A New Beginning: Time of Rebellion.

Chapters

Rebellion.
Goodbye, and Hello.
Time on the farm.
Finding Appleloosa.

Rebellion.

"Sister? You...Called for me?"

"Yes. Come here please. There's something you need to know.."

"What's wrong?" The alicorn poked her head into the dark room, a soft light illuminating from her horn. "You called me from my night. What is it Celestia?"

Celestia sighed, turning her head sadly to her sister. The goddess of the sun looked horrible. Sleep hadn't crossed her in days, she had done everything to keep Luna from finding out. But now, with Ponyville in flames she had to tell. Sorrow nipped at her voice as she let the secret out "T-They...Luna...My dear sister...The ponies are rebelling." after all the years of hiding everything from Luna,a from being harsh and cruel...It had finally happened...

Equestrian was in troubled times, the citizens of many towns and a few cities weren't very happy. It had all begun twenty two years ago, following the disappearance of princess Twilight Sparkle and the bearers of the elements of harmony . Gone. Never seen again after leaving for somewhere. No one knew where the six had been heading, but the loss of her favorite student, and her friends, shattered and reformed Celestia. She wasn't very kind and caring, the once much loved alicorn become more bitter every day, the loss burning a permanent place in her heart. Celestia doubled taxes, demanding more Money from everypony. Horrible strict laws laid down, more crops, more industry,more everything. Nothing just seemed to please her . She had basically hid Luna from everything, ruling more as a queen. The royal guard become rowdy, abusing their positions. Stealing and robbing ponies. The once happy land was in dark times, poverty was getting higher , prices rising. Ponies lived under horrible conduits for ten years, but the murder of a family was what sent many into a frenzy. It was the last straw for everyone!

Canterlot, twelve years ago

A young filly trotted happily between a mare and a stallion, all looked very happy. Their names has been forgotten, but the story never died down. The family was on their way to the market, a sack of gold coins in the fathers saddlebag. The happy scene went to horrifying in mere moments. A patrol of royal guard saw the money, they forced the stallion against a wall, making him hand over the money. The filly started yelling and telling them to give it back.

A shot fired, no one knew if on purpose or accident, but the filly dropped, a bullet hole punctured her lung, she was dead quickly. The mare attempted to assault the guard, another shot brought her down. The stallion had been cut down by a bayonet. A entire family murdered, the first shot may have been an accident but it furled the flames for rebellion! When knees got out the guards had been pardoned, Equestria itself seemed to roar bad burn with a passion for rebellion. The biggest cities remained loyal, but many of the tows just needed a push and they would help. Parts of canterlot had been put under military control. Ponies rioted, but none were as serious as when Galaxywing, her brother, fired back. He assualted the royal guard, uniting the small town they came from to ride up. The first pony to do something. They were fighting, for a better Equestria. So ponies could live happily as they once had. The alicorns weren't wanted, they were gated! The rebellion fought so their children could live happy lives. So Equestria could become the great place it once had been.

:1 hour earlier...

Soft hoof-steps were heard down the streets of ponyville late at night, a hooded figure could be seen walking the shadows. "Hey! Who goes there?" A gruff voice echoed around the dark night. "Oh? You don't recognize me dustwing?" The hood was pulled down. Revealing a dark blue mare

"Midnightshadow! Sorry I-didn't recognize you!" The dusty stallion waved at her "Hmph...Its ok dustwing...How di-" "So where are ya going to midnight? Isn't your house the other way?" Dumb mare! Probably out drinking late and lost her way home! "Oh no I've got places to be dust. I'll see you around.." Breaking off Into a run, Midnight rushed towards her goal. The gunpowder storage house, located six or seven houses down from around Sugar Cube Corner. Others were meant to light fires all around the town. Their cause was weak, it wasn't known. This event would spark the rebellion. It would let the princess's know how the ponies felt.

This, this would be a message. The rebellion has begun.

Okay...Remember your training midnight. Light the fuse, turn, run. Looking up, seven barrels of gunpowder were stored here. Right in the cellar of the old house. Not many ponies knew about it. The only reason it was here was due to the growing population of the everfree forest monsters. Throwing down the royal guard armor and Lighting the fuse, Midnight watched the light head towards the barrels for a split second before running away as fast as possible, but not fast enough.

KABOOOOMMM

Pain seared across her body, the flames dancing across her flank, shrapnel from the house digging in two spots of her left leg. In the same moment, four houses burst into flame. The explosion shook the ground, debris flying in every direction from the massive explosion, clearly seen from Canterlot as the explosion lit the sky. The roaring fires were heard crackling, spreading from house to house quickly. Fireponies tried their bests to put it out, but it was too strong. Not even the spells could save them. Engulfing the town in flames, more then half of ponyville was burning without the hour.

"FEAR NOT!! We shall save you!" A thundering voice boomed, a Pegasus zipped through the sky along with others, water raining down on the fires below. They scooped ponies up and brought them away from fires. The fire was quelling down quickly. They had gathered mass numbers to do this. Fire ponies were small in number, but when an entire army, all carrying fire helped...The fire stood no chance.

Perfect, this was going well. Galaxywing had ordered her and a small team to light fires, and to blow up the gunpowder store. It signaled that ponyville had been taken. All the troops, a small militia, had run, abandoning ponyville as their gunpowder was destroyed. Celestia had gathered a small force their to protect it, while her main army begun there march there. For an odd reason she seemed...Scared to lose it. They knew this. And ponyville was a central position, filled with ponies supplies and food. It would serve well as a base! The fires had gone a little out of control. They had meant to burn only a small portion, barracks and mail places. It had spiraled out of control but at least the whole town hadn't been burned!

Midnight was bleeding, her whole body in pain. A cry left her desperately, and the last thing she remembered seeing was a white pony dragging her away.

"Midnight? Midnight can you hear me?" She groaned, not wanting to wake up, but her duty called. Being second in command of the rebellion was nothing to snooze! Especially with her brother as the leader! Grinning, Midnight looked up at Galaxywing. Her brother was a big pegasus, light and dark blue, a swirl of white, blue, and gray in his mane. A spiral galaxy was his cutie mark. He certainly looked intimidating. "Brother! Did it work? Hows the plan going?" Midnights heart swelled knowing Galaxy had gotten out of this mess. Still in her daze the unicorn sat down, rubbing her head.

