What Was Once Lost

Chapters

Epilogue
Chapter One: New Guy In Town
Chapter Two: The Pink and Orange Mares

Epilogue

What Was Once Lost
By the Anonymous Colt
Epilogue
Screaming, torture, mutilation. These were all things the dark grey pegasus grew accustomed to during his fiery imprisonment. Every day, he would wake up to hear the cries of the damned, to the smell of burning flesh. Every day, the colt would have to go through harsh, painful punishments, torment that would never end. In the beginning, he would resist, he would have tried to find someplace within this dark abyss to hide, to find peace. But each day, they would find him, just as they do with any other pony that would try to hide from punishment. Every day, the pegasus would hope that his body would give in to his injuries, so that he could finally rest in peace. But every time the colt would black out, he would awake in his cell, all of his mortal wounds gone, without any signs of physical abuse. After some time in the colt’s dark prison, he gave up any hope of freedom. Even if he was able to escape this never ending pain, where would he be able to go? He’d be another lost soul, never able to find peace after what he’s experienced. He was in a dark void, without any chance of him ever coming back.

But then, in the middle of the grey pegasus’ sessions, he saw a tall, skinny black alicorn walk towards him. He was shocked to see the ancient entity again, and it appeared and though his captives were too. When the black alicorn approached him, he stared coldly at the ponies around the pegasus, and said, “Be gone.” His voice was cold and hallow, and as soon as the divine creature said these words, all of the pegasus’ tormentors scattered. The alicorn approached the beaten up colt.

“So Thanatos, what are you doing here? I’ve already hit rock bottom. How else could I pay for my mistake?”

“I am not here to bring you any farther down than you are at, Dust Trail.” Thanatos’ voice was a booming cannon of noise, so loud that it made your skull buzz, but somehow, his voice was as quiet and as delicate as ringing bells, which made your spine quiver in place. Dust Trail could never find out how his voice could be at two levels of decibels at once. It disquieted him, but for some reason, it also gave him a sense of security in this dreary world. It probably did.

“Well if you’re not here to drag me closer to the depths of this cavern, what are you here for?”
“Believe it or not, my young stallion, but it appears as though you have been given a chance for redemption.”

“What exactly is that supposed to mean?” Dust Trail said, exasperated.

“What I am trying to say, is that you get to have another chance at life.”
“What?” The news stuck the grey pegasus hard. Could he have just heard the alicorn right? He could have another chance at life, have a fresh start, and finally end his suffering? Dust Trail was elated at the fact that he could finally be free from this cesspool, and feel freedom once again. But soon, the huge smile on the colt’s face faded. He looked at Thanatos.

“What’s the catch?”
“No catch. You are completely free to go. You could finally end your tragic afterlife here. There is just one thing you have to do while you are alive.”

“And that is . . . ?”

“There is someone in danger of falling into the same fate you have fallen into, and unless you can show that pony the error of her arrogant ways in three weeks, that pony will fall into the depths of this inferno. Including you.”

“So that’s the catch. So basically, I just have to reform some mare that’s going to die in a few weeks, and unless I do, we’re both coming back here.”

“That is pretty much it.”

Dust Trail was still skeptical. “ . . . How do I know this just isn’t some cruel joke you’re playing on me right now?”

“Would you really risk missing out on your only chance to get out of this hell you’re in on the assumption that I’m pulling a prank on you?”

“Point taken. Let’s get heck out of here.”

“Indeed. Let us begin our return.” Thanatos’ horn began to glow with a white, ethereal power, making the whole chamber hum with energy. Soon, the whole room was washed in a bright light, making Dust Trail cover his eyes with his hoof.

“Hey, Thanatos. I have one last question for you.”

“And what is your question for me, my little pony?”

“Don’t call me that. Anyways I just wanted to know why you decided to pick me out of the millions of damned souls in here. Why me?”
“Because, my little pony,” Thanatos said, making sure to really emphasize the term for little children, “You were the least likely pony to cause damage in the living world.“ The ancient entity sound as if he was hiding somthing, but for the moent, Dust Trail decided not to question his motives. The black alicorn continued concentrating, focusing his arcane magic on a section of the wall. Soon, a little ripple appeared on the wall, as if it were a pool of water disrupted from its relative calm. The ripple eventually grew larger, and wider, until it was big enough for Dust Trail to step through. Inside the ripple was a vortex of swirling lights of different colors of the rainbow, clashing into each other as if they were waves of water, forming new colors that would turn back into their original colors. It was the most beautiful thing that the colt has seen in a long time, or ever.

“Now before you step inside, there are a few rules you must know. First, you are not allowed to tell her where you came from. In other words, you can mot tell her you were dead. Try to tell her, and you will be sent back here.”

“Okay, that’s understandable.”

'Second, you cannot tell her why you wish to be at her side for your time up there."

“Speaking of which, how come this mare can’t fall down like we have?”

“You are not allowed to know.”

“Um, all right, anything else?”

“Yes there is one last thing. You must make sure nothing happens to this specific mare, OR ELSE.”
The last thing Thanatos said hung in the air, emanating a sense of dread
.
“Was that a threat?”

“Consider it a dangerous warning.”

"And aren’t you the spirit of Death? Can’t you protect her from any threats until its time?”

“Enough questions. Do you wish to escape this prison or not?”

“Yes.”

Then step into the vortex, quickly. I do not believe Lucifur would like the notion of one of his prisoners escaping.”
Dust Trail stared at the vortex of light for few seconds longer, then got ready to walk through. Before he stepped in, he looked back at Thanatos.

“Hey Thanatos. Thanks for helping me. I never thought I’d ever see Death give a pony life, let alone experience it.”
The black alicorn nodded, showing no emotions on his face.

“Remember, you have only three weeks.”
That was the only thing Dust Trail last heard before stepping into the portal.

