A Division of Three Sides - A Documentation of the Canterlot Turf War

“Do you ever worry we could lose it all?”

“What do you mean?”

“We have it all… and you know what they say, good things don’t last forever. So by that account…”

“Luna. Please. We are fine. We will be fine.”

“You’re right, Tia, you’re right. Ignore me.”

Luna poured another shot of whiskey, which she gulped in one go. Her older sister, Celestia, sat opposite her in their meeting room, drinking a glass of lemonade. Whilst she was not one to drink, she never judged Luna for her own habits, even if they were to go out of control. An ashtray separated them, filled with the butts of half a packet of cigarettes, the other half sat in the packet, yet to be smoked. Celestia pulled one out and lit it. She coughed a little, but carried on as if nothing had happened.

“What makes you say that?” Celestia asked with concern.

“Say what?” Luna played dumb, even though she clearly knew.

“Don’t be like this. Are you worried?”

“I always worry. You know I always do.”

“Have you been on the Hearts again?”

Luna shuffled in her chair. That touched a nerve.

“I’ve not been on the Hearts for weeks.”

“Do you promise?” Celestia leaned in and took a hearty drag. A slightly uncomfortable silence filled the air before Luna blurted something out.

“Okay, I’ve been microdosing.”

This made Celestia’s blood boil.

“You’re tampering with our supply?!” She scolded.

“No! I mean, maybe,” Luna went to pour another glass of whiskey, the bottle was already half gone. “It’s ours! We make enough for the entirety of the northern quarter three times over, it’s nothing.”

“You need to get off that shit. Why do you still take it?”

“It helps me, alright! Helps with my nerves.” Luna shook her hands, to handle the slight tingling sensation they had.

“You know they only make it worse.” Celestia reminded.

“It helps me be more sociable,” Luna's voice began to shake like her hands. “You know I don’t like dealing with the business side of things. So taking just a bit makes me more confident. There you go, are you happy?”

“No, of course not. You’re my sister. I love you!” Celestia got out of her seat. She had to drill it into her one way or another.

“Well, it’s the truth. Can’t I just share the truth with you? Ever since father died–”

“Don’t talk about him!” Celestia snapped, extinguishing her cigarette, and immediately putting another in her mouth, changing her tune. “Have a smoke.”

“I’ve quit.”

“Bullshit.”

“My second time! This time for good.”

“Alright, good. The Hearts next. Right?” Celestia stared at Luna as she took another huge drag.

“Right.” She responded timidly. They sat. The light sounds of the radio playing in the background filled the moment. Celestia smoked, Luna drank, all while staring at each other. Celestia chose to break the silence again.

“I worry about you. I worry that this life isn’t for you.” Celestia admitted, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

“Where’s this come from?” Luna responded, a little too aggressively.

“You care too much,” Celestia started. “You care about yourself, your image. You care about our clients, about our goons, about them all. Caring means weakness.”

Luna scoffed at this.

“But it’s true!” Celestia went in on the attack. “I say it with a lot of love, but I don’t want you to show too much weakness, it makes us look bad.”

“So, what, you don’t care?” Luna batted back.

“I do. But I care about the business, about keeping it going, about…”

“The money?”

“I suppose so, yes.”

“Do you not care about the lives we put on the line? Do you care that now we have to start getting weapons in, just so our dealers feel safe?” Luna was on the verge of tears.

“No! The ends justify the means, Luna.” Celestia put out her second cigarette. She didn’t go for a third. She was done.

“Right. Okay. You’re right.” Luna slumped back, and poured one more glass of whiskey.

“I care about you, Luna.” Celestia, gave a smile, a genuine one.

“Doesn’t that show weakness?” Her sister replied sarcastically.

“Not when it comes to family. You’re my sister. My partner. We do this together, yeah?”

Luna took a sip of alcohol, her body recoiling from the strong taste, before looking to Celestia.

“Yeah.”

VI
Operation: Sunrise

16:28.

Tuesday afternoon.

Luna stood, fake briefcase in hand. Her muscle, Big Macintosh, by her side. The two of them, cramped in a back alley, by a manhole cover. Boy, did it stink.

