Equestria Liberation Front

Sweetie Belle’s Indifference charm hid the three Crusaders as they crouched just inside the treeline of the Everfree, examining the wall that surrounded Ponyville. At just over twice the height of Apple Bloom, simply leaping over it was not an option.

“Short of blowing a hole in the side, which would draw too much attention, Ah can’t see a way in.” Apple Bloom concluded.

“What if I flew over the wall and opened the gate from the inside?”

“Is the gate guarded?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s why.” A strained grunt emanated from the unicorn crouched between them. “How ya holdin’ up, Sweets?”

“I’m...I’m alright.”

“Ya sure? The minute your magic falters, let us know so we can pull back.”

“Sure thing.”

“I can take out a couple guards.” Scootaloo asserted defensively.

“Ah don’t doubt that. Can ya do it before they raise an alarm?”

Scootaloo’s ears folded back. “Yeah?”

“That a question or a statement?”

The pegasus hesitated. “Statement?”

“Ah thought so. Ah ain’t sendin’ ya in there alone. No, we’ll have to figure out somethin’ better.” Apple Bloom glanced at Sweetie Belle and noticed the sweat beading on her brow. “Ah think we’ve seen all we can see. Let’s head back to the base and figure out what to do next.”

Apple Bloom heard Sweetie Belle let out a sigh of relief and dropped her charm as the trio retreated into the dense undergrowth. They moved in silence, still too close to the town to risk being heard. Scootaloo took to the canopy, leaping and gliding ahead of the group and making sure the path ahead was clear.

“Ya been practicin’ yer magic?”

Sweetie Belle shrugged. “Yeah. I put in an hour or so every day but it’s really difficult to make any progress without actual instruction. I’m pretty much at the same place I was a year ago. The best I’ve managed with anything new is I kinda levitated a piece of paper. Though, I’m not entirely sure if that was me or an air current.” She let out a sigh. “I just wish I was stronger.”

“Yer gettin’ stronger.”

“I suppose but I’m not strong enough to be an asset on the battlefield. I’m a better duelist than anything else but that doesn’t count for much in the situation we’re in, does it?”

“No. No, it sure doesn’t.”

“And my magic is still so weak. I can’t teleport. I do a halfway-decent healing spell. About the only thing I can do well is that Indifference charm and even that’s limited.” Her ears folded back. “I can understand why you and Scoots leave me behind all the time.”

“Now, hold on. Don’t go thinkin’ that yer useless because yer not that great of a fighter. Yer smarter and more organized than either of us. We need somepony to keep track of everythin’ we have.”

“Oh, great. So that’s what I can do best: counting.”

Apple Bloom slapped her forehead and grimaced. “That ain’t what Ah meant and you know it.”

“Then what did you mean, Apple Bloom? That I’m useless on the battlefield so you give me busy-work to keep me quiet? That you don’t know what else to do with me?”

“That’s enough! Ah got enough on mah plate keepin’ us safe and organizin’ a resistance. Ah don’t need yer bellyachin’ on top of it all. Not every pony’s meant for the front lines. Some ponies need to sit in the back and count the beans to make sure that the army can fight again tomorrow, next week, next year. Yeah, it ain’t as glorious but look at it this way: Of the three of us, yer the one most likely to see the end of all of this. Me an’ Scoots, we’re probably gonna die.”

Scootaloo dropped from the trees above, landing with a heavy thump. “There’s a trade wagon stopped ahead. Looks like they got stuck in the mud. We should go check it out.”

“Yeah, we’ll be right there.” Apple Bloom turned back to Sweetie Belle. “Ya’ll got the best chance to survive this. Ya’ll get to live on and die in a warm bed with yer babies and granbabies all watchin’ over ya. Be grateful for that.”

Apple Bloom took off, hurrying to catch up with Scootaloo. As they crested a rise, she spotted a road carved through the hill. The heavily-traveled route was rutted and full of holes, one of which had caught a wagon. The wagon was overloaded with ore and the exhausted slave pulling it was straining to free the wheels, even as her master bellowed and beat her.

“He’ll beat her to death before she pulls that thing free.” Apple Bloom commented as the driver gave another unrestrained lash of the whip to the silver-coated mare.

“We need to help her.”

Apple Bloom’s sharp eyes scanned the road for any sign of Gryphonian soldiers before nodding to Scootaloo. “Do it.”

In the blink of an eye, the pegasus had her bow in hand and an arrow nocked. She inhaled as she drew the bow back to her cheek and, on the exhale, let the arrow fly.