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Though the vortex’s exterior was breathtaking, there was nothing beautiful on the inside. Dust Trail felt as though he was falling down a dark, bottomless abyss, until he looked down, and saw a tiny red spot that was slowly growing smaller, and realized that he wasn’t plummeting, as he had when he first arrived at his prison, but was flying up fast. It was an experience he hadn’t enjoyed in a long time. He looked around him, and saw that other ponies were falling towards the now tiny dot, screaming. Though they were going by too fast for him to see their faces, Dust Trail could see their sins. Some were falling because of their anger, which thus led to violence and murder. Others were falling because of their greed, their never-ending hunger for fortunes bringing them all to their doom. Others, still, fell because of their inability to humble themselves in front of others, the sin of pride. All of them, whether it was a sin of moral, or a sin of complete contempt, were falling, without any hope of escape or revival. Dust Trail was the only exception. As the pegasus looked upwards, he saw a bright white light that was growing ever bigger, his last chance of redemption, his last chance at Paradise. The light enveloped the pegasus, filling him with a sense of joy. He let out a breath of air, his first one in ages, and lost all track of his senses, and blacked out.

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At the first break of dawn, Dust Trail awoke from his deep slumber, his eyes sore from the sudden light. The dark grey pegasus took in his surroundings, and gasped. He was in the middle of a clearing in a forest, flowers of all hues of colors blooming. Hummingbirds and butterflies flutterd through the air, and a fresh water lake was sparkling in the moring sun. Everything around Dust Trail was beautiful, a much better improvement compared to where he was before. The stallion stood up slowly, testing his legs and joints like a new born foal, and realized his throat felt dry and hoarse. He walked slowly to the lake, still a bit shaky on his appendages, and lapped up the cool, refreshing water. It was heavenly, the way the water trickled down his chin, the way it cured his thirst. It might have been a minor detail to another pony, but to Dust Trail, drinking was an experience he wanted to hold on to for the rest of his life. He kept on drinking the water until his stomach felt as though it were about to burst, then sat on his haunches on the shore. He stared at his rippling reflection taking in on all of his own details. His mane and tail was jet black, his coat slightly dirty, but otherwise groomed and kept well. He had a thick frame, but wasn’t exactly big. Dust Trail stood up, and tried to get a look at his cutie mark. It was a blood red puzzle piece. “So, I really am back.”

Dust Trail stared at his cutie mark for a few seconds longer, remembering as to how he got it, when he suddenly heard a blood-curdling scream. The pegasus stood there, listening with a deadly calm on his face. For a few moments, it seemed as though whoever screamed was gone, killed off by whoever, or whatever, ambushed it, when it came again. The scream sound as if it was a few meters away from Dust Trail. He spread his wings, which felt sore from staying st the side of his body for so long, then flapped them once, twice, and then he was off, flying high into the sky, making Dust Trail feeling elated, then soared over the blurry tree tops. To most pegasi, they probably wouldn’t have made out anything out of the zooming landscape, much less a pony in trouble. But Dust Trail practically had eagle eyes, able to pick out tiny details that could hint the location of any object, which he once used to help rescue a child from a pedophiliac stallion in his neighborhood from his past life. Dust Trail looked left and right for any signs of a stuggle, when he suddenly saw a flash of light. He slowed down, and saw another flash, followed by a scream. Dust Trail prepared himself for a possible fight, breathing in slowly, in and out, in and out, then plummeted himself towards the attacker.

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“The Great and Powerful Trixie will show those foals when they’ve seen the new me.” Trixie was travelling along a dirt road trough the infamous Forest, thinking of how her return will play out. Ever since her embarrassing defeat at quaint little Ponyville, her audiences have been dwindling, until one day at a small park, instead of her usual audiences of grown ponies that would travel miles just to see her amazing feats, only a few little colts and fillies appeared at her show. At that moment, she decided to draw the line, and from then on, she made the decision to temporarily abandon show business, and travel across Equestria to study new and exotic spells that would definitely put that Twilight in her place. “Twilight, you foal. Just wait when I get there. You’ll be so sorry you ever crossed paths with the Great and Powerful Trix-“ The unicorn was cut off, both her sentence and her path, by a rustle that came from a nearby bush. She readied herself for a fight, a fight that she would obviously win, of course. Yes, she could see it all now, an epic struggle between her, the Great and Powerful Trixie, against a creature that all ponies feared, its mouth foaming, eyes filled with hatred, howling for her blood. Her battle with the beast would go down in history. She concentrated, filling her horn with lethal magic, ready for the worst, when a little timber wolf came walking out of the bush and stopped right in front of her. It couldn’t have been a year old, and yet it looked up to her, and started to lick its lips, or what passed off as its lips, at the sight of such a big meal that stood in front of it. Trixie started to laugh, surprised at this little cub’s guts.

“Oh my Celestia, how will I ever get past this beast of such great size!” Trixie started say with dramatic flair, then started to laugh again, this time with more hysteria. The little wolf was still staring at her hungrily, a hint of annoyance and determination blazing in its beady yellow eyes.

“Oh please. Just step aside you little mutt, and maybe, if you conform fast enough, the Great and Powerful Trixie just might keep you as a house pet. Might.”

The cub stared at the unicorn for a few more seconds, then scurried away back under the bush. Trixie let out a satisfied snort. “Well that was a waste of the Great and Powerful Trixie’s most valuable of time. Now, if no more distractions would hap-“ she was cut off again, this time by a blood-curdling howl that seemed to resonate from everywhere around her. Panic began to sink in, and soon Trixie started to back away slowly, going back the way she came, when a little timber wolf, the same one from before, blocked her path, followed by two full grown wolves twice her size. The unicorn tried to run the other way, but was cut off by three more wolves, snarling at the chance of fresh meat. The wolves were closing in on her, and she couldn’t run back the way she came or towards civilization. Trixie tried to summon a spell, but her mind was clouded with dark thoughts of what could happen to her, ruining her concentration. The wolves had her surrounded, and Trixie did the only thing she could think of. She ran through the woods. The wolves gave chase, and a trip meant for retribution soon turned into a day filled with terror. Trixie ran with all her might, constantly looking back, the timber wolves constantly hot on her tail, snapping their jaws, howling at her. Tree limbs seemed to appear right in front of her, scratching her face and sides. Once while she was looking back, her hooves got caught on a tree root, and caused her to trip and fall on her face.

