Chapters The stars shone in the ebony sky, suspended in nothingness and forced to remain there, forever burning till their slow demise. Their strong light was hindered by the thick atmosphere of equestria, causing it to flicker uncertainly. A cool breeze shook the tree boughs, ruffling the feathers of a vibrant blue-tit attempting to sleep within her nest. As if fearing for her life she took off, flying towards the dark city of Canterlot, where a single lone statue stood like a sentry, as if gaurding the night.
She raised her head and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Then, she began to sing.
Her eyes snapped open on the last word, and she flew to the ground in front of the castle, swooping low through the streets as she sang.
"Follow sweet children
She landed in front of an old stone brick orphanage, where the children were all happily asleep, drool seeping from their open mouths. They were dreaming dreams any young child would dream. Trips to the moon and travelling to far off lands. The alicorn outside smiled to herself. After the last note was sung, the children woke up one by one and filed downstairs, as if in a daze.
They stopped at an open window, and stared at it questioningly.
"Hush now dear children
She began to hum the tune as she took off to join the children in the air. There were hundreds, of all types; unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies. All were galloping in the air next to the Alicorn, away from their city, their homes, their friends and their pearents.
She held the last note for as long as she could as they flew farther away from Canterlot. Soon, they could not see the city for the distance they had travelled. Away they flew, deep into the night, not to be seen again.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"Gone, all gone!" Yelled Princess Celestia. She was a tall, white Alicorn. Her horn was extremley long, and her wings were huge. Her mane and tail were a mix of green, pink yellow and blue. At the moment, her face was twisted into a furious snarl.
"Every last child, snatched from their beds. I have a mob of angry pearents outside, demanding to know what happened." She shreiked. "Luna will rue the day she was born, just as I have."
She paused to think, staring at the purple unicorn in front of her. She was kneeling as low as she could, her eyes shut tight. She had a navy blue mane and tail with pink and purple highlights running through the middle. One purple eye was open, watching carefully as .
The princess used her horn to telekineticly open the doors. A troop of two hundred pearents filed in all demanding an explaination.
"Where are my kids!?" Screamed a pink and white earth mare.
"Oh we can't have that." Twilight said, her voice low. "Now, I want three groups. Unicorns in one, pegasi in the other, earth ponies in the third. You have thirty seconds"
The ponies scrambled to get into position, clambering over eachother in their panic. They all finished with seven seconds to spare, and they stared wide-eyed at Twilight who simply smirked and looked to the Princess still standing behind her. They nodded. Twilight opened her mouth to speak. "We did not take your children. As you know, we are not allowed to 'till the eve of their fourteenth birthday. It is the law"
The pearents all visibly relaxed, and a low muttering began in the group. The pegasi seemed to look a great deal more relieved than the other two races.
The pearents began to panic once more, questions being yelled from each group, as they fought desperatley to be heard by the purple unicorn, who merely smirked.
"We know why she took your children. Yes. She has initiated them to her army, that she plans to use to usurp our beloved leader. Now, your children are enemies of the great Celestial Empire. And according to Section B-34 of the Code of Conduct ruling, paragraph A/49 line 43 through 45..." She cleared her throat and began reading off the scroll.
When it was quiet, Twilights horn began to glow with a purple aura, and she grinned, her eyes turning black.
The ponies that had remained in their groups began to scream in agony. Their skin began to peel away, and their eyeballs melted from their sockets. Several of them were writhing on the floor, convulsing in pain. They all wept as they caught fire, their tears evaporating into nothing. One by one they sank to the floor, their bones turning to dust. The screams still echoed around the hall long after they had died.
Author's Note
So hope y'all enjoyed. Please comment your criticisims dowm below.
The door creaked as the pegasus slowly pushed it shut. She tip-toed through the darkness, trying her best to make no sound, not daring to move her wings for fear of the sound of rustling feathers.
At the sight of her safe haven, she began to pick up her hooves, certain that she would make it, but suddenly she heard a high pitched voice behind her.
Rainbow Dash froze. Her pupils dilated as she stood, one hoof raised, not three hoofsteps from her goal...but what did it matter? The voice was right, this was inevitable and all Dashes fault.
