Arcos Hieroglyph, Star Tracker, Pyro, and the Frail Stallion.

They must die.

They will die.

Fluttershy has already killed Mama, and the horror has faded to relief. Why was she horrified to begin with? Is it because of “Do no harm”? As a medic Fluttershy took the oath to do no harm, and yet she broke it without hesitation. Maybe that is where the horror came from, but do no harm did not save her, the act of harm did, and doing harm is what will get her, Zephyr, and the others off of this ship.

Fluttershy smiles and buries her muzzle into Applejack's shoulder as she hugs her tight. They are so close to getting off the ship. Everything is getting closer to being fixed. The ones responsible for the Bon Voyage tragedy are coming closer to their end, she has Zephyr, and once she gets to Dr. Rock, she if she can confirm he is Arcos Hieroglyph then can kill him and they can all go home and be whole again.

As the two mares stay in the embrace, time seems to lose all meaning, but one thing they both register is a distant thud, followed by metal bending and breaking, and both of their ears perk. Then they look down the hallway as heavy steps echo in the darkness in front of them. The steps are familiar, and Fluttershy pales and pushes Applejack up.

“Run,” says Fluttershy urgently.

Applejack immediately gallops away and Fluttershy runs after her, their steps banging in the dimly lit stairwell. Zephyr stays close, thankfully, and when the heavy steps get faster the group runs faster down the dark hallway towards the destroyed door to the Terrarium. They run out and like a hive mind they turn into the gift shop and take cover behind the counter.

Fluttershy activates her cutter, keeping it aimed down so the beams don't expose them, and she covers Zephyr's mouth while Applejack readies her weapon, cringing as its clicks echo in the destroyed shop. Fluttershy nearly jumps out of suit and skin when her muzzle is covered, but quickly regains herself when she realizes that it was Applejack's hoof, and the engineer was making the motion to be quiet. Fluttershy decides to leave the weirdness be for now, and the group remains still with only their racing hearts making a noise, and after a few seconds of silence, the heavy steps thump by. The steps stop outside the shop, and a low growl rumbles out, followed by bug-like clicks, and it stays there for a few more seconds before the steps move away from the shop and fade out of ear shot. But even with the steps gone, none of the ponies make a sound until a long moment passes. And all of them exhale with Applejack banging her head against the counter and Fluttershy looking around the corner. There is nothing in the dark silhouettes of shelves, destroyed merchandise and the remains of the Terrarium.

“What was that?” asks Applejack.

“A Hunter,” says Fluttershy. “It regenerates. I dropped it down an elevator shaft, but it only slowed it down.”

“Wait? Ya talking about a Regenerator? That was the thing that got our team when we first got here!”

Fluttershy looks at Applejack. “Really?”

Applejack nods. “Eeyup. That damn thing tore our ship apart, killed the Captain, Roid, the others, and it chased me, Rarity, Thunderlane and Dash until we split up.”

“Oh dear...”

“Yeah... But the good news is that its loud, and if we're lucky we can get to the bridge, get Dash and Thunderlane and get out of here before it finds us again.”

Fluttershy nods and takes one more peek around the corner. “I think it's safe. Stay close to me, Zephyr.”

Zephyr nods, and Fluttershy creeps forward, stopping by the doorway and looking side to side in the dark. When she sees nothing, she moves towards the door at the other end of the Terrarium. Or, what's left of it.

Applejack shines her light down the hallway, and when nothing appears Fluttershy goes forward, followed by Zephyr, and then Applejack. They go down the hallway, trotting and sweeping the hall as they go, and one room they pass has its door partially open with its walls exposed. Blood has splattered on the wall with a dried pool next to it that streaks towards the door, and near the dark crimson stain is an audio disc that Fluttershy immediately goes to.

“Hey, what're ya doing?” says Applejack, following her inside, but stopping when Fluttershy holds out her hoof.

“Watch Zephyr,” orders Fluttershy.

Applejack cocks a brow, and Fluttershy carefully picks up the disk and slips it into her audio band. Truthfully, she is surprised that the band still works, and as the audio plays, she looks at Applejack, who is not guarding Zephyr for some reason, even though her brother is out in the open hallway. But she says nothing, choosing to let her disapproving stare do the talking while she walks past Applejack. When she is by Zephyr, she tugs him close to her and resumes walking down the hallway while the audio plays.

“Is this thing on? Testing testing testing,” says a stallion, his voice quivering with fright while an alarm wails in the background. “It looks like this is working. I see numbers and stuff on this thing.”

Fluttershy rolls her eye, and the stallion takes a deep breath.

“Okay, here we go. This is audio recording number one of Dusty Horseshoe, stock accountant of the Bon Voyage. I'm hoping for there to be a lot more because I do not want to die here,” says the stallion. “That said, that goal will be a little bit hard to do since the life pods have been disabled, but if I can get into the bridge I can force Captain Star Tracker to reactivate them and then I can escape. Wife be damned. I only married her because she was a Unitologist and they have money and connections that would move me up in this sorry excuse for a space empire, and with ninety nine percent of the inhabitants dead that means she's probably dead, too! Heh, I just might make it out as the only survivor, and I can publish this audio log and make a fortune. Get something out of this mess.”

Fluttershy frowns, but before she can think a nasty thought a Slasher breaks through the vent and lands next to Zephyr. It roars and raises it scythe limbs, Zephyr shrieks, and Fluttersher pushes Zephyr aside and rams the Slasher into the wall. She then breaks its rotting maw to pieces with an upper cut, and as it staggers she knocks it down and stomps on it, and keeps stomping on it, snapping its limbs and ribs, and growling with every stomp as its body twitches and its blood squirts up. By the time Fluttershy is done, her limbs and face are dripping with blood and a growing pool of blood surrounds the mutilated Slasher.

