Equestria no Kitsune [REDUX]

Chapters

Arc 1 - Chapter 1
Arc 1 - Chapter 2
Arc 1 - Chapter 3
Arc 1 - Chapter 4
Arc 1 - Chapter 5

Arc 1 - Chapter 1

The vacuum of space.

A peaceful yet hostile environment, at a temperature of near-absolute zero, bathed with radiation and seething with all manner of particles, debris and energies nigh-undetectable. Above the blue sphere of the planet Gaia, it was only slightly more tolerable. The sheer lack of heat when not in the sun’s unrelenting, blinding whiteness was enough to kill off all but tardigrades, as was the radiation.

And yet, hanging above the planet, alone and comatose, was a figure -- a frozen, nearly dead but still living humanoid. With its back to the planet, the frozen, vacuum-ravaged humanoid seemed to be looking out into space… if it wasn't frozen and in extreme pain. A red glow surrounded the indistinct, half-frozen being, evidently protecting it from the radiation to some degree.

But this being was falling. Slowly at first, Gaia’s gravity took hold of it, and so it began to accelerate.

The being was gradually coming back to the world of the living as it began to plummet, the ice breaking off from its speed and the rapidly-building heat of atmospheric entry. Still indistinct from its vacuum-induced pitch blackness, the friction with the atmosphere continued to build up, the previously serene blue surroundings against space rapidly becoming a horrible, unbearable fire. The flames of atmospheric entry suddenly flared up to its maximum as the being exceeded the speed of sound.

Realizing its situation, the being was awake and panicking, its mouth open in a silent, ice-riddled scream, with no air to form one but just enough to send a smattering of ice crystals out, which then promptly evaporated in the bright red flames.

Reflexively, a red, thick glowing outline expanded around the being’s form before the heat could do much more damage -- this outline did protect the creature from the hellfire, but it was a poorly-summoned, easily compromised shield.

The magnetic field of the planet then came to the being’s attention as it entered the stratosphere -- a punch in the face by all means apart from physical; a blinding, disorientingly sudden shock that caught the being by surprise from inside its own skull.

The stifling pressure of the atmosphere was beginning to make itself known to the creature as well, blood escaped its body as it adjusted to the presence of pressure and breathable air. Still, the energy shield was holding as strong as it could, making the being look very much like a brightly-glowing meteorite, an image only boosted by the intense flames streaming off of the shield.

The wind direction and the gravity of the planet was altering the creature’s course -- instead of falling straight down, the energy-protected creature was cruising at supersonic speeds at an angle. Of course, such behavior was no less than expected of a falling object from that height.

Moving too fast to be able to see anything, not that its eyes worked to even try at this point, the being would have seen mountains rushing past, a curious city perched on one of the slopes, its denizens startled by the sudden ‘meteor’ speeding by far too quickly, followed by a merciful green plain that glided past, which soon gave way to a massive expanse of untouched, unbroken forest, which was coming alarmingly close to---

A bright red, glowing object sped through the trees -- literally, in the sense of trees being crushed, destroyed and burned by the object’s heat and speed. It tore through the shroud of ancient evergreen pines, ripping wood, rending the earth and starting fires here and there that quickly grew and spread. Several small ponds were near-instantly vaporised by the object’s heat as it continued its immensely destructive path through the forest. It eventually came to a stop in a small clearing that was quickly made much larger -- and distinctly more cratered, thanks to its absurd momentum and inconceivable heat.

The red glow surrounding the object was still bright enough to outshine the burning magnesium it had unearthed. The crater that it made upon stopping was deep. A huge hole scarred into the dark earth, with small, neon-red fires licking along the now-exposed roots, and some of the smaller rocks melting into puddles of lava as the larger ones glowed angrily. It had left a vast trail of burning destruction -- a massive, scarring trench gouged into the land, and a scene of immense destruction around it. All while, thick, billowing smoke from the burning vegetation, the beginnings of a forest fire, began to rise. The rising torrential curtain of black smoke rose higher into the sky, easily visible from countless miles around.

Stillness.

Is this--?

This is... weird.

Am I even alive?

what's that sound? some sort of... machine?

And that scent… iodine? Am I in a hospital?

the distant beat of a heart monitor

A dusky, yet vivid yellow eye opened, unfocused and stared up at the nothingness on the ceiling.

where

A quick glance downwards and a twist, with a few flexes and the crack of a knuckle confirmed that both hands still worked.

Eerily quiet, with stagnant, tasteless air and pale orange light filtering in through a window somewhere, off-white walls surrounding it all. It really was a hospital.

Muscles and joints complained with the several efforts to sit up, and the pads on the hands sore. A rather large, red-furred, bushy vulpine tail was freed up, a white tip surrounded by a black zigzag of fur. Digitigrade legs bent on their unusual knees as they tested their functionality. Even the pain was being sluggish on its way up the legs.

Pawpads scraped against the mattress, painfully catching on linen, as did blunted, jagged claws. Red fur had become much the same as black, with soot, dirt, ash and burns staining the body all over. Black hair was in ruins, frayed and charred, as was fur. A hand went up to a muzzle, slender fingers ending in broken claws brushing down it, as if testing for any sort of sensation.

A door opened somewhere.

Footsteps, short pauses in between, one sharp point of contact with the floor for each footfall what the hell is that

Nurse Redheart had her work cut out for her.

Only a week after being transferred from Ponyville A&E to one of Canterlot's hospitals, she had to deal with the strangest thing that anyone had ever come across in a very, very long time.

It was exceedingly stressful to be in that room for any long period of time, at least, according to everyone else. So much so that even the veterans, the trained and highly experienced among the hospital's staff, couldn't tolerate staying there for too long. Odd sensations of frustration, anxiety and fear took hold, and grew worse with every passing minute in there, until, eventually, no-one could spend more than twenty minutes in the room before having to leave.

In any case, there was a job to be done, and it had fallen on Redheart to do it.

Taking a deep breath, Redheart made her way towards the door, tentatively turned the silvery knob and entered, and made sure to close that door behind her, but didn't lock it quite yet, just in case. Pausing for a moment, she passed the thin steel table, picked up the clipboard that lay there and turned the corner, laying her eyes on the patient, her patient, for the next however-long she would be needed to spend in there.

She took a minute to take it in. She had never before dealt with anything that didn't pass as a pony, yet this time, her patient was anything but equine in even the slightest sense of the word. This time, a fox, for lack of a better word, lay in that bed. This creature, whatever it really was, almost definitely would be classified as a vulpine animal, discounting the fact that this particular specimen was very much a bipedal organism.

Even the best zoologists had been unable to explain this fox's existence. There were no other recorded specimens of foxes that stood on two legs and had hands, let alone any degree of sapience. While the fox hadn't spoken, it had clearly reacted to stimulus, once it was awake, of course, and could clearly understand speech.

The fox was sitting upright and slightly hunched over, with its eyes closed, and while Redheart had been told to expect as much, but she hadn't been told exactly why this was the case. Perhaps nobody knew. Redheart steeled herself and made her way to the chair next to the bed and sat down.

'Don't look into its eyes for too long,' she had been told by one of the senior doctors. 'Because one of our nurses did that, and you were transferred here the following week.'

However, she felt fairly safe, considering--

The fox's eyes flashed open, and it sat bolt-upright. And Redheart then knew exactly why she was warned.

Those eyes were yellow with white sclera. An extremely intense, bright yellow, not a damp, mundane hue belonging to, say, a banana, but vibrant in the most ominous possible ways, as if the sun itself were that same yellow as opposed to pure white.

And the thought of how the fox wasn't even looking at her only made it worse, mentally.

Slowly, deliberately, its head turned, the intensely, ridiculously yellow eyes swivelled to look at Redheart... and whatever it was that was so distressing disappeared. They were just normal, if mildly unusually-coloured eyes.

"Oh... er... Good evening. I'm Nurse Redheart," she tried as she put on a polite smile, at a loss for words for a moment.

what in the world was everyone so scared of?

No answer would come, save for just a slow, small nod of acknowledgement and a blink from an emotionless face. Oddly polite though, one would admit.

