Knight of Equestria - Gabriel the Wanderer

(Entry 16)

"Now Matthew, you need to take better care of yourself. What if I wasn't here to patch you up?"

"I know. I'm sorry, mother."

"Oh, it's alright, darling. I'm happy you're playing outside more. Just be more careful, okay?"

"I will."

…...

He awoke suddenly, in a state of shock from his dreams. A face he hadn't seen in quite awhile. He had done his best to not think of his mother lest his original nightmares return.

Looking around, he saw that he was in his tent. He wondered for a moment if what happened last night was also a dream before feeling intense pain from the left side of his body. Upon investigation, he found his left arm severed and what remained bandaged. He was honestly surprised to still be alive. He must have caught the poison in time.

He crawled his way out of his tent, immediately regretful that his top half was bare against the cold air outside.

"Whoa, hey! When did you wake up?"

He turned to see the young purple unicorn whom he had last seen going to fetch his first aid kit.

"Just now." he replied, reaching into his bag for any sort of shirt. After putting one on, he immediately noticed the long sleeve dangling on his left side, which he began to try and tie.

"Then you probably shouldn't be walking around. You were asleep for two whole days." she said.

He found some trouble balancing his upper body with the lack of a left arm, taking a few seconds to recenter himself. "And you managed to fix me up?"

"I did all I could. I wish I could do more. You only got bitten because you saved my life." she replied.

"Well, I'm not dead, so I guess you did pretty well." he said, beginning to pack up his camp.

"You're already moving on? In your condition?"she asked, clearly confused.

"I am."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Well at least let me come with you while you recover."

After the tent was comfortably sandwiched into his bag, he turned to face the young mare. "Listen, you don't owe me anything. I only ended up helping you for selfish reasons. You said you were here for the treasure, right? It's all yours."

She looked somewhat bashful as she replied. "Well... I already lined my pockets. And no matter what you say, I still feel responsible for what happened to you."

"Well, don't." he said, swinging his bag over his shoulder, thanking his lucky stars that it only had the one strap.

"Can you at least tell me your name?"

He paused for a moment, thinking about how to respond.

"I don't have one."

The mare crooked her head to the side, perplexed at what he said before giggling.

"I guess that makes two of us. I don't have a name, either. Not a real one."

The human cocked an eyebrow at her response.

"I was abandoned at an orphanage when I was just a baby. The only thing I had with me was this blanke-" she cut herself off. "... was this cloak. Since it was all I had, the folks who run the place decided to call me 'Amethyst'. No idea what my birth name was, or if I even have one."

He sized her up again, noticed the frayed edges of her 'cloak', hinting at its age. The pony herself however looked younger than Twilight and his friends. A few years older than Applebloom, he guessed.

"So... you're from an orphanage? Shouldn't you be getting home?" he asked.

"Pfft, no way. I haven't lived there for like, two weeks. I'm a treasure hunter now. A nomadic treasure hunter." she replied.

"I see. Best of luck on your travels, then." he said, beginning to depart.

"Wait! You're forgetting something!" Amethyst called out to him.

He sighed in annoyance, turning around to see what she was talking about. He saw the pony dragging the large sword he had used, contained once again in the golden sheathe he had thrown at his foe.

"I can't get any kinda use out of this thing, it's too heavy." she laid it at his feet. "Doubt anypony around here would buy it, either."

He bent down to pick it up, finding it much heavier with just the one hand. He felt a strange warmth emitting from the sword, and something compelled him to take it along. Instead of leaving his tied, dangling sleeve on his left side, he decided to cut the sleeve and use it to fasten the sword between his back and the bag.

"Thanks. Happy trails, Amethyst." he said, once again taking his leave. This time, the pony did not protest and let him carry on.

…...

As he resumed his wandering, the man found himself subconsciously searching for his left arm. Each time he reached for it, he could swear it was still there. Some kind of phantom pain lingered where it once was. He knew it would take quite some time to get used to. He wondered why it didn't bother him more and decided he was just happy to still be alive.

The sword at his back was quite the burden to bear, but made tolerable by the warmth it emitted in the frigid environment.

As he had done so many times before, when the night fell he set up his tent. After getting a small fire set to warm him up, he noticed a pair of eyes watching him from the brush. A pair of violet orbs observing him silently. He could barely make out the shape of the small pony he had parted ways with earlier that day.

He had guessed that she followed him. Her silhouette seemed to be shivering, probably eyeing up his fire enviously. When he turned to look at her more directly, she ducked down trying not to be noticed. He smirked at her attempts to be stealthy.

He pulled out his journal and one of his non-perishable rations, letting his food heat up closer to the fire.

Ended up sticking my nose where it didn't belong, and it cost me an arm. Now I've got a little pony tag-along who thinks she owes me something. A child with delusions of grandeur. She's a self proclaimed nomad, but apparently doesn't have any sort of shelter. I suppose it would be rude of me to let her freeze to death.

He closed the book, stashing it back in his bag.

"You're going to catch your death of cold out here." he called out.

Amethyst's eyes shuffled nervously before hanging her head and approaching.

"How long did you know?" she asked.

"I only just noticed you." he replied.

"Sorry I was following you, but you have to understand. I haven't ever seen anything like you, so, I was curious." she said, warming up to the fire and sighing with relief.

"I'm sure you were. Shouldn't you be getting home? You found your treasure, right?" he asked.

"... That place isn't my home. The place is nice, don't get me wrong. But I lived there my whole life. I watched as all my friends got adopted, but never me." there was an awkward pause as she shifted the mood. "I answered one of your questions, you should answer one of mine. It's only fair!" she declared.

He chuckled slightly at her sudden change of subject. "Fine."

"What the heck even are you? Where did you come from?" she asked.

"That's two questions. Though I suppose I can't really answer one without the other." he said, clearing his throat. "I'm what is called a human. Due to a magical accident, I was pulled here from my native earth. My home here was Equestria."

"Whoa, you lived in Equestria?! Is it as magical and immaculate as they say it is?" she asked, clearly awestruck.

"I... guess? More magical than where I came from, for certain."

"Are there a bunch of Unicorns there? I hear Equestria is filled with them."

"You heard right. Are they not as common out here?"

"I've never even met another Unicorn!" she said, still gushing. "What are you doing here? Why aren't you still in Equestria?"

The man grew silent at her question, finding a sudden interest in the fire instead of the conversation. Amethyst noticed how suddenly awkward the atmosphere had become as her stomach began to growl.

He looked down to the half eaten ration in his hand, a mix of vegetables mainly, and offered it to her. She took the tin carefully and thanked him profusely before tearing into it.

"You can share my tent if you don't fancy freezing overnight. Make sure you put out the fire first. Oh, and I only have the one blanket, so I guess you'll have to use your 'cloak'." he said, crawling inside to try his best to fall asleep.

Some time later, he heard her extinguish the fire then climb inside, closing the entrance behind her.