Chapter 05 : Escape from Canterlot

Standing on a hill, Snow peered into the red sky. He had been in this position for over an hour, and if Deep hadn't known he was awaiting the return of their leader and the agent's squad, he would have begun to worry. The stallion's patience impressed Deep, who clearly lacked in that area, as he had been pacing around the camp for the last hour, where Snow remained without moving a muscle. But Deep, even in those situations where he was forced to wait and be discreet, always needed to stir something, to stretch after a while, even to get up and walk around a bit.

"Would you stop ?" yawned Misty Breeze, lying on her side, next to Derpy.

"Stop what ?"

"Walking back and forth like this. I'm trying to rest."

"I ain't sleepy. And i've got to be ready for when AJ comes back."

"They won't be here for a while," sighed Breeze. "Scouting the caves is gonna take a bit of time."

"Why didn't she want us to come anyways ?" shrugged Deep.

Derpy let out a chukle, as if it was obvious for everyone but the black pony. Deep let out a frustrated growl, and walked to the other stallion of the group, sitting next to him, looking at the sky. Deep tried to stay still, say nothing, wait... But after only a few excruciatingly boring minutes, he finally cracked, and got up again.

Snow was thinking. Whenever he wasn't focused on a goal, he thought. Too much, in fact. But in the present moment, he wasn't thinking about everything at the same time, like he always did. The truth was that a single concern took over his entire mind.

Not the special operation that would take place in only a few hours. Not the fact that death was awaiting them at the corner of every small mistake. Everything was settled like clockwork, so it should go well. The idea was not without risks, and it was only up to luck to decide otherwise so that everything would end in a one-way bloodbath. It was too late to go back anyway. The train was on, and nothing would stop it before it ran out of steam. The fighting had never preoccupied him, but a shadow now loomed on the board :

What would happen if they won ? If they succesfully rescued Lady Rarity ?

Would they finally launch the assault on Canterlot, that Celestia had been planning for years ? Would the Tyrant become crazier than she already was and wipe them all out in a massacre ? And if they managed to rescue the Lady, get enough time to attack the capital, seize the throne and restore peace in Equestria, what would become of everyone ? Deep was a killer who enjoyed his job quite a lot, Breeze had murdered too many pegasi to feel comfortable around them, AJ had seen her whole life destroyed... Who were they, without the war ? Snow didn't have a home anymore. Ponyville had been reduced to ashes, there was nothing to return to, no one.

"What are you sulking for ?" called Deep. "You're afraid ?"

"No," simply responded Snow. "Worried, yeah. But not afraid."

Deep sat down again. Snow was pretty surprised his partner wasn't teasing him but instead seemed to listen to him. The atmosphere was strange in this "afternoon".

"If we carry out this mission succesfully, we could very well turn the tide in this war. What if we win ?"

"Isn't that a good thing ?"

"On paper, yeah. But what will become of us ? Do you really see yourself become a baker, or a florist, after everything we've been through ?"

The black stallion kept silent. For all those years, he had avoided thinking about the future for this paticular reason. He liked fighting, and he had never been good at anything else ; was there even anything else he could do ?

"Tell me," Snow said, breaking the silence. "Do you have anypony to go back to, anywhere to go to ?"

"I do," said Breeze, softly smiling, a rose colored tint on her blushing cheeks. "I had a coltfriend in the Crystal Empire, but he didn't enroll in the army like I did. But he promised he'd wait for me, and he often writes me letters. The thought of him keeps me sane on the battlefield, you know. And you, Snow ?"

"I don't have anypony," revealed Snow, lowering his head. "My hometown is destroyed, and I don't even know if my family made it. I like to think they're safe in Canterlot, or someplace else where things are quiet, but how can I ever know ? I don't have any friends, I..."

"You got us," Deep cut him off, frowning.

"We're not friends," chuckled the grey unicorn.

"We're not ?"