“Are you okay?” asks Fluttershy after taking a long, raspy, painful breath.

“For now. I'd hate to be at the wrong end of your hoof,” says Applejack uncomfortably from a short distance away with her weapon aimed at Fluttershy.

“I wasn't talking to you. Zephyr?”

Applejack raises a brow again and Zephyr smiles.

“Fine and dandy!” he says.

“Good,” says Fluttershy.

“So, Zephyr's good?” asks Applejack slowly.

“Yes.”

Applejack nods and Fluttershy notices the earth pony's tail flicking slightly, and she looks at Applejack with a small frown while the light above flickers, putting her in a moment of darkness.

“Is something wrong?” asks Fluttershy.

“Zephyr don't talk much, does he?” asks Applejack.

“I told him to be quiet earlier. He just now started listening.”

“Does he want to talk to me? I'm a good listener.”

“Not my type,” says Zephyr.

“He doesn't want to talk to you,” says Fluttershy.

“Fair enough.” Applejack motions Fluttershy ahead. “Well, we best keep walking.”

The lights flicker again and Fluttershy narrows her eye while Applejack stays put. The audio is also still playing on her band, which Fluttershy is now registering the words while wondering why Applejack is has her weapon aimed at her.

“Look at me rambling. Am I going mad? I must be!” says Dusty.

Applejack stares at Fluttershy, unblinking and her hat tilted down just a bit, covering her eyes in a shadow.

“You okay, hon?” says Applejack.

“You're acting weird,” says Fluttershy.

“No, I'm not going mad. This is real. Everyone else is insane!” says Dusty. “I've seen them changing ever since we stopped above this forsaken planet, but I haven't changed. I'm not mad!”

“How am I acting weird?” asks Applejack.

“You're just... off,” says Fluttershy. She looks at Applejack's weapon for a split second. “You also seem tense.”

“She really is off. I can see it in her eyes,” says Zephyr. “We should ditch her before she snaps.”

“I'm fine. Can't say the same 'bout you, though,” says Applejack.

“They are trying to kill me, but I'll live. They don't know who they are messing with!” says Dusty.

“Why don't you go up front?” suggests Fluttershy, stepping to the side while Applejack's weapon trails her.

“I'd rather not.” Applejack's ear twitches. “In fact, its best you stay up front.”

“Why?”

Fluttershy is really fighting the temptation to activate her cutter, but she figures that will lead to Applejack shooting Zephyr, so she puts herself between Zephyr and Applejack, which leads to Applejack taking a step back.

“'Cuz I don't want ya flipping out and beating me to death,” says Applejack.

Fluttershy stares at Applejack and the engineer looks back, unblinking. Fluttershy's heart thumps in her ear, clashing with the heavy steps and breathing in the audio, and soon the steps turn to banging and the stallion screaming.

“Hey, open up! Let me out!” screams Dusty.

A roar in the audio brings the stallion to stop his screaming, and his hoofs bang against the metal as he runs, followed by a door opening and shutting and him breathing heavily.

Fluttershy paws the floor. “You don't trust me?”

“Fluttershy, you've been muttering the whole time and now you just beat up thin air. I ain't letting you stand behind me,” says Applejack.

“She's lying,” says Zephyr. “You saw that Slasher. Big, ugly, mean.” Zephyr shudders. “Nasty things!”
Fluttershy's fur bristles inside her suit and she can feel her injured wings trying to ruffle her feathers, but all she can do is harden her stare.

“You're staying in front of me,” says Applejack firmly.

In the audio, the door opens, and the stallion's heavy breathing is loud in Fluttershy's ear, and her eye focuses on Applejack while she clenches her jaw.

“I think they're... Wait... Is that... It is!” says Dusty. “Hey, Reverend Heart! Over here!”

Fluttershy's heart immediately jumps into her throat and she presses her hoof against her ear bud while her blood runs cold. In the audio, another set of steps approach. The similar, heavy, calculating steps of the Pyro.

“Reverend Heart, I'm so glad to see you!” says Dusty, his voice quivering with fright. “We're being overrun! These things just won't stop! Everypony and everyone is dead, and the Captain has sealed the bridge and now the escape pods won't work! You look like you have been able to take care of yourself so far. If we work together, we can get off this ship.”

“Now you come to me?” says the Pyro with the tired and heavy voice Fluttershy knows. “You turned your nose up at me, mocked me, mocked my flock, my faith, and now when Hell is upon you, you cry for help?”

“Look, I know I was a dick, and I'm sorry, but I promise I will convert, get baptized, whatever I have to do to make you happy when we get off this ship. I even got this audio thing recording everything so we can make bank when we escape! We'll be rich!”

“None of us are leaving.”

“What? Come on, man! Let's be optimistic. Its survival of the fittest. You're here so you're not as weak as I thought, and I'm here so I know I'm good, so let's put our brains together and get off this thing.”

“I will not let any of us leave. This disease cannot spread.”

“Wait... What are you doing? … STOP!”

There is a crack, followed by a cry of pain, followed by heavy stomps and wet, painful gags that turn to gurgles and chokes. Seconds later, the choking is cut off with another heavy stomp and a crunch, leaving just the Reverend's heavy breathing.

“This disease cannot spread. They cannot be made whole,” says Reverend Heart.

