Black Sun

For all the problems with the Badlands and everything they represented, Rainbow Dash had to admit that it was a great area to fly over. On a clear day like this she could see for miles in every direction, there were plenty of thermal currents to keep herself gliding on and the sheer blandness of the environment made anything unusual stand out. On the ground, the dark magic that permeated the region was enough to make the hairs of her coat stand on end. At a thousand feet in the air even that disadvantage was negated. She could simply put her mind on autopilot, keep her eyes peeled for any hint of Tantabus' presence and enjoy the chance to have an extended flight with her little sister.

"Anything?" She called back to Scootaloo for the umpteenth time as the two of them banked left and headed south-east. They'd been in the air for a little under two hours and every time the reply had been the same.

"Just rocks," Scootaloo called back as she pulled up on Rainbow's right side. "And cracks. Lots of cracks. I could understand the rocks but we're, what, forty miles in now? Why's the ground still so broken up?"

"You'd have to ask Twilight for the details, but something big went down around here, roughly ten thousand years ago." Rainbow glanced over to check Scootaloo's reaction, satisfied that answer would suffice for now. The elements had agreed among themselves early on that directly announcing the truth about the ancient alicorn race would only panic their allies. Any that inquired on their own though, would be told all they wanted to know.

"Woah...More than big..." Scootaloo commented to herself as she looked to the south, studying the environment again. For a few seconds she simply kept staring out in that direction before nudging Rainbow with a hoof. "Hey, what'd you think that is?"

Rainbow followed her gaze, easily making out what she was pointing at. The terrain in that direction was largely the same as everything else in sight, leading toward the heart of the Badlands. Visible near the edge of the horizon, roughly twenty miles away, was either a very large hill or a partially collapsed mountain. Standing roughly seven hundred feet tall at its peak and composed of a slightly darker rock than the rest of the wasteland, there were also a number of fissures that seemed to originate from its base and join the others in the area. Nothing else could be made of it at this distance but it stuck out as prominently as Canterlot Castle would on the moon.

"I'd say I'm not sure, but something about it feels familiar..." Rainbow mused, slowing herself slightly so she could remain focused on the landmark. After a few moments of wracking her brains, she remembered where she'd seen something just like this. "There was a report in the information the changelings exchanged with Princess Celestia that Chrysalis had established a hive in the Badlands. At a guess, we're looking at it."

"But, there's no changelings there now. Right?" Scootaloo quickly asked, struggling to keep the nerves out of her voice. Rainbow didn't blame her for the response, considering what she and the other crusaders had gone through at Cadance's wedding all those years ago.

"None at all. Chrysalis abandoned it years ago, when she relocated all her forces to Mount Silvat. Even if there were any changelings that slipped away from that fight at first, Thorax's forces swept every uninhabited area they might have been hiding. The only changelings we're involved with these days are allies."

"Right...So, what're we doing about that 'hive' then?"

Rainbow looked back toward the peak and narrowed her eyes slightly. Scootaloo was clearly still wary about it, but it was the first thing they'd seen since the plateau that was over a hundred feet tall. Combining that with the likely network of tunnels and hiding places inside, and it seemed like the most likely place they'd found that Tantabus would use to keep herself out of sight.

"For now, how about we just give it a pass and see if anything looks off. Then we'll pull back to meet Aurora and tell everypony what we found. Either we'll end up searching somewhere else or Twilight will deal with whatever we find. Okay, Scoots?"

"Okay. I'll follow you." Scootaloo replied, sounding somewhat reassured.

Rainbow Dash nodded and pulled ahead slightly before turning south, Scootaloo following her lead. Up until now, they had both been taking it somewhat casually. Checking the unchanging terrain and scanning over the cracks in the earth on the chance something was hiding in them. Now though, they were focused and driven, putting all their senses on full alert.

