>>42404935
>It was a strange feeling
>Your feathers didn't have nerves
>But then something would press into them
>And you'd feel it
>Like the wind
>Or the ground
>This was different though
>Metal
>Metal chains to be exact
>Occasionally the links would pinch one and send a twinge up your wing
>It wasn't quite pain
>But it was a far cry from pleasant either
>How did you even end up here?
>"I apologize that I must leave you two so... tied up, but I have ponies to see, artifacts to sell"
>A terrible quip
>An accent that's all over the place
>Looking up, you see a brown pony with a five o'clock shadow
>Doctor Caballeron
>Honestly the weirdest part of him was the fact he wore clothes
>You should really go visit Rarity at some point
>And Rainbow's other friends
>"You'll never get away with this!"
>There she is
>Rainbow's tied up with you
>And she's dressed as Daring Do
>When did she start wearing clothes?
>"Don't be so sure Daring Dash"
>That gives you pause
>You look up at the new voice
>It's what you can only assume is Daring Do
>She fits the description at least
>Weird, nonsensical situation?
>No memory of how you got here?
>You're dreaming again
>You're not telling Rainbow about this
>She has enough ego as is
>But now you need to wake yourself up before that moon horse shows up again
>"Dashing Do!?" The dream Rainbow asks
>You can't help but chuckle to yourself at the butchery of names your brain is trying to cobble together into something coherent
"Alright, I think I'm gonna wake up now"
>You briefly strain against the chains and they briefly go limp like noodles
>"Leaving so soon?" Your imagined Daring Do asks. "But we wanted you to meet some friends of ours."
>She lands next to Caballeron, seemingly allied with him
>For... some reason
>With a swift kick to the wall of the non-descript temple you're in, she laughs as cracks split their ways up the structure
>Strangely enough there's a window across from you, completely untouched
>And Applejack's kicking trees on the outside
>Even in your dreams you can't get away from her
>As the cracks splinter up and across the walls like spider webs, portions of stone break away, and green coils tumult out of the gaps
>"You're not afraid of snakes are you?" Rainbow asks as you feel her struggle against the noodle chains
>You have to shift a bit to get free
>Apparently you don't have full dream control
>But it's easy enough to slip out of them, though it is a bit of a squeeze
"Not particularly-" you cut yourself off as you get a closer look at the 'snakes', "and those aren't snakes"
>Instead you're looking out at a proverbial sea of origami snakes with the head of Tank
>Despite the fact you're asleep, you're already exhausted from seeing all this
>You glance to your side and see your wings still bandaged and in a cast
>With a brief amount of focus, you recall how your wings felt just a little over a week ago
>Then, with a quick stretch, the cast and bandages move off

>>42224913
>Pain
>Lots of pain
>A dull ache
>Distant noise
>Getting closer
>Clearer
>A voice
>Mach
"Mach!"
>You're awake
>More pain
>Dirt
>Your body feels like it's been crushed and pushed through a garden hose
>Deja vu
>Only this time you know why your body feels this way
>Everything's still attached at least
>But you can feel something's bent the way it's not supposed to
>Great, another visit to the doctor
>A hoof pulls your focus back
>Mach's in front of you
>Shaking like a leaf
>You immediately pull him to you and check him over
>He quietly accepts it, his breathing heavy and fast as his eyes dart around
>Grunts and small squeaks of pain escape him as you give him a once over
>Lots of bruising
>Nothing broken
>Best of all, no bleeding
>Except for the bit you just dripped onto him
>You wipe at your brow
>A heavy, thick mix of brown and red
>You'll need to clean that
>Later
>Mach is hyperventilating
>You turn him around to face you
>Like before, you level out your breathing
>Hoof to chest
>Breathe in
>Breathe out
>He slowly starts to copy you
"You alright, Mach?"
>Your voice seems to finally pull him out of his own head as he seems to finally focus on you
>Now he's hugging you
>That's new
>"I wanna go home"
>He sounds so small
>You look up
>There are gaps in the canopy of the trees
>Too small for you
>But he could squeeze through
>Sadly, you doubt he has the energy to even fly to Ponyville, let alone Cloudsdale
>You don't even know where you are, or which way is north
>Not that it'd do you much good, cause you don't know which way you should face to get to Ponyville in here
>But the kid doesn't need to know that
>The truth was all well and good before
>Now is the time for lies
>With a slight wince you stand and set Mach on your back
>He clings to you like you're driftwood
"Well, let's get to it then, we're burning daylight"
>The deathgrip on your coat relaxes a little at your usual casual tone
"Besides, if I don't get you home before curfew, Hot Stuff will have my hide"
>This draws a small chuckle from the little colt
>That's good
>You prefer him chucking at your inevitable demise to being terrified
>With a once over of the forest, you're already lost
>No sign of a beaten path
>Not good
>No sign of any life either
>Doubly not good
>Because you're very familiar with what lives in these woods
>And if they're not here
>Then that just means they're watching you
>You decide that you should at least give them a moving target and begin to trek in a random direction
>Before you get too far, you shoot a glance up and over your shoulder
>Wherever you fell in from, there's no way to tell
>None of the trees have broken branches or displaced leaves
>Either this place is durable enough that you didn't make it budge
>Or it fixed itself
>Neither option is comforting