Chapter 34

“We found him buried in a snowbank on the edge of the city,” the doctor whispered. “He was practically dead when we found him but not unsavable. It took so much of our healing knowledge and power but we brought him back from the darkness. He is in critical condition but he will recover, partially.”

Ian sat down next to the man he had come to call his friend and placed his hand on the German’s chest. The frost bitten face of Frederic, covered in bandages, remained still.

“I can barely feel his pulse,” the American muttered. He turned to the doctor. “You said he will only heal partially?”

“Yes. We were able to bring warmth and life back into him but much of his body already perished beyond saving.”

The door flew open and the Germans rushed in, passed the Americans, and huddled around their leader. Felix knelt next to Frederic and took the unconscious man’s wrapped hand and started to cry, murmuring German under his breath.

“Is he be alright?” Udo’s eyes were wide, begging the doctor for good news.

“We believe he will survive but we don’t know how well he is going to heal,” the doctor responded.

“Lads,” Ian stated as he stood to join his men. “No more wandering alone and unarmed. I think we’re being hunted.”

“Fuck,” Bill growled.

“Hunted?” Matt squeaked. “By who?”

“Changelings,” Luna said as she entered the room, followed by Patton and Lee. “They can change their appearance to look like ponies. We believe they were the ones who sabotaged the storehouses as well.”

Udo heard what the others were saying and began relaying everything he understood to his comrades. Felix immediately started to form a plan in his head. The German gunner stood up suddenly and stormed out of the room, a dark and bloodthirsty look in his eyes.

“Where is he going?” Ian asked Udo.
The German shrugged his shoulders then turned to Martin and motioned for him to follow Felix. Martin nodded and ran after the gunner.

Luna stepped closer to Frederic and sighed. “My power is weakened due to my weariness but I can heal many of the wounds that the doctors were unable to mend.”

She leaned over and placed her horn on the human’s chest. A soft glow filled the room and the others were amazed to see some of the patches of frostbite and dead flesh heal. Frederic’s breathing eased slightly and Udo smiled widely.

“Thank you, pony princess!” he laughed though his tears. He stood and wrapped his arms around Luna’s neck in an awkward hug. “Thank you!”

“I wasn't able to heal everything,” she said sadly.

“You raise the sun and moon. Why can't you heal him more?” Bill didn’t mean to sound critical but it came out that way nonetheless.

Luna didn’t seem upset at the harshness of the question. “Nearly all of my power is spent on the sun and moon. Also, rebuilding flesh is very difficult. It takes immense power to create living tissue from dead and even more to create it from nothing.”

“Oh,” Bill murmured.

“Princess,” the doctor exclaimed. “You look exhausted. There is an open bed here if you need to rest.”

“I agree, Princess,” Lee added. “You need some sleep.”

Luna looked at the bed and despite the urge in her mind to lay down and pass out she shook her head.

“Thank you for the offer, but I need to return to my duties.” She turned to leave. “Tell me when he wakes, please.”

She walked out of the room, flanked by four guards. Patton sat down on the empty bed and looked around wounded throughout the hospital. He then turned his attention to Zeus who was leaning heavily on his crutches.

“Marshall, how are you doing?”

Zeus looked up and shrugged. “Feeling much better, sir.”

“Good to hear,” Patton leaned back and sighed. “Let’s hope no more of us get whacked.”

“I really want to know where Felix went?” Ian said as he looked out of the icy window expecting to see some sign of the German.

Patton grunted. “Don’t know. But that krout seems like a tough bastard. He should be fine.”

*

This wasn’t the first time Felix had been hunted. Allied airpower and armor chased them ceaselessly back on Earth. The feeling of being stalked wasn’t new to him and Felix knew exactly how to turn the hunter into the prey.

“What are we doing?” Martin whispered as the pair walked casually down the street.

Felix had originally tried to get the radio operator to leave so his plan would have a better chance at success but in the end he let him tag along.

“I told you,” Felix replied. “We’re going to kill the cowards who attacked Frederic.”

