Chapter 45: The Doctor is In

- spacefaringPioneer [SP] began pestering accomodatedDragon [AD] -

SP: Sorry for the long abscence, but me and the others were distracted with... let's just say shenanigans...
SP: Are you doing all right?...
AD: Astra! Glad to see you again!
AD: Or... hear you. Read you?
SP: I'll take that as a yes...
AD: Oh, sorry.
AD: I've just been babysitting Reed, and grinding away at imps when they get too close.
AD: Now that we're in the medium, we don't seem to have a set time limit. The difficulty curve is probably based off of how fast you can get your house built!
AD: I've built up a lot of grist, though, and have been slowly climbing the Echeladder. I'm all the way up to "Chair Today", whatever that means.
SP: What's an Echeladder?...
AD: Oh, it seems to be a sort of leveling system. Moving up increases various statistics, like gel viscosity and grist cache.
SP: ...
AD: It'll take a while to explain everything, but that's why we have sprites. Would you care to build my house up a bit? I have build grist to spare.
AD: ...or, I WILL have, when you recycle all those chairs I've been making :P
SP: I'll get right on that...
AD: Just... don't recycle them all, ok? please?

Years in the future, but not many...

A lone figure walked through a vast wasteland, unable to gain a sense of direction beyond the position of the sun. He did not belong here. Days of wandering, and there wasn't a single sign of intelligent life or landmark in sight. He had only found signs of civilizations shattered to pieces in years past. His situation was dire, and yet he was determined to find some way of returning to the place from which he came, and the friends from which he had been torn away.

There was one thing he was thankful for, however... and that was the pair of triangular sunglasses that rested upon his nose, protecting his sensitive eyes from the blistering sun.

He was forced to live off of the land. His source of water hung from his neck, contained in one of the few intact bottles that he had found among the wreckage of a town. His diet consisted of small animals dwelling in the sand. The animal encounters were scarce, but the whole desert seemed to barely have enough to sustain him and him alone.

Water was another story. Whatever bodies of water existed in this region in the past were all dried up now, and so he had had to dig for the one source that he could find. His bottle was half-empty, and he wasn't sure how much longer he could make it last.

Optimism was the key to finding the will to survive in the wasteland, he told himself. His bottle was half-full. He was alone, that much was true, but at least his supplies would carry him further that way.

So, naturally, he wouldn't stay alone for long.

His back suddenly became heavy, causing him to stop in his tracks. That occurrence wouldn't have been enough to startle him if it weren't for the scream that came with it, its point of origin directly behind him.

"-AAAAH!"

"WAH!"

He collapsed under the unknown weight. His head pressed into the sand, and he was unable to turn and look at whatever it was that caught him off-guard, which only served to upset him further.

"What the..." A young voice belonging to the weight on top of him uttered. "Where am I..."

"On top of a disgruntled Yoshi," he answered sarcastically.

"What?" He felt the weight remove itself from him. "Oh... er... my bad! I think..."

He picked himself up, spat out a mouthful of sand, and turned around to face the newcomer. It was a small, purple-scaled reptilian creature of a species he did not recognize. He had no idea how this youngster was able to sneak up on him so quietly. Up until the last minute, that is.

"Watch it, pal," he growled at the purple one. "I don't know who you are, but I'm really not in the mood for any cheap tricks."

"...Yoshi? You're a Yoshi?" the reptile replied, cocking his head in ignorance of the Yoshi's tone. He sighed, nearly forgetting that nobody could understand him. "Well, hi Yoshi! I'm Spike." He extended his hand politely.

The Yoshi begrudgingly took it and shook it. "Broshi," he answered. "Not like you're going to hear that..." he added under his breath.

Spike cocked his head again. "Hmm... It's too bad I can't understand you. I guess I'll just have to call you Yoshi for now." He looked around, taking in the many sights of the wasteland for the first time. "So where the heck are we?"

"Beats me," Broshi shrugged. "You're the first person I've talked to in days."

