Chapter 2

Earthen slowly woke up from his sleep in a very comfortable place.

As his eyes slowly opened, they adjusted to the lights in the place he was in. Eventually, they opened fully and he took in his surroundings; a whitish room with white lights and white beds around him. He tried to move up to get a better look but felt his movement were sluggish and slow to act. He looked around again and saw a tube attached to his arm. He looked at for a while before removing it with a tug. After a couple of seconds, his movement speed eventually returned to him. He tried out his arms agains and felt pain as he moved them back and forth. The pain was quite sever but nothing Earthen hadn't gritted his teeth through. He looked around once more and realized where he was.

"A hospital." He said out loud without really meaning to. Earthen had never been in a hospital but he understood the gist of what it looked like from other eye witness accounts. As a pirate, you couldn't go to a hospital when hurt as they must take down information of your character which can led to being found.

If someone what hurt in the crew they went to go find the doctors who don't work in the hospitals, the 'off the books doctor'. There you would he treated for your injuries in the most minimalistic way possible with your life in safety. They were good but costly.

However Earthen's thoughts were more directed at why he was in the hospital on the first place. Shouldn't he have died? Getting shot with a bolt from the princess invokes a high probability of death so why was he not only alive but in a hospital? He figured that staying around wasn't a good idea because it could mean being found out of who he was if he was anywhere near the Crystal empire.

He threw the light sheets off of him and got out of the bed he was in. There were a couple more things attached to him which he removed with annoyance. Once removed he began a stretch that was immediately interrupted by a surge of pain. He looked to where the pain was emanating from and saw that there was a large bandage around his right wing.

"So I guess am not dead." Earthen said to himself, as he inspected the wing. He figure he would have to let that one heal on its own, once he was out of here. He removed the strange garment he was wearing and began to walk out of the room. As he opened the door, a pony stumbled in wearing a large white coat and wearing a strange device around his neck.

"Ah, so you are finally awake." said the pony who Earthen assumed was the doctor, "And you seem to be moving quite a bit. I don't suggest that as a good idea, you had multiple fractured bones and your right wing has a broken bone. It would be wise for you to let us do our jobs."

"I have no reason to stay here. And I don't want to be kept here against my will!" Earthen said as he pushed past the doctor. He began to go down the corridor and the doctor followed, speaking as they went along, "But sir, you have sustain quite a few sever injuries, I am surprised you are actually walking around as if your not in pain but-"

"Oh I am in pain. Quite a bit. I just don't want to be here for long. No pain cannot be solved with rum and gin." Earthen interrupted.

"I see, but we must monitor your progress for a bit. It is imperative that you stay for longer."

"No." Earthen said at the doctor while looking for the exit. The doctor walked besides him and continue to talk about his health an how he shouldn't be moving. Earthen noticed however, that there were a couple larger ponies wearing white clothing were gathering around him and the doctor.

Earthen eventually stopped, turned to the doctor a said in a somewhat angry tone, "You say I should stay and your acting all nice about but why is there a couple of what I assume are 'muscle' circling me like some sort of animal?"

The doctor stopped talking and his face fell into one of apologetic fear. He stepped back slowly as if he was stepping away from a feral best in the middle of lunch and said, "Well, um, these ponies are here to help you and you are injuring yourself so they wish to take you back to your room for full recovery."

Earthen gave a loud snort and began walking again, except this time he was headed towards one if the aids the doctor had called to escort him back to his room. The aid wasn't sure on how to react to him.

When Earthen was close enough to the aid, Earthen grabbed the scruff of the aid's shirt and smashed his head into the aid's. A perfectly executed head-butt which rendered the aid unconscious. This was supposed to prove Earthen's health and his care was nonessential. But the action caused him also of as much harm as at it did to the aid.

As the head-butt was delivered, the force he exerted had a small kick back due to the contact. The kickback wasn't much but it was enough to rattle most of the fractured bones within Earthen himself, causing immense pain and forcing him to the ground. The pain was enough to make Earthen yell out, but he didn't. He never cried in pain, ever since he was 10 he never did. Screaming due to pain showed weakness and that wasn't allowed in a pirate ship. Old habits die hard.