Redheart then got on with it. "W-well then... I've been asked to collect some information about you. Is that okay?" She asked slowly, reaching into her white nurse uniform’s pocket and producing a pen, spinning it on her fingers once or twice.

Another small, polite nod, but Redheart had an odd sense that this creature didn’t really understand what she was saying.

"OK, then," she smiled. With a quick shuffle of paper, she moved a blank sheet to the front, before clicking the pen, ready to take notes.

"First of all," Redheart began. "what's your name? Do you have one?"

It was the first question that came to mind. Nobody had gotten anything out of the fox as of yet, thanks to a very apparent, yet still somehow polite, refusal to speak. It seemed to give a sigh of sorts and avert its eyes.

It held up a clawed, padded hand, as if indicating for Redheart to wait where she was. Its left hand flexed and seemed to glow, giving off red, luminous smoke, which seemed to spill downwards like heavy, cold mist, dissipating as it floated away, only to be replaced by more.

"I'm sorry, w-what are you doing?" Redheart asked, her eyes a little wider as she sat up straighter. Was this thing casting a spell of some kind? Redheart had only known about unicorns being capable of casting spells, and was taken aback.

It paid her no heed as it held that hand up to eye level, the glowing smoke flowing around the creature’s head as it took a deep breath, inhaling much of the smoke with a hollow, echoing noise as it rapidly flowed down its throat, as if drinking the red vapour. The rest of the glowing smoke seemed to simply disappeared as it floated downwards, as if being drawn downwards before dissipating.

A moment of stunned silence fell upon Redheart as she tried to figure out just what had transpired. The fox just let out a short, shallow breath, which carried only faint wisps of the red, luminous vapour, like breath on a winter’s day.

It paused before turning to look at her again, and held back a muted, restrained cough before it spoke. “We… should be able to understand.. each other now,” it said, with a restrained, quiet voice, completely lacking in any accent Redheart could recognise.

“Oh. Well, that’s.. a very handy spell,” Redheart smiled, unsure of how exactly to respond. “Uh, in that case, I’ll ask again. What’s your name?” she asked, clipboard at the ready once again.

“It’s Ryuzaki,” it replied, still holding a quite blank, neutral expression.

"Ryu... zaki? A-and how would you write that? Can you show me?" Redheart asked cautiously, tentatively offering the clipboard and pen.

It nodded and took the offered items, and swiftly scribbled on the paper before returning it, but unfortunately, it seemed to be in a language Redheart didn't exactly understand, or even recognize. Instead of a regular string of letters, it instead read 'りゅうざき'.

"I-I'm sorry, that spell doesn’t work on.. writing," Ryuzaki quickly apologized, seeing Redheart’s confused expression as she looked down at the paper.

"Oh. All right, then, um... Would I be correct to guess that you're a male?"

Yet another small nod, but it was at least accompanied by words. "...Yes. I am male."

"Right. So..." Redheart began, tapping her pen on the side of her clipboard. "How are you feeling right now? Do you remember how you needed treatment?" She asked, deciding to revert to the usual questions patients were asked.

Ryuzaki paused, slowly running a hand over the bandages on his chest as he looked down at them. A few electrodes here and there, and an empty IV tube was stuck into his wrist. "...No. But I remember falling," he admitted.

"Well, that's actually how we think you were injured," Redheart affirmed. "But never mind that. How are you feeling?" she asked again.

"I'm okay. Nothing hurts," Ryuzaki said, slowly taking in the room. He had been slipping in and out of consciousness for a while, and thus had never had the chance to see exactly where he was. "May I ask you a question?"

"O-Oh, of course," Redheart smiled, jotting down the details and findings -- this would prove to be rather valuable at some point.

"Where am I, exactly?" Ryuzaki asked, still looking around. His ears swivelled, as if listening for something. Redheart had heard in passing that foxes could use magnetic fields to determine where they were, and she was immediately reminded of the fact.

She was more than happy to answer.

"You're in the Royal General Hospital, in Canterlot," Redheart said, though as soon as the words left her mouth, she realized that what she said probably just rose more questions than it answered. Ryuzaki simply nodded and sat in silence for a moment or two, as if considering that information... or it could have been him concentrating on the magnetic field, or listening through the walls, all things considered.

"I see." He simply said.

"Yes. Now, I’m sorry, but we're... well, rather confused with regards to your species. What exactly are you?" Redheart inquired.

Before he could answer, a knock on the door startled the two of them. Ryuzaki’s triangular ears swivelled in the door’s direction, a tiny flicker of what looked like a quickly dissipating orange flame that escaped his mouth with a sharp exhale. Redheart didn’t see it happen, however, with her attention elsewhere. Just a trick of the light, she thought.

“Just a moment,” Redheart said through a disguised sigh of irritation as she got up and paced to the door, clipboard still in hand. A look of surprise and bewilderment immediately shot across her face as she looked around the corner through the little window on the door, and she near-immediately exited through it, almost slamming the door shut behind her.

Ryuzaki cocked his head and listened, his finer hearing gradually coming back. Redheart was stood just on the other side of the door, sounding panicked and flustered as she spoke to someone.

...“But-- but why? I--I’m not denying you, but I really must ask, and I’m not sure if--”

“It’ll be fine, Redheart. I just need to see him for a few minutes, and I’ll be gone,” came another voice. One belonging to a female, by the sound of it.

“Oh, I… All right, then, I’ll-- I’ll let him know.”

Ryuzaki was confused as the door opened, with Redheart entering again, a much more positive expression on her face. “Ah, Ryuzaki? You have a visitor,” she said, holding the door open.

At that, another pony entered, this one vastly different from Redheart. Standing at least a head above her in height. This new one, Ryuzaki observed, not only had lilac-feathered wings, folded down onto her back and jutting up slightly behind her shoulders, but also sported a horn. Odd, to say the least, since he’d only ever seen ones with one or the other, or neither, like Redheart.

This mare, with purple fur and a back-length mane of at least three different shades of it in streaks, appeared friendly enough as she entered, regarding Ryuzaki with a distinctly amicable look on her face.

“Hey there, Ryuzaki,” The mare smiled, speaking as if she knew him well as she sat down in the chair Redheart was just using.

Even more confused than before, Ryuzaki sat up a little straighter. “I’m.. so sorry, but who exactly are you?” He asked, doing his best to hide embarrassment as he absent-mindedly scratched an errant itch on the back of his neck. Had he simply forgotten this mare’s name, or was there more to it than that?

"Oh, that’s right, I never told you," she chuckled, cracking a nervous smile as she sat back in the chair, hands on her lap. "My name’s Twilight. I got you to the hospital about.." she paused, as if trying to recall a fact. "Uh, two months ago."

A sinking feeling made itself known inside the fox’s chest. "Two months…? What.. what happened to me?" He asked as a hazy memory of cold soil and ozone came to mind, a tiny, cold shiver passing down his body as he turned away slightly.

Twilight dropped the overly smiley act as she looked at him with concern. Best to tell him now, or…?

"I found you unconscious in the woods near my home, so I brought you here," she said, going for what she thought was the safer option.

"I am sorry. I… still don’t remember,” Ryuzaki apologized once again, still at least mildly embarrassed. “But thank you, Twilight."

"Oh, it’s no problem," Twilight shrugged. "It’s quite amazing you survived, actually. You were injured pretty badly when I found you," she remarked. But of course, Twilight was just stalling at this point, and an uncomfortable silence took hold, with her not knowing what to say and with Ryuzaki not knowing how to feel, and just content to sit and listen.

Twilight began searching for the right words as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "I.. don’t want you to take this the wrong way, Ryuzaki, but once you’re feeling better, I’d like to run some tests on you."

A terrible mental image involving sharp objects and scalpels flashed across the fox’s suddenly racing mind, but it didn’t show through the straight face. "Tests? Why?" he cautiously asked, though still sounding monotone and restrained as he turned to face Twilight.

"Oh, d-don’t get the wrong idea," Twilight reassured him. "I’d just like to run things like physical examinations, blood tests, that sort of thing. You know what I’m talking about, right?"

