“Hey, Midnight… Wait up.” A voice called after the bat pony, who strolled through the corridor of the castle.

She stopped and turned her head around. Quickly she saw who called after her. It was High Mile, a pegasus with deep blue coat and grey mane. She was one of the few pegasi in the night guard.

Pegasi and Unicorn served mostly in the Day Guard, as protection for Celestia, while the bat ponies serve Luna. Still, there are some ponies, who prefer the night over the day and such an odd pony was High Mile. She never said anyone, besides Midnight, why she was in the Night Guard and so she was a bit of the oddball. Although she stands out in the ranks of the bat ponies, Midnight considered her a friend.

Midnight waited until Mile was beside her, then she continues to walk down the corridor, but know with her friend at her side. “Mile, good to see you. How are you?”

Mile shrugs her shoulder. “Well Captain, good to see you too, besides some small shake I’m fit…” She shakes her head. “Cut the small talk… I want to ask you the big question.”

Said captain stops dead in her tracks. She turns to the pegasi. “What question?”

Mile smiles one of her smug grins. “The Big “What happens” one?”

Midnight puts a hoof on her shoulder. “You want to hear it?” Mile nods one time. “To bad. Princesses said it’s classified. So, no bit of information for you.” She said to her.

The pegasi look dull at her before she starts to make big eyes. “You know that won’t stop me, do you?”

Midnight realizes a breath and in her head, she wages the two options. On the one hand, the princesses had ordered to shut her mouth about the direct circumstances, but on the other hand, bits already are out and with the rumors will appear.

So, quickly she thought about her decision before she came to a conclusion. “Ok. I will answer, but first how much do you already know?”

Mile starts to smile, knowing she had scored a little victory. “Well for starters. We had been called for another opening portal. Both guards mobilize and march out to engage any pony/ anything trying to come through. Freaking magic stuff happened and something shot out of the portal. One landed directly in front of the lines. It was one stranger with a bundle in his hooves. “She sniggers for a moment. “Celestia shot a magic blast and knocked him out. Then it turned out he had the missing Princess Twilight Sparkle. We take both in, Twilight had gone into the infirmary and the stranger into prison. Then a well nothing happens, but then something happens. Strange Magic and stuff. A Magic blast roaming through the castle.”

She pointed her hoof at the remnants of what had been a window. Now instead of the window, it was simply a hole, which was simply covered up with a long, thick cloth.

“Did some prosperity damage and messed up the ponies. Hit me while I had been in the barracks. Had thrown me into a wall. Still hurt” she rubs her head while muttering the last part.

Midnight listens to her. Then she leans towards her. “Well my dear Mile, that is already much, but what I will tell you now must be a secret for a moment. OK?” she looked deeply into her eyes.

Mile counter her deep stare. “Did I ever let something slip my lips?”

Midnight takes a few steps. Her face bore the same grin Mile had. “Follow me, I will tell you some small details.”

With that, both start to walk further down the corridor…

…

Unknown to them something slides the cloth moves slightly as if a soft breeze blew. Something like that wouldn’t be something worth to worry about…

But there is no wind. A spell is in action so that no cold enters the castle through the new and unwanted openings.

It was something far darker than a breeze carrying cold in it. A ghost-like scheme.

Its hooves take some steps on the stone ground and the carpet. No sound came from his steps.

And before another moment passed the scheme had vanished, leaving nothing behind…

…

“So, you are saying me, that the prisoner still took you with him, when he broke out… and the whole time he called you Batsy?” A snort sounded. “And he is still alive? Midnight I think the blast stole your edge.” Mile teased her friend.

Midnight growled. “It sounded found to you, but he has a way to go under my fur. There had been moments, where I simply wanted to strangle him.”

She looks around the blast had devastated the corridor, still, no pony was hurt. In her mind, she put him down in the list of damage control. First the wounded, later the property damage.

She was so deep in her mind, that she blocked out her surroundings, which lead to a heavy punch against her shoulder. The short pain resets her focus and she looked at Mile. “What?”

“I said… And now he had moved the princess into another room so that we can have the infirmary for the injured?”

