To Walk Again

Chapters

01 - An Unexpected Fortune
02 - An Expected Misfortune
03 - Awake Again
05 - Dinner
06 - The Cannons of Canterlot
07 - So close.
08 - Fatigue
09 - Dinner with Gods
10 - Therapy with Luna
11 - Bubble and Panic Attacks
12 - Small Break
13 - Prisoners of Sombra
14 - The Final Hours
CANCELLED
04 - Memories Creeping

01 - An Unexpected Fortune

Author's Note

This version of Equestria plays out slightly different from the show's plot. Instead of King Sombra being banished, they are simply teleported forward in time. Princess Luna was banished before The Empire fell. (and yes, this message is to fill in plotholes and inconsistencies that I created.)

01 - An Unexpected Fortune

[Crystal Empire, 4/4/3210, Two Sister's Reunion]

Was this karma?

Had it finally caught up to me? After all these years, I thought death would be an encompassing warm blanket. After all, I’d caused so much pain, I thought I had it figured out. Yet, here I am. My right hoof is nothing but a blistering fire. That one mare had cut the blood flow. Fluttershy, was it? That didn’t matter, because now, ten tons of building were pushing on every inch of my corpse. Most of my body was in pain- except for my legs, which I couldn’t feel… does that even count? Thank god, though, because I could feel warm liquid pouring down my sides. Was I upside down? Once again, didn’t matter, because I knew it was blood.

I want to scream out. I want to cry for my friends. Friends? They aren’t my friends. I’ve only just met them- they only used me as a pawn to take down the big guy- King Sombra. Why did I betray him? He gave me everything… A workshop, a bed… He liked me, I knew it. Not in the mushy-gushy way, but he was my only friend. The look of horror on his face when I used my right hoof to blow open the boiler, giving the six newly accrued ponies a chance at a surprise-attack. I knew I was gonna hurt my hoof- my good hoof- but not this badly. Fluttershy said I didn’t loose enough blood to be serious. But that was before the building collapsed.

I decided to stay silent. I could hear them, yelling my name. Rusty Gears. Rusty. The lavender unicorn was using her magic to shift the debris out of the way. I could yell for them, I would be out of here in ten seconds flat. But if I did… the royal guard would murder me. How couldn’t they? I created the weapons King Sombra used- they aren’t going to wait another second. Either they kill me now, or lock me in a dungeon for eternity. No, it’s better to wait under the rubble for my death.

I can feel it. My consciousness started slipping away. Finally. I can relax. If heaven and hell lay above me, god, I’m going to hell. Maybe not before seeing Herb again. That sweet, sweet stallion, Herb. God, how I miss you.

I take a shuddering breath in. This is it. I can finally let go. The last breath of a generation, rotting away. I start to breathe out, exhaling my fin-

Final-

My fin- oh sweet Celestia.

I’m coughing! I’m coughing so loudly! Stop, please stop!

The mares above me stood silent. They stopped moving. They were listening for my coughing. Stop coughing! I can’t expand my lungs. It feels more like dry-heaving than coughing, but I can hear them. They start digging again, this time directly on top of me.

The weight is being lifted off my chest. Every passing second, I can breathe a little easier… a lot easier… Hopefully it’s too late. They were only digging to watch me rot in a jail cell. I hope I lost enough blood, then they have no choice but to let me die. The pool of blood around me has significantly expanded. Why am I still coughing? Blood is starting to pool out of my mouth. I didn’t even know ponies had this much blood. The coughing slowly turned towards gurgling as I closed my eyes once more. Behind my closed eye-lids, I can see daylight shine through. It doesn't matter. I feel the blanket, it’s pulling above my head. Blackness encompasses my soul, and I fall through the mortal plane. I can almost see my body. A life of horror, finally set to rest. I tried so hard to redeem myself, the final hours. I tried so, so damn hard. Was it even worth it?

It might’ve been easier to just stay with King Sombra. Then, I wouldn’t feel so guilty.

[Manehattan, 1/17/2203, Celestia's Solo Reign]

What a load of horse-shit!

Here I am, working on the stupidest thing I could be for my cutie mark- which was two gears, by the way- fixing a small stove in an even smaller living room of an old stallion. I’m no older than a hundred and fifty, barely an adult, working my ass off to stay afloat. It’s very cold out, seeing it’s winter. He probably wanted this stove fixed fast. I’ll give him fast, as long as he pays me.

It was unusual to work in a house, though. Being in Manehattan for my entire life, an entire building dedicated to one pony was… strange? The old stallion wasn’t rude about it. Actually, hes been staying silent the entire time. It was weird to know he was looking at me, laying on my back, crotch in the air. But, I’ve dealt with weirder clients in my days. At least he was old. The younger ones are the ones to be afraid of.

Nothing was wrong with the stove, it was the chimney connecting to the stove. There seemed to be a blockage… it couldn’t be soot, could it? No, too much was blocking the small pipe. Something must have been lodged in the pipe, and soot built around it. I’m poking and prodding the blockage with a long stick. It felt hard.

I wasn’t thinking about what would happen if the small spot were to… suddenly break free? I had my goggles on over my eyes, so I was set there.

Finally, with one push, the blockage broke free, and the black soot and leaves fell down.

BOOF

The soot covered my air-ways, my mouth full of it. I quickly tried pushing myself upwards, but the door to the stove was directly in my path. My forehead smashed against it, making a soft bell sound. I fell back down, and then pushed myself out with my hooves. I started sputtering, coughing out globs of the stuff. I used both hooves to rub away the shit from my face. Ugh. If I were a unicorn, it would be so easy. I could just- magic my way out. Gracefully descend the shit from the pipe, and in a neat little pile, sort each clogged particle into a size chart.

Eventually, the air-ways were cleaned, and I could breathe again.

“I’m done!” I exclaimed, putting up my hooves, as in to never touch my work again. “Sorry for the mess, mister Clover, I-” was on my way to lying through my teeth. Telling him how sorry I was for doing my damn job. The stallion looked ninety, he was sure to take pity on me.

Yet, the stallion was slumped over the headrest of his wheelchair, head to the back-right.

Are you kidding me? The one bucking pony who visits his house, he sleeps on? Just rolls over and gives up? A blast of anger en walloped my soul. I was going to shake this piece-of-shit awake. I stand to my hooves, and trotted over to him. I’m going to show him-

I stared for a moment. Did his mane look- whiter than usual? The tip of his ears looked pink with cold. His eyes were… wide open, looking away from me. They have a haze to them, like a tub full of soapy water.

I lightly put my hoof to his neck. His tender skin didn’t flinch when I touched it, and under my hoof, below the skin of Mr. Clover, I felt nothing. No pulse. No sign of life.

God dammit. He really died while I was here, huh? As if my life wasn’t tragic enough, now the guard are gonna think I murdered somepony. Anger boiled in my stomach. I wanted to kick him. He’s making my life worse, just sitting here! I’m going to push his wheelchair down a mountain, watching him take every blunt and nick of the rocks on the way down. Shame he’s dead, I would’ve much preferred hearing him scream.

That was until I saw what was in his hoof.

A purse…

A small purse, filled to ripping with bits.

It looked so… so… appealing? Where had this been my entire life? I could take it from him… I could spend a couple nights in a motel! I could- I could sleep on a real bed for once! Can you believe it? I could take Herb out to dinner!

Herb… Oh, Herb. What was he gonna think? I keep showing up with bits every-day to the homeless shelter, he’s going to get suspicious of what I’m actually doing… But I’m sure he knows, right? Every day, he gives me the glance. I feel guilty. But he’s just- so cute!

Me and him, sleeping on a bed for once, instead of the floor with blankets… So, so erotic.

Without a second thought, I grabbed the purse quickly, almost like Mr. Clover was going to wake up. Even after the weight dissipated from his hoof, he still stayed in the same slumped position as before. Quickly, I need to check if it’s real bits. I can’t be getting excited over nothing, after all.

Holy mother of shiny-shiny coins! They were real. Of course they were real! Oh my god, they’re real! The dreams came flooding back into my memory. Herb is going to love this so, so much. After a quick count… Four-hundred bits? I feel like passing out.

Quickly, I packed my tools up from the floor. Half of them, covered in soot. I don’t care. I’m rich! But at the same time, what would the guard think? Find a dead pony in his home? Would they ever trace it back to me? Of course not! I’m being silly. As long as I leave nothing behind, there will be absolutely no cause for concern.

I merrily trotted towards the door. I take one last glance at the surrounding area. I left nothing. I’m sure of it. My eyes gazed back towards the hefty purse, still in my hoof. A smile spread across my face. This will be one hell-of-a-night to remember. I tentatively placed the stash into my saddlebags. Without a second thought, I was gone. Into the wind, and nopony knew I was even there. The snow would cover my hoofsteps.

02 - An Expected Misfortune

[Rusty’s Mind, 5/5/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

Buck. Buck. Buck. Buck.

I thought I had died. I really, truly hoped I had died.

But for some reason, my consciousness kept holding on. Like a dangling filly, I could not escape it. I think I’m asleep? No, I know I’m asleep. Floating in some black void. I can’t see my coat, but I’m sure it would’ve been stained with blood. I can hear voices. I had thousands of eyes on me. Maybe I was dead? Maybe this is hell, and the eyes are those I’ve directly tormented. They’ve come back for me. They’re restless.

The voices, though… They sounded… comforting? Actually, I think I hear the voices of the mares who had saved me. I could definitely hear Fluttershy. What about the other ones?

I tried really hard to redeem myself in the final hours. I could feel my end. Like a pre-death breath of fresh air. I had hoped I could breathe again. The lavender unicorn spoke of a mysterious power… friendship? I knew the concept, but I had never had friends. She promised forgiveness. She promised open-hooves. Why was I so foalish to listen to her insane ramblings?

The pain had came back, again.

Every little while, something would hurt. In the beginning, everything did. But as the hour went on, I could feel myself being administered drugs, another point to my theory of still being alive. They were doing something to me. It started out with pain of the back-legs, like they were doing something. But a little while later, I had lost all feeling back there.

Then, my right-hoof. It was more sudden than the back legs, but like my back legs, the pain dissipated. But I swear, there’s something more missing. More than just the pain. It was like matter itself was sucked away from me.

My torso still hurt. It was still fire. My head throbbed. Why couldn’t they do anything to help against that? Probably the worst would be the atrophy. I can feel my body loosing weight. I can feel myself loosing pounds. My once bulky earth-pony figure had quickly devolved into a lanky mess. I can only assume, though. Maybe they were purposefully malnutritioning me? Getting me ready for prison whenever I woke up?

If they were so adamant on locking me behind bars, why would they care so much to save my life? Just so I can shrivel behind the bars? It didn’t add up. This didn’t make sense.

I can feel their hooves, pressing into my chest. What were they up to? If they could lay off it for a while, that would be great.

[Ponyville, 5/5/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

“The fluid has gone down quite a bit.” The Nurse said to the mare, standing on the other side of the bed. The patient in the middle of the room, Miss Rusty Gear, had tubes and wires hooked up to her. The once ginger-coat had faded in color, leaving a pale ghostly presence, like her body was drained of blood. Which, for lack of a better term, absolutely had been.

“Will she be alright?” The unicorn pressed. The nurse could only shrug her shoulders.

“I’ll give you the same answer this week as last, and the same next week, too.” She said. Her grammar confused the pony. “There is truly no way of telling. She’s… stable today. She might not be tomorrow. Miss Gear is so badly banged up, we are pushing into the realm of theoretical healing if we’re not careful.”

Twilight had expected this answer. It had already been a month since the fall of King Sombra. But the answer still hurt.

If it wasn’t for me, she wouldn’t be in this position. Twilight thought to herself. I should’ve let the others fight King Sombra. I should’ve guided her to safety. She was already so badly injured, why did I just leave her there?

Twilight just laid orange flowers on top of the patient’s lap. She looked at the closed eyes of the mare, and started talking. It began with an apology, then slowly diverted into her day. Then the others day. Sprinkled in was a little bit of crying, a little bit more apology, and finally a farewell, just in case she didn’t make it till her next visit.

This repeated for a long time.

[Manehattan, 1/17/2203, Celestia’s Solo Reign]

“Holy shit! We are dining fancy tonight!” Herb said, kicking his hooves in front of himself, vaguely looking like a horse for a moment. I liked to see him excited. It was almost comforting.

For almost a year, we’d been in this blasted homeless shelter. This is where we met, after all. Finally, even if it was for a few days, we could pretend to be any pony else. We excitedly grabbed our cloaks, and left the shelter.

This was it! Our first real date. I just wanted to be near him. I just want to feel his warmth against my coat. I just wanted to see him smile. And tonight, I was going to get all of those, tenfold.

As we entered the restaurant, his lime-green coat reflected the incoming light, illuminating the waiting area. The person leading us to our seats gave us the side-eye. Not only were we wearing the shabbiest-looking cloaks, but we were both sixteen. All the other Mares and Stallions looked down at us with an evil eye. The buck were their problem?

A twinge of anger built as I met the eyes of a Stallion. He had a white mustache, and was sipping on what I could only assume was grape-juice. He got to eat like this everyday, and the one time common-pony wanted some of it too, he gazed at us like we were animals. I wanted to watch his body burn. I wanted to watch his family burn. I-

A hoof was gently rested across my backside. Herb could feel me getting angry, and calmed me down. I only then realized my face was lighting up red with anger. The anger slowly changed to embarrassment, then blushing. God, he was hot. How could I get so lucky? And why did his parents abandoned such a handsome foal? Maybe he was ugly when he was a foal. That didn’t matter. What mattered now was his soft gaze into my eyes.

We were seated next to a window. Outside, snow built up on the ground, and around the window sill. Ponies marched around outside, trying to out-pace the snowflakes. I softly laughed as I saw one slip.

A feeling came from my abdomen. I looked down to see Herb had placed a napkin on my lap with his magic.

“So fancy.” I said, redirecting my attention to the stallion across from me.

“Fancier than anywhere I’ve been.” He said, lowering his head slightly. “Mind telling me where you got these bits from?”

I contemplated for a moment. He would understand. But I decided against it, just shaking my head instead.

“That's about what I expected.” He said, smiling deviously. The menus soon came later, and we both made the choice to buy the most expensive things we could find. I proposed a plate of pasta linguine, with a healthy helping of sliced tomato, and some cheese, all for only 50 bits. That was more than my month’s wage. Herb spoke up, instead pointing towards a dandelion truffle, worth 60 bits. The price only increased, as our bill reached 200 bits. We had enough to pay for it, obviously. But the taste of that meal was nothing like I’d ever had before. Of course, the feeling was amplified by the cute Herb sitting across.

That had to be the night I would never forget.

[Rusty’s Mind, 5/5/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

And I never did forget it.

That was the night before Herb took the blame on the murder of Mr Clover.

Everypony I touched turned out bad because of me. Maybe it was better if I had died. I kept replaying the same situation in my head, over and over again. What if I took the blame? Would I be rotting in a prison-cell instead? Would Herb be the pony currently unconscious from trying to save his only friend in the world?

Why couldn’t I die?

I wanted to die.

I want to die.

[Ponyville, 8/10/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

Twilight burst through the door. A temporarily stunned Spike dropped the pile of books he was holding, sprawling across the floor. He rubbed his head tentatively with his claws.

“Twilight? Why’d you-” He suddenly noticed the large smile across her face. He had not seen her like this for a long time. Not since the Crystal Empire, at least. “Whoa… What’s gotten to you?”

“What’s gotten into me? Nurse Redheart just announced Rusty is going to wake up!” Twilight pranced around the room like a filly, bounding up and down around the small dragon.

“Wait… they can just do that? Why has she been in a coma for so long then?” The small dragon questioned.

“Well, silly, they want to give her time to heal. If she starts walking and talking before she’s had time to heal, she might cause even more damage. Keeping her in a medically-endued coma is the safest way to keep her alive.” Twilight explained, stopping momentarily before continuing her bouncing. “With that out of the way, we need to start planning.”

“Planning?” Spike cocked his head, looking towards Twilight. His head started spinning, trying to keep track of the bounding mare. She stopped suddenly, and turned towards Spike.

“Of course! I volunteered to keep her until shes on her hooves. We also have to have a welcome-back party-” Spike stopped her right there.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. No party. Na-hah. No way. This pony has been in a coma for four months. I think she just wants to… exist… for a little while. The party can happen after she recovers.” Spike scolded Twilight. She looked like someone deflated her, slinking to the floor. Spike suddenly saw a very uncanny relationship between her and Pinkie Pie.

“Oh, alright. But we still need to find a place where she can sleep.”

“Right… When does she get discharged?”

“Well, she’s going to wake up tomorrow, and if there are NO complications, she should be out within the week.”

“Great! That gives us plenty of time to prepare! Just one question.”

“Go ahead, Spike.”

“Can she… walk?”

…

“No.”

[Rusty’s Mind, 5/6/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

How long had I been asleep for? I could feel myself deteriorating. Memories kept becoming fuzzier, and faces of ponies had become nothing more than static. I wasn’t in hell. I could feel myself in the real world. I was just trapped in my mind. Well, trapped as much as you can. Maybe if I tried pulling myself out, I could wake up. But to be fair, what was on the other side?

The Royal Guard ready to arrest me? A damp jail cell? No. I couldn’t deal with that. But I couldn’t deal with forgetting, either. Either I rot in purgatory until my memories are nothing more than a fine sheet of see-through paper, or I wake up, and rot in a jail cell, still intact.

Buck. I had to wake up. I was in so much pain. I was in so much pain. I was-

I started to cry.

When was the last time I’d cry before? When I was a little filly? I didn’t want to go back to reality, but I couldn’t let my memories atrophy like this. My sense of time was so distorted, I really, really didn’t know how long I’d been out for.

Finally, I grabbed out. I could feel the tension in reality, pulling myself out of the pit. Finally, I could move my hooves. The pain started to lessen. Instead, I felt like I’d been asleep for a long time. The knots in my shoulders and neck were not a good sign. I opened my eyes. I wasn’t awake yet, but I could finally see the void. My amber coat glowed back at me.

I felt reality, like swimming to the surface from the deep end of the pool. I was so scared. God, I was so scared. What would await me on the other side?

Buck.

03 - Awake Again

[Ponyville 5/10/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

“God bucking- for all things Celestia, let me WALK!” I screamed at the top of the lush green hill. I’ve been discharged from the hospital. We moved to a nearby hill, because I want to see how hard it is to walk.

Applejack and Rainbow dash were holding me up with their hoofs, watching me.

My mind is fuming. My hind legs were barely touching the ground, yet I was giving it everything. Every inch of nerve in my body was being redirected to moving the muscles in my back legs. My face must look like a tomato with this amount of effort. I was just trying to take a step forward.

But I didn’t even get a muscle to twitch.

They were totally relaxed. Despite me trying my absolute hardest to make them tense up, some semblance of life, they just rested there, barely touching the ground. I want to break some ponies skull. I want to watch their brains bleed out on the grass, converting and demonizing the previously lush hill. I want nothing more.

“I-I’m sorry! I can’t! I just can’t!” I finally let the air escape my lungs. Did I just apologize? Why did I do that? Whatever.