'Should have been doing this from the start,' Rainbow thought to herself. 'Tantabus would be hiding deep in the region if she's here at all. No room for us to-'

Roughly a third of the way up the hive, something glinted. In the blink of an eye, she saw a spark of black across it and her eyes widened in shock. She was right in the worst possible way.

"Evade!"

Rainbow tucked her wings in and dropped down quickly, feeling an expected rush of air above her. She glanced up and the world seemed to slow to a crawl as she realised Scootaloo had pulled up and left. Possibly an attempt to shield her, possibly a panic response. Whichever it was, it had put her straight into the path of the beam.

"Dangit!" Scootaloo grunted, pushing herself into as hard a spin as she could to avoid being hit.

The magic sliced along her left wing, coming within an inch of burning into the flesh. The feathers running along its length weren't so lucky, all of them incinerated in one fell swoop. As the rest of her body passed the beam she tried to straighten out and spread her wings properly. The look on her face indicated that she wasn't even aware of the damage done. Then, a single heartbeat later, everything sped up again and the younger mare was plummeting in a barely controlled spin-out, crying out in surprise.

Rainbow moved without thinking, twisting her body over and dropping into a rapid dive. She still couldn't push herself as fast as she used to though. The wings may have been stress tested and could handle significant G-forces, but finding out if they could handle a sonic rainboom in this situation wasn't worth risking. She was still gaining ground though, enough that she was able to catch up to Scootaloo before too long. As much of a shock as the situation was, she was handling it surprisingly well and focusing on trying to level herself out.

As she managed to get alongside her partner, Rainbow had a brief moment where she realised this was partly on her. She'd defaulted to training and instinct when in danger. The Sky Wing used different words for different evasive manoeuvres. If she'd been with an EDF pegasus they would have dived with her, but Scootaloo had no way of knowing that. Wing feathers could grow back, or imping could be used to attach immediate replacements, but none of that would matter if she hit the ground at this speed.

"Hang on, kid!" Rainbow shouted to Scootaloo, wrapping her hooves around her body just as they dropped into one of the canyons. It was only forty feet deep and thirty wide with relatively smooth sides, but it felt like a grave opening up before them.

Her wings shot out and she put everything she could into slowing their descent. The metal skin creaked as it took the strain, a firm ache spreading into the point where it bent slightly against her organic skin. They held strong though, cutting their speed enough that with just enough time to brace herself, Rainbow was able to land with a undignified stumble. Scootaloo was less prepared and hit the ground on her stomach, sprawled out as she skidded to a halt several feet away.

"Th-thanks," Scootaloo started, coughing from the dust cloud as she pushed herself back to her hooves. She seemed slightly stunned but otherwise unhurt. "What happened there?"

"I think we accidentally broke the 'No fighting' part of the mission." Rainbow replied. Although she looked like she was checking herself over, inside she was silently wondering how she was going to break the news of what happened.

"No, I mean...Up there. I saw a glint of something, you yelled something at me and then..."

Scootaloo stopped as she spread her wings to examine them and saw the still-smouldering remains of her feathers. After several seconds she tucked them back in and looked forward with an exasperated sigh.

"Suppose it could be worse. Not sure how...Maybe this canyon could've been full of rats," She muttered to herself before looking back toward Rainbow. "So, how are we gonna get out of here? I'm not small enough for you to carry me the whole way anymore."

"I might not have a choice," Rainbow told her as she span in a quick circle to check their surroundings. There weren't any real pointy parts or ledges on the canyon walls that could be used to climb out and the empty space they had landed in showed no hints of which way to go. "If we stay down here, we're just risking heading straight into an-"

"Ambush?"