"Yeah, I dunno either," the dragon shrugged back. "The last I remember, I was sitting in a tree and watching a Pokemon battle... and suddenly, a record flew by, opening some kind of portal underneath me, and I fell in. Then I landed right on top of you... Sorry about that, by the way."

Broshi raised an eyebrow. Those were some oddly specific circumstances, and there was only one person he knew that could possibly open portals in space. "Were you with a man named Blahsadfeguie when it happened?" he asked, even know he knew his words wouldn't reach Spike. He figured it was worth a shot at least.

"That does sound kinda weird, doesn't it?" Spike answered, apparently interpreting Broshi's question differently. "Well, it's a LONG story."

"We got time." Broshi turned around and patted the saddle on his back. "Hop on, maybe you can tell me all about it."

"Oh, you don't mind carrying me?" Spike asked, and he eagerly hopped onto Broshi's back without waiting for a reply. "Cool! Let's go! To... somewhere!"

Broshi continued on his travels, curious as to how the little dragon was able to remain so light-spirited. Perhaps the severity of the situation hadn't gotten to him yet...

The two acquaintances traveled onwards. Before long, out of boredom, Spike began to tell Broshi all about the adventures he had been on with Blah and the others, confirming his suspicions. He was also brought up to speed on how Charge had betrayed them, not to his surprise, and scattered the heroes across the timeline.

"Hey, wait a minute..." The cogs were turning in Spike's head. "One of the missing 'players' that Blah mentioned was named Broshi, I think... are you Broshi?"

Broshi looked back at his rider and nodded enthusiastically. "Yep, that's me all right!"

"And we found Sera right before the battle started, which means that she was the one that got sent to the past... and you were sent to the future." His own words stunned him. "The future! That's where we are..."

Broshi stopped. It made too much sense. A vast wasteland, traces of a dead civilization... This was Earth, during the aftermath of the meteors brought about by the game that he was supposed to play.

"Oh no, we're in the future... and that means everyone's..." Spike trailed off as he finally realized what had happened. Broshi looked back and noticed that tears were starting to form in his eyes.

"Hey, man, don't worry so much..." Broshi tried to calm him down. "We've traveled through time before... there's a chance we can make it back to the past!"

Spike sniffled. "You really think so...?"

"Of course. In fact, Blah might already be..." Broshi paused. "Wait. Did you understand what I said just now?"

Spike blinked. "Y-yeah, I guess I did... what does that mean...?"

Broshi recalled the one time that he was able to communicate with someone who wasn't a Yoshi. "The TARDIS..."

"The what?"

"The time machine that we found in the underworld..." Broshi broke into a run, forcing Spike to hold on tight. "It had this... psychic field, or something, that automatically translated languages for people near it. And if you can suddenly understand me, then that can only mean one thing."

"The time machine is nearby!" concluded Spike. "Wow, that was easier than I thought! Now we just have to find it!"

"Heh, funny... that's exactly what I said. And then I had to wait for hours in this hot desert for you to show up."

The new voice startled both of them. It was feminine, and quite assertive and forceful at that. Spike and Broshi looked up to see a tall, womanly figure, her skin as black as night. She wore faded, gray, hooded robes that reached down to just below her knees. They looked more like a large sheet of cloth wrapped into the shape of a robe than actual clothing.

"Oh well. I won't be here for much longer, at least." She twirled around a curved blade that matched her skin color, a bit of dried blood on it. "Not once I kill you. Hah!"

"Who are you?!" Broshi demanded.

"A Determinate Assassin sent here to stop you from returning to your own time," the dark woman responded. "That's all you need to know, hon. If you REALLY want to give me a name, just use DA." She cackled. "And it looks like you've brought a friend... I expected you to come alone, but I don't think the boss will mind a body count of three for this mission."

"Th-three?" Spike stuttered, almost too afraid to speak. "Who's... the third...?"

"That'd be the joker who came here in the time machine," DA casually pointed to a blue box laying on its side in a nearby dune. "I killed him pretty quick. He didn't put up much of a fight."