One of the wolves saw its opportunity, and lunged at the unicorn, its claws ready to rip her throat out. Trixie closed her eyes and screamed, preparing herself for death, but then, at the last second, she felt a surge of terror fill her horn, and a light flashed so brightly she could even see it through her eyelids. She opened her eyes, and saw that the wolf lay stunned on the floor. It took only a second for the unicorn to realize what happened, then started to run. She looked back, and saw the wolves were chasing her again, hatred literally burning in their empty eye sockets, a small fire growing within them. Trixie looked back at the road, and saw that a fallen tree trunk was right in front of her. She jumped at the last second, but something yanked her back by the tail in mid-air, and she fell for the second time, knocking the wind out of her. She turned her head, and realized that a wolf had her tail in its mouth, pulling her back towards the approaching pack. She screamed, and struggled to free herself from the beast’s grip, but the monster held its grasp. Just as the wolves were on top of her, Trixie stood up on her forelegs and bucked the timber wolf right in its malformed face, making it loose its grip on her tail. For the second time, she just escaped Death’s hand, and ran for her life for the second time. She kept on running, and when she looked back, she realized the wolves were getting tired, and were starting to slow down. Trixie thought she was finally safe, and that if she could just run for a little longer, she could finally lose those mutts. But just as those happy thoughts were starting to seep into her head, she turned around a corner and stopped dead in her tracks, her mouth hanging down in terror. She was in a dead end, a sheer cliff sloping down at an impossibly deep angle. She looked down, hoping it wasn’t a far drop, and saw that she couldn’t even see the bottom. She suddenly heard a low growl, and the hairs on her neck stood up. She was trapped. Trixie looked back, and saw the timber wolves were bent low towards the ground, snarling. Trixie screamed one last time, and another surge of magic filled her horn. It shot out a blast of kinetic energy, but the wolves were prepared, and ducked. The blast hit a tree, and turned into ashes. After the wolves saw what could’ve happened to them, they turned their eyes back on the unicorn, with deadly intent burning within them. Tears were starting to stream down the side of her face.

Oh Celestia, I never thought it would end like this. This was the only thought swimming through the mare's head. Trixie closed her eyes, and finally gave in. She was going to die. She heard a howl, and felt the ground rumble as one of the wolves charged. She tensed every muscle in her body, preparing for the slaughter ahead, when she heard a sharp crack and a loud thud that shook the ground Trixie stood on. She slowly opened her eyes, and saw a somewhat handsome grey pegasus. She looked down, and gasped. Beneath the hooves of the stallion was the splintered head of the unconscious pack leader.

“If any of you want to live to see another day, you will leave this mare alone.”

Chapter One: New Guy In Town

Chapter One: New Guy in Town
As soon as Dust Trail saw the light blue unicorn, he knew she was in pretty bad shape. She had scratches across her entire body, her mane and tail was dirty and had a few stray twigs in them, and she was starting to cry.
Oh boy, I hate it when I see a mare cry
He swooped down at a break-neck speed, and landed on top of a timber wolf’s head so hard that it caused the ground to shake for a few seconds, practically breaking its neck. He caught a glimpse of the mare’s face, and grinned for a second, enjoying her shocked expression. He turned his attention back to the wolves, who were still standing there, surprised at the practical bomb that just assaulted their comrade. He regarded them with a cold stare, practically penetrating their primitive souls. They started to back away slowly, whimpering. “If any of you want to live to see another day, you will leave this mare alone.”

Dust Trail spoke with authority, meaning every word he just said. The creatures were starting to turn back, ready to retreat, when suddenly, a voice from behind the pegasus shouted-“Hey!” Dust Trail turned around, and saw that the whimpering mess that he saw just seconds ago stood tall with her chin up, bearing the grace of royalty, or a death wish. Whichever one came first. “Just what do you think you’re doing?”

“Umm, saving your life . . ?”

“I do not need saving! The Great and Powerful Trixie has this completely under control!”

“Really? Then where is this ‘Great and Powerful Trixie’? We could really use her help.” The pegasus started to look left to right, searching for any other pony around them. Complete disbelief showed on her face, and soon the unicorn was starting to grow red on her face.

“It’s me, you blubbering idiot! I am the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

Dust Trail looked back at her. He hopped off the injured timber wolf, and walked towards her. “You? You’re the Great and Powerful Trixie? You don’t look so ‘Great’ and ‘Powerful’ to me. I mean, have you seen yourself lately?”

The blue unicorn realized how she must have looked like to him and started to groom herself, embarrassed. “Never the less, I am still capable of handling this myself, so if you could please be so kind as to leave. I would be so grateful if you did." Trixie said with some difficulty, as she was trying to pull some of the twigs out of her mane.

Looks like I found my mare, Dust Trail thought to himself. The pegasus was about to say something, but then thought better of it. He began to have an idea. He started to smile. “All right, you’re right, I’ll leave.”

“Okay, thank- wait, what did you just say?!” Fear began to bubble into her voice.

“I said I’ll leave. I mean, you’ve obviously have everything under control here.”Trixie started to look back at the timber wolves, who were silently inching towards them during their conversation. They looked hungry.

“So anyways, I guess I’ll see you later. Good luck with your little wolf problem!” The colt spread his wings, getting ready for flight, when the unicorn called out-

“Wait!”
Dust Trail turned back to the mare. “Yes?” he asked innocently.

