“I. Am not. Upset.”

I moved across homebase with the force of a whirlwind, a broom in hoof, two dusters strapped to my pink apron, and an unquenchable desire to purge my home of all filth and disorder. Desks, chairs, curtains, no dust bunny would be safe from my wrath. No pillow was left unfluffed. No counter unclean. No paperwork unorganized.

“I do not get upset,” I muttered to myself through clenched teeth as I attacked the floor with my broom. “I’m always in control. I would be a disgrace to my hive if I allowed some foolish upstart to rattle me.”

Once the dust on the floor was collected and dumped, I moved the desk and unleashed my dusters upon it like a raving tiger. Traitorous thoughts brought me back to the moment Spike embraced me.

“Foolish little dragon. Thinks he can go around saying whatever he wants. So what I blabbed dangerous information to him that could easily be used against me? I… simply wanted to him to lower his guard and make him think I was lonely and miserable! Hah! I showed him!”

My pace slowed to a stop.

“You know what? I’m going to not worry about anything! Not about Thorax blabbing away our secrets, or Flash’s foolishness, or Shiny’s weird kindness, or how Spike might be the only one who can understand me, or even that I might be forced to kill Elytra! I can handle this! I-it’s only the fate of my hive that’s at stake! I totally got this!”

The dusters trembled in my grip.

“This is fine. I am fine. Everything. Is. Going. To. Be. Fine!”

The window cracked.

I turned my head in time to see pitch black clouds and a torrent of snow outside. The large crack on the window pane gradually spread.

I barely had time to drop to the floor and use the desk as cover when the enchanted, soundproof glass shattered.

The blizzard’s howl and panicked screams rattled my senses. I flipped into my Sassy disguise, ripped off my apron and rushed for the main street of Sugarcube Corner to grasp the situation.

Loose carriages, barrels, and stripped fragments to roofs tumbled down the roads. Cries of panic echoed all around me as the citizens ran for cover or attempted to hold their fragile homes together in vain as the blizzard raged on.

Flash! Spike! Please tell me you two aren't caught up in this!

I activated Dragon Whisper while using the building as a windshield. The panic and unfiltered anger in Spike’s tone doubled my anxiety. As he explained the involvement of the Cold One’s vassal–a windigo he called it–I realized both the truth behind what caused this blizzard and the direness of Elytra’s presence.

Just when I thought things couldn’t get worse, Spike brought more grim news when he reported Twilight’s status.

I let them leave my sight for just a little while and this happens. What did I do to deserve this?

I frowned. ...Oh. Right.

“Alright, I’m enroute. Do what you have to do to keep the others alive," The moment our connection ceased I sprinted towards Spike’s location.

I hurried from building to building for cover against the blizzard. The closer I drew to Everfree Forest, the stronger my headache grew from overwhelming surge of pathos energy embedded in the atmosphere. I stopped by one of the houses to catch my breath and stall the lightheaded sensation that assaulted me.

If this gets any worse, there wasn't going to be a town left to save. You two better not get yourselves killed!

A cry for help tore me out of my thoughts. Across the street I saw a group of three young mares huddled together in the middle of the intersection. The wheels of a runaway carriage clicked and bounced along the ground towards their direction.

Protective instincts placed me in front of the girls in a blink. I gritted my teeth and channeled the icy energy of pathos from my chest into my forehooves. The carriage almost fell upon us before I darted forward and flipped it over our heads and into the side of a building.

It exploded into a shower of broken wood fragments on impact, a slew of vegetables stored inside scattered into the wind. Any fragments that threatened to whip around and hurt them were thwarted by my wings as I shielded them. Only when the three were clear of danger did I breathe in deep and force the pathos in my hooves back into my chest. When the rebellious energy finally subsided to a gentle pulse of warmth, I knew it was contained. For now.

I turned to the girls, who in turn gaped at me with awe. They seemed familiar, but I couldn’t put my hoof on where or when. “Are you three hurt?” I asked.

“That. Was so. COOL!” The orange one beamed. Ah, right. The Cutie Mark Crusaders. This must be Scootaloo then. Which means the other two are...

“This ain’t the time to be impressed!” Applebloom barked.

“Anyway,” Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes at the miffed Scootaloo before looking up at me, “you’re my sister’s friend, Sassy, right? Thank you so much for saving us!”

“What are you three even doing out in this blizzard? You need to find someplace safe to hide until things calm down. Stay with your families,” I said.

“We tried to find our sisters, but we don’t know where they are! It got too dangerous to stay in my sister’s boutique! We wanted to make sure they were safe too!” Sweetie was on the verge of tears. Scootaloo and Applebloom nodded, sharing equally stressed expression.

It’s too dangerous to let them flail around looking for their sisters, and no way in Tartarus am I going to bring them with me to Spike’s location where their sisters actually are. They need someplace safe to wait it out.

An idea clicked.

“I’ll find your sisters and let them know you’re safe. For now, stay at my place.”

“B-but we can’t just sit around while they could be in danger! We gotta help ‘em!” Applebloom said. The others nodded with strengthened, albeit hesitant, resolve in their gazes.

More worried about their family than themselves.

...Elytra, please be safe until I find you.

My expression softened as I lowered my head until we were at eye level. “And you will be helping them by putting their minds at ease. Don't leave my place, even if the storm stops. Don’t open the door for anypony except for myself, Twilight’s friends or your family members. Am I clear?”

Blizzard or no, there was no telling how many ponies were still influenced by the pathos surge. The last thing I wanted was for them to deal with a pony who went mad from its empowerment.