“You alright?” Luna asked to fill the awkward air.

“Eeyup,” Big Mac responded. “Yourself?”

“Fine.” Luna replied coarsely, reaching for her cigarettes. She put one in her mouth and began to smoke.

“You’re smoking again? I thought you quit.” Big Mac showed a small amount of concern in his voice.

“Yeah. Well. There’s a few reasons why.” Luna shrugged.

“That’s alright.” Big Mac took a step closer to her.

“Where are they?” Luna began to get nervous.

“There’s still a minute to go yet, they’ll be on their way.” Big Mac said reassuringly.

“I know, you’re right.” Luna took a breath and calmed down.

“As soon as all of this is done with, I’ll give you a week off.”

“Just me, boss?”

“Well, no. Well, maybe. I haven’t really thought it though, I just kinda… said it, you know?” Luna began fidgeting with the briefcase.

“Calm your nerves, boss, it’s gonna be alright.” Big Mac placed a hand onto Luna’s back.

“How on earth can you stay calm in situations like these?” Luna asked genuinely.

“I’ve been through some things. Saw a guy about it,” Big Mac awkwardly looked up, recollecting those moments. “I suppose it’s just one of those things. Why worry?”

“You’re right. You are. I need a vacation.” Luna chuckled.

“Don’t we all,” Big Mac chuckled back. “But the city never sleeps.”

“Right again, Mac.” Luna sighed.

Suddenly, the sounds of rustling could be heard under the manhole cover. Luna braced herself. Big Mac, though he didn’t show much, did the same. The cover flipped open, causing the Tantabus members to step back, and rising out of the sewers were none other than Bulk Biceps, Sombra, and Discord, in that order. Despite the fact that they spent a lot of time around raw sewage, they didn’t stink of it much. Luna could, however, smell the expensive cologne that Sombra wore, pungent through the air. It could’ve made her gag, but she stood strong.

“Do you have her?” Luna cut straight to business.

“My my, Luna,” Sombra smirked. “Not even a hello? It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“I’m not here for formalities Sombra, I would like my assassin back please.” Luna cut through Sombra’s words like a knife.

“Before I say anything, I just need you to be searched. You can never be too safe.” Sombra clicked his fingers, and Biceps stepped forward immediately. Rolling her eyes, Luna raised her arms. Big Mac did the same, with little fuss.

Biceps started with Big Mac first, checking every pocket on his person. He was clean. He moved onto Luna second, searching her body. His hands hovered on her behind and she stepped back.

“Nice try, big guy.” She said with authority.

Biceps sneered, but she was clean, too. He nodded to Sombra, who proceeded.

“Yes, I have Sunset Shimmer.”

“Is she with you right now?” Luna butted in, hopeful but didn’t want to show it.

“She is held captive deep in our base.”

“Take me to her.”

“You will do no such thing,” Sombra snarled. “You will stay here. I will only fetch her when the money is handed over and counted.”

“Fair deal,” Luna shoved the briefcase over to Sombra. “Fourteen thousand, three hundred and fifty five bits, counted them myself. Quite a small amount from your mighty empire, don’t you think?”

Sombra snatched the briefcase from her.

“You know it’s not about the money, Luna, my dear.”

Luna folded her arms. She nodded to Sombra.

“I will get Discord to count it, then we will be in business.” He added. He readied the briefcase with his huge hands, ready to open it, when he heard a scuffelling from the sewers. Then the sound of rhythmic metallic clangs as the ladder leading to the street was climbed. It was none other than Starlight Glimmer, who stood, proud and concerned all at once.

“Starlight. I’m in the middle of something here,” Sombra bulldozed. “What is so important you have to tell me now?”

“Well, sir…”

16:19.

Tuesday Afternoon.

“Why did she suggest we come here?” Rainbow Dash grumbled.

“It’s the closest cover, so they say. We have to cut some corners today.” Zekora admitted, loading her weapon of choice, a MP5 submachine gun.