Her wall of arrogance was starting to crumble, and he could see it. “ Listen, um, maybe the Great and Powerful Trixie . . . needs your help.” She said with obvious distaste.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.” The colt placed a hoof next to his ear.

“I said I need . . . your . . . help. . .”

“I’m sorry, one last time?”

Trixie looked back towards the wolves. They were right on top of them! “I SAID I NEED YOUR HELP!”

“Okay, I’ll help.” The pegasus ran straight towards the hungry maws of the predators, to the mare’s surprise, and started a struggle that kicked up dust everywhere. The only thing you could see from the fight was the occasional hoof , wing, paw, teeth, and even Dust Trail’s head. After a few minutes, Dust Trail jumped out of the fray, a few scratches across his body, but otherwise was fine. Behind him, the fight was still going, the wolves completely unaware of the fact that their meal just left. “This is when the fun starts happening. All right, so this is what we’re going to do . . .” The pegasus whispered something into the blue unicorn, a small grin growing on her face. “So do you think you know what to do?”

“Definitely.”

“Good. Let’s do this!” The grey colt began to fly around the wolves in a series of small circles, until a dust devil began to form around the predators. Dust Trail kept on flying around the creatures until he formed a small tornado around them. The wolves were being blown around inside the cycle, completely out of control. The colt stopped flying in circles, his job done, and sored over to Trixie.

“Care to do the honor?” He said while bowing his head and bringing a hoof out in front of him, towards the general direction of the cyclone.

“With pleasure.” Trixie began to concentrate, filling her horn with energy, and then focused her magic on the tornado. She willed it to start flying away, to be completely weightless. Then, before the ponies’ eyes, it began to float, and before long, the tornado was nothing but a small black dot in the horizon. The mare and the colt let out exhausted sighs. They looked at each other, then started to laugh. "Hey, I never told you my name. I’m Dust Trail.”

“And I am the Great and Power-“

“Yeah yeah, Great and Powerful Trixie, I know.”

The mare cleared her throat, annoyed by the fact that she was interrupted. “Yes, well, thank you for, uh, helping me out. I, um . . . needed it.”

“No problem. I’ll always help out a damsel in distress.”Trixie punched Dust Trail in the leg as soon as he made that statement, her face flustered. “Ow, that really hurt!” Dust Trail said while rubbing his sore leg. “You know for a little mare, you punch really hard.”

Trixie punched him again, much harder than before.“Don’t you ever call me a ‘little mare’. I am still the Great and Powerful. I just needed a little assistance, is all.”

“Right. So, let me take you to a hospital. Those scratches could get infected.”

“What are you talking about? I am fine!” As Trixie tried to walk, her knee buckled in, and she yelped from pain.

“Yeah, right. You’re fine.” The colt said with engrossing sarcasm. Dust Trail sat down on his haunches and spread his wings. “Just lie on my back and I can fly you to a hospital.”

“I told you, the Great and Powerful Trixie does not need your help!” She said as she was struggling to get back on her feet. She looked as though she was in real pain, and each time she would try to walk, she would end up falling on her face, crying out.

After what seemed to be an eternity, the colt made up his mind. Before the mare was aware of what was happening, Dust Trail picked Trixie up with his wing and placed her on his back. “Hey! Wh-what do you think you’re doing?!”

“I’m taking you to the hospital, whether you like it or not.” Dust Trail spread his wings and got ready to fly.

“Wait! I’m afraid of heeiiights!” Before she could finish, Dust Trail dove head first down the side of the cliff, plummeting straight down to the ground, making her heart leap into her throat. Trixie was holding on tight to Dust Trail’s neck, never letting go. “What are you doing?! Are you trying to kill us?!”

Dust Trail only started to laugh insanely, enjoying Trixie’s reaction. Trixie started to scream, thinking she was going to die by the hands of a lunatic, but just before both ponies hit the cold, hard dirt, Dust Trail shot out his wings at the last second, sending them sky ward at terminal velocity, which only made Trixie scream louder. But to the pegasus, he felt absolutely alive. Back in his imprisonment, his wings were clipped long ago, and so flying was an old friend he had not seen for a long time. He reveled the feeling of the wind brushing past his mane, the smell of the cool, brisk air. He looked behind him, and saw that the unicorn was looking down at the ground, her pupils dilated.

“So I’m going to guess that you’re not a big fan of flying.” The unicorn shook her head vigorously. “Well don’t worry, I’ll fly pretty gently, so don’t you worry your little head. I’ll keep you safe.”

She looked up and stared into his bright yellow eyes, his reassuring words. He actually seemed sympathetic for her, something almost nopony has ever shown her. “O-okay . . .” She was still scared of falling off Dust Trail’s back, but was more reassured now.

“Good, so do you think you know the closest town around here so we can get those wounds treated?” The unicorn filled her horn with energy, and kept her eyes closed for a few seconds. When she opened them again, they were glowing, her pupils grown twice their usual size. She started to scan the horizons, and then pointed towards a distant flat valley.

“Over there, a few kilometers away.” Dust Trail was surprised at the mare’s certainty in her voice. He turned his head towards the distant valley, but couldn’t see anything.
“How are you so sure a town is over there?”
Trixie started to point at her eyes. “I just used a spell that allows me to have the ability to see things ten times greater than even a dragon. It allows me to see things that most ponies couldn’t even see the naked eye.” She closed her eyes, and her eyes were back to normal. “But, unfortunately, it is a very complicated spell, and takes a lot out of even me.”

Dust Trail nodded his head. “That’s pretty impressive. Explains why I couldn’t see it.” Trixie gave him a curious glance, but decided to ask what he meant later. She was too tired to ask any questions. The pegasus began to fly towards the distant village. At the same time, a cyclone far away started to unravel, and when the winds stopped blowing, a pack of timber wolves comically began to fall down towards the woods below.