"The plans going great"

"How many injuries?"

"Four"

"G-Great! How long have I been out?"

"Two or so hours"

That snapped her out of the daze. Buck! Two hours?! "Are the roya-"

"Heh...No need to worry little sis. We fought them back"

Midnight sighed happily. Sitting up she gave a friendly smile to the medical mare that had fixed her up. "Erm...Excuse me sis!"

Galaxy dashed off, a massive crowd of ponies, armed to the bone with weaponry cheered. Civilians of pony vile cheered also, however some weren't so happy. Moving infront of the crowd, Galaxy coughed. Everypony hushed, all eyes on him.

"Today…Is a glorious day...One that shall be remembered forever! Our cause is righteous! We are the new Equestria! Where were your precious princess's when that fire started? Who saved you? We did. Us. Normal ponies who know it's time for change! Your princess's sit in their castle while we suffer!" An uproar of cheering from the crowd "They are not needed! A change is coming...We shall throw off these shackles and rule for ourselves! Tonight, we shall rest, for tomorrow, a new future awaits!" Another shaking wave of cheering, though it was quelled down quickly. "Any pony who wishes to join our army is welcome! Muskets are graciously appreciated, swords too!" Hundreds of hooves shot into he air, barely 1/4 of all the ponies "Anypony that does not join, we humbly ask of you to support us with food and supplies. The royal guard shall try to tamale pony vile. But we will not loose!!" Hooves stomped against the ground as Galaxy stepped of the stage. "Midnight. Take forty or fifty of the new recruits and set them in the trenches around ponyville. Sweet Apple Acres is low on men, four hundred about. That old cottage by the way to canterlot is where I want you. We expect an attack on both fronts tonight." She nodded, under the cover of night both sides had advantages. The element of surprise would highly contribute to whatever side used it force. Ordering the new recruits their stations, Midnight trotted off to the cottage trenches. It was not a pretty sight.

Pony bodies lay scattered everywhere, bits and pieces littered the ground. The grass was sticky, red pools everywhere. Bodies laid piled in some places, where the dead had been used for cover. Muskets had been taken from the dead, swords, musket balls, anything that could be re-used was scavenged. Holes scattered across, cannons packed quite a punch! The cottage had four or so holes in it, Two or three Pegasus hung off the sides of the hoof. The normally peaceful place was in ruins. It had been a costly battle. What they had done had been idiotic, but it guaranteed ponyville if they held back enough for the signal . Without even owning the town, they dug trenches around it and claimed it. A long trench better defended trench around the cottage, a smaller one in the apple orchard. A very small amount of soldiers were stationed at whitetail woods. A risky move, if any ponys had gathered arms, they would ha been attacked on both sides.

Tonight had been to win them over. For troops and land...A capital.

Walking over the battlefield Midnight felt ready to hurl up her lunch. Crunch.

Agh!! Her hoof through a rotting head, a sword dug into this stallions stomach, his insides nearly being ripped out. No pony dared to go carry back the dead. It was too risky. The royal celestial army, the main army of the celestial sisters, had a base a mile or so away, along with a trench no pony dared to check yet. In the dark, Midnight was safe. If this was day, she'd have a shot in her head by now. Shaking her hoof in disgust, she reached the trench, another horrific sight meeting her eyes.

A few feet deep, wooden stakes jutted out towards the other trench, both sides did, to block a charge. Six unrecognized bodies lay on the stakes, the reddened wood digging into their bodies. They hadn't died immediately, over the hours of the battle they had bled out. A terrifying death for any pony. It was sick here! Bodies lay side by side, sword against sword. The ground still slick and sticky with blood from this mornings battle. Cannon balls had torn ponies in half, seeing this, she doubted they'd last another battle. Already outnumbered here, another bloody charge would destroy them! A few screams snapped her out of her daze coming from behind the cottage, currently being used as a medical station. Turning her head Midnight threw up, her lunch coming up her throat. Groaning, Midnight stepped back, she took a gaze over the few thousand soldiers, a few hundred coughing and sick. It had been three weeks since the first battle, and no ponies on their side had moved. Many were underfed , the whimpers and groans of soldiers made her want to hurl again. The ponies sat around, some sleeping, some watching guard. Armed with weapons of all sorts, from mere pistols to muskets, swords and axes. The were a feeble force. Their uniforms however were very nice. A dark black, nearly pitch black, with little swirls of blue on the sides. Going right up to the neck, stopping before a cutie mark. Golden buttons up the stomach. A three cornered hat, also black. Metal shoulder blades to protect, they were light, making them a fast mobile force. The royal celestial army however, was armed heavier. They were slow but very tough and fierce in sword combat. They were better equipped with everything, yet they were still being held back. They underestimated their army, giving them an advantage.

Hoping into the trench, a few nodded to her, some cheering to have her here. She wasn't a battle hardened soldier no, she had always been used for distractions and little jobs. Galaxy had done everything to keep her from danger. Honestly she had never killed a pony, the thought appalled Midnight! Though she would have to, the war required sacrifices. Luna and Celestia didn't realize this. They had tried to make peace, then they tried to squash them. They hadn't begun recruiting soldiers, they didn't want to sacrifice the lives. They thought it would end soon. But we fought for a new life, the sisters were not needed. They were the only alicorns in Equestria now, and no pony wanted them still. After the little secret that they had tried to get a pony killed slipping out, many who had their distrust supported them.

The trench was dug for miles, most of the troops dug in around the the canterlot side, while less then half by the cloudsdale.

"Hey! Who said you could leave yo-Oh! Midnight! I didn't know it was you. Sorry!" A white Pegasus stepped out, half of her ear shot off. Dark, almost blood red mane with streaks of a lovely purple.

Rose. Major General, Commander of the Rose's Regiment. Not a mare you want to go into a fight with. Rumor had it she had sharpened her teeth to near fangs, so in combat she could dig her teeth into her enemy for an advantage. Terrifying, Brutal, Strict, but one hell of a leader. "What brings you here? I saw the other reinforcements you sent. They were needed badly. Everypony counts"

The two of them went back to little fillies, just entering school. Rose had been her very first friend, one of her only friends. Midnight wasn't a social mare. But Rose, they were the bestest of friends.They knew everything about each other, but the struggle had driven them apart over recent years. It had been months since she last saw her. "Galaxy sent me to help out. Oh rose it's so good to see you!" Pulling her I to a Hug the situation changed dramatically. A hooded figure, a soldier she had presumed, leapt up, pistol clutched in their mouth. Bang

"ROSE!!"