Then the audio clicks off and Fluttershy's hoof drops as she looks at Zephyr, and then at Applejack. The light above turns back on, and a new resolve comes over Fluttershy. She has her brother, she has Applejack, and Rainbow Dash and Thunderlane are a short distance away. They will make it off the ship alive. Pyro be damned.

However, the thought of something like the Necromorph infestation spreading sends a chill down her spine, and after hearing the Pyro speak of his mission to stop the infestation she wonders if he is insane like Mama or the only sane one left of the colonists. And how many survivors did he kill to stop the disease from spreading? But on another note, even if he did kill survivors and try to kill her to stop the Necromorph disease from spreading he still killed innocent people and tried to kill her. That is unacceptable. He must die.

He will die.

“Fluttershy?” calls Applejack.

Fluttershy blinks. “Yes?”

“You're muttering again. Ya need to come down to the real world.”

Fluttershy frowns. “Stop lying.”

“I ain't lying.”

Fluttershy snorts and walks ahead. “Sure. Stay next to me, Zephyr.”

“Aren't you worried Applejack will shoot us in the back?” asks Zephyr.

Fluttershy looks over her shoulder and sees Applejack has kept her distance, and Fluttershy motions Zephyr to lower himself so his ear is close to her muzzle.

'Curse him and his height,' thinks Fluttershy before saying quietly, “If she shoots me, run. I'll find you after I kill her.”

Zephyr nods. “Sounds good to me.”

Fluttershy looks at Applejack again and flashes a sweet smile. Or, as sweet as a pegasus with burnt hair, half a burnt face, a missing eye, scars and blood soaked damaged armor looted from a corpse can smile.

“The bridge shouldn't be much farther,” says Fluttershy.

“Right,” says Applejack slowly, “and don't worry. I ain't gonna shoot you unless you give me a reason to.”

“Make sure you shoot me in the head if you do. Because I will kill you if you don't.”

“Thanks for the advice... Emo.”

The two mares fall silent after that and walk with caution. Nothing spectacular happens for a minute, but after crossing through a doorway Fluttershy finds herself in a hallway with a long row of clean windows. The hallway is brightly lit, light shines past the windows and an intercom plays an announcement while chatter and steps flow down the hallway. On the other side of the window, a large group of administrative workers going about their business at their computers with a holographic display of a map of discovered space being projected in the center of the room. All the workers are wearing blue jumpsuits with yellow bands, and they are casually talking, and Fluttershy watches them, heart racing and mouth going dry. Then her eye drifts to the corner and she sees a group of shadows sitting and standing, all facing a lone shadow.

“We only want what is best for you,” says the soft spoken stallion.

“Please don't be mad,” says the soft mare.

“But that was my dream,” says Fluttershy.

“You can have a better one with us,” says the stallion.

“Where are you!?” cries another voice.

The last voice jerks Fluttershy out of her trance, and she shakes her head and steps back, looking to the side only to find that Applejack or Zephyr aren't there.

“Zephyr? Applejack?” calls Fluttershy.

Nothing.

Fluttershy paces in a circle, seeing clean walls, bright lights and posters displaying uplifting messages or propaganda of a glorious future. One such being a picture of all the races of Equus looking proudly into space with a colony ship above them, with a text saying: The Future Holds Greatness.

Fluttershy hurries past that, not wanting to think about their idea of greatness.

“Zephyr!? Applejack!?” calls Fluttershy again.

Fluttershy walks forward again, passing a clean window that changes to cracked with a streak of blood with the flickering light above.

“Zephyr! Applejack!” screams Fluttershy. She coughs into her hoof and stumbles forward. Her body trembles with sharp tingles running up her spine, and tears cloud her vision as she goes forward. “ZEPHYR!”

Fluttershy coughs again and collapses against the wall, wheezing and rubbing her throat as the taste of blood soaks her tongue. The people working on the other side of the glass continue their tasks, unknowing or uncaring of Fluttershy's presence. The computer screens and the holographic display flash to the double helix and the clean room and tidy work spaces flash to blood soaked walls and floors, destroyed furniture and flickering lights with some dangling from the ceiling. On the wall, written with thick and long strokes of blood is: THE BROKEN WILL BE MADE WHOLE.

Then the lights in the hallway flash off and are quickly replaced with swirling red lights that stretch darkness over the metal walls and broken glass. A window shatters behind Fluttershy and she turns around, heart racing and eye wide. The Frail Stallion has broken through the window, and is now charging her, roaring with its eyes glowing red. Fluttershy shoots its front legs off with her cutter and while it collapses the window next to her breaks and she is rammed into the wall by another Frail Stallion. Fluttershy punches it in the maw, followed by shooting off its head and its front legs. While she shoots that thing, a slash goes down her flank, and she screams and buckles, and when another slash cuts into her near useless armor she whirls around and punches a Slasher. It staggers back and Fluttershy rams it in the chest, ignoring all the pain in her side and flank as she pushes it back, screaming hoarsely.

The Slasher hits the wall across the way, and the two flip through the broken window with Fluttershy landing on the bottom but quickly flipping them around and stomping on its face. Broken bone and strings of blood pop up, and when another Slasher tries stabbing Fluttershy, she bucks it into the wall. Gunshots ring out, and while the Slasher beneath her twitches, she unloads her cutter on the swarm of Necromorphs in the area. Limbs, bones and broken computer parts fly with the blood and sparks. Her vision goes red and she can barely hear her thumping heart over the Necromorph screams, the discharge of her cutter and breaking of bodies and computers. Slashers that get close are beaten down with punches, stomps and bucks, and every slash they land on Fluttershy is shrugged off or met with vicious whack that breaks their bones. There is so much chaos and bloodshed that Fluttershy loses all sense of time and barely feels the first barb get lodged into her from one of those damn Lurkers, but she definitely feels the other two, and she drops to the ground, growling and forces herself to crawl behind a desk. More barbs puncture the furniture, with one coming close to her head, and when Fluttershy pokes out to shoot the Lurker she sees it squished by a flying desk.

