Chapters Chapter 2: Final Struggle
Silence and static filled Rainbow's helmet. Heartbroken, she assumed that the connection was lost. She felt done for as she pulled herself to her hooves, but hope fluttered in her heart again as the blue of the suit began to glow. She almost teared up. Her pleas had worked; Pinkie had heard her!
Rainbow flapped her wings and flew back onto the roof, letting the light blind the ponies still around. Moon Dancer shielded her face from the blinding light as Rainbow's mech began to change. The armor grew tighter and thicker around her body, and another pair of wings made of ice sprouted on her back. From the back panel, a solid metal rod began to emerge. Rainbow grabbed it in her hooves, forcefully freeing it from its containment. She twisted the handle, and ice sprouted in a sharp blade around the rod, making it appear like a long spear. Icy tendrils sprouted from the top of the handle around the new blade, flapping proudly in the wind.
Rainbow landed on the roof as her armor grew its final layer of protection, the faint sheen of ice obvious against the blazing sun. She gripped onto her ice spear tightly, holding it against the ground proudly. She looked at Moon Dancer with a determined grin as the machine finished changing around her, its only last addition being a few protective spikes around her helmet. She wasted no time when the suit was finished, sailing towards Moon Dancer to engage in battle once again. Moon Dancer seemed prepared, as once more she used her flames to shoot herself into the air out of Rainbow's way. She spun in the air, flames attaching to her hooves. Moon Dancer threw her hooves down, the flames snapping in the air like whips.
The flames wrapped around Rainbow's back legs, and yanked her backwards. She didn't seem worried. She spun around, slicing the flames with her spear and watching ice coat them entirely. She was unlucky though; while the flames around her legs broke, Moon Dancer snapped the ice from the fire around her hooves and freed herself from the temporary containment. She landed finally on the ground, letting herself down gently with her flames. She lowered her head, her horn glowing as she shot beams of fire from it towards Rainbow Dash. Rainbow was unfazed; each beam that passed her, she would hit with her spear, and freeze them. Blocks of ice fell around her as she marched towards Moon Dancer. The blocks shattered on the concrete, and began to melt in the sun when the flames inside broke.
Moon Dancer channeled all her energy into her horn, flames wrapping around the white crystal on her head. She shouted as she snapped her head downward, and fired the flames towards Rainbow Dash. As they approached the pegasus, they came closer together and formed the shape of what appeared to be a dragon. The flame-born creature shrieked, its mouth opening and firing flames from its maw. Rainbow braced herself against the flames, feeling them dig through the ice that made a thin veil of protection around her armor. She flapped her wings and flew into the fire, lifting her spear and stabbing the fire dragon at its most solid point. Ice encased the entire creature and froze it in place. Rainbow pulled the spear free and let the beast split in half, shattering on the ground around her.
Moon Dancer's fear was obvious through her visor as the ice from the dragon spread to her, enclosing her entire body. Rainbow watched as the mare's armor shattered, revealing the light yellow mare underneath. Her body was shaking with fear, and the pearl hairtie that held up her hair had fallen into pieces when her armor shattered. Her mane fell around her, and she shook her head, backing away from Rainbow as she approached. Rainbow pulled her pistol from her armor again, and aimed at the mare.
"No-!" Moon Dancer yelled, frightened more than even lavender eyes could showcase. "Don't you dare!"
Despite Moon Dancer screaming at her, Rainbow had to do her job. She fired ice from her pistol, watching as it wrapped around the mare's hooves, neck, and horn, and made her collapse on her side. The mare yelled out and thrashed against the ice, trying desperately to escape from this prison. Rainbow would've felt bad for her, but she knew that this had to happen one way or another. She stepped away from the mare she had just captured, and looked up at the pony still sitting comfortably in their throne.
"Are you just going to sit there?!" Rainbow yelled up at them. "I've caught every last one of your allies, and you're all that's left! You could've left while we were fighting, but you just watched! You're a sick coward, stupid firebug!"
The pony hummed, boredom obvious in their tone. They lifted themself to their hooves, rolling their neck and letting it pop as they walked to the edge. They stepped on air, flames taking form at their hooves and solidifying into crystals. Rainbow stepped back as they descended, a slope of fire crystals making the path for this pony to walk down to her level. Rainbow lifted her spear and her gun, pulling herself onto her hindlegs to aim her weaponry at the pony in question. The pony didn't seem worried at all about this threat. They spread their wings, horn glistening as one crystal of their slope bent backwards, curling over their shoulder. They lifted their hooves, wrapping them around the sharp edge and ripping it free from the structure they had walked down. Flames circled around the object as they took it in their magic, allowing it to rapidly spin in the air before they brandished their weapon; a sword made of crystal.
Rainbow took this as an opportunity to at least make this fight fair. She opened the panel beneath her, sliding her pistol back in its slot on her waist. Her hoof tightly gripped her spear, and she lowered it to point at the pony. The pony had an energy about them that sent chills down Rainbow's spine. The way they moved as they approached her made her shake, but she wasn't sure that it was out of fear. Really, she wasn't sure what it was, but whatever it was didn't sit right with her. She decided to approach as well, striking up conversation in the mean time.
"So," She began. "You're Sparkle's Fire's leader."
"Only recently I rose to this role," The pony said blankly. "I haven't always been in this position."
"So it was you that orchestrated this attack, eh?" Rainbow hummed as she lowered her head. "How brave."
"Maybe I did," The pony said, voice frighteningly gentle behind the visor. "But we had good reason."
"Good reason?" Anger flared up in Rainbow's chest. "What good reason could you have for endangering the lives of ponies, attacking their homes and works? How many ponies have you killed because of your attacks?!"
"None," The pony said as they lifted their sword, the blade colliding with the handle of Rainbow's spear. "My friends and I do not kill without reason. It is a strict code of conduct we hold to the highest extent. Not that you would understand, you think all Burnish are pests."
"You are!" Rainbow confirmed the pony's idea as she stepped back, ears pressing down in her suit. "All you do is destroy! What reason could you possible have for that?!"
"The flames are the reason," The pony said, lifting a hoof. A flame burst to life at the center, licking hungrily at the air. "It is the flames that make us burn. If we could choose not to, we wouldn't burn your creations, but it's the only way to keep them tame. To control these flames, something needs to be destroyed before they destroy us. This is how the Burnish live; it has always been this way."
"But why?" Rainbow didn't understand a thing this pony was saying. They must be crazy if they think she believes any of this horseshit. "Why couldn't you just control your urge to burn? Face it, you're only doing it to have fun!"
"No," The pony hissed as Rainbow launched herself at them again. They lifted their hooves, expelling a much stronger flame than the ponies before could ever manage. Rainbow yelled as the flames pushed her back. The heat was incredible against her face, easy for her to feel due to the cracks in her visor exposing her to the open air. She rolled on the ground, but used her wings to stop herself from going over the edge. She lifted herself back to her hooves and glared at the pony.
"Regardless of what your purpose is," Rainbow said, panting from the heat. "I'm not going to stand for it. You are going to be arrested, as are your buddies, and we won't have to deal with another attack of yours again!"
"You're awfully confident," The pony laughed and flapped their wings. "Well, if you're so certain of yourself, why haven't you landed a single attack-" The ice on one of Rainbow's shoulder blades cracked and shattered, making her gasp in surprise. "-but I've been able to hit you with ease?"
Rainbow growled. The time for talk was over by now. She flung herself into the air, wings spread wide. She forced them to her sides and dived for the pony with her spear extended forward. The pony faced her head on, lifting her katana and flinching as the hard crystals collided with the metal handle. Rainbow flapped her wings to keep herself in position so she could kick underneath the weaponry, hitting the pony in the chest and forcing them backwards. She didn't give them a moment to recover before she lunged again, managing to score a hit against the pony's armor. It cracked underneath the ice on the spot, but unlike the other ponies, the ice didn't spread. The pony ignored the cracks in their armor happily.
The pony lifted their hooves to bring the still burning flames from the floor underneath the concrete they stood on upwards. It burst through the concrete holes that had been left from the earlier attacks, and took snake-like forms that lunged at Rainbow with fangs bared. She dodged to the side of a few, but one scored her good on her side. Her suit cracked on that side, and several pieces fell off onto the concrete and exposed the skin and coat underneath. Rainbow would take great care with her new blindside. She breathed in as she raced across the ground for the pony once again. The pony was growing bored of her repeating tactics, easily able to dodge out of the way each time Rainbow came for and slashed at them with her spear.
"Is that all you know how to do?" The pony asked as they lifted their katana, flames bursting around it as they slammed the flat edge down on Rainbow's back. They leapt back as her armor cracked, the suit around her wings crumbled into ash.
Rainbow didn't respond, only taking note of just how damaged her suit was. Even this fancy new armor wouldn't be enough to stop this pony, and that scared her only a little. She refused to let her fear show, and ignored the heat beating down on her wings and back, making sweat roll through her coat. She decided to take the pony's advice, and use some new tactics. She lunged for the pony again, and when they dodged out of the way, she flapped her wings, rolling onto her side in the air and firing ice from her hooves. The ice forcefully pushed the pony back, and Rainbow was happy to hear them gasp in surprise, clearly not expecting this. The ice burst around the pony's helmet on one side. They hissed as they drove their hoof underneath the ice, and knocked their ruined piece of armor off their face. It hit the ground and shattered, and Rainbow could now see at least half of their face.
It was a mare underneath, only a little older than Rainbow herself. Her bright mulberry coat was a jarring contrast against the jet black that made up her armor. A sharp and flat sapphire blue mane draped around her body, bright purple, blonde, and raspberry stripes standing out incredibly bright as the light of the flames danced off of them. The pony glared at her, deep violet burning into Rainbow's soul as she stared.
"You're barely older than me," Rainbow said. "No wonder you said you only became leader recently. I only joined Burning Rescue recently!"
"I didn't ask," The mare said firmly, finally allowing her anger to be showcased. She stomped forth toward Rainbow Dash, using her magic and moving her head to slash at the pegasus's remaining armor. Rainbow did her best to counter, but every now and again as she backed away this mare scored a hit. One by one, her armor fell apart, the only remaining armor sticking to her hooves like glue. She fell back, head dangling over the edge of the building and letting her see the ground below. She lifted her head to stare at the mare as she pointed her sword at Rainbow's neck.
"I told you we don't kill," she said. "But we have exceptions. I'm sorry, but I can't let myself be captured. For the sake of my friends, this needs to end here. I can spare you if you let me go free, but Celestia help you if I'm caught."
"Is that a threat?" Rainbow laughed, her wings spreading on the ground around her. "It's a pretty weak one. I'm not scared of her."
"You would be if you knew what she was capable of," The pony said with a hum. "I suppose I know your answer then. Say your last words, or let me make this quick."
Rainbow said nothing as the pony lifted her sword. She waited, but not for long before she began to move the sword down. Quickly, Rainbow smacked the sword with her hoof, expelling ice from it and coating the entire thing. It shattered before the mare, and Rainbow took this moment of surprise to kick her in the stomach with all her might. The pony flew backwards, flipping in the air and spreading her wings to hold herself up. Suddenly, she was kicked to the ground. A crater was made around her as she impacted the concrete. Rainbow looked up to see a familiar face before her; Fluttershy had finally come to the battle. She couldn't hear what she said, but Fluttershy seemed to be talking through her own headset to the ponies still in the firetruck on the surface.
Rainbow could've finished this fight herself, but she had to admit that she appreciated Fluttershy's late help. The Burnish mare got back to her hooves and shook rubble from her body, glaring daggers at the pegasi around her. Fluttershy and Rainbow seemed to have the same idea, and at once they threw themselves at the mare. They rolled with her before they managed to pin her to the ground, expelling ice from their hooves and covering her body. They split the ice, and Fluttershy brandished her own gun to apply restraints to the mare. Her hooves, horn, and wings were coated in ice.
"I think you were the one getting overconfident," Rainbow said with a laugh as Fluttershy pulled the mare into a standing position. "It seems like you've lost this battle now!"
"I suppose," The pony said, allowing her voice to soften again. It seemed at the very end, she accepted her fate. She flicked her hair back with a quick shake of her head, and the cravat around her neck moved with the motion as well
"So, what do they call you?" Rainbow asked. "I already introduced myself, it's only fair that I know the fifth pony I was fighting too."
"Twilight Sparkle
"I plan to," Rainbow said as she came forth. Their foreheads rested together as they stared eachother in the eyes. Twilight's face was soft, but a raging flame burned in her pupils that showed she would never be done with this battle of theirs. Rainbow hoped that flame was reflected in her own eyes, but she knew her own confidence would overshadow any anger she had towards this pony. She had to admit, this mare put up a good fight, and that was all she looked for when they went on missions and encountered Burnish. Their rescues were only the most fun when she could get in a fight.
"Y-you really should've called for help earlier," Fluttershy said, smacking Rainbow on the back of the head and making her recoil away from the mare.
"Ow!!" Rainbow hissed, rubbing the back of her head and glaring at Fluttershy. "I didn't need help, I was doing just fine!"
"I-I know," Fluttershy said, waving her hoof and humming. "B-but your suit is entirely destroyed. Pinkie is going to h-have to make you a new one. R-really Dash, y-you need to learn to a-accept help from other ponies. W-what if she had killed you?"
"Oh please, she wouldn't have!" Rainbow groaned. "Stop treating me like a filly!"
"Whatever you s-say," Fluttershy sighed, bringing her hoof up to her ear. A small click emitted from her headset. "Pinkie, AJ, R-Rainbow and I are on the roof. We've caught t-the Sparkle's Fire ponies that started the f-fire."
Patience was a virtue then. Rainbow was bored now that all the fighting was over, and the other ponies had stopped trying to escape from their hoofcuffs. Applejack and Pinkie Pie soon came up to the roof to finalize this mission.
"The rest of the fires are down!" Pinkie said as she hopped off Applejack's shoulders. She adjusted her white coat and hummed happily. "Well done everypony! We rescued some ponies, we stopped some fires, and we've caught Sparkle's Fire's leader! What an exciting day!"
"Don't get too excited," Applejack said to the mare, pointing to the sky. The winds suddenly changed, and each pony around shielded their eyes from the strong winds. Descending from the sky were a small group of flying vehicles, their wheels rotated and spinning rapidly to fly them through the air. Once they hit the roof, their wheels shifted back into their usual position, and they appeared just like a group of monster trucks on the roof. From one of the vehicles, a large minotaur clad in black and blue armor emerged.
"Ponies, Freeze Force has arrived!" He yelled as he walked to the group, and pushed between them to stand with Twilight. "Iron Will will take care of the situation from here!"
"Great," Rainbow Dash mumbled, kicking a stone near her hooves. "Of course Freeze Force has to come in and ruin our celebration."
"What was that, pony?" Iron Will spun his head around to glare down at Rainbow Dash.
"You heard what I said," Rainbow hissed. She coughed as the minotaur grabbed a hold of her by the neck and lifted her into the air.
"Iron Will knows this rule better than you," He began, making sure she couldn't struggle out of his hold. "But you ponies are not authorized to work in situations like this! Iron Will has a motto, and that motto is 'When ponies push and shove, those attitudes you get rid of!' Burning Rescue does not deal with Sparkle's Fire, and Iron Will knows that for a fact! As such, in this situation, Iron Will will be arresting you now for interference!"
"Arrest?!" Rainbow struggled in the minotaur's grip, and flapped her wings. "You can't do that!"
"She's right!" Applejack yelled up at Iron Will. The minotaur lowered his head to glare down at the pony.
"What makes you say that?" He demanded, his expression hardening further.
"Sparkle's Fire showed up during our rescue," Applejack said. "Ah think it's in our code that we can deal with them if they're on our grounds. Freeze Force has no daggon reason to fault us because we were in our rights!"
Silence came across the ponies and the minotaur. He huffed, making Applejack flinch as the air hit her face. He dropped Rainbow, allowing her to gasp in air and rub at her neck where he had been holding her.
"Regardless, it is Iron Will's job to detain these ponies!" He shouted, flexing his muscles before he grabbed up two of the captured ponies, launching them into the back of the vehicle he had been situated in.
"My, my," Twilight hummed, unamused. "The leading forces are at odds. I feel as though I've seen a situation like this before. It seems like none of you ever learn your lesson."
"Quiet down!" Iron Will slammed his fist down atop the mare's head, making her yell out in pain. He grabbed her by the torso, throwing her into the vehicle. He grabbed the final two ponies and threw them in as well. It seemed like he didn't care if any of them got hurt. He slammed the door shut and climbed back into the driver's seat. Without another word, the vehicles drove off the building, wheels flipping back up to allow them to fly from the scene. Celestia knows where they were going.
"We should be gettin' back," Applejack said. "Our job is done here."
"W-we should take Rainbow Dash to see P-Princess Celestia as well," Fluttershy said, somewhat uncertainly. "S-shouldn't she be rewarded for catching s-so many Sparkle's Fire members, and their leader?"
"You should get credit too," Rainbow said with a cough. "You helped me catch that mare."
"I-in the end, yes," Fluttershy said, drawing circles on the ground with her hoof. "B-but I didn't help you fight. Y-you're a hero."
"I know that," Rainbow laughed. "You don't need to be modest, I think Celestia will give you an award too, Fluttershy!"
"Yeah!" Pinkie bounced with joy. "You guys are heroes and deserve to be treated like such! I'd say once we all are done celebrating, we should go down to the Tasty Treat to celebrate!"
"Sounds might fine to me!" Applejack said happily. She clapped her hooves, and allowed Pinkie Pie to climb onto her back once again. "C'mon everypony, let's git goin!"
No pony objected as they descended off the building into the crowd of ponies below. Rainbow basked in the cheering from the crowd. She knew that could only get and feel better over time. She could just imagine the cheers as she would walk through town, bearing a medal given to her by the Princess herself... She couldn't bear to wait any longer. Her excitement was definitely at its highest. She could hardly contain herself once the ponies climbed back into the firetruck, their next stop being Celestia's Sunlit Tower.
Chapter 3: Whinnyapolis's Heroes
"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...
A few days later...
Some time had passed, and Twilight was getting impatient. The fillies in her cell had been taken out, as well as the elder mare. She sat in the back of the cell with her deputies, and Minuette. Their impatience was growing day by day. Moon Dancer was getting more and more frustrated, while Lemon Hearts seemed to be losing hope entirely. Even Twinkleshine had lost that hopeful sparkle that was always in her eyes. Twilight kept her determined face, not ready to give up just yet. She never was; she refused to give in, no matter the cost. But, she had to admit, she was getting tired, and it showed.
Finally, their prayers were answered. Twilight's ears flicked as the sound of melting ice brought her back to reality. The other ponies in her circle looked up as well, hatred blazing in their eyes. The Freeze Force ponies outside said nothing, only motioning their hooves toward themselves, a signal for the ponies to leave. The group stood up, with Twilight leaving first. Minuette chose to stay behind, already weakened by the experiments. Twinkleshine, Moon Dancer, Rarity, and Lemon Hearts all fell in line behind Twilight. The door closed behind them, and they began walking down the hall.
Twilight swallowed hard, ready to put her plan into action. She lifted her wings on her back, the black boxes still stuck to her sides. It felt uncomfortable, but this was the signal she would provide. The unicorns around her noticed, nodding their heads and making small noises of affirmation. She let her wings fall against her sides again, knowing that the ponies around her were ready. She shut her eyes, and paused in her walking as she focused her energy.
From deep within her soul, she felt the flames igniting and coursing through her body. They burst from her hooves inside the boxes, and were quickly frozen. She screwed her eyes shut even tighter, pouring magic into her horn. Her wings moved, and they too began to heat up. Parts of her were being frozen bit by bit, but she refused to give in to the cold. Flames continued to burst where the ice formed, and she gritted her teeth as the cold began to hurt. Still, she pushed through the pain until every box on her body began to cry out in a frenzy of beeping. The Freeze Force ponies stopped before her, and the unicorns around her paused as the machines finally broke. They fell apart in halves around her, freeing her.
The Freeze Force ponies aimed their guns at her, but she was quick. She fired a blast of fire from her horn and spread her wings wide. The ponies were flung backwards, and she threw her head back to slice through the boxes that kept her friends hostage. Metal fell all around her, loud thudding echoing throughout the hallway as the devices broke apart. She heard the Freeze Force ponies getting back to their feet, and her friends used their magic to steal the guns they had been carrying.
"Go, now!" Twilight yelled to the unicorns around her. "Free the other Burnish, as many as you can, and stop every pony that gets in your way. Don't kill them! We'll head outside, get moving!"
"Yes ma'am!" The ponies shouted in unison as they ran back the direction they had came and began to free ponies, starting with the cell they had been kept in.
Twilight raced forward towards the Freeze Force ponies that had been their escorts. Flames burst at her feet as she launched herself over their heads, and surrounded them in flames. The ponies yelled out obscenities and demands for freedom, powerless to escape without their guns. Twilight ignored their cries and sped down the hallway. She heard the alarms going off, but she didn't have time to pause and take in the fact that the entire building was on lockdown. She had faith in her friends to escape with the others, and she had a mission to stop any pony that got in her way.
She turned a corner, and skidded to a stop in the hallway when she heard the sounds of wheels scraping against steel and metal. At the edge of the hallway, a Freeze Force vehicle was forcing itself through, though it could barely fit. Twilight hissed. Idiot! Whoever is driving that thing is horribly stupid! She thought furiously as she raced to face it head on. She lowered her head, channeling her strongest magic through her horn before she snapped her head upwards, creating a wall of black crystal in front of her. It did the job just fine, and she almost laughed hearing the car slam into the crystal and stop in its tracks. Smoke poured from around the wall from the collision, and the pony that had been driving was frantic to get out.
Twilight slipped past the car and continued her race down the hallway, dodging bullets the entire way and blasting through ponies that stopped in front of her. She heard the engine of the vehicle from before explode behind her. She wondered if any pony would get hurt because of it. She spotted a few cells in this hallway, and used her magic to press the buttons and melt the ice that made up the doors. The ponies inside peaked out, panic written all over their places.
"Everypony, this way!" Twilight yelled to the ponies as she ran down the hall. "We don't have much time, follow me to safety!"
Twilight hissed as a bullet hit her in the wing, encasing it entirely. She had no time to focus on freeing it because the hallway was becoming full of the Burnish she had freed, and the Freeze Force ponies racing to stop them.
"You're all stubborn," She hissed as her hooves and horn glowed bright with fire. "Get out of my way!"
She yelled and slammed her hooves into the ground. Flames burst through the lines that made up the panels of the floor, shattering the metal and breaking loose nuts and bolts. The Freeze Force ponies in the hall panicked to get out of the way of the flames, and many yelled out as they were burned and flung into the air. Some hit the ceiling and collapsed on the ground as the flames calmed down, but the hallway had still caught fire. Twilight slammed her wing against a wall, finally freeing it from its icy prison before she sped past the dazed ponies, the herd of Burnish following close behind her and leaving trails of torn bandages along the way.
Finally, they began to reach the end of their journey at the main entrance. If Twilight remembered correctly, there were a few helicopters outside; those would work perfectly to get them out of here. At the entrance, Freeze Force ponies lay unconscious everywhere. Twinkleshine, Moon Dancer, Rarity, Lemon Hearts, and Minuette were at the entrance waiting for her. When she began to approach with her crowd, the ponies channeled their magic together and burned a hole through the metal door. The hole continued to get bigger as the edges burned, and every pony pushed their way on through to the outside. Just as Twilight had thought, there were a few helicopters outside, but they came with Freeze Force soldiers as well.
"Knock them off!" Twilight ordered to the ponies around her. "Every pony get into a helicopter, fill them as full as possible, then get out of here! Don't wait for anypony, just go!"
Every pony yelled in unison in agreement with Twilight's plan. Few of the ponies in the crowd managed to channel enough energy to break free from their boxes. They worked on freeing the other ponies while they bucked and blasted Freeze Force soldiers into the ocean that surrounded the island they had been held on. Twilight herself put full focus on getting rid of as many Freeze Force soldiers as she could, and herding ponies into the helicopters. The platform came alive with the sounds of rotating blades, and the helicopters soared into the skies, unsure of where to go. When every helicopter on the platform was in the air, Twilight cloaked herself in the same jet black armor that she had used to fight with Burning Rescue.
She flapped her wings, and let flames ignite at her hooves. She acted as a beacon for the helicopters and propelled herself through the air. She heard the sounds of the blades close behind her, and knew that the ponies that were piloting them were following her. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew they couldn't stay here. Wherever they were going, it would be much safer than at this place...
The sun began to rise when they finally found a destination. Twilight stopped in the air, and the helicopters surrounded her. She used her magic to project her voice for the ponies inside to hear.
"We need to abandon the helicopters!" She shouted. "Pilots, find a place to drop the helicopters, they can be destroyed when they hit the ground. Every pony else, you need to jump! The unicorns and pegasi will help to carry the ponies that can't help themselves to safety, when we all land we can run and find somewhere to hide! Every pony, meet me at the waterfall once you're finished!"
She didn't wait for their answers before she descended, flying straight to the waterfall that was nearby. It was in an open area, just open enough that every pony would be able to regroup easily. Twilight was horribly tired from how little sleep she had gotten the last few days, but she couldn't rest now. Not yet, anyways. She sighed as she landed on a rock by the pond the waterfall was making. She let her armor disappear into the air, the energy flowing back into her hooves and horn so she could use it later. She sat down, staring at the rippling water while she waited for the other ponies. In the distance, she could hear the helicopters hitting the ground and exploding on contact. She desperately hoped no ponies were getting hurt.
She turned to the tree lines as ponies began emerging; she was ever so happy that they were all Burnish. She waited until ponies stopped filling the space around the waterfall before she projected her voice again.
"I don't know where we are, or where we're going," She confessed. "But I do know that we're far from the city. No pony will be able to find us out here for some time. I'd like to say that we cannot go back to the city right now. We all are at a huge risk of being caught again, with myself as a main priority. Freeze Force is going to be on our hooves for a while, and we may need to keep moving to keep them off our tracks. I have another location in mind, if and when we can move, but we need to find shelter for now. We need to search this forest for a safe location to hide."