Snow offered him a surprised look. Were they ? "I mean, we're more like... colleagues. I thought you were joking when you said we had a friendship. Weren't you ?"

"You're a boring little prick, always thinking you're smarter and above everyone else. You always want to have the last word, you think you're better than the others because you're sure you've retained a stupid sense of honor even after everything you've done."

"...Thanks ?"

"If we weren't friends, i'd have beaten you up already just for being that way."

Snow smiled faintly, as Deep looked away. He figured that was the dark stallion's own way of expressing some kind of affection towards him. Ever since they had their last argument, and bonded a bit, the two ponies had grown a little closer, even if neither of them would admit it. Awkwardly, Snow lifted his hoof up, and clumsily patted his partner's back. Deep jumped back.

"What the fuck was that ?"

"I don't know, you just said we were..."

"You two, shut it !"

The two stallions looked back at Derpy, that gave them an annoyed glare. That's right, they were supposed to keep a low profile, waiting for the squad to be back... Snow looked at the cave's entrance, where they had set up camp. This was it, this was their gateway into Canterlot. Once the scouting would be done, everything would be set into place, and the game would be on. They had been travelling for a little less than a week, but it had felt like entire months leading up to Canterlot. And now that they were finally there, all they could do was wait. It was frustrating.

Snow understood why AJ didn't bring the squad with her for the scouting. They weren't like the Lunar Agents, they weren't as discreet, wary and prudent. They weren't used to hiding in the shadows. But still, spending hours sitting powerless, the stress and and fear building up in their stomachs, Snow wished they all went together.

But there was one thing that he appreciated : the quietness. Snow thought that the place would be filled with sentinels and soldiers, but they had managed to stay under the radar, and he enjoyed the peaceful calm of the mountain. If the sun still shone, it would have been a beautiful afternoon to relax and sunbathe. Then, he noticed figures, detaching themselves from the darkness of the cave. Snow grabbed his firearm, and his comrades did the same, preparing themselves for an eventual attack. The grey unicorn aimed, and waited. An orange mare.

"Stand down," he instructed. "It's them."

Coming out of the abyss, were Applejack, Diane, Apple Bloom and three other agents. Snow didn't know their names, and he never really bothered to learn, as they were quieter than a gravestone. The agents reached them, and AJ sat for a bit, as her squad went up to her.

"We're takin' a few minutes to grab a bite an'a drink, an' we'll be on the way," explained AJ, drinking out of a bottle.

"How's the situation in the tunnels ?" asked Breeze.

"Better than we expected, actually. We won't enter inside the castle, the undercover agent'll be meetin' us near the entrance of it. We didn't hear patrols, but we'll stay careful. Diane has already communicated the codes to the agent, and instructed her to cut them in five hours. So we have five hours to reach the castle through the underground."

"Only five ?" asked Derpy, surprised. "That's... Not a lot."

"Yeah, but we have to be fast. Apparently, the agent has reported that something's brewin' at the castle. We can't waste time."

The ponies started preparing their weapons. Deep had pouted when he was told that he couldn't bring his dear explosives and grenades with him, because they couldn't risk blowing up the underground on them and getting buried, but he was still disappointed. Five hours until the rescue.

***

Rarity was staring at herself in the mirror, disgusted at her appearence. She really had let herself go even more, ever since she locked herself in her room so no one could bother her. Seeing Sweetie Belle again had shaken her up, and nothing could make the agonizing sadness that had ensnared her heart as she saw what her sister had become go away. Dried up tears had sunken her cheeks, and the weight she had lost while keeping herself in her room made her look even sicker.

She didn't want to see anyone. In a matter of days, she had managed to clam up even more than for the past six years, something that she didn't even think was possible. But it was, and she was in a state mentally that she never had been in before, the emptiness and the solitude eating away at her.

"Miss ?"

"If it's dinner, just pass me the food under the door," replied Rarity in an exhausted tone. "I haven't changed my mind. I won't open this door."