There was another pony next to her, a pegasus, holdig a candle. As the two moved, the flame illuminated Rainbows body with a soft glow, revealing many scars and cuts and bruises along the length of her torso.
Rainbows eyes followed the pony, till finally she could see the pink muzzle and blue eyes directly in front of her. Her hair was dark pink and straight, reaching past her shoulders and messy with tangles and knots. Her fur was matted with dried blood and she was scowling.
"So? Where is she?" The pink earth pony demanded.
"Where is she, Rainbow Dash?" Pinkie demanded. The blue pegasus remained silent, trembling with fear.
She raised a bloodstained hoof, and struck Dash on her cheek, below the eye. This caused Rainbow to stagger back, and she absently touched the bruise, feeling the warm stickiness of blood on her cheek.
"Oh, Rainbow Dash, you know what I have to do now."
She slowly advanced on her cowering friend and raised her hoof again, placing it gently on Rainbows temple. Quick as a flash, she withdrew her hoof and slammed it back into place. The blow knocked out Dash instantly, and she fell to the floor, with Pinkie glaring down at her.
When Dash awoke, found she was strapped to a backless metal frame that felt cold against her skin.
There was also a vast assortment of knives, and Dashes heart pounded as she saw a shelf of boxes, labbled with things like
Rainbow gulped as she saw a movement in the shadows. Pinkie stepped into the light, holding a scalpel between her teeth. She ignored her captive pegasus for a moment, putting the scalpel down on a plain wooden table that was just in front of Rainbow.
When she finally did speak it was in a calm, clear voice, much unlike the fast, high-pitched one she usually spoke with.
"Hello Rainbow. You're awake." The Pink pony said menacingly.
Pinkie walked over to the shelves and boxes, trying to decide what to do. She nonchalantley picked up the boxes labelled; Broken glass, Salt and Fish hooks.
She gently placed them down and opened them up, allowing Rainbow Dash to get a good look at what was inside. The fish hooks caught the candlelight and her heart jumped.
The pink earth mare walked up to rainbow and gingerly brushed the pegasuses mane behind her ear. She trailed her hoof down her cheek and under her chin, pausing at the bruise she had made earlier, circling it.
Pinkie brushed her cheek against the feathers, enjoying the soft, light touch that made her feel so warm. As Pinkie played with her wings, Rainbow squeezed her eyes shut, her ears flicking back and fourth, ready for any pain Pinkie would try to throw subject her to.
After a few minutes, Pinkie stood back, examining the pony in front of her.
Rainbow violentley shook her head from side to side, trying desperatley npt to cry out.
She began to scream.
Her skin felt as if it were on fire and she screamed untill her throat was hoarse, and tears ran down her face.
After a while, Pinkie grew bored. She picked up a wet sponge from the table and began to clean Dashes wounds.
"You remember how it all began yes? With nightmare moon. Remember the gala? The parties? Your obsession with the Wonderbolts? Do you remember Scootaloo?"
Pinkie clapped her hooves together and a unicorn stepped forward, lighting up his horn. For a moment, Dash was blinded, and if she wasn't still tied in place, she would have sheilded her eyes.
Eventually her eyes ajusted to the bright light, and straight away wished they hadn't. In front of her, were two ponies strapped to metal tables that were slightly tilted back. The pair were just beginning to wake up, groggily shaking their heads. One was a grey unicorn that had messy brown hair and green eyes. The other was a white pegasus that had golden hair and a single orange streak running through it. Her eyes were blue.
"Dawn Feather?" Dash gasped.
"Rainbow Dash? What's going on?" Dawn asked, and her eyes widened as she looked around. She suddenly recognised what room she was in, and she stared at the pink pony in front of her in horror, her mouth open, trying to speak but completely unable to make a sound. The grey ponys reaction was much the same. The four ponies stared eachother down for a moment, the three that were tied up too shocked to speak, and Pinkie was simply enjoying the moment. Finally, Rainbow Dash spoke up.
Pinkie began to laugh hysterically, rolling around on the floor in fits of laughter, tears of joy staining the floor. The captive ponies looked on in confusion, glancing at eachother uncertainly. Pinkie eventually calmed down. Shakily she stood up and wiped her eyes, still chuckling softly to herself. She grinned at Star Shine and her sister.
