Revenge is Bittersweet

Chapter 8: *Painful memories*

The walk to Fluttershy’s house was rather unspectacular: Rarity didn’t behave like if she wanted to start a conversation, and neither did I.

So we silently trotted through the ravaged scenery, passing the decaying houses and abandoned plains at a constant, quick pace. I couldn’t hide my surprise about Rarity’s endurance: regarding her former job, I’d thought she would collapse after a few minutes – but she kept her pace, trotting next to me and staring into the distance purposefully.

Thus, time went by – I couldn’t tell exactly, but I was sure that we were walking for more than two hours when Rarity finally stopped and looked at me. “Fluttershy’s house is over there.” She said and pointed to a small cottage surrounded by smaller trees and moldered bird houses.

Just like Carousel Boutique, it looked like it had been adjusted to provide somepony the best possible protection from the exterior world: the windows were barricaded with big wooden slats, the door was sealed by multiple locks, and a big ‘DO NOT ENTER’-sign was attached to it.

Upon beginning my walk towards the house, I noticed Rarity staying back. I slowly turned around and gave her a questioning look, asking: “Won’t you come?”

She shook her head determined: “No, I don’t want to risk getting seen by her. If she’d see me, she may ask me for help – help I couldn’t provide for the life of me. No, it’s better if I just head back home; I can’t leave Sweetie Belle alone for too long anyway.”

I nodded understanding and gave her an appreciating look: “Alright. Thank you for everything then.”

Rarity nodded drably: “It’s alright. Goodbye! And good luck with finding your daughter!” she said and turned around, heading back home.

I took a deep breath of the hot, dry air and started on my way to the small cottage.

After only a few moments, I noticed my breathing getting heavier and sweat rolling down my forehead. With an exhausted pant, I slowly lifted my head and looked up to the blue sky: no rain, no clouds, not even a slight breeze.

My anger grew again, surely driven by the high temperatures: Why? Why did Celestia punish her subjects with that infernal sun? Why didn’t the weather pegasi arrange a little thunderstorm? And why for buck’s sake didn’t Luna finally end the day? If she couldn’t arrange a full-fledged night, she could at least cause a solar eclipse, right!?

With an angry snort, I clenched my teeth and quickened my pace. “Why the heck does the whole world work against me?” I growled, “Hell, I just hope that this Fluttershy or whatever her name is can help me. Otherwise … otherwise … well …” I shook my head and looked up, focusing Fluttershy’s house, “How did granny say? Expect the worst, hope for the best.” Taking a deep breath, I added, “It’ll be fine. It’ll all be fine.”

I approached the cottage after a few more moments and knocked at the sealed entrance door.

As no reaction came, I knocked again -that time slightly harder- and calmly shouted: “Fluttershy! Are you at home? I need to talk to you!”

“G-go away!” a terrified voice sounded from inside the cottage.

I hesitated for a second, then knocked again and shouted: “Fluttershy! I really have to-“

“Hey! What are ya’ll doin’ at Fluttershy’s house? Leave her alone, will ya!?” I got cut off by a slightly familiar voice.

I span around: the orange mare I met a couple of days ago was standing behind me and giving me an angry glance; in addition to her Stetson, she now also carried a brown saddlebag on her back.

“Oh, it’s you again. … You know Fluttershy?” I asked after a moment of silence.

She nodded rigidly: “Yeah, she’s mah friend, Ah know her very well. An’ Ah know how she reacts to strangers threatening her!”

It took me a few seconds to understand what she meant. Hastily shaking my head, I replied: “Look, I didn’t threaten her! I have to ask her something very important!”

She raised an eyebrow: “And what could be important enough to bother Fluttershy? The war has already stressed her enough; the last thing she needs at the moment is somepony upsetting her!”

Taking a step towards her, I sharply explained: “As I already told you, I’m searching for my daughter! I’ve got a hint that Fluttershy might know where she has been taken!”

The mare hesitated, giving me a slightly surprised look: “Ya … Yer looking for your daughter too?” she shook her head in pity, “It’s a shame - so many families have been torn apart due to that war. A couple of days ago, Ah met somepony who was also looking for his daughter. A blue pegasus with blonde-”

I tore off my sunglasses, revealing my eyes, and shouted: “That was me! Don’t you recognize me!?”

She gave my face a closer look; her eyes widened after a few seconds and she stuttered: “I-it’s you?”

I nodded hastily: “Yes, just call me Fippo. Now if-“

“Well then, hey Fippo. Mah name’s Applejack.” She interrupted me.

With a quick nod, I put my sunglasses back on and dryly responded: “Well Applejack, I’d love to chew the fat with you, but if you don’t mind, I really have to talk to Fluttershy!”

