The Insecurity

by RandomExpert781

Rating: teen
Tags: Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Philomena, Cutie Mark Crusaders, Romance, Adventure, Winona, Tragedy, Discord, Princess Celestia, Slice of Life, Dark, Main 6, Princess Luna
Length: 7477

Evil has risen. Secrets have been kept. The time has come to act.

The Leaders of Discordian Rule, or LDR, has risen. The ruthless group's goal is to overthrow the princesses and rule Equestria in the name of their idol, Discord. Their first goal: kidnap the Element of Magic, and any other Element they can get their hooves on.

Meanwhile, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and a few other mares in Ponyville, are hiding a secret. A BIG secret. When LDR invades Ponyville, the secret is revealed. With their knowledge, they are the only ones (and a few more friends) who can stop complete chaos. But can they?

That's not the only secret . . .

*This is my first fic, so complement, criticize, and suggest at will.
Image by contrail09.
**If anyone can find a better picture for this, please send a private message to me with the picture. I would appreciate it.
WARNING: Language used.

Published 2011-12-11 15:38:02 UTC
Last updated 2012-01-23 02:09:36 UTC

Prologue: Predictions

The Insecurity
RandomExpert781
Prologue: Predictions

Scootaloo was running. Running where; she had no clue of where, but all she knew was that she was in some forest, and something was telling her to keep running, keep running, don’t stop. Voices were all around her, all different voices, whispering different things. One voice in particular she recognized as Sweetie Belle’s. “I would never let you down,” it kept saying. Another voice came through; a colt’s voice, soft and cheerful. “I-I remember you . . . the mission in Stalliongrad!”

Scootaloo finally reached what she thought was her destination. A mountain. She could sense inside was some sort of labyrinth of tunnels, some intricate base. There were plenty of ponies guarding the place, all dressed up in military gear. She started listening again. The voices- they were different this time. Instead of whispering, it was faint screaming. Many voices this time, too. All were screaming, “Help me!” like some sort of haunted house on Nightmare Night. But it was all too real . . .

Suddenly, everything froze. The ponies, the voices, everything – except for herself. Scootaloo looked around, frightened for the first time in a very long time. A familiar face appeared in front of her.

“Applebloom?” Scootaloo said, confused.

“We’re gonna make it,” Applebloom whispered, smiling broadly. Her smile immediately turned to horror. “Oh, Celestia.”

Scootaloo found herself falling for a split second, before falling into a chair. She looked up from where she was sitting and froze. She found herself looking into the barrel of a pistol.

“Tell me everything,” a gruff voice said.

“Please don’t kill me,” Scootaloo whimpered.

The gun fired, and Scootaloo raised her arms as to protect herself. Yet she felt no pain and saw no blood. Instead, she was again, falling down, down, down, into what seemed like a never-ending abyss, inside what seemed like a cage. She started screaming. Yet through her screaming she heard a soft, motherly voice: “I will bring you back, back up, up, up . . .”

* * * * * * * *

“Wake up, wake up, wake up!” Sweetie Belle was yelling and shaking Scootaloo crazily. The three Crusaders were having a sleepover inside their clubhouse. Planning the sleepover itself was tough; they needed considerable freedom from their sisters, of which Applejack and Rarity were not ready to give up. Eventually the two sisters gave in, and the crusaders were finally able to have it. But Sweetie Belle was having second thoughts.

“Wake up!” she cried one final time. Applebloom was standing right beside her, eyes closed, whispering as if in a prayer. “Please wake up, please wake up.”

Suddenly, Scootaloo’s eyes opened wide. The filly sat up quickly, gasping for air, sweat running down her face and neck. She was cringing and groaning, as if in pain.

“Are you okay?” Applebloom asked, coming beside Scootaloo and gently rubbing her back.

She cringed again. “I-I don’t know,” she stammered. She took a deep breath and massaged her temple with a hoof. “W-w-what just h-happened?”

Sweetie Belle gave a quizzical look to Applebloom. She could only shrug. “We were about to ask you that,” Sweetie Belle said, facing Scootaloo.

She looked of into the distance for a few moments. She looked at the clock beside her. 1:44 AM. She gave a small chuckle and shook her head. “Please, don’t worry about it,” she mumbled, lying back down. “It’s late. Go back to sleep, I’ll be fine.

Applebloom pulled her back up and looked into her eyes. “We want to worry about it,” she said, laying a hoof on her shoulder. “Tell us. Please.”

Scootaloo put a hoof on her chin, as if thinking. “What if I say . . . no?” she said softly.

“As long as your fine, we won’t push it,” Sweetie Belle assured, giving a soft smile.

“Then I think that’s how I’ll leave it,” Scootaloo stated. “Go back to sleep, girls. We have a lot of crusading to do tomorrow.”

Both fillies hesitated. “Well,” Sweetie Belle said cautiously. “Okay, then.” Both fillies went back to bed, and both were asleep within minutes.