"Is there a cave nearby?" A filly shouted up from the center of the crowd. She jumped on another pony's back so that Twilight could see her. "We can hide there!"
"That's a good idea," Twilight mused. "Let's look around, every pony. Let's try and get as far away from the helicopters as we can before we settle. The crash site is going to be a major point of exposure to any pony that comes across it, whether they're travelers or Freeze Force units, or even members of Burning Rescue. Let's get moving everypony!"
"Yes ma'am!"
Meanwhile, in Whinnyapolis...
"Rainbow Dash, wake up you log!" Pinkie shook the mare's shoulder forcefully, trying with all her might to wake her up. Rainbow Dash groaned and blinked her eyes open. Once again, she was waking up to the sounds of sirens.
"W-what's going on?" Rainbow got up, having to force her body to stretch. She flapped her wings and brought herself into the air while she grabbed her jacket and gear.
"It's the Tasty Treat," Pinkie said with a fearful whimper. "Apparently a fire broke out in the kitchen, but it's a Burnish fire."
"What?!" Rainbow yelled in surprise. "But how?! I thought all the Burnish were contained already, and the Sparkle's Fire leaders were all that was left!"
"I don't know what it is," Pinkie sighed, rubbing her temple with her hoof and pacing back and forth. "None of us know how the fire started, we just know that it's ongoing, and we need to get going so we can put it out! We don't need to take the truck this time, Applejack has ordered you, me, and Fluttershy to take my aircraft and head onto the scene. I've already loaded the back with extra ammo in case you need it, but we need to go quickly before we actually do need the truck!"
"Okay okay, I'm ready!" Rainbow hit her hooves together and flew out the door over Pinkie's head.
She flew into the garage of the station, and skidded to a halt outside of Pinkie's aircraft. She hopped inside, seeing Fluttershy already sitting inside, clearly waiting for her. The door to the back container shut when Rainbow was inside. She heard Pinkie's voice yelling a farewell to Applejack, and she felt dizzy as it lifted off the ground.
"Let me guess?" Fluttershy said as she looked at Rainbow, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh hush," Rainbow shot back, sticking out her tongue, but still breaking out in a smile. "This is serious business, my favourite restaurant is on fire right now!"
"I-I know," Fluttershy whimpered, petting her hair with her hooves. "A-apparently it's a Burnish fire. I'm worried..."
"Yeah, me too," Rainbow said with a sigh. "Why would somepony attack the Tasty Treat? It's not the biggest restaurant there is, and usually the Burnish attack bigger buildings, so why here?"
"I-I suppose it doesn't m-matter," Fluttershy said and got to her hooves as she felt the aircraft coming to a stop. "But we have a-a job to do, so let's focus on that f-first."
"Right." Rainbow nodded firmly and grabbed a gun from the wall.
She and Fluttershy ensured that their weapons were full before the aircraft opened. They ran outside, and ran inside the building. Thankfully, no pony was inside. Flames were blocking the door to the kitchen, and were pouring out from the order window. Rainbow lifted her gun, firing at the flames through the order window and watching them shatter when they had been contained. Fluttershy cleared the flames from the door and ran inside, while Rainbow dove in through the order window. Amongst the flames, she spotted a pony. Fluttershy seemed to notice too.
Right away, the yellow pegasus fired blocks of ice at the flames around the doorway that were keeping the pony trapped, and only then could they see the pony in question; Saffron Masala, the head chef. She was knocked out cold on the floor. Fluttershy forced herself underneath the pony and pulled her onto her back. The weight was a bit much for her to handle, but Rainbow knew she would force it if it meant saving a pony's life. Rainbow focused on taming the rest of the flames in the kitchen while Fluttershy headed outside, and set the unconscious mare on the ground. When the flames had calmed, the kitchen was covered from head to toe in ice. Rainbow sighed, sweat dripping down her face.
She walked out the door and headed outside, having to shield her eyes as the winds outside were much stronger than when she emerged earlier. She hissed as she soon found the source; Freeze Force was making another appearance. Why do they need us if Freeze Force is always around? She thought bitterly, waiting for the winds to calm down as the vehicles landed.
"Every pony!" Iron Will's voice shouted from within one of the vehicles. "Step away from that mare this instant!"
Rainbow quickly took notice of who they were talking about. Fluttershy was already backing away, and Saffron finally awoke. She got to her hooves, fear clearly pulsing through her body. She was shaking and her eyes were wild. She looked up at Iron Will, and backed up.
"W-wait, sir-!" She tried to beg, but she was quickly silenced as ice wrapped around her hooves and her neck, fired from the minotaur's own gun.
"Wait, what are you doing?!" Rainbow shouted, flapping her wings and carrying herself into the air. "What has Saffron done wrong?!"
"Yeah!" The owner of the Tasty Treat, Coriander Cumin, emerged from the shop. "That's my daughter! What do you think you're doing detaining her!"
"She's a Burnish!" Iron Will announced, sending gasps of shock throughout the crowd. "Why else would there be a Burnish fire when Sparkle's Fire has been contained?"
"But she didn't do anything!" Coriander shouted, spreading his hooves on the sidewalk and standing his ground. "She's only been cooking meals for the ponies that come to our shop!"
"And did you know she was a Burnish?" Iron Will demanded to know the answer. Coriander fell silent, swallowing hard as sweat dripped down his face. It seemed that every pony knew the answer; he was well aware.
"Disgusting!" A stallion shouted from the crowd, gagging and backing away from the scene.
"How could you let a Burnish cook our food?!" A mare yelled at the front.
"Hey, she didn't do anything to you!" Rainbow shouted at the ponies that were speaking up. "Just because she's a Burnish doesn't mean she's not a good cook! I never knew that she was, and I still thought her food was incredible!"
"That's too bad," one of the Freeze Force soldiers said. They stepped forth, removing their helmet and revealing a velvety pony underneath, with a snapped horn displayed almost proudly on the top of their head. "I'd hate to close down such a restaurant, but it is the law."
"Both of these ponies must be detained!" Iron Will stomped his hoof. "In accordance with our new laws against the Burnish, and the Burnish Protection Crime Act! You know the rules ponies, and Iron Will knows it too! When you protect the fire, you expect to get burned!"
"That law is only in place for terroristic acts!" Pinkie shouted. "These ponies weren't doing anything terroristic! They were just cooking food!"
"It's alright, Pinkie," Saffron said sadly as she lay on the ground. "It was my fault that the kitchen caught fire. I-I'm sorry to have troubled you all, I just couldn't control the urge anymore... but it's okay, I'll be fine."
"Saffron..." Coriander said sadly.
"Tempest Shadow, take them away!" Iron Will ordered the pony with the broken horn.
"Fine," The mare said, stepping forth and using the little magic her horn could muster to equip the two ponies with the same black boxes that had been used to contain Sparkle's Fire. One went around their horns, and four around each of their hooves. The unicorn forced the ponies inside one of the Freeze Force vehicles, and climbed into the passenger seat. Iron Will climbed into the drivers seat, and the vehicles drove off down the road to who knows where.
"How could they just do that?!" Rainbow yelled, anger bubbling throughout her entire body and threatening to explode out of her ears. "Saffron didn't do anything wrong, and Coriander wasn't doing anything wrong by protecting her! Why do they have the right to treat them as if they were Sparkle's Fire members?!"
"It's not o-our business," Fluttershy sighed. "T-they know the law better than u-us. We can't say anything a-against them, Dash. I-I know it's hard, but i-it is the way it is..."
"But that's..!" Rainbow wanted to say something back, but her anger was at its highest. She grumbled, messing up her hair and flapping her wings much harder than usual. She spun around, and launched herself down the street. A rainbow trail followed behind her as she sped down the road.
"Rainbow Dash, come back!" Pinkie shouted, and Rainbow could only barely hear her voice fading into the distance as she went down the road. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew she didn't want to be in the city right now. These glass buildings had begun to piss her off, and she needed to cool down. She flew over the road until the buildings began to fade into the distance behind her. She turned off the road, and disappeared into the forests outside the cities, hoping she could find somewhere to relax for a change...
As Rainbow Dash flew out of the city, her thoughts were racing. She couldn't deny the immense anger that was pushing her to fly faster, and flap her wings harder. How dare those Freeze Force bastards..! She couldn't believe the events she just witnessed! It came to her clear as day now that not all Burnish should be faulted and treated as terrorists. The ponies that made up Sparkle's Fire were the ones causing the fire, and now all Burnish were suffering because of their attacks! What a load of--
She suddenly skidded to a stop as she came to the edge of a cliff. She panted, allowing herself to catch her breath. Her racing thoughts went full stop, and she walked to the cliff edge to see the view. Over the cliff, there was a huge lake with a waterfall continually spilling into it. Her eyes shined with wonder as she stared out at the view. She flapped her wings, and carried herself down to the ground beside the lake. It truly was a beautiful sight.
She hadn't seen many waterfalls in her life, because most of them had been destroyed when the city was in construction. Landmarks like this only existed on the outside, and who knows how long they might be there for? She sat on a rock by the water, watching the waves occasionally lap at the stone and fling droplets onto her hooves. She stared at her reflection in the water when she could see clearly. She saw the anger from earlier still lingering in her eyes, but the sounds of the water crashing into the lake drowned out even her loudest thoughts. She could barely focus with such loud noise all the time.
In this place, it felt as though time stood still around her. For the first time in a while, she felt truly relaxed. Her shoulders weren't bunched around her neck, her ears weren't forced upright, and she felt as though she could sleep peacefully on her side for once. She let herself lay down on the rock, and let time waste away while water fall into the lake and splashed over the stones at the bottom. All of her anxiety and her anger had faded away, leaving her with a strange calmness that was unfamiliar to her. Had she ever really been this calm in her life? She never realized when she rested her head against her hooves, and fell asleep atop the stone.
A few hours had passed, and she awoke from her nap. Nighttime had already fallen, and the stars reflected back in the lake were even brighter than the ones in the sky. The waterfall was still deafeningly loud, but she had gotten used to the eternal roar as it collided with the lake. She got up, stretching out her limbs and her wings. She felt as though she had slept for moons, but the sun had only been going down when she fell asleep. She couldn't see the moon in the sky over the trees, so she hadn't been out for very long. She never was much of a napping person to begin with; usually she'd sleep as long as possible the second she closed her eyes.
She yawned, and let the cold night air wake her up again. As her hearing fully returned from its muffled state now that she was more awake, she became aware of a sound that wasn't the waterfall nearby. She narrowed her eyes and followed the source of the noise. As she approached, she learned what exactly the noise was that she was hearing; voices. There were ponies out here. She ran towards the voices, but stopped when she reached where they were coming from. A large cave with a wide open mouth was some distance away from the waterfall. She could hear the voices inside echoing off the walls. They weren't as loud now; whatever commotion was going on had died down now.
She brandished her gun from her belt, ensuring that it was full of ammo before she snuck inside the cavern. Water droplets fell from the stalactites on the ceiling onto her wings and mane, but she ignored them in favor of going further inside. She heard the voices pick up again as she approached, and she recognized them now; the Burnish, Sparkle's Fire. How did they escape from prison..?
"Twilight, what are we supposed to do?" Moon Dancer said to the pony in question.
Rainbow Dash pushed her thoughts away, focusing on the situation at hand. She hid behind a large rock, but peeked over the top to see what was going on. The ponies were surrounding a large flame, and a dull, nearly lifeless mare was laying on the ground close by. Her breathing was shallow, and her eyes were barely open. Twilight was sitting beside her, her face shadowed out because of her back being turned to the flames.
"I don't know," Twilight said, fear in her voice.
"We can't just let her die!" Rarity said defiantly, stomping her hoof on the ground. "She doesn't deserve it, none of them do! Twilight, can't you try to help her?"
"I can try, but there's no guarantee it's going to work," Twilight mumbled. Rainbow just barely caught the fact she was even speaking.
Twilight got to her hooves and sighed, pushing the pony onto her back. She stood over the mare, and stared down at her. The mare looked at her with dull eyes, threatening to close. Twilight leaned down, the edges of her forehooves glistening with flames. She closed her eyes, allowing her lips to connect with the mare's. Rainbow almost felt embarrassed watching this situation. What exactly was Twilight doing? She squinted, trying to get a closer look at the scene. Her eyes opened wide again as a bright blue light emitted from between the lips of the ponies, and a pink wave struck down the mare's body from head to tail. Twilight pulled back as life flickered in the mare's eyes, but Twilight's face was screwed with heartbreak.
"Twilight..." The mare spoke, lifting one of her hooves to rest it against her leader's face. "Thank you..."
"W-why are you saying that?" Twilight's voice was breaking. She lifted her own hoof and gripped onto the mare's. "I haven't done anything... I know it."
"Thank you for..." The mare sucked in a breath and shut her eyes. "For... keeping my students alive."
Twilight fell silent as the mare grew still. The flame in her body had flickered out. Twilight let go of the mare's hoof, and it fell limply to the ground beside her. The alicorn pulled herself to the side, and used her magic to rest the pony's hooves in an X shape over her chest. She dipped her head, letting tears fall to the ground. As her tears fell, the mare before her began to change. Her body slowly turned a light shade of gray, and began to break off into the air. Rainbow felt sick as she realized what was happening; this pony had died, and she was turning to ashes.
"From flames to ashes, from ashes to Earth," Twilight said, watching the ashes lift into the air and disappear. "...Rest in peace."
The ponies around dipped their heads and fell into silence, in respect for the deceased pony before them. Rainbow felt her heart snap seeing this event. In all her years working as part of Burning Rescue, she had never had to deal with the death of another pony, let alone a Burnish. She wasn't sure how to think or feel about what she just witnessed. She did feel awful seeing this happen, but should she..?
"You can come out now, Rainbow Dash," Twilight spoke, lifting her head and staring at the stone Rainbow had hidden behind. Hesitantly, Rainbow slid her gun back into her belt and emerged from behind the rock.
"H-how did you know I was there?" She asked. She never stuttered, but being surrounded with all these Burnish ponies, she couldn't help feeling just a little bit afraid.
"I saw your mane poking out over the rock," Twilight said with an amused hum. She stepped around the mare's ashes, and approached Rainbow.
Moon Dancer's hooves and horn lit up with flames, but Twilight extended a wing as a silent show for her not to attack. The unicorn huffed, allowing the flames to disappear. She stepped back, and stared into the flames, choosing to ignore what was going on right now. Clearly, she still wasn't very pleased after her battle with the Burning Rescue member.
"How did you find us?" Twinkleshine demanded, glaring daggers at the pegasus.
"I didn't mean to," Rainbow Dash said. "I left the city to cool down, and found a waterfall nearby. I... I napped for a short while, and I thought I heard something, so I came to see what it was. I heard voices from inside the cave when I approached, so... I came to see the situation."
"I knew you were being too loud!" Twinkleshine butted heads with Lemon Hearts.
"I was not!" Lemon Hearts retorted with a pout. "You and Moon Dancer were talking too!"
"Enough," Twilight said, her voice firm. The mares quieted down almost instantly. "If she knows we're here, other ponies do too."
"They don't, trust me," Rainbow said confidently. "I'm certain that I'm the only pony out here, other than your group."
"Liar," Moon Dancer hissed. "Your buddies are probably waiting outside to ambush us when we leave."
"Moon Dancer!" Twilight turned her head and snapped at the mare. "Quiet down, or don't talk at all. Let me talk with Rainbow Dash. If I find it necessary then I'll make her leave, and we can go elsewhere in peace."
Moon Dancer wasn't the slightest happy. Her face was contorted in a snarl and her eyes were wide with fury. She was doing everything her power to prevent flames from bursting around her entire body, and it showed. She faced the flames again with her hooves crossed.
"...Why are you all here?" Rainbow asked when Moon Dancer had fallen silent. "You all were captured by Freeze Force a few days ago."
"We escaped," Twilight said. "I freed my brothers and sisters, and we fled to this place. We've been living here for a short time. We never planned to stay for long."
"And, that mare..." Rainbow spoke tentatively, knowing it would be a sore subject since it just happened. "What... what happened to her?"
"She died," Twilight said bluntly. Her voice almost caught in her throat, evidence by the cut off gasp she emitted. She cleared her throat before speaking again. "When a Burnish dies, their body turns to ashes. In death, we become one with the Earth again as our flames are extinguished."
"You turn to ashes when you die?" Rainbow said in disbelief.
"It is because of our flames," Twilight explained, extending her hoof to Rainbow and lighting a fire at the very center. "As long as the flames are with us, we can live forever. We feed the fires, and they feed us energy and life. When we can no longer provide for the flames, they burn out, and we too reach the end of our lives."
"And you turn to ashes," Rainbow finished Twilight's explanation, and stared at the ground with wide eyes. She blinked, still unable to believe what she was hearing.
"Yes," Twilight said with a sigh, letting the flame in her hoof vanish and return her face to shadows. "That is the way of the Burnish. That is why we must burn, so that we can live."
"Is that why you attack Whinnyapolis?" Rainbow asked, lifting her head again and forcing her expression back into its usual state, dismissing her fear and disbelief. "You burn down our buildings so that you can live while other ponies can die?"
"We don't kill," Twilight hissed, anger flaring up in her eyes. She took a deep breath, and quickly calmed herself so she could respond properly and gently. "As the leader of Sparkle's Fire, I forbid any of my kin to kill without reason. When we attack a building, we always leave an easy escape for the ponies to free themselves, or for the rescue teams to find them and take them to safety."
"Then why have you kept attacking the sisters' castle?" Rainbow asked, stomping her hoof. "Before you were captured, you repeatedly attacked that castle instead of the other buildings you had before. Ponies have already given up on repairing the place, and Celestia herself wants to tear it down."
"Good," Moon Dancer snorted. Twilight shot her a glance before she spoke.
"It is our message to Princess Celestia," Twilight explained. "Since the Great World Blaze, Celestia has made it her ultimate goal to capture and contain the Burnish, to use them for her own gain. She uses their flames for god knows what. She kills us as ponies for her personal agenda. She is a murderer, and the destruction of the buildings she cares about the most is our message to her that we will not stand for her genocide."
"What?!" Rainbow lifted herself into the air, her voice filling the cavern. "You're lying! Celestia would never do something like that!"
"You don't know that," Twinkleshine said. "One of our ponies just died because of what that wicked mare is putting into place. We saw it when we were at their headquarters. Foals and elders, stallions and mares... all of them are being killed. Since we arrived in this cave, four of our ponies have turned to ashes. They were covered in bandages and gauze. We didn't apply them; the foundation did, because of their experiments."
"That's insane..." Rainbow lowered herself back to the ground, trying to come to terms with the things she was being told.
"It doesn't matter what you think," Twilight said, looking behind her as the last of the mare's ashes lifted into the air, and were carried away by the winds blowing in from the outside. "It matters that it is happening. Another one of our ponies could be dying right now because of ponies like you."
"What..?" Rainbow was still trying to process everything. She bared her teeth, feeling her head aching as well as her heart.
"I think we've said enough," Rarity said, putting her hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "We need to leave. Clearly, it isn't safe here anymore, darling. Moon Dancer might be right; if she knows we're here, other ponies will as well."
"Fine," Twilight sighed. "Let's finish the food I got for us, and then we can leave. Every pony needs to be strong enough to survive the journey."
"What about her?" Moon Dancer snarled as she looked at Rainbow Dash. "What are we supposed to do with her?"
"Don't worry about it." Twilight lifted her head, magic energy expelling from her horn and lifting Rainbow Dash into the air. "I can handle this."
"Hey!" She squirmed in the alicorn's magic. "Put me down!"
Twilight didn't listen. She moved Rainbow Dash to one of the stalagmites on the ground of the cave. She set the mare down with her back pressed against the rock, and used her flames to wrap tightly around her. The flames crystalized, gripping the mare's body and holding her against the rock. Rainbow Dash struggled against the crystals, unable to pull her gun from her belt so she could free herself.
"Just keep quiet for now," Twilight ordered her. "When we're done eating, we're going to leave. When we leave, you won't know where we are. If you tell any other ponies that we were here, we can and will kill you, because we have reason."
"You wouldn't," Rainbow snapped, her wings fluttering behind her and trying still to free her from the makeshift ropes.
"We might," Moon Dancer laughed as she got to her hooves. "I'll head outside and survey the area. If I don't come back, just assume the worst and be prepared for battle."
"I'll come with," Twinkleshine offered.
"Me too," Lemon Hearts spoke up as well. "It'll be much safer if more ponies go. If a fight breaks out, we can try to save eachother."
"Be careful, please," Twilight said gently. "We don't need more unnecessary casualties. Come back inside as soon as you can verify no other ponies are out there."
"Yes ma'am," The ponies said together before they trotted to the entrance of the cave, their chattering voices growing fainter as they left.
"So you're not going to kill me right now?" Rainbow asked to Twilight.
"No," Twilight answered her. She sat down in front of the flame in the center of the circle of ponies, and stared blankly into it. "We don't have a reason to kill you yet. You know where we are now, but we can hold you here until we're out of your view. You'd only become a killable threat if you knew where our next location would be, and told Freeze Force or your friends in Burning Rescue."
"So you're just going to leave me here?" Rainbow snapped. "No pony knows I'm out here, are you just going to hope that they find me?"
"Maybe," Twilight hummed, almost amused with the idea. "If any pony saw where you went, they can find you easily. Or, they can use their fancy technology to locate this place, and save you. Regardless of whether you speak or not, those crystals will be sign enough that a Burnish has been here. But, that's of no concern to us."
"You're stupid," Rainbow hissed.
"No, you're the stupid one," Twilight turned to her, her eyes narrowing with anger. "You waltzed into our cave as if you expected not to get caught, and I saw you brandished your gun. You hoped to capture all of us and send us back to that hellscape you call a prison. You wanted to send us all back to a world of damnation without a second thought. The only reason you talked to us is because you knew that you would die because you're outnumbered! You don't really care about us, you care about that medal on your jacket!"
Rainbow glanced down at her jacket. Through the fire crystal ropes, she could see the faint glint of the flame on the gold medal. She blinked, and looked back up to Twilight.
"I do care about you," Rainbow said, her voice much calmer than Twilight's was currently.
"Don't lie to me." Twilight turned around, her shoulders tensed.
"I'm not lying!" Rainbow yelled. "I... I came out here because of a Burnish being captured in the city. That's why I was pissed off. It wasn't one of your buddies, it was a pony that I've known for a while. She was the head chef of my favourite restaurant in town. We didn't know it until Freeze Force showed up, but she was a Burnish and her father, the owner, knew it. Freeze Force arrested both of them, even though they didn't do anything wrong."
Twilight was silent, but by the way her shoulders relaxed, Rainbow knew she was listening. Perhaps she was in disbelief of the events, but Rainbow suspected she wasn't surprised at all. Any Burnish got arrested, not just those that were part of Sparkle's Fire. All of them were terrorists in the public's eyes. None of them would willingly be spared.
"That situation is what made me mad enough to leave the city," Rainbow Dash continued. "It's not fair that she and her father had to go to prison because she had a spasm that set fire in her kitchen! She didn't do it intentionally, and she wasn't trying to hurt or kill anypony, or destroy anything! It's total bullshit, and it's completely unfair! Not all Burnish are bad ponies, it all depends on how you use your flames."
"...You're right," Twilight said, her voice soft. She looked at Rainbow Dash, and nothing but grief and misery flooded her eyes. "Sparkle's Fire has made life worse for all Burnish. No pony is safe. I only have the leaders before me to blame for this sequence of events, and those that began their Burnish lives destroying everything around them. The good Burnish will be punished for all the things that the bad Burnish do. There is no line between them, there is only one shape surrounding us all."
"Twilight," Lemon Hearts said as she emerged back into the cavern with Moon Dancer and Twinkleshine. "We've checked around outside, it seems like there are no other ponies. We're free to leave whenever we feel like."
"Good." Twilight got to her hooves. "Then I suggest we go. It seems that everypony has eaten and drank their fill. We need to be on the move before the sun comes out."
"We're leaving Rainbow Dash here?" Moon Dancer asked. "I just want to confirm that."
"Yes," Twilight answered her. "She is no threat to us right now. Unless I give you a good reason, don't attack her. She doesn't deserve it. I think she's a good pony."
Rainbow felt flattered, even though she shouldn't. Twilight stared at her with only approval in her eyes, but her expression was dead. She smoothed out the cravat against her neck, and used her wings to motion the other Burnish to follow her. She said nothing, not a command nor a farewell, as they exited the cave. Rainbow watched them leave, and she was alone with her thoughts. The flame that the Burnish had made was beginning to die out, and it disappeared once every pony had left the cave. She stared at her hooves, her thoughts conflicting with everything that she had heard. She couldn't decide whether or not Twilight was telling the truth about what Celestia was doing with the Burnish, but she did know that she had to find out one way or another.
Her eyes felt heavy, and she struggled to keep them open. Despite her nap earlier, she hadn't gotten her full sleep just yet, and she was feeling the affects of it. Her head rolled to the side, and her body relaxed. She fought to hold her eyes open, but eventually she gave in, allowing them to close, and allowing sleep to overtake her entire body.
When Rainbow Dash awoke, light was pouring into the cave from the outside. She lifted her neck, it hurting from the way she had been sleeping. She moved against the crystals holding her in place, but they were still tight around her. She blinked sleep from her eyes and looked in the direction of the cave's mouth, seeing blue light filtering in and moving. Some ponies were coming to find her, it seemed. She flinched as light shined on her. When it shut off, she recognized the other members of Burning Rescue.
"Dashie!" Pinkie shouted, running over to the mare and cupping her face in her hooves. "Are you okay? What happened?"
"I'm fine," Rainbow said with a smile. She was still emotionally hurt from yesterday's events, but she wasn't sure if she should tell everyone else what happened. She was still holding onto Twilight's threat; if she told any pony where the Burnish were going, Sparkle's Fire would kill her.
"Have you been here all night?" Applejack asked to break Rainbow out of her thoughts.
"Yeah," Rainbow answered. "I fell asleep when it was still dark out. I don't know how long I've been out for."
