The Equestrian Monomyth - Book 2 - Complexs of Disharmony

Equestria, nearby Ponyville, third day after Luna's escape:

"Daybreaker, are you sure that we will find any information about Princess Luna's whereabouts... in this lowly town?" Was asking Trixie to the white alicorn, now disguised as if she was Celestia, while both were walking in direction to the town. "Shouldn't we be looking for her... I don't know... nearby Canterlot?"

"Yes, I'm sure, mommy. And not. We can't be sneaking near Canterlot, or my disguise could be discovered. According to Intel, at least two of the so-called 'elements' ponies went on Princess Luna's capture, and, as she hasn't arrived to the Empire, we can only assume that they've succeed. So, they'll be returning here at any moment." Explained Daybreaker.

"And if they don't? If they take a detour or something?" Trixie still insisted.

"That's exactly what we've come to learn here." Daybreaker smiled.

"And how 'exactly' are you going to learn? It's not likely they'll reveal that important information nice and easy. Are you going to... torture them...?" Asked Trixie, horrified.

"Only as a last resource, as I want to put in practice my spying skills first! I'll make Agent G proud too!" Daybreaker happily announced.

"Ow. That's... a relief..." Trixie puffed and smiled, relieved.

They were in that talking when they arrived nearby Sweet Apple Acres:

"Well, mommy, now hide, and watch how a pro do her job!" Daybreaker joyfully told to the blue unicorn, while undressing from her body armor and weaponry, and putting it all in a small wooden cart that Trixie was pulling.

Applejack was taking a nap under a apple tree, when she felt a flapping nearby. She raised her stetson a bit, and her surprise was outstanding: "Yar Highness!" She quickly hopped back in her four legs: "Ah had finished all the work already! Honestly! Ah wasn't slackin' off!"

Daybreaker giggled, with a hoof in the muzzle "Don't worry, little one! I'm sure you did!" Then, she put the hoof back in the ground: "Have you got any news about Luna?"

"Oh, sorry, Yar Highness, but Ah haven't heard anthin' from two days ago, since ya sent the team in her capture."

"Are you sure? You might be forgetting something. Why don't you try harder that good memory of yours?"

Applejack looked to a side. There was something odd about this Princess Celestia. If only she could figure out what...

"Nothing? Nothing at all? Ow. I have to say that I'm very dissapointed about you, little one." Angrily commented Daybreaker, looking to a side with her eye closed. "I hate to say this, but you're dumber than the trees you buck everyday. Brute, foolish and stupid."

That hit Applejack. Hard. She immediately remembered Twilight's scolding, and she couldn't skip the tears. Even Princess Celestia was telling her that she was stupid! Then, it was true! Oh, what a shame! What a shame!!

Applejack looked down, clenched the teeth and her tearful eyes, and started to tremble: "Ah'm stuuuupiiiiid..." She sobbed.

"That's right." Daybreaker smirked, realizing that she could use that on her own benefit. "And a stupid like you shouldn't be an element. You'll only bother the others with your stupidities, screwing up all what they do!"

Applejack was about to break. Her trembling legs was barely keeping her on hoof, and she was deeply crying.

"So, I think you should step aside, so somepony more capable than you can hold that important title." Assured Daybreaker.

"Ya... (sobs) ya'r right, Yar Highneeeeess... (sobs) Ah should... (sobs) Ah should go awaaaaaaayyy..." Cried Applejack.

Then, Daybreaker decided to give her the finishing blow, and threw a rope in front of her: "You know what you have to do..." And she flown away, back to where Trixie was.

Trixie was looking and hearing everything, and she quickly whispered below her breath to Daybreaker:

"My daughter! But what have you done?! You have driven her to suicide!"

"Indeed. All was in the plan. She wasn't of any help, and I have a death writhe on those so-called elements." She pulled out a small scroll with an alphabetical sorted list of the Main 6. "And she's first on the list! Applesack, see? And if we can make it to look like a suicide, it'll be perfect! That'll tear down the enemy's morale!" She bragged. Then, she looked to the list again. "Now let's see who's next... Flustershy? An isolated hut near the forest? Piece of cake! I'll be right here, mommy! Don't go anywhere!" And she flown in direction of Fluttershy's cottage.