"Damn, there goes our rescue party... but the TARDIS is still there at least..." Broshi's fists clenched. "You better let us pass, or I'll swallow you whole."

"Uh, did you even see this?" She held up the sword. "If your tongue gets anywhere near me, you better be prepared to kiss half of it goodbye."

"Didn't expect it to be that easy..." muttered Broshi. "Spike, you better hide somewhere. This isn't going to be pretty."

"R-right." Spike hopped off of the Yoshi's back and ran to the other side of a hill.

"Well, you got SOMETHING right at least," taunted DA. "It's too bad hiding won't save the little snot's life in the end."

Broshi tried his best to ignore the assassin's smug remarks as he took a moment to assess the upcoming battle. He was unarmed and unprotected, fighting against a trained killer with a sword. There was nothing around big enough for him to swallow and convert into ammo, and using his tongue near her was out of the question. However, if he were to somehow gain possession of her blade, he might have a chance.

"So, what'll it be?" DA continued to fill the silence. "You gonna try to defend yourself, or stand there and stare at me through your lame glasses until I stab you in the throat?"

DA's comment on Broshi's glasses was enough to derail his train of thought. "My shades aren't lame!" he argued as he rushed at her.

"What's wrong, did I get to you? Ha!" DA sneered as she closed the distance eagerly.

The two neared each other like two cars on the highway in opposite lanes. A few feet before entering DA's range, Broshi jumped, predicting a slice of the dark one's sword. High in the air, the Yoshi brought his full weight down in a ground pound counterattack. DA leaned back in time to dodge, and stabbed at his stomach, prompting the dinosaur to twist backwards a full 360 degrees and aim a sweeping kick. The exchange ended there as she could not move her legs fast enough to prevent them from leaving the ground.

As she landed, Broshi saw his opportunity. He made a grab for DA's sword, but her grip was too strong. This action left her with enough time to roll onto her feet and make an immediate swing at Broshi's arm, cutting it shallowly. Light pain traveled through his arm as he retreated backwards a short distance, inviting her to charge again.

She had no qualms with taking the battle to her enemy and did just that. Her sword drew back, and Broshi instinctively jumped as before, but only after he was in midair did he realize that DA's maneuver was a feint. He winced as she swung upwards, catching him across his underside and causing him to lose his focus. He flopped onto the ground.

"Aw, what's the matter, lizard?" DA mocked, catching her breath. "Did I poke you too hard? Poor thing. I should put you out of your misery."

She lifted her sword to bring it straight down onto the prone Yoshi, but he managed to roll out of the way before the strike. He worked his way to his feet despite the searing pain. "It'll take a lot more than that to bring me down," Broshi grumbled.

"Good thing I have all day." DA dashed at the dinosaur again, sword already out wide.

Spike sat just behind the peak of the hill, watching anxiously with his hands near his eyes as the battle unfolded. He knew that the scene would be hard for him to bear regardless of how it turned out, but he couldn't bring himself to look away. The young dragon didn't get to see many train wrecks where he came from. The midair slice had caused him to flinch on his new friend's behalf, but in the process, his eye caught something a bit darker than the sand.

Happy to find an excuse to keep himself occupied, he rushed over towards the brown spot. Getting closer, he was able to confirm that it was an object buried in the sand, and standing over it, he discovered that it was of a hard leathery material. He hastily dug around it, in the hopes that it would be useful in some way...

Broshi sidestepped a stab from DA, having learned his lesson from the previous hit, and dashed into melee range in the short time that DA registered her enemy's new position. Before she could pull the sword around, Broshi used his momentum to ram into her ribs headfirst. She stumbled, and the orange reptile landed a kick in the same spot to knock her over again. This time, instead of going for the sword, he jumped and performed a quick pound onto her midsection, causing her to wheeze.

After some work, Spike managed to wrench the object free from the ground. Just as he had suspected, it was a backpack! It was also very heavy, but he eventually pulled it level to him and started rummaging through it. Inside were various chunks of minerals, some potions, and most notably, several weapons. "Is this..." Spike mumbled, pulling out a golden broadsword. "Is this Blah's backpack...?!"