The aids took this chance to collect him and put him back into his bed and this time, strap him down with restraints. The entire time this was going on, Earthen was shifting in between consciousness was and it's opposite. The doctor was talking through all of it, as if to accentuate his point for Earthen care at the hospital. The one thing that Earthen's constantly shifting consciousness was able to hold onto was the thought of hitting the doctor for what sounded like a pompous attitude.

It wasn't till midday that Earthen woke up again and he was quite frustrated with the doctor's talking. He had been talking off and on, none stop through Earthen's shift of consciousness.

"Ah, you're awake again."

"No doctor. I was never truly asleep to begin with. Gods, do you never stop talking?" Earthen said as struggled against the bonds more to test out their strength than to escape.

"Oh. So you heard most of that, did you?"

"Most, doctor, most."

"Well now that you are awake, I can fill out your contact list. Can ask you your name?"

"You don't know?" Earthen asked somewhat curious, he figure that they wouldn't need this information if he was still on the Crystal Empire.

"Yes... I don't. That is why I am asking you."

"Where am I?" Earth asked, tentative of the pony's response. The doctor seemed confused and wrote something down on some papers and responded, "Um, you are in a town called Ponyville."

Earthen starred at the doctor, for quite a few seconds determining if he was being played. When he was sure that the doctor wasn't lying, he smiled to himself.

He wasn't dead.

Nor was he in the Crystal Empire.

He was almost free.

"Sorry doctor. It's just... Never mind, what was your question?" Earthen said smiling and having a generally lighter attitude.

"What is your name?"

"Earthen" The doctor stopped a bit before asking he next question. He was slightly taken aback by the patient's name. Pegasi weren't normally named like that. The doctor continued, "Do you have any family or close acquaintances in the nearby area?"

"Nope." Earthen said, almost with pep. The doctor noted this down, wondering what had happened to the youth and continued, "Do you have a place to stay?"

"No, doctor."

"Do you have any family or close acquaintances that you can contact to pick you up or come and see you?"

"None of the sort doctor." Earthen said, a bit dejected at this realization. He knew starting a new life was going to be difficult but he hadn't really thought about the way and fashion of creating his new life. He had originally prepared for this by having a small fortune. He was going to by some house in a small town and then live in semi seclusion, coming down to the local pub and entertaining himself by drinking and talking to the locals. He would live a life of semi luxury. Now he had to start from square one.

"Well then. I guess you need to get a place to stay for a while. How about I contact your benefactor and you can discuss your stay or other things?" The doctor said, as he began to walk out of the room.

"Benefactor?"

"The one who brought you here." The doctor said, stopping before closing the door, "I believe that you would want to say thank you and maybe discuss about what to do next."

Earthen thought about this and decided that it would be very beneficial to get some sort of witness like person to show his new life to. Get someone to introduce him to the world and give him a small start ok creating his own life. He began to plan out discussion he would have with his benefactor in his head, trying to create a situation. that said thank you but also asking for more help.

AppleJack hadn't expected the call from the hospital and she had almost forgot the reason for the hospital for calling. It had been two days since she dropped the unconscious pegasus at the hospital. She was actually bit aggravated for being called out at this time. She was in the middle of doing the finance report for Apple Farms, and though she was good at math, she hated being disturbed doing then because she would get loss where she was in her calculations.

She figured she would have to come though, the hospital had asked her to come to talk the person who had crashed through her farm and she figured she would at least get an apology from him and asked how that happened in the first place.

"Ah, Miss AppleJack. Thank you for coming." a doctor said as he walked over to her.

"It was nothin' doc. So wha did ya need me fo'?"

"Well sadly, it seems that patient you brought in has no family or doesn't remember them. So we decided to call you to see you had pick up any information or anything that might tell us if there is any contact for him."

"Well, there wasn't anythin' specific. I jus kinda found him on the groun' with his wing bent. Sorry doc but there wasn't anythin like tha'" AppleJack said, her aggravation deflating a little. She was going to be a bit curt when getting her apology but now she wondered if that was pushing it a bit.