It doesn't even make a squeak when its body pops against the wall, and when the broken desk falls down, Fluttershy looks to the side and sees Applejack. The engineer is reloading her weapon, also surrounded by dead Slashers, and her hoof has a dimming glow of the Artificial Telekinesis Module. Seeing that wonderful blue glow makes Fluttershy green with envy, but envy is put in the back burner when she realizes that Applejack is glaring at her, and her stomps are heavy as she passes over dead Necromorphs.

“What's wrong with you!?” scolds Applejack.

“Me? What's wrong with you? You left me!” says Fluttershy. “And where's Zephyr?”

Zephyr pokes his head out from behind a destroyed desk, his hoof raised with a broad smile.

“Right here!” says Zephyr.

Fluttershy sighs with relief, but is forcefully turned away from Zephyr by Applejack, and the engineer's face is red from more than just the blood as she jabs Fluttershy’s chest.

“I was right next to you, and you flipped out for no reason, screaming like a maniac and got the attention of all them things! You almost got us killed!”

Fluttershy's trained eye scans the massacre, counting at least twenty bodies, not including the ones outside. A good portion are near her with their broken bones popping out of their bodies, brains oozing out or organs spilled from the wounds caused by the cutters or the stomps. Fluttershy can't help but feel proud about that. But there are still the barbs in her, which she needs to pull out, so she retracts her helmet and bites down on the nearest one.

“What are you doing?” asks Applejack.

Fluttershy pulls on the barb, wincing as the jagged bone tugs on her muscles, drawing more blood, and Applejack gags and shakes her head as she looks away while Zephyr snickers.

“Aw, hell no!” complains Applejack.

Fluttershy spits out the bloody barb, bites down on another one, and when Applejack looks at her out of the corner of her eye, she pulls on that one.

“Damn it!” Applejack stomps her hoof and once again looks away. “You're gonna make me sick.”

'Baby,' thinks Fluttershy. She spits out the barb and goes for the last one. She bites down, waits, and when Applejack looks at her again, she smirks and begins pulling.

“No!” Applejack turns away, shaking her head. “That's nasty!”

After Fluttershy spits out the barb she looks at the trails of blood moving down her limbs, and she shivers when the suit beeps and sprays her wounds with medical foam. The familiar sting and numbness is welcomed, but with all the blood she has lost over the course of this hell trip, she is wondering two things: first, if the doctors will have AB+ blood packs to use? And two, if they do have them will they have enough? Faust, God, Celestia, whoever rules the heavens knows she lost a lot of blood, and even if there isn't an all powerful being (which Fluttershy is sure there isn't) she knows she lost a lot of blood, is frankly quite surprised to be walking or avoiding a state of hypovolemic shock, and will be royally pissed off it they don't have her blood type in storage when she comes for her much needed refill.

“Warning. Medical foam depleted. Please refill,” says the suit.

'Well, fuck,' thinks Fluttershy bitterly.

Applejack looks at her, then at the yellow tinted blood that leaked from her, and she steps back, staring at her suspiciously with her focus on the yellow tint in Fluttershy’s eye.

“Ya sick or something?” asks Applejack.

“No,” replies Fluttershy sharply.

“Then why’s your blood weird looking? And your eye? That’s weird, too. Got a yellow thing going on.”

Fluttershy shrugs. “Maybe it’s cervical discharge. If cervical discharge is exposed to air, then it turns yellow. It is more common in pregnancies and can also mean high estrogen. So, maybe I’m pregnant? Yeah, I’m pregnant with a lot of estrogen. Mystery solved!”

Applejack frowns. “I doubt you got cervical fluid in yer hoof and eyeball. Ya might be infected with somethin’ nasty.”

“Cholecystitis can also cause yellowing of the eyes,” adds Fluttershy.

“Or ya might be infected with an alien bug.”

Fluttershy stomps her hoof. “I’M NOT INFECTED!”

Applejack remains steadfast, and Fluttershy takes a deep breath and runs her hoof through her mane, unable to look at Applejack, all while Zephyr’s eyes flick between the two.

“I’m not infected. I’m fine. There’s nothing wrong with me. I’m fine… I’m fine. I’m fine. I’m fine!” says Fluttershy.

Applejack shakes her head. “Nah, you ain’t fine. We’ll get you taken care of when we get off this ship, but you got something bad.”

“I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.”

“Yes, I am! And I’m not going back to the military when this over! I’m taking Zephyr and we’re going to have the lives that were stolen from us. No military, no Unitology! Just me and Zephyr!”

“Well, if ya keep screaming and beating random shit like a loon you and 'Zephyr' are gonna die here!”

Fluttershy does an about face with a loud huff and marches towards one of the gaping holes that used to be a window, and climbs out into the hallway where she finds five more dead Slashers near where she was and a few more a bit further back. She huffs again and looks in front of her to see Zephyr standing a good distance away from her, waving her towards a locked door with ADMINISTRATIVE DECK above it. The sign is red and flickering, and the door has a red ring, but it is only a small obstacle that Fluttershy has no problem breaking.

“Zephyr, stay close to me,” orders Fluttershy.

“Sorry, I'm just eager to get this over with,” says Zephyr as he trots towards Fluttershy. When he is next to her, he adds quietly, “We should still ditch the others while we still can. They'll try to stop us, you know?”

