Tending Flames

It was a long and painful era of nothingness.

Chasing Haze was at once aware of the immense feeling of pain, and yet also a very tenuous distance from himself. He could see his life and experiences with all the objectiveness of another, viewing it all with detachment and clarity. All of his years flying around the desolate peaks in the deserts around his birthplace, the grueling tests and missions that those of his kind would endure in the name of an objective they no longer followed. The crushing fears of his family when that mission had ended.

Broadwings were not like other ponies, not even like other pegasi. They were born to the mission given to them by the Princess of the Sun herself, over a thousand years ago; To hunt down the remnants of the followers of Nightmare Moon in their haunts in the shadows of the world. But Nightmare Moon was no more, and her loyalists had mostly repented and returned to their places under Luna's charge. The Broadwing Clan no longer needed to keep squadrons of hunters in readiness in case of an attack, which was why the peaceable and meek had been cut from the ranks.

Not even the children of The Chief of Broadwing had been spared.

Chasing's father, Paladin Haze, had given his son a job that seemed to match his skills. He had done the same for both of Chasing's sisters as well, getting them out of the cycle that the family had followed for centuries. Wandering Haze was a pioneer at the borders of the empire, exploring the fastnesses beyond Celestia's realm. Breaking Haze was part of the special services tasked with stabilizing those borders as they expanded ever outwards.

And Chasing Haze had been tasked with being a Fire Guard in a small town in the middle of the country, far from danger. All he had had to do was fly around every day and watch out for any fires that might spring up.

And he had failed before he was even meant to begin.

Even in his unconscious state, a cold pit settled in his heart.

*****

Firestorm couldn't believe what Rainbow Dash was telling him. He sat in the hospital's waiting room, surrounded by dozens of ponies all in need of some form of medical attention for mild burns and such from the fire, but he felt completely cut off from them all by the six ponies that stood around him. Rainbow Dash and Rarity had come to see him, and had brought their circle of friends along. All were silent as Rainbow shared what she knew from her conversation with Breaking Haze before Chasing's arrival. She didn't know much other than the fact that the Broadwings were disbanding their more militant wings, and that Chasing had needed a job. In closing, she shrugged, and said, "I heard that the family was trying join normal society again after so many years out, but that's all I remember."

The group all turned to the alicorn in the room. Literally the the only alicorn in town. Twilight sat with a small book emblazoned with the multicoloured cross-pattern that was the Broadwing crest. She looked up at her friends expectant faces. And Firestorm's..."Well, there isn't much written about the Broadwing Pegasi. They didn't feature much until the banishing of Nightmare Moon. According to this, they once served as the royal guard, much like Luna's thestrals, but when Luna was turned into Nightmare Moon, and her guards became warped with her, the Broadwings became professional hunters of Luna's old guard. I guess now that Luna is back, that the thestrals don't need to be hunted down anymore. It all seems a bit barbaric, really, good thing they've changed lately."

There was an awkward pause. Then Applejack asked, "Well, that's all well an' good, but what about Ditzy an' 'er little sis? What happened there, for them ta survive that?"

It was the question on everypony's lips. How had the two survived that terrible fire? Twilight answered again. "That is something I will have to look into. But from the descriptions I've heard and some deductions, I think Dinky may have cast a heat shield. Considering the sheer heat of that fire, it really is amazing. I...I think I may take Dinky in as my first student. I'll ask Celestia for guidance in this. Right now, though, our foremost concern is the well being of Chasing Haze. he was burned to within an inch of his life. "

A few nodding heads, followed by relative silence. None of these ponies knew Chasing very well, but he had at least made a good impression in his few days here. It was a tragedy that this disaster had hurt so many. Most ponies had accepted that it had to have been a simple kitchen accident. After all, Ditzy had been in the building.

Speaking of whom... Firestorm shot up and walked through the crowd without a word. The girls didn't need his input anyway.

"Hey, Firestorm! Where are you going?" Firestorm turned and was surprised to see Rainbow Dash at his side, looking concerned.

He growled slightly to himself. "Go check with a nurse, will you? You got a bit toasty over that fire, after all."

"And what about you? Look at you! You should be resting. Come and sit with us for a while, Fluttershy can look at that burn." Rainbow Dash said.