“Don’t you worry about it, sugar cube. You just woke up after four long, long months. It’ll take a while to get you walkin’ again.”

“Four… months?” That was a long, long time to be asleep. That was… that was long! I turned 23 years old, and slept through it!

“Oh god… I missed my 23rd birthday!” I said, looking down slightly. A gasp escaped one of the group. Pinkie Pie. Quickly, she disappeared from the group. The other members just looked onward as she became a speck in the distance, heading straight for sugar-cube corner. “I’m sorry.” I said.

“For what?” Rainbow asked.

“I must’ve been such a burden to you guys. I probably took up hospital real-estate. I didn’t mean to-”

“God, your being irrational! I knew the nurses said you might not act like you, but I didn’t expect you to act like Fluttershy!”

“...Rainbow.” Applejack threw her a look.. “What she means to say is: We’re all very happy your alive.”

Wait? I might not act like me? Is that why I’ve been a soft bitch? Wait… was I crying again? Oh man, don’t make me hug them again.

I pulled Applejack into a hug with my single hug. Rainbow rolled her eyes. What was her problem? Did she want a hug too? What a snotty bitch. If I had both hooves, she would be in the floor.

I then turned and hugged Rainbow aswell. She looked slightly taken aback. Why was there such a disconnect between my thoughts and actions? Was I that broken? Am I even the one in control?

I felt a pair of strong hooves lift me off the ground. I was placed onto Applejack’s back. God, I was pathetic. Is this what life had in store for the next 60 years? Being carried place-to-place?

[Ponyville, 5/10/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

“There she is! I was getting worried!”

“It’s alright spike. We just stopped by a hill for a little while.”

“OHMYGOD is that a baby?”

“Why yes he is, Rusty.”

“H-Hey, I’m not a- HUCK!” Spike was quickly lifted off the ground with her one good hoof, and mushed into her cheek, rubbing against the small dragon.

“Who’s a good little boy? Yes, you are!”

“Let go of me! For a pony who’s been in a coma, you have one hell of a grip!”

“SPIKE! What did I say about swearing?”

“Sorry- just tell her to let me go!”

“No. You just swore, you have to endure ten more seconds of cuddling, isn’t that right, Rusty?”

“Oh my god do I love him!”

-Ten grueling seconds later-

“I can breathe again! Oh, thank Celestia!”

“Cmon, it wasn’t that bad!”

“Easy to say when your dishing out the snuggles.”

“I can’t help it! I see a whittle baby, I have to hug!”

“Please, never call me ‘whittle’ again. I’m going to keep my distance, crazy lady.”

“So, we have a spare bed I’ll set you up in. You’ll be sleeping in my room. If you want some privacy, I understand, I can sleep somewhere else.”

“No- It’s totally fine. Thank you, though.”

I was watching. Waiting. I can’t use my legs, and I’m totally at their mercy. All it takes is one slip-up to show their true colors. Why are they so nice? Nopony back in Manehattan was this nice. There had to be a reason. What was their reason for being so nice? Extortion? They had came into my life, ruined it, then what?

I was enveloped by the familiar purple magic. It was warm, and borderline ticklish. I was lifted off the ground, floating.

“Miss Twilight?”

“Yes- Oh, please just call me Twilight. I thought we were past this, hehe.”

“Sorry- Twilight? Could I take a bath first?”

“Oh- of course! Why, you don’t even need to ask!” Twilight said. Trust me, lady, I don’t wanna ask. If I could use my legs, I would walk my ass to the bath myself. My floating position was re-arranged. My legs naturally crossed themselves as I was turned upside down, sticking upwards uselessly. I was literally being cradled like a baby. How absolutely degrading. Of course, Twilight didn’t even realize she was doing this. Maybe it was parental instinct... or negligence.

The bath was nice and warm. Twilight had only filled it a little less than half-way. Even so, It was still hard not to lay down. I couldn’t use my legs to push myself back up, no matter how hard I tried. I just laid there. How degrading. How degrading. How absolutely pathetic.

I’ve lived on the bucking streets for the majority of my life, excluding the thousand-years I was in Crystal Empire limbo. I could cut myself, rub salt in the would, and not flinch. Now here I was, laying myself out like a deflated balloon.

The bath wasn’t all that bad, though. Almost magically, questionably magically, I could see my coat color come back. The water seemed to restore it’s natural essence. The once gray turned back into a bubbly orange, my mane a deep brown. I gotta give doctors credit where due, but they could’ve tried keeping up on my hygiene a little better. I smell like a dead raccoon.

“Spiiike, baby, come here!” I was laying on the floor, a good distance away from him.

“No way! Last time I came near you, I almost died!”

“Think of it as an over-affectionate hug?”

“No.”

“Hmm. If you let me overly-affectionately hug you, I’ll convince Twilight to drop us by Rarity’s tomorrow.”

“What? Really?”

“Yes, really.”

“Hmmph. Fine. But only if you Pinkie promise.”

“I’ve heard about these… Pinkie Promises… Alright, sure, I pinkie promise.”

“Those promises hold on-

“FOREVERRRrrr”

“Like she said, forever.”

“How did she- this is the 4th story window!”

“Don’t question it.”

“Okay. Now, c’mere and hold up your end of the deal!”

05 - Dinner

[The Crystal Empire, 1/20/2203, Celestia's Solo Reign]

“This is your room, Miss Gear.” The attendant stopped at a door in the castle. With a heave, I pushed open the heavy metal door. The room was large, in the lap of luxury. It reminded me of royalty. How much I wanted to see them suffer.

The ceiling was curved, with a delicious chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Large windows shone bright sunlight into the room. Outside, a delicate snow drizzled from the sky.

I walked past the attendant without another word. She seemed to understand, and closed the door behind me. I could hear her hooves, trotting on the ground, down the hall.

I explored the large flat. The nicest of furniture decorated the room, going for a very minimalist vibe, yet still discreetly soviet. Everything was high quality. There was even a basket of apples on the coffee table with a small note attached. The note read, ‘From Apple Acres.’

I decided I hate apples. I kicked them with my hind leg, flying across the room. No, this place was too neat. I started moving sofas, which was easy, considering I’m an earth pony. They conformed to my demands. I slightly misaligned them, breaking the style. Apples strewn across the floor, I crossed it to the kitchen. Once again, I started opening cabinets just for the sake of making the home feel ‘lived in.’

The more I tried to make a mess, the more the anger boiled in my stomach. Why was I subject to this? Why was I the one- Did I- No, it had to be somepony else’s fault. It couldn’t be mine. What was I talking about? Maybe King Sombra- I don’t- ARGH!

I kicked the cabinets I was opening. One snapped all the way open, breaking off the hinges. I could feel my hooves pulsing under my legs. I was enraged. I needed to-

“Miss Gear?”

“WHAT?” I snapped, looking at the attendant again. She shrieked away under my piercing gaze.

“King Sombra would like to meet you… If you could follow-” I pushed past her. I’ll figure out my own way. I don’t need her.

“Miss Gear. So glad you could join me. Why do I feel anger resonating off your coat?”

“None of your business.” King Sombra was waiting for me in a large, empty dining hall. Around him, there were no guards. There were no staff. Just a large, open dining table with silver platters on it.

“Ah- I see. Before we start, I must ask you to endulge in this feast.” Using his magic, the lids were removed from the platters.

Infront of me, a Dandelion Souffle.

This was the same meal I had with Herb on our final night out.

Was this some kinda bucking sick joke? Did King Sombra know, somehow? I could feel my snout recede into my face, as I scrunch up my nose. I know I look like a filly, but I don’t care. How did he know? How? I swear to god, I will punt the sick buck into the next dimension over.

“Your emotions… Ahh~.” King Sombra rolled his eyes into the back of his head. “Anger. So, so much hate.” Why was he reading me? I didn’t like it. He was trying to get into my head. He was trying to buck with me. “You want revenge… I might be able to help with that.”

I could feel myself relax.

“There you go, Miss Gear. Relax.” King Sombra stood from his chair at the long end of the table, trotting merrily towards me. “I want to know your plans, Miss Gear. I want to know it all… Tell me- What is this… weapon?”

Alright. Time to spill my guts.

“Fire. Fire boil water. Water make steam. Steam hypercompressable. Hypercompressed steam equals deadly power. I can utilize that.” I now turned towards him. “Imagine a carriage, but without a pony to move it forward. Like it’s on magic.”

King Sombra huffed his chest. “I thought you said ‘no magic,’”

“I did. It won’t run on magic. It’ll run on nothing but steam. Magic counters magic. But what counters mechanical energy?”

King Sombra looked at me for a moment. I can tell he tried to make his gaze piercing, but I stood unaffected. He turned around, and started walking towards the exit. “I will allow you to build your steam machine, but I need you to build me something first.” He said. Before exiting the room, he turned to look at me one last time. “I need you to invent a magic limiter for Unicorns. A lot more prisoners would be cooperative if they couldn’t use their magic. Follow your attendant, she will bring you to the workshop.”

As I left the room, I realized I still hadn’t ate.

[Ponyville, 5/11/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

The sun had been setting.

The library was quiet, and I was laying in bed, feeling useless as always. Sprawled in front of me on the bed, the blueprint Rarity had wrote for me. I had added measurements, done mental math, and contemplated the reality of the situation. This was gonna be easy. Before I knew it, I would be able to walk again.

But Rarity had left something out. Or, rather, added something in. On the drawing, Rarity had added paint onto the pony’s front-right arm. A mechanical arm. She had made it look mechanical. Although I applaud Rarity’s intelligence and imagination, I hardly think I can ‘create’ a new arm. I thought of it as another ‘quirk.’

I rolled the parchment back into it’s original form, and tucked it snugly behind my bed frame, out of sight. Everypony, and everydragon, was asleep. I stared up at the ceiling as I lay there, making out the distinct curvature of the library’s roof. This place was once a tree, after all.

A methodical ticking sound overplayed my consciousness. A clock was beating in the corner, telling me it was sometime around eleven at night. I could fall asleep to this sound, and to be fair, I plan on it.

Tick

Click

Tick

One

Two

Three-

BLAM

Half awake on the floor, I had rolled out of bed, letting out a shriek. I was just about to fall asleep, too. I had seen it. For a moment, on the ceiling, I had seen that brick wall. That bucking brick wall. I had seen too many brains splattered against that wall. I had seen too many ponies final moments on that wall. I had- I had caused their final moments on that wall.

Twilight sat upright in bed,

“Wha- Rusty, are you okay?!” She quickly crawled out of bed, practically running over to my position. I was curled up, my one hoof grabbing my knees, pulling them close to myself. I was sobbing. When did I start crying? These past few days, I’ve done nothing but cry it seems. I couldn’t bring myself to look at Twilight. I was too ashamed.

“Rusty, talk to me. Please.” She was kneeling next to me, both hooves on my side.

“Twilight, whats wrong?” Spike had also woken up out of his small cot, looking in our direction. I couldn’t bring myself to talk. I just kept sobbing, letting it all fall out.

“Rusty, please. Please, just talk to me.”

“T-T-Turn off the c-clock!” I managed to whisper. The ticking sound was still front most in my head. Twilight looked to Spike. He seemed to get the message, quickly scrambling towards the clock on the wall. He took it down, and on the back, took a moment to find the off switch.

Tick

Ti-

Silence. Silence filled the library. True silence. I could let myself calm down. I could finally calm down. Finally. Oh god, the silence was music. The silence was deafening. Right there and then, I closed my eyes, and started drifting to sleep.

[The Crystal Empire, 1/21/2203, Celestia's Solo Reign]

“Try levitating that apple.” I demanded my attendant to do. The yellow mare looked towards the table with difficulty. A large, leathery object was hanging around her neck. She looked towards the apple, and started concentrating. Her horn lit up a blue. But nothing happened.

“More.” I said. She looked concerned, but kept trying. She rearranged her hoofs on the ground, and pointed more towards the apple. Once again, nothing happened.

“Even more. Put your back into it before this becomes something more than a necklace.” She seemed to understand, her face turning purple as she put everything she had into it. The apple still did nothing. But something unexpected happened. The red-leathery material covering her neck, which had valves, gauges, and other pipes sticking out of the thing, suddenly let out its own burst of magic, temporarily stunning the yellow unicorn. She was thrown onto her knees, and let out a wail.

Perfection. Not only did it prevent the unicorn from using magic, but punished her if she tried to use it. This is what King Sombra wanted me for.

“Miss Gear, could I please-”

“No. Leave it on.” I pointed at her. She shrieked backwards, diverting eye contact. I marched over to my desk, and in one of the drawers, I took out a quill and started writing a letter.

Sombra.

I have completed your Magic Restrainer.

Not only does it prevent Unicorns from using their magic, but will also zap them.

Rusty Gear.

There, that was good enough. I turned around to meet the Unicorn. I loved watching her look so uncomfortable, with the big heavy brace on. I let a smile creep over my face. For a few moments, I watched her, neck down, looking at me with those sad, fear driven eyes.

“Okay, you can take it off.” I finally said. She couldn’t agree more, quickly dismounting from the machine. “Send a letter, please. Straight to Sombra.” I used my hoof to motion her away. She took the letter from my outstretched hoof, and quickly ran out of the room.

My Dearest Rusty Gear,

I am absolutely pleased to hear you have completed my request. Somehow, against all odds, you approached a theoretical machine with a sense of diligence I can’t say many do. And you have done it in a single day. This is the upmost impressive. I do believe a reward is in tow for you. Would 3:30 tomorrow, courtyard be a good time? I would like to see your work in action.

Signed, King Sombra, Ruler of The Crystal Empire.

I sighed at the letter, getting out a new piece of parchment.

Sombra.

Sure.

Rusty.

And I sent it.

06 - The Cannons of Canterlot

[The Crystal Empire, 3/20/2203, Celestia's Solo Reign]

In the two months since I’ve been working for King Sombra, I only make Equestria better. Every day, I am producing something better and better. King Sombra seems only more accepting of my acquaintance. After all, my Magic-Dampening collars has been a huge hit, with next to no issues. They have already been issued state-wide. I look out from my workshop located on the top-floor of the royal castle. Everypony with a horn is also using a collar.

Now was not the time to look back- now was the time to adapt- now was the time for the industrial revolution of Equestria.

I can taste it in the air. Vividly, I can see it. Huge machines, wheels as large as homes, crunching over the poor ponies. I smile to myself, still looking down at the ponies below. They are so small, almost like ants. I need to start planning for my next big thing. I have created a variety of smaller inventions, including long-range communication. But I want to visualize my dream. I want to be the one at the helm. A surrogate god.

I better get to work.

From the top shelf, I grabbed a piece of parchment, about the size of a pony. I start doodling- wheels, platform, a seat, a wheel to steer the machine, and a large boiler. What would this become? I know I need a boiler for something- The idea keeps coming to my head. Steam. How can I use steam? I had so confidentially explained it to King Sombra at dinner, but that was borderline insane.

I’ll keep it in the back of my mind, for now.

Axles- they need something to rotate on. Bearings? What about the steering column? Yes, I have it. I could make all four wheels spin with this drive-shaft. Perfect.

I don’t need anypony. I never will. I will do this by myself. Equestria will rue the day. They’ll see. They have to see.

[Ponyville, 5/12/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

Where is she? I had been laying on the uppermost balcony of the library, the floorboards pushing into my frail body. To any common-pony, I must look like I’m sunbathing. But in reality, I’m trying to get a particular mare’s attention. I need Rainbow Dash’s help.

There she is! That rainbow shine is eye-catchingly distracting. Nopony else could have that kinda shine. She is doing her weather-patrol, dipping in and out of the clouds. The few spotty clouds on the horizon seem to listen to her, as they completely vanish from reality anytime she goes near.

Alright, time to enact my plan. I had… found… a broken piece of mirror. I clamped my teeth onto the cold surface, being careful to not cut my tongue on the sharp edges. I pointed it upwards, towards the sky. Hopefully she didn’t mind too much, being bombarded with sunlight rays.

The tricky part was lining it up with Rainbow Dash. I have no sense of reference, but I tilt my head back anyway, trying to get a hit-

“Now, what do you think your doing?” Suddenly, Rainbow Dash was mere inches from my snout, staring me down with her piercing purple eyes. That was much, much easier than I thought it would be.

“Sorry, sorry, sorry-” I kept repeating, diverting my eyes.

“Yeah, you better be!” She seemed angry, and had the right to be.

“I-I just need your help, that's all!” Rainbow receded from snout-distance. She looked a little surprised.

“You need my help? I mean, of course! Who wouldn’t need the best flyer in Equestrias help?” She levitated a few feet off the ground, showing off her leg and wing muscles. I became acutely aware of how frail I looked in comparison to her.

“I need you- to- uhm- I need you to… fly me to Applejack?” I said, tilting my head away from her gaze.

“Augh-” She went limp, wings still propelling her in the air. “What do you need her help for?”

“I need to create a prototype of a project I’m working on. I don’t know it’ll work until I try.”

“This better not be another pony-ender project, lady. We all know you’ve done that too many times.”

I could feel the air escape from my lungs, like an invisible vacuum was formed around my person. She doesn’t trust me. After all this time, I’ve been trying so-so hard to redeem myself. I didn’t mean to do it- or I did- I didn’t.

I could only face the simple truth staring back at me. I’m a monster. How silly I was to think I could redeem myself. Perhaps it would be better if she was just dead. Perhaps it would be better if I was dead. Maybe Herb would still be here. Rainbow Dash doesn’t trust me. She never will. Nopony I know will trust me. There’s nowhere I could go if I wanted to.

I slowly divert my eyes to the railing. It would be so easy. The burning sense takes over my brain. I could actually see Herb again. I could-

“Are you alright? You look a little… pale.”

[Canterlot, 4/10/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

The grinding sound over-empowered my ears, even with the earmuffs on. I could feel it through the floorboards, the crunching of rocks. My dream was becoming realized, even if it took longer than I wanted it to.

The once barren snowy wasteland was suddenly filled with these machines made from bronze. The snow acted as a natural barrier. If any civilization was waiting for an attack, their eyes would be on the sky, or the footpaths. But with this- the rules have been entirely rewritten. We could attack anywhere we wanted, from any side, and however fast we wanted. The ground, however, slowly shifted from snow to flat, grassy hills as we approached our final destination.

On flat ground, the speed rivaled that of the fastest equestrian flyers in history. 50 Mph, 60 Mph, with every new iteration, that number only increased quicker and quicker. The ground behind was was being torn into nothing but mud as our pact of a dozen vehicles rode along the once-smooth hillsides.

Even with the current iteration, I can see the problems. Maybe this bolt could change for a better one? A self-oiling system? These ideas danced around my head as I drove the front-line vehicle. Today was a special day. Not only had it been a little over a year after my internship had started with King Sombra, but today we were displaying out force.

Those idiots in Canterlot had no idea we were coming. The mountain, which before took hours to traverse, even with Pegasus (who needed to rest every few minutes) the amount of time was shortened to thirty minutes. We were already almost there.

