A Second Life chapter 18

>Spitfire hadn’t moved in minutes, only laid on top of you in what seemed to be a hug while she cried.
“Spitfire, please. I’m ok”
>”I thought I lost you…”
“It’s ok.”
>You reached up and patted her mane as she nuzzled against your chest.
“Come on Spits. Let’s get moving, we have a long walk ahead of us.”
 >Your situation hadn’t really improved with your escape of the cave.
>In fact, in some ways it had worsened.
>Your lack of food hadn’t really changed; you still would have to hunt or eat the plant life, provided you saw any.
>Cactus would most likely be your only source of water, provided you could make it out of this canyon, you didn’t have a lake you could drink from anymore.
>With that mentioned, you had only one good canteen now, your camelback in your backpack busted during the landing, as well as your second canteen.
>That meant you could only carry one liter of water at a time, which between the two of you wasn’t going to last long.
>The scuffle with the demon fish left you down to 1 grenade, 10 shots for your pistol, and a knife.
>Not much in the event you found a patrol of changelings.
>Or worse, a predator such as a wolf.
>You could handle a few changelings in hand to hand combat, but if something with claws and sharp teeth came at you, you preferred to kill it from afar.
>Spitfire finally let you up, rubbing her eyes with a hoof.
>”Sorry, I’m not usually like this.”
“You’re not usually in this kind of situation Spitfire. Don’t worry about it.”
>You dusted yourself off, and got your gear situated.
>If you remembered correctly, the cave had been on the left side of the canyon when you and Spitfire crashed, meaning if you put it on your left, you had your direction of travel.
>You really should have brought a map of the area, but hindsight is 20/20
>You and Spitfire began walking, the canyon shade doing little to keep you two cool.
>”How long do you think we have to walk?”
“Well, it takes half a day to fly from the castle to the hive. We were in the air less than an hour.”
>”So…quite a ways…”
“We’ll make it though. I promise.”
>Spitfire moved closer to you, nuzzling your side as you two walked along the rocky canyon.
>You two walked along, the only chat between you two was the occasional warning of a rock, or helping her down a long drop.
>After a few hours, you both at underneath a small overhang, desperate to find some relief from the heat.
>You took a small swig from your canteen, then handed it over to Spitfire so she could drink.
>She in turn, took a drink, and handed the canteen over to you so you could place it back in its pouch.
>”I don’t think we’re going to-“
“If you finish that sentence I will punt you to the top of this cliff.”
>”Sorry…”
>”We’ll rest for a bit, then keep going till dark. Once we get out of the canyon, we’ll move at night to avoid heat exhaustion.”
>”You’re the boss.”
>She laid down next to you, stretching her forelegs and her good wing.
>Her bandage had turned completely red with blood, probably from having moved around so much.
>Unfortunately, you didn’t have any more bandages.
>Hopefully it would be ok until you two got out of the desert.
>You reached over and scratched her backside, causing her tail to flick around happily.
>”That feels good.”
“I can tell”
>Content with a short break, you stood and put on your back pack again.
“Get in Spitfire.”
>”Why?”
“Your bandage is soaked through, and I don’t have any more.”
>”So I’m going to ride around in a bag.”
“Yes.”
>”Anon, I can take care of myself, I don’t need you to treat me like a filly.”
“I’m not treating you like a filly. You’re hurt, and you need to take it easy.”
>”I’ll be fine. Let’s just go.”
>Spitfire stood and began trotting down the path, forcing you to jog to catch up with her once you had your gear.
“What’s your deal Spits?”
>”I don’t have a “deal”. I just don’t like being treated like a filly. I’m pretty sure I’m older than you.”
“I don’t know about that. Besides, I’m not treating you like a filly. You’re hurt and I care about you.”
>”I know, but you’ve been taking care of me for four days straight, I feel like I’m just another problem for you to deal with.”
“You’re not another problem. You’re my Spitfire. Buddy, lover, whatever title you want to give yourself. Just don’t call yourself my problem.”
>”Sorry… I guess I’ll take that ride now.”
>You sat down without another word, allowing the mare to step inside the bag  and get as comfortable as she could.
>Once she was situated, you stood up and continued along the floor of the canyon.
>While you walked, Spitfire hummed various tunes in your ear, occasionally nuzzling against your ear.