After a moment of indecision, they slowly shook their heads and followed me. Outside the occasional flying debris we had to dodge, we made it safely to homebase. Once they were inside, I waited to ensure they locked the door before I continued towards Everfree.

That moment was when a sudden, anguished roar tore through the air that rooted my hooves and rattled my bones. As the cry faded, so too did the raging blizzard.

The pathos is disappearing. That means it lost its anchor… Did those two somehow defeat one of those monstrosities?

With the blizzard subsided recovery teams kicked into gear. Weather ponies took into the skies to disperse the dark clouds while other ponies left their homes either to check on their neighbors or rush to the hospital to seek help. The speed of efficiency of their response to the crisis was profound, though I had to remind myself that this was Ponyville.

I thought to take flight and head straight to Flash and the others, then realized my brethren had to be aware of what was going on, and they could be any of those ponies who are out and about to reign in the chaos. Instead, I opted to maintain a low altitude as I weaved through the buildings so I didn’t risk any unwanted attention following us.

When I finally arrived to the entrance of Everfree, I spotted a pony in the center of an otherwise empty snowfield. Collapsed on his side atop of bloodsoaked snow. My heart sank as I realized that pony was Flash.

Oh no. No no no. This can't be happening!

My body moved faster than I could think as I landed and closed the distance. A closer look confirmed my fears.

Cuts, bruises, and bluish flesh marred Flash with hints of frostbite. His wing hung to the side at an unnatural position, and whoever tried to apply first aid only managed a hastily applied gauze around his rib cage. His fur was a lighter shade of orange, areas around his It took considerable effort to keep my focus on the mangled mess of a pony who I called my ally.

Had I been paying more attention, just a little more careful, I may have been able to help prevent this. Perhaps I could’ve opened my senses to detect pathos earlier or said something to Flash so he didn’t go running off like a mad stallion. Either way, none of this should have happened, and I have no one but myself to blame.

How could I be so blind?

No, this is not the time to be thinking about my… distraction. Flash comes first.

I crouched over Flash and felt for a pulse. There was still a small twinge of life in him. Next to him was a conveniently placed saddlebag. I rummaged through it to find a generous number of medical supplies. This raised a few red flags in my mind I had to push aside for now to focus on the bigger issue that made itself known to me.

The windigo doesn’t seem to be around, yet there is so much pathos inside Flash still. I searched his body for further wounds, sifting through the fur and messy bandage job to find a deep blade wound in his rib cage. From this angle, whatever blade struck him risked hitting the heart.

I tore off the previous bandage and cleaned the wound with the white cloth and bottle of disinfectant alcohol. Once done, I was about to apply gauze when I realized the wound was already closing.

It must be the pathos healing him. I know it bolsters tissue regeneration, but that is ridiculously fast.

Next I moved to the broken wing. Pegasi wings are notoriously difficult to heal if they are not properly reset to their natural alignment. I was thankful the primary source of the injury was from a dislocated joint rather than a broken bone, which would likely cripple his flight ability forever. I grasped the ligaments and cautiously snapped them back into place and applied gauze to the now folded wing. With the major wounds taken care of, and the healing factor of the pathos able to handle the rest, I allowed myself a moment to internalize the situation before me.

When Spike called, he said Twilight and her friends were dealing with Flash. Yet here is Flash, near dead, alone with a medical saddlebag, a sloppy rush job of mending and, to top it all off, injected with a large amount of pathos energy. Let’s start by checking in with Spike and see where the others disappeared to. And for that matter, why did they leave Flash here?

I activated the Dragon Whisper. “Spike, are you there? Where did you go?

Nothing.

Don’t you dare do this to me, Spike. You’re not allowed to make me worry about you.

“Spike, please respond,” I tried again, only to receive continual silence. Concern flooded my mind as I left Flash alone to do a cursory sweep of the area.

Quite a battle took place here. Spike mentioned Twilight was hurt, so I’m assuming the snowless space was where she was at if the pony outline, splotches of blood and strands of purple mane are an indication. In this case, that means the blizzard took place after the fact due to all the hoofprints scattered across the snow and especially around where Twilight ended up.

Interesting. So Twilight’s injury was a catalyst for the blizzard invoked by Flash somehow. There’s only one thing that is bothering me: the single line of tracks went to Flash from Everfree.

I followed the tracks behind a tall tree, through a small path just behind the wall of forestation, and stopped halfway when it was clear they converged with a larger series of hoofprints that led to town.

No doubt the large collection of hoofprints belonged to Twilight’s friends. The crisp shape of the solitary imprint tells me these are a little fresher than the others. Now for the money question: who did the solitary prints belong to? For that matter, where did the others go that they left Flash out here to die?

Bah, I got nothing conclusive to go on. I’ll look for the others once I’m sure Flash is safe.

After I did a once over to confirm there were no critical wounds I missed, I slipped on the saddlebag, then Flash on my back. Once I was sure he was secured, I made the painful walk back to the castle.

Damn he’s heavy. He’s going to owe me big time for doing this.

I groaned.

No. If there’s anypony who’s in debt, it’s me.

“Sassy, you’re bac–Oh my goodness gracious!”

I’d barely set hoof into the castle’s foyer when I was almost knocked over by a yellow and pink blur. It took a few seconds the realize the frazzled pony checking Flash’s condition was Fluttershy. Immediately she fired off words before I could utter a single one.

“Are you okay? The girls told me that Flash was–”

The moment she touched Flash’s body, a look of horror overrode her features. She shook like a leaf as tears welled up. “F-Flash’s body is so cold. So he r-really is…”

I’d started to wonder why she was looking at him as if he was dead until it occurred to me Fluttershy likely presumed he was dead due to how cold his body was thanks to the pathos. From the onset, it was an easy mistake to make.

