Author's Note

E

(Also, didn't have much time to spell-check, so there might be an error or two...sorry!)

Chapter 4: Departure

[Two days after the mission brief, Canterlot Castle]

Being let into his room by the guard stationed outside, Hollow strode in with several bags in hand, having successfully managed to obtain supplies that had begun to dwindle during the time the doctor had spent doing research in preperation for his mission in Ponyville.

Once he had been left alone by the princess, Isaac had immediately thrown himself into studying all he could about the costs and effects surrounding the use of magic, specifically whatever he could about second hand effects magic-casting could have on those affected by the casting of it or exposure to it. While a lot of it had simply been exhaustion if overworked and spells were casted for too long by unicorns, the doctor wouldn't turn any information away as he wanted to have as much knowledge on this topic before his boots hit the ground tomorrow as magic wasn't exactly something he was well-versed in.

In fact, back in his country the idea of magic users would get one burned at the stake...though the doctor couldn't ever think of a time he ha'd ever heard of actual magic being reported back then instead of petty grudges villagers had with each other.

The supplies in question hadn't been anything strenuous to get a hold of, merely stationary tools and a few herbs that could be used in basic herbological medicine, all of which thankfully paid for in advance by the crown. To the doctors surprise, the city had shown little care for the tall creature among them dressed in all black and a bird mask, though this city was the capital of this region, so there were probably enough foreigners that passed through that desensitized the populace to outsiders.

Regardless, any lack of distraction was a blessing, as there was still so much work to be-

Well, if that's not the cutest sight I've seen all day.

Losing his train of thought and allowing the bags to fall beside his feet, Hollow looked towards the bed as his eyes laid upon the sleeping form of marble. Said mare had pushed the covers off in her sleep and was currently snuggling the pillow next to her as she occasionally nuzzled the pillowy fabric with her litttle nose.

"The ponies here have no right being that adorable." Hollow whispered to himself as he slowly backed out of the room and exited quietly, as to ensure his partners rest wasn't disturbed. Closing the door behind him with a near soundless thud, Hollow walked past the unfazed guard and began to wander aimlessly through the halls, his mind returning to the upcoming objective.

Odd vines that a random set of individuals catch an unknown pathogen from? From what the princess and the notes from the document she gave me state it seems as if the illness doesn't have a straightforward path of contamination or source of spread...though I know better. No mass illness starts without an outbreak, regardless of whether or not this turns out to be magical, and when we arrive it will be on my shoulders to not only do what these ponies could not in finding the source but to manage to stop it as well.

Coming to a stop in the middle of one of the many halls Isaac had been pacing through, the doctor felt his hands clench as a memory from the brink of his mind resurfaced, his gaze switching from the cheerfully white halls to the all to familiar sight of a death bed in his wake.

"F-Father..." The poor soul who's body and soul were forever caged withen the silken sheets croaked out, his voice shaky as Isaac knelt down before the child, reaching out and holding the boys hand in his own. "I...Where has Mother gone?"

Taking a deep breath, Hollow felt his head lower as he breathed out of his mouth, a broken sigh following right behind the shallow air.

"It's alright, Clyde. You'll see her soon, I swear." Hollow whispered, feeling the boy's hand reach up through his mask and touch the right side of his face. "Would you tell her to put the soup on the fire for me? Father has to work late today?"

Seeing the boy give him a weak nod, Isaac watched solemnly as the light left Clydes eyes, leaving the doctor alone once more in the hall with only a burning sensation where the child's hand had been.

Falling to both knees, Hollow reached up through his mask and felt the spot his son's hand had been, and did his hardest to suppress the welling emotion that dared to surge from within.

Why? Why was I spared from that blasted plague and not my child?!? Hollow's mind roared as he felt his body rock slightly, the burning sensation across his face growing as the doctors thought's began to downspiral. Why couldn't it had have been me? Haven't I earned the price of death for the sins I wrought?

As that thought rang through his mind, echoing from ear to ear in a almost wicked cacaphony of noise, a burning sensation in his wrists let Hollow know he had slammed his fists against the ground enough times to cause his knuckles to bleed through the gloves. Feeling something press into him from his side, Isaac slowly turned to his right to inspect the source of the new sensation, and was met with his face being blinded with grey as the source pulled him into a tight hug.