The mare gave me a confused look, still not letting me pass: “But … why do ya look like that? Ah mean, that … red?”

Impatiently shaking my head, I harshly answered her: “There are several reasons for that, let’s just say that I prefer to stay undetected! But really: I have to talk to Fluttershy! Now!” I turned around and faced Fluttershy’s door again, raising my hoof in order to knock.

“And ya think that she can help ya?” Applejack asked critically.

Without turning around, I hastily nodded: “Yes! She has experienced the same fate as Firespark; I suppose that she knows where she has been taken! She can help me to find her!”

Still looking skeptical, the orange mare reflected for a moment. Obviously coming to a decision, she took a step forward and knocked at the door, shouting: “Fluttershy! Please open the door! It’s me, Applejack!”

A few moments passed until, slowly, the wooden door opened and the terrified face of a yellow mare appeared in the small gap between the door and the doorframe.

“Applejack? What do you want?” the mare asked in a soft, scared voice; her horrified look was focused on me.

“Look, Fluttershy. Ah know ya don’t like visitors, but this pony here really needs yer help!” Applejack explained and tilted her head into my direction.

“But … but he looks dangerous!” Fluttershy whimpered and recoiled slightly.

“Fluttershy, his daughter got abducted! He suspects that ya know where she had been taken!” Applejack explained the issue.

“B-but why should I know that!? I-I…” Fluttershy’s voice broke in the middle of the sentence.

Applejack gave me an asking look over her shoulder. Taking a step forward, I calmly explained: “Look, Fluttershy. Firespark, my daughter, has failed her flight test. I’ve heard that you had the same issue, but somehow managed to escape the consequences of it. So I would really appreciate if you could-“

I got cut off by the door being closed powerfully and Fluttershy shouting: “Please go away! I’ve left that part of my past behind me! I don’t want to hear anything about it!”

With a helpless look on my face, I turned around and faced Applejack.

She understood immediately and knocked at the door again, yelling: “Fluttershy, open the door! Ah can understand if ya don’t wanna think about your past, but that stallion really needs your help! How would ya feel if somepony as essential as a daughter would be taken away from ya?”

A few moments of silence passed. Finally, the door got opened again and Fluttershy peeked through the gap. With a serious look, she silently asked: “Are you armed?”

Applejack and I both shook our heads denying; Fluttershy hesitantly opened the door and stepped back, saying: “Come in, I’ll tell you what I know.”

Without hesitating, Applejack stepped forward and entered the cottage; I followed her and closed the door behind me.

The first thing I noticed upon entering the cottage was that it was very dark in there: the furniture had been shoved in front of the windows and consequently blocked out the sunlight; the only light source remaining was a small candle in the middle of the room.

After multiple unsuccessful attempts to see in the darkness, I finally took off my sunglasses and placed them above my forehead.

Fluttershy stopped in front of the candle and turned around, facing us with a drained look: “Please … please sit down. I’ll tell you what you need to know.”

Fulfilling her desire, I took a seat and focused her, asking: “So, you are Fluttershy, right?”

The yellow pony was barely visible due to the poor lightning, but I could see that she nodded.

“Alright, Fluttershy.” I began, making an effort to speak as calm and clearly as possible: “As I said before, somepony told me that you failed your flight test. Is that right?“ I asked her brokenly.

She winced, but slowly nodded.

“So you probably got captured and taken away from the stadium.” I continued soberly.

Fluttershy hesitated for a second, then shook her head slowly: “No. No, that isn’t right.”

“So you didn’t fail your test!?” I asked and raised an eyebrow, trying my best to hide my growing impatience.

The pegasus nodded slowly: “Yes, I did. But I haven’t been taken away … not from the stadium at least.”

“From where then!? And where have you been brought!?” I harshly cut her off and stomped a hoof on the ground, “For buck’s sake, I need to know! Now!”

Fluttershy winced and let out a silent squeal.

“Hey now cut that pony some slack!” Applejack snapped at me, “She went through some serious stuff; the memory sure is painful to recall!”

Stiffly turning my head towards her and focusing her with clenched teeth, I retorted: “I know that the memory is painful! But do you know what’s much more painful that a bucking foalhood trauma!? Knowing that your little filly is somewhere out there!” I yelled at her, “That she might be in danger and that she’s waiting for you to come and save her![” my voice was about to break; tears began to flood my eyes, “And that’s why I would be very grateful,” I turned towards Fluttershy, having difficulties to see her through my tearstained eyes, “if you could just tell me where she’s been brought! So that I can find her and save her from those … those …” my voice broke and I fell over. With a dull ‘thud’ my head hit the wooden floor.

