Lost Family, Part 2by FanofAwesomenessChaptersRainbow RevealedPlans MadeEscapeRecaptureTragedyDeath UndoneRainbow Revealed"What have you done to my sister!?" Nightwolf screamed at the Queen. "I did nothing," she replied in her mimicing voice. "She did all the work for me. Your sister is a strong fighter, just like you. But you can't fight, can you? Not while you're in that cage." She pulled on a rope, dragging the real Rainbow Dash in to view. She was barely alive. There were cuts all over her body and her hooves were bleeding at the fetlocks. She was much thinner and her mane was even more messy. What was worse was that she was still conscious. She was weakly stryggling at her bonds. She was trying to escape even when it wasn't possible. "You can't cut her bonds from there," the Queen said. "The cage will throw back any magic. It would only cause your own injury." "Let. Her. Go," Nightwolf said, still staring at his sister. "If that's what you really want," the Queen said, taking a step forward. Rainbow let out a barely audible yelp to the pain. "She can stay with you. You are her brother, after all." the Queen opened the physical door, and Nightwolf ran towards her. He was stopped by an invisible barrier and thrown back ino the cage. "Did you really think I would have made such a foolish mistake?" "I hoped you had," Nightwolf muttered under his breath. "A one-way magical barrier," she explained. "To counteract the two-way physical one." As she threw in Rainbow Dash, Nightwolf ran to her to check up on her and make sure she was alright. "You're going to be fine," Nightwolf told his real sister. "You're going to be fine." "As you probably figured out by now, there is no way of escape," the Queen said. "You can try as much as you want, nothing is going to work." "She jumped me," Rainbow said, weakly. "I tried to hold her off. I tried to stop her. I'm sorry." "No one pony can take on the Queen, sis," Nightwolf said. "You have noting to apologize for. I should be the one saying sorry. I didn't get here soon enough." "How sweet," the Queen taunted. "Brother and sister together again. Enjoy those precious moments while you can." With that, Chrysalis launched into the air andflew off, probably to make her demands. "We need to find a way out of here," Twilight said. "We need to get to Canterlot so we can get the Elements. We need to stop the Queen." "You can't," Nightwolf said. "She probably already has the Elements hidden away. Plus, my sister can't fight in her condition. She's too weak right now." "I can handle it," Rainbow said, standing up, only to be brought back down by the rope around her legs. "You need to save your strength," Nightwolf explained. "She hasn't been feeding you every day, has she?" "No," came rainbow's reply. Nightwolf began untying the rope. "How long ago did she take you?" "When Twilight and I were attacked by those changelings," she said. "The Queen was hiding behind the door. when I picked up twlight, she came after me. I tried to protect both of us, but she was too strong. I've been tied up in the forest ever since." "Well that explains the fact that I was able to talk to you before hand but couldn't track you after." After he finished untying the rope, he set it aside. I may need this later, He thought. "Yeah," Rainbow said, standing up. Her legs were a bit shaky but but they could support her. "You need some rest. I'll wake you up if the Queen comes back." "I don't need to sleep," Rainbow said. "I don't even feel tired." "If you don't rest, you won't be able to save any energy you still have," Nigtwolf said. "I should be building up strength," Rainbow replied. "Not resting." "You're not going to rest? Noteven if a doctor was here and told you to sleep?" "Nope." She slid down the bars and started doing wing push-ups. "I need more strength to beat her," she said after 5. She was already out of breath from lack of food and energy. "If I can keep her distracted, you gys could get out of here." "I'm not going to let you sacrifice yourself to save us. And even if i did, if you don't rest, you wont be able to use that strength," Nightwolf tried. Rainbow looked at him, a scowl on her face. "You need energy to use all your strength. Resting means you have that energy." After a minute of thinking, she said, "I guess a short nap wouldn't hurt. But I need something comfy to sleep on, not this metal. Steel isn't comfy and it hurts my neck." "Use me as a pillow," Nightwolf suggested. "We're family. Now rest." Rainbow grunted a reply and stumbled over to him. Nightwolf layed down and Rainbow rested her head on his back. "Thanks," Rainbow said, barely above a whisper. And with that, she fell asleep. She rarely thanked somepony, let alone somepony that used her friend as a shield. Looks like I finally gained her trust. "Why were you really doing that?" Twilight asked. "You normally would have tried to wait her out like with that thing the other day." "She sleeps like a rock and is extremely loyal," Nightwolf said. "Which is why I needed her asleep. She can't get in trouble for something she didn't do. And she wouldn't let me do this if she were awake." "What are you talking about?" Twilight asked. "I'm talking about a plan. We need one. And as long as my sister is here, she's going to get blamed for what happened. For what Chrysalis did. I can't let that happen." "What kinda plan are ya talkin' 'bout?" Applejack asked. "Yeah," Pinkie said. "She said these things were super-duper proof." Ignore the randomness, Nightwolf thought. "An escape plan," he said with confidence. "We need to get out of here, and I think I know just how to do it." Plans Made"She said that these things would throw back magic," Twilight said. "I've tried teleporting out of here, but this cage seems to cut off my magic entirely." "We aren't going to use magic," Nightwolf said. "We need to shut off the thing that's making this field." "What are y'all talkin' 'bout?" Applejack asked. "What field?" "The magical field around us," Nightwolf explained. "If we can take it out, then we can bust throught these cages." "If this thing is around us, then wouldn't she be alerted to us escaping?" Twilight questioned. "Watch this," Nightwolf said. He thrust his hoof towards a rock and spoke. "Sgrabchvam." The rock flew to his hoof and he caught it. "It's a magic prevention barrier. It'smeant to cut off magic abilities by severing the connection that a unicorn has to their magic. I have a connection to the area around us. I don't have that much power. I have the one thing that can bypass the barrier. But it can only be bypassed by a non-magical possessing physical form." He lifted the rock and threw it at the tree closest to him. "Phēravavuṁ." It bounced off an invisible wall and lodged itself into the ground. "Now watch what happens when I don't use magic." He pulled the rock out of the ground and threw it hard at the tree again. This time, it hit the tree and bounced off it. "If there is magic around it, it won't get through. If there is just a physical form, is passes through the air as if there is no barrier at all." "How did you know that?" Twilight asked. "She used it against me when she attacked my tribe. She fed on me. I got a glimpse at her thoughts and used that knowledge to build my own and break through." "Then how do we turn it off?" "We need to find where the generator is," he said. "If we can do enough damage to it, it will stop working and release the spell." "Generator?" "Yeah. It's a device that will keep a spell up as long as you want it to. its made mostly of stone and metal. You need to make a small antenna to direct where you want thespell and you trap the spell with enchanted stone." "Then how do we damage it?" "We need to get a non-magical being through the barrier," Nightwolf said. "If they can pull apart the basic structure, then it will release the spell." "None of us can pass," Twilight added. "We are all Elements and you have extra magical abilities." "Thats why I have this," Nightwolf said, raising the rope. "I could make a destructive piece and tie it to the end of this rope so I could tear down the machine." "How are you going to do that withougt using magic?" "I haven't quite figured that part out yet." "What're you guys talking about?" Rainbow said, drowsily. "Nothing you have to worry about," Nightwolf said calmly. "Just go back to sleep." "You're hiding something," she said more awake. "And I don't need any more rest right now. You are going to tell me what you're planning." "You really don't want to know," Nightwolf tried. "It doesn't involve you, anyways." "Applejack," Rainbow said. "What were you guys talking about?" Uh-oh, He thought. She's asking for information from the Element of Honesty. I should have thought tis through better. "Ah can't make sense of what they're talkin' 'bout," came Applejack's reply. Thank Celestia I made it hard to understand. I would be in big trouble right now if I didn't. "But ah do know that they're discussin' some