The next day, I wake up earlier than usual so I can be on my way to the Royal Amoré Hospital: since yesterday, I’ve wanted to talk to some of those who were injured in the attack; however when encountering him, Hanzal eventually stops me in the street. I don’t know what could be wrong, but I can tell that he’s worried for some reason.

“Your Majesty, could I talk to you quickly?” he asks.

“Sure,” I say. “What’s wrong?”

We walk down the street together, heading towards the hospital. “I’m… I’m kinda worried about Sky,” he explains. “You can just tell when somepony isn’t happy, and I know something’s wrong. He’s been quiet recently. Too quiet.”

“Have you asked him what’s wrong?”

“Everypony has. Even Swift Lightning, which surprised him a bit, but you know what he’s like. Stubborn headstrong old git.” The corners of his mouth turn upwards.

“Maybe he’s just not sure how to explain everything.” I think back to when I first met Sombra, when I had to hide the fact that I was helping him. “Anything could be going on in his head.”

“Which is why I’m worried. Nopony can read his mind and if he doesn’t say anything, I can’t help him. He’s usually the one giving me advice and asking me what’s up, basically caring for me, not the other way around. That makes things harder too.” He sighs, “Looks like there’s another pony who needs cheering up, dammit. How in the Crystal Empire do you get a whole bunch of depressed Royal Guards and soldiers to have a laugh?”

“Same way the Lunar Guards cheer themselves up: apple cider,” I mess with him.

He looks at me in shock. “I’m sorry, what?”

I raise an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you and Skywalker have never gone to a pub at around eight o’clock in the evening and staggered out at sunrise. Every Lunar Guard has to do it at least once. It’s in the job description.”

“Well, not him,” he replies. “Since Old Sky was about twenty, maybe twenty one, he hasn’t dared to drink more than just a cup of wine or a small sip of vodka, apparently.”

“This has to be a joke of some kind.” For some reason, bat ponies have a huge drinking culture. Beer, ale and cider are the most popular favourites, and in places like Hollow Shades there are a lot of pubs. In Wishbone's old hut in the Everfree Village, there was maximum security on the small amount of rubbing alcohol that she kept for emergencies. Grogar knows what would’ve happened if somepony tried to drink it.

“Nope. Besides, I’m an ex-Solar Guard.” Well, that explains a few things.

“But then how did he survive being a Lunar Guard for so long?” I ask, still incredulous. “Being in charge of all those crazy bat ponies who don’t want to do anything other than drink cider and play poker all night?”

“Walk around,” the pegasus shrugs. “Enjoy the views, interact with Solar Guards that weren’t actually speciest, and maybe visit the Royal Gardens.”

“My Celestia. Apparently, I was a lot more of a rogue than he was.” I shake my head and smile.

“No, he was just very - what’s the word? Careful? No, it was more than that… He had a bit of a bad experience, I think, and decided he didn’t want it to happen again.”

“Fair enough.”

“Anyways, do you have any idea how I could, you know, get through to him?” he wonders.

“I think, just keep an eye on him for now, and I’ll make sure I look out for him as well,” I assure him. “If I get a chance to talk to him, I will, just to make sure everything’s ok.”

“Right… I just hope it isn’t too serious. I haven’t seen him act like this in a while. Not since - not since we thought Astral had died.”

The severity of the situation suddenly hits me. This is more than just a case of him not feeling himself - there’s something much deeper going on, and I’ll have to try and find out what.

We walk into the hospital building together, where we spot Radiant Hope. He nods at her, and she nods back before trotting off down the corridor with a smile on her face. I look at Hanzal, who struggles to keep a straight face.

"Is there a problem?" I ask, trying not to laugh.

He shakes his head. "No, Your Majesty.”

"Are you sure?"

“Yup.”

I try reading his mind, only to earn myself a sharp pain in my temples. Apparently whatever spell that Skywalker used to stop ponies reading his mind has been used on Hanzal too. He grins at me.

"Snap," I say. "Well, something must have made you want to laugh."

"You're here to check on everypony who got injured, right?"

"Yes, but-"

"Follow me."

He leads me through the corridors with the plain white walls that smell of antiseptic, past hospital wards and nurses pushing trolleys and ponies waiting to speak to doctors. This place is like a maze, and I’m not exactly sure where I’m being led. Twice I begin to wonder if we’re lost, but I don’t make any comment.