Her friend coughed, splashing blood across Midnights face. The musket ball buried itself deep into her neck. The light drained from Roses eyes, she fell down. Dead at her feet.

Rage. Sadness. The fury consumed her. Ponies leapt up, aiming muskets in every direction "MEDIC!!" She screamed before leaping on the hooded figure. Not bother to arm herself, the gun was kicked away.

Midnight didn't hold back. Tears streamed down her face.

Her hooves smashed down repetitively, bones crunched underneath the strength. Over and over, even as blood formed into a pool, some spraying up to her. "BUCK YOU!!" Again, Again, Again. Midnight hooves broke through his chest, she didn't stop her relentless beating until a few pairs of hooves literally dragged her away. The body was broken, unrecognizable now. Most of its head and chest are broken open and bleeding heavily. They had died about a whole minute ago.

Another shot rang out.

Thud.

A body fell next to her, blood dripping from the stallions mouth. A bullet in his head. Waking up from her daze Midnight heard a roar of fire, bullets whizzed by. The assassination had meant to distract, of course! When their army was caught off guard the enemy would open fire. "EVERYPONY TAKE COVER!! RETURN FIRE! DO NOT LOSE THIS TRENCH!!"She didn't know who gave the order, but for now she listened. Picking up the musket from the body next to her Midnight peaked her head above the trench.

"Holy crap.."

Their side was horribly unprepared. They weren't following orders, firing volley by volley. It was shoot when you could. Earth ponies fumbled for their guns, always at a disadvantage. Earth ponies shot their weapons very oddly...They had shorter muskets, with a strap on the buttstock. It wrapped around their neck, while the musket pushed up against their front leg. That way, they would lift their front leg, and pull a string attached to the trigger, with their mouth to pull the trigger. Terrible. Their cannons weren't firing, many weren't even at their positions yet, still waking from the daze and sudden attack. Not even half were fully up and ready to fire! Yet the enemy, ranking at about three thousand, marched, side by side, using the surprise greatly as an advantage. Even though there were Pegasus, they were forced to walk in lines. Pegasus ponies were either used for scouts, or flying snipers. Sometimes they would fly overhead and fire to try and pick off ponies. But the chance of a hit was so slim the tactic wasn't used much. About fifty cannons were firing nonstop in the cover of the woods. In the few minutes it took them to get to their own positions, load the cannons, and return fire, they had lost twelve of sixty cannons, four hundred soldier dead. Half a mile away the enemy was reloading, both sides were. Midnight jammed the musket ball down the barrel, glad she had her magic. Pouring in the gunpowder and loading the gun, she heard...Silence of gunfire. Just the explosion of cannons that lit the night.

Recovering from their shock, they had come to their wits, going into the volley fire under command of a general who a little ways away.. "FIRE!!" Already?! Midnight aimed, closed her eyes and sighed, barely having enough time to aim and get a good shot off.

Pulling the trigger at the same time as everypony else, their first volley was devastating. A cloud of smoke filled the air, the sounds of bullets hitting their goals was heard. Screams and cries erupted from the enemy line. She estimated five or seven hundred were hit, four hundred striking home and killing. The trench served it's purpose, giving excellent cover and providing good shots. Wait...Something was wrong.. "No wait...Everypony they aren't reloading!! AFIX bayonets!!" She screamed, dirt raining down on her as a cannon ball slammed into the ground infront of her. Flying back, Midnight hit the side of the trench hard, a ringing in her ears. The musket she had been using lay propped up, barrel stuffed into the dirt. At least she had gotten the warning out. Blackness swept over her.

The enemy hadn't been reloading. No they had affixed their bayonets. Already, as the rebellions army fumbled for their bayonets the celestial army was charging.

200 feet...

100..

70...

"BRACE YOURSELVES!! WE OUTNUMBER EM NOW! DONT LOSE THIS TRENCH !"

20 feet..

With a roar they leapt to counter the charge. Pony slammed into pony. Blades slid into flesh. Bodies were flung back and trampled. Screams erupted all around.

Goodbye, and Hello.

The impact of the charge had created devastating losses for both sides. When they had leapt from the trench, a third of them didn't have bayonets!

Numbers worked to their advantage. Overpowering now with over 600 ponies, this battle would end soon with good strategy. They were out-skilled but had soldiers available. While the two armies were battling, the ponies on the ends of the trenches which hadn't been put into battle knew what to do. Circling around, a charge from behind tore through them, The New Equestrians army clearly took this win. "Retreat!!" A horn blew, whatever ponies that were alive turned tail and ran. An estimated 800 survived, nearly half of them wounded. They didn't stop firing though. Seizing the chance to wound them even more, random shots flew out, barely killing ten of the fleeing soldiers. A costly battle though. Around 1,000 of their own had been killed, leaving them with roughly 2,000 left on this side. Large amounts of bodies lay dead, the agonizing screams and groans of the wounded filled the air. Blood was everywhere. It would take days to recover. The only reinforcement they would have would be thousand or so who signed up in ponyville. But it would take days, weeks perhaps of hard training before they could be thrown onto the front lines.

Over the years, ponyville had gonna from a small town to nearly three times it's size. The Everfree forest had been fought back, hundreds of houses were in there now, shops, industries. It wasn't a bustling city but it was getting close. Yet this made the monsters more vicious. A lot more. A pony was likely to die every week with the chances. But it provided space which was needed. Ponyville had blossomed, they say, when the princess's of friendship ruled. But those six hadn't been seen in forever, no pony from that time was still around. Their used to be an old castle there, where some believe they had lived. But it disappeared one day, and after that the princess's were soon lost to history, labeled "unreal and a myth"

Midnight Shadows eyes fluttered, her mind spinning. Laying on her side, a light layer of dirt over her, it took a few seconds to piece together where she was and what had happened. Quickly, her hooves searched up and down her body "Phew..No damage.." Groggily sitting up, the dark blue mare shook herself to get all the dirt off. Wrapping her magic around the musket, she floated it over and got up to her feet. Battle...Over?! How long had she been out! And how did these ponies get out off he trenches in a jump?! Placing her hooves on the side of the trench, midnight had to kick and use her magic to help herself get out. Panting, she picked up the gun and trotted off to the command tent, located forty or so feet away from the cottage. It was...Wasn't what she was expecting.

