Fading Star

Twilight walked at a faster pace ahead of the others, who all sauntered behind her.

“Would you all hurry up? We don’t have a lot of time!” she said, panicky in her loudest whisper.

“She’s not going anywhere, Twilight, don’t forget,” said Rarity, never liking to be rushed.

“Every minute we let pass is another of her in Chrysalis’ hands! Who knows what she’s doing to her right now!”

Twilight was anxious. She felt embarrassed having been so tired after performing just a few spells and flying in the snow, and embarrassment soon developed into anger and paranoia. Could she even beat Chrysalis in a fight? Could she beat Starlight? What if they were together? She tried her best to keep a clear head. Making rash decisions had already gotten Fritz lost.
In the back of the line were Shining Armor and Radish, who together carried the heavy bags of supplies. Their conversations were spoken at such a low volume, that they could barely be heard by the others, who were already far ahead of them. The cave tunnel looked the same the whole way through, stone, rock, occasional crevices and formations, and never any sunlight.

“Do we actually have a plan for when we get there?” asked Radish, who was beginning to prepare himself for the actual mission. He had a feeling they were drawing near.

“My sister’s right, we need to make sure we get her friend, and Fritz, if we can find him, out first before we engage Chrysalis…”

“Why’s it matter? We both know there’s gonna be a fight at some point, why not make the first move instead of risking getting caught?” Radish asked, bluntly.

“You’ve dealt with Chrysalis before, you know she’s going to try and use them as hostages, and make us surrender, or some other trick. And whatever it is, Twilight will give in, I know she will. She cares too much about ponies.”

“And what, you’d let the pony die? We’ve lost a lot to get her.”

“If it came down between saving my life, my sister’s life, and getting Chrysalis, or letting that pony die, then I’d choose the former, and I’d consider this mission a success.”

“She won’t see it that way.”

“We’ll see.”

“But what I meant was, are we just going to walk in blindly? We have no idea about the layout of the place, and your sister’s right, if she has Fritz, she’ll know we’re coming. She could set a trap.”

“That’s assuming Fritz got caught, and he talked.”

“If he got caught, he talked.”

“You haven’t been on as many missions with him as I have. He wouldn’t.”

“Captain, this is Chrysalis we’re talking about. She could make a pegasus admit they’re a unicorn.”

“You haven’t heard the least of it.”

“How’s that?”

“Twilight was talking to me, earlier in the tunnel, about what exactly Chrysalis was doing to her friend.”

“I can imagine.”

“No, you can’t. It’s bad, is all I’ll say. And I’d guess it’s getting worse.”

“Chrysalis has home advantage, and, to assume the worst, she knows we’re coming. None of this looks too good to me Captain.”

“What, are you going to try and leave again? Is that what you’re trying to say?” Shining Armor said, viciously.

“No, no, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that…”

“Good.”

They continued on in silence, and began to catch up with the others. They were approaching the four mile mark, and still no sign of Fritz.

“There’s nothing. No footsteps, no ash, nothing,” said Plat, somberly. He had taken a liking to the kid, seeing in him the heroic soldier he had always dreamed of being as a colt. Shining Armor nodded, almost as if he was grieving a death.

“Then, we need to be extra careful.”

Twilight wasn’t paying attention to the others. She was staring into the blackness of the tunnel beyond. She felt something inside her, like a dim light begging to be switched on.

“Everypony,” she said, silencing the others’ chatter, “Keep your voices as low as possible...we’re close.”

Stumbling through the pitch black tunnel, caked in dust, sweat, and blood, Applejack and the others realized they couldn’t go on much farther like this.

“We need...to stop.”

Rainbow Dash, in the front, turned back, ready to argue, but decided not to. She was too tired for that.

“Alright…”

Applejack was walking with one hoof over Fluttershy’s shoulder, her hind leg stinging like mad. Fluttershy dropped her down and collapsed, still exhausted from giving chase to those Diamond Dogs for half an hour. Hickory had a scratch on his face he hadn’t even noticed until he itched his beard and brought back blood. They were all a mess.

“What if those Diamond Dogs come back for us?” asked Fluttershy.

Nopony had an answer. They all just stared at the ground, trying not to drift off.

