauntlet.” Aqua walked into the room. “You were in the Iron Pegasus Gauntlet?” she asked, handing him a glass of water. “Yeah! Got first place in it!” “That’s awesome!” “Yes, very impressive,” Fire Whirl said dismissively. “Now how about we get to the part where he tells us what’s wrong with him?” “You're being an asshat, now say you're sorry!” Aqua ordered. “I don’t apologize.” “You know what, just ignore him. Now what seems to be the problem, Shadow?” “Well, you see… my parents died when I was very young. I was just five years old. There was this accident at the Cloudsdale weather station.” Aqua walked towards the chair in front of Shadow and sat down as she took out her notepad and black pen to take notes. “Hmm okay, so were you placed in foster care?” “Yeah I was up there until I turned 18 and could live on my own.” “Did you like your foster parents?” “They did the best they could with what they had. I was one of seven. They were kind ponies I’d say.” “Hmmmm interesting,” she mumbled, as she wrote some stuff down on her notepads. “I liked the part where his parents died. But he needs to work on the buildup. Make me feel something for his parents,” Fire whispered to Aqua, making sure Shadow couldn’t hear him. “Fire Whirl! That is very rude! Now say you're sorry!” she yelled at Fire “Say sorry for what?” Shadow asked, confused since he hadn’t heard Fire Whirl’s remark. “He said something very rude and now he needs to say sorry.” “clarifilteria” He mumbled to himself in his own personal language. “Sorry,” Fire sighed half heartedly. “It’s fine I suppose,” he said. “Do you want to know what he said” Aqua asked. “I will beat you to death with those glasses of yours if you tell him,” Fire quietly hissed at the doctor. “Well he has to know Fire!” “Shut up and just drop it.” “Fine i will drop it but this is not over yet,” she hissed at him. “Yes it is,” he growled back. Aqua glared back at him but didn't say another word. “So how can you two help me?” Shadow asked the doctor. “Well, I have a gift, and Fire, before you say anything, just shut it. I can communicate with ponies that have passed on.” Fire Whirl held back a fit of laughs, trying not to burst out at her claim. “Fire, I said shut it!” She yelled, throwing her notepad at him. Once her orange companion had stopped his laughing, she continued. “I just need something that belonged to them and I can try to get in touch with them.” Shadow nodded and dug into his bag to find a necklace of his mother and a pocket watch of his father's. “There you go. Will that work for you?” “This is perfect, thank you Shadow,” Aqua replied, taking the two items from him. “Pray tell doctor, how will you communicate with the dead? You’re not a unicorn, you have no spells or magic.” “All earth ponies have some magic inside of them. Most of the time this gives them superior strength or form of connection to the earth around them. For me though, my magic gives me certain psychic abilities!” Aqua gleefully replied with a big grin. “I’ll be right back, I need a fresh pot,” Fire told them as he trotted off to the kitchen. Aqua just glared at the back of Fire’s head as walked out of the room. “Fine we don’t need him anyway.” “I heard that!” “You were supposed to hear that, stupid!” Aqua turned back to face Shadow, who was still laying down on the couch. “So let’s see if I can get ahold of your parents shall we?” Aqua took the pocket watch and the necklace off the table as well as her crystal. She leaned over the table, held the crystal over the things that Shadow gave her, and whispered some words. She felt a cold wind come to her. “Shadow, did your parents have a black and red mane?” she looked at Shadow for a second then turn to look beside him. “My mother had the colors in her mane, why, what do you see?” he asked curiously. “I can see your mom standing beside you right now” “What about my father, Doctor? Is he here too?” Aqua looked at the other side of Shadow and saw his father sitting beside him on the couch and nodded. “Your mom and dad love you very much.” Aqua saw a tear rolling down his cheek. “Your mom says don’t cry, she hates when you cry.” Shadow nodded and wiped away his tears. “Mom, Dad I miss you.” He felt something on his shoulder, turned to Aqua. “Is one of them touching my shoulder, Aqua?” “Yes, your father put his hoof on your shoulder.” Shadow laid one of his hoof where he felt his father’s . “Thanks dad.” With that his parents disappeared. “And thank you for helping me, Doctor Aqua Light.” “You’re welcome, Shadow,” she said, leading him to the front door. Once Shadow had left, Fire Whirl entered the room. “Took you long enough. Now we can get back to work.” “Do you have to be mean to me?” “As long as it keeps being fun, yes.” “You’re an asshole you know that?” “I’m looking for answers. What you or anyone else thinks of me is not my concern.” “But it will be once you get your answers.” Fire simply grunted in response. “We’re leaving for the Castle of the Two Sisters tomorrow. Be prepared.” “Alright, let's get some sleep then.”