Trixie opened her eyes: Now it was her chance! She waited until Daybreaker couldn't see her anymore, managed to untie her from the cart and then quickly galloped to Applejack, who was already climbing an apple tree with the rope tied to a thick branch of it.

With a last sobbing, Applejack put the rope on her neck and cried with despair: "Death to the stuuuupiiiiids...!" and jumped down from the branch to hang herself, but, while she was still in the air, the nut on the rope around her neck magically untied and she hit the ground instead. She looked around, perplexed that her expertise in nut making had failed to her too, but her perplexity was even bigger when she saw Trixie:

"Who...?" She asked with sobbing voice, looking to the blue unicorn. "Wait... Ah know ya... ya'r tha pretentious from tha ursa incident..."

"Yes I am but I'm not like that anymore I've changed listen Applesack that's not Princess Celestia she's an agent from the Gryphoon Empire named Daybreaker and Flustershy is at risk she has a death writhe on all of you elements!" Quickly spoke Trixie, nervously waving a foreleg.

"What in Tarnation?!" Applejack backed off, surprised.

Fluttershy was finishing her daily housekeeping, when Daybreaker landed near her cottage:

"Your Highness! What good timing, I was finishing tiding up my house already. Please come in, I'll prepare that nice tea that you like so much." She happily invited her in. Once they were both inside, Fluttershy went to the kitchen to prepare the tea.

Daybreaker took a look around, staring to the cutlery, mainly the knives... Nah, it was too easy.

"Well, tell me, little pegasi, have you heard anything about Luna's whereabouts?"

"Oh, hummm, no... Sorry, Your Highness, but I haven't heard anything at all. And it has been two days already. I'm very worried for my friend."

"Your friend? Maybe you meant your friends?" Asked Daybreaker, to making her talk.

"Oh, no. I have no need to worry about Twilight. She'll be perfectly safe with my Ted... with the monkey taking care of her. Dashie is the one I'm worried about. She's the only pony that cares about me. I don't know what I'll do if something happens to her."

Daybreaker smirked: "Seems that you love her a lot, isn't?"

Fluttershy stopped short on her tea making: Love? Could that be what she was really feeling about Rainbow Dash?

"Young pegasi, are you alright?" Asked Daybreaker, with soothing voice.

"Ow! Yeah... I... humm... I think so..." Fluttershy resumed preparing the tea, blushing a bit.

Suddenly, Angel hopped inside the house too.

"Angel, honey! You little cheeky, you sniffed the smell of something tasty and you came right away." Fluttershy happily petted him.

Daybreaker looked to Angel, coming out with a gruesome idea: "Hmmm, you seem to love that bunny a lot too, didn't you?"

"Oh, yeah. He's the only one that's always with me, at all times."

'The only one, huh?' Daybreaker thought, shrugging her left eye. "Well, young pegasi, I hate to tell you this, but that 'Dasie' friend of yours, doesn't love you at all."

Fluttershy turned her head around, shocked: "What?"

"That's right. And to prove that, she told me that I should take that bunny of yours, because she wants to show you how much she hates you."

"What?!" Asked Fluttershy, with crying voice, completely turning around in a flash. "No, Your Highness, please no!" She pleaded with tearful eyes.

"So, I'm taking it and you'll never see it again." Daybreaker concluded, grabbing Angel with her magic and taking off.

"Nooooo! Please, Your Highness... (sobs) Please, Your Highness... (sobs) Please, Your Highness don't take my Angel awaaaaaaaaayyyyy." Disconsolately cried Fluttershy, slowly galloping after her, until she stopped near the brook. "Don't take my Angel away... (sobs) Don't take my Angel awaaaaayyyy... (sobs) don't be so meaaaaaan... (sobs)." She pleaded raising a foreleg, until she dropped to the ground to cry. "Dashiiieeee... how could you do this to meeeeee...? (sobs) I thought we were frieeeeeends... (sobs) Why everything has to be taken from meeeee...? (sobs) What have I done to deserve thiiiiisss...? (sobs) I want to dieeeeee..." She couldn't keep talking, too deeply in her sorrow, and sunk her head in the brook to drown herself.

Daybreaker smirked while leaving: "Hmmm. That'll do. I think I'll keep this bunny for my meal later, now, let me see who's next... Pinkio Pio, pink party mare. So, all I have to do is to find a party somewhere..."