“Come on, everypony, we’re not done yet,” said Rainbow. Now that she actually knew Starlight was within their reach, it meant even more to stay motivated and find her.

“Hang in there. The hardest part is over.”

They were all convinced of that, though the thought of actually having to fight Chrysalis herself began to creep into their minds. Nopony said anything, of course, but they all knew that if they could barely handle the Diamond Dogs, they wouldn’t be much against Chrysalis.

Then a thought came into Rainbow’s head.

“What if we got the Diamond Dogs to help us?”

Applejack’s eyes opened.

“That’s the worst plan I’ve ever heard.”

“We’re gonna need help, won’t we?”

“Those dogs won’t be too eager to help us, I think,” added Hickory.

Rainbow glanced at Fluttershy for support, but received only a gentle shake of the head.

“Well, we could at least go back and get Twilight and the others, I mean, if we’ve found Chrysalis’ lair then they’re probably on a wild goose chase, right?” Fluttershy said.

“There’s no way those Diamond Dogs are going to let us back in if we go back. They barely let us through at all. And I am still wary about if they’re really on our side or not,” said Applejack, through rasped breath but firm tone.

“What, you think they’ll come after us?” asked Rainbow.

“It’s possible. We killed their leader, I doubt we’re on good terms.”

“So, was your plan originally just to force them into telling us how to get to Chrysalis? I thought you had an ingenious plan, I could’ve done that,” said Rainbow.

“The situation changed. We’re here, all alive, aren’t we?” retorted Applejack.

“But now we can’t go back,” said Hickory, “we have to avoid interacting with the Diamond Dogs as much as possible. If we just give them some space, they might let all this go.”

“How do we even know if this is the right way? They could be sending us into a dead end. Then we’ll have to go back,” said Fluttershy, trembling. Those dogs were terrifying.

“Look, my bet is, Chrysalis is using more than one tunnel system to get around Equestria. I mean, there have been sightings of changeling happenings all over Equestria! And it wouldn’t make sense for this way to be her only entrance and exit, otherwise ponies would notice at some point. Right, Hickory?”

“I’ve never seen nopony leave that cave,” he confirmed.

“So, there will be another exit somewhere.”

“How far do you think it is?” asked Fluttershy.

Hickory looked around at the cave.

“Well, based on the look of the rock, I’d say we’re well underground. And this tunnel keeps going down, so ...I don’t know, a few miles, at least.”

“A few miles? We’ll never make it!” said Rainbow, exaggerating.

“The good news is that there's only one direction to go,” said Hickory, with a smirk.

“Right, and we’ve got a lot of walking to do, so I suggest we all rest here for a little bit. This day is only half done and I’m already exhausted,” said Applejack, closing her eyes again. The others all grumbled and sat back down, trying to relax. But the fear and anticipation of what exactly they would find on this one way tunnel prevented any of them from finding peace. The real adventure was just beginning.

Morale was low in the group as the pace fell. Twilight, of course, was still leading and hadn’t stopped once the whole time. Her energy and passion weren’t nearly as prevalent at the other end of the line, where a peevish Shining Armor and a disgruntled Radish sauntered on.

Radish had been with Shining Armor on countless adventures, in fact Radish was a soldier before Shining Armor was, despite his lower rank. He was poor, and envied how easily everything came to Shining Armor. Nonetheless, the two were good friends, and confided thoughts in each other that were rarely shared with any other pony. Except now.

Radish had been against going through with this ridiculous plan from the start, but decided to go along if only to stand by his friends. But now, one was dead and the other was lost somewhere underground, and hope was dwindling. Radish wanted out, he no longer saw the point, and began to question how much was worth sacrificing for this pony he’s never even met. Should he have to die for this pony? His instincts told him no. He felt as though the others saw him as expendable, because he wasn’t high born or particularly successful or good-looking. Radish stuck around because it was his duty to save that pony, not his personal responsibility. But is she worth dying over? Whose life is ultimately more important? Was it really selfish to want to protect oneself?

