With the battle won, our heroes make it back to Port Greenhold, where the news of their king's death fill the hearts of the entire area with sadness. Thankfully, though, the truth of the matter became clear, and the inhabitants had their bold prince to thank for their freedom.

Unfortunately, though, their prince was unconscious by the time he arrived, and needed medical attention, despite the healing that was done through the Druathican herbs.

Now, there are four patients in the hospital of Port Greenhold. When two of them wake up, however, there will have to be a lot of explaining to do...

Slowly, Swift's eyes started to open. The first thing he noticed, though, was that he was no longer in the snow... and that he felt warm. Then, the next thing he noticed was that he was in a hospital, in the same room that Quill was in.

Suddenly, his next realization caught him by surprise. His right arm was completely covered in a cast, along with his left leg. "What the..."

Then, another realization hit him... a Gryphon was sleeping on a chair with her head rested on the foot of his bed. He recognized the body shape to know just which Gryphon was lying there.

"G... Gilda?" Swift asked, only for the Gryphon to turn her head towards him, and stare at him with half-lidded eyes.

Then she mumbled, "Shut up, dumbass... I'm trying to sleep..."

He raised an eyebrow before shrugging his shoulders (which turned out to just be his left one, since the right one was "too heavily bound for him to feel it") and rested his head back on the pillow.

Suddenly, he felt a shift at the lower half of the bed, which made his closed eyes open again. Then, when he sat up to see what was going on, he saw Gilda staring at him slack-jawed and... wide, open, and teary eyed.

He raised both eyebrows in confusion before asking, "Um... Gilda? Are you okay?"

Slowly, she raised her right talon, and let it inch closer to his face. His look of confusion only remained plastered across his bandaged face, but he felt too tired to do anything besides stare.

Then, after she felt his face, she jerked her talon back and balled it up in a quivering fist. Then she closed her tear-felt eyes, looked down, and furrowed her eyebrows, before raising her right talon up, and lightly, but still painfully, punching Swift on the top of his scalp, stuttering, "Y-you... You bucking IDIOT!"

"OW! GILDA! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!" Swift grumbled, only to be answered by her leaning closer to him, and poking him in the chest with her right talon.

"DON'T YOU EVER TRY TO DO SOMETHING SO STUPID AGAIN!" She composed herself, took a few deep breaths, and then continued. "Do ya have any idea... any BUCKING idea how worried I was?!"

Swift grunted in pain as he continued rubbing the top of his head with his left arm. "Hey! It's not my fault that-" suddenly, an unexpected realization caught his attention. "Wait... you were worried about me?"

Gilda's cheeks suddenly turned red and she covered her beak with both talons, before glaring at him again. Then she popped his forehead with her right talon's palm, before retorting, "N-no! I said WE were worried about ya, dumbass! Gosh, can't ya open your ears for once?! Sheesh!"

Then she turned back towards the entrance, and stormed out of the room, not looking back.

Quill, who apparently woke up in the commotion, said, "I think she likes you."

Swift turned to the other Horse, and raised an eyebrow. "What? Why would she like me of all people, though? I mean, sure I might have been trapped in a cage with her at some point, then poured my life's story out for her... but she couldn't possibly think about me like that that easily... right?"

Quill shrugged his shoulders. "Hay if I know." Then, he smiled. "By the way, my name's Heavenly Quill. I take it you must be Swift Justice?"

Swift nodded his head, and chuckled. (Though they were in the same area, they never truly asked for the other's name.)

"Yes, sir... and I'm guessing you caught my name from Gilda?" Swift lifted a glass of water that was rested on the table near his left arm, then began to take a sip of it.

Quill nodded his head with a slight chuckle. "She did shout your name when you passed out three days ago."

At that statement, Swift spat the water from his glass out, and coughed a few times, before stuttering, "T-THREE DAYS?!"

Quill nodded his head, and then replied, "Yeah." Suddenly, his smile dropped. "By the way... I'm sorry for your loss."

Swift waved his left hand dismissively. "It's okay... I kinda had a feeling it would boil down to that."

"Not just your father, though." Quill added, which caused Swift to raise an eyebrow. "You lost something else in the battle, as well."