“Yeah, but we’re right next to one of the busiest intersections in Canterlot! Anyone with eyes can see what we’re doing,” Rainbow said, a little louder than usual, to battle with the heavy traffic. “Also, put that away, we could be spotted!”

“Rainbow Dash, everyone out here packs guns, isn’t that part of the fun?” Zekora jested.

“Maybe so, but not fucking SMG’s!”

“It shouldn’t be so hard to mention, that raising your voice attracts attention.”

“No shit, Sherlock. I’m going in.”

“No! Going in isn’t wise. We need to wait for the signal from the guys.”

Rainbow picked up the crowbar out of her duffle bag and started to pry the cover open.

“Oh please. Does your device thingy get a signal underground?” She asked, a quiver in her voice. Zekora simply shrugged and nodded. “Then we will get a head start, so long as we keep quiet, what’s the worry?”

“I don’t know Rainbow Dash, is there a need to be so rash?”

“It’s the love of my life that’s down there! Need I remind you. The quicker we’re in, the quicker she’s safe.”

Zekora didn’t want to abandon post. It could be disastrous. However, the only thing that would be worse is leaving the side of her superior, as reckless as she may be. So she simply nodded, stayed quiet, and followed her lead.

Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, couldn’t stop trembling. She was this close to getting to Sunset Shimmer. Frankly, she didn’t care about protocol, or rules, or order. She just wanted her back. It was a mixture of this desperation and adrenaline that helped her uncover the entrance with little effort. They climbed in, softly and quietly, resealed the entrance, and started to make their way.

Zekora led the duo, using a device she had held in her left hand, with her gun in her right. She could detect the heat signals through walls, not only leading them to Sunset Shimmer, but checking if any guards were on patrol. It was a really nifty piece of kit, no doubt from the best technician in the city.

The sounds of their footsteps were minimal, mostly due to their decision to wade through the murky water of the sewers. It slowed progression, and definitely stunk, but it was the best chance they had of being stealthy. Every once in a while, Zekora would detect the heat signal of a random guard, or hear distant footsteps. The best option they had was to duck and wait for the signal to disappear, or the steps to trail away, then they would carry on.

“Closest entrance my ass. It feels like we’re going around in circles.” Dash whispered. Zekora shushed her, nodded her head left, and they turned a corner, deeper into the hideout.

They knew this way was right. As artificial lighting started showing up, akin to underground street lighting. Whilst this was a win on their part, they knew they had to keep an even bigger eye out. If anyone spotted them now, it was game over.

Zekora found a darker patch, where she knew they wouldn’t be so easily seen, and stopped. Rainbow carried on for a moment, before turning and looking at her guide.

“C’mon then, techie, which way is it?” Dash pried, feeling more comfortable by the second.

“Staying here is our best bet. The signal still hasn’t gone off yet.” Zekora hushed, keeping low to the ground.

Dash checked her wristwatch. 16:35.

“It’ll go off any second, trust me. Let’s just keep going.” Dash grabbed Zekora’s arm, but she retaliated, pushing off.

“No. We follow orders from here on out. There are many soldiers about.” Zekora hissed through gritted teeth.

“We are following orders, my orders. Come on.”

“No way. Is this how you intend to play?”

“Stop it with that cryptic shit.”

“I am not cryptic. You sound like a lunatic.”

“Oh yeah? A lunatic? I’ll show you lunatic–”

The sounds of footsteps, Dash’s right. She and Zekora stop their quarrel, and immediately raise their weapons in the direction of the noise.

Starlight Glimmer. Hands raised. The look of horror on her face.

“Who’s this chick?” Dash muttered.

“Stay still,” Zekora said, a more raised, intimidating voice. “We will not hurt you against your will.”

Starlight looked at Zekora, then Dash, then back to Zekora. Then jumped behind a turning in the tunnel. Dash instinctively opened fire, all misses, but their sound echoed endlessly throughout the tunnelling network. Zekora instantly turned and yelled.

“Rainbow Dash, what the fuck?! This is what happens when you push your luck!” Dash hastily covered her comrade’s mouth.