But Scootaloo was restless, still awake and thinking hard about her dream. She looked at the clock again. 1:56 AM. The only thing she could do was be worried, wondering, was it only a dream?

* * * * * * * *

Meanwhile. . .

Sen. Sgt. Aleksei was worried. No, worried is not the right word. Truthfully, he feels worried every day. No, he wasn’t worried. He was scared.

The tan-bodied, blue-tinged blond Pegasus was new to the group he had just joined, which had him on his nerves. The League of Discordian Rule, or LDR, was basically an army against the rule of the two sisters, and supporting Discord. But since Discord was trapped inside stone, followers of Discord decided to come together to overthrow the sisters and rule in his name. The pony who had influenced him to join – Ekaterina, a unicorn – had spoken of grand times.

“Think about it,” Ekaterina had said, pointing to the sky and horizon. “You could be part of royalty along with us, and own a part of all of Equestria. And the money – so, so much money, enough to make you drool.”

She had finally been able to convince him to join LDR. At first, being a private, ponies of higher rank had looked down on him like he was a joke. A few high-ranking officers came to watch him the first time he went to the shooting range, which happened to be completely empty of shooters.

“You couldn’t handle a gun if you tried,” said the unicorn on duty, a sly smirk on his face. But Aleksei walked right past him to a gun rack, lined with. Without even hesitating, Aleksei picks up a Heckler & Koch UMP45, and from a huge collection of magazines, picks up the correct one, a .45 ACP magazine. He walks up to the firing range, puts the earmuffs on, and loads the gun. With the officers now watching intently and in surprise, he aims the gun at a target about 50m away with one hoof, looks away, and pulls the trigger.

He emptied the magazine within 4 seconds. He then drops the gun, takes his earmuffs off, and looks at the target. To the chagrin and amazement of the officers, the only thing on the target was a hole right in the center, the size of a plastic bottle cap, about 3cm across.

The officers watching just had their mouths open, staring wide. Aleksei remembered shaking his head in pity. “You guys are just sad rookies. I’m outta here.” He walked out of that shooting range. He got promoted and no one has messed with him since.

He had been invited to a meeting for his first mission. Judging on how hush-hush the ponies were keeping this (which was very), and the fact that the meeting was in the middle of the night, he figured it was a pretty important mission. It made him smile. Heh, he thought. I used to be in such a low position, and now my first mission is one of the most important ones yet. That’s how I roll.

Trotting into the meeting room, Aleksei noticed seven other officers in the room; all were of respectable rank, and all were sitting at a conference table. The table had a laptop with a projector next to it on a blank PowerPoint slide. Looking at each one, he noticed a dark blue Unicorn, with a silver and yellow-tinged mane. It was his friend, Lt. Faruq, with an empty seat next to him.

“Nice to see you again, Lieutenant,” Aleksei whispered, sitting down.

Faruq gave him a pat on the back. “You’ll be seeing a lot more of me soon,” he said, smirking.

Finally, a high-ranking officer walked in. He was an Earth pony wearing a military uniform, white with a blue mane, giving an irritated. He faced the conference table and the other ponies in the room.

“Hello, everyone,” he said calmly. “I am Colonel Safi. Let me just start by saying that this mission is a crucial step in moving forward. This mission will hugely affect the outcome of this group in the future.” He glanced at everyone in the room and smirked. “No pressure.” He looked at the clock: 1:45 AM. “Let me just remind you that this is just a briefing. Specific details will be given later.”

He clicked his laptop, and six ponies appeared on the slide, in the shape of a pyramid. On the bottom of the pyramid were three ponies: a yellow Pegasus with a pink mane; a white unicorn with a very elegant, purple-curled mane, and an entirely pink earth pony. The next layer had two ponies: a blue Pegasus with a blonde mane and sunglasses, and an orange earth pony with a rainbow mane and a cowboy hat. The last pony on the top was a purple Unicorn with purple bangs, and a magenta/violet streak.

Safi gave an evil stare at all the ponies in the room. “Also, to make a very important point, this,” Safi pointed at the purple Unicorn. “She is a top priority. She is to be taken care of at al costs.”

“Wait a minute,” an officer said, getting off his chair. “What is the nature of this mission? Murder? Rape?”

Safi paused a moment to ponder at the question. He looked up at the clock: 1:57 AM. Safi looked at all the ponies in the room, and then pointed at the projected screen. “These pictures you see in front of you are the holders of the Elements of Harmony. This kidnapping is, from now on, to be called, Operation Takedown.”

Operation Takedown (Part 1: Quiet Before the Storm)

The Insecurity
RandomExpert781
Chapter 1: Operation Takedown
Part 1: Quiet Before the Storm

Saturday, September 26, 2111

6:24 AM, Cutie Mark Crusader Clubhouse

Scootaloo slowly opened her eyes. The sun was just starting to rise over the horizon. She took a deep breath and let out a small groan. Ugh, I’m too tired, she thought. I’m gonna go back to sl- A thought jolted her awake.