Fluttershy shakes her head. “No, they're simply scared and mad at... well, everything. We're all going to make it,” says Fluttershy. She looks over her shoulder and sees Applejack is standing far back, her ear twitching again, and her eyes locked on Fluttershy. “We're almost at the bridge.”

“Good,” says Applejack. “Do you want me to unlock the door or do you want to handle it?”

Fluttershy looks at her cutter battery. It is a quarter full and it is the last one, causing Fluttershy to realize that she will have a problem breaking the obstacle plus killing things.

“By your silence I'll just assume that I have the honors of doing it,” says Applejack.

“Do you know how to hack a lock?” asks Fluttershy.

“No.” Applejack presses a button on her vest and a blowtorch slides out with a needle like, bright blue flame sprouting from it. “But I know how to cut a few things.”

A couple of minutes later, a circle large enough for Applejack to go through has been cut into the door, followed by the circle being bucked out of place, making a loud ruckus of metallic bangs and screeches. There are screams down the hall, and when Fluttershy and Applejack crawl through the hole they quickly gun down a group of Slashers that charge them from up the stairs. In Fluttershy's case, she has to use her rifle since it has plenty of ammo, and with the combined firepower of the two they make quick work of every Necromorph that comes their way. However, there is a fear in the back of Fluttershy's mind that they are too late. Rainbow Dash and Thunderlane could already be dead, and then there's the Hunter and the Pyro still on the loose.

“You're almost there. Go down the hall, take the first left and you'll be at the bridge door,” says Dr. Rock.

Fluttershy glances up and sees a camera looking at the two, and she smiles and goes ahead after Applejack instructs her to go forward. The two reach the top of the stairs and turn their trots into gallops when they hear gunshots, roars and Rainbow Dash screaming.

“Come on! Who wants more!?” yells Rainbow Dash.

Fluttershy is the first to round the corner, and she instantly shoots a Slasher in the back as it rushes towards Rainbow Dash, who is standing in front of Thunderlane's. Thunderlane is slumped on the ground, surrounded in a pool of blood. Rainbow Dash has a ring of dead Slashers around her, with the walls covered in blood and bullet holes, the lights flicker, and her war cries turn to maddening cackles as she kills another Slasher with a barrage of pistol shots.

“You can't kill me!” boasts Rainbow Dash. “None of you can kill me!”

Fluttershy gallops forward with Applejack following close behind, and the two of them gun down a pair of Slashers rushing towards Rainbow Dash. Some Necromorphs turn around and rush the pair, and Fluttershy gallops forward, ignoring Applejack's shouts while emptying the last of her battery into the creatures. A pair of them drop, and she tackles the third Necromorph to the ground, stomping on its chest and head with each stomp releasing a crunch and popping broken bone out of its skin. She then side steps a downward stab from the other Slasher and shoots it point blank with her rifle, tearing apart its torso and limbs. It falls, gurgling with torn muscles, organs and bone spilling everywhere, and she executes the Slasher below her. Applejack runs up to Fluttershy a couple of seconds later and guns down two more Slashers while Rainbow Dash reloads her pistol, and when Fluttershy looks up from her kill she sweeps her weapon around the area and realizes that all the Slashers are dead. Now, if Slingshot and Rarity were still with them then they would be an unstoppable force, but at least they found Rainbow Dash and-

A hoof hooks around Fluttershy's neck and she is dragged to Thunderlane while Applejack steps in front of a camera by the blast door, which is covered in scratches, dents, and scorch marks.

“Fix him,” orders Rainbow Dash.

Fluttershy looks at Thunderlane, and her colors drain and her ears droop as she looks at his limp form sitting in a pool of blood with a poorly bandaged stub of a hoof. The bandage has unraveled, revealed torn muscle and bone. She swallows and leans down, pressing her ear against his nose.

Nothing.

Fluttershy steps back, her eye filling with tears and her chest and throat becoming heavy, all while Rainbow Dash smiles hopefully with tears in her eyes as she rubs Thunderlane's mane.

“You'll be fine, Thunderlane,” says Rainbow Dash. “The medic is here. You're going to make it.”

“Rainbow... I can't,” says Fluttershy.

“You can't what?” says Rainbow Dash.

“I can't... Fix him. He's dead.”

Rainbow Dash's smile fades. “No... Don't lie to me. He was talking to me just a minute ago!”

“I'm sorry, I was too late.”

Rainbow Dash shakes her head, lips trembling and cheeks becoming wet with tears. “Don't say that.”

Applejack waves at the camera.

Rainbow Dash puts her hoofs on Fluttershy's shoulders and looks into her eye; Fluttershy can see her somber face looking right back at her and feel Rainbow Dash's hooves tremble.

“Don't say that,” repeats Rainbow Dash. “I don't want his name on the list! I can't have any more names on the list! You have to fix him, please! Please fix him!”

Fluttershy grips Rainbow Dash's hoof. “I'm sorry. I can't save him… He’s gone.”

Rainbow Dash's legs buckle, and she shakes her head as Fluttershy helps her sit down. The commander whimpers and buries her head in Fluttershy's shoulder, and her whimpers turn to sobs as Fluttershy holds her.

“You're lying,” says Rainbow Dash. “Stop lying.”

“I'm sorry,” says Fluttershy quietly.

As Rainbow Dash cries, Fluttershy looks at Zephyr, sniffling and blinking tears out of her eye. Her brother is standing next to Applejack, who is staring at the camera, and he points at the blast door, As if planned for theatrics, as soon as he points at the door, it pops, clicks and whirs and begins sliding open, shining bright yellow light on the group. Fluttershy watches the doors open in a state of joy and disbelief. Applejack steps back and does a quick sweep of the area before motioning the others inside, and Fluttershy helps Rainbow Dash up.

