Sparkle's Fire

"Ponies of Whinnyapolis, we gather here today to commemorate a momentous occasion," Celestia said to the crowd before her. A day had passed since the fire. 5 members of Sparkle's Fire, including the leader, were captured by Burning Rescue and detained by Freeze Force. That was what this day was for; it was to celebrate the great thing they had done that even Freeze Force couldn't do for a time being. Burning Rescue was the real hero group at the end of the day, and every pony knew it. The screen up against the wall of Celestia's Sunlit Tower showcased yesterday's events on the news, and Rainbow felt pride seeing herself on the screen, more than happy that they cut out her more embarrassing moments.

"Here before us all are our valiant and brave heroes of yesterday," Celestia continued when the crowd calmed down again. Rainbow had barely taken in the fact that they were cheering. "These ponies, as they always do, worked long and hard to extinguish the Burnish flames that burst on our ancient towers, and in the end they were even able to defeat the Sparkle's Fire members that caused the flames. The leader of this terroristic group has been captured and detained, and we no longer have to fear for our buildings being burnt to the ground! Today, we can rejoice, and thank these heroes! In particular, I would like to thank the two pegasi that flew to the center of the blaze, and engaged in combat with these Burnish."

Celestia turned to face Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. Fluttershy's body was shaking like a leaf, but Rainbow stood tall with her wings spread. She puffed out her chest, and Fluttershy took the idea to do the same so that she could appear strong too. Celestia stepped forth, her sun coloured magic glistening from her horn as she lifted two medals from her podium, and presented them to the ponies. She dipped her head and attached the medals to the shirts of the ponies, them proudly shining in the sunshine.

"Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, we are every grateful for your bravery in yesterday's events," Celestia spoke to them with the widest, most gentle smile. "I would like to ask that each and every pony welcome you as heroes, and thank you for your great deeds. No pony should forget this wondrous display of heroism, for as long as Whinnyapolis stands tall!"

"Thank you Princess," The ponies said in unison, with Fluttershy trailing only slightly behind due to her stutter. They raised their hooves to their foreheads. Fluttershy flinched as the crowd erupted in cheers, but Rainbow basked in the glory and the noise around her. Her teeth shined bright as she grinned, and sunlight bounced off of her eyes. It reflected all of her pride and joy, and though she didn't look, she hoped Fluttershy's eyes reflected the same.

After they received their medals, they were free to exit the square. Every Burning Rescue member hopped back into the firetruck, and made their way to their favourite place; the Tasty Treat. It was a restaurant they had begun frequenting when Rainbow first joined Burning Rescue. She had loved the place since she was a teenager, and she had practically dragged the entire group to visit it on her first day as a Burning Rescue member. Every pony fell in love with the shop like she did, and they made it a habit to visit it for celebrations whenever possible. Luckily, today seemed like a calm day, so they would have a nice time inside the building.

Rainbow easily remembered the first day they ever visited this place. When they got inside, the first thing they did was made their orders, with Rainbow's help. Rainbow spent enough time sitting around, explaining what the best dishes were that they could order, what drinks, so on and so forth. Eventually everyone got their usual orders memorized, and even the head chef Saffron Masala had memorized their orders. They rarely had to speak their orders before they were served, as if Saffron had been waiting all day for them to show up. And today for this celebration, their table already had food when they walked in the door.

"Welcome every pony!" Saffron clapped her hooves in joy as they walked through the door. She showed them to their table and sat them down. "I knew the very moment the ceremony ended that you would be coming, so I prepared your usual dishes for you early! They're still warm, so eat up!"

"Wow!" Pinkie's eyes sparkled as she bounced into her seat in front of her plate. "You work so fast, Saffron! What would we do without service like this?"

"Our celebrations would be very boring," Rainbow laughed as she dug into her bowl of food. "This place has it all! Atmosphere, good food, and an incredibly welcoming staff!"

"Oh, you're making me blush!" Saffron laughed, her cheeks turning pink. "I'll have to tell my father about this. Please, enjoy yourselves! I've got other orders to attend to."

Every pony waved their goodbyes to Saffron as she walked back to the kitchen. They enjoyed their food, and even took chances to try eachother's choices for a change. Rainbow wasn't a fan of any of them, but she was happy that she tried. She decided just to stick to her own bowl for a change, even if her occasional slurping was annoying the other ponies, some of which weren't at her table. No pony could deny that they were satisfied when they were done, leaning back in their chairs and enjoying the residual warmth of the food in their stomachs.

"Hoo, that mare can really cook!" Applejack said with a laugh. She patted her stomach and hummed. "Ah'm tellin' ya Ah could never cook like this!"

"Me neither," Pinkie said, covering her mouth after a small belch. "Hehe, excuse me!"

"I-I don't think I could either," Fluttershy said, petting the side of her mane with her hooves. "I consider myself a g-good cook, but making stuff like t-this is beyond me..."