Unfortunately, Broshi didn't anticipate DA using her free hand to grab him tightly by the throat. "Why you little..." she coughed. "I'll run you through!" She pulled her sword back as she got to her feet, draining the strength from the Yoshi with her iron grip. His arms were too short to reach anything but her choking hand.

Thinking quickly, Broshi lashed his tongue out at her face, licking it, and retracting just as fast. This startled her into dropping him, and as she frantically wiped the saliva from her face, Broshi dove in for another headbutt, staggering her again.

A cry echoed from behind the sandy hill. "Broshi!" Spike emerged, running closer to the fray and holding up the sword he had found, dragging the backpack with his other hand. "I found something!"

The Yoshi diverted his attention to the dragon for an instant, his eyes widening at the sight of the weapon. He had no time to ask questions, though, because as soon as he looked back at DA, she was coming at him again with sword held high. He leaped backwards, simultaneously nearing Spike and dodging swings. 'Just a little further...' he thought, keeping it up...

'Now!' He turned his head and threw his tongue at Spike just as the two of them were close enough, and he snatched the sword up with it. He caught the hilt with his dominant hand just in time to parry a particularly potent assault.

"Hmph," grunted DA as the blades pressed against each other, "You lucked out this time, Yoshi. Let's see if your swordplay is any better than your fashion sense!"

Broshi ignored the insult, entering a mode of full concentration and confidence now that he had his weapon of choice. The two engaged in a ferocious exchange of swings, thrusts, blocks, and dodges. Broshi remained on the offensive, aggressively striking at DA, but his every attempt was met with the black blade of his adversary. She didn't even seem to show any signs of difficulty or frustration from the onslaught. Having taxed his own endurance, Broshi leaped backwards to catch his breath.

The duel postponed, DA laughed. "Is that really all you got? I almost gave you too much credit." She leaned forward, her sword at the ready. "Now it's my turn."

Although Broshi had not quite recovered from his own endeavors, he found himself on the receiving end of the aggression this time. The weapon became a dark blur as it attacked from every side nearly simultaneously, driving the orange Yoshi backwards. His defense faltered gradually; first he sustained a cut on his shoulder, a gash on his cheek, a slice across his chest. The pain accumulated, and his defense broke down. All she needed was a moment, and after deflecting the gold sword far to the side, she jabbed the sword forward in a stabbing motion straight for his heart.

Spike hectically dug through the backpack in search of a healing potion, even though he knew by the time he found one, it would already be too late...

THWACK!

The sword penetrated Broshi... but the sound he heard did not come from the stab. The wound was less than an inch deep. When DA fell forward, he immediately saw the cause: an axe was sticking out of her back at an angle. "What? Spike...?" he gasped, as he was sure that could have been nobody else... however, looking up proved him wrong.

Standing behind where DA had been was a short, panting raccoon in a blue suit, stained with red. He had a crazed, protective look in his eyes. He folded his arms, seeing that Broshi had noticed him. "Well, well, well..." he spoke in a tone that did not match his light, whimsical voice at first, "looks like I came here just in time, hm?" He straightened his suit proudly, wearing an oddly cheery face.

"And who might you be...?" questioned Broshi, while Spike approached from the distance carrying a potion.

"My name is Tom Nook," the raccoon introduced happily. "And no need to strain yourself further by telling me who you are, Broshi, because I already know! Hoho!"

"So it was you who came in the time machine?" asked Spike as he handed Broshi the healing drink. "I thought she said that she..."

"Killed him?" the annoyed assassin said as she pried the axe from her back, standing up weakly. Spike ducked behind Broshi. "Yes... do tell. I stabbed you... clean through. There was blood and everything. So... how are you standing in front of me?"

Tom Nook held up an empty bag with a hole in the middle. "Fake blood packets!" he announced. "You really should never underestimate the arsenal of a raccoon, let alone a shopkeeper, hm? And also, you missed. You 'stabbed' me between my arm and my chest. Unless you were putting on a performance, your aim could use some work!"