She grinned again, placing a hoof on her forehead, thinking hard. She didn't think the traditional method would be quite spectacular enough for her very-best-friends-best-friends-sister. (She giggled a little thinking that.) Pinkie glared at Star Shine, pondering. Then, an idea struck her.
Rainbow and Dawn found themselves in a large, round, underground room. It had a broad, domed ceiling and a large empty space in the middle. The edges were all seats. There was a hallway over to one side that was dark, and blocked off by a rusty iron gate. This was mirrored on the other side. Rainbow dared not think what was through those long empty hallways. The whole thing looked exactly like the roman colleseum, except made of dirt. Dash and Dawn were then both teleported to the seats where the royalty would have sat, Rainbow in the left seat, Dawn in the middle and they found Pinkie on Dawns right. They also discovered they were tied and gagged, unable to speak properly or even move.
Vicious, snarling tigers began to pad out of the gates, saliva dripping from their open jaws. They wern't just angry, they were hungry. They licked their lips as they closed in on the cowering pony, and Dawn began to sob, terrified for her sister, who didn't stand a chance. By now the tigers had cornered Star against the wall, and sensing she had nowhere to run, the unicorn prepared to fight. One of the smaller tigers leaped at Star Shine, who raised her front hooves and brought them crashing down on his snout. He swiped with his paws, catching her on the side, tearing across her flank. Star screamed, and bucked with her hind quarters, knocking the tiger back. But another, larger tiger replaced him, and swiped at her again, catching her eye. Now nearly completley blinded, Star could not defend herself properly. She panicked and tried to buck the tiger, who saw the attack coming and caught the ponies left leg in her jaw, biting hard. Star screamed and fell to the ground, loosing blood fast. She tried to spring up and balance herself, but felt the tiger grasping her front left leg in its jaws.
Rainbow Dash and Dawn Feather both sobbed as they looked in horror at the scene as it unfolded beneath them, silently screaming. When the tiger bit down for the last time, Dawn stiffened. There was a pool of tears on the floor below each of them, and Rainbow put her wing around her friend comfortingly. They sat in silence as the tigers were rounded up by some unicorns and taken back to their cages. Pinkie watched them, smiling triumphantly.
Et erubescent luna et salvabit nos
The sun began to set over the dark compound, the sounds of slaves working in the corn feilds carried by the morning breeze. Every now and then, the sound of a cracking whip, followed by a sharp cry of pain could be heard. Most of the slaves were earth foals, teens or mares as the stallions usually worked in the mines and quarries, however there were still some males working there, under the blistering heat of the sun. The slaves worked hard and dared not complain for fear of punishment, weeding and digging, checking for and picking the ripe corn. They did whatever they were told to, no matter what. None of them looked for means of escape, as the feilds were surrounded by tall gaurds and sentries, mostly well paid unicorns skilled in magic. Besides, the punishments a runaway slave could face were the most severe of all, and a pony was better off not even trying; for the safety of not just themselves, but everyone they knew and loved.
Three figures silently watched them leave from the shadow of a clump of trees. They had all been at the farm since daybreak, scouting the area and gathering as much intel as they could. They had watched the brutal scene unfold in front of them with a certain level of indifference, for they had witnessed scenes much like this one many times before, and even more much worse. They were thankful to the Princess for all she had done for them, and hated to think what their lives would have been like if they were not so fortunate and were happy to work for her. Seeing the ponies they loved abused in such ways was a sad but necessary occupational hazzard, but they were proud of the job they did. They watched the gaurd and colt leave suspiciously, not daring to move.
Rumble inwardly cursed as he trudged through the cornfeilds in the dark, his eyes drooping. Throughout his life as a farm slave he had managed to survive on little sleep, but he was already low on energy due to not eating for that week, not to mention working all day, and his reserves were sinking low. He was all too aware of what happened to ponies that fell asleep on patrol however, and even more aware of the hulking unicorn guards behind him wth bullwhips, knives, lassos and goodness knows what else. Not to mention the swords. His scars were still fresh, some still bleeding and his bruises showed against his skin. He did not want another beating. Every now and then he stumbled and fell, as his left fore hoof was badly sprained, and it was a struggle to walk on it properly. As the moon steadily rose, and as he limped on in silence, Rumble began to wonder how much longer he could take it. He looked at the sentries walking next to him, and opened his mouth to speak, but thought better of it. Suddenly, Rumble saw the shadow of a pony, zip between two boulders, and he stared in shock. Then, to his right, he saw a yellow flash streak by him, but ony for a second. He glanced back, unsure, but at the same time accidentally put his bad hoof on the ground and tripped, crashing to the ground. Rumble lay there for a second, winded, and recoiled as he was kicked by one of the sentries, who glared at him maliciously.