The particularly sunny day was coming to an end, which was nothing to be scoffed at. Finally, after long months of winter, spring had broken, and today, the sunlight had nothing in between it and the ground. Ponies were bustling in their suits and dresses, wearing appropriate spring-wear for the mares.

The royal captain was looking out over the city. This was their home. Their pride, joy, and love. He felt a sense of happiness swell inside his chest. He had spent so much time protecting it.

“General Bash, Sir!” He heard the familiar sound of pegasus wings landing behind him. The voice was of a stallion, had to be one of his.

“This had better be good,” General Bash turned around, facing the pegasus. “Report, sar-” He stopped in his tracks, looking the Stallion up and down.

His armor was severely dented, and on his chest, a thin stream of blood was pouring outwards, staining the usually white coat. General Bash took a step back, looking at the poor stallion. His blue mane was dirtied, and his face covered in mud. What had happened out there? The General cleared his throat again.

“Report, Sargent.” He said, significantly calmer than before. Yet, adrenaline was thumping through his veins as he started at the eyes of the stallion. In his eyes, he saw something more than discipline. He saw fear.

“Huge machines, moving up the mountain currently. Our post was attacked. Many wounded, even more dead.” The stallion stopped himself for a moment, taking his breath. “These machines… Faster than you could-” He suddenly collapsed on the ground.

Princess Celestia had been at her throne, enjoying a nice dinner. The hall seemed so much more dreadfully empty, especially after Luna’s banishment. It was a soft of loneliness Celestia had not experienced in a long, long time. The sunny day was coming to an end, and the faint light that still shone left pretty patterns of colors on the walls, shining through the stained-glass windows.

Princess Celestia almost chocked on her dinner as she heard the door to the hall burst open.

“Celestia! Princess! Oh, princess!” She recognized her immediately. It was a Mare from an outpost down the mountain. What Princess Celestia didn’t like was the fact she was covered in mud, having multiple wounds across the open areas of her body. Her armor was also severely dented, making the poor thing look like she’d aged a thousand years.

“What’s wrong, my faithful guard.” She said with a calm voice. She had ignited her horn, calling the doctors to the throne-room. This pony needed help, and fast.

“The- There's machines!”

“Machines?” Princess Celestia repeated, looking down on the mare. Princess Celestia had stood up and walked to the quivering pony, placing a hoof on her shoulder.

“Moving machines! They- They’re fast! ETA. Ten minutes fast!” The mare had exhaustively sputtered. The room reeked of tension as she looked at the mare below her. Suddenly, the mare had fallen on the ground, breathing hard.

“Ten… minutes? Your outpost is hours away.” Princess Celestia said, not meaning to cast doubt onto her claims, but that was fast. Impossibly fast. “I’ll get the royal guard ready… Doctors are already on their way for you. Be still.” Princess Celestia left the hall, leaving the injured pony by herself.

She could feel it in the ground, in the air, through the walls. Every second counted. She had already sent messages to every available outpost. Apparently, a few were already ready for the attack, due to the outpost coming back injured.

Princess Celestia parked herself on a balcony, overlooking Canterlot. This was it- war was coming.

It wasn’t going to be war- not yet, at least. We would fire into the sky to scare them. Get their nerves riled up. If they were at all expecting us, they might've been thinking of a huge army. Ponies expanse as far as the eye can see. But they were wrong. All it took was a dozen ponies driving a dozen machines.

I watched the speedometer go from 30, 40, back to 30, 50. I didn’t want to crash the damn thing, so I was trying to be careful.

I could eventually pick up more speed, as the road went from dirt to stone bricks, laid by those pompous pricks up in Canterlot. I could see behind me, just like with the grass, the stone bricks were also being chewed up by the immense weight and pressure of the vehicle. The day of reckoning has come. Who knows, I might even take one pony out.

“Magic doesn't work on them.”

“What do you mean?”

“We need something else… like explosives!”

“Are you thinking of cannons?”

“Yes sir.”

“But those are… barbaric, at best!”

“Well, It’s either going out in glory, or fighting to see another day.”

“Alright- I understand. Generated, dear, take a message. Tell our guard to position cannons on the walls. Get the cannons from the museum, tell them General Bash sent you personally. What’s our ETA?”

“Eight minutes.”

“Damn.” Just then, a guard ran up behind General Bash.

“We have spotted them from the Guard Tower! ETA, 40 seconds!”

The sound of the boiler increased in volume as we turned the cliff, the steam chugging amplified. I had to slow down slightly, but as I rounded the corner, the huge, spiraling golden towers dominated the setting sky. The white walls stretched far beyond any imagination. It was very, very pretty, especially with the lights illuminating it through the night. Too bad, in a few years, this will be nothing but a pile of smoldering rubble.

My radio-communication sparkled to life. I clicked the button to listen to the pony on the other end.

“There she is. How do we wanna play this, ponies?” The voice spoke. I clicked back to talk.

“Let’s line up before the river, give them plenty of room to look at us.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Oh my sweet Celestia.” General Bash looked as the huge machines rolled around the corner. They looked like buildings on wheels. Brass covered the pilot, and the huge boiler sat squarely in between the two back wheels. On top of the cockpit, a large cannon was positioned, pointing directly at Canterlot.

General Bash could hear ponies behind him, innocent civilians. They were gasping, taking photos, looking at the huge machines. Suddenly, for the first time in a long time, General Bash felt fear strike through his heart. He could only hope those cannons would arrive sooner.

He heard something he could only describe as a metal door slamming. Then, from behind the machine in the center, a simple earth pony trotted from around the giant tire. She looked happy. Absolutely delighted. It sickened him.

Her coat was a tan with a slight hint of yellow. Her mane was a ginger, and her eyes, a blue. Her cutie mark was two gears, and she wore silver goggles on top her mane. But she didn’t look like any of the other Crystal Empire ponies. She almost stood out against them. The other ones were sad, drained of life. But she looked happier than a princess.

She stood in front of the machine, headlights casting a shadow down-range. She crossed her front hooves, and took a long glance at our defense. She was still smiling. Did this not… affect her? Shoot fear through her? Did she think this was amusing?

“Sire! Cannons are coming up the stairs now!” Thank god. Hopefully this would end this stand-off. General Bash put his front-hooves over the castle wall, and spoke loudly.

“By direct order of Princess Celestia, the Canterlot Royal Guard order you to stand down!” He said. The mare took a moment to think, before giggling to herself. Who was this psychopath?

“Is that the best you got?” She spoke, her voice higher and more feminine than he expected. General Bash didn’t give her the satisfaction of responding. After a few short minutes, her smile faded. “Playing the silent-game, huh? Alright.” She trotted to the back again.

Suddenly, all of the cannons on the top of the vehicles moved upwards. Temporarily aimed straight at the Royal Guards on the tower, which caused them to duck down. But the cannons kept going, until they were slightly shy of 90 degrees.

The ground shook, and the eardrums of each pony rung out in horror. They cannons fired, but only straight-up as a warning shot. It was louder than any spell he had performed. These machines looked so… mechanical. He wondered if there was a trace of magic in the damn thing. No, that’s impossible.

After the sound died out, the shaking calmed, General Bash spoke again.

“What the hell do you want?” His voice, shaking more than he wanted to. The same tan pony came around from the front.

“What the hell do I want? What do I want?” She said. This time, her face was contorted into anger. Just a few moments ago, she was happier than can be, now she looked angry.

“I want everypony in that blasted capital DEAD!” She stomped her front-hooves onto the ground, leaving an impression. “All you… all you royals ever did was screw me over!” She stomped her hooves again, like a foal who wasn’t getting what she wanted. But there had been no negotiations. Why was she so angry? Was she truly a psychopath?

“We can come to an arrangement-”

“Bullshit we can!” She screamed. General Bush was taken aback. She wasn’t listening, but only getting more angry. Canterlot had done nothing to her yet, and she was fuming like a foal. She took a few moments, catching her breath, looking away from the main gate. Without further moments notice, she paced back to the machine, again.

The cannon of the machine was lowered. This time, it stopped directly onto the Royal guards, positioned at the wall. A few slight yelps, and they dived out of the way.

It didn’t fire… yet.

“Unicorns, get ready!” General Bash yelled. They few trained Unicorn’s horns started to glow. “Aim!” He yelled, again. “Fire!”

What seemed like hundreds of glowing bolts quickly descended across the field and over the river. A few missed their mark, leaving huge, different color explosions on the ground in front of the machines. The others that did hit, the entire machines were covered in colored fireballs. Suddenly, the machines that once were there, were nothing more than a cloud of smoke.

General Bash let out a relieved sigh. The amount of grit their ponies showed, perseverance, was incredible. He reminded himself to take them for a drink later tonight.

*WHEEEE- WHEE WHEE*

That was, until a train-whistle blew, breaking the temporary moment of celebration.

From out of the smoke, still radiating off of it, the machines rolled forward. All in a straight line, noticeably undamaged. The headlights shone across the ground, giving a ghostly, unpony-like sense of dread.

“My turn.”

He could hear it coming. The machine was reloading itself from the last fire. He could hear the cannonball clunk into the bottom of the tube. It was pointing directly at the wall, ready to take it out. Some more mechanical noises sounded.

But unannounced to the monster-machines, a shorter pony, with a picture of an artifact, was doing the same thing, just across from the General. He had a cannon from the museum, where he worked. He went through the same motions, only faster. This was it. Pony v. Machines, and for the time being, Ponies had to come out on top. They had to.

He worked his hooves, quickly, loading the gunpowder. He had always seen this thing sitting in a display-case. But he had never taken the time to fire it. Why would he? This was something earth-ponies used before harmony was discovered.

Finally, he finished pushing the cannonball inwards, and dropped the stick. With god-like precision, he pointed the cannon at the brass machine, currently pointing towards one of Equestrias best generals. He couldn’t let this happen.

With a strike of a match, the wick started descending. He knew he was cutting it close. One wrong move, and somepony dies. Well, somepony was going to die either way. He would prefer if the death was not one of his own.

The wick kept approaching the interior of the cannon. Wait. Should he be standing behind the cannon?

07 - So close.

[Ponyville, 5/12/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

“Applejack! Delivery for Applejack!” Rainbow Dash projected across the farm. Between her hooves was a particularly embarrassed Rusty Gear.

“A’hm down here!” Applejack yelled. Rainbow Dash looked around for a moment, before spotting her, bucking away at a tree. She flew downwards, placing Rusty on a pile of apples in a cart.

“Post-mare Dash, at your service!” She said, saluting to the orange pony.

“Hmph. Better service than Ditsy, tell you what.” Applejack walked over to where Rusty laid. “Now, what might I owe the service?” She said, bowing slightly.

“Hallo Applejack. If it wouldn’t be a problem, I was-”

“Oh, trust me sugarcube, nothing’ll be a problem.”

“O-okay. I was wondering if I could borrow- ahem, ‘BORROW’ an apple cart?” Rusty Gears shy’d away from Applejack’s gaze.

“What do you need it for?” She questioned, tilting her head slightly. Rainbow Dash lowered to the ground.

“She won’t even tell me!”

“Well, it should be a surprise.” Rusty said, still diverting her eyes to the ground.

“But don’t worry, AJ, It’s not anything evil. I already asked.”

“Rainbow! You don’t ask somepony that!”

“Why not? It’s not my fault shes pretty much a convicted war-criminal.”

“RAINBOW!” Applejack looked back to the pony in the cart, who was now delicately pushing an apple between her hoof. She could not imagine the pony in front of her doing those… horrible things. In the past few months, she certainly had changed her ways. “It’s okay. You can borrow a cart, I trust you.”

With that, Rusty perked up, smiling. “Thank you Applejack!”

“But… I don’t think you can really build anything with your current condition, though.”

“Yeah- It might take me a little while.”

“We’re all busy… But I think I know a group of ponies who would be more than willing to help.”

“Oh? Who would that be?”

“Well…” She put a hoof to her chin, tapping, and looking mysterious.

“Oh, AJ.” Rainbow re-introduced herself to the conversation. “You’re not thinking about… the crusaders, are you?”

[Canterlot, 4/10/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

*BLAM*

The poor museum-pony was thrown backwards with the shock of the cannon. Out of the tip, an explosion fired, and a cannonball flew through the air, towards the huge machine.

*CRUNCH*

The entire face of the machine was crunched inwards, the cannon now pointed directly at the ground. A direct hit! The once pristine brass was nothing more than a load of crumples. Surprisingly, the other machines who stood by the strange pony, backed up, into the smoke. Was that a sign of retreat? Soon, the only machine left was the one inhabited by that… pony.

She was fine, just severely disorientated. The cannonball had barely missed the cockpit, instead all of the force went directly into the boiler.

What was that sound? It was hissing, something not good with a high-pressure environment. She took a moment to think. Hold on, if the boiler was loosing pressure- was it going to explode? She had to get out of there!

With a buck of her hind-legs, the windshield popped off. She quickly clambered out of the machine. She had forgotten how tall the machine was, as she jumped off the machine, landing on her chest, instead of her legs. She kept clambering, just trying to gain some distance, before-

*KA-BLAM*

The damn thing exploded from the inside! A large ball of red fire erupted, the shock wave knocking Rusty off her legs, and she slid into the ground, and onto the bridge that separated the machines from Canterlot. With a knock of her head, she became unconscious.

[Ponyville, 5/12/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

“So- your the pony who almost killed my sister?” The small tan one investigated.

“Uhm-”

“Don’t worry, I forgive you.”

“Wha-”

“Well, I don’t!” The orange pegasus with the purple mane said.

“O-oh, I-”

“Let’s give her space. She’s probably very confused.” The white unicorn said.

“Actually, I do forgive you, but barely!” The orange one said again. Her mind was completely ker-frazzled. How do these things have so much energy?

“I have a job for you- and you might get your marks from it.”

“Why would it?”

“I dunno, just providing options for you. You guys wanna try everything, right?”

“YEAH!” All three said in unison.

“Then it’s decided!” Rusty pulled out a piece of parchment from her saddle-bags. “I need these things from town. Don’t worry, I have bits. If you bring me back everything, I might even pay you.” She said, with a wink.

“YES MAM!” They said in unison. The pegasus grabbed the paper, the earth-pony grabbed the bits, and the white unicorn was left in the dust for a moment, before looking confused, then following them.

[Canterlot, 4/12/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

I had a terrible headache. The world seemed to fade in from reality as I realize my position. I think I’m in a hospital? The walls do seem like it. And the bed below me feels like it’s made from cloud.

I try moving, only to feel something pulling against my right-hoof. I take a glance and realize I’m handcuffed to the bed. Dammit. The memories come flooding back. That’s right. I tried to attack Canterlot. Maybe I got a bit out of hand… But they’re still a bunch of assholes.

“Ah, I see somepony is finally awake.” A doctor had his hoof on mine, listening intently.

“Will all due respect, get the buck away from me.” I jerked my hoof away. He just gave me a look. A look of… disappointment? He eventually nodded, and exited the room. I could faintly hear talking outside the door. A moment later, a royal guard entered the room, dressed in the usual golden-glowing armor.

“Princess Celestia will be here shortly.” He said with a firm, but gentle voice. Why were they acting like… that?

I only rest my head back onto my pillow, looking up at the tiled ceiling. I gave an exhaustive sigh.

It must’ve been a mere ten minutes when I heard a knock on the door. The guard walked to the door, and opened it, and god damn, there she was.

A towering figure, taking up the majority of the room walked in. She actually crouched to walk into the window-less room, before returning to her full-height. Her coat was a snow-white, and her hair glistened a bright pink, flowing in the non-existent wind. One feature I noticed right away, however, was the fact she had both wings and a horn. Weird.

“Thank you, guards, please leave us.” She said, motioning with her hoof away from the door. The guard listened, and walked out.

“I see your finally awake. How have the doctors been treating you?”

“I dunno, just woke up.” I nonchalantly said, trying my hardest to hide my fear.

“Of course. How silly of me. Welcome to the Canterlot hospital.” She smiled. She was hiding something behind that smile.

“Uh-huh.” I said, diverting my eyes, back towards the room. “It’s very… regal.”

“Is that a problem?” She said.

“No- it’s fine… Why haven’t you killed me yet?” I said, looking back into her eyes, which I only just noticed was a shade of purple. Her face inhibited a mask of shock… or was it a mask? She seemed at least partially genuinely confused;.

“Why would we kill you? That’s only barbaric.”

“I mean, I’m the solo weapon-producer and engineer behind the entirety of The Crystal Empire. I would think you’d want me dead.” I said. Celestia took a moment to process the information.

“No. Everypony deserves a second chance. That’s why I never send anypony away forever.”

“Is that what you’ll do to me? Send me away for a thousand years? Like your sister?” I had obviously trotted on a nerve. She looked away for a moment.

“Let’s start with your name.” She looked back towards me. “I am Princess Celestia, ruler of Equestria. What’s yours?”

“Rusty Gear. Soon-to-be ruler of Equestria, current engineer.”

“Ah. That’s what you want.” She looked towards the ground. “Why? Why do you want to dethrone me?”

“You bloomin royals have taken so much from me. You obviously don’t know how to run a country.”

“What have we done to deserve this reaction?”

“You took my parents, my home, my stallionfreind, what else are you gonna take? My soul?”

Well, this was interesting. Celestia was digging at the truth. The internal struggles of the mare in front of her. Her way of things seemed more… barbaric? Maybe all she needed was kindness. That would make her understand. Kindness and honesty.

“Tell me more about this Stallionfreind. I’m sure I can help you.” She said, carefully choosing her tone. She saw what set off her last time, and she doesn't want it to happen again. Obviously, something stirred in her brain. Had she unlocked something? This mare seemed fragile. Living in a glasshouse, maybe?

“His name was Herb.” She crossed her hooves together as best she could, before the slack in the handcuffs toughened up.

“Here, let me get that.” Remember, Celestia, kindness. Show her kindness. With a flick of her magic, the handcuff released. Rusty rubbed the spot where it had been clipped, her fur slightly distorted in color. Rusty looked like she wanted to thank her… but something got in the way.

“He was the kindest, nicest, and cutest stallion in all of Manehattan.” She flicked her hair.

“You come from Manehattan?”

“Yes. Is that surprising?”

“No, not at all. Continue.”

“Hmph. I was working on a chimney, when the old bloke paying me died. I didn’t lay a hoof on the old prick. He just… died.” Celestia noticed she was holding something back. “I went to the homeless shelter, and the police arrested Herb for murder instead of me.”

Celestia wanted to defend her position as royalty, citing how the police rule differently from the guards, but Celestia kept her mouth shut.

“I am so sorry to hear that. I’m sure we can release him, get this all cleared up.” Remember, Celestia. Kindness. And it was working. She perked up at that idea.

“R-Release him? W-hat about me?” She stuttered out. Celestia took a moment to think. No parents, living on the street, lost her only friend… She had to have some trauma in her brain. Is that why she joined The Crystal Empire? To escape her past? Take revenge?

“You need to listen to me, please. I can tell something is tormenting you. We can plead for insanity.” Surprisingly, Rusty didn’t seem to mind.

“But you can get him back?”