The dream. She had been pondering it for a lot of the night. Something was bothering her about it. Something about the dream – the things that were happening, the message it was trying to convey - it seemed all too eerie, ominous, and- a third idea popped into her mind that gave her the chills. Was it . . . real? Was it a prediction? She had no idea. Yet something, a part of her consciousness, a deep part inside her, told her, yes, it was real. All too real.

Why last night, she thought. Why now, instead of before, or later? Is it something about today? Is something gonna happen . . . today? The only thing to do is wait . . .

Taking out a sticky note and a pencil, she wrote a note for Applebloom and Sweetie Belle when they woke up. She finally opened the door into the cool, still air and flew towards Ponyville.

I need to talk to . . . somepony, she mused. I like talking to Dash, but I’m not sure if she can understand it the way I want her to. Maybe . . . maybe Fluttershy could listen and understand. Yeah, Fluttershy seems to be the only fit. She picked up some speed and hurried towards Fluttershy’s cottage.

6:26 AM, LDR Main Base, Mt. Kayosi

Sen. Sgt. Aleksei had a small feeling of excitement as he prepared for his first mission. But most of that feeling was not excitement, but worry.

He, along with seven other soldiers, and Colonel Safi who was leading, were preparing to go on one of the most important missions yet in the group. And this was only is first mission! This is working better than expected, he thought cheerily.

It was amazing how high-tech the LDR actually was compared to Aleksei’s first impressions. He expected to get an ordinary and worthless AK-47 rifle and a M1911 pistol as a sidearm. Instead, the new troop was given Heckler & Koch MP7A1 submachine guns with red dot sight, and a Glock 34 pistol with a GTL 22 laser attachment. They even had some body armor. This might go better than he thought.

“Okay, everypony,” Safi called out in the small room, gathering the group of soldiers together. “Here’s the plan: We’re going to drive near Ponyville in two HUMVEEs. One will be driven by Aleksei, carrying Kashar, Nabel, and Suha. The other will be driven by Faruq, with me, Huller, Kir, and Grekk. Faruq’s HUMVEE will depart right on the edge of town, near Fluttershy’s cottage, while Aleksei will drive around the border of the town near Sweet Apple Acres. Then everyone . . .” Aleksei started to worry a little bit, zoning out. This is a very complex mission. Am I sure I can do this?

Lt. Faruq glanced at Aleksei, noticing the expression on his face. “Don’t worry,” he reassured, giving him a pat on the back. “This mission will work out fine.”

Aleksei gave a weak smile. But his mind was thinking differently. Succeeding in the mission is not my goal. I have a deeper motive.

6:30 AM, Fluttershy’s Cottage

Fluttershy rocked back and forth in her chair. Thankfully for her, most of the animals were asleep, and the few that were awake were being very quiet. She finally had some time to relax – and think.

Last night was a very weird night. For her, at least. Something had happened last night that was . . . a bit confusing. She had a nightmare – it wasn’t like this was unusual, she’s had nightmares before. It was just the nightmare itself that was confusing. Like it was a . . . prediction of some sort-

Fluttershy’s thoughts were interrupted by a knock on her door. Who could that be? she wondered. Somebody knocking on her door alone was rare; never mine the fact that it was 6:30 in the morning. “Well, there goes a relaxing morning,” she sighed. She got off her chair, walked to the door, and slowly opened it, a happy grin on her face.

The first thing she noticed was that the sun’s first rays were coming from the horizon, turning the sky into a beautiful orange. A beautiful day, indeed. The second thing she noticed was Scootaloo, sitting on her haunches, looking at her with a weak smile. Her own smile instantly disappeared from her face.

Immediately assuming the crazed, hyper part of Scootaloo was coming to her house, her first impulse was to shut the door and hide behind it, hyperventilating in the process. Fluttershy, without any hesitation, did just that. Why would Scootaloo be here? At this time of day? It made no sense . . .

“I’m not in the mood to be hyper right now,” Scootaloo called, as if reading her mind. “I just want to talk to you. About something a little . . . personal.” Her voice was cracking, like she was crying. When Fluttershy still didn’t come out, she continued, “A-and I thought you’d be a good pony to talk to. I thought you might understand the best.”

Fluttershy slowly opened the poor to peek outside. Scootaloo was still there, sitting in the same spot, looking at the ground, almost shamefully. She looked up at Fluttershy, still giving that weak smile, a single tear running down the right side of her face. Fluttershy hadn’t seen anyone like this, let alone a filly. She couldn’t take it anymore. She opened the door, gesturing her inside. “Come in,” she said softly, giving a small, warm grin.

Scootaloo looked back at the ground, mellow, and walked in slowly, almost painstakingly. It was then Fluttershy realized what was going on: Scootaloo was scared. No, no, petrified.It was a hard concept to understand. Scootaloo was sturdy emotionally; she wasn’t the type of pony that would breakdown easily, unlike herself. What could put her in a state like this?