Apple Bloom tracked the arrow as it flew through the air, easily piercing the master’s thin tunic and finding a home in his chest. The Gryphon let out a startled squawk as he tumbled off of the wagon and to the dirt.

Apple Bloom leaped from the rise, sliding down the dirt embankment to the road. Her patchwork armor rattled loosely as she sprinted to the wagon, vaulting over the load of ores, and landing on the Gryphon. The bird-brain gasped as it struggled to escape her. Without a word, Apple Bloom drew her sword. Contempt in her eyes, she swiftly and smoothly relieved the Gryphonian Slavemaster of his head.

“Bloom, we could use some help over here.”

Leaving the corpse, she went to the front of the wagon, where Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were knelt over the collapsed slave. Sweetie Belle was doing her best with her limited magic to heal the slave’s grievous injuries. The lacerations from the whip bled profusely but the blood was congealing rapidly under the influence of Sweetie Belle’s healing spell. The Unicorn sweated and grimaced under the strain of maintaining the spell. After several tense minutes, the bleeding halted in the still-gaping wounds.

“Alright, Sweets. That’ll do.”

“W-wait. I...I think...I can...seal th...seal them.” Sweetie Belle panted, the aura of magic fading and flickering around her horn and her hands.

“Nah. Ah don’t want ya overdoin’ it again. She’s outta immediate danger.”

Sweetie Belle sat back on her haunches and massaged her pounding head. “What now? We can’t leave her here.”

“Nah. Yer right about that. Can’t leave her here and Ah dunno if she’s fit to bring into the base.”

“She’s unconscious. If we don’t let her wander about too much when she wakes up, she won’t know where she’s at.”

Apple Bloom shrugged. “Ain’t like we got a lot of other options, eh?” Sheathing her sword, she crouched down and scooped the slave into her arms.

Scootaloo squinted at the filly’s flank. “What the…” Lifting away the tattered tunic, she got a better look. “Hey, Bloom. Check this out.”

Apple Bloom shifted the mare in her arms to get a look at the mark: an elaborately-decorated spoon. “Silver Spoon.”

“I didn’t recognize her without her glasses and braids.” Sweetie Belle commented.

“She’s been through the mill.” Agreed Scootaloo.

“She’s spent much of her life as a slave. Ah think it’s a miracle she’s still alive.” She turned and started down the road, where the embankments were shorter and easier to climb. “C’mon. Let’s head back to the ruins and take care of this. Ya’ll bring that wagon if ya can.”

“What do we do about the driver?”

Apple Bloom turned and leveled a contemptuous glare at the headless corpse. “Check the body for anythin’ useful then leave ‘im for the scavengers. They’ll make short work of him.”

With a few loping steps, Apple Bloom’s long, powerful legs carried her and Silver Spoon up the embankment and back into the forest. She moved as quickly as she dared, mindful not to aggravate the other mare’s injuries. The sun was beginning to dip below the horizon and the forest was growing darker. In the fading light, Apple Bloom had to rely more on sound and touch to find her way but, before long, the ruins came into sight, dark remains silhouetted against the dusk sky.

With ease born of practice, she leaped through the broken window and quickened her pace to find the opening to the base. She was careful on the steps into the base, moving gently once on the stone floor. Gently laying Silver Spoon on a sleeping mat, Apple Bloom rolled her onto her stomach and pulled the tattered tunic away, leaving the mare naked from the waist up and her wounds open to the air.

“Ain’t the best but it’ll do until Sweetie Belle’s ready for ya.” She said.

The unconscious mare let out a soft groan as she shifted slightly, her brow furrowed in pain.

“Sit tight, now. Ah won’t be a minute.”

Returning to the surface, she trotted back out to the road, meeting her struggling comrades halfway and taking up the wagon pull while the other two pushed. Their combined efforts made the pace quicker.

“What do you want the wagon for, Bloom?” Scootaloo asked. “Interested in the ores?”

“Nah. Mah forge doesn’t get hot enough for smelting ore but Ah think Silver Spoon and this here wagon are gonna be what gets us into Ponyville.”

“I see the gears turning in your mind, Bloom. What are you thinking?”

“Ah’ll tell ya’ll later, after Ah’ve had a chance to think about this a little more and talk with Silver Spoon. Meantime, we need to stash the wagon. We’ll take it across the gorge and push it back into one of the caves where patrols can’t spot it. Afterwards, you, me, and Sweets will look after our new friend. Didja get anythin’ good off of the driver?”

“Found some papers and supplies. Enough to keep us for another week. Something that looks like a manifest schedule too.”