Applejack and Trixie arrived just in time before Fluttershy drowned herself:

"Flutters! Flutters! Talk to me! Talk to me!" Nervously asked AJ, pulling her out of the water and pushing her chest with her forelegs.

"I think you should better let her breath!" Suggested Trixie.

"Ow! Right! Breath, Flutters, breath!"

When Fluttershy had regained her normal breathing and coughed all what she was gonna cough, AJ told her: "Flutters, tha wasn't Celestia, she's an imposter...!"

"Come on, Pinkie. Please attend our party. You made an appointment with us. Remember?" Were Lyra Heartstrings and Bon Bon trying to convince the depressed Pinkie into a party, in her work at Sugarcube Corner.

"I already told you that I can't. I don't feel well. I'll let you know when I get better..." Pinkie sadly rejected the request.

"Awwww. Come on Pinkie, if you're always up into partie! What can be so awful for the super duper party mare to make her not wanting to make a party?!" Joyfully asked Lyra.

"I had an argument with my coltfriend. I fear he'll break up with me." Pinkie confessed.

"Well, if he returns and finds you with that look he surely will." Lyra replied.

Pinkie raised the head, gasped and facehoofed, horrified: "Do you think so?!"

"Yeah. So, if you want him to stay with you, you should look as you usually do, so he sticks with you again!" Assured Bon Bon.

"You're right! You're right!" Happily bumped Pinkie, and her mane and tail poofed again. "Of course! How silly of me! When he arrives, I'll make him a party so big and so long that he'll forget that former marefriend of his! Thank you, girls, thank you, thank you! I'll end with my shores here, and we all be in a party in no time!" She joyfully stood on her hinder legs and raised her forelegs, with a wide smile.

No too long after Pinkie's departure, the trio of AJ, Fluttershy and Trixie arrived to Sugarcube Corner:

"Mr. Cake! Where's Pinkie?!" Asked Applejack, very concerned.

"She has just left for a party with Lyra and Bon Bon. Why?"

Then, Applejack turned to Fluttershy: "Flutters, we still hav' time! Go to Twilight's house an' send a message to Celestia with Spike! Trixie, ya com' with me!"

Fluttershy arrived to Twilight's oak house and knocked the door, but for her surprise, it wasn't Spike the one who opened the door, but a young pegasi stallion instead:

Fluttershy gasped, deeply blushing and unable to speak, because that stallion has something...

"Ah! You should be Fluttershy! I can tell by your cutie mark. Hello, I'm Flash Sentry. Nice to meet you! Can I call you Shy?"

Fluttershy nodded, with wide open eyes and muzzle, still unable to speak.

"Are you alright, Shy? Oh! Maybe you're surprised that I'm here. Celestia posted me here to take care of Spike while Twilight is gone. Seems that Equestria it's not so safe nowadays, isn't?" He smiled. "But tell me. What can I do for you?"

"Where's Spike?" Asked Fluttershy in a whisper.

"Where's who?"

"Spiiiiiike." Whispered Fluttershy again.

Pinkie's party has already begun, and Daybreaker had hid nearby, as she'd like to be seen the least the better, to watch Pinkie from the distance, so she could take her down where nopony would be looking. But her 'winning streak' was interrupted when she saw Applejack and Trixie arriving at the party. She couldn't believe it: Her own mother, betraying her and the Empire! That deserved no less than the death penalty!

Daybreaker angrily stood up in her four legs, and flown to get her combat gears back, resolved to sever every and each head on that lowly town.

"Pinkie! Pinkie!" Applejack called her. "Ar' ya right?!"

"Of course, AJ, I can't be better! Why? Is something happening?"

"Com' on, we'r all on danger! Let's find Rarity an' wait fer Celestia at Twilight's!"

Pinkie backed off, surprised: Well, if it's Applejack the pony who said that, then it must be true! So, she turned to her hosts: "Sorry, girls, but it seems that there's an emergency somewhere! See ya!"

And they galloped to Carousel Boutique, until Trixie had to stop, putting a hoof in her chest:

"Trixie, we havn't time for tha!" Applejack scolded her.

"I forgot... my medicine... I left it... in the cart..." Said Trixie among gaspings, becoming pale and stumbling.