"Yes, I do, but…" Ryuzaki trailed off as he doubted her honesty, eyes darting in Redheart’s direction before looking back at Twilight. "I... am not sure if the hospital will let me go any time soon."

"Hey, don’t worry about that," Twilight said dismissively, waving the thought away. "I can convince them to let you out. Only if you’re feeling all right, though," she added, a hint of concern in her last sentence.

He nodded after a short moment of silence.

"Perfect!" Twilight suddenly beamed, springing up from her seat, her wings spreading then beating, lifting her a few inches above the floor for a moment. "I’ll come and get you once I’ve set up."

A pale lilac glow began to spread through the room a little way, emanating from Twilight’s horn as floating, tiny points of purple magic began to surround her and glow brightly themselves, as if absorbing the light in the room. Ryuzaki was forced to shield his eyes as the glow intensified, growing until it reached pure whiteness within fractions of a second, before…

She disappeared, the light 'collapsing' in on itself, like a camera flash in reverse as all the light suddenly retracted back into a single point before fading entirely, leaving not a single trace of Twilight’s presence behind.

"...I must learn how to do that," Ryuzaki remarked as Redheart made her way back over and sat down again. "I didn’t expect there to be magic here," he added with something of a sense of relief.

Redheart simply nodded and reorganised her clipboard, bringing her page of notes to the front. "So, you’re quite familiar with magic, Ryuzaki?" she asked.

"Yes, actually. Although, I’ve never seen anyone disappear like that," he replied, sitting up and cracking one of his knuckles. A heavy sigh left his muzzle as he looked around. "Um.. listen, Redheart-san, could you do me a favour?"

"Hm?" came the distracted response.

"Could I leave? I’m feeling perfectly fine."

Redheart’s pen stopped, and she looked over the top of the clipboard with discerning eyes. "Uh… what? Did.. did you say you wanted to leave?"

Ryuzaki shrugged and blinked slowly. "Well, yes. I'd like to get going. I mean, sure, I’m not particularly busy, but I assume I’ve been here a while, and I’m feeling OK, so…" he trailed off, beginning to pluck off the electrodes stuck onto his chest, and scowled at the shaven-off patches of fur where the electrodes had been.

Redheart was taken aback, and extremely against this new development. She shot to her feet, clipboard under her arm as she scowled at her patient. "Now look here, Ryuzaki, you can’t just--"

She was cut off by Ryuzaki’s utterly casual approach to pulling the empty IV tube out of his wrist, as if ignorant to pain as he simply eased the plastic tubing out and tossed it aside. Her stunned, wide-eyed reaction continued to hold as Ryuzaki then simply shoved the railing on the side of the bed aside, the railing clattering onto the floor as it was ripped away from its securings.

"Well, you know, Redheart, I really am sorry, but I don’t fancy dissection," Ryuzaki shrugged as he edged himself to the end of the bed and pushed himself up, his digitigrade feet padding against the floor, his claws clicking against it as he steadied himself.

Now standing, Ryuzaki was a solid six feet tall, and absurdly thin, with barely any muscle definitition present, much less any real structure to his body apart from visible bones, visible even under his fur, with prominent ribs and quite spindly limbs. The true extent of his apparent malnutrition was most likely hidden by his mildly grubby, matted fur, a slightly dullen shade as opposed to what it would have been otherwise.

He stretched, letting out a groan as vertebrae and joints clicked, an immeasurable sense of relief coming over him as Redheart just stared in utter disbelief. “Hm? What are you looking at? I am wearing clothes, right?” Ryuzaki asked as he looked over, noticing her staring.

"U-uh, yeah, but your jeans are kinda shredded, so… w-wait, what?! Why did I--?!" she gasped, confounded by how easily that had slipped out.

"Why did you answer, you mean?" He asked, slowly pacing towards the door, his claws clicking against the floor as he stepped. "I don’t know. But never mind that," Ryuzaki trailed off, turning back to face Redheart as he stood just a metre away from the bed. "I’m sorry, but I need your assistance, Redheart-san, and I... don’t think you’ll have much say in the matter," he grinned, a mischievous glint in his yellow eyes.

Redheart was getting annoyed, and clenched her fists as she snapped at him. "I sure don’t think so! First of all, there’s no way I can just discharge you on the spot, and second, you’re not even going to be dissected! Didn’t--"

Ryuzaki chuckled, and a faint glow began to manifest in his amber eyes. "So you’d just take this Twilight’s word for it? You really think she WON’T dissect me, or do you just think that?" He asked with a small smile on his muzzle as he shrugged, and took a single step forward.

Redheart thought for a second. It was true, she had nothing to disprove him with. And while she had little first-hand knowledge, she did know that Twilight would go to great lengths in the name of science.

"So, I’m really, really sorry, Redheart, but--"

She looked in the fox’s direction and gasped… and stopped there. Ryuzaki wasn’t smiling any more, and his eyes were undeniably glowing brightly, becoming the brightest light sources of the room if they had cast any real illumination onto the surroundings, which they seemed to fail to do -- instead, they seemed to suck in the daylight. Her body refused to move, and was rooted to the spot, her muscles apparently rendered immovable. Soft padding and clicking filled her ears, backed up by the sound of weight shifting on those footsteps.

"I really must hitch a ride, Redheart-san. It’s the safest option," Ryuzaki’s tired, quiet voice came from somewhere as the vague sensation of light pressure made itself known on her hand as it was pulled to her eye level.

"H… Hitch a ride?"

"Yes, a ride. Don’t worry, though. This won’t harm you," came the distant voice again, with something of a quiet, restrained chuckle behind it. Bright light filled her vision as she felt heat course down her arm and into her torso, shooting down her body in pulses of sheer, nearly unbearable heat, the vague sensation of smoke crawling across her arm accompanying the glow and the hotness--

The light faded, as did the heat and crawling sensation.

Ryuzaki had gone completely. Apart from Redheart, the room was completely silent and devoid of life or any movement.

Redheart was suddenly returned to her senses, the heaviness in her muscles completely lifted, and even her work-induced tiredness she’d accumulated throughout the day was gone. But there were more serious matters to deal with. Like a missing fox, for example.

She shook her head, thinking that the situation must have been a bluff. Of course Ryuzaki could teleport, she thought. He’d only said that he ‘wished he could do that’ to throw her off!

But instead of looking around the room, her body had other ideas. Redheart took a step towards the door, but couldn’t stop the second, or third, or fourth one. The sensation was beginning to fade, not just from her legs but from her whole body as her arm reached forwards by itself and opened the door.

No matter how much she wanted to stop, or how panicked she felt, Redheart kept on walking, even breaking into a run as her body seemed to drive itself, taking no notice of what she wanted to do. No matter what, though, she couldn’t stop. And she had the sneaking suspicion that the situation was only going to go downhill from there.

Arc 1 - Chapter 2

Stop! Stop it right now! This is weird!

Weird as it may be, I'm sorry, I promise I'll give your--

No, I want out! This is my body! You can't just take the driver's seat!

I'm sorry, but you'll have to ride shotgun until I can get out of here unnoticed

Ugh, for pity's sake! I'm gonna get you out of me, and once I do that, I'll... do.. SOMETHING!

Yeah, good luck with that. I'm not leaving until I get to safety -- I already told you that

No, look -- look, this isn't fair! All I had to do was request for you to be discharged, but no, you just straight-up possessed me!

You never offered. And I'm still not leaving

W--well, you--! Ugh.. I guess I don't have a choice in the matter, do I?

Nope.

... Fine, I--I'll let you keep doing this for now. But you have to release me, got it!?

Got it. Sorry.

Redheart had stopped running, and was instead opting to, as suggested, 'act natural'. She had just run though several corridors and passed by several ponies that she may or may not have crashed into -- it was hard to tell with someone else in the driver's seat, all things considered. Considering how conspicuous it would have otherwise been, both she and the one inhabiting her had decided to walk casually instead, so as not to draw any attention to themselves.

Redheart, the temporary 'driver' mentally whispered, when does your shift end?

Slowly getting used to not being in control of her own body as it made its way through the hospital corridors, Redheart answered. It was MEANT to end at six-fifteen! We've been going around in circles for, like, fifteen minutes!.

