The Awakeningby GDapperStudiosChaptersEpisode One: HeatEpisode Two: CollectionsEpisode Three: In Due TimeEpisode Four: SaviourChapter Five: Left WaitingEpisode One: HeatAuthor's Note Hey reader, just a quick note that this story is a huge undertaking for me right now in terms of longevity, so the first few chapters don't have much happening, but I'll try to get more out as quickly as possible :) Episode One: Heat Follicles of a dim hue of blue mane danced across the grass with the flowing breeze. There was a faint cadence in the air, one of ancient sounding voices and haunting melodies. All there was to be taken in was just that, and with an almost childish whimsy. "Crystal! Crystal Light!" From her cozy backyard hammock, a young mare's eyes opened. Her head turned to spy a mare with a strikingly red mane and contrasting blue coat, and as her thick sunglasses slid down her nose, the figure at the doorway waved. "Come in, dear!" There was a breath blown through barely open lips, the embedded exasperation nearly visible in the air. Eyes squinted shut as the mare stood from her hammock and walked to the house of faded red brick. The creak of the sliding door and its accompanying slam alerted the contrast colored mare in the kitchen of the younger mare's presence. "I have a reason not to be happy with you right now, and I believe you'll know why." The young mare's heart sank as her gaze locked on to the single envelope on the table before her. Her head shot back to her right, the mare now turned and staring. "Mom, I can explain." "Explain what? I know what it was, you didn't care enough to put the effort in." The young mare's eyes rolled as she leaned her hooves on the counter seperating them. "It's not that, it's just-" "Don't, I don't want to argue it right now. Your father will be home soon, and he'll decide what to do with you." "Come on, mom," The young mare started, her sunglasses now moved to the top of her mane. "It's summer, not to mention, my last summer!" "Don't be dramatic, dear, you'll have plenty of summers, but you'll just have to be working through them. Everypony has to do it." A carbon copy breath of agitation, something which seemed to be shared between generations. The older mare leaned on the counter, mirroring her daughter. "Hide it in your room. I'm giving you this week before I tell your father. Does that seem fair?" The young mare nodded, an action which was then returned to her by her mother. "Good. Dinner's coming along, go and grab my radio so you don't kill it again please." "Yes mom." The older mare turned away, but heard the creak and slam of the screen door. A heavy sigh. There was little more than a morsel at her disposal, and she had no time to get to any of the markets. It would do her little good anyways, she thought, as she grabbed a knife in her teeth and began slicing the few vegetables in front of her. For a few minutes, the door remained closed, and the mare could hear a distant sounding swirl of voices from the open window. Not caring to minimize noise, the knife clattered against the counter as it dropped from her mouth. A huff. That colt again. "So, what's the deal? Your mom ground you?" "She gave me a week." "Ooh, that's a real bummer, Crys." Hovering brown eyes stared forward at the mare on the other side of the tall fence, their owner keeping a small smirk about his face. "See if you can get out now, make the most of it." "I can try, I hope she hasn't seen you yet." The smirk opened to let out a chuckle, and a thick black mane covered the stallion's face as he looked down. "Still not forgiven, huh?" "Not even close." There was a very comfortable air between the two bodies, not of the unnatural heat of the day, but of understanding and near kinship. A white hoof connected roughly with an outstretched grey one, and a smile beneath blue eyes emerged. "I'll see what I can do, wait here." "I got nowhere to be." Waiting for Crystal Light inside was a mother's stare, the kind she knew unfortunately well. "Mom, can I go hang out with-" "Yes, I heard, and I know what I promised. Just be back before ten, and try to stay out of trouble." "Thanks mom! Love you!" A smile that hadn't shown itself in quite some time made an appearance on a face that showed its age. The mare watched in mild content as her daughter scaled the backyard fence and started walking off down the street. The day's heat was now just simmering, as opposed to the boil that had assaulted Ponyville's resident's throughout that entire week. From atop a playground pirate ship, blue and brown eyes scanned the town. This playground treasure that had been grown up with, used and worn to near death, remained a relic and an ever-calming area for the two. "Have they thought of names yet?" "No," A pause while the wonderfully cool, icy beverage was sipped loudly from its cup. "They're kinda in between a few things, but they really aren't sure on anything." "Have you told them anything?" "Nah, I suck at naming foals." "I would hope you wouldn't have any experience." The stallion chuckled and shook his head, the thick black mane making its way into his eyes again. Contrast was ever so apparent as a white hoof moved it back behind the stallion's ear. "You need to cut this, you know." "Yeah, I know. Haven't had the time." "Oh, because you're so busy?" "As a matter of fact, I am. I'm no longer Nova Bomb, student. I'm Nova Bomb...free. I've got a blank slate ahead of me." "You've got a blank mind more like." "That is not an unreasonable statement." A shaken head again, and sip, this one of a much lower decibel. The stares extended far into the slowly dimming afternoon, dreamily taking in all that was. "Any news on your applications?" "Not yet." "You applied to Canterlot first, yeah?" "Yeah. Hopefully I get in." "You will Crys, you got it." "Hopefully." "Hey, did you hear about what's happening in Fillydelphia?" "Another riot over buckball?" "No, seriously." "What?" "Something went down over there the other day, about some conspiracy involving space...space time magic, or something like that, I don't remember what it was." "Ok," Crystal Light started, her eyes fully fixated on the stallion. "So, what's your point, is it something we need to worry about or is it just some nutcase?" "From what I heard, there were some attacks, and some were pretty brutal." "Oh, maybe ponies are getting a little crazy with this heat wave, or something. Where did you hear all this from anyway?" "My uncle. Then again, he's a bit of a conspiracy nut himself, so, maybe it is nothing." A presence had crept upon them during the conversation as the night sky slowly darkened. Not one with any physical or worldly anchor, but one of a foreboding, unanswerable question. "What do you think caused it?" Episode Two: CollectionsIf there was to be any dew that morning, it would not have lasted long. The clocks hands had barely had the time to stand upright, and already the day was unbearable. Two bodies sat around the circular kitchen table, beads of sweat cascading down their faces. Crystal Light rested her head on the table, and released a stagnant breath. "It's still so, damn, hot." The bright pink body across the table let a stale breath escape her as she reached a wing out to a small thermostat. "Yep," Her high, dry voice peeped. "Still way up there. Any chance you could grab me another water?" Crystal Light turned, and with her hoof outstretched, reached for the already half-empty case of bottled water. But the effort seemed all too much with the case too far away, and her hoof fell. "You know, it's a little far." Though unseen, eyes were rolled. The pegasus tipped her head back as she leaned her chair, her long orange mane falling almost to the floor behind her. "Why don't you guys have a pool?" "Why don't you have a pool?" "Yeah, that would work out well. Mom, I know you said no to literally everything else, but can we get a pool?" "Whatever. Worth a shot." "Was it now?" "Could've been." For three more minutes there was little to no movement, the bodies rooted to their chairs by the otherworldly heat. Then, the familiar clicks and clacks of the front screen door, and a few solid hoofsteps on the tile floor. "Jeez, looks like a crime scene here." "Hey Nov." "Crystal Light, Amber Breeze, how we doin'?" "Dying," Crystal Light started, her voice muffled by the table her face was still pressed against. "same as everypony else." "Hmm, shame." "How are you still so up and up?" "Um, cuz I'm from Las Pegasus, remember? It's pretty bad though, I don't remember it ever being this bad." "Really?" "Yeah, I think it was closest to this, maybe, about three years before we moved? That was a bad summer." "Hm." "Well." Nova Bomb started, loudly landing a hoof on the table. "We've got to do something today, I trust Crystal has explained the predicament to you?" "Yep. All those times I'd ask if she wanted to study together, look who was right." Crystal Light waved a dissmissive hoof, but stayed completely still otherwise. "Come on, let's get up, let's go." "Ok, appreciate the enthusiasm Nov, but where are we gonna go?" "I got something cool planned, we just gotta stop by my house to grab something first." The heat continued to show no remorse as the day crawled by into the early afternoon. Upon a hill, just barely