North by Northwest

Twilight Sparkle sat upon her bed in her relatively new room in Canterlot Castle, reading a book concerning royalty both past and present of other nations and considering her earlier interactions that day. Royal duties were harrowing.

Spike was fast asleep behind her, having spent nearly an hour sending letters that she’d personally written for various subjects awaiting a reply from Princess Celestia or Luna. Everything from farmers concerned about weather patterns to mayors of the major cities voicing concerns over possible riots due to small markups or discounts on household supplies came in batches of several dozen every morning, concerns that would need to be perused by a princess who had insight into the matter. The other two princesses were busy in very important negotiations with Aquastria and Atlantica, whose national boundaries were both being encroached upon by Equestrian expansion and prosperity, and who would also hopefully reach an agreement on where their own boundaries between one another lay. Twilight had researched the dilemma and had suggested to the princesses that a trench which lay within the grey area be established as the national boundary, though that may cause some small dispute with Aquastria due to the trench being nearer to their end of the grey area than it was on the Atlanticans’.

She was slowly approaching the tiredness that she knew would overtake her soon, though the fascinating traditions that the zebras and the sea-ponies underwent were breathtakingly intricate. She would need to see if the library in Canterlot had more detailed information on these specific cultures and the origins surrounding the traditions before she left back for Ponyville; she had several more days here, holding audiences, attending the dinners of fancy nobles, and being a reassuring presence to her citizens more than anything. She would have time to check.

Her thoughts were swiftly interrupted by a very loud knock on her door—the type of knock that would wake a sleeping pony. On the other side of the door, a guard nearly shouted, “Princess Twilight Sparkle, your presence is required in the throne room immediately! Please come at once!”

A rummy-eyed Spike shot his head up and loudly said, “Huh? Wha? I’m not a princess....”

Twilight couldn’t resist a chuckle, telling Spike, “He means me.” She then raised her voice, saying, “Yes, coming!”

Spike stared at her for a moment, then said, “You need me?”

She shook her head and replied, “I don’t think so. It sounds like royal business. Get back to sleep, I’ll send a guard to get you if you’re needed.” She flashed a smile at him, then opened the door. “Okay, I’m ready.”

The guard swiftly trotted down the hallway, forcing Twilight to immediately match pace with him. They winded through the now-familiar corridors of Canterlot Castle in a mad rush to the throne room, the guard’s hoofsteps implying barely concealed panic. He must have either seen or heard something terrifying, to be shaken like this. She was starting to become more acutely aware of the situation she was about to get herself into.

After what seemed an eternity turning down dimly lit hallways, they abruptly found themselves at the enormous doors to the throne room. The guard rapped in a very distinct pattern, stating, “This is Vigil. I come with Princess Twilight Sparkle.” At his words, the doors opened and the guard rushed in and to the side, where he stood at attention with several more guards.

Twilight made her way timidly into the throne room, thanking both of the door guards for opening the door as well as Vigil for guiding her. She then turned her eyes to the throne, where Celestia sat upon it and Luna stood beside her sister.

Twilight gasped. “But... you’re supposed to be at negotiations! Both nations will take this as an insult, to not have a presence from Equestria there!”

Celestia nodded gravely. “We’re both aware. There is very little that would convince Luna and I to sour diplomatic relations, Twilight; you know better than to ask those kinds of questions.”

“You’re... you’re right. Why are you back?” She couldn’t hide the nervousness from her voice, and Celestia picked up on it.

“Please, don’t overthink this. Luna and I would never have come back were this not serious, but we have the best interests of—”

“She does not need coddling from us, sister. Tell her what is happening.” Luna’s directness sliced cleanly through the pleasantries that Celestia was trying to convey.

Celestia nodded at her sister before continuing. “An ancient foe has returned, one that Luna and I have not encountered for as long as we have ruled Equestria.” She stood and began pacing along the floor of the throne room. “His name is Black Cat. Forgive me if I don’t go into detail about our past with him; it is painful to remember.”

Luna once again added her own thoughts into the matter. “He slaughtered many and enslaved countless more. Some of our own blood fell prey to his machinations. Our own sister was a victim of Black Cat’s entertainments.”

“Luna, please,” came Celestia’s wounded reply. She then continued, “We have received word from Black Cat himself that he has returned. According to the pony who sent the letter to us, he entered a hospital and—I can’t. I just can’t.” She sunk her head down low. “Those are our citizens we’re talking about, Luna. They trusted us to protect them.”