"R-rainbow, what happened?" Fluttershy stepped forward to ask, brandishing her pistol. She pointed to the crystals on the side of the rock, and fired a few blocks of ice. Rainbow shuddered as the crystals broke into ice around her, and the air felt even colder on her skin now that nothing was providing them heat. She got up and stretched her body, finally being able to stand and get all the kinks out of her joints.
"The Burnish," She confessed. "I found a few here and they held me here until they left."
"Burnish?" Applejack twitched her ears. "Well, it ain't no surprise that's for sure. Y'all found a Burnish just yesterday that was livin' in the city without bein' caught. More of em are prolly on the run now."
"I guess so," Rainbow said. She swallowed hard. She was lucky that they couldn't figure out it was Sparkle's Fire that had come out here. She stared down at her hooves, guilt coursing through her body.
"Rainbow Dash?" Pinkie gently nudged the mare. "Are you okay? You look really down, it's worrying me."
"Yeah, I'm fine," Rainbow lied. She smiled and waved her hoof. She flapped her wings and lifted herself into the air. "But, now that you guys have freed me, I have somewhere to be. You guys can go back to the station, I just have something I need to do really quickly."
"What are you doing?" Applejack asked with narrowed eyes.
"I'll tell you when I get back," Rainbow promised her. "I just need alone time for now."
She didn't wait for the other mares to speak again before she dashed out of the cave, a rainbow trail following her. It took her a few minutes of being lost to find the road that lead out of the city. She followed the side of the road, and saw the buildings that made up Whinnyapolis in the distance. She recognized the pointed tops of Celestia's Sunlit Tower and the sisters' castle. She narrowed her eyes and let the smile drop from her face. She took a deep breath and quickened her pace, lowering her head so she could fly faster. She knew exactly where she was going.
Ponies on the ground looked up as she sped overhead, watching as she flew past. Few wondered where she was going, some became worried that a fire had started. She ignored them all as she went straight to Celestia's Sunlit Tower. She skidded to a stop on the steps outside, giving herself a few seconds to catch her breath. She swallowed down the air, and walked up the stairs. She pushed open the doors, and walked to the front desk.
"Hello, Rainbow Dash," The light brown mare at the front desk greeted her.
"Hey Mayor," Rainbow hummed in greeting. "Um... c-can I see Celestia? It's kind of urgent."
"I'm not sure," Mayor Mare scratched her head and looked to the computer at the desk. "Celestia has been quite busy lately with her research, I'm not sure if I can fit you in."
"Please, Mayor?" Rainbow hated begging, but this really was urgent business! "I have to see her now, this is important for her research too."
"Okay, okay," Mayor Mare sighed, pressing a button beside the computer. A beep sound was heard, and she spoke into a speaker on her desk. "Princess Celestia? Rainbow Dash is here to see you. She says she has urgent business to speak to you about."
Silence passed through the room for a few minutes. Rainbow worried that Celestia wouldn't talk with her. Eventually, the speaker buzzed to life and Celestia's voice rang through.
"Send her up," She said simply. Not another word was uttered before the static was cut off.
"Come with me," Mayor Mare said, motioning to Rainbow with her hoof.
The mares said nothing as they walked to the elevator. Mayor Mare pressed the button for the highest floor when they were inside, then moved to stand at the back. Rainbow's wings fluttered with her nerves as the doors shut, and she felt her full weight on the ground of the elevator as it began to go up. She looked at the mayor, trying to catch some feeling in her eyes. Her eyes were blank, staring at the doors of the elevator. She very rarely blinked. Rainbow tried to mimic her, calming her expression and staring at her reflection in the door. She let her eyes widen back to their normal size when the door opened.
"Rainbow Dash," Celestia greeted her from the throne situated at the very end of the room. She spread her wings, and motioned her hoof toward herself. "Come forth, we can speak here."
While Rainbow Dash was busy, the Burnish were still walking. Twilight felt the heat of the sun beating down through the black leather strapped down around her torso. She knew she couldn't rest now, for the fear of Freeze Force units flying overhead and catching them all as they walked.
"Twilight," one of the fillies yelled up to her from the center of the crowd, running forward so they could speak with her as they walked. "My hooves are killing me... can we please rest?"
"Not yet," Twilight said, knowing the filly was going to get upset over it. "I don't think we're safe just yet."
"We've been walking for hours!" Twinkleshine complained. "We've already cleared half of this forest!"
"And tell me, Twinkleshine, have we come across a shelter?" She snapped back at the mare. She didn't respond, and simply looked elsewhere in the woods. "My point exactly. Until we find another safe place, we have to keep going. No where outside of a secure shelter is safe for us. We always start our own flames for warmth, not use what is natural, and if any pony in the air comes across that, we're all going to die."
Twilight hated the truth, and the rest of her group was tired of hearing it. She knew it, they didn't have to make a sound and she knew it. But she didn't mind; everypony had to remember what the dangers were. If they let their guards down for even a moment, they would all die. She flinched as she heard a pony collapse behind her. She spun her head around, seeing the filly that had spoken to her before laying on the ground. Her white hooves were caked with dirt from the mud they had trailed through, but Twilight could tell they were sore. She used her magic to gently lift the filly, and rest her on her back.
"Every pony, a new plan for now," Twilight said to the crowd. "If you can, pick up a foal or an elder. If anything, I think they deserve the most rest. I'm not going to force them to walk any longer on their own. We adults can rest when we find a shelter, but it's not fair for them. Aching joints and little legs shouldn't have to suffer like ours do. When everypony has been accounted for, we'll keep going. Consider this our brief rest."
The ponies sighed in relief at the last sentence, and quickly got to work ensuring that every foal and elder would be safe on their backs. They spoke to eachother and ensured the ponies they held that everything would be alright. The pain would fade when they got their rest here, and soon they would be somewhere safer where they all could sleep peacefully. When everypony was finished, Twilight turned and kept walking. She already heard the filly on her back falling fast asleep, gentle snores emitting from her. She hummed with a smile, knowing she did the right thing now. She should've thought of it sooner, but it only made sense for her to do this now. If everypony could travel on their own, they should until it becomes unbearable. She knew if she was a foal in this situation, she would've pushed on without a pony carrying her.
She sighed, feeling the tiredness even in her legs. She wasn't aware of it until other ponies mentioned it, but her body was aching. She hadn't gotten proper rest in days, too terrified that she would wake up at Freeze Force HQ again. She made the decision to herself that when they got to the new shelter, every pony would rest. Yes, they would have guards to watch over them while every pony else was sleeping, but they all needed to sleep when they could.
"Twilight!" A light blue pegasus said to her from above. Twilight stopped, and looked up.
"What is it Cloud Chaser?" She asked, her head cocked.
"I think I see a new cave over the tree line," Cloud Chaser said. "It looks smaller, but it may go further than the other. It could make a better shelter for us because it isn't so open."
"That sounds perfect," Twilight let a genuine smile come to her face. "Cloud Chaser, lead us to this cave. Let's see just how far it goes!"
Cloud Chaser flew through the trees, and every pony galloped after her. Some of the foals and elders on their backs awoke, but excitement flooded their bodies as well at the fast pace. They must've assumed they were finally getting to safety too, or some of them were scared that they were being chased. The tree line ended sharply by the rocky walls of a mountain, and Cloud Chaser motioned for every pony to come to the small cave opening.
"Cloud Chaser, you head in first," Twilight ordered. "See how far it goes, and we can then be able to tell if every pony can fit."
"Yes ma'am!" The pegasus mare held her hoof up to her forehead, a salute to Twilight.
Cloud Chaser took a deep breath before she dove into the cave, the sound of her flapping wings becoming fainter as she went in further. Twilight waited patiently while the mare went further in. Ponies around her murmured, wondering if they could find anything inside the cave. Some questioned whether or not this place would truly be safe, but Twilight believed in her heart that this was the best place they could possibly be. A cave was their best shelter, and if they were lucky, no pony would know they were there.
"Twilight!" Cloud Chaser finally emerged from the mouth of the cave. "These tunnels seem to go on forever, but there's a huge cave inside! It's beautiful in there... you have to see it!"
"Come on everypony," Twilight motioned for the rest of the Burnish to follow.
She went in after Cloud Chaser, and heard the hoofsteps of the Burnish falling in line behind her as they walked the tunnels. They seemed to be walking for some time until they finally broke into the cavern. Every pony around gasped at the sights inside, and Twilight's eyes even sparkled. The cave was huge, and full of life. Moss was growing across almost every stretch of rock, and a pond made up the center of the cave. A thin waterfall was crashing into the water from a small hole in the ceiling, but it was so far up Twilight could barely tell there was a hole there. Some flowers were sprouting on the moss, and vines stretched down from the ceiling. Few lights lit up the area, that being a few fireflies and the hole that the waterfall was coming from.
"Cloud Chaser was right," Rarity said, her voice breathless as she took in this beauty. "This place is wonderful..!"
"I think this is going to be our new home," Twilight said confidently. "Every pony, let's get to work! We can use the moss to make beds and act as kindling for our fires. Don't get rid of it all, I want to leave some of this natural beauty to grow as long as we're here. We don't need to make homes, we can sleep in the open on the beds. Let's get moving!"
"Yes ma'am!" The ponies filled the cave with their voices.
Immediately, they got to work. On the soft moss, ponies lay down the foals and elders they had been carrying, with Twilight following suit. She got to work with the other ponies as well, rolling up patches of the moss and ripping it in order to make soft nests. The ponies placed their nests together, lining one of the walls of the cavern. When enough nests were made, they set down any extra moss back where they had found it in the hopes that it would grow and spread with the rest. Ponies began chattering happily as they found a nest to settle into. Some complained it wasn't soft enough, but others felt as though they were sleeping in a real bed.
Twilight watched the ponies as they navigated the cave, and drank from the water. She wondered how she could get food to them all out here, but somehow she knew that they would be fine. She sighed, settling into her own nest. The voices began to die down, and she heard some ponies offer to guard the nests while they slept. She didn't hear the rest of their speaking, as her eyes closed the second her side hit the moss. She let sleep take over her, and prayed that everything would be alright.
Meanwhile, in Celestia's Sunlit Tower...
"I don't understand," Celestia said, blinking her gentle eyes. "Why do you want to return your badge?"
"I don't deserve it," Rainbow said, drawing circles on the ground with her hoof. She cleared her throat and lifted her head so she could stare the Princess in the eyes.
"Why wouldn't you?" Celestia tilted her head, confusion in her expression. "You arrested the leader of Sparkle's Fire, and put an end to their attacks on the city. That is worthy of a medal."
"But Twilight Sparkle has escaped," Rainbow confessed.
"...Has she now?" Celestia hummed, resting her hooves on the velvet seating of her throne. "No pony told me of this."
"I met her for a brief moment," Rainbow said with a sigh. "That was the only way I found out myself. But, she told me some things about you, and I... I'm not sure if I should believe her."
"Why would you believe a Burnish?" Celestia questioned.
"I don't know," Rainbow answered. "That's why I came to talk to you, to see if she was telling the truth."
"Well, go on then," Celestia relaxed in her throne. "I want to hear what this 'Twilight Sparkle' has said about me."
Rainbow took a deep breath. She knew Celestia wasn't going to like what she was about to hear. Rainbow didn't want to say it either, but she had to know the truth. This was going to change her entire life as she knew it, and change everything that she stood for. She sighed, finally letting out the breath she had been holding onto. She lifted her head to stare Celestia in the eyes as she spoke.
"Twilight called you a murderer," Rainbow said bluntly. She saw Celestia's eyes widen with shock, but she kept going. "She said that you were killing Burnish for your own personal gain when we and the Freeze Force captured them. She said that she saw it herself in their headquarters, that ponies were covered in bandages and gauze because of experiments that were being done on them. Princess Celestia, please tell me that isn't true. You aren't really killing them, are you?"
Celestia fell silent, her hooves put together in front of her chest. She stared down at the carpet in front of the throne, not saying a single word. Rainbow's eyes widened, and her ears flattened. She blinked, knowing exactly why Celestia wasn't saying anything. She put her hoof over the badge on her jacket, and took it off. She set it on the carpet in front of her, and saw the mare lift her head when she heard the metal unclipping.
"I can't accept this medal," Rainbow said. "I don't deserve it for continuing their suffering, and you don't deserve to give out medals for causing it. Even the Burnish don't deserve a fate like this."
"Rainbow Dash," Celestia said, getting to her hooves and patting down the velvet that had stuck up. "I need you to come with me. There's something important that you have to see before you make a decision."
"What is it?" Rainbow Dash didn't hide the anger in her voice. She couldn't believe that Celestia was doing these horrible things..!
"You'll see," Celestia said.
She walked down the small slope in front of the throne, patting Rainbow Dash on the shoulder before she walked to the elevator. Rainbow Dash followed her, and stood beside her. Celestia pressed a button at the very bottom of the elevator panel, and watched the doors shut. She glanced down at Rainbow Dash as the elevator began to descend. When darkness filled the elevator the further down they went, Celestia turned her head to stare at the door. Light shined in the room, but they were surrounded in darkness. Rainbow glanced up as what was once the elevator ceiling disappeared like a computer deleting its last line of code.
"In order for you to understand what I'm doing, I have to tell you the truth," Celestia said, her wings fluttering as though she were nervous. "Equestria, and the lands outside... they are no longer safe. So long as there are Burnish on our planet, we cannot live here. I'm not killing them to save the planet from the destruction their flames cause, their sacrifice is necessary for us to find a new place to live."
"A new place to live?" Rainbow said in disbelief. "What the hell does that mean?"
"We are researching a new planet for pony kind to live," Celestia explained, staring down at Rainbow Dash. "We've not yet found one, but we are looking as quickly as we can. It is for the good of us all that we find it soon, or else we are all going to die."
The room filled with light as the world around them seemed to change. Rainbow Dash flinched as the light hit her eyes, and she looked down into what seemed to be the very center of a volcano. The magma below bubbled and warped, slowly building and rising. Rainbow felt her heartbeat increasing as the magma began to approach, and she shielded herself as it suddenly enveloped the entire elevator. Not feeling the heat or any pain, she blinked and uncovered herself, looking around at the bright orange that surrounded them.
"Because of the Burnish and their flames," Celestia continued to explain. "The magma in this planet's core is growing out of control. New volcanoes are reported sprouting out of nowhere every day. Many cities are being destroyed because of the lava flows, and the fire that it brings to the forests around. It spreads and it kills, just as the Burnish flames do within our city. We are not the only city with Burnish, even places as far as the Crystal Empire have reports of Burnish attacks. The North Winds are not enough to quench the flames."
"Even the Crystal Empire isn't safe?" Rainbow said, shock making her voice drop barely over a whisper.
"Nowhere is, as I said," Celestia sighed. "When the magma breaks the surface, everyone is at risk, and things have only gotten worse since the Great World Blaze. While most of the fires have calmed by now, the magma continues to rise for every flame that is used. That is why we have begun to develop this."
Celestia tapped her hoof, and the scenery changed again. The lines of the elevator's destination were obvious now. Rainbow Dash gasped as the scenery finally cleared up, and a massive spaceship was before her. She walked to the wall of the elevator, resting her hooves up against it and staring out at the gigantic piece of technology and metal.
"A spaceship..?" She said, dumbfounded.
"This is what my sister and I call the Eclipse. It is the staple of the Warp Project, the plan we have put in place to transport ourselves and the ponies of our choosing to a new Equestria," Celestia said with a smile. "1,000,000 ponies can fit on this ship."
"Only 1,000,000?" Rainbow said in disbelief. "But there are so many ponies just outside of Whinnyapolis! What about them?"
"There's nothing we can do," Celestia said with a wave of her wing. "We can only afford to put ponies in this ship that already come from our city. Of course, the Burnish are coming with us too. Afterall, without them, our ship couldn't run."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Rainbow said, her eyes narrowing. She walked to stand by Celestia again and stare up at her.
"You'll see," Celestia assured her, with a smile that made Rainbow Dash uncomfortable. "Just be patient, and I'll show you everything you need to know."
Author's Note
Just saying it as a spoiler now, y'all better get ready to listen to Kakusei in the next few chapters!
"Mayor Mare," Celestia said to the pony in the elevator with them. "We're going to the project room."
"With her?" The mayor said in disbelief. "Are you sure?"
"Of course," Celestia hummed, staring down at Rainbow Dash with gentle eyes. "She already knows about the Warp Project and the Eclipse. Why not show her what the engine is going to look like, hm?"
"A-alright." The mayor swallowed hard. "I'll inform the researchers as soon as we reach the floor."
"What?" Rainbow looked at Celestia with confusion and concern written on her face. "The 'engine?'"
"Yes," Celestia said with a nod. "I told you that we need the Burnish for a reason, and now I'll get to show you what that reason is. I hope you're as excited as I am! I haven't gotten the opportunity to see a successful test just yet, so I do hope it turns out well."
Rainbow couldn't help but feel scared. Celestia's excitement just... didn't sit right with her. It made her feel sick to her stomach seeing that usually sweet smile be so wide. Her eyes were sparkling as though the sun itself was shining down on her. Rainbow blinked as the doors to the elevator opened into a sleek white laboratory. Ponies in white coats were walking everywhere and talking amongst eachother in low and monotone voices. Mayor Mare exited the elevator, announcing her presence and searching for the researchers she had mentioned talking to.
Celestia tapped Rainbow's shoulder, and motioned with her head for the mare to follow her. The two walked together out of the elevator, and the doors shut tight behind them. They walked down the hall, Rainbow keeping her head low and Celestia holding hers high and prideful. Celestia occasionally moved her wings to pass silent greetings to her fellow ponies. They reached a door at the end of the room, where a scanner was present. Celestia leaned her head down, and opened her eyes wide. The scanner shot out a thin red beam that passed down over her eyes. After a few seconds, the doors opened, and Celestia blinked a few times to ensure she could see again. She walked into the room with Rainbow Dash. Mayor Mare was already waiting for them.
"What is this place?" Rainbow asked Celestia at last.
"This is our main laboratory," Celestia explained as they walked to the window. "Here, we are testing the Prometech pods that are going to act as our engine upon the Eclipse. This is why we need the Burnish; they are going to power these pods."
"What?!" Rainbow's eyes widened and her ears pinned to her head by force. "You're using the Burnish as a fuel source?! "
"Precisely," Celestia stated with no shame. "Now, just watch. Let us see if this works. Activate the warp test!"
"Activating warp test," A pony from beyond the glass said.
Two ponies gathered around a control panel, and a pony inside a glass box waved up at the glass to Celestia. All the ponies beyond the glass were wearing protective yellow suits with blue visors over their faces. Two glass boxes were stationed together on either side of the control panel, and in the center was a metal circle with a pony strapped onto it. Rainbow's eyes widened as she recognized the pony at the center; Saffron Masala, the head chef at the Tasty Treat. She looked dazed, and her coat was much more dull than when Rainbow had seen her last.
"That's Saffron," Rainbow said quietly, putting her hooves up on the glass. "What are you doing to her?"
"Shh," Celestia ordered her to be silent as the test took place.
The circle holding Saffron down began to spin. Her eyes opened wide, and she struggled against her restraints. All at once, the circle reached the maximum speed that it could, and her body was enveloped in flames. Rainbow's body shuddered as she heard the mare scream while she spun. Inside one of the glass boxes, a black triangular shape opened up on the roof. The pony inside jumped to the shape, and was sucked inside. In the other glass box, the same shape opened up, and the pony was spit out as though it was a mouth. They fell to the ground, hitting their head and groaning while they got up.
"Test success!" Celestia squealed with joy and clapped her hooves. "Stop the test, this is wonderful!"
"Test success, shutting down!" One of the ponies beyond the glass exclaimed. They slammed their hoof down on a red button on the control panel, and the metal sheet Saffron was strapped to slowly began to stop spinning. The flames dispersed, and she was left to lay limp again. Her eyes closed, and Rainbow noticed that her hooves were beginning to turn gray, parts breaking off and disappearing into the air.
"She's dying," Rainbow said, covering her mouth with her hoof.
"Don't you see, Rainbow Dash?" Celestia said, the joy of earlier still in her voice. She put her hoof on Rainbow's back and hummed. "With this test showing success, we can begin to assemble the engine on the Eclipse, and we can finally find a new home. Now that we can travel much further than we ever thought possible, the continuation of the pony race is in our sights. We will no longer have to worry about the threat of our planet being destroyed because of the Burnish's flames. We can live in peace on a new planet. Do you understand now?"
"...I do," Rainbow said, defeatedly. She quickly corrected herself and snapped her head up to glare at Celestia. "But I refuse to accept what you're doing to these poor ponies. I just can't."
Celestia stared down at her. Her eyes were blank, but she kept that smile on her face. She removed her hoof from the mare's back. She moved to stand before her, and her wings positioned themselves off of her back as if she were going to take flight.
"So what do you think we should do?" She asked calmly.
"We need to prevent this disaster!" Rainbow said firmly, stomping her hoof on the ground and spreading her wings wide. "We already know that the Burnish flames are causing the magma to go out of control, so why can't we just stop the magma? There has to be some way to tame it!"
"There isn't," Celestia assured her. "The only way for us to continue living as a species is if we leave this planet. The magma is going to kill us all if we stay. None of our technology is advanced enough to try and 'tame the magma' as you're suggesting, and we don't have time to develop it. The way it seems to be right now, we only have a few months before this planet will be destroyed."
"Then I'll do something about it," Rainbow hissed. "I'll do what you can't. I'll stop the magma, I'll free the Burnish, and I'll make sure that no pony has to die!"
Celestia looked at her in silence. She tilted her head to the side, her eyes falling half lidded. She sighed, turning her head to look out the glass at the test site. Her wings rested against her back again.
"I knew that you would say something like that, Rainbow Dash," She finally said, allowing her smile to fall. "I knew it would happen the very second I showed you what was to come. But I can't have you ruining the things we've already gone to build now."
Rainbow flinched as she felt something cold against the back of her head. She turned her head, eyes wide as she saw a Freeze Force soldier behind her. She let her eyes move to see that the pony was pointing a gun at the back of her head. She whipped around, glaring up at Celestia.
"What are you doing?" She demanded to know.
"Take her away," Celestia said to the soldier, ignoring Rainbow's question. "Make sure that she doesn't get in our way. And when you're done, send out an order to Iron Will to find Twilight Sparkle and the rest of her group. He'll know why we're looking for them."
"Wait!" Rainbow yelled as the soldier used the magic from their horn to lift her into the air. She fought against them furiously. "You can't do this! Celestia! Celestia!! "
Her screams fell on deaf ears as she was carried back the way she came.
"Mayor Mare," Celestia said as she turned to the pony in question.
"Yes ma'am?" The pony said, lifting her head.
"Tell the engineers to begin installing the Prometech pods on board the Eclipse," She ordered. "And I want a report on the magma levels immediately. I fear that with our research, our time has been shortened much further than we think. Tell my sister to start contacting the ponies in the city and the Crystal Empire. Regardless of what the new statistics tell us, I want to ensure that every pony is aware of what is going on before it is too late."
"Yes ma'am," Mayor Mare said firmly. "I will return soon. But, what of Rainbow Dash?"
"Don't worry about her," Celestia snorted, glaring at her reflection in the glass. "We'll send her to Fillydelphia's prisons before we launch the ship, and she'll go down with the rest of the creatures on this cursed planet. I'll make sure of it, personally. "
Meanwhile, outside a cavern beyond Whinnyapolis...
"Mayor Mare, give me the report," Tempest Shadow said into her radio, static echoing from it for a few moments before the mare in question responded to her.
"Celestia has issued an order to find and capture Sparkle's Fire," The mayor said through the radio. "Any and all Burnish still in Whinnyapolis should also be discovered as soon as possible, at least that's what I assume she would order as well. Her main focus is on Sparkle's Fire as their leaders are the strongest Burnish on record. Princess Luna has been sent to contact ponies in Whinnyapolis and the Crystal Empire, and I've just put out an order to begin installing the Prometech Pods on the Eclipse."
"Good," The unicorn mare laughed. "We're finally getting somewhere. We're out on the main road currently exiting city borders, we've detected strong Burnish signals from the mountains and we are heading there now. Will report back once all Burnish have been captured."
"We'll be waiting patiently," The mayor said before terminating the signal.
"Did you catch all that, boss?" Tempest said, turning to the driver's seat where Iron Will was situated.
"Iron Will would've caught those ponies without an order anyways!" The minotaur laughed, flexing his arm and using his other hand to steer the vehicle.
"We're going to be leaving soon," Tempest sighed, rolling her head over her shoulders. "Let's try to be quick. What are we going to do with Twilight Sparkle when we get her?"
"Princess Celestia will decide," Iron Will said. "Iron Will is bound and determined to catch her red-hoofed!"
"Yeah, you've been saying that for days," Tempest groaned, burying her face in her hooves. "Sometimes I wish you'd stop being so obsessed with her and focus a little more on your job. We're coming up to a break in the forest anyways. What's your plan for us catching these punks?"
"Easy," Iron Will laughed, hitting the steering wheel with one of his fists. "When they know you're there, you can scare! Iron Will says you ponies frighten them outside, and Iron Will will catch them as they run!"
"You think all of them are cowards?" Tempest snorted. "Well, you might be right. But Twilight isn't a little bitch from what I know. Tell you what, we can focus on scaring out all the cowards, and I'll make a team to fight with Twilight and her little posse. How's that sound?"
"No need!" Iron Will said confidently. "Iron Will has a plan for those ponies."
"Whatever you say, Mister Boss Man," Tempest relaxed in her seat with a sigh.
The vehicles turned into the break in the woods. Their wheels weren't exactly built to run off the road, but they pushed on anyways. This was their duty, and they wouldn't back down just from driving on the ground instead of the asphalt. It was difficult to dodge around few of the trees, and some were even hit by the other vehicles, but they would fall soon. Tempest jumped as one of the trees did fall behind them, hitting hard against the mountain.
"Fuck," She cursed under her breath. "Some idiot knocked a tree down. They have to know we're here now."
"Good! Scare them out!" Iron Will cackled as he pulled the vehicle to a stop close by what seemed to be the entrance to a tunnel. "When the ponies come through here, Iron Will will take them down!"