“Of course, Rusty.” Celestia smiled. It was working. Now, time for the truth. “After talking today, I believe you have some… trauma? Childhood trauma perhaps?” Rusty still didn’t object. “Therapy would be good. But not until we find Herb, you understand?” It was like talking to a filly.

“Yes, of course, Princess Celestia!” There was that smile. All it took was a conversation, and she was convinced.

Herb. HERB. I get to see Herb again! Thank Celestia! I could barely contain my excitement. Actually, I couldn’t because I was smiling like a little filly. Maybe she wasn’t as bad as I had thought.

“Come, let’s go for a walk, together.” Celestia returned the smile, extending a hoof in offering. I excitedly took it, and we left the room.

The hospital was grand, and ponies were rushing to and from. Guards started following us as we left. Doctors and nurses who weren’t currently busy bowed to Celestia as we moved through the hall. I almost got the impression they were bowing to me… which was slightly uncomfortable.

We had soon left the front doors, and a pony-drawn carriage was waiting out-front for us. Celestia extended a hoof, offering it up. I gladly obliged, and entered the slightly over-sized carriage. But to be fair, Celestia was also over-sized.

Celestia had almost entered the cart. She was so close, hoof on the step, before a messenger pegasus flew down next to her.

“Princess Celestia!” The pegasus bowed. “An army is building out front! They have demands!”

Not The Crystal Empire again! No- she had been so close! Here is Rusty, literally sitting in the carriage, ready to be reformed. Her hypothesis on villain-reforming has to wait, business to attend to.

Dear Princess Celestia.

I have to understand things got slightly out-of-hoof two days ago. It is entirely my fault, and I apologize for almost blasting your guards. Those who left behind my favorite engineer have been punished, no need to worry about that.

However, I have been informed you have imprisoned the previously mentioned engineer. I wish to stress, I am standing outside with every soldier I have ever trained, ready to blow the walls off that pretty little palace.

My demands are simple. Destroy the mechanical carriage she had made, and return my engineer. This doesn’t have to turn to war.

Signed, King Sombra.

No. NO! She’d been so close! She was willing to listen, willing to change. But this blew it all back. She would be irate again. All the work, gone down the drain.

“Princess Celestia, Is something wrong?” Rusty said, having noticed her face of panic.

“I-I’m so sorry. I am so, so sorry, Rusty.” Celestia said, avoiding eye contact.

“What’s wrong?”

“King Sombra wants you back.” Celestia said, eyes still pointed towards the ground. She could feel her confusion.

“Oh. But- I like it here. Couldn’t I just stay?”

“No.”

“Wh-at? Why not?”

“Because I’m not risking everypony’s lives for an engineer.”

I knew it. I bloody knew it. All the royals were the same. Just soul-draining, stupid monsters. Willing to give up anypony for any reason. Lives were just trading cards to them. I feel… almost like vomiting. Why would I listen to something as spineless as Princess Celestia. Why was I listening? Was I acting? I didn’t feel like I was acting.

“No! You can’t send me back there!” I shouted. I sounded broken. Why did I say that? The Crystal Empire was my home. Celestia looked at me. Her eyes were full of tears. Did she actually care for me? No. Of course she didn’t it was just a show. I bet she lied about Herb, too. Of course she did. Why did I listen to her so willingly?

“I’m sorry.”

“No your not! You were trying to use me! All you royals are the same, I knew it!” I shouted. Celestia’s tears started flowing even more as she looked at me.

“You need to trust me-”

“I never would!”

“Rusty-”

“I hate all of you! You’ll see the day Canterlot is a pile of rubble! I’ll make you watch!”

“Rusty, by next month, I want you out of-”

“I don’t want to hear it! No more lies!”

“Listen if you ever want to see Herb again.” She said. “By next month, I need you to escape The Royal Empire. Just- find an excuse, anything. If you are there, you will never see him again. By March 12th, 3:30 in the afternoon, that's the hard deadline. Any longer... you don't want to find out. ” For some reason, I still believed her. She closed the carriage door without saying anything else. I watched her mouth something to the taxi driver, and we started moving.

I was dropped off by the main exit to meet Sombra again. He seemed thrilled to see me again. But I still chewed those words. By next month? What did that mean? What was Celestia planning? I hate her, I hate all royals, but for some reason, those words stuck with me. What could it hurt to listen?

08 - Fatigue

[Ponyville, 5/13/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

Half-asleep on the bathroom floor.

I can’t sleep. Not now. Not ever.

Every time I try- I see them again.

King Sombra, Herb, Celestia…

I don’t want to sleep.

If I close my eyes, I’ll just see them again.

I am so… tired…

So… so tired.

[Ponyville, 5/14/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

“Woah! You look- umm… lookin’ good, lookin’ good.” Twilight said, with a reassuring smile. Truth be told, Rusty looked worse than she did before getting out of the hospital. A new pair of bags under her eyes told Twilight all she needed to know.

“Thanks. I try.”

“Umh… night troubles?”

“Yea.”

“Is that why your on the bathroom floor?”

“Cold tiles feel nice.”

“Alright… did you crawl over here?”

“Yea.” She said. Twilight knew something had to change. Ever since her incident involving the clock a few days ago, she wondered if she’d been getting any sleep at all.

“I think you need to see Princess Luna.” Twilight stated bluntly. This caused Rusty to look up from her position on the ground, squinting slightly at her.

“Princess Luna was banished to the moon, remember?”

“She was banished for a thousand years. It’s been over a thousand years.”

“So she’s back?”

“Like she never left.”

[Manehattan, 4/13/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

He’s doing this because he loves her.

He’s doing this because he can’t live with her here.

He’s doing this-

“Mr. Gar Herb? Message from Canterlot. Must be pretty important.” A guard walked into the cafeteria. A few hoots and deep ‘ooo’s’ resonated from the prisoners.

“Who the hay is sending a message from Canterlot?” One of his friends ask.

“Dunno. Herb, you got family up there?”

“Nope. Not a clue.” He took the letter with his magic, and unfolded it. A few of his friends gathered across the table, looking on with a slightly morbid interest.

“Go on, read it.”

“Yeah, we’re dying.” But all they could get was an open mouth from Herb. He wasn’t even reading the paper, just looking at the bottom.

“What is it? Somethin’ wrong?”

Finally, he broke the silence. “Guys, it’s signed by Princess Celestia.”

Suddenly, the entire prison cafeteria went completely silent.

“Ok- I’m reading it now-

Dear Mr. Gar Herb

It is with my honor to announce you have been acquitted of all crimes, if you follow my demands, of course. I believe you’ve had an intimate relationship with one of The Crystal Empire’s engineers, Rusty Gear. This news may come as a shock, but ever since your lock-up for her crimes, she has gone ‘off the rails,’ to put it lightly.

She has the brains, and has developed super-weapons for The Crystal Empire, likes which we have never seen. I was able to briefly talk to her while she was in our captivity, and I do believe you were the pony keeping her tied to the ground, so to speak.

I humbly invite you to the Canterlot guard, for a discussion on how to ‘deal’ with Rusty Gear in the most non-violent way possible. I have already sent guards to escort you. Although I believe you to be no danger, its still within our best interest to keep you safe.

Signed, Princess Celestia.” He let go of the note with his magic, fluttering to the table below him. That was it. He had been acquitted of all crimes. He was a free stallion. The cafeteria suddenly erupted into celebration, chanting something about herb ‘going home’

Two tough stallions, wearing the usual Canterlot gold walked through secured doors at one end of the hall. Herb used his hoof to point to himself, mouthing the word ‘me?’ The two stallions only nodded their head.

[Ponyville, 5/14/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

The cart had been destroyed. Pieces of it laid across the ground. The group was currently at Sweet Apple Acres, peering over my shoulders. I knew they were waiting for me to do something smart, which I was, but how was I supposed to start? Well, for one, this prototype was only temporary until I found something better, two, start with the wheels.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders had provided me with all the tools I needed, including saws, hammer, nails, chicken wire, soft fabric, and whatever else I wrote on that list. They even got themselves ice cream from Sugar cube corner. I hear they’re really good. I should try it sometime. But not now. Now is the time for independence, and progress.

I bolted together the two wheels with a sort of rear axle. The construction was eerily similar to something else I’ve built before. But never mind that. From there, I constructed a sort of trainer-wheels behind the main construction, to stop it from falling over. From there, two beams went up with a piece of fabric inbetween to hold myself. The Crusaders even picked up some socks, which my legs would firmly slot into.

All of this work took about two minutes, which wasn’t a lot for me. But the crusaders just looked on with awe.

“H- Wha- I-” The orange pegasus named Scootaloo stuttered.

“What my friend here means to say is-” Sweetie belle tried talking, but was rudely interrupted.

“How the HAY do you do that so fast?” I turned backwards to look at the three, all of them with their mouths wide open.

“It’s my special talent. I’ve always worked like this.” I gloated.

“No fair!” Said Scootaloo. “I want a special talent like that!”

“Well, you just gotta keep trying, I guess.”

“But how did you get yours?”

“Umm. That’s not a story I’ve ever told. Especially because I can’t remember.”

“WHAT?” They all three said in unison.

“How could ya forget sumn’ that important?”

“It’s um- Princess Celestia said I might suffer from childhood tramua.”

“OH.” The three said in unison again.

“Why?” Questioned Sweetiebelle.

“Princess Celestia thinks because I lost my parents at such a young age, I didn’t turn out right mentally. Turns out, theres a lot more blank-spots in my memory than I thought.”

“You never had any parents?”

“Nope.”

“Sounds all too familiar.” Scootaloo said, which got everypony to turn and look towards her. “Whaat? I read a lot of sad books.”

“Alright, enough chit-chat, help me put this thing on.”

[Canterlot, 4/14/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

The train had come to a hault. Everypony less important walked out. Herb could only watch as he was treated like royalty, something much, much different than what he’d just experienced for the last year. Once the coast was clear, the guards, shoulder to shoulder, let him out of the plush train-car and into a side-exit, where nopony else was. There, through a few windy tunnels and dank alleyways, Herb and the guards arrived at the front-gates of the ginormous castle.

“Audience with Princess Celestia?”

“Apparently so.”

“Right this way, sire.” The fancy pony said. He was an off-white with a gray, slick mane and stubby mustache above his mouth. The guards left his side as he followed the suited pony.

Herb had never been in something this large before. The halls were large enough to comfortably accommodate an Ursa-minor. It was insane.

Of course, after a few stair-cases and humble bows to people he ‘thinks’ are important, they eventually came to a set of large doors. With one hoof, the servant knocked twice, paused, then once, and entered the chamber.

“Princess Celestia, may I introduce you to Mr. Gar Herb, of Manehattan.” The pony said, bowing and walking away as Herb stepped up. A slight silence fell over the room as he stared at the Alicorn. It was getting awkward.

“Do I bow, or-” He started. The Alicorn laughed slightly.

“That wouldn’t be necessary. Besides, you are more important than my regular audiences.” She said. Her voice, although powerful, soothed Herb slightly as he herd her speak.

“I saw the letter. I hope my marefriend isn’t causing too much trouble?”

“Mr. Herb, I would like you to tell me what you know about Rusty.”

“Oh- umm. Well, I wouldn’t say this unless it was this important, but…” He hesitated slightly. Was he really going to throw his marefriend under the bus like this? But after all, it was for her own good. Alright fine, he would tell her. “Rusty has… problems.”

The Alicorn giggled slightly. “Oh, you tell me. She had quite the display of power the other day.” Herb decided not to question what that had meant, and continued on.

“She- has anger issues. Pleasedon’tlaugh. I was always scared what she would do if I wasn’t there with her. I think some ponies just need to show her a little kindness, and she will repay it in tenfold. I was the only pony keeping her grounded, I think.”

“That was my suspicion, too.” Celestia spoke. “When we had her captured, I showed her a snippet of life, and she warmed up. It was almost as if-”

“She became a totally different person.”

“Correct. I assumed childhood trauma after she informed me she’d been homeless her whole life.”

“Me too. I do worry about her, and it seems my worrying might not be totally unjustified.” He said. Celestia nodded. Once again, there was a silence filling the void. For a moment, the two just stared past each other, unsure of what to say. Eventually, the Alicorn cleared her throat.

“Of course, I do need you for something.”

“Oh?”

“We plan on attacking The Crystal Empire without any casualties.”

“Double Oh?”

“In around a thousand years, the Elements of Harmony will rise to their full strength. I’ve already sent Luna to be dealt with by them. I’m hoping I’ll do the same to The Empire.”

“So… send them forward a thousand years?”

“Yes. It’s barbaric, and sounds… not like the best plan. But you have to understand, I will still be alive by then. It’s almost like procrastination. By the time The Crystal Empire comes back, not only will the general populous be more ready to deal with them, but The Elements of Harmony will be by my side, ready to take them on.”

“What about Rusty?”

“That’s where you come in. I’ve already told her to escape by the date I decided, but I feel like she will be hesitant. If she sees you, she will absolutely come running.”

“And what about the things she’s already done?”

“Acquitted. After all, what happens in The Crystal Empire stays in The Crystal Empire.” She giggled.

“But what if she doesn't make it? What if she is sent forward a thousand years?” Celestia had to think for a moment.

“We will cross that bridge when we get there.”

[Ponyville, 5/14/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

I had been somewhat securely fitted into the device. The fabric let my legs dangle above the ground. The wheels would now do the walking.

“So- how do I look?” I asked the three fillies in front of me. Sweetie belle was the first to respond.

“Awesome!”

“Vintage.”

“Yah had to use ‘our’ cart?” We all started laughing to each other. Of course, it wasn’t done just yet. I still had the issue of my other hoof. I could barely hobble across the ground by myself, but if I wanted to pickup something, it was impossible without face-planting the ground. I needed a piece of metal, like a peg-leg to support myself. Getting the resources would be a thousand times easier, now that I could manually walk place-to-place.

I had also installed wooden saddle-bag like structures on-top of either side, creating a nice area to store amenities, like bits.

“Well, I’ll see you guys around! Thanks for the help!”

“But we haven’t got our Cutie Marks yet!”

“Tough luck!” I said, walking away. No, rolling away. This was it. I could go anywhere I wanted. The sense of freedom was absolutely breath-taking. What an experience. I can’t believe I used to be able to walk whenever I wanted, taking it for granted whenever I wanted. Now, after all this time, I was finally walking again. This machine was only a prototype. I had Rarity design a proper one for me. For all I know, she is the only one who knows what I’m doing. Rainbow Dash and Applejack both had an idea, but both were probably still completely blind.

I know what to do. If I want to be as close to whole as I can get, I need a robotic leg. Nothing too insanely fancy, just something that would move when I did. It didn’t need to move via neurological inputs or anything, just move when the cart moved forward. I could even use my other hoof to pick things up. That would be great.

I really really want to show ponies. They would absolutely love it. Finally, independence from shame and embarrassment.

I closed my eyes for a moment, soaking up the sky. It was such a methodical feeling, having the sun shining on my face. When was the last time I did this? I felt better.

*THUMP*

I fell over, didn’t I?

I totally just fell over. When did I close my eyes? I opened them again, to realize I was tilted on my side like a turtle. The sky had darkened quite a bit. Man, I was tired. Not sleeping might do that to a pony. But I can’t fall asleep now, I had come this far.

Silently struggling, I stood myself back up with shifts of my spine. I could feel it in my nuzzle, sleep trying to inch its way back into my system. Not right now. Not forever. I just had to keep going.

09 - Dinner with Gods

[Ponyville, 5/14/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

It was getting dark. I had shaken off the feeling of overwhelming tiredness as I walked, rolled, and hobbled over to the Library. The first pony I’d show would be Twilight. She would be happy.

I approached the door. Crap, I can’t knock. How I wish I was born a unicorn. Screw it, I’ll just use my head.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

“We’re closed for tonight, thank you!”

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

“I said we’re closed!”

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

“For sweet Celestia- WHAT.” She threw open the door with her magic, revealing myself to her. I stood there, slightly dazed and confused from the lack of sleep and the head-pounding. She immediately took a step back, and studied my wagon closely. “Oh my god! Rusty!” She looked positively impressed. “This is awesome! Come in!”

“I was getting a bit of a headache out there, thanks.” I hobbled in, the wheels dragging behind me. “Do you like it?”

“Of course I do! You did all this? Is that why you dropped by Rarity’s?”

“Yeah! I had to go over the design.”

“Design?”

“Of course. This is a prototype to help me with the final version.” I looked at Twilight. I saw a friend in her. She looked happy to see me. When was the last time anypony was happy to see me? “You wouldn’t mind if I spent the night here still?”

“Rusty, of course I don’t mind! Just because you can walk again doesn't mean I’m going to kick you out! Silly.” She used her hoof to give me a shove. We laughed for a moment. “Wait. How are you going to go up the stairs?”

“Trial and error. The final version has grippier wheels.”

“But of course! If you need any help with anything, just ask. Also, Spike is cooking dinner. You still look… thin. You should eat.”

“I would love to, Twi.” That was the first time I had used her nickname. Would she accept it?

“Then follow me!” She hadn’t even given it a second thought.

[The Crystal Empire, 4/22/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

“No, I don’t want to eat!” I said, shoving the servant away. “Go tell whoever made that food to shove it up their anus!” I slammed the door. For the past few days, my mind was going a million miles a minute. I had tried working on something to get my mind off of it. Pegasus wings for non-pegasus. Of course it didn’t work, don’t bother asking. Unicorns and Earth-ponies are too heavy. Of course they are. Pegasus have lighter bones to allow them to fly, hence why they are so much more injury proned. Earth-ponies have the opposite, heavy bones. I was of course an earth-pony, so I was much worse off. I could get a Unicorn to try it on, but I don’t feel like talking to anypony.

Maybe I was too heavy. Could that be it? Maybe I’m just fat. I stare at my reflection through the window. Maybe I should starve myself? Then I’ll feel better. Great. For the next few months, I will refuse to eat unless I’m dying.

Buck it, I’m hungry now. I’ll eat something. Why did that stupid servant leave me? I want my food, dammit!

Was King Sombra somepony to trust? He seemed trustworthy. He was willing to go to war for my return. Was that because he wanted me? Or because I’m a pawn in his silly game. Before, I wanted to watch heads roll. Now?

I was confused. I slinked down onto a sofa I had moved out of the way. Dammit, why am I so confused? Celestia had shown me so much respect I never knew a pony could take. I want more of it. I want more.

There was always the issue of Herb. She promised me Herb. I would go back just for herb. But I know she’s lying. She only wants me to stay so I can develop weapons. Even though they say Equestria doesn't harm unless absolutely necessary, I don’t believe them. They had been so willing to fire upon my machines. My beautiful, baby machines. I’m hungry still. Where the buck is my food? Oh, right. I forgot to call them. Not my fault!

“I’m sorry chef, but she doesn’t want to eat right now. She actually told me to tell you that-” Before she could finish the thought, the radio on the wall crackled back to life.

“I want my BUCKING food! Get your ass back up here!”

“Oop- never mind then.”

Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to leave that day. When did she say? Sometime around three? I could make up an excuse. As long as I was confident they weren’t following. Celestia seemed pretty urgent in telling me to leave that day. What was up with that?