I remained lying; my sobs filled the small room. “I just want my daughter back! Is that too much to ask for!?” I whimpered tearfully.

Applejack put a hoof on my back and comforted me: “Hey! Hey, it’ll all be fine.”

I didn’t look up. I didn’t react at all. I’ve had enough; I was done with this world.

“Look, if there are ponies that escaped their fate, then yer daughter surely won’t be an exception.” Applejack continued, doing her best to sound empathetic.

Slowly, I raised my head and looked up, focusing her.

“Trust me.” Applejack told me confidently. Turning her head towards Fluttershy, she added: “Now come on, Flutters! Tell us what happened!”

The yellow pony slowly nodded. In the flickering light of the candle, I could see a slight blush on her face as she began: “I-I just fell. Right after the beginning of my test, my wings just failed me; they simply didn’t move.” She sighed deeply, “So I fell. Fortunately, got caught by a bunch of butterflies a few feet above the ground and survived the fall without getting harmed - at least not physically.” She added wistfully.

Her voice began to quaver as she continued: “I-I didn’t dare to enter Cloudsdale again, for I was certain that they wouldn’t accept me without having passed the test.”

“You don’t say.” I said to myself.

Fluttershy’s face brightened slightly as she continued: “But that wasn’t a problem after all: I quickly discovered my love for the nature - I loved the animals and they loved me. I lived in harmony with the nature around me and couldn’t have been happier.” She sighed; her wistful mood returned: “Up to that day.”

“What happened? Come on, Fluttershy! Get to the point!” I interrupted her and sat back up, wiping away my drying tears with a quick move of my hoof.

The pegasus shivered: “One day, just when I was in the forest to collect food for my friends, I was approached by two guards in golden armor. They asked me whether I was Fluttershy and -naïve as I was- I said yes. They captured me and … and tied me up. I tried to struggle, but one of them hit my head with his foreleg and I got unconscious.” Despite the dimmed light in her cottage, it was clearly visible that recalling the memory made her skin crawl.

Taking a deep breath, she continued: “When I woke up again, I found myself in a dark chamber, still shackled. The sounds I heard reminded me to those of a carriage. I shouted for help, but nopony seemed to hear me, so I-“ she jugged, “just laid on the ground and cried. I knew that it would have been more clever to look for a way out, but I … I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t move at all.”

“Yes, Fluttershy!” I interrupted her, trying to sound less harsh than earlier, “I understand that you were shocked, but could you please skip that part and move to the part where you arrived at the factory!? Time presses!”

She nodded slowly; her eyes began to glaze over: “After multiple hours, a door got torn open behind me and I was blinded by the broad daylight. A masked pony, completely dressed in black, harshly told me to dismount. I didn’t want to take a risk, so I obeyed and stepped on the ground in front of the carriage. Upon looking around, I saw that I was in Cloudsdale; there were three of the masked ponies and a huge building in front of me.”

“The factory.” I silently concluded.

Fluttershy hastily nodded: “The weather factory! The building definitely was the weather factory!”

My body stiffened; my head shot up, facing her with widened eyes: “What!? Weather factory!?Are you sure!?”

“Yes, I’m sure it was the weather factory!” she confirmed with a confidence that surprised me, “But we had stopped at the backside of it, a side of the factory I’ve never seen before.” She closed her eyes, apparently reflecting, “There was a … a metal overhead door in front of me. It was completely painted in white and almost invisible in the cloud-wall.” She revealed her memory, unable to hide a shiver that ran through her body.

Giving her an unbelieving look, I asked: “A-are you serious? You were brought to the weather factory?”

The yellow pony nodded determined: “Absolutely.”

I paused for a moment, having difficulties to internalize what I’d just heard.

However, after a few seconds, I shook my head and leaned forward, bringing myself face-to-face with Fluttershy and impatiently asking: “Then were you inside? Have you seen what’s done in there?”

“And how did ya escape?” Applejack added.

“Just when the door was about to get opened,” Fluttershy continued with her story, “a guard came from somewhere and hastily approached the masked ponies. He said something about a reprieve by Princess Celestia.”

Raising an eyebrow, I skeptically asked: “A reprieve? By her?”

The pegasus nodded confirming: “That’s unusual, I know. The masked ponies were just as surprised as me. They asked whether he was serious multiple times, but he approved every time.”

She took a deep breath, continuing: “So they approached me, loosened my shackles, and, without a further comment, gave me a powerful kick that made me stumble over the edge of the clouds.” Again, a shiver ran through her body, “I fell. I still couldn’t fly properly, but I could at least slow down my fall a bit, so I didn’t get injured when I landed on the ground.”