“Yes, he even carried her. Walked the entire time on his hind legs and carried with his forelegs.” Midnight shakes her head and lets her mane fly freely. “He was more stable on two legs than on four… I don’t get it.”

Mile tried to imagine the picture. “Hard to believe. Still, you must have got a nice look onto his packet… So, has he a good one?” She asks in a sly tone.

Midnight just waves her hoof. “Well the corridor is clear, let’s go further. There are maybe still injured ones.” She starts walking.

“You didn’t answer my question?” Mile urged her.

“I didn’t need to answer because there is nothing to say.” She tried to end the conversation of the theme.

Mile on the hoof saw the slight blush on the bat pony’s face. “Oh… you had to get a glance. Say bigger than normal?” she asks in an eager tone.

Midnight chooses to ignore her blushing cheeks and her babbling friend and walked down the corridor, Mile on her tail.

…

The scheme followed behind them. Lurking in the shadows it tailed them.

“She is here. Vet is with here.” Was the only thing on its mind.

It stops in a small niche in the corridor. The niche was small, still completely in shadows so that he chooses to stay there for a moment.

The scheme stood still, while it starts to plan his next steps.

It knows that the main goal was to answer the call and go to the center. But the way is unknown and it didn’t want to waste precious time wandering around.

But a sound echoed through the corridor and it listens to the sound. Lighter steps and fewer steps, so the scheme knows whoever walks isn’t the two from before.

After a few more steps a maid came into view. She turned to a broken window and show her back towards the niche behind her.

In the niche, the scheme starts to show a feral grin.

In this moment, all of its thoughts about plans were pushed aside as it comes forward and grabs this opportunity. So, it stepped out of its hideout and locks it glance on her…

To get information… and feeding…

The maid froze completely, she didn’t even dare to breathe. She was suddenly filled with fear. She tries to move her legs, but they didn’t even budge an inch. Panic started to rise in her.

With utter willpower, she was able to lower her glance down her neck, where she sees that a white leg closes around it. Slowly, without making a sound, the leg pulled her with it. Dread filled her throat.

As soon as she was fully pulled into the niche, her head was twisted to the side. With one eye, she catches a glimpse of the scheme…

But the only thing she really saw where the two fangs at its maw. Said fangs come closer to her neck. Panic rises higher in her. She wanted to shake in fear, but the scheme simply looks at her. Even without eyes, she feels its glance and her mind start to fall…

Then a simple word escapes its maw… “Prey” the word came out as a whisper.

She opens her mouth wanting to scream out her terror, panic, and fear, but the fangs enter the soft flesh on the side of her neck… and no sound left her mouth.

…

Midnight had a problem. She can’t decide if she should strangle her friend High Mile or first beat her into a bloody mess and strangle her then. Both options were very appealing and with every new word, Mile said, the wish just to do one of the two options becomes harder and harder to ignore.

“Mile... By all what is holy by the grace of the Moon Princess and everything that is touched by the moonlight… STOP TO ASK ABOUT HIS SCHLONG” she screams into Mile’s face.

The pegasi were setback from the outbreak from the normally controlled bat pony. “Gotcha, ” she thought in the back of her mind. “Jess, you didn’t need to scream so loud. I think even Manehatten had heard you. And was completely unnecessary. It was a completely legit question.” She answers while rubbing her ears with on hoof.

“That it… now I will …” Midnight said while she raises her own hoof, ready to beat the pegasus when suddenly a shrill scream cut through the air.

“KYYYYYAAAAA”

Both guard ponies stopped dead in their tracks. In union, both turned their eyes and located the direction of the scream. Without missing a beat both darted to the source, their bickering side aside, as now duty calls.

As fast as their hooves could carry them, they run through the corridor and halls, passing broken furniture and windows, until they arrived at the source.

A maid and a guard standing beside the body of another maid, who lays in a niche.

“Guard what happened here?” Midnight asked in her officer voice. The guard was shocked by her appearance and barked an order, but his training came to his help and he jumps into position. The maid jumps out of her frozen stance, but then she jumped to the side of the guard and he puts his wing over her.