"Well that's ok. Still, you can go see him now. And please call any of the aid if he starts giving you any trouble. Or if he starts moving around a lot. Or if he breaks his bindings"

"Bindin'! Why do ya'll need the bind in' for?" AppleJack questioned perplexed.

"He seemed to be a little bit violent upon first waking up and so we took cautionary actions. He is fine now but we have a policy to keep restraints for a full day before removing them." The doctor said as he gave an apologetic look. AppleJack wondered what his violent behavior was but decided to take the dive anyway. She entered the room, and saw the pegasus she had helped two days ago. He was starring at a plate of food I front of him and had a look of annoyance on his face.

"Wha's the matter? Not gonna eat yer food?" AppleJack said, hoping to light the mood with a small joke. The pegasus looked up at her and gave her smile before giving a sigh saying, "See, that the problem. I can't eat it."

"Why's that?" AppleJack asked, hoping he knew she wasn't poking fun at him.

"Because, the idiot doctor forgot that I am still strapped to the bed." The pegasus groaned out while attempting to reach for his food with his bound hooves. AppleJack giggled at the sight, and the pegasus gave a sarcastic sob as he said, "Yeah, right. Laugh the guy who can't eat his food huh?"

"Imma sorry, it's jus' funny!"

"Yeah, I guess it is." He said and struggled over-enthusiastically again. She began laughing out loud now and he made exaggerated faces of pain or effort and she laughed even harder. This went one for another minute before he got tired and eventually stopped.

"Can I ask you your name now?"

"AppleJack, an' how bout you?"

"Earthen. I would shake your hoof but as you can see, I'm only a captive audience." The pegasus said as he bowed his head. AppleJack was a bit taken aback at the name. However, instead of just holding in her surprise at the name she said, "That's quite a strange name for a pegasus."

"I have been told, but that's the name I prefer" he said, but then continued in a low voice as if to himself "over others" AppleJack was about to ask what he meant by that but decided not too. Earthen smiled while looking out the window for a while before turning back to AppleJack. He opened his mouth then closed it and ten said slowly as if he was picking his words carefully, "I want to thank you for helping me out the other day. I know it's sometimes scary to just find a guy, out in your place and I want to thank you for helping me out. I am also sorry for all the damages I caused during my... Um, I guess crash landing would be the best way to describe it right? Anyway, I will do what ever it takes to get buy you back."

"Well, I am very glad you said tha'. I was gonna try an' get some money out of you to repair the damages but it looks like I go't myself a new worker." AppleJack said cheerfully, "I do hope ya know tha' I will make ya work hard to pay off them damages?"

"What cruelty, your gonna make a pony who can't even get out if his bed do work! How could you?" Earthen said in mock despair.

"You know wha'I mean!" She laughed out.

"Yeah, I do. I do wish for you to know that I don't have anyplace to stay once they kick me out of here."

"Ya be livin' with me and my folk till ya'll debt is paid."

Earthen gave a surprised smile and said, "I have never meet anyone willing to just give a pony like me a place to love for a while."

"I don' see why not. You seem like a decen', honest pony." Even as she said that, she felt something was off about him. Though all the laughs the my shards were genuine, she felt as though there was something that was still hidden or un-shared. While she was being honest with her intentions, she felt he wasn't entirely doing the same with his intentions.

"Well I don't know when I'm out so do you mind asking the doctor on the way out?" Earthen said.

"No problem." She said as she exited the room. She wondered what and how he had gotten to her farm but she figured she would ask later, during his stay at their place.


Hey Guys, how was this one?

I figured this one was going to be short cause it was the introduction chapter and nothing usually big happens then. This chapter is also to establish the relationship between AJ and Earthen. They are basically workers, not only that but AJ doesn't trust the guy.

I also made this a bit more description in the character of Earthen. I made to show that he doesn't really care for the opinion of others, unless he can get something else out of them. He does this to AJ as he agrees and talks nice to her but he shows his animosity towards the doctors. This is meant to more clearly outline the fact that he is a pirate and that they had to learn certain skills in order to survive in certain places. The skills of flattery and such is one that goes a long way when you life revolves around people who can kill you without a second thought.

Anyway, tell me what you think. Read, and enjoy.