past Ponyville's limits, the sound of exasperated grunts and groans were carried in the wind. "I hope whatever you have planned is worth it, or I'm never taking your advice again." "Oh, will you just? We're almost there." "Why couldn't we have just gone to the regular spot?" "Because it's too close to town, nopony ever goes up here, especially not now." "Couldn't see why." Nova Bomb's eyes rolled as he took the final steps in their ascent up the hill. Crystal Light and Amber Breeze slowly made their way to the crest of the hill, Amber Breeze giving up and falling to the grass when they had. "Well, what's the big surprise?" "Ever think of using your eyes and not your mouth?" The eyes with which she should have been looking were rolled. As she surveyed the land atop the hill, she spotted a small blue cooler in the wonderous shade beneath a short but sturdy oak tree. Just behind that, there were three chairs arranged around the side of a small blue pool, full of crystal clear water. "Wow, when did you bring all this up here?" "All what?" Amber Breeze asked, finally lifting herself from the ground and walking over. "Holy feck!" "I managed to sneak the cooler and chairs out a little while after the heat wave started. The pool I got from a yard sale the other day, and I've been running the odd drinks out whenever I can." "I thought your parents didn't have soda in the house very often?" "They don't. I never said I snuck them out of my house. Here." Nova Bomb tossed two cans, dripping with ice cold water to the two mares. Amber Breeze looked at her can with a foal-like bewilderment as she excitedly opened it. Half the contents dissapeared before her friends eyes as she drank like she hadn't in days. "Gosh, it's been so long since I've had this. How did you know cream soda was my favourite?" "Lucky guess." Nova Bomb smiled at Amber Breeze for a moment before turning to Crystal Light, who was just taking a sip from her own can. What about yours? Was I right with you?" "As long as it's cold, I'll take it." "I second that." "Third. Come on, let's grab a seat." As the sun set in the late afternoon, casting so gently it's beautiful amber rays upon the sleepy town, the trio sat, relaxed upon the hill. "So, Amber, did you hear about Fillydelphia?" "Ah jeez Nov, you're gonna tell her about that too?" "Yeah, so?" "Do you not believe it?" "Look," Amber Breeze started, leaning forward in her chair to look closely at her friends. As their gazes mirrored her own, a sigh escaped her, and she looked to the ground. "I don't know just what I believe yet. I've heard more than even you've told me, so I'm inclined to say that I do. But I don't want to say-" "Wait, wait, wait. What more have you heard?" Nova Bomb's question seemed to make Amber Breeze regret her words. Almost choked, the pegasus cleared her throat. "The same thing that happened in Fillydelphia happened in Canterlot, and, a few other cities too, I think. One of them was Las Pegasus for sure. And they, they started to round up any important ponies into groups to be kept safe. The princesses, the elements of harmony, some of Celestia's students, judges, mayors, everything, they have all been moved. I think they're evacuating small towns and villages next. Where to, I'm not entirely sure." Three faces ceased to move. The words were paralyzing daggers, jabbed violently into their nerves. Nova Bomb was the first to close his open mouth and clear his throat. No words came however. He merely turned his head and stared off into the slowly setting sun. Episode Three: In Due TimeThere is a commotion, in the lobby. We descend. The commotion enters the stairwells. There is only one. She moves to help. It backfires. I reach out. Nothing connects. I blink. There are more of them now. I hear something above me. I look to it. I see...nothing. I look back to the commotion at the bottom of the stairs. Her eyes, they stare back at me. They ask questions I have no answer for. I run. I can't do anything else. No one can. I blink again. Even more of them. The door is barred behind me now. If I had wings, this wouldn't be the end for me. Sun, boiling sun again. There wasn't anywhere on the surface of the earth wherein a pony could lay and avoid it. Atop the crest of a hill three young ponies sat, drenched in sweat, upon their chairs. "Ok, I know I said I can bear the heat well, but I think they've broken me." "Ugh, me too. What about you Amber?" "Flip me over, I need to cook on the other side." "Alright, that's it, we gotta do something about this." Nova Bomb declared, standing on shaky hooves. A glare from behind mirrored sunglasses and an unmoving head met him. "So that's a no?" "Nov," Crystal Light started, pushing herself up just slightly in her seat. "It's hotter than the sun out today. Our pool is practically evaporating before us, and look at Amber, she's catatonic! What could you possibly want to do?" "Would you just get up for a moment?" There was something in the last few words that made even Amber Breeze turn around to look. Something sharp, something unnatural. They had never heard such a tone from their friend before. "What's going on?" No response. "Nov, hey, what's happening?" Amber Breeze was now on her hooves, the worry in her face as apparent as the beating sun in the sky. Nova Bomb ran a hoof through his jet black mane, turning to face the town at the bottom of the hill. "I just... something doesn't seem right. I know this sounds stupid, but, I'm worried. There's somepony we have to check on." Though it was market day, there was a very scarce number of ponies in the street. Many of them were indoors, searching for some body of water to relax in, or tending to their suffering crops. The trio walked carefully through the streets, the nervous stallion taking the lead. "Nov, will you at least tell us where we're going?" Nova Bomb did nothing in response to the question. His pace continued uninterrupted, as did his straightforward gaze. "You try." Crystal Light whispered to the obviously struggling pegasus to her right. "Umm, Nov? Isn't this our neighborhood? What are we doing here?" Nova Bomb stopped, the first time his pace had changed since they descended from the hill. As he turned to his friends, they saw the worry on his face. "I just need to check something." A scream ripped through the air, effectively silencing the conversation and turning the ponies' heads to the source. From a house to their left, through the window, a commotion. Nova Bomb's eyes widened. "It's here." Nova Bomb immediately moved, running to the front door of the house. "Wait, Nov!" Amber Breeze shouted, stepping forward. "What are you doing?!" "Just get to your house, I'll meet you there!" Amber Breeze opened her mouth, but no words were able to escape. She watched in wide-eyed horror as Nova Bomb burst through the front door of the house, dissapearing into the dark front room. "Let's go!" The two mares ran, though one stayed wavering for a hesitant moment. The objective house was not a very far distance away, a timeline narrowed further by the adrenaline fueling the sprint. The door opened from the inside seconds before it was even reached from the outside. A white pesasus mare with a bright green mane waved a hoof and called the young ponies inside. Amber Breeze ran into an embrace with her mother, holding her tightly as Crystal Light ran to the window. The older mare adjusted her mirrored sunglasses and looked with both fright and relief at her daughter. "Dearie, we're so glad you're here! Your cousin was over and just went out lookin' for you now." "Where did he go?" "He went t'look for you at the hill your always on top of. How long ago'd you get back to town?" "Not very long. He'll-" The front door was thrown open, and the mother and daughter's heads snapped to the door. Crystal Light, having seen him through the window, ushered in Nova Bomb before quickly shutting the door behind him. The three mares gasped when they saw the glinting trickle of scarlet running from the small gash almost hidden under his mane. "Nova Bomb, what happened?" Crsytal Light recieved no response as the dreary looking stallion moved slowly and nearly fell into a seat at the kitchen. "They're gone." "What?" "I..." Nova Bomb muttered something further, almost unintelligibly, before breaking into a small fit of sobs. "We need to go. We'll find your cousin and head for somewhere safe. Crystal dearie, you and Breezy go get your parents, come back here, as soon as possible." "Wait, mom, what about Nov's parents?" "They were just about over for a drink, should be here in just a minute." "I'll be fine here until they come. Where do you guys keep the bandages?" "Right, well just hold on, I'll get you covered up there." The town was a madhouse. Ponies ran through the streets, looking for somewhere to hide, or somepony to protect them. There was a growing air of dust and debris. The two young mares raced through the chaos, the crippling heat pushed aside by the overwhelming gravity of the situation. "Do you think they'll be home?" "I haven't thought about it!" "Well, your-" "I didn't want to think about it!" Amber Breeze was going to respond, but she was tackled to the ground by a stallion. The yelp that escaped her was sharp enough to catch her friend's attention, and she