Okay then, why don't you direct us to the exit then? We're going to need to co-operate here, the fox thought back. Redheart had stopped near a corner -- there were a mercifully small amount of ponies present in the whole hospital at the time, and the corridors had been next to empty apart from the odd nurse or two. Thankfully, none had really engaged Redheart in conversation, only given her a friendly nod or a wave before getting back to whatever they were doing.

Fine then. Turn left when we can, and we should see signs to the front door and the staff room.

Redheart carried on walking and turned left -- true to Redheart's consciousness' word, there were blue signs on the wall that pointed to the exit, staff room, additional wards and waiting rooms. Looking down the corridor, one could see that it shared the white-and-cream colour scheme with the entire hospital, with polished laminate floors and featureless walls save from the occasional fire extinguisher, first-aid kit or telephone. It was, by any other name, a slow evening at the hospital, which was exceedingly rare for a hospital in a big city.

I take it we're going to the locker room first?

Yeah -- I need to get changed. And you'd better take shotgun for that, mister!

What do you mean? I'm not attracted to you. It's not like I'm going to be feeling this body up, because in fact, Redheart, I DON'T LIKE THIS ANY MORE THAN YOU DO! Ryu protested as Redheart continued to walk down the corridor.

Even so! It's really uncomfortable having exactly zero distance between us -- how would you like it if I possessed you?!

But you can't. I wouldn't let you do it.

Ryu and Redheart were still arguing as she came to the staff room door. The locker room was just through the door on the other side -- and thankfully, in yet another stroke of luck, the room was empty.

The room had a distinctly green theme to it, given the colour of the carpet and wallpaper. Sofas and chairs were placed in corners or against walls, and there was a worktop with cupboards and a fridge underneath it. Redheart entered tentatively before shutting the door behind her, but before she could take another step, her body froze.

Is there tofu?

Wh--What?

I want some tofu

Foxes don't like tofu! Why do you want tofu?!

Well, I eat tofu and I'M a fox!

I hate tofu! It makes me feel sick

Good for you, the fox's voice came, but he didn't direct Redheart's body over to the fridge. She kept on walking, glancing around once or twice before opening the door to the locker room.

All right. You take shotgun.

She wouldn't get a response. Suddenly, it felt as if Redheart was in control of her body again. She stumbled a little bit before regaining her sense of balance -- she let out a sigh of relief, and made her way over to her locker, near the very back of the changing room.

Redheart produced a key from her pocket and unlocked the door, pulling out her casual wear. As she began to get changed, however, there was something wrong. For example, she never really knew that she hated tofu -- in fact, Redheart quite liked it up until a few minutes ago. Also, she thought, the fox's voice is gone. There's something wrong.

Still, though, she paid it no mind.

"...Hey, fox?" Redheart whispered just as she was pulling up her jeans.

Yes? came his reply -- so he HAD been there all along!

Redheart took a look around -- the locker room was empty apart from her and her mental passenger. No footsteps, no voices -- nothing at all, thankfully. "You can do magic, can't you?" She asked in a hushed tone.

Um. Yes?

"And you're possessing me?"

Yeah, I-- look, what are you getting at? his voice came again, patience audibly wearing thin.

"I'm just wondering -- what do I get out of this?" Redheart asked, raising an eyebrow as she pulled her dark blue t-shirt on. "I mean," she began, tugging the shirt over her head, "is this a trade, or are you basically hijacking me?"

Silence was the only reply she received, save for a distant, quiet sound of what resembled a sigh. It was enough to make her wait for a response, oddly enough, but as it seemed she would only get no input;

...Well, I can be your guardian spirit for a little while. Is that enough?

Unfamiliar with the concept, Redheart looked -- or at least felt as if she looked at him with a discerning stare, given that there wasn't a direction he was in that she could look in. "So... what does that entail?"

Eh... well, it's my first time actually doing this, but let's say, uh... let's say that after I escape, I'll help you out in little ways? Ryuzaki chuckled nervously, the sound echoing through her head with just a touch of feedback, as if coming in from a microphone, making Redheart's ears ring painfully.

"O-ow! What was that?!" she protested, recoiling and nearly tripping over, just barely missing the open locker door before she steadied herself.

S-sorry! It's just feedback... W-well, as I was explaining, I'll help you out

Teeth gritted, Redheart frustratedly sighed, a hand going to her forehead, attempting to ease the short-lived headache. "Yeah, I get that, but how? What do you mean, 'help me out'?"

No, no, it's very simple. I can put a blessing on your household. Sure, I've never done it before, but it does work in theory, he began as Redheart got back to getting changed. I mean, I-I took a class on it once, so I can convey things like... I don't know, good fortune? Financial success? Blessed crops? If you really want, I can--

Redheart slammed the locker door shut in exasperation. "Okay, I get it! You can 'bless my household' and stuff, so just..." she paused, stepping away for a second, letting out a tired sigh as she gathered her thoughts. "I'm... I'm sorry, Ryuzaki, it's just that this is getting--"

Weird?

"Ugh, yep," Redheart admitted as she practically threw her jacket over herself, fumbling with getting her arms through the sleeves. She sat down, taking a much-needed moment. Not only would this situation get her in an astronomical amount of trouble, but she'd actually gain something out of it. And what was that about a 'blessing'?

Head in hands, another sigh left her as she straightened up, slowly coming to terms with not talking in any particular direction to commune with her newfound spirit. "So... what kind of, uh, blessings are you offering?" Redheart tentatively asked.

Um... let's see. I think I can do money-related blessings easier than anything else. What's the name of the currency around here, anyway? Ryuzaki asked.

"Oh, we use bits. They used to be just gold coins, but notes are more common now," she answered, though with a little confusion. Why would he need to know what the money was called? Surely he'd do better with knowing how valuable it was, she thought.

Right. Just so we're on the same ground, what would... say, fifty bits get you?

"Fifty? That's basically two day's groceries, if they're not doing any offers," Redheart replied. A sudden idea shot through her mind, the sound of fluttering notes very easily imaginable as a look of surprise appeared on her face. "Wait, can I choose what kind of blessing--"

Sure you can, he interrupted, but first, I can do this for you: I can exactly double any earnings you make from now on, no matter where they come from. In exchange, you need to get me at least as far as your house, so I can actually cast the thing

No longer than a second's consideration passed before Redheart accepted the deal. "Done," she smiled, fists clenched with excitement. Looping, then securing her belt through as she got up from where she sat, a great sense of motivation overcame her. To think: permanently doubling her income, with no drama and no questions asked, with the only condition being to get home? It was nearly enough to make her forget the situation of the supposedly disappearing fox, never mind who would be looking for it.

Oh, one more thing

Redheart paused after picking up her bag, holding the strap over her shoulder. "Huh? What is it?"

I'm sure they'll be looking for me. The, uh, powers that be, I mean. If they find out where I am, I'll get out of you and run away, but I'll still invoke the blessing. Is that alright?

She shrugged, a chuckle escaping her lips. "Sure. I'm getting that blessing either way, right?"

Yes. I just, um.. said that. Oh, and don't forget your keys. They're underneath your locker

Redheart scooped the keys up and pocketed them, thankful for the fox's attentiveness. "Let's go, then," she smiled.

Right! U-uh, I mean.. yeah. Let's go.

Redheart smiled a little as she vacated the room, exiting onto the main corridor near the entrance. The corridor was still as empty as it had been that evening, much to Redheart's fortune, so the coast was clear enough to simply walk out the front. And of course, she needed to sign out anyway.

Um, Redheart? Can I just say, you've been very helpful

"Uhh.. you're welcome, I guess," Redheart answered quietly as she made her way down the main corridor. It was getting a lot noisier from there, mainly because the waiting room was at the front as well as the exit. Sounds of telephones ringing, and of course the rolling sound of voices came from the waiting room. Even though it was a rather slow day at the hospital, there were still a good few ponies waiting to be treated for one reason or another. Once or twice, Redheart would pass someone, be it a nurse or a patient, on her way to the exit.

As she signed out and said her goodbyes for the day, Redheart couldn't help but think about how strange the situation was. Here she was, walking out of hospital (that now had one patient unaccounted for) with a mental passenger that happened to be what appeared to be a dangerously underweight and quite alien fox. Hardly a very mundane occurrence.