Marble...but how?

The doctor wasn't sure how much time had passed during the extended hug from the grey mare, but the burning feeling on his cheek had switched to a throbbing soreness in his throat, so it had been clear that he had been trapped in his companions embrace long enough for the overflow of his pain to dry up.

"H-How long..." Isaac croaked out, though he was shushed by his friend and felt a hoof stroke the back of his head.

"I don't know, but a guard came by and brought me to you. He said while doing his rounds he stumbled upon you punching the floor, and that you didn't hear him when he called out to you to stop." Marble pulled back, frowming at me as she took off my mask and stared right into my eyes. "I know your not comfortable telling me your past yet and that's fine, but don't bottle up your emotions like this, not when I'm here to shoulder some of the burden with you."

This mare, the very same mare that was more than willing to hide in the doctor's shadow whenever they went out in public, was simultaneously comforting Hollow at his lowest. Had she always been capable of such things? When he had first laid eyes upon Marble Isaac wouldn't have been too far off to say she was almost puppet like, only doing what she was asked of and barely existing outside of those bounds.

Could this be why she wished to leave the farm she was raised on? To have a chance to escape from the existence that had been carved out for her there, and to become something new as she traveled with me?

Isaac wouldn't dare complain or question her motives though, not when she seemed to be one of the few things keeping his mind and soul on the right track. If he had been alone on this quest and had one of these episodes...

Shuddering slightly, Isaac gave the mare in front of him a nuzzle to her cheek (something Marble claimed to be a sign of affection between friends when she did it to the doctor a few weeks prior) as he retrieved the mask from her hooves, placing it back on his face as he rose to his feet.

"I thank you, Marble. It seems the ghosts of my past life chose today to haunt me...though it feels unfair to force the aftershocks of such events upon you like this without paying you back."

Letting out a grunt, Marble whapped the side of Isaac's waist with a hoof before shaking her head.

"It's no burden to me, Isaac. I'm here for you whenever you have need of me, as you were there for me and my family when we needed you." With that, Marble began to walk towards the doors behind the doctor, motioning him to follow as they began to make their way back to their room, passing by several guards as traversed the castle. "Though next time, could you confide in me back in the room? These floors are lumpier than the rocks back home."

Watching the mare stretch her back out, her flank going straight into the air with a slight wiggle in the process...something in which Hollow suppressed a smirk at the two guards that passed by during the act stumbled on their next steps as their eyes traveled directly to the oblivious mare.

"Very well, as long as you try to not show off to the guards, they do have a job to do and your 'stretching' can be quite the distraction." Hollow retorted, watching as the previously stern mare had now fully returned to her shy self, noticing the guards at last as she let out a strangled "Eep!" and sped-trot out of the room, forcing Hollow to jog after the mare to keep up with her escape from wandering eyes.

"What is the matter, friend? Do the admiring eyes of these fine stallions not fill you with pride?" Isaac called out with a chuckle as he followed after the retreating mare, who was somehow looking back at him and making perfect turns around corners at the same time, a shocked glare meeting his mask-hidden amused stare...though Hollow was sure Marble knew what face he was making underneath.

"T-That's not funny, y-you turd!" She called back at him, though it took all of the mare's willpower to not smile at the scene that had somehow managed to take place. The doctor had been in a state of absolute sorrow moments before, and while she had not planned for any of this to happen, the fact it was distracting Isaac from his pain was payment enough for a little embarrassment and ribbing on her end.

She would just have to get him back for this later. The doctor would have to sleep at some point, and when he did Marble would remind him why one does not toy with one of the sisters Pie.

[The next day, Canterlot train station]

"Back to Ponyville so soon...think your sister will be excited to see us? We made quite the impression at that party of hers she threw for me, after all." Hollow asked Marble, taking a break from scanning the wary bystanders as his gaze drew to the mare beside him, who had taken the task of double-checking their saddlebags and carry-ons to make sure they hadn't forgotten anything.

"Mmm-hmm!" Marble hummed, pulling her head out of her saddlebags and attaching them to her person before turning to face the doctor. "Pinkie loved having us as company...though it will be nice to not have to share a bed with her this time."