“Lieutenant. I accompanied the maid beside me. She had been so frightening, that she wanted protection, so I have offered myself as her bodyguard and …” he wanted to say more but Midnight already senses the half-truth in his answer.

“Private Flame Sword… I don’t give a damn, that you and the maid Black Duster other there, tried to find a place for rutting each other.” She snarled at the brown pegasi guard and the black unicorn maid. “What happened here?” She points at the victim.

The maid mare lays in the niche. Her face was drained from colors, her breath come flat and she was in fetal position. She whimpers unintelligible words and then Midnight heard Mile gaps. Blood flows down her neck and a few drops already hit the ground. All in all, she looks like death had visited her

The maid Black Duster gulps before she starts to talk. “Well, Flame agreed to accompanied me.” She gulps again. “Well I had hoped that we find a quiet place away from all, so we both had walked to this corridor. It’s usually a quiet place.” She shivers in fear. “But then reach the niche and we had found Red Quilt. At first, I was shocked, but then I say the blood and then I screamed.” She turns to the pegasi guard and buries her head deeper in his side.

Midnight waited for a moment longer, but Duster didn’t seem to have more to say. “Ok. You two get her to the infirmary” she ordered.

This somehow triggered a reaction. The head of Red Quilt suddenly jumped up. “NO.” she screamed.

The sudden change of behavior shocked every pony.

Mile was the first to ask. “What? Why?”

Red Quilt stands on shaking hooves, she looked like she would simply fall any second. “When…When…it had bitten me… I heard a voice in my head… I…I think it was its… the thing asked where the infirmaries are…where princess Twilight lay…”

Midnight was shocked. “What? Did you say anything to its questions?”

Red nods in a staggering motion. That made Midnight mad. “WHY?” she asks in a threating voice

The hurt maid starts to shake more and Black Duster rushed to her side to support her. “I couldn’t resist… I tired… But there was so much terror… He had drained my will… just through his presence.”

Midnight stared at her. That wasn’t good. Such a dangerous thing roaming through the castle… with both the ruler of the nation and the national heroes here, with the unknown stranger as another complication…

She snorted, but she gathers herself. “For things like this I had enlisted myself.” She thought to herself. “Mile follow me. Private Flame Sword you too. We rush to the nearest weapon rack. We take some weapons and then we hunt this thing down before it reaches its target.”

“MA’AM, YES, MA’AM” both guards salute and Midnight gives orders to the maid. “Black Duster get Red Quilt to the infirmary. Immediately. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?” The maid nodded and then started to rush the injured down the corridor.

But after a few steps, Red Quilt talks again. “I remember something…” That catches the attention of Midnight who had just turned to face Mile and Flame.”

“What did you suddenly remember?” Midnight asks in a wary tone.

“When I had given the location of the infirmary… The voice had asked who is with her?” Red weakly said.

That raised many red flags in Midnight's head, so she rushed to her side. “The voice had asked, who's with the princess?”

Again, Red nodded in her staggering movement. “I said she was with princesses Celestia and Luna, as well as the Bearers of Harmony and the dragon Spike… and this Vet, the stranger from the portal.”

“Why is this important?” the bat pony asked. She had a hunch, but couldn’t point her hoof on it.

“Because, as soon as I had said the stranger's name… the thing it had left… it had said something…” she raises her head and stared into the eyes of Midnight. “I’m coming brother.”

This little sentence was all Midnight needed. Her battle trained mind was able to process this information in no time. She reeled on her hind legs to Mile and Flame. “New Order. Mile with me. Flame to the barracks. I want every unicorn guard on the hooves and going to the infirmary holding Twilight Sparkle. ASAP. If they aren’t there before 5 minutes, I will personal skin them.”

Mile was astonished by her violent outburst, while Flame suddenly fears for his life. He gulped, then simply saluted and then run as fast as he could to the barracks.

He had heard of Midnight reputation. She had always been tough, but since her injury from the battle of Twilight abduction and the result of the loss of her flying ability had made her an even greater threat. So, when she threatens with skinning, Flame had to get the feeling she would do it… with a dull and rusty knife, just to make her point.