Her look wandered over to the candle; her eyes began to glaze over, “I haven’t been to Cloudsdale that often after that day, but the ponies seem to accept me as I am. However, I’ve never talked to anypony else about that, I feared that they would capture me again and…” she shuddered, “I definitely wouldn’t get a reprieval the next time.”

“So you don’t know what’s done in the factory?” I cut her off, “I mean … of course, the weather factory makes the weather, but what happens to the foals? Are they used as forced workers? As slaves!?”

Fluttershy slowly shook her head: “I’m sorry. I can tell you that I’ve been brought to the weather factory, but I don’t know what’s done behind that metal door. … And to be honest,” she shivered, “I don’t want to know!”

I gave her a hesitant nod, making an effort to hide my disappointment: “Alright then. Thank you very much. … Now I at least know where to look for her.”

She forced out a smile: “You’re welcome. I’m glad that I could help you.”

Without wasting time, I got to my hooves and walked towards the exit. However, I involuntarily stopped as I heard Applejack ask: “But what was that with the reprieval? Why did the Princess do that? Ya know: she usually isn’t that type of mare to just forgive an’ forget.”

Fluttershy nodded: “I know, but … I never cared about why she’s done that. After all, she’s probably saved my life with that reprieval. … or at least saved me from a life in the factory, so I didn’t question her decision. However, a few years ago, Rainbow Dash finally told me the story.”

“You … you know Rainbow Dash?” I asked over my shoulder, unable to hide my surprise.

She nodded approving: “Yes, we’ve been friends ever since flight school. I was one class above her though.”

Giving her an inspecting look, I mumbled: “Right, you look somewhat familiar. … Anyways, what was the story?”

My eyes slowly seemed to adapt to the darkness in the cottage, for I could see that Fluttershy had tears in her eyes. I couldn’t tell if those were tears of joy or of sadness though.

“Rainbow Dash approached Princess Celestia herself and asked her to be merciful.” Fluttershy explained, admiration swinging in her voice, “Of course, the Princess first was skeptical, but Rainbow didn’t give up! After hours of discussing, she finally managed to convince the Princess to let me go.” A weak smile formed on her face, “I think she saved my life.”

Slowly, her smile vanished; she sighed deeply and added: “I miss her as a friend.”

“So what happened to you all?” I asked, involuntarily deferring my departure even further.

As if by command, the two mares’ heads lowered, looking to the ground; Applejack let out a wistful sigh and hesitantly started to explain: “After Twilight’s coronation, she completely split herself from our group. Ya know, she moved to Canterlot and never showed up again.”

Fluttershy, apparently having old sores reopened, sobbed clearly audible. Applejack flung her foreleg around her friend’s neck and pressed herself against her, trying to comfort the drained pegasus.

“After a couple of months, as if losing one of our friends wasn’t enough,” Applejack continued, “Rainbow Dash didn’t show up any more: she was either somewhere out in Cloudsdale or sleeping in her house, but she didn’t seem to make an effort to keep our friendship up.” Applejack interrupted herself to lean forward and rub a hoof over her face, trying to muffle a sob, “An’ finally, there’s Rarity,” she continued bitterly, “She’s barricaded herself in her house and refuses to collaborate with us in any way. All she cares about is herself, other ponies mean nothing to her.”

I nodded: “Yeah, I already know her. I met her the day before, she offered me a place to sleep and colored my fur and mane.”

“Are you sure yer talking about Rarity?” Applejack asked with an unbelieving look, “Cuz’ the unicorn Ah know never helps anypony! Not any more at least!”

With a shrug, I replied: “Well, she’s a white unicorn, she knows the two of you and calls herself Rarity, so…”

Applejack put me off and shook her head, mumbling: “Well, maybe she had a good day…”

“Yeah, probably.” I replied absentmindedly and took a step towards the exit door, determined to lose no more time. However, I froze in my movement as a question popped up in my head.

I knew that time pressed, but before I could stop myself, I’d already turned around and focused the two mares again: “So … the two of you are still friends, right?” I asked.

Fluttershy hesitated: “Well, and Applejack and me, we … well …”

“We help each other out from time to time.” Applejack answered for her friend, “In those hard times, it’s good to have somepony to depend on. Somepony of whom ya know that she won’t let ya down.” Her face darkened, ”Not like certain other ponies.”

Fluttershy nodded approving, apparently still having difficulties to hold back her tears.