"Com' on! Hop on!" Said Applejack and mounted up Trixie on her loin and carried her from there.

Finally, they picked Rarity up and they got to Twilight's house, once there, and after a briefing with Flash Sentry, Applejack asked Trixie: "Trixie, yar cart, where ya left it?!"

"Forget about it, AJ... Daybreaker... will be there too and she'll... kill you..." Barely could said Trixie, having problems to breath, laying on the side in the floor.

"Stop talkin' so much applecrap an' tell me already where it is!"

Trixie hesitated for a couple of seconds "Behind some bushes... near your farm..." She finally explained, fainting.

Applejack turned to Pinkie: "Com' on Pinks! Ya'r good at findin' stuff!"

Pinkie nodded, and they both galloped back to Sweet Apple Acres.

"Don't worry, ladies! I'll protect the ladies!" Assured Flash Sentry, causing Fluttershy to giggle, even she doesn't know why.

Daybreaker was having a hard time finding the small cart: "Claws and beaks!" She cursed. "All this bushes looks the same! Where is my stuff?!"

Then, she perked her ears, and happened to catch AJ and Pinkie rushing to the farm. She smirked: "Bah. Two earth ponies. No need of weapons for those."

Fortunately, Pinkie had a combo: "We're gonna be attacked!" She warned. A mere second after that, a white beam came from the bushes and Pinkie rolled until she could hide behind a thick trunk. "AJ, hurry, hide here..." She called below her breath, waving a hoof. "AJ?" Pinkie quickly looked to each of the sides, being unable to see Applejack... then, she dared to look behind the tree, and her eyes opened wide, quivered and started to shed tears: There, lying in a puddle of blood was... the battered body of Applejack.

'No... no... no... NOOOO!!!' Multitude of scenes of her hanging with Applejack quickly, but not less painfully, passed by her mind, lovely and friendly times spent with her dear friend, who now was lying down motionless in a blood pouring, probably dead. Pinkie felt a burning force inside her, like an erupting volcano: Her anger know no limits! Her eyes turned red, and small rocks levitated from the ground, and started to orbit her mane and tail like asteroids. Then, she screamed with a demoness's like voice, and darted from back the tree to fight Daybreaker all by herself, taking the alicorn by surprise: She wasn't expecting such fierce retaliation.

Daybreaker yet launched some more beams, which Pinkie easily dodged, and the alicorn had to teleport and take the air to avoid the pink mare's onrush. There, she smirked, as now she has clear advantage, so, she decided to save her magic and try to pierce the enraged Pinkie by quickly enlarging and recoiling her horn, but the fury-crazed mare looked like she knew where she was going to hit, dodging every and each of her attacks.

Finally, she jumped behind some bushes and Daybreaker enlarged her horn even once more, but, for her surprise, instead of piercing Pinkie, she found her galloping above her enlarged horn, right against her! And when she was only a few meters away: "Hadou-ken!"

Even with her magic shield, the impact was so strong and violent that threw Daybreaker several dozens of meters backwards, shooking her body up to the bone. Daybreaker then flown higher, to recover from such attack, which let her dizzy, and yet she had to dodge more Hadou-kens from Pinkie. No doubt about it, while she remained on the mare's vision field, she'll not give her respite, so she had no other choice but retreat higher and faster to the sky.

Pinkie managed to drop safely over some bushes, and shot Daybreaker some times more, until her foe dissapeared in the sky, then, her eyes returned to normal, and she galloped back to Applejack: "AJ! AJ... oh no. Please, you can't be dead. Oh sweet Celestia, don't let her die, please!" Then, she carried the battered body of her friend, and, happening to see the cart, she took in her muzzle Trixie's medicine rack, and ran back to Twilight's home.

Celestia was already at Twilight's library when Pinkie almost took down the door: "Your Highness save AJ please save AJ!" She pleaded after spitting the medicine rack to Trixie, who quickly took a flask and drink it, escaping from certain death too.

Without hesitation, Celestia cast a Life-Force healing spell, and brought Applejack back to life from near death. Then, she sat on her hauches, scared to death, as every time that she cast such spell, could be the last.

"Pinkie, what happened?" She asked when the fright was gone.

"That bucking Daybreaker, imponiating Your Highness! Look what she did to AJ!" Replied Pinkie with tearful eyes.