"Hmph." DA arched her back. "Well, your axemanship could also use some work. It'd take a lot more force than that to penetrate Dersite carapace." She swayed slightly as she spoke, indicating that perhaps she was undermining the true damage caused by Nook's sneak attack.

"In that case..." Broshi downed his healing potion in one quick gulp, most of his wounds healing over as he entered a ready stance. "Hey Tom, care to find out how many hacks it takes to get to her center?"

Tom dashed with the speed of a forest animal, scooping up his axe before DA could react. "That's why I'm here!" he jovially accepted, stopping to face DA from the other side. The two of them had her surrounded. "Let's get this show on the road, hm?"

"I still can't believe we're actually getting stuff done," said Hailstorm after a long silence, sitting across from Seraphina in the Desperado. Being one of only four people on board the plane, one of which was in the cockpit and the other two sharing the same body, he had felt more alone than ever. The fact that most of those missing were off doing important things made it a sort of relaxing solitude.

"No kidding," agreed Blah, getting comfortable while Sera slept. "I mean, we still have to take a detour for the sake of getting me a non-borrowed body... sort of... but hey, progress is progress."

"Oh, right, we're going back to Metropolis first..." Hail looked out of the window idly.

"Is there anything you really needed to do in Ponyville first?" asked Blah.

"Nah..." Hail shifted his legs in his seat a bit. "I just can't shake the feeling something's going to happen if we leave it alone for too long again. Seems like every other day since the corruption spread, something attacks the town, or somepony gets kidnapped... or both... and now that the Elements of Harmony are all in Canterlot..."

"Is there even anything left TO happen?" Blah assured him. "We did quite a number on Bowser, Eggman's on our side, and I doubt there's anything Charge and his goons need from there anymore."

Hail turned to look at him. "What about the war?"

"War..." repeated Blah, as if trying to recall something from a history textbook. "I don't... quite... remember...?"

"Come on, you seriously don't remember?" Hail questioned, rather shocked. "Equestria formed an alliance with the Mushroom Kingdom against the Koopa Troopas and those dragon guys?"

"That's still a thing?" Blah tilted his head in confusion. "What are they even fighting for?"

Hail facehoofed. "Control of the territory..."

"Why do they want the territory?" Blah had as many questions as a high-schooler who missed class.

Hail did not budge. "Don't you think with a strong military presence, Charge could easily control the flow of the game and keep us from accomplishing our goals?"

"How would taking over Equestria help them with that?" Blah continued innocently.

"Do I really have to spell everything out for you?!" shouted the pegasus. "You were there when we talked about this! When you enter the game, your part of the universe gets sent into the medium as its own planet. If they occupy Equestria now, they'll occupy it when I enter the game. They won't suddenly stop existing or anything!" He sighed. "Seriously, what the hail, Blah, I thought you were sharper than that."

Blah had nearly forgotten about Hail's tic, and he mistook it for a sliver of humor. "My weapon of choice is a hammer, if anything I thought that would make me blunt..." Blah smirked. Coming from a Kadabra, it looked almost creepy.

"And now you're just messing with me, aren't you." Hail looked down out of sheer disappointment.

"Come on, man, lighten up!" encouraged Blah. "There's no point in being pessimistic about everything. War never changes, but your attitude sure can."

"Ponies are dying out there," stressed Hail with a stamp of his hoof. "We haven't had a war in decades, and now they're fighting just so that they can help us reverse a natural disaster that they had no way to predict. They're dying because of us; because we're the only ones who can save them. And you want to joke around about it?!"

Blah sat still, astonished and silent in the wake of Hailstorm's explosion.

"Sometimes I wonder," he continued, "Why did it have to be me. Why am I the hero who's supposed to set everything straight? What makes me so different from any other pony out there, let alone Rainbow Dash or Twilight or Applejack?" When he did not get a response, he asked again. "Tell me, how do I deserve to be in this position?!"

