Savage POV

One of the Goddess' big plans has been to find a way to create male alicorns. She has only been successful in creating females, which has resulted in there never being an alicorn foal. Our kind was never able to conceive with normal ponies, so we needed the stallions.

But why would the Goddess want alicorn foals? The answer is simple: to ensure the continuation of our kind in the future.

Yes, the reason why we supported Crystal's plan to have foals was because we knew the Goddess had the same plan. However, that wasn't the only reason. We also knew how much it meant to Crystal to have a foal of her own. We wanted her to be happy...

Blueberry and we had watched Crystal and Zitrus talking to a zebra. Two other zebras had stood in the background, escorting her. We couldn't understand what they were saying.

Truth be told, we didn't trust those stripes (or Zitrus) initially, but in the end, nothing had happened. They had continued their conversation until we noticed a change in Crystal's mood. A change for the worse...

Zitrus and the zebra continued their conversation for a bit longer until they parted ways. Crystal and Zitrus returned to us, and the sight was etched in our memories forever. Crystal...

Her head and ears hung low, her usual cheerful face gone, replaced by emptiness. It was as if something had sucked the life out of her, leaving behind only an empty shell.

"Sister!" We rushed past Zitrus, with Blueberry following closely.

"Crystal, what happened?", Blueberry asked, concerned.

These words brought tears to the eyes of our green sister.

"They have nothing... nothing to help me conceive", she managed to say.

Neither of us could find words to respond. We could only hug her tightly, holding her close...

It was the evening of the same day. We hadn't traveled far, just enough to distance ourselves from the zebra village and to set up a camp to allow Crystal some rest.

We sat beside Crystal, providing her with comfort. Blueberry sat with Zitrus a short distance away from us.

"It may not have worked this time, sister, but that doesn't mean there isn't another way. We will continue to search for other options, as most sisters do. Sooner or later, we will find a solution that allows you to have a foal", we said reassuringly to Crystal.

In return, she leaned against our side. She had stopped crying, but her sorrow still weighed heavily on her. We wrapped a wing around her, embracing her tightly.

"You can always consider adopting a foal, dear sister", we said. The idea of a sister raising a non-alicorn pony wasn't something we favored. To our shame, deep down, we hoped she wouldn't consider such an option. We wanted Crystal to be happy, which is why we suggested it. However, the thought of an alicorn being a mother to something unworthy...

"I just want a foal of my own", Crystal said sadly. We felt relief within us, but also shame for prioritizing our sister's happiness as secondary.

"Can't you talk to her? Offer her some support?", we heared Blueberry ask Zitrus in the distance.

"I will. She needs comfort, yes. But I sadly can not perform miracles. I can't do more than what you two are already doing. By being here for her, we are already helping. But in the end, she also needs time", he replied.

We blamed Zitrus for the depression our green sister was currently in. He should have known that the zebras were unable to assist her, and that it would lead to Crystal's pain. He should have never allowed her to come here.

It was all his fault.

"Don't... It wasn't his fault", Crystal whispered, most likely having read our thoughts.

But we didn't place much value in her words.

Nearly two weeks had passed since our visit to the zebra village. Winter had arrived, with the first frost on the ground, and it seemed that snow would come in the following days.

As much as we hated to admit it, Zitrus had been right. We had all been there for Crystal, providing her as much support as possible. But, as Zitrus had mentioned, she also needed time. Now, she was mostly back to her old self.

We were in an abandoned house in the middle of a forest. Well, calling it a house would be an exaggeration. It was a single room, mostly made of wood. There wasn't even a bed inside. However, it did have a cooking plate that required firewood, a table, chairs, a rusty bird cage hung from the ceiling, and it had some scattered items like playing cards and books about the local fauna, old but still serving their purpose. From the saws and axe attached to the wall, it seemed that this building had once been used for forestry purposes. There were also some packs of tea, so old that they probably had no taste left. Zitrus still took them.

Zitrus had started a fire on the cooking plate to warm up the room without risking burning the whole building down. However, the door to this shelter was completely broken, so we had to use one of the tents to cover the entrance as best as possible, keeping the warmth inside. The second tent, instead of being set up, was used by Crystal, Blueberry, and Zitrus as a makeshift large blanket for the night, leaving us to sleep alone...

"Here, Savage", we heard a voice say. We turned our head to see Zitrus. In his mouth, he held a brown wool blanket, which he placed in front of us.

"You can use my blanket for the night. I usually use it for myself, but since I share the tent-blanket with the other two, you can use mine to keep yourself warm", he said.

We looked at the "offer" Zitrus gave us, then turned our head away from it. It wasn't even worth throwing it back at him. Using a tent from this wretched worm of a pony was one thing, but using his blanket was different. That thing even stunk like him! He probably planned this from the beginning when we came here.

"Pass!", we said, too prideful to look at him.

Zitrus sighed. "Look, Savage, I know you don't trust or like me. But this blanket is not poisoned or anything like that. It won't harm you. I'm just offering it to you so you can keep yourself warm at night, without any ulterior motives."

We huffed. Deep down, we knew he was right, and we were just acting stubborn now. But this was about pride! Our kind should not stoop to accepting help from an earth pony!

"Goodnight", we said curtly and laid down, facing away from him, without using his blanket, of course.

We heard him give another sigh and trot away from us. We closed our eyes, trying to ignore the nagging feeling in our mind and find sleep as soon as possible...

