PyraohXBlaze (72) - Lol you're welcome :D It actually took me awhile to hash out the details of exactly what happened to the poor mare; I wanted it to be tragic, but not too tragic...

PyraohXBlaze (71) - Lol probably not :P but, that also means that Blake wouldn't be getting answers either...

PSYCOPATH - Why thank you :D -P.S. I've already told you why I like them :P -P.P.S. It looks like it. I wonder if I could find a place to do it out at the Dunes...

KillerWoW - Thanks. :D I wish I could get them out to you guys quicker, but I just don't have enough time in the day to get that much writing done. RD: Heck yeah 'really'! That jerk left us high and dry with barely even a word! You'd better believe I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind the next time I see him!

xel101 - Yup, those were definitely busy chapters... and who says that's what Luna's planning? Lol she could be thinking something completely different for all we know :P

Guest - Nice! It's always awesome to hear that people enjoy my story that much! Lol and something's always going on inside that crazy head of hers :P

TurnupGrain43 - Well, there's one simple reason for that (which I probably could have detailed better...): The creature threw the shield away, beyond Blake's 'sight' range, so he can't percieve the shield in order to grab it with his magic

PBJFanFiction - Ch 71: That's good; you weren't meant to know who it was right off the bat :P Ch 72: Very Cool! Let me know if you need/want help with it

killer43penguin - Yeah, Derpy's parents suck :( (That's not canon as far as I know BTW)

Mikalzilla - Lol not quite. Physically, they more closely resemble Lickers from Resident Evil, though I will admit that I did borrow the 'acidic blood' idea from Alien

darksoul78 - Lol I gotta mix things up once in awhile ;)

Kyguy - Yeah... yeah, she definitely could've handled that better...

Ponified Bacon Boss - Well that's always fun :| Was it a weeping angel, or something else...? And the 'Prench' thing is actually canon, I didn't make that up...

DragonLovingBrony (72) - Mwahahaha! My secret evil plan to hit you with all the feels is working! Oh wait... did I say that out loud?

DragonLovingBrony (71) - Oh, you ain't seen nothin yet...

Poketurn88 - Lol that it is...

A/N - Howdy everypony! I bet you're all excited to see just what's going to happen in this week's installment of A Second Chance! Well, I'm not going to tell you; that would be spoilers! :P This week was fairly quiet, at least in terms of my life, which isn't really saying much... So, without further ado, let's get on with the chapter! As Always, don't forget to follow/favorite, review, and most importantly; enjoy!

I felt the creature lurch, and I braced myself for my own end. The pain never came though, and I turned on my aurasight to see Quickhoof with what looked like a sling in his hoof, just at the edge of my perception. The lurching I felt must have been my companion pegging the monster with a rock. It turned to face Quickhoof, still pinning me to the wall, and I saw Quickhoof smirk. He whirled around and my shield appeared from seemingly out of nowhere as the Agra warrior sent it flying.

Before it could even react, the shield had bashed my captor in the face, and I felt its grip loosen as it howled in mixed anger and pain. That blow should have been enough to split its skull though, so I knew we weren't out of the woods just yet. Quickhoof's surprise attack filled me with a new determination, and I lifted my legs up, planting my feet on the creature's side, my enhanced strength sending it stumbling away from me as I kicked hard.

Before it could recover, Quickhoof was on it again, slamming the thick metal into its face again with a sickening squelching crunch. It roared even louder, and batted the shield away as Quickhoof went for a third strike. I rushed it and slammed my shoulder into the creature's side, sending it tumbling to the ground with me on top of it. It tried to slash at me, but with the awkward position, it couldn't get the purchase it needed to do any real damage, save to scratch my armor.

I looked up and saw Quickhoof dragging the shield over again, but it looked like he had a limp in one of his hind legs. He tried to raise the shield to smash the creature's face again, but it was clear I was in the way. I gave the monster several jabs to the face to disorient it long enough for me to get off of it so Quickhoof could finish it.