For a second, I was unable to move; unable to loosen my glance from the sobbing pony: I couldn’t believe how hard the past years must have been for them: not only that they had to deal with extortionate dues and strict state control, no, they’d also lost most of their friends. I never had that many friends, so I hardly knew how it felt to lose them.

However, I knew how it felt to be separated from somepony who meant a lot to you, so I felt sympathetic for Fluttershy having lost so many of her friends almost at once.

But I quickly shook my head, remembering the reason why I came to Fluttershy’s cottage in the first place, and turned towards the exit door. “Alright, I should leave by now. I really have to search for Firespark.” I said and, with a look over my shoulder, added, “Thanks for the help, the two of you.”

Without a further comment, I left the darkened cottage and stepped back outside.

In the second I stepped through the door, a loud curse passed my lips as my eyes got flooded by the blinding daylight, making me clench my teeth and jerkily lower my head.

“Goddamned motherbucking…!” I growled and hastily put my sunglasses back on, “Stupid sunbutt!” I started an attempt to blink, still being mostly blinded, “Got nothing better to than to let her goddamn sun beat down on that goddamn planet!” slowly, my eyes recovered and the blurred scenery of Ponyville began to appear in front of me, “Screw that whore! She’s gonna get what she deserves soon enough!”

Gripped by a new wave of determination, I looked up to the sky, focusing the distant silhouette of Cloudsdale, and took a step forward.

My look fell onto the salient silhouette of the weather factory and I felt a determined smile form on my face. “Showtime.” I mumbled and trotted off.

After only a few moments of walking away from Fluttershy’s house, I heard the door of the cottage getting opened and hasty steps coming closer. I turned around and saw Applejack running after me, her eyes widened.

Focusing her with a skeptical glance, I asked: “What do you want?”

She approached me and, breathing heavily, asked: “So yer going to the weather factory now?”

“Where else should I go?” I asked with a determined look, “I now know where Firespark is; I’m gonna go there and kick some flank! She’s gonna be the last foal to be abducted by those buckers!”

Applejack gave me a resolute look and, without a second of hesitation, said: “Then Ah’ll come with ya.”

I dully looked at her for a moment, then said: “I don’t need your help. I’ll do that on my own, thank you.”

With that, I launched into turning around, but got stopped by Applejack laying a hoof on my shoulder and saying: “Look, if there’s a place where abducted foals are brought, and if that place additionally is endorsed by Celestia, it’s mah duty to find it an’ do somethin’ about it! As a Republican, as a big sister, and as a pony!”

I didn’t release her from my skeptical look, but remained silent.

“Apart from this, we’ve already seen what happens when ya try to do somethin’ like that on yer own, right?” she said with a cheeky grin.

“What do you mean?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Ya fell out of the clouds, remember?” she explained, “Considering that yer daughter got abducted, Ah’m pretty sure that ya tried to avert her abduction an’ because of that got thrown off Cloudsdale.”

Without leaving me time to respond, she added, “An’ Ah’m sure that if Ah wouldn’t have found ya and brought ya to the hospital, you’d have died in that slough of a pigpen.”

My jaw dropped as I understood: “Wait! You were the pony that brought me to the hospital?”

She nodded, a touch of complacence on her face: “Eeyup. Ah saw ya fallin’ and landin’ on mah farm. Ah checked for ya, but ya were all unconscious, so I picked ya up and carried ya the few miles from Sweet Apple Acres to Ponyville.”

My jaw seemed to drop even further as I realized the issue. Taking of my sunglasses, I said: “You … you saved my life.”

She nodded casually and hunched her shoulders, saying: “Yeah, you might say that.”

“And you really carried me all the way to Ponyville? I mean … Sweet Apple Acres … I don’t remember its exact position, but I know that it’s hell of a way to get there from Ponyville.” With an unbelieving look, I asked again, “You really carried me!?”

Applejack nodded again: “Yer not the heaviest thing Ah carried so far if ya meant that.”

Unable to respond to that, I said: “… Well … thank you very much then!”

She smiled warmly: “Yer welcome. Now let’s go, there’s no time to lose!”

Putting my sunglasses back on, I asked: “So you really wanna come with me?”

“Yes,” she said with a determined nod, “Ya can depend on mah support!”

“Well…” I slowly turned around and continued my walk away from Fluttershy’s cottage, “Alright then. Thank you I guess.”

“Don’t mention it,” She said from behind me, “Foalnapping is a terrible, terrible thing! And everypony who doesn’t do something about it is just as terrible as those who do it.”

“You can say that again.” I mumbled to myself and turned around, continuing my walk away from the cottage.

After a few minutes of walking next to Applejack, I incidentally looked at her and noticed: “But wait a second! You’re an earth pony! You can’t fly to Cloudsdale, let alone walk on clouds!”