"Something else? What are you-" Before he could even finish his sentence, one more sudden realization hit Swift's mind... the sacrifice he had to make in order to deliver the final blow. Turning to his right arm, he quickly began undoing the bandages, only to gasp at the unfamiliar sight before him.

Instead of a right arm made of flesh, he saw a silver mechanical arm with several pipes in-between each joint that somehow managed to move naturally once freed from the cast. Of course, he couldn't feel anything that that arm held, but somehow, it felt natural as well.

"Whoa... that's something you don't see every day!" Swift stated, before moving the arm around and examining the fingers, the joints, and then trying to get used to the feel of it.

Then, he heard the sound of whistling coming from the entrance of the doorway. Turning to his left again, he spotted none other than the very same Fox that built him the arm.

"I'd say I've outdone myself! Ya might become the next lady-killer, mate!" Stealth chuckled before hopping on Swift's bed, and examining the arm.

"Wait... you built this?!" Swift asked confusedly.

Stealth nodded his head. "Indeed I did, mate. You like it?"

Swift looked at his arm again, and then nodded his head. "Y-yeah! It works like a charm... thanks!"

Stealth nodded his head before stretching his right paw out. When Swift took it, however, he noticed Stealth haunch down in pain, which made him quickly remove his grip, and pull his arm back.

"BLIMEY, THAT HURTS!" Stealth shouted, before placing his right paw in his mouth. Then, in a muffled voice, he said, "Gonna have to work on that grip there, mate!"

Swift rubbed the back of his hair with his right arm nervously, before yanking his head forward at the feel of the sudden chill of metal. "Yeah... and I'm gonna have to get used to it, as well... might take some time."

Stealth nodded his head. "Indeed... well, rest easy, mate!" Then he hopped off the bed and headed towards the door again.

"Wait!" Swift called out, which caused Stealth to turn his head back.

"Yes, mate?"

After looking around for any other visitors, he asked, "How's... Justin and Ruby?"

Stealth's smile that he formerly had was sunken into a frown. "They... haven't woken up, yet... and the doctors say that it's no mere exhaustion, either."

"What do you mean by that?!" Swift asked, now with a look of worry in his eyes.

After taking a deep breath, Stealth replied, "Swift... they're in a coma."

Even though the battle was won... not a single smile was on any of the faces of the visitors in the room where the father and his daughter lied.

Sitting in a chair between the two of their beds was Gilded Blade. He wasn't looking at any of them, but rather, at the ground, between his feet.

On the left-hand side of Justin's bed, Pinkie sat there with his left hand wrapped in her hands. It doesn't matter how long she knew them... any friend of hers would be treated like a best friend. Seeing them in this condition, though... it tore her spirit up.

Sitting next to her, Limestone and Marble had their arms wrapped around their sister. The last time they ever saw their sister crying the way she did dated back to when she lived in the rock farm with them.

Maud, instead of sitting in a seat like her sisters, stood at the back-left corner of the room, squeezing onto the pebble that remained of Boulder, while looking at her sisters. Even though she didn't appear to have any emotions on her face, the streams of tears that fell from her cheeks said enough.

Thor'lok sat on the right side of Ruby's bed, and had his face covered by both hands. His elbows were rested on his knees and, like Gilded, he was looking at the ground.

Zula stood next to him, and had her left hand rested on his right shoulder. She looked at Ruby with a hurt expression, unable to cope with the thoughts of this poor girl never waking up.

Zero leaned on the left side of the entrance, with his mane covering his eyes. He looked down, and glared at the ground... unsure of what to say in this kind of situation. While he didn't really know Justin all too well, he also felt like, if he or Ruby never wake up, then he will have lost a golden opportunity for knowledge that this world could've needed. Add to that, a potential friend that he could hang out with. (His communications with Thunderwing were long gone at this point. His earpiece was stolen when he and the others were abducted... he hoped that the others back in Manehatten didn't assume the worst... but as he already knew, Thunderwing was always considered one to be melodramatic.)

Nightshade was no longer with them. He departed from the group, but told them that Justin and Ruby will be fine... despite what the doctors and nurses said.

Suddenly, the heart monitor that Justin was strapped in started to go to one long beep, which caused Pinkie Pie to stare up at it, then at Justin in complete horror. "N-no... NO!" She shouted, before a group of doctors ran in.

