Fight the darkness,
it lives inside your heart.

It was worse, so much worse, than he had seen from the air. Mesec was glad he had sent Lucius to the Basin right away - every moment could be precious here in the growing night. She croaked out names in response to his question of what happened - the latter of which was a lashing to his heart. How could Ampere do this? What had Hotaru done to deserve the wrath of two? The blood and the injuries, the signs of electrical burns, would be enough to cause his knees to give way if he had been standing. The name of Ampere swimming in his mind caused a flurry of curses from his companion, cementing the already-harsh feelings Lucius had toward the mare. But Mesec couldn’t let those thoughts distract him, couldn’t dwell on her when Hotaru was in this state - crying, bleeding, broken just a few feet away from him.

She managed to give a name to who he assumed must be a healer in the Basin and he was quick to relay the information to Lucius. “Lena, get Lena.” Mesec described the bay unicorn as much as he could from their brief acquaintance, but he hoped it would be enough. How many of them could there be? And she had a companion too but his head was swimming again, the information too hard to reach as Hotaru spoke again, begging him not to leave her. “Oh Hotaru. I won’t. Never.” The promise came without the slightest bit of hesitation as his own eyes started to flood with tears. There was nothing he wouldn’t promise, nothing he wouldn’t do, for her in this moment.

And that was enough to get him moving, to get him past the uncertainty and hesitation he had felt when he had landed. With more care than if she were made of glass he stood up to move closer, folding his legs once more to the blood-stained snow by her back. A silver-lined wing extended to drape gently across her - feathers brushing blood as he maneuvered as gently as he could to drape it across her. Hopefully the slight pressure would be worth the heat his body could give her while they waited. This close, he could see more of the damage and those brimming tears fell silently from his silver eyes as he reached out to touch her mane in the softest of caresses. “Stay with me now. Just a little longer and Lena will be here.” However fast Lucius could fly to the Basin did not seem fast enough but he didn’t dare look away from her now to see how far the zephyr had gotten. What if he looked and she slipped away? He didn’t think he could bear it - didn’t even think he could handle blinking in case he missed her... them. He looks to Alice, knowing the pain he felt was nothing compared to the hellhounds. She remained close, a faithful companion if there ever was one, but he beckoned her now to join them, to add what more heat she could.

It wouldn't be long now.

Even those few moments he had looked away felt too long to turn his attention from the pink mare he held against the soft glow of his body - growing stronger as the night deepened and the moon rose. His voice cracked as his whisper interrupted the thick darkness of the Steppe night, making a lamenting chorus with the haggard and pained breathing of his friend. “You are so strong, Ru, but you don’t have to be right now. I’ll be strong for you. We’ll hold on together. Just stay with me.”

It's not your fault my dear son,
it is simply your past.