Hey, Ryuzaki? Redheart mentally asked, deciding that it was much safer than audibly speaking.

Yes?

When you were in hospital, were.. uh, did you feel weird or anything? she enquired.

No, not at all. I can breathe the atmosphere and the gravity's fine, if that's what you're worried about he explained.

Right. That's good she answered as she stepped out of the front entrance and onto the road.

She suddenly felt an odd sensation of movement in the front of her head, accompanied by a little pain, as if something was shifting behind her skull.

"H-hey, what gives?" She whispered, rather startled.

Sorry, sorry... I just need to get a better view., came Ryuzaki's quiet voice.

Canterlot, as cities go, was rather unusual. Once, it was just a castle, perched curiously on the side of a great mountain. It overcame the difficult terrain, and it slowly became a more modern city as the mountain was carved, dug and re-shaped to suit the city's needs.

The hospital was situated on the biggest main street of the mountainous portion of the city.

This white cobblestone road stretched the entire length of the newly developed section of Canterlot, and it eventually lead to the older, more traditional area surrounding the castle. There was a slightly-less-than-gentle slope to the road, which disappeared over a hill towards the right. The streetlamps hadn't switched on, as the golden-orange light of the evening forbade them just yet, and, surprisingly, there weren't a particularly huge amount of ponies on the street that evening. The castle itself loomed in the distance, but not blocking out the sky, as it was up much higher, on its own miniature plateau, which forced the roads to the left to gradually slope upwards as they lead to the sections of town much closer to the castle.

...Nice. I do like the architecture

Uh, thanks... A-anyway, we should get going Redheart thought.

Redheart's home was in a rather inconvenient place. Considering that her workplace was in the mountainous section of the city, and her house wasn't, it took a rather lengthy commute to and from work. Of course, it could have been worse; she was compensated for the time she needed to get there, but her commute involved at least an hour or two of walking.

Redheart, are we... how far away do you even live? asked a weary Ryuzaki.

Shut up in there -- it's not much further she mentally answered as she let out a sigh, hefted her bag and kept on walking, taking quicker and faster strides.

No really, how far away are we

It's literally only another mile! We need to get down the mountain, go right at the lower gates, take a left, then we'll be on my street, just please be quiet

I'm just saying -- you've been walking for like two hours

Yes I know, Redheart sighed, exasperated. She'd had to put up with Ryuzaki's complaining for a while now -- and while the overall situation of having a mental passenger wasn't exactly terrible or much of a burden, he was getting annoying. Just hold on for, like, half an hour, okay? she mentally sighed. How are you tired, anyway? It's not like you're not doing any walking

I know, it's really stupid. basically i can feel whatever you can feel, but your leg muscles are so weird

That still doesn't explain how you're tired!

Well why dont you try lying still for like 2 months and see how YOUR legs handle it

Oh, right... point taken she concluded.

Woah, woah hold on a second stop

Redheart stumbled to a halt, having heard little more than silence from Ryu for the last twenty minutes. Wh-what? Don't startle me like that! she snapped back. Nobody saw her trip, given the emptiness of the street at that time of day, but nothing stopped her from being embarrassed, a pale pink hue to her cheeks flaring up.

Yes okay i'm sorry but please listen

Alright, what is it?

I'm gonna need you to answer as honestly as possible here, ok

Yeah, what's the matter?

Do you have helicopters on this planet

...What’s a 'helicopter'? she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Oh. Well, do you have ANY sort of powered flying machines?

Annoyed, she answered him. Of course we do, we have airships! You might have things we don't, but that doesn't mean we're--

I never meant to insult your kind, Redheart, but I can hear something approaching. Two kilometres behind us.

Falling silent, Redheart looked behind her. The pale purple glow in the rapidly ambering sky instilled a distinct feeling of hopelessness within her, and since Ryuzaki mentioned it, she really could hear it. The low, resonating hum of magic energy, quiet but undeniably there, and getting very gradually louder with each minute.

Oh. Um... we're in trouble.

Okay, okay, so... you and I have very different definitions of 'airship'. How fast do they go? came Ryuzaki's voice again, with just a hint of shakiness to it. Fear, perhaps? It was hard to tell.

They're, uh... pretty fast.

Okay. I suggest we start running, then.

Arc 1 - Chapter 3

"Y-you-- wha-- how am I supposed to outrun an airship?!" Redheart demanded. She then clasped her hands over her mouth, wide-eyed, as she'd never intended for that to come out. Mercifully, only one or two passers-by gave her an odd look, most of them just content to ignore her -- not that there were many ponies out that evening.

Okay, okay, I, uh.. I-I can help you with this, but it poses a risk.. the fox's voice began. Redheart could practically hear the metaphorical cogs turning, which seemed notably easy when you're sharing a body. The faintest, thrumming buzz of flux tyres could be heard. Extremely quiet, but undeniably there.

Redheart you're not going to like this, but if we stand any chance of getting away--

Uh, I think you mean any chance of YOU getting away! I'm not a fugitive OR an alien! she pointed out.

I get the message! I was saying that I need to take over your body again. Fully, this time.

Silence fell for a moment. The sounds of quiet footfalls and the crowds, and even the distant whirr were muted. The orange light of the sunset fell upon the left of her face as a defeated sigh left her lips.

Something was wrong, however. Of course time seemed to slow down in tense moments, but the way the meandering crowds had simply stopped where they were, mid-stride, caught her off-guard.

Before that happens, Redheart, please.. Ryu's voice began, before a brief flash of light erupted before Redheart's eyes, and a gust of wind knocked her back a little way. She struggled to regain balance for just a moment, but when she did;

"Please listen to me," Ryu finished, his voice more focused and a lot less echoed.

Confused, Redheart looked to her left and right before finding the source of that voice, behind her. Astonishingly, Ryuzaki was there, casually leant against a white stone-brick wall, his bushy, long tail swaying at what seemed like a snail's pace.

"H--how are you out here?! Aren't you still possessing me?" Redheart asked, beyond bewildered at that moment. Her gaze alternated between the seemingly paused, muted crowd and the fox's deathly thin figure, partially silhouetted by the bright amber sunset.

He gave her a small, half-hearted smile that faded before he turned to look at the river of pedestrians, his head resting against the wall, tiny particulates of white brick dust in his inky hair. "Tell me, Redheart-san. What do you see here?" Ryuzaki asked, lifting a hand to motion towards the crowd.

She turned and stared for a brief look. Countless ponies were on their way home at this point, no doubt, as if in a mass exodus from the workplace. A grey mare with a bright blonde mane and tail had tripped and spilled her coffee, the light brown drink frozen mid-air just as the mare was, paused on her way down to the paving. The hands on a businessman's watch had stopped ticking as well, frozen, just like its owner, in the middle of checking the time. Ironic, in a sense.

"You've... stopped time?" Redheart whispered, her eyes wide in spite of the intense evening sun. Her footsteps echoed as she tentatively stepped forward. The pigeon on a nearby bench had stopped, mid-takeoff, a skilfully-nabbed fry in its pinkish beak. A single raindrop hung in the air not two feet away from Redheart's head, like a suspended ice crystal, shining brightly as the sunlight hit it at just the right angle.

"No, not exactly. I can just convince it to... disregard us," Ryu answered, taking a deep sigh, a hand on his right shoulder. "What do you see, though?"

She considered his words, taking in the sight. "Uh... I, um.." Redheart began, her brow furrowed. In truth, nothing was that out of place, save from the fact that she was essentially living in a paused moment. But aside from the curious sense of unease one felt outside of time, there was nothing particularly noteworthy occurring.

Redheart looked back at Ryu with a shrug and a raised eyebrow. "What am I meant to be looking at, exactly? Is this some sort of... like, artistic analysis-type thing your kind do?"

Ryuzaki blinked slowly, and pushed himself off the wall with his shoulder. "No, it's not. You're looking too deep into it. I'll tell you what I see, though." Redheart could only stand and watch as Ryu's padded, clicking steps echoed through the street, his tail seemingly floating weightlessly as he paced towards the stagnant, frozen crowd, his hands clasped behind his back.