“What happened?” Fluttershy asked, sitting down next to her and rubbing her arm gently. “Was it something from last night? W-w-was it Sweetie Belle? Applebloom?”

Scootaloo grimaced and took a long, deep breath. “No,” she whispered as calmly as she could, even though her voice was still shaking. Another tear ran down her face. “It was a nightmare,” she whimpered.

Fluttershy saw the emotional pain she was in. “C-can you talk about it, maybe, please?” When she didn’t respond, she comforted, “I-it’s the o-only way you can get better. Please?”

Scootaloo looked up at Fluttershy humbly, who gave her a small nod. Scootaloo took another deep breath. “Well,” she explained, “It all started with me running . . .”

6:32 AM, Exit of Mt. Kayosi

Colonel Safi looked out the window in the front seat of the HUMVEE. He was very pleased with how things were working out so far. The other HUMVEE was a little ahead of them, and neither truck seemed like it was undergoing any trouble.

Safi was thinking about all the members of the team. This is a pretty well-put group for the LDR’s first important mission, no doubt. Most of the solders are very dedicated and accomplished ones – specifically Suha, one of the most decorated soldiers in existence – all except one. It was the driver of the other HUMVEE, Aleksei. He had never been on any mission, and he wouldn’t be on that mission if Suha hadn’t talked about him and convinced him to put him on the mission.

“This newly-recruited Private came into the shooting range, picked up and prepared the gun like he had done it all his life, looked away, and fired a hole about as big as a plastic bottle cap,” Suha explained excitedly. “He’s perfect for a mission like this. I also saw him on the track driving around that HUMVEE; he was pretty good, even driving something as heavy as that.”

“Are you sure?” Safi said. “I mean, he’s never been on any mission, and you know how some soldiers lose their calm during actual missions. We can’t afford anything like that on this one.”

Suha gave Safi a withering look. “He’s the last one that comes even close for the level needed for a mission like this. On the training course, I have never seen a soldier so composed and sure of himself, on the battlefield and in the driver’s seat. There are very few as good as him. I should know, ‘cause I’m one of them. Besides, his cutie mark is the cutie mark for a stunt driver.”

Safi had trusted Suha’s recommendation and put Aleksei on the team, and so far, he didn’t seem to be any bit nervous. But he knew that could all change in an instant.

All I need to do is keep my eye on him, he thought. Nothing could go wrong with that, right?

6:34 AM, Fluttershy’s Cottage

Fluttershy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. The dream Scootaloo just described – it was almost the exact same dream she had last night!

B-b-but t-that’s i-i-imp-possible! she thought, shocked. Two ponies having almost the same dream on the same night! That’s too much of a coincidence! How –

“Fluttershy?” Scootaloo called, looking at her with a quizzical expression. “Fluttershy?” She started waving her hoof in front of Fluttershy’s wide-eyed face; first slowly, then frantically. “FLUTTERSHY!!”

Fluttershy, suddenly snapping out of her trance, shook her head. She then turned to the filly, “Scootaloo,” she said, with a confused look on her face. “Why are you talking to . . . me right now, instead of, I don’t know . . . Dash, maybe?”

Scootaloo looked to the side, pondering the question. “I didn’t think Dash would have as deep of a – what’s the word? – understanding as you would.”

Fluttershy gave a small nod. Damn right about that, she thought to herself. Suddenly feeling stressed, she started rubbing her temple with a hoof and pacing around the house. “This is going to be a long day,” she sighed.

She had no idea how correct she was.

Operation Takedown (Part 2: Revelation)

The Insecurity
RandomExpert781
Chapter 1: Operation Takedown
Part 2: Revelation

Saturday, September 26, 2011

6:43 AM, Fluttershy’s Cottage

“WHAT?” Scootaloo exclaimed. What was Fluttershy talking about? The only thing she did was tell her about that dream, and next thing you know, she has this wide-eyed look of realization of something, and she –

Wait, realization? That little piece of info got her thinking. Is there something she’s not telling me? Only one way to find out . . .

“Fluttershy,” Scootaloo whispered calmly, a hint of rage in her voice. “What’s going on?”

Fluttershy stopped her pacing and gave her a sarcastic face. “Nothing. Nothing at all!” she lied. Being a terrible liar, it was obvious to Scootaloo that she was hiding something. With Scootaloo was not buying it, Fluttershy finally gave up and took a deep breath.

“This is gonna be hard to explain,” she groaned, sitting down next to the filly. Scootaloo was taken aback by the seemingly out-of-character reaction. Taking another deep breath, Fluttershy started to explain - even more hesitantly and nervously than usual. “When you started describing the . . . dream, I recognized it all too well. B-because . . . I had the same nightmare that you had last night, at the same time, same night. . . . Well, it wasn’t the exact same dream, but it had many of the same parts that yours did – the forest, the running, the voices, the mountain – similarities that are hard to . . . ignore.”