Around ten feet high, twenty feet wide, the tent was a mottled gray and green. Four ponies inside, sitting around a table. "If we move forces here...We will be dangerously low here...We need more troops! Scouts have seen the buffalo with their armies! With how low we are now another attack will not be held here!" A light red hoof pounded on the table, blue and pink bobbed.

"Ehem.."

Four heads spun to meet her, she knew them all personally.

The one who had pounded her hoof, General NightRose, a name that fit her looks. Sweet yet deadly. She had grown up in the same town as her and galaxy. They had been ok friends as fillies. Her parents lived in the same town still. NightRose was very friendly, except when you questioned her command. A thorny rose was her cutie mark, she says that it was earned after jumping giving a rose to someone as she was filly.

Next to her, "Phoenix" was all he went by. Orange earth pony with a firery mane. Very smart yet weak when it came to battle. He never gave away where he came from, but the unicorn was very skilled at commanding. His cutie mark couldn't be seen, having a bullet tear threw it in a battle, after the bandage had been taken off, the fur grew back, a horrible scar remained. But his cutie mark never returned. His name actually came from his love of phoenixes, not his looks!

Across the table was blueshadow. Bulky chin and known to be quite a hard-ass. Mean, grumpy, coming from canterlot itself. He was the son of a rich family. But when the rebellion had started and word got out, he had abandoned everything to come join the ranks!

And last but not least, "Toxic" A snow white mare and a vibrant green mane. Quite like NightRose. Her name came from two thins. The fact half her body was burned off, and her looks. Toxic didn't like talking about her past, but as a filly she had fallen into hot toxic waste. The fur on her back two legs, around her cutie mark and stomach had been burned off. It had grown back but very thinly, the skin could be seen if you looked hard enough!

"Midnight? What're you doing here...I thought you were out. We got a letter you had been knocked out by the explosion!" Phoenix said surprised.

Shaking her head she chuckled lightly "No I came here cause my brother assigned me here. I guess I'll help you all with deployment and running things. There's a lot of casualties after that bat-"

"We know. Medical ponies are treating it now. Don't you worry. But we need to talk to your brother about what we will do. The battle over there by Sweet Apple Acres ended not long ago. The family is not happy with how it ended. There's less then three hundred soldiers there. And here we are stretched so thin. Another well placed attack and were done. The soldiers know this, they grow weary. The recruits in ponyville will take days to train, but another attack before that.." Toxics voice filled with sorrow "We should strip ponyville of supplies and leave..."

"You can't possibly mean that! So many ponies have died here! You want to say they fought for nothing?! We stay Toxic, you know Galaxy will say the same thing!"

"Yes but we don't have a big enough army!! It's not even five thousand! With the ponyville division it's just three thousand five hundred about. The celestial army dwarfs us with nearly ten thousand! We've dented them but our scouts report their whole army is days away! We cannot hold off another skirmish!" Blueshadow argued

"We fight. We will until the last pony! This isn't a joke Blue-"

"What? Midnight scared to admit she lost, again?"

Biting back a remark the memory of why he would ever say that to her flashed in her eyes.

It was a few months ago, fillydelphia.

She had been assigned to get the city people to join their cause under any means necessary. After several failed attempts she had gone to the lowest of low...Blackmail...But even that didn't work. However, she lied to everypony, telling them it was going well, pride would never allow her to admit it. Blue had found out though...

"I know you're lying. Why can't you just tell us?"

"You don't understand! Please"

"I'm telling Galaxy about this...Maybe then he'll realize I should be by his side helping him lead!" He was gone soon, leaving a crying mare curled up in a ball waiting for the truth to hit everypony . Never in her life had she heard Galaxy voice get so loud...The look of distrust and shame for lying about something so big...He hadn't stripped her of her title but that small look of distrust was always there...Haunting...Reminding her off how she had failed and lied..

Midnight blinked, shaking her head "You know that doesn't matter right now! Shut up Shut up!!" A layer of magic coated her horn, the mare huffed, turning around "We aren't leaving ok? End of discussion.." Her voice seethed with anger.

How dare they?! After everything they had done! Taking a town was going to require sacrifices! All of them didn't seem to realize this! Ugh she wouldn't allow them to lose...

Heading back to the trench, she gulped. Looting a dead body was disgusting, but she needed the supplies. Moving over a dead body, the mare picked through him with her magic, gagging at all the blood and bodies everywhere. Picking up a saddlebag from a soldier, a pistol and some food, the mare sneaked off far to the right. She was going to fillydelphia.

Where was she...

Midnight had begun walking right if the cottage and trench, trying to veer all the way around both camps, then continue towards fillydelphia. Rolling out the old map, the dusty paper crinkled as she unrolled it. Blowing off the dust, Midnight looked Down with a groan. This was over a hundred years old! It looked how Equestria did before the "boom" time. She could use it though...

After an half an hour of looking, she discovered that instead of going to Fillydelphia, a nearby town would be quicker and easier. Though there was only one close enough...Appleloosa.The ponies there were rumored to have been put down, the town burned and ransacked. They had rebelled, rumor had it, yet Celestia had quickly smashed it, wiping everypony out then cutting off all mail. The skies there were patrolled too.

From a small town, it grew to become a massive center of trade and industry. Apples sold by the thousands every day! But no one had heard from them in weeks.