The guards were listening, and so Rumble perked his ears up and listened too. He heard a muffled cry, followed by a threat and another muffled scream.Then Rumble saw the gaurds relax as another whistle could be heard. The gaurds sighed. Rumble heard one mutter:
Just then, Rumble saw the orange flash again, and the corn rustled. This time, the gaurd saw it to and he looked up. Rumble saw the yellow flash dart behind the two unicorn guards and Rumble gasped. The gaurd glared and yelled as loudly as he could.
Rumble was surprised that they knew his name, and was also surprised that, apon glancing around, the three were all mares. One was orange, one was yellow, and the other was the white pony he had seen earlier. He also noticed the slave owner murdered in her bed, blood seeping from the wound in his back. Rumble tried to look at the faces of the ponies, but each was wearing a helmet. The colt looked at the swords, wich looked expensive and intricately made. The white mares was slendre and silver, with a black and gold gilded hilt. The other two were made in the same style, but the orange ponies sword was red black and silver, and the yellows was blue black and silver. Each had a moon on the hilt, and the yellow and orange ponies had to use their mouths to hold them. Rumble was afraid to say anything, but it seemed clear the ponies wouldn't hurt him, so he ventured for a question.
Apple Bloom noticed him staring grinned at the colt, then turned to her companions, putting her helmet back on.
The once slaves were all awake, milling around in confusion, the atmosphere a mix of fear and anticipation as they inspected the huts where the bodies of the sentries and gaurds lay. They watched, uncertainly as the three mares ran towards them, some backing away slowly, pressing their flanks against the mud walls of their homes, protectivley hugging their families close as if willing to protect them. Apple Bloom and her companions skidded to a halt in front of them all, giving little hops and skips of excitement that somewhat ruined their professional demeanour. They hastily explained the station, Sweetie Belles eyes darting around and Scootalooss wings giving little flutters and twitches. Rumble didn't know why the three of them were so agitated, and then noticed that Scoots' wings were now fully grown, and wondered if she could fly now.
A few hours later, the three mares were huddled beneath the shadow of a rock, debating fiercely bit as quietly as the could. It seemed there was a few small problems that needed resolving, but neither of the three could agree on a solution.
Satisfied, the three lay dow their heads to sleep, knowing they would need all the sleep they could possibly get for the days that lay ahead.
Rainbow Dash gasped and awoke with start, looking around the room wildly with a pounding heart. The memory of what had happened was still fresh in her mind , and she looked at the quivering pony beside her. Rainbows wing was still wrapped protectivley around Dawn at night, despite it being nearly a week since everything had happened. The small mare was dreaming, but Rainbow already knew what she was dreaming about. The pain was still rooted in both their minds and it would be a while till they were completely healed from the damage caused. Rainbow looked around the small room in disgust, kicking some of the straw bed. Just one thing she wanted to do was nap on a cloud…well that and finding Scootaloo and the other three.
They tok their chunk of bread and wolfed it down, still chewing as they got to the notice board, where the time and date of the next raid had been put up, and they sighed apon realising they were out in five minutes. Just enough time to get prepared. They did the necassary stretches as fast as they could in complete silence, both knowing how the routine would go. Eat, stretch, leave, attack, return. It was always the same, just new targets.