spun around as quickly as she could. The stallion was attempting to strike her, but Amber Breeze was managing to dodge most of the attacks. Crystal Light ran her full body weight into the stallion, and recovered quickly, rushing to her friend's side. "Are you alright?!" "I'm not sure." "We'll sort it out at my house, let's go!" Crystal Light helped her friend up, but when the momnt came to start running, Amber fell to the ground again, the pained yell causing Crystal Light's panic to escalate. "What's wrong?" "My leg, I think my leg is sprained!" "Just fly, we need to go now!" Crystal Light looked to where the initial fray had occured as she helped Amber Breeze to her hooves again. The stallion was standing just feet from them, and was looking to the sky. He opened his mouth and let a violent scream erupt from it. The mares took off again, their nerves shot now more than ever. After just seconds of running, they heard a noise they hadn't ever heard before, and the scream ended much more abruptly than it had began. "Mom, dad!" The words rang through the house as Crystal Light sat the limping pegasus down in one of the kitchen chairs. "I'm gonna go grab something for you, just stay calm. Hello?!" Crystal Light ran through the house, calling again and again. There were only so many rooms to check, and the backyard. The house was empty. Episode Four: SaviourMy stomach growls. I think back to the days before this. As the whole system was crumbling. Just for the whole thing to fall down on our heads at once. There is banging at the door. It shakes me from my thoughts. Deprives me of sleep. Of sanity. The knocking is louder now. Faster. Screams now accompany it. I lay my head back down. Maybe it will be over soon. Crystal Light fumbled with the first aid kit she had retrieved from the bathroom. Her mane no longer shimmered in the damp, dusty room darkened by closed blinds and growing night. The box creaked and groaned as she opened it, the rust upon it's hinges was given notice by the reasonably panicked mares. "Is that stuff gonna be fine to use?" "It's gonna have to be. Alright, let's, let's just see what we can do." "Crystal, Crystal..." Crystal Light looked up. The look on her friends face went far beyond fear or exhaustion. This was a look of proportions unspeakable. "I...I-I can't feel it. I can't feel my leg anymore." "It, it's probably just... adrenaline. Let's take a-" Crystal Light moved just ninety degrees, enough that she noticed the small bit of red and brown that was littered upon the bright pink. "What? What is it?" "It's, I forget what it's called." There was a moment where Crystal Light had to look away and cough into her foreleg, almost choking from the sight. "That bad?! What happened!?" "No! Don't look! This...this will be easier if you don't look." Tears came to Amber Breeze's eyes as she put her hoof on the table and rested her head on it. "Just, whatever it needs, do it. Quickly." "Alright, just, brace yourself. This may, well, this is gonna hurt." Crystal Light poured a fair amount of alcohol onto a strip of bandage, and prepared herself for what she was about to put her best friend through. The moment the cloth touched the wound, an ear-splitting, gasping cry ripped through the house, carrying out into the streets and sky. Amber Breeze's wing scrambled across the table, and soon enough, the small plastic fruit was being violently clenched between her teeth. "I'm sorry! Just hold on, I'm almost done." Another cry, muffled this time, but still just as heartbreaking to hear. The wound was soon free of blood and dirt, and Crystal Light looked with a slight relief at the wound. "Ok, good news. This isn't what I thought it was. "What?" Amber Breeze said after removing the object from her mouth. Her breaths were rapid, and made her sentences stuttering messes. "What is it?" "I thought it was a compound fracture, but it's not. It, I think it's fractured though." Crystal Light took a roll of bandages from the first aid kit and strated to clumsily wrap it around the leg. "Here, keep going. We need to get back to your house, Nov's mom can fix you up." "How are we gonna get back there? There's no way it's any better out there than it was." Crystal Light took a few steps to the front door and peered through it's window. In the distance, through littered streets, she could see an unmoving form laying on the ground. She backed away. Suddenly, an idea struck her, and she was running to her bedroom as fast as she could. "Crystal, where are you going?" The question was answered when Crystal Light spat the walkie-talkie from her mouth onto the table. She took a seat and started to fiddle with a few of the knobs on the device. "The walkies! I remember those!" "Do you remember what channel you left yours on?" "I, I don't." Satisfied with her handywork, Amber Breeze ripped the bandage and taped them tight against her leg with the small roll of medical tape. "Just try them all. I think I left it somewhere in the den, they should be able to hear it fine." Three older ponies stood, exchanging embraces. The younger one stood by the window in the next room, nervously biting his lip. "Rusty, Dr. ShineHeart, it's good that you two could make it." The red stallion of the couple chuckled slightly, reaching a hoof up to rub his scruffy mustache. "Well, can't say we're over during the best of circumstances, but, we're here nontheless." "Thank you for helping Nova Bomb out," The mare spoke next, dropping her thin, yellow hooves from the other mare's body. "Can't ever keep that boy from hurting himself." "Reminds me of me a little." The three parents chuckled, somehow the impending fate of the world listfully forgotten for a few moments. The contemplative moments were interrupted suddenly by a faint crackling and a muffled voice. Nova Bomb's ears perked up, and he spun around to look at the room before him. Through drawers and under chairs he looked as the crackly voice came again. Finally, he found the small grey device hidden under a chair he had not yet flipped over. "Hey, hello?" "Nova Bomb? Did it work!?" "Yeah, yeah, if this is what you were trying. Where are you guys?" "We're at my house." Crystal Light paused for a second. Amber Breeze could only look away after her next sentence. "My, my parents are there, by any chance, are they?" "No," The response came after a few moments of hesitation. "No, they aren't. They're somewhere though, somewhere safe, I know it." "Thanks." "Look, you guys need to get back here." "We can't! We were in the streets running here and some guy jumped on Amber Breeze!" "What?!" The walkie-talkie was quickly grabbed from Nova Bomb's hooves. "Dear, put my Breezy on the line." Crystal Light pushed the walkie across the table to Amber Breeze, who shakily picked it up. "Mom?" "What happened?! Are you alright? Do you have something you can use? Is Crystal Light versed in-" "Mom, mom, I'm fine." Amber Breeze answered, cutting off the mile-a-minute questions. "Is Nov's mom there?" "Yes, yes she is. You need to get here so she can check you out, somehow... Can it wait until nightfall?" Amber Breeze and Crystal Light exchanged glances quickly, faces of concern and wonder. "Yeah, probably." "Alright, I don't like it much, but that's what we'll do. Come time, you'll go out and through the backyards to here now, ok?" "Alright, that may be easier said than done." "Well remember who's child y'are now dear lass, I raised ye like me mum raised me, you're just like her, just like me." Warm, genuine smiles came to both Amber Breeze's and Crystal Light's faces. "Alright mom, I'll see you later. Love you." "Ah, takes the end o' days for you to show your mother affection in front of your friends, eh?" The mare gave a soft laugh, and in hearing her daughter's laugh through the walkie-talkie, smiled. "I'll put the boy back on now. Good luck sweetheart." The hours before darkness seemed teeth-grindingly long. The groups in either household sat, waiting nervously for the hour of imminent action to arrive. The glass door sild open leisurely, just barely emitting it's trademarked squeak as it did so. "Ok, let's go." Crystal Light pushed the door open just slightly further, allowing for her very full saddlebag to fit through. Carrying a saddlebag equally as full, Amber Breeze managed to limp through the doorway following closely behind. "Fly if you have to but don't leave me behind." "I think I'll be fine, I don't think we'll be running too fast." "Yeah, definitely don't need to draw any attention. Come on." The hinge of the gate let out a loud, slow creak as it was pushed open. The two mares quickly made their way along the long row of fences. "So, if I may ask, what the hell's our plan once we get back?" "Hold out for a while, see what happens? I don't know, I guess we'll all talk it over." An overbearing silence blanketed the lion's share of the walk. The pair eventually reached a corner adjacent to their target house, their bodies pressed gently against a fence. "Alright, is it clear?" Crystal Light, having taken the lead, check cautiously around the house. She saw dim lights through the closed blinds, and just barely noticed one of them shift slightly. "Alright, now's the time, let's-" The mare's sentence was cut off by a loud expression, somewhere between a