sort a' escape plan." I'm screwed. "What?!" Rainbw Dash almost screamed. "You were figuring out how to escape without me? What kind of brother are you?" "We were going to take you," Nightwolf said. "We just needed to figure out how to get out of here and I knew you wouldn't want me to risk myself to do that." "Of course I don't!" Rainbow yelled at him. "I just learned that my parents are dead! You're the only family I have left!" There was a long silece. "Then we have only one choice," Nightwolf said. "If we are going to get out of here, we need to work together." "No more secrets?" "No more secrets." "I hate to break up the reunioun," Twilight said. "But can we get on to the part where you build something to get us out of here? I don't know if you two noticed, but we don't have that much time." "Right," Nightwolf said. "I need some basic tools. Twilight, I need you to put together a few pieces that look like hollowed-out blocks. Rarity, I need you to put together a small cylinder that's also hollow. Rainbow, you need to tie the rope around this rock." "Got it," came Twilights reply. "You can coun on me," Rarity said. "Why do I get the rope with a rock?" Rainbow asked. "Because that can't be done with magic for this to work," Nightwolf explained. "And let us hope it works." Escape"Are you done with that cylinder yet, Rarity?" Nightwolf asked. "I'm going to need it soon." He had already made the hole so the cylinder would fit. Then hechored th rope to the main body. "You can't rush perfection," Rarity said. "It doesn't have to be prfect. Just round and hollow." "Well here you go," Rarity said, tossing him the stone. "Alright," Nightwolf said as he slid the cylinder into place. "Conferrumino," he muttered. The stone instantly melted together forming a single piece. "Now time to enchant this thing. Let me know if any changelings get close. They can't know about this." "Got it," Rainbow said. He began chanting the what he needed for it to work. He channeled in his emotion and power from the ground into the small object. "Zjarri kur unë të urdhëroj. Përdorni fuqinë me tokë për të forcuar. Pushim gurin. Zjarri kur unë të urdhëroj. Përdorni fuqinë me tokë për të forcuar. Pushim gurin. Propel indarra eta abiadura handiko energia zehar bihurgunean objektu hau. Propel indarra eta abiadura handiko energia zehar bihurgunean objektu hau. Gōlī mārō jaba maiṁ ādēśa. Kamāṇḍa' aāga' kāma karanē kē li'ē-" "Changeling," Rainbow said, interrupting the enchantment. "Hide it!" "Adraśya ḍagalō," Nightwolf said, quickly hiding the device behind a veil. "Get over here and pretend to sleep." "Got it." Rainbow was back over resting her head on Nightwolf's back so she would seem asleep. "You!" the thing commanded. "Get up!" "Me?" Nightwolf asked. "Why would you want me? Your tricks won't work on me. I've guarded myself too well against your traps." "Because," it said, shifting into Twilight. "You didn't do well enough." It was feeding on him. He felt his life beginning to drain, his blood begin to slow. He became dizzy and eventually just passed out cold. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight couldn't believe what she was seeing. Nightwolf was being drained. She couldsee his life force being weakened. She could see him weaken. She could see the trap. Before she even thought abou what she was doing, Twilight pointed a hoof towards the revealed machine and muttered the same thing Nightwolf had. "Adraśya ḍagalō." She was suddenly dizzy and felt weak. This must be the effect of using a spell not meant for unicorns. When she resteadied her vision, the changeling was looking in the cage that held Nighwolf and Rainbow Dash. "I guess he wasn't playing tricks," the thing said after switching back to it's natural form. "Oh well. It was a good snack." ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf woke to see Rainbow looking out the cage bars. "Good to know somepony has been keeping watch," Nightwol said. "How long have I been out?" "Two hours," Rainbow replied. "The guard comesback every half an hour. He should be back soon. Once he leaves again, you should finish with that thingimagij." "Let me know when he passes," Nightwolf said. "I'll fake-sleep until then." It was hard not to really sleep. It had gotten late and using so much magic was tiring. But if he didn't get that thing done before the guard came back, hewouldn't get another chance to escape. It was already a miracle the thing hadn't been revealed from the veil after Nightwolf had passed out. "He's gone. Hurry up." With that, he began to work. "Zjarri kur unë të urdhëroj. Përdorni fuqinë me tokë për të forcuar. Pushim gurin. Zjarri kur unë të urdhëroj. Përdorni fuqinë me tokë për të forcuar. Pushim gurin. Propel indarra eta abiadura handiko energia zehar bihurgunean objektu hau. Propel indarra eta abiadura handiko energia zehar bihurgunean objektu hau. Gōlī mārō jaba maiṁ ādēśa. Kamāṇḍa' aāga' kāma karanē kē li'ē prayōga karēṁ." "You done yet?" Rainbow asked. "He could be coming around the corner any minute now." "Just finished," Nightwolf replied. "We can test this thing on him." Right after Nightwolf finished his sentance, the changeling came around the corner towards them. "What are you doing?" "Aāga'!" Nightwolf exclaimed. The device shot out the rock and it hit the changeling in the head with anough force to knock it unconscious. Nightwolf then reeled the rock back in with therope and reloaded for the next shot. "I'm aiming for the machine next. When it goes down, you'll know. Bust the doors when it goes down and then run. Run as fast as your hooves can carry you." "What?!" Rainbow asked. "What about you?" "I'll be following you shortly after. Aāga'!" The thing fired and hit a large stone structure. There was a spark and green light began to escape. "Go!" ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight felt her connection to magic return. It was a rush. She aimed her horn at her cage door and blew it off it's hinges. She repeated the process with the other doors. "Come on!" she yelled at them. "We have to get out before the Queen gets back." ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf was exhausted. His wing was broken and his sister and friends were escaping. You did good, Nightwolf, he thought. You did good. Now you need to rest. Or run. "Come on, Nightwolf!" Rainbow said, interrupting his thoughts. "Are you waiting fo a written invitation? We have to get out of here!" "Go," Nightwolf replied. "I'll catch up in a minute." "We don't have a minute! Come on! I'm not leaving without you." That settles that, Nightwolf thought. I'm running. "Right behind you. Now let's get out of here." And with that, they ran. Recapture"Keep running!" Nightwolf yelled at Applejack. "Lead them out of here! I'll catch up in 10 seconds!" "You're coming with us!" Rainbow told him. "I'll carry you if I have to." "You don't have the strength built back for tht and you know it," Nightwolf commented. "I'm only setting up some quick traps for those things that are following us." "I'll help you." "Fine," Nightwolf said. "Hand me that branch." "This one?" Rainbow asked, picking up a fallen tree branch. "Yeah," Nightwolf answered. He slammed it into the ground and made a small spring-trap. "Let's go!" The forest was a dark place. Not much light came through during the day, let alone at night. Suddenly, there was a sharp sound behind them. "Don't let them get out of the forest!" Chrysalis screamed in her imitation of Rainbow Dash. "Don't let them get away!" Green bursts of magicstarted flying all around them. Nightwolf turned and thrust his hoof forward. "Vidyudvadhisu!" he screamed. Lightning shot from his hoof and hit one of the changelings in the head. He did'nt have time to check to see if it was still alive, so he just turned and ran. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| Rainbow was scared. She would never admit it, but for once, she was afraid of what might happen. She heard her brother scream something and saw a flash, but didn't turn to look. Her legs were already beginning to tire. If this kept up, she would fall and be captured again. No, Rainbow thought. I'm not going to let them take me again. Or my friends. Or my brother. ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Sleep, Nightwolf thought. I need sleep. He was beginning to really feel the extent of his magic. He was running on empty. They needed to get out of that forest. There was a blast that hit Nightwolf in the leg. He went tumbling toward the ground thinking one thing. Ground, meet face. Face, ground. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| "Nightwolf!" Rainbow screamed. She ran up to where he had been shot down. "Please be alive." "I'm fine," Nightwolf said on the edge of consciousness. "I just need some rest. Another shot like that and they're going to need that net." "What net?" "The one right above you." And the net came down. ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf shoved as hard as he could to get his sister out of the way of the net. She got out just in time, but Nightwolf was trapped. He was pinned under the large, rope mesh. "Go!" Nightwolf said. "Run! I'll be out in a few seconds!" "I'm not going without you," Rainbow said. "GO! I'll be free soon. Just get out of here!" Nightwolf yelled at his sister. He had to get her out of there. "Once you're free, I'll leave," she said stubbornly. "Slā'isa," Nightwolf muttered, cutting the net into tiny pieces. "Fine. I'm free. Now let's get moving!" "You're not going anywhere!" thundered the Queen's voice from above. "I can't let you escape. So either come with me or die." She said that so casually it was scary. Nightwolf felt a mental shiver run through hm. "You're not taking either of us anywhere!" Rainbow said. Nightwolf looked aroundto see all these changelings surrounding them. They couldn't escape unless Rainbow had enough strength to carry both of them through the conopy of trees overhead. And even if they did escape, it would only be short. They would catch them both in the air and kill them right then and there. And even if they were to fully escape them, who would believe them? "Sis," Nightwolf said. "You have to know when to give up." Nightwolf sat down and put his hooves in the air. And then he was hit in the head and slipped out of consciousness again. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| "No!" Rainow screamed. Her brother was hit in the head. Hard. It was obvious when he didn't try to get back up that he was out cold. "Why did you do that?!" "He was planning on turning against us as soon as he could to try to buy your friends more time," the Queen said. "I couldn't let that happen." She turned to face theother changelings. "Drop him off. They need to be delayed." As soon as they were gone, Rainbow charged. She knew she wouldn't win this fight, but she had to do what she could to save her friends. Tackling her, Rainbow spun around and punched the Queen in the muzzle. "That's for my brother!" she screamed. Chrysalis rolled, pinning Rainbow to the ground. "You have heart," she said. "But do you have passion?" Rainbow widened out her wings and distracted the Queen long enough for Rainbow to get back out of the pin. She was beginning to feel the wear. "You apparently do," Chrysalis said. "Let's see what that gets you." She charged up her horn, preparing a blast of magic. Right before she fired, Rainbow jumped up and once again tackled the Queen to the ground. But her timing wasn't as good as she had thought and took a small blast to the head, knocking her off-balance. The last thing she saw was a hoof coming towards her face. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight didn't dare look behind her in fear of what could have happened to her friends. They were moving too fast for her to worry. But her mind didn't wat to agree. They could be in real danger, she thought. What if they were captured. It's been a while since you heard Nightwolf's voice. "The exit is dead-ahead!" Applejack screamed over the sounds coming from their hooves and the natural ones from the forest. "We're almost free!" Suddenly, somepony was dropped in front of them, pulling them all to a stop. A second pony followed, confirming Twilight's fears. "They held us off for a few seconds," the Queen said, landing next to the two unconscious ponies. "But they were a few seconds short. Now come with me or you can die. Or you could watch your friends die. Your choice." "I don't want to see anypony die," Twiligt spoke up. "Just let us go." "You know why I can't let you do that," Chrysalis replied. "Then I guess you don't leave us a choice." "I don't want to see anypony getting hurt," Fluttershy said softly. "We can only do what can prevent such a dreadful thing to happen," Rarity said. "Ah don't see what else can be done," Applejack said. Pinkie Pie was stunned. She was staring at the two sleeping ponies and obviously thinking. "I can't let you be such a meanie," she finally said. And with that, they were all chained and led deeper into the forest once again. TragedyWhen Nightwolf finally woke up again, he was in a cave. He was exhausted. The use of so much magic was too tiring. Sleep is good, he thought. "Good," came the voice of the Queen. "You're up. Just in time to see what happened." "Well I guess you didn't think that one through," Nightwolf said, nodding to the chains bolted into the wall. "I can't move." "Then I guess I'll just have to describe the scene. Fires are burning. Ponies screaming. Fear is visible on them. And once it seems like too much, we come in and offer them comfort. They will fall imprisoned to us and there will be no way for you to stop us. Once they have outlived their usefulness, they will die. Just like you should have years ago." "You were trying to kill me," Nightwol said. "I had a reason to live. That's why I beatyou. I chose t fight not for myself, but for those who matter to me. That is why I still live," Nihtwolf said, standing up, "And stand against you. You don't have the strength to fight for long. You have gone without feeding for a while. It's obvious." "You may stand," the Queen said, walking over to him. "But you are not invincible." She attacked him. It's really hard to fight while chained t a stone wall. All you can really d is dodge while trying to get enough chain to actually throw back a punch. Nightwolf backed into the stone wall so quickly, he didn't even realize that it wasn't a stone wall. The Queen hit him hard in the jaw. Pain exploded at the point. "I do not need to feed constantly to keep up my strength." What was behind Nightwolf was soft. Not the stone wall he had thougt, and hoped, was there. This object was a cyan blue with hair that matched the rainbows in the sky. Looking back, he saw all of them chained together keeping him there. He was trapped and chained to six ponies whose lives were in danger because of him. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| Rainbow could feel a hoof bump into her, bringing consciousness with it. She saw her brother above her. "Nightwolf?" "Rainbow?" he asked as he turned. But he was hit in the back of the head by a swinging hoof. "Agh!" he screamed. "Looks like you will get to see your precious brother die," the Queen said tauntingly. "Watch closely." She raised her hoof, preparing to make the final blow. Rainbow was staring in fear. "My Queen!" came the yell of a changeling. "Some of the rsidets are attempting to escape! They found lightning-proof suits." The Queen looked over her shoulder. "Lookslike you have some time to wait before I kill him," the Queen said, putting her hoof on the stone floor. "Enjoy your last few moments with him." With that, she flew off. ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ "Nightwolf!" Rainbow scramed, tending to her half-conscious brother. "What happened?" "I tried to take on the Queen," Nightwolf explained. "It was the only way to prevent her from hurting any of you. She is a lot more powerful than I thought." "Let me take care of your wounds," Rainbow tried. "No," Nightwolf said, backing away. The chains didn't let him get too far away. "I can't let you." This seemed strangely familiar to him. Woah, Nightwolf thougt. Déjà vu. "Why?" "I have a bad feeling. And the last time I had this feeling, it didn't end well." "Well maybe that bad feeling is pain," Rainbow said. "No. The pain isn't what's causing it. Something bad is going to happen." Suddenly, Nightwolf was hit with a splitting headache. He felt his hooves come up to try ad squeeze the pain out. He heard somepony call his name. Then he was consumed by blackness. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| "Nightwolf!" Rainbow screamed again. This time it woke up her friends. "Rainbow?" Twilight asked, still slightly groggy. "What happened?" "Nightwolf tried to fight the Queen and now he's passed out on the ground!" she explained. "Well lets see what we can do to try to wake him up," Twilight suggested. "Maybe he could get us out of this predicament." ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ "Hello?" Nightwolf called out into the blackness. "What's going on?" "You are dreaming," said his ow voice from behind him. "That's whats going on." "Ah!" Nightwolf screamed, jumping back. "What are you?" "I am you. I'm the you that will exist if you don't find a way out of that cave. You see, if you don't escape, the Queen will kill one of you. You are safe. The others are not. Get them out and you will have sacrificed yourself to save others. If you don't, one of them will die." "Which one?" Nightwolf asked. "Which one of them will die? I can protect them!" "I have seen every scenario," his other self explained. "Whenever you try to save one, another will die. You cannot save them all without sacrificing yourself. And even then, there is one possible scenario that could happen. The chances of it happening are barely 1% though." "What do I do?" "You need to-" "Nightwolf!" Rainbow screamed as he awoke from his dream. "You're alive!" "Rainbow!" he exclaimed. I guess I'll have to do this on my own, Nightwolf thought. "It's good to be alive. Now let's get out of here before the Queen get's back." "How?" Applejack asked. "These chains are the toughest ah've ever seen." "Well, I guess we are going to have to find out." Then an idea hit him. "Twilight, target that link," he said, pointing to one of the links in the chain between Twilight and Rainbow. "When I say go, shoot it with your laser spell." "Got it," Twilight said, shifting around to get a clear shot at it. "Ready. Go! Slā'isa!" With the power of both unicorn magic and his own, the link shattered. "Let's take care of these pesky cuffs." After cutting through all of their cuffs, Nightwolf wentto the edge of the cave. "You're going to need to go west as fast as you possibly can," he said. "I don't know when the Queen will get back, but I do know tht you guys can get out of here. I don't have the energy to run. Too much magicand not enough sleep. I'll hold off the Queen. You six leave." "I'm not leaving you," Rainbow said. She had gotten enough strength to build up for her to hover. "You'r my brother. I'm staying with you." "What a nice thought," the Queen said from above. "Now maybe you could share a little more. What were you planning on doing after you escaped? There is no way out of your little town now." "You aren't going to stop them, Chrysalis," Nightwolf said. "And you are going to stop me? You already tried that trick." "I think I am going to stop you. I know what I'm up against," Nightwolf lied. He had no chance of surviving anoter fight with her. But he wouldn't let her kill any of the others. He charged the Queen, throwing away his chance at surviving this. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| Rainbow saw the entire thing fold out. Her brother charged the Queen of the changelings. She batted him aside as if he were a bug. "You cannot defeat me!" "I can try!" Nightwolf yelled. "Vatra, struja, kamen, zrak!" he screamed, hurling elements at her. Lightning hit first and then fire. A large boulder flipped out of the ground and almost flattened her. Thewind zipped past her as if nothing had happened but it fed the fire that was burning her body. But just as soon as the flames grew, they went out. "Did you really think simple physical elements vould hurt me?" she asked. "I am queen of the changelings! I protect myself from these simple things all the time." "It was worth a shot," Nightwolf said. The Queen faced him and shot a burst of magic at him. He fell and kept getting pushed back from repeated blasts. "Now you die!" the Queen said, preparing a deadly shot. Rainbow wasn't thinking about what she was doing. She launched herself in between Chrysalis and Nightwolf and took the hit. ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf closed his eyes, waiting for death. "And even then, there is one possible scenario that could happen. The chances of it happening are barely 1% though," he thought. 1%. Here I am about to die. Thank Celestia it wasn't that 1%. He was at peace with dying. For once, he was at peace. But that peace was short lived. "AGH!" It was Rainbow's voice. Rainbow's scream. His eyes snapped open. The Queen was standing in shock. In front of him was his sister with a hole in her torso. "Rainbow!" Nightwolf screamed, his voice hoarse. "No! Please, no!" He could see the damage. The hole was bleeding. Her abdomen was missing a corner and her coat was burned where the spell had hit it. "Please." "Hey," Rainbow said weakly. "Don't talk," he said. "Just don't talk." "I guess you were right," she said, ignoring his advice. "I shouldn't have let that surprise me. I guess I'm a little too loyal." "You're the best sister I could ask for," Nightwolf said. "You say that like you'll see me again," Rainbow said. "I will," he explained. "You'll make it. I promise." "Don't make promises you can't keep," Rainbow said. Her eyes closed and her breathing stopped. Death Undone"Well that was unexpected," the Queen said. Nightwolf had forgotten she was there. "It looks like there is nothing to worry about now." "You killed her," Nightwolf whispered. "You killed my sister." "You were the target. She jumped in front of the shot." "YOU KILLED HER!" Nightwolf screamed. His rage wiped out his fatigue and he slowlly started walking towards her. "You killed my mother! You killed my father! You killed my foster parents! And now thy hath the guts to kill my sister! You really think there is nothing for you to worry about now?!" "You are nothing," she said, kicking him back a few feet. "This is for my mother, Munja!" he screamed throwing a strong bolt of lightning at the Queen. It knocked her back a few yards and stunned her. "For my father, pakao požara!" The Queen erupted into flame. It burned with a deeper red and orange. "For my foster parents, kiselina voda!" Acid poured down from the tree above her. "And this is for my sister you bitch, duša požara!" She burned again with a silver hue. "You have defeated me," the Queen said weakly. "You have won the fight." She swept her hooves around and knocked Nightwolf to the ground. "But you fail to remember what I told you so long ago. A philosophy a wise pony once told me. When you seek revenge, dig two graves." She powered up her shot and fired at Nightwolf. "Protegat!" he yelled bringing up his green shield just in time. The blast bounced off the shield and into the sky. "Āṟṟal tuṭippu! Āṟṟal tuṭippu! Āṟṟal tuṭippu!" Blast after blast, Nightwolf was pushing the Queen back. His strength was fading but he didn't care. He had no family left. "Please," she said, weakened by the blasts. "Have mercy." "Sorry," Nightwolf said, building up a final blast. "I don't know what you mean by 'mercy'." "Wait!" Twilight screamed. "What?!" Nightwolf spit the question out. "This isn't you," Twilight said. "You wouldn't kill somepony. Don't do this. It's not what Rainbow would want. Rainbow would be dissapointed in you if you killed her." That hit harder than any of the blasts Chrysalis had shot at him. It hit hard and fast. But most importantly, it hit home. He realized what he had done. He started to feel the pain again. He started to feel weak. "You're right," he said. "She would want me to make her suffer." He pulled out his own chained cuffs. "You will be tried by Princess Celestia. Anything you do or say can and will be used against you in a royal court. You will be given an attourney should you not have one." "You're a part of the royal guard?" Rarity asked. "Ex-royal guard. I work aone and try to stop things like this." "Why didn't you tell us?" Twilight asked. "I never had the right moment." He looked away after chaining the Queen. "Gabháil cruach," he said. Steel bars rose up around the Queen, making her temporary prison. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go and give mysister a proper burial." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight was still getting over the fact that Rainbow Dash was dead. She was barely able to hold back the tears when her mind decided to catch up to what happened. Nightwolf was walking over to her slowly. After hauling her ont his back, he started to walk towards town. His head perked up. He looked aroun as if remembering something. He laid down Rainbow's body and ran off after yelling, "Genezing!" ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf ran off to try to find the herb in time. He had less than ten minutes left before the herb would have no effect. It was the one thing that could save his sister. "He found it and almost fell into the trap laid out before it. "I don't have time to play your games, Fools Doom!" he yelled out. "Let me walk away with the herb and I willspare your life!" "You know that I can't do that," it said. "You defeated my sibling, but can you defeat me? Mental or physical?" "Physical," Nightwolf replied swiftly. "And be prepared to die." "As you wish," the thing said, lashing it's tail at Nightwolf. He dodged easily and threw out his hoof. "Prisilno!" Invisible force lashed out and hit the thing hard enough to crack the tree behind it. "Ubiti!" he yelled. The thing let out a scream and died quickly. "I warned you." "You did," it said from behind him. The creature could never truly die, at least not permenantly. "And you have won. Take the herb. You are short on time." "Thank you," Nightwolf said, pulling the herb out of the ground. He ran back toward where he had laid down his sister. "Please work." He pulled a few other herbs from around him, ground them up on a rock and added water to make a paste. He then took the paste and rubbed it onto Rainbow's wound. Then, he waited. After three minutes of waiting, he knew he had missed the mark. He bent down and picked up the lifeless body of his sister and began walking toward Ponyville when he heard something. The slight pulsating on his back proved what he thought it was. "Thank you," Rainbow dash had said.
