Semper Vigilans - Applebits

I weakly opened my left eye but this time was not in pain, thankfully as I was getting tired of always being in pain. Looking around I could see Bulls Eye laying down near me with a neatly sown leg where I saw it get blown off. Shadow Star was sitting with her little sisters eating, wait food! My stomach rumbled and I groaned, which was a mistake as I cringed at the pain in my both my neck and stomach from my burn wound. To my surprise the ghoul that saved us from Cotton Candy, speaking of whom he 'cybernetic body was in pieces over by the wall, came up next to me and laid down as he stared directly into my single working eye.

Though the ghoul didn't, couldn't speak a word; I could see in his eyes what I thought to be worry. Before I could even try to speak to him, I watched as an aura flashed in his eyes and from his stitched chest wound blood floated out in a speckled, nearly dotted line. I watched it with surprise, the dribbles of blood forming slowly letters behind him that made a single word.

"Help?" That was what it asked.

This was what he was asking me. He wanted to know if he could help me somehow. Weakly, I managed to croak out to him. "I don't think you can help my injuries...But some food would be nice."

I could swear that the ghoul smiled through his stitched muzzle. It was eerie, but I also took notice of that same hint of amusement form earlier as he shook his head slightly. When he rose, I watched him walk away and disappear around a bend into an alley before laying down again with confusion as to where he was going. Within moments though, he was back; and now he had perched between his stitched wings what appeared to be a sandwich of sorts packed with flowers that I vaguely could recall. Not only that, but he had brought me a bottle of water as well that looked perfectly fresh and clear; and as he laid down again I wondered where he'd managed to get such things from.

The blood that had floated above him spelled it out as he gently coaxed small bites and sips of water into me. "My supply. From home."

I was so tempted to ask where he meant by home, but my voice I didn't exactly trust and it was actually painful to talk now that I recalled from moments earlier as my throat ached from my burns. As though he was reading my mind, he shook his head again before looking me over. I watched his eyes, they had a trained feel about them, as though he were assessing my injuries like a front line surgeon would.
"Help?" Again the word was repeated in blood, only this time it seemed to be more pointed to my injuries.

I guess I felt I should humor him, despite the fact that I knew he was no Unicorn and as such could only treat so much of my burns without magic. Nodding faintly, I watched as he rose and looked to the blood floating before him. Rather quickly, I observed as more blood left his body through his various stitched back injuries; including also now that I took notice were black holes with flaps of bloody skin and muscle stitched away where his cutie marks would have been. The blood formed in a ball over his head, and his eyes were locked so intently on my injuries before he nodded faintly and knitted his brows in concentration. Before I could object, his dark blood was covering my body where I had been burned, and though I had though the injuries were horrible feeling before; this made them burn just as intensely or more so than before as the blood thickly spread over them. The foul liquid even filled into my damaged eye, and I barely muffled a scream of agony as the pain wracked my body. However, within moments I could feel a sense of drawing out, like the pain was being sucked from my body; it was so soothing that I sighed and simply let the blood thicken over my injuries as the ghoul likely intended.

When the blood finally was withdrawing, I managed to raise my head with surprisingly no pain and look at my body. To my surprise, I no longer saw singed and burned fur and flesh; rather my body was pristine and normal again. I gasped slightly, also noticing that my other eye could see again. I turned instantly to the ghoul, who absorbed the blood back into his body and I saw his eye that would've been on the same side as my previously damaged one go completely dark. His body seemed to become more ashen, especially around areas similar to where my injuries were; it was like he was now burned the same way I'd been before. He didn't show a hint of pain, not a grunt or breath; not even a single sound. All that showed was a slight frown in his muzzle that seemed to loosen his stitches before he re-tightened them again.

With my voice returning to normal, I managed to ask. "W...What did you do?"

"Helped." He spelled out in darker blood than before, blood that seemed tainted.

"I know that...But what did you do?" I found myself asking again.

"Ancient Magic...made before Princesses." The blood spelled out.

Reading what he said, I found myself confused by what he meant. More than anything, now I also was desiring to now who this ghoul was that had healed me and saved us from Cotton Candy. "Who...Who are you?"

The question seemed to draw yet another eerie smile out of him, and as the blood formed the letters I carefully scanned it as he spelled out his name slowly. "Mortalitas Gladius."

"Mortalitas Gladius?" I said aloud, unsure if that was correct. His nod confirmed it, which made me smile a little back at him. "Thank you...For fixing me up Mortalitas Gladius."

"Welcome." He spelled out. "Gladius. Call Gladius."

I nodded faintly. "Alright...Gladius....Thank you."

He nodded slightly in response before stepping away and moving out into the street. "Rest. I watch" He spelled. "When ready, I take to home."

Finally he absorbed the blood back within himself and walked slowly around, all the while his one good eye was still watching me and keeping eye contact. Despite what little bit I knew about our savior, I was still desiring to know more as I rose and first looked to Bulls Eye and could see just how easy he was resting. Deciding that rest could wait, I began to walk towards where Gladius was watching both myself and the perimeter from down the street.

Coming to his side I looked him in his only good eye before I gave him a soft smile. I floated my power armor over to me and put it on while we stood at a silent vigil. The thought did cross my mind that he could still have a little vision left in his other eye, but if his new wounds mimic that of which mine were then the eye was likely gone completely.

"Thank you Gladius, for healing me." I said earning a nod from the ghoul next to me. "I'll take this watch, you rest." I practically ordered him since he did just do something I never had once thought possible.

His good eye was sharp with determination, but the stare he received from my visor was blunt and unwavering. A few minuets passed and he closed his eye and shook his head before walking ever so slowly back to Bulls Eye. Behind my helmet I was smiling to know that we had found a real friend in the wastes and not just a cybermare who wanted to just kill us and take our crap.

Author's Notes:

Applebits managed to survive probably only due to Gladuis saving her life, though now immensely worried for her ghoul friend you can be certain that she will take many bullets for him if and when the time comes, that just who she is. Meanwhile the others (Tempest and Lightning) are provably thinking that they are all dead.