"You see, Redheart.. the thing you were meant to spot was a 'society'," he explained, pausing in front of the airborne coffee spillage. He plucked the cardboard-lined cup out of the air and delicately, almost as if it were a dangerous task, scooped the coffee out of the air.

"I see a society... no, an entire civilization, that would want me dead," Ryu said, replacing the lid on the coffee and slotting it back into the would-be unfortunate mare's hand, and the scene looked as if nothing had changed, save for the absence of dark beige coffee floating around. "I know mine would, were they in your situation. An alien crash-landing onto our planet, completely unharmed under the circumstances of atmospheric re-entry? That's what we would consider a 'threat', you know."

A shadow fell over the fox's muzzle as he padded down the length of the crowd, pausing to check the time on a passer-by's watch. "But here's what I don't understand. I know that you, as a general collective, would want me exiled or executed on the spot, if you had a say in the matter. That hasn't happened yet, and it's bugging me," Ryuzaki continued, reaching into the crowd to correct the time on another pony's wristwatch.

A sinking feeling made itself known in Redheart's chest. "Wh-why would you assume that we'd wanna kill you? We're not... like your people. I guess," she said, watching with no small amount of confusion as the fox paced about, fixing these small, minute details.

Ryuzaki smiled bleakly at that. "I guess that I'll find out, regardless. But here's what I've deduced," he announced, taking a quick look to his left, a sly, sinister look in his yellow, glowing eyes.

He whipped towards Redheart, far faster than anything Redheart had seen. "Your boss, I'm assuming, is the Head of Staff at that hospital. He, presumably, is under the command of a committee, or maybe some other sort of chief medical authority. Is that true?" Ryu asked, beginning to pad towards her.

Redheart recoiled just a little at that, but nodded. "Y-yes. Uh, well, we're usually overseen by a committee, like most hospitals around here, but--"

"Exactly. That individual, or group, considering that I'm still alive," he said in a mock amazed tone, motioning towards himself as he kept on pacing, "must have received orders to both keep me alive and to ensure my recovery. Now, I don’t know the circumstances of how I ended up there and I assume you don’t either. So I’m going to need to find out.”

He suddenly stopped, and shot his right hand into the stonework, launching a plume of pale dust before he pulled out a lump of brick from the wall itself. That plume of dust hung there, unaffected by time as Ryuzaki lobbed that chunk of rock to his right -- without even looking.

"So I am asking you, Redheart-san--" he began, becoming a blur as he sped back to the wall he was previously leaning on, "--who is the highest authority in government? What kind of government is it?"

She was put on the spot here. Redheart knew the basics of the government, of course, but she remembered only a little about it from her school days. "Okay, um.. well, it's a monarchy, mostly. B-but it's not like a dictatorship or anything like that," Redheart managed, a nervous smile making itself known.

That was only returned by a cold look from Ryu, which prompted for her to continue. "Uh, well, I guess the 'highest authority' would be Princess Celestia.. oh, she's not like... um," Redheart paused, searching for the right words.

"...She's not like... what?"

"Right! She's a little... unusual," Redheart nodded, trying to see that white brick Ryuzaki had thrown, but could only see a white blur, making its way slowly, at a snail's pace, through the air, disappearing around the corner.

"Unusual in what way, exactly?" Ryu asked. "If you're calling her unusual, then there must really be something odd about her."

"Celestia is not odd! She's just.. uh, well, she... moves the sun--"

Ryuzaki sighed and got to his feet, taking Redheart's hand once again. "I'm sorry, Redheart, but that sounds weird, yet interesting. And look, I can't sustain this time distortion for long, so I need to hop back inside. I've got an idea," he said, a hand on Redheart's shoulder.

"O-Oh, right, right.. But one more thing," she said, her nervous smile fading, that humorous tone of voice changing.

Ryu was stopped in his tracks, looking down at Redheart, the glow from his eyes fading for a second. "What's wrong?"

"Don't ever talk about us wanting to kill you. You can't just lump everypony into the 'We-Want-To-Kill-Aliens" camp. Okay?" She stared up at him for a second or two, a look of indignation -- even mild anger in her eyes.

"...Right." Ryuzaki's glow returned, and he disappeared into thin air.

I'll remember that. Please wait a second.

Before Redheart's eyes, time began to move again.

Slowly at first, as if reluctantly starting from a complete standstill, but then a sudden rush of crisp air accompanied normality as it returned. Looking around, she could see that mare stumble with her drink, but this time, with little loss of coffee. And that rock the fox threw finished that sonic boom it made as it was first thrown, and shot off, causing a spot of clamour and commotion, which quickly subsided.

I'll explain my idea on the way. We need to make a detour first, though

“Where are we going?” she asked quietly, her eyes on the contrail of the thrown chunk of brick as it sailed into the distance. “How are you that strong, anyw--”

Wait for it… he cut her off, his own attention probably on the distant light.

Soon enough, within at least ten seconds, the light in the distance and the white, wispy contrail of the stone projectile made contact. The light flickered, and seemed to drop in the sky as it was evidently struck. The distant, quiet thrum of the magic engines faltered as well, dropping in pitch for a second or two.

OK, go!

Arc 1 - Chapter 4

Before Redheart could react, her legs moved on their own before she clumsily co-operated with her "driver's" wishes as she broke into a sprint in the opposite direction she’d been going. Her hooves clacked against the alabaster paving as she ran faster than she’d thought herself capable. Wh-Where are we going?! she demanded, hurriedly sealing her bag as she ran, the faint, wispy beginnings of a white contrail gradually manifesting behind her as she picked up even more speed.

The world began to blur as it flashed past, the orange sky stretching beyond what would be allowed and the outlines of blocks in the stonework merging into an unbroken blur, and the sensation of the wind began to only gently buffett against her clothes, mane and tail as the field of view deepened, the road ahead of her stretching out rather disorientatingly. But somehow, she felt fine with this -- it was the way it was meant to look, she thought.

I’ll explain in a second! I.. I'm doing all I can to help your body cope with the speed!

He was right. Redheart felt incredibly aware of her surroundings as she deftly weaved in and out of crowds, which were but more coloured blurs, with only a second or two to hear sounds of shock and alarm as a white, wispy stream of distortion shot past them. The sound of her hooves striking the stones had faded into a constant low hum as her legs moved faster than she could clearly see them. It was as if she'd had the speed her entire life, with her mind and body fully used to moving at such velocities, her body ignorant to air friction and inertia as she cornered instantly, not losing any momentum at all. This is incredible! How... how fast am I going? she asked, oddly surprised to be quite enjoying the experience, let alone hear herself think over the constant noise of speeding air.

About as fast as I can run, came the fox's reply, equally as clear. Let's get up on the rooftops -- it'll be quicker that way! he suggested as the worrying electric thrum began to fill Redheart's hearing. Even at the speed they were moving at, they still had the problem of being pursued to address.

Redheart glanced to her left at the passing alleyways between the white-blur buildings. You're saying we can run up walls?! she gasped before cornering instantly once again, the white and pinkish blur zipping in between the gaps in the otherwise unbroken alabaster brick blockade. The wind generated from her speed blasted air down the alleys, sending loose paper and refuse flying in little whirls as air trapped itself in the narrow passages.

L-Let me handle it from here! Ryuzaki's voice, now brimming an odd enthusiasm came as Redheart felt the control leave her body, handed over to the more experienced speedster. She was vaguely aware of her speed further increasing as her vision was flipped by ninety degrees, the velocity holding her onto the wall as she was sped along. In what seemed like a fraction of a second, they were suddenly on a flat surface again -- this time, much higher up.

The white and pinkish-red distortion now seemed to bound across from rooftop to rooftop, high above the streets and effortlessly speeding over any gap, any alley. A feeling of exhilaration filled the two of them as the amber sun, now visible just above the horizon, shone down, the wispy, plasma-like contrail hanging in the air and glowing with the last hour or so of sunlight. From below, all an observer would have seen was a flash of a pale blur, generating a glowing, white-and-pink, wisp-like trail of what looked like gas, hanging in the air behind the blur like trapped, electrified neon. And even then, most ponies in the street below passed it off as a trick of the light, if they took any notice.