Sunny Skies“How much farther is this place?” Fire Whirl asked his red maned companion. They had been walking through the Everfree Forest for a good hour now with no end in sight. “It should be right up here,” Aqua hollered back. The two approached a clearing through the dense forest. Before them stood the Castle of the Two Sisters. The stone castle was in complete disrepair owing to the battle between Nightmare Moon and Celestia, and thousands of years left to rot away. Aqua and Fire trotted over the wooden bridge to what was left of the main entrance. Even with the sun shining down on it, the castle gave off a very ominous aura. It was as if the dread and sorrow of the events that happened so long ago lingered on to this day. “Well… here we are,” Aqua announced with a slight shiver. Fire took note of Aqua’s unease but decided to pursue it. “Hard to imagine the two most powerful beings used to rule here,” he commented, walking through the entrance. They continued down the main hallway until the reached the throne room, still bearing the tapestries of both Celestia and Luna, although heavily torn. The sun’s rays beat through the collapsed ceiling, providing much needed light on the otherwise dark castle. Fire Whirl spent some time observing the throne room and all of the exits around in it, being sure to cover all possible ways to make an escape. Most of the corridors leading out of the throne room had collapsed and were completely inaccessible. However there were still a few that seemed to provide a viable, if slightly questionable means of escape should the need arise. “I must say, the damage this castle has sustained might work to my advantage, if I need to make a getaway,” Fire observed. “I think it’s time I let United Front know I’m very much alive.” “And I don’t know about you, but this place is kind of starting to give me the creeps,” Aqua said, a shiver running down her spine. “Yeah, I’ve seen what I needed, let’s get back to Ponyville.” “Okay let’s go then,” she said. The doctor pushed up her glasses as she wrote some notes for her other patient before she came. She never knew this job can get this hard. On the other hoof, she had met great friends because of this job. A strong knocking on the front door disrupted Aqua’s thoughts. “It opens!” She hollered. The door slowly opened and a nervous looking mare stepped in. Aqua looked up from her paperwork. “Hello there, do you need help with anything?” “Uh… yes, you see I’m looking for somepony and…” mid sentence her bright red eyes landed on Fire Whirl. “Subject 19! You’re alive!” The red unicorn rushed up to Fire as he simply took in the mare’s nearly blinding features. Her flame yellow and orange hair complimented her red body surprisingly well. She looked like she was the daughter of Celestia’s own sun. “Who the hell are you?” Fire asked, taking a step back from the mare. “Oh, sorry. I’m Sunny Skies, I was one of the scientists that helped create you.” The pegasus raised a curious eyebrow. “Then you know Paradise Lost,” he said more as a statement rather than a question. “Where is she?” “Wow, I’m surprised you actually remember her, considering you were barely conscious before the accident.” “The memories aren’t very clear, but I remember bits and pieces. Now answer the question.” “I’m sorry, but I don’t know where she is. I was still at home when the accident happened. I wasn’t able to find her at her house and no pony else has seen her since the accident. I’m afraid she probably died down there in the lab.” “That’s not good enough for me. If she’s truly dead then I want to see her body.” “I’d assume the first place you went to was the lab, or what’s left of it.” When the orange pegasus nodded she continued. “Then you know that it’s going to weeks, maybe months, before the debris is cleared. I’m shocked that you managed to survive it.” “If I was able to survive whatever happened, then so could she.” “Well let’s say you’re right and Dr. Lost did survive the incident. Why hasn’t she made contact with anypony? Why hasn’t she let her colleagues know she’s alive? Why would she, of all ponies, want the world to think she was dead?” Fire Whirl frowned, knowing that Sunny raised very valid questions. “What could have caused the entire lab to be destroyed in the first place?” “I’ve been wondering that myself. We had countless safety measures in place so that something like this wouldn’t ever happen. My gut says that it must have been sabotage from someone in the lab.” “That’s a pretty heavy accusation to throw. Do you have anything to back that theory up?” “What we worked on down there was highly controversial, especially creating you. A few of our own scientists even voiced their concerns about what we were doing. I don’t even think the princesses knew exactly what went on in the lab.” “What?” Fire asked in disbelief. There was no way that Celestia and Luna weren’t kept in the loop on something as big as this. “Are