Shining Armor was having his own entitlement-filled rant in his head. He was angry, and wanted more than anything to defeat Chrysalis, after years of sleepless nights, fearing she would return to hurt his newly born daughter. Shining Armor was the type to take everything personally. Especially with his sister, the pony who annoyed him most in the world. He let her take the lead because she needs to, and because maybe she was right that sending Fritz out alone was a bad idea. He was an idealist-he had a picture of how he wanted everything to go: they sneak in, save Fritz and Starlight, kill Chrysalis, and get out all in one piece. And in his mind, Twilight wouldn’t be able to pull it off.

Starlight’s mind snapped awake after a few hours, her body pale from blood loss. The chair was impossibly uncomfortable, the spikes tearing her flesh apart from the inside. She didn’t scream, instead only wincing and yelping occasionally, trying her best not to move too much. She had begun to lose her voice, from screaming so loud and so often. Her eyes focused in on the one who awoke her, it was Chrysalis, slamming the door open and walking towards her.
“Hello, Starlight Glimmer.”
Starlight shook her head trying to stay alert for any commands, like a good pet.

“Look at you, you’re as pale as a ghost! And you’ve got blood all over the floor. Tsk tsk.”

Starlight glanced down and realized there was indeed a puddle of blood that had dripped down the chair. Her head felt as light as a balloon. She waited for Chrysalis to reel the spikes back and free her, but Chrysalis instead just stared at her, admiring her work.

“I was worried it would be too difficult for you, but I think you managed just fine.”

Starlight stared at her, unsure whether she had to thank her.

“I’ve just finished setting up the trap for your friends. I wonder, what should I do with them? They’re not as responsible for my pain as you are, but, well, it’s always fun to throw in some variation, isn’t it?”

Starlight hesitantly nodded, as Chrysalis licked her lips with vile intentions.

“Alright, I’m sure you’ve had enough of this.”

Chrysalis strolled behind the chair and cranked a lever. Starlight felt the spikes on the chair withdraw back into their holes, her skin feeling wet and loose. Starlight sighed in a combination of relief and pain. Chrysalis chuckled.

“Would you like some food? You haven’t had any in so long, and you have lost a lot of blood.”

Starlight stared at her, still sitting in the chair, in disbelief.

‘Was she serious?’

“I-”

“I was only kidding, Starlight, you stupid pony, don’t you understand jokes?”

Chrysalis laughed at Starlight’s misery as she crumbled back down in her chair. She was starving, and losing so much blood made her body extremely weak and fragile. She had no energy, she could barely even move.

“Come on then, stand up, I’m done with you for the day.”

Starlight took a deep breath before pulling herself up, her legs quaking.

“Having trouble?” Chrysalis snickered before slamming her hoof into Starlight’s knee. Starlight reeled back in pain, still standing on her other three legs. She held back tears as she tried to stand straight. Chrysalis reattached her leash around Starlight’s collar.

“Do you like your collar, Starlight?”

“Yes, my queen.”

“Why do you like it?”

“It...it suits me…”

“Good answer,” she said, grinning, as she led Starlight back to the dungeon. Chrysalis fiddled with the keys before opening it.

“I got rid of those rats, by the way. I didn’t want you getting any illnesses, quite yet.”

Starlight was skeptical as to why she would do something nice like that, but didn’t have much time to think about it before Chrysalis shoved her inside. Starlight fell to the floor and gaped into the familiar ominous darkness of the room.

“Oh, and your magician friend told me you were scared of spiders. I wanted to see if that was true.”

Starlight’s heart sunk in an instant. Inside, she was begging for this not to happen, but remained silent. She turned around with an outstretched hoof and pleading, wide eyes, before the door slammed shut. The glow of the chandelier up above lit the room. Starlight was on edge.

“Please no. Please no. Please no.”

She heard the sound of scurrying legs in the distance, like a distant chatter. She was panting heavily now. Pain, emotional trauma, that was one thing, but this? This was hell. Her mind felt like falling apart, she felt as though she was going to have a heart attack. Her anxiety tripled when she spied the dirt-encrusted webbing decorating the floor in front of her. She made sure her hooves weren’t touching any of it, as she clung to the door of the dungeon, gasping for air as sweat dribbled down her forehead. Then she saw. A mass of what must’ve been hundreds of eight-legged arachnids, all about the size of a cherry, approaching her. They moved at a mild pace. Starlight, unable to hold it in anymore, turned around and banged on the door.

