I hurt everywhere. I was so tired. My brain wouldn’t work.

“..muhh” was all I could get out of my throat.

“Nurse, he’s waking up.”

That voice was so loud my ears slammed back down… which only got my eyes to crinkle tight in pain.

Which got another little grunt out of me in discomfort.

At least the approaching hoof steps were slightly muffled and the voice that came with them was gentler. “Good morning, mister Icarus. Don’t try to move or talk yet. I’m nurse Spring Well and you’re in the Guard Reserve Infirmary. You’ve had quite the adventure. The doctor is on the way to speak with you, and your parents will be in shortly after.”

My mouth was dry. My lips were dry. My throat was dry…. Even trying to open my eyes felt like there was glue sticking between my eyelids. The best I could get out of my lips was, “--mwuh hep’n?”

It made me feel safer to hear the smile in Spring Well‘s voice. “ ‘What happened’ is something the doctor will talk with you about. What I can say is, congratulations on getting your cutie mark.”

“So! Mister Icarus! What Are You Doing In My Hospital Today?”

I knew I was laying on a bed, but I could swear the volume from that voice spun me in space. All I could do was scrunch my nose and eyes tighter - which hurt…

--which caused another slight grunt in pain.

--which caused me to flinch my shoulders, making me feel my wings hurting too.

I guess that means I still have them, right?

“A little quieter, please, Doctor. He’s still coming around.”

I wished I could thank Spring right then. Can’t my nurse be my doctor now?

“Right! Sorry. Near the end of my shift. I’m a little tired myself. Mister Icarus, I’m Xanshi Go, the resident doctor on duty right now. Can you hear me alright?”

Best I could do was nod a little. Even that hurt. Taking my attention from my nurse to my doctor hurt. How did I even hurt my brain like this?

“Ok. We’ll try not to make you move until we need to. Mister Icarus, you suffered something called, ‘Cutiemark Blackout’. It’s a rare condition that happens when somepony taps into their cutiemark power too much and overdrawns on it. Basically you tapped into your magical ability and tried to use more than you had inside while flying. Fortunately the security detail spotted you and kept you from being in worse shape than you are now.”

I was able to open one eye just a sliver to look. Even with the fuzziness I could finally see Nurse Spring sitting next to me, Doctor Xanshi was close to my rear hooves, reading from some notes. Past both of them I could make out what I could only guess was the side of a Reserve Guard at the door, standing at attention facing the doorway.

It was more the colours of the uniform that tipped me off than anything else. It was just a blurry blob of blue and purple hulking blurriness.

My mom is going to kill me.

“Mister Spring, how’s he doing so far?”

“He seems reasonably stable, Miss Go. Water and light snacks until his parents arrive?” I could hear how many buttons Spring was pushing back on. It hurt to smirk, but I did it anyway. He slyly winked back at me.

“Mmmmm…” Water sounded really good right about now. Maybe with some sap sweet mixed in. Oh, I could really go for something that didn’t hurt to do. Swallowing won’t hurt, right?

I saw the edge of the cup slide under my cheek and against my lips. “Take it nice and easy, Mister Icarus. Take a very small sip, hold it in your mouth for one breath before swallowing. That’s it, just like that. Good. Nice and slow.”

Wasn’t sweet, but it’s water. That’s good enough.

And it didn’t hurt. So, that’s good, right?

As she turned to leave the doctor made a few quill strokes on my file without looking up. “About right. And Mister Icarus? We’ll make sure the Cutiemark Councellor Services will be available to talk with you once you’re ready. Don’t want you overdrawing your powers while flying again, hmm? I’ll make one more check in on you just before I leave and your parents should be arriving any minute now.”

With Doctor Go out of the way I could see the doorway a little better and I didn’t like what I saw, fuzzy as it still was; TWO Guard-Coloured Blobs flanked the doorway, stock-still.

“I suppose introductions are in order. On the left is Commander Pipistrelle Dawn…”

The mass of colour moved, giving what I could only guess was a formal Snap-To Wing Salute at the mention of her name.

“-- and on the right is Commander Obsidian Nebula.”

She gave the same salute, only left-hoofed, making them a matched, mirrored pair of fuzzy formal, uniformed blobs. And as if they were just that, they released the salute and went back to their previous sentinel pose in perfect synchronicity. Spring snorted and shook his head with a smirk on his face. “They’re just showing off for you. They brought you in and have been on watch for a full night and day. Something about you being their responsibility now. When you’re ready we’ll explain what happ--”

And right then my eyes opened hard! I heard the galloping hoofbeats of my parents down the hall, approaching fast. The guards filled the doorway so fast I flinched in surprise. With their wings back, heads down, and the most clear voices I’d ever heard they ordered simultaneously, “Back. Now.”

My ears slammed back on my head, giving me another grunt of pain and an understanding nod from Spring. How in Tartarus do even the insides of my ears hurt? Oh, mom was going to kill me.

All my life my parents were like a force of nature to me. To hear their hoofbeats come to a staggering stop was weird. I knew the guards were at the door, but I never considered they’d be able to stop my mom and dad!

“Mmm… ‘hrents” was the best I could mumble out for Spring to hear.

His eyes never left me, watching me drink, and he nodded. Without turning his head or speaking loud enough to hurt my ears, thank Luna for that, his voice came out in a way that was definitely All Military. “Commanders, that’s the parents. Let them pass.”

As soon as the purple-blue blobs left the doorway dad and mom trotted in, getting less fuzzy the closer they got. At least Spring greeted them for me, at a volume that didn’t hurt. “I’m Nurse Spring Well. Mister Icarus here experienced ‘Cutiemark Blackout’ the other night while flying--”

“But, that’s a foalhood disease, isn’t it?” Oh, mom. Always with the worry for me overriding any concepts of propriety or authority.

At least Spring had the professionalism to deal with her initial worry before getting back to the subject at hoof…. me. Mentally I winced at that and was pleasantly surprised that it didn’t hurt. “Cutiemark Blackout can happen at any age. Near as we can tell he overtapped his ability while his cutiemark was manifesting. Those two guards rescued him from the skies before…”

I didn’t need my eyes to hear how pale my father’s face went, I could hear it in his voice. “--before he could crash. Icarus, are you hurt?” His hoof on my ankle didn’t hurt. Maybe I didn’t hurt all of me.

Mom’s hoof on my shoulder belayed that idea and I scrunched my eyes a little. “Mmhmm. Bedder. Tired.” The water was helping me talk and see better. Both their eyes were worried and as tired as I felt. I doubt they’d slept a wink all day.

After hearing how Nurse Spring was before, I could tell he was in All Business Mode now. “I know you’d like to be in here with your colt, but for now we need to get him some more water and food. The doctor was just here and she’ll be back to check just before her shift ends. Let’s give him an hour or so to finish waking up. I’ll take you to the commissary to have something to eat while we wait. OK?”

Spring Well was so good with my parents. I was really impressed. I wonder how many parents come through here that he’d be this good at wrangling them.

“Mom and I will be close by, Icarus. Just rest. Do what the nurses tell you to and we’ll come back in when you wake up again, ok?” Dad, ever the pragmatist. I could tell he was talking more to mom than me. “I’m sorry, too. Before we go… Would you like to show us your ‘mark?”

My cutiemark? I didn’t realize that I hadn’t even seen it myself, yet.

Author's Note

The Real Life story about this cutie mark is, it's accidentally based off the Apollo 8 Mission Patch from NASA. Once I realized what I had done, Icarus' bio and reason for being came to be in my head.