Luna sighed. “According to the traumatized pony, Black Cat slew all healthy and able staff in the hospital. He then took the sickly and the absent-minded and... we request the letter.” A piece of paper floated in front of her face, which she took hold of with her magic. “’The ponies that couldn’t stand on their own or were unconscious suddenly stood again, like they’d been given new life. They looked at each other, then they all looked at me and started telling me that Black Cat has returned. Then a pitch-black pony walked up to me and told me to write this letter of what I saw. He says he’ll kill me if I don’t finish it and send it. He said he let me live so I could write this.’ That is all that is written; there is no signature. We can assume that, due to Black Cat’s nature, he has also slain the writer of the letter.”

There was a short period of awkward silence, then Celestia spoke up. “Twilight... we need you. We need the Elements of Harmony to stop Black Cat, once and for all.”

Twilight spoke quickly. “Of course, Princesses. He is an enemy of Equestria and must be stopped. We have the power to defeat him, I’m certain of it.”

“Be careful, Twilight. He is cunning and powerful. Luna and I managed to drive him away, but we knew he would eventually return. Once again, the fate of Equestria is on your shoulders.” She exchanged a glance with her sister, then looked back at Twilight. “Please, do what we could not. Make him face justice for his crimes.”

Twilight smiled boldly. “You can count on me. And on my friends.”

Luna replied with, “A chariot awaits you on the observation balcony. It will take you to Ponyville, where you will then travel with your friends to Vanhoover, where Black Cat has presumably taken residence in the hospital which he has decimated. We have received no more word of his actions, but have reason to believe the local police force has barricaded him within. They cannot hold him; he is waiting by choice. Find him there.”

Twilight nodded in understanding. “We won’t let you down!” She turned and began trotting back out the door, toward the nearby balcony, calling over her shoulder, “Send somepony to the negotiations to apologize on your behalf!”

No more than a minute later, the chariot was taking off into the night sky, Ponyville in the gazes of the two guards pulling the chariot as well as the newly worried princess sitting upon it behind them.

“So... lemme get this straight. We’re just runnin’ in, hooves a-blazin’, to defeat this Black Cat feller, who’s more’n likely just gonna kill us, with nothin’ to help us, not even the Elements of Harmony, and y’all think we got a fightin’ chance?” Applejack, as always, was very honest about her thoughts.

“Well... yes.” Twilight sounded a little uncertain of herself, but her voice began to build confidence as she continued. “But we’ve overcome far worse than this. We defeated a mare with the power to leave Equestria in eternal night, and she could have killed us. We defeated Discord, who could have easily killed us, though I don’t think it’s in his nature to do something like that. We fought King Sombra, who likely led many ponies to their deaths through enslavement. We even faced a dragon, who was inches from killing us, until Fluttershy stood to defend us. We had no more information then than we do now.” She smiled confidently at her assembled friends. “But we didn’t lose. We proved our strength and pushed our way to victory. Friendship always comes through in the end. This Black Cat is just another test of our friendship, and we will succeed. I’m certain of it.

“No matter what he tries to throw at us, he won’t tear us apart. Our bonds are unbreakable, and our care for one another unstoppable. There is nothing that he can do that will cause us to back down, or worry, or waver. We will defeat him, just as we have overcome all other challenges that we have faced as friends.”

Pinkie Pie smiled brightly. “This’ll be a cinch! When we’re all together, there’s nothing we can’t do!”

“Yeah, and if I beat this Black Dog guy, they’re sure to let me join the Wonderbolts!” Rainbow Dash declared.

“It’s, um... it’s Black Cat, not Black Dog,” Fluttershy interjected.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Rainbow replied, waving her hoof dismissively, “he’s still gonna go down when we face him!”

Rarity simply smiled, enjoying the friendly banter that eased the tension caused by Twilight’s announcement of where they were going and who they were going to be confronting. She personally felt she needed the casual conversation to prevent her from panicking.

The chariot suddenly lurched, Pinkie Pie’s eyes gluing themselves to a window as they slowed down to a stop on a landing strip outside of the Vanhoover General Hospital. She excitedly announced, “We’re here! We’re here! Oh, I haven’t seen Vanhoover since the 16th Annual Equestria Candy Confectioners’ Convention!”

The others rolled their eyes, then they all climbed out of the chariot and onto the cobblestone that dominated much of the streets of Vanhoover. Applejack was attempting to suck in all the sights, Fluttershy seemed intimidated by the massive buildings looming all around her, Rarity seemed disinterested, Pinkie Pie was bouncing around happily, and Rainbow Dash and Twilight both had their sights steeled against their destination. Eventually, the others, too, noticed where their eyes were affixed, and all six of them stared at the hospital looming ahead.