Apple Bloom nodded. “Alright. We’ll see if Silver can shed some light on what that might be. If the wagon and Silver are our way in, that might be our way out again.”

“How many slaves are we bringing out?”

“Only one or two at first. Ah want to have words with Diamond Tiara and see if she can organize some kind of uprising.” Apple Bloom cocked her head as a plan began to shape in her mind. “Matter of fact, maybe we can let the slaves to the bulk of the work. Ain’t many we can sneak out before some bird-brain takes notice. Whatever we end up doin’, it’s gonna have to be quick. Maybe the ones we sneak out could go in with us during the uprising and take out specific targets.”

The three mares pushed the wagon into its hiding place and continued on to the base, moving up through the caverns and passages.

“Where’d you stash Silver?” Scootaloo asked.

“She’s in the dorm, resting. As soon as we get there and yer feelin’ up to it, Sweets, Ah want ya to finish the work on her wounds. Not direct healing but suture ‘em up really nice and tidy.”

“I’ll take care of that right away. Our base isn’t exactly the most sanitary place in the world. The longer they stay open to the air, the more likely the wounds themselves get dirty and infection sets in. I want to clean them really well before we do anything else. When we get back, Bloom, I’m going to need you to put a pot of water on to boil and I’m going to give you a few things to put in that water.”

Apple Bloom nodded. “Alright. How long do Ah need to boil these things for?”

“About an hour. Long enough for me to give her wounds a good cleaning.”

Ducking into her smithy, Apple Bloom lit her furnace. “Go and get yer stuff, Sweets. This stuff’ll take a minute to get rollin’. Scoots, grab Silver and bring her in here, if ya would. Be gentle now.”

With the other two gone, Apple Bloom scrounged up every lantern, lamp, candle, and torch she could find in an effort to make her smithy as well-lit as possible. She fetched a pot, filled it with water from the nearby well, and set it over the flames in her forge. She set the lights around the table, taking the burlap that had been covering her Thunderstaff and tossing it over a long table.

“Look who’s up.”

Apple Bloom turned to see Scootaloo helping a bleary-eyed Silver Spoon into the smithy. “Just in time.” She crossed to them, gently lifted Silver Spoon into her arms, and carried her to the table.

“Apple Bloom?” Silver Spoon murmured.

“Yeah, that’s me. It’s been awhile, Silver.”

“Where are we?”

“Someplace safe. Yer safe here.” She set Silver Spoon on the table. “Need ya to roll over onto yer belly, please.”

The mare complied, moving gingerly as Apple Bloom carefully pulled Silver Spoon’s long mane away from her back, letting it hang from her neck. “How’ve ya been, SIlver?”

“Well, I’ve been a slave for I don’t know how long. I’ve spent each day wondering if my family was still alive and where they might be and hoping I’d die and watching fillyhood friends be killed or worked to death but, aside from that, not bad. Are you still a Blank Flank?”

“Lookin’ for another reason to pick on me?”

Silver Spoon shrugged. “Just curious.”

Obligingly, Apple Bloom stepped back and lowered her pants enough to display her cutie mark: a hammer and sword crossed over an apple-shaped shield.

Silver Spoon frowned contemplatively before nodding. “Not bad. What about you, Scootaloo?”

“Check it.” Scootaloo unbuckled her belt and dropped her pants, proudly showing off her drawn-bow-holding-a-spyglass cutie mark.

“I realize you’re excited to see her, Scootaloo, but do you think you could hold off on the sex until she’s healed?” Sweetie Belle asked, wearing a massive grin and carrying her sewing kit. “Hey, Silver. Nice to see you.”

“Ditto. I hadn’t heard about any escapes lately. When did you guys manage to get free?”

“'Get free'?” Scootaloo echoed. “We were never caught. Hid out on Apple Bloom’s farm for the first few days after the invasion. Moved out here shortly after.”

“I see. Wait…” Silver Spoon’s ears stood at erect attention as she looked about with startled curiosity. “If you’re free. That means I’m…”

Apple Bloom nodded. “That’s right, filly. Yer free too.”

A slow smile spread across her face as Silver Spoon let out a sigh of relief. “Wow. I honestly didn’t think this day would come. What about Master Ernst?”

“Ernst?”

“My owner. I don’t think he just gave me up just because.”

“Ain’t like he had much choice in the matter.” Apple Bloom pulled up a chair and sat down. “Scoots and Ah killed him. She took him down with an arrow and Ah finished him off with this.” She drew her sword and displayed it proudly.

“Good.” Silver Spoon’s smile vanished. “He was a mean bastard. Took every excuse and opportunity to put that whip of his across my back. Hope you two made him suffer. Bastard deserved worse for what he did.”