“Please! Let me out! I can’t!”

She turned around and saw they were nearly upon her. They had menacing red eyes and hairy backs. They looked angry. Starlight’s eyes darted around the room. She tried her best to keep her usual calmness under pressure, but when it came to spiders, that was difficult. Usually she had to be the one to calm Twilight down.

‘Would Twilight even do that for me?’

She shook her head, trying to regain focus.

‘No time for that now…’

She saw a patch of open ground near the right corner of the room, and jumped over the silk-covered floor to get there. She wanted to avoid getting stuck at all cost. She made the jump, and looked back to see the army of spiders still approaching. She bought herself some time, but not much. She thought about climbing, but the walls were made of large, thick stones, completely flat. She instinctively tried using her magic, which of course still didn’t work. She knew her last resort was to physically fend them off. She kicked the one that was closest to her away, same with three more. They began to encompass her. She had to get out of that corner. She saw another opening a few feet away, and tried to jump.

This time, she didn’t make it. She tripped on the ground and slammed down onto the silk-covered ground before her, her ass bent upwards and facing the spiders. Her chin was stuck to the floor.

“No!”

She was practically crying as she tried to get up, her legs and body stuck to the ground. The silk was like superglue, and she wasn’t going anywhere.

“Ugh! Somepony help me!”

All reasoning and pride disappeared as she felt completely helpless. This was what she was afraid of.

Helplessness.

Embarrassment.

Bugs.

All rolled into one. She felt something on her hoof, like trickling water. It didn’t take long to realize there was a spider crawling up her leg, followed by dozens more. They crawled up and down her, not sure what to do with such a large meaty catch. Starlight shut her eyes and refused to open them, refusing to accept that this was happening. It felt disgusting, having these putrid bugs use her like a carpet. She felt a sharp pinch on her flank, that made her shudder. A few more sharp jolting pain shot through her spine, like someone was sticking acid-ridden pins in her. After a few minutes of enduring the spiders all over her back and legs, she felt her limbs go slack. She tried moving one, but found herself unable to control her own body. She felt like puking now from the disorientation and fright of it all. This was a nightmare come true. Her whole body was now immobile, the only thing she could move was her face. She opened her eyes to test this, and a few seconds later she saw the outline of a large, black, fuzzy spider walking right over her eye. She screamed, and then gagged as another fell into her open mouth. She spat the spider out in horror before shutting her mouth and eyes, shaking. She had no choice but to give up.

‘My queen won’t let me die, she wouldn’t.’

Starlight realized she actually just thought of Chrysalis as ‘My Queen’ without even realizing it. She groaned in self-hatred.

‘Look at me. I really am pathetic. Beaten by creatures the size of my hoof.’

She felt the spiders cover her entire body, stretching long fibers of silk along as they went, effectively creating a sort of sticky blanket draped over onto the floor. The silk was at least soft, and it was almost comforting. She tried to drift off, which was easy given the amount of spider venom in her veins, filling her mind with static. She fell unconscious as the spiders triumphed on top of her.

After another hour and a half of silent walking, Twilight noticed something up ahead. A major deviation from the continuous look of the cave. The tunnel spread out into a larger room. Twilight stopped.

“Everypony turn your lights off!”

Rarity and the other unicorns all shut off their already dim lights, while Radish stomped on his torch. Twilight still had her light on, though extremely dim. She bent down to the stony ground with a hoof and drew back some ash.

“Fritz’s torch,” she whispered. She glared back at the room. The others all froze in hesitation.

“I’ll go first and see what it is.”

The others were completely fine with that. Twilight snuck down to the end of the tunnel and peered into the room. She saw the same door Fritz had found yesterday.

‘This must be it,’ she thought. A wave of relief hit her as the mystery finally unravelled. Now the real mission began: save Starlight and get out of here alive.

She looked around some more and saw the other tunnel entrances.

‘These must go all over Equestria! She’s sure been busy.’

She focused again on the door and noticed the triangular-keyhole off to the side.

‘Must be locked from the inside.’

Then she noticed a series of mechanisms at the top of the door frame, which Fritz failed to see.

‘And from the outside? This isn’t going to be easy.’