"Everyone get back!" The doctors stated, as they carried a pair of defibrillators in each hand.

Gilded stared wide-eyed at the scene before him... his mission... he failed them... he could've been there... but he wasn't. When those thoughts came to his mind, he broke down into tears, as he let out a pained roar.

From the dark room, Justin took a deep breath, and fell backwards. Then, he looked up and glared at nothing in particular. "HAVE YOU LOST YOUR F**KING MIND?! I HAVE TO FACE DEATH?!"

The voice replied, "Rest assured... we will see to it that you do not remain dead... but yes. This is one of your fears... is it not?"

Justin shrugged his shoulders and stretched his arms out. "Yeah, well I kinda figured that the whole point of this shit is to, like, NOT die! And whatever happened to 'you have passed', huh?!"

"You must have mistaken the meaning of our words, Justin... we told you that, with the meaning that you have passed on."

Justin's eyes widened at that statement. "Wait... so are you saying that... I'M ALREADY DEAD?!"

"Yes... and you have already felt it."

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!" Justin shouted, before loudly growling out of frustration. Then, he fell to the ground, and sat with his knees stretched up and forward.

"I just wanted to go home... is that too much to ask?! I just wanted to go home, and live a normal life with my daughter again..."

There was another moment of silence. "Justin... it is time."

"Oh REAL f**king clever! Yeah, I guess that's another one of your fancy 'you are dead' jokes, huh?!"

"No... it is time for you to wake up."

"Yeah, nice! Only one problem, though... HOW THE F**K DO YOU EXPECT TO WAKE A DEAD GUY, HUH?!"

"Have no fear... for we won't be the ones to wake you up."

This statement caused Justin's eyes to widen. "Wait, what? Then... who will-" Before he could finish speaking, another projection appeared in front of him... the image of the situation that was going on in the hospital. Then, he gasped at what he saw next. "Ruby... she's... she's..."

"D... Daddy?" Ruby weakly mumbled from her hospital bed. Then, when her hearing became more clear, she turned to her left, and froze in fear. The monitor... she knew about what it meant by the many different TV shows she watched... but this one was strapped onto the chest of a figure lying in the bed opposite of her. "D-Daddy?! DADDY?!" She quickly stood up and, without even realizing it, pulled the cords from her heart monitor out of her chest.

"DADDY! WAKE UP! WAKE UP, DADDY!" Ruby cried, before the doctors started moving closer to take her away. Before they even got close to her, however, they stopped in place, and noticed just what their patient was.

"I-is she an... Alicorn?!" One of the nurses behind the two doctors asked.

Ruby ignored their statements and, instead, rested her head on her father's chest, while Gilded, who was standing there right next to her, wrapped his left arm over her shoulder, and closed his eyes, while his head bowed over the scene.

Then, out of the corner of his eyes, he saw a glow. When he opened his eyes again, they grew wider, as he noticed Ruby's horn was, for the first time, glowing.

It glowed a bright golden color, and following it, both her whole body and Justin's glowed along with it. Even so, her eyes remained closed, and buried in his chest; unfazed by the glowing.

"Please, Daddy... d-don't go... please... please!" Then, as the two of them glowed a golden color, the monitor cracked, and the room started to quake, causing the entire group to back away. Then, after ten seconds, all of the glowing ceased.

"Please, Daddy... don't go..." Ruby cried once more, before she placed her right hand on his chest, directly over her forehead.

Then... she felt a comforting hand brush the back of her mane... which caused her muscles to tense up.

In a gargled, yet familiar voice, she heard the one word that made her ears perk up. "...Never..."

Slowly, she looked up from Justin's chest, and saw his eyes... were half-opened.

With her mouth covered, Pinkie Pie let out a relieved gasp from outside the doorway, while Gilded's jaw dropped... and formed into a smile. "J... Justin?!"

Justin looked around the area, and raised an eyebrow. "What the heck's going on? Was there a funeral, or something?"

Instead of getting a verbal response, he soon found himself caught in the (surprisingly strong) arms of his daughter, and shortly following that, Pinkie Pie as well.

Then, after another moment of crying and explaining the current situation, Justin asked, "So... what did I miss?"