Twilight decided to approach a nearby police pony. “Excuse me, what’s the situation here?”

The police pony glanced over, then snapped to attention. “Princess Twilight Sparkle! One of our unicorn mail-ponies told us we’d be expecting you sometime tonight.” He paused a moment, then realized she’d asked him a question. “Far as we know, Black Cat’s in there. We did a sweep of the building, but the radios all died and nopony has been out. We’re guessing Black Cat got ‘em.” Tears glistened in his eyes. “He’ll pay. Won’t he, princess?”

Twilight nodded in affirmation. “Of course. Nopony kills an Equestrian citizen and expects to not face severe punishment for their crimes. He will answer for his actions, don’t you worry.”

The guard seemed inspired by her confident words, his gaze all the more earnestly set toward the hospital he’d been tasked with watching.

Twilight called to her friends. “Girls, let’s go. We’ve got an enemy of the state to apprehend.”

They marched past the barricade line, nodding to the officers, who snapped to attention at the sight of royalty and cohorts. They made their way up to the gates of the hospital, opening the way to a reception area that seemed eerily devoid of life.

Fluttershy, terrified, stayed huddled near the ground in the center of the group, and the rest moved forward, Rainbow Dash at the forefront and Applejack in the rear, with the others conglomerated in the center. They all kept scanning their surroundings, watching for danger and afraid they may find it.

Eventually, as they passed by a stairwell, they heard a voice ghosting down to them. “Come to me, ponies.”

Twilight immediately stood in an aggressive stance. “Black Cat, why are you doing this? Why are you making ponies suffer?”

The voice only replied in a seductive whisper, “I am on the third floor. Find me there.”

Twilight asked several more questions, but there was no reply. They decided that they would have to confront Black Cat if they were to learn anything. They climbed single-file up the narrow staircase to their foe, eventually warily spreading out onto the third floor. In it, there was once again nothing but a hallway. They made their way to a doorway at the very end, opening it and entering. It slammed shut behind them, prompting a surprised shout from Applejack and a responding squeak from Fluttershy.

Applejack looked at her friend apologetically. “Awful sorry about that, Fluttershy. Ah didn’t mean to frighten ya.”

A stallion’s voice from directly in front of them replied, “Oh, it’s all right. No harm done.” The entire group was taken off-guard by his completely normal voice. They expected something deep and sinister, the likes of King Sombra, not a normal pony saying things normally.

In fact, this pony looked completely normal. His coat color wasn’t jet-black, like they’d been expecting; rather, it was a slate grey color, the type that snow takes when it’s been tracked on a few too many times. His mane, also, was a most sickly green color, the same as a pony who was ready to throw up.

He looked so nondescript, in fact, that Twilight initially mistook him for another pony. “Um... hello. Are you the pony that sent the letter to Princesses Celestia and Luna?”

The pony gave her a bored look. “Do I look like a unicorn to you?”

At this question, Twilight noted that he was, indeed, not a unicorn. He was an earth pony. “Well... no, you’re not one. I apologize for not noticing at first. Who are you, then?”

The pony smirked arrogantly. “I am Black Cat.” At the hostile double-takes they all took, he laughed mirthlessly. “It’s just a nickname, pets. Named so because you hope to never come across me. Named by the princesses themselves, in fact. No, my real name is far more normal. And a name that I will not indulge you in.”

“Why are you doing this, Black Cat? Why hurt all these innocent ponies?” Twilight was trying to appeal to his better nature, the nature that she believed was in everypony.

Black Cat rolled his eyes. “Please. We all die someday; we all just take different roads to get there. Don’t try white knighting me because it won’t work, pet. Now scram, before I send you away myself.”

“Hey!” Rainbow Dash yelled defiantly. “You can’t talk to my friend like that!”

“Oh? Is that so?” The smirk still hadn’t left Black Cat’s face since the start of the conversation. “And who’s going to stop me from doing so?”

Rainbow Dash volunteered, “Me! Who else?”

“Oh yeah? Come prove yourself to me, then. Unless you’re a coward.”

Before anypony could react, Rainbow Dash had bolted straight for Black Cat. Twilight only had time to let out a fearful “Rainbow!” before she was upon him.

No more than an inch from Black Cat’s face, she stopped.

