Patriots of Equestria, Part 1

Starlight and her fellow unicorns carefully approached the beds where Discord and Trixie laid, having been placed out of surgery and glad to be alive. Yes, they were still drugged slightly, but they were awake and aware of their surroundings.

"Ugh, Fluttershy?" moaned Discord, greatly affected by the drugs in his system. "Where's Fluttershy? Is she alive?"

"Discord, you're under the effect of drugs," said Sunset, placing a hoof on his bed. "Fluttershy is still in Manehattan and is still in a coma."

"No, she's waiting for me and I need to be there for her," replied Discord in a droning voice. "Where is she?"

"Discord, you can't move," said Starlight, firmly as she walked over to Trixie's bed. "You've been shot with a dangerous and deadly Changeling magic that almost hit your heart."

But, Discord continued to moan in protest as he struggled to try and snap his lion's paw to use his chaos magic. However, all his efforts were for nothing and he quickly gave up, weak and exhausted.

Just then, the sound of a knocking door was heard and the pony doctor from earlier walked into the room with a few nurses following him as they tended to both Discord and Trixie.

"Doctor, Discord's becoming delirious," cried Sunset, worriedly. "How long do you think the drugs will wear off?"

"It should take no more than a few more hours at best," he said as a nurse injected Discord with a shot of morphine into his lion paw. "The fact that he is delirious is a sign that the drugs are circulating through his body. However, they should both be very lucky considering that the blasts almost hit very vital areas of their bodies. If the blasts went any further…well, they wouldn't even be alive right now."

Just they thought of him saying that made Starlight cringe slightly. In the short time they had known each other, Starlight and Trixie had become very close to one another and just the thought of her dying was seemingly unthinkable.

"Now, I think it would be best that they are moved to Canterlot by the end of the day," continued the doctor. "However, that depends on what you all think."

It took a moment for them to respond, but Starlight, Sunset and Moon Dancer came to complete agreement on the doctor's suggestion.

"Its for the best for both of them," said Starlight, firmly. "If there is going to be a long road ahead of them, then its best to start that road now. Our friends have already begun their road to recovery now."

"Very well, we will start making arrangements right away," answered the doctor. "The sooner we start the process the better."

"What kind of therapy are you planning on having them do?" wondered Sunset, but just before the doctor could answer the question, Starlight noticed Instant Justice talking with another doctor pony right outside the hall and left to find out what is going on. "Starlight? What's going on?"

…

But Starlight ignored Sunset and instead went out to find out what was going on with Instant Justice. No sooner did she approach him however did Equestria's minister of justice say his peace.

"So, he's done it," sighed Instant Justice. "One of my warriors is dead."

"I'm afraid so, my lord justice," said the pony he was talking to as Starlight placed a hoof on her mouth in shock. "His wounds were too great, so he died on the operating table."

"Then, we'd better set about notifying his family," replied Instant Justice. "Thank you for your service, doctor."

Starlight waited until the doctor was gone before she went over to Instant Justice, who was clearly despondent over losing one of his own. Yes, he had expressed desires for the sake of his injured son, but from the way he was acting, Starlight thought that his son was the pony in question who had died from his injuries.

"Damn these Changelings," he muttered as he walked past Starlight. "Damn them all to Tartarus!"

"I'm sorry, Instant Justice," acknowledged Starlight, walking over to him. "I'm sorry at the fact that you lost one of your own."

"Oh sure, you're sorry," he flounced, his anger simmering and boiling. "Try telling that to that murderous bug that is still on the loose. Yeah, I'm sure he'll listen to what somepony will tell him and he'll go quietly."

Starlight didn't know what to say to Instant Justice. Sure, he was very upset, but there was also the sense that Starlight thought that Instant Justice was a hater of all Changelings, whether they were reformed or not.

"Look, we are all troubled by this," pleaded Starlight. "And you promised to us that we would let you help you in hunting for the Changeling who is still alive, remember?"

"Wherever he is," said Instant Justice. "Why do these Changelings have to be so desperate? They should all be exterminated!"

"Not all Changelings are evil, you know!" cried Starlight, shocked at what Instant Justice had said. "Some have learned to share love freely instead of taking it. But, this isn't about taking love."

"Then, they need to show it to me," remarked Instant Justice, firmly. "There needs to be a sign that can make me change my mind about them."

…

Meanwhile, Thorax had finally decided that he needed to reach out to Hopper and thus, he had come up with an idea.

"Do you think it will work?" asked Thorax to his four alicorn princess friends.

"Yes," replied Luna. "The sooner the message goes out, the sooner this reign of terror on Equestria comes to an end. The Changeling who did this to us and our subjects will pay dearly for doing this."

"I completely agree with my sister," added Celestia, firmly. "It's time for the hunt to reach its peak and its end."

Still unsure for a sense, Thorax left the hospital room and walked up to the rooftops of the hospital, taking to the air with his horns glowing. A brief light shone in Thorax's throat and taking in a deep breath, Thorax loudly cried out into the air.

"HOPPER! PLEASE END THIS MADNESS NOW!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, loud enough for all in Manehattan to hear. "THE REIGN OF QUEEN CHRYSALIS IS OVER AND YOU MUST ACCEPT IT! TURN YOURSELF IN NOW!"

Taking a few deep breaths, Thorax landed on the hospital's roof and returned to the princesses' room. It may have only been brief, but he was already exhausted from using a good chunk of his personal energy.

"Now, its only a matter of time before we see if Hopper gets the message or not," sighed Thorax as he walked over to the hospital window.

"Let's all hope for the best," sighed Twilight. "Let's all hope for the best."

…

Meanwhile, the slightly wounded Hopper was making his way towards Ponyville, growing more and more desperate to survive the hunt that was going on for him. Soon, the hunt for him would reach its tense filled climax…