“Whoa, hey, slow down, Buttercup,” I patted her shoulder to catch her attention. “Flash isn’t dead, but he does need to warm up. If you don’t believe me, check his pulse.”

“Huh? Flash is really alive?” She asked. I nodded towards him. With a hard swallow she checked him for a pulse. When her face went from hesitation to dumbfounded, I knew she figured it out. “Oh. He really is alive.”

Three… two… one…

“Holy smokes, he’s alive!” Fluttershy’s wings fluttered spastically as she ran in place, eyes bouncing all over the castle. Never had I seen a pony both ecstatic and panic all at once in such a marvelous fashion.

“Hey, calm down, everything is going to be–”

“We need blankets! Lots of blankets! No, more than that! We need a fire to warm him up!”

“Fire? Hey, slow down and–” The next second, Fluttershy disappeared as she barreled into a nearby room, nearly smashing the door off the hinges. Sounds of crashing and rapid movement erupted from inside. I shook my head, a smirk on my muzzle.

Gotta give her points for taking the initiative. Still, something’s rubbing me the wrong way with that initial reaction.

“Uh, Fluttershy? Did you think Flash was dead before you checked on him?”

The door slammed open as Fluttershy rushed towards me with two blankets. “That’s what the other girls were saying when they brought in Twilight and Spike.” She threw the blankets over Flash and dove into the room on the opposite end. More crashing ensued, grunts muddled in her words. “I-I refused–huff–to believe it and–puff–was about to go out there–huff–and see for–puff–myself.”

They told her he was dead? Even though he was barely alive, he still had a pulse. Did they make the same mistake Fluttershy did?

“Fluttershy, please wait for me! I too would like to check on Flash Sentry!”

I looked ahead to see a zebra slide into a halt before me; Zecora, I recalled. An awkward silence fell on us as she looked at me and Flash, whose head poked out from beneath the blankets. Zecora looked rather worse for wear with her cuts and generous helping of gauze, at least she was nowhere near Flash levels of bucked up.

Her reaction to Flash makes sense if she’s in the same boat as Fluttershy, but why do I feel like she’s also shocked that I’m here? For that matter, why does she know Flash? Don’t think they’ve ever met, and Spike never mentioned her when he explained the situation. What the hay happened in the meantime?

The door crashed open again, which made Zecora jump back as another two layers of blankets were thrown over Flash and I. The moment she locked eyes with the shocked zebra, Fluttershy’s eyes lit up like a hearth's warming tree.

“Hey Zecora, guess what? Flash is alive!”

Zecora blinked in surprise, then exhaled with relief. “Thank goodness he is alright. The news of his death gave me quite the fright.”

So just like Fluttershy, she was also told Flash was dead.

Fluttershy was ready to zip towards yet another room when she paused. “Oh, right. You two haven’t met yet. Zecora, this is Flash’s twin sister Sassy. Sassy, this is Zecora. She’s the one who told us Flash was in trouble.”

“Yes, yes, salutations and all that,” I waved off. I wasn’t in the mood for making pleasantries. However, now was a good time to confirm some information. “So who was the pony who said Flash was dead?”

“Rainbow delivered news of his passing to us,” Zecora answered. “Without a body on hoof as proof, it caused quite the fuss.”

“Where are they now?”

“In Twilight’s chambers with Nurse Redheart to aid in her healing. I escorted Spike to his room and took care of his mending.” A despaired look overcame Zecora. “The boy has suffered a great ordeal. Though his body will recover, I fear his mind and soul won’t be as easy to heal.

Spike...

It took all of my effort to stall the motherly worry that gripped me. If the situation took a toll on him, that likely explained why he didn’t answer me when I called him earlier. I’ll deal with that later. First I need to address that slip of the tongue. “Nurse Redheart?”

“Oh yes,” Fluttershy answered. Only now did I realize she disappeared from my side and spoke from the third room. Just how many blankets is she going to get? “When the others arrived, she was with them. Looks like they had gone to the hospital first to get help. Because it was so busy due to the blizzard, she offered to come to the castle and help out.”

A bead of sweat rolled down my cheek. Of all the places for my brethren to be stationed during a chaotic event, hospitals were at the top of the priority infiltration zones. If Nurse Redheart turns out to be a changeling...

“Speaking of busy, you two go and take care of Flash’s mend. I have… other business to attend.”

Zecora's mysterious tone caught my attention, but before I could ask any questions, Fluttershy rushed out of the room with even more blankets, this time throwing two particularly thick covers over Flash, one lavender, the other matching Flash’s coat.

“That’s right," Fluttershy said, again focusing on the zebra. “You did mention you had to go somewhere after that. Don’t forget the supply closet is in the hall to the right.”

Zecora cringed and averted her eyes from me.

“A-ah, yes, that is correct. Fear not, for I didn’t forget.” Just like that, Zecora scurried off down the hall.

Zecora, what in the hay are you up to?

I turned towards the hall where Twilight and her friends resided. Though I didn’t have the time to interrogate Zecora directly, I had the next best source of information next to me.

Fluttershy was about to rush for the next room when I caught her by the wing tip. “Alright, that’s enough. I think Flash has enough blankets to help him through an ice age.”

Fluttershy shook her head. “Oh, I wasn’t going to get more blankets. That would be silly. I wanted to find some flint to get him to warm up faster.”