Firestorm turned and faced her squarely. "I'm fine! But I don't see why you should care, you couldn't remember my name after all these years. I'm going to visit Ditzy, she at least was always friendly to me."

Firestorm decided to make a dramatic exit after venting at and probably angering the prismatic mare. What he wasn't expecting was her reply.

"I always remembered your name, Firestorm."

He turned again in surprise, only to see her tail vanish into the crowd. Rainbow one, Firestorm zero.

Again.

He looked down at himself. Ash covered his legs and body, and his coat the rest of him, except for the large burn across his back. Grey. Desolate. It symbolized a dispair that came with pain, a pain worse than burning. The pain of being alone.

Firestorm sighed as he accepted that if he felt the way he did, he'd have to say something to Rainbow eventually. Later though. Ditzy would need comfort, now more than ever.

The worst cases were all being tended in the hospital's longest gallery. It also contained both Dinky and the town's new Hero. Chasing had been out since the fire, and the doctors were worried that he may not fully recover. at the moment he was still isolated for fear of infection, most of his body burned. He was lucky to have retained his nearly indestructible pinions, so he may be able to fly afterwards. If his lungs weren't burnt too.

Firestorm would visit Chasing as soon as he was allowed to. Ditzy was awake in her bed against the far wall. She stared blankly out the window. She was alone, too. Firestorm sat next to her on the bed and put a hoof on her shoulder. She whipped up to look at him, but softened into his touch. She leaned away, though, and closed her eyes. "I'm s-sorry. I don't know what I d-did..."

Firestorm forestalled her by pulling her into a hug, something he would never do for any other pony. But Ditzy was hurting, and she was being blamed by the whole town for this accident. Even if she had started the fire, she didn't deserve to be sitting here, alone.

And besides, he had a suspicion that Ditzy had had nothing to do with that fire.

*****

Firestorm heard it first. He was lying down beside Ditzy, holding her as she quietly cried herself to sleep. It started with a low moaning, but slowly increased to full-blown sobbing. With none of the nurses nearby, Firestorm decided then that if anypony should choose to be the first to cross that curtain, it should be him. He disentangled himself from the sleeping mare and crossed the room  and stood before the curtain, ready to pull it aside.

Then the crying stopped.

Rarity heard the scream first, being the only pony awake in the waiting room. Rainbow Dash woke up to see Rarity galloping though the door towards the intensive care ward with the final tones of the blood curdling scream hanging in the air. Rainbow wasn't the only one to hear it either; Few ponies could hear that sound, one of sheer pain and anguish, without reacting as she and Rarity did.

Ponies dashed through the halls as the screaming increased, grating tones between vengeance and loss calling all to bear witness. Rarity and Rainbow Dash burst through the doors, only to stop dead at the sight. Firestorm's body was hidden by the broad span of wings and bandages, and the form of the pony pinning Firestorm to the wall beside Chasing Haze's bed. As ponies began to gather in the room from all corners of the hospital, the bandaged head turned to face the crowd, looking blankly over the heads of the ponies that had been so friendly to the new Fire Guard.

Chasing Haze felt hooves on his shoulder, burning the raw skin beneath the gauze. He looked around and saw his foreleg pressing into Firestorm's throat. The chestnut unicorn held himself up, in no real danger,and looked down with pity in his eyes. Chasing hated that. He looked back and saw Rainbow Dash holding him, the same expression on her features. Chasing felt at that moment all the eyes in the ward bearing down him, radiating pity and concern. Because he was hurt. Because he had failed. They pitied him because he could not do what he had been tasked with. He had failed them and deserved none of this.

He couldn't stand anymore. He fell and tried to hide himself under his wings, the the feathers were too sparse to provide any cover. He choked as his lungs attempted to clear themselves, but he shouted out at the chattering group of ponies anyway, "I-I'm Sorry!"

Chasing Haze lay on his side and looked through a closing gap in between the legs of the surrounding ponies. He saw the shocked face of Ditzy staring at him from over the edge of her bed, eyes wide with fear. Fear

"I'm sorry!" He choked out, As he felt himself being lifted, but if by hooves or by his slipping consciousness, he couldn't tell. All he could focus on was his failure to protect those he should've helped.

I am so sorry