Martin threw up his hands, irritated at his friend's vagueness. “But can’t they disguise themselves to look like ponies? How will we know when we seen one?”

“They will come to us,” the gunner said matter of factly. “Then we kill them.”

Martin huffed in frustration. “How am I going to kill them? I didn’t bring my gun like you did.”

Felix stopped and looked the other human over. “Why didn’t you bring it, idiot?”

“I didn’t think I would need it.”

Felix rubbed his forehead, trying to hide his irritation. “Fine, we will head to the shed and retrieve your gun.”

The shed was empty when the two Germans arrived half an hour later. Felix stood guard as Martin entered the tank and hummed quietly as he waited. The sound of a luger being loaded alerted Felix to the fact that Martin had found his gun.

“Ready to go?” the gunner asked impatiently.

“Yes, yes,” Martin holstered the firearm. “Lead the way.”

It was starting to snow when they reached the place where they last saw Frederic in full health. They could hear Cheerilee and the foals in the building as they wandered around the doorway. They searched around the snow for a while before making out solo bootprints.

“Lets follow these and see where they lead us,” Felix stated. “But we must hurry. Snow is starting to fall and the tracks are already faint.”

They followed the trail for several minutes and Felix was starting to get frustrated. “He is such a walker. See how his tracks wander the streets with no apparent destination?”

Martin nodded. “Yes.”

Felix stopped suddenly and pointed to hoofprints. “Look, he was joined by a pony. This must have been one that attacked him.”

“Do you think we are getting close?”

“Yes.” Felix started walking again. After a few more minutes he stopped once more. “Here.”

The gunner looked at the tracks for a moment before lifting his eyes to the dark alleyway where Frederic’s bootprints disappeared into the shadows.

“He went in there.”

Martin peered over his friend’s shoulder. “Why would he go in there? It doesn’t make sense.”

“That doesn’t matter,” Felix grunted as he walking into the alley. “All that matters is that we find the ones who attacked him.”

They followed the trail until it reached the wide doors that led into the storehouse. Felix was about to enter it when the doors creaked open and a pony carrying firewood stepped out. She stopped immediately and stared up in shock at the two humans glaring down at her.

“He-hello,” she stuttered.

“Hello,” Felix replied in english. Then he pointed into the building. “Is anyone in?”

“No.” She was shaking with terror now and the German was sure that the mare wasn’t an enemy. “It’s just me.”

“You, only?” Felix grunted. “Okay pony. Go.”

The mare didn’t hesitate and rushed down the alley as quickly as she could. Felix watched her go before stepping into the building.

“This shed isn’t far from the city edge,” Martin stated. “They could have set up an ambush here then dragged him to the snow to hide the evidence.”

Felix nodded. “I agree.”

The pair searched the storehouse for several minutes with little luck. Felix though, thanks to his sharp eyes, noticed a speck of blood and a few light brown hairs next to the entrance as they were preparing to leave.

“Here we are!” the gunner exclaimed as he lifted one of the hairs. “Same color as the commander's.”

“You think this was the place?” Martin moved close to see the evidence for himself.

Felix dropped the hair. “It has to be.”

The pair left the shed and into the falling snow. Martin looked up at the sky and sighed. “This weather, reminds me of Russia.”

The gunner grunted in agreement. “Come, lets go to the place where they found him.”

The snowdrift wasn’t far from the firewood storehouse. Felix walked around the area as Martin stopped every pony that passed and asked them in vain with his poor english if they had witnessed anything. Most of them just looked up at him with confusion and fear and the rest said no.

“It’s no use,” Martin said as the last pony heading back from the factories passed them. “There are no witnesses and what kind of evidence is there that would lead us to his attackers? The sun is also going down.”

“So?” Felix faced his friend with cold eyes. “Darkness will make his attacker’s bold. For all I know they are watching us right now, waiting to strike.”

“Damnit, Felix,” Martin groaned. “I am freezing and the weather is getting worse. Can we hold off our search until later. I can’t feel my hands!”

Felix let out an annoyed sigh. “You sound like a child. Come, we will search the city a while longer, then you can warm yourself next to a fire.”