Eventually, we reach the cafeteria on the second floor, and he opens the door. I look around the room in awe. Around forty ponies, changelings and yaks are in the room, talking and eating and enjoying themselves, and at one end there is an area with a raised platform and a ramp for those with more severe injuries to walk up to the stage.

“What’s this?” I ask in wonderment.

“So me and Sky decided we wanted to make a few ponies laugh, and this is what we thought of. I won’t spoil anything for you, but we’re doing a little performance. Just a bit of music and messing around on stage, nothing major.”

“How long did it take to convince Wishbone that this was a good idea?”

“Miss Sergeant Major? Took a while, but I think Hope talked her round. Once she realised that he’ll be sat down the entire time, she was a bit more relaxed. But honestly, in this hospital she’s like a whole other pony, bossing everypony about. She’s not happy about Sky getting up and walking around, but I’ve been trying to convince him to use a wheelchair.”

“Sounds like you’re stuck trying to negotiate between them,” I giggle.

He laughs. “You have no idea, Your Majesty.”

We find Skywalker near the front of the room and I sit down next to him. Surprisingly, he's on his own rather than spending time with his friends, and he doesn't seem to notice me.

"Sky, buddy?" Hanzal asks.

Skywalker looks at his best friend and smiles. "Hey, Hanz."

"Her Majesty's here."

"Hmm?" The Colonel turns to me. "Oh sorry, didn’t notice you, Ma’am.”

"It's ok," I tell him.

He glances at Hanzal, then looks back at me. "Did Hanzal here tell you about all of this?"

"Not much, to be honest."

Skywalker's smile grows wider and eyes Hanzal. "Ah, keeping it low, are we?” A chuckle comes. “Good one.”

Then, his head turns to me. “Rest assured, Ma’am. Might remind you of the ol’ times."

Ooh, goody. I'm excited now as well as curious. One thing that Celestia will never be able to deny is that bat ponies know how to have fun.

I hear a disturbance and look up at the stage, where a couple of Changelings and a pegasus are setting up a keyboard and a drum kit. Another unicorn carries two saxophones with his magic, whilst an earth pony is setting up a couple of guitars and Sweet little Lucky is placing violins on the remaining chairs, ready for the musicians.

"A concert?!" I say in surprise.

"Kind of, yeah." Hanzal answers. "Whilst Sky was busy walking around the hospital the other day, he found who the best musicians were."

I look at the bat pony, who nods in response. "Wishbone was too ‘hooves full’, so I took profit." He stops smiling and coughs a few times. "Listen, Ma'am…" he whispers, "both you and I know there's gonna be an attack on the Crystal Empire at some point. The troops gotta be in their best mood.”

Another cough gets him, this time more severe. “Putain de chance.” The stallion mutters before clearing his throat.

Neither Hanzal nor I can help but share a worried look for a brief moment. I must be sincere here, for a while I’ve struggled to ignore the cough and kept telling myself that it’s surely a temporary thing; yet, for some reason, it keeps going and getting worse as time goes by.

I'm not lying when I confess my concern about his health. Just as Hanzal does.

"So, what should we do?" I ask Skywalker.

"This ain't the best time or place to discuss battle tactics," he whispers, "but we'll need the Crystal Empire to be as secure as possible; Hanzal here has helped by organising the army while I was out of duty. In two days, I’ll go and supervise the digging of trenches around the perimeter."

"Um…" I say. Something tells me that really he should stay in the hospital, and maybe I should speak to somepony about his coughing too. "Are you sure about going out there so soon?"

"I have a responsibility now to protect those who live here. I won't let innocents lose lives just because of an old colt's health, Ma'am." He clears his throat again. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

I nod, hiding my fears behind a mask of calm and a smile. "Ok."

He looks up at a clock hanging on the wall, then looks at his friend. "Are you ready, Hanz?"

"Yup! Let's go make a few ponies smile."

Hanzal helps Skywalker to stand up, and they slowly walk up to the stage together. Once Skywalker is seated in front of a piano, Hanzal takes a few steps toward the front of the stage and nods at a few individuals around the room, who in turn join the two stallions on-stage. Lucky is also there, holding a miniature violin in her hooves.