“We have to keep moving.” Dash said, panic in her voice. Zekora simply looked at her, and they kept swamping through the water.

Starlight ran, ran, ran as fast as her legs could take her.

Left, then right, then straight on. Then another right. At last, she saw the light, bleeding out of the city streets. She climbed each rung of the ladder like they were on fire. No chance to rest, he has to know.

Suddenly, she found herself in front of five incredibly powerful criminals. Knowing some by face, knowing some by legacy, all frustrated and confused. Starlight had to act now.

“Starlight. I’m in the middle of something here,” Sombra bulldozed. “What is so important you have to tell me now?”

“Well, sir…” she beckoned Sombra down to her height.

Luna didn’t know exactly what it was that this young woman was whispering into her boss’s ear, but could smell that something was off.

“Tantabus infiltration.”

Sombra stood back up to full height, his eyes fixated on the briefcase. Maybe it didn’t matter, Luna thought. Just another grunt pissing him off.

Sombra looked up at Luna. Holding the stare, he flipped the briefcase around, aiming it at Luna, and ripped it open with his bare hands.

Just another grunt, oh how wrong she was.

The explosion knocked everyone back. It launched both Sombra and Luna straight into the tight walls of the alleyway, and collapsed both to the ground instantly. Starlight was launched backwards, into the sewer. And Big Mac, Discord, and Bulk Biceps flew away from the explosion at opposite angles. Luna sat up, delirious, unsure of where she was. The ringing in her ears drowned out any noise she could’ve heard, making her head spin, and her balance slippery. When her vision focused, all she could see was an old man with a pistol, aimed directly for her head.

Her life flashed before her eyes.

Celestia.

Rainbow Dash.

Father.

Celestia.

Big Mac.

Big Mac reached out and grabbed Luna’s arm, yanking it with such force he could’ve broken it. Ducking behind a corner as a flurry of bullets chipped away at the wall beside them.

The ringing slowly faded. Luna had come to. Big Mac pulled out the shotgun he had placed in the drain pipe only minutes earlier and fired. A miss, but getting a look at the scene, Sombra was out cold, with Discord and Biceps on the ground, firing aimlessly.

“Luna! Y’alright?” Big Mac yelled.

“I think so. What happened?” Luna mumbled, still gathering her thoughts together.

“Something has gone wrong.”

Red flashing light; the signal had gone off. Rainbow Dash breathed a sigh of relief, the operation was still a go.

“Whilst we can go ahead, don’t make a sound,” Zekora cautioned. “There could be many guards around.”

Dash nodded. They rose up onto the stone passageway to build up more speed, but stayed close to the ground, to keep the noise at a minimum. They turned a corner. Two guards, two headshots. They turned another corner. Two more guards. Clearly they must be in packs of two. Another headshot, half a mag into the chest of the other. They pressed on, hoping Sunset would be somewhere.

“They definitely know we’re here now.” Rainbow cautioned. Even she knew every bullet fired was a sign of where they were at any one time. Still they moved, taking no time to rest, as every second was vital, every precious moment wasted could be fatal.

The coast was clear. Dash assumed it was because Chaos will have their sights on Luna and Big Mac, but she could never be too sure. When all of a sudden a small yellow flash reflected on the water in front of them, and the sound of a bullet shot past her head. She turned and fired aimlessly, catching a soldier who collapsed into the sewage water and floated downstream. Where was the second? A shadow charged with a knife, letting out an ugly battle cry. He was promptly shot down by Zekora, who went limp before her eyes. That was close. Too close.

“How close are we?” Dash said in a panic. She knew they couldn’t stay here too much longer.

“The heat readings are all over the place,” Zekora matched the panic, and then some. “We must keep on moving with haste.”

“Keep a cool head. We will be fine.” Dash reassured her partner. Whilst even she didn’t believe those words, she hoped Zekora would.

Then, a faint sound. Almost intangible, but a boom echoed throughout the tunnels. An explosion, which left the women confused.

“Where did that come from?” Dash asked with fear.