curse and a cry. "What was that?" Amber Breeze whispered harshly. "Was that-" The incoming question was answered all too promptly when another sound echoed, followed by multiple loud cracks through the sky. The two mares waited for a long moment, agonizingly still. The curtain moved again, and this time, they could see a face on either side of the living room window. The two mares started running, but stopped when the source of the previous screams fell into their view. A mare and a stallion, both looking just slightly older than themselves, were running past the house. The stallion fell, crying out, and the mare turned back for him. "Get up, come on!" "Just go! Get back!" "No, I'm not-" "Hey!" Crystal Light ran over to the pair, and held a hoof out. "Come with us! This house right here!" "What? You-" "Let's go!" Amber Breeze ran as fast as she could into the house and into her mother's open hooves, Nova Bomb having propped the door open after seeing them. Crystal Light helped the mare drag the stallion into the house, where the gravity of his injuries became apparent to all. "Somepony help me with him, does anypony have medical training?" "I do, Emerald does too." ShineHeart and Emerald moved to the table and started to scan the stallion's body "Good, get him to a room with some more privacy, I'll help you carry. Somepony's gonna need to grab a medkit." "There's one in the bathroom here," Nova Bomb said, started toward the hallway. "I'll grab it." "Thanks." The mare said, nodding to him as he ran off. As she and ShineHeart lifted the stallion, her eyes met those of Crystal Light. "Thanks to you too kid, you may have saved a life." Chapter Five: Left WaitingThird day. It's growing colder. They've almost made it through. It almost can't help but remark at that. They're just bashing and clawing at the door. They never stop. Some of their hooves are down to the bone. I move to the opposite edge. I can't stand the sound anymore. It's driving me to madness. It's dark now. The night seems to staunt them, at least some. This will finally end. It had been a sleepless night for most. A night plauged by fear, adrenaline, or concern. Crystal Light walked down the dim hallway, the faint morning sunlight just barely stinging her sleepless eyes. She passed the guest bedroom, a room of dull, basic color scheme and similarly fashioned bedspread. There was a grey pegasus mare with a white mane sitting, hooves pressed into cheeks, watching the stallion on the bed. "Hey." The seated mare jumped slightly at Crystal Light's greeting, but her stance softened when they locked eyes. Crystal Light couldn't help but notice as the mare's wing slowly retracted from it's reach toward the holster on her leg. "Oh, hey." "Is he going to be alright?" The mare looked back to the sleeping stallion. There were bandages wrapped around his head and chest, slightly bloodied. "Yeah, he's fine. Just a little shaken. He'll be alright." "And you?" Thought Crystal Light figured she would never admit it, especially to her, she could see that the mare was exhausted at the very least. "Fine. Yeah, I'm, I'm good. Thank you. What about you? What were you doing out last night? Here." With a muffled groan, the older mare moved to another chair in the small room and patted the seat of the chair she had moved from. "We were trying to get here, actually." Crystal Light said, sitting down. "We went back, a good way, to try to find...try to gather my stuff. We're planning to just hold out here." The mare seemed to understand not just the words that were said, but the ones that needed not be spoken. "I'm sorry, kid. That, that sounds rough. It's gonna be alright, you know?" "I guess, yeah." "Hey, what's your name?" "Crystal Light." "Ooh, very pretty name." "Thanks. What's your name?" "Second Lieutenant Windy Nights." "Lieitenant?" The two conscious heads in the room turned to see Nova Bomb standing in the doorway. "Lieutenant of what?" Windy Nights looked from Nova Bomb to Crystal Light and back, quickly. A mild scowl crawled across her muzzle, but as she looked to the unconcious pony in the room, a resigned sigh escaped her. She rose to her hooves, and made a motion for him to close the door, to which he obliged. "This backyard fenced?" "Yeah." "Good." Windy Nights unlatched the window and slid it up, sighing as it clicked into place. She pulled a carton of cigarettes from her military top and slid one into the corner of her mouth. "Alright, listen." Windy Nights said, lighting the cigarette with the lighter she had stored in the opposite pocket. "I'm not really supposed to be telling, well, anypony, about this stuff. But, I'm a Lieutennant in the CDF, you guys heard of that?" "No, what's the CDF?" "Canterlot Defence Force. Established only so long ago after threats from the changelings and a few smaller incidents around the city. More of a peacekeeping unit than anything else, we never really had anything major happen until now. In short, if an incident ocurred in a town or city and that town or city's police couldn't handle it, we did." "So, you know anything about what's going on?" Windy Nights gave a small laugh at Nova Bomb's question as she turned to blow another puff of smoke out the window. The laugh only seemed to make the two younger ponies nervous, Crystal Light giving her friend a side-eyed glance of terror. "Nope, sorry. We know about as much as you do. Reserve units are sitting at home, next thing you know ponies are running around beating the hell out of each other." "So why are you here?" "I was sent here on an escort mission. Again, I'm not really supposed to be talking about this, but, what're the odds this makes it back to my superior. This fellow here, was being held in police detainment awaiting his trial. Outcome wasn't looking good, that's why Canterlot wanted him." "Where are you escorting them?" Again, Windy Night looked contemplatively at the young stallion. "A little service station a bit of a way out of town. West. About two, two and a half miles. Nice group there. Last ones left waiting for rescue." A thin smoke wafted around a pile of spare wagon parts, the stallion standing above them managing to spit on the ground from the corner of his mouth not bearing a cigar. From behind him, he heard somepony appraoching. "You're outta luck Blink, if you were thinking we could get something out of this." "I'm not here for that." Blink's light, clear voice blended harshly with that of the older stallion's. His red coat and blue and white mane were also of stark contrast to the other, a stallion comprised of black and grey, even through his drab CDF top. "What was it you were thinking then?" "Come inside." Inside the station was a very dim, melancholy seeming place. The windows were boarded, and the sun peeking through the cracks judt barely illuminated the dusty air surrounding them. "It's been twelve hours, I need to go find her and other civillians." "Woah, listen. I'm not letting you go alone, and anyone you take from here either can't be lost or wouldn't help." "What do you mean? What about ThunderBolt? I've seen the guy shoot, and he's fast, competition level fast, even." "He has a daughter, Blink. Just listen to me. She'll come back, we'll get out of here." The older stallion gave Blink a stern look. Blink looked around the dusty garage section of the service station. A young looking mare was sitting in the corner with a pink filly curled in her lap, running her hoof through the child's single blue stripe amidst her grey mane. "Listen, we need them here now, or we're fucked. You can't give me a chance even? ThunderBolt and I could be in and out of there in a minute, and I know he wouldn't hesitate to-" "Stop, I get where you're going." The old stallion sighed as he looked over to the mare. Their eyes met for a moment, bringing smiles to their faces. "I'll go get him. Get his stuff ready." Blink nodded and walked over to the corner adjacent to the mare and filly. Atop the roof, a stallion with a navy blue coat and red and black mane paced. "ThunderBolt." The stallion called from the top wrung of the ladder. "Aye?" "Blink wants you, I'll take your position." "Ah, has Bubble Blitz gotten to sleep yet?" "I don't think so." "Alright. Blink and I running into town then I reckon?" "That's what it looks like." "Lad's off his face, I swear." ThunderBolt started, walking to the ladder. "Only a stallion under the influence o' somethin' would be so stupid. Believe me, I know." Once ThunderBolt had descended the ladder, he pushed through the creaky wooden door into the station. His head darted to the mare in the corner, and he quickly made his way over. "Ey, she down yet?" "No, sorry. Not for lack of trying." "I don't doubt it. Listen, I've gotta go out, you'll be fine with her?" "Yeah, you're good, just be careful." "I will." ThunderBolt looked down to the filly when she looked up to him. "You stay here, OK? Daddy's gotta go out for a minute." The little filly nodded, but extended her hooves out, soon being picked up. "It's OK, I'll be back before you know it." ThunderBolt set the filly down in the mare's lap again, just as Blink approached. "You ready?" "Yeah. Let's make it quick, next pickup is in twenty-four hours, yeah?" "Twelve." "Oh, better make it real quick then. We can make that." "We'd better. If Windy Nights isn't back in twelve hours, we're all on our own.