"Riiight..." Tempest got up, and pushed open the door to the vehicle. "Well, I'm heading inside. You have fun sitting out here and freezing the poor things. I'm going to find Twilight Sparkle."
"Wait," Iron Will stopped Tempest before she could leave.
"What is it now?" She hissed as she turned to him.
"Take this," Iron Will handed her a capsule. She took it in her hoof, using a brief spark of magic to examine it.
"What the hell is this?" She questioned him with a raised brow.
"Celestia calls it an Absolute Zero Bullet," Iron Will explained. "It's designed specially to paralyze whatever it comes into contact with. Use it on Twilight, and aim for the heart."
"Interesting..." Tempest hummed. "Could you tell me anymore by any chance?"
"Iron Will has got just the thing you need!" Iron Will opened a panel on the dashboard of the vehicle, and lifted out a clip loaded full of Absolute Zero Bullets. Within the clip was a small sheet of paper. He handed the clip to Tempest. She opened it, and pulled out the piece of paper, reading off what it wrote.
'Absolute Zero Bullets were developed by the Royal Guard after the first recorded attack on Celestia's Sunlit Tower. These bullets are specially designed for Freeze Force personnel. Absolute Zero Bullets work by absorbing the affected individual's body heat in order to create a prison of ice. These bullets are only to be used in an emergency situation. Do not aim bullets toward self for fear of termination by Princess Celestia or death during ice imprisonment.'
Underneath the explanation was a blueprint describing how the Absolute Zero Bullets were manufactured. A diagram showcased what would happen when an individual was hit with one. Tempest almost felt sick looking at this report, but a smile was still on her face. These bullets were not something that could be easily messed around with.
"Interesting," Tempest laughed. "I'll be sure to use one of these things on Twilight, don't you worry boss."
The two exchanged no further words as Tempest loaded her pistol with an Absolute Zero Bullet, and signaled to some of the other soldiers. The ponies fell in line behind her as she slid on her helmet, her horn fizzling with magic through the top. She held her gun close to her body as she ran to the tunnel entrance, and slid inside. The other soldiers followed in after her, and the loud sounds of their footsteps surely alerted the other ponies. She heard panic begin to spread inside, the pitter patter of hoofsteps and the sounds of flames igniting.
The ponies were forced to a stop as flames began to fill the tunnel. Tempest grabbed the gun on her back, cocking it before firing ice blocks at the flames to freeze them. They shattered quickly after being frozen, filling the tunnel with quick melting ice. They pushed through, and soon burst through the other side. Few ponies were surrounding the entrance, trying to block them out, but they failed. When the soldiers burst into the cave, they let loose and froze the ponies closest by.
"Everypony out!" Tempest shouted an order.
The Burnish panicked as they pushed past, shooting flames from their hooves to try and attack the soldiers, but they too were stopped and frozen. Ice blocks containing these ponies fell around them, and few ponies escaped past them. Tempest heard cut off screams outside as Iron Will and the other soldiers froze the ponies that managed to escape. Tempest gasped as her group was suddenly thrown off their hooves by a larger flame. Her back hit the wall and pain resonated through her entire body. She got to her hooves after she had fallen to the ground, and glared in the direction of where the attack had come from. A group of 6 ponies were stationed together at the other side, and at the front of the group, Twilight Sparkle stood. She hissed as the group surrounded themselves in flames, jet black crystals wrapping tightly around their bodies and creating the armor that they usually were seen with, all except for one pony.
"How did you find us?!" Twilight demanded through her visor.
"We had some help!" Tempest laughed, bringing up the gun containing the Absolute Zero Bullet. She pointed it at Twilight with a smirk that only her mask hid. She cocked her head in a brief motion, staring into the eyes of one of the mares in the group. A silent order, but a well received one.
"Hold still, Twily," Minuette said, pushing past her and using her magic to drop a block of ice onto the alicorn's back.
Twilight had no time to react before the ice quickly spread. She yelled out as her armor shattered around her, and the cold ice froze her wings. Piercing cold seeped into her skin, making her shiver so hard it hurt. Tempest took this as her opportunity to fire the bullet. Twilight shouted out as the bullet embedded into her skin, right where her heart would be. She collapsed to the ground, ice spreading to freeze two of her legs.
"Twilight!!" Rarity screamed.
"You bastard!" Twinkleshine yelled at Minuette as she ran to take shelter behind Tempest and her group.
"Y-you..." Twilight hissed as she thrashed against the ice. "Y-you lead them to us..!"
"Your little deputy here was the first pony of your group we got to experiment on!" Tempest cackled. "We settled on a little deal; we'd only do experiments on her and spare the other ponies in her cell, and we'd implant a tracker in her just in case she ever got out. Lead us straight to you! That signal is stronger than your fires!"
"Minuette how could you?!" Lemon Hearts cried. The flames that made up her mane were even stronger now, licking angrily at the air.
"And what did you do to Twilight?!" Moon Dancer tried to help the mare up, but Twilight cried out in pain and collapsed again as another one of her legs became encased in ice.
"Absolute Zero Bullets," Tempest explained, pulling out the clip filled with them. "They're designed specially to contain you idiots. With any luck, she'll be dead soon."
"We'll see about that!" Moon Dancer yelled.
She slammed her hooves to the ground, expelling flames from underground and setting fire to the moss around the cave. The force of the explosion flung the Freeze Force soldiers backwards. Moon Dancer and Twinkleshine leapt forth through the flames, expelling more from their hooves and drowning the soldiers in fire. Their flames turned into solid ice in seconds as the ponies underneath fired their guns. The mares landed on top of the ice and bent their legs, ready to escape. The ice shattered and launched them up to the ceiling. They fell back to the ground encased in ice when their brief attack was over.
"You never learn your lesson!" Minuette cried and covered her face. "There's nothing we can do against the foundation! We're powerless to stop them, can't you see that?! We can run as far as possible, but we'll never get away from them, tracker or no tracker! They'll always find us... we're all going to die!! "
"That's enough out of you," Tempest grumbled, using her other gun to fire a bullet at Minuette and freeze her entirely. "It's funny how the more you panic, the worse you make things."
"G-god damn you..!" Twilight hissed. She cried out again as her last leg was frozen, and she was struggling even more now to move out of this prison. Through her coat, it seemed like her veins were willing to burst.
"I don't think I really explained how these bullets work." Tempest tapped her hoof. "The angrier you get, the worse that ice is going to feel on you. The more heat you expel, the more it will spread. You may as well just give in, Twilight Sparkle. Regardless of how calm or how angry you are, that ice is going to eat you alive. So why don't you let go?"
"Twilight would never!" Lemon Hearts shouted in defiance. "We won't let you take her!"
"No matter what happens, we won't let Twilight die!" Rarity joined Lemon Hearts.
The two ponies stood together, pointed their horns to the ground, and fired into the earth with their magic. A massive wall of flames burst from the ground in front of them, so many that it was almost solid. The Freeze Force Soldiers leapt forward, lifting their hooves and firing ice against the wall of flames. The two mares gasped as they pushed themselves to their limit to keep the wall up. They were outnumbered because of the soldiers, and Tempest being among them, but they refused to give in. Even as sweat dripped down their faces and sizzled against their armor, they pushed on.
"What are you doing?!" Twilight yelled up at them, managing to move her neck. "You need to leave, they'll kill you!!"
"That doesn't matter!" Lemon Hearts shouted. "We might die, but your life is more important!"
"You're our only hope, Twilight!" Rarity yelled at her, lifting a hoof and aiming it at the ceiling. Lemon Hearts followed suit. "Without you, there is no hope, and there is no flame!"
"As long as you're alive, our flames will never burn out!" The ponies yelled together.
They fired the strongest of their magic from their hooves. A large ball of flame collided with the ceiling, and split a massive hole in the side of the mountain. Smoke and debris fell everywhere around them, and the sun shone brightly in the cave. Tempest got wind of what they were planning, and hissed. She channeled as much magic into her horn as she could, and fired with all her might against the barrier of flames. Lemon Hearts and Rarity struggled against the growing ice, but they refused to back down from their current mission. Saving Twilight was their priority.
"Wait-!" Twilight screamed as flames wrapped around her, quickly solidifying into sharp black crystals that pointed at the new skylight.
"It's okay Twilight!" Lemon Hearts assured her.
"Just get out of here, and we'll be fine!" Rarity tried to reassure the mare.
Rarity and Lemon Hearts looked at eachother, and through their masks they could see the pain in eachother's eyes. They knew what they were doing, but they didn't care about the consequences. They let flames build underneath Twilight inside of the black crystals they had created. The slammed their hooves to the ground, and Twilight was shot free from the crystals like a cannon. They heard her screams of protest as she sailed through the sky like a comet. They knew they had done the right thing, and they could give in. Finally, the flame wall they had built shattered, with ice falling into the pond. Their armor shattered, and though they were perpetually shocked in their ice prison, they didn't look afraid. They had already given their lives for something better than them.
"Dammit," Tempest hissed, seeing the flame trail as Twilight sailed through the sky. "Twilight has escaped. Those idiots... Where is she going?"
"Judging by the trajectory, it looks like she's going to Celestia's Inferno," One of her soldiers said.
"The volcano?" Another pony piped up. "Can even the Burnish survive in that place?"
"Who knows," Tempest sighed, taking off her helmet and staring up at the sky. "These ponies... I'm going to put in a report to Celestia about them. We may have all of Twilight's deputies now, but she's still on the run. Celestia is not going to be pleased."
"We'll deal with her fury later," A soldier said. "We should get all these ponies back to HQ. Fuel is fuel."
"Right," Tempest affirmed with a nod. "Every pony, load up the trucks! We need to get all of these ponies back to HQ! The Warp Project is now underway, let's get a move on!"
"Yes General Tempest!"
The entire time Twilight was sailing through the air, all she could think of was the sacrifice her friends had made. She knew that they wouldn't last long in that cave against Freeze Force, they never did. She couldn't even bring herself to cry, the shock of the situation was too much for her to handle. She wasn't even sure where she was going, but she could feel the ice clawing deep into her skin. Even if the ice melted, god knows if she would be able to move at all. She was launched out of her thoughts as her back hit solid rock, making her yell out.
Her yell was cut off as the ice coated her head, leaving her entirely frozen. She was alone with her thoughts as the ice continued to spread, her prison ever expanding. Even the lava at the bottom of the volcano wasn't hot enough to melt the ice. It only continued to grow in every direction, ensuring that she would be trapped here. Her expression was frozen with her scream of pain when her back collided with the rock, and she couldn't even move a muscle. It seemed as though even her thoughts were freezing, while her heart still burned and begged for her freedom...
Whinnyapolis, one week later...
Rainbow stay curled in the back of the cell she had been placed in, her expression crestfallen as it had been since she was put in here. She had long given up figuring out ways to escape. With her weaponry confiscated, there was no chance for her to escape. She wasn't a Burnish, she couldn't just blast through the door when she wanted, but she truly wanted to. Her ears flicked as she heard hoofsteps outside. She lifted her head and glared at the door when it opened, seeing a pony clad in a white coat walk in. The door shut behind them. Silver coat with a darker gray mane wrapped tight around her shoulders and hung limply over one side to cover her eye. The mare came forth with a plate on her back.
The mare didn't say a word as she picked up the tray with a hoof, and set it in front of Rainbow Dash. They locked eyes for a moment, her violet eyes cloudy. Something was there that was making her upset, but Rainbow couldn't tell what it was. She forced herself to sit up as the pony turned away from her and headed to the door.
"You're one of Pinkie's sisters, aren't you?" Rainbow asked. The mare stopped in her tracks as if she had turned to stone. "Marble, was it?"
Rainbow had remembered her only because she used to frequent Burning Rescue's station. Before Rainbow joined, it seemed like she was always there to visit her sister. Since she began working for Celestia, she was rarely even seen outside. It was as though she lived in her lab. All of her time was spent researching whatever Celestia made her.
"Mhm," Marble finally confirmed after some silence, turning her head to look at Rainbow. Now with the confirmation, Rainbow felt like she could navigate the fog in her eyes with ease. It was sadness, in its purest form.
"And you're fine with all of this?" Rainbow asked accusingly. "Do you know how your sister would feel about you doing this?"
Marble looked back at her, but still she said nothing. She was one of few Pie family members that knew when to keep her mouth shut, but she stayed quiet even more than the rest. Rainbow stared back at her, seeing Marble's expression shift. She didn't realize how hard she was holding the mare's gaze until that look in her eyes shifted. Rainbow sighed, sitting up more properly so she could face Marble head on.
"You do know how she's going to feel when she hears about this... right?" Rainbow said, her voice soft.
"Mhm," Marble stared at the floor, unable to hold Rainbow's tough stare any longer.
"And you're just going to hold off telling her?" Rainbow got to her hooves. Her back felt heavy from the weight of the metal boxes that held her wings down to her torso.
"...Mhm." Marble blinked and lifted her head to look at Rainbow again. Guilt clouded her vision. There was no shine, no light. Only pain reflected out of the deep violet.
"You have to say something, Marble," Rainbow said firmly. "You know this is wrong, I can tell! It's worth risking how Pinkie feels. If somepony outside knows, maybe they can do something!"
"Mh-m," Marble shook her head from side to side. Her eyes widened with what looked to be fear. She rubbed her leg with her hoof, and stared at the wall beside her.
"What?!" Rainbow's lips curled back in a snarl that exposed her teeth. "Why?! Ponies are dying out there, Marble! Why won't you say anything?"
"I-I'm scared for her," Marble said. Rainbow was shocked actually hearing her speak for a change. Her voice was so broken. She wasn't used to talking at all, and it showed.
"...So what?" Rainbow continued, her tail swishing the air behind her. "You're not the one being killed."
"I will be, P-Pinkie too," Marble tried to speak firmly. She held Rainbow's stare, trying to push the same hardness through her eyes. "C-Celestia, she..."
Rainbow waited for her to continue, but Marble didn't speak any further. Rainbow could imagine what she had planned to say. If word began to spread, Celestia would know it was her that spread it. She could be personally executed by the princess, and no pony would know. Her sister wouldn't either; she might die too. Maybe it would be passed off as an accident, and the project would continue as normal without a hitch. Rainbow felt sick thinking of the possibility.
"Fine," Rainbow said. She spun around, sitting back on the ground and resting her forehead on the wall. She couldn't bring herself to eat right now.
Marble uttered not another word as she opened the door, and exited the room. She stared back at the door, wondering if Rainbow was going to do anything. She heard no noise, no movement at all. She sighed, ears drooping at the sides of her head. She shook her head, forcing herself to walk on forward. She didn't bother lifting her hooves to greet the other scientists as she walked. She couldn't even bother to greet her other sister as she walked past. The other mare was stationed by one of the doors to the lab, fully suited up in Freeze Force grade armor. Catching the other mare's low mood, Limestone pulled her helmet off and set it down by the door.
"You, keep watch," She ordered the other guard. "I'm going to pay a visit to our... 'new friend.'"
She said the last word bitterly. The other guard didn't speak, only saluted to her. She adjusted her gun in the sash on her back, and walked the direction Marble had been coming from. She glanced through the windows of each of the cells as she walked past, before she found the one that was occupied. She gave a curt nod to the guard stationed outside before she scanned herself at the door, and let herself in.
"You're not eating?" She asked when she stepped inside.
"Why do you care?" Rainbow said, turning her head to glare back at Limestone.
"Cause this is all you're getting." Limestone tapped the floor, her brief motion to the tray situated behind the pegasus mare. "Celestia plans to have you taken care of by tomorrow, you know. This is the only thing you're getting, she's not going to prepare anything else for you tomorrow. You've already wasted two meals this week, it would be wiser if you just suck it up and quit being a little bitch."
"If I'm going to die anyways, what's the point in wasting food on me?" Rainbow snapped, getting to her hooves and spinning around. "You can take it for all I care!"
Limestone was surprised with the mare's outburst. Clearly whatever she had talked about with Marble had ticked her off. Limestone growled, lowering her gun from her back and pointing it towards Rainbow.
"You better watch your fucking mouth," She hissed. "I could kill you without Celestia's orders and deal with the punishment later. I don't care what plans she has for you, and I don't even know why she's let you live this long in full honesty, but it doesn't matter to me. You're just getting in our way, valuable time spent researching for Princess Celestia is being wasted on bringing you food and checking up on you. I should just get rid of you right here so we all can focus a little more."
"And you're not scared of dying, like your sister?" Rainbow snapped.
Limestone fell silent, her hoof shaking as she held the gun. She blinked, sensing familiarity in Rainbow's eyes. So, this is what they were talking about, she thought. She could understand; Marble was terrified of stepping out against Celestia. Celestia and the Freeze Force admired her 'talk shit get hit' attitude, but they wouldn't dare accept something like that from Marble. Marble wasn't in the same place as her, and she could easily be replaced if the situation arose. Limestone sighed, slipping her gun onto her back once more.
"...Marble is, I'm not," Limestone said after a minute of silence. "She's too busy thinking about family and friends to focus on her work. Since you got here, she's just been... all wrong. It's like everything is bothering her lately, even the smallest things. She almost cried when she dropped some of her paperwork the other day. She isn't a weak pony, but that's not saying she's the strongest one of us all by any means. She has the smarts and the kindness to back her up, but that's all there is. Even Pinkie has a bit of toughness to her... you know, every now and again."
Rainbow sat down, calming down enough to keep her mouth shut. Limestone could almost feel the anger radiating off of Rainbow, like the heat from an open fire. She took a breath, ensuring she could keep herself in check before she spoke again.
"Point is, Marble stopped being herself since you showed up," She said. "And judging by her reaction just now, you two didn't have the best conversation. Mind explaining?"
"It wasn't that bad," Rainbow said. She drew circles on the ground with her hoof. Her wings tried to flutter on her back, but were weighed down by the metal boxes holding them in place.
"Tell me," Limestone insisted. "It's not like I'm going to spill anything."
Rainbow lifted her gaze, staring Limestone in the eyes. Limestone caught onto the look in Rainbow Dash's eyes that meant she was suspicious. She could understand; she didn't need to pretend that she didn't. She was part of the Freeze Force, and Rainbow Dash was a prisoner who was for the other side. They weren't exactly good friends by any means. Finally, Rainbow lifted her head and chose to speak.
"...I asked her why she's letting this research happen," Rainbow said with a sigh. "It just seems weird to me that she's willingly letting other ponies have their lives sacrificed because of what Celestia wants. I asked her if she would tell Pinkie, and she said no. She said she's just scared that she and Pinkie could die if she openly mentioned what was going on in the lab here. She seemed more focused on saving her own life than every pony else's."
"Wouldn't you?" Limestone asked accusingly. "If it were me in her position, I'd rather keep myself and my sister alive over anything else. Why is that a bad thing?"
"Because," Rainbow growled. "Hundreds of ponies are dying right now because of the research Celestia is doing. I've seen it happen. I watched one of the Burnish turn to ashes in front of me because of what you are doing to them! Twilight Sparkle told me herself, and I couldn't deny it when I saw the effects in front of me. Ponies are being murdered by Celestia and no pony is saying anything about it! No pony outside knows, and no pony in here has the balls to speak out against it, not even you!"
"Excuse me?" Limestone hissed, her ears pinning to the sides of her head. She lifted a hoof, ready to grasp her gun.
"You heard what I said!" Rainbow slammed her hoof on the ground, making Limestone jolt. "You're keeping quiet about it too. You're part of the Freeze Force, and it seems like you don't see anything wrong with what's going on in here and outside. These ponies are just trying to live their lives, and you're killing them. You're using them until there's nothing left of them. You don't care what happens to them, just like Celestia you're all focused on your stupid space plans than trying to save lives! And for what?! Because they have to burn things to the ground just to stay alive? You're murdering people who just want to live, and you're scared of being unable to save your life."
Limestone opened her mouth to speak, but quickly clamped her teeth back together and kept quiet. She stared at the floor with narrowed and wide eyes. She knew deep down there was nothing she could say to convince Rainbow otherwise. She was right; Limestone was just as much of a coward as Marble was. She shut her eyes, feeling the weight of the guilt pulling her down to the Earth. She didn't know what would happen if she spoke out against Celestia, but she knew now that she really wanted to deep down. She opened her eyes, allowing them to soften up as she looked at Rainbow.
"You're... you're right," She said finally, watching Rainbow's face turn from anger to surprise. "I'm a coward too. Maybe I am scared of death, and maybe I'm letting this go by willingly... but as much as I'd love to put a stop to this, Celestia won't listen to a lower class pony like me. She doesn't care about my opinion, it's only hers that carries us to our future. Or, at least, the future she wants us to have. Without the Warp Project, there is no real future for any pony in Equestria, unless you count death as an option. Regardless of what happens here, ponies are going to die; Burnish, the royals, normal ponies like you and me, nothing is going to be left."
"We can do something about it," Rainbow said. "Celestia arrested me because she didn't want me to interfere, but I want to stop the magma in the Earth from spilling. If we can find a way to stop it, then we don't need to leave. We can stop the Burnish from dying, we can live in peace with them, and we don't need to find a new planet. We can stay here, and live out the rest of our lives."
"Celestia would never allow that," Limestone managed to chuckle. "I'm sure she told you that already. No pony can interfere with her plans. They'll be arrested, or they'll be killed. Either way, nothing can stop her."
"Where there's a will, there's a way. That's how the old saying goes, isn't it?" Rainbow tilted her head with a grin. "Maybe Celestia doesn't have to know."
"You're evil," Limestone snorted. "And how do you suppose you're going to stop this world-wide disaster, eh? You're just one pony, and no offense, but I don't think you've got the brains to invent a fixer-upper overnight. As much as I'd love to agree with your idea, it's stupid and impossible."
"Maybe so, but I'll find a way," Rainbow said. "I just need to get out of here, and then I'll have all the time in the world to think."
Limestone fell silent, trying to think on her own. She stared at the door behind her, before she trotted forth. She lowered her head and her voice so she could speak to Rainbow Dash.
"Listen, I might have an idea," She whispered. "But nobody else can know about it, not even Marbs."
"What is it?" Rainbow whispered back.
"I can break you out," Limestone said with a grin. "You can get out of here, and I'll come with you. If we're lucky, then we can find a way together to get to the root of this issue. Just maybe, we can stop this disaster before Celestia can go any further in her plans."
"And you'll seriously work with me?" Rainbow asked.
"If you let me, I just might," Limestone promised. "But I'm going to need you to keep this a secret. If you can do that, we're home free. And when we escape together, you've got to keep me out of the public eye so I can save my flank, got it?"
"I'll try," Rainbow affirmed with a curt nod. "But this is all just assuming I don't get out of here before we get our plan in motion..."
"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Limestone chuckled softly. "I'd hate for all this conversation to go to waste."
"But you'd still work with me even if I broke out early, wouldn't you?" Rainbow cocked her head to the side.
"Maybe," Limestone said, lifting her head and straightening her back. "For now, I'll see what I can do before Celestia decides to ice you tomorrow. You need to eat your food though, get your strength up so that you're prepared. I can only do so much; you'll have to do the rest for me."
"Got it," Rainbow sat down, lifting the tray up in her hooves.
"I'll get going now." Limestone turned around and headed for the door. "See ya, Dash."
"Later Limes," Rainbow waved to her with a chuckle as she began eating.
Limestone hummed. She was sure that nickname wasn't going to stick at all, but oh well. Whatever made her happy. She sighed, letting her expression fall back to its usual state as she exited the room. The door shut behind her, and she walked back to her post at the door. She nodded to the other guard that she was stationed with, and slid her helmet back onto her head so she could continue her shift.
Meanwhile, at Burning Rescue Station...
"Everypony," Applejack said, catching the attention of her fellow members. Pinkie drew her eyes away from her computer screen, and Fluttershy blinked her eyes to get sleep out of them. They both stared at Applejack, worry overcoming their features.
"I-is there news about Rainbow D-Dash?" Fluttershy asked nervously, her wings fluttering on her back as she sat up out of her hammock.
"Unfortunately," Applejack sighed, her ears drooping. "Ah got a call from Mayor Mare today. Told me Rainbow'd been arrested."
"What?!" Pinkie gasped in shock, her ears falling. "Why?!"
"She tried attackin' Celestia it seems," Applejack said.
"T-that's ridiculous!" Fluttershy exclaimed, covering her muzzle after. "R-Rainbow Dash would never... y-you don't believe that, d-do you Applejack?"
"It doesn't matter," Applejack shook her head. "It matters that Dash was arrested. Ain't nothin we can do about that."
"Isn't there something we can do?" Pinkie asked, feeling her mane beginning to flatten around her body. "Dashie doesn't deserve to be in prison... she'd never do something like this! I just know it! She's too good of a pony!"
"Mayor didn't tell me anythin' about a bail," Applejack said with a shrug of the shoulders. "There ain't nothin we can do but wait for em' to release her, or wait to hear the... bad news."
"D-don't say that, AJ..." Fluttershy whimpered, pulling her side mane over her muzzle to try and quiet herself before she could cry.
"This can't be happening..." Pinkie wasn't sure what else she could say...
She couldn't believe what she was hearing! First that Rainbow was arrested, and second that she tried to attack Celestia?! She wasn't sure what to believe, but Applejack was right; what was she supposed to do? She stared at the keyboard of her computer, her thoughts blank. She let tears roll down her face as her emotions overwhelmed her. She was broken out of her thoughts as she heard the sounds of wheels scraping the asphalt outside.
The ponies turned as Freeze Force vehicles covered the entrance to the garage. From one of them emerged Tempest Shadow. She lifted her helmet off her head, shaking out her mane as she walked into the station.
"You, pegasus," She pointed at Fluttershy with her hoof. "You need to come with us, immediately."
"W-what?" Fluttershy blinked, panic filling her eyes. "Why?"
"Don't ask questions," Tempest said firmly, stomping her hoof on the concrete. "Just get in the truck before we blast you."
"Fluttershy, what's going on?" Pinkie looked at Fluttershy with fear in her eyes. Fluttershy said nothing, her body reflecting that same fear. She was paralyzed, like a deer in headlights.
