Saving Equus

~~

HOPE

~~

Fluttershy galloped haphazardly out of the fighting. When she was sure nobody was looking, she backed into a dead end alley, taking off her hoodie. With the fabric burden released, she opened her wings to the cool air.

I won’t be safe here… I need to hide somewhere where no one will find me.

 She took flight to one of the corrugated roofs above her.

She landed safely on top, and looked for somewhere else to hide. While the roof wasn’t anywhere anypony would look usually, it was quite low down, and someone would spot her soon enough if she didn’t get moving.

The roof wasn’t any easier to navigate than the thin narrow alleys below. Fluttershy found herself catching a hoof almost every step at first, and had to coordinate to stop herself from falling over. When she felt comfortable with her stability on the crooked roof, she looked up to observe her surroundings. She saw the chimneys, and the boxes and barrels that couldn’t be stored anywhere else, essentially making for free storage. There were parts that looked like houses on top of the slums, too, bedrolls laid out with the sky as their ceiling, with desks and cardboard boxes filled with tools.

Fluttershy hid between some of the storage boxes, in a slight made by two pony-size wooden crates that were only just far away from each other for her to sneak in-between. Protected from both sides, and behind by a conveniently placed chimney, she felt a slim hope for safety against the sounds of crystal fire and shouting below.

It was still going, but had quieted down since the first encounter. There was a loud firing sound minutes before, making a very repetitive drone, almost like a drill. After that though, there was very little crystal fire. Most of the sounds became the chatter of voices instead of weapons, sounding like orders. The voice that overtook the rest was blunt and boisterous for a mare. Fluttershy guessed as much that it was from one of the griffons from Central’s Sentries.

I don’t belong here. It gave her a strange hope. There’s… there’s only one place I belong to here.She sat her hindlegs down to bring up the small metallic device strapped across her arm once again. And using this’ll be the only way I can find it.

She turned it on, and it started beeping. The screen on the hoofbrace was usually blue, and it was an off shade of green now. There was a silhouette of a pony on the screen detailed with a question mark, and there was some text down below.

Incoming Magitalk from Username Unidentified.

Respond?

[YES]         [NO]

Fluttershy hastened to find a way to turn it off, the chance of alerting either the Sentries or the operatives in the area terrifying to say the least. Assuming is was touch-sensitive like it had been before, she pressed the “No” button, and the hoofbrace interface returned to its default state. Phew.

She stayed still for a while, snuck between the crates and swiping through her hoofbrace. Sounds of shouting and shooting were fading out, leaving an eerie silence. The problem was, as she thought about it, that there was nopony to help her. She didn’t like the look of the group that Belowitz seemed to know; the Sentries, who were armed to the teeth from what she saw in the firefight. The police force across Equestria Central might not be too kind to her either, especially after her escape. Either side could be waiting around the corner.

Her mind was set. I have to contact the Apples. She poked her hoofbrace, and found the Apple’s contact ID.

*Beeeep…*

*Beeeep…*

“Hello? Fluttershy?”

Fluttershy drew a breath of relief; it was Palsley Apple. “I’m here,” she responded quickly. “Thank Celestia… I’m lost, Palsley. There was a shootout.”

There was static on the other side. “Fluttershy? Could y’get a bit closer, please?”

Fluttershy moved her hoofbrace to her mouth. “Hello?”

“That’s perfect. Now did I hear what I thought I heard, or did you say somethin’ about a shootout?”

“Yes. I was there, and ran away. I’m not hurt, but I don’t know where I am... ”

The stallion cut in. “Hold it, Fluttershy. Is there anythin’ you can see like a landmark? The clock tower, maybe, or one of th’ monoliths?”

“Give me a second.” Fluttershy peeked out over the top of the crates to observe her surroundings. The size of the slums was obnoxiously large in comparison to the skyscrapers around it. “I can’t see a clock tower, no. I... think I can see a monolith, though.” She guessed as much from the buildings size, about the same height of the monolith she arrived in. “It has crescents on it, surrounding a big moon in the middle.”

As Fluttershy looked at it more, it reminded her of Luna, the princess she’d last seen about two hundred years in the past. Both the two reigning princesses left at the same time, from what she had heard from Twilight years ago.