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The sun began to set by the time the colt and the mare reached the village, and by then, almost everypony began to settle into their homes for the night. But a few ponies staying out late saw the pair and began to whisper to each other. Dust Trail had no idea why everyone was looking at them so strangely, but Trixie seemed to be completely oblivious to their staring. He would’ve assumed that they were looking at them because they looked so beaten up, but he wasn’t so sure.
Everypony who saw them would constantly gawk or whisper something, until Dust Trail just couldn’t take it anymore. “Hey, don’t you notice these ponies staring at us?”

“Of course I do, but it’s better if you don’t pay any attention to them.” Trixie seemed to be hiding something, and the colt could tell instantly that she was holding something back.

“Do you have a history with this town or something, because they seem as though they don’t want you around these parts.”It was true, they were all starting to either give them the sink-eye or the cold shoulder.

“It’s . . . a long story, and I’d rather not talk about it.” They walked in silence after that.

Eventually, they were able to reach the hospital. On its roof were bold letters that said Ponyville Sanctuary. When they went inside, a nurse at the reception desk was reading a magazine, and it must have been a very interesting one, because she didn’t notice the pair until Dust Trail was right in front of her. The nurse found a sudden interest at the colt, who she thought was really attractive. “Oh, hello!” Her smile was very reassuring, radiating with a sense of sympathy. “You look as though you could use a doctor. Here, follow me and I’ll take you to-“

“Thank you, but I’m not the one that needs medical attention. She needs it.” The colt pointed at Trixie, the nurse just now taking notice of her, and narrowed her eyes, her smile completely vaporized.

“? You want us to help her?” Her voice was harsh, losing any sincerity it had just moments before.

Dust Trail didn’t like the way the nurse was acting towards the unicorn. He could sense the nurse’s hostile attitude towards the mare, who was starting to look down at the floor now, ashamed. What did she do that was so bad? “Yes, I mean her. Is there going to be a problem, Miss . . ?”

“Redheart, and yes there is going to be a problem. I’m sorry to say, sir, but she just can’t stay here.”

“Why not?” He couldn’t believe this was happening. This was a hospital for Celestia’s sake! They were supposed to take in whoever was injured, no matter how vile that pony was. And yet here he was, being told that someone who needs a doctor can’t stay here, because of something she did, whatever it was.

“Because, sir, she nearly destroyed this town by bringing a rampaging Ursa Major here!” Oh, so that’s what she did. The colt guessed the shock on his face was evident, because the nurse had a smug grin on her face.”So, if you could be as so kind as to leave? You’re disturbing the patients.”

He looked at the nurse, then at Trixie, who was staring at him, guilt written entirely across her face. Dust Trail began to think about what he should do. He studied Trixie, and all of her injuries from the timber wolf attack. He sighed, then turned back at the nurse. “Look Nurse Redheart, I don’t care about the other patients right now, or what she did to the town. I just need to get a doctor to check her wounds.”

“Listen sir, I would take her in if I could.” Dust Trail could tell she didn’t mean a single word. He was good at telling when someone was lying. “But if someone found out she was staying in this hospital, a mob would most likely form outside, and that’s something a hospital is not prepared to withstand.”

"Than let me handle it. If anypony has a problem with her, I’ll take care of them personally.” He began to look at Nurse Redheart accusingly.

Nurse Redheart was about to say no for the second time, until a voice behind her said, “Let them in, nurse. This hospital is supposed to take in all patients, despite their mistakes.” All three followed the source of the voice, and saw a tall, burly Earth pony with a blue mane and tail, and a light brown coat.

“Doctor Gauze! What are you doing out here, I thought you were working on a patient.” The nurse seemed nervous, as if she were a criminal that’s just been caught.

“I just finished stitching his wound, and decided to get some fresh air until I heard a commotion out here. What are you doing, nurse? This is a hospital. We are supposed to take in all forms of patients.” His voice was firm and demanding, like a teacher that did not tolerate any nonsense.

“B-But Doctor, this colt wants us to take care of that mare!” She pointed an accusing hoof at Trixie.

“I know, but she still needs help, and so as CEO, I demand that you show her a room, unless you were thinking of finding a new job?”

Nurse Redheart’s face grew pale. “No sir! I mean, uh, I’ll show this mare to her room.” Trixie began to follow the nurse down the corridor. She looked back at Dust Trail, and mouthed the words ‘thank you’, then continued down the hallway.

Dust Trail turned back to the colt. “Thanks for the help. We probably wouldn’t have gotten her wounds checked if it weren’t for you.”

“No problem, we all need to help out each other once in a while. You know, we could get you a room too. Those scratches look like they could get infected.”

“Thank you, but no, I’ll be fine. I’ve had worst experiences then a few paper cuts.”

“If you say so, but if you’re not going to get treated, then you can’t stay here overnight. This isn’t a hotel.”

“I know, I only wanted to make sure that mare would be fine here. But before I go, would you mind if I said goodbye to my friend?”

“I understand completely, just don’t spend too much time with your marefriend, okay?” The doctor started to walk away coyly.

It took a few seconds for Dust Trail to comprehend what he just said, then shouted, “Wait! She’s not my marefriend! It’s not what think!” But it was too late, the doctor was already gone. His face flushed, the pegasus began to walk down the hall.

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It took a few moments for Dust Trail to find Trixie’s room, but once he found it, he went inside and saw she was already patched up, her wounds bandaged or covered by gauze. Her front right hoof was raised by a sling around Trixie’s neck, apparently sprained. She was staring out the window, lost in her own thoughts. The colt came up to her side. “So”, she started to say, “you didn’t want them to treat you?”