Midnight was unaware of his thoughts. She simply darted to the nearest weapon rack, a few corridors down, with Mile on her tail.

As soon as both reached the rack Midnight takes two spears and a bunch of knives, some of them able to be thrown. She gives one spear and the half of the knight to Mile. “Come with me Mile.” She leaned to her and the pegasi unintentional gulps, as she saw the murder intend in her eyes. “We have a thing to hunt.”

With that, she rushed away, Mile after her. The entire way Midnight had only one thought on her mind. “Now I will bucking kill Vet. He is in league with that thing. Maybe the princesses will be disgusted, but they will understand…” She starts to make a nasty grin, with way too many teeth showing. “Vet, your ass will be on my table and your head on my spear.” She threats the stallion and she could swear she could already taste his blood.

In the infirmary, where Twilight lays…

Vet groaned a bit out of annoyance. He had proposed the idea of taking Twilight to another infirmary so that they could use the space for another injured. Also, he had hoped to steal some time for a good portion of sleep, before he was forced to explain things.

But he had learned in his life too soon that the universe doesn’t give a damn thing about wishes and so he sits on the bed, Twilight’s sleeping form at his side, her head on his shoulder. She had fallen asleep, while he had carried her and he didn’t want to disturb her, especially now, as she was able to sleep without any drug.

That wasn’t the thing what disturbed him. It was the fact that the royal sisters and the Bearer of Harmony with the dragon were with him in the room.

Vet had already decided that Luna was alright. His opinion over Celestia was worse, especially after he had learned that it was Celestia, who knocked him out.

His opinions over the elements were different. He thinks that Rainbow Dash was arrogant and cocky. He like from Applejack that she was a ground steady mare. He wonders how Fluttershy can be one of the Heroes. “That mare is so shy and timid, how would she have the courage to do that?” He also doesn’t really understand Rarity, but that’s mostly because of his lack of understanding and caring for fashion and the upper-class.

His opinion over Spike raised fast. He had learned enough from Twilight about her “number one assistant” that he believes he is a good guy under all the scales. That he still growls and glare at him was something that didn’t bother Vet. He knows that the dragon must have aggression for abducting his mother/boss/sister, still, he seems to understand to take Vet from Twilight would only make the situation worse for her. So, Vet easily forgives him. “Better aggressive but controlled, than apathetic.” Vet dry thought.

About the last pony, he hadn’t come to a conclusion about liking or hating her. Pinkie Pie had jumped the entire time around and never stood still. And all the questions she asked, her hole blubbering… Vet feel like he was on a bad trip. “How can she have so much energy? Did she take a mix of Speed and LSD for breakfast” Vet wondered?

He had made the mistake to ask and right now he follows the advice the others had given him. “Don’t think about Pinkie Pie”. An advice he truly follows by all of his heart.

So right he sat on a bed, princess sleeping on his shoulder and 8 interrogators around him. “I don’t get any sleep until I answer some question?”

A collective nod was the answer. Vet loudly sighs. “Faust above, if shit come down always so much to buried me six feet under.” Another sigh. “Ok, I will answer a few, but if I don’t like the question there won’t be an answer, understand?”

Again, a collective nod. “Okay, who wants the first question.” He asks the group.

Celestia was the first to ask. “Is vet your real name?”

Vet was mildly surprised, he had bet they ask something different. “Nah, Vet is my call name. Fully I’m called Veturius.”

“Did they shorten that name to Vet?” came the question from Luna.

Vet snorted. “No, it came through my job. I was the caretaker of little Miss Sparkle here.” He pointed at the sleeping alicorn. “Some of the people over there called her an animal… and a dumb animal doesn’t need a doctor, but a Veterinarian and the researcher over there didn’t spend any bit of energy to learn my name, so Vet was born and it stuck.”

Fluttershy suddenly make a small sound, it resembled a Memp. “A Veterinarian… so you a doctor?”