Rainbow Revealed"What have you done to my sister!?" Nightwolf screamed at the Queen. "I did nothing," she replied in her mimicing voice. "She did all the work for me. Your sister is a strong fighter, just like you. But you can't fight, can you? Not while you're in that cage." She pulled on a rope, dragging the real Rainbow Dash in to view. She was barely alive. There were cuts all over her body and her hooves were bleeding at the fetlocks. She was much thinner and her mane was even more messy. What was worse was that she was still conscious. She was weakly stryggling at her bonds. She was trying to escape even when it wasn't possible. "You can't cut her bonds from there," the Queen said. "The cage will throw back any magic. It would only cause your own injury." "Let. Her. Go," Nightwolf said, still staring at his sister. "If that's what you really want," the Queen said, taking a step forward. Rainbow let out a barely audible yelp to the pain. "She can stay with you. You are her brother, after all." the Queen opened the physical door, and Nightwolf ran towards her. He was stopped by an invisible barrier and thrown back ino the cage. "Did you really think I would have made such a foolish mistake?" "I hoped you had," Nightwolf muttered under his breath. "A one-way magical barrier," she explained. "To counteract the two-way physical one." As she threw in Rainbow Dash, Nightwolf ran to her to check up on her and make sure she was alright. "You're going to be fine," Nightwolf told his real sister. "You're going to be fine." "As you probably figured out by now, there is no way of escape," the Queen said. "You can try as much as you want, nothing is going to work." "She jumped me," Rainbow said, weakly. "I tried to hold her off. I tried to stop her. I'm sorry." "No one pony can take on the Queen, sis," Nightwolf said. "You have noting to apologize for. I should be the one saying sorry. I didn't get here soon enough." "How sweet," the Queen taunted. "Brother and sister together again. Enjoy those precious moments while you can." With that, Chrysalis launched into the air andflew off, probably to make her demands. "We need to find a way out of here," Twilight said. "We need to get to Canterlot so we can get the Elements. We need to stop the Queen." "You can't," Nightwolf said. "She probably already has the Elements hidden away. Plus, my sister can't fight in her condition. She's too weak right now." "I can handle it," Rainbow said, standing up, only to be brought back down by the rope around her legs. "You need to save your strength," Nightwolf explained. "She hasn't been feeding you every day, has she?" "No," came rainbow's reply. Nightwolf began untying the rope. "How long ago did she take you?" "When Twilight and I were attacked by those changelings," she said. "The Queen was hiding behind the door. when I picked up twlight, she came after me. I tried to protect both of us, but she was too strong. I've been tied up in the forest ever since." "Well that explains the fact that I was able to talk to you before hand but couldn't track you after." After he finished untying the rope, he set it aside. I may need this later, He thought. "Yeah," Rainbow said, standing up. Her legs were a bit shaky but but they could support her. "You need some rest. I'll wake you up if the Queen comes back." "I don't need to sleep," Rainbow said. "I don't even feel tired." "If you don't rest, you won't be able to save any energy you still have," Nigtwolf said. "I should be building up strength," Rainbow replied. "Not resting." "You're not going to rest? Noteven if a doctor was here and told you to sleep?" "Nope." She slid down the bars and started doing wing push-ups. "I need more strength to beat her," she said after 5. She was already out of breath from lack of food and energy. "If I can keep her distracted, you gys could get out of here." "I'm not going to let you sacrifice yourself to save us. And even if i did, if you don't rest, you wont be able to use that strength," Nightwolf tried. Rainbow looked at him, a scowl on her face. "You need energy to use all your strength. Resting means you have that energy." After a minute of thinking, she said, "I guess a short nap wouldn't hurt. But I need something comfy to sleep on, not this metal. Steel isn't comfy and it hurts my neck." "Use me as a pillow," Nightwolf suggested. "We're family. Now rest." Rainbow grunted a reply and stumbled over to him. Nightwolf layed down and Rainbow rested her head on his back. "Thanks," Rainbow said, barely above a whisper. And with that, she fell asleep. She rarely thanked somepony, let alone somepony that used her friend as a shield. Looks like I finally gained her trust. "Why were you really doing that?" Twilight asked. "You normally would have tried to wait her out like with that thing the other day." "She sleeps like a rock and is extremely loyal," Nightwolf said. "Which is why I needed her asleep. She can't get in trouble for something she didn't do. And she wouldn't let me do this if she were awake." "What are you talking about?" Twilight asked. "I'm talking about a plan. We need one. And as long as my sister is here, she's going to get blamed for what happened. For what Chrysalis did. I can't let that happen." "What kinda plan are ya talkin' 'bout?" Applejack asked. "Yeah," Pinkie said. "She said these things were super-duper proof." Ignore the randomness, Nightwolf thought. "An escape plan," he said with confidence. "We need to get out of here, and I think I know just how to do it."
Plans Made"She said that these things would throw back magic," Twilight said. "I've tried teleporting out of here, but this cage seems to cut off my magic entirely." "We aren't going to use magic," Nightwolf said. "We need to shut off the thing that's making this field." "What are y'all talkin' 'bout?" Applejack asked. "What field?" "The magical field around us," Nightwolf explained. "If we can take it out, then we can bust throught these cages." "If this thing is around us, then wouldn't she be alerted to us escaping?" Twilight questioned. "Watch this," Nightwolf said. He thrust his hoof towards a rock and spoke. "Sgrabchvam." The rock flew to his hoof and he caught it. "It's a magic prevention barrier. It'smeant to cut off magic abilities by severing the connection that a unicorn has to their magic. I have a connection to the area around us. I don't have that much power. I have the one thing that can bypass the barrier. But it can only be bypassed by a non-magical possessing physical form." He lifted the rock and threw it at the tree closest to him. "Phēravavuṁ." It bounced off an invisible wall and lodged itself into the ground. "Now watch what happens when I don't use magic." He pulled the rock out of the ground and threw it hard at the tree again. This time, it hit the tree and bounced off it. "If there is magic around it, it won't get through. If there is just a physical form, is passes through the air as if there is no barrier at all." "How did you know that?" Twilight asked. "She used it against me when she attacked my tribe. She fed on me. I got a glimpse at her thoughts and used that knowledge to build my own and break through." "Then how do we turn it off?" "We need to find where the generator is," he said. "If we can do enough damage to it, it will stop working and release the spell." "Generator?" "Yeah. It's a device that will keep a spell up as long as you want it to. its made mostly of stone and metal. You need to make a small antenna to direct where you want thespell and you trap the spell with enchanted stone." "Then how do we damage it?" "We need to get a non-magical being through the barrier," Nightwolf said. "If they can pull apart the basic structure, then it will release the spell." "None of us can pass," Twilight added. "We are all Elements and you have extra magical abilities." "Thats why I have this," Nightwolf said, raising the rope. "I could make a destructive piece and tie it to the end of this rope so I could tear down the machine." "How are you going to do that withougt using magic?" "I haven't quite figured that part out yet." "What're you guys talking about?" Rainbow said, drowsily. "Nothing you have to worry about," Nightwolf said calmly. "Just go back to sleep." "You're hiding something," she said more awake. "And I don't need any more rest right now. You are going to tell me what you're planning." "You really don't want to know," Nightwolf tried. "It doesn't involve you, anyways." "Applejack," Rainbow said. "What were you guys talking about?" Uh-oh, He thought. She's asking for information from the Element of Honesty. I should have thought tis through better. "Ah can't make sense of what they're talkin' 'bout," came Applejack's reply. Thank Celestia I made it hard to understand. I would be in big trouble right now if I didn't. "But ah do know that they're discussin' some sort a' escape plan." I'm screwed. "What?!" Rainbw Dash almost screamed. "You were figuring out how to escape without me? What kind of brother are you?" "We were going to take you," Nightwolf said. "We just needed to figure out how to get out of here and I knew you wouldn't want me to risk myself to do that." "Of course I don't!" Rainbow yelled at him. "I just learned that my parents are dead! You're the only family I have left!" There was a long silece. "Then we have only one choice," Nightwolf said. "If we are going to get out of here, we need to work together." "No more secrets?" "No more secrets." "I hate to break up the reunioun," Twilight said. "But can we get on to the part where you build something to get us out of here? I don't know if you two noticed, but we don't have that much time." "Right," Nightwolf said. "I need some basic tools. Twilight, I need you to put together a few pieces that look like hollowed-out blocks. Rarity, I need you to put together a small cylinder that's also hollow. Rainbow, you need to tie the rope around this rock." "Got it," came Twilights reply. "You can coun on me," Rarity said. "Why do I get the rope with a rock?" Rainbow asked. "Because that can't be done with magic for this to work," Nightwolf explained. "And let us hope it works."