“I know not what to say, other than it came from that way.” Zekora responded, checking the heat reading going off the charts. Leaping into action, the girls ran in the direction of the sound. Dust began to fill their lungs, they knew they must be close.

They stopped before a mighty, man made wall. This was the aftermath of the explosion, no doubt. Vaguely lit up by a flickering light in the tunnel. Debris and dirt piled high. This was unusual. Nowhere near Luna and Sombra, so what could’ve caused it?

“What happened here? Was this by us, or them?” Dash inquired.

Suddenly, there was a scuffle, and a couple of voices were heard from the other side of the barricade. The girls took a step back; this can’t be good.

“This will not end well, I suggest we run like hell.” Zekora turned to run, but the shouting of a male voice made her stop dead in her tracks.

“DEPLOYING GRENADE!”

Several light clinking sounds; the metal object hitting different parts of the wall and debris as it made its way over the wall, landing perfectly in front of Rainbow Dash’s feet. She was done for. But when you do things for love, you make some stupid decisions.

“Oh no you don’t!” Dash screamed, picking up the grenade, and lobbing it back as hard as her arm would let her. A mere second after she let go, and just about clearing the other side of the wall, a series of detached voices screamed in mass panic…

And the grenade went off.

The heat was excruciating, Dash thought. Her right arm began to burn, badly. The pain was so immense, Dash hadn’t even realised she was flying several feet in the air. She hit the ground hard, followed by a shower of already loosened rocks and stones flying past her. Some turning to dust, or several larger pieces bouncing on the ground beside her. The smoke blocked out the already whispering light source, making it impossible to see. Fortunately, Zekora had managed to avoid the blast entirely, save for a few pieces of rogue shrapnel giving her a couple of light scratches. She jumped to the aid of Rainbow Dash, finding her silhouette in the darkness and lifting her onto her feet.

“My arm… fuck.” Was all Rainbow could let out. She became alert again, however, when a dragging sound was heard on the other side. There was now a clear passage, which the women climbed through.

Half a dozen men and women, dead. Some were fortunate to remain in one piece, others were crushed, or had limbs missing. All were deceased, except one. A pathetic man dragging his body across the floor, whimpering and crying all the while. His foot must have been splattered by a falling rock, and he tried to get away at a snail’s pace.

“Please… help… me…” Was all he could get out. Zekora thought it would be better to put the man out of his misery, and shot him swiftly in the skull, making his pathetic struggles cease.

Looking at the bodies of the dead, there was no contention that these were Sombra’s men.

“This is all a bit queer,” Zekora pondered. “We’re the only Tantabus members in here. Even if we were, we aren’t using explosives. This can’t be us, so what gives?”

Dash would usually have a quip, or a point to make. But her arm was in agony, and it was only getting worse.

“Best not to think about it,” She mustered up. “Let’s just hope this takes us closer to Sunset.”

And so they continued on, deeper into the heart of Chaos's lair.

“I spy… with my little eye… something beginning with… B!” Fluttershy said, starting the fifth or sixth game in a row.

“Is it a bandage?” Sweetie Belle responded, almost a little bit bored with playing such a trivial game. The first few rounds were fun, but it was getting to the point where it wasn’t.

“Wow, you’re good!” Fluttershy congratulated.

The two were sitting in the back seat of Rainbow Dash’s car, some distance away from the entry point she and Zekora had made, just under an hour ago. There was a direct line of communication set up between the three parties, with a walkie talkie in Sweetie Belle’s hands, should they need to hear any messages, primarily from Dash, if they needed to call Belle in.

“Can we stop playing that game now? I’m bored with it.” Sweetie said honestly, trying to let Fluttershy down easy.

It would never be ascertained as to why on earth Fluttershy of all people existed in the underground crime scene. She was meek, mild, well-mannered, had never so much as pushed a person the wrong way. She was a pacifist by nature, which isn’t exactly useful in a company such as Tantabus. However, with a background of studying veterinary medicine, she was easily the most qualified medic in the underworld. If Sunset Shimmer was to get out alive, she would easily make a full recovery under Fluttershy, sans tooth and kneecap.