“Having fun back there?”
>”Mhmm.”
“You know your adorable when you’re happy?”
>”Shut it.”
“I’m just saying, I know there’s a… marey mare under that tough chick routine.”
>”If you weren’t carrying me, I’d bite your ear off.”
“Kinky.”
>A sharp pain went through your ear, and Spitfire pulled away as you caressed it gently.
“Jerk. That hurt.”
>”Aw is the little human going to cry?”
“Buck you.”
>Spitfire kissed your throbbing ear, resting her head on your shoulder.
>You walked several hours, making occasional idle chat about your surroundings.
>As the sun began to set on the first day, you were lucky to come across a tiny waterfall spouting from the rocks.
>”Wow, water in a desert, we must be lucky.”
“Might be from the lake, I can’t imagine another one of those things around.”
>You helped Spitfire down onto the ground, and she crawled out of your back pack, stretching her legs out.
>She trotted over to the tiny stream, putting herself under it and washing away the dust, dirt and sweat from her body.
>Midway through her little shower, you placed your canteen under the water spot, cutting off her shower.
>”Hey! Turn the water back on!”
>You shrugged, turning the canteen upside down and pouring its contents on her head.
>She gave an amused grin, and stepped out from under the waterfall, allowing you to fill up the canteen.
>Spitfire got comfortable underneath another overhang, looking up at the sky in the distance.
>”Looks like it’s going to rain.”
“Does that mean there’s Pegasus over there?”
>”No, Equestria controls the weather, other places just let it happen.”
“I see. Should cool things off a bit, might make traveling tomorrow a bit easier.”
>You sat next to Spitfire, who in turn moved onto your lap.
>”It’ll probably get cold tonight.”
“We’ll manage, get some sleep.”
>The two of you lay down on the sandy ground, curled up in a ball as the sunlight faded and distant thunder tickled your ears.
>You fell fast asleep; carrying Spitfire had tired you out.
>But it was better that you be tired, than her wound open back up and she continue bleeding out.
>It seems just as you closed your eyes, Spitfire was jabbing your sides, trying to get you up.
“What Spits?”
>”What’s that sound?”
>You listened closely, hearing a distant rumbling sound.
“It’s just thunder Spits, go back to sleep…”
>”That’s NOT thunder.”
>You sat up, careful not to hit your head on the low overhang.
>She was right, that didn’t sound like thunder.
>More like, rushing water, possibly rapids.
>Rapids?
>In your canyon?
>Mid thought, the unmistakable sound of rapids, coupled with white water that seemed to glow with moon light came down through the canyon, and around the nearby bend.
>It’s more likely than you think.
>Not the time brain, double time!
>You scooped your p0ny companion and made a mad dash the opposite direction from the incoming water.
>”Anon, this is probably a bad time to tell you I can’t swim that well.”
>You could probably formulate a witty remark under normal circumstances, but this wasn’t normal circumstances.
>The incoming water rushed by your feet, sweeping you up and causing water to wash over you.
>You clutched Spitfire as close as you could, kicking your legs in a desperate attempt to stay afloat.
>It wasn’t easy, it was downright impossible.
>You did your best to keep your feet pointed downstream to keep your head from bouncing off one of the sharp rocks that jutted out of the ground.
>Spitfire let out an ear splitting scream as you careened through the canyon, completely at the mercy of mother nature.
>Her screams became coughs as water entered her lungs, the two of you being submerged again.
>Clutching Spitfire in your left arm, your right extended, in search for something, ANYTHING, that you could grab to stop the madness.
>You resurfaced momentarily, allowing both of you to draw in a breath of air, and take in the situation.
>Dead ahead was rock that jutted out of the ground, beyond that, what looked to be a water fall.
>Well this was about to suck shit.
>You grabbed the rock with your outstretched arm, nearly losing Spitfire in the process.
>You grabbed onto her hoof just before she was whisked away by the current, holding onto the rock as best you could.
>But you were slipping already, and she knew it.
>”Let me go!”
“How about no?”
>”If you don’t let me go, we both die!”
>She was right, you needed your left hand to pull yourself close to the rock,  but that would mean letting go of her.
>”Save yourself. I love you…”
“I love you too.”
>You let go.