Fluttershy started to explain her dream. When she finally finished, Scootaloo's eyes were as wide as dinner plates, and she could only shake her head at what she was hearing. “No,” she cried, stunned. “That’s impossible.” She hesitated. “I-isn’t it?” Fluttershy looked down, refusing to answer. Scootaloo tried continuing her train of thought. “If that happened, are these nightmares . . . trying to tell us something? It’s a wild guess, but . . ." Her voice trailed off, leaving a tense atmosphere.

Fluttershy looked up, almost as if praying, a tear mark on her face. “I think,” she said softly, her voice breaking. “I think I have to agree with you.” The Element of Kindness made a small sigh and took a glance at the door. “I need to take a breath of fresh air.” She started walking outside, and motioned for Scootaloo to follow her.

Fluttershy never thought that fresh air could be so . . . calming in such a stressful situation. Of course, she'd given some of her patients that advice, but she had never experienced it firsthand. Taking a few deep breaths, she finally let out a sigh of relaxation and plopped down on the ground, closing her eyes. Oh, maybe I should just stay here for the rest of the day . . .

“Uh, Fluttershy,” Scootaloo whispered, poking her shoulder and pointing. She sounded worried. “Is that what I . . . think it is?”

Ugh, what now, she thought, slightly annoyed. “Scootaloo, I don’t want to see-” She suddenly stopped talking as she heard something that she had dreaded for the longest time: the sound of an engine. She slowly opened her eyes, hoping her ears were deceiving her. Unfortunately, they were dead-on.

HUMVEEs. Two of them. Both were passing by her house, heading towards Ponyville. As both the mares watched, the first HUMVEE took a left turn into the forest, following the border of Ponyville territory, but the second HUMVEE stopped right outside the border, pretty far away, but close enough for the two ponies to still see what’s going on.

Time seemed to stop forever. Fluttershy could’ve sworn she held her breath for a few seconds. Then the front door opened, and a hoof appeared.

A colt stepped out. He was dressed, head to hoof, with the MARPAT digital desert camouflage design, including the beret, his mask, and his bulletproof vest. Along with him was a submachine gun, and a side-arm Fluttershy didn’t recognize. The soldier was looking into the distance, completely unaware of the two ponies watching him.

“Is that an MP7A1?” Scootaloo whispered in horror. She had barely said that when the rest of the soldiers started exiting the huge truck.

“Quick, into the house,” Fluttershy said hurriedly, and both took a quick sprint into safety. Both found themselves panting, eyes wide in horror, calming down after a few seconds.

Sitting there after the close call, a realization hit Fluttershy. Standing up, she walked towards Scootaloo and confronted her, face-to-face. “How did you recognize that Hummer?”

Scootaloo was taken aback by the question. Who did she think she was? “Well, how did you recognize that Hummer?” she replied angrily.

“How did you recognize the gun that colt was holding?” Fluttershy retorted, anger rising by the second.

“How do you even know what a gun is!?” Scootaloo shouted, rising to match Fluttershy’s eye level.

Fluttershy realized three things right at that moment: One, that they had one huge thing in common; Two, they both knew what to do; and three, if she approached this situation right, they could be the ones to stop a disaster from happening. “Well, well, well. I believe you and I both know what going on," I think we each have our secrets,” Fluttershy replied calmly, her face showing no expression. She started walking around Scootaloo.

Scootaloo raised an eyebrow in confusion. "I believe we each have our own secrets." Fluttershy paused a moment, looking the filly in the eye. "It's hard to keep a secret with other ponies who share the same secret." Fluttershy held out a hoof. “Are we in an agreement? For now?”

A brief 'oh, now I get it!' moment now came over Scootaloo, interpreting the message hidden under the small riddle. Giving a smug smile, she shook Fluttershy’s hoof. “Yeah. For now,” she said, relieved. She glanced around the room, as if she was anticipating something. “Get me a rifle. FN SCAR.” She turned around towards a table she saw, noticing a little imperfection. “I need to make a phone call.”

6:58 AM, Border of Ponyville, Sweet Apple Acres

Aleksei sat tense behind the wheel of the Hummer. This is it, he thought tersely. It’s almost time for the action to come.

So far, everything had gone fine. The other HUMVEE had stopped where it was supposed to, and his HUMVEE had split, following the outside edge of Ponyville silently until the decided point, near Sweet Apple Acres. He was driving with three other soldiers: Kashar, Nabel, and Suha.

Suha. She was the reason he was on this mission. She had decided to convince the colonel to let him be on the mission. He can’t forget the moment when she went to tell him.

“I did it!” she yelled excitedly, entering Aleksei’s dorm. “I convinced Safi to join that mission to Ponyville.”