“We're almost whole,” says Zephyr.

Fluttershy nods and walks ahead, stopping only to look over her shoulder at Rainbow Dash. She is staring at Thunderlane's corpse.

“Rarity Belle, Roid Rage, Moonlight Aura, Comet Tail, Hothoof Trotter, Red Joystick, Gage Meter, Thunderlane Hurricane,” says Rainbow Dash quietly. She sniffles and walks inside the bridge, with her steps slow and her eyes dead.

Fluttershy enters the bridge next, followed by Applejack, and the medic looks around, taking in the brightly lit circular room. Computers line the wall, all flashing warning messages, a holographic display shows the Peace System, and the bridge window has a view of the black planet and its red sun. There is also a captain's chair on an elevated position that has a view of the whole bridge, and large screen on a bare wall shows profiles in red with flat lines for hundreds, possibly thousands of names, save for two with a stream of vitals. All of which have their profiles enlarged.

One is Heart Fire with steady vitals; the brown earth pony stallion has a bright smile, soft green eyes, and his dark green mane is combed nicely. A complete opposite of what he is now. His vital signatures are steady with the occasional spike. His profile is outlined in green.

Then there is the other. Star Tracker. His vitals are sharp and through the roof with rapid pulses and heavy breathing, and his profile is outlined in yellow.

“What did you do!? Why'd you open the door!?” yells a stallion with a shaky, pathetic voice from an elevated position with a circle of computers and the holographic display of the Peace System in the center.

Fluttershy looks to the voice and sees Star Tracker, Captain of the UEG Bon Voyage. The same scrawny stallion with an odd purplish-blue coat, blue eyes, and freckles, and his white and gold banded captain's suit that is too big for him is now open and ripped in spots with patches of sweat. His mane is also a mess and his eyes are bloodshot.

Seeing him, Rainbow Dash exhales and marches forward while Fluttershy and Applejack stay back.

“Watch the door,” orders Rainbow Dash.

Fluttershy didn't need to be told to do that, but Applejack doesn't listen. She stands off to the side, watching her commander.

“You must be the captain of this ship!” says Rainbow Dash, her voice booming in the empty bridge. “Where's your crew? Where are the colonists? Where's the warm welcome!?”

“I-I, uh, I-”

Rainbow Dash zips forward, leaps on a console and balances herself on it as she goes nose to nose with the Captain, her fiery eyes beating down the skinny stallion further.

“We came to fix your ship and we got sucked into Hell! What did you do to your ship!? What did you do to all these people!?”

“It wasn't my fault, I swear! I've been set up!” cries Star Tracker.

Rainbow Dash whacks Star Tracker on the head, and he yelps as he crashes to the floor. Rainbow Dash then leaps off the console, hoists him up and slams his face into one of the computers, shattering the monitor and spraying sparks everywhere. As he screams in pain with glass digging into his face, Rainbow Dash throws him down the stairs and cracks her neck as he shifts on the ground, moaning and whimpering with blood dripping down his broken face.

“Big, hot shot captain had a death trap waiting for me and my team,” says Rainbow Dash. “Do you know their names, hot shot?”

“It's not like that! None of this was supposed to happen, I swear!” cries Star Tracker.

Rainbow Dash draws her pistol. “Answer the questions. Do you know the names of my teammates? They died on your ship, the least you can do is know their names!”

“Oh, God! Somepony stop her!”

Fluttershy hesitantly takes a couple of steps forward but stops when Zephyr gets in front of her.

“Do you really want to stop this? I mean, look at what he did to the ship. To me.” Zephyr points at Fluttershy. “To you. He caused all this.”

Fluttershy stares at her brother, halfway agreeing and halfway disagreeing. She wants to hear what Star Tracker meant with his claim of being set up... But at the same time, his acts almost got her and Zephyr killed, and now her team is a skeleton crew going on their last limb. Their blood is on his hooves, as well as Arcos Hieroglyph. Wherever he is.

“Rainbow, he ain't gonna know our names,” says Applejack. “Put the gun down and let's take a moment to figure out what to do next.”

“Rarity Belle, Roid Rage Snowflake, Moonlight Aura, Comet Tail, Hothoof Trotter, Red Joystick, Gage Meter, Thunderlane Hurricane,” says Rainbow Dash. “Repeat it.”

“Wha-what?” stammers Star Tracker.

“Repeat their names! Now!”

“Rarity Belle, Roid Rage Snowflake, Moonlight Aura, Comet Tail, Hothoof Trotter, Red Joystick, Gage Meter, Thunderlane Hurricane,” says Star Tracker quickly.

“Quick mind, huh?” sneers Rainbow Dash. “Did that quick mind tell you to keep me and Thunderlane locked out when we needed you?”

“Wait. Wait!” Star Tracker crawls on the floor, one hoof held up and tears mixing with blood. “I couldn't open the doors! Protocol dictated that!”

“Protocol dictated that,” mimics Rainbow Dash. “How come you didn't fix the comms yourself, hmm? How come? You had engineers and techies, right? Did protocol dictate that you couldn't fix your own ship? My team died because of you!”

“Rainbow Dash, stop this right now!” says Applejack.

Rainbow Dash snaps her pistol to Applejack. “STOP TRYING TO TAKE CONTROL! I’M IN CONTROL!” She turns her pistol back to Star Tracker. “And this… This little fucker killed my team! He killed everyone and hurt us, and I’m not going to let him hurt us anymore!”