All this thinking and walking was getting to her. Fatigue began creeping up on her, going almost a day without sleep. Having run around, battle, and nearly die twice was tiring. Her eyes slowly closing on herself. Slumping forward into a bush, blackness swept over her.

~~~~

Hours later...

Midnight woke with a painful groan, rolling onto her side, feeling soft hay underneath her instead of the bush she had passed out on. A slight pain ran up her left back leg at the movement, a bandage wrapped around. Lifting up her head midnight examined the room with sleepy eyes. It was a shed...Or a shack of some sort. Hay littered the ground, a few farming tools hung on the side. Old wood walls, the roof caved in slightly.

The door opened, a small figure standing in the doorway. A filly obviously. Squinting from the blinding light she lifted a hoof to cover her eyes "W-Who are you? Where am I?! What have you done to my leg?!"

The filly turned her head to look outside, nodding. Then, she took a step towards her. "Great! You're awake!"

She could just make out the filly. Earth pony, with A lovely red body, a long purple and pink name. Nice blue eyes. Kinda cute for a filly..

Midnight say up, brushing hay off of herself. Dried blood could be seen on her bandage...Though she didn't know why. When had she gotten injured? Looking up again, a mare stood by the fillies side now, staring at her silently. Breaking the sudden silence with a cough, she asked her questions again "Who are you, where am I, and what have you done with my leg?" Her voice was more harsh then she had intended it to be.

Getting a better view of the mare, midnight wanted to take back every word. She. Was. Gorgeous!!

A dark purple coat, almost grape, complemented with a dark pink mane. The tail was long, touching the ground. Groomed perfectly. Her mane curled around her neck, falling an inch or so above her eyes. A little messy though. Midnight felt her cheeks starting to lightly burn. Get a grip Midnight! You'll be gone before the hour is over..

"Just call me Graperose. Though I must ask you the same thing! Who are you and what is your business on my property?"

Time on the farm.

Midnight blinked, shaking her head to clear the thoughts. Coughing into her hoof she spoke "My name is Midnightshadow. I'm just passing by. I just passed out on your property. I'll be gone soon."

Graperose nodded "The fillies name is Pulmonaria."

The filly had run off to go play. "She will be fine. Now follow me, we need to talk.."

Midnight stayed quiet, and got up. She didn't mean to stare so much at the mares flanks, but how could she resist! Averting her gaze, she stared at the ground to better help herself. Though she did catch grapes cutie mark. Three grapes. "Ok now sit and tell me exactly why you're passing though. You're lucky I haven't thrown you out, I only put you in my shed because you were hurt. And don't think I haven't noticed that staring. If you endanger that filly I won't hesitate to attack.." It was clear to Midnight, that Grape just wanted to protect Pulmonaria. Though saying she was a soldier for the rebellion, and sister to the leader might not help her case...But she would tell the truth.

"Ok my name is midnight my brother Is leading the rebellion and after a battle were going to lose and I'm coming here to Appleloosa or another town to search for ponies and I just needed to stop for a second I got really tired and passed out I won't hurt the filly I promise I'm leaving soon and I won't stare!" She spoke in a flurry, letting out a long sigh afterwards.

At the mention of "rebellion" Graperose was listening very eagerly now to this mares story. Her left ear twitched. She herself wasn't very fond of Celestia and Luna. Pulmonaria was a survivor of Appleoosa! From what little the poor filly could tell, it had been a massacre. "Ok...Midnight. Though you're not leaving soon" Midnight's face went from calm to a look of complete shock Huh?! Who're you to tell me I ca-" "That wound down there is bad. Looks like you got skimmed by a bullet or a piece of shrapnel. Still very bad. It was almost infected but I managed to clean it and bandage it up. Still, I wouldn't risk running off or anything. Give it a day or two to recover. Alright?" The tone in her voice told midnight that she should say yes, so she nodded.

"A-Alright I'll stay for two days max. Then I really need to get to a nearby town."

Three Days Later...

Life on Graperoses grape farm was peaceful and quiet, relaxing and very enjoyable. Midnight had planned to leave yesterday, but she decided one more day of peace with Grape and Pulmonaria wasn't going to hurt. Though it was going to be hard to say goodbye. Having a major crush on grape, and adoring that little filly made it so very hard...Sure, she knew that she had a duty, but this was...Perfect! But midnight knew today she had to leave, no matter how much she yearned to stay here with them.

So there she sat.

Outside, early in the morning. Staring at her hooves and deciding what to say. The house that grape lived in was fairly nice. Two stories, painted white and made of fresh wood. Graperose said her father had built it no less then thirty years ago. At least that's what he had told her. That topic was a fragile one, the mare hated to talk of her parents, who had mysteriously vanished one day. She had last seen them go into the woods to head to town, but no pony ever saw them again.

The cold, brush air nipped at her, causing her to shiver. Midnight could see her breath. So cold... She thought, but she didn't want to risk waking the two of them by going outside.

The door opened, a familiar hoof touched her shoulder "Midnight! What're you doing outside this early? Oh dear you're shivering! Come on inside!" The soothing voice of Graperose woke her from her thoughts, she nodded and went inside, a smile on her face. She was quite happy that grape was awake. Some alone time with her was exactly what she wanted! Midnight knew it was odd that after three days she already loved Graperose. Or, had a crush on her. Maybe it was how tough she was...How dangerous yet sweet she was..

"How long were you outside? You're freezing!"

Midnight groaned "All night...I've just been thinking and stuff.."

"All night?! You need to get some sleep! And you need a blanket, please sit down I'll be right back!"

Galaxy would kill her if he saw what she was doing. Laying around and enjoy herself while they struggled! But it was just so good here..

She shook her head, but the purple mare was already walking away. She had been up all night thinking of what she would do when she left, and exactly what to say to the two of them. But that could wait again, midnight needed sleep. Her job couldn't be completed if while it was in motion she was passing out in the middle of a road! Sitting down, Midnight was already slipping away. A warm blanket was soon wrapped around her, a soft hoof rubbing her mane "Shh go to sleep midnight..." Graperose whispered, making her lay down. The warm mares body was right against her, their muzzles just barely touching. Midnight gave a yawn, soon falling asleep right against grape, the blanket draped over the two of them.

The sound of an excited filly standing infront of the them was what woke Midnightshadow. "Grape! Midnight! Come in wake up!" She chuckled, blinking open an eye sleepily and yawning loudly. Graperose grumbled, rolling onto her side "Too...Early.." Midnight shook herself, getting up to her feet groggily. "S-She's right...Grape time to get up.." With that the earth pony sighed, getting up and nodding "A-Alright alright I'm up I'm up...Calm down you to.." She stretched, yawning loudly "Midnight you're lucky you have comfy fur and are good at cuddling, or you'd be in trouble for staying up that late.." A gulp could be heard. "U-Uh...Thanks?" Midnight asked, taking a step back. Pulmonaria jumped "Comee on! Can we go play pleeeaasseee!!" The two mares nodded. "Yay! Hide and seek it is! I'll count first! Go hide!" Midnight and Grape left the house to a filly nearly screaming her numbers. "IM COUNTING TO SIXTY!" Pulmonaria yelled, already at seven.

Graperose pointed to the shed "There's tons of hay in there we can hide under!" Midnight nodded in agreement, following her I to the barn.