"Please, miss," said Lemonade Haze, knocking again. "You can't stay hidden in here. The Princess is worried about you."

"Is she now ?" chuckled Rarity. "Well, go tell her i'll get out when she'll STOP TOYING WITH MY OWN SISTER !"

The mare let out a pained sob. There was a silence, for a bit. Had Lemonade Haze gone away ? Deep down, Rarity didn't want her to. She wanted to be hugged, to be reassured, for her feelings to be validated. She was trapped in this castle, and was treated like she was the crazy one. Was it really mad to be against the violence happening in Equestria ? Was she really insane for doubting the intentions of the ponies around her ? She wanted someone to tell her she wasn't, to tell her it would be alright. But she kept quiet.

"I'm worried about you," finally said Haze. "Please, let me in, miss."

Rarity didn't dare to move, even though her heart was screaming at her to do it. The loneliness had become too much to bear, and slowly, she approached the handle, and opened the door. Standing behind it, sweetly smiling, and her big gently eyes looking at Rarity's, was Lemonade Haze. She entered, and locked the room. Then, tenderly, she put her arms around the unicorn, who began to quietly cry. Haze caressed Rarity's hair, and she stopped.

"Oh, miss, your mane is so mangled... Do you want me to brush it out for you ?"

Unable to let out a word through her swollen throat, Rarity faintly nodded. Lemonade walked to the vanity next to the lady's bed to take out a brush, and invited the unicorn to sit on the bed, facing away from her. Climbing up on the bed, Rarity felt a great sense of relief as soon as she felt the brush through her mane, a sense of peacefulness rising in her heart as she appreciated somepony taking care of her. That was all she had ever wanted.

"Have you been enjoying the tea I brought you, as of late ?" asked Haze, continuing to brush her mane.

What an odd query, thought Rarity. "It's... Yes, it's good. I wish my tea maker wasn't broken, so I could have been able to continue making it myself, but... It's good. Thank you."

After a maid had managed to come in to clean the room, she had unfortunately knocked Rarity's tea machine on the ground, succesfully breaking it. It was pretty stupid to be this sad over a tea maker, but the mare really had been affected by losing it ; after all, making her morning tea herself had been one of the few things she could still enjoy in this hellish place. Lemonade Haze stopped brushing her mane, and put down the brush on the silky covers of the bed. She then pulled out a beautifully sculpted glass bottle, filled with a shimmering purple liquid, and put it next to it. Rarity grabbed it to examine it.

"What's that ?"

"I have been instructed to put a few drops of this in the tea i've been serving you, miss."

"Alright, but what is it ?"

"Poison."

Rarity turned back to face Haze, shock painted on her face. Lemonade Haze had lost all her timid demeanor, and had spoken with confidence and calm, her tone never changing. The unicorn stated shaking, as her breath got jerky.

"P... Poison ?"

"Yes. The earth pony Commander has given this to me to poison you. Of course, he didn't say it was poison, but he thought I was naive enough to not question it. Please, miss, it's alright ; I never gave any to you. Stay calm. You need to remain calm."

Lemonade Haze got up, and helped Rarity getting up as well. She threw away the bottle, and started searching in the lady's vanities.

"What... Why..."

"I'm sorry to say that I have been deceiving you, miss," confessed the pegasus. "Now, where did I... Ah !"

Out of a drawer, Haze pulled out a remote, and she began to press the buttons of it, dialing a code. Rarity was frozen in place, unable to understand what was going on.

"How did this get in there ? I don't even use my drawers, I..."

"I asked a maid to plant it in there," said Haze, still concentrated on typing. "She broke your tea maker because I also asked her to. It was necessary to make the Commander believe I was able to give you the tea, but he had no idea about the remote. I stole it from him in a moment of inattention. You wouldn't believe the things you can achieve when a stallion believes you to be useless and naive, miss."

"This maid, she..."