Listen, Redheart-san came Ryuzaki's voice once again, I can't keep this up forever. We need to--

A low, electric roar began to make itself known, relatively far off in the distance but undeniably there. As Redheart sped past the source of the noise, time stopped where it was -- even for her, with the sheer amount of speed, time was slowed to a crawl as she ran in slow motion, the rest of the world paused. The sound stopped, the soundwaves moving too slowly to reach one's ears.

Ok, I-I know, this really isn't the time, but I really want to look at that thing

Confused, Redheart looked to her left, and her eyes widened in shock. An airship she hadn't seen yet had descended and was only a few metres above the two of them. The looming, massive hull of the craft, frozen in time, hung above like a dark, angular, plated cloud of midnight-blue metal. At a length of fifteen metres end-to-end, the source of the low, charged resonation became clear -- instead of conventional propeller blades or jet engines, the craft was held in the air by what looked like immense, grooved, segmented discs, with two on each side, spinning at incredible speed against guard plating. In each groove, white and yellow magic shone intensely, the light seemingly leaving streaks of light, with what looked like jets of light emanating from the bottom of each disc as it grinded against the guard plates, like afterburners. But with time slowed for the moment, the streaks of light appeared to pile on top of one another, making the discs too blindingly bright to look at for long.

The front of the craft tapered a short distance to a flat, slanted point, and behind the cabin was a smaller yet equally bright disc, presumably mirrored on the other side and tilted at an angle as if to act as a stabiliser, its metal guard facing outwards, propelling the magic directly outwards as opposed to only one direction.

On the sleek hull of the craft were raised panels where the exit ports would go, with an insignia emblazoned on the side -- a white, angular sun as a circle, with angular 'rays' coming off what would be its corona. The shape of a black crescent was in the centre of the sun symbol, nearly touching the inner edge of the circle.

Amazing. They have nothing quite like this back home.

You guys don't have airships?

Eh, well, we have similar flying machines. I never thought of machines using magic to actually facilitate levitation, though. I really must examine--

But his voice cut off with a quiet yelp. Redheart. Wh... where is the ground? came his voice again, with a nervous flatness.

Redheart's brow furrowed in confusion. She looked down, and understood why the fox sounded so scared. Despite time being slowed to a crawl, she was still running, and hadn't seen that gap in front of her between the buildings, stretching down into an alleyway, many metres below. And her right leg was slowly inching down towards the gap, going at a slow crawl as her hoof slowly sank beneath the edge of the building she was on, failing to find purchase on the air.

Oh crap oh crap oh crap-- Redheart's mind blared, her eyes screwed shut and her teeth clenched as she was powerless to change course, or even do anything to stop herself.

Okay, okay, this-- this isn't actually that bad a situation, I'll return time to normal, j-just calm down Ryuzaki's voice came as Redheart began to tip over in slow motion, disappearing further below the edge.

Time gradually began to speed up once again, and just as Redheart was in the middle of falling over the edge, the control left her body once again, her hoof striking the wall as she flipped entirely, now facing towards the stone paving far below as her momentum was completely diverted downwards.

Like a rubber band snapping back into shape, time shot back up to normal speed, and Redheart became a white and pale pink blur that shot down the wall, loose fragments of glass flying downwards as the blur flew past a window or two. Just as the stone paving below rushed worryingly close as she sped downwards, Redheart screwed her eyes shut, bracing for the inevitable impact against the paving. And as she began to wonder if this would be the end of the line, a blindingly bright flash erupted in front of her outstretched arms--

*SLAM*

The stones beneath cracked, a crater punched into the pale brick as an immense cloud of obscuring white dust sprung forth.

As the dust settled, Redheart slowly opened her eyes. She just lay there for a few seconds, unable to believe she was still alive, let alone conscious. Shakily, she lifted an arm, her hand twitching as she began to gingerly, yet slowly steady herself in an attempt to get back up. Fine brick dust began to drift downwards, like off-white volcanic ash, with some floating away on the light breeze, and Redheart had to squint to stop any of it getting in her eyes. Even through the ringing in her ears, the electrical thrum of the airship above them grew fainter as it presumably flew away, much to Redheart's relief. Being caught up in this was the last thing she needed, after all.

Noting her lack of injuries, or at least ones she could feel, Redheart paused for a moment as the ashy brick dust cleared, giving way to the same setting sun, filling her with something of a sense of--

"Ughhh..." came a quiet, pitiful groan from beneath.

She looked downwards, her attention drawn by that noise, before quickly getting to her feet and scrambling to the side as an embarrassed hue occupied her muzzle. Pressed into the white paving, seemingly stuck fast and with cracks running through the surrounding stones, was Ryuzaki. It seemed as if he'd taken much of the impact, given the sheer damage to the paving. He lay there on his front, face-down, spread-eagled, and undeniably embedded in the stone paving itself, the sheer force he'd shielded Redheart from proving more than enough to compress that much rock. And she'd just been lying on him.

"Um.. Ryuzaki? A-are you okay?" she asked hesitantly, her eyes quickly scanning for any telltale signs of injury. She was fine, of course, but oddly, even while allowing for the species difference, Ryuzaki didn't seem to have broken anything, save for the surface he'd landed on.

Her eyes were drawn to the slow, shaky and tentative movement of his right arm as it strained upwards once or twice, then freed itself from the stony grip, slowly rising upwards before his hand began to shake and curl into a fist -- just before giving up and flopping limply back down onto the stone again.

Just as the question of how the fox would breathe with his face buried in the stone crossed Redheart's mind, he shot a bemused, yet desperate glance at her, and gestured, seemingly exasperated, towards his firmly stuck head, his neck strained with the effort to try and pull it back out. Unsure of how to go about it, Redheart quickly leaned over, tentatively grasped each side of the fox's head with both hands and pulled, her arms straining with the effort, even with the admittedly little help he could provide.

"Ugh! You really.. really are stuck--!" Redheart grunted with effort as she pulled upwards with all the strength she could muster. Even with the combined effort, only a few centimetres of muzzle slowly rose up from the paving, bringing with it little particulates of white dust and tiny bits of crushed mortar, as well as now audible muffled sounds of complaint.

"Mmph-hm-mmph," came Ryuzaki's suggestion as he tried to push himself up with his freed arm, but to no avail, as the rest of him was still embedded firmly in the stone.

Redheart just looked at him, mildly confused. "I'm sorry, what? You're all muffled."

Before either of them could do anything else, the noise of several pairs of hoofsteps, coupled with the din of clanking and shifting equipment growing louder, the sounds echoing around the alley the two had landed in. "They went this way!"

"Oh, that's... not good," Redheart meekly whispered, slowly letting go of the fox's head. He shot her a more annoyed, bemused stare before wriggling his head from side-to-side, getting absolutely nowhere, despite his best efforts. "Listen, just do as they tell you and we'll.. be alright, I suppose?" she nervously laughed, a chill running down her spine as she just knelt there and waited -- much to Ryuzaki's silent protest and muffled complaining, coupled with more efforts to pull out of the paving.

Their impending arrest grew closer by the second, the sound of many metal-clad hooves striking stone quickly growing louder as the source approached the alley.

Arc 1 - Chapter 5

Immediately, the situation had escalated. The communication chatter was all over the place, scattered like spilled sand, the main channels nearly crashing for a moment from the sheer traffic.

The two-way handset nearly slipped from his hands as he sprinted through the echoing corridors, taking a hurried left, a right as his attention was divided between the communications, the situation at hand, and the hypothetical plan that could deal with it -- but there were just too many unknowns.

The handset crackled, and a voice just barely broke through the static haze, barely audible. "Come in Capt--kshhh--,this is Squadron Two, we've got a fix on the esc--kshhkhhh"

He switched the receiver off, which crackled one last time in futility, the connectivity just too poor to even attempt two-way contact. "Damnit -- what's with all the static? And at a time like this..?"