The farmer slowed down and shrugged: “Well, Ah know that there’s a spell that can make wing-less ponies walk on clouds. We just gotta find a unicorn.”

I let my glance wander over the waste scenery around us and mumbled: “Well, this is gonna take a while.”

For a minute, I thought about just telling her to stay on the ground and going to Cloudsdale on my own – after all, she was the only reason why I wasn’t in the factory already.

However, I quickly realized she had been right with her assumption: if I really wanted to intrude into a top-secret part of the weather factory and free Firespark, a little help by somepony else could help. Especially if that pony was a hard-bitten farmer strong enough to carry a full-grown stallion miles to the next hospital.

A few seconds of awkward silence passed until I suddenly had an idea. “We can ask Rarity! She’s a unicorn!” I said, louder than I intended to.

Applejack gave me an unbelieving look: “Seriously? Ya wanna ask Rarity? No offense, but Ah don’t think she’s gonna help us. Ever since Twilight moved to Canterlot, she’s become more and more jealous of her. An’ after Rainbow slowly cleared off, it didn’t look like if she’d give a damn about the rest of us anymore.  So why should she help us now?”

“Because she helped me too!” I replied without hesitating, “She doesn’t seem to be that generous, but I’m sure that we can convince her to help us if we try.”

Applejack didn’t release me from her skeptical look.

“Come on, we at least have to try! Or do you have any better suggestions?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

She slowly shook her head.

“See? So let’s just give it a try!” I summoned her, “If you really used to be friends, why should she just send you away?”

Applejack let out an annoyed moan, but replied: “Let’s just see what she does, alright? Who knows … maybe she has a good day.”

I nodded: “Let’s find out.”

We’d been walking for a couple of minutes as Applejack’s body suddenly tensed and she growled: “Goshdarnit!”

My head shot around: “What!?”

Before I could see what was going on, Applejack grabbed me by my tail and tore me into a nearby bush. I wanted to protest, but she held my mouth shut and pressed my head down.

“Whab fe heck if going on?” I asked Applejack, unable to speak clearly.

Without responding, she tore my head upward, making me look at the sky above us: a large, white sky-chariot, pulled by multiple royal guards was just passing by; the silhouette of a purple alicorn was visible in its seat.

“If fat Prinfeff Twilight?”

The chariot passed and vanished in the clouds again; Applejack released me from her grip and got to her hooves, leaving the bush.

I quickly followed her and, entering the road again, asked: “Now what the hell was that!?”

Continuing her way on the road without looking back, she said: “Twilight may not see us. Ah’ve got enough problems already, the last thing Ah need is some snooty princess approachin’ me an’ bombardin’ me with questions about what I did all day and if I’m loyal to the empire and all that.”

“So that’s what she does all day?” I concluded unbelieving, “She flies about Equestria and questions ponies about … their lives?”

“Well, somepony’s gotta manage all that surveillance-thing. And apparently, Celestia has no other use for her.” Raising her head and looking at the light blue sky, she added, “Though I suppose she’s gonna use her on the battlefield as soon as the war has finally begun.”

I gave her an unbelieving look, asking: “Are you kidding?”

Lowering her glance and turning her head, she returned the look, saying: “No, officially, there’s still peace between the Republic an’ the Empire. Most ponies think we have war, but there hasn’t been an official declaration yet.” she explained and snorted dryly.

I hesitated for a second, then slowly explained: “… We have war since yesterday, you know?”

Applejack’s eyes suddenly widened in horror: “What!?”

“The Empire attacked the embassy of the Republic yesterday; Luna declared war to Celestia. The attack has been extinguished, but both sides had to deal with major losses.”

Her face turned pale as she stuttered: “M-major losses? What d’ya mean?”

A shiver ran through my spine. Having the blood-soaked meadow in my mind’s eye, I slowly said: “I’ve been there. I’ve witnessed the attack; I’ve seen the battle.” Oppressing a choke, I added, “Believe me: the area around the embassy looks like a graveyard. A ravaged, blood-soaked graveyard.”

Applejack’s face seemed to turn even paler as she asked: “A-are ya serious?”

“I don’t joke about those kinds of things.” I replied dryly, “But why did you ask?”

“Because mah family’s out there!” she yelled, her voice about to break from her horror.

“Your family?”

“Yeah, mah brother an’ mah sister! There guards of the Empire!”

Contorting my face with disgust, I said: “Ugh. So you’re a supporter of Celestia?”