"Don't worry, miss, she's in on it. She won't talk, believe me. In my order, talking isn't an option."

"Your order ?"

"The Lunar Agents, miss. We're breaking you out."

***

The lapping of the water. The sound of hooves on the stone. The faint phosphorescent glow coming from the horn of the grey unicorn ahead of him. Apart from that, nothing. Silence and darkness reigned supreme in the underground passages. There was no one. Deep cursed.

"Fucking hell."

"You're very vulgar today, Deep."

"I've never been treated this badly in an operation, Breeze."

The Agents were walking upfront, Applejack with them. They hadn't said a word since they entered the underground tunnels, and AJ's squad found themselves on the back, covering for them. Deep cursed again. They were just tourists, while the agents were the one leading the tour. That was pretty frustrating for the stallion.

"How long have we been walking ? Are we close ?" he asked.

"Stop complaining like a filly," retorted Derpy. "How old are you again ?"

"That's a secret," he shrugged. "My hooves are hurting, that's all. I want some action."

"If you really want to, I can throw you up the tunnels and send you right into the castle," snapped Applejack. "Let's see how proud you act then. So, if you don't want me to do that, keep your mouth shut and obey."

Deep raised his eyebrows, surprised. Their leader always seemed to be in a bad mood, but there, she was really, really tense. Of course, this was to be expected. The mare was leading an expedition with her own sister, former best friend, and best elements. If she made the smallest mistake, everypony she still cared about could very well be killed in an instant.

"If we're going to walk for long, we should at least kill time a bit," said the dark stallion.

"What do you want to do ?" chuckled Derpy. "Poker ? We're in the middle of an operation, dumbass. Stay focused."

"Fine, fine..."

Deep shook his head, and walked towards Snow. He'd find somepony to talk to.

"Hey."

"Deep..." groaned Snow. "Stay focused."

"I am focused. But look around ; those tunnels haven't been used for a long time. Nopony's gonna come for us."

"If you say so."

"So, Snow..."

Snow let out a long sigh. His partner never knew when to shut up. But he was right, in a way ; they had already been walking for a while, and they had not heard or seen any signs of a patrol or soldiers, and the big coat of dust on the stone ground made it pretty clear that they didn't come down there often. The tunnels were carved pretty deep in the underground, so they could talk freely without risking being heard upside. And Deep never knew how to stay serious anyways. In a stealth mission, he probably was the worst stallion to bring.

"What are you going to do after this mission ?" asked the dark pony.

"I don't know. Sleep ?" shrugged the grey unicorn, uninterested in the discussion.

"Oh come on, you can't be that boring. This is going to be a huge win for us. Stealing an element right under the Tyrant's nose. Isn't that something to celebrate ?"

"I guess so. What are you going to do ?"

"I'll probably party with a chick or two."

Snow coughed. Diane turned back, and launched a deadly gare at the two of them. Embarassed, Snow looked away. Great, now the agents wouldn't only think of their squad as underqualified for this mission, but also see them as dumb perverts. Amazing job.

"You can't be thinking about this stuff right now," whispered the unicorn.

"Why not ? Those caves are ugly and dull, i'm freezing my ass off, it's only normal to think about the warmth of a mare."

"Come on, Deep," Snow hissed through his teeth. Can't he take a damn hint ? he thought.

"Hey, if we manage to pull this job, I'll introduce you to some nice ladies. Oi, Breeze, what are you giving me that look for ?"

Breeze didn't respond, and silently judged the pair. Snow slowly walked away from his partner, and started marching next to his leader, hoping the stallion wouldn't follow him. And thankfully, he didn't. Finally, some peace.

"Once we'll be coming closer to the castle, we'll have to be very careful," explained Apple Bloom. "Even if we didn't see any patrols there while scouting, the situation inside will have changed. Hopefully, since the communication will be cut, they won't notice Rarity leaving right away, but if they do and we're still at the entrance, we'll have to prepare ourselves."