Meanwhile, Redheart was still there, frozen in fear, doing her best to stay perfectly still, sporting a blank weak smile of despair -- unable to even consider what to do otherwise. The somewhat distant radio static and metallic clank of armour and weapons let her drown out the reality of the situation as time passed slowly, courtesy of the adrenaline and stress -- and the fear that she, a perfectly innocent (in her eyes) citizen, would be branded an accomplice to the screw-ups, varied and numerous in number, that the blasted fox caused along the way. Ryuzaki was still struggling, at a much slower rate given the present situation, only able to pull a fraction of a millimeter of his face out of the stonework as he glanced fruitlessly at the kneeling, distant-minded nurse beside him, trying to convey something to no avail.

At least eight armoured guards had arrived, blocking the way out. Dark, near-black metallic plating shone in the dying light, face-obscuring helmets like one-way mirrors, and silver-coloured, thrumming weapons in hand. Faint, electrically humming rifles, along with what looked like small, bladed batons also gleamed menacingly.

"There's nowhere to run!" came one of the guard's voices above the rapid shifting and high-pitched electric whine of those oddly-shaped rifles charging up. Eight points of laser lights were trained on the two of them, and Redheart's hands went up with a strangled, cringing squeak, her eyes screwed shut. Ryu, still stuck fast, glared at the present opposition, ignoring the blinding lasers periodically drifting across his eyes.

Yet there was an air of hesitance. They weren't firing anything -- no nets or non-lethal rounds; rubber bullets, as Ryu would've expected, weren't being fired. They were just waiting. Was it because of--?

He quickly realised the situation -- they thought Redheart was a hostage, or an accomplice, as technically true that may have been. He wasn't sure what kind of non-lethal methods these guards had, but if they were this hesitant, he thought, then it must be risky enough to have to consider collateral damage. The dry, charged smell of ozone emanated strongly from those weapons, a faint bluish glow surrounding the various exposed chambers along the receiver of each one.

One of the guards had two fingers to their helmet, the metal plates shifting apart to reveal a now exposed light blue crystal set over their ear cavity with a brief crystalline chime, a static-like resonance filling the air.

The guard with the communicator appeared to be in charge -- the same emblem, the angular depiction of a sun surrounding a moon emblazoned on the airship was branded onto one of the plates on the shoulders, possibly denoting a higher rank than the other seven personnel. "Command, please advise; suspect and accomplice have been cornered. Awaiting clearance to apprehend," they reported. Nothing moved during the next five seconds, save for the distant sound of empty resonance and the background murmurs of ponies on the street far behind them, surely curious as to what the guards, particularly one of the special units, were doing there.

The perfect window of distraction had presented itself.

A little bit more dust and bits of brick were pulled from the stonework as Ryu inched his muzzle out a little bit more, with painstaking caution. Enough to speak, surely, but still quite stuck. He glanced up at Redheart, who was still frozen in fear.

"Oi. Redheart-san," he whispered, looking straight ahead as a plan undoubtedly began to form.

The terrified nurse opened an eye and looked down, with just enough courage to breathe a tiny "Y-yes..?", not daring to move a muscle. The points of laser light wobbled very slightly with the guards' aim, guns trained on those two.

Patchy as the communications were, and whoever 'Command' was -- their voice came through, cut into ribbons by static. "G--kshhh--Squadron Two. Make--kssshhhhk--it alive. Ensure the mar--kshhh-- this. Over."

His muffled, urgent whisper came again, the dust spilling upwards once more. "Redheart. Get off of my tail; I'm about to do something."

She dared herself to look down, even for a moment -- she'd been kneeling right on top of the fox's dust-covered tail, which seemed to be pulling itself free, inch-by-inch out from under her. Redheart shuffled to the side at a snail's pace, allowing more room, but--

"Don't move!" All seven laser pointers went to her as the droning resonance of electricity slowly filled the alley, the rifles glowing with faint blue magic. Once again, Redheart was paralyzed with fear, but she'd already done it -- whatever Ryu wanted to do, he was now in the clear, his tail free. The air began to shimmer around the very tip as it slowly rose, but Redheart passed it off as nothing.

The guard with the communicator glanced over -- as best one could with a face-obscuring helmet. "Don't try anything stupid, you two! It won't end well." They turned away again, the luminous comms crystal showing itself once more. "Command, please repeat. Suspect and accomplice are cornered; awaiting clearance to--"

All the noise faded from the world for a moment. A wave of heat blew through the alley, as if a blisteringly hot wind had blasted through and singed the air behind it. No thoughts entered Redheart's head as it all played out, captured as if in slow motion by her stress-addled mind.

Wide-eyed, she saw Ryu's tail wave and lunge forwards, bending like a whip, the air shimmering in a heat haze around the white-hot paintbrush tip. His determined, sunlight-reflecting amber eyes seemed to glimmer with the same heat that threatened to set everything around them ablaze. The pavement where his muzzle was stuck began to crack, bubbles of trapped air beginning to rise, previously trapped in the white stones.

A single bright, yellow spark of light budded, then leapt in a perfect arc from the white fur, just as a water droplet would fall from a leaf. The intense light played around the shadows of the alley, outshining the weakened evening sunset with an odd glow. The air seemed to flow, as if something giving off invisible fumes had suddenly appeared. The single spark appeared to leap at the chance to combust, like a drowning swimmer going beyond the brink for air, with the same desperation.

Redheart came to her senses, and time returned to its normal pace to be greeted by fire.

Flames, bright orange and red in colour, flooded the air which appeared to catch fire just in front of Ryu's outstretched tail, as if an invisible dragon had unleashed its attack. The mass of flames seemed to compress itself as it relentlessly barrelled forwards as a wall, a blast wave of fire and force, carrying a pressure wave of collapsing air and heat caught in its unstoppable path. It was too late to react, not enough time to dive out of the way as the fire shot forwards with great force. The guard never got to finish their conversation, or even react in time as the compressed flames threw them and the other seven guards like ragdolls -- doing more than just clearing a path, as the force was surely enough to outright kill an unarmoured target.

The bright flames flooded the alley with light, forcing Redheart to shield her eyes and recoil from the wave of near-scorching air. She was far away enough to avoid being flung by the explosion, but the heat still singed a hair or two.

No sooner than a split-second later, Ryuzaki raised his fist and punched the paving with immense force, shattering the stones into rubble in a certain radius. With a single pull and a growl of effort, his muzzle was finally freed; dust and debris was flung away as he wrenched himself away from the ground, ripping a hole in the white bricks as he pulled the rest of himself, slightly-less-stuck, out of the stonework.

Eyes still smouldering -- quite literally, if the heat haze had anything to indicate -- Ryu pulled himself to his feet, the dust streaming off of him as he paused for a moment, breathing heavily as he slumped against the wall. "W-whew... This isn't-- usually.."

Redheart sprang to her hooves, looking on at Ryu with wide-eyed shock. "You-- what?! W-was that firebending?!?" The wall of flames the fox had launched left a trail of black scorch marks everywhere on the bricks it'd touched, further contrasted by the pure white stonework. Ryuzaki looked back at her, even more puzzled.

"You have bending here, too?! I thought the fact that you guys have magic was enough!" he exclaimed, the heat haze in his yellow eyes fading. His left arm went limp, a little flame dancing across his hand. "Ugh... that's not the point, though -- that blast took a bit too much out of me... S-something's gone wrong."

Redheart huffed in exasperation. "THAT'S not the point, either! You just attacked the guard!" she yelled, nervously glancing to the right, where the guards had been standing just a moment ago. Black scorch marks were spilled across the otherwise alabaster bricks, and cracks littered the area as if the stonework were as fragile as glass. The distant din of general panic had faded, as if the street was suddenly abandoned.

She took a quick, split-second glance around the corner -- three of the eight guards were lying on the ground, motionless, but the other five were slowly getting up, with armour pieces all over the place, littered with those pieces of black metal.

"Well..? How many are there?" Redheart heard the fox ask. She turned back, unable to believe what he was implying. "You don't seriously plan to fight them some more, do you?" Redheart asked.

A weak nod was the answer she received. "Yeah... but I'm gonna leave one of them alive, so I can ask questions," Ryu breathed, a weak but mischievous smile on his muzzle.