>Of the rock.
>The current whisked you away once more, and you pulled Spitfire toward your chest as the two of you plummeted toward the oasis below.
>We’re you dead?
>No, that would be too easy.
>You felt a steady, rhythmic pounding at your chest, followed by air being blown down your throat and the distinct feeling of p0ny lips against your own.
>”LIVE DAMN IT!”
>You felt a sharp pain in your stomach as Spitfire slammed a hoof down on it, possibly cracking a crib or two.
>Regardless of the collateral damage, it did the trick, and you spat out a fountain of water.
“Ugh… This is why I didn’t join the navy…”
>Spitfire tackled you once more, locking lips with you.
>She pulled away and brought a hoof across your face.
>”That was bucking stupid Anon! If you scare me like that ONE MORE TIME! I SWEAR I’LL BUCKNG-mmphmphmm…”
>You pulled Spitfire down, kissing her again.
“Does that make up for it?”
>Spitfire looked down at you, her mane plastered to her neck and face in the most adorable way possible.
>”I guess so… you’re still a bucking idiot.”
>You pulled the sopping wet mare close to you in a hug, only to have her flinch away with a yelp of pain.
“What’s wrong?”
>”My wing…”
“Let me take a look at it- OH SNAP.”
>”Is it that bad?”
“Spits… wings don’t bend like that.”
>In addition to the previous fracture unsetting, it now appeared to have another bend in it, giving the wing somewhat of a z shape.
“I’m going to try and set this again. Do you have the old splint we made?”
>Spitfire shook her head.
>“It must have fallen off in the fall.”
>You walked over to a nearby tree that was growing next to the oasis, using your knife to pry off a chunk of wood.
“Bite down on this, this is going to hurt a lot.”
>”That’s reassuring.”
>Spitfire took the wood in her mouth and closed her eyes, bracing herself for the pain.
>As lightly as you could, you gingerly touched the wing, which flinched anyways.
>It was swollen, and very tender, she needed to get to a hospital soon.
>This was going to be like ripping off a Band-Aid, the faster you did it the better.
>You pulled and pushed on different parts of the wing, snapping the farthest fracture back in to place.
>Spitfire gave a whimper, her jaw quivering from the pressure she was exerting on the piece of wood in her mouth.
“Half way done Spitfire, stay strong.”
>You moved your hands down to the second fracture, placing your hands as gently as you could around it once more.
>It was throbbing, literally pulsing with pain.
>With a firm a quick motion you set it in place, causing Spitfire to cry out once more despite the wood.
>A single tear rolled down her face as you cut your shirt apart, fashioning a new sling for the wing.
“I’m sorry, I should have pulled you in.”
>”You couldn’t Anon. The water was too strong. I’m just glad you’re ok.”
”I could say the same thing about you.”
>You reached around her body and tightened the sling, careful not to make it too tight.
“Thanks for saving me.”
>”It was nothing… ‘Sides, without you I’d end up dead anyways.”
>You pulled her close to you, watching the sunrise over the mountains in the distance.
>You got more sleep than you thought; then again you weren’t sure how long it had been since you went over the falls.
“Don’t be so negative. You’re the toughest Pegasus I know.”
>”Why didn’t you save yourself? You could have died. I thought you did die…”
“I’m not leaving you behind Spitfire. No matter what.”
>”That attitude’s going kill you and you know it.”
>You sighed and changed the subject.
“Will you shut up? We’re both alive, and we have a beautiful sunrise to watch. We need to enjoy the little things at this point.”
>You reached over and wiped Spitfire’s tear from her face.
>Poor girl was tough, but she had passed her breaking point a long time ago. What was holding her together was beyond you.
“Come on, we should get going before it’s too late.”
>You took a big swig from your canteen, allowed Spitfire to take a drink as well, and filled it up from the oasis.
>In some ways the flash flood had really helped you out. In a matter of minutes it had shoved you probably half a day’s walk, and dumped you along an enormous cliff that stretched for miles.
>Not only did it offer a bit of shade, it served as a useful guide, pointing toward the Equestrian Mountains in the distant horizon.
>The desert was a tricky one; those mountains were probably a hundred miles away.
>Then again, you and Spitfire had nothing else to do.
>So with determination of a bull, you began the long walk along the cliff side, keeping a specific mountain peak in sight as your destination.