Seeing the tears forming in the pegasus's eyes, Blah couldn't bear to make eye contact. He couldn't joke or dodge his way out of this one - he had to say something. Taking a deep breath, Blah turned to face Hail. "You want to know what I think?" he began, his tone becoming solemn. "I think it's because you care so much about them."

"I only care as much as anyone would..." Hail uttered, but Blah kept going.

"So much that you're willing to fight to your last breath for your people, and for all innocent lives. You had plenty of opportunities to leave, so that someone else might take your place, but you always came back. I don't think just any pony out there would have the same degree of determination and protectiveness that you do. I mean, you KILLED a guy to save someone you hadn't even met, because you knew it was for the greater good. It takes a real hero to make that kind of decision."

"To be honest, I didn't know that killing him would save Beats..." Hail responded quietly, looking away. "It was more of a spur-of-the-moment thing..."

"Well, you avenged him at the very least. Seriously, it takes a lot to make one sentient being kill off another, and again, it was for the sake of an effective stranger. Perhaps you had a gut feeling that doing so would bring him back. It set you on the path to manifesting your abilities as a Rogue of Life, after all! It really is a fitting title for you, and a role that I doubt anyone else could fill."

"...you think so?" the Rogue said after a moment.

Blah nodded. "Of course. If I could pick anybody to stand by my side on the field of battle, it'd be you, Hailstorm."

Tears streaked down Hail's face at the sound of Blah's words. "Thanks, Blah..." he sniffled. "That means a lot..." He paused, as if putting his emotions on hold for a second. "C-can I hug you?"

"If you want to," Blah permitted, and before the sentence fully left his mouth he found Hail's forelegs tightly around him.

"You're like the brother I never had..."

Blah returned the favor, patting the pony on the back. "You too, man."

'Brother...' The word bounced around in Blah's head, catching him by surprise. 'Didn't I... didn't I have a brother...?'

The idea sounded accurate. However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to find a face, or even a name, to support it. He HAD to have had a family, at least at some point. Parents were a given, but the simple fact that he might have had a sibling or two stuck out in particular.

'And come to think of it,' Blah thought, 'where did the name "Blahsadfeguie" come from?'

It wasn't a real name, for sure. It sounded like total gibberish, but it was the only name he could remember that was associated with himself. It seemed as though every detail about his past life had been wiped from his mind.

"You ok, Blah?" Hail's voice broke his train of thought. Blah hadn't realized it, but after Hail released him from the hug, he had simply sat there blankly.

"I'm fine, don't worry," he answered, his head out of the clouds. "Just doing some reflecting..."

"Are you sure you're ok?" Hail repeated. "Do I need to have a reassuring talk with you now? Seems everyone's getting one all of a sudden, anyway..."

"That won't be necessary," laughed Blah. "It's nothing. We should be focused on the future, not the past."

Hail could tell that it was certainly a bit more than nothing, but he did have other things on his mind. He looked out of the window. "How much farther is it to Metropolis?"

"It's not too far," Dr. Eggman said through the speaker, implying that he had been listening the entire time. "Just a few more minutes."

Hail nodded. "I just wish there was a way to reduce travel time a bit..." No sooner had he said it than he remembered that the solution was sitting opposite him. "Wait! We have Sera now!" He turned to Blah. "Can't we just start teleporting everywhere again?"

Blah blinked. "I can't believe I hadn't thought of that," he responded. "Sera, you awake in there?"

"I am always aware of what is going on," answered the familiar voice of Seraphina as if she had never fallen asleep. "To be honest, I had forgotten about my teleport as well..."

"Can you teleport us to Metropolis, then?" Hail requested.

"I cannot teleport huge, inorganic objects such as this vehicle," she explained.

"We're almost there anyway... have you ever heard of this thing called 'patience'?" The way Eggman said it, it sounded as though he hadn't heard of it himself either.

"We can save time going to Ponyville and Blahtown at least," Blah said. "Man, I nearly forgot how awesome it is being able to teleport everywhere..."

The passengers rode out the rest of the trip in calm silence as the plane pulled into Metropolis for a landing. Blah could hardly wait to see what Dr. Eggman had in store for him.