“I’m gonna go on a limb and say a simple bed to get him to rest on will do for now.” As well as getting him and the fifty pounds of fabric off my damn back.

“...O-oh. Right,” Fluttershy flushed. “Um, we created a makeshift ward for Twilight and Spike to rest in. There should be a spare bed for Flash, so let’s use that.”

“Now we’re talking. Let’s go.” I fell into step with Fluttershy as we trotted at a brisk pace.

After a few seconds of comfortable silence passed, I started my inquiry. “So, what was that about with the supply closet?”

“She asked me for a shovel earlier. I imagine all of that snow buried her hut something awful.”

In which case, that doesn’t explain that weird look she gave me. Don’t have time to deal with that. First Flash, then Nurse Redheart. It’ll be faster to put him in the same room so I can work to secure him and make sure Nurse Redheart isn’t a changeling.

As we hurried to find the others, Fluttershy quickly filled me in on Zecora’s story. I also learned of what transpired during the battle with Flash based on the accounts of the mares present.

I need to remember to investigate the path Flash came from where the windigo resided. There should be clues to help me piece together where Elytra is.There’s also Zecora that I have to talk to and learn everything about Flash’s movements before shit went south. This is going to be a very busy evening.

As the topic drifted to Flash, Fluttershy cast her gaze to the ground as she walked. “I’m… I’m sorry about Flash getting hurt, Sassy.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about. Considering Flash went into Everfree alone, he’s only got himself to blame,” I grumbled.

“But that’s the thing. I think this is all my fault.”

Whoa, what? “Your fault? How?”

“Flash asked me about the Everfree Forest earlier and Twilight’s expeditions there. When he told me not to say anything to Twilight because he didn’t want her to worry, I had a feeling he truly wanted to make sure she was safe. When he rushed out the door, I wasn’t sure why he seemed so panicked. That must have been the point where he decided to go into the forest himself.” Fluttershy sniffed. A tear fell. “I knew I should have said something to Twilight. I’m a terrible friend.”

“Oh no, you don’t. Stop blaming yourself for something another pony did. There’s no way you could have predicted he would do such a thing.”

Predicted. As the word rolled off my tongue, Shining Armor’s words returned to haunt me: “If you continue sabotaging your own teammates by hiding too much information, you’re only dooming yourself and the team for failure.”

“Besides,” I grimaced after a beat, “this is actually my fault.”

“H-huh?”

“He and I had a, well, let’s call it a disagreement. Flash can be very narrow-minded at times, and he only seems to see my flaws whenever it’s convenient for his arguments. Things came to a head today as he got on my case about some of my... habits.”

“What sort of habits?”

“Trust issues.”

“Did something happen where you feel you can’t trust anypony?”

“I suppose you can say it runs in my blood. Must’ve got it from our mother.”

“But he’s your brother. Surely you can trust him, right?”

“We have a complicated history.” Very complicated.

“I can relate to that. I’ve had issues with my own brother time to time as well. He can be self-centered, lazy, and petty. Sometimes, I just can’t stand him.”

I grinned. “Can’t spell brother without bother. Am I right?”

Fluttershy giggled. “Yes. Brothers can be a hassle, but I still love him anyway. And he has good merits too. He can be really passionate and dedicated when he actually puts his mind to it. Sometimes he just needs a push in the right direction, or at least a chance to prove himself.”

A chance to prove himself...

I thought back to our interactions until this point. I always knew something about me got under his skin, yet he always tried to brush it off and give me a chance to earn trust. I had to acknowledge the effort it took for him to do that now that I knew his history with changelings.

He gave me more chances than anypony else. Far more than I’ve ever given anypony.

More than I deserved.

I suppose I never did give him a chance, did I? I know he gave me several.

I frowned.

Can’t believe I’m actually letting this get to me. Not like it matters. Even if he survives this, there’s no way he would give me another chance.

“It’s never too late.”

I tensed as I glanced at Fluttershy. “What?”

“It’s never too late to start things over. I’m sure if you two just had a heart to heart and talked things out, you two can be close again.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” I’m afraid that train already left, Buttercup.

When we arrived, I was greeted by the two beds that took center stage in the chaotic mess of tables and improvised supplies, Twilight settled in the centermost mattress. The neighboring bed was empty.

The ponies in the room perked up at us; Applejack, Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity, and a white mare with the neatly styled pink mane who had to be Nurse Redheart. The smiles on their faces dropped the moment they noticed Flash, sans Redheart who, for half a second, had an unreadable look on her face before she gasped in surprise.

“Another patient? Please, lay him here,” Redheart directed me to the unoccupied bed I slipped Flash onto with the piles of blankets.

“This is a lot of blankets for one pony. I know it’s snowing outside, but this might be a little overkill,” Nurse Redheart said as she peeled through the layers of blankets checked his pulse. “Oh my, the poor thing's freezing! No wonder you got him so many blankets. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of him from here.”

As Redheart started checking him for injuries, two things caught my attention.

First was Nurse Redheart, who I attempted to mentally feel out for any signs of pathos. Usually, the pathos inside me pulsed at the proximity of other sources of pathos or aggressive emotions like a magnet. Yet the response to Redheart was mild at best.

A pathos signature would normally be a sign that they were a changeling. But after that surge, now I’m not so certain. With that logic, Flash would be the biggest candidate for a changeling in this room. Speaking of Flash...

The second concern was Flash’s body: He was completely healed.

Though his body grew even colder, he recovered from what had been near-death to almost perfect health. No doubt this led to further awkwardness from the four mares who pronounced him dead almost an hour ago.