“Awesome,” Aleksei said happily, turning to face Suha. He had a bright smile on his face. “Now I can make a name for myself, for all of Equestria to know.”

No one else knew this, but Aleksei had known Suha before meeting her at the LDR mountain base. Aleksei had been able to keep it secret for now, but he was worried about the future. Anything could happen . . .

“Is anyone back there nervous?” Aleksei asked, his own nervousness showing through his voice.

“Mentioning it will probably make me nervous,” Nabel said. Weak laughter filled the air. Everyone is too serious, Aleksei thought. Well, for Nabel, it sort of made

Without warning, he suddenly stopped the truck. “This is our stop,” he called back. While everyone started exiting, Aleksei picked up the radio set to the frequency of the other Hummer, codenamed Hunter. “Hunter, units have been dropped off, 10-12.”

“10-4, Range, stay hidden, standby for further orders,” cracked the radio. Aleksei, sat back. Now, all he had to do was wait for the right moment.

7:01:07 AM, Cutie Mark Crusader Clubhouse

Applebloom opened her eyes and looked out of the window of the beautiful morning. She raised her head and stretched her arms out wide. She turned around to see Sweetie Belle stretching also.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Applebloom said apologetically. “Did I wake you up?”

Sweetie Belle gave a small chuckle and continued stretching. “No.” She stopped stretching for a moment to give Applebloom a quizzical expression. “At least, I don’t think so.”

Both girls started laughing from the small joke. After a while, however, Sweetie Belle’s expression turned serious. “I was just thinking . . . about our . . . past.”

Applebloom’s smile started to fade. “You mean . . . FISU?” Applebloom asked doubtfully, referring to an organization. Sweetie Belle gave a small nod.

Applebloom looked into the distance, remembering those times. There were some questionable times “For when we weren’t training, those were some of the best times I’ve had with some of the kindest ponies I’ve met.”

Sweetie Belle nodded, remembering one colt in particular. “I think Scootaloo liked the training better than anything else,” Sweetie Belle said thoughtfully, smiling at the memory. Noticing Scootaloo’s sleeping bag, her happiness turning to worry. “Hey Applebloom . . . do you see Scootaloo?”

Applebloom looked around the clubhouse to discover; indeed, Scootaloo was nowhere to be seen. Looking around, she found a sticky note that had writing on it. “No,” she responded, standing up and walking towards it. “But she did leave a note.” She proceeded to pick it up and read it aloud.

“Hey Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. Had to take care of some business early in the morning. I’ll be back in the clubhouse before 8 o’clock to do some awesome crusading! -Scootaloo.”

Both fillies gave a sigh. “Great,” Sweetie Belle groaned, falling back to her sleeping bag with a thud. “What are we gonna do for another hour before Scootaloo comes back?”

Suddenly both fillies were aware of a small buzzing noise. Both turned to see a section of the table disappear, and two small, rectangular devices appeared on a platform from below. Also on the platform was a small, eight centimeter speaker.

“Bluetooth headsets,” Applebloom whispered in awe. Immediately after, the speaker started crackling, and Scootaloo’s voice came on: “Hey, Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. Like the headsets? Listen carefully; this is a live, one-way conversation. This is not a recording, and this is not a drill.”

“Ponyville is being attacked by foreign soldiers. This is 10-35. Ghost Guard has been initiated.” Sweetie Belle’s eyes widened in shock. What are we supposed to do about it? She thought fearfully, hoping the answer wasn’t what she thought it was.

Scootaloo continued, “The goal, although still unclear, seems to be targeting a kidnapping of all the Elements, specifically focusing on the Element of Magic. Your objective: Get all the elements in Pinkie Pie’s basement; that’s where we shall escape. Use the headsets in front in front of you to keep in contact with me. Weapons and ammunition are also provided on the wall beside you.”

As if on cue, the wall behind them opened up, and all-different types of rifles, submachine guns, sidearms, and snipers popped up. The voice continued, “For radio safety, do not call by name; call by the element they possess, like Magic. I shall leave you to start preparing. What happens today will be in history books. Weapons free, engage at will. Stay sharp, and good luck.” A click told the two fillies that the line was dead.

“Well,” said Applebloom, picking up a headset and looking around the clubhouse at all the gear. “We should get started.”

7:01:47 AM, Rainbow Dash’s Cloud House

Rainbow Dash looked up at the ceiling of her house from her bed. The beautiful sunrise coming over the horizon, the only thing she could think was: I am so lucky to be the pony I am right now.

What can I really complain about? Rainbow Dash told herself. I live in a house – more like a mansion, really – I have a job, I’m still walking, and I have some of the best friends I could have. What more can I ask? Rainbow found herself chuckling. Wow, I’m actually reflecting on something. Never expected that to happen.

Her thoughts were interrupted, however, by the sound of metal downstairs. Rainbow sat up, suddenly alert. “Whose there?” she shouted, a hint of nervousness in her usually boisterous voice. No response. As anypony would, she decided to investigate.