~~~

The two were once again side by side, hay covering them and hiding them pretty well. A loud "forty!" Could be heard. "Grape we need to talk ok?"

"About what?"

"Me and you and when I'm leaving"

"Me and you? What do you me-"

"SIXTY!"

"Shh after she finds us!"

They waited in silence, the only sound they heard the occasional hoof steps of Pulmonaria walking around the shed. A few minutes, later however, the door creaked open "I know you two are in here..Aha!" She pounced onto the ground right next to Midnight, just barely missing. "They're not in here?! Where are they!" Graperose chuckled, causing her to get pounced on, exposing midnight too "I found you! Haha!" The filly grinned and cheered happily, the three laughing together and throwing hay until Graperose coughed, looking at midnight. "Now there's something I...We need to hear, right?" She asked, looking at midnight with a serious look.

She shuffled her hooves, sighing sadly and nodding "I have to go. Probably for weeks. I have to get to a town, get supplies, ponies, to help. It's my duty and I can't just let my brother and thousands of ponies be killed. I must return to ponyville soon. I'm l-leaving...Now.." Her voice cracked. midnight could see the filly tearing up "B-but you can't go!" Midnight smiled weakly "I'll come back..Trust me...G-Grape...There's s-something I have to tell you before I go.." With a quick movement, their lips were soon touching, midnight swiftly pulling Grape into. However to her surprise she was kissing back! They kept up the kiss for a few moments before Grape broke it , giggling "You feel that way too? No need to cry Pulmonaria. And don't be sad Midnight we will be closer then you think!"

The unicorn was lost, legs wobbling as a daze seemed to have come over. The next sentence woke her from it however. "What? Huh how?!"

"We are coming with you that's how!"

Midnights eyes widened as Grape said that. She shook her head "N-No you can't come with me! I'm going to very dangerous places! And Pulmy's just a filly!" Grape rolled her eyes "Well I know how hard it is for you to leave us...And now that I know how you feel, you expect me to let you run off and never return? And you're like a big sister to her! She loves you!" The mare nodded "You've got a horn, and a gun. I'm betting you can protect us if someone attempts to attack us" Midnight could tell her defense was crumbling. And having a pretty mare around with her at all times would be nice...

"Humph...Fine.." Her voice lowered "Stupid Grape...Stop being so bucking beautifu-"

"I heard that Midnight!" The mare turned around, flicking her tail up, brushing her chin. "J...Agh! Just go get your stuff and lets go!" She grumbled, trying to get rid of her blush. The only thing that she feared was that they wouldn't go fast enough. They had at most four days to get to a town, any town that had ponies, or a militia, or anything. Her brother needed help, and she had thrown away days for her own comforts...She shook her head, trying to get rid of the doubt that lingered in the back of her mind. But she had to stay strong, now she had two more ponies to look after! All midnight had was the pistol, seven shots, a horn of gunpowder, enough food to last them maybe two days, and of course the old map. She rummaged around it, her hoof finding something hidden. She used her magic to pull out...A key? A white key, small, thin, three diamonds on each side. Not real diamonds. The shape of diamonds carved into it.

She stuffed it back into the brown leather bag, throwing it over her side again. The key probably went to something the pony she had gotten this from had owned. Graperose and Pulmonaria came out with a saddle bag each, just stuffed with clothes, food which was greatly needed, a old but newer map, and a pistol Grape stuffed inside her bag too quick for Midnight to get a look at it. "Alright! So we're going to appleloose to scavenge, then head to a nearby town...This will be very dangerous you two, so when we walk, I will go first, and if we get into any trouble you two have to run and get away as far as possible.." Right now they would be safe. Around noon they might not be so secure. Traveling at dawn was common, so seeing soldiers or other ponies was guaranteed. Both of them nodded, eyes widening in fear suddenly. "What? What is it?" She asked, gulping as she heard a twig crack. Pulmonaria squeaked, ducking behind Grape. When she turned around, four oddly dressed unicorns stood behind them, horns glowing under their hoods. The look of murder could be seen on their glowing faces..

Midnight gulped, and then, a flash of white blinded her.

What happened first?

She never knew, if it was Graperose who shot first, or the four unicorns who used spells.

But in an instant, the world was white, a spell...She didn't know which one was cast. A thud was heard, Graperoses shot had been a success. But the mare dropped the pistol, how Grape had gotten the strap around her neck so easily she would never know.

Still, it had given them advantage, now they were 3 to 2, one of the hooded unicorns dead already.

One of them had cast a spell, blinding them. The only thing Midnight could see, and feel, was magic. Bolts of magic shot all around, skimming her sides, burning off fur. She winced in pain, pulling Graperose and Pulmonaria behind the shed. The house already had holes in it, the magic tearing right through it. Light debris fell on them, and she decided it was enough. A clear shot would be needed, Midnight didn't have many to waste! Jumping out from behind her cover, the last thing the mare remembered was pulling the trigger, and an incredible amount of pain.

Her shot luckily, had taken the lives of two, and the fourth had run off. Midnight hadn't even fully aimed as she fired, but the bullet had gone right through the neck of one as he was running, tearing right through, leaving a devastating hole. It passed through, digging into the chest of another. A very very lucky shot! But her glory faded quickly. Seeing their teammates fall, the last one casted a bolt that slammed right into her chest. She had flown back, skidding across the hard ground, a nasty gash opening along her left side. And then, she had slipped into unconsciousness.

Graperose panicked, seeing Midnightshadow fly back in the air, her body soon limp. She rushed over, quickly looking her over. "Oh gosh oh gosh...A-Alright.." Taking a deep breath, the mare pulled a first aid kit out of her saddle bag. Never had she expected to use it so soon. Cleaning the wound, wrapping it up with bandages, and throwing up once, Grape fixed up Midnights wound. It had taken precious hours though. In the meanwhile, Pulmonaria had looked over the mysterious ponies. The filly was shaking as she approached them, but something caught her eye that made her come closer faster. A scroll! On of them had a scroll on them! Running forward, she picked it up with her teeth, racing back to Grape "I found something!"

"Shh...Not now. Just put it in my saddlebag alright? We have to get going like Midnight said, or more of those mean ponies might come back. Could you help me carry her please?"

Pulmonaria nodded after putting the scroll away.

Finding Appleloosa.