They both froze at that word. It had come from above. Even though they were almost too scared to do it, they both looked up together. Standing at the lip of the canyon, a cruel smirk on her face, was Tantabus. It wasn't the fact she was there that unnerved them most, nor that she didn't seem to have a scratch on her after what had happened in the Crystal Empire. The one thing that seeped fear into their hearts was the aura she radiated. At ground level, as deep into the region as they were now, the feeling of dark magic was like a thin haze that shrouded everything it touched in shadow. Now though, they could feel it being pulled toward the unicorn as if she were a black hole, consuming the darkness and fuelling herself with it. The sheer power she could command out here was unlike anything they could imagine a unicorn wielding.

And they were trapped with her, nopony knowing where they were.

"Stay close," Rainbow quietly said, stepping to put herself between Scootaloo and Tantabus. "No matter what happens, we'll find a way to deal with her."

"Oh, isn't that adorable?" Tantabus commented, her smirk widening before she teleported. "In most other circumstances, I'd consider it sweet in a pathetic way," Her voice came from behind them. By the time they'd turned to face her though, she was gone again. "Right now though, I'm just tired of dealing with defects."

"We have names! We are pegasi!" Scootaloo snapped as she spun round, going back to back with Rainbow. They could see all the way down the canyon in both directions, but their adversary had disappeared again.

"You'd barely even qualify as a slave," Tantabus replied, back in her original position at the top of the canyon. Her eyes narrowed as she took the moment to study them more closely. Rainbow first, then Scootaloo. "I recognise you actually, from that first little skirmish in the mountains. It took a moment, thanks to that...Costume, on the other. Not that it matters now."

Before either of them could respond, she fired straight down at their position. The two were forced to flee in opposing directions as it hit the ground, kicking up a small blast and showering the area in pebbles and dirt. Rainbow put her wings out to shield herself from any rubble and spun round to get a handle on the situation. Fighting any enemy in their home territory was risky even at the best of times, trying it here would be suicidal. Her best bet would be to get in close, stun Tantabus, grab Scootaloo and fly out. Even that would be difficult, Tantabus' ability to get to most out of her unicorn body gave her a lot more stamina than she'd expect in a regular fight. The pegasus could still probably take her in a straight hoof fight though. All she had to do was make it one.

Tantabus had followed her attack in and was charging her, horn surrounded by her magic aura in preparation for the follow-up assault. Scootaloo had similarly doubled back and was rushing after her with a look of unmasked fury on her face. She clearly wasn't taking the fact she'd lost her ability to fly again well. That only made her more likely to make a mistake when it mattered most though. Rainbow made an immediate judgement call; Make herself the focus of the fight and keep Scootaloo safe until an opening presented itself. No sooner had the thought been formed than she had to jump, spreading her legs out wide. A beam of magic passed through where her torso had been moments before, close enough to singe her underbelly.

Rainbow didn't hesitate for a moment, going into a hover for the briefest of moments before launching herself forward. Despite the dust cloud getting worse with every action taken, she narrowed her eyes and focused on her opponent's movements. Just as Tantabus lowered her head to strike again, she pushed herself up to avoid it and kicked a back hoof out a second later. With their closing speeds, Tantabus didn't even have time to use her magic again before Rainbow was over her, the outstretched hoof making contact with the base of her neck. The force of the blow knocked her off her hooves, but she teleported before hitting the ground and reappeared a few feet away, back on her hooves. While Rainbow swung round to maintain her offensive, Scootaloo dashed under her. Tantabus turned just in time to see a raised hoof headed for her face, a look of raw anger etched onto her features.

This ferocity was unexpected. She'd expected desperation in this situation, but to fight so hard, and so precisely as to outmanoeuvre her...Tantabus was almost impressed. At least, she would have been if both her opponents were working this way. As it was, it was only the blue defect that was giving her that impression. The look on the orange one's face told her all she needed to know.

It was the look of a fighter operating on emotion rather than focus, the kind that didn't think how each move would be followed up. The weak kind. Tantabus rolled with the punch as it hit her left cheek, the lessened pain letting her time her moment. The instant the upstary had passed her, her magic lit up again and she gripped them in a full-body hold. The momentum of the punch, coupled with some focused magic use, sent both of them flying toward the canyon wall. Tantabus was able to dig her hooves in and come to a stop, but at this speed her victim would left helpless.