"Fluttershy?" Applejack said, putting her hoof on the mare's shoulder and bringing her out of her trance.
"I-I... I don't want to go," Fluttershy said finally, though fearfully. "W-we... we're busy. W-we just learned that R-Rainbow Dash was arrested. I-I have to stay here to help t-them save her."
"I didn't ask for your sob story, Snow White," Tempest said, brandishing her pistol from her belt. "Celestia wants you to be part of a little... 'project' that we're working on."
"Why can't we come?" Applejack asked. "Why just Fluttershy?"
"Because you're unimportant," Tempest said. "We need her. We need her flames. "
"Flames?" Pinkie's eyes widened. She stared at Fluttershy and her body began to shake. "I-is she telling the truth? F-Fluttershy you're a..?"
Fluttershy's eyes flickered with light. She pressed her hooves into the ground, wings spreading behind her back. Pinkie had never seen her be so serious before. This was a side of Fluttershy she had never seen before.
"I-I said I'm not leaving," Fluttershy said firmly, though the stutter she always carried with her broke her appearance of being strong and held together. "M-my decision is final."
"Oh, fine then..." Tempest hummed dully. "I guess we'll just have to take you by force ."
Without warning, Tempest fired a few blocks of ice from her gun in Fluttershy's direction. Fluttershy seemed to be one step ahead of her. She flapped her wings hard, dodging out of the way of the bullets. She brought her forehooves together in the air, expelling bright flames from them. The flames only grew in size as they dove for Tempest. Pinkie and Applejack shielded their eyes as the light of the flames filled the station and nearly blinded them. They heard Tempest cry out as she was flung backwards, her gun sliding on the ground beside her. When they looked back again, Fluttershy had disappeared.
"Follow that mare!!" Tempest shouted to the other soldiers.
Applejack and Pinkie ran outside, seeing Fluttershy propelling herself down the road. They shielded their eyes as the Freeze Force vehicles sped down the road, chasing after the fleeing pegasus. Pinkie and Applejack were left in shock at the events that just unfolded before them.
"T-this whole time, Fluttershy was..." Pinkie whispered.
"Fuck," Applejack hissed, hitting her hooves on the ground and bucking the wall beside her. They were down two members, and she was rightfully pissed about it. She and Pinkie were all that was left of the group, with Rainbow Dash being arrested and Fluttershy being on the run because she was a Burnish.
So many things had happened just today. Pinkie felt her head spinning. She held her head, feeling nausea pooling in her stomach. She blinked rapidly, her vision blurring and her legs becoming wobbly. She heard Applejack say her name before she collapsed on her side, fainting on the side walk.
Meanwhile, in Celestia's Inferno...
Twilight's burning desires never failed her now. Even amongst the ice, her flames emerged from the magma below. The snake like forms they took on cried out in fury and despair as they threw themselves against her icy prison. The solid walls of frozen water had continued to expand over the entire week she had been trapped within Celestia's Inferno. None of it wished to melt, and none of it wished to break. It was as if her flames were hitting against solid bedrock, but they pressed on. Twilight's desires fueled their energy, and their energy was endless. Twilight still remained, trapped in limbo inside the ice, her pained expression having softened as the ice overtook her. But deep within her, her flames still burned brighter than they ever had before...
And the very second her eyes finally snapped open, the ice around her shattered into millions of shards.
Author's Note
MAHARI YUWARE-- /ref
The scene, it approaches!! Are yall ready for the next chapter?? Cause I sure as hell am!!
When the ice shattered, the full force of Twilight's fury was unleashed. Flames cloaked her entire body; darker, and fueled with much more hatred than she was usually capable holding onto. Her body was bathed in jet black, and even her coat itself had caught fire. Massive raven wings spread from the places her original wings had once been, the edges blazing with blue flames. Her horn had broken in several places, but it had grown several inches, and it too was created with the brightest blue fire she could control without help. Flames even sparked around her eyes, pointing up to the sky as if they were her own personal pair of wings. Her mane didn't look like a part of her body anymore, but an ever burning flame that was hotter than the sun itself. Her eyes had been dyed a bright white, fuchsia pupils standing out against the blankness, their only purpose to showcase the inferno raging deep from within her soul.
She gasped, feeling the bullet still lodged in her chest, trying with all its might to stab into her body with ice. She wrapped her hooves around it, twisting it and grunting in pain. She screamed as she ripped the bullet free. Between her hooves, she could glare at the cursed object that had began her suffering. She pressed onto it, crushing it between her hooves as though it was made of glass. Her body felt hotter than it had ever been before, and fury forced her once paralyzed body to move with the wind.
"Celestia," She hissed, never before having heard such anger in her voice. "I know what you are now, and I am determined to make you pay for your transgressions! "
She flapped her wings, raising herself into the air above the volcano. Her entire body was shaking, anger pulsing through her and making her blood boil. Flames burst from the magma underneath her, surrounding her entire body and stretching for miles. She surrounded herself in a flaming ball of anger that even the sun would quiver in fear seeing. Around the shield she had created for herself, the body of another creature began to form, and her shield was the eye at the very center. The magma that she carried from the volcano solidified into crystals, and they came together to create the glistening shape that one could only identify as a dragon; the same dragon as the ones that inhabited the lands surrounding this very volcano. As the magma solidified, the volcano erupted around her and split the ground apart.
She felt no pain as the volcano shattered from every angle, expelling magma into the sky that rained down in balls of hot lava. They burned everything around as they hit the Earth, and hard rock made craters in the ground as it fell from the skies. Twilight took control as the center of this great beast she had summoned, snaking through the ground and bursting at the surface as she began to move toward the city.
"Celestia!!" She shouted to the sky, hoping that her voice could carry to Whinnyapolis. She could see it in her sights. The sight of this city standing tall and proud only further fueled her fury. "You will know pain, and I will ensure it! All of Sparkle's Fire stands with me, and with their might as my energy, you will burn in the pits of hell from which you were birthed!! "
As she screamed to the open air, the dragon that she had created screamed a war cry into the sky. The scream carried for miles, echoing through the walls of the city. She still had distance to go before she would reach the city, but she was approaching rapidly. The Earth below the beast she made cracked and burst open with fire and magma. Lava flowed from the ground below, trailing from the volcano she had been trapped within for so long. She didn't care about the destruction right now; she knew exactly what she was chasing, and she was determined to reach her goal no matter the cost. She forced the head of the beast into the ground, digging through the Earth and burying underneath the city.
As she dove through, she tore through the pipes that made up the fire hydrants stationed around the city. From their placements on the sidewalks, flames emerged instead of ice. They shot through the sky, spreading flames everywhere that they could touch. From the intersection of one of the streets, Twilight allowed the dragon to burst through into the sky, destroying the structures in the area around her. Glass and debris fell around her, and smoke and dust filled the air.
"Princess Celestia, hear me!!" She screamed. Her voice carried as far as Celestia's Sunlit Tower. "Hear me now; free all captured Burnish this instant! This is my only demand, and this is the final time that I will ask this of you. If my brothers and sisters are not freed soon, I will level Whinnyapolis, and destroy everything that you have built! No amount of ice can tame my fury, not until you yourself have been crushed beneath my flames!! "
The maw of the dragon opened wide, crying out as flames burst from its jaws and fell in waves onto the tallest buildings in the area. The blaze dripped off the buildings like searing waterfalls onto the ground below. Glass shattered as flames quickly traveled through the floors, and burst on the sides. Twilight took no care in sparing any lives; every pony around her was against her existence, and they supported the beast that ruled this city. In her furious gaze, every pony was at fault for her suffering, and the murder of the ponies she cared for so dearly. No pony deserved her mercy... not a single one. She made her own note of that as she twisted the dragon's body, slicing through one of the buildings and watching almost with glee as it crumpled to the ground. The impact made a crater in the street and knocked several other buildings down with it, but it also temporarily trapped the dragon's crystalline body beneath. She hissed as she wiggled her way free, the dragon crying out in rage, before she continued her onslaught throughout the streets.
In one of the buildings nearby, a wall had broken open into the prison cell where Rainbow Dash had been situated. She ran to the opening in the wall, staring out at the immense destruction in the streets. She coughed, covering her muzzle and squinting her eyes as the smoke hit her. Panic rumbled through her head like storm clouds; she had never seen this much destruction in her life! When she wondered what could be causing it, the answer flew past her. She looked up to see the head of the dragon that Twilight had created, still spewing flames from its open jaws as it roamed the streets like a wild animal. She squinted, looking up to its eye and spying the huge raven wings that faintly flapped within.
"Twilight?" Rainbow blinked, surprise taking over her features. "I-is that Twilight?"
Her eyes moved down, watching as a blue flame burst from around the eye of the beast, spilling into the air and dropping to the ground like rain. It flowed across the road, setting what little greenery remained alight. It pooled around the buildings around, but that wasn't what Rainbow was focused on right now. Her face softened as she realized what this flame symbolized. For a moment, she felt as though she could see the tears on Twilight's face.
"...Twilight..." Rainbow whispered, her wings fluttering on her back. "She's crying... she's in pain."
She gritted her teeth, and leapt out of the building to the street. She could worry about the consequences of escaping her cell later. She knew she had to help Twilight, and stop this rampage. Limestone was going to be pissed, but Rainbow Dash couldn't be focused on that, and no amount of threat from Celestia would stop her from doing her duty as part of Burning Rescue. For the safety of her city, and for the pony at the head of it all, Rainbow had to stop Twilight before things got worse.
But in her head, Twilight was nowhere near done. She would never be done until she had dealt with Princess Celestia herself. As she roamed the streets, she heard the sounds of rapidly spinning blades overhead. The beast turned its head, allowing her to catch sight of what was making such a hideous noise. Her eyes burned even deeper with hatred as she spied the familiar logo of the Freeze Force overhead. Her world paused as bullets of ice were fired from the vehicles, and wrapped tightly around the dragon's head, bursting on the spot. But Twilight wouldn't let this ice stop her. Seconds after the ice had formed, it shattered into pieces, falling onto the ground around her and freeing her from the endless cold. Blocks of ice stabbed through what little dirt made up the city's scenery, while other pieces that had been expelled smashed through windows and the steel that held up the skyscrapers.
"You've gotten weaker since I've been gone," She taunted the squadron flying above. "Now get out of my way, loathsome bugs!! "
The beast opened its jaws again, screeching louder than before as it fired its own crystalline bullets towards the vehicles. Few of them were shot down, and for others, the wings that made them capable of flight were destroyed on impact. Fires caught as they descended to the ground, ramming into buildings and the road below. Many of the vehicles exploded on impact, leaving a crater and a raging fire in the center. Surely the ponies and creatures inside those vehicles were dead now, but Twilight didn't care. She paused, turning the head of the beast as she felt the wheels of one of the vehicles rolling across the dragon's scales. She hissed, moving her hoof to control one of the beast's hands.
The hand traveled down the beast's body, and crushed the vehicle between its claws when it lifted it off its scales. But the onslaught wasn't finished just yet; Iron Will had emerged from the vehicle before its destruction, and had managed to bring his own weaponry too. The minotaur laughed as he ran up the beast's scales to the head, firing blocks of ice at the eye the entire way. The ice was weak against a flame this large, and melted off within seconds of contact. Twilight glared at the minotaur as he approached, and when he came close enough, she let her eyes snap shut, trapping the creature under the eyelid of the beast. He struggled against the force, and with his luck he was freed; but not in the way one would expect. Twilight used her energy to fire the minotaur into a nearby building, making every floor above the impact site collapse in on itself, and send Iron Will tumbling to the hard, smoldering ground below.
"I've had enough!" Twilight shrieked into the sky, lifting the head of the beast. "Face me, Celestia!! "
The dragon screamed with her, their voices echoing through every street in the city. She was certain that Celestia had heard her now, and she was desperate to engage in combat. Her body craved to be in the center of the battle, but until that happened, she would destroy every last street in this city. The entire city could burn for all she cared. As fire dripped from the beast's mouth like drool, she could ensure that it all would turn to ashes when she was done with it. She would rather be killed herself than allow this cursed city to stand tall another day.
On the street, Burning Rescue was having the hardest time putting out the rapidly spreading fires. Applejack had put all her energy into driving the truck down the streets, while Pinkie's focus was ensuring that the flames they sped past were put out. The hoses were continually filled and refilled with pallets of ice that were fired off instantly into the surrounding buildings. They were trying desperately to stop the flames, but the flames were moving fast. With only two ponies running the truck, it was a difficult task to handle properly. Regardless of the struggle, they sped through the streets to do their jobs.
"Applejack!" Pinkie yelled to the pony from inside her room. "This is endless, the flames just seem to keep popping up out of no where! It seems that all the Freeze Force ponies have been shot down as well; there are no other ponies that can help us stop these flames! We're all that's left!"
"It's goin' to be alright, Pinkie!" Applejack tried to reassure the mare. "Just keep your focus, we'll stop this!"
As they sped down the road, Applejack recognized a sight up ahead; another flame, but it wasn't on a building. She drove up next to the sight, and looked to her side as she recognized the lit pony speeding down the road.
"Rainbow Dash?" Applejack questioned in surprise.
"Applejack!" Rainbow turned to look at the mare as she ran. "Applejack, there's a huge fire! We need to put it out, quickly!"
"There's one on your flank, Dash," Applejack pointed out what Rainbow Dash had clearly missed.
"What?!" Rainbow Dash looked behind her, taking notice of the flame that had caught itself on her tail.
Her wings broke free from their metal boxes with the immense force the shock of finally noticing the fire gave her. She patted herself, trying to put out the flame as she flung herself through the air, eventually diving inside of the firetruck. Pinkie let her excitement of seeing the pony wait as she grabbed a gun from the wall, firing ice at the flame on Rainbow Dash's flank in a desperate attempt to put it out.
"Applejack!" Rainbow Dash said as the flame began to die out, bringing up Applejack's figure on Pinkie's computer screen. "I'm coming with you guys to put out these fires!"
"But weren't you..?" Applejack started.
"Don't worry about it!" Rainbow assured her, waving her tail when the flame finally died out. "What matters right now is putting out these fires and saving lives, and I want to go for the biggest flame! Pinkie, I'm going to have to ask for your help!"
"Eh?" Pinkie perked as she put her gun back on the wall. "Why me?"
"I know what's causing these fires," Rainbow explained, running to the other side of the truck where the mechs were stored. "It's Twilight! I don't know how it happened, but she got pissed enough that she's destroying everything! I saw it when I was in my cell; I've never seen her this upset before. Whatever the reason is, somepony needs to stop her before she destroys all of Whinnyapolis! And you can help me in your aircraft!"
"Oh boy, adventure!" Pinkie squealed. "Applejack, are you gonna be okay on your own?"
"Ah've done this before," Applejack assured them. "If this Twilight is really startin' these fires, y'all need to stop her fast. Worry about me later, worry about ya'selves now!"
"Yes ma'am!" Rainbow laughed, pulling over a metal crate from the wall.
"I fixed up your fancy mech, by the way Dash!" Pinkie giggled, patting the mare on the back. "Applejack's orders. Turns out she liked how it ran and wanted me to make it a fully fledged project! You better not destroy the entire thing this time, dummy."
"I'll do my best!" Rainbow scratched the back of her head and laughed. She bumped hooves with Pinkie and shared a bright smile with her.
She forced the metal crate holding the machinery open and climbed into the seat while Pinkie loaded it up into the cannon attached to the firetruck. Outside, the cannon stretched out to its full length and aimed itself in one direction. Rainbow Dash took a deep breath, preparing herself for what was to come. Pinkie slammed her hoof down on a button at the computer, and laughed joyfully as the cannon began warming up. In seconds, it had fired Rainbow Dash in the metal crate into the open air and between the still standing buildings. The mech took its shape when it was out of the cannon, wrapping around Rainbow Dash's body and cloaking her in metal and ice. She pulled the metal rod that contained her spear out from the back of the mech, spread her wings wide, and flapped her wings hard to push forward. She sailed through the air at her top speed, ready to put her plan into action...
Meanwhile, at the center of the city, Twilight was still busy. While she was no longer spreading fires, she patrolled the streets like a lion, terrifying any pony that was still inside their home; any pony that was witness to this destruction daren't face this raging beast. She glanced to the side, looking down the street and spying the destination she had hoped to see the most... Celestia's Sunlit Tower . The dragon turned, head down so she could glare past its mighty scales at this building. She paused allowing herself to take in what she was about to do. She took a shaky breath, clenching her teeth and spreading her wings so wide that they hurt. She slammed her wings down and forced the beast forward. It screamed in fury and raced toward the tower at the fasted speed she could manage to make it.
From the tower, several sections of metal hoses emerged and shot freezing beams of ice at the dragon, ice so cold that even Uranus would shiver from. For a moment, her beast was pushed back from the force of the flames, beginning to coil around itself as its body caught up with it. She hissed, allowing flames to build in the beast's throat. The flames expelled from the back of the dragon's mouth, wrapping around the tower and shattering the hoses that spewed the frozen water at her. She brought the beast forth, coiling in layers around the tower and gripping onto it with all its might. It screamed, shooting flames from its maw to destroy the other hoses that burst around the tower. Metal and shattered ice fell in bundles around the great building and filled the streets below, useless against Twilight's fury.
Twilight paused her rampage as her eyes trained on something on the tower's roof. Her entire body shook with rage as she recognized the pure white alicorn, standing almost proud on the edge of the tower. Her hair flowed beautifully in the wind, and her horn was glistening with golden magic. Her expression was hardened, and her wings were spread wide. One of her hooves twitched as she craned her neck forth and opened her mouth.
"Sparkle's Fire!" She yelled up at the dragon. "I am here!"
"Celestia..." Twilight allowed herself to whisper, teeth clenched together harder than before.
Her hooves were shaking, and her eye twitched. Her wings had stopped flapping, but still she hovered at the center of the flaming ball she had created as her shield. She pressed her hooves together against her chest, feeling it rising and falling rapidly as her anger overtook her body. Her face felt even hotter than before, and she was nearly sweating. The dragon's mouth opened wide, channeling all of the energy it could manage in its throat. Celestia herself prepared for an attack, spreading her legs and lowering her head. Her horn glistened brighter than even Twilight's flames, ready to put an end to this attack on her city. Twilight bit down hard on the air as she sucked in a lungful, and prepared herself to fire and destroy this pony once and for all...
...But suddenly, she was forced to pause as something collided with her shield, sending the dragon's head flying in another direction. She recognized the cold feeling of ice through the flames, and heard the voice of a pony she had only spoken to very little before. She barely had time to be nostalgic as she felt her heart beating in her head and stomach, and boiling blood pumping through her body...
"Twilight Sparkle!" Rainbow Dash shouted as her hooves pressed against the shield. Her armor was beginning to melt from the immense heat, but she ignored it and the pain it brought with. Despite the shaking in her legs and wings, she held on.
"You again?!" Twilight snapped, her horn glowing bright with flame and magic. "Get out of my way, you vile stain!! "
She fired a beam of teal flames at Rainbow Dash, but the pony seemed unfazed. The pegasus mare lifted her visor and pushed forth with all her might.
"Your flames aren't hot at all!" She yelled, digging her hooves further into the shield. "You've destroyed enough of this city, Twilight Sparkle, and it's time someone put a stop to your rampage! No matter how much you burn and how much you destroy, we won't stop putting out your fires! Your rampage ends today!"
She lifted her spear, channeling as much of her strength as she could to stab into the eye of the dragon. At the contact site, ice began to spread to cover the flaming ball Twilight had used as a shield. Twilight gasped as the beast screamed, and its entire body was encased in ice in seconds. Rainbow Dash had put all of her strength into this attack, and her plan had worked. Twilight's fury melted through the ice, propelling her and Rainbow Dash through the air. The pegasus held her tight between her hooves, even though the alicorn struggled like hell to escape. As they sailed through the sky, they soon found themselves rolling into the container of an aircraft, and hitting against the metal walls. At the head of the aircraft, Pinkie sighed in relief as she caught the two ponies, half terrified she would've missed them. She pulled up at the control panel, forcing the aircraft to lift up from the ground and splash water everywhere as she sailed over one of the city's pony-made rivers. The door shut tight on the container seconds before the uplift could've thrown the ponies within out into the water and dirt.
The aircraft flew into the sky over the city, blowing smoke out of the way from the still burning flames so that the pilot could see. Pinkie silently hoped that Applejack was doing alright on the ground, putting out the fires by herself. She grunted as the aircraft jolted, and flames burst from the closed door at the back of the ship. She brought herself back to reality, realizing that her job wasn't entirely done yet, and Twilight's fury had not been tamed so far...
Author's Note
Hoooh boy I've been waiting to write this chapter since I started this book! I hope you guys enjoyed it; this was SOOOO much fun to write!
Chapter 10: Questions Answered
Within the aircraft, Twilight's fury was still at an all time high. Her body still was lit with fresh, raging flames, and her eyes showcased more anger than every part of her could. While she had lost her creation, she had not lost her flame. Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, was almost entirely calm on the outside. Her expression was hardened, ready to face Twilight head on with all her might. She knew there had to be some way to calm Twilight down, but Twilight wasn't set on it just yet. As her horn lit up with magic, Rainbow took to her quick thinking as her best guide. She brought up her spear and deflected the beam of magic that Twilight fired at her, it fizzling out against the wall when it realized it wasn't going anywhere useful.
"You!!" Twilight hissed, lunging for Rainbow and lighting up her hooves with magic. "Why did you have to interfere?!"
"You were destroying the city!" Rainbow yelled at her as she brought her hooves up. Her hooves collided with Twilight's and froze the flames she had spewed. Twilight flapped her wings hard and flew herself backwards, slamming her hooves on the ground to free them from their icy prison. Shards of ice coated the ground, but quickly melted knowing the heat of Twilight's flames was too much for them.
"But I had Celestia where I wanted her!" Twilight snapped. "I could've put an end to this, and you stopped me!! "
"What good would killing Celestia do?!" Rainbow growled in retort.
Twilight launched herself forward again, snaking under Rainbow Dash. She rolled onto her back and bucked the mare into the ceiling, shooting flames at her from her back hooves. Rainbow coughed as the flames collided with her, and she forced her hooves down to freeze the flames around her. She kicked through the ice and watched it shatter on the ground around her before she flew to the other side of the room to look back at Twilight.
"If there was no Celestia, there would be none of her experiments!!" Twilight shouted. "There would be no murder and genocide, because no pony would be authorizing it! And you're allowing her to continue by stopping me!!"
"And you'd be no better for killing her!" Rainbow Dash retorted as Twilight leapt for her.
"You bitch!! " Twilight shouted as she tackled Rainbow Dash.
The ponies rolled together, firing quick kicks and punches of flame and ice at eachother. Rainbow ignored the searing pain burned into her coat that each hit brought to her, and the cold of the ice couldn't affect Twilight's flame-kissed form. When Rainbow rolled onto her back on the floor, she flapped her wings and launched Twilight into the ceiling. Twilight grunted as she hit the hard metal, briefly feeling pain flash through her body. She fell onto the floor in front of Rainbow Dash, and shook her head as she got back to her hooves. Rainbow looked back as some of the metal that made up her armor broke off onto the ground, but she looked forward to focus on Twilight before she could be attacked again.
"Twilight, don't you remember anything you've told me?!" Rainbow Dash flapped her wings hard. "Haven't you always stressed that Sparkle's Fire doesn't kill?!"
Twilight hissed and pinned her ears back, but very quickly paused as the sounds of mechanical creaking were heard. She and Rainbow stared down in unison at the floor beneath them, before it suddenly split in two and dropped them into the air. They were too shocked with the sudden motion to spread their wings and catch themselves.
"You two, calm down!" Pinkie shouted from the front of the aircraft. "Take a chill pill, ponies!"
Rainbow couldn't focus enough to unfurl her wings as she and Twilight began plummeting to the ground. Beneath them was the lake where Rainbow had first heard of the Burnish's hideout in the cave. The waterfall was still roaring strong beside them. Rainbow hissed as Twilight's body fully ignited in flames again, the heat concentrated around them both as they plummeted. When they hit the water, steam filled the air. Twilight's flames were hot enough to evaporate all of the water around, and send a massive steam cloud flowing through the area. Trees were blown to the side as the steam flowed free, blanketing the area in pure white vapors. Pinkie pulled up in her aircraft, the spinning blades that kept her in the air blowing hard enough to clear the steam from around her. As the vapors cleared, she could see the ponies laying at the bottom of the natural basin that once held the lake's water.
Twilight had finally returned to her normal state, panting and curled in on herself. The sleeves of her jacket had gotten burned away when she returned to normal. Her body was littered in bruises from her assault on the city, and her fight with Rainbow Dash. The pegasus mare in question groaned as she sat up, rubbing her head. She had definitely landed on her head. She looked to Twilight, having to take deep breaths of her own.
"Twilight..." Rainbow groaned, getting to her hooves and stretching her back and wings. "Are you calmed down yet..?"
"Yeah..." Twilight sighed, using one of her wings to push herself into a sitting position, before she too stood up and stretched her aching limbs.
"Twilight, Dashie!" Pinkie shouted from above. The ponies looked up as Pinkie landed her aircraft. She opened the hatch that made up the windshield, and poked her head out. "Look!"
Pinkie pointed at where the waterfall had once been. The ponies turned to look, and noticed a massive cavern that had seemingly been behind the waterfall before.
"What the hell?" Rainbow scratched her head with her hoof.
"There's a whole computer system back there!" Pinkie said with sparkling eyes, motioning the ponies over to the aircraft. When they trotted over, she showcased the screen on board that she usually used for a GPS system. "It was hidden behind the waterfall, completely untouched. Dashie, did you know about this?"
"No, I didn't!" Rainbow shook her head back and forth. "I only slept here by the lake before finding Twilight, I had no idea that there was anything back there!"
"Neither did I," Twilight said. She looked back at the cavern with mild curiosity in her eyes. "What's it doing here..?"
"I can explain," A computerized voice suddenly spoke out of thin air.
"Wha-?!" Rainbow Dash's coat stood on end, and the trio of ponies bunched together, eyes glancing around the area in a panic.