Midnight woke hours later, the sun high up in the air. She was lying in cool grass under a tree, a bandage wrapped around her side.

When the mare attempted to move, pain shot through her. The wound was nasty, and it would be slow moving and walking for another day or two until that healed up. Grape was laying next to a small fire, it had grown colder as everypony prepared for autumn. Pulmonaria was sleeping by the fire too, a few toys cuddled close to her. Midnight struggled to get up, a few dots appeared in her eyes at the sudden movements. The wound was killing her! She wondered who those ponies had been though! They had been clearly trained, the element of surprise had helped them. Without they'd all be dead. This had to be reported when she got back. If Celestia was deploying Unicorns for magic attacks, it'd be a whole new war. Moving slowly over to Grape, the earth pony turned her head, hearing Midnight walking over

"Good...You're up...Appleloosa is about three miles away...But me and Pulmonaria got tired" She explained, moving over abit to let Midnight have some room to lay down by her. Taking the offer, she sunk into the ground next to Grape, wondering if they were dating or not. She had kissed Midnight back! Was that a sign? Deciding to push her luck a bit, Midnight moved closer to Graperose, their bodies pressing. Hearing a chuckle, she leaned forward, softly nuzzled her neck, smiling happily as the nuzzle was returned "It's alright...You need your sleep..We all need to get our strength back after that." She whispered, feeling a kiss on the top of her head that made her squirm, the lips deadly close to her horn. "Thanks...You're too sweet.." Rolling her eyes, Midnight rested her head. They hadn't known eachother for long, but Midnight already loved her. Well, maybe not love just like a lot. A squeak made her lift her head.

"There's a letter! In my saddlebag! One of the magicians had it!" Widening her eyes she floated out the scroll, tearing it open and began to read.

Dear FlashFire. I'm sending you, along with three other hoof picked unicorns to assist this country. You are four very talented unicorns, and I know you will get this job done. As you know already, this little rebellion has been going on for far too long. If my student Twil...Well never mind that. I ask of you to deliver a critical blow. Our spies report that Midnight Shadow, a unicorn who is also the brother to Galaxywing, is currently heading in the direction of Appleloosa. I ask of you to please find her and make sure noone see's her again. If you brought her to me that would be most helpful.

~Princess Celestia

Midnight crushed the scroll, tossing it aside angrily. How dare she! Hiring...Assassins! To come and kill her! Such a thought was unheard of! Though she feared, if Celestia could deploy unicorns...Sure, Unicorns did throw out spells a bit in battles, but many of them missed. The accuracy those ones had used...A whole line of them would be terrifying. Many questions arose. How had she been spotted? And who was this Twil? Student student...Was she referring to Twilight?! No...The books showed her as a nice unicorn...She would never assassinate! At least, she thought. But what did she know, never in her life had she meet the strong unicorn. The only real reason Midnight knew of her because her mother always used to read a spellbook, written by her. She shook her mind clear of the thought "Grape. Wake up Pulmonaria please, I know I said we need rest but we can't waste any more time. Carry her on your back, we need to get to appleloosa as soon as possible. Any survivors or supplies will be very useful." Midnight felt Graperose lift up her head, the warm feeling on her neck fading quickly "Okay okay fine...But I'm tired after carr-"

"I know. And I'm very sorry. Just...Please. We have to move.."

Pulmonaria let out a whine as she was woken, but she soon nodded, a quiet tongue lashing from Graperose made her hush and crawl onto her back, wrapping her front legs around the mares neck.

"Alright...I'll carry the bags with my magic alright...Say uh Grape where did you get the pistol? Can I see it?"

Grape pointed to her saddle bag, which Midnight tried to open it with her magic, but her the tip of her horn sparked twice before stopping. Groaning her head pounded, horn aching suddenly.

"Whats wrong Midnight? Are you hurt?"

Not wanting to make her think she was hurt, Midnight shook her head "No. Fine. I'm just a little tired that's all. My horn is acting up a little, I must have hit it or something." But it was clear that the spell that had hit her was to disable magic. Worry crept into her but she tried to keep it down. What if she couldn't even use magic again?!

"Let's just get moving. What way is Appleloosa from here?"

"Southwest. Though more south. I'd say it's about a thirty or forty minute walk from here. So it's safe most likely."

"Alright. Now why don't you tell me about this pistol and it's weird designs all over it as we walk?"

Grape nodded "Well...When my Grandfather first moved here, he met a pony who said they had traveled all the way Saddle Arabia, a trader. My grandfather asked if he had any weapons, something to help protect himself around in the woods. The trader pulled out that same pistol, the designs are some writing, but I forget what. It's easy to reload, a little quicker then an equestrian pistol. He gave it to my father, and my father to me. I don't have anything for it though, it was loaded when I pulled it out."

The story lasted around twenty minutes, they had picked up the pace, and soon, they were there.

Midnight nodded, looking it over. It was smaller, little grooves on the inside of the pistol to help the bullet spin more. Longer barrel, a tiny bit bigger.

"You can have it if you'd like!"

"W-What?! I couldn't! It's your families!"

"I don't plan on shooting it again. I'm not a gun mare like you...Please take it. As a gift! I'll need somepony to protect me!" Grape smirked "Now you have two!"

Midnight grinned "Sweet! Thank you so much Grape!" She jumped forward, nuzzling her chin softly "I'll carry it with me at all times!" Floating it up, now the blue mare had two pistols! Perfect! And Grape kept to her word! The pistol took around seven seconds quicker to reload! "Wow! It's fantastic!" In that small time a tiny bit of her magic seemed to have returned, but just floating two simple pistols send jolts of pain down her body. She had to keep going though, to protect them!

"You're welcome.."

Midnight sighed happily, blowing Grape a kiss. The earth pony giggled, rolling her eyes "Thanks. I'll treasure your air kiss forever!"

BAM

"Ouch!" She had been so caught up in staring, that she had run right into a building...Or what was left of one. Bullet holes riddled the wood, the top half had collapsed, a few rats scurried out of the wreckage. A pegasus, clearly a scout, had seven or eight bullets buried into his side. He was bent over a hold in the building, dried blood on the wood below him. "G-Grape...Don't...Look...Up. Just follow me.." Hearing fear in her voice, Graperose nodded, glad Pulmonaria was asleep right now. Following Midnight, the hot sun poured down on them. Tumbleweeds drifted out of the town. What had once been a bustling trade center for apples, it was now a ghost town. It was supposed to show rebellions would be demolished, but it only encouraged them even more! A stone statue was right at the entrance to Appleloosa, a leg of the Stallion torn off by a cannon ball. He wore a vest, or something, along with a hat. A sniper lay propped up against his side. He was...Old too. Very old. How he looked showed that! But he also looked as strong as a young stallion. Getting closer, Midnight read the words on the bottom.