Apple Jack nodded. They were close, she could feel it. She could feel her friend getting closer to her, she could feel her warmth already. She had longed for it.

***

Haze let the body fall to the ground, his head turned the wrong way. Rarity let out a small hiccup of terror at the sight of this, but followed the pegasus nonetheless. She walked down the hall, and started counting the doors. In front of the fourth, she knocked and entered. Inside, there was a whole pile of various weapons piled up on shelves, the armory of the castle. She instructed Rarity to stay outside for a minute, as a guard was reading on a chair next to the weapons, a shelf full of books behind him. The unicorn gulped, but silently agreed, and stayed against the wall, frantically looking around her.

The guard looked up at Lemonade Haze, and smiled.

"Yes, Haze ? Need anything ?"

"Can you show me where' the firearm number seven ?" she innocently asked. "The commander has tasked me with bringing him back this gun in particular, he wants to train for a bit... Anyways, you'd be an angel."

The guard tilted his head as Haze gave him her sweetest smile, then pointed to a shelf. The mare reached the shelf, and took one of the pistols lying around, and the silencer that was next to it, then one of the loaders and grabbed a handful of bullets from the corresponding ammunition boxes, under the gentle eyes of the guard.

"Needed anything else ?" he asked.

"Oh yes, I wanted to ask ! What's that book behind you, the one with the green cover ? It looks interesting, and you were reading it a few days ago, right ? Could I borrow it ?" asked Haze, pointing to a bookshelf behind the keeper.

He turned around, then heard the characteristic clicks of a weapon being loaded, and closed his eyes. There was a plop, and blood mixed with brains splattered the ground. Haze moved among the shelves, collecting straps to put her weapon in, and a guard's uniform. She grabbed another one aswell, and loaded another gun. Finally, she met Rarity outside, and let her in, closing the door behind them. The unicorn gasped at the sight of the bloody corpse.

"Oh god," she cried out.

"It's okay. Put this on, and strap this gun to your flank. It's only a precaution, if everything goes well, you won't need to use it. We need to conceal your mane, put this cap on. I cut their communications, so it'll be a while before they realize we're gone, but now, we need to navigate the castle without being remarked. You need to do everything as I say, understood ?"

"Yes," gulped Rarity.

The mares came out of the armory, checking that the hallway was deserted. The body of the guard was still where Haze had left it. No time to conceal it. The pegasus took a map from the pocket of the uniform where she had placed it, and memorized the route. The floor under. The mares crossed the corridor, still without meeting anyone. Rarity was sweating bullets, stressed out of her mind. She could barely believe what was happening to her, and everything was going too fast. An assasination attempt ? Agents ? Breaking out ? This was too much for her, but she couldn't do anything other than follow her "saviour".

They reached a staircase, and began to climb down, cautiously, Haze's pistol at her hoof. Arrived on the floor under, they entered the corridor, and remained motionless for a short moment. The castle's kitchens. At the end of the corridor, a single door, guarded by two ponies. Haze walked confidently toward the guards, who looked at her but didn't flinch. Coming within a few yards, she took out her gun and fired two shots. The two guards collapsed without a sound.

Haze stopped in front of the door. She checked that there was no one left in the hallway, gestured for Rarity to join her, and entered. Inside the kitchen, the maids stopped what they were doing, and looked at the two escapees. They didn't make a sound. Rarity got closer to the pegasus's ear.

"Aren't they going to report us ?" whispered the lady.

"Don't worry about it," simply replied Haze, her calm tone never changing. "Half the staff is in on it. You wouldn't believe how badly some ponies can be treated simply for doing what the high ranking officers think is a low-end job... They won't rat us out. And even if they do, when they do, we'll be far from here."

Rarity looked at the servants of the castle. Most tried to ignore her, but some of them offered her kind smiles, whispers of encouragement. The unicorn found herself smiling too, silently thanking those ponies, risking their lives for hers. Some ponie's hearts had yet to be tainted by the darkness of the war.