The ponies stared at the waterfall as a shape manifested before them. It seemed like a pony, but their body composed was entirely of a pale blue substance, separated in diamonds and triangles; it looked just like the crystals Twilight could create with her flames. Their face was unrecognizable, and their eyes were a blank white. The pony moved their head, curly hair now sharp in their crystalline state.
"Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle," The pony said, voice now identifiable as that of a mare's. "I've been waiting for you both."
"Who are you?" Rainbow asked, her wings spread defensively at her sides.
"And... how do you know our names?" Twilight questioned, much calmer than Rainbow Dash.
"I'll explain things to you soon," The crystallized mare said, motioning with her hoof towards herself. "Come with me, there is something important I need to show the both of you. Pinkamena, you can come as well."
"Umm, it's Pinkie actually!" Pinkie stuck her tongue out and hummed. "But okie dokie! C'mon guys, let's go see what the funky crystal pony wants!"
Twilight and Rainbow stared at Pinkie, then the crystal pony, then at eachother. Their expressions showcased their confusion and the distrust of this situation, but they chose to follow anyways. The crystal pony walked to the mouth of the cavern behind where the waterfall would be flowing, her body occasionally glitching out and lightening as she walked. Rainbow and Twilight walked close together, while Pinkie happily bounced the entire way. The ponies let their eyes wander around the pitch blackness that made up the cavern. Twilight ignited the light on her horn, acting as a sort of lantern while they walked. The crystal pony ahead had disappeared, but they continued to wander in the hopes she was still leading them somewhere...
Celestia's Sunlit Tower, Whinnyapolis...
"Princess Celestia," Mayor Mare spoke to the Princess as she approached. She dipped her head in respect for the pony before she continued speaking. "The fires in Whinnyapolis have come to a full stop. Many of our buildings are destroyed, and Freeze Force is still trying to make notes of casualties in the city. Whatever had caused the fire has, supposedly, been dealt with, and activity is resuming as normal."
"Good," Celestia hummed, lifting her head and staring out at her city. "Then I want to make this order to you; find Tempest Shadow and Iron Will, and make them begin contacting the ponies still alive. The Eclipse will be taking off shortly."
"What?" Mayor Mare's eyes widened. "Princess Celestia, we're scheduled to be leaving in 6 months. Why now?"
"The reports already came back showcasing that the magma in the planet has increased beyond our original estimations," Celestia turned on her hooves, and walked past the pony to the elevator. "But, with this idiot Burnish's rampage, I'm sure that they are far worse now. There is no time left to prepare and test our plans. We need to leave before the planet splits."
"But... but the project is still unstable in its current state, your Highness," The mayor pressed. "We haven't had the opportunity to fine tune the engines just yet, and they are still being installed on the ship. You can't expect us to--"
"Tell the ponies in charge to work faster ," Celestia said firmly, glaring back at the pony. "If they don't, we're all doomed, and no pony will survive. I'm going to save every pony, and I don't want to hear any excuses. Now come, we have work to do!"
"Y-yes ma'am..." Mayor Mare said sheepishly, walking to the elevator and joining Celestia inside, not uttering another word as it descended. When it reached the ground floor, the Mayor exited the elevator, looking back at the Princess still inside. Celestia gave her a curt nod before pressing another button on the panel, and descending into the laboratory below. Mayor Mare sighed and broke into a gallop. She headed outside of the building, on her way to search for the creatures Celestia had instructed her to.
Inside the waterfall cavern, the crystal pony finally appeared before the group again. She motioned to an elevator at the back of the room, glistening bright with golden light. Twilight shuddered seeing the light, reminded of the earlier events. Rainbow patted her on the back, a silent reassurance for her. Twilight looked up at her, saying nothing, before she walked into the elevator, and turned as Rainbow and Pinkie walked in after her. The crystal pony watched the doors close, and disappeared from the other side. The elevator began to descend, and lights lit up the outside as they went down. The elevator was made of glass, so they were able to see as the lights turned on during their descension. They had no idea where they were going, but Pinkie was the only one of the group who was excited. Rainbow and Twilight weren't quite sure how they should feel, but they weren't excited by any means.
They wobbled slightly as the elevator came to a stop. They still weren't sure where they were, surrounded in nothing but pitch blackness. Pinkie tapped the ponies on the shoulders and pointed to the elevator doors as they opened, revealing a stretch of circular lights in the floor that were turning on one by one. They were in a single row, continuing to light their path forward. They exited the elevator, walking along the path that the lights were creating for them.
"Where are we..?" Rainbow Dash mumbled as she looked around. "I've never seen any place like this."
"Beats me!" Pinkie laughed. "Whatever this place is, it's toootally giving me inspiration for my new party cave! I want to have funky lights in my floor too!"
"Is that really what you should be focusing on right now?" Twilight said to the mare, unamused with her antics.
"Nope! But it's fun to think about fun!" Pinkie clapped her hooves together. "But, in all seriousness... I'm not sure where we are at all. It feels like we're walking on metal, and there sure is a lot of mechanical noises in the walls. Maybe we're in some sort of lab?"
"Maybe you are," The crystal pony spoke, appearing out of nowhere beside them and frightening them all backwards. "This is my laboratory. I used to frequent this place when I was alive."
"When you were... alive?" Rainbow tilted her head.
"What does that mean?" Twilight asked, her eyes narrowed. She would never say it or show it outright, but her body was tense, and solid like rock.
"Look." The crystal pony lifted her hoof and pointed at the wall. The ponies looked up at where she was pointing, confusion on their faces. In a moment, the entire wall lit up, playing a video and revealing to them that it was a screen they were looking at. The video was old, and colourless, but showcased three ponies that they all knew well; the two sisters, and the ruler of the Crystal Empire.
"I don't understand," Celestia said on the screen. "What's so bad about using the Prometech pods?"
"They're dangerous!" Cadance, the pony that had lead them here, said firmly. "Burnish are going to die if we use them. There is no way we can use them safely."
"That's preposterous!" Luna said, her voice echoing in the room of the research lab. "Haven't you been working to fine tune the machine?"
"I have," Cadance admitted. "But to see if it works, I would need a Burnish subject to test on. I can't risk hurting them to test my machine, and I won't. The only way these pods are going to 'function' is if the Burnish use their flames, and using them in this state will kill them! We can't risk anymore lives for this project."
"I see..." Celestia said softly. "And no pony else knows about this?"
"No," Cadance said. "It is only us three who are aware of it. Even our top scientists are unaware of what I've been doing here. They would never truly accept any of my research if I told them about this. No matter if the device was fine tuned or not, no pony likes the insinuation of impure sacrifice."
"I understand," Celestia said with a nod. She turned to Luna, her expression invisible to the camera. "Sister, it seems we are just going to have to take things into our own hooves."
"What?" Luna said with shock, staring at Celestia with wide eyes.
"Celestia?" Cadance pinned her ears back. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"You know what it means," Celestia hissed. "We need this research. If pony kind is to survive, we have to use the Prometech pods when the Eclipse is finished being constructed. I can't sit here waiting for the Earth to explode, and Equestria to perish, while the answer is right here. Regardless of what you say, pony kind must live on, and I won't let any cowards stand in the way of this race's continuation."
"Celestia--" Cadance's rebuttal was caught off by her own scream as Celestia lowered her head and lunged forth, stabbing her in the chest with her horn. Her horn emerged at the back of Cadance's neck, just barely. Twilight, Rainbow, and Pinkie's gasps filled the room. Pinkie covered her eyes, and Rainbow's wings spread wide in shock. Twilight felt her heart drop into her stomach as she stared at the screen, terror in her eyes, watching Celestia remove her horn painfully slowly from the wound she created.
When Celestia finally pulled back, her horn was covered in blood, and Cadance had collapsed on the ground. Her eyes were wide open, and her legs spasmed as she bled.
"Celestia!" Luna shouted at her sister before running to Cadance's side. "W-what have you done?!"
"Collect her research," Celestia ordered her sister. "Leave her here, I don't care what happens to her after this point. We're taking all of her research and returning home."
"B-but Cadance..." Luna let tears roll down her face, staring at Celestia with fear in her eyes.
"I gave you an order!" Celestia snapped as she cleared the blood from her horn. Few blood droplets rested around the base, soaked into her single coloured hair and making it appear darker around the horn. "Now collect everything and transport it back immediately . You will not tell a soul about the events that have occurred in this room, or I will ensure that no pony living on our new planet knows that you existed in our history."
Celestia caught sight of the camera recording the events that took place here. She glared up at the lens, her horn glistening with magic again. She curled her lips in a snarl as the camera glistened and sparkled, showcasing that she had took hold of it in her magic. The screen cracked and the glass shattered, and the video turned to static. It didn't take a rocket scientist to know what had happened. In the end, Celestia had crushed the camera, and this footage was assumed to be lost... The ponies viewing the recording stared at the screen, eyes widened with shock.
"Celestia..." Pinkie's mane had fallen straight around her shoulders, and tears were welling in her eyes.
"She is a murderer," Rainbow whispered, shock in her eyes. "I-I thought..."
"I always knew," Twilight said, swallowing hard. Her ears dropped by the sides of her head as well. "I knew she was killing Burnish, but she even killed the Crystal Princess. But then... how did she lead us here?"
"There's an easy answer," The crystal pony, Princess Cadance, said as she appeared behind them, once more making them jump and spin around to face her. "After Celestia destroyed all the evidence of her murder, and Luna stole my research, I clung to what little life I still had. No matter how long Celestia would stay to ensure my demise, I held on. I was able to back up my consciousness into my super computer, so that I could live again, and meet with any pony that would be lucky enough to discover my laboratory."
"So, who are you really?" Twilight asked, holding her head high. "If you're really Cadance, what were you doing all those years?"
"I was the head scientist in the Crystal Empire's own anti-Burnish protection laboratory," Cadance explained, unblinking. "I worked in combination with Celestia's scientists and researchers, as the Burnish first appeared in my city before hers, despite what everypony now thinks. Nearly every weapon that you see these days being used against the Burnish was developed and tested by me."
The room around them lit up, showcasing training videos and testing logs. Every wall around them was a screen, revealing every invention that Cadance had helped to create. Guns, armor, shields and mechs... they all filled the screens.
"Fireproof armor, instant freezing bullets," Twilight named off few of the recordings as she looked around. "Those cuffs... they're the ones used by the Freeze Force to detain Burnish!"
"All of these were your inventions?" Rainbow asked, turning to the projection once again, and forcing her expression back into its usual state.
"I recognize them all, except I don't see..." Twilight looked around the screen again. "The... the Absolute Zero Bullets. They aren't here."
"I didn't make those," Cadance quickly said, shaking her head.
"But you said that--"
"Like I said, most of them are my inventions," Cadance said with a hum as she cut off Twilight. "Celestia did develop a few devices by herself, but that was only from referencing off of my own research. She gave her teams the ideas, and they were the ones who fine tuned them. By extension, I can only be credited for giving her the inspiration, and laying out the original blueprints."
"Wait," Rainbow looked back at Cadance. Her wings were fluttering, and betraying her tough expression by showing how afraid she really was. "If you died before the Eclipse was fully built, how did you know who we were?"
"By chance," Cadance chuckled, her voice still sickeningly sweet, even through the echo the computer had given her. "As a computer, I can do many things now. I can't run by myself, so I've been linked to Whinnyapolis's main database for many years. Every thing that you've done that's been important has been fed to my memory. I've heard of your attacks, your accomplishments, and Rainbow Dash's recent arrest of course."
"Can we not talk about that?" Rainbow Dash groaned.
"You were arrested?" Twilight looked at Rainbow Dash with surprise. "Why?"
"It's a long story," Rainbow sighed. "Celestia took me into her laboratory, showed me the Eclipse. It's a spaceship that she's been working on. And... while we were in the lab, she showed me what she was doing with the Burnish. She's been using the Prometech pods so that she can warp through space, and find a new planet for everypony to live. Apparently the magma in the Earth is going crazy, and pretty soon it's gonna go ka-BOOM!" Rainbow made a dramatic noise and spread her hooves wide before she went back to her serious explanation. " ...And it'll kill everypony on the planet. She's using the Burnish to power the engine of the ship, and over time, it's killing them. I saw it happen for myself."
"What...?" Twilight said, anger twisting her face again.
"The Prometech pods are unstable," Cadance said, anger taking form in her voice as well. "I refused to use them because the only way they could function is by feeding off of the pain of the Burnish, as you saw in the video. I was trying to push myself to develop a variation of the pod that wouldn't harm them, but Celestia didn't let me because I refused to bring them to the public eye before they were done. She took my research, she developed the pods anyways, and she's tormenting these poor creatures for her own gain!"
"That's worse than I thought," Twilight stared at the ground, her face clouded with guilt and rage. "How could she do this to us..?"
Rainbow could understand how she felt. She had felt the same kind of pain when she saw what Celestia was doing to Saffron. She had felt that kind of pain when she watched that mare die in the cave, despite Twilight's attempt to save her. To a degree, she could understand why Twilight was hurting, but she couldn't imagine living it every day. Being on the run, and knowing that her fellow ponies were being killed and tormented, and now being aware that they were being used as a pony fuel source? Rainbow tried to see into the mare's thoughts, but even she couldn't navigate them. If they were her own, she'd hurt her head trying to sort them out.
"Things are about to get much harder from here on out," Cadance said, staring at the screen on the wall again as it lit up.
"What do you mean by that?" Rainbow asked, ears pressing back.
Twilight lifted her head and stared at the screen, eyes going wide. Around one section of the city, towers were ascending into the sky and creating a rectangular shape. The pillars spread out from either side, creating walls and dragging that piece of the city into the ground. From where they once stood emerged what looked to be a massive rectangular spaceship, coated in black and glistening with neon blue streaks around the edges. At the very front of the ship, Celestia's Sunlit Tower stood tall, staring out over the ship.
"The Eclipse," Rainbow whispered, eventually bringing her voice to a yell. "They're planning to depart now..!"
"What?!" Pinkie gasped. "But didn't Cadance just say their engines are unstable because of the Prometech pods?!"
"Celestia doesn't care!" Twilight snapped. "She murdered Cadance, stole her research, and now she's killing my brothers and sisters!!"
The ponies were broken out of their yelling as the ground shook beneath them. They looked up at the screen again, the camera panning to showcase Celestia's Inferno in the distance. Magma shot out of the top of the volcano, and rocks broke from around the eruption point. Lava and solid stone collapsed all around the mountain, raining hell down on the world around and spilling down the sides like fresh water from a faucet.
"The magma in the core is beginning to spill," Cadance said. "The world as we know it is beginning to end."
Chapter 11: Equestria's Ending
"But why?!" Rainbow snapped, flapping her wings and carrying herself into the air. "Why is this happening?!"
"I can explain if you'd be quiet for a moment to let me," Cadance said with a sigh. "And unfortunately it goes along with some of Celestia's ideals. The Burnish are causing the magma in the core to overload."
"Excuse me?" Twilight hissed.
"Don't get upset," Cadance said, waving her hoof and making her computerized expression as gentle as she could. "It isn't for a bad reason that I agree with her, but it is because of her that it becomes a bad reason. What she's doing to the Burnish is causing the magma to overflow, and that's why the world is going to end."
"How?" Rainbow demanded to know as she landed on the ground again. "How are the Burnish the reason that this is happening?"
"Because of what lingers in the center of our planet," Cadance continued. The horn on her head ignited, and the screen began to change to display what she was explaining. "The Promare in the core, that is why the Burnish are responsible for this destruction."
"Promare?" Twilight tilted her head.
"These little creatures are responsible for the flames that you possess, Twilight," Cadance looked to the mare with a hum as the screen changed. It showcased a diagram of the Earth, its center dyed a bright pink, just like the flames Twilight had often been seen wielding in battle. "What you have been seen using are not real flames, in truth. These flames are simply the byproduct of the energy these living creatures are creating. It is that energy that pushes you to burn and gives you life. The reason that you are responsible for the disasters that are spouting up now is because of the over-usage of these 'flames,' and the pain Celestia is bringing to the Burnish she has detained."
"What?" Pinkie flicked her ears, trying to get a good grasp of the situation at hoof.
"The Promare can feel your pain," Cadance said, hitting the screen behind her with her hoof and changing the screen again with her magic. "As they feel your pain, they get hotter and hotter, they're heating up the magma like boiling water. When it can't handle it anymore, it bursts from the Earth's surface and spreads out as lava. The more pain they experience, the stronger these feelings get. The more Promare the feel pain, the more destruction they are going to bring with them. Celestia is causing the world's destruction because she is instigating this event; the planet is going to die only because Celestia continues hurting the Burnish, the only ponies that the Promare trust with their abilities."
"But the Promare do not come from this world," Cadance continued, changing the diagram again. "They are beings from another universe. When the Great World Blaze occurred 30 years ago, what really happened was that time split, and connected these universes. The center of our planet was replaced with a Promare core instead of our own, enabling very few of us to harness these flames and wield them willingly. Because of this other dimensional link, my research has proven that time warps are possible... but the way they are being used comes at a cost that we've already discussed."
"It will destroy our planet," Twilight stated, her wings fluttering as discomfort spread through her body.
"Precisely," Cadance let the magic stop flowing from her horn, and the room went dark again. "The Promare will continue to spiral out of control and continue their path of destruction unless they are stopped, that is why I brought you here. Twilight Sparkle, and Rainbow Dash. I have a simple favor to ask of you; I want to ask that the both of you stop Princess Celestia, and save our planet from destruction."
"Us?" Rainbow's eyes widened with shock. "You want us to stop her? Why?"
"Well, you are the only ponies that have discovered my lab," Cadance laughed and covered her mouth, her body temporarily glitching out. "A Burnish, and a firefighter... it is good luck that you ended up here."
"You were relying on luck to make us show up?" Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Well, that's stupid."
"Maybe, but luck was on my side," Cadance hummed, swishing her tail behind her. "Now that you both are here, you can use my greatest invention, complete with my finalized version of the Prometech pod. And I can assure you, Twilight Sparkle, that you will feel no pain."
"Eh?" Twilight blinked in surprise.
"Come with me, we don't have much time left." Cadance didn't wait for the ponies to respond to her before she began racing down a hallway.
"I'll get my aircraft!" Pinkie shouted after them, running in the opposite direction, back to the elevator they had come down here in.
"What did you mean by that, Cadance?" Twilight asked as they ran. "What is this 'invention' you're taking us to?"
"It is a mech that I created in the time after my death," Cadance explained. "I knew there had to be a way to stop Celestia, and so I pushed on to make something that would ensure her defeat. I was never able to use it because I am only one pony, and not a living pony at that. I need two live ponies to power the machine; a Burnish to make it run, and a living pony to pilot it. You both dropping here was absolutely good luck, and you'll get to use it to the fullest extend to stop that tyrant!"
Cadance slammed her hooves down on a button in the floor, and a large metal door opened up ahead of them. Twilight and Rainbow shielded their eyes as light poured into the room. Cadance lead them up a staircase, and at the very top was another control panel.
"You both," Cadance pointed to them, then to a panel in the wall. "There is a Prometech pod and a control panel there. Twilight, you must get in that pod so that you can power the device with your flames. Rainbow Dash, you will be the pilot behind the control panel. Go, now!"
The ponies didn't question as they ran to the panel in the wall. Twilight flew into the Prometech pod, being shrouded in blue and white light as she made herself comfortable, standing on her hind legs and pressing her hooves to the walls on either side. The metal was cold, but it felt comforting for a change. Rainbow Dash leapt in behind the control panel, sitting down in front of it and staring in surprise at all the buttons and levers ahead of her. She had no idea what any of them did, but she was sure to figure it out. Cadance hit a button on her own control panel, waving to the ponies as they began to ascend out of the ground. Metal boxes contained whatever it was that they were inside of, but those boxes shattered in halves when they finally breached the surface.
When the boxes fell, it revealed what they were inside of; a giant pony mech. Clad in pure white metal, with split sections at the knees of the legs to showcase blue glass chambers. The face of the pony mech was what they were situated in, with Twilight acting in place of the brain and Rainbow Dash in front of the windshield that acted as the eyes.
"Pretty cool, right?" Cadance laughed, her voice echoing over the speakers inside the mech.
"I suppose," Twilight shrugged. "How are we supposed to work this thing?"
"It's quite simple," Cadance hummed. "Twilight, when you use your flames they will be channeled throughout this mech. As long as there are enough flames acting as a power source, this mech can run until they burn out. When you use your flames, you will feel no pain; it's as though you're using them for your own purposes outside. Rainbow Dash, since you are at the control panel, you are in charge of making sure that the mech can run. It can fly, use magic, all those fun sorts of things, as long as Twilight is in there with you."
Twilight hummed, deciding to test for herself if this worked. She shut her eyes, her entire body becoming cloaked in flames that passed through the entire mech. Rainbow watched as the flames spread through the glass chambers, and changed the blue tint to bright pink as they traveled through.
"Wooow..." Rainbow said in awe. "This thing is kinda pretty... I wish the design was a little better though."
"Quit complaining," Twilight rolled her eyes. "We have more important things to worry about than the design."
"Yeah yeah I get it," Rainbow complained as she slammed her hoof down on a red button at the center of the panel.
The mech's windshield lit up bright white, and the wings on its back spread. Its horn glowed as it flapped its wings down toward the ground, and flung itself into the air. Rainbow set her sights on Whinnyapolis, and began flying the mech there. As they flew through the sky, Rainbow took notice of the dark aura around her, and glanced back at Twilight.
"Something tells me you aren't the happiest mare in Whinnyapolis," She said.
"So?" Twilight narrowed her eyes, tensing her shoulders.
"It's fine, you don't need to be so tense," Rainbow laughed. "I know it's a lot to take in. You know, your flames being aliens and all, and hearing what Celestia's doing to the Burnish. I get it, it's nothing that you can accept really easily. But you shouldn't let that get you down, Twily."
"What?" Twilight blinked, her eyes softening at the nickname.
"I'm just saying," Rainbow let a grin come to her face. "We're working together now, and as long as you're with me, you should let your soul burn! Let Celestia know what it is you came here for, and show everypony who exactly they're fucking with! Have a little pride, Twily. That's what all you Burnish want to show off, isn't it?"
"...Yeah," Twilight said after some silence, letting determination fuel the fire in her eyes, and the flames powering their mech. She shut her eyes, and the flames around her hooves burned hotter than ever before. "I'm tired of being down in the dumps. Let's show those bastards what a real blaze can do."
"That's the spirit!" Rainbow laughed, pushing forward on the levers controlling the mech to make it fly even faster.
Though she couldn't feel the wind hitting against the metal, she could just imagine it blowing her hair around, and it felt incredible. She glanced to the side, spying Pinkie's aircraft flying along side them. When they locked eyes, the ponies saluted to eachother. Rainbow couldn't hear it, but she could hear Pinkie laughing as her mane re-inflated. She had barely taken notice to the fact it had been down before, but she was happy to see Pinkie back to normal again. She focused back on their flight pattern, and let her own pride fill up her face. This was going to be the greatest thing she'd ever do in her life, and she'd make everypony remember it when it was all over!
"Do you have any plan for this at all?" Twilight asked as they got closer to the Eclipse.
"Nope!" Rainbow said with a laugh. "We don't have enough time to think about what to do, I think it'd be better for us if we just dive straight in and let fate take its course!"
"You're so stupid, it's baffling," Twilight groaned, rolling her eyes, and staring up ahead. "Whatever, let's hope you've got some sense in you still."
"Hey, I'm still the pilot you know!" Rainbow looked at Twilight upside down, and stuck her tongue out.
"Then shut up and pilot," Twilight stuck her tongue out in retaliation.
Rainbow huffed and pulled her head back down so she could focus on flying. As they approached the Eclipse, she narrowed her eyes seeing panels opening around the base of Celestia's Sunlit Tower. She gasped, realizing what they were opening for. Smoke trailed through the air as projectiles flung at their mech, ice blocks hitting against the metal and freezing in places, only to break off to the ground below. One in particular hit the head of the mech, and sent them sailing into the deck of the ship, head first. Rainbow was flung down onto the ceiling as the impact hit, and Twilight hit her head against the wall.
"You idiot, what are you doing?!" Twilight hissed. "What did I just tell you?"
"My bad," Rainbow groaned as she sat up. "I really just can't get into the zone with this thing..."
"What the hell does that mean?" Twilight glared daggers down at the mare.
"I mean, have you seen this thing's design..?" Rainbow pointed to a diagram that appeared on the control panel. "How am I supposed to do my job in this?"
"I come here to help you pilot this stupid thing, and this is the shit I'm getting?" Twilight grumbled. "Fine, let me make it more 'appealing' for you, your Majesty."
She shut her eyes tight, concentrating all her energy to even the outside of the mech. Flames burst around the mech's hooves, and quickly fell over the metal like waves of water. Rainbow heard alarms beginning to go off inside of the ship, but she ignored them as she watched the mech begin to change around them. Black crystals made from the flames solidified against every leg, wrapping around them like snakes catching prey. The flames burst from around the mech's wings, destroying the metal, but in turn replacing them with massive raven wings; Rainbow recognized these wings as being the same kind that Twilight had grown herself when she began her destruction of Whinnyapolis. Nice touch, she thought with a chuckle. She forced the mech out of the ground, and let it land on its hooves as a sharp, glowing blue horn emerged from where a metal horn had previously been on the mech's head, and flames burst around the windshield to frame it.
"Celestia!" Rainbow called out through the mech up to the tower. "Your reign of terror is over, this is where it all ends! You better be prepared, because even your huge spaceship is no match for the Twilight Rainboom! "
"The what now?" Twilight raised a brow, staring down at Rainbow Dash.
"Well, Cadance didn't give this thing a name," Rainbow laughed as she turned to the mare. "I figured I might as well name it myself! Just feel grateful that I named it after you, Twily."
Twilight rolled her eyes, feeling her cheeks heat up with blush. Well, at least she appreciated the gesture. Unfortunately though, they had more important things to focus on than Rainbow's stupid naming system.