“Nah, these cuts aren’t that bad, I can live.” Trixie was still transfixed by the horizon out the window. After a few more moments of awkward silence, Dust Trail said, “Well, I can tell you want to be alone, so I’ll just go now.”

He started to walk out the door, until the mare behind him said, “Why did you do it?”

He turned back around. “What do you mean?”
Trixie looked back at him. “Why did you save me?” There was more silence between the two.

Oh boy, I guess this question was bound to rise to the surface. “Well, I just couldn’t stay there and see you die. I mean, who would have done that?”

“I would have. It was five timber wolves against a single pony. I would’ve just run the moment I saw a single timber wolf. But you just dived in to save me as if you weren’t afraid of facing death. Plus, we’re complete stranger, we don’t know anything about each other. So why did you do it?”

Dust Trail just stood there in silence. Admittedly, he had no idea she was the mare he was supposed to save from the inferno until they started to converse. He didn’t even think about what he was doing, it just all felt natural to him, as if he was being guided by a heavenly being, which was probably true. After a few seconds of silence, he finally said, “Well, um, I guess I just like to play the hero sometimes. What matters is is that you’re safe, and now nothing can hurt you.”

“Except my pride . . .” mumbled the unicorn.

“Well, um, see you in the morning Trixie. Good night.” Dust Trail closed the door, and wnet outside into the cool night. The air was crisp, as if the ocean was right next to the village. The pegasus was aching all over his body, tired from the events of today. He flew to a nearby cloud and made a makeshift bed out of it. He nestled into it, and began to drift into a dreamless sleep.

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It was morning. The first beams of light shining upon the small village, giving everyone a new start. Except one light blue unicorn that had slept restless on her mattress all night. She had too many thoughts swimming through her head, constantly making her ask questions about the stallion that saved her life. No one had ever shown her such kindness, from the timber wolf attack all the way to him demanding that she gets some treatments for her wounds. The doctors found out that when she fell, she had twisted her hoof, and she wouldn’t be able to walk on it for a week. When the stallion had entered her room, he had shown real concern on his face when he saw her injury, though whether he knew or not was a mystery. Right now, the mare was wondering what the stallion was doing right now.

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Dust Trail was turning in his cloud, grumbling. He was never much of a morning pony, and being brought back to life didn’t change that. He opened his eyes, which stung from the bright sun. After his eyes got adjusted, he began to stretch his sore muscles. He looked down at the town, and thought that it was very peaceful. Everypony was talking to each other, having conversations, and saw little markets selling goods.
He began to ponder how his life would’ve been if he had been grown up here, instead of dirty, unstable Purgatory. It was a little town just outside of Equestria’s borders, its crime rates always at a constant high. His thoughts were interrupted when a pink blur of joy popped right in front of his face and screamed, “HEY THERE~!” in a sing-songy voice.

Dust Trail, caught completely off guard, shouted, “What the fuuuuuu~!” while falling down his cloud and landed on the ground, hard.

The pink pony that was jumping on her trampoline that seemed to have come from nowhere hopped off, laughing at the pegasus’ fall. “Geez, lady, you could have given me a heart attack!”

The pink pony stopped laughing and began to introduce herself, or at least tried to, but her words were blurred close together, her sentences going by at the speed of sound, maybe even faster. “OhI’msorryabouthatIdidn’tmeantomakeyoufallit’sjustthatyou’reanewponyandIjusthadtomeetyoubecauseIknoweveryoneinPonyvilleandeverytimeaponymovesinIjusthavetomeetthemandthrowthemapartytohelpwlecomethemohyeahmyname’sPinkiePiewhat’syourname, huh?” She didn’t even stop to catch her breath. Her smile went from ear to ear, her entire being practically exploding from the anticipation of the newcomer’s name.

“Woah, me no speak your gibberish. Speak proper engrish!” Dust Trail spoke those words very slowly and with his hooves, as if she were a retard, or a mental psychopath, or both.

Ignoring the pegasus’ insult to her sanity, the mare said, “My name is Pinkie Pie, and since you’re new to the town of Ponyville, I wanted to welcome you to the rest of the citizens by throwing you a party! But first I need your name, because how can I throw you a party if no one even knows your name, I mean how ridiculous would that be, everyone stumbling, trying to guess your name right, spending most of party trying to get it right, it would be boooring! So what’s your name, huh?”

“Um, yeah, I don’t give out my name’s to complete strangers that stalk me around just to throw a party, so uh, no party for me. Thank you though.” Dust Trail started to walk away when Pinkie Pie came up right in front of him again out of nowhere. Being caught off guard again he jumped back ten feet. “Celestia’s Beard, stop doing that!”

“But I just can’t leave knowing that you can’t have a party! Every pony here has had a party done by me, and they’ve all loved it! I mean, you’re acting as though you don’t like parties, but that’s ridiculous because everyone loves parties I mean who doesn't? The only way you couldn't like parties is as if you never had one!”

“Well I’ve never had a party before, and I never will.”

Pinkie Pie stopped dead in her tracks. “Wait, I’m sorry, I didn’t quite get that.”

“I’ve never had a party and I never will.”

“I’m sorry, I just don’t understand . . ?”

I’ve never had a party and I never will!” Dust Trail was seriously getting annoyed by this mare.

Suddenly, Pinkie took out a dictionary and reading glasses from nowhere, and started to skim through the book. “Those words . . . can they be in the same sentence like that?!”

That’s when Dust Trail lost it. “I’ve never had a party! I’ve never had a party! I’ve never had a party! What part of that do you not understand?!”

“Never had a party?!” Pinkie threw away the dictionary and glasses from utter disbelief. “Well that’s terrible! Come on, follow me!” Suddenly she grabbed hold of Dust Trail by the tail with her mouth and started to drag him with her.

“Wait, where are you taking me?!”

“Ah’m taeking yoo thoo the paerthy wheder yoo like it oor noth!” The pink mare’s words were muffled by the colt’s tail.