“Of course! What would you like to play?” Fluttershy chirped.

“Nothing for now, I’m getting worried.” Sweetie leaned against the passenger seat of the car, burying her face into her arms.

“That’s okay. They shouldn’t be too much longer.” Fluttershy sweetened.

“I suppose so,” A silence carried for a moment before Sweetie Belle asked “How do you do it?”

“Do what?” She responded innocently.

“Be involved in all of this, you know.”

“Because I want to?”

“Really,” Sweetie Belle chuckled. “You want to be a part of a gang. Have you ever held a gun?”

“Have you?” Fluttershy retorted.

“No, but I’m only young. Luna says I can have my first weapon when I’m eighteen.” Sweetie said with an adolescent cockiness.

“I did carry a gun once. It was too heavy. Then I fired it, and I missed.”

“When was that?”

“It doesn’t matter. It was a long time ago.”

“Right.”

Suddenly, what felt like an earthquake, the ground shaking, ever so slightly under the two girls feet, before stopping as quickly as it began.

“Did you feel that?” Sweetie Belle remarked.

“Yes,” Fluttershy took a breath. “What is going on down there?”

Then, a cloud of dust huffed out of the holes in the manhole cover, scattering onto the dust and dirt around the entrance. Sweetie Belle watched intently.

“I think they’re using explosives down there.” She concluded.

“Why would they be doing that?” Fluttershy was puzzled.

“I don’t know. But Rainbow Dash and Zekora better be alright in there.”

Sweetie Belle leaned back in her chair, crossing her fingers as tightly as she possibly could.

Word spread like wildfire that Sombra had been knocked unconscious. His wounds needed to be tended to. So their medic was deployed and escorted by Starlight, who had suffered minimal injuries in the explosion, somehow. They were lucky they didn’t run across any Tantabus members infiltrating the compound, and got back to where the shootout on the street was situated. Gunshots were persistent, with no fatalities. Tantabus and Chaos had been in a stalemate for about a half hour. Somehow reserving their ammo enough to keep a steady stream of gunfire going.

“MEDIC COMING UP!” Starlight yelled up.

Realising he could capitalise on this situation, Discord spoke up.

“Hold your fire! We have a medic coming up to tend to Sombra!”

“What does that have to do with us?” Luna, now much more conscious, shouted from around the corner.

“She is but a child, and she is unarmed. Please.” Discord pleaded.

If he was telling the truth, and she really was an unarmed child, then Luna would not fire. You can never be too sure on whether Discord was able to tell the truth, however, and leaned around the corner with her Magnum in hand. Surely enough, a child had emerged from the entry, carrying no more than a humble first aid kit. It wasn’t any child however. The red hair and farmers tan ascertained it was none other than Big Mac’s sister, Apple Bloom. She began to tend to the wounds of Sombra, who suffered a pretty nasty burn on the side of his face. When all of a sudden, Apple hears in her peripheral:

“Hey, Apple Bloom! Lookee here!”

She turned around and locked eyes with her brother. It has been years since they last saw each other.

“Big Mac, what are you doing here?” She asked innocently.

“It doesn’t matter,” He tried to conceal the tears in his voice He couldn’t even stay unprotected for too long, in case he got shot. “My, how you’ve grown. Ya shouldn’t be here, Applejack is no good for you! We’ll look after ya, promise!”

“Big Mac!” Luna said through gritted teeth. She didn’t consent to this.

“Let me try.” He begged, and Luna stood down.

“Applejack says you’re a dangerous man.” Apple Bloom called out.

“Ignore him,” Discord hissed. “He is a threat to our safety. You cannot believe a word he says.”

“No! You can!” Big Mac piped up to a yell.

“Take this to the sewers,” Discord commanded. “We have to deal with whatever is going on at base, we have been here too long.”

“Yes sir.” Was all that came out of Apple Bloom, before being dragged back into the entryway by Starlight.

Big Macintosh jumped out from behind the wall.

“Please! Apple Bloom! Please!”