The stallion raised the shield and brought it down on the thing's face yet again, but I could tell he was exhausted, and each blow was having less and less effect on our adversary. I put a hand on his shoulder and took the shield from him, smashing it into the creature's face one more time as it tried to get up.

With the vile monster now thoroughly dazed, I grabbed the shield on either side and planted my feet. I brought the shield up, then swung it down, piercing the creature's neck with the point at the base of the shield. It tried to roar again, but all that came out was a strangled gurgle. I brought the shield up and down again, but the damned thing refused to die. I kept hammering at it for what felt like an hour, until I felt Quickhoof's hoof on my side.

I looked down at the thing and saw that there was only a bloody mess where its head should have been. "I think you have killed the beast."

I threw the shield off to the side and sat down on one of the ancient beds, taking in several lungfuls of air as I tried to catch my breath from the intense battle. I had lost count of the number of times Quickhoof and I had nearly died in this room alone, but I knew it was a number far greater than I would have cared for.

"I think… it's time for… a break…" I huffed out; the entire day had been stressful on our minds and bodies, and the lack of sunlight not only made it difficult to gauge time, but was also dampening our spirits. I took in one last, deep lungful of air to steady myself. "I say we go back to that shrine room and get some rest there before we press on."

"That is a long trek in the wrong direction, are you sure you would not rather rest here?"

I nodded to my companion. "Yeah… that room felt different from the rest of this place… like the shrine was protecting it or something. I think if we're going to get any rest at all, that place is going to be our best bet."

"You are right… I remember now how that room did not feel as… hateful as the rest of this cursed temple. Come, the sooner we get there, the sooner we can rest."

I stood up on shaky legs and started to follow Quickhoof, only now noticing that the doors were open again. I stopped briefly and walked over to where I believed we had first hidden. It only took me a moment with my spherical field of view to find what I was looking for. I stooped down and picked up the empty magazine I had dropped then walked over and grabbed the scroll that had given us away in the first place.

I let Quickhoof lead the way back since he could see my markers from a greater distance than I could, and we wove through the various rooms and corridors we had fought our way through in search of a safe place to rest.

When we finally made it to the shrine room, I dismissed my armor and inspected my shoulder; the wound was deeper than I had thought, and could have been potentially fatal if it had gone much deeper or been in a different place, but with proper binding, seemed like it would be of little hindrance to our mission.

I sat down with a grunt next to the shrine and took my shirt off, ready to sacrifice it to make the necessary bandages. Right as I was about to tear the first strip, Quickhoof spoke up. "Why would you ruin your tunic? The shaman gave me some healing supplies to use in case we needed them."

I looked up just in time to catch a small leather pouch with what little magical stamina I had left. I opened it up and saw that it had a surprising amount of supplies stuffed into it, including several meters of cloth bandaging, some sort of paste in a small bone container, and even a primitive suture kit. "The paste works like the medicine the shaman used to heal my shoulder, only slower. If you put it on over a wound and bandage it up, you will heal more quickly. It will also keep your wound from becoming septic."

I set to work, first getting a closer inspection of the three distinct puncture wounds dotting my shoulder. "This would be a whole lot better if I had some saline or something to irrigate these with…"

I jerked and rolled to the side as I felt sudden magical surge flare up from the shrine. Pain flared in my shoulder, but I wasn't worried about that at the moment; my focus was on what the shrine was doing.

A moment later, the magical pressure faded away, and I walked up to the shrine, curiosity overriding caution. Sitting on what I had assumed to be the altar at the top of the shrine was what looked like a large syringe, only it had a large tube on the end instead of a needle. Sitting next to the syringe was what looked like a big plastic bottle full of some sort of liquid.

I picked up the bottle and unscrewed the lid, still curious of what was going on. I brought the bottle to my nose and took a deep whiff of the liquid inside, but whatever it was, it was odorless. I passed the bottle to Quickhoof. "Can you smell anything off about this stuff?"

He repeated my actions and sniffed it for himself. "No, it is clear, like water. I do smell salt, though it is very faint."