Episode One: HeatAuthor's Note Hey reader, just a quick note that this story is a huge undertaking for me right now in terms of longevity, so the first few chapters don't have much happening, but I'll try to get more out as quickly as possible :) Episode One: Heat Follicles of a dim hue of blue mane danced across the grass with the flowing breeze. There was a faint cadence in the air, one of ancient sounding voices and haunting melodies. All there was to be taken in was just that, and with an almost childish whimsy. "Crystal! Crystal Light!" From her cozy backyard hammock, a young mare's eyes opened. Her head turned to spy a mare with a strikingly red mane and contrasting blue coat, and as her thick sunglasses slid down her nose, the figure at the doorway waved. "Come in, dear!" There was a breath blown through barely open lips, the embedded exasperation nearly visible in the air. Eyes squinted shut as the mare stood from her hammock and walked to the house of faded red brick. The creak of the sliding door and its accompanying slam alerted the contrast colored mare in the kitchen of the younger mare's presence. "I have a reason not to be happy with you right now, and I believe you'll know why." The young mare's heart sank as her gaze locked on to the single envelope on the table before her. Her head shot back to her right, the mare now turned and staring. "Mom, I can explain." "Explain what? I know what it was, you didn't care enough to put the effort in." The young mare's eyes rolled as she leaned her hooves on the counter seperating them. "It's not that, it's just-" "Don't, I don't want to argue it right now. Your father will be home soon, and he'll decide what to do with you." "Come on, mom," The young mare started, her sunglasses now moved to the top of her mane. "It's summer, not to mention, my last summer!" "Don't be dramatic, dear, you'll have plenty of summers, but you'll just have to be working through them. Everypony has to do it." A carbon copy breath of agitation, something which seemed to be shared between generations. The older mare leaned on the counter, mirroring her daughter. "Hide it in your room. I'm giving you this week before I tell your father. Does that seem fair?" The young mare nodded, an action which was then returned to her by her mother. "Good. Dinner's coming along, go and grab my radio so you don't kill it again please." "Yes mom." The older mare turned away, but heard the creak and slam of the screen door. A heavy sigh. There was little more than a morsel at her disposal, and she had no time to get to any of the markets. It would do her little good anyways, she thought, as she grabbed a knife in her teeth and began slicing the few vegetables in front of her. For a few minutes, the door remained closed, and the mare could hear a distant sounding swirl of voices from the open window. Not caring to minimize noise, the knife clattered against the counter as it dropped from her mouth. A huff. That colt again. "So, what's the deal? Your mom ground you?" "She gave me a week." "Ooh, that's a real bummer, Crys." Hovering brown eyes stared forward at the mare on the other side of the tall fence, their owner keeping a small smirk about his face. "See if you can get out now, make the most of it." "I can try, I hope she hasn't seen you yet." The smirk opened to let out a chuckle, and a thick black mane covered the stallion's face as he looked down. "Still not forgiven, huh?" "Not even close." There was a very comfortable air between the two bodies, not of the unnatural heat of the day, but of understanding and near kinship. A white hoof connected roughly with an outstretched grey one, and a smile beneath blue eyes emerged. "I'll see what I can do, wait here." "I got nowhere to be." Waiting for Crystal Light inside was a mother's stare, the kind she knew unfortunately well. "Mom, can I go hang out with-" "Yes, I heard, and I know what I promised. Just be back before ten, and try to stay out of trouble." "Thanks mom! Love you!" A smile that hadn't shown itself in quite some time made an appearance on a face that showed its age. The mare watched in mild content as her daughter scaled the backyard fence and started walking off down the street. The day's heat was now just simmering, as opposed to the boil that had assaulted Ponyville's resident's throughout that entire week. From atop a playground pirate ship, blue and brown eyes scanned the town. This playground treasure that had been grown up with, used and worn to near death, remained a relic and an ever-calming area for the two. "Have they thought of names yet?" "No," A pause while the wonderfully cool, icy beverage was sipped loudly from its cup. "They're kinda in between a few things, but they really aren't sure on anything." "Have you told them anything?" "Nah, I suck at naming foals." "I would hope you wouldn't have any experience." The stallion chuckled and shook his head, the thick black mane making its way into his eyes again. Contrast was ever so apparent as a white hoof moved it back behind the stallion's ear. "You need to cut this, you know." "Yeah, I know. Haven't had the time." "Oh, because you're so busy?" "As a matter of fact, I am. I'm no longer Nova Bomb, student. I'm Nova Bomb...free. I've got a blank slate ahead of me." "You've got a blank mind more like." "That is not an unreasonable statement." A shaken head again, and sip, this one of a much lower decibel. The stares extended far into the slowly dimming afternoon, dreamily taking in all that was. "Any news on your applications?" "Not yet." "You applied to Canterlot first, yeah?" "Yeah. Hopefully I get in." "You will Crys, you got it." "Hopefully." "Hey, did you hear about what's happening in Fillydelphia?" "Another riot over buckball?" "No, seriously." "What?" "Something went down over there the other day, about some conspiracy involving space...space time magic, or something like that, I don't remember what it was." "Ok," Crystal Light started, her eyes fully fixated on the stallion. "So, what's your point, is it something we need to worry about or is it just some nutcase?" "From what I heard, there were some attacks, and some were pretty brutal." "Oh, maybe ponies are getting a little crazy with this heat wave, or something. Where did you hear all this from anyway?" "My uncle. Then again, he's a bit of a conspiracy nut himself, so, maybe it is nothing." A presence had crept upon them during the conversation as the night sky slowly darkened. Not one with any physical or worldly anchor, but one of a foreboding, unanswerable question. "What do you think caused it?"
Episode Two: CollectionsIf there was to be any dew that morning, it would not have lasted long. The clocks hands had barely had the time to stand upright, and already the day was unbearable. Two bodies sat around the circular kitchen table, beads of sweat cascading down their faces. Crystal Light rested her head on the table, and released a stagnant breath. "It's still so, damn, hot." The bright pink body across the table let a stale breath escape her as she reached a wing out to a small thermostat. "Yep," Her high, dry voice peeped. "Still way up there. Any chance you could grab me another water?" Crystal Light turned, and with her hoof outstretched, reached for the already half-empty case of bottled water. But the effort seemed all too much with the case too far away, and her hoof fell. "You know, it's a little far." Though unseen, eyes were rolled. The pegasus tipped her head back as she leaned her chair, her long orange mane falling almost to the floor behind her. "Why don't you guys have a pool?" "Why don't you have a pool?" "Yeah, that would work out well. Mom, I know you said no to literally everything else, but can we get a pool?" "Whatever. Worth a shot." "Was it now?" "Could've been." For three more minutes there was little to no movement, the bodies rooted to their chairs by the otherworldly heat. Then, the familiar clicks and clacks of the front screen door, and a few solid hoofsteps on the tile floor. "Jeez, looks like a crime scene here." "Hey Nov." "Crystal Light, Amber Breeze, how we doin'?" "Dying," Crystal Light started, her voice muffled by the table her face was still pressed against. "same as everypony else." "Hmm, shame." "How are you still so up and up?" "Um, cuz I'm from Las Pegasus, remember? It's pretty bad though, I don't remember it ever being this bad." "Really?" "Yeah, I think it was closest to this, maybe, about three years before we moved? That was a bad summer." "Hm." "Well." Nova Bomb started, loudly landing a hoof on the table. "We've got to do something today, I trust Crystal has explained the predicament to you?" "Yep. All those times I'd ask if she wanted to study together, look who was right." Crystal Light waved a dissmissive hoof, but stayed completely still otherwise. "Come on, let's get up, let's go." "Ok, appreciate the enthusiasm Nov, but where are we gonna go?" "I got something cool planned, we just gotta stop by my house to grab something first." The heat continued to show no remorse as the day crawled by into the early afternoon. Upon a hill, just barely past Ponyville's limits, the sound of exasperated grunts and groans were carried