"There it is…" Rainbow said. They were hiding out in the ghastly gorge, watching a small, beaten-up pony-drawn carriage wobble its way along the cliffside path, rather dangerously close to the edge. It was a rickety old western style thing made of wood, but the carrige itself was made of some sort of metal, with tiny air holes through the sides and a completely sealed of entrance, as if whatever was in there wasn't meant to escape. The small band of pegasi all looked at their rainbow haired leader, who was testing the wind, and trying to discern the best angle of attack.The gorge was good for the element of surprise, but their window of attack was small. Dawn whispered to Rainbow, who nodded, and almost immediately, the white pony took of, straight into the air. Rainbow held her breath as her friend glided silently onto the toof of the vehicle, and began to peer through the holes, lean over the edge and inspect the sides and check what was inside the wagon. She signalled to Rainbow Dash, and shot straight back to the gorge.
"We're looking at two unicorns, three earth ponies and a pegasus." She said to Rainbow once she was back, biting her lip nervously. For a second, they both looked nervous, but soon straightened out. Rainbow Dash nodded to her crew and adreessedthem confidently.
"Are you aware of what is in this carriage?" She growled, and the stallions laid back their ears, shuffling their feet nervously.
Of course, the stallion shook his head and Rainbow Dash began to feel a little annoyed, what was so important in this carriage? Slaves aren't usually expensive, and this stalion wouldn't be ponished too severely…she hoped. The pegasus beneath her began to struggle, and the other one was shaking uncontrollably, occasionally trashing around. Fortunately, the way they were pinned had them at a disadvantage, at least for now. Rainbow Dash looked at Dawn anxiously, who returned her gaze.
The next time she asked, it was a sort of quiet shout. The stallion kept shaking his head, as if to rid himself of the sound as it plauged his eardrums. Each time she sked, Dawn kept on getting louder and louder, untill she was screaming at the top of her lungs. The stallion simply began to sob. Rainbow Dash signalled with her wing, and Dawn rose on her hind legs, shuffling back slightly so she was standing over his leg. Now everything was silent, save for the sounds of the sobbing, from the stallion.
Dawn came crashing down on the stallions leg, splitting the bone clean in two. The stallion screamed as he felt the bone crack, and he burried his nose in the ground. After his sobs finally calmed down, Rainbow Dash asked him the same question again with tears in her eyes. Dawns vision also swam with tears, and she felt them roll down her cheeks as the stallion screamed again. Dawn raised her hoof. It was covered in blood.
"In the pouch, under the wheel axl, you'll find a key." The stallion coughed. Dawn disappeared under the wheel and returned ith a key. She cried out in relief, and flew to the rear of the wagon, unlocking it, and she sighed. All of the slaves were asleep inside, so they should wake up in a few hours.
"Come on" Dash said, as Misty helped the drivers into the back, and she and Cloud Kicker hitched themselved to the front. "Let's get you all home"
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Of course, it toook a while to get back to ponyville on foot, and the group was stopping to give everyone a rest. Blossomforth had been sent forward with the news that they wouldn't be back till daybreak, so they could all rest easy tonight. The slaves that they had tried so hard to get hadn't woken up yet, and so nobody had had a chance to talk to them yet. One of them was a white unicorn with a limp mane which was two shades of electric blue, with a quaver music note for a cutie mark. Another was a mint green unicorn, with a brilliant cyan mane with white streaks through it and a Lyre cutie mark. One was a medium grey earth mare with a dark grey mane and tail and violet treble clef as her cutie mark. The fourth was a beige earth pony, with a navy mane that had a rose pink streak going through it. Her cutie mark looked to resemble wraped sweets. The third earth pony was a male with medium brown coat and dark brown mane, and an hour glass mark on his flank. The sixth was a pegasus, who was light grey pegasus with a light yellow mane and tail, and and her cutie mark was bubbles. They all looked remarkably dirty, and had cuts and scrapes and bruises as if they had been in a fight.
Dawn glanced at them and sighed. They had been asleep so long, Rainbow Dash and Dawn suspeceted they had been drugged, and heavily at that.She was sorry for what they had to do to them, and she knew Rainbow Dash would have a hard time getting over this, but they consoled themselves by saying they'd help the 'new recruits' through it all. They were doubtful, as nopony lasted very long with Pinkie, especially as her mental state was…worsening. There wasn't much room in the metal carriage, so they all agreed Dawn and Rainbow would have to stay in there with them, as the rest, including the drivers, slept under the cool night sky. It was hot and stuffy inside the wagon, as they had locked the door to prevent the new ponies escaping, it was very dark and now only Dawn was awake.