Rainbow Dash crept down the stair slowly, staying close to the wall, completely unarmed. Her big ego driving her forward, she made it to the bottom of the stairway, not making the slightest noise. Breathlessly, she stood up on her hind legs and took a peek from where she was hiding, looking for anything suspicious inside her living room.

If Rainbow Dash had the smarts to look behind her, she would’ve seen a colt dressed as a soldier with a gun, creeping down the stairs. She would’ve seen the colt stop, wide eyed, at how easy this was. She would’ve seen the colt put his gun down, ever so slowly. She would’ve seen him noiselessly fly up, so that he was only a few feet off the ground, and straight above her. . . .

Rainbow Dash felt a few quick jabs to her back. Before she could even react, she was pinned to the ground, face-down, with the intruder sitting on top of her with his gun. She tried to move herself, but she found that her muscles wouldn’t move. She couldn’t move anything but her head!

“W-what,” she stammered, cringing in pain. “What did you . . . do to me!?” She tried to turn her head to see the criminal on top of her, but a hoof pressed down on her face, pinning her head to the floor.

“I paralyzed you temporarily,” a calm, low, male voice responded. “Don’t worry, it’ll wear off in about ten minutes. But from now on,” – Rainbow could now feel him breathing on her face, - “you are under my command, and you are going to do whatever I say. Got it?”

Rainbow, still trying to catch a glimpse of the soldier, gave a defiant look. “I’m not going with you,” she replied haughtily. “Who do you think you are?”

Damn, she’s getting feisty, Huller, the colt, thought. Time to be a little forceful. He got up, put his gun down, far away, and then approached the mare again. Still paralyzed, it was at that point that Rainbow Dash managed to get a good look of the criminal. Along with the desert camouflage uniform, he had a light-brown mane, and his face was covered with a mask. Not much of a description, she thought to herself.

Huller proceeded to pick the mare up by the scruff of the neck and slam her to the closest wall, both of them upright on their back legs, his arms holding her by her shoulders. Huller pulled out his pistol on his belt and held it right on her temple.

Rainbow Dash’s face turned from one of determination to one of sheer horror, eying the piece of metal that could kill her with only the pull of a trigger. Her eyes watched the colt in front of her as he pulled out . . . a knife? What would he do with a knife? she asked herself. As this point, she could run away if she wanted to, but you don’t want to with a gun pointed at your head, right?

Huller proceeded to put the knife on her neck, first with slightly any pressure, then putting more and more pressure. Rainbow started shuddering, actually scared for the first time since she woke up. He might actually kill me, she thought. Oh, sweet Celestia, I don't want to die.

Finally, a trickle of blood appeared on her neck. Rainbow, seeing the blood, finally broke down. “STOP!” she begged, tears starting to flow down her face. “Stop, stop, I’ll do whatever you want, just stop this!”

A smirk appeared on Huller’s face, unbeknownst to Rainbow Dash. “Excellent,” he said evilly, in that evil voice that most bad guys happened to have. Just for good measure, he took his knee and drove it right into her abdomen. Dash crumpled to the ground, no longer having the will to defend herself or run away. She kept sobbing and mumbling incomprehensible and unrepeatable things to herself.

Huller went back to grab his MP7A1 rifle. Returning back to the broken mare, he grabbed her by the mane and raised her to her hooves. “Come on,” he said gruffly. “We’re leaving.”

7:02:11 AM, Sweet Apple Acres

Applejack was happy. It was a beautiful morning, she was at the farm, doing what she does best: bucking apples. Her sister was at a sleepover with her friends, so she actually had some alone time to think. But she didn’t really have much to think about. Well - yeah, actually, there was a little something disturbing her.

She stopped for a moment.

She kept picturing . . . soldiers, yeah, soldiers. But they weren't any soldiers. One of them was her, and then there were her friends the other Elements, and the Crusaders, all in battle, taking down the enemy-

She shook her head vigorously. Just keep buckin', Applejack, she thought. Ya shouldn't be thinkin' 'bout thangs like that. Get that image out of your head.

She sensed today that something was gonna be - different. It was that sort of sense that tells you that somepony is behind you. She didn't know how, or why, or any idea if this could be good or bad. She just . . . knew. And those images in her head weren't comforting her much.

Thud. Applejack heard a soft noise, like an object hitting a floor. And it wasn’t an apple.

“Whoa, there,” she called nervously, looking around the orchard. “Hello? Anypony?” she looked around, starting to get worried. I must be hallucinating, she thought.

Before she could even realized what happened, she was on the ground, a desert-camouflaged soldier on top of her, point his gun at . . . her. She could’ve sworn her heart skipped a few beats.

“You’re gonna come with me,” he said. Applejack noticed he had a heavy Russian accent. “You’re gonna do what I say, and you are not gonna resist.”

Applejack tried to give the pony a cold stare through his mask. “And if I don’t do as y'all say?”