I just want to sleep. No wait! I want to eat. I keep forgetting. Wait. If I keep forgetting to eat, does that mean I’m even hungry?

“Your food, mada-”

“I don’t WaNT fOoD RIGHT NOW!”

[Canterlot, 4/22/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

The immense dining here was nothing to turn a nose up at. For the past week, he’d been dining with Celestia. She seemed more than happy to have company. It was like she wanted nothing more in life than to freely talk about her day doings.

She was in the middle of complaining of nobles. He was listening of course, but still had a twinge of worry. What was Rusty currently doing? Suddenly, the topic changed to something he really, really wanted to hear.

“The Wizards have been finalizing the spell we’ll use on The Empire.”

“What does that entail?” He had been picking up on way the Royals had been speaking, trying his hardest to not look or sound like a common pony. Maybe after all this blew over, they might be offered a place to live.

“Well, the amount of magic it takes to do something so… drastic is insane. We have to perfectly time the spell, hence why the date is so specific. 3:30 is the time we have decided to throw the spell. Any sooner, and longer, it might not work.”

“Very interesting. You mentioned Wizards… aren’t those just Unicorns?” He asked. Celestia laughed for a moment before regaining her composure.

“I can see why you’d think that. No, Wizards are ponies who specialize in advance magic. Things with runes, spell books, things like that.”

“Interesting. What kind of spells?”

“Well, besides sending an entire city a thousand years into the future… how would you like to be a mare for a day?” Celestia said with a raised eyebrow. Herb started choking on the piece of lettuce he was eating, gagging it up. Celestia started balling laughing as she watched the poor pony. Eventually he hacked it up.

“Y-you can do that?”

“Of course.” They sat in silence for a few moments.

“When?” They both started laughing again, this time without Herb choking to death. Celestia missed this kind of intimacy with her sister. This was partly why Herb was able to stay here for so long. He liked listening. Celestia could feel his soul, it was clean. Pure and incorruptible. If the Elements hadn’t already chosen ponies in the future, he might even be one.

10 - Therapy with Luna

[Canterlot, 5/14/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

Dear Princess Luna

I understand you must be busy, and no, this isn’t a friendship report. Although this is about a friend. Her name is Rusty Gear. She has been having night terrors recently and cannot fall asleep. I am worried about her. By the time this reaches you, she might already be asleep via sleeping spell. I would like for you to... check on her. Friend helping friend.

This situation is slightly unique, though. She (might) have childhood trauma, and she was an engineer for King Sombra. Ask Princess Celestia, she would know. I fear the things she has seen or done, but trust me, just like Discord, she has been reformed.

~~Your faithful student,~~ ← sorry

Signed, Twilight Sparkle.

Ontop of a hill, just outside of Ponyville, she had been searching. Reaching out with her magic, she crept below the floorboards of sleeping ponies, looking for night terrors. She had already calmed a multitude of dreams- but she was looking for something special tonight. Twilight Sparkle, a student of her sister, had been concerned about her friend. She had owed Twilight for all the help she had received.

So, still sitting on the hill, pondering the minds of ponies, she was looking for something intense. Certain dreams had different auras to them. Some dreams were sweet, some dreams lustful. Some terror. But, if Twilight was correct in her assumption of ‘trauma,’ She was looking for a special type of aura. Something only produced by the deepest, darkest fears. A nightmare produced by memories of days gone by.

Suddenly, the dream radiated. She could feel it through her magic. The signature. It seemed to be a memory-dream. A suppressed memory turned into a haunting nightmare. Usually only fillies and colts have these signatures. But sometimes ponies involved in horrible accidents, gone to war, or simple witnesses can radiate the same energy. Like a form of PTSD.

Luna reached out. The aura coming from the Golden Oaks Library. She wrapped her magic around the aura. It was powerful, trying to fight back. But the struggles were no match for her. Slowly, she pierced the dream, materializing inside the world.

While crossing the conscious boundary, she had to keep reminding herself. Remember, Twilight said she was reformed. What happened was in the past.

Her hooves planted firmly into the gravel roads. She stood on the outskirts of The Crystal Empire… yet it was different than she remembered. The once blue skies were replaced with a pitiful gray. The shining blue castle was nothing more than black bricks. The area erupted a feeling of depression in her soul. This had to be before Twilight had used the Crystal Heart. This was when King Sombra was ruling.

The entire area seemed very militaristic, something The Crystal Empire was good at. The half-dome houses reminded her of compact housing. That, and Military Bunkers for incoming missiles. This was a memory, not something produced by her mind. Whatever they were there for, they existed at one point.

She heard hooves around the corner. Quickly, Luna disguised herself as a dark-blue unicorn stallion with the traditional silver King Sombra armor. She slinked behind an alley between two large bunkers, and watched two more earth-pony stallions march by.

“So- Heard there was gonna be a demo today?”

“Yeah. I’m starting to get depressed watching ponies-”

“Shush! You don’t know who could be listening. Sadness is weakness.”And without another word, the kept trotting. Luna silently stepped around the corner after making sure the cost was clear, and started following the two stallions, slightly changing her appearance to a more diluted dark blue to match the guards in front of her.

The small winding paths of the bunkers soon opened into a small court-yard. The grass had long since died, and due to the temperature, Luna wouldn’t be surprised if it was closer to Spring than Hearths-warming. Large chain-link fences enclosed the small area, with only a few entrances leading to more endlessly winding paths.

A gray brick wall was positioned in the center of the field, away from a line of guards, all wearing the silver uniform who were positioned twenty to twenty-five feet away. However, one pony stood out against the others. Unlike the wall of Stallions, it was a Mare. Her tan coat and ginger mane radiated a warming attitude, but the face she wore was anything but sane. Her ghastly smile unnerved Luna slightly, but far from terrify.

“There you two are! We’d been waiting for you. Now, come line up before I have you discharged, you bucking-” She stopped. Her high feminine voice was noticeably tuned down, probably on purpose to make herself more intimidating. The reason why she stopped was soon identified by Luna. “And whose this?” She said, pointing a hoof at Luna. Quickly, Luna made up a name.

“My name? Uhm-”

“That doesn’t matter.” She dismissively waves, her blue eyes still piercing her soul. “What matters is that you are here. Wanted to watch, you sick, sick stallion?” She said. Luna had temporarily forgotten she was disguised as a stallion. “Be my guest! You’ll come useful in a moment. Stay separated from the others, I can’t go about loosing you.” She said, winking at Luna.

While she was talking, Luna observed her surroundings. Which one of these ponies was the one causing the nightmare? Who was Rusty Gear? For some reason, none of the stallions radiated energy. Actually, they were all products of the memory.

“Bring him in!” She yelled, suddenly startling the Princess. From one of the entrances, an earth-pony with an off-white coat walked forward, flanked by two guards. He was looking down at the ground, absolutely terrified, dropping tears. Maybe this was Rusty Gear? But it was a stallion. Maybe he could identify… No. He didn’t radiate any energy. Once again, another product of the memory.

“Gentle colts, meet Mr. Grub!” She said, waving her hoof as the fatigued and starving pony walked towards the wall, being directed by the two guards. “Mr. Grub, care to explain why you’re here?”

Nothing but silence filled the dreadfully dull air as the pony kept his eyes towards the ground.

“No? Meh, death wishes and all. I guess it’s your right to keep silent.” She said, turning away and facing the line of stallions once more. “Mr. Grub here has been caught stealing bread- I know, hold your breath- He claimed he did it for his family. After his family… ‘disappeared,’ he willingly submitted himself for execution.”

Once again, Luna had to remind herself that what happened in this memory had already happened in real life. Time had moved forwards without him.

“Luckily, I have the urge to test a new long-barrel design I’ve been working on. There's always a chance something will misfire, so I’ll have somepony else do it.” The tan pony said. Luna was still searching for an energy signature. Whoever was holding this dream, there was a severe case of dissociation, which makes sense. They don’t want to relive horrible memories. But Luna had still never seen something so severe before.

“Which is why I have you out.” She turned to face Luna. “Since you wanted to watch, you get to participate. Any objections?” Luna merely stood stone-faced, looking at the pony. “Cold. I like it.” She said, licking her lips seductively. Luna had to fight against shivering down her spine.

“Alright- come stand here. You have to tuck this under your arm-pit, like this. Crank your hoof back to grab the trigger. Okay.” She explained, showing her how to use the long bronze weapon. “This is where the gunpowder goes, here is the bullet. Yes, we’re using projectiles. Magic is too unreliable. I don’t mean to offend you, mister horn.”

Suddenly, Luna caught it. The slightest whiff in the air. For a moment, she felt the energy radiate off her horn. Rusty had to be close.

“Alright- now you just-”

click

tick

“There! Should be ready to fire.” She said, stepping back. Luna had to gauge more information. Wherever this pony was, she needed her help. She looked at the rifle, accidentally making a face. There it was again. The magic scent. She higher she raised the rifle, the stronger the scent became. Where was it coming from? It was too faint to gauge the direction.

The poor off-white earth pony was in her sights. The long sleek barrel doing nothing but radiating pure evil. The pony looked shocked, his face contorted into nothing but pure sadness and fear. His coat was stained under where he was crying. Even Discord wasn’t this evil. Maybe Mr. Grub was Rusty? Who else?

“Are you… gonna fire?” The scent once again gained in strength. She could feel what it was made from. Regret. She could feel regret. Why would Mr. Grub feel regret? It couldn’t be him.

Wait.

Luna slowly turned her heat to face the tan mare. She had never gotten a name. Her eyes darted towards the Cutie mark on her flank. A pair of Rusty Gears. This mare was the one currently dreaming.

“Hello, Huston to Unicorn, anypony in there?” No. This couldn’t be the mare dreaming. She seemed so evil. But the letter did mention she was an engineer. And she was testing a new rifle.

“Listen pal, if you don’t bucking fire that weapon already, I’ll have your sorry ass on the wall instead.” The scent of Regret grew even stronger. It had to be coming from her. She was sorry. “Just fire the damn weapon!” Now, time for step two. Calming the nightmare. Luna dropped the weapon, and turned to look at the fuming pony. If Twilight trusted her, so can she.

“I have only one question.” The pony looked infuriated. She was standing on the tips of her hooves to look into her eyes.

“And what would that be, you absolute failure of a guard?” Luna waited, pausing for the appropriate amount of time, glaring down at the little pony.

“Are you okay?”

...

She could see the mind working of the pony. She dropped back onto her hooves. For a moment, she could swear she became thinner, more ghastly. But it hadn’t worked. She was merley thrown off her grind for a moment. She regained her composure a second later.

“Of course I am! Who do you think you are?” She screamed, dropping the deep voice and returning to her natural higher-pitched tone.

“No, Rusty. Are you okay?” Once again, the pony noticeably looked thinner, and older. Come on. She was so close. Luna had experience dealing with trauma like this, and could tell the poor pony was almost breaking.

“W-who are you?” She said, this time retaining the lost weight. She did look sick. Luna wondered for a moment if this was her physical appearance, or only her true mental state.

“It’s me. Princess Luna-” She dropped the disguise. “-Guardian of the night. I’ve come here to rescue you from this nightmare.”

Bingo. She had cracked her. But something less than predictable happened.

The world fell away, as expected, but instead of being left with Rusty, she was changing. For a moment, she let out a screech. Something of mere pain. Then, she collapsed on the invisible ground. In a matter of moments, she looked 30-40 pounds lighter. She had also lost her right-hoof, and her back legs atrophied.

If Luna was not used to these sights, she might have vomited at the sudden change. The pony on the ground was clasping her ears closed with her only remaining hoof. This was more than mental state, this had to be her physical appearance. Or, at least what Rusty thought herself looked like.

Luna approached the pony, shivering on the ground. Was she a monster? She looked like a small filly, cowering form the overhead beast. With one motion, Luna picked up the pony, cradling her life a filly. She sat down with her, using her wings as a blanket. The pony was crying.

They must have sat there half the night. Luna had broken other memory-dreams before, but this one was violent. She must have truly regretted her actions for something so blatantly evil. Eventually, the crying calmed down, and devolved into slight sniffling of the nose.

“Better?” Luna asked the pony.

“Better.” She responded. For a pony who was in her face a moment ago, she turned immediately docile, trying to avoid eye-contact as much as possible.

“Tell me- do you regret your actions?” Luna asked in a firm, yet soothing voice, something she had learned over many, many years.

The earth-pony nodded her head, still avoiding eye-contact. This was a broken pony. Twilight was right. This entire scenario had childhood trauma written all over it. She might’ve been slightly psychotic- but she was alone then. Now, she had friends to help her through it. Luna meekly smiled at the pony.

“I heard you have trouble falling asleep. Is this why?” Luna asked in the same voice. The earth-pony mumbled something incoherent. “Come again?”

“Y-yes.” She said.

“Mmm. Do you have parents?”

“No.”

“Siblings?”

“N-no.”

“Any living family.”

“N-not that i-i’m aware of.” The tears started flowing through her eyes again. But Luna had to keep pressing.

“Where did you grow up, then?” Suddenly, at the end of her sentence, the ground shifted yet again. She had suddenly been displaced. The area was all-too familiar, though. Obviously, they were on the streets of Manehattan. The brick roads screamed industrial, and the glowing orange buildings loomed overhead. However, the two ponies weren’t looking towards the pretty lights or the large buildings. They were pointed directly into an alley. Luna could feel herself vanish from peering eyes. This was a different type of dream-memory. Not something intractable. And it was old.

From inside the alley, a small filly popped her head out. Obviously, it was Rusty. She was looking side-to-side, shivering. Although Luna couldn’t feel it, the temperature had to be cold.

Quickly, the little filly descend back into the alley, grabbing a newspaper from a nearby trashcan. Perhaps as a blanket?

Luna looked back down at the modern Rusty, only to realize she was even lighter than before. This time, she had devolved not into a broken mare, but rather looked the same as the Filly she had just seen. She was short and stubby, not out of place for a Filly, and she had regrown her right arm. Luna took pity on the soul. Although royalty had worked for a long time in order to reduce poverty and homelessness, it was still a problem in the big cities.

“This is where you grew up?” Luna asked.

“Mhm.” Even her voice sounded younger. This mare had gone without a childhood her entire life. Maybe this experience was somewhat relieving for the filly, being cradled by a mother-figure. “Although, everything is kinda blurry.”

“Blurry? How?”

“Like, I forget a lot of things.” She said. “I don’t even remember how I got this.” She pointed to her flank. That was not a good sign. If she couldn’t remember her Cutie mark, then she must be severely mentally damaged.

“You don’t remember your Cutie mark?” Luna asked. The ground tried shifting for a moment, going into a white haze. Like she was trying to land on a specific memory, but just couldn’t realize it. The ground shifted back into the alleys of Manehattan.

“Nope.” She said.

“Well, from this trip I can deduce a few things.”

“What would that be?”

“You need to see a therapist.”

“Oh.”

“That, and listen to me.” Luna loosened her grip on the filly, looking into her blue eyes. “Don’t ever be afraid to fall asleep again. I can promise you, I will always be there to protect you. You need my help, and a friend of Twilight is a friend of mine. Got it?”

The filly nodded.

“Good. Now, let’s set you up a slightly happier dream, alright?”

11 - Bubble and Panic Attacks

[Canterlot, 5/05/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

The gramophone was blasting music as Herb sat on the comfy plush bed. A slow methodical tune encompassed his soul as he tried to soothe his nerves. The date had been approaching rapidly. Every time Herb glanced at the calendar on the wall, the higher and higher the anxiety built. Now, the attack was a mere week away. The group was supposed to leave today- possibly the last day of his life.

Deep down, he knew Celestia would never, ever let anything happen to Herb. But there was always a chance. There was always a voice clawing out of the depths of his brain, saying what if?

Knock knock

The time had come.

Everything he had been working towards was at the apex of his ascent. Slowly, Herb lifted himself off of the bed, and clicked the record player off. He took another deep breath, and walked towards the closed bedroom door. Celestia had been nice enough to lend him a room within the castle- but that didn’t matter now. What mattered was the oncoming storm.

Herb opened the door to be greeted with two guards, shining in their golden armor. Suddenly, his legs felt like jelly, almost refusing to move. Herb only nodded at the two guards, and they nodded back, trotting away as if to say follow us.

With enough mental determination, Herb moved one hoof in front of the other, forcing himself to walk forwards. His world became a blurry mess as he followed behind the two stallions- he felt like he’d grown an extra two feet, head in the clouds, floating above his own body.

There she was. Princess Celestia was conversing with the other guards, and a few wizards, probably preparing them for what was next. The carriages had been converted into long-term bunker vehicles, fitted with food, water, and other supplies to last them at least an entire month. Usually, Celestia wouldn’t come on a journey this reckless, but she decided King Sombra didn’t deserve any chance of survival.

Princess Celestia had stopped talking and looked towards Herb. Herb wore a face of drained color. Herb wore a face of concern, worry, and fear. Celestia noticed this, and merely motioned him forward with her hoof, and pointed into the cart. Herb obliged, and trotted into the enclosed tin can.

[The Crystal Empire, 5/07/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

I had devoted myself back into the small workshop. My workshop, unlike my room, was closer to the middle of the black tower, and was entirely void of any windows. Currently, hanging from the ceiling, mere inches off the ground, another bronze boiler hung, and I was currently muzzle-deep, working on an exhaust system.

Ever since my run-in with Princess Celestia, my mind had been racing. Sure, I hated the bitch, but what if she was right? What if she was totally willing to find Herb, and wipe all my (essentially) war crimes under the table? What if King Sombra was the bad guy?

Pfft, of course he was the bad guy. I had teamed up with him in the first place because he was the bad guy. But what if I didn’t want to be the bad guy anymore?

Was I feeling remorse? Regret? These feelings- something I’ve never felt before. It startled me slightly. What if I truly wanted King Sombra wiped off the planet? What if, deep down, I wanted the poor bastard dead?

“Miss Gear.”

“GAH!” I shouted, banging my head on the interior of the massive boiler. I quickly shot myself out, landing on my rump. Slowly, my eyes turned upwards to see a powerful Gray-coated stallion staring back at me. “Oh! King Sombra! What are you doing here?” This isn’t who I want to see right now.

“Dear Miss Gear. Certainly you haven’t forgotten our meeting?” Meeting? What meeting? I need to rack my brain backwards a few days. Oh. OH. That meeting. Of course.

“No- No. I hadn’t. I would never. I mean, I did, but I remember now!” I said, flashing a smile. I knew better than to mess with the big man himself. After all, I’d been shown what happens when I misbehave. Even thinking about it, I start to rub my right-hoof in phantom pain.

“Miss Gear. That doesn’t matter. What does, is why you had summoned me.” King Sombra said, lowering his eyes in a disapproving matter. Why did I summon him? Crap. Wait!

“Oh- I wanted permission for another escapade. Ya know, to test some vehicles?” I smiled meekly, knowing full well I was lying straight to his face.

“Of course. Anything for my loyal engineer. What time did you have in mind?”

“Uhm-” I took a cursory glance at the calendar. In red sharpie, I marked the date, May 12th. “The twelfth.” I said.