Applejack hastily shook her head and shouted: “No, damnit! Ah’m a civilian of the Republic! Ah’ve been loyal to Luna from the day the Republic has been formed!” she reached into her saddlebag and pulled out a small piece of plastic, presenting it to me and adding, ”Ah’m a member of the Republic, but mah family’s in the Solar army!”

I gave the paper an inspecting look: indeed, it looked like an official ID of the New Lunar Republic: being held in dark blue and black tones, it showed a picture of her, as well as her name and date of birth.

My jaw dropped: “What? But … how does it come that …?”

Applejack sighed: “After the Republic was formed, me an’ mah family tried our best to stay out of that quarrel. Of course, Celestia made our lives hard, but mah granny always told me ‘Be tough or go west!’ Grit your teeth and get to it!” she let out a muffled sob, “She passed away a few weeks after that struggle began.”

She wiped her face and shook her head, “But anyways, Ah tried to live that counsel: Ah clenched mah teeth an’ tried to get by, even though Celestia didn’t really make it easy for me.” She said, bitterness in her voice, “However, one day, four guards of the Empire came to our farm. Those buckers said they’d seize the farm for Celestia an’ recruit mah family.” Her voice began to quaver, “Of course, we struggled with them; we built that farm up in more than three generations, we wouldn’t leave it to some megalomaniac tyrant!”

The tension in her voice vanished again as she lowered her head in shame: “But there were too many of them: they managed to shackle mah brother and took mah sister with them. But instead of taking me too, they told me to stay at the farm and run the show; that Ah had to sustain the Empire with the fruits I grew. That day, Ah knew what to do: Ah swore to myself that Ah would join the Republic; that Ah would defeat the empire an’ free mah family!”

Within split seconds, her mood changed from determination to sorrow. “And now there probably dead!” she yelled, unable and unwilling to hide the tears in her eyes.

Beginning to sob, she stopped and sank to the ground: “Ah said Ah’d free them! They were waiting for me! And Ah didn’t come! Now there dead!”

Trying to calm her, I placed a hoof on her shoulder, I said: “Hey, I’m sure they’re still alive.”

Without looking up, she sobbed: “An’ how d’ya wanna know!? Ah thought the Embassy looked like a darn battlefield!”

I hesitantly nodded: “Yes, it … it looks quite bad. … But that’s no reason to give up hope!” I hastily added, “Can you tell me how your brother and sister looked? I may have seen them; there are several survivors, you know?”

Applejack sobbed again, but slowly got to her hooves and said: “Mah brother’s name’s Big Macintosh: he’s a mountain of a stallion; red fur and dark blonde hair. Mah sister’s name is Apple Bloom, she’s a-“

“Young earth pony with yellow fur, a red mane and a slight accent.” I finished her sentence.

Her head shot up, her eyes widened: “Ya saw them? A-are they alive!?”

I nodded approving: “Yes. Big Mac is slightly hurt, but Apple Bloom vetted him as I saw them. They got up and walked somewhere, away from the battlefield.”

“So they still are alive?” Applejack asked with deadly seriousness.

With a weak nod, I said: “When I saw them the last time, yes. But to be honest, I think they’ve been dragged up by some guards and pressed back into sentence aftermath.”

Applejack’s determination instantly returned: “That doesn’t matter! As long as there still alive, it’s alright!” With that, she continued her way along the small dirt road, the quickness of her pace revealing her newly gained motivation.

“So … you’re not gonna head to Canterlot and free them or something like that?” I asked, hurrying after her, “After all, they’re some kind of prisoners.”

“Why should I?” she asked with an unbelieving look, “Look, there guards! I know where they are, but just running to Canterlot and trying to get them outta there would be pointless! Ah would be dead before Ah even set a hoof into the city! They’ll be free as soon as the war is over an’ the Empire has fallen, but until then, Ah can just hope that they don’t die in a combat.”

Unable to respond anything, I gulped silently and looked into the distance.

After some minutes of silently walking next to each other, I asked: “But … what was that with your friends? You said you were friends with Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Rarity. But Rarity said there were six of you. Mind to explain?”

Her look focused on the distant silhouette of Ponyville, Applejack sighed and said: “Yeah, we were six friends; Pinkie Pie was the last one. … We … we avoid to talk about her though.” She explained with noticeable sorrow.

“Pinkie Pie … I remember that name…” I said reflecting, “Right, she was that pony that … erm … well …”

Applejack nodded sadly: “Ah guess her loss was another reason for our lil’ group to fall apart.” She sighed deeply, “But that was yesterday. Everypony has to leave the past behind and look into the future. Ah’ll defeat the Empire, free my family, an’ continue to live my life.” She paused for a second, then hung her head low and added, “But Ah know that it’ll never be the same without my friends.”