"It's here," said the pegasus, pointing to a dishwasher against the wall.

The agent pushed against the dishwasher, and revealed behind a dark passage, leaving the tiles of the kitchen behind for stones and dirt. She entered the tunnel. Rarity watched her go in, and followed her when she passed. Behind them, a maid put the dishwasher back, concealing the entrance, and putting the mares in obscurity. Rarity lit up her horn, and they walked like this for a few minutes, through the dark corridors of the secret passage, leading to the underground tunnels. Haze pulled out a communication device, and put her ear to it, and smiled. The communications were still cut.

"You're going to see some familiar faces," said the pegasus. "But we've got to stay careful. Stay on your guard until we're out of the mountain."

Rarity nodded, and kept on following the pegasus, who seemed to know where she was going. After a few more minutes of this, Haze stopped in her tracks. Cloacked in the darkness, ponies were waiting for them, weapon in hoof.

"Identify yourself !" called out a familiar voice.

"Agent Lemonade Haze, codename Lime," shouted back Haze. "Number 106."

"You're clear !"

Wasting no time, the mares ran to the ponies, and Rarity's eyes widened as she finally saw her friends, Pinkie and Applejack, waiting for her. Without even thinking about it, the unicorn threw herself at them, holding their faces close to her chest and hugging them tight. AJ accepted the embrace, and hugged Rarity back, but Diane stayed still, not even changing her expression. Rarity pulled away for a bit, then tearfully cried out AJ's name, before hugging her again. Snow and Misty smiled at this heartwarming scene.

"I've missed you so much," sobbed the lady. "You planned this for me ? All of this ?"

"Diane did," softly answered AJ, basking in the moment of their reunion.

"... Diane ?"

Rarity pulled away, and stared at Pinkie... Diane. This was like a punch in the gut. In Rarity's dreams, all of her friends had stayed the same, and were all happily waiting for her to be free, and they'd all move far, far away from the war, and live happily ever after. But obviously, this wasn't going to be reality, and she had to accept that. But seeing her face again, after all those years, was more than enough for now.

"It's good to see you again, Diane," gently said Rarity with a soft smile.

"Likewise. Any trouble on the way, agent ?"

"None," replied Haze. "The communications are still cut. I suggest that we..."

A shot. Immediatly, AJ grabbed Rarity and threw her behind her and her squad, as they put themselves in front of her like a shield. The Lunar Agents pulled out their firearms, ready to strike back. Diane shouted at Applejack.

"Start leaving with the Element. Go !"

AJ nodded, and still covering for Rarity, started to gallop away with her team. Diane aimed in front of her. A shot was fired again, and this time, the pink mare shot back, but heard nothing other than the hollow sound of the bullet hitting a rock. Then, a figure. Diane got ready to shoot again, but was stopped by a hoof on her firearm.

"Hold on, chief."

Apple Bloom took a step forward, and squinted. There was only one pony, sporting a guard's uniform. But this wasn't what appealed to her. Small wings, too little to be those of a regular pegasus. Unsure, the yellow pony called out.

"Scoot ?"

Finally emerging from the shadows, the orange pegasus advanced. She was shaking terribly, and was trying to hold back her tears as she aimed for her former friend. Putting both her front hooves up, Apple Bloom slowly walked towards the pegasus, who fired again, missing her target and shooting the ground instead. The yellow mare put a hoof behind her, instructing the other agents that she was fine, and to let her continue. Diane didn't move.

"Scoot, it's me. Can you lower your weapon, please ?"

"I saw them," hissed the pegasus. "I saw Rarity leaving. You're with them, aren't you ?"

"Yes."

"Then you know I have to take you out, I have to..."

"You don't have to do anything, Scoot. Just lower your arm, we'll talk."