Both he and Ruby looked at Gilded in unison, while he let out a weak chuckle. "Well... it's a long story..." With that, the rest of the group explained everything from their perspectives, until the sun was getting closer to the west of the horizon.

After one week of recovery, the group found themselves in the docks of Port Greenhold. Justin was impressed with Swift's new arm, and also sympathetic over his loss... and what had to come next.

"Well... guess this is it, huh?" Swift stated, before looking around at the wandering citizens who stood around the heir of the throne.

Justin nodded his head, and placed his hands on his waist. "Yeah... I hate it, though... I mean, we've had you with us since Druathica, but it still feels like we just met after all, doesn't it?"

Swift nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah..."

"I blame the armor mostly, though." Justin pointed out, which made the two of them chuckle.

Swift then sighed and turned around. "I... wish you all the best of luck on your journey."

Justin nodded his head. "Hey, we'll write to you when we get there... it's the least we can do, before going home. After all, weren't you an important part of this journey?"

Swift chuckled in response. "Yeah..."

"Top that off with the fact that you're a hero around here!" Swift paused his movement when Justin stated those words.

Then he turned around and asked, "Wait... I'm a... hero?!"

Justin nodded his head and turned to Ruby. "If you weren't there to intervene with your father's plans, then Ruby and I would probably still be stuck in those cages!"

Then Justin walked up to Swift, and held his right hand out. "And for that, you have the thanks of an Alicorn, and an Alien... something I bet no one has ever achieved, yet!"

Swift smiled at that compliment, before accepting the handshake... with his metal hand.

"And for the record, that new arm looks badass." Justin whispered, which made Swift chuckle even more.

"I... I'll always remember you... all of you... thank you." he stated. Then, he turned around, and began walking back towards the northern gates, while the rest of the group began loading up in the metal boat that was scheduled for a route to Atlantis. The first person to enter the boat, however, was Gilda... which Swift couldn't help but find odd. (Throughout the week, she has been avoiding him.)

As he walked through the streets, he turned to watch the distant boat. Then, he let out a sigh. Why was he feeling so... alone, now?

At once, a sudden realization hit him. He no longer had a family up here in The Highlands... and he was never a huge fan of being the prince during his life... so why would he even want to be a King?

He looked to his left and noticed a young mare who carried a picture of Zero Gravity with her... and the rest of the group. "Is she a fan of theirs?" he thought to himself.

"Excuse me, ma'am?" Swift asked the mare, who turned and gasped. When she noticed who it was, she froze in place, and bowed her head respectfully... which made Swift feel uncomfortable.

"Yes, Your Majesty?" she asked in a nervous tone.

"Um... you may rise. Anyways, what do you know about them?" Swift asked, as he pointed at the pictures in the mare's hands.

"Oh, um... w-well... the one with the red eyes and the fangs here," she pointed at Zero, "saved us from some of Stonefist's men..."

Swift nodded his head and rubbed his chin in thought. "Hm... so, you're saying that you all have good standards, then?"

Again, she nodded. "Y-yes, Your Majesty... why do you ask?"

Swift looked towards the horizon again. The boat was still within eyesight, at least.

Then he looked back at the mare, and replied, "Because... by royal decree, I, Swift Justice, declare your family to be the next rulers of these lands!"

At once, the pictures flew from her hands. "Y-you're... joking, right?"

He shook his head and smiled. "No! Go tell your family at once! You are all to live in the castle, and be treated as royalty!" Then he placed the necklace that King Goldheart wore in her hands, which made her raise both eyebrows.

"And now, as a king, I resign! Good luck, Your Highness!" Swift said, before turning around, and bolting towards the docks. Then, with all his might, he made one mighty leap... but due to his speed, he only appeared as a white, gold, and silver blur.

From on board the S.S. Atlantis, Gilda sat at the rails that faced Port Greenhold. Her legs were rested outside the rails, and her elbows were rested on the rails themselves. Her cheeks were tucked in her talons, and her expression seemed... empty.

Gilded opened the door from the passengers' quarters and asked, "Can I get you anything, G?"

In a surprisingly calmed, yet sad tone, Gilda replied, "No thanks, Big B... I just need to be alone for a sec... alright?"