Having dropped his guard for too long, Bulk Biceps took an easy shot at Big Mac, and got him in the left arm. He bounced back behind the wall, tears dropping one by one down his face.

Biceps and Discord carried Sombra down the steps into the sewers, with some difficulty.

“Raise all entrances to maximum security!” DIscord shouted, and as they shut the manhole cover, a large clunk sound was heard, and a small, bright, lavender light shone on top of the cover.

Luna and Big Mac made a dart to the cover. They used whatever they could to open the cover, but to no avail. The edge of Mac’s shotgun. A sheet of metal left on the sidewalk. They tried whacking it out of position with blunt objects, but it was truly cemented in place.

“What are we supposed to do now?” Big Mac asked sincerely, trying to cover up the pain he felt, applying pressure to the wound on his arm.

Luna pulled out her walkie talkie.

“Luna to Rainbow Dash. Come in Rainbow Dash.”

After a moment's silence, a crackly voice was heard on the other line.

“Receiving.”

“DIscord and Bulk Biceps are back on patrol underground. Sombra is with them too, but he is passed out.”

“Shit. Copy that.”

“Also, all manhole covers are going into maximum security mode. They will not budge no matter what we do. Get Zekora to disarm them when you can.”

“Ten four.”

Suddenly, the faint sound of several police sirens could be heard in the distance.

“We have to go!” Big Mac yelled and ran. Luna followed behind him.

“Police are apprehending our location, we have to leave. Mac got shot in the arm, too. Give me a call when you’re out and safe.” Luna instructed through the walkie talkie.

“Yes, ma’am.” Rainbow responded on the other side.

Luna and Big Macintosh hopped into Luna’s car and sped off, just as the lights of the sirens were coming into view.

A younger voice appeared through the walkie talkie.

“Sweetie Belle to Luna.”

Luna couldn’t help but crack a coy smile at this.

“Go ahead.”

“Do you want me to go in and help?” Sweetie Belle asked in earnest.

“No need to just yet, Sweetie. Dash will get in touch if she needs to.” Luna spoke professionally.

“Okay…” You could tell she was disappointed just from her voice.

Luna’s smile began to fade. It dawned on her that plans have to change sometimes.

“Mac?”

“Eeyup?”

“We’re meeting with Sweetie and Fluttershy. We will get that shot of yours cleaned up. And I can’t have her go in. It’s too dangerous.”

“Understood.”