“Oh. Well now. Looks like he doesn’t need anything more than rest.” Nurse Redheart said.

I recovered from my moment of surprise and gave my chest a proud thump. “Of course. He’s had a rough day, but luckily he had his sister to look after him. Oh, and another thing, not pronounce him dead.” I added a pointed look at the mares, who recoiled with surprise.

“That…s-something ain’t right. Flash was bleedin’ out when we last saw him. Dead as a doornail!” Applejack exclaimed.

I chose to play along and get to the bottom of this mystery. “Well, when I found him, he was still alive. Even Fluttershy was able to find a pulse in him.”

“Yeah. You all told me he was dead when you found him. So how do you explain this?”

I expected them to flounder in the strange logic. Instead, guilt-ridden expressions overrode their features.

“Sorry, Sassy, I… what we did wasn’t right. I’ll own that.” Rarity said.

Wait. Wasn’t right? What they did? They’re speaking almost as if…

“When you told Zecora and I that Flash was dead, was that the complete truth?” Fluttershy’s eyes narrowed with suspicion.

Silence.

“Well?” The suspicion in Fluttershy’s tone receded into hesitation. My eyes widened.

No way. They didn’t seriously…

“You weren’t there, Fluttershy.” Rarity spoke up with a somber tone. “Flash did some terrible, unforgivable things…”

“I-I didn’t want to do it. We’re not monsters, but...” Pinkie bit her lip.

“And your bright idea was to leave our friend to die?!” Fluttershy’s eyes welled up. “That is beyond monstrous! It’s barbaric!”

They were at the eye of the storm where the highest concentration of pathos would be, so it makes sense their bolstered anger would warp their decision making. Still, never thought I would witness the legendary heroines of friendship leave a pony to die.

Twilight Sparkle, you are seriously sleeping on the job here.

“He nearly killed us all!”

The raw burst of emotion rushed from Rainbow, who snarled. “Look, I’m not a fan of doing such a thing, but if Spike hadn't stabbed him, we'd all be dead. Are you saying that we would’ve been better off dead? Huh?!”

My brain slammed the brakes as Rainbow’s words hit me.

Spike… stabbed Flash? I heard that wrong. That can’t be right.

“Whoa, slow down everypony! Rainbow, repeat what you just said!” I demanded.

The heat in Rainbow’s eyes cooled as she shot me a somber look. “Spike pushed through the blizzard and got close enough to stab Flash in the rib cage with a really weird dagger. Don’t know where he was hiding it, but he saved our lives."

I fell back on my haunches. My eyes clouded up, unfocused, staring somewhere past Rainbow's face.

Spike stabbed Flash.

With a Niekinis dagger. My dagger.

I gulped.

No. I… I can’t believe it. Spike, of all teammates, stabbed Flash? There’s no way. Especially after all that talk about not wanting to kill anypony, he attempts to kill the one pony who he looked up to like an older brother? That’s too unbelievable.

But… I did train him, didn’t I? In the end, I was the one who put the knife in his claws and showed him how to use it. I showed him the philosophy to control his emotions and focus on his directions without distraction of thought and morality.

I stifled a gasp. Was this my fault? Did I drive him into killing Flash? No, but I… I only wanted to…

I rubbed my watery eyes to clear up my expression. I have to stay focused. If Twilight’s friends have this thought in their heads, Flash is still in danger. Even if Spike did manage to snap him out of the pathos' control.

Fluttershy shrunk back from Rainbow’s words as if she was struck. “B-be that as it may, lying about it was wrong.”

“No, what we did was necessary!” Rainbow fired back.

“Necessary? Leaving our friend to die was necessary?!” Fluttershy snapped. “I’ll have you all know Flash is actually a really sweet and passionate stallion. I know for a fact he would’ve never hurt Twilight had he been in full control. Just as I’ve never seen him when he was possessed by the windigo, neither of you have seen how hard he’s worked to overcome his, um, personal issues. So please try to understand that we shouldn’t resort to such barbaric measures to protect ourselves. We’re all friends here.”

Another flare of aggressive energy burst from Rainbow as she glared at Flash. “What if he goes berserk again? Windigos follow hatred and fighting, right? We can’t let this happen again!” Her eyes narrowed. “I won’t let it happen again.”

"Rainbow," Fluttershy said, her tone pleading, but ominously low. "Listen to yourself. Whatever happened, Flash is hurt. Or… he was. But when he wakes up, he's going to need friends!",

Doing what was necessary…

Something inside me twisted at the absurdity of the situation.

These ponies know nothing about what’s necessary! Flash would have never left an ally to die. He gets on my nerves, but at least he’s an honorable pony.

White-hot anger flooded my veins as I glared at the bearer of the element of loyalty.

I’ll be damned if I let things stand as they are.

“Rainbow Dash, if you think I’m going to let any of you hurt Flash, you are gravely mistaken.” Though there was no anger or threat in my tone, it caught everypony’s attention like a rattlesnake’s tell. Nurse Redheart grew alert and curious.

Rainbow walked up to me, wings flared in some sort of war stance. “Sassy, look, I got nothing against you, but your brother tried to kill Twilight."

"He's not some kind of monster." I enunciated every word, resisting the urge to snort at the irony that I was actually defending him. My voice rose an octave higher, matching my intense gaze into Rainbow's eyes. "You do not get to treat him li--"

"I'm not waiting 'till he wakes up and starts ripping up the castle, and Spike, Twilight, and whoever bucking else he can get his hooves on," Rainbow growled. "Make this easy on all of us and just… just move aside.”