Gilded nodded his head with a concerned expression. "I understand... please let me know if you need something."

Gilda nodded her head, and continued to stare at the island. "What's the point... I can't even tell what I'm feeling anymore... I mean, what the buck is wrong with me?!" Then she let out a long, drawn-out sigh. "Is THIS what I think it is that I feel? If so... then why? And of all the people out there... why him?!"

Suddenly, she heard a loud thump from the lower half of the ship... and the sound caused her head to jump up, and her eyes to widen.

"You know... for someone who doesn't even like me, you sure seem to be pretty mopey when I'm away!" Swift's voice sounded from below.

"SWIFT?!" Gilda screeched, only to cover her beak and look down. Sure enough, Swift was hanging on one of the ropes that the anchors would be tied to. "SWIFT! WHAT THE BUCK ARE YOU DOING?!" Gilda shouted before spreading her wings, swooping down, lifting him from the rope, and placing him on the deck where she sat at.

"Thank you..." Swift said as he caught his breath. Before he could even breath his fifth heavy breath, though, Gilda's talon found its way to his right cheek... quickly. "OW!"

"SWIFT! WHAT THE BUCK WERE YOU THINKING?! YOU COULD'VE MISSED AND DROWNED, YOU DUMBASS!"

Swift rubbed his red cheek before replying, "Yeah... I wasn't really the brightest tool in the shed... but still, I wouldn't want to leave my family behind!"

Gilda's cheeks turned redder, before she glared at him again. Then, she gripped him by the neck with her left talon, and slapped his face again with her right talon. "You..." *SLAP* "Stupid..." *SLAP "Little..." her right talon quivered at that point, as she swung behind his neck this time. Then, with her right talon locked on his head, she pulled the two of them in for a kiss... which caused Swift's eyes to shoot open.

The kiss lasted for thirty seconds, but five seconds in, and Swift closed his eyes, and wrapped his arms around her (while avoiding using any grip with his right hand for obvious reasons). Then, when they broke from the kiss, Gilda whispered, "...Dumbass."

With a nervous blush, Swift replied, "Um... thanks?"

Then, the two of them heard Stealth say, "Oi! Get a room, you two!" When they noticed him standing there with a camera, Gilda's entire face turned red, and her happy expression became one of both, embarrassment and rage.

Then, in a flash, she roared and chased Stealth around the ship, while he screamed of either genuine fear, or humorous... his tone, however, made it difficult to tell for sure.

Swift, on the other hand, stood back up, and looked on in the distance. Shortly after that, though, he heard the sound of footsteps getting closer.

After letting out a light chuckle, Justin asked, "So... family, huh?"

Swift nodded his head. "If that's okay, that is."

"Swift," Justin began, before gently patting Swift's left shoulder, "just you helping us get there has already made us consider you family... and by the way... welcome back."

Swift chuckled again, before nodding his head. Then, as the two stared at the sunset, he asked, "So... where to now, boss?"

Justin shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Pinkie's sister Maud told me that Ruby and I have quite a bounty on our heads... so we're gonna have to stay at Atlantis until the heat dies down. Then... wherever Celestia's sun takes us."

Swift nodded his head, and placed his arms on the rail.

A gentle breeze made Justin's coat flow freely, along with Swift's mane. When Swift looked up, he smiled... and could vaguely hear his real father speaking to him through the gentle breeze.

"Well done... my son."

Author's Notes:

SWEET CELESTIA, WHAT A RIDE!

And here, I thought I'd never reach the end of this season! (I even found myself crying over these last few parts the past few months since I originally thought up this scene! )

So, what did you all think? Did you like it? Please feel free to leave a "like" if you haven't already! (It motivates me to do MORE, after all! )

Brace yourselves, though! There's gonna be a LOT of peace going on for our heroes... but sometimes, even the PEACEFUL places can have their issues! What kinds of issues, one might ask? Find out next time, in "Journey to Equestria: Homeward Bound", Season 3... "Atlantis: City Below the Sea"! See you then, My Little Bronies!

As always, stay sharp, My Little Bronies! And remember... "You can always be happy... but then, you'll never be satisfied... and you can always be satisfied... but then, you'll never be happy."