The hoofbrace spoke back to her. “Right, I know which one you’re talkin’ about. Uhh..” the hoofbrace stopped talking, and Fluttershy could hear some background noise.

She started worrying. “Palsley? Hello?”

“Hi Fluttershy. Sorry, I was lookin’ for a map. I remember th’ place, but I could get you some directions… give me a minute.”

“Can’t I just start making my way towards it?” No response, aside from what sounded like a few taps on the stallion’s own hoofbrace.I wish he would just respond. What is he doing?

Fluttershy was impatiently waiting and looking around the dark scrap-paper ridden alley. She guessed a conductor must have lived nearby, since her impatience led to learning that a few of the papers were ripped-up music sheets.

She found the silence curtailed by a sudden-starting discussion, though, and turned around to face it. It wasn’t on the hoofbrace, but below her, with the sound of the shuffling of hooves as it came closer. Terror struck her, and Fluttershy ducked back between the crates.

The first voice was male, and sounded familiar. “The beacon’s coming from around here... It’s coming from that piece of crap.”

“Call it a house, that’s what it is.” It sounded like one of the mare griffons was back. “Any idea what it’s contacting?”

“Looks like a standard edition, most likely bought in Central… and it’s calling someone in the residential area a good few blocks away. Maybe two, three miles off.”

Fluttershy froze. Are they talking about me? She glanced at her hoofbrace, only seeing the group photo of the Apples that Palsley used, and along with it, a string of random numbers. Should I turn it off? I need to hear what Palsley has to say...

She heard a crash underneath her, and vibrations shook through the corrugated iron she was sitting on. Quickly, she clicked ‘end call’ on the hoofbrace, and turned it off.

The voices were coming from directly under her now. “No windows, one exit. Where’s that beacon?”

“Off.”

They were so close, she heard the griffon huff impatiently. “Typical.”

There was a long period where Fluttershy sat still, trying not to stir, while the group below was clattering and moving furniture. What if she moved, and they heard her? One of them was a griffon, that much she knew, and could catch her in flight.

An idea came to her mind.Twilight used to use magic to mute herself. If I could only remember how to do that… maybe I could get out of here. She had never asked the alicorn herself, nor attended the lessons of any wizard, but there had to be an instance, just once, where Twilight told her or did it in front of her. Come on Fluttershy, think...

As Fluttershy racked her brain for an answer, someone below her talked again.

“Found it?”

“You think I would’ve found it, and not told you a thing? You know as much as I do that this place is empty.”

“This receptor ain’t shit. The beacon was here, I know it. What i—”

The voice cut off suddenly, as if the stallion caught off-guard. The act distracted Fluttershy for a second. Maybe they’ve found the operatives again?

She heard something else a little while later; the sound of a paw touching the roof she was hiding on.

Fluttershy crouched down. Paws and claws fell onto the roof she was standing on ever so louder, the vibrations coursing through her own hooves.I’m in a cage, where if I move I get caught.

Time slowed and the silence became ever more prevalent until the griffon spoke out: “You sure about that beacon?”

That’s definitely Ruska, Fluttershy thought. She waited a little while longer, and then she saw her. She saw the griffon… but the griffon didn’t notice her. Ruska was talking into her hoofbrace wrapped around her arm, and was facing the other way. Huh, that’s weird… there are burn marks on her clothes.

Ruska spoke back to her hoofbrace. “Hey, hey! I don’t give an alicorn’s tush about fucking pride. Your equipment works fine… long as I don’t break it. Remember that... Yeah, they must be. Must have been an Op, too.”

Ruska walked right past her, facing her arm as she talked. Fluttershy breathed out, finally.

She was still facing out the hole between the crates.If she’s distracted, I might be able to escape. Or stop her.

The Apples were right about these being vicious ponies to work with. Assaulting policemares, starting firefights... and now some pony who she assumed was a leader, at least from how they treated her, had turned her back. Fluttershy had an opportunity to fight back.Maybe the authorities will realise I’m on their side… if I knocked her out with a bit of telekinesis?

The thought sickened her as soon as it came out. One of the, perhaps the last of the Elements of Harmony driven to violence to save herself. That’s not the way I would have acted two hundred years ago. I would have come out, been honest, and love them even if they didn’t love me.

