The Fugitive

An unpleasant push returned the pensive little girl to the real world. Patting her eyes, she found herself among a multitude of unfamiliar figures, slowly walking in the same direction as her.

The chill devoured the frail legs, gradually spreading over the entire tiny body. Having shaken herself off like a dog, the filly decided to keep her red-haired aunt in uniform, chatting at ease with another guard.

''Damn, this light will drive me crazy'' the attendant grimaced ''What strength should the closure be if the whole complex is pounding from it?''

''You saw what kind of 'specialists' work here. In general, it is amazing how this labyrinth of a schizophrenic has not yet collapsed on our heads.''

''Then a schizophrenic with an extremely poor imagination...and this is not typical of them'' the stallion laughed.

''Well, there are exceptions. Hooves is a distinctive person...''

Both laughter echoed off the walls.

Just to be drowned out by the booming rumble.

The crowd stirred, looking around in bewilderment. Single screams were heard. The hum was replaced by the noise of frightened voices, many of which turned into alarmed whispers.

''Calm down...but calm down, you! SILENCE TO ALL! the stallion snapped back. The voices died down altogether ''It's gas. Ordinary gas flowing through pipes - there is nothing to spread panic from scratch. Are you afraid of every rustle?''

''Didn't guess''

The stallion turned his muzzle back. Something was staring at him, grinning playfully.

Gentle hooves with a death grip squeezed his neck, not giving even a chance to come to his senses ''And how did such a pitiful, self-confident prankster dare to think that I would just let him doubt MY powers?''

A pungent smell pierced the air. The stench of burnt flesh, which before our eyes began to peel off from the face that was hammered in a heart-rending scream, and a nasty porridge of skin and blood to crawl over the melting body, forming a puddle under the rapidly exposed bones. The blow crumbled the skeleton to dust.

The hum returned in a cannonade of voices throbbing in agony.

When the grip of icy horror released the beholders, the figure disintegrated into flocks of predatory squealing bats - swiftly rushing in their direction. Not understanding and unable to understand what had happened, everyone rushed away. In the insanely flickering light, the persecuting creatures surrounded the not fast enough, tearing them to pieces alive. Those who had not yet fallen into the sharp fangs ran without turning around, trying with the last bit of strength to save their lives.

As it turned out soon, only two of them succeeded.

Suddenly, they found themselves in the middle of a completely empty, sterile clean corridor. Surrounded by silence. And it reigned until a stately stallion in blue armor came around the corner.

''Stawn? Holy sisters, you are alive!'' not remembering herself with joy exclaimed the piebald guard. The baby, hitherto clinging to her, threw herself on the neck of the one who had approached.

Only a moment later, the pegasus noticed the stained blade in his teeth.

Steel slashed through the air, crashing to the floor with a clang as the guard flew into the wall. Jumping back, the brave guard threw the sword aside, with a sweep hitting her colleague's face, twisted with malice.

''Flamy, run!''

''B-but...'' discouragedly babbled the little girl who rolled to the side and barely got to her feet.

''That's an order!'' the red-haired barked in a tone that did not tolerate objections, bending over from the sharp blow of the opponent. Stown threw the filly off him, trying to get hold of the blade again. Flapping her wings, she regained balance and made another dash straight into the back of the distraught stallion.

The baby obeyed, running forward. The fighters disappeared from sight, but their shadows remained on the walls. Those hysterically rushed from side to side - none could take over. Suddenly, a long appendage pierced the second shadow through. There is only one left.

She didn't remember what happened next.

A lonely silhouette appeared against a black background. Amber eyes flashed like flames. The pinkish filly rose to her hind legs and began to perform an exotic dance. The curls of her golden mane whirled in a whirlwind along with the body twirled in pirouettes - vicious in its ideality, getting closer and closer to the impudent, frozen in amazement.

''Who are you?..'' he muttered in bewilderment when the stranger had already crossed all permissible boundaries.

In the next pirouette, the fluffy tail seductively tickled his chest, and the hooves that fell on his shoulders gently pulled his reddened muzzle to the shamelessly smiling snout.

''So far - just a figment of your sick imagination'' she whispered sweetly ''But very soon...'' a heavy, warm breath caressed his neck ''I will become much more real than you can imagine. And we will do great things.''

''Business?..''

''Wake up'' the filly pulled back, leaving only her face visible. Her voice became hushed ''Come on! Wake up!''

Then she disappeared. And then the light returned, with which a new face came. A middle-aged green-haired unicorn, with a pronounced anxiety in completely unremarkable blue eyes, stood opposite him, fearfully covering her pretty mouth with her hoof.