“No… I’m a caretaker…a male nurse…”

Rainbow cuts herself in. “What’s different and why were you ordered to take care of Egghead. Wasn’t she able to care for herself?”

Vet’s grin looked suddenly more like a grimace. “A doctor looks at a patient, say some fancy words and write receipts. Caretaker and Nurses have the job to do the actual work and they are the one who sees how the patients die under them.”

Again, Fluttershy made the Memp again. “What?” she asked in a timid voice.

Vet’s mad grind grow. “To continue the answer for Rainbow over there… She wasn’t able to care for herself because she was busy to keep her lung and heart working, while the bastards over there did there little sick experiments.”

A shock goes through the equestrians in the room. “WHAT?”

“Oh, should I explain it.” He leans a bit forward. “They wanted to know everything about Equestria, Alicorns, and Magic… So, they experimented on her… Cut her open, break her bones, her wings… give her drugs just to see how she react to them… Slowly in their pursuit of science…” he spat the word out.” … they were killing her in body and mind.”

If someone who drops a needle and let it hit the ground… said needle would be loud as thunder…

Celestia was again the first to speak, but only after a long moment. “They tortured her…?”

Vet noded and slowly points his hoof on the sleeping alicorn. “Yup. The cut over here…” he pointed near the base of the wings. “They cut her there to see the muscles responsible to move the wing. After they had been finished they had left the cut open. Had been forced to sew it close.”

He pointed to the wings. “The put her once in a machine which slowly put pressure on them… only to see how much weight they can withstand. Afterwards simply throw her back into her cell. I had to splint them or they wouldn’t heal in any way”

He moved his hoof to her horn. “Sometimes they did things to her just for fun. Once one of the interrogator, a pig in clothes, had asked her question she couldn’t answer, so he grabbed her by the horn and had her thrown into the room as if she had been a doll. It had hurt her and she didn't give any pieces of information. Still, he continues to torture her, just because he gets a boner from doing it.”

Vet closed his tale and Spike started to growl so strong that Vet swears the ground shake. The dragon looks like he wants to kill and Vet slowly get the feeling that he is the target for his bloodlust.

Rarity was calm and put a hoof on his claw. Instantly the dragon stopped to growl, instead, he looks at her. Vet was relieved by her ability to control the dragon, as he didn’t want to fend off an angry dragon.

“So, you had patched her back and made sure she survives?” She asked him. Vet nodded. “I must say thank you for that, still you did a poor job on it.”

Vet grins again. “Well excuse me. Alien physiology wasn’t a subject when I was at school. I did what I could, still, I needed help from Hawk and Psyker. They mention things about her wings and horn, so without them, I dare to say… either she had died or lost both body parts.”

Luna stared at him. “The one who hurt her… did they get punished for their crime?”

Vet nodded eagerly. “Yes, her Warband did that. There had been once a doctor who did a vivisection on her, cut her open when she was in full awareness… Boy Law did the same thing on him." Vet shakes his head. " Damn he had proven me that the fastest way to man’s heart is still straight through the collarbone.”

He looked at the others, who stared at him. “He died painfully. In fact, everyone did. The doctors who crushed her wings, Hawk had broken every one of their bones. The interrogator who tossed her like a doll… Be did the same to him.” He grinned sinisterly. “Be had far more strength than him… So instead into walls, he had thrown him through them and in the end, he had demonstrated how many times a man can be folded. I give you a hint… it’s a double-digit number.”

Pinkie was now the one who asked a question. “Warband. What is that? Were that her friends?” She jumped around him.

“Kind of. But fewer friends and more loyal battle dogs.” Vet said earning a round of confusion. He sighed and put a hoof on his face.

“Had they been some sort of guards?” Luna asked.

“Less guards or soldier, but more living weapons. Enhanced with some nasty things to improvised their battlefield abilities.”

“What enhancements?” Came the confused question. Vet didn’t know from who came the question as he didn’t raise his hoof of his face.

“Enhanced strength, speed, vision. The abilities to see in the dark and such…” he finally raised his hoof and look at the group. “Sparks had told me you have magic, which candies the same thing but only for a short time. Their enhancements are permanent.”