"And how could you escape my clone, Pinkie?!" Asked Celestia, amazed.

"I... I don't know... I was... so angry... I can't tell exactly what happened..." Pinkie rubbed her mane with a hoof. Then, she looked to Celestia, perplexed: "Wait a sec. That's your clone?"

All the present in the room looked to Celestia, perplexed.

Celestia closed her eyes, embarrased: "Sorry, my little ponies. I should have told you before..."

The alarm bell was ringing in Ponyville, and several pegasi Royal Guards were warning: "Evacuate! Everypony, evacuate! This is not a drill! Take your foals and fillies! Leave everything else! Evacuate the town at once!"

The ponies were rushing with a nervous trotting, obeying the command, while Mayor Mare was 'helping': "Come on, come on. Evacuate orderly, please. We have to protect every and each pony. We can't miss even one." Then, she added under her breath: "Less ponies means less tax payers."

Celestia flown in front of a line of royal guards, which were getting ready to fight: "Stand ground, guards! We have to defend this town with our lives!"

"Your Highness, please return to Canterlot now! We can manage from here!" Assured a high-ranked guard.

"No way, sergeant! If my clone is as strong as me, there's no pony strong enough to stop it here, but me!" Denied Celestia.

Pinkie galloped near her: "I'm gonna help too! I'll give her a taste of my 'Pinkie Power'!" She smiled, sharpening her eyes. Then, she turned around in direction of Sweet Apple Acres: "I'll make her pay for hurting my friend!"

Celestia smiled. She knew that there would be no way to convince her otherwise.

Inside the oak house, Rarity and Fluttershy were doing their best to get Applejack back on hoof. Even her life wasn't in danger, she was still unconscious and in a very bad shape.

"Ow... my." Mourned Fluttershy. "I should have paid more attention to my healing practice. Now I don't know if I'll be able to help at all." She raised her forelegs over Applejack, and tried to follow Rarity's directions:

"Look at my horn, dear. Look how it shines. Try to gather that same kind of magic into your hooves. Come on, I know you can do it, darling."

Fluttershy's eyes filled with tears, as she was sure she wouldn't be of any help. She was the most useless, foolish, uncapable...!

"I know you can do it, Shy." A soothing stallion voice snapped her out from those despairing thoughts.

Fluttershy turned her head to look at Flash Sentry's smiling face, and it was like a lightning of hope stroke her heart: Yes, yes! She can do it! She can do it!

With smiling face and renewed strenghts, Fluttershy made her forehooves to shine like Rarity's horn...

Suddenly, a earthshaking rumble made the nearby appletrees to twitch, and finally, they ended unrooted and thrown far away, like an invisible giant had pulled them out, and Daybreaker, now armed, dressed in her full body armor, and featuring her usual femme-nazi look, landed in front of Celestia and her guards, leaving a crater in her wake.

She unsheated her swords, causing another eartshake and a dust cloud, and hit the floor with a whipping sound of her braided tail, causing yet another eartshake and a loud whipping sound:

"COME OOON!!" She angrily and frightfully roared, and there she stood, panting with rage.

Celestia froze at the sight of Daybreaker's swords. The memories, as vivid as if she was watching them, returned to her mind like a cascade:

Severed heads, bodies cut at half...

Celestia's widened eyes got filled with tears: "Not again..." She mumbled.

Legs and wings teared down, screams of agony and pain... "Not again!" She said louder.

Corpses spreaded all around, blood... DEATH!

Putting her eyes white bright, Celestia screamed with the Royal Canterlot Voice: "NOT AGAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIN!!!"

Then, she cast a huge lightning spear, and teleported to fight Daybreaker first! Swords and spear clashed, leaving a trail of sparks with every swing! Then, they started to teleport and clash, teleport and clash, teleport and clash! They were doing it so fast, that the guards, who flown right after their liege, soon found out that they were no longer there, then, they flown backwards, because the alicorns have appeared there, but, the next second, they weren't there either. The battle was so quick and violent, that it looked like there was a firework display in the sky!

After several times of uselessly flying to aid their liege, the guards finally gave up, as there was no way they could keep with such speed. They just stood there, unable to doing nothing but to watch. Even Pinkie was perplexed:

"Amazing... She wasn't so fierce when she battled Luna the previous time..."