What surprises me is seeing Hope joining the group, approaching at one of the two microphones. I'm surprised, and slightly annoyed. I'm not a good musician or a singer, and now I find out that Hope - the mare who once used to love my husband and who I already think is trying to win back his heart - is able to sing on stage in front of a crowd.

Oh, joy.

Hanzal taps the microphone in front of him, both to check that the spell to magnify his voice is working and to draw everypony's attention to the front of the room. Once everypony is silent, he begins to speak.

"Good evening, everyone," he says. "I'm delighted to be here today with all of you, and I'd like to thank both the hospital staff for helping us set up this event, and the musicians around me who've decided to join in. And the one pony who needs the biggest thank-you is none other than my good friend, Colonel Sky, because of his idea to hold this little concert of sorts."

There's a round of applause, and I join in. My eyes catch Skywalker’s reaction, which confuses me a bit: the Colonel doesn’t dare to look at the crowd, he just looks at the piano for several seconds before glancing and giving a quick nod, only to return to his previous position.

Once the applause dies down, Hanzal takes a step back from the microphone to allow another pony to take his place whilst he sits down and picks up one of the cellos. Then, without another word, the band begins to play.

A range of songs from many different music genres are played over the course of an hour - everything from classical music to jazz, blues and rock. Whilst I don't recognise any of the numbers - all of them having been written after Luna and I were banished - the majority of those in the room do, and there's a lot of singing and laughing. A few of the ponies with slightly more minor injuries even decide to start dancing at one point.

Unfortunately, the evening is over far too soon, but Hanzal steps forwards again just as the performance is drawing to a close.

"Right, fillies and gentlecolts, I'm afraid that we're down to the final act," he says.

The crowd gives a collective sigh.

"But don't worry, we're going to make it something to remember. Now, before we play the final song for tonight, let's give all of our amazing guest performers one last round of applause."

Everypony claps and cheers, and those standing on the stage all stand to take a bow, save Skywalker, who just nods and smiles to himself. Most of the ponies, changelings and yaks leave the stage, but Hanzal and Skywalker stay where they are. Hanzal picks up two saxophones that were left at the back of the stage until now and passes one of them to his friend. I hear excited whispers running through the room, then silence falls once more.

Once they each have their saxophones, both stallions get a bit of practice on the volume and tone of their instruments; afterward, I see them adjusting some parts and then settling into their seats for the final event.

The two friends nod in affirmation, then Hanzal begins with a short jazz-style saxophone solo, only for Skywalker to join him; more than a duo of saxophones, it seemed more like a battle of sorts, each of them showing off and trying to beat the other. As if both contestants were responding to each other with music, instead of words.

However, after a few minutes of each of them playing increasingly faster and more difficult solos, it reaches a point where this is no longer felt, but the situation is reversed again; they get on perfectly, complementing each other in what was left empty of the melody for each part.

In both I can see their faces, red as tomatoes, reflecting happiness and enjoyment that I haven't seen for days in the crazy duo. I don't realise it instantly, but with a little distraction from Hope - who is now sitting next to me - I feel my lips forming a smile; I decide not to erase it, because after all this moment is meant to be enjoyed.

There's a final round of applause and the show ends. Ponies walk up to the stage to help tidy up and put the musical instruments away, whilst Hanzal leads Skywalker - who’s breathing to recover oxygen - back to me and Hope, who guides him into a wheelchair.

"All of you were brilliant," I tell them, still smiling.

"Aww, it was nothing," Hope blushes. "I just joined in to help cheer everypony up. Laughter is one of the best medicines of all."

I swallow my pride and admit, "You were pretty amazing, though." She has a powerful singing voice - not what I expected from such a quiet and sensitive mare. But who am I kidding? This is the Crystal Empire. It's full of surprises.

"Your Majesty?" Skywalker asks.

I look at him.

"We just did this for fun and to entertain everyone.”

“Well,” I turn to look at all of the happy faces around us, "I think it worked."

As a group, we all walk back to Skywalker's hospital room. With help from both Hanzal and Radiant Hope he climbs into bed and wishes us all goodnight. Hope returns the kind gesture and trots away, and I do the same, walking down the corridor after her. But I stop as I hear Skywalker's voice.

"Hanz, buddy? Could you… could you close the door? There's a few things that I'd like to tell you and… I'd rather not tell anyone else about them just yet."