Years of isolation had changed her too much, and she couldn’t take it any longer. She took a deep breath, stood up, and walked out of the space between the two boxes. The griffon was still talking on her hoofbrace.

“Yeah.. yes, yes, okay. Good to know. So this what I’m going to do. I will find whoever made the beacon. You will…” her voice cut off as Fluttershy started walking, rattling the roof with her hooves. The griffon turned her head. She jumped, startled when she saw her. With a few clicks of her talons on the hoofbrace, Ruska swerved it around, revealing a crystal-gun, like the ones in the firefight. The gun glowed turquoise, and Fluttershy let out a scream.

“Eeeek!”

Without as much a second thought, Fluttershy lit her horn, before releasing a burst of power. Waves of force flew cut through the air with the sound of a drum being torn through, and Ruska was thrown back, her paws stumbling. She crashed down on the iron corrugate, and slid flat across the roof.

“Gah, fuck!” Ruska seemed to have her strength sapped away by the magic. “Falstof’s tail-feathers… she’s here.” She tried to shout, but her calls were stunted, the air knocked out of her to speak.

Fluttershy failed to respond. She blinked, startled by what she’d done. This was the second time she had used her magic, and felt so strong… And it’s not me on the floor with a crystal stuck out of me, she thought, turning. She jumped off the building, gliding away.

The new hiding place was still in the slum-area of the city, or what she thought was the slums, from the state of the rusty walls around her. She’d opted for an alleyway on the ground this time. The least obvious place for a pegasus… well, alicorn, to hide. She only wanted to stay for one quick reason, anyway.

Fluttershy hid behind a short, splintered wall of concrete, and opened her hoofbrace. Her plan was to call back to the Apples. I don’t need their help anymore, I think I could find the way to the moon-monolith easy enough and, honestly, the way after that I could work out myself. But I need to tell Palsley I’m okay after that hang-up.

What if Palsley didn’t even realise? He’d been away from the call for a long time. She shuddered.What if something happened on their end?

Before she could call him up, though, the hoofbrace flashed green with the beeping sound again. Same unidentified caller. This wasn’t coincidence, or a wrong call. Somepony had got her contact.

Was it really an unidentified caller, or was it one of the Apples? I haven’t shown this thing to anypony else. The only ponies I know who have touched this thing was Palsley when he gave it to me. With her now being hidden away in the alley, giving her relative comfort, she felt the best idea would be to answer it. If it is somepony else, they won’t be able to find me.

*Beeeep...*

*Beeeep...*

“—el—” the hoofbrace filled with static, and Fluttershy recoiled from her hoof. After a few seconds, though, a voice could be clearly heard. “ ‘ello?” It didn’t sound like anyone she’d heard.

Examining the interface of the hoofbrace, Fluttershy found the end call button. She stopped short of pressing it when the caller spoke again, though. “Fluttershy? Can-y—ear—me?”

More static followed afterwards. Fluttershy looked curiously at the device. “I’m here,” she whispered nervously. “What’s that sound?”

“—gimme me a sec.” There was a pause, where the caller made a couples “tcks”, and the static ceased afterwards. “This is better, right?”

It was, but Fluttershy didn’t think of saying so. She was still tensed by the caller, whoever they were. The only thing she could discern was that the caller was a mare, and her accent wasn’t something she’d heard before. “Who are you?”

“I’m the mare who’ll get you out of there. Call me Flowers.”

Fluttershy hesitated. “Flowers?” The name was familiar to her.

“Yeah. You thin’ my name is strange or something?”

Fluttershy breathed a sigh. “No, I, I didn’t mean to offend... “

The caller chuckled. “I wooden close a call with you ‘cuz you offended me, Princess.”

Fluttershy felt this was getting off topic.  “What do you mean, get me out of there? Can you see me?” She looked around instinctively. There was nothing around on the ground… but looking up, there was a big, mysterious sky above her, clouded and darker than she remembered.

 “Ahh…. kinda. There was a shootout, yeah? Lots of fire exchanged both sides. I thin’ we saw a sandgun, too... If you’re injured, don’ worry. We’re comin’.”

Fluttershy had no idea what was going on. “What? Sandgun?”

“We jus’ tneed a landing spot. So we can get you outta there. Do you have a flare addon?”

“Excuse me?” she responded, flustered. Landing spot?