"Gyaaa!" Scootaloo cried before smashing against the rock wall. She hit the wall at an angle, hard enough to crack the rock. A thick crunch was audible as the magic holding her dissipated instantly, letting her drop to the floor and slump over. She was still breathing, but unmoving.

Rainbow Dash froze in place as she saw it happen, too far away to intervene. Without thinking she landed and dashed forward, placing herself between the stricken mare and her attacker. This was precisely what she'd been trying to avoid, yet she had gotten careless, not stayed close enough. It didn't change her overall plan of escape, but getting there was going to be much harder now. If her focus strayed for a moment now, Scootaloo would be a sitting duck. Keep close, limit magic use, and utilise all her training to neutralise her foe. That was the only way. If Tantabus had the freedom to go all out at any point, she wouldn't stand a chance.

"That was my sister," Rainbow said firmly as she shrugged her saddlebags off her back, only getting a cold smirk in response. "That was a mistake."

"The only mistake here was thinking you stood a chance." Tantabus replied, staring her down. She wasn't taking the bait though, holding her position.

"We have more of a chance than you realise. Because we don't have to win here."

Tantabus tilted her head slightly and raised an eyebrow in surprise. Rainbow saw the opening and rushed forward, closing the gap in a second. Tantabus attempted to move out of the way but it was too little, too late. A hoof gripped around her horn and yanked her head to one side, preventing any magic use. Another slammed into the underside of her front right leg. She yelped in surprise and brought her own front hooves up, bringing them down on her opponent's right side and trying to pull away.

Rainbow grunted at the counter blow and tightened her grip. She wasn't at immediate risk and Tantabus was punching into her side like a filly throwing a tantrum. She couldn't get away though, her head pulled down almost alongside Rainbow's. In these circumstances, the struggle could go either way. Rainbow glanced back and saw that Tantabus' chest was level with her side. It wouldn't feel good, but it might be exactly the attack needed to end this while she had a chance. In the space of a heartbeat, her inherent magic flowed through her nerves into the bindings that converted them to magical charge, heading onward into mechanical systems. Her metal wing flared out faster than an organic one ever could, the end feather burying itself several inches into the unicorn's chest.

She couldn't feel the blood that leaked out onto it, or even the sensation of it against flesh. She could see the look of shock in Tantabus' eyes as she realised she'd been suckered, hear the roar of pain and the sickening squelch as her wing retracted almost as quickly as it had extended. More and more punches were thrown into her side and she could feel energy gathering in Tantabus' horn as she tried to force through the disruption to her magic channels. The resultant surge sent an incredible amount of heat through the horn, burning Rainbow's hoof and forcing her to release her grip. Tantabus backed away quickly as soon as she was free to, still thrashing at the air, momentarily blinded by her pain.

Without any restraint on her magic now, the built up magic discharged in a strong beam. Rainbow pushed herself sideways to avoid being caught in its path, wincing on reflex as the beam clipped her outstretched, bloodied wing. Even with a mere glancing hit, the amount of energy contained in Tantabus' magic caused a minor detonation that blew off several feathers, sending them clattering away down the canyon. A quick glance confirmed that she could probably still fly even with such damage, but it was looking less and less likely that she'd even get to that point. If Tantabus could bring power like that to bear, then this fight was already over.

The look in her eyes as she steadied herself and stared Rainbow down indicated that she was doing just that.

Rainbow gritted her teeth and charged again. Unless her next hit was a knockout blow, this was now a losing battle. She couldn't back down though, or show so much as an hint that she was weakened. Not when she still had so much to protect. At best, she could lure Tantabus away and double back, then grab Scootaloo and run. As tough as it was to know her plans were falling apart faster than she could perform a divebomb, she still had faith that there was a way out of this.

Somehow.