“Hmm. Miss Gear, that day already has weapon-testing planned.”

“Uhh- what time?”

“For the weapon-testing? 3:20.” He said. I could almost feel my heart shrink. Yet, in the bottom, there was still a glimmer of hope. Ten minutes to get to the border of The Empire. Ten minutes. Maybe it was highly impractical and illogical, but anything for a chance, right? Maybe, just maybe, I could make it.

“Oh. How about this-” I started rubbing my joints together, deep in thought. “At the end of the weapon-testing, the vehicle exploration can immediately start. Then, we have the rest of the day to drive.”

“Sounds like a plan. However, I hardly imagine you needed to meet me for this. You could have told your personal servant.”

“Oh. Right. By the way, I’ll need another one of those.”

“What happened to the first one I gave you?”

“Retired.”

“Retired?”

“Yep. I got angry.”

[Outside The Crystal Empire, 5/11/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

“One- Two- Three, Check!” The mare wizard said, using her horn and focusing on the blanket on top of us.

“This corner looks good.”

“Ehh- This one could use some more work.” One of the orange stallions said, pointing towards an area that Herb, despite being a unicorn, could not see. For him, all he was pointing at was the sky.

“If we want this invisibility spell to stay hooked, we should divert some magic into repairing that.”

“But what about this corner? It’s already too weak.”

“Do you suggest re-casting it?”

“Perhaps.”

“Fair. One cannot expect a spell to last forever.” Once again, the wizards moved, each to one corner.

“Three, Two, One, BREAK!” The area above the hastily-setup camp had erupted into a storm of blue sparks, as the previously casted invisibility spell broke.

“And- Three, Two, One, CAST!” He repeated, the sparks seemingly reforming into the blanket it once was, then vanishing into the air. Although Herb knew it was still there, he couldn’t help but worry of being spotted.

“Whew. Nice work, you guys.” They marveled at their work, looking upwards. Herb still just saw a bunch of ponies looking at the sky. They had setup camp on top of a nearby mountain, with a vantage point on The Crystal Empire. For the past few days the guards, wizards, and even Princess Celestia were debating on how to approach the Empire. There were four wizards. Each wizard would be positioned at equal spaces around the boundary of The Empire, ensuring complete coverage of the large city. Each wizard would be accompanied by two guards, both of which were pegasus, in case something went wrong, they could just fly away.

Celestia sat on the edge, overlooking the Empire. Her face wore a sad expression. Herb slowly approached her, eventually laying on his stomach besides her.

“Look at that place. It used to be so full of life.” She said. For a moment, Herb swore he saw a tear stream down her eye. “Now, nothing more than solitary confinement.”

“You’re doing all you can. Sending them into the future can guarantee them a fighting chance at escape.”

“I know, Herb, but I can’t help but think- what would happen if one Crystal pony had family outside the Empire?” Princess Celestia pondered. This was a very real concern, as separating two ponies forever would just be pointlessly cruel.

“Princess, I have family in there.” This revaluation made Celestia turn and look towards him. “Rusty isn’t just my marefriend… She is everything I have. We both grew up without parents, and while Rusty tuned out… worse… We were our family. She’s my family. And as somepony with family inside the Empire, I say do it. Send them forward.”

Princess Celestia smiled at Herb. It seemed his words had an effect on the lonesome Princess.

“Whatever happens down there… I forgive you.” Herb said. Princess Celestia diverted her eyes back towards The Empire. Whatever happens… happens.

[The Crystal Empire, 5/12/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

I glance at the clock tower. The time is currently 3:15. I have 15 minutes to get outside The Empire.I don’t know why. I don’t know why I care. I don’t know why I trust Celestia’s word so much. After all, she’s the bitch who caused all this in the first place. She doesn’t know how to run bucking kindergarten play, much less an entire country.

But I trust her. When I was in her care, I felt safe. Something I’ve not felt in years. My deep internal instinct rings out across any source of logical processing going on in my head.

I’ve been waiting for far too long for this bucking guard. At any weapon-demo, there’s always at least one that’s tardy. How has The Crystal Empire not been invaded with these dopes at the helm already?

Perhaps they didn’t care. Perhaps they thought nothing of it besides a demo. Perhaps…

Perhaps they are scared of me.

I take a look at the stallions lined against the wall. The towering, darker maned stallions. Are they really scared of me? Why would they be? I’m just some sweet little mare, absolutely defenseless. Yeah, right.

Eventually, I let out a deep breath that I didn’t know I was holding. Once again, glancing at the clock tower, the time is 3:17. Damn. I inhale again, but realize I feel something holding my chest in. Like a strap around my neck, I raise my hoof to feel it, yet there's nothing. I just extend my neck, inhaling as much oxygen as possible before I begin.

“Alright, we’re gonna start without the last guard.” I know I’m being hasty, but I cannot wait any longer. The more time I wait, the farther Herb gets. Once again, I inhale more oxygen, but the tightening sensation doesn’t go away.

The other guards look confused towards me. Did they really not expect me to continue until the last guard gets here? After all, it is tradition. But I’m on a tight schedule, dammit. I look around at the ponies in front of me. Do they look… taller than usual? And what’s with their eyes? Whatever. I can’t be bothered.

“Bring in the executionee, please.” I yell. Just like any other weapons-demo, a rundown stallion comes from one of the entrances of the park, and makes their way towards the brick wall.

But this time, it’s a mare. This stuns me for a moment. I had always assumed the trouble-makers in society were all stallions. After all, our entire army-force were stallions. Stallions were nasty brutes. But seeing a mare slowly shamble her way in front of the wall makes my chest tighten more than before.

I start to sweat slightly. Why am I sweating? I don’t know. But looking at the skinny, frail mare makes my heart stop. Not only is it a mare, but she has an orange-tinted tan coat. Very, very similar to my own. I can feel a chill run up my spine, despite my own sweating. But no matter. I need to get this demo done before 3:30. I glance at the time again, with a slightly pained expression that I hoped nopony noticed. 2:19. Oh buck.

“O-Okay,” I accidentally stutter, having a few stallions shoot a look towards me. I clear my throat, still not bringing in enough air. “Does anypony know what this is?” I trot towards a small desk, setup by myself with a large cylindrical object on it, similar to a cannon.

I didn’t realize how tired I was. When I stop at the desk, my legs start shaking. I clear my throat again, trying to get myself under control. Once again, I glance at the tower. Officially, it was 3:20. I have ten minutes. I’ve spent 5 minutes bumbling to some guards about waiting.

Suddenly, I feel my heart descent deeper into my chest. Like my ribs begin guarding it, it begins thumping harder than usual. I look back at the stallions. Again, why are they looking at me like that? Are they mad at me? What did I do? They’re eyes are showing something of fury, and I can almost see fire beaming behind the glossy surface.

Are they planning a coup? Take over The Empire? What about the mare? Will they kill an innocent? Wait- she’s not innocent. She’s here for… she’s…

“I-I’m sorry.” I stutter out, backing away from the tall stallions. The one closest to me suddenly steps out. His eyes go sharp, and I watch his lips move. What is he saying? “I’m sorry.” I repeat. Why are they suddenly so hostile? Are they trying to surround me?

Buck it, I’ve got to get out of here.

And I make a dash for the exit.

[Outside The Crystal Empire, 5/12/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

“I still don’t see her. Can’t we wait a little bit longer?” Herb questions the tall alicorn.

“I’m sorry. We have to continue the spell. She can always escape until we finalize the casting.” Princess Celestia reaches a hoof onto Herb’s shoulder, who doesn’t reply.

“Okay, I’m going to begin pre-spell preperations.” One of the wizards said. Quietly, he approached the outskirts of The Empire. He lowers his head all the way to the ground, touching snow against his horn.

“Do you think King Sombra knows were here?” Herb questions Celestia.

“If he doesn’t, he will in a few moments.” Just as Celestia finished talking, the wizard’s horn ignited a blinding white, as a monumental bubble encompassed the city. For a moment, the bubble was undefined. Blurry at the edges. But, as the other three wizards started their spell across the axis’s of the compass, the bubble suddenly gained an edge. Standing so close to the barrier, the bubble looked like one large wall.

“Now he knows we’re here.” Celestia said with a smile.

“What if he comes to attack us right now?” Herb said, taking a few steps back from fear.

“Don’t worry, the spell is designed to let common pony out, while keeping King Sombra in. He is exceptionally powerful, the spell will recognize it and push him back.”

“So why don’t we just… not send the city forward in time?”

“Do you really think King Sombra isn’t smart enough to break this barrier? We live in a glass house, currently.” Princess Celestia explained. Herb took a glance, past the barrier and into the city. He focused his eyes on a clock-tower. 3:27.

“Please hurry, Rusty.”

[The Crystal Empire, 5/12/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

I can my heartbeat through my hooves. Every time I stop, I see them. The guards are towering over me, with that same old expression of anger. Why are they trying to kill me? I think I’ve been pretty nice to them, all things considered.

The wind pushes through my mane, cooling my body temperature. I’m still sweating, however. The grip around my neck has loosened slightly, allowing me to take in the air while running, but I still know it’s temporary. I have to get to the city’s edge. I have to find him.

I come to a sliding stop in front of even more guards. Why are there so many? However, they don’t seem to see me. Rather, looking upwards. Just as luck has it, I quickly get back on my hooves and avoid them.

I can’t keep going. I have to calm down. I have to.

However, just before I stop, I spot a something.

I’m standing in the middle of the main-street. A street that goes all the way back to the castle. But, at the other end, I see them. The familiar golden chest plate tells me who they are. The familiar towering alicorn tells me who they are.

A familiar green unicorn tells me I’m almost home.

But I can’t run. My hooves are in pain, and every step hurts. I just start limping towards them. I have to see them. I have to touch Herb.

The shortness of breath comes back again. Did somepony put a collar on me? I try extending my neck, but this time it hurts. I can’t bring in any air, and I just start hobbling forward, holding my breath. I can see them. I’m so close, I can see the whites of their eyes.

Herb is motioning me to hurry. I can’t. He’s moving his lips, but just like the guards, I can’t hear him. He’s so close.

My legs finally give up, suddenly feeling cold. The muscles that contract are nothing more than freezing, as I start to see blackness encompass my soul.

[Outside The Crystal Empire, 5/12/2204, Celestia's Solo Reign]

“Rusty! Cmon, get up!” Herb’s screaming at the top of the lungs, looking at the pony, no more than ten feet away. “Rusty, please! Please get up!”

“Please, Rusty.” Celestia whispers to herself.

“Let me go in there! It’ll take ten seconds!”

“Nothing can go in! It’s a one-way mirror!” The wizard yells, horn still planted at the edge of the dome.

“Get up Rusty! Please!” Herb yells again. To his surprise, the pony stirs on the ground, and looks at him with deeply sad blue eyes.

Before he is suddenly looking at snow.

12 - Small Break

[The Crystal Empire, 4/4/3210, Two Sister's Reunion]

I can hear the familiar beeping sounds pierce my conscious. Ever since I got this job, I’ve been in and out of the hospital for various reasons. Recently, It’s been passing out and waking up with a world leader by my bed. This time was, of course, no different.

I creak an eyelid open, and look around my room. The familiar white walls surround my setting. Unlike the Canterlot hospital, there are no windows, and the white walls are just painted bricks rather than plaster. I let out a small sigh, realizing I can properly breathe again.

“Finally awake, Miss Gear?” King Sombra said, disturbing the peaceful feel of the hospital. In the room is the Gray Unicorn, and also a Nurse who wears an expression of fear, glancing between me and King Sombra. I pity the mare, having to treat me under such unideal circumstances.

“Mhm- Yes.” I say, re closing my eye. I feel a hoof suddenly push against my chest. I suddenly realize the circumstance I was currently in, as I open both eyes again, looking into the soul of the tyrannical monster.

“What were you doing so close to the border, Miss Gear?” He breathed, mere inches away from my face. He started applying more pressure against my chest, and the familiar tightness grew within me.

“M-master Sombra? She just had a panic attack… I would appreciate it-”

“Silence, parasite!” King Sombra turned towards the nurse, practically spitting at her. She takes a step backwards, and looks towards the floor in an attempt to deescalate the situation. “I said, what were you doing so close to the border?”

Now was the time to lie. I couldn’t tell him I was trying to escape. He would for sure see me to my death. “I saw Princess Celestia.” I heaved, hardly able to breathe with the hoof, still firmly planted against my chest. “I tried to stop her, but my legs stopped working.”

“Hmph.” He made a noise, and removed his hoof, plopping back onto the floor. “Nurse Grow, what did you say happened to her?”

“She- Um-”

“Speak, dimwit!” He shouted. The nurse shrunk back into the corner again.

“She had a panic attack!” The nurse half-yelled, still trying to look away from the towering figure.

“You saw our mortal enemy, and had a panic attack?” King Sombra looked towards me again. “Instead of trying to stop her, you passed out?” He said, his voice taking on a sharper edge again.

“I couldn’t help-”

“You just caused the entirety of The Empire to be invaded, you fillyfooler!” He quickly approached the bed again. “Do you have any idea how much damage you caused? You looked at Princess Celestia in the eyes, and decided NOT to stop her.”

“I didn’t decide-”

“SILENCE!” He brung his hoof down, and slapped me across the face with such force, I spit across the floor. “Because of you, Princess Luna is back! Because of you, The Elements of Harmony have hosts! Because of you, we are 1,000 years in the future!”

For the most part, I wasn’t listening. Leaning over the bed, rubbing where he hit. I was almost crying.

“You better- I- You better get your ass back in that lab of yours, and do something! Maybe, just maybe I’ll forgive you, if you can, at the bare minimum, prolong the invasion.” With that, he left the hospital room, nearly taking the door off the hinges with his magic.

Now, it was just me and the Nurse. I took a second and mulled over his words. Princess Luna, back? Elements of Harmony are just a myth, right? And… 1,000 years in the future?

“Nurse… what did he mean by ‘1,000 years into the future?” I meekly asked, looking up at the trembling nurse. She looked at me with the same fear as King Sombra. For the first time in over a decade, I lowered my voice. “I’m not like him. Just… tell me.”

“P-Princess Celestia. She cast a spell that… sent us into the future. That was the bubble over the city.”

Just like the slap, it suddenly hit me. I laid back onto the bed, and stared up into the ceiling.

“Nurse, please leave me for a moment.” I said, totally void of emotion. She obliged, and quickly walked out of the room, closing the broken door.

The words echoed inside my head. Princess Celestia offered me freedom. A chance at escape, and I fell just short. Now I know what she meant. She literally meant I would never see him again. I took her word, and dropped it on the floor.

That’s why Luna is back. I had seen her banished, and I now live when she came home. 1,000 years. 1,000 years is… countless lifespans. Nations have risen and fallen in a shorter amount of time.

If I hadn’t gotten myself into this situation… If I hadn’t managed to get a job from King Sombra…

For the first time since I was a Filly, I felt a tear go down my cheek. That’s it. I lost Herb. Life is over. All this time, I’d kept going for the hope I would meet him again. I could cuddle him again, and hear him tell me everything was going to be okay.

Nothing would be okay ever again.

I don’t care if it’s suicide, because god dammit, it is, but I’ll get my revenge.

I came to The Empire with an itch for revenge, and I’ll leave this life with that itch scratched, god dammit.

Just… how?

[Canterlot, 4/4/3210, Two Sister's Reunion]

It was a beautiful day over Canterlot. The weather-team had cleared most of the clouds, letting in the rays of sunshine after a harsh winter. Things had been looking up recently.

The doors to the huge royal throne room burst open as a slightly frazzled looking guard ran towards the throne. Princess Celestia was in the process of signing legal documents, hardly taking time to read them. She didn’t order the pony to stop, as the look on his face was nothing more than fear.

“News from northern Equestria!” The pony said, still running up to the throne. “Uh- Your highness.” He said, bowing his neck slightly before coming to a full stop. Princess Celestia looked on with concern.

“Yes?” She said, still judging the look on his face.

“I am simply to tell you that- It has returned.”

No. Not now. Why did it have to be today? But now was the time for action. Every moment counted when dealing with them. Dealing with such archaic spells was not an exact since, even with wizards trained in the arts of runic magic. There was no exact return date to The Crystal Empire. It was to only return ‘around’ 1,000 years later. Their spell had been a mere few years off. No matter. Celestia quickly turned to address the pony on her right.

“Find Princess Cadence and Shining Armor.” She directed the guard, who quickly ran to attend to his tasks. Immediately, before they were done running out of the room, she grabbed parchment and started writing to her student.

13 - Prisoners of Sombra

[The Crystal Empire, 4/4/3210, Two Sister's Reunion]

I could only pace my chamber, looking towards the glamorous chandeliers hanging in the middle of the grand room. I had to come to a simple conclusion, but I really couldn’t. It goes against everything I’ve stood for. Everything I’ve come to know. But I’ve been forced into a corner, here. I can’t kill a god,

How do I kill a god?

The answer, although not what I wanted, lies in something I’ve never obtained in all my years of living.

I need a friend.

Somepony who I can trust. Somepony who trusts me. Somepony who shares the same hatred for King Sombra that I do. Maybe ‘hatred’ is a big word. I had hatred, and look how I ended up. No- somepony who shares a similar distaste for King Sombra.

Where could I find somepony like that? Once again, the answer is something I don’t want to do, but afterall, a suicide mission causes for suicidal tenancies.

I need to find a prisoner in the dungeons.

“Ew- this place simply reeks of dirt!”

“What do you mean? This isn’t chocolate?”

“NO- Pinkie! That’s disgusting!”

“Don’t tell me you jus’ licked the ground.”

“I didn’t!”

“Oh, thank celestia-

“It was just the toilet seat.”

“HURK-”

“Quiet, everypony! I hear hoofsteps!”

The sound of trotting hooves became louder and louder, as the six prisoners fell silent. The dungy atmosphere added to the scare as they shrank away from the decaying metal bars.

The old wooden door creaked open, as the damp wooden planks struggled against the push. A shadow formed against the end of the hallway with a border-line godlike appearance. The pony walked forward, as the few looked on in awe.

The pony had an orange-tinted tan coat with a ginger mane. On her mane were a pair of silver goggles. Her Cutie Mark was two gears. Twilight could only assume her name had something do do with those.

“Hello, everypony. I am Rusty Gear.” Nailed it. “I am largely the reason why you are here, and I take that responsibility.” This lady gave off all the wrong vibes. From the way she presented herself, to the way she talked, she screamed nothing but evil. Twilight had experience with these ponies. Even a few months ago, a self-absorbed megalomaniac tried to take over Ponyville. This pony couldn’t be any different.

“I am the engineer for The Crystal Empire, and I want to kill King Sombra.” Well, this was something new. “And I want one of yours help.”

“Uhh- sorry miss, but this show goes as is. No exceptions!” Rainbow Dash said.

“Wait! Let’s hear her out.” Twilight spoke up. “You’re the engineer? Did you design this?” Twilight pointed at the collar currently around her neck.

“Yes, I did. Don’t overexert yourself, It’ll shock you.”