“Don’t they all?” Scootaloo asked.

Silver Spoon shook her head. “I’ve heard some owners are really nice to their slaves and treat them fairly. I guess mine was just the luck of the draw. Seriously, I don’t know how to thank you for rescuing me.”

“Ah can think of a way.”

Silver Spoon looked up. “How?”

Apple Bloom leaned close and whispered conspiratorially. “We’re puttin’ together an army to take back Equestria, startin’ with Ponyville. We’re gonna need yer help.”

“I...I’m not a fighter and I’m not exactly in the best shape to do much of anything.”

Sweetie Belle climbed up onto the table, straddling Silver Spoon and picking up a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a clean cloth. "I'm going to clean your wounds, Silver. It's going to burn a bit but I'll be done as quickly as I can. Okay?"

Silver Spoon nodded. "Yeah. Thanks."

“Ya won’t be doin’ any fightin’." Apple Bloom continued. "Not yet, at least, and we ain’t leavin’ tomorrow. Soon as yer healed, the three of us are gonna hop in the back of that wagon of yers and yer gonna pull us right through the front gates of Ponyville. We’re gonna run around the city fer a few hours while ya put together yer next load, then we’re gonna load up and head back out again.”

“So, all I do is pull a wagon around? What if they ask about Ernst?”

Apple Bloom shrugged. “Tell them he was snatched by a Manticore or somethin’. The Gryphons don’t come into the Everfree. That’s how we’ve managed to stay unnoticed for this long.”

So, while I’m making this delivery and loading for the next, you three are going to…”

“We’re gonna see about freein’ a couple more slaves and have words with an old friend of yours: Diamond Tiara.”

“Tiara’s still alive?”

“Eeyup. Workin’ the farm over at Sweet Apple Acres. We’re gonna see about organizin’ some kind of revolt to free Ponyville in one shot. Once we three finish what we’re gonna do, we load back up into yer wagon and come back here.”

“What if they don’t let me take the next load? It’s a possibility because I’m still a slave but without a master. This could end really badly.”

“If it looks like everythin’ could head south, high-tail it back into the Everfree and try to stay hidden. We’ll find another way out.” Apple Bloom assured her.

Silver Spoon bit her lip and looked hesitant.

“C’mon, Silver. We need you on this.” Scootaloo begged.

“Let me think for a minute. Y’know, I’m not exactly eager to head back into the hornet’s nest without any sort of protection. Ernst may have been a cruel bastard but the other Gryphons left me alone when he was around.”

“If we pull this off, Silver. You won’t have to worry about Ernst or any other bird-brain for as long as ya live.” Apple Bloom urged. “Think about it. Ya’ll get to live your life as ya see fit. Get married. Raise a family. Whatever ya want to do.”

“And if we fail?”

Apple Bloom shrugged. “Then ya’ll get yer wish. They can only kill ya once.”

“They can torture us for a long time before they kill us, you realize that?”

“Better to die fightin’ than to live a slave.” Apple Bloom responded.

Silver Spoon contemplated this for a moment before nodding. “Alright. I’m in.”

Apple Bloom nodded. “‘Atta, girl.”

Scootaloo extended a hand. “Welcome to the club.”

Shaking the offered hand, Silver Spoon looked about. “So, what do you call yourselves? Still the Cutie Mark Something-or-others?”

“What about ‘Crusaders’?” Scootaloo offered.

Apple Bloom shook her head. “Nah. We need somethin’ that all ponies can get behind. A name that makes our intentions clear.”

“Ponyville Freedom Fighters?”

“Liberators?”

“Gorehounds?”

Apple Bloom snapped her fingers. “Ah’ve got it. We’ll be the ‘Equestria Liberation Front’.”

Scootaloo nodded. “Yeah. I like that. Has a nice ring to it.”

Sweetie Belle pulled the pot of boiling water off of the fire. “I’m ready over here.”

Looking about, Silver Spoon asked, “Ready for what?”

“Yer wounds are pretty bad. We’re gonna close ‘em up for ya but it’s gonna hurt. Ya want somethin’ to bite down on?”

Silver Spoon shook her head as Sweetie Belle straddled her and threaded the needle. “I’ve felt worse.”

“Scoots, help me with the light. Bloom, keep her distracted.” Sweetie Belle leaned down and squeezed the first gash shut. “I’ll try and be as quick as I can. Be patient with me and stay as still as possible. The more you move, the longer this is going to take.”

“Take mah hand, Silver. The more it hurts, the harder ya squeeze. Don’t hold back now.”