I took the bottle back and poured some of its contents onto the ground. After confirming that it wasn't acidic, I poured more onto my fingertip and tasted the substance. "This is saline!"

Quickhoof poked the bottle in my hand. "What is 'saline'?"

I grabbed the syringe and started filling it with the fluid. "It's sterile water with a bit of salt in it. Hospitals… err, places of healing, back where I'm from used it for all sorts of things; from keeping unconscious patients hydrated to administering medicine to cleaning out wounds… this stuff is super-useful."

I finished filling the syringe and pulled out my wallet, popping it into my mouth and bringing the end of the tube up to the first hole, which was still oozing blood. I was glad that the creature had somehow missed the various veins and arteries that ran through the area, otherwise I would have been in serious trouble.

I depressed the plunger on the syringe and bit down on my wallet as the saline solution rushed into the gaping wound, burning as it flushed out whatever foreign matter may have been in there. I panted as I finished flushing the first wound, grateful for the small break offered by having to refill the syringe for the next hole since I had used the entire syringe on the first.

I noticed Quickhoof watching me, probably trying to see exactly what this whole deal was about. I flushed the remaining two holes the same as the first, and I was also glad that it didn't have any of its own blood on its claws. From the looks of things, the shrine had given me just enough saline to properly flush out my wounds so I could properly bind them.

I kept the wallet in my mouth as I readied the suture kit, though I wished I'd had a length of degradable thread for internal stitches. I nearly face-palmed at my own stupidity in that moment. I popped the wallet out of my mouth for a moment and turned to the shrine. "May I please have half of a meter of degradable suture?"

There was another flash of magic, and a small, flat spool appeared on the shelf of the shrine. I took the thread and started unwinding it from the spool, but nearly jabbed myself with a tiny, metal suture needle that had apparently been attached to the spool.

I grabbed the needle in my magic, which was still as exhausted as the rest of me, and threaded it for internal stitching. I inserted it into the first hole I had irrigated, and bit down hard on my poor wallet as the tip bit into my flesh. I would have asked for an anesthetic from the shrine, but about the only thing I knew about applying anesthetics was that I could very easily paralyze myself with it if I wasn't careful, so I chose to deal with the pain and get it over with.

The pain made me dizzy, but I knew I had to press on and finish the stitches if these things were going to heal. I took a few minutes to collect myself once I had finished with the interior stitches of the third hole, and asked the shrine for a drink. I realized that I hadn't specified what kind of drink when I had asked, but was relieved when what turned out to be a sports drink appeared in the same spot as the other items.

I swigged down about half of the drink, passing off the other half to Quickhoof before I realized we could have simply asked for another. I switched out the threads and took a few deep breaths, steadying my nerves before I went back to work.

By the time the exteriors of the holes were finally closed, I was feeling light-headed from the pain I had forced myself to endure. I leaned back and rested my head against the cool stone of the wall behind me. "Man… what I wouldn't give for a leg of lamb with mashed potatoes and an ice-cold apple cider right about now…"

The Shrine complied with my half-delirious request, and in a flash of magic, they appeared, filling the room with a heavenly aroma I never thought I'd smell ever again, especially since I was well aware that sheep were almost as smart as ponies here.

I struggled to stand, but it became quickly apparent that I had already pushed myself beyond my own limits, and my body slumped back to the floor. I tried reaching for the platter that held my heavenly reward, but the pain singing through my shoulder quickly reminded me that I had yet to finish binding my wound.

Quickhoof limped over to the shrine, and I finally got a good look at his leg; from the looks of it, one of the creatures had splattered its blood on him, leaving odd patterns and streaks of missing flesh. I had to mentally commend the stallion for being able to tolerate such pain, but I knew his pride would never let him accept open praise for it.

I quickly finished applying first aid my wound, first coating it with the off-smelling paste Quickhoof had said would help it heal, then covering that with a square of cloth and wrapping it up with some of the bandaging that was in the small pouch.

I tossed the small bag to Quickhoof, who had set the platter and a mug of what I assumed was the apple cider down next to me while I was finishing tending to my wounds, then moved back in front of the shrine. The instant I felt the leather of the pouch leave my hand, I cut off my aurasight, already feeling a massive headache from overusing it over the last several hours.