The stallion sergeant unyielded his spear: "I think it's because she found a true reason to fight. One that she had forgotten long ago..."

Celestia made her spear to twirl, rushing with a relenteless attack over Daybreaker, who retaliated with several slashes of her swords and swings of her braided tail, trying to pierce Celestia with her sharp kunai, but Celestia always managed to dodge or block it. Daybreaker tried to push Celestia away by enlarging her horn, but a hit on it that almost broke it, made her to avoid doing that tactic again. Then, Celestia used several and quick lunges of her spear, trying to take Daybreaker out of balance, but Daybreaker dodged or blocked them all.

Unfortunately, centuries of a peaceful existence started to take it's toll, as Celestia was unable to keep with Daybreaker's pace. She was panting already, and her sweaty body was an unmistakable indicator of her exhaustion. To make it even worst, she was running out of magic too. Maybe Daybreaker haven't as much magic as Celestia, but she knew how to save it better.

Then, the dreadful time arrived, when Celestia tried to teleport and failed. Daybreaker smirked. That was her chance!

So, she did her signature move, the one that had made her to gain her nickname: She turned her wings into some sort of sharp pincers, and quickly trapped Celestia with them, and then, holding her in place, swung her braided tail and stroke her with her kunai, as if it was a scorpion's sting, several, several, several times, so quick and stronger, that she finally managed to pierce Celestia's magic shield.

Fortunately, doing that movement meant that she couldn't fly anymore, as she was using her wings as a weapon, and Celestia stopped flying too, covering herself with her own wings, as a last resource to avoid a fatal wound. So, they both started to fall, soon reaching Pinkie's field of view, making her able to throw a Hadou-ken to Daybreaker, forcing her to teleport away and saving Celestia just in time.

Unfortunately, it wasn't fast enough as Daybreaker managed to wound Celestia, very badly. She gasped of pain and rolled in the ground, avoiding further harm. Daybreaker threw an angry stare to Pinkie: "Hey, you dishonorable puny pony! How dare you to mess with a battle of honor?! Wait for your turn!" She scolded her with one of her swords.

"How dare YOU to talk about honor?! You treacherously attacked AJ and me, and when you couldn't defeat me, you escaped like the bucking coward you are!" Angrily replied Pinkie.

"I escaped because you cheated first, hiding my stuff!" Replied Daybreaker.

"I didn't hide anything, it was you the bucking piece of idiot that couldn't find her horseshoe even if she had it on!" Kept 'angrily' arguing Pinkie, but she was actually trying to earn time so Celestia could recover herself.

But Celestia didn't seem to recover at all. In fact, she looks like she was getting worse. She even tried to stand up, but she fell to the ground.

"Your Highness!" The guards rushed to her, concerned. "What's happening to you?!"

"I feel faint... I think she poisoned me..." Barely could explain Celestia, panting.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Evily laughed Daybreaker. "Seems that the scorpion's touch is taking effect!" She bragged, twirling her kunai. Then, she looked to the rest of ponies: "Soon, your almighty sun goddess will be no more, and I'll have my rightfully earned prize! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Next, she looked to Pinkie: "So, I think it'll be no trouble in taking you down first, you annoying thing. Your fate is sealed, anyway. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

The guards raised their spears, but Pinkie, with red eyes, stopped them short, turning her head to them with a crazy enraged look: "Nopony dare to get in the way! SHE IS MINE!!"

The orbiting rocks levitated again around Pinkie's hairy areas, and she scratched the ground with a foreleg: "Come down here and fight!"

Daybreaker smirked: "This might be fun..." And next, she rushed against Pinkie, with her swords ready to slice her in three...

Scotaloo was doing some stunts to drive her scooter among the running ponies, when she gets to Applebloom and Sweetie Belle: "Hey girls! Celestia is fighting with another alicorn! It's like a firework festival! It's amazing, you have to see it! Come on, this way!"

"Are you sure, Scoots? Everypony is evacuating now. We should do the same." Sweetie Belle replied, frightened.

"Wha'r ya sayin'?" Applebloom bumped. "We can earn ar' cutie marks in fightin'! Let's go!"

"Yeah! Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!" Eagerly agreed Scootaloo.