“What? I can’t understand you.”

Pinkie spat his tail out. “I said-“ Dust Trail flew off in an instance, free from Pinkie’s grasp. He thought he was free, but looked behind him and saw she was right behind him. He started to fly higher, but just before he could fly three feet off the ground, the mare tackled him, bringing them both down to the ground.

“No! I don’t want a party! Let me go! Nooo!”

Chapter Two: The Pink and Orange Mares

Chapter Two: The Pink and Orange Mares
A purple unicorn with a pink streak across her mane and tail was trotting through Ponyville, a smile across her face as she greeted each pony that would say hello to her, enjoying the slight breeze that blew through town. It was a beautiful sunny day, foals playing with each other, mares and colts having brief conversations with each other. Twilight would’ve relaxed in the very spot she was standing on, taking in all of her surroundings, until a grey blur was speeding right towards her. Before she could react, the pegasus collided head-first into the unicorn, causing them to tumble across the dirt floor for a few seconds until finally settling into a tangled mess. “Ow, what the hay was that for!?”

The colt seemed jittery, his voice filled with nervous tension. “I’m sorry, but this crazy mare has been chasing me all over town, and I’m just trying to get-“

Suddenly he was caught off by a shrill voice filled with rage. “COME BACK HERE! YOU ARE GOING TO GET A PARTY!!!”

The pegasus looked back and saw the pink Earth pony running at full speed, closing the distance between them with deranged intentions. “Oh crap!” The colt’s eyes were practically bulging out of his eye sockets, and flew off with all his might, leaving behind a few fluttering feathers. Pinkie Pie ran even faster, leaving the purple unicorn in the dust.

Twilight just stood there, bewildered. “What just happened?”

Dust Trail continued to fly, soaring past a red farm with dozens of apple trees as far as a pony could see. He saw an orange mare with a Stetson bucking apples, her blonde mane tied behind her head in a pony tail. He flew up to her and collapsed on the floor, gasping for breath. “I need . . . your help . . . a crazy mare . . . is trying-“

“There you are!” Pinkie was standing right behind him, staring daggers at him. She wasn’t even tired, as if she was walking this entire time instead of galloping across half the continent.

Dust Trail couldn’t believe it. How was she so fast! The colt thought of flying again, but decided against it. He was exhausted, his wings were sore, and his sides chaffed from his wings beating against them for so long. “Oh I give up. Do what you want with me, I don’t care anymore.”

With a satisfied grin on her face, Pinkie grabbed his tail and started to drag him away, until the shocked farmer finally said something. “Naw hold on just a’ sec, Pinkie.” Her voice had a southern drawl to it. That’s weird; Dust Trail thought to himself, we’re probably in the middle of Equestria. Why does she sound like such a redneck? “What the hay is happ’nin’ here?”

Pinkie spit out the colt’s tail. “This colt has never had a party before, so I wanted to make him a super duper party filled with cake, and candy, and ponies, but he didn’t want to have a party, because he doesn’t like them, so I had to chase around all over Ponyville to catch him to give him a party, and so that he could see how fun they really are, and boy is he fast, he might be as fast as Rainbow Dash, but I was still able to catch him because he got tired, and then you asked me what I was doing, so I told you that this colt never had a party and-“

“Pinkie, ya’ll gone and tellin’ the whole story again.”

“Oh yeah”, then the pink mare started to giggle at her little goof.

“Listen Pinkie, ah’m not too sure forcin’ somepony ta havin’ a’ party is such a’ good idea. Ya’ll should let ‘im decide whether he wants a’ party or not.”
“So does that mean I can go?” The mares looked down at him. He was apparently bored at their conversation, his face lying on his hoof.

“But if you don’t get a party, nopony will know you’re here, and you won’t be able to get any friends here.” Her voice seemed sad, as if she was going to start crying if he didn’t comply.

Dust Trail turned his attention towards the orange mare, who just smiled sheepishly. “Ah would jus’ say ‘yes’ if ah were you. It’s a’ lot easier if ya’ do.”

The pegasus looked back at Pinkie, then at the farmer, then facehoofed, sighing. “Fine, I’ll go to the party.”

“YAAAAY!” The pink mare jumped ten feet into the air, ecstatic with the colt’s answer, ran off, somehow in mid-air, and then ran back. “Um, I’m sorry, but I never got your name.”

The pegasus gave her a glare, but told her his name in a slow fashion, trying not to be mean. “Dust Trail.”

“Welcome to Ponyville, Dust Trail!” She took out some streamers from nowhere and threw them at the colt, and then ran back to town, preparing for the big party.

The farmer then smiled at Dust Trail. “Anywho, mah name’s Applejack, mister Dust Trail.” She stuck out her leg, shaking his hoof.

“Nice friend you got there, Applejack. She’s a really fun and sane person to have around.” He put a real emphasis on the word ‘sane’.

“Oh don’t ya’ mind ‘er none, Pinkie is jus’ bein’ Pinkie.” The farmer said this as if she’s said this to many ponies. After the colt’s experience, that was probably true.

“So she’s always this bat-shit insane.”

“Hey, don’t ya’ go an’ use foul language on mah friend. She means well, is jus’ she don’t know much about personal space is all.”

“Yeah, among other problems,” mumbled the pegasus. “Anyways, thanks for the help.” He started to walk back to town.
“Not a’ problem. If yer ever need somethane, just come ta’ me, and ah’ll be there.”

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By the time Dust Trail walked to the hospital, –he was walking because his wings were just too tired to be used anymore- it was around noon. He went inside Trixie’s room and saw that she wasn’t there. The colt started to look around the hospital, and after not being able to find her anywhere, he asked Nurse Redheart if she knew where she was. ”She checked out about an hour ago, said that this hospital didn’t deserve her presence.”