''Oh, sorry, I thought...really, what nonsense'' she sighed with relief ''The orderlies are sometimes very rude. I yelled at them so much for these tranquilizers...I hope you're feeling better already?'' The nurse raised her eyebrows. The patient said nothing. He studied the room, fortunately, the vertical position of the couch or whatever it was, allowed.

Tiny operating system. White walls, white floor, white ceiling - all tiles are white as the butt of one famous mare. Motley scatterings of flasks, tweezers and saws on the shelves of cabinets equipped with wheels. Judging by the slightly chaotic passing of the latter and the scattering of fragments lying on the floor. Mother Teresa knows how to scream. To the right is a small table, piled high with some papers. On the papers are a pair of syringes. Just half a meter from him. But this is already a mistake...a big mistake.

''Sir?..''

''It can't be bad in the company of such a charming lady'' he finally replied, grinning wryly. The flirtation worked flawlessly. The nurse's muzzle flushed. She looked away, embarrassed. A long lack of love by itself reflected on the face, far from youthful ''However, it would be much easier for me to enjoy her beauty if I did not pinch these belts on my upper legs in such a shameless way'' the patient remarked painfully.

The filly looked thoughtfully at the man chained to the wall. She had no doubts that belts arranged in a similar way and tightened in a similar situation could pinch. Doubts arose when looking at what they were holding down. Maybe this beige, almost cream-colored stallion with a soldier's haircut of jet-black hair seems quite adequate and even to some extent...cute, but do not forget that he is a patient. After all, wouldn't you just shackle him? It would be much wiser to wait for the head physician - Mr. Hooves, that mysterious ''Doc'' as one of the degenerates she had driven out with reverence and trepidation called him.

On the other hand, to look at the suffering of the patient, and especially to do it as a doctor, who, in theory, should prevent these torments - the torment is no less than hardened skin, rubbing sweaty flesh through and through. But even in spite of this, do not forget - she hasn't been a young graduate student for a long time. Moreover, such a decision looks overly frivolous even for her. But suffering...damn it, why did she get a cutie mark not with flowers, not with butterflies, and not even with the notorious dusty books? Why is it the red cross that decorates her croup?..

She hesitated visibly. What could not be said about him.

''Grrr...'' the prisoner reached forward, writhing a grimace of sincere pain. Yes, so convincing that the unicorn gave a little back from surprise, not for a second taking her from the constrained even more frightened gaze.

''Please be patient! Mmmmr Hooves should be here any minute...'' she muttered.

''It will be much easier for Mr. Hooves to talk to me if my speech is at least similar to speech! And not to the groans of a dying manticore'' hissed the patient struggling with the unbearable heaviness of being.

The nurse finally broke down. After all, nothing terrible will happen if she looses the fasteners a little? In addition, in the event of force majeure, the unicorn will have a clear advantage over the earth pony. The main thing is to keep a sufficient distance to be able to loosen the belts and not get a hoof in the face. Resolved.

''Okey, okey! But I warn you - if the tricks start, blame yourself. Lean back and try to relax'' the filly entered a pose, tilting her head forward. A soft greenish glow enveloped her horn, soon covering the upper straps of a simple ring-shaped design.

He was just waiting for that. Barely sensing a loosening of the grip, the patient rushed forward, throwing off the fetters that were released from the fasteners and immediately leaning towards the table, almost instantly magnetizing one of the syringes to the hoof. The unicorn did not even have time to scream, as a sharp needle flew in her direction.

The filly's eyes widened. She swayed. And then lavender hair scattered on the floor from under the cap that had come off. A sad gaze rested on the syringe thrust into the very heart, ominously towered over the still warm body. He felt no remorse. Only a little regretted.

Without much difficulty, he detached the lower legs of the earth-grabber and jumped to the cold floor. Pulling the numb limbs, he yawned long and as if nothing had happened, stepped over the corpse, not forgetting to grab a doctor's saw on the way. He headed straight for the closed door, pulling the handle of that door towards himself. Didn’t give in. He pulled away from himself. Didn’t give in again.

''Yes, I can see you are still magicians...'' turned to the lock built into the door. Its design immediately seemed somewhat strange. Exactly in the center was a large groove, gradually tapering to the size of a small dot. At the same time, on the sides of this gutter there were recesses twisting into the depths, just like...and then it dawned on him. The gaze returned to the body lying behind, slowly crawling onto the horn. He would like to see this key. However, he was already looking.

Without wasting time on unnecessary hesitation, the patient walked around the nurse and lifted her by the education protruding from his head, taking the saw to the side with his right hoof and sharply hitting her on the main dignity of the unicorn.

The corpse let out a shrill cry. The saw fell to the table with a clang, and the patient staggered back toward the cupboards. Behind the wall came the sound of hooves.