"Indeed, nor was I wanting to use her bedroom floor as a sleeping space again. I'll have to make sure to thank the princess for the sleeping arrangements again when we next see her." The doctor agreed with a nod as a chuckle bubbled out from his chest. "Still, I can't believe those two friends of hers thought they could out-drink the creature with a bigger body density than them."

Marble couldn't suppress the giggle that came with the memories of that night. Her sister, as she did with anypony that was new, had thrown a surprise party for Isaac. And while it had taken a few minutes to get the townsfolk to get used to the crow-masked man, once they warmed up to him the party picked up quickly.

Of course, this also meant Pinkies closest friends were there, and two of the more bold ones (Marble couldn't remember much about the cyan pegasus or the Apple farmer, just that from Pinkies letters they always seemed to be locked in competition with each other) had pressed Hollow for his taste for cider. A few drinks and a rather blunt challenge from the pegasus and Hollow had found himself sitting next to two knocked out ponies.

"Greetings! Would you happen to be a Dr. Hollow?"

Turning their attention to the new voice, the pair were met with a stallion standing before them, a duffel being held in a cyan aura as he gave Marble a energized smile. "And you must be his companion that I was told about as well, I'm Holy Lance, though you can just call me Lance if you want."

Walking up to the stallion, Hollow glanced the colt over as he recalled the document stating one of his guards were going to be a silver unicorn...though the doctor wasn't exactly comfortable with the idea of such a young kid watching his back.

"A pleasure, Lance. What exactly were you briefed on again? I'd like to ensure your caught up with the situation."

That, and Hollow wanted to make sure the kid knew this wasn't a game. He had seen some of the guards the king back home had stationed in town, and most of the time the younger and newer ones didn't take the job seriously.

Dropping the duffel beside the carry-ons, Lance gave a swift nod as he placed a hoof on his chest, his face scrunching up somewhat as he took a stern look upon his face.

"Gladly, I was briefed by the the princess' assistant that I was to be deployed to Ponyville to assist a Dr.Hollow and his partner in his efforts to cure an illness that has broken out there. I was also told that while I am not the only one on this job, we will be meeting Seargent Eclipsa when we disembark from the train, and was to inform you of this change of plans."

Removing the hoof from his chest, Lance let out a breath and almost instantly dropped the serious guard routine for the same smile from before.

"I'm so excited to have a station so soon into my contract! And though I do wish it was under better circumstances I can't wait for this adventure to begin."

Eyes narrowing behind his mask, Hollow crossed his arms as he shook his head, keeping his eyes locked on the yellow-eyed colt as he shifted his weight onto his heels.

"Keep in mind this isn't a storybook adventure, soldier. There are possibly lives at stake and the actions we take could benefit your country and its medical system for the better."

Gulping nervously at the strong tone coming from the masked doctor, Lance watched as Marble sighed and whacked the creature in the leg twice, nearly making Hollow fall backwards before glaring down at her.

"What? I was simply explaining to him what our goals are." Hollow remarked, pointing to the stallion with a hand. "We can't have him running around thinking this is a game."

"We also don't need to scare him out of his wits, either. Be softer on him until he can get accustomed to you." Marble softly chided Isaac before turning in the direction of Lance, using her mane to hide herself from his eyes. "S-Sorry about that...the doctor is passionate about his goals."

Sighing in relief, Holy Lance gave the mare a smile as he heard a whistle go off in the distance.

"Thanks, ma'am. Though it sounds like our train is arriving."

Giving Marble a wink, Holy Lance levitated both his duffel and the carry-ons in the air as the train pulled into the station. "And don't worry about me, Doctor! My and the Sergeants number two mission is to make sure your mission goes by as smoothly as possible."

Watching the train come to a stop, Hollow felt a surge of giddiness run through his veins as he watched the passengers disembark from the locomotive. They didn't have anything like this back in his country, and when they had first ridden the train Hollow was ashamed to admit that it had taken Marble dragging him off the device to get him to leave.

"What is your first priority then?" Hollow asked the stallion, following Lance and Marble as they entered near the back of train. Ducking into the compartment, Hollow was thankful that the trains had been built for creatures as tall as him, as walking into buildings in Ponyville had NOT been the most fun of past times...which he would have to get accustomed to again.