“What!?” Dust Trail couldn’t believe Trixie just checked out when he wasn’t around, and while her wounds were still healing. “Do you have any idea where she could be?”

“Honestly, I really don’t care. It’s about time she left; she was stinking up the whole hospital.” Suddenly, she felt herself go cold, as if she was drowning in a freezing ocean, with no hope of ever escaping. It was a horrible experience, and she desperately wanted it to stop. The nurse turned her attention back at the pegasus, who was giving her a stare void of any emotion other than pure wrath and hatred, a stare that froze her inner most being. His yellow eyes were drilling into her soul, causing it to crack at its very foundation.

“You’re going to tell me where you might think she is, or else I swear in Celestia’s name that you will experience suffering you didn’t even know existed. Now, where is she!?”

“I-I really don’t know where she might be, I’m telling the honest truth, I don’t know! M-maybe she’s at the park!”

“Why would she be at the park? What would she want from there?”

“I don’t know. I just don’t know!” She could feel herself at the breaking point. The longer the colt stared at him, the more the nurse felt like she was in danger of complete agony.

The pegasus stared at the mare for a few seconds longer, then released his mental grip on the nurse. The nurse let out a gasp, never wanting to ever feel that awful drowning sensation again. The colt began to walk to the front door, and before he left, he told the nurse, “If I find out in any way you made her leave, I’ll come back to you, you’ll be so sorry.” And then he left.

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Dust Trail searched across the entire length of the park, never able to find any trace of the blue unicorn. He scanned every tree, every bush, every playground, but couldn’t find her anywhere. Finally, he gave up on the search, and sat on a bench. “Dammit Trixie, where the hay are you?” He let out a sigh. The colt has looked everywhere. He thought back at the hospital, and wondered if that nurse lied to him. He dismissed the idea, because one, he had used the Stare on her, and nothing could ever resist its grasp, and two, whenever a pony uses the Stare on something, they are able to see within the being’s very morality and conscious. He could tell the nurse wasn’t lying, he didn’t see any form of red manifestation within her. Dust Trail was at a dead end, having no other clues to Trixie’s whereabouts. He sighed again, then got off the bench. He had no idea what he should do next. Suddenly, he remembered something.

‘Not a’ problem. If yer ever need somethane, just come ta’ me, and ah’ll be there.’ The colt suddenly knew how to find Trixie. He spread his wings, still sore from the events of the day, but ignoring the pain, he flew to the sky, and soared back to the apple farm.

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“So, you need ma’h help to find dis’ here friend of yours.” Dust Trail explained everything to the farmer pony giving out all the details he could give, from the timber wolf attack all the way to the mare leaving the hospital. Of course, he left out part where his friend was Trixie, the one that brought the Ursa Major to the village. No need for that part to get out.
“Yes, and it’s really important that we find her soon, or else she might get hurt by something.”

“Somethin’ like what?”

“I don’t know, a runaway baby carriage? I don’t care what it is, we just have to find her now!”

“Al’right, hold ya’ horses, ah can tell this certain mare is very important to ya,” she started to snicker, making Dust Trail’s face go red. Maybe this was a bad idea, he thought to himself. “Ah’ll jus’ gather some a’ mah friends and help ya look fer ‘er. Naw, how does dis’ mare look like exactly?”

“Uh, well, she has a white mane and tail, a blue coat, and a magic wand for a cutie mark”

“White mane and tail, blue coat, magic wand . . . say, why does dat sound so familiar . . ?”

Uh oh, Dust Trail thought to himself. “Um, Dust Trail, what exactly is dis mare’s name . . ?” Her face was serious, scanning the colt’s face.

He started to cringe, a severe grimace on his face. “Um . . . Trixie?”

Applejack’s reaction was immediate. “Trixie!? Ya mean dat no good varmint dat nearly destroyed da whole town with her boasting?”

“Okay yes, it’s that Trixie. But right now, I don’t care if she angered a Ursa major and almost killed everypony, I only want to find her and make sure she’s okay. She’s a friend, and I’m not going to abandon her just because of a mistake she did! Now, are you going to help me or not, because I’ll still look for her even without it, I’ll search all night if I have to! So, are you with me?”

Applejack sighed. “Well, ah know ah’m gonna regret dis, but, ah never go back on mah word. Ah’ll help ya, but dat probably means dat we’re going ta’ have ta’ cancel Pinkie’s party fer ya, and dat’s not gonna go well with her.” Dust Trail could already imagine the horrible things that mare was going to happen to him if he told her the bad news of cancelling her party over a mare she probably doesn’t even like,

“Uh, yeah, about that, do you think you could tell Pinkie what happened? I’d rather not get eviscerated by her.” Applejack let out a hearty laugh from Dust Trail’s response.

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Dust Trail had to walk instead of fly over to Pinkie’s home, one because Applejack couldn’t keep up with him, and without the farmer pony, his plea for help could fall into deaf ears, and two because Dust Trail was seriously terrified of Pinkie Pie. By the time they reached the bakery, it was dusk, and nopony was walking on the dirt road or making small talk with another pony. Dust Trail stared at the bakery, his mouth agape. “She lives in a gingerbread house . . ?”

“Well, if ya’ll are gonna be so technical about it, then yes.”

“Huh, I guess it makes sense. A crazy home for a crazy pony. Tell me, what do you guys do if rodents or bugs start infesting this place?”

“Oh, it’s not really made a’ suger and spice and everything nice, it’s made out a’ concrete and support beams.”

“All right, so Pinkie’s not as crazy as I thought.”

“Come on already, we better get inside an’ let da girls know.” Applejack walked inside, while Dust Trail stood there for a moment. He couldn’t help but remember those little foal books he read when he was a kid, and thought about that evil witch that lured those two foals in her home to be eaten with her candy house. The colt gulped, then walked inside and braced for the madness ahead.