I rolled my shoulders until I felt the satisfying pop between my shoulder blades. The pathos inside raged and flooded my limbs and chest with a burst of adrenaline.

Time for mommy to unwind.

“Enough!”

The screech caused us to freeze up as Fluttershy planted herself in front of us, forehooves raised to keep us from getting through. Angry tears rushed from Fluttershy as she glared at all of us.

“You all should be ashamed of yourselves!” She screamed through choked sobs. “So many ponies got hurt today, yet rather than find a peaceful solution to bring us together, everypony is trying to use violence to fix their problems! Am I the only pony who sees something wrong with all of this? Well?!”

No one had an answer for that.

Fluttershy continued. “Yes, Twilight and Spike got hurt. Flash got possessed by a windigo, but that doesn’t mean we can’t work together to figure things out without needing to kill each other! Please, think this through! Don’t rush a decision you’re going to regret for the rest of your life!”

I looked down at my hoof, and recalled the moment I punched Spike.

I’m… better than this, aren’t I? Have I gotten so sloppy that I let a pathos-influenced pegasus control my emotions?

Or rather, to be more accurate, let the very anger the pathos feeds off of control me? No. I’m the master of my emotions, damn it. No matter what, I can’t let the pathos win.

“Fluttershy’s right. We’ve been going about this all wrong,” I finally said. “You have to admit, this is an extreme leap of logic without doing a proper investigation on all possible solutions. For all we know, that was the only windigo in the area, and Flash just happened to be the unlucky one to catch it. First of all, let’s wait for Flash and Twilight to wake up and work together to seek out answers.

“After all, if the bit was on the other hoof, would you kill Twilight to prevent Flash from getting hurt? He’s my brother, and even I wouldn't go that far.”

The tension gradually climbed down as the realization dawned on the other mares. Even Rainbow seemed a little more receptive to the idea after I broke down basic logic. Logic that I had admittedly forgotten in my own anger.

“Ahem, if I may interrupt for a moment?”

We all turned to Nurse Redheart. Though I had not forgotten about her, it was a surprised to see this tensed atmosphere had little effect on her.

“It’s been a crazy day for all of us, and I for one agree we should not jump to any conclusions until we’ve collected ourselves. A little rest and reflection should help resolve things in the morning.”

“U-um, I have to agree with that plan.” Pinkie looked around at all of us with a nervous smile. “Why don’t we all get some sleep rather than think about silly things like committing murder? Safe to say we’re all under a teensy amount of stress.”

“I-I agree. I don’t feel right about any of this at all. Feelin’ a little sick to be honest,” said Applejack.

“Let’s at least sleep in the castle to keep an eye on things. Twilight did have spare rooms for all of us, after all.” Rarity suggested.

“Y-yeah…” Rainbow averted her eyes from me, her expression a conflicted grimace.

“Glad to hear it. Twilight and Flash Sentry will be fine, so let’s all leave them to rest. I’m prepared to call it a night myself.” Nurse Redheart yawned and shooed us out of the room before closing it behind her.

Everypony exchanged awkward farewells as they part ways, leaving uncomfortable tension in their wake. Though I never got to truly tell if Nurse Redheart was a changeling, the fact that she'd left and showed little pathos inside her put me at ease for now. This left me with one concern to take care of before moving onto my investigate: Spike.

I moved across the hall to his room and quietly opened the door. I slipped in, locked it behind me, and moved to Spike’s bedside without a sound. Even in his sleep, Spike still suffered as his tear-stained face was contorted in pain.

My hoof smoothed over the torn cloth used to prop Spike’s arm in a sling. I carefully shifted it to reveal the exposed injury. I wrinkled my nose at the smell of mint and some other strong substance Zecora likely added to disinfect the wound.

I’m sure she wouldn’t mind a little changeling intervention. I hate that I can’t do this in Sassy’s disguise, but beggars can’t be choosers.

I dropped my disguise and channeled my horn. Warmth flowed in my stomach, then the magic bubbled through my lungs until I coughed up a glob of fluid that glowed from the ‘love’ that filled it. I chuckled at the mental image of Spike gagging himself at the sight.

You better be thankful for this, Shortcake. I don’t give my magic to just anyone.

I applied the goo to the wounded zones. The results were instant as the magic repaired the damaged tissue and rejuvenated the skin cells. His arm took a considerable amount of magic to heal, which left me breathless for the next few minutes.

I need to hold onto the rest of my magic. If I let the pathos take over… no, I can’t let myself think about it. I’ll have to find a way to feed tonight.

I wiped the sweat off my face and fixed the sling back on Spike’s arm as if nothing changed. Just as I turned to leave, I heard him mutter under his breath.

“Please... No... It’s all my fault.”

Whether it was the pain in his voice or the context of his words, it rooted me.

Just walk away. He’s just talking in his sleep.

My hoof moved like lead as I took a step forward. Each step was heavier than the next.

My kin are likely to attack or make a move soon. Don’t get distracted.

I stopped as grasped the door handle. You’re losing your edge! Getting too attached.

The line of thought made me gasp. From the start, I had seen Spike only as a means to an end. A tool to help me accomplish my mission. The sleeper agent I could manipulate and use as leverage if necessary.

When did that change?

At what point did I start seeing him as… as a friend?

“Trojan, don’t leave me,” Spike whimpered in his sleep.

I almost squeaked as my heart skipped a beat. My eyes stung and blurred. I scrubbed at the tears.

Stop it! I… I can’t. There’s no place for us with them. After everything we’ve done to them, ponies will never accept my kind.

The tears didn’t stop. My hoof trembled on the door handle.