“I know.” Twilight said, slightly cringing at her failed escape attempts.

“Well- did you design these?” Rainbow pointed at a belt holding her wings shut.

“No. That is a leather belt.”

“LEATHER?”

“Anyway. Who will be the lucky one to come along?” The pony said, with a devious smile. The group largely sat silent. For a few moments, Twilight could almost watch the hope die inside the tan pony. “Nopony?” She said. Twilight was planning to let the silence ruminate across the room for longer, make sure her point was across. That was, until a small peep broke her concentration.

“I-I will.” Fluttershy said. Twilight gasped and looked across the cell block at her pink-maned friend.

“Fluttershy! What-”

“If it means helping my friends, I will do anything!” Her voice, louder than usual, boomed across the cell blocks. “S-Sorry. That was loud.”

“I have a plan! Listen to-”

“Hey, purple unicorn. She wants to help, I say let her.” Rusty said, smiling as she trotted towards the cell that held Fluttershy. She clicked open the door with a pair of keys she was storing… somewhere.

“Thank you, miss gear.” Fluttershy peeped out as she stepped outside the cell.

“No problem-o. Just follow me.” And, as quickly as she arrived, they left. Not without Fluttershy giving Twilight and her friends one last look, then disappearing behind the large wooden door.

The halls were big and scary. Fluttershy felt small compared to the portraits and statues of large ponies, all doing something to crush smaller ponies. She also felt the slightest bit claustrophobic. Pegasus weren’t meant to have their wings clamped shut like this, and the fear was building in her as she followed the tan pony.

“U-um. Excuse me, miss. I was wondering if you could- um. Unclip my wings? Please?” Fluttershy squeaked out. The pony in front stopped walking and turned to face her, looking down at her ever-so-slightly.

“Sorry, but they need to be cut off.” With this, Fluttershy made an ‘eep’ and shrunk down, practically laying on the floor. “I mean- the belt. The belt needs to be cut off.”

“O-oh.” She said, slowly raising herself back up.

“I’ll do it, as long as you promise not to fly away.” She said, rolling her head back forwards.

“I would never. My friends are in danger, I have to help them.”

“The only danger they are in is starving. The entire guard is getting ready for an attack, hence why these halls are so empty.”

“S-S-Starving?”

“I was joking. My plan shouldn’t take longer than today. They won’t be down there long.”

“If you don’t mind me asking- what is your plan?”

“Uhm- Well, you see. It’s… It’s a suicide mission.”

“Well, what is it?”

“A suicide mission.”

“That doesn’t-”

“I mean, I am literally going to kill myself in setting off a bomb large enough to blow Canterlot off the mountain its standing on.” Rusty turned around to face Fluttershy, giving her a squinting look with her eye.

What happened next happened fast. As rusty turned back around, Fluttershy practically teleported directly infront of Rusty, staring her down and forcing her to walk backwards.

“You- You are going to kill yourself?” Her nose bumped Rusty’s for a moment, taking that as a que to back up.

“Uhm- Yeah.”

“Suicide is NEVER the answer!”

“It is when your trying to kill a literal god!” Now it was Rusty’s turn to push her back. The tables flipped, and Rusty started pushing Fluttershy backwards. “I have committed atrocities. Crimes against carbon-based life-forms. If anypony deserves death, it’s me!”

“I don’t think so! Everypony deserves a second chance, not death!” The roles were reversed again, Fluttershy making Rusty back up.

“I had a second chance! I bucked it up!”

“I don’t think so!”

“Why doesn’t King Sombra deserve a second chance? What makes me any different from him?” Suddenly, Rusty was tearing up. Fluttershy could feel her weakness, and quickly encompassed the mare in a hug.

“You are very different from him.” She said, still hugging Rusty. “Sombra was designed to be evil. Sombra is barely a pony anymore. You are different. You’re just a pawn in his game. Don’t let him get to your head.” They sat there, hugging for several moments. Then, Flutterhy broke the hug, sitting down, as did Rusty.

Fluttershy still had more questions. “Tell me what kind of things you’ve done, and I’ll judge you for who you are.” Rusty looked confused, but obliged anyway.

“I am an evil mare. I’ve seen brains blotched across walls because of me. My direct actions. Pulling the trigger. I’ve developed devices to kill ponies. I’m no better than King Sombra.”

“That’s where you’re wrong.” Fluttershy said, pointing a hoof to Rusty. “King Sombra told you to make those things. You were doing as asked. Although still wrong- you don’t deserve death.”

“Then what do I deserve?”

“Reformation. I can’t look past the fact you are a villain. But I’ve met many villains in my days. None of them were as kind as you are.”

“You think I’m kind?”

“Of course, sweetie.” Fluttershy said, putting a hoof on her shoulder. She wasn’t sure how she’d react to being called ‘sweetie,’ but she didn’t even flinch. Fluttershy could obviously see something else going on below the surface. “Me and my friends are all about friend-ship. Understanding each-other. We have shown villians nothing more than a reaching hoof, and they always graciosuly accept it. The question is- will you accept the hoof?” Fluttershy took her hoof off her shoulder, and presented it like a hoofshake.

For a moment, there was hesitation. For a moment, she didn’t take the hoof. For a moment, she meerly stared at the thing.

Instead of taking it, Rusty dodged the hoof, stood up, and went straight for the hug.

“I’m baaack!”

“What did you do with Fluttershy?” Rainbow dash shot up from her laying position, ready for a fight.

“N-nothing. I’m here.”

“Then- why are you back?” Applejack asked.

“Oooh! Is it because you already brainwashed her? You want to convert us all to your evil slaves?” Pinkie said, surprisingly bouncing up and down, despite her dark thought process.

“What- No?”

“Then why are you back?” Twilight questioned, moving towards the bars.

“Well- I,” Rusty was interrupted by the only mare she thought wouldn’t.

“Can I answer this?” Fluttershy asked in a low, nonthreatening voice.

“Uh. Sure.”

“Everypony, Rusty doesn’t want to be the bad-guy anymore.”

“Wow. That was fast.”

“She is a kind, but broken pony.”

“Thanks for that.” Rusty said.

“It’s true. Rusty doesn’t want to do this anymore, and want’s nothing more than our help. I extended my hoof, and she took it.” Fluttershy looked at the cells. “If you don’t believe me, just know she wanted to die a few minutes ago. I took her out of that place, and you should do the same.”

“Now- I didn’t say I wanted to die-”

“Fluttershy. You are the kindest, bravest soul I know.” Twilight suddenly spoke up. “Rusty, would you like to be our friend?”

Fluttershy could see on her face. Something she might’ve never been offered. She took a step back, her iris’s shrinking into her skull, mouth slightly agape. “O-oh. Have you never had friends before?” She shook her head. Fluttershy swears she could hear something rattling in there. “Well then, let us be your first.”

“Heh. Yeah. It would be great if you could let us out, though.” Rainbow Dash said.

“Oh! Of course. Sorry.” She said, lowering her head and walking towards the cells with a pair of keys.

One by one, she unlocked the cells. Rainbow immediately tackled Rusty, not in anger or haste, but as a friend, ruffling her hair. Next, Twilight merely offered a smile. Pinkie had a similar reaction to Rainbow, but instead of ruffling hair, she just started talking about ‘friendship parties’ or something. Applejack also offered a nod.

Rusty came to look at the final cell, with a white unicorn laying on the floor.

“Uhh- is she okay?” Rusty asked, looking at Twilight.

“She’s fine. That’s Rarity. She’s in a fashion-deprived coma.”

“Wh- But is she okay?”

“Yeah. We just need to dangle some gems in front of her for a moment.”

“DID SOMEPONY SAY GEMS?”

“There she is.”

“Welcome, to my lair!” Rusty said, pushing open the large bronze doors with her hooves. The workshop was marvelous. Bronze and silver-steel shone, making dancing patterns across the ground. The few lights in the workshop only operated in the background, giving off a nice orange hue. It was very homely. Strung across the ground were parts of work-in-progress machines, and hanging off the ceiling were half-torn apart machines and weapons.

“What’s this?” Rainbow Dash asked, sticking out a hoof.

“DON’T TOUCH THAT!”

“Woah- why?” She quickly retracted her hoof.

“It’s very delicate.”

“But what is it?”

“It’s a machine I tried building. The idea was to give flight to Unicorns and Earth-ponies by perfectly replicating the wing structure of a pegasus, like yourself. Might I say, you have a very healthy pair of wings.”

“Thanks, sis.”

“The idea never came to fruition. Unicorns and Earth-ponies are too brutish, our bones too heavy. Pegasus have hollowed bones, making flight easier.”

“That explains why I’m in the hospital so much!”

“...did you take biology?”

“Didn’t pass it.”

“Oh.” Rusty shied away from that conversation, and walked towards Twilight, who was poking and prodding at the collar around her neck. “Here- let me get that for you.” Rusty quickly grabbed a screwdriver, and started working on the collar, unscrewing bolts in a specific sequence.

Why am I doing this? I already trust these Mares. They are probably spies sent by Celestia to hunt me down. But why haven’t they killed me yet? Maybe they want their bindings removed before my untimely death. But… Fluttershy, was it? Fluttershy treated me life a foal. And I liked it. I liked being hugged.

Does that mean I’m actually damaged? Mentally? Or am I just so starved for love I’ll take anything at this point.

“There- do you feel better now?” I asked the purple unicorn, who lit up her horn. The collar was engulfed in a blinding blaze of purple light, and it was lifted out of the way. She gave her mane a little shake, letting it fall back into place.

“Yes. Much better, thank you.” She said. Surprisingly, she didn’t murder me yet.

“Can you get my wings undone now?” Rainbow dash practically put her flank in my face. I used the screwdriver to wear the leather down, eventually snapping the thin piece of leather.

“Oooh. Can I help, please?”

“Pinkie- this equipment is mighty dangerous. I don’t think you should touch nuffin.” Applejack said, looking at her reflection in the huge boiler I was in a mere few days ago. Or a thousand years ago.

“This place is simply marvelous!” A high, eloquent voice spoke. “Just look at these designs. I must know, Rusty, who designed these master-pieces?”

“That would be me.”

“My dear, you have an eye for fashion. That much is known.”

“Let me get that collar off for you.” I trotted towards her with a screw-driver.

The pink one started talking again. “I don’t mean to burst anyponies bubble, but how are we going to deal with Sombra? So big meanie will see us coming from a mile away.”

“That’s the thing.” I said. “He expects somepony like you. He doesn’t expect me to-” I gulped between words, “-betray him.”

“So what’s the plan?” Rainbow said, now flying a few feet above the ground.

“The plan was to detonate a bomb- but seeing you guys are here now…” I looked around my workshop. I needed something explosive. It couldn’t be something that takes time to charge, or for him to see coming. It had to be a instantaneous.

“What’s this thing?” Twilight said, pointing towards my boiler.

“Aha! That’s it!” The idea came flooding to my head. “I’ll forcefully explode the boiler! He won’t know what hit him.”

“But- how do we do that?”

“I’ll have to make a few adjustments, but Twilight, I need your magic to remotely detonate it when he’s close. It’ll be as simple as turning a valve. It sure won’t be as powerful as a bomb, but it’ll destroy whatever part of his body is making contact.”

“Okay. Rusty, if we make it out of this, you can come back to pony-ville with us.”

“Pony-ville? I’ve never heard of it.”

“Oh, sorry. It’s a relatively new town, only founded about 160 years ago.”

“Oh buck. I keep forgetting I’ve been gone 1,000 years.”

14 - The Final Hours

[Ponyville, 5/15/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

The sunlight had protruded from the open window, shining onto my eyelids. The dancing light forced me awake as I looked outside the window. For a moment, I saw the familiar monotonous gray skies. A blink took that vision away.

Last night, I had a dream. A very, very strange dream. I’d been avoiding sleep ever since I was discharged from the hospital. Maybe that wasn’t the best idea. I’ve crashed before, but I’ve never crashed that hard before.

The dream started out as a nightmare at first. But instead of ending in bloodshed, waking up in a pool of my own tears, the dream manifested into… a picnic?

Yes- a picnic on a large, billowing green hill under a lush tree, looking over Ponyville. The place seemed familiar. Like I’d been near the area, but never sat on that specific hill.I remember watching the ponies doing their tasks, like busy ants of a larger colony. Oddly, it was silent melody.

There were also two ponies, both of which towered over me. The first, who I could only assume was a stallion based on it’s snout-shape, was nothing more than a blurry mess that hurt to look at. The second pony was a yellow pegasus. Although her face was still blurred, I could faintly make out her cyan eyes peering back at me. The caring eyes of a mother.

Had these two ponies been my parents? Was it a gateway to the past, or just an interpretation of my imagination? I rolled onto my back, and stared up at the ceiling. If my mother was a pegasus, why didn’t I have wings? I would’ve loved wings.

The previous night, I had positioned pillows to break my fall in case I accidentally fell out of bed during an episode. But today, with a clear mind, I purposefully fell out of bed. The pillows catching my fall. With a single hoof, I slowly inserted my dangling legs into the carriage mechanism I’d designed a day before. Although still a prototype, having the ability to walk was an incredibly liberating feeling. If I hadn’t been so foalish, I wouldn’t be in this position.

But that was neither here nor there.

Slowly, I inched my way down the troubling steps, making sure not to slip a wheel. I don’t want to end up in the hospital. Again.

The smell of pancakes infiltrated my nostrils, temporarily taking my mind off of the shuffling. Somepony was cooking, and I had to get a taste. I practically floated over to the source of the smell, descending yet another small staircase deeper into the tree.

“Up early today, Rusty?” The lavender unicorn said, not taking her eyes off of the daily newspaper. She was sitting at a table, out of the way of the main kitchen. The kitchen in question was small, with a single stove positioned against the wall, under a window. At the stove was Twilight’s favorite assistant, Spike the Dragon.

“Oh- I guess. What’s the time?” I asked, rolling my way towards the table.

“Based on the sun, I would say it’s about… nine?” She said, looking up and sticking a hoof in front of her eye, closing the other.

“Hey, Rusty. Ready for some breakfast?” The predominately male voice stated. Why was Spike the only male in this entire town? Half the hospital staff were mares, and she’d barely seen any stallions on the streets. Back in The Crystal Empire, it was about a 1:1 ratio.

“Yes please, Spike.” I said with an enthusiastic nod. Spike looked back at me for a moment, then went back to flipping pancakes. However, he stopped mid flip, and looked at me again.

“Whoa. Maybe you don’t need any pancakes.”

“Why’s that?”

“Did you gain ten pounds overnight?” The dragon asked, piercing my comfort zone. My cheeks went red, as I stared at the small dragon. To my left, I could hear Twilight spitting her drink all over the table in front of her, surely ruining her copy of the local newspaper.

“Sp-hike!” She said, clearing her airways of any residual droplets of coffee. “You don’t say that to somepony! Anypony!” She looked at him not with anger, but surprise at his sudden remark.

“Sorry. Geez, I wouldn’t have said anything if I knew it’d offend you so much.”

“Ahem- What Spike means to say is- You’re looking a lot healthier.” Twilight said, looking back at me with a forced smile. Although the comment itself was insulting, I didn’t take it that way. Spike was right. I do feel healthier.

“I don’t mind, trust me. Recovery is a long process- or whatever the doctors said.” I explained, trying to force my voice into an upbeat tone. I started slipping out of my wheel-chair, transitioning my body onto the chair across from Twilight at the table. Finally, with a thunk against the ground, I was sitting at the table.

“So… have any weird dreams last night?” Twilight said, finally putting down her paper. She cocked her head at me, while giving my an inquisitive grin.

“Huh- funny you say that-”

“Anything with Princess Luna?” She said, raising her voice a few octaves. Now that she mentioned it, I do remember conversing with Princess Luna for a few moments, before slipping into my personal picnic.

“Wait. I do remember something with- how the hay did you know that?” My face contorted into one of a flabbergasted pony.

“I may or may not have sent a letter to Princess Luna before knocking you out.” She said with a devilish grin.

“You sly dog, you.” I said, laughing as she made a face. The pancakes were placed in front of us by a Dragon who could barely reach a table. With a satisfied grin, he pranced back to the stove to pour himself noticeably larger pancakes than ours. I pretended not to notice, as Twilight smiled at the Dragon’s selfishness.

“If you don’t mind me asking, Rusty. What was the dream about?” Twilight said, before indulging on her breakfast.

“Oh. I should’ve seen this question coming. Umm-” I wanted to put a hoof on my chin, but that would only make me face-plant into the pancakes.

“Cmon, you can be honest with me.” Twilight was still in the middle of stuffing her face.

“Well, therapy is non-judgmental, right?” Twilight stopped eating for a moment, taking a cursory glance at me.

“Rusty, was it a wet-dream?”

“What? No! Of course not, Twilight. I’m not a perv.”

“Someponies can’t help it. Especially pegasi. You should see Rainbow when she gets aroused.”

“Twilight, please!” I said, the red in my cheeks returning once again. “It was nothing like that. It was about… before.”

“Oh. Bad memories?”

“Yeah- but the nightmare was interrupted by Luna.”

“Princess Luna.”

“Sorry- Princess Luna. She shifted the dream to a happy one. It was a picnic with two ponies.”

“Two ponies? Who?”

“Well, I could only assume they were the stand-ins for my real parents, who I never knew. My dad was just a blur, I can’t remember anything about him, but my mom was… a yellow pegasus. With cyan eyes. I remember that much.” With this, Twilight stopped eating again, shooting me an inquisitive look. She went back to her food, before stopping yet again, slapping a hoof to her forehead.

“What?” I asked.

“I think I- Hmm.” She said, looking towards the floor. “Rusty, do you know what naming-dreams are?”

“Nope.”

“Well, after a mare has her foal, she has dreams about what the foal should be named. Like for instance, my grand-mother saw a setting moon over a horizon, and named my mom Twilight, who then named me.”

“Your mom’s name is Twilight, too?”

“Yes. Now, I wonder about that dream of yours, whether its something similar.” She looked longingly at her half-eaten pancakes. I could tell she decided to stop eating for a moment to explain this when she looked back up at me. “Rusty, I think you have childhood trauma.”

“Well, duh. I was abandoned. That’s sure to have some lasting affects.”

“Right, but I was thinking… What if you still are, in some way, searching for a mom?”

“Like how?”

“I mean- your still looking for a mom, subconsciously. Somepony to take you under their wing. I can tell by your face, does that ring a bell?”

“Actually, it does.” I tried remembering. “Back when I was captured by Canterlot, I remember immediately swayed towards Princess Celestia after she treated me nice. Then, recently with that dream, I think I treated Princess Luna like my mom.”

“But those are princesses. Anypony whose anypony would act like that to them. Any other examples?”

“Umm. Not really, no.”

“Are you sure? Because I have an idea.”

“What do you mean?”

“I know a certain somepony who treated you like their child.”

“What? Who?”

“A certain yellow pegasus with cyan eyes.”

“Like the one in my dream?”

“Yeah. I’ll ‘introduce’ you to her later. For now, eat your food, foal. It’s getting cold.”

“But Twilight! I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“If I lift my hoof, I’ll headbutt the table.”