Escape"Are you done with that cylinder yet, Rarity?" Nightwolf asked. "I'm going to need it soon." He had already made the hole so the cylinder would fit. Then hechored th rope to the main body. "You can't rush perfection," Rarity said. "It doesn't have to be prfect. Just round and hollow." "Well here you go," Rarity said, tossing him the stone. "Alright," Nightwolf said as he slid the cylinder into place. "Conferrumino," he muttered. The stone instantly melted together forming a single piece. "Now time to enchant this thing. Let me know if any changelings get close. They can't know about this." "Got it," Rainbow said. He began chanting the what he needed for it to work. He channeled in his emotion and power from the ground into the small object. "Zjarri kur unë të urdhëroj. Përdorni fuqinë me tokë për të forcuar. Pushim gurin. Zjarri kur unë të urdhëroj. Përdorni fuqinë me tokë për të forcuar. Pushim gurin. Propel indarra eta abiadura handiko energia zehar bihurgunean objektu hau. Propel indarra eta abiadura handiko energia zehar bihurgunean objektu hau. Gōlī mārō jaba maiṁ ādēśa. Kamāṇḍa' aāga' kāma karanē kē li'ē-" "Changeling," Rainbow said, interrupting the enchantment. "Hide it!" "Adraśya ḍagalō," Nightwolf said, quickly hiding the device behind a veil. "Get over here and pretend to sleep." "Got it." Rainbow was back over resting her head on Nightwolf's back so she would seem asleep. "You!" the thing commanded. "Get up!" "Me?" Nightwolf asked. "Why would you want me? Your tricks won't work on me. I've guarded myself too well against your traps." "Because," it said, shifting into Twilight. "You didn't do well enough." It was feeding on him. He felt his life beginning to drain, his blood begin to slow. He became dizzy and eventually just passed out cold. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight couldn't believe what she was seeing. Nightwolf was being drained. She couldsee his life force being weakened. She could see him weaken. She could see the trap. Before she even thought abou what she was doing, Twilight pointed a hoof towards the revealed machine and muttered the same thing Nightwolf had. "Adraśya ḍagalō." She was suddenly dizzy and felt weak. This must be the effect of using a spell not meant for unicorns. When she resteadied her vision, the changeling was looking in the cage that held Nighwolf and Rainbow Dash. "I guess he wasn't playing tricks," the thing said after switching back to it's natural form. "Oh well. It was a good snack." ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf woke to see Rainbow looking out the cage bars. "Good to know somepony has been keeping watch," Nightwol said. "How long have I been out?" "Two hours," Rainbow replied. "The guard comesback every half an hour. He should be back soon. Once he leaves again, you should finish with that thingimagij." "Let me know when he passes," Nightwolf said. "I'll fake-sleep until then." It was hard not to really sleep. It had gotten late and using so much magic was tiring. But if he didn't get that thing done before the guard came back, hewouldn't get another chance to escape. It was already a miracle the thing hadn't been revealed from the veil after Nightwolf had passed out. "He's gone. Hurry up." With that, he began to work. "Zjarri kur unë të urdhëroj. Përdorni fuqinë me tokë për të forcuar. Pushim gurin. Zjarri kur unë të urdhëroj. Përdorni fuqinë me tokë për të forcuar. Pushim gurin. Propel indarra eta abiadura handiko energia zehar bihurgunean objektu hau. Propel indarra eta abiadura handiko energia zehar bihurgunean objektu hau. Gōlī mārō jaba maiṁ ādēśa. Kamāṇḍa' aāga' kāma karanē kē li'ē prayōga karēṁ." "You done yet?" Rainbow asked. "He could be coming around the corner any minute now." "Just finished," Nightwolf replied. "We can test this thing on him." Right after Nightwolf finished his sentance, the changeling came around the corner towards them. "What are you doing?" "Aāga'!" Nightwolf exclaimed. The device shot out the rock and it hit the changeling in the head with anough force to knock it unconscious. Nightwolf then reeled the rock back in with therope and reloaded for the next shot. "I'm aiming for the machine next. When it goes down, you'll know. Bust the doors when it goes down and then run. Run as fast as your hooves can carry you." "What?!" Rainbow asked. "What about you?" "I'll be following you shortly after. Aāga'!" The thing fired and hit a large stone structure. There was a spark and green light began to escape. "Go!" ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight felt her connection to magic return. It was a rush. She aimed her horn at her cage door and blew it off it's hinges. She repeated the process with the other doors. "Come on!" she yelled at them. "We have to get out before the Queen gets back." ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf was exhausted. His wing was broken and his sister and friends were escaping. You did good, Nightwolf, he thought. You did good. Now you need to rest. Or run. "Come on, Nightwolf!" Rainbow said, interrupting his thoughts. "Are you waiting fo a written invitation? We have to get out of here!" "Go," Nightwolf replied. "I'll catch up in a minute." "We don't have a minute! Come on! I'm not leaving without you." That settles that, Nightwolf thought. I'm running. "Right behind you. Now let's get out of here." And with that, they ran.
Recapture"Keep running!" Nightwolf yelled at Applejack. "Lead them out of here! I'll catch up in 10 seconds!" "You're coming with us!" Rainbow told him. "I'll carry you if I have to." "You don't have the strength built back for tht and you know it," Nightwolf commented. "I'm only setting up some quick traps for those things that are following us." "I'll help you." "Fine," Nightwolf said. "Hand me that branch." "This one?" Rainbow asked, picking up a fallen tree branch. "Yeah," Nightwolf answered. He slammed it into the ground and made a small spring-trap. "Let's go!" The forest was a dark place. Not much light came through during the day, let alone at night. Suddenly, there was a sharp sound behind them. "Don't let them get out of the forest!" Chrysalis screamed in her imitation of Rainbow Dash. "Don't let them get away!" Green bursts of magicstarted flying all around them. Nightwolf turned and thrust his hoof forward. "Vidyudvadhisu!" he screamed. Lightning shot from his hoof and hit one of the changelings in the head. He did'nt have time to check to see if it was still alive, so he just turned and ran. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| Rainbow was scared. She would never admit it, but for once, she was afraid of what might happen. She heard her brother scream something and saw a flash, but didn't turn to look. Her legs were already beginning to tire. If this kept up, she would fall and be captured again. No, Rainbow thought. I'm not going to let them take me again. Or my friends. Or my brother. ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Sleep, Nightwolf thought. I need sleep. He was beginning to really feel the extent of his magic. He was running on empty. They needed to get out of that forest. There was a blast that hit Nightwolf in the leg. He went tumbling toward the ground thinking one thing. Ground, meet face. Face, ground. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| "Nightwolf!" Rainbow screamed. She ran up to where he had been shot down. "Please be alive." "I'm fine," Nightwolf said on the edge of consciousness. "I just need some rest. Another shot like that and they're going to need that net." "What net?" "The one right above you." And the net came down. ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf shoved as hard as he could to get his sister out of the way of the net. She got out just in time, but Nightwolf was trapped. He was pinned under the large, rope mesh. "Go!" Nightwolf said. "Run! I'll be out in a few seconds!" "I'm not going without you," Rainbow said. "GO! I'll be free soon. Just get out of here!" Nightwolf yelled at his sister. He had to get her out of there. "Once you're free, I'll leave," she said stubbornly. "Slā'isa," Nightwolf muttered, cutting the net into tiny pieces. "Fine. I'm free. Now let's get moving!" "You're not going anywhere!" thundered the Queen's voice from above. "I can't let you escape. So either come with me or die." She said that so casually it was scary. Nightwolf felt a mental shiver run through hm. "You're not taking either of us anywhere!" Rainbow said. Nightwolf looked aroundto see all these changelings surrounding them. They couldn't escape unless Rainbow had enough strength to carry both of them through the conopy of trees overhead. And even if they did escape, it would only be short. They would catch them both in the air and kill them right then and there. And even if they were to fully escape them, who would believe them? "Sis," Nightwolf said. "You have to know when to give up." Nightwolf sat down and put his hooves in the air. And then he was hit in the head and slipped out of consciousness again. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| "No!" Rainow screamed. Her brother was hit in the head. Hard. It was obvious when he didn't try to get back up that he was out cold. "Why did you do that?!" "He was planning on turning against us as soon as he could to try to buy your friends more time," the Queen said. "I couldn't let that happen." She turned to face theother changelings. "Drop him off. They need to be delayed." As soon as they were gone, Rainbow charged. She knew she wouldn't win this fight, but she had to do what she could to save her friends. Tackling her, Rainbow spun around and punched the Queen in the muzzle. "That's for my brother!" she screamed. Chrysalis rolled, pinning Rainbow to the ground. "You have heart," she said. "But do you have passion?" Rainbow widened out her wings and distracted the Queen long enough for Rainbow to get back out of the pin. She was beginning to feel the wear. "You apparently do," Chrysalis said. "Let's see what that gets you." She charged up her horn, preparing a blast of magic. Right before she fired, Rainbow jumped up and once again tackled the Queen to the ground. But her timing wasn't as good as she had thought and took a small blast to the head, knocking her off-balance. The last thing she saw was a hoof coming towards her face. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight didn't dare look behind her in fear of what could have happened to her friends. They were moving too fast for her to worry. But her mind didn't wat to agree. They could be in real danger, she thought. What if they were captured. It's been a while since you heard Nightwolf's voice. "The exit is dead-ahead!" Applejack screamed over the sounds coming from their hooves and the natural ones from the forest. "We're almost free!" Suddenly, somepony was dropped in front of them, pulling them all to a stop. A second pony followed, confirming Twilight's fears. "They held us off for a few seconds," the Queen said, landing next to the two unconscious ponies. "But they were a few seconds short. Now come with me or you can die. Or you could watch your friends die. Your choice." "I don't want to see anypony die," Twiligt spoke up. "Just let us go." "You know why I can't let you do that," Chrysalis replied. "Then I guess you don't leave us a choice." "I don't want to see anypony getting hurt," Fluttershy said softly. "We can only do what can prevent such a dreadful thing to happen," Rarity said. "Ah don't see what else can be done," Applejack said. Pinkie Pie was stunned. She was staring at the two sleeping ponies and obviously thinking. "I can't let you be such a meanie," she finally said. And with that, they were all chained and led deeper into the forest once again.
TragedyWhen Nightwolf finally woke up again, he was in a cave. He was exhausted. The use of so much magic was too tiring. Sleep is good, he thought. "Good," came the voice of the Queen. "You're up. Just in time to see what happened." "Well I guess you didn't think that one through," Nightwolf said, nodding to the chains bolted into the wall. "I can't move." "Then I guess I'll just have to describe the scene. Fires are burning. Ponies screaming. Fear is visible on them. And once it seems like too much, we come in and offer them comfort. They will fall imprisoned to us and there will be no way for you to stop us. Once they have outlived their usefulness, they will die. Just like you should have years ago." "You were trying to kill me," Nightwol said. "I had a reason to live. That's why I beatyou. I chose t fight not for myself, but for those who matter to me. That is why I still live," Nihtwolf said, standing up, "And stand against you. You don't have the strength to fight for long. You have gone without feeding for a while. It's obvious." "You may stand," the Queen said, walking over to him. "But you are not invincible." She attacked him. It's really hard to fight while chained t a stone wall. All you can really d is dodge while trying to get enough chain to actually throw back a punch. Nightwolf backed into the stone wall so quickly, he didn't even realize that it wasn't a stone wall. The Queen hit him hard in the jaw. Pain exploded at the point. "I do not need to feed constantly to keep up my strength." What was behind Nightwolf was soft. Not the stone wall he had thougt, and hoped, was there. This object was a cyan blue with hair that matched the rainbows in the sky. Looking back, he saw all of them chained together keeping him there. He was trapped and chained to six ponies whose lives were in danger because of him. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| Rainbow could feel a hoof bump into her, bringing consciousness with it. She saw her brother above her. "Nightwolf?" "Rainbow?" he asked as he turned. But he was hit in the back of the head by a swinging hoof. "Agh!" he screamed. "Looks like you will get to see your precious brother die," the Queen said tauntingly. "Watch closely." She raised her hoof, preparing to make the final blow. Rainbow was staring in fear. "My Queen!" came the yell of a changeling. "Some of the rsidets are attempting to escape! They found lightning-proof suits." The Queen looked over her shoulder. "Lookslike you have some time to wait before I kill him," the Queen said, putting her hoof on the stone floor. "Enjoy your last few moments with him." With that, she flew off. ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ "Nightwolf!" Rainbow scramed, tending to her half-conscious brother. "What happened?" "I tried to take on the Queen," Nightwolf explained. "It was the only way to prevent her from hurting any of you. She is a lot more powerful than I thought." "Let me take care of your wounds," Rainbow tried. "No," Nightwolf said, backing away. The chains didn't let him get too far away. "I can't let you." This seemed strangely familiar to him. Woah, Nightwolf thougt. Déjà vu. "Why?" "I have a bad feeling. And the last time I had this feeling, it didn't end well." "Well maybe that bad feeling is pain," Rainbow said. "No. The pain isn't what's causing it. Something bad is going to happen." Suddenly, Nightwolf was hit with a splitting headache. He felt his hooves come up to try ad squeeze the pain out. He heard somepony call his name. Then he was consumed by blackness. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| "Nightwolf!" Rainbow screamed again. This time it woke up her friends. "Rainbow?" Twilight asked, still slightly groggy. "What happened?" "Nightwolf tried to fight the Queen and now he's passed out on the ground!" she explained. "Well lets see what we can do to try to wake him up," Twilight suggested. "Maybe he could get us out of this predicament." ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ "Hello?" Nightwolf called out into the blackness. "What's going on?" "You are dreaming," said his ow voice from behind him. "That's whats going on." "Ah!" Nightwolf screamed, jumping back. "What are you?" "I am you. I'm the you that will exist if you don't find a way out of that cave. You see, if you don't escape, the Queen will kill one of you. You are safe. The others are not. Get them out and you will have sacrificed yourself to save others. If you don't, one of them will die." "Which one?" Nightwolf asked. "Which one of them will die? I can protect them!" "I have seen every scenario," his other self explained. "Whenever you try to save one, another will die. You cannot save them all without sacrificing yourself. And even then, there is one possible scenario that could happen. The chances of it happening are barely 1% though." "What do I do?" "You need to-" "Nightwolf!" Rainbow screamed as he awoke from his dream. "You're alive!" "Rainbow!" he exclaimed. I guess I'll have to do this on my own, Nightwolf thought. "It's good to be alive. Now let's get out of here before the Queen get's back." "How?" Applejack asked. "These chains are the toughest ah've ever seen." "Well, I guess we are going to have to find out." Then an idea hit him. "Twilight, target that link," he said, pointing to one of the links in the chain between Twilight and Rainbow. "When I say go, shoot it with your laser spell." "Got it," Twilight said, shifting around to get a clear shot at it. "Ready. Go! Slā'isa!" With the power of both unicorn magic and his own, the link shattered. "Let's take care of these pesky cuffs." After cutting through all of their cuffs, Nightwolf wentto the edge of the cave. "You're going to need to go west as fast as you possibly can," he said. "I don't know when the Queen will get back, but I do know tht you guys can get out of here. I don't have the energy to run. Too much magicand not enough sleep. I'll hold off the Queen. You six leave." "I'm not leaving you," Rainbow said. She had gotten enough strength to build up for her to hover. "You'r my brother. I'm staying with you." "What a nice thought," the Queen said from above. "Now maybe you could share a little more. What were you planning on doing after you escaped? There is no way out of your little town now." "You aren't going to stop them, Chrysalis," Nightwolf said. "And you are going to stop me? You already tried that trick." "I think I am going to stop you. I know what I'm up against," Nightwolf lied. He had no chance of surviving anoter fight with her. But he wouldn't let her kill any of the others. He charged the Queen, throwing away his chance at surviving this. ~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~|~| Rainbow saw the entire thing fold out. Her brother charged the Queen of the changelings. She batted him aside as if he were a bug. "You cannot defeat me!" "I can try!" Nightwolf yelled. "Vatra, struja, kamen, zrak!" he screamed, hurling elements at her. Lightning hit first and then fire. A large boulder flipped out of the ground and almost flattened her. Thewind zipped past her as if nothing had happened but it fed the fire that was burning her body. But just as soon as the flames grew, they went out. "Did you really think simple physical elements vould hurt me?" she asked. "I am queen of the changelings! I protect myself from these simple things all the time." "It was worth a shot," Nightwolf said. The Queen faced him and shot a burst of magic at him. He fell and kept getting pushed back from repeated blasts. "Now you die!" the Queen said, preparing a deadly shot. Rainbow wasn't thinking about what she was doing. She launched herself in between Chrysalis and Nightwolf and took the hit. ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf closed his eyes, waiting for death. "And even then, there is one possible scenario that could happen. The chances of it happening are barely 1% though," he thought. 1%. Here I am about to die. Thank Celestia it wasn't that 1%. He was at peace with dying. For once, he was at peace. But that peace was short lived. "AGH!" It was Rainbow's voice. Rainbow's scream. His eyes snapped open. The Queen was standing in shock. In front of him was his sister with a hole in her torso. "Rainbow!" Nightwolf screamed, his voice hoarse. "No! Please, no!" He could see the damage. The hole was bleeding. Her abdomen was missing a corner and her coat was burned where the spell had hit it. "Please." "Hey," Rainbow said weakly. "Don't talk," he said. "Just don't talk." "I guess you were right," she said, ignoring his advice. "I shouldn't have let that surprise me. I guess I'm a little too loyal." "You're the best sister I could ask for," Nightwolf said. "You say that like you'll see me again," Rainbow said. "I will," he explained. "You'll make it. I promise." "Don't make promises you can't keep," Rainbow said. Her eyes closed and her breathing stopped.
Death Undone"Well that was unexpected," the Queen said. Nightwolf had forgotten she was there. "It looks like there is nothing to worry about now." "You killed her," Nightwolf whispered. "You killed my sister." "You were the target. She jumped in front of the shot." "YOU KILLED HER!" Nightwolf screamed. His rage wiped out his fatigue and he slowlly started walking towards her. "You killed my mother! You killed my father! You killed my foster parents! And now thy hath the guts to kill my sister! You really think there is nothing for you to worry about now?!" "You are nothing," she said, kicking him back a few feet. "This is for my mother, Munja!" he screamed throwing a strong bolt of lightning at the Queen. It knocked her back a few yards and stunned her. "For my father, pakao požara!" The Queen erupted into flame. It burned with a deeper red and orange. "For my foster parents, kiselina voda!" Acid poured down from the tree above her. "And this is for my sister you bitch, duša požara!" She burned again with a silver hue. "You have defeated me," the Queen said weakly. "You have won the fight." She swept her hooves around and knocked Nightwolf to the ground. "But you fail to remember what I told you so long ago. A philosophy a wise pony once told me. When you seek revenge, dig two graves." She powered up her shot and fired at Nightwolf. "Protegat!" he yelled bringing up his green shield just in time. The blast bounced off the shield and into the sky. "Āṟṟal tuṭippu! Āṟṟal tuṭippu! Āṟṟal tuṭippu!" Blast after blast, Nightwolf was pushing the Queen back. His strength was fading but he didn't care. He had no family left. "Please," she said, weakened by the blasts. "Have mercy." "Sorry," Nightwolf said, building up a final blast. "I don't know what you mean by 'mercy'." "Wait!" Twilight screamed. "What?!" Nightwolf spit the question out. "This isn't you," Twilight said. "You wouldn't kill somepony. Don't do this. It's not what Rainbow would want. Rainbow would be dissapointed in you if you killed her." That hit harder than any of the blasts Chrysalis had shot at him. It hit hard and fast. But most importantly, it hit home. He realized what he had done. He started to feel the pain again. He started to feel weak. "You're right," he said. "She would want me to make her suffer." He pulled out his own chained cuffs. "You will be tried by Princess Celestia. Anything you do or say can and will be used against you in a royal court. You will be given an attourney should you not have one." "You're a part of the royal guard?" Rarity asked. "Ex-royal guard. I work aone and try to stop things like this." "Why didn't you tell us?" Twilight asked. "I never had the right moment." He looked away after chaining the Queen. "Gabháil cruach," he said. Steel bars rose up around the Queen, making her temporary prison. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go and give mysister a proper burial." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight was still getting over the fact that Rainbow Dash was dead. She was barely able to hold back the tears when her mind decided to catch up to what happened. Nightwolf was walking over to her slowly. After hauling her ont his back, he started to walk towards town. His head perked up. He looked aroun as if remembering something. He laid down Rainbow's body and ran off after yelling, "Genezing!" ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_ Nightwolf ran off to try to find the herb in time. He had less than ten minutes left before the herb would have no effect. It was the one thing that could save his sister. "He found it and almost fell into the trap laid out before it. "I don't have time to play your games, Fools Doom!" he yelled out. "Let me walk away with the herb and I willspare your life!" "You know that I can't do that," it said. "You defeated my sibling, but can you defeat me? Mental or physical?" "Physical," Nightwolf replied swiftly. "And be prepared to die." "As you wish," the thing said, lashing it's tail at Nightwolf. He dodged easily and threw out his hoof. "Prisilno!" Invisible force lashed out and hit the thing hard enough to crack the tree behind it. "Ubiti!" he yelled. The thing let out a scream and died quickly. "I warned you." "You did," it said from behind him. The creature could never truly die, at least not permenantly. "And you have won. Take the herb. You are short on time." "Thank you," Nightwolf said, pulling the herb out of the ground. He ran back toward where he had laid down his sister. "Please work." He pulled a few other herbs from around him, ground them up on a rock and added water to make a paste. He then took the paste and rubbed it onto Rainbow's wound. Then, he waited. After three minutes of waiting, he knew he had missed the mark. He bent down and picked up the lifeless body of his sister and began walking toward Ponyville when he heard something. The slight pulsating on his back proved what he thought it was. "Thank you," Rainbow dash had said.