Celestia and Luna gasped for air. “The Stress and the toll in their bodies and mind… they can’t endure it long. Their bodies must have crumpled and their minds shattered.”

The no magic of the group looks at the alicorns. “Why?” came from Applejack.

Rarity was the one who answers. “I don’t know much about it, but spells who enhance for example your strength already cost much magic power. If a normal unicorn uses it on himself he can maintain the spell for approximately for 10 to 15 minutes. Any longer and he starts to poison himself with magic.” She shrugged.

“Darling magic poison is a serious threat for a unicorn. If some pony get it he had so much magic stored in his body start to affect his organ. Slowly it degenerates them, while his mind starts to twist and madness occurs.”

She shudders again and Spike rushed to her side. Grateful for his support she leans against him, while her coil his tail around her hooves. “The school taught us some stories about unicorns how did a magic poison on themselves or other ponies.”

Vet laughed. “Oh… they maybe go in the category MAD a bit, but weak bodies…” his laughter intensive. “They can bend steel... Them and weak… best joke I heard since a long time.” He chuckled for the last time, then he gets serious. “They had been the one to free her. Killed their way to her and recruited me to her caretaking. They had taken the portal and send me and her first through.”

“So, these super-duper strong friends of her? Did they stay behind?” Pinkie asked. She seems eager to meet these new friends of Twilight.

“Well, they had said they would walk after us through the portal…”

Celestia and Luna look at each other. “The other blasts!” they shout and look at the confused group. “When the portal had open we had shot our magic in them in an effort to close it. You landed in front of us, but there had been other blast who had shot all in different directions. But we don’t know where they had landed.”

“Well, the term crashed will fit better for it… but that means they had come through… they are just scattered all over… But they will come.”

“How will they come? They are scattered in a foreign land. Also by judging your appearance, they will stand out. So well will learn from them soon enough. In addition, I don’t think they can simply walk right in?” Luna asks while she tipped her mouth with her hoof as she thought about it.

“Well…” Vet wanted to say more, but he was cut short, as the door was suddenly pushed open, with enough force to rip it out of its hinges.

Vet set with the face to the door, so he was the first one who sees the intruders. Much to his dismay, it was Midnight and a pegasi guard. First, he wondered why they entered

A pissed of Midnight with murder in her eyes and a spear in her hooves… Which she throws with force… targeted at Vet and his vital organs…

“MIDNIGHT!” Luna screamed. Celestia lost her footing when her sister screamed. And the rest just break into utter chaos. Meanwhile Twilight stirred up as the sound wake her up.

The spear flies through the room, untouched the commodity. “Oh, for Faust’s sake.” Vet loudly swears. “I survived so long, the facility the outbreak and Sparks outburst here, and now I fucking die because batsy lost her fucking mind?” he thought while hoping for a miracle.

The spear comes closer and he closed his eyes, awaiting his death. But it didn’t come, so after a few moments, a loud SNAP echoed through the room, so he opens his eyes again, to get great by a shocking view.

Right before the bed stand a foreign stallion, the remains of the spear laying to his hooves, while the tip of the blade was in his maw, as he had caught the spear midair and instead of simply defecating he had bitten it in two halves. He had wings and ears like a bat pony. His entire coat, his wings, and mane were white. Not the alabaster white of Rarity or Celestia, more a ghostlike white, making it hard to see him. Still, three features making him stand out.

First, he had really long fangs, second, his eyes were hidden under a black bandage going over them and most importantly… he had no cutie mark.

This allowed Vet to realize that the foreign stallion was one of the war band.

Also, Twilight had jumped up and thrown herself on the albino bat pony and hugs his barrel. She started to cry into his coat, while she mumbles… “Hunter, Hunter, Hunter…”

Vet looked up and saw that ever pony was set back by this scene. Vet couldn’t’ resist. “Well, I think they can simply walk in and right now I think I owe you guys an even bigger explanation.”

Author's Note

So another update. Faster than before, but the next need a while... damn this writer block and RL.
Still enjoy