“Oh,” Martin moaned. “Fine.”

The night sky was black due to the cloud cover and snow. Felix, tired of slipping on hidden ice, stole a lantern from a ragged house and now used it to light his way. Martin followed doggedly behind, shivering and cursing the whole time.

“Shut it,” Felix growled. “Your chattering teeth are making my head hurt.”

Martin glowered at his comrade and continued to shiver violently. He looked back at the darkness that surrounded the area outside of the lantern’s light and for a moment thought he saw a pair of blue eyes watching them.

“Felix,” he stammered. “I think we are being followed.”

“The blue eyes?” Felix asked. “Yes, I have seen them too.”

“What do we do?” Martin whispered as he started to fiddle with the gun on his belt.

Felix looked around for any more eyes. “Stay calm.”

They continued to walk until they were in the industrial section of the city. Martin looked up at the towering smokestacks and factories. Many of them incomplete. Felix took a sudden turn and entered a partially completed structure.

“Follow me,” he muttered as he pushed open the the two makeshift doors and entered the wide, ceilingless room of the factory. “Get some wood and start a fire.”

Martin grabbed a pair of thin planks and started to snap them into smaller pieces. He set most of them on a pile in the middle of the snow covered stone floor. He took a thinner piece of wood and ignited it using the lantern. After a minute they had a small fire to stand around.

“Could you have chosen a building with a roof on it?” Martin protested as snow fell around them.

“I could have,” Felix replied smugly.

Martin grumbled under his breath, grabbed a toolbox and sat down next to the flames. Felix remained standing for a while before doing the same.

“What now?” Martin asked.

Felix pulled a cigaret from his pocket and lit it with the lantern. “We wait.”

Much to Felix’s pleasure they didn’t have to wait long. The sound of approaching hooves in the snow put both humans on full alert. Out of the darkness appeared a unicorn. Behind her several pairs of blue eyes glinted in the fire.

“Hello,” she said pleasantly as the eyes behind her started to spread out to encircle them. “I am wondering, were you intending on making your deaths as easy for us as possible or what?”

Both humans just stared at her with blank faces. The pony frowned, not understanding why they wouldn't answer.

“Staying silent won’t buy you time,” she continued. “We have orders to kill you. There is no escaping this.”

They humans still remained silent.

“Did you freeze to death?” She laughed. “The other one spoke so I know you’re kind isn't mute.”

Felix tossed his half finished cigarette into the fire and stood slowly. Martin glanced up at him nervously.

“Oh, you aren’t frozen,” she stepped forward. “Shame, it would have made our job so much-”

There was a swift move from Felix as he slipped his luger from its holster and proceeded to fill the pony’s body with an entire magazine. The mare was dead before she hit the ground and her bloody body quickly changed into it’s true form.
Martin rolled off his box and hugged the ground just as green magic soared through the space where he had just been. Martin pulled his pistol as well and opened fire on two changelings charging his position, downing one. The other took to the air and shot two burst of magic at him before flying back into the shadows. Felix remained standing as he reloaded, his bloodlust obscuring his mind. Martin saw another pair of changelings aiming for an attack on the gunner and he grabbed his friend’s arm and dragged him to the ground just as the magic bolts flow over.

“Thanks,” Felix grunted. A green bolt hit the snow in front of him and dissipated. “It seems their magic can't penetrate snow. What luck! Use it as cover.”

The German jumped to his knees and fired on a changeling that was flying above to gain a clear line of fire on them. The rounds hit true and the creature dropped like a stone and became impaled on a row of iron rods. It screamed in pain for only a moment before Felix landed a bullet through the side of its head.

Martin hugged the ground behind the pile of snow he was struggling to build around him. There was a green flash and the human lost all feeling in his left leg. He looked back and saw that his pants were charred and his skin was blackened and bleeding.

“Felix!” the man screamed. “Above us!”

The gunner glanced at his friend momentarily before raising his eyes to the incomplete smokestack above them. At first he couldn’t see anything but quickly a green glow emerged as the hidden changeling prepared another shot.