''This whore isn't dead?!'' he could only exclaim, staring at the convulsing nurse. It seems that a sharp blow to such a powerful magical vehicle caused an equally sharp rush of adrenaline in the blood, starting the heart. Or he simply does not know how to throw.

In a matter of seconds, regaining his composure, the well-dressed genius strategist without further hesitation grabbed the nurse by the mane and pulled this wriggling something to the blocked passage. Then he grabbed the skull with his hooves and thrust the horn of that into the keyhole. Someone started banging on the door.

''Hilney? Are you all right there?!''

The patient swore foully, throwing the crumpled lady on the floor, and fell against the door wall, preparing the saw for the attack.

''Hilney! Tear you Tartar!'' the door threatened to fly off its hinges.

''Mel, what's going on here?'' came a voice nearby.

''Oh, Mr. Hooves! It's good that you came. I heard a scream from the operating room! There's a new nurse looking after your maniac...''

''Alone?..'' with amazing speed the restrained voice grew into an indignant scream ''What idiot thought of leaving them alone?!''

''I don’t know, sir...I was just passing by''

''Leave unnecessary conversations! You two - open the door. You are urgently on the guard post. Let them draw everyone here! ALL!''

The doors shook with unprecedented force and clang. Someone was clearly knocking out the lock. And he obviously won't last long.

The patient evened his breathing and took a tighter grip on the weapon of sophisticated murder. An instant later, the door swung open with an eerie crash. An imposing-looking guard in blue burst into the room, swooping in as a nurse flooding the floor as he walked.

''Hilney, my mother mare!'' he bent over the horsie ''Yes, she has a seizure!''

''Rghypvapyvariyavryap...abyr...abyr-roll!''

Next came an intelligent-looking unicorn in a medical gown and with round glasses on madly darting from side to side eyes.

''Damn it...'' he immediately glanced towards the disconnected procedure device. Suddenly, a chill ran down his spine, a natural reaction to the pop behind him.

''Wanted to see me, doc?'' someone said with a dirty grin.

The next moment, a bright flash illuminated the room, and the last thing that the guard, blinded by her, saw for a moment, was a mustang rushing at him, bringing a saw with shiny sharpened blades over the victim. And the blades stabbed into her neck, cutting through the aorta like a knife cuts through butter. A fountain of crimson blood hit the stallion's muzzle in distorted rage, immediately hitting his opponent's legs and ripping out the saw from the shredded flesh. The rest was dealt with by nature.

''DID YOU KNOW THAT YOUR HEAD IS A RARE RAT?!'' he barked, intercepting the saw and turning to the colleague of the murdered standing at the newly opened door.

''S-stay there, where you stand!'' stuttering mumbled pegasus, shaken by gagging.

''And if I don’t stand?''

''Then ... then-a-a-AAAAAA!'' the door had grown right in front of psychopath. But he was not going to give up.

''Better run while you can run. Perhaps this way you will prolong your miserable life at least a little'' came from the operating room with amazing calmness. Pegasus swallowed. How to be? He will not keep him here for a long time - the lock is knocked out, and the pegasus clearly does not have enough strength to hold this earthly one on one handle. Run? But what about the rest? How will colleagues look at him later? Like a coward. And what the hell is this...

To the psychopath's ears came the vile crunch and thud of the collapsed body. And then a lingering creak.

She was standing there. The same pinkish fur, the same strange mane and the same mysterious shine of amber eyes.

''In life, you are even more beautiful...''

''And you are still the same freak''

The filly smiled slyly, pulling an utterly strange object from the belt around her waist, and tossed it to the stallion.

''Have you ever met something like this?''

''This is the first time I see it'' the patient admitted without hiding a slight bewilderment, having caught an unknown thing. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be something like a hoof attachment, on the sides of which there were fixing plates going in the opposite direction, and several small wide trunks protruded from the front.

''Never mind, you will still have plenty of opportunities to appreciate this baby''

At some point, he came out of the stupor caused by the unexpected appearance of a new acquaintance, starting to rely on his head, and not the movement under his own bottom.

''Maybe even now you will bother to explain to me what is happening here?''

''Everything has its time. Plus, now we have bigger problems...''

The deafening roar of sirens rang out over their heads.

''And if you don’t want to aggravate them even more, I advise you to run after me'' she turned around and wanted to lean forward, as she stopped, throwing a painfully pressing question behind her back.

''By the way, do you even remember your name?''

''Heh. I don't...''

The filly chuckled.

''In that case, I will call you The Fugitive'' the stranger threw in a laughing tone and disappeared behind the turn of the corridor that opened ahead.

''You know'' the Fugitive said after her ''Sometimes I feel like a fool. And this is an extremely pleasant feeling''