you telling me, that you all kept information from your princesses?” Sunny shifted on her hooves nervously. “We may have been… uh… a bit selective with the information we shared.” “Did they know about me?” “...No. We kept your creation a secret from just about every pony except for the general. I was never told what his business there was, but he seemed really interested in you.” “I’m well aware of General United Front’s involvement with me. But why did Paradise keep information from the princesses? She reported to them after all, right?” “That’s the thing. I don’t know why exactly, but Dr. Lost resented having to report to Celestia and Luna. She made it very clear that you were not to be shared with anypony other than Front. Dr. Lost insisted that the princesses wouldn’t understand how great of a scientific breakthrough you’d be, and that they in their shortsighted thinking would shut it down. I, as well as most of the other scientists, agreed with her. What we were doing was decades ahead of all known science. Creating life to the extent we did with you is a rather grey area.” “So you deliberately went behind their backs all for the sake of creating me? Why? Why go to such lengths and probably risk charges just shy of treason?” “For science! You have no idea what your existence means to Equestria! You are the gateway to solving some of life’s greatest problems. Cancer, infection, disabilities, disease, maybe even death! Making you has brought us closer than we ever thought possible just a few years ago,” Sunny insisted, her eyes lighting up just thinking about the good that could be achieved. “So why would anypony be opposed to that if the benefits are as great as you claim them to be?” Sunny sighed and lowered her head. “Because others see you as the next evolution of ponykind. And that it would mean the very likely extinction of the obsolete race, which would be all of us. If science has taught us anything, it is that when a more evolved race comes in contact with a similar, less evolved one…” “They’re destroyed,” Fire finished. “They would see me as the first step towards their own demise.” “Exactly. So you can see why you fall into this grey area of science,” she said with a sigh. Fire ran a hoof through his red and black hair. Sunny had provided him with many answers to his questions, but there were still more that he had. Ones that could only be answered by Paradise Lost. If Division 516’s security and safety measures were as extensive as Sunny claimed, then the most likely cause for the accident was sabotage. Fire Whirl didn’t believe for a second that the doctor was dead. But he couldn’t deny that the mare in front of him raised a valid argument. If Paradise was alive, why wouldn’t she reach out to her colleagues and let them know she was ok? “Is it possible that Paradise was the one who destroyed the lab?” Fire asked Sunny. “I mean, it’s possible, yes. If anypony knew how cause a catastrophic failure in the lab, it would be her. But why would she? Do you have any idea how much data and research we lost down there? That was Paradise’s life work down there. She would willingly die before sacrificing so much as a single file of her research.” “A true scientist in that regard. Look, I’m not going to be satisfied until we find her. I don’t care how long it takes to do that. I will dig up that entire fucking lab if that’s what it takes just to find her corpse. But I figure that since Canterlot’s rescue crews are already doing just that, I can spend my time entertaining the possibility that she’s alive and somewhere in this kingdom.” Aqua looked to Fire then to Sunny. “Say, do you have a place to stay?” “I do actually. I’m staying at the hotel just down the street,” Sunny replied. “How much are you paying for that hotel?” “It’s only about fifty bits per night.” “No no no that won't do. You can stay with me!” Aqua said “Uh in what bed?” Fire asked. “She can have yours and you can take the couch!” Fire shot her a dirty look, mouthing the words, “fuck you.” “So it's settled you're staying here!” “Uh are you sure? I wouldn’t want to impose.” “ Yes I'm sure, you can take Fire’s bed! Follow me and I will show you where it is!” She jumped up from her seat. “Oh ok.” Sunny slowly followed Aqua upstairs, leaving Fire downstairs by himself. Fire Whirl looked up at the ceiling, deep in thought. With Sunny literally showing up on their doorstep, he finally had a chance of narrowing his search. She was also able to shed some much needed light on a number of his questions, even if there were still many remaining. “Just hope she’s as useful as she appears,” he whispered to himself before following the mares upstairs. Author's Note YES! The story lives! I am really really sorry for taking so long to get back to this story. Life has been kind of weird these past months, but I've finally found some balance to write again! I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter. And be on the look out for another one in a few weeks.