She jumped as she was interrupted from her train of thought as there was movement behind her, and the sounds of yawning could be heard. Dawn Feather nudged Rainbow Dash who sat up, eyes wide in surprise as they adjusted to the dark. Silently as they were able, they pushed themselves into the darkest corner, as far away as they could get. They did't want to scare them, but they had no idea how to approach this situation correctly. For now, all they could do was listen.
"Doctor, are you awake?" Said a high pitched voice, that had a childlike tone to it.
After a brief pause, the Doctor spoke again.
She grinned apolageticley at Octavia who narrowed her eyes.
Vinyl shook her head.
Author's Note
Sorry for the Hiatus. I was ill, then there was computer problems and school just started up. Hope this chapter was worth the wait. Next chapter alredy being worked on.
Campfire sories
Everyone lay down for the long journey, and each began to tell their stories in turn as the wagon moved forwards.
Lyra and Bon bon
Then, the raids came for the mares and stallions, and as I was a former agent, I was deemed dangerous. Lyra was asscociated with me, and she alone knew of my identity, so she was in danger aswell. We fled to Appleloosa, hoping someone there could help us out, but by the time we got there, it was too late. The whole place had been transformed into a ghost town, and all the food was gone. We wandered around southern Equestria for three years, avoiding the patrols as best we could, all of the towns and settlements were completley desolate and deserted. I hoped the ponies there were not victims to the trade, and had simply escaped, but I suppose we all know that isn't true. We drank from the river, and gathered food left behind in the ghost towns. But our luck would not last forever; Lyra fell ill, and we decided to try find help. I met up with some smugglers in Dodge City, who said they would help us across the border to the Crystal Empire, but it turns out you shouldn't trust smugglers. We were turned over for a couple thousand bits and sold to a slave owner who owned a corn plantation in Baltimare. Luckily, I still had my training, and was able to sneak the two of us out and another two pegasi, with a little help from three brave ponies, stealing this wagon along the way. The plan was to smuggle ourselves under the disguise of being slave transport. We picked up these four a while ago, recognising them as we spotted them trying to evade a patrol they were being cornered by. We've been travelling for months. I didn't expect to be ambushed along this road, least of all by Rainbow Dash.
Vinyl and Octavia
I remember our last day at that death prison. We were heaving a dragons hoarde worth of emeralds and rubies to the surface. It had been a long, tiresome day and I was expected to work that night as well. I was starving and had developed a cough from the dust that clouded the passageways. As we neared the fifth level, we felt the ground begin to shake, and there was a deafening rumble. As I looked around, a couple of pebbles fell on my head somewhere below there was a scream.
We freed ourselves as quickly as we were able, and tore along the passageway. As we reached the fourth level, I noticed other ponies were running with us, and I wish I hadn't, as i saw them die. Many were trapped under fallen rocks, their legs twisted. I saw some struggling under boulders that had trapped their entire bodies, and one pony was felled by a rock crashing on her head, her blood spurting onto my coat. As we raced the chaos, tears streamed down my eyes, and I was very nearly hit myself. Tiny, but needle sharp gemstones tore at our coats, causing little jolts of pain that just made me run faster. Everyone ran in blind panic, and if they were not killed by the rocks, then those who fell were trampled on by the herd as they forgot all else to just tear towards escape.
As we reached the first floor, a huge boulder was shaken loose, and many ponies couldn't turn in time and so dashed right into it. We ourselves had barely enough time to turn away, and I cried out in horror as I saw the exit- our only hope of salvation- was blocked by a huge pile of rocks. We skidded to a halt and began to bang desperately against the boulders, deafened by the screams and cries for help of those next to me. I even remember several of us bucking with our back hooves, but we were all to weak to make a dent. Not to long after that, a rock struck my head and I fainted.I woke up in hospital a few days later, and was told the two of us would be transferred to Canterlot as soon as was physically possible. Vinyl, six other ponies and I were the only survivors of the mine collapse, because the eight of us were the only ones on the first three floors that wern't crushed, and Celestia ordered the mine to be abandoned before the survivors below that were reached. She said to "save time and resources", but everyone knows she just didn't care what happened to them. I still think of them to this day…the poor souls. I think of how they must have felt, deep down, knowing they wouldn't be reusced. Left to slowly suffocate or starve until… it's best not to think of it.