“...Now you do.”

Not getting an answer to her confusion, the hoofbrace started beeping again. Fluttershy raised her hoof to look at the lower part of the interface, and saw a flashing icon that looked like an envelope, with a ‘1’ symbol attached.

The caller continued. “D’you know how to use flares? No, I bet. I’ll guide you through...”

RANGE: [5000][M]

DIRECTION: [UP]

MUTE: [FALSE]

COLOUR: [14]

SECONDARY COLOUR: [13]

[NOTE: FLARE DOES NOT PASS THROUGH SOLID OBJECTS. RELOCATE IF NEEDED FOR ESCAPE PURPOSE.]

[WARNING: COLORS CAN DAMAGE EYES/BLIND IF DIRECTLY OBSERVED. DON’T HURT YOURSELF, NOW. PLAY SAFE!]

“And that’s everything?” Fluttershy had been led by the instructions of this caller for the last few minutes, and she was getting impatiently concerned about whatever was going to happen. “And you’re going to… land here? That’s what you’re doing? That sounds mad.”

The voice on the other side chuckled. “Yeah, that’s everythin’. Press save settings on the bottom right, an’ press okay.”

“Uh… okay, then…”

Fluttershy was back on a roof, a different one this time, and pressed the flare button. Almost instantly, the device colour turned a blinding white. Fluttershy squinted, turning the hoofbrace away from her face as she was told, and waited for the magic to happen.

Which didn’t take long. Weird curved, holographic forms pranced about on the hoofbrace surface. They were bright white too, and in a second, the merged together in the center of the screen. Compressing into a ball of light.

Now it was Fluttershy’s turn to look away. She was looking at the corrugate roof she stood on, illuminated by the white light. A high pitch screech, something from a firecracker came from the device. The roof reflected a different light now.

Fluttershy shot a glance back at the hoofbrace.It’s back to normal. She looked up. Oh no.  She gazed up at the two lights, one a vibrant pink, the other yellow, as it flew higher and higher up into the sky. She darted her hoofbrace back to her face. “Why is it pink and yellow? I’d say that’s a pretty easy couple of colours to recognise!”

Nothing came back from the device. A deep feeling of dread crept over her. “Hello? Can you hear me!? That thing is...” The thought came back to Fluttershy that there might still be ponies or griffons from Central’s Sentries lurking about, and zipped her mouth. That caller could have been one of those killers. I’m getting a pretty convincing suspicion I should leave…

The sky in Equestria Central was usually unnaturally busy, hovering cars flying by and the occasional bigger, hulking mass of metal, like the one which drove her to the monolith. Hardly coloured but shining in the sunlight, they looked like big metal clouds.

But there was one in the sky at present that didn’t look anything near that. It was flamboyantly coloured, caressed in its curves, almost cartoonish in shape. If there was any one of the ships that were flying out that day, this was the one which looked most like something from the old, vibrant and joyful Equestria, and it was making its way straight towards her, slowing down as it got closer to the ground.

She stepped backwards. I have to fly out of here! Sure, they can see me, but I might be able to hide away again. I might be able to—

Her hoofbrace was beeping. I never turned it off?

In freak desperation she answered the call. Static burst through from device, which Fluttershy could barely hear over the sound of an airship gearing to land. “—Here—or lift, princess.”

“Who are you?” she repeated, shouting at the hoofbrace. Her hair was flying frantically into her eyes, and she looked away from her device. The brightly coloured airship looked like it was landing, and she didn’t want to be anywhere near it. She turned to fly away again, like she did with Ruska… to see a group led by a flying Ruska. The rest were ponies, and galloping towards her position.

She didn’t have long to pick out who the ponies were when she saw that Ruska was not the only one flying. There were two more griffons with her, and they both had braces that chillingly reminded her Ruska’s. Oh no. They were shouting something, but she couldn’t hear it over the now furiously loud wind from the airship.

Fluttershy was beginning to lose vision from her hair. She swept it over, hearing the static as her hoof neared her face. There was another voice over the device, one that didn’t seem to be talking to someone else. “—Clear. Open the door.” More static overtook the voice afterwards.

