The Escape[private][dated]

Shady huffed heavily while galloping through the large field of chin-length grass in search of some place they could use as shelter while focused on getting as far away from the ruined city as she could while the sun was still up. She was in pretty decent shape, but far from used to covering such long distances so quickly.

Looking to her side, she managed to place a smile upon her muzzle despite what was happening. As long as the white and gold pegasus of her dreams was still there with her, she had all the happiness she needed.

Unknown to the black and red mare, a stone hidden in the grass was quickly approaching her. In an instant, the earth pony vanished under the grass with a heavy thud, groaning wordlessly as her tired body refused to respond and let her pick herself up.

Freyia's mind was surprisingly empty as she ran behind Shady. There were no thoughts about being a fugitive, about abandoning everything she knew, about dishonoring herself. No thoughts about the future, about where she would go, what she would do. She felt nothing aside from the sharp grass on her legs and the small bits of pain shooting through her body as they scrapped against her healing wounds. Maybe it was her focus on following, just follow the mare in front of her. If Shady were to go off a cliff, it would be likely that Freyia would have followed without hesitation. Yet this was not out of love, at least not at this moment. A lot had happened to her, and her mind had yet to process it all. In order to survive, was best to just keep following.

A thud awoke her from the trance. Suddenly Shady was gone. Freyia dug her hooves into the ground and came to an abrupt stop. Looking around frantically, all she could see was the tall grass. Her heart picked up a little as panic began to set in. "Shady? Shay!" she called out, listening for any response.

How did she just disappear? I was right behind her? Damnit Freyia, you need to focus more. Where could she have gone?

Smelling the air, she could tell no griffons were nearby; their stench always easy to pick out. With that relief she began to calm down a little. "Where'd you go?!"

Shady groaned quietly, the sudden stop of her muscles giving them time to finally feel the aching that had been building in them ever since they had ran away from the big city. An ear twitched as a sound came to her: the voice of Freyia. With what energy she had left in her body, she slowly rolled onto her back to release any pressure on her chest to allow for easier breathing.

"F-Frey! I'm down here...! Tripped...on a d-damn rock!" She called out in a weak voice between her heavy panting. The last thing she wanted to do was worry the pegasus she cared so much about. "I think I'm...f-fine though...!"

"Shady?" she turned to where the voice came from, just a few steps to the side. Parting the tall grass, she saw the mare laying on her back, panting heavily and obviously sore from all the running. "A rock? Are you alright?"

She moved closer, inspecting her body and limbs for any signs of injury. Everything looked fine. She looked back to the horizon, the sun was getting closer to dusk. They had maybe a couple hours more of light before they would have to find shelter.

We really need to keep moving, she thought. But, looking back to her mare, she could tell that Shady was out of energy and needed to rest. She smiled softly and sat next to her. "Seems like you need to get in shape more," she teased, petting her coat gently.

Shady chuckled slightly while slowly catching her breath, making sure to keep her breathing in slow, long breaths to help recover quicker. Despite everything, she couldn't help get a smile on her face as she looked up into the eyes of her pegasus, the gentle touch of the white hoof only adding to it.

"I suppose I do. I've focused more on speed and not distance." She replied, slowly turning her eyes up towards the sky. "We've covered plenty of ground at least. As long as we can find somewhere to safely sleep, distance shouldn't be an issue."

Freyia scanned the horizon for anything that might serve as an adequate shelter. In the distance, she could see what perhaps was an old barn house. "There's something that might work," she said standing to try and get a better look. "We'll head over there. C'mon," she grunted as she bent down and started nudging Shady with her head. After getting her head halfway underneath, she quickly pushed forward and pulled her head up, lifting Shady a few feet into the air. With a quick motion she moved underneath and caught her on her back. A sharp pain tore through her muscles as her nerves screamed in anger. Right, still wounded

After shifting the weight a little, Freyia let out a sigh. "Alright, you okay up there?" Freyia turned and smiled a tired smile. To be honest, she was just as tired as Shady, and wanted nothing more than to just collapse in the grass too. But they needed shelter, a fire, and some water, all of which is better found while the sun still shines.