>The last thing you needed was to get turned around and backtrack toward the hive’s remains.
 >Spitfire walked along side of you, your backpack had been lost in the flash floods along with any supplies it had.
>Well, it didn’t hold very many supplies now, save for a small med-kit that had a tourniquet, but you didn’t want to use that anyway.
>Neither of you had  injuries to your limbs, save for her broken wing.
>Was that considered a limb?
>It doesn’t matter, you had a canteen, pistol, a knife, and boots tied to your feet.
>You could make it out of here without too much of a problem.
>Brain, for an asshole, you’re pretty optimistic.
>”You know, if this desert wasn’t trying to kill us, I might say it’s kind of beautiful.”
“I’ve seen quite a few deserts, and this is one of the “prettier” ones.”
>”Did those deserts try to kill you too?”
“No, the people that lived in them did.”
>Your words carried a slight edge, causing Spitfire to fall silent for a minute.
“Sorry, I didn’t-“
>”Nah, its fine. I know some things are hard to talk about.”
>You reached down and ruffled her mane.
>”Hey! I just washed that!”
>You couldn’t help but laugh a little bit; it was nice to hear Spitfire cracking jokes again.
>Your stomach rumbled from not being fed in a few days, interrupting the happy moment.
>The last meal had been… two, three days ago?
>The snake you caught in the cave had been small, barely a meal, and you had forced Spitfire to eat it.
>Something she would probably hate you for next time you went out for drinks, and told the rest of the Wonderbolts.
>This was day two in the desert, day six of trying to survive.
>Or was it three and seven?
>It was official, you had lost track of the days since you crashed.
>Your grip on reality was slipping, and given a few more days in the desert you would end up bat shit crazy.
>At least the shade would keep you from being sunburnt, and reduce your chances of heat stroke by a little.
>”What’s on your mind Anon?”
“To be honest, I’m wondering if you broke your wing just to get me to take off my shirt.”
>”Funny.”
“I thought so too.”
>Spitfire rolled her eyes, and the two of you walked along in silence.
>Not an awkward silence, just one where you both had nothing to say, focused on the task at hand.
>Your stomach was the most talkative of either of all it seemed, growling every so often.
>”Shouldn’t we go hunting or something?”
“I’m fine, humans can last a while without food.”
>”Exactly how long is a while?”
“I’d say in our current condition, I have a few more days before I should get worried.”
>”Well then tell your stomach to shut up. It’s annoying.”
>You looked down at Spitfire, who had a small grin on her face.
>That joker, hiding her concern for you with jokes. She was always afraid of seeming too girly around the guys, or mushy around a stallion she liked.
>It didn’t make sense to you now, given you two were alone.
>Then again, she had liked you for a while, always putting on a tough girl attitude to hide it from you.
>Why would she hide that though?
>Maybe she was afraid you would reject her, and things would get awkward between the two of you.
>The sun set after a long day of walking, the scenery changing very little, other than the oasis having disappeared behind you.
>Spitfire collapsed tiredly beside a large rock, sighing.
>You allowed her a drink, and took off across the desert to the nearest cactus, driving your knife in its body and collecting the precious water from inside.
>What didn’t fit in the canteen, you pressed your lips against the body of the cactus and drank, the sensation of fresh water soothing your throat.
>You pulled away, and made your way back to Spitfire’s side, resting next to her.
>The two of you sat there, your back against a warm rock, your hand resting on Spitfire’s mane, scratching it to help her sleep.
>”The stars are lovely, aren’t they?”
“Mhmm.”
>Something seemed familiar about them, but you couldn’t put your finger on it.
>Your skin felt chilled as the sun disappeared once more, ending who knows what day you were on.
>The temperature out here seemed to swing from one extreme to the other, and you laid down in the sand, pulling Spitfire over you like a blanket.
>”Cold?”
“Yeah, a bit actually.”
>You fared better than her in terms of cold temperature when you had clothes on.
>But with your shirt made into a temporary sling, you felt exposed, and your body temp was falling pretty quick.
>”I know something we can do…”
“Orly?”
>”Mhmm”
>Spitfire is a naughty mare
>You awoke to the familiar feeling of Spitfire sleeping on top of you, curled up on your chest.