Applejack steps forward, and Fluttershy takes another step forward, but stops when Zephyr slips in front of her again, wagging his hoof disapprovingly.

“No. Just let her do her thing, sis,” says Zephyr.

Despite Zephyr's insistence of not letting her interfere, there is voice in the back of Fluttershy's mind urging at her to get between Rainbow Dash and Star Tracker, but her legs are no longer wanting to move.

“Rarity Belle, Roid Rage Snowflake, Moonlight Aura, Comet Tail, Hothoof Trotter, Red Joystick, Gage Meter, Thunderlane Hurricane,” says Rainbow Dash. “That's eight. Eight! Eight ponies who I have worked with for years, eight good ponies that died on your ship!”

“You don't understand. None of this is my fault,” whimpers Star Tracker. “I can explain everything if you'll let me!”

Rainbow Dash checks her pistol and gasps loudly as she looks at Applejack and Fluttershy theatrically before focusing on Star Tracker.

“Oh wow. Would you look at that. EIGHT BULLETS!” announces Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow Dash aims her pistol at Star Tracker, and Fluttershy's heart races as the voice is really screaming at her to stop Rainbow Dash. Zephyr, however, is smiling.

“Rainbow, no!” shouts Applejack, her hoof extended.

“No! Please, no! Let me explain!” sobs Star Tracker.

BLAM-BLAM-BLAM-BLAM-BLAM-BLAM-BLAM-BLAM!

The sudden gunshots make Fluttershy jump, and she looks at Zephyr when stomps the floor in applause.

“A fitting end for a lousy captain if I do say so myself,” says Zephyr.

Fluttershy looks at Applejack and sees that her hoof is locked in place as she stares at Rainbow Dash, her face frozen in shock. On the wall, Star Tracker's profile flat lines, flashes red and shrinks with Reverend Heart Fire's growing in size.

“You... Do you have any idea what you've just done?” says Applejack.

“Yes,” says Rainbow Dash as she reloads. “Rarity Belle, Roid Rage Snowflake, Moonlight Aura, Comet Tail, Hothoof Trotter, Red Joystick, Gage Meter, Thunderlane Hurricane, they all died on his ship. Now he's dead. Justice for my team.”

“Our team.”

“Our team!? It was just me this whole time!” says Rainbow Dash. “You and Fluttershy left me and Thunderlane to die.”

Fluttershy's lips hook into a frown and she stomps forward.

“Excuse me? I saved your life,” says Fluttershy.

“But you didn't save Thunderlane's,” says Rainbow Dash. “You could have saved him, but you didn't. And if you, Applejack, had stayed with us then Rarity would have lived and Thunderlane wouldn't have had his hoof cut off!”

“I had to save my brother,” says Fluttershy firmly.

“Fluttershy, don't,” says Applejack.

“Oh, really? And where is he now?” says Rainbow Dash.

“Fluttershy-” starts Applejack.

“Right there!” claims Fluttershy.

Fluttershy points at Zephyr, Zephyr smiles and waves, and Rainbow Dash looks to where Fluttershy is pointing. At first her face is blank, but then her muzzle twists to a snarl, followed by her eye twitching, ears folding against her skull, nostrils flaring and wings twitching as her breathing becomes heavy with a fire in her eyes.

“You fucking with me? Is that it?” sneers Rainbow Dash. “Everypony's making fun of me now because Rainbow Crash is seeing spooky, weird shit! Is that it? You making fun of me!?”

“No, I'm not. How can you not see him? He's right there!” says Fluttershy.

“Lie to me again!” Rainbow Dash punches Fluttershy's vest. “Lie to me again! I dare you! I DARE YOU!”

“Dash, calm down,” says Applejack.

Rainbow Dash jumps back and points at Applejack.

“Don't you dare tell me to calm down!” cries Rainbow Dash. “You ran off! Just like Fluttershy! While everypony dies around me, you two are fine, exploring and doing whatever the fuck you two have been doing!”

“Do I look fine to you!?” says Fluttershy.

Rainbow Dash points at Fluttershy. “There's no way you're a medic. No way! You're not even supposed to be here and as soon as you show up, I lose my team while you somehow survive and kill these things without a problem!”

“I've had a lot of problems killing them!”

“Bullshit!”

“Fluttershy, things are getting a little hot,” says Zephyr. “You might have to shoot them.”

“Stop it, Zephyr,” snaps Fluttershy.

“You're with Section 0, aren't you? AREN'T YOU!? ADMIT IT!” says Rainbow Dash.

“I'm not a spy!”

Rainbow Dash quickly reloads her pistol and aims it at Fluttershy's forehead, which leads to Fluttershy aiming her rifle at the commander’s chest.

“Will you two stop this!” yells Applejack.

“You killed my team!” cries Rainbow Dash.

“I saved your life!” screams Fluttershy hoarsely.

“This is all your fault, you Section 0 fuck!”

“Rainbow, stop!” begs Applejack. “You already killed a captain, don't go killing your teammates!”

“She's not on my team, Applejack! She never was! She's with Section 0! Thunderlane was right about these creeps and now I can't apologize because he's dead! They're all dead because of Fluttershy!”

“I'm not Section 0!” says Fluttershy.

“Lie to me again! LIE TO ME AGAIN! I'LL BLOW YOUR DAMN HEAD OFF!”

“Everypony lower your weapons, right now!” orders Applejack.

“My team died because of this damn captain and Section 0, and now I can make things right,” says Rainbow Dash.

“Then you're gonna have to shoot me, 'cuz Fluttershy ain't the spy. I am.”

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy snap to Applejack, and the room becomes quiet, save for their heavy breathing.