The griffons landed on the side opposite to the ship, one in the middle, two on the side. They recoiled from the jump onto the roof, and one by one regained posture. They looked ready to pounce at her, their crystal-throwing devices in clear sight. Fluttershy looked at them in disgust and tensed her hooves, crouching slightly. She could hear mechanics whirring from behind her. That must be the door.

“This doesn’t have to end this way, alicorn!” Ruska shouted, pointing her claw to the thing behind Fluttershy, not moving from her spot. “This ship is bad fortune for any pony that grazes its halls. You will not be an exception.”

Fluttershy scowled at them. Ruska was making a threat, and the weapons the griffons had looked deathly easy to draw on her. “Are you going to shoot me?” she shouted back.

“Perhaps,” Ruska exclaimed. “You cannot leave here. Belowitz has convinced me. He says, you are of more importance to any of us here, and you cannot be in the wrong hooves. And now I see your true form, wings and all, and your power!... No. You will stay.”

While Ruska talked, Fluttershy’s attention diverted to the ponies she saw earlier, who were climbing up a ladder that led out from the house below. She felt a weird chill when she saw Belowitz.

He was the second up after a pony she didn’t recognise, and he didn’t look in the least bit contented by the situation. “ ‘In Tartarus did I just hear?” he said, his front hooves heaving himself up on the rooftop. “Ruska, stand down! You can’t aim a gun at the princess!”

“Why?” Ruska asked.

Belowitz had gotten up, and was now pacing towards Ruska. He pushed past the first pony that had got up, as well as a couple griffons, too. “Because she’s the element of kindness, that’s why!” His face was turning red. “And this is the worst entrance of a princess to save the whole world that I think I’ll ever see, hell,has ever been! Just look at her!” Belowitz shoved a hoof in her direction, turning his head afterwards. He looked into her eyes, but then he turned his sight up, above where she was standing.

Belowitz and the rest of them had stopped, it seemed, and it gave her time to think. ...He’s trying to save me.

...And he brought me here in the first place, saying he… wanted me to save the world. He sounded sincere, just like he does now... but I don't trust him. He's two sided. One owned an airship, and a monolith they took me to in the middle of the city, the other sticks with a gang, comprised of vandals and killers.

Do I want to join these ponies on their quest to do.. something, or what else will I do? Go back to the Apples? My farm? I’d like to go back there. That thought stuck thick on her mind. Yeah, why can’t I go back to my farm?

The world was crazy enough as it was. She’d tried helping these ponies out, and none of them seemed trustworthy. The most polite, and kind thing she could do was to leave.

Finally, she looked up at them. They looked a bit strange, their angry faces before turning to a sort of… horror?

She flared her horn in defence, if the griffons suddenly tried to pull something on her. “I’m sorry. I don’t think I’ll be joining you today.”

There was a short silence, where the the griffons and Belowitz regained their composure. “Yes,” Ruska said. “I think that would be best.”

Belowitz turned to the griffon. “I... No, you can’t.”

“Sentries, take off your weapons, and put them on floor. Now.” They did so.

Fluttershy was utterly relieved by the development, but stayed on alert, just in case. If I flew away, they could still catch me. Griffons have sharp claws. Fluttershy nodded at Ruska, and toned her horn down. “Maybe you're not as violent as I thought. Thank you for that.”

“Damn right they’re not.” The voice made Fluttershy jump, as it came from straight behind her. She turned her head to see the door to the ship fully open, displaying the similarly brightly coloured interior around a wide space inside the airship. Where the visitors and cargo come in from.

The way of entrance into the ship had maybe ten or twenty ponies standing in, or out of it on the corrugate roof. They didn’t have armour, or any sort of uniform like Central’s Sentries, or Equestria Central’s policeforce; they wore clothes that were colourful like their coats, and they all had their own colour of crystal-shooting gun, similar to the vastly outnumbered griffons. In fact, the only thing about them that could be called uniform was that they all had their gun-hoof up, outstretched towards the griffons.

“Yeah,” said the mare who’d made Fluttershy jump, a purple furred mare with a rather smug look on her face, “we call this the point and wave, ‘coz if they try anythin’, we’ll send out a wave on ‘em. Ha!”

Fluttershy didn’t really know what to say.

“These your friends from the firefight?” She pointed her head towards the griffons. “They ain’t a problem anymore. Name’s Flowers. Welcome to the Cirque D’Sang.”