Colgate breathed deeply as she peeked from behind the corner. The guards had left her behind, leaving her safe to get out of Foregtful territory. The place was suffering.  Lyra's corrupt hoarding of the sun had left it a dead place coated in ice and snow. Some had died from being deprived of vitamin d, others starvation, and Colgate had been living off whatever she could find until she found a way out of Forgetful clutches. Bon Bon  had taken her captive after the fire and was holding her ransom for the sun. Luckily Colgate mustered all the magic she had left and teleported to the outskirts of town where she'd been hiding out for a while in an out of business jewelry store until she found some gems left and used them to bribe her way into a few homes for a night or two.  Letting out a sigh of relief, Colagate galloped to a hole in the chain-link walls where a few Mintys had tried to black-market pawn some vegetables to some desperate Forgetfuls to make a quick buck. She slipped underneath, but accidentally brushed the  electric barbs at the top. Air-raid sirens roared as search lights blazed over the grass to her. She blinked a moment  but started running over the iced hills towards the tufts of the Everfree Forest. One of her hoofs slipped and she went sailing down the iced slopes, barely missing a tree by a few inches. her hoof was throbbing with pain, but there was no time to check the damage. She ran towards the dark canopy of the forest. Settling Beside a tree, she panted  heavily as the light streamed through the forest's fog, letting her see the fine canopy of mist shrouding her in full light. Her chest began puffing as she breathed heavily in her agonizing pain. " SHE'S NOT HERE!" cried out one guard, gesturing to another place to search.  Colgate sighed in relief as she dragged herself across slime and lumps of wet leaves, her legged swelled and burning in pain. She desperately crawled, looking around, her eyes burning wet with held back tears. Suddenly, she saw a light through the mist. She ducked under some leaves, thinking she had been found out. Suddenly she squinted and found it to be no more than the lantern of Zecora's hut. Colgate sighed in relief. If anyone could help her, It would be Zecora. Mustering all her strength, she shoved herself onwards towards the door. With her last bit of strength, she knocked three times on the hard oak. Suddenly, a burst of pain in her leg sent everything swirling into darkness.

                                                                                    .........

Colgate came back into consciousness under the face of Gilda. She was pouring a wooden bowl of warm greenish liquid down her throat. Colgate looked around the room. A few messy sleeping bags where placed around the room. The lantern had been hastily put out with a bucket of water and Zecora was holding a match in her teeth over Colgate's body to let Gilda see what she was doing.  Twilight was flipping through a book frantically  while Fluttershy was whimpering under a pillow in the corner. " Are they gone?" she asked, " Is it safe?"  Colgate raised herself up only to cringe in pain as she saw her leg wrapped in a palm throng cast. " Guards followed you to our abode. We quickly faked the house being alone!" whispered Zecora in her usual rhyme. Gilda nodded. " We all are hiding out here until it's safe. Unfortunately, its not safe here anymore. Guards are patrolling for her." Gilda said, nodding to the shadowy form of Princess Luna, who then stepped into the fire's light and showed her baggy eyelids and bloodshot eyes. " She's a wolf's head." Twilight piped up. " Thy guards of Bon Bon's want my crown." She said, pointing to the simple indigo tiara on her head. " Thinks it'll give her power over the moon." Said Fluttershy, jittering around nervously. Twilight used her horn to lower Colgate onto a cot and lifted a quilt over her. " Get some sleep, my injured child. Tomorrow's eve may be much more wild!" Said Zecora, drawing the shades and barricading the door with a heavy iron cauldron. Colgate frowned to everyone sadly. " Aww, sweet mare, it is not your fault. What started this problem was a crude insult!" said Zecora, turning to face colgate. " Nowhere's safe anymore. Somehow, this whole thing's even made it's way to Cloudsdale. " Said Gilda, shaking her head sadly. " We have all left for our safety, but now all this brings is more misery." Sighed Zecora, lowering her head. " My potions are running low, for to get ingredients, my face I must show. This is a risk I can not take, for fear it would make a terrible mistake. However, we must fetch some sleep, but as for talk, there must not be a peep."  said Zecora, Finally dunking the match into water and shunning out all light.