in the wind. "I hope whatever you have planned is worth it, or I'm never taking your advice again." "Oh, will you just? We're almost there." "Why couldn't we have just gone to the regular spot?" "Because it's too close to town, nopony ever goes up here, especially not now." "Couldn't see why." Nova Bomb's eyes rolled as he took the final steps in their ascent up the hill. Crystal Light and Amber Breeze slowly made their way to the crest of the hill, Amber Breeze giving up and falling to the grass when they had. "Well, what's the big surprise?" "Ever think of using your eyes and not your mouth?" The eyes with which she should have been looking were rolled. As she surveyed the land atop the hill, she spotted a small blue cooler in the wonderous shade beneath a short but sturdy oak tree. Just behind that, there were three chairs arranged around the side of a small blue pool, full of crystal clear water. "Wow, when did you bring all this up here?" "All what?" Amber Breeze asked, finally lifting herself from the ground and walking over. "Holy feck!" "I managed to sneak the cooler and chairs out a little while after the heat wave started. The pool I got from a yard sale the other day, and I've been running the odd drinks out whenever I can." "I thought your parents didn't have soda in the house very often?" "They don't. I never said I snuck them out of my house. Here." Nova Bomb tossed two cans, dripping with ice cold water to the two mares. Amber Breeze looked at her can with a foal-like bewilderment as she excitedly opened it. Half the contents dissapeared before her friends eyes as she drank like she hadn't in days. "Gosh, it's been so long since I've had this. How did you know cream soda was my favourite?" "Lucky guess." Nova Bomb smiled at Amber Breeze for a moment before turning to Crystal Light, who was just taking a sip from her own can. What about yours? Was I right with you?" "As long as it's cold, I'll take it." "I second that." "Third. Come on, let's grab a seat." As the sun set in the late afternoon, casting so gently it's beautiful amber rays upon the sleepy town, the trio sat, relaxed upon the hill. "So, Amber, did you hear about Fillydelphia?" "Ah jeez Nov, you're gonna tell her about that too?" "Yeah, so?" "Do you not believe it?" "Look," Amber Breeze started, leaning forward in her chair to look closely at her friends. As their gazes mirrored her own, a sigh escaped her, and she looked to the ground. "I don't know just what I believe yet. I've heard more than even you've told me, so I'm inclined to say that I do. But I don't want to say-" "Wait, wait, wait. What more have you heard?" Nova Bomb's question seemed to make Amber Breeze regret her words. Almost choked, the pegasus cleared her throat. "The same thing that happened in Fillydelphia happened in Canterlot, and, a few other cities too, I think. One of them was Las Pegasus for sure. And they, they started to round up any important ponies into groups to be kept safe. The princesses, the elements of harmony, some of Celestia's students, judges, mayors, everything, they have all been moved. I think they're evacuating small towns and villages next. Where to, I'm not entirely sure." Three faces ceased to move. The words were paralyzing daggers, jabbed violently into their nerves. Nova Bomb was the first to close his open mouth and clear his throat. No words came however. He merely turned his head and stared off into the slowly setting sun.
Episode Three: In Due TimeThere is a commotion, in the lobby. We descend. The commotion enters the stairwells. There is only one. She moves to help. It backfires. I reach out. Nothing connects. I blink. There are more of them now. I hear something above me. I look to it. I see...nothing. I look back to the commotion at the bottom of the stairs. Her eyes, they stare back at me. They ask questions I have no answer for. I run. I can't do anything else. No one can. I blink again. Even more of them. The door is barred behind me now. If I had wings, this wouldn't be the end for me. Sun, boiling sun again. There wasn't anywhere on the surface of the earth wherein a pony could lay and avoid it. Atop the crest of a hill three young ponies sat, drenched in sweat, upon their chairs. "Ok, I know I said I can bear the heat well, but I think they've broken me." "Ugh, me too. What about you Amber?" "Flip me over, I need to cook on the other side." "Alright, that's it, we gotta do something about this." Nova Bomb declared, standing on shaky hooves. A glare from behind mirrored sunglasses and an unmoving head met him. "So that's a no?" "Nov," Crystal Light started, pushing herself up just slightly in her seat. "It's hotter than the sun out today. Our pool is practically evaporating before us, and look at Amber, she's catatonic! What could you possibly want to do?" "Would you just get up for a moment?" There was something in the last few words that made even Amber Breeze turn around to look. Something sharp, something unnatural. They had never heard such a tone from their friend before. "What's going on?" No response. "Nov, hey, what's happening?" Amber Breeze was now on her hooves, the worry in her face as apparent as the beating sun in the sky. Nova Bomb ran a hoof through his jet black mane, turning to face the town at the bottom of the hill. "I just... something doesn't seem right. I know this sounds stupid, but, I'm worried. There's somepony we have to check on." Though it was market day, there was a very scarce number of ponies in the street. Many of them were indoors, searching for some body of water to relax in, or tending to their suffering crops. The trio walked carefully through the streets, the nervous stallion taking the lead. "Nov, will you at least tell us where we're going?" Nova Bomb did nothing in response to the question. His pace continued uninterrupted, as did his straightforward gaze. "You try." Crystal Light whispered to the obviously struggling pegasus to her right. "Umm, Nov? Isn't this our neighborhood? What are we doing here?" Nova Bomb stopped, the first time his pace had changed since they descended from the hill. As he turned to his friends, they saw the worry on his face. "I just need to check something." A scream ripped through the air, effectively silencing the conversation and turning the ponies' heads to the source. From a house to their left, through the window, a commotion. Nova Bomb's eyes widened. "It's here." Nova Bomb immediately moved, running to the front door of the house. "Wait, Nov!" Amber Breeze shouted, stepping forward. "What are you doing?!" "Just get to your house, I'll meet you there!" Amber Breeze opened her mouth, but no words were able to escape. She watched in wide-eyed horror as Nova Bomb burst through the front door of the house, dissapearing into the dark front room. "Let's go!" The two mares ran, though one stayed wavering for a hesitant moment. The objective house was not a very far distance away, a timeline narrowed further by the adrenaline fueling the sprint. The door opened from the inside seconds before it was even reached from the outside. A white pesasus mare with a bright green mane waved a hoof and called the young ponies inside. Amber Breeze ran into an embrace with her mother, holding her tightly as Crystal Light ran to the window. The older mare adjusted her mirrored sunglasses and looked with both fright and relief at her daughter. "Dearie, we're so glad you're here! Your cousin was over and just went out lookin' for you now." "Where did he go?" "He went t'look for you at the hill your always on top of. How long ago'd you get back to town?" "Not very long. He'll-" The front door was thrown open, and the mother and daughter's heads snapped to the door. Crystal Light, having seen him through the window, ushered in Nova Bomb before quickly shutting the door behind him. The three mares gasped when they saw the glinting trickle of scarlet running from the small gash almost hidden under his mane. "Nova Bomb, what happened?" Crsytal Light recieved no response as the dreary looking stallion moved slowly and nearly fell into a seat at the kitchen. "They're gone." "What?" "I..." Nova Bomb muttered something further, almost unintelligibly, before breaking into a small fit of sobs. "We need to go. We'll find your cousin and head for somewhere safe. Crystal dearie, you and Breezy go get your parents, come back here, as soon as possible." "Wait, mom, what about Nov's parents?" "They were just about over for a drink, should be here in just a minute." "I'll be fine here until they come. Where do you guys keep the bandages?" "Right, well just hold on, I'll get you covered up there." The town was a madhouse. Ponies ran through the streets, looking for somewhere to hide, or somepony to protect them. There was a growing air of dust and debris. The two young mares raced through the chaos, the crippling heat pushed aside by the overwhelming gravity of the situation. "Do you think they'll be home?" "I haven't thought about it!" "Well, your-" "I didn't want to think about it!" Amber Breeze was going to respond, but she was tackled to the ground by a stallion. The yelp that escaped her was sharp enough to catch her friend's attention, and she spun around as quickly as she could. The stallion was attempting to strike her, but Amber Breeze was managing to dodge most of the attacks. Crystal Light ran her full body weight into the stallion, and recovered quickly, rushing to her friend's side. "Are you alright?!" "I'm not sure." "We'll sort it out at my house, let's go!" Crystal Light helped her friend up, but when the momnt came to start running, Amber fell to the ground again, the pained yell causing Crystal Light's panic to escalate. "What's wrong?" "My leg, I think my leg is sprained!" "Just fly, we need to go now!" Crystal Light looked to where the initial fray had occured as she helped Amber Breeze to her hooves again. The stallion was standing just feet from them, and was looking to the sky. He opened his mouth and let a violent scream erupt from it. The mares took off again, their nerves shot now more than ever. After just seconds of running, they heard a noise they hadn't ever heard before, and the scream ended much more abruptly than it had began. "Mom, dad!" The words rang through the house as Crystal Light sat the limping pegasus down in one of the kitchen chairs. "I'm gonna go grab something for you, just stay calm. Hello?!" Crystal Light ran through the house, calling again and again. There were only so many rooms to check, and the backyard. The house was empty.