I’ve manipulated dozens of ponies and dragons. Mindless drones who bent to my will with the slightest persuasion and trickery. I didn’t care then, and I can’t care now. There’s too much at stake for me to lose focus.

So why are those two so different?

After a moment, I released the door handle.

Why... do I actually give a damn about them?

I walked back to Spike’s beside and soothed my hoof over his head, humming a nameless tune. I continued until the pain in his expression faded to mild content. On impulse, I planted a kiss on his forehead then whispered into his ear.

“Damn you both for doing this to me.”

Spike smiled as I quickly and quietly flipped into my Sassy disguise and left the room.

As soon as the door clicked close I slumped to my haunches, leaned my head against the door and shut my eyes. I did not move or let myself think for the next few minutes, all spent to reel in the emotions that threatened to burst out of my chest.

“Pull it together. Just a little while longer. We still have a job to do,” I groaned.

As if some cosmic forces heard me, my choker buzzed.

That’s got to be Shining Armor. Ugh, as if this day wasn’t already stress enough as it is.

I thought to answer it immediately, but knew it was too risky for prying eyes. Then my mind drifted to the unknown hoof tracks over by ‘ground zero’ where I found Flash. I still have to investigate. Might as well talk to Shining Armor while enroute.

After taking a moment to collect myself, I moved to exit the castle.

He is not going to like this.

From the main floor to the base of the castle, Shining continued trying to reach me. The buzz on my collar matched the butterflies in my stomach as I took into the clouds.

What will Shining Armor say or do upon learning about Flash? Don’t know if I should tell him about Zecora yet, but there’s no denying that we need help.

Once I found a lone cloud high above Ponyville to settle on, I triggered the imageless function of the collar by pressing in the gem. I still had to mind my surroundings for any curious pegasi, as anypony could still hear us.

“Trojan, what’s your status?”

“Single,” I smiled wryly. Might as well get one last joke in before I get on his bad side.

“Very funny,” he replied dryly. “Seriously, what’s your current status?”

“Could be better. Things certainly didn’t get better, given Flash’s, well, anger getting to him.”

“I see. He didn’t answer my call, which is a problem I will tackle when I get to it. But since I have you on the line, have you reflected upon our last conversation?”

“Yeah. I’ve done a ton of reflecting in the past few hours.” A lifetime’s worth.

“And?”

“And… you were right.”

Shining went silent for a beat. “Just so we’re on the same page, what exactly am I right about?”

I opened my mouth to snark at the obvious smile in his voice, then closed it. No. Let the guy have his victory. It’ll be all downhill from here in a minute.

After a pause to collect my thoughts, I continued. “Show my work, eh, Teach? Alright, fine. You and I both know the easy part. Honesty is a virtue, friendship is magic, yadda yadda yadda. Just so you and I are clear, we come from completely different walks of life. Case in point, Chrysalis is our one true ruler and teacher. She taught all of us the values we know today. Clearly there’s going to be some, well, bias.

“I admit, I felt cornered when I realized I had no choice but to work with you. Our history with each other isn’t exactly spotless, so I went in with the assumption that you could get rid of me at any moment, not to mention anything I told you could be used against us. I mean, come on, our invasion was on your wedding day.

“On top of all of that, were it not for Flurry Heart stepping in, you and I would not be having this conversation. I would either be dead or rotting in your basement. Could you blame me for not wanting to be just a little careful considering my entire race is on the line here? I’m under a lot of pressure here.”

“I’ll concede to that point. I couldn’t take any risk either.”

“Exactly. So, I don’t regret most of the things I’ve done or hid from you. It was for survival’s sake. However… I do regret how I went about it. Regardless of the type of information I feel safe to share, I should not have compromised the health of our team the way I did. I plan on rectifying this moving forward by communicating better. So yeah, I was wrong in my methods, and I’m sorry.”

“Color me impressed. Glad to see you finally came around. I take it you will be more forthcoming and honest with us from now on?”

Forthcoming and honest. Mother would strangle me if she saw me now. Then again, I put myself in this position.

I looked up at Luna’s moon and smiled.

You always wanted me to be more honest, Flash. Hope it’s everything you wanted.

“Indeed. So, on that note, I know you’re a stallion of action rather than words, so I would like to start off this honesty kick I’m on to show I’m not just messing around.”

“Fantastic! So what would you like to share?” Shining’s tone was filled with hope and anticipation.

I cleared my throat and spoke with a calm, careful tone. “The situation in Ponyville has escalated. We could really use some reinforcements. A medical and disaster recovery crew would be highly recommended as well. Might be a smart idea to get an evacuation going too.”

“What?! Explain!” Shining roared.

Hello, happy Shining armor. Goodbye, happy Shining Armor.

“Word from Fluttershy, which is based on Zecora’s testimony, is that some time after our meeting, Flash went into Everfree by himself and met with Zecora. From there, he encountered a windigo and got possessed. It’s believed he entered some sort of PTSD flashback during this period and ended up whipping up a blizzard that drowned Ponyville in snow.”

Shining Armor went silent.

“Did you just… I…”

Another pause.

“You’re not serious, right? Is this another one of your jokes?” Shining Armor asked as if I told him I was Celestia’s lovechild. The calm before the storm.

“No. I’m serious.”

I took a deep breath and prepared myself.

Three… two… one…

“What the buck happened down there?! Blizzard? PTSD?!” A pause. “Windigos?! Are you kidding me? What are they doing here?!” Shining punctuated every word with the force of a volcanic eruption. Glad we’re not face to face at the moment.