I felt around and managed to locate the platter and cider, crossing my legs and setting the delicious food in my lap before feeling around for any form of cutlery to use with it. I felt ready to pass out at a moment's notice, but the sinfully wonderful smell of the lamb and potatoes was enough to keep me going. It didn't take long for my fingers to brush across the telltale metal of a fork and the wood of a knife handle, and I grabbed both, more than ready to dig in. I had wanted to use my aurasight again to see how Quickhoof was doing, but I knew that would be a terrible idea at the moment.

From the sounds I was hearing however, Quickhoof had sat down and was now rummaging around in the small medical pouch, ready to tend to his own wounds. I could tell from the angry growl of his stomach that he was just as hungry, and probably just as fatigued, as I was. I listened to the quiet grunts of pain and guessed that he was suturing up his own wounds, though I had no idea if he'd already known how, or if he had learned from watching me a moment ago.

My own stomach growling brought me back to reality, and I set knife and fork to meat and began sawing away. The first cut of the tender flesh came away with almost no effort, and when I brought the shaking portion up to my lips, the perfection of the cut of the meat as well as the cooking were confirmed when the morsel practically melted in my mouth, sweet and savory juices practically flooding from it as I chewed, sending jolts of what I could only describe as concentrated happiness racing up and down my entire nervous system. The boar I had had only a day before tasted like moldy cardboard in comparison to the symphony of flavors assaulting seemingly all of my senses.

"Do I need to give you a moment with your new friend?"

I chuckled and swallowed the delectable morsel. "Quickhoof's got jokes huh? Ok big guy, why don't you have the shrine make you a plate and try some for yourself."

"May I also have a portion of this 'leg of lamb' that you have gifted my companion with?"

I waited, but nothing happened; no telltale pulse of magical energy, no nothing. "Hmm… I wonder why it didn't work for you…"

I heard Quickhoof scrabbling at something. "Perhaps it used up its remaining magic to serve you."

I shrugged, though I had no idea if he saw the gesture. It also wasn't lost on me just how much better I felt after only a single bite of the lamb. "Or maybe it only responds to humans…"

The scrabbling sound stopped. "That may be true. Why do we not test this? We can take our necklaces off, and you can teach me how to ask the shrine for the meal you have in your own language; if that does not work, you can ask it yourself, and if it still fails, then we will know that it is indeed drained of its magic."

I was silent for a moment. "That's… surprisingly well thought out for a spur of the moment idea… Ok then, let's get started, and if it does still work, maybe we can get it to replace some of the gear we've lost, like your knife."

I took off my necklace, and I heard a quiet rustling as Quickhoof did the same. It took nearly ten minutes to teach the stallion the simple phrase 'leg of lamb, mashed potatoes, and apple cider please' so that he could speak it back to me, and I could actually understand him, but we managed. I had wanted to teach him 'I'll have what he's having', but I was afraid that that wouldn't be specific enough for the shrine.

I was still reluctant to use my aurasight again, especially since I could still feel the traces of the headache it had brought on, so I settled for simply listening as Quickhoof recited the words to the shrine. When he finished, a moment went by, and I was about to call the attempt a failure and ask the shrine myself, when I felt the pulse of magic from it. If Quickhoof was surprised by the success as I was, I didn't hear a peep from him indicating it.

I listened as a light scraping sound echoed through the almost empty chamber, followed by a moment of silence. "It would seem that this shrine only responds to your language…"

The squelching sounds followed by the nearly lewd moaning from my warrior companion confirmed that not only had the shrine worked when asked in… well, whatever language I was speaking; I had honestly never thought to find out if I was still speaking English, or if I was somehow speaking Equestrian, or if the two were somehow one and the same.

Quickhoof and I continued eating our meals, the mashed potatoes being every bit as flavorful as the lamb was, though in their own, unique way, and the apple cider would give even Applejack's finest stock a run for its money. I finished my meal sometime later, having forced myself to slow down and pace my eating to avoid cramps or any other unpleasant business that eating too quickly would have caused.