>Honestly, you were growing used to this, waking up to a gentle, soft, fuzzy blanket that had its own heartbeat, which seemed to sync with your own.
>Scratching her head, you woke the mare from her slumber, her eyes squinting from the sunlight shining from by the horizon.
>She buried her head in your chest as if it were a pillow, her snout tickling you as she did.
“Damn it Spitfire, quit being so damn adorable.”
>”5 more minutes…”
“No, your lazy flank is getting up. Don’t make me pee on you.”
>”Alight alright…”
>Spitfire sleepily stood up, trotting aside as you stood and drained your bodily fluids against the cliff side.
>”After last night, you’re still going to hide that from me?”
“If you use that logic, I might as well not wear clothes around you.”
>”I’d be ok with that.”
“Oh you!”
>With your bladder empty, you took a swig of your canteen and handed it to Spitfire.
“Ready to get going?”
>”Mhmm, I bet we can get all the way to those mountains!”
>Well she seems in a good mood, guess you did alright last night.
>The two of you set off, using the cliff edge to shelter you from the sunlight, and the tallest mountain on the horizon to keep your bearing.
>”So…”
“So what?”
>”What are you thinking about?”
“Getting out of this damn desert.”
>”Fair enough.”
>Spitfire began humming a little tune, content with herself for the time being.
>Quite honestly, you enjoyed it when she was in this kind of mood, if nothing else you could listen to some music as she hummed along.
>It only lasted so long, and the two of you were left silent, making casual conversation after periods of silence.
>You would point out the occasional critter that scurried by in the sand, much too agile for you to even consider chasing.
>Your journey was stopped short as you came to the end of this cliff face, finding it gently sloping down until it blended with the dried earth at your feet.
>Dried earth, not sand, there was a difference.
>Sand was loose and shifty, and slowed you down quite a bit, which is what you had been walking in since you left the canyon.
>This was hard, cracked earth, showing more signs of vegetation than the sandy dunes behind you.
“We should make good time on this, come on.”
>You stepped from the shade of the cliff and into the blistering sun, instantly feeling the effects.
>”Buck, this is hot…”
“It’s a desert Spitfire, what did you expect?”
>”Fancy umbrella drinks, shade, maybe a carriage ride.”
“Is your wing still broken? Cause your heads up in the clouds.”
>”Buck you.”
“Language!”
>”Buck you.”
>The two of you laughed, and you took another drink from your canteen, sharing with Spitfire of course.
>”What do you think happened to Canterlot?”
“You mean with the changelings?”
>”Yeah, those freaks of nature.”
“I’m going to bet that with the flank kicking we gave them, the royal guard had an easy time fighting off whatever forces were left. ‘Sides, I’m pretty sure you killed the Queen.”
>”I don’t know…”
>Spitfire looked away from you, down at the ground as you walked.
>Telling her she might have killed something, no matter how ugly or how vile, might have some unforeseen consequences on her mood.
“Hey, we’re going to get back to Canterlot, you’re going to get that wing looked at, and then I’m buying the first round.”
>”Actually, I’ve been thinking about cutting back on drinking.”
“Where did this come from?”
>”I don’t know, it just doesn’t seem healthy  to be drinking every night till I pass out.”
“It probably isn’t. So new plan. We get that wing checked out and put into a cast, and we go do something together. Concert, play, dinner, whatever you want.”
>”Sounds good Anon. Thanks for being there for me.”
“No problem Spitfire.”
>”No, I mean for everything. Carrying me home all those nights when I was too drunk to know which way was up, just being a good friend I could talk to when I felt down…”
“Come on Spits, you’re being all sappy.”
>”I know I know. I just appreciate you, and I love you.”
“I love you too. Where’s all this coming from?”
>”The heart..?”
“Aw cut it out.”
>”Sorry, I’ll keep the mushy love stuff. I’m not usually this emotional.”
“I know Spits, are you feeling ok? Not dizzy or anything are you?”
>”I… I think so.”
>She stumbled once, catching herself before she face planted in the ground
>Kneeling down beside her, you placed the canteen at her lips, pouring small amounts down her throat.
>She grabbed the canteen in her mouth and tilted her head back, gulping down a good amount of water before you pulled it away from her.
“Not so fast, you’ll get sick.”