Shady shifted slightly as the fuzzy nose nudged her, not saying much until she was resting on Freyia's back with her legs hanging to the pegasus' sides.

"Whoa, hey. If it's not that far...I think I can walk." She replied softly, face slowly hardening despite the tone of voice. "You're still injured, and have been running for as long as I have. I don't want to put any more strain onto you than I have to."

Her words held no more weight than a simple bluff, however. It felt as if her legs were made out of gelatin and hardly responded to her brain's screams at them to move.

"It's fine Shady. It's my fault we are in this mess. I don't want you to hurt if I can help it. The least I can do is carry you over to that building."

It was a moment before she took the first step; her mind had to override her body in order to do so. There, not so bad, just a little bit to the east, not that far at all. She picked up the pace quickly, and within no time was trotting steadily on.

Shady looked towards the face of Freyia, wearing a light frown but otherwise not doing much to protest.

"Alright. But, once we get in there, I want you to rest while I take care of anything we may need. You need your strength more than I do." She replied, actually kind of glad for her rather frail frame for once due to it possibly making her lighter for Freyia to carry.

For an earth pony, Shady was rather lite. Really lite. halfway to the old, ruined building Freyia actually forgot she was carrying her. Her mind was still empty, only thinking about the current moment of getting to her destination. "You okay back there? How are you feeling? We are almost there."

Getting closer, the building looked like an old barn or storage house. Half of it was exposed, and the other half looked like it was about to be at any moment. The wood was old and mostly rotted. As they approached the grass began to shrink until there was nothing but baron dirt for the last few yards.

"I'm fine, slowly getting better. Thank you, sweets." Shady replied calmly, taking one final big breath in before breathing normally. Her smile returned to her muzzle as the shelter slowly approached them, even if it wasn't in the best condition. "You're too good to me."

Freyia let that comment go as she crept over to one of the openings, taking a peek inside. The floor was covered in old, mildewy hay and grass. The rays of light through the many holes revealed particles of what she hoped was only dust in the air, which smelled of rot. A few pieces of wood hung from the half torn roof, and the second floor balcony area was all but torn down. Oddly enough, the ladder leading up seemed perfectly fine.

"Well, I think this is as good as we are gonna get right now." She pulled her head out of the hole and laid down on her stomach, letting Shady slowly get off. "I think we have a few hours left before dark. We should try and make a fire and see if maybe there's a well around here." She let out a sigh as her body ached. C'mon Freyia, just a few more hours, then you can rest.

Shady slowly climbed off of her love and rose to her hooves. Her legs ached, but is wasn't anything she couldn't handle.

"Right. We can just use what has fallen off of this barn for the fire at least. The well is another story though..." She said with a slightly drained sigh. Shaking her head every so slightly in an attempt to pull some of her senses back, she made a little stretch. "At least one of us has some survival training to give us the edge. I get that I was trained for spying, but would it have hurt to tell me some things I could use outside of a cityscape?"

Freyia gave a small chuckle. "Indeed, it probably would've been a good idea." Freyia stood up and stretched, extending her wings. "Well, I'll fly up and take a quick look around. She flapped once, lifting her body a few feet. Instantly her muscles froze and pain shot through her body. She fell back down, landing half on her side. She let out a painful moan, "Then again, maybe not." She stroked her wing with a hoof, winching as she tried to bend it.

Shady jumped as Freyia fell back to the ground, instantly moving to her side and lowering herself down. "Are you alright, Sweets?" She asked nervously, slowly moving a hoof to the fallen pegasus' wing to check it for her. Placing the hoof gently onto the wing's main joint, she applied only a touch of pressure.

"Does that hurt?" She asked in a rare caring tone that was reserved solely for the white pony in front of her.

Freyia winced at the pressure, "A-A little." She gave a cheeky smile and opened one eye to see if Shady bought the obvious downplay. There was no reason to lie at this point, but she couldn't help herself. She wanted to appear strong.