Episode Four: SaviourMy stomach growls. I think back to the days before this. As the whole system was crumbling. Just for the whole thing to fall down on our heads at once. There is banging at the door. It shakes me from my thoughts. Deprives me of sleep. Of sanity. The knocking is louder now. Faster. Screams now accompany it. I lay my head back down. Maybe it will be over soon. Crystal Light fumbled with the first aid kit she had retrieved from the bathroom. Her mane no longer shimmered in the damp, dusty room darkened by closed blinds and growing night. The box creaked and groaned as she opened it, the rust upon it's hinges was given notice by the reasonably panicked mares. "Is that stuff gonna be fine to use?" "It's gonna have to be. Alright, let's, let's just see what we can do." "Crystal, Crystal..." Crystal Light looked up. The look on her friends face went far beyond fear or exhaustion. This was a look of proportions unspeakable. "I...I-I can't feel it. I can't feel my leg anymore." "It, it's probably just... adrenaline. Let's take a-" Crystal Light moved just ninety degrees, enough that she noticed the small bit of red and brown that was littered upon the bright pink. "What? What is it?" "It's, I forget what it's called." There was a moment where Crystal Light had to look away and cough into her foreleg, almost choking from the sight. "That bad?! What happened!?" "No! Don't look! This...this will be easier if you don't look." Tears came to Amber Breeze's eyes as she put her hoof on the table and rested her head on it. "Just, whatever it needs, do it. Quickly." "Alright, just, brace yourself. This may, well, this is gonna hurt." Crystal Light poured a fair amount of alcohol onto a strip of bandage, and prepared herself for what she was about to put her best friend through. The moment the cloth touched the wound, an ear-splitting, gasping cry ripped through the house, carrying out into the streets and sky. Amber Breeze's wing scrambled across the table, and soon enough, the small plastic fruit was being violently clenched between her teeth. "I'm sorry! Just hold on, I'm almost done." Another cry, muffled this time, but still just as heartbreaking to hear. The wound was soon free of blood and dirt, and Crystal Light looked with a slight relief at the wound. "Ok, good news. This isn't what I thought it was. "What?" Amber Breeze said after removing the object from her mouth. Her breaths were rapid, and made her sentences stuttering messes. "What is it?" "I thought it was a compound fracture, but it's not. It, I think it's fractured though." Crystal Light took a roll of bandages from the first aid kit and strated to clumsily wrap it around the leg. "Here, keep going. We need to get back to your house, Nov's mom can fix you up." "How are we gonna get back there? There's no way it's any better out there than it was." Crystal Light took a few steps to the front door and peered through it's window. In the distance, through littered streets, she could see an unmoving form laying on the ground. She backed away. Suddenly, an idea struck her, and she was running to her bedroom as fast as she could. "Crystal, where are you going?" The question was answered when Crystal Light spat the walkie-talkie from her mouth onto the table. She took a seat and started to fiddle with a few of the knobs on the device. "The walkies! I remember those!" "Do you remember what channel you left yours on?" "I, I don't." Satisfied with her handywork, Amber Breeze ripped the bandage and taped them tight against her leg with the small roll of medical tape. "Just try them all. I think I left it somewhere in the den, they should be able to hear it fine." Three older ponies stood, exchanging embraces. The younger one stood by the window in the next room, nervously biting his lip. "Rusty, Dr. ShineHeart, it's good that you two could make it." The red stallion of the couple chuckled slightly, reaching a hoof up to rub his scruffy mustache. "Well, can't say we're over during the best of circumstances, but, we're here nontheless." "Thank you for helping Nova Bomb out," The mare spoke next, dropping her thin, yellow hooves from the other mare's body. "Can't ever keep that boy from hurting himself." "Reminds me of me a little." The three parents chuckled, somehow the impending fate of the world listfully forgotten for a few moments. The contemplative moments were interrupted suddenly by a faint crackling and a muffled voice. Nova Bomb's ears perked up, and he spun around to look at the room before him. Through drawers and under chairs he looked as the crackly voice came again. Finally, he found the small grey device hidden under a chair he had not yet flipped over. "Hey, hello?" "Nova Bomb? Did it work!?" "Yeah, yeah, if this is what you were trying. Where are you guys?" "We're at my house." Crystal Light paused for a second. Amber Breeze could only look away after her next sentence. "My, my parents are there, by any chance, are they?" "No," The response came after a few moments of hesitation. "No, they aren't. They're somewhere though, somewhere safe, I know it." "Thanks." "Look, you guys need to get back here." "We can't! We were in the streets running here and some guy jumped on Amber Breeze!" "What?!" The walkie-talkie was quickly grabbed from Nova Bomb's hooves. "Dear, put my Breezy on the line." Crystal Light pushed the walkie across the table to Amber Breeze, who shakily picked it up. "Mom?" "What happened?! Are you alright? Do you have something you can use? Is Crystal Light versed in-" "Mom, mom, I'm fine." Amber Breeze answered, cutting off the mile-a-minute questions. "Is Nov's mom there?" "Yes, yes she is. You need to get here so she can check you out, somehow... Can it wait until nightfall?" Amber Breeze and Crystal Light exchanged glances quickly, faces of concern and wonder. "Yeah, probably." "Alright, I don't like it much, but that's what we'll do. Come time, you'll go out and through the backyards to here now, ok?" "Alright, that may be easier said than done." "Well remember who's child y'are now dear lass, I raised ye like me mum raised me, you're just like her, just like me." Warm, genuine smiles came to both Amber Breeze's and Crystal Light's faces. "Alright mom, I'll see you later. Love you." "Ah, takes the end o' days for you to show your mother affection in front of your friends, eh?" The mare gave a soft laugh, and in hearing her daughter's laugh through the walkie-talkie, smiled. "I'll put the boy back on now. Good luck sweetheart." The hours before darkness seemed teeth-grindingly long. The groups in either household sat, waiting nervously for the hour of imminent action to arrive. The glass door sild open leisurely, just barely emitting it's trademarked squeak as it did so. "Ok, let's go." Crystal Light pushed the door open just slightly further, allowing for her very full saddlebag to fit through. Carrying a saddlebag equally as full, Amber Breeze managed to limp through the doorway following closely behind. "Fly if you have to but don't leave me behind." "I think I'll be fine, I don't think we'll be running too fast." "Yeah, definitely don't need to draw any attention. Come on." The hinge of the gate let out a loud, slow creak as it was pushed open. The two mares quickly made their way along the long row of fences. "So, if I may ask, what the hell's our plan once we get back?" "Hold out for a while, see what happens? I don't know, I guess we'll all talk it over." An overbearing silence blanketed the lion's share of the walk. The pair eventually reached a corner adjacent to their target house, their bodies pressed gently against a fence. "Alright, is it clear?" Crystal Light, having taken the lead, check cautiously around the house. She saw dim lights through the closed blinds, and just barely noticed one of them shift slightly. "Alright, now's the time, let's-" The mare's sentence was cut off by a loud expression, somewhere between a curse and a cry. "What was that?" Amber Breeze whispered harshly. "Was that-" The