Apple Bloom finally reached Scootaloo, and put a hoof on her weapon, lowering it herself. The poor guard looked pitiful, tears rolling down from her eyes, her body shivering with fear. They both had turned out to be very different ponies, after all. Then, she put the same hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder, and offered her a calm smile.

"It's okay, Scoot. You're okay."

"I need to, I need... For Rainbow, I... I can't be weak..."

"You're not weak, Scoot. Here, it's alright, it's alright. Come."

Apple Bloom gently pulled her old friend into a hug.

"Have you warned anypony ?" she asked in a soft voice.

"N-No. The communications are down. But I can't let you go, I can't let her escape, I..."

Scootaloo was cut off in her sentence by a knife plunging itself deep in her chest. Apple Bloom pulled her away from her, throwing her body on the ground. The strike had been deep, and blood started rapidly coming out of the wound in a stream, pooling on the ground. Without giving her a second glance, Apple Bloom walked away, and indicated that they were in the clear. No pony else was coming, not for a while. And without giving her more consideration, the agents left the place and Scootaloo's corpse there, nothing more than a casualty. Diane glanced at Apple Bloom ; not a tear in her eyes, not a change in her strict expression. She smiled to herself. She had trained the youngster well.

***

"Fuck, fuck, fuck !"

Rainbow Dash was galloping through the corridors, strapping on her equipment, accompanied by her fellow pegasi. Rarity had escaped, guards were missing, the whole castle had been plunged into a panic. For five hours, the communication channels had been hijacked. Five whole hours ! This was shameful, for the Princess's special security squad, but right now, Rainbow had other concerns. Rarity was gone, and maybe even worse, Scootaloo was missing. She never wanted for her to be affected in this damn castle in the first place, but now, because of that bastard Golden Shield, Scootaloo was gone. But Rainbow would find her.

"To the sky, everypony ! Come on, quicker, we don't have all day ! Fuck, Soarin, I said quicker !"

"Commander," he said, unsure. "The unicorns have searched through the underground tunnels."

"I thought they had been sealed," replied Dash, surprised. A sick feeling of unease was building up in her stomach, and coming up her throat.

"I thought so too. But it appears they've escaped from there, as the unicorns have found a... They've found a body, commander. Of a guard."

Rainbow's eyes widened. No. It couldn't be. She started taking quicker, heavier breaths, and the hairs of her fur rose up. She could feel her blood starting to furiously boil.

"Who did they find ?"

Soarin stayed silent.

"Goddamn it, Soarin, who the fuck did they find ? Who the fuck did they murder ? Fucking spit it out, or I'll take the words out of your throat myself !"

"An orange pegasus..."

Rainbow let out an awful scream, piercing through the castle, rage filling up her mind.

***

Finally, everypony had came out of the tunnels, and they were now making their way down the mountains, and towards their new headquarters : Fillydelphia. But first, they needed to run and hide. It would be a week of traveling under the radar before reaching the headquarters, so any advance they had, they took advantage of. Derpy was helping Rarity climbing down the steep cliffs, carrying her and flying down with the Lady on her back when it became too difficult for her to follow the squad. The communication channels had been back up, so time was of the essence. Sentinels had already been sent out, and they had to hide themselves in the cliffs when they heard or saw a pegasus.

"We're almost down," indicated Breeze. "Let's hurry, come on !"

Finally reaching the ground, the squad started galloping through the fields, as fast as they could. They could hear shouting from where they came from, not far away ; they had been found. AJ cursed under her breath.

"Should we fire ?" shouted Snow at their leader.

"Not yet !" yelled back Applejack. "We still have a chance of outrunning them, we can't stop !"

"It's the pegasi, chief !" shouted Breeze.

"Derpy, Misty Breeze, in the sky, now !" ordered Diane. "Cover us !"

"Are ya crazy ?" argued back AJ. "They'll get killed !"

"I said now !"