She remembered that Chrysalis might know they’re coming, and examined the room for traps. She looked frantically all around the room, and noticed some odd out-of-place features. There was a large metal plate with bar-like rivets that was stuck on the ceiling.

‘Either an air vent or a trap.’

Probably a trap.

She looked right below the entrance to the tunnel and saw a trip wire.

‘Yikes!’

She saw some metallic pointed fixtures along the walls as well, all pointing towards the center of the room. Satisfied with her findings, she returned to the others, who were anxious. She gathered them all together, huddled in a circle.

“Okay, there’s a tripwire right outside the exit, so make sure you step over it. Also stay away from the center of the room.”

“Hold on, Twilight, is there an entrance to the lair?” asked Shining Armor, unconcerned with booby traps.

“Yes, yes, there’s a door.”

“A door?” asked Rarity.

“Yes, a door.”

“Is there a handle to this door?” asked Radish condescendingly, “Or do we have to pry it open like a safe?”

“That would make too much noise. And no, there’s not a handle.”

“Then how do you know it’s a door?”

“Because, it looked like a door!” said Twilight, annoyed with these ridiculous questions.

“How could what you saw resemble a door, if it should not possess a handle? Surely, it would just be classified as a rectangular shaped object, no?” asked Radish.

“What about revolving doors?” added Pinkie Pie.

“Oh, very true. I forgot about those.”

“Enough of this!” said Twilight, angrily, “There’s some sort of keyhole to the door. That’s how you open it.”

“Oh, great. Where are we going to get a key?” said Shining Armor pessimistically.

“Well we know Chrysalis would be the only one with the key, right?” asked Twilight, who was basically consulting herself at this point. “So, if we wait for Chrysalis to come out, we can sneak in while invisible.”

“There’s too many of us to do that without being noticed,” said Plat, blankly. “We’d have to send two or three, and then open the door for others.”

“That won’t work, the door locks from the outside too.”

“How could you possibly know that?” asked Rarity.

“Just trust me, I saw it. And it’d be safer to assume that anyway.”

“Yeah, and more complicated, ” added Shining Armor.

“What we could do, is send in two or three invivisble, like Plat said, while the others are hiding in this tunnel, and have the first invisible group hold the door just a little bit open, just enough for her not to notice, and then let the others in, while Chrysalis runs off somewhere and leaves Starlight alone. That would be the optimal time to rescue her-when Chrysalis isn’t there.”

“Would the others be invisible?” asked Plat, who loved it when a plan came together.

“If they need to be.”

“So we’re going to have to wait for Chrysalis to open that door? That could take forever!” Pinkie Pie said, tired of waiting.

“It won’t...there are other tunnels in the room that probably go all over the rest of Equestria. I’d bet she’s a pretty busy pony, so we might get our chance sooner than you think.”

“We can’t fall asleep though.”

“Not here,” Rarity added.

“Definitely not,” said Twilight.

“What if she comes up through this tunnel?” asked Radish.

“Then…”

“Then we engage. While we have the jump on her,” said Shining Armor.

“Shining Armor, I don’t think-”

“Unless you want to keep us all invisible, if she walks up these steps while the rest of us are hiding, we’re going to have no other choice.”

“Fine. Then I’ll make both groups invisible.”

“But Twilight, can you hold it that long?” asked Pinkie, worriedly.

“I won’t falter again. But nopony can make any mistakes. This is our only chance.”

They all nodded and sat back, preparing themselves.

“Shining Armor and Pinkie Pie, you’ll be with me, we’ll be the ones to sneak inside the door and hold it.”

Shining Armor glared at her, knowing she put them together to keep him in check. He resented that.

“Rarity, you and Plat and Radish hide here and wait for the signal to come out.”

“And what is that signal?” asked Radish.

“Um...if you hear me tap a rock one time.”

“But Twilight, what if Chrysalis hears?” asked Rarity.

“We’ll wait until she’s long gone…”

“Okay,” said Rarity, cautiously.

“So, should we send someone to watch for that door to open?”

“I’ll go.” said Plat, immediately. Shining Armor eyed him.

“You sure about that, Plat?”

“Quite.”