incoming question was answered all too promptly when another sound echoed, followed by multiple loud cracks through the sky. The two mares waited for a long moment, agonizingly still. The curtain moved again, and this time, they could see a face on either side of the living room window. The two mares started running, but stopped when the source of the previous screams fell into their view. A mare and a stallion, both looking just slightly older than themselves, were running past the house. The stallion fell, crying out, and the mare turned back for him. "Get up, come on!" "Just go! Get back!" "No, I'm not-" "Hey!" Crystal Light ran over to the pair, and held a hoof out. "Come with us! This house right here!" "What? You-" "Let's go!" Amber Breeze ran as fast as she could into the house and into her mother's open hooves, Nova Bomb having propped the door open after seeing them. Crystal Light helped the mare drag the stallion into the house, where the gravity of his injuries became apparent to all. "Somepony help me with him, does anypony have medical training?" "I do, Emerald does too." ShineHeart and Emerald moved to the table and started to scan the stallion's body "Good, get him to a room with some more privacy, I'll help you carry. Somepony's gonna need to grab a medkit." "There's one in the bathroom here," Nova Bomb said, started toward the hallway. "I'll grab it." "Thanks." The mare said, nodding to him as he ran off. As she and ShineHeart lifted the stallion, her eyes met those of Crystal Light. "Thanks to you too kid, you may have saved a life."
Chapter Five: Left WaitingThird day. It's growing colder. They've almost made it through. It almost can't help but remark at that. They're just bashing and clawing at the door. They never stop. Some of their hooves are down to the bone. I move to the opposite edge. I can't stand the sound anymore. It's driving me to madness. It's dark now. The night seems to staunt them, at least some. This will finally end. It had been a sleepless night for most. A night plauged by fear, adrenaline, or concern. Crystal Light walked down the dim hallway, the faint morning sunlight just barely stinging her sleepless eyes. She passed the guest bedroom, a room of dull, basic color scheme and similarly fashioned bedspread. There was a grey pegasus mare with a white mane sitting, hooves pressed into cheeks, watching the stallion on the bed. "Hey." The seated mare jumped slightly at Crystal Light's greeting, but her stance softened when they locked eyes. Crystal Light couldn't help but notice as the mare's wing slowly retracted from it's reach toward the holster on her leg. "Oh, hey." "Is he going to be alright?" The mare looked back to the sleeping stallion. There were bandages wrapped around his head and chest, slightly bloodied. "Yeah, he's fine. Just a little shaken. He'll be alright." "And you?" Thought Crystal Light figured she would never admit it, especially to her, she could see that the mare was exhausted at the very least. "Fine. Yeah, I'm, I'm good. Thank you. What about you? What were you doing out last night? Here." With a muffled groan, the older mare moved to another chair in the small room and patted the seat of the chair she had moved from. "We were trying to get here, actually." Crystal Light said, sitting down. "We went back, a good way, to try to find...try to gather my stuff. We're planning to just hold out here." The mare seemed to understand not just the words that were said, but the ones that needed not be spoken. "I'm sorry, kid. That, that sounds rough. It's gonna be alright, you know?" "I guess, yeah." "Hey, what's your name?" "Crystal Light." "Ooh, very pretty name." "Thanks. What's your name?" "Second Lieutenant Windy Nights." "Lieitenant?" The two conscious heads in the room turned to see Nova Bomb standing in the doorway. "Lieutenant of what?" Windy Nights looked from Nova Bomb to Crystal Light and back, quickly. A mild scowl crawled across her muzzle, but as she looked to the unconcious pony in the room, a resigned sigh escaped her. She rose to her hooves, and made a motion for him to close the door, to which he obliged. "This backyard fenced?" "Yeah." "Good." Windy Nights unlatched the window and slid it up, sighing as it clicked into place. She pulled a carton of cigarettes from her military top and slid one into the corner of her mouth. "Alright, listen." Windy Nights said, lighting the cigarette with the lighter she had stored in the opposite pocket. "I'm not really supposed to be telling, well, anypony, about this stuff. But, I'm a Lieutennant in the CDF, you guys heard of that?" "No, what's the CDF?" "Canterlot Defence Force. Established only so long ago after threats from the changelings and a few smaller incidents around the city. More of a peacekeeping unit than anything else, we never really had anything major happen until now. In short, if an incident ocurred in a town or city and that town or city's police couldn't handle it, we did." "So, you know anything about what's going on?" Windy Nights gave a small laugh at Nova Bomb's question as she turned to blow another puff of smoke out the window. The laugh only seemed to make the two younger ponies nervous, Crystal Light giving her friend a side-eyed glance of terror. "Nope, sorry. We know about as much as you do. Reserve units are sitting at home, next thing you know ponies are running around beating the hell out of each other." "So why are you here?" "I was sent here on an escort mission. Again, I'm not really supposed to be talking about this, but, what're the odds this makes it back to my superior. This fellow here, was being held in police detainment awaiting his trial. Outcome wasn't looking good, that's why Canterlot wanted him." "Where are you escorting them?" Again, Windy Night looked contemplatively at the young stallion. "A little service station a bit of a way out of town. West. About two, two and a half miles. Nice group there. Last ones left waiting for rescue." A thin smoke wafted around a pile of spare wagon parts, the stallion standing above them managing to spit on the ground from the corner of his mouth not bearing a cigar. From behind him, he heard somepony appraoching. "You're outta luck Blink, if you were thinking we could get something out of this." "I'm not here for that." Blink's light, clear voice blended harshly with that of the older stallion's. His red coat and blue and white mane were also of stark contrast to the other, a stallion comprised of black and grey, even through his drab CDF top. "What was it you were thinking then?" "Come inside." Inside the station was a very dim, melancholy seeming place. The windows were boarded, and the sun peeking through the cracks judt barely illuminated the dusty air surrounding them. "It's been twelve hours, I need to go find her and other civillians." "Woah, listen. I'm not letting you go alone, and anyone you take from here either can't be lost or wouldn't help." "What do you mean? What about ThunderBolt? I've seen the guy shoot, and he's fast, competition level fast, even." "He has a daughter, Blink. Just listen to me. She'll come back, we'll get out of here." The older stallion gave Blink a stern look. Blink looked around the dusty garage section of the service station. A young looking mare was sitting in the corner with a pink filly curled in her lap, running her hoof through the child's single blue stripe amidst her grey mane. "Listen, we need them here now, or we're fucked. You can't give me a chance even? ThunderBolt and I could be in and out of there in a minute, and I know he wouldn't hesitate to-" "Stop, I get where you're going." The old stallion sighed as he looked over to the mare. Their eyes met for a moment, bringing smiles to their faces. "I'll go get him. Get his stuff ready." Blink nodded and walked over to the corner adjacent to the mare and filly. Atop the roof, a stallion with a navy blue coat and red and black mane paced. "ThunderBolt." The stallion called from the top wrung of the ladder. "Aye?" "Blink wants you, I'll take your position." "Ah, has Bubble Blitz gotten to sleep yet?" "I don't think so." "Alright. Blink and I running into town then I reckon?" "That's what it looks like." "Lad's off his face, I swear." ThunderBolt started, walking to the ladder. "Only a stallion under the influence o' somethin' would be so stupid. Believe me, I know." Once ThunderBolt had descended the ladder, he pushed through the creaky wooden door into the station. His head darted to the mare in the corner, and he quickly made his way over. "Ey, she down yet?" "No, sorry. Not for lack of trying." "I don't doubt it. Listen, I've gotta go out, you'll be fine with her?" "Yeah, you're good, just be careful." "I will." ThunderBolt looked down to the filly when she looked up to him. "You stay here, OK? Daddy's gotta go out for a minute." The little filly nodded, but extended her hooves out, soon being picked up. "It's OK, I'll be back before you know it." ThunderBolt set the filly down in the mare's lap again, just as Blink approached. "You ready?" "Yeah. Let's make it quick, next pickup is in twenty-four hours, yeah?" "Twelve." "Oh, better make it real quick then. We can make that." "We'd better. If Windy Nights isn't back in twelve hours, we're all on our own.