The world was frozen in time for a brief instant, then something shimmered and gave way. There had been an illusion spell cast on a strange contraption in front of Black Cat to make it invisible. Rainbow Dash’s head had gone through a small hole in it, where she was now stuck.

“So nice of you to take the bait, Rainbow Dash,” Black Cat said loudly. The smile left his face, replaced by a stern one. “Any last words for your friends?”

“Huh? Wha? Get me outta here!”

He shook his head sadly. “Alas, they were wasted.”

The trap suddenly fully materialized around her as a box-shaped container which was suspending her in the air, its beige walls hiding her body. Before anything could be done, the box constricted around her body, allowing Rainbow Dash no more than a tiny squeak before there was a terrible sound of bones snapping and organs popping, in addition to the sound of the forcible ejection of her own body from around her head as semi-liquid due to space in the box running out.

This all happened in the blink of an eye, not even so much as a groan able to escape Rainbow Dash’s lips before her entire body had been smashed flat. There was only a brief flicker of confusion, fear, and anger in her eyes—memories of a life she would never lead—before they went out and her journey ended.

The entire exchange had taken place in no more than ten seconds, with the bulk of the time being spent with Black Cat speaking to Rainbow Dash in her final conversation. The friends only stared in shock, their minds not comprehending what they had just seen happen.

Black Cat looked back at Twilight Sparkle. “Now that I have your attention, go back to your princesses and tell them that I’ll be ruling Equestria in light of their recent abdication. Not that they need worry—they’ll never see me. I’m not a monster, only a mastermind. Unless you’d like to join your friend, I suggest you leave back the way you came. I will never leave this hospital, though my influence will stretch across the nation. It would be pure foolishness to try to stop me.”

Twilight’s eyes finally registered something other than confusion. Her eyes pierced into Black Cat’s soul, uttering a premonition to him. “You will get what you deserve. I’m certain of it.”

Black Cat only chuckled. “Not from you. I’ll just squelch any of these bands of elements before they have something, same as yours. There will not be another like Rainbow Dash in many years, long after your time has come and gone. You cannot defeat me, not without all of you.”

Then, Black Cat turned and began to retreat. “I’m done talking.”

“Well, we’re not,” Applejack retorted. “We’re gonna stop you, right here and now. Aren’t we, girls?”

Fluttershy stared blankly at Rainbow Dash’s severed head, half-expecting her friend’s body to reform and reassure her that she was just fine. Rarity likewise stared at her late friend, albeit with a far different look—that of absolute horror. Pinkie Pie had no look on her face at all, as if she had broken; all she possessed was a soulless stare, as if something had happened that she could never and would never truly grasp, even if she devoted her entire life to understanding it. The only ponies who could even speak at this point were Applejack and Twilight, pushing through whatever feelings they had to finish what they’d started.

Black Cat sighed, then there was a sharp intake of breath from Rainbow Dash beside them. Her eyes rolled to face her friends, suddenly possessed with life once more. She told them jovially, “Black Cat has returned.”

Fluttershy’s scream could be heard for miles. “RAAAAIIIIINBOOOOW!”

Rainbow Dash only smiled excitedly at her friend in return, replying, “Black Cat has returned.”

Fluttershy began screaming at the top of her lungs, unable to control herself. Her mind had finally caught up with her eyes. Applejack quickly started pushing Fluttershy toward the exit, telling Twilight to try to get the other two to go. Rarity’s mind was still present, her eyes fluttering as she tried to blink back tears and failed miserably, helping Twilight guide Pinkie Pie away, her eyes still staring blankly in front of her, the sight she’d just seen refusing to leave her.

Several minutes later, the five of them spilled onto the hard ground in front of the building, Fluttershy still screaming, Rarity still crying, and Pinkie Pie still staring at nothing, refusing to comprehend anything. Twilight looked as if she’d aged a thousand years, several lifetimes of pain and misery crashing against her in waves as she realized what had just been lost. Applejack was busy trying to calm Fluttershy down, her words of reassurance falling upon deaf ears, but needing to occupy herself so she wouldn’t have to think about what had just happened to her friend.

A police officer rushed up, confusion on his face as he asked, “What’s wrong? What happened? Where’s your other friend?” Twilight stared at him silently for a few moments, saying nothing. The guard asked again, “Princess Twilight, are you there? What happened to Black Cat?”

Twilight spoke far more loudly than she intended, her words reaching the assembled ponies and dooming them to whatever existence Black Cat had in store for them.

“We failed.”