Plat was eager to risk something, to feel the thrill he always dreamed of as a foal. He joined the military with the intent of seeing some action, not being crammed in a tower studying maps all day. And this was already more than he bargained for, so he might as well take advantage.
He stumbled down closer until he could see the door through the darkness. He gazed back up at the others, lit up by the dim glow of Twilight’s horn. The others all sat down on the rock and waited. Twilight shut off her light.

“Good luck everypony.”

Chrysalis paced around her throne room. Something wasn’t right. Unless that pegasus was more than a day of travel ahead of them, Twilight Sparkle and her friends should've made it to the entrance by now. She remembered vividly what each of them looked like. There was the pink one, the one with the rainbow hair, the blonde, the shy one, and the glamorous one. She was just beginning to plan out exactly what she would do to each of them, to punish them justly.

‘Perhaps Starlight is the only one meant to suffer, otherwise it’s not as special.’

She decided against torturing Twilight or her friends, feeling that was Starlight’s unique punishment- a lifetime of pain. But still, Twilight and her friends had to be punished.

She was getting sidetracked. Where were they? She had set up a series of elaborate traps-tripwires that would lock them inside, flamethrowers that would force them to the center of the room, and a large cage that would drop from the ceiling. It was foolproof. She would finally have defeated Twilight Sparkle, one of her greatest foes!

Suddenly, she realized that they could’ve somehow gotten inside already and rescued Starlight from the dungeon. Chrysalis buzzed through the cave tunnel to the dungeon entrance and opened a hatch in the door, peering inside. She saw Starlight’s bloody, pink body strewn up in silk on the ground and covered in spiders. Chrysalis couldn’t help but laugh at how pathetic Starlight looked, and was also relieved those ponies hadn’t succeeded. Her mental state couldn’t possibly handle another defeat.

Concerned, she decided to see for herself.

She flew up into one of the ceiling-tunnels, down all the way to the large wooden door, and, using her triangular-shaped key she always carried, opened it.

Plat, who was slowly drifting asleep, jumped up and ran up to the others upon the sound of dangling keys and metal gears coming from the door.

“She’s here! She’s here!”

The others all jumped up, Twilight, Shining Armor, and Pinkie Pie stepping in front, the others all crouching behind. Radish gripped his spear in anticipation. He didn’t exactly want to fight, but he knew it was his duty. Yet, the compulsion to turn around and just run was eating at him. It had been since the name Chrysalis was first uttered. He glanced at Plat, who also had a spear, except that his had never been used. Rarity sat between them, chattering her teeth in nervousness. Twilight zapped the three of them, turning them invisible. Then she turned to Pinkie Pie, Shining Armor, and herself, and did the same.

“Let’s go,” she muttered.

They climbed down the tunnel into the vestibule, just as Chrysalis swung the door open. Twilight froze. Chrysalis didn’t seem like she was heading out to leave for anywhere. Twilight carefully stepped over the tripwire, and prayed the others remembered as well. Twilight stuck to the side of the room, as Chrysalis stepped towards the middle. Shining Armor and Pinkie Pie followed, both also avoiding the tripwire. Their steps were light and barely audible. Chrysalis paid no notice as the three slowly tip-toed towards the still-open door. Chrysalis was just standing there, like she was waiting for something. Anything.

Twilight was on edge. Already, this wasn’t going as planned. Twilight ushered Shining Armor and Pinkie Pie inside the tunnel. They were in.
Amazed, Twilight focused on the others. She reached towards the wall and gently tapped it once.

Chrysalis’ head shot around in alert. She stared at the still-open door and saw nothing. Twilight and the other two stood perfectly still inside the doorway tunnel, aware Chrysalis was staring right at them.

Above, Rarity mustered up some courage and got up first, Plat following and Radish last. Twilight was struggling to hold the invisibility spell this long. Her main focus was on herself and Shining Armor and Pinkie Pie, who were still being stared at by Chrysalis.

Chrysalis smelled the air. She knew there were ponies here, but couldn’t see any.

‘Perhaps I’m too obsessed.’

But, as Rarity crept down the tunnel, she slipped, and fell face first down the tunnel, falling over the edge and right onto the tripwire. Twilight gaped in shock as Chrysalis turned to where Rarity had fallen. Twilight was now focusing most of her efforts on Rarity, who was petrified on the floor. Plat was up above with Radish, both unsure what to do. Had she seen her?

