The Devil You Know

The rotten wooden door burst open, practically knocked off its hinges as Twilight stumbled inside. Flickering light emanated from her horn, banishing the darkness to the shadows.

“Bring him inside, hurry!” she cried, clearing the way so her companions could join her.

As fast as she was able, guardsmare Rainbow Dash staggered into the room. Draped across her back was the limp form of Captain Shining Armour, his forelegs bloodied stumps that oozed crimson down the cyan pegasus’ armour and onto the floor. He groaned in agony with every bump or jostle as the overburdened pegasus limped into the room.

“Be careful, you’re hurting him!” Twilight said, concern for her brother overriding the blind panic that threatened to overtake her.

“We can’t hurt him more than he already is,” Rainbow Dash grunted, her voice strained and beads of sweat running from her brow.

“B-but…”

“Just shut up and find something to barricade the door.”

Twilight’s ears flattened and her eyes darted between the door and her brother, tears beginning to trickle down her cheeks.

“Snap out of it!” Rainbow growled. “They’re probably following his blood trail right now!”

“Do as she says, Twilight,” Shining said weakly, his breath coming in quick gasps. “It’s alright, you can do this, little sister.” He was trying to sound reassuring, but she had never heard his voice sound so fragile before.

Taking a breath, she surveyed the room. It looked to be quarters for one of the army of servants that worked in the ancient fortress. Old cobwebs clung to the ceiling, and motes of thick dust kicked up by their arrival swirled in the air. A single small arched window offered the barest of views to the courtyard beyond, dimly illuminated by the blood-red light of the moon. A rotten bed frame and a collapsed cupboard of ebony oak were the only furniture in the room. They were thick, heavy pieces, and Twilight thanked Celestia that the ancient craftspony had gone a bit overboard in their construction.

Wrapping them in her magic, she levitated them over to the doorway. Between the door and the furniture, a makeshift barricade began to take shape. They would not last long against what was coming, but it was all they had.

A clatter of armour drew her attention back to the room as Rainbow Dash set her brother down as gently as she could. She set about checking the makeshift tourniquet on his legs. “I need to tighten these, sir. It’s going to hurt,” she grimaced. “A lot.”

Shining nodded as she put a small chunk of leather into his mouth for him to bite onto.

“Hey egghead, I need your help to hold him down,” Rainbow called.

Numbly, Twilight lay down beside her brother, her head swimming from the thick coppery scent of blood that permeated the room. Gently, she pressed down onto his armoured side, grimacing at the gore-splattered, rent plate metal that oozed more blood from within.

“Are you ready?” Rainbow asked, grimly, taking a breath to steady herself.

All Twilight could do was nod numbly as she gazed into her brother’s eyes.

“Okay, one, two, three!”

Shining moaned pitifully as she tightened the rag on his bloodied right leg. Twilight could only watch in horror, sobbing as fresh tears came forth. His body bucked as it instinctively tried to escape this fresh pain being inflicted on it.

He should be able to throw us off with ease, Twilight pondered, pinning him down as he thrashed about.

With grim professionalism, Rainbow repeated the procedure on his left leg, each cry a fresh stab into Twilight’s heart. Then, it was over, the only noise their ragged breathing in the flickering light.

Twilight knelt beside her brother, removing the bite, unscrewing her canteen, and gently feeding him some water. He was still conscious, somehow, but his eyes now had a glazed look to them. He had grown pale, so pale.

“They’re gone, all of them,” Rainbow muttered, finally, her voice quivering and her wings refusing to sit still at her sides.

“What do we do now?” Twilight asked.

“We kill those bastards, that’s what we do!” the pegasus growled, stomping her hooves and taking to the air.

“That’s enough, Private,” Shining said. “We still have a mission to perform.”

“Mission?! Everypony is dead, you’re badly injured, and I’m stuck with this bookworm!” Rainbow snorted, gesturing to Twilight.

“That’s my sister, Private,” Shining said sternly, “and she’s the key to getting you out of this mess.”

Rainbow just huffed and folded her forelegs.

“Shining I-I can’t…” Twilight said.

“Yes, you can, sis,” he said softly. “You're the smartest mare I know; if anypony can finish this, it’s you.”

“But your legs,” she stammered.

“I was never a good dancer anyway,” he laughed weakly before letting out a soft sigh. “I wish I had asked Cadence on a date.”

“You still can.”

“We both know I’m not making it out of here,” he said. “I’m just slowing you down at this point.”

“Don’t talk like that.”

“The mission takes priority. Speaking of which…” he said, turning to the grumbling pegasus. “Private Rainbow Dash, I have one last order to give you.”

She straightened to attention. “Sir?”

“The mission. Remember the mission. Protect my sister, everything rests on her.”

Rainbow Dash hesitated but nodded grimly with a salute. “With my life, sir.”

“And Rainbow…”

The pegasus’ ears perked. “Sir?”

“I’m sorry for how things…”

“It’s a bit late for apologies, Sir.”

A chittering sound made them all look towards the door. A pair of burning white orbs stared back at them from the gloom of the hallway. Their blood froze as a deep, bellowing roar echoed through the room. Bladelike claws tore into the doorway, tearing chunks of splintered wood with each pass and hungrily grasping towards its prey.

“That barricade won’t hold that thing forever!” Rainbow shouted, looking around for anything they could use as a weapon. All they had between them were the books in Twilight’s saddlebags.

“Sis, you have to go,” Shining said.

“No! I’m not leaving you,” Twilight sobbed.

“You don’t have a choice. I love you, sister,” he said, his horn beginning to glow, then wrapping her and Rainbow Dash in its light.

“What? No!” Twilight cried, reaching out for him as a flash of light ushered forth from his horn.

With a quiet pop, she and Rainbow Dash appeared in the courtyard.

“Shining!” she cried, trying to reach up to the window as the sound of crashing wood echoed from inside the room.

“Run, Twi-!” His voice trailed into a wet gurgle as the beast descended upon him, his scream cut short by the sound of ripping flesh and splattering gore which filled the room.

Her whole body shook. This was a nightmare, a living nightmare. Twilight’s rational mind refused to process what was happening.

“Come on, we have to go!” Rainbow called, dragging her away from the terrible sounds of the beast feasting on her brother.

“No!” Twilight sobbed, vainly kicking as the pegasus lifted her into the air and took her away from the scene.

She dropped her unceremoniously onto the ground in a side passage. Twilight collapsed into a heap, sobbing into the cracked floor.

“Get up,” the guardsmare ordered.

“No.”

“We can’t stay here—we already reek of blood, and you know they’ll be tracking us.”

“Good.”

Rainbow Dash snorted, dragging her to her hooves. “He died protecting you,” she snarled, jabbing a hoof at her chest. “Now I promised him I’d protect you, but I’m not fond of commiting suicide.” She sighed, her ears flattening. “It hurts, I know. But we have to honour his last wish.”

“I…” Twilight stammered.

“Come on, you’re the brains here, supposedly,” Rainbow said, her eyes narrowing. “Where do we go from here?”

Twilight blinked, her words cutting through the fog of emotions clogging her senses. Rationality returned. Here was a problem that needed solving. She could do this. She pushed back her pain, locking it away to the back of her mind. She would mourn for her brother later.

Sniffing, she wiped her nose, surveying the surroundings for the familiar. There were elements in the architecture she recognised. “O-okay, we shouldn’t be far from the tomb now.”

“Great, lead on.”

Twilight let out a heavy sigh and tried to restore her inner calm. Her heart was in tatters, but they still had a job to do.