“Keep shooting the ones on the ground,” he ordered. “I got that one.”

“I’ll try,” Martin replied as another magic bolt hit the snow next to his left hand. “But I don’t have much more ammunition!”

Felix held his breath and aimed directly at the glowing speck against the dark sky. A green bolt barely missed his face but he paid no attention to it. Another one grazed his back and the pain clouded his vision. He ignored it and softly pulled the trigger sending a round skyward. A split second later the green glow went out followed by a dying scream.

“Nice shot,” Martin grunted. “But could you get down. They almost hit you three times now.”

Felix compiled and hugged the ground. He fired his last three rounds in that magazine at a changeling taking cover behind a pile of lumber but didn’t know if he had hit. He reached for his third magazine and while he was busy reloading another changeling jumped into the sky and rushed their position. Martin saw it coming and fired his last two bullets. One hit and the changeling dropped and slid across the ground towards them. It started to get back up but Felix had reloaded by then and put a round between its eyes.

“How many more are there,” Martin gasped. The numbness in his leg had disappeared and now a growing pain had replaced it.

Felix fired a round at a dark area where a magic bolt had just flew from before answering. “Don’t know.”

“I’m out of bullets,” Martin called. “Damnit, my leg hurts!”

The gunner pulled his fourth and last magazine from its pouch and slid it to his comrade. Martin snatched it up, shook off the snow and reloaded his luger. Then everything went silent.

“Are they gone,” Martin whispered hopefully.

Felix shook his head and continued to pan his pistol side to side, looking for movement. There was a series of hissing that the humans took to be the changeling language then the silence returned. Felix took the time to check his ammunition status. One chambered, three in the magazine.

“Should have brought more ammunition,” he chuckled.

Martin let out a frustrated sigh. “It scares me how you can find humor in deadly situations.”

The loader just smiled. “No more waiting. Our move. Cover me.”

He jumped up and darted to a nearby stack of bricks. A bolt of magic passed inches behind him and when he arrived at his new cover he turned to return fire but Martin had already taken care of it.

“Good shot, boy.” Felix cheered.

“Yeah, thanks,” Martin replied blandly.

Felix then rushed out again from hiding and reached the factory wall and jumped over a stack of iron bars and landed behind the changeling that was taking cover there.

“Boo,” the gunner growled as he fired two times into the changelings face as it turned to face him.

He couldn’t see Martin but he heard his comrade fire twice then yell, “don’t worry, I got it!”

“Good,” Felix replied as he peered at the next position where he believed a changeling was hiding.

Two blue eyes peered out at the same time and Felix fired a bullet through one of them. It screamed once then was silent.

“They’re leaving!” Martin cheered and Felix looked up just in time to see the remaining changelings flee.

He raised his pistol and fired his last bullet at the trailing changeling. It shrieked and plummeted back to the ground. Felix jogged over to it as the creature struggled to get up. It saw the human approaching and tried desperately to drag itself away. Felix knelt down and shoved his lugar between the changeling’s terrified eyes.

He pulled the trigger and muttered, “boom.”

The creature closed its eyes expecting death but all that happened was a small cick. It opened it’s eyes again to witness the human holster his weapon.

“To bad,” he said to himself. “I’m out.”

The changeling continued to stare at him in terror.

“I still need to kill you,” Felix huffed. He then laughed. “You don’t understand what I’m saying do you? Perhaps you’ll understand this.”

He reached into his boot and pulled out an Waffen SS dagger that had been gifted to him by his brother. He admired the shine of the steel in the fire before smiling down at the Changeling.

“I am going to enjoy this far more than you are,” he laughed as he plunged the blade into one of its legs.

The tortured screams of the changeling was what finally convinced Martin to get to his feet. The radioman limped over to his friend, following the sounds of death and Felix’s laughter. He found them on the other side of storage boxes just as the gunner slid his blade through the changeling’s neck, silencing it. It’s legs and wings had already been removed. The creature’s head hung loosely on it’s shoulders until another twist of the dagger sent it rolling across the floor. Blue-Green blood covered the snow as it gushed from the maimed body.