Just then, the alarm went off as a result of the tripwire, and Rarity jumped up in fright, her hoof prints now visible to Chrysalis, who was paying close attention to that spot on the ground. Chrysalis shot a blast of magic at the ground where an invisible Rarity was standing, blasting her into a wall and breaking the invisibility spell. However, Twilight had cast one spell on all three of them, Rarity, Plat, and Radish, so that when one of them broke the spell, it broke for all of them.

“You!!!” yelled Chrysalis, as she stalked towards a moaning Rarity, whose head was bashed by the impact of the rock. Plat glanced at Radish.

“Come on…”

Plat leaped down the tunnel, spear in hand, no longer invisible, and threw the spear at Chrysalis. Chrysalis was no fool however, and caught the spear with her magic in midair. She turned to face the spectacled pony, who stared in shock. She then blasted him straight in the face, throwing him into a rock and twisting his neck sideways. Plat fell to the ground, his body contorted in an unnatural way. Twilight and Shining Armor were stunned, but couldn’t risk making any sound or reaction. Rarity gasped at Plat’s death and looked up at Chrysalis in terror. She glanced at Radish, still in the tunnel, who Chrysalis hadn’t seen yet.

Yet, Radish, just witnessing the death of Plat and Rarity’s defeat, all at the hands of the all-powerful Chrysalis, gave in to his fears. He had lost hope, she seemed unbeatable, and if she was to kill Plat like he was a ragdoll, she would definitely do the same to him. Shining Armor noticed his hesitation from the opposite side.
‘Don’t,’ he thought, though Radish could neither hear nor see him to be persuaded.
He turned around and dashed off, holding back tears and not looking back. Chrysalis hadn’t even known he was there by the time he was long gone. Shining Armor was furious at his friend’s betrayal, but had to hold it all back. He stared at the ground and fumed. Chrysalis was focused on Rarity, picking her up with her green aura of magic, before Rarity could come up with any spells to defend herself. She was petrified in shock, just witnessing the death of a pony for the second time this week.

“Well well well, I’ve been expecting you...Rarity, was it? Yes, I remember ...You were the pretty one…”

She got close, too close for comfort. Twilight and the others stayed where they were. They had made it after all, and she refused to risk their advantage quite yet. She held onto Shining Armor, preventing him from taking action.

“So sorry about your...friend, but he was asking for it really,” she said, splitting Plat’s spear in half and dropping the pieces to the floor.

“That was a nifty little trick, turning yourselves invisible,” she said, as the alarm continued going off. She shot a beam of magic towards the ceiling, which shut it off.

“I’ll be ready for that next time.”

Chrysalis carried Rarity back with her through the doorway. All Twilight could do was watch as her friend was carted away like a piece of meat. The remaining three stayed close to the wall as Chrysalis buzzed past them, Rarity saying nothing as they both disappeared down the tunnel, the door slamming shut and locking from both sides, just as Twilight had predicted.

After a few minutes of waiting for Chrysalis to definitely be gone, Twilight let go of the spell, all three collapsing to the ground. Twilight out of exhaustion, Shining Armor out of anguish, and Pinkie Pie because of collectivism.

“Plat...he’s…” Shining Armor muttered.

“I know,” Twilight whispered back, embracing her brother.

“Now we have to save Rarity too…” said Pinkie Pie, somberly.
“What happened to Radish?” asked Twilight, unknowingly.

“He ran off. He betrayed us, that-”

“Easy...You might’ve too if you were him…” said Twilight, though she too felt betrayed.

They all sat there, defeated.

“How are we going to do this?”

“We have all night...we just have to find where Starlight and Rarity are, and...and save them...and...get out of here...we...we need the key…” she groaned in hopelessness, tears welting up. Shining Armor, who had shown her little sympathy this whole journey, was softened by the sniffles of his little sister.

“Hey...look at me…”

He grabbed her and forced her to stare in his eyes.

“It’ll be ok, alright? Everything will work out...It always does.”

She wiped her tears away and let him hug her tight, the two sitting on the ground, a mess. Pinkie Pie wrapped her arms around both of them, hoping to lighten the mood.

They had made it at last.