On the way to Baltimare, our cart was apprehended, by three young mares, Doctor and Derpy. They looked and sounded to be in their mid teens, lithe and strong, taller than normal. They led us just south of Filly Delphia, where we met Lyra and Bon Bon. The agreement was, the four of us would smuggle ourselves across the border. It's a shame we only got this far.
The Doctor and Derpy
Doc decided that we needed to take some extra procautions, so we decided to go to Cloudsdale. We told others it was to check on some old friends, but we were really getting some more parts to a machine we were building, and someone in cloudsdale had them. Doc never told me who or what we were going to get, or even what the bloody thing was going to do, but I suppose it didn't matter anyway. Doctor had ben working on a Cloud Walking Elixer, and it was finally ready. We cught a taxi up to Cloudsdale and I have to say I was excited. We were waiting outside a spare parts workshop, to buy a couple extra cog wheels that the machine needed when I heard shouting in the distance.
I stared, frozen in place as they descended, picking a random pegasus - some foals- and binding them with rope, and tossing them aside before moving on to the next. A few brave mares and stallions rose up against the army, instinctly defending their loved ones, and the rest of us watched in horror as the guards slew them mercilessly, without any hesitation. It was then that I screamed and ran blindly, unsure of waether it was safer to stay with or away from the crowd. I decided to go for the latter, veering away from the stampede of helpless ponies.
I suddenly felt the wind knocked from my lungs as a large unicorn gaurd landed on me. I stared into his copper eyes that were dull and listless, but his mouth was contorted into a furious snarl of pure hatred. I fought my hardest, but I couldn't get him off of me; he was just too heavy. His horn glowed as rope began to snake it's way up my torso and I screamed, but the gaurd only laughed cruelly.
The two of us ran to the left, thankfully we were near the edge of the city where I stopped dead. I looked around for a way to get my friend down, because I knew a fall from that height would kill him.
He jumped off shreiking 'geronimo' at the top of his lungs. I shreaiked and jumped after him, folding my wings to try reach him faster. Once I had fallen level with him, I grabbed onto both his arms and pulled up with all my might. He was lighter than I anticipated, so we shot up slightly, but I was able to set him down on the ground gently enough. We grinned at eachother, and I giggled, telling him off for scaring me, but he shrugged saying there was no fun in doing things the easy way. We wern't far from Ponyville so we decided to hot foot it back to the lab.
The town was a mess. Litter lined the streets, and many houses were crumbling ruins and Twilights Castle was gone. Worse is what had happened to the lab. It looked like it had been hit by a hurricane. Papers were burned and torn up, machines were smashed and all of the elixers and potions had been stolen or smashed. Broken glass, wood and singed straw lined the floor. We knew then we were in serious trouble. We hid around Ponyville for a little bit, before we were approached by three mystery mares. They told us about a secret movement to smuggle all vunerables and slaves across the border to a safe place. Apparantley, Luna was there and she was recruiting. Celestia was insane, and would bring down Equestria with her in her descent. We agreed, and this was our first mission. It failed quite spectacularly.
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Rainbow Dash and Dawn Feather listened to each story in awe, shedding more than a few tears. They glanced at each other uncomfortably, aware that they were the bad guys here. They sighed as the storys came to a close, and were beginning to grow uncomfortable in the presence of their newest catch.
"What about you?" Octavia asked passively as Vinyl stared intently at them.
Rainbow grew hot, and she closed her eyes, allowing a flashback to wash over her.
The blood on Pinkies face as she ran from Celestia, her mane slowly deflating and her mouth contorted into a grimace of conflicting emotions. The tears in Applejacks eyes as she accepted her fate, for fear of her family. The fustration Twilight showed as she was fed conflicting lies and turned against her friends. The fear for her two friends, one that never returned from the palace, the other running away in blind fear.
Pinkie Pie shaking as she drops the knife, blood running fown her forelegs as she smiled cruelly ad her terrified friend. Rainbow Dash knew that this was it…Pinkie had finally snapped.
A knocking came from the door, snapping Rainbow out of her daydream. The door slid open and Blossomforth stuck her head through the crack.