“Please tell me you’re not serious. Windigos, of all things?” Shining Armor’s onslaught relented, though I knew another wave of unbridled rage was right around the corner.

“I don’t have all the facts, but I’m positive they were drawn to Flash’s aggression. Just like in the stories, they are drawn to hatred and conflict. As for their presence in Ponyville, that’s bothered me too. There shouldn’t be enough means of generating pathos to sustain their presence for–”

“Hold up! Sustain their presence? As in, those monsters feed off pathos?”

“Even we don’t know all the mechanics behind them, as the Cold One denied us their secrets. From what I’ve been able to glean, windigos are born from pathos, and they cultivate other sources of pathos to create more windi–”

“You knew this!” Shining cut me off. “You knew about the windigos from the start, didn’t you?!”

I braced myself. “Yes.”

“You are un-fucking-believable!”

I winced. “Had I even a remote idea they were in the area, I would’ve–”

“I don’t give a damn what you think!” Shining spat. “This could’ve been avoided had you told us everything from the start. Flash’s condition, the blizzard, we could’ve avoided all of this! This is all your fault!”

“...Yeah, you’re right. That is a possibility I cannot deny.” The next words tumbled off my tongue before I thought it through. “I failed to predict that Flash’s outburst would have fed him to the windigos.”

A furious snort ripped from Shining’s nostrils. “Flash’s outburst was all because of…!” A shudder escaped from Shining as he went silent. “O-of…” He tried again. The anger in his voice fizzled. Several seconds passed. “Celestia damn it, Flash…”

The defeat in Shining's voice shot pang of guilt wrenched into my stomach. A flame doused by their own hubris.

No, it’s not fair for him to blame himself for that. In the end, things would not have escalated so far if it wasn’t for me.

“Is… there anything else you’ve failed to mention thus far? Absolutely anything else you need to tell me?” The anger rose up in his voice again, though saturated with bitterness and exhaustion.

I sighed. Time for the final nail in my coffin.

“There’s something else. During Flash’s PTSD attack, some ponies, including Spike, got hurt. Twilight and her friends stepped in to stop Flash, and though some of them got minor injuries, Twilight received a deep laceration across the face and is currently unconscious. Spike received several wounds including a broken arm. I’m sure there are some townsfolk that got hurt during the storm, but I haven’t been able to confirm casualties so far. Nothing looks life-threatening, and local first responders are active, so I'm sure they will recover with rest and medical treatment.”

Shining Armor went quiet.

A second passed. Then five. Ten.

The warmth of the magical aura told me the connection was still on. I hesitated to call out to Shining at the chance of setting him off even more. Is he going to be okay? Is the connection broken or something?

I gathered what little confidence I had left and took the plunge. “Shining? Are you still there?”

Another full minute of silence.

I opened my mouth to speak when another voice beat me to it.

“H-hello? Is this working?"

My heart almost leapt out of my chest. “W-Wha… Thorax?”

Thorax gasped. “It’s working! Yes, I can hear you!”

Shining is letting him use the communication channel? Something isn’t right. “Is Shining there with you?” I asked crisply.

“He bolted past me some time ago. Looks like he forgot to turn this thing off.”

My shoulders tensed. “What’s going on?”

“I don’t know what you told him, but he started gathering almost every able soldier to get on the train and head towards Ponyville. I’ll be on the first train heading towards you."

...Oh, no…

Thorax continued, "I, um, overheard that he wants me to be your replacement. He plans to send you back to the Empire immediately.”

So this is it. When he gets here, it's all over for me.

“You need to hide,” Thorax’s voice jumped an octave, “I tried to tell him that a smaller group would be smarter, but he ignored me and said something about doing things his way now. He’s being really scary.”

I pressed the cold flat of my hoof into my forehead. “Hiding is not going to do me any good," I replied glumly. "My collar is not only a tracking device, but he can make it explode anytime he wants. There’s no escape for me.”

“Oh no. No, no, no. I-I’ll find a way to get those off for you. Maybe there’s a key or disenchant spell to break it?”

I considered the angle. With Shining Armor on the approach with the wrath of Tartarus, the next few hours would be my last moments of freedom. However, his anger was directed at me. If Thorax got caught up in my mistake…

“No. Don’t put yourself at risk. I need you to stay on his good side and do whatever he tells you.”

“But what are you going to do?”

“I’ll figure something out, but I need to know something. How’s everything back home since I left?”

A pause. “Not good. The division of the broods has shifted since you were deemed K.I.A. and only grown since then. At this rate, the entire hive will– oh no, they’re looking for me! Stay safe! I’ll find you and do what I can!”

“Thorax? What is about to happen to the others? Are you still there?” Only silence greeted me. The connection ceased.

My teeth gnashed together as unholy rage flooded my senses. It's worse than I feared. If I don't hurry, there won't be a hive left to save. Don't they realize this is exactly what he wants? Either way, if I don’t accomplish what I came here to do, I won’t be able to save myself, much less the hive.

I peered over the edge of the clouds for an overview of Ponyville. Several houses were completely destroyed. Ponies moved across town in a frenzy, majority towards the white building at the edge of town opposite of the Everfree forest. The hospital must be a mad house right now.

Houses closer to the eye of the storm were demolished, broken wood and snow left in the storm’s wake. My gaze continued to follow until it landed on ground zero, where I had found Flash.

No choice. I have to dig up whatever I can. My kin likely covered up the evidence already there, but perhaps they left a clue only someone like me would pick up. Either way, it’s the only real lead I got so far, and I can’t afford to wait things out.

I have to find Elytra before Shining Armor imprisons me again. It’s do or die.