Ya no good Varmint!

I can't believe I was ever your friend!

You're not awesome; you're just a jerk!

No daughter to mine!

You have betrayed your element!

I HATE YOU!

Rainbow snapped awake, panting heavily. Soon, the panting turned into dry wheezing. Her throat ached, and her whole body was sore. She also felt a strange sense of, for lack of a better term, nothing. Like something in her had died, yet she still lived.

Her mind was torn away from this thought from what she was on. It wasn't the mat in her house or her bedroll in the wilderness; it wasn't even the bloodied thatch she slept on in the brigand's captivity. Instead, it was a thick, near stark white mattress; feathers, if she was right. On said mattress, and still covering most of her body, were thick, silken sheets of quality even her old ones in Equestria couldn't match. She leaned back, laying there. Unable to move, either due to the warmth of the sheets or her own body's weakness.

She looked around the room she was in, eyes going wide in surprise. It was like nothing she had seen in the past two years in exile. The walls were made of smooth white stone, polished to almost shine. A rug made of brushed, black fur rested by the foot of her bed, along with a polished wooden nightstand. Other bits of furniture in the room included a large dresser, a nice looking yet small desk, and a full-length body mirror. Light-filled the room from two sources. One was the window, in which the cool, silvery tone of the moon filtered in. The rest came from a light on the ceiling; likely a candle or a small flame surrounded by a cut-glass globe.

It was a level of luxury she hadn't seen since Canterlot. She had thought it was a dream, yet the previous voices and the lack of said voices and of something burning seemed to indicate it was real. W-where a-am I?, she thought to herself.

Suddenly, the door opened up, a zebra of all things entering. She wore a simple linen dress and a black collar. She walked up to the bed, grabbing onto her foreleg. Rainbow, as feeble as it was, attempted to resist her. She was a new creature, and she had learned it was never a good idea to trust new people. Her attempt was fruitless, as she was easily overpowered and.... assisted out of bed. "Sequimini me, sodes", she said.

Rainbow briefly forgot about her potential abduction to look at her forelegs. They were back, yet not as they once were. From the spot where they were severed, just above the elbow, down was polished metal. Where her elbows once were was now a simple swiveling hinge. Where her hooves once were, now rested a pair of equally well polished and razor-sharp looking bird talons. They were, in a few words, 'The coolest part of being amputated.'

The zebra led her along a corridor made of the same polished stone as her room, also line with expensive-looking items. Paintings, busts of what she guessed were famous people and statues of other things besides resting on tables, weapons, and armor. The center of the floor was marked by a purple carpet with a golden trim. Windows opened up out onto the navy blue night air, with faint lights showing in the distance like torches.

Finally, after a few minutes of assisted walking, they came to a room with a large set of doors. The zebra stopped, looked at her and said, "Tu sta in tua?" Not know what she said, Rainbow just nodded, hoping that it wouldn't get her into any more pain. The zebra unslung her left foreleg from her shoulder and set it down on the ground, and went to go push open the door.

Rainbow was left standing there for a few moments. While her forelegs, now sturdy and unmoving, stayed upright and straight, her hindlegs now threatened to buckle under her. They quivered and shook, and Rainbow was now focusing whatever energy she had left into keeping them from falling. Before it came to fruition, however, the zebra returned and slung her leg back over her striped back, and led her inside.

Inside, she was immediately hit by a massive wave of hot air and steam. The stone in this room was a dirty grey, while the pillars that held up the ceiling were slick with moisture. The source of the moisture was the massive pool of steaming hot water that took up most of the room. It looked like a hot indoor pool, with stone benches and stools sitting in the shallow end. Steam curled off of it like smoke off a fire, and Rainbow could already feeling her tenseness relax somewhat.

The zebra led her to one of the stools in the shallow end, slowly setting her down as to have her underbelly resting on it. Her coat let the near scalding hot water soak into it, her bound tight muscles unwinding in an instant. It felt good and was just what she needed. She sighed in relief, letting herself be let go.

Light splashing indicated to her that the zebra had left the pool, while another set of them indicated her return. Rainbow then felt something falling down onto her back, resting just above the water level. Cracking her neck to look back at it, she saw the zebra pouring oil onto her back, the golden liquid pouring out like syrup onto her back.

Rainbow attempted to rise, pushing on the edges of the stool with her new limbs. The zebra was pouring oil on her; she could be preparing to light it on fire and burn her! While the more logical part of her brain told her that was stupid, instinct took over and urged her on. However, both due to her lack of capable muscle and the lack of experience with the new appendages, she failed. She rose up maybe a few inches, only to slid back onto it, her limbs falling into the steaming water.

Her fears turned out to be unfounded, anyway. The mare didn't light it on fire; instead, she began to rub the oil into Rainbows back, just in between the joints of her wings. It felt surprisingly pleasant, especially since oil wasn't necessarily something one wanted to get in their feathers. The hooves of the mare rubbed the oil in, the liquid almost feeling like she was being massaged with honey. Once again, she let herself be lost in the pleasing sensation.

She became faintly aware of another set of light splashes coming up near her. Opening an eye and looking over, she saw another mare; a caragor this time, wearing a similar outfit to the zebra. She carried a small brass item, looking very similar to a knife. Once again, Rainbow tried to pull away in alarm, yet couldn't due to lack of strength. The caragor revealed it wasn't a knife, however, as she went to her hind legs, lifted on out of the water, and began to use the brass instrument to rub away sweated out oils from the limb. She then moved on to the back, sides, and neck, careful to avoid the numerous scars that marred her body.

Rainbow felt herself relax again, letting it wash over her. The removal of the oils felt pleasantly good, as did the zebra now rubbing down her wings with a warm towel. She didn't know why, and didn't care, why she was being treated this way. All that mattered was that it wasn't pain, and in fact, it felt nice and relaxing. If she shut her eyes, she could imagine she was at one of her secret appointments at the Ponyville Day Spa.

Like those appointments, it had to end eventually. After what felt like an eternity but was likely only about fifteen minutes, the two of them stopped their actions and then lifted her up off the stool. Leading her out of the water, the grabbed and began drying her off with warm towels. Even this part of the experience was nice, allowing her already warmed and relaxed body one final huzzah. Soon, she felt reinvigorated; like she had just drunk a dozen coffees.

Another person entered the room: a Demigryph in armor. Said armor consisted of a chain mail set of armor, a steel square of metal on his chest held in place by leather straps, and a large bronze helmet with a black feather crest. He had a sword with gold scabbard coverings on it and an equally good looking dagger on the opposite side. "Et paratum est?", he said in a short, curt manner.

"Ita, domine", they both answered instantly.

"Bonum," he said. "Tu dimisit." He then turned his gaze to her as the two of them shuffled out. "Quaeso, mulier. sequere-" He then stopped, cursed under his breath, and said, "Follow."

Next Chapter: 34~A new offer Estimated time remaining: 7 Hours, 13 Minutes