"Well one thing's for sure, no pony else can cook like she can!" Rainbow hit her hoof on the table. "Not us, not any pony here! I don't think any pony can make food as good as Saffron!"

"Her dad might be able to," Pinkie laughed. "We'd have to see ourselves someday!"

The ponies broke off into various conversations, and Rainbow found herself talking to Applejack more than she usually did outside of work. The ponies never got along too terribly well, but they weren't entirely rivals by any means. Applejack would always get angry when Rainbow slept in late, and Rainbow would always complain because of Applejack's overly bossy nature. Outside of those minor issues, they got along quite well, but they still didn't talk much. Rainbow usually found herself the closest with Fluttershy, but Fluttershy had begun talking to Pinkie more lately. Rainbow liked seeing them interacting; they were much more serious than she would expect out of ponies like them. She sighed, relieved that she was able to spend moments like this with her friends.

Meanwhile, yesterday afternoon...

After a long flight, Freeze Force finally arrived back at the HQ they were keeping all the other Burnish. With little retaliation, Twilight and her fellow Burnish were escorted through the facility. Anger blazed in her soul as she heard the televisions overhead broadcasting the news of her defeat. That name, 'Rainbow Dash,' she was certain she would never forget it for as long as she was trapped here. Her ultimate goal upon leaving was ensuring that this pony paid for the suffering she was bound to endure, but her current goal was simple; ensuring the safety of her fellow ponies. She couldn't imagine how badly hurt they were in here. Other than little stories she had heard from those lucky enough to escape, she wasn't entirely sure what life was like in this facility; if it was lifelike at all, that is.

The Freeze Force ponies stopped the group in front of what appeared to be a cell. The door was shut tight with ice, but the ice melted when a button on the wall was pressed. Twilight and the unicorns around her gasped seeing the ponies inside. Black metal boxes were clasped around their bodies, weighing down their hooves individually, their wings on their sides, and even their horns. Unicorns tried to lift their heads from the floor, but quickly fell again from the weight. Twilight felt tears threatening to spring in her eyes; the conditions were worse than she expected.

The Freeze Force ponies turned them around, applying the same metal boxes to their figures over the ice crystal structures that kept them grounded from Burning Rescue's interference. Twilight could easily handle the new weight on the top of her head, but her fellow ponies were struggling to keep their heads high. They were shoved inside of the container in a pile, and mist burst from the top and bottom, creating a door made of solid ice that blocked them off from the hallway, and dimmed the room with faint blue light. The ponies stood, glaring at the door for a few moments, and Twilight remained the longest. She stared at her reflection, watching her ears fall as hopelessness filled her heart and soul. Her head was aching, still from the earlier battle and from the box around her horn.

"Twilight," Moon Dancer alerted the mare, making her turn around.

At the back of the room, a small group of fillies surrounded an older earth pony. Her cerise coat was dull, and her rose mane was more tangled than a collection of brambles in the forest. The mare opened her bright green eyes, looking at Twilight. She tried to lift a hoof, her leg shaky. Twilight raced to the mare, skidding to a stop before her, and staring down at her with dull eyes. The earth pony's own eyes were falling into grayer territory, and quickly filling with tears.

"Twilight..." The mare said, her voice broken and raspy. "Why... why us?"

"I..." Twilight didn't have a good answer. She screwed her eyes shut, forcing tears not to roll. "I-I don't know. I'm sorry."

"This is just as bad as the stories said," Twinkleshine said, banging her hooves on the door and trying to shatter the ice. Even with the weight of the boxes on her hooves, it wasn't enough to break the door. One thing was for sure, Freeze Force technology was much more powerful than whatever Burning Rescue was using.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Lemon Hearts said, tears slipping down her face. "If they've got us and Twilight, what can we do?"

"I might have an idea," Twilight said, trying to hold her voice firm. She turned to the other mares, tears slipping down her cheeks and dripping onto the hard floor beneath her hooves. "We have to escape."

"But how?" Rarity questioned. "These wretched things-" she flailed one of her hooves. "-are heavier than anything I've ever carried with my magic. I can barely hold my head up..."

"It's going to be alright," Twilight held her voice strong, and her head high. "I don't know how soon it can be, but we just need to be patient. I'm the big danger here. As an alicorn and as the leader of Sparkle's Fire, they're going to put me on high priority, and with you all as my 'deputies' per say, they're on high alert for you too."

"What are you getting at?" Moon Dancer asked, narrowing her eyes at the alicorn.

"They might move us," Twinkleshine answered in Twilight's steed. "If they let us out of here, then maybe we can get lucky and bust these things open with our flames!"

"A low chance," An elderly green mare said from the back of the cell. The ponies turned to look at her in surprise. "We've all tried to break out ourselves, but to no avail. When these devices figure out y'all're tryin' to use your flames, it'll freeze ya faster 'n a lake on a mountain."