Being lucky enough (Or helped by a royal hoof or two) they managed to be the only ones in this car, allowing their things to take up the empty where citizens would've sat. Sitting down in a booth styled chair, Hollow watched as the colt finished up placing the carry-ons away before coming over and sitting across from the man.

"Our first and foremost job is to the crown and country, anything after that depends on our station and mission from higher-up." Lance explained, taking a moment to pause as Marble made her way over Hollow and sat on the inside of the booth, taking the chance to look out the window as the train began to pull out of the station. "As long as nothing you do endangers the local populace or is blatent heresy to Princess Celestia then I'm more than willing to aid you in whatever you see fit to task me with."

"I see. Thankfully, I'm in no mood to attempt a coup, so rest assured that your mission won't be anything like that."

turning his attention to his side, Hollow unlatched the book from his side and brought it to his lap, crossing a leg over to give the tome a place to rest as he opened its bindings, ignorant to the shocked look on Lance's face.

"Wow, and here I thought the books in the library were big, where did you get that?" Lance spoke up, fidgeting slightly in his seat as he watched the doctor glance back in his direction.

"Might as well tell you since your tasked with protecting myself and my research." Hollow sighed as he closed the book and showed its cover to the stallion for him to read. "When I first arrived in this country I found myself in a place I'd later know as Hayseed Swamp. During my arrival I got injured in a nearly botched attempt to escape some of that swamps more dangerous wildlife, and was about to pass on when the previous owner of this book found me."

"Hayseed swamp? That's like really far east right?" Lance chimed in, trying to remember the last time he had looked at a global map, let alone specifically for a place on one and failing. Guards didn't need to know that sort of stuff, anyway!

"It's close to the sea on that side, yes." Hollow answered, clearing his throat as he contiuned, though not before noticing Marble was now leaning against him as she listened in as well. "The one who found me managed to patch me up, and I spent almost a month with her in that swamp, absorbing as much knowledge as I could about this world and her skills with medicine. However, I could not stay forever, as I had a job to do, and in thanks for keeping her company and showing interest in her works, the mare gave me this book."

Taking the book in his hooves, Lance glanced at the cover again as his eyes fell upon initials engraved on the front

M.M

Taking the book back from the stallion, Hollow opened it and rested it in his lap once more. "Long story short, from what I've both been told and seen so far is that this is an Omnibook. It's got some sort of connection to it's owners in that it can display their knowledge upon the pages without having to write them down."

Looking from the book to the man before him, Holy Lance pursed his lips for a moment before frowning.

"So...it shows the owner what they already know? Aren't books supposed to do the opposite though?"

"That they are, only the last owner did something special to this one. An old friend of hers enchanted this book to where if it passed directly to a successor it would retain the knowledge of the previous owner, and said owner gave me the task of furthering her research in her stead as she no longer felt the urge to do it herself."

"So, you hold the complete and organized knowledge and research of another pony in your hooves? That's actually so cool!" Lance exclaimed, pushing his cheeks together on the word cool, something that elicited a groan from the doctor.

"Cool? I believe that is an understatement." Hollow remarked, though he dropped it as he leaned back and stretched out his back, letting his free hand rest on Marbles withers as said mare had begun to snore softly, pressed into his side in a similar way a child would to their mother. "On a different note, how long do you think we have until we arrive?"

Rocking back and forth, Lance let out a couple "Hmms" as he mulled it over before coming to a complete stop mid-rock.

"About a few hours, so if your planning on having a late night when we arrive I'd recommend we get some rest beforehand."

"That's fine, feel free to rest. I have some things I wish to look into." Hollow said, already returning his gaze to the pages in front of him, a rather informative topic on the uses of toxins in medicinal remedies appearing almost instantly as his attention tunnel-visioned instantly.

Lance, watching as the book gave its owner his subject for the time being, shrugged as he ponyloafed and laid his head down on the open seat he had sprawled across prior. While this wouldn't have been his first choice for a duty station, it beat standing guard in the sun all day. And who knows, he might get a chance to run into his idol in Ponyville, and that was worth a hundred guard duty stations! Though considering the risks of being stationed to ponyville made Lance wonder if this was the right call after all.

Oh well, how bad could a couple cases of sick ponies be?