Not listening to their own squad leader, Derpy and Breeze rushed into the crimson sky, launching themselves at the pegasi tailing them. They couldn't risk the failure of this operation, and even if it costed them their lives, they would do their best to ensure the success of the mission.
Derpy aimed quickly and opened fire. The pegasus she was aiming for dodged and dived at her, knife in hoof. In the air, it was easier to fight hoof-to-hoof than to shoot, because pegasi had two advantages in the air : they could dodge faster than the bullets could reach them, they were faster than them, and above all, they had an incredible instinct to sense disturbances in the air, and thus, they could vaguely predict the trajectory of projectiles. Training and experience would then refine this instinct, making them capable, to some extent, of dodging fire. Derpy was a better sniper than a close combat expert, but she would manage. She had to, for the team.

Breeze was more comfortable in close combat than Derpy was, and she plunged on an enemy with a quickness almost unmatched. With her rear legs, Breeze slammed into the unfortunate soldier's skull with the might of a hurricane. The soldier's skull exploded without resistance. And without even glancing at the body now falling down, Breeze launched herself at another enemy. She was not looking behind her, she didn't turn back to see her team for what could very well be the last time. Instead, she focused on her job.

Her new opponent pulled out a knife, with which he plunged at Breeze, who dodged, and she grabbed his head, kicking him in the muzzle with her bare forehead. Then she punched him again there, and again, knocking the soldier's head back, until Breeze simply dropped him, and too stunned to react, the pegasus crashed on the ground. Breeze breathed heavily. She could do it. She was the best pegasi killer of the Celestial army. But she wasn't the best pegasi killer of all of Equestria : that would have to be Rainbow Dash. And Rainbow Dash was coming.

Suddenly, Derpy and Breeze saw a strange light coming from above. They looked up, to find a kind of condensed coloured spot heading towards them. Derpy's eyes widened. She remembered her days living in Ponyville, looking at the sky when Rainbow Dash practiced her acrobatics. She recognized this. Rainboom. And it was coming towards them. Derpy shouted at her partner to fly away, but it was too late. Rainbow Dash had came for them.

Filled with a hellish rage,the cyan pegasus accelerated her descent.

The team still on the ground stopped for a second, and looked at the sky. Suddenly, a large flash of light burned their eyes. A terrible explosion ensued, followed by a multicolored shock wave that swept away everything around. Thankfully, they were out of the hit zone, but they saw everything, and the show was superb. Superbly awful.

"Oh god," managed to say Rarity. "Is that..."

"Let's move, let's move !" shouted Apple Bloom.

Snow stayed frozen for a moment. He couldn't see his partners, in fact, he couldn't see anything where the explosion had been. There was... Nothing. Until he saw it. Corpses of pegasi, falling from the sky. Corpses of the enemy, mangled and bloodied. But in the mess of the cadavers, Snow recognized one. A pastel, pink fur. But it was a body without a head. Snow swallowed his tears, and galloped away, just like the others.

Rainbow Dash landed on the ground, and looked around her. She couldn't see where the escapees had gone, blinded by the dust of her own explosion. Then, she looked down, and gasped. Her fur wasn't cyan anymore. Her whole body had been stained crimson red, just like the sky where she had dared used her greatest pride as a mass extinction weapon. Everywhere around her, corpses. Of fellow pegasi, fellow comrades. She had killed them herself.

Rainbow finally crumbled down, and fell to her knees, letting out a terrible cry of anguish. She had lost. She didn't just lose the enemy. She had lost her pride. She had lost herself. Rainbow buried her face in her hooves, soaked with blood.

She was a monster. Rarity was lucky she had gotten away. At least, she didn't see Rainbow like this. She didn't see what it was that she had become. The pegasus broke down in tears. The Solar forces's mission was a success.

Author's Note

That was a heavy one, wasn't it ? I'm definitely not the best at writing battles, so I tried my best, and hope it was enjoyable.
Anyways, as always, thank you for reading this chapter. English isn't my first language, so do tell me if there are any mistakes I can fix, i'll gladly take any advice.