"Rainbow? Can you hear me?"

The pain had moved down the scale a few notches and was just within bearable again. She continued to just stare out at nothing completely quiet, completely still.

"Rainbow? Answer me... Please."

She pondered her life, thinking about everything that had happened, how she got lost in the woods, how she had been found, how some stallion and a dragon were taking care of her. So many unanswered questions, where were her friends? Did Luna tell them she was alive? Had that... monster been caught yet? She started to feel angry. "He had better been caught." She thought "And if he isn't I'll catch him."

"What? Rainbow? What are you talking about?"

"Oh I'll catch him. And when I do, I'll gut him like the filthy pig he is." She thought getting progressively angrier at her anonymous attacker. "I'll let him scream, let him beg for mercy in my hooves as I tear this and that out of him and I'll laugh as he pleads 'please! I'm sorry!' and then when I am finally done with him, I'll take him into the forest and leave him to die just like he left me..."

"RAINBOW!" the dragon's hand connected with her face, rudely pulling her out of her trance.

"Ouch! Wh- What was that for?" She hissed.

"I- I- Yo- You I-" She stopped and collected herself " You were saying horrid things, I... I just couldn't stop myself"

She froze "Did... Did I just say all that... out loud?" She hid her head in shame. "You... You weren't supposed to hear that." After a few short seconds she found herself locked in another warm hug.

"It's okay. I swear... If I ever met the colt I'd... I'd... Ugh!" She said quite upset herself.

"It's not okay. What would everypony think if I sunk to that level?"

"I wouldn't blame you."

"I... I don't think I could live through being the end of another one"

"A- Another one?" Before any more could be said the doctor walked in

"Oh good! I was getting worried you wouldn't come around" He said " How are you feeling?"

"Oh fantastic, thanks for asking!" She thought "Like somepony gutted me." She replied with a bit of cheek.

"I can understand that." He said " Has there been any more bleeding Rachel?

"Not in the last hour or so." She replied.

"Good, and how is her battery doing?"

"Battery?! What battery?" Rainbow thought moving a bit and feeling some kind of cable attached to her.

"Erm" Rachel said as she fiddled with something next to her "33% it says"

"Darn it's draining fast... How much has the other one charged?" He asked

"U- Um... mind if I ask what the hay you two are talking about?" Rainbow asked almost positive she didn't want to know.

"Well that is a bit of a long story." He said sounding in thought.

"Wh- What did you do to me?" She asked

"Weeeeeeeeell-" He was cut off

Growing slightly impatient "What. Did. You. Do?" She repeated much harsher than she meant to.

"To put it simply, I was doing some work for a chemical research plant and they had me design some filters for them. The filters are designed to take impurities out of liquid. Two of those filters are now in you." He said sounding proud of himself.

"Y- You wha?" She said completely lost for words on the procedure he just described.

He continued not really hearing her "Problem is when I designed them power was no problem, you on the other hand are running them constantly and burning through a battery every two hours or so."

"Oh... So what do I do now?" She said sounding like a lost filly.

"I have a friend with a mobile lab set up, he's going to bring it up and see what we can do to get you back together. Maybe fix your lungs too."

"Wh- What's wrong with my lungs?" She asked feebly.

"I removed one of them, it was pretty far gone. Starting to rot even."

"Well that explains my chest pain I guess" She thought.

"Any other questions?"

"Am I going to live?"

He sighed "Rainbow, as long as I live I promise to do everything within my power to keep you alive."

She lowered her head back to the bed and noticed it wasn't the hospital bed. "where am I?"

"Back in your room, do you not remember?" He asked

"I really don't"

"Probably for the best. Anyway, I have to go meet my friend out front."

"You do that... I'll just lay here I guess"

"Okay, I'll be back soon" He left leaving her alone with the dragon. There was a long pause.

"S- So... You were saying before..." Rachel asked

"Look, Rachel... I have done some horrid things... You really don't want to know"

"I... I understand."

"Thank you Rachel" She said looking off into the blackness. "can I ask you a question?"

"What is it?"

"What color are you?"

"Red. Same shade as your mane actually."

"Really? I had you as purple in my head for some reason." She was quiet for a while again trying to paint her imaginary purple dragon red. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Of course I can."

"Can you get me some water?"

"Alright. Will you be okay by yourself?"

"I'll be fine."

"Be back in a minute then" She got up and left.

"Okay Rainbow. We don't have long here" She thought as she checked herself over. She lifter her legs one at a time to make sure they were working. Her back right leg exploded in pain. "O- Okay. That hurts." She thought waiting for it to die down. She felt around the bed finding something hard to her right. She felt her way around it, it was about a foot wide, eight inches tall and about eight inches deep. "This must be the battery" She could feel a cord attached to it. "Where the hay does this thing connect to me?" She followed the cord, discovering it was about six feet long. Her hoof hit the back of her head, the cord seeming to plug right into the base of her skull. "O- Oh my..." She thought unable to even think of the words. She laid flat, now aware of the cord laying on her neck as it snaked away to her battery. "My battery? There is a phrase I thought I'd never use" She started feeling herself over again, looking for anything else crazy. she found a long stitch running from one end of her chest to her hind right leg. "I swear at this rate they are going to run out of pieces of me to put back together" She thought to herself with a grim chuckle. She heard the dragon returning "Darn it" She shifted about trying to make it look like she hadn't been examining herself.

"I got you some water" She said

"Thanks." She said and she felt a glass set next to her. She fumbled around for it eventually picking it up and drinking. She could hear hooves in the hall. "Is someone coming?"

"It's probably the doctor coming to get you"

"Great. Knowing my luck he's going to tell me I need brain surgery or something"

"You'll be fine" She said with a chuckle.

Author's Note

Shortened to make more sense and whatnot whilst I finish the second half now becoming chapter 19.