"Rainbow-!" Twilight looked back and yelled out in surprise to the mare for her to focus.
Rainbow looked back just in time to catch a missile that had been sailing for them. She grabbed it between the mech's hooves, holding it tight before flying into the air using its newfound wings, and throwing the missile onto the ship. She covered her eyes as the missile exploded on the ship's deck, making it rock back and forth. A huge crater was created where the missile struck. Rainbow outstretched one of the mech's back legs, and sailed down toward the crater, kicking into it with all the strength the mech had. The kick broke through the surface of the deck, sending shards of metal into the makeshift city below. Rainbow forced the mech's hooves to pull against the hole they had made, trying to push it wide open to fit inside.
"We need to find where they're keeping the Burnish!" Rainbow said to Twilight.
"We'll just have to dig through!" Twilight yelled back, cloaking her body once more in flames to power the mech. "Hold on, everypony, we're going to save you!"
"Twilight, Rainbow!" Pinkie shouted, her voice echoing inside the mech's main room. "Look up, the ship is trying to warp!"
Rainbow turned the mech's head up, just to see a massive black rectangle in the sky. It looked big enough just to fit the entire Eclipse. She recognized what it was; that was their warp portal. She had seen a smaller version of it inside Celestia's lab before she was arrested. She hissed, pulling her focus away from the hole in the deck, and racing with the mech to Celestia's Sunlit Tower.
"Celestia, where are the Burnish?!" She yelled, bringing the mech's hooves up and slamming them down around the tower's base repeatedly, punching into the metal with all its might. "Tell us now!!"
The tower was wobbling as Rainbow forced the onslaught. She was determined to either bring this tower down, or force an answer out of the Princess in exchange for it to keep standing. Either way, she wasn't ready to give up her attack just yet. She flapped the mech's wings, forcing it to fly backwards before she slammed forth, ramming the mech's hooves against the tower base. She heard the metal creaking, ready to collapse at any given moment.
"Rainbow, be careful!" Twilight hissed. "If that thing falls, it could crush us! And there are innocent ponies in there; we can't risk their lives!"
"Ugh..!" Rainbow growled, forcing herself to stop attacking the mech.
"Guys, look up!" Pinkie warned the ponies.
Rainbow made the mech look up so they could see. From the top of Celestia's Sunlit Tower, one of the outlooks was beginning to fall. Rainbow gasped, slamming the mech's wings down and making them fly backwards as it came crashing down, slamming into the deck of the ship. The impact of the outlook made a massive hole in the ship, more than big enough for Rainbow and Twilight's mech to fit through. They leapt in after it, and landed inside the makeshift city. They stood back as the outlook began to change, revealing itself as its own personal pony mech.
"You..!" Celestia hissed from within as the mech formed. Bright white metal towered over their black crystals, and almost filled the entire street space they were occupying. "You both need to stop interfering with things you know nothing about! This is my city, and my spaceship... and I'm not about to have you both destroying it!!"
Chapter 12: For Equestria
"You've done this to yourself, Celestia!" Twilight retorted, flaring her wings behind her. "You're the only one destroying your city!"
"Liar!" Celestia shouted, her own wings flaring out at her back as she pulled up the levers of the mech, raising it onto its hind legs. "I am saving my city. What have you done for my city other than destroy our buildings and homes?!"
"That doesn't matter!" Rainbow slammed her hooves down on the control panel. "You're murdering thousands of ponies for your own gain! You're trying so hard to be a 'hero' for your ponies, but you're sacrificing innocent lives for them! You can't claim to be a hero when all you've done is kill!!"
"You act as if you're different!" Celestia hissed, pulling together the hooves of her mech. Rainbow flinched as she saw bright white light bursting from between the metal hooves ahead.
"Run," Twilight whispered down to Rainbow, forcing her body to ignite again. Her hair flowed around her as her flames spread to every inch of the mech.
Rainbow pulled back on the levers responsible for the mech's movements, spreading its wings up wide. It launched up into the air, just narrowly missing the beam fired by Celestia's mech by but a few inches. The ponies looked down as the beam tore through the ground below, instantly changing the decorative structures below into piles of dirt and sand. Their mech landed on top of the pile, staring down at what had been created.
"What the hell did you do?!" Rainbow shouted out at Celestia.
"More importantly, what's that thing made of..?" Twilight's voice was shaking, and her shoulders were bunched up against her neck. Her mouth was open wide in shock and fear.
"This is just one of my many inventions," Celestia hummed joyfully, as though her anger had entirely faded in seconds, but the way her voice shook showed that it was still very present. "This magical beam in particular is used for the terraforming we will need to be doing on our new planet. The ground must be able to support the trees and plant life here on Earth, so we designed this machine to achieve that same effect! As long as the plants think they're on Earth soil, they will grow, and change the ground around them."
"You can level entire buildings with just one beam," Twilight said, shaky breaths catching in her throat. "If you can create an invention like that, why can't you create something to stop the magma?! Apparently you're smart enough to do something like that, so why don't you?!"
"It's too late for this planet, don't you see?" Celestia stomped the hoof of her mech into the makeshift dirt inside the ship. "Disaster is already spreading, and it rains hell fire upon everything in sight... There is no hope to save this planet."
"Bullshit!" Twilight snapped, flames bursting around her eyes. She sucked in a lungful of air to calm herself, allowing the flames to dissipate. "You just want to leave no matter what. Even if the Earth is destroyed, taking Equestria and the lands outside with it... every pony will see you as a hero for taking them somewhere new! You know that this planet can be saved, you just choose to let it burn for your own selfish desires!"
"Maybe so," Celestia's voice rumbled from her mech as it stood on its hind legs and glared down at them. "But that's none of your business now, is it? After all, no pony is going to believe your tall tales. You're a low-life firefighter, and a wanted, terrorizing criminal. Any pony would rather believe their city's leader than a duo of no-ponies!"
"You..!" Twilight's body shook as flames consumed her.
"Twilight!" Rainbow spun around in her seat, grabbing the mare by the shoulders. "Don't let her get to you, this is just what she wants! You've got to keep it together if we're going to win this. The only way we're going to stop her is if we destroy that mech... but getting angry isn't going to help matters!"
Twilight recalled the destruction she had caused when she left Celestia's Inferno. She shut her eyes, the flames calming down around her figure again. She knew that her anger was a horrible destructive force, stronger than any cannon attached to Celestia's mech, and Rainbow just didn't understand it... but she was right. If they were going to truly win this fight fairly, she had to keep it together. She took a deep breath, and let her heartbeat slow.
"...You're right," She said finally, opening her eyes to look into Rainbow's. "Let's get this over with. I've got an idea."
"Go for it," Rainbow said with a grin, settling herself back in her seat.
...Inside the ship, things appeared to be turning for the worse. The scientists on each floor of Celestia's Sunlit Tower were searching frantically for Celestia herself, entirely unsure of where she went. Marble and Limestone stood at the end of the hall, watching the chaos with fear and confusion in their eyes.
"What the hell happened?" Limestone turned to Marble, demanding an answer out of her.
Marble said nothing, only shrugged her shoulders and shook her head. She didn't know what had happened either, but she was terrified of how the situation was turning out. Limestone cursed under her breath, running down the hallway to the elevator. Marble ran after her, not wanting to be left behind. Inside the elevator, Limestone slammed her hoof on the panel and felt the weight as the sisters ascended to the very top floor. They leapt free from the elevator when it hit the top, looking around in the very top room Celestia had used as her lookout.
"Where the fuck is she?!" Limestone yelled, stomping about.
"Marble, Limestone! Are you there?" A familiar voice squeaked from Celestia's desk. The mares stared at eachother before they ran to meet the call. They turned the screen imbedded into the desk, and were met with a sight that made their eyes sparkle.
"Pinkie!" Limestone called out in glee, staring down at her sister's figure on the screen. "Where the hell have you been?!"
"I don't have time to explain that!" Pinkie shook her head from side to side. "There are a lot of important things that I need to tell you right now, and some of them you might already know. Just look at these!"
The screen lit up as Pinkie passed files into the computer. They heard the roar of Pinkie's aircraft outside, but they both focused on the files being brought into the system. Marble sifted through the files, opening them one by one, and gasping in shock at the information they were receiving. The truth behind the Burnish flames, Celestia's murder of Cadance, the theft of Cadance's inventions... and the truth behind the Warp Project, the real reason the Earth was going to be destroyed. The video played of Celestia stabbing Cadance, repeated over and over. It made Marble sick to see it.
"Celestia..." Limestone said quietly, fear overtaking her tone. "She's a murderer..."
"I'm not sure how she kept it hidden from you guys all this time!" Pinkie said when she appeared on the screen, sticking her tongue out. "Dummies! But, moving on from that, you need to understand this; that engine that you're using to power the ship is dangerous! Not just for the planet, but the ship itself could be in grave danger if you don't do something!"
"We have to shut the engine down!" Limestone said to Marble, putting her hoof on the mare's shoulder.
"W-we.. we can't..!" Marble tried to raise her voice over a whisper, but she barely came close enough.
"Why can't we?!" Limestone yelled, slamming her hooves on the ground. "You heard what Pinkie said! We read those files and watched the same video, can't you see what's happening?! When are you going to stop being so terrified all the god damn time?! It's not just your life at stake here yknow, mine is too! Every pony is in danger! Don't you want to do something about it for a change?"
"I-I do..!" Marble cried, tears slipping down her face. "B-but... but what can we..."
"I might have an idea!" Pinkie brought the sisters' attention back to the screen on the desk. Limestone took a breath, stepping back over to the desk and staring down at Pinkie's figure on the screen. Marble wiped tears from her face, and tried to focus on the situation again.
"What's your idea?" Limestone asked, tone blank once again.
"Just do as I say, okay?" Pinkie put her hoof over her heart. "Trust me, everything is going to be okay. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye! I promise you girls, this is going to help everypony involved!"
The sisters looked at eachother, fear and doubt still in their eyes, and Marble's glossy eyes made her look worse than ever. Regardless, she gave a curt nod, and a quiet 'mmhm' to show she was ready. The sisters looked down at the screen, and Pinkie sighed in relief as she began detailed her personal plan...
...In the makeshift city, Twilight sucked in the air around her, and channeled flames through her hooves. For a moment, she found herself as the pilot of the mech while Rainbow sat back and watched the events unfold. She lifted the creation onto its hind legs, hooves stretched forth. Its wings spread wide, and she snapped her eyes shut as she expelled flames from the metal hooves. The flames quickly solidified together to form crystalline structures that she remembered well; the same dragon that she had used to destroy the city had become a pair, one for each hoof. The beast screamed as it sailed towards Celestia's mech. Celestia lifted the mech's hooves, but her brief plan was stopped as the dragons coiled tightly around the legs of the mech.
They shrieked as they squeezed around the metal with all their might, and Twilight slammed her own hooves down to yank the dragons backwards. The legs of the mech were ripped off, crashing to the ground and severing the crystals that connected Twilight to the dragons. They collapsed on the ground, unmoving. A panel opened on the chest of Celestia's mech, and Rainbow recognized the kind of device stored within. Two blocks of ice fired from the chest cavity on the mech, bursting against the bodies of the dragons and shattering them into pieces. Celestia tilted the mech back, hissing as the last two ice blocks were fired, sailing towards the mech opposite her.
Rainbow forced their mech's wings to flap, and fling them into the air. The missiles hit the ground where they had been standing, exploding and leaving a crater that was filled to the brim with icicles. Rainbow pushed down on the levers, the mech slamming down onto the ice and shattering it beneath its hooves. She looked up and gasped in surprise, finding that Celestia had reloaded her cannons and already fired the full palette for them. Behind her, Twilight was much more calm. She took her hooves from the walls and clapped them together. The mech clapped its hooves as well, and flames burst from the center in a shockwave. Twilight pulled her hooves up, and the flames lifted into the air to create a wall. The missiles hit the wall of flame and froze it on the spot. Rainbow pushed forward, ramming the mech's head against the ice wall and breaking it apart into millions of pieces. She charged forward, the mech's hooves glistening bright blue as Twilight reattached herself to the pod she was shielded within, and spread her magic through its metal body.
Celestia poised herself to attack, but both ponies froze as something rumbled deep within the spaceship... Rainbow forced the mech to a skittering halt, and looked around in panic. Twilight glanced around, trying not to panic herself, but her heart rate was increasing, and she felt only bad things could happen now...
Inside the ship, the scientists were once again frantic. In the engine room, things were even worse. Marble was busy at work, focusing on putting as much energy as she possible could into the main engine. She had never looked so serious before, and shadows cast beneath her bangs onto her face as she worked. On first glance, one might even say that she was scary.
"Marble Pie!" One of the scientists yelled in a panic, and ran to the mare in question. "The engine, i-it's overflowing with energy! If this keeps up, it's going to explode! We need to put a stop to it to continue the warp!"
Marble didn't listen. She took a deep breath as she adjusted the last knobs on the control panel, and stepped back. She felt her heart beating in her chest, and shut her eyes tight as she prepared herself for what was to come. The panel Marble had just been working on sparked at every twist and dial, and spontaneously combusted, sending flames straight up into the air. The ground quaked as the engine below burst, flames and debris falling all around. It was a rain of ashes, dust, and charred and molten metal. When the engine burst, the portal outside had shattered like glass. Now that the portal was no longer holding up the weight of the ship, it fell to the ground. When it collided with the Earth, the winds from the impact were powerful enough to level even the tallest buildings nearby. Dust and dirt filled the streets as the ship rested on the ground, exactly where it had risen from before.
From the ship falling into the ground, the mechs that were battling inside were launched into the air. The force broke holes in the ceiling, sending them both high into the sky. Celestia's mech crash landed at the base of the tower, while Rainbow and Twilight's mech skidded to a halt on the opposite side of the hole.
"What did you do?!" Celestia's voice rang in Marble's ear.
"T-the engine..." Marble said. She cleared her throat, forcing her voice to be louder than it ever was before. "I-I overloaded the engine. Everything has been destroyed. The ship... can't move anymore. W-we're stuck now."
"You did this on purpose?" The anger in Celestia's voice was immeasurable.
"I did," Marble confessed, no shame in her voice. "I-I was wrong to agree to w-work under you. My sisters and I... w-will never bend to your will again. A-and there is nothing that you can do about it."
"That bitch..!" Celestia hissed, slamming her hooves against her control panel as the connection cut off. "She destroyed my precious engine... we can no longer warp..?! Tch... no matter, I'll have her pay for that, and I'll find a way to get it running again."
Celestia hummed, typing something into her control panel. A screen opened up beside her. She glared at the screen, and held onto a button on her control panel.
"Mayor Mare!" She yelled at the screen, loud enough to hear her own voice echo on the other side. "Call Tempest Shadow! I have a pony you need to deal with."
"They destroyed the engine?" Rainbow said in shock to Twilight, still recovering from hitting her head.
"It sounds like it," Twilight said, brushing her hoof through her mane. "If there is no engine, they can't pilot the ship, and that means they can't leave. I think it's safe to assume that some pony has helped us win this battle."
"No, not yet," Rainbow said, her wings flaring behind her. She forced the mech to its hooves and pointed ahead with one. "Not as long as she's still alive."
"You two!!" Celestia shouted from across the ship's roof. "I've had enough of your antics too! You've destroyed my ship, and my inventions! You've soiled all of my plans, and yet you think you've won?! You'll have to think again!"
The panel at the center of the mech's chest opened again, and a long cannon emerged. When it had reached its full length, a metal rod extended from the bottom and spread out at the base to hold the cannon upright. Celestia cackled behind the windshield at the mech's head as she fired the cannon, aiming directly for Rainbow and Twilight. Rainbow's quick thinking saved their lives; the mech ducked underneath the beam, and while the wings of it had been slightly frozen off from the beam's immense cold, they were safe. They stood back up and watched as the beam sailed through the sky, landing inside of Celestia's Inferno. The cracks along the volcano that were continuously spilling lava were frozen over within seconds, as if an eternal winter had kissed the erupting mountain. The ice burst, and the light from the lava and flames was no longer present; they had been entirely quelled.
Celestia's Inferno... was just a mountain now.
"What the hell?!" Rainbow yelled, turning to look back at Celestia.
"This is my most prized possession," Celestia laughed, her mech staring down at the cannon. "We call it the Ultimate Equestrian Freeze Ray. It was designed to put out lava flows and cool what is to be our new sun on our new planet. Our sun pales in comparison to what this cannon can do!"
"Why can't you use that to stop our magma flow in the Earth?!" Twilight yelled, her coat standing on end. "You just froze an entire volcano! What's stopping you from obstructing the flow further?!"
"Covering the magma on the surface won't help anything!" Celestia shouted back at her. "If we wanted to do real damage, we would have to make it to the core! Nothing that we've invented in recent years can withstand those depths, and no pony could survive heat that intense! Not even you, Twilight Sparkle!!"
Celestia slammed the back hooves of the mech onto the metal of the ship. The hooves cracked as ice burst around them, sailing in waves towards Rainbow and Twilight. Twilight took full control of the mech for this moment, using her flames to brandish a sword just like the one she had used to fight Rainbow Dash before. The mech's horn glowed, carrying the sword like a feather, and slicing through the ice that approached. The ice melted willingly against the heat the sword brought, and as they marched forth, the ice couldn't stop them.
"You're a liar," Twilight said as she moved her head to control the mech's battle against the waves of ice. "You know that you could reach the core, and you're choosing not to. It's just as Rainbow Dash said earlier; you're desperate to appear as the hero of pony kind, so much so that you want to migrate no matter what!"
"So what?!" Celestia yelled as she finally stopped the onslaught of ice. At the very back of the cannon in the mech's chest, light began to pulse as she prepared another attack. "Regardless of the situation's outcome, these ponies will thank me for saving their lives! I will be treated as a goddess , walking amongst mortals. And no amount of hatred that you may have for me will stop me from continuing on in my plans! Now just shut up , and get out of my way!!"
Celestia screamed her threat, and fired the cannon. A tornado of snow and ice sailed through the air, and Rainbow Dash had no time to steer the mech away. Ice pelted against the mech, but she pushed forth, forcing all of the mech's strength and her own into these movements alone. Twilight's body ached as she forced her flames through the chambers that made up their power source, desperate to fight against the searing cold.
"R-rainbow Dash, you didn't even try to move!" Twilight shouted at her as they pushed against the ice. "Do you have any idea what you're doing?!"
"Not at all!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "Just keep pushing forth!!"
"You idiot!!" Twilight yelled back at her.
But, over time, the mech did begin to reach its destination. All the energy being poured into these motions drove it closer, meter by meter... Flames continued to burst around the mech when their armor cracked, as Twilight was desperate not to let this ice get through them. Rainbow's hooves were hurting as she put all her weight into holding down the levers that made the mech move. No matter how difficult it was, she refused to back down! She lifted the forehooves of the mech as it got closer, the black crystals breaking off like grains of sand, but she didn't care about the armor. When they were close enough, Twilight used her own idea. She channeled the flames within the mech's hooves, sending blazing spikes through the metal of Celestia's mech and hitting every vital system inside. Celestia panicked as her systems began to crash, but she took their idea too, lifting one of the back legs of her mech, and sending ice sailing through the other ponies' mech.
Within minutes, their fight was over. Celestia's cannon had run out of power from the destruction, and both their mechs were frozen as they were, littered from head to hoof with spikes spreading out in every direction. Each and every pointed edge glinted against the surrounding lights, reminding the ponies of their sharpness. The mechs shut down... but the ponies inside were safe, and their war... had come to a close.
"Rainbow Dash!"
Rainbow Dash
"You best be gettin' your flank out of bed now!" Applejack yelled over the sirens echoing throughout the station. "We've got work to do!"
"What's going on?" Rainbow didn't hesitate to fly herself out of bed and dash to her locker. She flung it open and grabbed her own jacket off the hook.
"What do you think?" Applejack said with a brief eyeroll. "The sisters' castle is on fire, again."
"Again?" Rainbow Dash was baffled. That was the third time in one week the castle had been attacked. By the second time, ponies were already giving up hope of it being repaired. It would soon fall into ruin just as the ancient Canterlot castles had.
"Yes, again," Applejack sighed, scratching through her mane with her hoof. "Ah'm not sure why those daggon firestarters keep goin' for em, but Ah ain't the only pony who's sick of puttin' out their fires."
Rainbow Dash finished equipping herself while Applejack was talking. She left her jacket unbuttoned, showcasing the black sash strapped over her torso. It was stocked full of ammo for the ice pistol that was tucked into the belt around her waist. She brushed herself down, clearing out what little wrinkles she could before she flew out the door over Applejack's head. She didn't think to respond to the mare's complaints, but Applejack didn't want to continue talking either. The two raced to the firetruck at the front of the station.
"There you two are!" Pinkie called from the top. She was poking out from a skylight in the back room of the truck. "We've been waiting for you! Dashie were you sleeping in again?"
"Let's talk about that later?" Rainbow tried to hide her embarrassment as she flew into the skylight, and landed soundly inside. "We've got business to attend to, Pinkie!"
"Righty-o!" Pinkie laughed as she pulled herself inside, and closed the skylight. The room became dark, the only light coming from the computer attached to the wall. Every so often it would flash from blue to red, showcasing the severity of the situation. In the red lights making the room bright, Rainbow Dash caught sight of Fluttershy sitting in the corner. Her tail was neatly curled around her body, and she was tying the side of her mane into a tight bun at the back of her head.
"Hey Fluttershy," Rainbow Dash greeted the yellow pegasus as she took a seat next to her.
"H-hi," The mare said, finally pulling her hairtie tight when she got it just right. "You took a l-long time to come out... you weren't sleeping through the sirens, w-were you?"
"Maybe..." Rainbow laughed awkwardly, her cheeks flaring up with blush. "I guess I'm just a really heavy sleeper. How long have they been going off?"
"Not long," Fluttershy hummed as she pulled a tablet off the wall. Her face brightened as the screen lit up in a bright white. "Y-you were lucky Applejack thought to come get you when it went off. W-we might've left you behind i-if you didn't wake up."
"Yeah we would've!" Pinkie said. The sound of her hooves clicking the computer's buttons, and her voice, were almost drowned out by the overhead siren. "I told Applejack that either you need to learn how to be a light sleeper, or we start leaving you behind when we go out! Really, Dashie, this is serious business and you're always half asleep!"
"I am not!" Rainbow scoffed. "I can do your work and more in 10 seconds flat !"
"D-don't get too confident, Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy said. Rainbow turned to her just in time to watch her load a clip full of ammo into her gun, and cock it. "A-apparently this fire is bigger than a few days ago."
"Bigger, you say?" Rainbow raised a brow, and adjusted herself in her seat. She pressed her hooves into the floor as the truck ran over a bump in the road. She heard the breaks screech, assuming that they had just turned a corner and were on the final path to their destination.
"Yepper doodles!" Pinkie sounded, leaning back in her creaking chair and staring at the screen in front of her. "I'm surprise nopony has called Freeze Force yet. This might be the biggest fire we've ever dealt with!"
"You don't suppose those 'Firecrackers' are behind this, do you?" Rainbow said, bringing a hoof to her chin and trying to think. The Firecrackers were a group of Burnish that reportedly lived outside of the city. Every so often, they would burst into town and wreak havoc in full armor. No pony has seen their real appearance, not even through their visors. Some ponies would go missing every now and again, and most had just gotten accustomed to the fact that the ponies they knew had become Burnish.
"If they are, I-I hope we don't run into them," Fluttershy mumbled, as if she were talking to herself. Rainbow picked up on what she had said, but wasn't sure if she had reason to respond.
The truck came to a jolting halt. Through the walls of the truck, Rainbow heard Applejack's voice urging them out. Her voice became more distanced as she walked away, yelling evacuation orders at the ponies gathered in the streets. Fluttershy slipped her gun into the slot on her back, and pulled the goggles on her head down over her eyes. She adjusted her jacket and the black fire-proof armor underneath before she flew to the ceiling and opened the skylight so she could fly out. Immediately, the smell of fire and smoke made Rainbow cough and shield her eyes. Pinkie pulled down her own goggles, and the black gas mask around her neck was brought up to cover her mouth and nose. She looked back at Rainbow and motioned up to the skylight, a signal for her to leave.
Rainbow held her breath as she flew outside. She had to blink a few times to adjust her eyes to the bright daylight shining down on the glass buildings surrounding her, and the blazing flames emerging from the castle-like structure they had parked nearby. The sounds of terrified voices and angry demands filled the air around her, and made her heart flutter with anxiety.
"Rainbow Dash!" Applejack called out to her, bringing her out of her daze. Applejack pulled her own set of goggles down over her eyes when Rainbow looked down at her. "Get yer' mech! We have to go inside!"
"Are any ponies trapped?" Rainbow called over the shouting around her as she shielded her eyes with her goggles.
"Pinkie can tell ya that," Applejack said as she ran to the side of the truck, pushing against it with all her might to pull open the door. Rainbow flew down by her to help her open the door.
"A few are trapped on the 30th floor," Pinkie finally answered when the door was open. "If you guys are quick, you can stop the flames before they reach them!"
Pinkie kicked two large metal crates beside her and looked back at the ponies outside. Rainbow knew that when they pressed a button on the outside of the crates, they would transform into the mechs they needed in order to get inside and make their rescue mission all the easier. She stepped inside with Applejack, and dragged the two crates outside. Rainbow briefly paused while Applejack began setting up her mech.
"Where's Fluttershy?" Rainbow asked, finally taking notice of the other mare's absence. She had left out of the skylight earlier without bringing her own mechsuit. What did she think she was doing?
"She already flew up, Ah'm thinkin'," Applejack said uncertainly. She looked up at the building, hoping to catch sight of the pegasus flying around somewhere. "She's stupid if she thinks she's gonna be fine without a suit on."
"She should be bringing her ship!" Rainbow snorted. She slammed her hoof down on the button on the outside of her crate, and stood back as the sounds of machinery filled the air. The pony mech emerged before her, sharp edges and fire resistant metal white and blue against the bright sun. It was near blinding at this hour, but she managed to get used to it very quickly. She forced open the panels on the back of the suit, and slid herself comfortably inside. The metal molded to her figure and shut the panels behind her. She hated how uncomfortable her wings were, buried underneath all this metal. Quickly, the discomfort passed as the machine sprouted its own wings, and allowed her to slip hers into them as if they were gloves. Glass slid out of the mech's helmet to shield her face from the elements, and she could easily hear the machinery around her clicking with life.
