Chapter 5 “Moonrise”

It turns out that Ember was right. Soundwave located Pixel a few hours after her encounter with the Lead. The words exchanged between the siblings were few, if any at all. The male made no effort in trying to lead the female home, he simply took her by the scruff of her neck and flew her back himself. Collin was resting up on a ledge, watching as the two landed below him. The unicorn instantly cowered, waiting for a harsh word, but her body tensed as a warm hoof rested her back. “Sit up, Alpha.” The command was soft, and she surprised to find that it had come from her father. She hesitated, but eventually rose to a sitting position, still not meeting his eyes. He pressed a hoof under her chin, gently pushing it up to be level with his. When their eyes finally met, he raised an eyebrow. “You think I'm mad at you, don't you?” She simply nodded, out of fear of speaking. The stallion chuckled softly, causing her to give him a confused look. “Far from it,” was his answer.

“B-But, why not? I thought you would have skinned me by now.”

“Because I thought you would have learned your lesson on your own, which by how you're acting I assume that you did.”

Pixel fell silent, running the words through her head, her muzzle scrunching up in further confusion. Collin finally started laughing, the corners of his eyes crinkling as the sound reached them. “Go get some sleep, Pixel. I'll explain in the morning.” Now that was an order she could get behind.

In the early hours of the morning, Andante was trying her best to be discreet as she slipped out of the cave, unfurling her wings to take flight. Her movements, however, weren't unnoticed by her father, and he watched her, amused. “And where do you think your going, Missy?”, he called out, unintentionally startling her.

“O-Oh, I forgot you were up there. Um, just a little Beta meeting. Nothing special.”

“Must your meetings be so early? And this is coming from someone who had to be up by sunup for training.”

The pegasus shrugged. “I dunno, Dad. You've lived with a Beta, you should know how we work.”

“Clearly not enough time apparently. Now go. I don't want you breaking Beta Rule No. One.”

Anne smirked. “And you know what that is?”

“Yes. 'Never be tardy, under any circumstances.’”

“That is- correct. I'm impressed.”

“Go, or do I have to force you to?”

“Ok, ok. I'm going.”

Just a few feet away from the Raging Rapids, a trio of mares sat facing each other in a triangular shape. Limelight raised a hoof before speaking. “I, as meeting coordinator, ask that the two of you will not let what is spoken of here tonight that is personal pass your lips to anyone else, or you shall be breaking Beta Rule No. Seven. Do I make myself clear?”

The pair nodded in unison, watching as the unicorn lowered her hoof back down to the ground. “Wonderful. Anyone have any news to share?”

Quetzal’s tail swayed as she spoke. “Ember's planning on having the Alpha meeting tomorrow afternoon.”, She announced.

“And who is going to be the Peace Keeper?”, Limelight inquired.

“I heard it was going to be Firefly, but if she can't make it than it would Obsidian.”

“My brother? That's a first. If anything, I think he'd be the last Omega I would think of to be chosen as Peace Keeper…”

“I see where your standards are, Lime.”, Anne said with a little smile.

The teal mare rolled her eyes. “Ok, moving on. Actually, speaking of the little squirt, I think he's got a thing for your sister, A.”

“Really? Well I'm not surprised. I think that they'd be cute together.”

Quetzal's eyes narrowed. “You do realize that your father would pitch a fit if he found out that the two of them were actually mates? I've seen him under emotional pressure, he doesn't handle it well.”

“So what? It's not like he can force them not to be with each other. If it's fate, then he can't tamper with that.”

All the while, Limelight had become awfully quiet. She shifted on her hooves nervously, biting her bottom lip. The Dragon hybrid was the first to pick on the odd behavior.

“We see you, Lime. What's gotten you so frazzled?”

She looked up slowly, ignoring a strand of hair that had fallen in front of her face. Her voice was shaky, but she managed to get out:

“Girls, I've made a grave mistake.”