[The Crystal Empire, 4/4/3210, Two Sister's Reunion]

“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, Rusty.” The yellow pegasus said with a sympathetic expression.

“Of course she has to do it, she got us here in the first place!” Rainbow dash floated above the small group. For the past hour, we had been making preparations for the assassination of King Sombra. Now, that we’re actually here, I began feeling a familiar chest-tightening sensation in my lungs. What was wrong with me? I’ve never had panic attacks before, at least until the other day.

“Rainbow! I, for one, completely forgive her.” Fluttershy said, coming to my side. Surprisingly, I don’t remember the last time somepony had tried to defend me before. I’d always been on my own.

“Yeah, and if we get out of here alive-” That made my heart drop. “-then I’ll throw you a ‘congratulations, you’re not dead’ party!” Pinkie Pie bounced up and down. Although she was trying to lighten the mood, I could still feel the bones in my legs get progressively weaker.

“Okay, if we could go over the plan one more time?” Twilight said, hovering over a long piece of parchment with blueprints on the other side. Presumably, she found it on the ground and wrote an entire novel on the back.

“I don’t mean to upset you, but this’ll be the sixth time you went over the plan.” I said, somehow maintaining a non-quivering voice.

“And the fifth time wasn’t too much?” She retorted. “Anyway- Rusty, you will lure King Sombra into the workshop and position him in front of, or near, the boiler. Then, I’ll throw the shield spell, and blow up the boiler. Sound good?”

“Perfect.” I said. Although I sounded confident, my head only began to spin as the ponies continued to work. Were the walls always that shade of black? Never-mind.

“So.” I said, regaining the attention of the six other mares. “I guess it’s time?” I said. My voice came out as a long, drawn out whisper. Quieter than I intended. I only got some looks from the other mares as they tried desperately to read the expression on my face.

“Are you alright, Rusty?” The familiar voice of Fluttershy rung out across my ears. On my shoulder, I felt a hoof. The wave of euphoria made me snap back for a moment or two as I looked at Fluttershy in her cyan eyes. I’ve never felt this way towards anypony. Not even Herb.

“Y-yeah.”

“You don’t sound alright. Wanna sit down?” She said, to which I promptly planted my flank on the ground. When was the last time I ate? Must’ve been over a thousand years ago.

“Your looking green, dear.” I heard the voice of Rarity call out to me. However, my gaze was directed solely towards the ground. I wanted to tell them how bad of a pony I’ve been. I want them to understand this will be my last ‘rodeo.’ I want them to see my true colors. But as I sat there, I could only feel a sense of uncomfortableness as I couldn’t find my words.

“Do you want to say something?” Fluttershy said, once again her words washing away doubt for a moment.

“G-guys. Listen.” I finally caught my breath. I kept staring at the ground as I explained. “I’m not a good pony.”

“Don’t say that-” Rainbow dash was going to say, before I kept talking.

“I’m not. I’ve caused so, so much death. And yes, I mean death. I’ve seen ponies brains across walls.” I closed my eyes, partially to distance myself from their faces. “And I will never be pure again. I want to redeem myself. I do. But I don’t think any amount of redeeming will cleanse the acts I’ve done.” I kept waiting for a few more moments, eyes still closed.

“Is that it?” Pinkie Pie said, breaking the short-lived silence. “All of that wooziness for something we already know?”

“What?”

“Rusty.” The voice of Applejack rang out. “We’ve seen our fair share of villains in our times. Nopony has been so willing to change than you.”

“What matters is whats happening right now. So what if you’ve done a few evil deeds? I know someponies who’ve done so, so much worse.” Twilight said.

“Really?”

“Yes, really. I don’t want any of that sap from you. Now, get out there and show King Sombra whose boss!”

“O-oh. Alright. I guess.” I said, shakily breaking my shoulder from Fluttershy’s hoof. Without looking at the group, I kept walking until nearly colliding with a door. I gave one last reassuring glance towards the group, all of which looked concerned for me. Alright. This was it. I going to kill King Sombra.

The second I left the workshop, I collapsed on the floor. God dammit, I had shown them such strength. I convinced them I was able to deal with this, yet here I was, almost sobbing on the floor.

The chest tightening became much worse, and no matter how hard I tried, my legs refused to respond. I closed my eyes and listened to my own shaky breathing and rapidly increasing heartrate.

I wanted to kill the prick, I really did. But in that moment, I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

That was until I felt a hoof on my shoulder.

If was Fluttershy again. Did she have some hidden sixth sense of when mares act like fillies? That didn’t matter. What did was how overly welcoming her hoof felt on my shoulder. I could feel my chest start breathing again, and I could feel my legs suddenly regain blood flow.

“You have to do this. For me.” She said. I could almost feel energy drooping off her hoof into my own body. Maybe I could do this. “When this is all over, I want to give you a tea party, sit down together, and talk. Maybe even go to the spa. I-if that’s okay with you.” I took a sharp, shaky breath inwards, and released it as a soft laugh.

“I’ve never been to the spa before.”

“Oh. Me and Rarity go there all the time. It’s really quite nice.”

“Even after everything I’ve done? You’re willing to take me in like that?”

“Of course.” She paused for a moment, hoof still planted. “Rusty, did you ever have parents?” This question struck me as odd, and out of place. But, at the same time, it was going to eventually be asked. I just didn’t expect it so soon. Maybe when we got out of here. If we got out of here.

“No, Fluttershy. I didn’t. I grew up in a box on the side of a street.”

“Oh dear. If you could find your parents again, would you?”

“No offense, Fluttershy, but I’ve been displaced over 1,000 years into the future. Anypony over the age of two hundred that I knew is probably dead. Parents included.”

“Oh. Of course. Sorry for asking.” They sat like that for a few moments. “But- if you could go back and be with your parents again, would you?”

“I dunno. Honestly, I think I would. They might be raging snot-holes, but I would love just to… look at them.”

“If you ever want to feel comfort again, Rusty… I need you to be strong and get King Sombra down here.” Oh, right. That’s why we were doing this.

Buck it, I feel better. Mentally reinvigorated. I can do this. I have the mental capacity to do this. I’ve been training all my hundred-and-fifty-one years of living for this. This wasn’t any harder than brushing my teeth in the morning. I could feel the suspense building up, my head gaining perkiness as I stared down the empty hallway. Alright. I can do this.

“Yeah. Thanks, m-Fluttershy.” I gave her hoof a slight pat, and stood up from my fetal position.

Time to go get this sum-bitch.

Author's Note

Sorry this chapter took so long! The original plan was to post once every two days, but I just hit my very first case of writers burn out, or whats-it called? Anyhow. I took a break and made another short story on my page. Check it out. I literally wrote it in under thirty minutes.

But with chapter 14, It really sucked to get it out there. After Rusty leaves the workshop and collapses on the floor, I felt like I was really stretching it out there. Sorry if it doesn't meet your quality of writing, because it certainly doesn't reach mine. And my quality of writing is a very low bar.

I feel like describing a characters feelings is very hard to do, and I'm getting burnt out on writing in the first-person, hence why for a chapter or two, even though it was still following Rusty, I made the perspective third person.

Don't worry, I'm not cancelling this project or what-not. I'm just trying to make quality writing, and I'm not very good at it. I just like telling stories.

Okay see you in like, five days.

CANCELLED

When I was younger, I always wanted to tell my own stories.

I mean- really get into the thick of it. I had grand plans about inter-dimensional travel, a guy who had his soul split into multiple pieces, and had to collect it like he was Thanos from Infinity War. I had plans about a machine that you could fly a space-ship into, and all of this amazing stuff.

The problem is: I had no idea how to write.

The problem still is: I still have no idea how to write.

It was around this time when I was taking a ride on my four-wheeler for fun. I was feeling particularily nostalgic, so I crammed some earbuds under my helmet and began listening to old Brony music that I used to listen to ten years ago. And it really did entrance me. So much so, that I re-read a story that I had read way back when I was a child. Past Sins by Pen Stroke.

I had a crazy idea. A crazy, no good, dumb idea. And at the time, it was just a dumb fantasy dream:

What if I wrote Fanfiction?

But, at the time, I hadn't been active in the community... ever. I watched the first episode of the show before my parents ever let me use the internet, and I loved it. I thought I was a weird kid, but when I discovered Youtube, I found out I wasn't alone. There was an entire community around My Little Pony. And I was some dumb kid, reading Fanfiction like Past Sins and My Little Dashie.

I got bullied for watching the show, and promptly never talked about it again.

Until, of course, that four-wheeler ride.

It was like a spark reignited in my soul. I watched the show, I read the stories, and I loved it. So, once again, what if I wrote Fanfiction? I was having a hard time getting my own writing project off the ground, so seriously: why not just devote my time into writing shit little stories and getting experience? Writing experience that I know is garbage, but hey, it's better to start somewhere than nowhere, right?

So I was browsing the MLP subreddit, and I found that drawing by Natt, linked in the description of this story. And- it just spoke to me. In the comments, Natt wrote their own little story of who this character was. And I thought it was a great oppertunity. I mean- the story was literally written out for me. I just had to write the whole thing.

And so I did. I wrote, I wrote, and I wrote. The second I was done with a chapter, I smashed the publish button. Because- it was just My Little Pony. Who cared, right?

And that was the problem.

I started caring.

I started caring about the stuff I put out there. I started caring about how well it was written, and suddenly, I felt like everything I had written up to that point was garbage, because there was zero passion behind it. To say the least, I started feeling incredibly self-concious about it.

So I left this story to rot. I could finish the last chapter or two, but this story is just awful. If I like a story I've published, I'll re-read it to myself, because I genuinely love it. I've never re-read this story. If anybody wants to do a rewrite, be my guest, because I feel like I could do it, too. But I probably wont.

Anyways- story's dead, ya'll. Sorry to blue-ball you.

Go check out Do It For Her. That's a story I actually care about.

04 - Memories Creeping

[Manehattan, 1/18/2203, Celestia's Solo Reign]

They ROBBED me.

They took Herb, and now they were going to pay.

I’m the smartest mare I know. I can do something to them… I can reap what they sought. But what to do? Idea’s flood my mind to the brim. Will this work? No. What about this?

All I want to happen is see them suffer. I want to see their faces look at me with fear. I want to destroy everything they hold dear. If I can’t have Herb, they can’t have their lives.

I need an idea. Something to really break them.

Magic is too unreliable. I can’t torture them with magic. Magic can be overwritten with more magic, plus I’d need a unicorn who shares my unfathomable lust for murder. Murderers are hard to come by, though.

I need something mechanical. Something only controlled with bare hooves.

I trot by an open barrel. Homeless ponies were throwing logs onto the flame, and sparks grew against the night sky. Perhaps something with fire? What can I do with fire?

Fire is great at burning things. But fire can be put out with magic. But what if I create something with the fire? Like steam? Large amounts of steam? What does steam do to help me achieve my goal?

“Hey, are you alright, miss?”

“Get the buck away from me!” I use my hind-legs to give him a kick, sending him down the street. Ponies are looking at me with shocked faces. I don’t care.

No distractions. I can’t have anything go wrong. I need a workshop. I need money. I’ve been clawing at that objective for years. Money is such a stupid thing. Why do I need to pay when I can take? Take the lives of ponies. I’m going to see Herb again, even if it means sacrificing myself.

Who can I work for? Who has a workshop? Or, who has money to steal?

The conclusion came to me like a brick. I can find a unicorn with murderous intent! Obviously! What a dumb thing to overlook. For the past four years, the Crystal Empire has been plunged into darkness by, what I can only assume is, a tyrannical evil dictator by the name of King Sombra.

Bingo! We both have fantasias of watching Equestria burn, this will be the greatest team to ever exist!

Without a second thought, I started trotting off in a certain direction. Cab drivers have stopped offering rides to the Crystal Empire. I guess I’ll just walk. It’s not a big deal, only a few hundred… miles…

[Ponyville, 5/11/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

“All right, my attention is solely yours.” Rarity said, leaning down next to the small dragon. Spike blushed profusely.

“Actually, I’m here to help.”

“Oh, but of course! Spike, could you go grab some velvet silk from upstairs, please?” Rarity asked. Spike’s eyes, I swear, turned to love hearts for a moment. The purple dragon quickly pranced out of sight, seemingly driven by Rarity’s words.

“Now that’s out of the way, why did you want to see me today, Rusty? And why so early after being discharged? If I were you, I’d take my beauty sleep.” Rarity laid on the ground directly across from the me at a respectable distance. I took her words carefully. My mane has returned color, yes, but It was unkempt, and fraying. I could feel Rarity’s eyes diverging to the hairy mass atop my head.

“Rarity, I was wondering if I could use some… help?” The last word was squeaked out. I’m scared of making her upset. What if she decides I’m a monster, like I actually am?

“Ah, help with what? That mane? Let me say, If I were you, I’d-” Rarity kept going. I don’t have the heart to stop her. She seems to be in her element. A stray hoof keeps touching the hair atop my head, making vague symbols. I’m hardly listening, but still enough to keep eye contact.

Eventually, she stops talking, and waits for my response. “Actually, I was wondering if I could have some design help?” I shy’d away from eye contact. I mean, it’s her job, after all. She shouldn’t be that mad. But I am kind of leaning on her for help.

“Design help? Rustee, I just told you how to style your mane.”

“No- I mean, thank you for that- but I- Hmmph.” I struggled to find the proper words. Why was this so difficult? “Here- let me show you?” I proposed it as a question, tilting my head slightly. Rarity looked at me, waiting, before realizing it was a question, then sheepishly nodded her head.

From the saddlebags, I grabbed a roll of parchment, and unraveled it, spreading it with my only hoof against the floor.

There, staring back, was something I worked on while in the hospital. There, was something I’ve not stopped thinking about, laying bare for Rarity to see. With an inquisitive eye, she looked down at the paper.

Spike came downstairs, carrying every piece of purple silk he could possibly find. “I couldn’t find the right one, so I brought them all- woah! Is that a wheelchair?”

[The Crystal Empire, 1/20/2203, Celestia's Solo Reign]

A hoof pushed onto my skull against the cold floor of the castle.

“Let go of me before I buck you up!” I screamed, echoing around the blackened, sickly walls of the hall.

“I recognize your tone, lady.” A voice boomed over the guards. As soon as it came, the guard released my skull from the ground. He immediately got on his knees, bowing to almost kiss the floor. I looked up, unphased by the sound. Just seeing the guard kneel, I could taste the fear in the air. His fear. I gave him a little kick, and his armor jingled.

“A tone of great loss. A tone of… despair?” The only light in the entire large hall was the open door behind me, where we had come from. The further down, the more darkness encumbered the room. Despite this, high up, larger than anypony I’ve seen, two pairs of glowing red eyes stared back. Tears of purple flowed out of it’s retinas. Although the sight was ghastly, I merely stared back.

“I sense no fear. Is this a product of the aforementioned despair? Or are you merely stupid.”

“Listen, buddy, I have nothing left to live for. I don’t give a flying shit what happens to me.”

“Loss. I sense loss.”

“If you don’t stop using the word ‘sense,’ I’ll buck the teeth out of your head.” The ghostly figure came forward. I soon realized it was just that, a ghost. A black cloud with eyes.

“So, so fearless. You came to my Empire. Why?”

“I need your help.” I said, bluntly. The black cloud looked at me again, shifting it’s eyes. It must’ve been thinking. I recognize that face anywhere.

“How foalish. My help? I only work alone, filly.” The shadow turned around. Although just a black cloud, it had a shape to it. It did look like a pony, just a tiny bit.

“What if I told you I could create a super-weapon?” The shadow stopped moving away, and instead turned to face me.

A purple haze overtook the shadow, and when the light faded, a Unicorn took its place. His coat was gray, partially covered up with a regal red cape. He wore light armor around his bust and hooves, which looked more like a fashion statement rather than use in battle. He had a mane blacker than the night. An uncommon sight- for me atleast.

It was combed back, held in place with a silver crown. Protruding infront of the crown, a red horn, contrasting from the rest of his body. A two-toned pony?

“Why would I need a super-weapon?” He snarled, showing his teeth. He was now partially facing me.

“I’m the smartest pony you’ll ever meet. I can make you anything.” I could feel a sort of haze take over my eyes. I was pleading my case. If King Sombra didn’t listen, I think I might seriously kill myself. Nopony else is as insane as the one standing in front of me. This was my one-shot.

“I can craft things untouchable by magic. The ponies of Equestria have wronged me so, so many times. All I want to see is them suffer. I want to see Equestria go up in a blaze of fire.” I kept going. King Sombra now had his full attention towards me. He looked… impressed?

“These words you speak- not to convince me, but rather from your heart? I can only feel darkness in your soul.” He smiled a creepy grin. “Interesting. What about this weapon you speak of?”

[Ponyville, 5/11/3210, Two Sister’s Reunion]

“Yes, in a sense, it’s a wheelchair.” I explained, looking towards the adorable dragon. I want to hug him again.

“But- It’s just two circles around a pony?” Rarity looked confused.

“Again, yes. This is why you are here, Rarity. I need your help to make this bad boy look… how do I say this… a little less drab? Give it a spark, would you?” I push the drawing towards her. I can see it. In her eyes, a little imagination starts moving.

“Why yes, dear. I think you could use some copper bars here, for the tire!” Without a second thought, Rarity levitated a large piece of parchment over, laying it overtop the smaller one. It was larger than a pony, with a sketch of a pony already on it. “I use these for sketching dresses.” She explained. Already, a huge array of pencils were laid out infront of her, and she started moving. Spike looked on in awe at her incredible work ethic. I started at her face. I can see the concentration. When ponies are doing what they love- or their ‘special talent,’ they can sometimes go into ‘the zone.’

Rarity looked so focused. It was unbelievable. The last time I was in that zone was when I was creating weapons for Master Sombra-

I almost cried in shock. I made a gagging sound with my mouth. I was disgusted with myself. I had been pushing the memories down, but for the first time, I was thinking about it like I did before. Plainly, and not guiltily.

Rarity stopped drawing. She was half-way through the first wheel. She looked up at me, with a concerned eye. I had my hoof over my mouth, looking towards the ground.

“I-Is it ugly? I could-”

“No- I just had some… thoughts.”

“Oh, Rusty. Are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine.” I said. A familiar tone crept into my voice. A tone I was so, so familiar with.

“If you want to talk about it-”

“I said- I’m FINE.” I shouted. The mare crawled backwards for a moment, looking into my eyes. I read her emotions for the hundreth time today. Except this time, all I saw was the familiar eyes. I had seen hundreds of ponies give me that look. I had stood right next to the big stallion while it happened. There was no doubt I was the last face they saw before- testing. In Rarity, I saw the face of fear.

Tears started flowing from my eyes. I lowered my head to the ground, and put a hoof over my mane. Tears leaked onto the parchment, giving the tanned paper inky black splotches. What had I done? I’m a monster. I’ve led so many ponies to their death.

I felt a hoof on my shoulder. I hazard a glance upwards, looking at the white unicorn who had comforted me. She pulled me into an embrace.

“Bad memories, huh?”

I could only sniffle, and nod my head against her chest.