The soldier pushed the gun harder on her head. “Then it’ll be the last thing you do,” he replied fiercely. Applejack could only nod, her face expressionless.

Kashar was surprised. He thought he would get some more resistance from her, but instead – it was weird to say the least. He got up to allow his captive to get up, the gun pointing at her the whole time. He glanced around – and his hopes fell at what he saw.

Big Mac. Running at him like a full-throttle steam train. A look of pure fury and rage on his face. The thing he hoped he wouldn’t have to go through. So that's why Applejack didn't seem to care.

Shit.

He pulled Applejack closer, pushing the gun against her head. “Come any closer, and I shoot!” he growled, his determination showing through his mask. Applejack was becoming more scared by the moment.

Big Mac stopped, almost unsure for a moment. A mischievous smile appeared on his face. "Nope," he responded in his signature low voice. He took a step slowly, then another, and another.

Kashar realized he was testing him – testing if he would actually shoot. “C’mon, Mac. You and I both want Applejack here alive.”

Mac kept creeping closer. He looked at the intruder with a mix of determination and doubt. “You would never pull that trigger in your lifetime,” he said flatly.

Kashar recognized this was his chance. “Unfortunately, you're wrong,” he said evilly. He took the gun off Applejack’s head, pointed it somewhere else, and fired.

Applejack screamed in agony as the suppressed weapon fired a bullet into her back-right knee. She had once heard - she had no idea where - that the knee is the most painful place to get shot in. She knew it was painful, but not this painful.

She took a few steps, stumbling, trying to get away from the enemy, before collapsing on the ground in an exasperated heap, clutching the bleeding knee. She gave another cry of mercy before succumbling to silence, only able to whimper a few times.

Big Mac watched the scene in horror and understanding. A new fire of rage burned in his eyes. "Oh, no you didn't," he growled.

Taking his attention away from the suffering mare, Kashar aimed his assault rifle at the farm colt calmly. "You're next," he hinted.

This is not workin' out, Mac realized. The tables are turnin'. He looked around, hoping for some inspiration somewhere around him. To the right, nothing but skies and trees. To the left, only the Clubhouse and the fillies - wait, what?

Big Mac looked closer. Eeyep, his eyes weren't foolin' him - There were Applebloom in Sweetie Belle, plain as day, holding weapons and dressed like trained soldiers! What were they doing? Applebloom noticed him, apparently not noticing the predicament he was in. She gave a small smile a a small salute. At that point Big Mac knew what he had to: get out of there. They must know what they're doing if they're walking around fully armed, right?

"Get lost," Kashar barked fiercely, noticing Mac thinking and procrastinating. "It's hopeless."

Mac backed up slowly, keeping his eye on the intruder. Applejack, still sobbing, looked up from her place on the ground. "NO!" she screamed. "DON'T LEAVE ME!!"

But before she could try to get up, he was gone. Running away from the scene. Which surprised Kashar even more. Big Mac is not the type of colt to run away from a fight, he knew that for a fact. So why would he run away? If he saw something, no matter - the rest of them will be able to take care of it.

"Get up," he barked to Applejack, who was still struggling with the knee wound. "Let's go."

"Where?" Applejack said calmly, resisting the urge to say something she'd regret..

"You'll see."

7:02:19 AM, Ponyville Public Library

Twilight is a busy pony. She's busy making checklists for checklists for a day, reading books, making experiments - it's always work, think, read, study, go with friends, more thinking, go with friends. But today, nothing was happening inside the Ponyville Library. Nothing at all. Strangely, today wasn't a day where Twilight was doing anything. Oh, wait - I lied, she's reading. Cancel that last part!

With Spike on Canterlot duties, Twilight had no company. And since she was a very organized pony with no organizational skills at all, Twilight was trying very hard not to make a mess, shown by the pile of books sitting next to her couch. She had decided not to do any studying or work; rather, to take a few fiction books to read for fun. She was wrapped up in a book when she saw an unfamiliar word, which was very weird, since she had half-memorized the dictionary.

"What's a terrorist?" she asked aloud to herself. Finding no answer in the sky, she picked up the dictionary next to her and searched through it. "Ah-ha! Terrorist, a pony or creature who practices terrorism." More flipping pages. "Terrorism, the use of violence and threats to intimidate, especially for -" She stopped disbelievingly at the next part. "Political purposes?"

She sat back, shocked that something like that could even exist. "Why would someone use violence just to express hate for the Princesses? I may be a little biased, but they are the kindest, most warmhearted ponies I have ever met. Who would ponies like that be for - Discord?" She took a moment to ponder her own question. "Actually, I can so see that. But what would they do for violence - kidnap high political officers?"

Without any warning, the door to her house was suddenly knocked right off it's hinges, and a camouflaged and masked colt with a gun steps in. He points his gun straight at Twilight.

"Hooves up," he says softly, approaching closer. "This is a kidnapping."