"30th floor?" Rainbow said as she turned to Applejack, happy to see her shielded with her own suit. The only visible difference in their mechs was their colours; where Rainbow had blue, Applejack had red. She looked at Rainbow through her glass visor with the most serious of expressions.
"We can fly up," Applejack said. Her mech sprouted a similar style of wings that Rainbow's had. Rainbow was surprised; Applejack couldn't control those! She's no pegasus so how could she-?!
Rainbow's thoughts were instantly drowned out as Applejack took flight in her suit. It was as though she had wings all along. Rainbow didn't have time to ponder how it worked or why she added the attachments, she flapped her wings and followed after the other pony as they ascended the building. Rainbow squinted, allowing the machinery to give her a proper visual of the scene. As Pinkie said, Rainbow could make out the shapes of ponies trapped inside the building and surrounded by Burnish flames. The flames weren't so bad here, but further up in the building they were much, much worse.
"Applejack!" Rainbow called out to the mare. "I'm going up to deal with the flames, you focus on rescue!"
"What?!" Applejack turned her head in disbelief at Rainbow's suggestion. She couldn't object, because Rainbow was already flying past her and heading for the roof.
"Pinkie?" Rainbow hit the side of her helmet, forcing it to make a connection to Pinkie's computer within the firetruck. This would be the only way they could communicate from this distance.
"How's it going?" Pinkie's voice echoed in her ear, and her figure appeared on Rainbow's visor as if it were a screen.
"I'm going up to the roof," Rainbow explained. Her wings were already getting tired under the mech's weight. "Applejack is going to focus on rescuing the trapped ponies, I'm trying to tame the flames."
"Whaaat?" Pinkie leaned forward in her chair, eyes sparkling. "You're nuts! Your mech isn't strong enough to withstand those flames without proper precautions! Dashie, I know you wanna be a hero, but you're taking it a bit far!"
"That's the goal!" Rainbow laughed as she finally cleared the edge of the roof, and let the weight of the mech drag her down. She skidded to a full stop on the rooftop, and flapped her wings as hard as she could to send waves of wind through the air. Slowly but surely, the flapping of her wings was beginning to clear the smoke from the air, and it allowed her to see easily.
"Oooh, I see," Pinkie giggled while Rainbow made herself busy. "You're trying to get me to use that funky little machine of mine on you! You're a lucky mare because I already installed it without your permissiooon!~"
"I knew you would," Rainbow chuckled. She looked around the area once she could see, feeling the heat and the lack of energy getting to her. Sweat was rolling down her face as her wings tucked themselves against her back again and finally took a deserved rest. She glanced at Pinkie's figure on her visor as her face changed to panick, and she leaned forward in her chair. Her hooves clicked against the keyboard and concern drifted to her expression.
"Dashie, you might have a situation," Pinkie said. "We might need to use that little machine after all!"
"Why do you say that?" Rainbow asked, reaching into the underside of her mech and opening the panel below. She pulled free some of her ammo and her pistol, quickly shutting the panel again while she filled her gun.
"Look up, dum dum!" Pinkie said.
Rainbow finished filling the pistol, and lifted her head to see what Pinkie was talking about. She blinked in surprise at what she saw on the next level of the building, just ahead of her. A group of 5 ponies stood on the edge, their bodies clad with jet black armor. Flames sprouted from the places their manes and tails would be, and visors that looked like shark teeth shielded their faces. Every pony had a white horn extending from the center of their forehead, and the one at the very center of the bunch even had white crystal wings to go with.
"Rainbow!" Applejack's voice yelled in her ear, the orange mare's figure appearing on her visor as well. "What in the hay is goin' on up there?"
"I can tell ya!" Pinkie said, while Rainbow swallowed her anxiety. "I think Rainbow's come across the Firecrackers!"
"Firecrackers?" Applejack said. "Is that what y'all call em?"
"A stupid name," spoke one of the ponies, their voice muffled and strangely robotized behind their visor. One thing was for sure, Rainbow recognized that voice. "I would choose something nicer than that."
"We are Sparkle's Fire," said the pony at the direct center. They spread their wings and lifted their head, a silent order for the other ponies. Rainbow flinched as the horns and hooves of the ponies ignited with burnish flames.
"You can't possibly expect to fight them on your own!" Pinkie yelled, finally letting fear show in her voice for a change. "You'll get yourself killed!"
"We'll see," Rainbow chuckled, tapping the side of her helmet and allowing the connection to shut off so she could focus. "So! You ponies are the ones responsible for this fire, eh?"
The ponies didn't respond to her, they only seemed to stare in utter silence as she approached.
"Rainbow Dash," She said. "I want that to be a name that you firebugs remember! I'm going to put out your flames, and put you were you belong!"
"She's stupid," another pony said, turning to the center pony. "Should we humor her?"
The middle pony said nothing. They pulled their wings back against their torso, and let flames light around them. They softly hummed as they sat down amongst the flames. The flames stretched and formed black crystals, creating what appeared to be a throne around the pony. The pony adjusted themself, laying in the throne with their head resting on one arm of the chair, and their flaming tail draped gingerly over the other side.
All at once, the other ponies leapt forward. Their laughter filled the air as they moved to surround the blue pegasus with their flames. Rainbow flapped her wings hard, flinging herself from the center circle and sending out a wave of wind that fanned the flames. She pulled her gun between her hooves, firing blocks of ice down at the ponies. They each quickly dodged her bullets and let her come crashing back to her hooves on the ground again.
"I thought you were the fast one!" One of the ponies called out, yellow muzzle briefly glinting through the visor before they began to laugh at Rainbow's expense. "I expected better!"
"Don't get too cocky!" Rainbow laughed in turn, darting forward with a rainbow trail briefly following behind her mech.
She tackled the pony in question, rolling in a ball with them for a short time. She lifted them in her hooves and flew into the air. The pony struggled before ice erupted from Rainbow's hooves. She kicked the pony down to the roof, encasing their entire form in ice. The ice shattered when they hit the concrete, and the yellow pony within was freed from her burnish armor. She gasped in shock as Rainbow shot blocks of ice from her pistol at her. Her hooves became encased in ice and stuck together. She furiously thrashed about, her cerulean mane becoming a frizzled mess against the concrete as she struggled. To finalize the event, two more blocks were fired, wrapping tight around the mare's neck and horn to prevent her from using her flames and escaping.
"Lemon Hearts!" One of the ponies shouted in shock as Rainbow landed on the ground again.
"That's one down!" Rainbow shouted out as she turned to the ponies again. "Who's next, eh?"
One of the ponies seemed to emit a growl as they lunged forth, flames exploding from their hooves and creating a wave that carried them to Rainbow's location. The other ponies followed along the wave, sprouting vine-like flames on either side of the wave that came at Rainbow from all directions. She raced to dodge the flames as they hit the ground, shattering through the concrete and creating holes where they had collided with it. Rainbow feared for the ponies inside, hoping that Applejack was able to get them out. By the look of things, this attack would make the ceiling begin to collapse, and that could spell danger for the ponies on the ground as well.
Rainbow was caught off guard by a flame smacking against her side. She cried out as she was launched into the taller edge of the building. Her armor cracked and glass shattered around her. She refused to let this moment stop her, as another tendril was heading straight for her when she fell to the ground again. She lifted her hooves, ice colliding with flames when they came close. The ice shattered when it encased the flames, effectively stopping that brief attack, but this wasn't the end yet. Rainbow pulled out her gun once more, firing blocks of ice towards the ponies as they ran towards her, but the blocks broke off of their armor as if they were nothing. She abandoned her gun for now, hiding it back within her armor. She chose to face the situation head on.
One of the ponies lunged at her, and she slid up underneath them. She rolled herself quickly onto her back, and kicked the pony with her back legs. They coughed as she hit them in the stomach. Ice surrounded them, stopping them in their tracks. Rainbow dodged out of the way as the two other ponies tried to tackle and pin her. She flapped her wings, grabbing the newly encased pony and pushing them against the concrete to shatter their armor. The white pony inside was freed, curly pink mane flapping in the wind. Fury filled her eyes as she looked up at Rainbow Dash. Rainbow ignored the sinking feeling this hatred-induced fury gave her, and shot ice from her hooves to capture this mare in the same way she had captured the other.
"Twinkleshine!" One of the remaining ponies called. "Dammit, how did you both get caught like this?! Even Freeze Force couldn't get you!"
"Focus on that later, Moon Dancer!" The other shouted. "We have to stop her before-"
The pony was silenced with a gasp as Rainbow Dash flew up and landed on top of her back, forcing ice from her hooves. Just as before, the pony's armor shattered underneath the ice and freed the pony within. The white mare skidded on her hooves, trying to run from the situation now that she was exposed. Her fancy purple hair trailed behind her, before she too tripped on her hooves when ice surrounded them, and she was forced to a halt against the concrete.
"Rarity!" The last pony, Moon Dancer, was distraught with the events unfolding. She looked at Rainbow, and even she could feel the anger in the last pony's eyes, though it was hidden under her visor. "You bitch, you'll pay for this! I'm not going to let you forget this, even if you catch me too!"
Rainbow said nothing, feeling the sweat dripping down her face even more than before. She flinched as flames burst from Moon Dancer's hooves and began filling the area like water. Tendrils lifted from the flames and hit the air around when Rainbow flew up to avoid them. Few of them hit against her legs as she ascended, making her flip in their air and nearly send her tumbling into them. She knew her suit couldn't withstand this kind of heat, so she forced herself to stay in the air even as she tumbled. She hissed as a larger flame hit her in the stomach, launching her into the sky. Moon Dancer herself shot into the air with her flames, and threw herself at Rainbow.
The last pony put all her weight onto the other mare, sending them cascading to the ground rapidly. Rainbow struggled against her, before Moon Dancer forced her down with her hooves, making Rainbow collide with the concrete. The weight of the impact made the ground shatter beneath her, and sent her into the second floor. Her back and wings were aching from the impact, and she was certain she broke something. Dust clouded the air around her, and her visor had cracked. She tapped the side of her helmet, trying to see if the connection still worked.
"Pinkie," She coughed, desperate for this new idea of hers to work. "Pinkie Pie! I need that upgrade, and now! "
Author's Note
I'm horrible at writing fighting sequences, can you tell?
Chapter 13: Heartbreaking Secrets
The windshields of the mechs had shattered from the temperatures, and inside their mech, Rainbow was freezing. Parts of her body had been frozen over from the ice. Twilight immediately noticed the mare's condition, and stepped down from the destroyed pod. She gently rested her hooves against the mare, small flames surrounding them. She massaged each of the spots encased in ice, melting it away slowly and helping warm the mare up. Rainbow sighed, finally beginning to relax as the cold dispersed. Twilight glanced to the side, and stopped what she was doing when she noticed something through the mist her flames and the ice had made. She shook Rainbow's shoulder, and pointed to the figure that was somehow still standing in the wreckage... Her laughter filled Twilight with dread.
"You ponies... you ponies are something else!" The mare cackled. "You want me dead so badly, I can just tell. Well, you've destroyed my mech and you've stopped my plans! Why don't you finish the job?"
"Is that an invitation?" Twilight hissed, flaring her wings and stepping to the edge of the cockpit.
"Twilight, don't," Rainbow put her leg in front of the mare's chest. "Don't give in."
"You have your chance!" Celestia continued to egg the mares on, even being so bold as to step forward a few paces. "I'm weak and powerless now, aren't I? Without my big bad machine? There's nothing protecting me now. And since you just hate me sooo much, surely you want to finish the job, right?"
Twilight recalled when she was levelling the city. She wanted nothing more than to finally kill Celestia and put an end to the torment. She had the opportunity. Her flames were always at her disposal. She blinked, anger flaring up in her eyes...
"Your ponies are suffering," Celestia continued again, making Twilight flinch. "Listen, Twilight Sparkle. Can't you hear them crying out for you? Can't you hear their agony echoing off the walls inside of this ship?"
She could. When Celestia had mentioned it, Twilight could feel their pain. She could hear their cries bouncing off metal and into the breaks in the ships. They fell into the open air, their chorus of pain breaking her heart. Her body began to shake, and once more her veins wanted to pop. The leather against her coat felt tighter than ever, clenching down on her tense muscles. She grew a snarl onto her face, and threw a death glare in the princess's direction.
"Celestia..." Twilight hissed to herself, spreading her legs in preparation to run.
"Twilight!" Rainbow yelled at her, trying to snap her out of it.
Twilight didn't listen. She shoved the mare's leg out of her way, and pushed her away from her. She ran down the slope the wreckage had created, and her horn was swallowed in bright flames.
"I'll never forgive you!!" Twilight shouted. "Never!! "
When Twilight was finally close enough to Celestia, she lowered her head. The flames she expelled from her horn were hotter than lava freshly spilling from a volcano. She was beginning to sweat within seconds of using magic this intense, and she could even feel her horn burning. She wasn't used to using this much magic, and to be fully honest, her body hadn't properly recovered after her destruction. She could truly feel the aches now, but with any luck, she had done her job... and the pony was dead.
"...Is that it?" She heard the mare's voice say.
"What..?" Twilight gasped in shock, flapping her wings and pushing herself back as she stopped her onslaught. For a moment she had wondered if she was simply hallucinating. She blinked rapidly, shaking her head and staring through the flames as they began to die.
"I said, is that it?!" Celestia yelled up at her when the flames cleared.
She had... changed . Slit eyes stared at Twilight with more fury than ever seen before. Her mane had transformed from its beautiful and bright pastel colours, into a raging torrent of sunset orange flames. The flames fell around her body just like the silky mane of Nightmare Moon, and blazed with life. Her white coat that had always had the faintest pink sheen now glimmered with flecks of gold. She held her head high, eyes cast down on Twilight, nearly bright enough to make the mare cast a shadow behind her tangled tail.
"H-how are you..." Twilight spoke in shock, unable to fully finish her thought. Her ears pinned back as the flaming mare spoke again.
"You think your flames can hurt me?" Celestia taunted her, adjusting her stance. She lifted a hoof, the familiar teal and fuchsia flames sparking to life above her shoe. "You and I are not so different, Twilight Sparkle. I, too, have been cursed with this... disgusting infliction. For years I have held back, and unlike you, I have been able to control my flames. The urge to destroy the world around me can not keep me from my duties... as the saviour of my city!"
"You make it sound like you're so different," Twilight snapped, her teeth clattering together as she barked out her retort.
"That's because I am!" Celestia laughed, her voice silky again. Though she had regained her regality, the madness that flittered in her pupils was ever brighter. "I've had a horrible time containing these flames... but I've only gone back on my vow against destruction once. And it involves that mare's story too."
As Celestia pointed to Rainbow Dash, the blue mare blinked in surprise. Celestia's story involved hers? What was that supposed to mean? Rainbow Dash flapped her wings, leaving the confines of the mech's control pod to approach the scene. She stood on the wreckage nearby Twilight, meeting Twilight's concerned expression with one of her own. The mares focused on Celestia as the shock passed, and a serious look overtook her features.
"Before I became princess, I was just like you," Celestia sighed, lowering her head and staring at the rubble beneath her hooves. "Though not nearly as regal as I am today, I was but a poor pony who had happened to become victim to the Burnish Spasms that destroy my city day by day. I had held the urge back for so long, and to finally break was a world shattering experience. The force of the flames I expelled shattered my horn, and through the agony I had barely noticed what I'd done."
Celestia turned away from the ponies, flapping her wings and flying up to some of the wreckage around her mech. She pressed a hoof to the cold metal, a certain softness in her body that the two mares were more than used to seeing. Though her slit eyes contained nothing but fury, her eyelids had fallen half-lidded, and she looked at her creation with a sadness in her eyes. She closed her eyes, and lowered her head, sighing. She lifted her head and focused on the mares again to continue her story.
"When I looked up, the poor shop I had been walking past was in flaming ruins," Celestia said, pausing when the ponies gasped in shock. "...It was a horrible sight, for all eyes. No pony had seen what had truly happened, or known that it was my fault, but what happened then might surprise you. Because then... a little filly tumbled out of the wreckage. I had never seen a dull rainbow in my life, and that was the first time I ever did. She came to me, and she collapsed, unable to utter a sound."
Rainbow Dash began to recall the events as Celestia spoke them. Now she knew what Celestia had meant; that filly was her. Rainbow Dash blinked, the memories beginning to flow. When her family's shop had burnt down, she had been too young to even attend kindergarten. She could barely remember it, but Celestia brought back the events so clearly to the front of her mind. Tears sprung in her eyes, and her ears pinned back as she looked from the ground to the mare engulfed in flames.
"I picked her up, and only then did a crowd begin to gather," Celestia continued, leaping back down to the ground before the ponies. She stared at Twilight when she backed away, but chose to continue the story over belittling her. "I was hailed as a hero for rescuing the poor filly from the flames, at the cost of my horn. No pony knew the truth, but I knew I had a wondrous career ahead of me. I never again let my flames destroy the world, and I began to make a name for myself as I developed specialized weaponry to deal with Burnish flames. Who better to understand them than I?"
"But you didn't develop them," Twilight hissed, her wings raising off her back. "Princess Cadance did."
"Oh, you know about that?" Celestia mumbled to herself, but with the deafening silence after their battle, it wasn't hard to hear her disproval. "Lovely. Well, after our battle, I suppose I would have no reason to hide it from you anyways. While Cadance began the initial research, it was myself and my dear sister that continued it."
"After you stole it," Rainbow snorted in annoyance.
"I wouldn't call it stealing," Celestia said, slowly turning her head to glare at the rainbow maned mare. "I would call it... a transfer of ownership."
"You're sick," Twilight barked.
"So you didn't save me," Rainbow Dash continued their earlier topic. "You were just capitalizing off the moment."
"Somewhat..." Celestia purred joyfully. "You were just a very sweet convenience for me. If it weren't for you I never would've become the ruler of Equestria and this city. For that, I can thank you graciously... only by sparing your life. I had originally planned to kill you, but I find this revelation amusing, so you can live for now. But Twilight Sparkle..."
Twilight felt her heart beating when Celestia said her name. She cautiously stepped back, only to yell out in shock as Celestia's flames coiled around her body and lifted her into the air. She struggled against the mare's might, her wings pinned underneath the tight, crystallized coils, and her legs pressed tight together.
"You'll make a perfect addition to my project!" Celestia laughed, pulling the mare forth. "You're almost as strong as me... with you, I'll be able to use my engine even with it being broken. Your magic will be our vessel, and your comrades our offerings. With you as part of my project, nothing can stop me."
"Fuck-!" Twilight hissed, continuing to struggle against Celestia's might. "I refuse to let this happen!! No matter what, you can't make me take part in your vile schemes!"
"I didn't say you had a choice, did I?" Celestia chuckled, brushing a hoof through her fiery mane.
"That's enough!" Rainbow Dash shouted suddenly.
The two mares paused as a small ice bullet melted against Celestia's magic. They glanced between eachother, and looked to Rainbow Dash. She cocked her gun, her wings spread wide behind her back as she prepared herself to fire again.
"Put her down Celestia," Rainbow Dash demanded. "Or else."
"Or else?" Celestia snickered. "Hah! Listen to her... as if she thinks she can stop me when I already have everything I want! I find your insistence cute, now get out of my sight. "
"Rainbow Dash, run!!" Twilight yelled as Celestia lowered her head.
Celestia held her head parallel to the ground, magic spiraling around each indent in her horn before it was expelled. Twilight wasn't ready to let this happen willingly. She tilted her head, firing her own blast of magic to shield Rainbow Dash from the onslaught Celestia had unleashed. Despite Twilight's efforts to shield the mare, Rainbow Dash was launched back from the force of Celestia's magic, and sent plummeting over the edge of the cold metal that made up the Eclipse. Twilight watched in horror as Rainbow fell over the side, and tears sprung in her eyes once the mare's blue figure had finally disappeared from her view. Rainbow Dash's silence as she fell over the edge could only signal the worst, and it made Twilight shake with fear. She snapped her eyes shut, and her ears pinned back as tears slipped down her cheeks.
"And you said you'd spare her life..." Twilight gasped. "You sick, lying, son of a bitch... "
"It was coming to her anyways," Celestia mused. "I had planned to have her executed today anyways. Might as well get it over with.
"Fuck you!!" Twilight shouted, trying again to force her way out of Celestia's grip.
"Cute, but no," Celestia cackled, flapping her wings and carrying herself into the air. "We have business to attend to, Twilight Sparkle. You're going to take us to the last leg of our journey, whether you like it or not! And I... oh, the things that I have planned are going to be just wonderful!"
Celestia's laughter filled the air as she dragged Twilight with her into the wreckage at the top of the ship. She dove through the holes in the ground, and made her way to the engine of the ship. She only had one goal in mind... and Twilight felt sick to her stomach knowing what it was.
Meanwhile, on the ground...
"Rainbow Dash!" Pinkie shouted, continuing to shake the mare. She had fallen quite a distance, and hadn't even bothered to catch herself with her wings. She was out only when she hit the ground, surely? Pinkie began to panick, still unsure of how to wake the mare up.
"Pinkie!" Marble waved a hoof to alert the mare. She nosed over a bucket of cold water to the pink mare.
"Oh, thank you Marble!" Pinkie clapped her hooves together happily as she lifted up the bucket.
"Mhm," Marble nodded, trotting over to stand by Rainbow Dash's limp figure.
Pinkie lifted the water bucket and took a deep breath. She poured the contents out over the unconscious blue mare. Within just seconds of the water slipping through her coat, Rainbow's eyes flew open, and she thrashed. She sat up, coughing and sputtering from the water. She rubbed her eyes and blinked, looking around at the ponies gathered around her.
"Oh Dashie you're alive!" Pinkie shouted, throwing her hooves around Rainbow Dash.
"Yeah, I-I guess I am," Rainbow laughed. She pulled one her hooves forth, unclasping them and showcasing a small flame that had budded to life between them. "Twilight's fire protected me... she's the only reason that I'm down here."
"You're lucky," Limestone snorted. "If I had found you after you left your cell, Tempest wouldn't have hounded me all day! Thanks for that, by the way."
"Oh yeah, sorry..." Rainbow Dash laughed nervously. "If I hadn't left, Twilight probably would've levelled Whinnyapolis. I wasn't going to stand by and let it happen."
"So what's the plan now, Rainbow Dash?" Applejack asked as she approached. "Where's Twilight?"
"Celestia has her." Rainbow Dash stood up and sighed, holding Twilight's flame close to her. "She's going to use Twilight to power the engine."
"B-but I destroyed it!!" Marble shouted, something uncharacteristic of her. She quickly quieted again, but kept speaking. "T-the engine shouldn't work... e-even if somepony powers it..!"
"If Celestia succeeds, bad things are sure to come," Rainbow Dash said with a firm stomp of her hoof.
"Bad things are already happenin' sugar cube." Applejack pulled a tablet from her saddlebag, and turned it to face Rainbow Dash. She pressed her hoof on the screen, and a live video screen appeared. It seemed to be from one of the top rooms in a skyscraper, though Rainbow Dash couldn't tell if it was in Whinnyapolis or not. A volcano was erupting outside the city, with hot teal lava spewing out of it, and Burnish flames swallowing up the forest outside.
"The volcanoes are erupting," Rainbow Dash gasped. Her ears pinned back and a firm look took over her expression. "We need to stop Celestia, and fast."
"But how?" Pinkie asked. "If Marble's already destroyed the engine, what else are we supposed to do to keep them from warping?"
"I have an idea, but I'm going to have to ask for your help again." Rainbow Dash nodded to Pinkie. "You need to get me back inside that ship, and I need to go straight to the engine. If Celestia's already started her work... I-I'd hate to imagine the pain that Twilight's experiencing right now."
Just as Rainbow Dash mentioned it, the ground began to shake. The ponies struggled to stay on their hooves as the air around them warped. They were blown off their hooves as the Eclipse began to sail into the sky once again. Rainbow Dash looked up in horror as the warp gate began to open above the ship once again. She could already imagine the screams of the ponies inside, and the thought of Twilight's ringing so clear in her mind made her want to vomit.
"We need to go, now!" Limestone stomped her hooves as she barked the order. "You, orange mare, that truck of yours has a cannon doesn't it? Get Rainbow Dash in there and send her in, we don't have much time!"
"Right, c'mon Dash!" Applejack began to run off before Rainbow Dash could give her an answer.
Limestone, Rainbow Dash, Marble, and Pinkie each raced after Applejack to get to the firetruck still in the street. It had been pushed away by the force of the Eclipse taking off, but thankfully it hadn't toppled. The ponies climbed into the back, and Pinkie pulled a metal crate free from the wall. She forced open the plates with all her might, and Limestone's assistance helped pull back the restraints that held it down. Rainbow Dash climbed into the seat in the center, and the ponies worked to shove her into the loading area for the cannon. Pinkie stood in front of her computer, adjusting the angle of the cannon once she was able to pinpoint the engine's location to the best of her abilities, with some advice from Marble.
"Hold on Twilight," Rainbow Dash said quietly, clamping her hooves around the flame that had protected her. "I'm going to save you, even if it's the last thing I do."
She shut her eyes, clutching the flame close, and feeling its warmth in the cold that made up the crate and the cannon. She felt the force as the cannon propelled the crate through the air, though she was surprised she was still in the dark. She flinched, hearing the sound of drilling, and it took her a moment to realize that it was the crate making the noise. She pushed up against the ceiling with her hooves, trying to use her energy to help push through into the ship. The drilling noise ceased suddenly, and she rolled inside the crate as she finally hit her target, and collided with the ground inside the Eclipse.
Author's Note
Hooh boy this chapter was a doozy to write. Sorry for keeping you guys waiting so long, my Promare binge ended a while ago, but I wasn't going to abandon this story when I'm so close to the end! Hope you guys are enjoying it anyways!