Martin shook his head, disturbed, as Felix stood. The gunner wiped his dagger off on a cloth, sheathed it then stepped gleefully towards the severed head.

“Damn,” he chuckled. “I wish I could keep this as a trophy. But I guess I’ll just keep it to show Frederic when he wakes.”

The door to the factory suddenly flew open and a dozen armed ponies rushed in, weapons ready. They stopped short and looked around at the carnage. One of them vomited.

“A little late, are we?” he laughed. The ponies stared back, not understanding. “Lets go Martin, we’ll let them clean up.”

Day 33

“Good morning,” Celestia chimed. “How do you feel?”

Morning Mist looked around the room, confusion in her eyes. She sat up slowly but was quickly told to lay back down by the filly.

“What happened?” Mist asked in an exhausted tone. “Where am I?”

Celestia frowned. “The other’s were captured. But we patched you up and saved you.”

The bedroom door opened and Flo entered. “I knew I heard voices. It’s good to see you're awake.”

“Hey Flo,” Mist greeted as she tried to sit up again just to have Celestia politely push her back.

“Try to stay lying down,” Flo stated. “Your stitches have yet to heal.”

The injured mare frowned. “The others were captured? My sister?”

“Yes, your sister was taken,” Flo sat on the bed next to her. “But we have a plan to get them back.”

Mist didn’t seem convinced. “A plan? What kind of plan?”

“A rescue plan,” the older mare replied. “Don’t worry about it. We have everything ready to go.”

Mist once again made a move to sit up and Celestia stopped her. She opened her mouth to protest but the filly shook her head sternly.

The mare sighed. “What am I going to do? Can I help?”

“Sorry,” Flo replied as she placed a hoof on the young mare’s forehead. “You need to heal. Another member of the resistance is on his way here to take care of you.”

“Who is coming?” Mist looked back and forth from the others seeking solid answers. “When are you leaving?”

“I don’t know who it is,” Flo replied as she felt the bedridden mare’s forehead for any feaver. “But he sounded like a nice stallion by the letter he sent me.”

“And we’re leaving today,” Celestia added as she jumped from the bed. “Now that you’ve woken up. But we won’t depart until Flo’s friend arrives.”

Mist shot up and glared at them both. “Wait, she’s going to?”

“Please lay down,” Flo ordered and the younger pony complied. “And yes, she is coming to.”

“What!” Mist sat up again and Flo pushed her back down. “You're bringing a little filly with you?”

“Stop sitting up, and yes.”

“Why?” Mist glanced between Flo and Dawn. “What can she do?”

Flo stood and followed Celestia out of the room. “She’s the one who created the plan and will be leading it. Now try and relax. You still need your rest. I will be back shortly with some food. Don’t worry, I trust her.”

Mist’s mouth hung open in disbelief as they walked out of her room.

“Her unanswered questions are going to annoy her ceaselessly,” Flo stated as they walked through the hall. “How are the preparations on your end?”

“Everything is ready.” The filly jumped up onto Flo’s lookout chair and peered through the renewed snowstorm. She chuckled, “lets hope Mist’s foalsitter arrives soon.”

When he did arrive the pair barely stayed long enough for goodbyes. After a quick “good luck,” from a grumpy Mist and a double check that they had everything they needed the pair disappeared into a flash of light. Moments later they appeared in the woods a mile outside of Canterlot. They looked around for patrols that might have seen them before taking off running towards the city.

“You sure this will work?” Flo whispered as they made their way through the icy undergrowth.

“No,” the filly replied. “But I believe it has a greater chance of succeeding than failing.”

The mare huffed, “Oh good..”

“Don’t worry,” Celestia looked back at her. She could barely see the mare through the blizzard like conditions. “This isn’t the first time I had the odds against me.”

Flo grinned as the wind picked up and began to howl. “I know.”

Author's Notes:

If you saw any mistakes, plot holes or other issues please tell me. Thank you.