"I'm fine, just need a little more time off my wings. I'll find some water." Brushing herself off, she stood up and looked around. "We may get lucky with a well close by. Otherwise we'll have to make finding water top priority tomorrow."

Shady's concerned frown slowly grew wider across her muzzle. She knew Freyia was hurting, but she didn't want to stop her if she truly wished to help. She could use all the help she could get. For the sake of both of them.

"Alright. I just hope whatever water we can find is clean. The last thing we need is one of us getting sick with something." She replied with a heavy sigh. "Just please don't strain yourself too much, okay? If you need to rest, I'm more than happy to search on my own. I don't want you getting hurt..."

Freyia looks to Shady and smiles. "Of course. There's no need to push any limits here."

Of course...that was a lie.

For some odd reason Freyia felt more compelled than ever to push herself beyond the pain. She didn't quite know why, but a guess was that soon the gravity of the current situation would hit her like a train, rending her an emotional wreck. Better to get all the necessities done before that happened.

"I'll look around the area. You gonna be alright?"

Shady gave her head a simple nod before standing up fully once more.

"I should be fine starting the fire. Just be safe on your search. Don't worry about coming back early if you need to. I wouldn't mind taking your place in the search at all." She said with a kind smile.

Freyia gave a nod and trotted around the building. She wasn't sure what this structure was, maybe an old barn or storage place. Looking around there were no paths or other buildings, as if this structure was built and stood alone throughout its history. Oddly this made the pegasus feel a little sympathetic for it.

There was nothing here, just more of the grass. With a sigh, Freyia turned back. She could see Shady through the holes. For reasons unknown to her, that mare chose to run away too. Because of her, Shady had to leave everything behind. And now she couldn't even find a little water for them. This thought brought with it a renewed vigor. The pegasus glanced back at her wounded wings.

C'mon

She flexed them a few times then took to the air again. The pain immediately returned, but this time she was ready. Just going to the first low hanging cloud, not that far. You can do it.

After a few long moments and painful wing flaps, she made it to the cloud. Landing semi-gently, she took a few moments to catch her breath. Alright, now to find that water. From up above, the land looked even more baron. Again, there was no sign of any well or path nearby. She cursed a little under her breath. Looking to the horizon, she could make out the edge of a forest in the distance. Tomorrow they could reach it.

She sighed, and decided that tonight they could go without water. Looking over the edge of the cloud, she realized something...

...getting down might be a little tougher.

Shady watched Freyia move away from her for a few short moments, eventually turning her attention back to the task she had been put in charge of. The black mare slowly cantered her way into the large barn-like structure. Most of the wood had been rotted or at the very least deteriorated, but it was still wood that should be able to burn.

Being careful to not give herself any splinters that could cause infection, the slowly began to pick up and move small pieces of the wood that had fallen into a small pile by the doorway of the building. It was slow and careful work, but she didn't seem to mind it in the least.

Stamping her hoof on the ground three times, the blade strapped to her foreleg sprang out. The sight made her grin, it was still working for now. She took one of the smaller pieces of wood she had found, using the blade to carefully shave off small bits of the wood to act as kindling to start the flames off with.

After a moment, a realization struck her. ...How do I light this?

"Um..." she mumbled to herself. Normally a simple glide would work, but she didn't think her wounded wings would be able to stiffen properly or for enough time. Scanning the ground, she found a spot padded with the tall grass. Well, that might work.

Taking a deep breath, she extended her wings and hoped off the cloud. She alternated between a glide and a free fall, about all her wings could handle. Half way down she realized she was still too fast. Seconds before impact, she fully extended her wings, pulling her up.

Sadly, this meant she missed the soft patch.

It was three thuds before she slid to a stop, a nice line cut through the grass and dirt. The pain at this point just pissed Freyia off more. She was tired of feeling pain, tired of being weak.

She let the minutes pass by, just laying there, face half buried in the ground; her thoughts mostly about how much this sucked.