I set my plate aside and took one last, big swig of the apple cider, finally draining the wooden mug it had come in. An idea suddenly popped into my head that should have come to me a long time ago. I got up onto shaky legs and stood in front of the shrine. "Can you make me a Quagon'Leth flower?"

The shrine hummed and pulsed its magic like it always had, but something felt different this time. My fear was confirmed when I felt the top of the altar and came up empty-handed; the shrine couldn't make the flower. Another idea popped into my head when I shifted to better my balance and felt the necklace shift around my neck. "Can you recreate these necklaces for us?" The shrine hummed and pulsed, but ended with the same result; no item atop the altar. I groaned. "Fine, how about a bowl of ice cream then?"

I had asked more out of frustration than any real desire for the frozen confection, but I felt the familiar magical pressure the shrine had always let out before, only this time, I actually found the requested bowl perched where every other object before it had been. "It would seem that this shrine cannot create objects with magical properties." I nearly jumped out of my skin; without my aurasight on, I hadn't even noticed Quickhoof walk up next to me.

"Yeah, looks like we'll have to keep our break brief, these necklaces probably will only last a few more hours if what the shaman said was right, and we should get as far into this place as we can while we can still understand each other." I turned back to the shrine. "Can you recreate the knife my companion here was wearing when we passed through this room earlier?" The shrine hummed and complied with my request, and I handed the sheathed blade off to its owner.

I groaned and sat back down next to the shrine again. "I wonder what kind of magic it takes to run this thing; I sure wouldn't mind having one back home…"

The thought of home reminded me of the scroll that had nearly cost us our lives, and I picked it up and unrolled it, laughing almost instantly at its contents.

I groaned and sat up, looking around to see that the dreary stone walls of the temple's shrine room had been replaced by an open field, the light of a full moon streaming down on me. I stood up and turned around, my heart leaping for joy when I saw the beautiful midnight mare standing there, her ethereal mane flowing in an intangible breeze. "Hello my love… I am glad to see that you are… finally…" I followed her gaze to my shoulder, which was still bandaged for some reason. "My love! You are injured!" Luna rushed over to me and used her magic to quickly unwrap the bandaging, revealing the three stitched holes in my shoulder.

I sighed and knelt down, wrapping her in a grateful hug. "It's ok Lulu, it's actually not as bad as it looks. I'm glad you're here though, I missed you…"

She smiled and tilted her head up, gently kissing me on the lips. "And I am glad to see you as well… I feared that the letter my sister sent to you, not knowing you had entered the temple, had put you in danger. How are you faring Are you close to your prize?"

I chuckled at the mention of the letter. "So, it really was Celly that sent me that, huh? I had a feeling it might have been."

Luna tilted her head to the side. "I must admit, I am curious to know exactly what it was that she felt was so important that she could not wait until you returned. She claimed it to be an apology letter, but I feel there is more to it than that…"

My chuckle turned into an all-out laugh. "I'd like to know too, Lulu." She gave me another quizzical look. I smirked and kissed her again, savoring the wonderful feeling of her lips against mine. "Tell her to make sure she uses the magical ink next time…"

Luna's eyes went wide, and she face-hoofed, making the both of us glad that this was a dream since she still had her metal slippers on. "She put you in danger by sending you a letter in the midst of your trials, and she did not even bother to make sure she was using the correct ink?!"

I shrugged. "Hey, we all make mistakes; besides, I'm relatively alright." Luna walked around me, her scrutinizing gaze combing over my entire body.

"I can tell that you are far from alright my love; even here in your dreamscape I still feel your fatigue."

I sat down on the soft grass of the field and looked up at the dream moon. "I'll admit, it hasn't exactly been a fun trip, and I'll definitely be glad to be back home with you again…" Luna sat next to me, and turned her gaze to the moon as well.

"… Do you really see my moon as being so beautiful?"

I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her close. "That moon is nothing compared to how beautiful you are Luna…"