Pinkie eyed the new arrivals warily, who stared back, their eyes wide with terror. Their reactions had mirrored that of many others before them. Their ecstatic smiles fading, as they took in the blood, the scars, the smile, and worst of all the cold blue eyes, filled with hatred and bloodlust. Those eyes had seen much suffering in their time.
A small part of herself remembered that these six used to be her friends, but that was nothing new. That small part was weak, and believed that it had lots of friends, that everyone had loved her once. But that part was stupid, weak and helpless. It was gullible, it was doing nothing more than lying to itself.
"Celestia lied to us. These ponies aren't bad, we can be good too." It pleaded
Fear
Yes, there was truth in the screams of tortured souls. Nobody could lie about pain or fear if they were made to feel enough of it. Everybody had a breaking point, it was just a matter of finding it.
Celestia had offered her freedom, and in the midst of her inner turmoil, Pinkie took it. Pinkie snapped. Now she could hear the truth dance around her and play it's sweet tune in her ears, enchanting her and washing away the hurt of her past.
"Your friends love you though, they always have." The voice argued.
Pinkie closed herself from that thought, trying to block the memory of the timid animal lovers fate. After a brief moment of silence, the voice piped up again.
Oh, dear sweet Rainbow Dash. The element of loyalty, the one true friend that Pinkie had left, the one that would never, abandon her. The screams from the mare were magnificent if she were pushed in the right direction. Though she was beginning to croak a little lately, and her voice was cracking more than usual.
And poor, young Dawn Feather. An interesting pegasus, but a little annoying. She was proving to be as tough as Rainbow had been to break, and was like a puzzle, but puzzles were fun. Maybe her sisters death would have weakened her spirit enough for it to be snapped. She was very dishonest, but that just meant Pinkie got to play with her more.
A little cough brought Pinkie back to reality, and she realised they were waiting for her to speak.I just need to train the new recruits now. Pinkie thought.
As a rule, she would go for the weakest one in every three. Her eyes fell on the wall-eyed pegasus, and it was obvious who her first target would be. A sweep round of the other five faces told her nothing about them, they all wore the same shocked expressions, and carried themselves in the same proud, confident way. She picked one at random, and called to Rainbow Dash.
"I think It's time to throw our guests a party!" She giggled. The 'guests' all shifted nervously, making Pinkie laugh harder. An idea struck her, and she glanced at Dawn. Maybe it was time to test that pesky pegasus' will once more.
"I want...that one!" She grinned at Derpy, who cowered beneath the party mares gaze.
Two large ponies came into the room, clipping shackles onto each ponies front and hind legs. Just before Dawn was about to be bound, Pinkie called out;
The grey Pegasus sighed in acceptance, and hung her head in acceptance, knowing it would be futile to argue. As her captor walked past, however Dawn flashed her a look of utter hatred and defiance. The meaning was clear.
Dawn was saying, I will not be broken. You can't scare me. I will not conform
Oh, we'll see, Dawn. We'll see.
The campfire flickered, illuminating the three ponies as they sat around the campfire. A million stars dotted the sky, and the moon was almost full, slightly concealed by grey wisps of cloud drifting through the sky. The grass swayed in the cool breeze, carrying the cold scents of the night as well as the sounds of distant crickets and cicadas.
The three ponies on the hillside were curled up together, stargazing in silence. Three slender swords lay discarded next to three elaborate suits if armour, and the silhouettes of a dozen sleeping ponies could be seen at the bottom of the hill.
After a moment, one turned her head to look at her flank, admiring the cutie mark that was there. She chuckled to herself, softly.
"What is it Sweetie Belle?" Scootaloo asked quietly, twitching her ear.
Apple bloom sat up and yawned, her sunset eyes sparkling, her mouth curved into a smile.
There was another brief moment of silence, broken only by the sounds of wildlife and the crackling fire.
"Remember how proud or sisters were?" Scootaloo asked, a small tear sliding down her cheek, and Sweetie turned her face to the ground, kneading the grass.
The other two perked up again, and they went back to watching the stars. Suddenly, they heard a quiet voice behind them.
"You want to know where Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Applejack are? I can get you to them. But you may not like what you find."