>Just as you said that, she spewed vomit into the ground, the heat instantly baking it and making the smell waft up into your nostrils.
“Bleh, come on Spits, small sips.”
>You pulled her away from the puddle of vomit, helping her drink a few small sips of water again.
>The last of the canteen was emptied, leaving you both in a bad spot, and you weren’t sure who was worse off.
>Spitfire took a few more steps, swaying wildly.
>Definitely her.
>Throwing the pony over your shoulder, you began a light job, knowing that every second you delayed getting her more water meant a greater chance of heat stroke, and death.
>Her heart was beating with the speed of Kenyans, another sign confirming her condition.
>”Look at the clams gurgle in the bucket Anon.”
>Great, now she was hallucinating as well.
“Spitfire, if you throw up on me, I’m going to drop you. Just hold on, we’re almost there.”
>If you pushed yourself, maybe you could make a 3 day walk in two.
>And if you were lucky, you’d find some form of shelter and fresh water before then.
>You pushed yourself for what seemed like hours, every stride burning more than the last.
>Your throat burned for water, your body running low on its reserves.
>Actually, by now it was probably well beyond dehydration.
>The vegetation was becoming more and more dense, but none of them appeared to bear fruit, or hold any amount of water.
“How you doing back there Spitfire?”
>No response.
“SPITFIRE!”
>Nothing.
>With a new found energy, you pushed yourself harder than you ever had before.
>You were never a big runner back on Earth, your PT score always reflected your pushups and situps better.
>But if there was one time you needed to haul ass, it was now.
>Luckily for you, the sun was going down, which would cool off the earth and give you an easier time with moving.
>Shouldn’t you rest? Regain your energy for the next leg of the journey?
>I’ll rest when I’m dead.
>Are you always this headstrong?
>You know I am brain.
>You continued a walk/ jog routine, walking for maybe 30 minutes, then jogging for 15.
>With it being dark, you didn’t notice your vision had blurred, and your path had become a bit wobbly.
>Sweat had long stopped pouring from your body, but the little that remained added to the chill factor.
“Spitfire? Please respond…”
>Despite being dehydrated as MRE crackers, your body found the few precious drops of liquid to spare for tears.
>Worst yet, you could be passing a field of water bearing cactus, and you had no idea.
>It was too dark to see beyond 10 feet in front you, and what you could see only appeared as black silhouettes of various desert plants.
>Inside your brain, something snapped.
“Fuck this desert, fuck these changelings, fuck this cold, fuck this heat, fuck not having water, FUCK!”
>You drove a foot down into the ground, except there was no ground for your foot to land on.
>You just ran off the edge of a cliff, you dumb fuck, because you were too caught up to really look at where you were going
>This was how you died.
>Your dramatic thought process was interrupted as you face planted into a stream about a foot deep.
>Spitfire fell from your back, splashing down to your right.
>”WHA-!?”
>Good, she was up, surely she could concentrate enough to drink from a river.
>Lacking better judgment at this point, you thirstily gulped down mouth full after mouthful of the streaming water, hearing Spitfire do the same thing upstream.
>Cool, clean, running water.
>Least you hoped it was clean, but it was running so you had a decent chance at surviving.
>In fact, you couldn’t recall getting even a slight cough in this world; maybe p0ny diseases didn’t affect humans.
>Bad water might be why Spitfire was having such a hard time
>But then again the two of you had been out in the wild for over a week, it was a miracle you two were still alive.
“How you feel Spits?”
>”Like I just woke up from a bad dream… where are we?”
>”I don’t know. I’ve just been doing my best to keep going in a straight line.”
>”Thanks for not leaving me behind… I thought I was about to die.”
“You were.”
>Silence.
>Ok, maybe that wasn’t the most inspirational remark you could have made.
“Hey, we’re ok though. We found water again, we’ve made good progress, I bet we’ll make it to those mountains by tomorrow.”
>You paused, making sure you filled the canteen to the brim before taking a few more drinks from the stream.
>”Are we going to rest now? I don’t want you to push yourself too hard.”
“No, we’re going to press on. The more we move now the less time we’ll spend in that bucking sun.”
>You crawled out of the stream, pulling Spitfire out and helping her onto your back.
>”I can walk Anon.”