Hanzal closes the door, and I silently wonder whether to leave or find out what's bothering Skywalker. My curiosity gets the better of me, but I don't have to stand anywhere near the door to hear them; instead, I focus on my magic and let my bat ears do the rest.

At first, I struggle to understand what they're saying and the noise is muffled, but I tune in to the sound and I can hear the two stallions' voices crystal clear.

"Sky?" Hanzal asks. "What is it?"

"I… It's hard to explain. Give me a moment." I hear a sound like somepony rummaging through a drawer - probably in the bedside table I saw - and silence fills the room.

“You’re joking, right?"

An empty laugh escapes Skywalker. “I wish I were, buddy. But… those are the results.” His voice sounds serious and a little sad. “The doctor checked it three times. I got it.”

My stomach lurches. He has what?

Hanzal says, "And what are they going to do about it?"

“Nothing.” Skywalker answers.

"What?!"

“Don’t think bad about them,” the Colonel assures his friend. “It’s impossible to stop it, only hold it temporarily.”

"But - but - there has to be something they can do! You've survived everything thrown at you so far, so why not this?!"

“I’ve survived imminent death too many times, pal.” Skywalker comments. “Guess life was just too pissed with me.”

I can't believe what I'm hearing. Skywalker is… dying?!

"I - damn - damn you, Sky. I - I can't - you-"

"Please, stop. It happens to everyone eventually."

"But why you?!”

“Real question is: why not?” he replies. “Life’s unpredictable, cruel - yet fair. Everyone fades away, some of us sooner than others.”

"But why does it have to be something like this? With a heart attack or something like that, at least it's quick, but…” The pegasus halts. “Damn Celestia. I - I've known you for so long - you've been here for me-"

“And so you’ve been for me, Hanz.” There's the sound of rummaging through the drawer again, and Skywalker's violent coughing. "And… let's make sure it stays that way, until, well… then. I won't be going for a while, and I'm going to fight this for as long as possible."

There is a moment of silence. I take a moment to process this. I don't know what it is, but Skywalker's ill, and it's terminal. He's been through so much, and now this?! Life has been too cruel to him.

"Hanz, look at me.”

"Sky?"

"...Listen, it doesn’t matter what life throws at me, alright?” he begins. “It might’ve gotten me good this time, but… I ain’t letting this war end without me, bud. I want to see…” A cough interrupts him. “I… I want to see peace and true harmony rule the world. And I want you to prove to me that you’ll enjoy it, as well as the time we have left together. So, is that-” The Colonel clears his throat. “Does that sound okay to you? Will you stick around to look after me?"

"Yes," Hanzal answers. "Damn you, Sky. I'm upset, and I'm... furious, but oh Tartarus, yes."

"Good," Skywalker responds, “now, give me a hug, buddy.” Then the two of them share a small laugh.

I don't know what's happening exactly, but hearing them laugh is a good sign. I'm still trying to process the fact that Skywalker - who's only been in the Crystal Empire for such a short time - could be leaving soon, but at least the two of them have each other for now.

I hear the two of them saying goodnight to each other and Hanzal shuffling toward the door, so I teleport out of the hospital and take off into the night sky, flying back to the Crystal Castle. I don't know what Sombra will think of this, or whether I should even tell him, but there's a lot to think about.

Even more confusing were Skywalker's words after admitting that he was ill. There's a doubt in my mind, something that doesn't make sense to me. They're close friends, I know, but… I can't help but wonder if there's something else that they have yet to tell me about.

Author's Note

Something I will say is that I’m genuinely upset and sorry about the grim future for Skywalker. From the start, Bronie312 decided that he would eventually die. I protested about it, I was furious about it, but Bronie insisted.

~~The concession to this is that I get to ship Skywalker with whichever character I choose.~~

Bronie312: I would apologize, but I’ll be like Captain America: “No. I don’t think I will.”

Bronie!

Bronie312: Without your permission, I’ll begin bothering you in each Author’s Note.

Oh, Celestia...

Bronie312: Sunbutt.

Fine, Sunbutt.

Anywhoo, before certain ponies start getting out their popcorn buckets so they can watch us argue all day, I’m going to sign off and apologise once more for this chapter. I was on the verge of tears writing it, so I have no idea how all of you are going to react.

~ Angel and Bronie312