"Cutie Mark Crusaders, to the chaaaaaarge!!" They both happily exclaimed, and they galloped back into the mayhem. Sweetie Belle, still not convinced, followed them anyway...

Not too far to the northwest, a Gryphoon platoon, with the purpose of supporting Daybreaker in her extraction, hiding among the woody areas around, came to watch the battle. Their commander looked to his soldiers:

"Wings, our Daybreaker has engaged battle with the enemy! It looks like is Celestia herself! We must aid her! Take off, take off, take off!"

Daybreaker sliced her swords where Pinkie was, but finding nothing there, Pinke popped behind her and threw her another Hadou-ken, but Daybreaker dodged it as well. Then, the alicorn tried to pierce Pinkie with her poisoned kunai, quickly and randomly hitting around her, trying to get her by chance, as she figured out that it was no use to attack her directly. Suddenly, she has Pinkie on her head, biting the alicorn's mane and quickly pulling it in all directions!

"AHRG! What the claw?!" Cursed Daybreaker, surprised by that orthodox attack, and both mares rolled for the ground. "Get off me!!" Exclaimed the pained alicorn. "OOOUCH!!"

And in a completely unexpected chance of luck, Pinkie managed to grab a sword, and to put it on Daybreaker's neck!

"The antidote!" Pinkie demanded Daybreaker. "Give me the antidote, at once!"

Daybreaker was astonished. How was this possible?! She had underestimated this opponent, not once but twice, and now she was paying the price! But she'll never give the antidote to her. That'll be dishonorable, and she'll rather die than that.

"Hey! Where ar' the fireworks?! Ar' we taa late?!" Loudly asked Applebloom, galloping at the front of the CMC.

Pinkie turned her head to them, scared: "No, girls, no! Go away, she's dangerous, go agh...!"

She couldn't end her warning, as Daybreaker took the advantage of her small lapsus without paying attention, and shooked off Pinkie from her loin, dropping her to the ground and presenting the edge of a sword on Pinkie's neck.

Everypony facehoofed and gasped of terror, as they could imagine the gruesome outcome of that.

Pinkie angrily looked to Daybreaker. "What are you waiting for, horseshit?" She defied her.

Daybreaker smirked. "You've put a good fight, pink pony, and you've earned my respect so forth." Then, she looked to Celestia, who had already been completely affected by the poisoning, and now she was tilting her head to the sides, like drunk. "So, how I won after all, and the winner takes it all, I'll generously reward you by letting you to live... so you can enjoy how I slain everypony else. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" She evily cackled.

Pinkie's tearful eyes widened and quivered, and her muzzle scrunched in a sad grimace: She has failed! She has failed and now everypony is gonna die because of her fault!

"Daybreaker, my daughter! That's enough! Stop, please! Stop this madness already!" Trixie yelled to her, barely standing, slowly walking to the alicorn.

Daybreaker looked to her with anger: "How dare you...? How dare you to call me your daughter? You betrayed the Empire! You betrayed me! How could you... mommy?!" She said the last statement with crying voice.

"I did it because this is wrong! All of this is wrong! Daybreaker, the ponies are your kind, not the gryphoons! They're just using you for their own benefit! They don't care a mane about you! Only for you to solve their plights! No more!" Trixie tried to convince her.

Daybreaker bucked Pinkie's muzzle, leaving her unconscious, and direfully walked to Trixie, pointing her with a sword: "Listen to me well... puny pony. You're no longer my mother. You're no longer a honorable subject from the Gryphoon Empire." Tears appeared in her only eye. "And for your betrayal, I hereby condemn you to death!" She said with sobbing voice, and swung the sword, leaving it in horizontal position, getting ready to sever Trixie's head.

Tears appeared on Trixie's eyes too: "Please, Daybreaker. This was my fault. Only my fault. Take my life, and Celestia's spell, but let them live, please. Don't make them all to pay for my mistakes. Do that last favor to your mother, I beg you..." She pleaded.

Daybreaker's sword trembled: "So... so be it... mommy..." She cried.

"I'm so proud of you... my little daughter..." Trixie truthfully smiled, and closed the eyes, resigning to her fate.

Daybreaker didn't delayed it anymore, and launching a pained yelling, swung the sword again, making everypony to scream in terror...