“What?” says Rainbow Dash a few seconds later.

“She ain't Section 0. I am,” says Applejack.

“No... No, don't you dare cover for her,” says Rainbow Dash. “Don't cover for her! You're better than that!”

“I ain't covering for her.”

Rainbow Dash takes a step towards Fluttershy, pressing the pistol against her cheek while Fluttershy's rifle digs into Rainbow Dash's chest. Rainbow Dash's wet eyes snap between Fluttershy and Applejack, and Zephyr stands next to Fluttershy.

“The madness is taking them. We either kill them and live, or they kill us,” says Zephyr.

Fluttershy's ear twitches from that, and her heart races as she tries to wrap her head around Applejack's confession plus her chances of survival if she shoots first.

“But she's not even supposed to be here,” says Rainbow Dash. “And you... You suck at poker! You can't bluff worth shit and now you're telling me you're a spy? Bullshit!”

“You're right, Fluttershy ain't supposed to be here. Her being here is a fluke,” says Applejack. “But the truth is that I have been with Section 0 from the beginning. They sent me because they lost contact with the assets on Onyx and the Bon Voyage, and I was sent in to recover research documents about an artifact called the Marker. Had Section 0 known the situation was this bad then they would have sent in heavier teams, rather than just me. All this was an accident.”

Fluttershy's eye widens at the mention of “Marker”, and Rainbow Dash's eyes glaze over.

“So... You knew? All this time, you knew and didn't tell us? Didn't tell me?” says Rainbow Dash, tears dripping from her cheeks as her hoof trembles.

“I didn't know it was this bad. None of us knew this was going to happen! All the research pointed towards residual energy with minor cellular manipulation and minor cases of psychosis. It was supposed to be easy to handle. But this? … This is all wrong. It wasn't supposed to be this way...”

Rainbow Dash's eyes harden and turns her pistol to Applejack, and Fluttershy's colors drain.

“Give me one reason why I shouldn't blow your brains out,” says Rainbow Dash.

Applejack is silent and Fluttershy takes a step forward but stops when Dash's wing snaps to her.

“Don't,” orders Rainbow Dash. Her eyes narrow on Applejack. “Three seconds.”

Applejack's tail and ear flick.

Fluttershy bites her lip and keeps her weapon trained on Rainbow Dash.

“Two seconds,” says Rainbow Dash.

“I got a password that will allow us to leave the system. If Section 0 doesn't hear that password then you're dead,” says Applejack.

“Password? What password!?” yells Rainbow Dash.

“If you kill me then you'll never know.”

“Does Dr. Rock have a password?” asks Fluttershy.

Applejack nods but doesn't break eye contact with Rainbow Dash.

“Who the hell is Dr. Rock?” says Rainbow Dash.

“An alias for Dr. Hieroglyph,” replies Applejack. “He and I have been in radio contact and broadcasting messages to a Section 0 torpedo boat orbiting Onyx's moon.”

“And we need his password, too?”

“Eeyup. Without our passwords, that boat will shoot us straight to Hell.”

A sudden bang brings all three sets of ears to twitch, and after the thud comes a loud scraping, and the three turn to the source and see the wall of profiles on the bridge has opened. Fluttershy's eye widens and she turns her cutter to the doorway as they are approached by a griffin with gray fur, white plumage and tipped wings, and gray eyes. He is wearing a white labcoat and dark suit, and when he is in front of the group he smiles, calm as can be.

“That'll be quite enough chitchat from you, Agent Apple,” says the griffin, his voice familiar to the multiple intercom chats and the video log. “Honestly, with all the info you just spat out you could get in serious trouble.”

“We're all in trouble,” says Applejack.

Rainbow Dash's eye twitches, and even though she still has her pistol aimed at Applejack she looks at the griffin, completely silent but with smoldering rage burning in her eyes.

“Dr. Rock...?” says Fluttershy.

The griffin looks at Fluttershy and beams.

“Ah, Fluttershy Breeze, in the flesh!” says Dr. Rock, a.k.a. Dr. Arcos Hieroglyph.

“Oh, I like this guy,” says Zephyr. “He's the one who will make us whole.”

Fluttershy shushes Zephyr, then squeaks and flinches when Arcos grabs her hoof and shakes it vigorously.

“I'm a big fan of you. I hate to admit it, but I made a wager that said you would die early on. Never been more happy to lose a bet before!” says Arcos.

“Thanks,” says Fluttershy sourly.

Arcos pulls away from Fluttershy and goes to Rainbow Dash but backs up with his talons raised when she turns her pistol to him.

“I just wanted to say I like you, too. All small and feisty. I also liked how you and Fluttershy interacted,” says Arcos.

Rainbow Dash's face heats up and her muzzle scrunches while Applejack sneers and Zephyr snickers.

“Hehe~ Knew it~” says Zephyr.

Fluttershy's face is also hot and she growls viciously with her hoof raised at Zephyr, making him leap back, giggling madly.

“Can we please get off the bridge?” says Applejack. “We're lucky them things haven't gone after us, yet and I don't want to press that luck.”

“Right. Of course. If you'll follow me, I got the module needed to fit the mini-warp battery,” says Arcos. “Also, I want to show you girls something special before we refit the ship for escape.”

“Yeah, I bet you do,” sneers Rainbow Dash.

Arcos looks at Rainbow Dash. “I really do. After all that you suffered-” he looks at Star Tracker's corpse “-and all that you killed, it is time for you to see what you have been fighting against. Ladies, it is time for you to see the Marker.”

Author's Note

Soon there will be no sanity left to fight for.