“I know, but I don’t want to risk getting separated. Once the sun starts to come up I‘ll put you down.”
>”Good thinking.”
>You began walking along the desert floor again, your pants sopping wet, but that might come in handy if they stayed that way until the sun rose.
>You didn’t run this time, you learned that lesson the hard way.
>Last time you fell in a shallow stream only a few feet deep.
>Next time, you might fall off into the Grand Canyon.
>Best to take it slow and watch where you were walking.
>Somehow, Spitfire made herself cozy, resting her head on your shoulder and falling back asleep.
>It was kind of cute, the way she snored in your ear.
>Her breath kissing the base of your neck…
>Focus brain.
>Soon enough the sun was beginning to peak over the horizon behind you, casting an orange glow around the landscape around you.
“Wake up back there.”
>”Mmmpgh…”
“Don’t give me that. I’ve been up for a whole day now. Wake your lazy flank up.”
>Spitfire unhooked her forelegs from your shoulders and slid down to the ground, then trotted along beside you.
>”Thanks Anon. I know I say it a lot, but it never seems like enough.”
“You’re welcome Spitfire.”
>You reached over and ruffled her messy flaming head, her hair going every which way by now.
>”I tell you what Anon. First thing I’m doing when we get to Canterlot is getting a proper shower, THEN I’m going to the hospital.”
“I can respect that Spitfire, I need one myself. I’m sure we both stink up to Elysium.”
>”Probably.”
>You had made better ground than you anticipated, the mountains looming over you after only an hours walk.
>Your wet pants served as a decent A/C system, no doubt Spitfire’s improvised sling doing the same thing.
>The first mountain was only a thousand or so feet, an easy climb for you and Spitfire.
>As you reached the summit, you found yourself looking down at a familiar looking lake, in the distance a small cliff nestled in the middle of three mountains.
>It looked like a good place for a romantic picnic, provided you could reach it.
>Maybe another day.
>For now, you focused on the smoke cloud to the right of said mountain formation.
>That was definitely Canterlot, and if you had to guess it was still a day away.
>”We could save a lot of time if we stick to the tops of mountains, they look pretty close together.”
“True, but then there’s no chance of us finding food.”
>”I think we can make it there by sunset, after that we can get something to eat in the city, maybe from the guard.”
“Works for me.”
>You set off along the ridge line, with Spitfire leading the way for a change.
>She seemed upbeat about making it so far after being through so much, you liked seeing her happy.
>Seeing the black smoke was at least a sign of civilization, the battle must have been intense.
>Still, you made sure you hadn’t lost your weapon, however few bullets you had.
>If changelings were still around, your first objective would be to get to the castle for weapons and ammo.
“Hey Spitfire?”
>”Hmm?”
“Just remember those changelings are deceitful, we may be walking into an ambush.”
>”Good point…”
“Which is why I want to tell you as soon as we get to Canterlot, we should part ways. I don’t want you to get hurt more than you already are.”
>”Not a chance Anon. I promised to bring you to Celestia.”
“No i-“
>”Don’t argue with me Anon. If you know one thing about me, it’s that I don’t break promises.”
”Fine. But stay beside me. And if something happens, stay behind me.”
>”Deal, now come on slowpoke.”
>Spitfire started a light jog pulling away before you could chase after her as well.
>But your longer legs carried you faster than her four little ones, and in no time at all you were jogging alongside her.
 “You’re not as slow as you look.”
>”Oh now it’s on!”
>Spitfire kicked in the nitrous and shot ahead of you as fast as her legs could carry her.
>You sprinted after her as  well, keeping pace with her, slowly reeling her in.
>She was a flyer, not a runner, after all.
>But that didn’t make her any less fast.
>Eventually, you tired out, exhausted from pulling an all-nighter and running for who knows how far.
>Spitfire raced ahead to the next peak, sitting on her haunches as you slowly made your way back up next to her.
>”I WIN!”
“Oh buck you. That wasn’t fair. I was running all night.”
>”Excuses excuses. Guess you just can keep up with the fire.”
>She walked next to you the rest of the way, the mountains steadily climbing higher and higher into the air.
>In turn, you progressively got colder and colder, until the two of you reached the summit, which overlooked the city.
“We made it Spitfire. We’re home…”