"Braeburn. Leader of Appleloosa's finest sniping division. Killed in the second skirmish. May the hero rest in peace."

Midnight looked over the giant stone statue, this stallion must have been a hero. It even said hero! But why, leading the best sniping division is nothing to get a statue over! Ugh if only there was more about this stallion...

After weeks of being deserted, everypony either dead or gone, many of the wooden buildings had burned. As she walked down the street, hearing the hoof steps of Grape behind her Midnight wished she hadn't brought her. Ponies, dead, everywhere. Bodies torn in two, shots in every place imaginable. The sandy ground was dried red in many places. Little flames were still going on, the buildings creaked when a breeze came through, threatening to topple over. Half the town wasn't even accessible, and all the spots where trade had happened had been burned. It looked like they had been attacked during the night, some of the ponies lie dead, in pajama's, not even carrying any form of weapon. She saw through a shattered window of a hotel that a mare was in bed! Lying in bed as bullets ripped through the walls and killed her. Was this how Celestia thought she should end rebellions?! Murder every pony in the town? She kicked the ground in disgust, closing her eyes tight. "Grape lets just go..." The fact that this had been done to everypony...It stung. Celestia had done something horrible here. She saw fillies, colts, brutally murdered. This town had been killed to make an example! How horrifying! At least they were holding out at ponyville...Maybe Celestia was trying to save ponyville and not kill the entire town. Why would she want to save it though?

"What?! It's almost dark, we're tired, and you said we'd get supplies and stuff from here!"

"I don't want to sleep here please...Appleloosa is a death trap! Look at all these buildings they're going to fall! Every pony is dead and there aren't any supplies!" Her voice came out harsh but cracked at the end. It was horrific what had happened here! "Hey...Hey now calm down...It's ok.." Grape was at her side in a second, a little kiss on her ear making her sigh "It's just so horrible what happened here!"

A sleepy mumble was heard from Grape, Midnight knew she needed sleep. Though she couldn't carry anypony. Three saddlebags were worn on her back, stuffed full. A fourth was on her leg, surprisingly light that. But that weighed her down a bit. "Okay let's just head towards...Dodge City. Those ponies are living I heard. And by the sound of it your ponyville needs ponies fast!"

"Alright...Dodge City? You mean Dodge Junction right? Shouldn't we rest first though, You really look like you could use some sle-"

"Lets just go until I collapse. I'll push it for you Midnight. The city is only a few miles away.."

Now she was confused. Her old map didn't have any Dodge City but she trusted Grape. It had probably been re named anyways.

" Alright...Just remember I can't really use my magic all that well at the moment.."

"I know I know...Lets go! I've always wanted to go t...there !" Her voice was a little mumbled, her fatigue and tiredness clearly showing.

They walked slowly, Midnight had to constantly fall back, trying to keep Graperose walking. Pulmonaria just slept away, though occasionally she'd yawn or squirm on Grapes back as the mare began drooping her head, walking off, tripping. They had reached the woods, where they had just come from and it was too much for them. Grape slumped to the ground, falling into a deep sleep.

Midnight facehoofed in irritation. They were just beneath the tree's, but if only she could've gotten then two of them a little further...This would have to do! Setting down the saddlebags, she rested Graperose against a tree, the same with Pulmonaria. Lying down next to them, pistol tucked into her chest, the unicorn fell asleep too. Today had basically been a waste. Not much had been accomplished. It pained her to know that she was doing so little..They were dangerously low on food too.

They had enough for a small breakfast and that was it. In the scrap with the magicians when she had gotten blasted and skimmed their food had been hit numerous times. Her dreams were none the pleasant either, images of appleloosa haunted her until she woke, wet. Sweating cold sweat. She panted softly, looking around scared until she realized this was the real world, not her dream! A low fog had covered the tree's, dew could be seen on every blade of grass. Two ponies snoring next to her. A calm peaceful night for them...At least that was good!

Still, she knew that now it was time to go. It was early, the safest time to travel. They had to be back in ponyville by tomorrow afternoon, or Galaxy was in big trouble! Stretching, tears flooded her eyes and she clamped her mouth shut. Determination had seemed to null down the pain from her wound, Midnight had completely forgotten about it! But now she was bleeding again, having re-opened the wound. Blood trickled down her side turning the blue fur crimson. The cool morning air made her shiver. Great, freezing cold, hungry, bleeding, tired. Could things get any worse?!

Getting up to her hooves, the mare leaned against the tree, panting softly as she slowly bled. Not much, but she felt drained from it. Midnight whimpered in pain, crying softly. She didn't want to alert them, to have Grape fuss over her and clean her up and make her rest and go slow. She'd lie, Midnight had to! They had to get moving and a wound would only slow them down! Pain ran through in waves, the unicorn bit her lip, sitting there and dealing with the pain so they could rest more.

It stopped bleeding a few minutes later, but those few minutes had seemed to be hell. Her side was numb, blood leaked down her legs after dripping down her side. Wet salty tears stung her eyes. It made little sense to her why she hadn't woken up Grape and asked for help, but her mind had just said "No!" Midnight didn't want to wake them, to have them worry for her. It wasn't her job, her job was to protect. Not that.

Waiting a while longer to get a control of herself, Midnight walked over to the two sleeping ponies.

Leaning over she poked Grapes shoulder repetitively until the mare groaned, opening her eyes. Midnight hid her body, not wanting the blood to be seen. It'd be easy to hide it, a river had to be close too. She'd just wash in there !"Come on...Too early..."

"We have to go. You know this. It's early. Wake up Pulmonaria. We're heading to Dodge city." Muttering her sentence, Midnight nodded. They had to go now. "We wasted yesterday, today we get there, get support and get back to ponyville. I'm not letting my brother down once again.." She knew that it was a little strict, demanding, but Midnight wanted to get this done. Spending time relaxing was nice, but she had a duty to do, one that she would not abandon. She loved Graperose, but Galaxy was the only family she had.