The Brothers Don't

Macintosh smiled when Shining Armor marched through the enormous doors. He was the only one smiling.

Cadance rushed to her husband and threw her hooves around his neck. "Oh, Shining... I'm so glad you're here."

"What happened?" he asked, barely returning the hug before stepping back to stare her in the eyes.

Cadance's lip quivered. "It's... it's about Twilight."

Shining's gut tightened. He looked behind Cadance at a large table where sat Macintosh, Zecora, Spitfire, and Flash Sentry. Shining and Macintosh shared a nod. The others wouldn't look up.

"Tell me now," Shining demanded, trotting to the table. "I don't have the patience for subtlety."

"She sent another message," Spitfire said. "You won't like it."

"What did she say?"

Flash spun his forehooves over each other.

Shining looked at Cadance, then Zecora. "What did she say?" he shouted.

"We found a troupe of pegasi scouts," Zecora said, her face still and somber. "The lights of their lives had already gone out."

His brow creased. "What, you mean... dead?" he asked. "Where?"

Zecora pointed down. "Around the Heart, where you were found," she said. "We're lucky the citizens weren't around."

"It was the dead of night. They were found by the guards," Cadance explained. "There were ten of them, one of the thirty teams you—er, that were sent north."

Shining vision blurred. "I don't understand."

"Last night, ten pegasi popped up dead in a circle 'round the Crystal Heart," Macintosh said. "When the guards found 'em, they say they heard Twilight's voice come from the Heart itself."

"Twilight?" Shining repeated. His knees shook.

Macintosh nodded. His eyes were dim and tired. "She said, 'Stop trying.'"

Shining Armor's lips pursed. He shut his eyes to stop tears. "No," he said. "They must have been in shock. Must have heard wrong."

"I performed a memory spell on them," Cadance said in a shaky whisper. "They were right. It was Twilight. She said to stop trying."

"No!" Shining slammed his forehooves on the table. The room was deathly silent. "No! We will not stop! Who knows what kind of magic is behind this? Changelings could mimic voices, we have no way of knowing that was Twilight."

"Ponies are dead, Shining," Cadance said.

"Ponies are dying every damn day out there!" he screamed at her, throwing a hoof at the nearest window. "Every day! Whatever those things are, they're stronger than us! They're slaughtering us!"

"Shining..." Cadance choked.

"We have to save them! They're the only ones that can stop this. We have to get them back, no matter the cost!" Shining turned from his wife and addressed the team. "They must have found something, right? If they died, they must have gotten close. We can find them."

"Shining," Spitfire said softly, "it's been over and year, and we still have no idea what we're dealing with."

"But they're dealing with me," Shining said. "And they have my little sister."