Instead of taking a left, she took the right, and carried on deeper into the heart of Canterlot.

~~~

The sewers were much brighter now. Dash and Zekora could actually see the whole tunnel illuminated. Which wasn’t great for their heat signals, but they knew they had to be close.

“It’s still so quiet,” Dash realised. “Like, you’d think it’d be louder the closer we are… but where is everyone?”

Another explosion, this one much more faint. What was going on?

“That was back the way we came,” Zekora apprehensively commented. “But there must be other players in this game.”

“Maybe so, but that isn’t going to change anything.” Dash remarked.

In the cold, silent, darkness, they heard a voice. A quiet voice. A new voice.

“Get up, ya dumb bitch.”

“Wait a second,” Dash halted Zekora. “Did you hear that?”

They stood and waited, hoping to hear anything else.

Nothing. Then:

“I said get up! You are wasting my time!”

“It came from this way!” Dash commanded. Both her and Zekora began to sprint. Their bodies were weary, and injured, but the end was in sight.

The conversation was one sided, but constant bangs of scuffling and wrestling allowed for the duo to easily know where they were headed. And that voice… Rainbow Dash recognised it. The southern drawl ingrained in her very brain from that video she watched last night.

It had to be them.

And sure enough, they turned the corner, though a great, medieval-esque archway, and stood in front of her was the love of her life, Sunset Shimmer. She wasn’t alone, as standing behind her, propping her up, with a sawn-off shotgun shoved into her jaw, was the one and only Applejack. Placing themselves in front of an opposite archway, which, in contrast to the artificial brightness of this room, gave Applejack a sinister shadowy hue. Sunset’s mouth was covered with tape, but even Dash could tell her screams were a mix of happiness from seeing her, and horror with the fact her fate may be close at hand.

“Well howdy, Rainbow Dash,” Applejack said with a smile. “I’m glad y’all could join us this evenin’. Just in time to see your little Sun begin to set.”

Tears were streaming down Sunset’s face. Rainbow didn't want to admit it, but it broke her heart into a thousand pieces seeing the most important person in her life being treated so inhumanely

“Let her go,” Rainbow Dash said with venom in her words. “You don’t have to do this. No one has to die.”

“Tell that to the dozens of guards ya slaughtered! And I think I do need to kill this one. Not only did the deal not happen, but she is so goddamn annoying Dash, I have no idea how you can live with her.”

“Shut up!” Dash was coursing with adrenaline. She would rip off Applejack’s face if she could.

“Well now. People always credit me for my honesty,” Applejack smirked, keeping control. “It’s half past five. I was supposed to send her to slaughter thirty minutes ago. But I waited for you. I thought ya wanted to see this.”

“If you kill her, that’ll be the last thing you do.” Dash cocked her assault rifle. She wanted to shoot her then and there, but couldn’t get a clear shot.

“Violence always begets more violence, you’re right,” Applejack laughed. “But really, if it ain’t me killin’ ya, it’ll be Sombra. We all die playin’ this game! Ya just gotta find a way to… keep the life support on.”

“Enough! You don’t know what you’re saying. Give me Sunset, now.” Dash pleased, a single tear of fear crawled down her cheek.

“Oh, what, you crying now? Ya pussy? Keep your eyes open, y’all wanna see this one.” Applejack bit to Rainbow Dash and Zekora, who was too shocked to speak.

“No!” Dash exclaimed.

Applejack placed her finger on the trigger of Winona.

“Time to say goodbahAhAhAhAhAhAhAh…”

Suddenly, as if out of nowhere, the once confident, menacing Applejack had her whole body begin to uncontrollably jitter and spasm. She let go of Sunset, who couldn’t stand due to her injuries and simply fell to the floor. Applejack’s mouth began to foam, and her fists went tight, firing a slug out of her weapon unintentionally. Shrapnel scattered on the wall and to the ground, missing Sunset by a fraction of a hair. Rainbow Dash didn’t even flinch, she darted straight to Sunset and held her tight, with no plans to let her go anytime soon. She was safe and in her arms again. Zekora breathed a sigh of relief. Dash ripped the tape off of Sunset’s mouth.

“Dashie,” Sunset said with tears in her eyes. “You came for me.”

“Of course, baby. Of course.” Dash let loose another tear, this time it was one of joy. They embraced each other for the first time in days. They had both missed this.

Applejack went limp, and collapsed to the ground. Passed out, unfortunately for Rainbow Dash, who would’ve preferred to see a far worse revenge acted upon her. She did, however, notice two electric cables shot into her back from what could only have been a stun gun. She followed the wires up to a shadowy figure standing in the opposite doorway from where Dash and Zekora had entered. The figure took a step forward into the light.

“No fucking way…” Dash said in awe.

“The Party Planner is back?!” Sunset added.

There she was, standing in an all black, well-fitted spy suit, the end of the stun gun in her right hand, an M16 in the other. A belt of grenades wrapped over her shoulder, various pieces of equipment dangling from all parts of her, and her iconic hair as messy as it always was. It was Pinkie Pie alright.

“You guys remember me? Stop it, you’ll make me blush,” She quipped. “Plus someone had to shut her up. Boooooring! I would’ve fallen asleep if she wasn’t about to murder someone!”

“What are you here for? Who’s side are you on in this war?” Zekora asked, grateful, but still keeping her guard up.

“Who I’ve always worked for, silly! Operation: Blood Clot is in full swing, and I wouldn’t want you guys to get caught in the middle of it all.” Pinkie announced, with a cunning grin.

“Operation… Blood Clot?” Rainbow Dash asked in confusion.

“Yep! Harmony has got plenty more bombs about to go off,” Pinkie said in her ever optimistic tone, with an evil tint glistening through her eyes.

“So I’d get out while you still can.”