I tried to cheer her up: “Come on, Rarity can still be your friend! And Rainbow Dash isn’t gone forever either! Maybe she just needs some time to see how to deal with that war. I mean: she still shows up in Cloudsdale from time to time; maybe she’s spending her time at a quiet place where she has some time to think about everything and will return in just a few weeks!”

Applejack snorted dryly: “Ha. From your lips to Faust’s ears. But if yer so serious, let’s see how Rarity acts when seeing her ‘ol’ chum’ again.”

We approached Ponyville a couple of minutes later and stopped in front of Carousel Boutique. Certain that Rarity would help us, I walked towards the entrance and knocked forcefully.

The door opened by a few inches and Rarity’s face appeared in the gap. She quickly recognized me and asked: “Fippo? What do you want?”

“We need your help,“ I said and stepped aside, revealing the view on Applejack, “we’ve finally found out where Firespark has been brought, but since it’s in Cloudsdale, we need a spell that can make Applejack walk on clouds.”

Rarity’s crystal blue eyes narrowed: “So you’re collaborating now … Why should I help that mud pony? What did she do for me? And why can’t you just fly up there on your own?” she asked me resentfully.

Applejack snorted slightly annoyed and stepped forward, saying: “Look, Rarity! Ah know that yer skeptical with helping other ponies, but we really need that spell! Yer the only unicorn around!”

Rarity gave Applejack and me a bitter look, then slammed the door.

Applejack took a step forward, positioning herself right in front of the entrance and shouting: “Oh come on! Please, Ah need your help! We used to be friends, remember? The sleepover at Twilight’s? Winter wrap up? The Grand Galloping Gala? Those times! Remember how ya would have acted back then? Would ya have denied a friend a simple spell!?”

A few moments of silence passed until the door slowly got opened again and Rarity stepped into the doorframe. Even though her face was mostly emotionless, her voice revealed her tension: “I will help you this time, but don’t expect anything beyond it!” she said sharply.

Her horn began to lighten up; she closed her eyes in concentration and said: “You can thank Twilight for teaching me that spell before she turned into … whatever she is now.”

Applejack nodded sadly: “It’s a shame.”

A cloud of blue magic wandered over from Rarity to Applejack, disappearing in the mare’s orange fur. Rarity relaxed again; her horn stopped shining and she looked up: “That spell will last for three days. After that … well, you have to see how you’ll get by.”

I gave her an appreciating nod and said: “Thank you, Rarity! And also, thanks for that good disguise.”

Ignoring my praise, she said: “I don’t know how you plan to get up to Cloudsdale, but good luck with that. I can’t help you, even if I wanted to.” Without a further comment, she turned around and closed the door again.

I turned my head and gave Applejack a clueless look: “Damn, we didn’t think about that either! How are we supposed to get you up there?”

She gave my body a closer look and said: “No offense, but ya don’t really look like if ya could carry me up there all by yerself.”

I nodded silently: despite being a mare, she was extraordinarily sturdy and looked way too heavy for me to carry her up to Cloudsdale.

The door to Carousel Boutique opened again: Rarity had stepped into the doorframe and now focused Applejack.

The earth pony returned the look and asked: “What? Forgot to tell me something, ‘pal’?”

Rarity used her magic to hand Applejack the black hoodie she usually wore outside and drably said: “You should use this if you want to go to Cloudsdale. They would be suspicious if they saw an earth pony walking on clouds.”

With widened eyes, Applejack grabbed the garment and –unable to hide her surprise- said: “Wow. Thank ya, Rarity!”

The white unicorn nodded coldly, then turned around. Before she closed the door again, I could hear her whisper: “Good luck … friend.”

We slowly turned away from the door and I gave Applejack a triumphant look, saying: “See? She isn’t as selfish as you think! Maybe you can be friends again one day!”

Applejack shrugged dully: “Maybe. … But we have more important things to do now!”

I nodded: “Certainly. Now, do you have an idea how we can get you up to Cloudsdale?”

With a practiced movement, she loosened a rope from her saddlebag and said: “We could use that as a lasso so that -if we had a second pegasus- you could carry me with it.”

Letting my glance wander over the decaying city, I asked: “Well, do you see any other pegasi around here? Do you see any ponies at all?”

She shook her head: “No, but maybe we could-“

She got cut off by the sound of hooves coming closer. Simultaneously, we turned around and saw the approaching pony: a grey mare with yellow eyes, a blonde mane, and a muffin in her hoof.

Smiling satisfied about that sudden, yet fitting appearance, I quickly trotted towards the mare and shouted: “Hey, Derpy!” she looked up, “We need your help!”