Shady angrily stared at the pile of firewood she had laid out, unable to think of a good way to get it lit. An ear twitched as a very faint sound made its way to the mare's ear: a thump. Turning her head in the direction the sound had come from, she stood up from her spot. She didn't know what the sound had come from, but it was better to be safe.

She slowly made her way towards the source of the noise, not finding anything for a few minutes, until what she was scared of was presented to her.

"Frey!" She called out, quickly moving to the downed pegasus and kneeling down next to her.

"Sweets, are you alright?" The mare asked in a very scared tone.

Freyia began laughing as she heard Shady's voice. "Yes I'm fine, just had a little...rough landing." With the other mare's presence, Freyia figured this was a good a time as any to get up. She groaned as her muscles cried out in defiance at the movements.

"Was trying to get a better view to find some water. I'm afraid there isn't any nearby. I did see a forest on the horizon, good chance to find water there." Aside from a few scrapes and bruises, Freyia seemed to be fine.

Shady let a sigh of mild relief escape her when Freyia didn't seem to be too injured at least. Closing her eyes for just a moment, the mare slowly slipped the simple cloak she was wearing off of herself, revealing the frail frame that only seemed to have gotten noticeably thinner since the last time the two had really been able to be together.

Draping the cloak over her pegasus, she gave a faint smile. "Come on, let me help you back." She offered in a caring tone as she lowered herself to allow Freyia to climb onto her back.

Freyia smiled warmly as the cloak was put over her, "Thank you, but I can walk." Freyia stumbled slightly at the first step, but then trotted normally. "So, do you know how to start a fire?" she looked over to Shady, the warm smile still on her face.

Shady slowly stood back up normally, knowing she wouldn't be able to force Freyia onto her back. She stumbled for a moment as soon as the question was asked, righting herself to continue on.

"No...I don't..." She replied with a slightly embarrassed tone in her voice. "But, there's always time to learn for later."

"No worries, I'll see if I can't make fire. We'll need wood that isn't rotted to start the fire, as well as kindling." With this she began looking around and picking up dry brush that might serve this purpose. Freyia was always working, always thinking. Never could she truly rest herself.

Shady's ears folded back just a touch while listening to the instructions she was given on starting a fire. She truly wished she had been given better survival training so she could stop embarrassing herself in front of her love. She shook it off after a bit and simply kept close to Freyia, picking up some of the dried brush as well, nodding her head while the pegasus spoke to show she was listening.

There was a bit of awkward silence as she made her way back to the shelter slowly. She didn't know what to say, if there was anything to say. She was probably embarrassing herself in front of Shady. Why she still struggled to perform the most mundane social activities around her was a mystery.

Finally as the reached the baren outline, she spoke, "D'you see any non rotted wood in there?"

...nice.

Shady kept close to Freyia, making sure she was alright first and foremost. Her ear swiveled towards her partner once some words were spoken before looking around.

"I'm not quite sure. I thought any kind of wood would do..." She replied truthfully, letting a sigh go as her lack of experience due to age and profession began to show. "There might be some good wood we can still pull off of something inside the barn. I never really gave it a full look."

Freyia could sense a kind of shame from the grey pegasus. "Any wood will do, once the fire is hot enough. But while it's getting started, it's better to use dry wood. I am sure we will find something in there. I think the old ladder, if not fake, will work."

She entered through the half door way, looking right for the ladder. The wood was surprisingly untouched by age. Smelling it, there didn't seem to be any coating; it seemed like perfectly normal wood. "Yes this will work perfectly. And you gathered enough wood for the night. We should be fine." Freyia wrapped her mouth around one of the rungs, and with forceful kicks, began to take it apart. "He-er, h-ake -hese and h-ile h-em up." She did not think to remove her mouth to speak.

Shade smiled and moved up to the ladder bits that were broken off for her, taking a few into her mouth before quickly trotting over to the door and carefully making a nice pile just outside to make sure the barn wouldn't go up in flames. She continued her trips back and forth as quickly as she could to make sure the wood from the ladder wouldn't pile up too much and make Freyia carry some she didn't have to.