"We'll be fine," Twilight assured the elder pony. "At the very least, my magic might be strong enough to break at least one of these things open. If I can get just one open, I might be able to smash the rest."

"But what if they don't move you?" One of the fillies in the back asked. Her head was heavy from the box encasing her horn. "What if you end up stuck here like the rest of us and we never get out?"

"We can bust out anyways," Moon Dancer said with a grin. "Anything can melt or break ice, y'know. Even Freeze Force's technology isn't completely fireproof. If it burns hot enough, it'll cut through bedrock!"

"Moon Dancer is right," Twilight affirmed. "If they don't move us soon, then we can try the plan anyways. I'll see if i can managed to bust through these things, then I can free all of you. Then, all together, I want each and every one of you to use all the strength that you can, and make your flames burn hotter than they've ever burned before. If we fill the room with our flames and try to attack the door, maybe we can burn hot enough to melt the ice. We'll be able to get out regardless; those Freeze Force bastards can't keep us here forever."

"Yeah, Twilight!" A blue mare quietly cheered from the back. Her white and deep, navy blue mane was a mess, and her eyes were half lidded with tiredness, but she still looked full of life in comparison to the other ponies.

"Minuette," Twilight said, surprised to see the mare here. "I was wondering where you had went... you were captured?"

"Unfortunately," Minuette sighed, the box on her horn weighing her head down. She lowered it to the floor with a groan. "A few weeks ago when we attacked that office building, Burning Rescue caught me, and Freeze Force brought me here. I'm surprised no pony noticed."

"I had been wondering," Twinkleshine said. "I thought you had gone off on another one of your solo expeditions at the junkyard. I went to look one day, but I couldn't find you."

"You've been here this entire time," Rarity gasped, covering her mouth with her hoof.

"Unfortunately," Minuette spoke sadly.

"Minuette, can you tell us what it's been like here?" Twilight asked, moving to sit with the mare. The other captured ponies sat with her, side by side.

"Horrible," The unicorn mare said with a shudder. "I've been through many cells here, they never put you in the same place. We're always moving, always being used. I've seen adults, elders, and fillies alike covered in bandages. Their legs are blue; they stop at nothing to try and burn through the metal in these boxes, but all they get is frozen limbs. They're dying, and no pony is doing anything about it."

"No pony knows," The elderly mare said. "If any pony has escaped, they've been brought back here without having told a soul."

"I miss Applejack," A light yellow filly said, beginning to sob. Parts of her red mane were frizzled or burnt beyond repair. "I want to go home."

The room fell silent of conversation as ponies began to cry. The despair filling the cell made Twilight's stomach churn and her head spin. Tears slid down her face again, and her body wished to join in this cacophony of agony. She took a deep breath and composed herself. She stomped her hooves as she stood back up, and looked at the ponies around.

"This is why we must fight," She said firmly. "You're all my friends. You're my family. You're Burnish, just like me, that means we stick together. We can't give in because we've been captured. We have not failed yet, we have only survived what is still to come. You've all lost your hopes, but not me; I refuse to give in to Celestia's wants and desires. I don't know what she's doing up there, but whatever it is, I demand to put a stop to it."

The sobs began to die out as Twilight spoke. Ponies forced their heads up from the floor, hope glimmering in their dying eyes. Tears continued to slip down their faces, but they were cold. The anger was beginning to fade, replaced with a stronger feeling.

"Every pony, I know we can do this," Twilight continued, a smile finally coming to her face. "We're going to escape, and we're going to end this torture. No pony else is going to have to suffer because of the desires of a princess. One way or another, freedom will be possible for all Burnish. It doesn't matter what we do from here on out, as long as we don't kill, and we can provide. We are going to leave this place alive, and prove to those bastards that we're just like every pony else. How does that sound for a plan?"

The ponies let their voices fill the room, affirmations and excitement spreading like wild fire. Twilight felt hope flutter in her heart again, and sparkle in her eyes. She wasn't fully confident in her own plan, but hearing how much faith every pony else had in her for this plan to work made even her believe that anything was possible. Maybe she was being a little bit overdramatic with things, and sure her plan did have its flaws, but as long as every pony else believed in her, maybe they had a chance. She sighed, holding her head high and staring through the icy window behind her. She could feel as though the eyes of every creature in Equestria were looking down on her and judging her for the things she has done.

She closed her eyes, feeling the heat of their burning gazes deep in the caverns of her soul. She ignored the sickness that they brought her, and the anger they filled her heart with. If every pony else believed in her, she needed to believe in herself. She sat beside the door, staring outside and letting her expression fall neutral once more. Her plans would be set in motion soon. Either she was going to free everypony by herself, or Freeze Force would be stupid enough to let her leave alive. She didn't care what the outcome was now, as long as she got to leave. She silently prayed to whatever god that existed, hoping that her plans could go into motion soon and she wouldn't have to suffer like every pony else had...