It was the next day. It had snowed during the night, not much, but enough to cover the ground with a thin layer of white. That is, if we weren't still in the forest.

This place didn't sit well with us. It held too many possibilities for an ambush.

We walked with some distance behind Zitrus and my sisters. The three of them chatted as if there were no worries. We despised how this filthy heap of dirt was getting along so well with our two sisters.

Suddenly, a rustle!

We turned our head towards the direction of the sound, noticing a bush that stood out. We ignited our horn, prepared to burn the whole bush if necessary. Slowly but steadily, we approached.

Then, we felt a sting on our flank. Turning our head again, we spotted a syringe.

A poison shot!

Quickly, we used our magic to remove the needle, but it was already too late. Our legs grew wobbly, and our mind started to spin.

We attempted to look around, but we couldn't spot the attacker. The bush in front of us rustled once more, revealing a pony, a stallion with an evil grin. The rest of our surroundings were no longer recognizable. We lost our balance and fell to the ground.

"No! We...", were the last words we managed to utter before everything faded to black.

When we regained consciousness, we were met with what was likely the worst headache ever. Struggling to push through the pain and confusion, we surveyed our surroundings. We were inside a cage! Panic coursed through us as we frantically searched for any sign of our sisters. Their absence could be either a good or bad omen, but we feared it was likely the latter.

The cage provided enough space for us to move somewhat freely, yet it was a place unbefitting a proud child of the goddess. A quick teleportation spell would have done the trick.

Our headache intensified, and we hissed in pain while rubbing our forehead. And then, we noticed it - or rather, the absence of it. Our once exquisite, powerful horn was gone! All that remained was a dull stump, cleanly severed. It appeared to have been sawed off.

We scanned our surroundings, the reality sinking in. Without a horn, we had lost our ability to use magic. No magic meant no teleportation. No teleportation meant we were still trapped in this cage...

Sisters, please be alright…

Our cage had been positioned in the center of a camp, surrounded by various tents. The camp was bustling with activity, filled with ponies who appeared to be the worst of the worst—filthy, dangerous, and seemingly half-insane. It was evident that we had fallen victim to raiders.

Two of the ponies were engrossed in a card game, while a unicorn used his magic to rub a pistol against his back, relieving an apparent ache. Nearby, another pony gnawed on a bone, greedily seeking the last remnants of meat like a dog. And then there was one more pony...

He, a unicorn, used a knife to work on our severed horn. With precision, he guided the blade along the pointy end, making it very sharp. And as if choreographed, he delivered a forceful blow to the newly sharpened section before inserting it into his grimy mouth, employing our exquisite wonder of magic as a crude toothpick.

“YOU! YOU WILL LET THAT GO THIS INSTANT BEFORE WE RIP OFF YOUR HEAD!”

Everypony turned their gaze towards us as we shouted through the bars of the cage.

"Oh, look! Our guest is awake", another disgusting stallion, much like the rest of them, positioned himself in front of the cage, blocking our view and drawing attention to himself. It was unfortunate that he stood too far away for us to reach, or we would have swiftly dealt with his despicable presence by punching his brain out of his head this instant.

“Let us out so we can make it slow and painful for you!”, we demanded.

He responded with a derisive laugh. "I highly doubt you are in any position to give orders, let alone make believable threats, abomination."

"Where are our sisters?", we growled at him, displaying the fierce demeanor of a wolf stalking its prey.

As if scripted, a stallion emerged from behind a tent with a chain clenched in his mouth. Blueberry followed, her neck encircled by the other end of the chain, and her limbs tightly restrained, allowing only restricted movement. She wore a shattered expression. Not only had they severed her horn, but they had also taken her wings...

Where once her glorious blue wings had been were now bloody bandaged stubs.

Seeing her fully trapped in chains made our heart scream.

No! Not Blueberry! Not after everything she went through!

Blueberry turned her head towards us, her expression barely showing any emotions. However, in that moment, she gave us a look of profound sadness and defeat, before the chain around her neck forcefully reminded her to continue moving.

We clenched our eyes shut and ground our teeth together. The anger within us threatened to erupt, causing us to envision unleashing a torrent of violence, brutally ending the lives of everything around us.

"Where is Crystal?", we asked through gritted teeth, our voice filled with a dangerous whisper. Fear gnawed at us, but we needed to know the truth.

"Who? Oh, you mean our green cumdumpster?", the stallion replied, his grin indicating he knew exactly whom we were referring to. If he hadn't been out of our reach, we would have eagerly punched out every tooth in his mouth.

“YOU RAPED HER?!”, we shouted at him.

"Oh, I wouldn't call it rape. In the beginning, she seemed to enjoy it. But after a dozen stallions, she started to cry", he said, his tone filled with sadistic satisfaction.

Driven by pure hatred, we threw ourselves against the bars of the cage, disregarding the pain it inflicted upon us. All we felt was an overwhelming desire for vengeance. However, the bars held firm, refusing to yield.

"We will kill all of you! By the Goddess, you will pay for this!", we declared, smashing our hoof against the cage, yet our efforts were futile.

And then to make this nightmare even worse, HE appeared.

It felt as though he had appeared out of nowhere, but there he stood - Zitrus. He gazed at us from outside our prison, just beyond our hoof's reach.

“YOU! WE KNEW YOU WERE NOT TO BE TRUSTED! YOU PIECE OF SHIT!”, we continued to hurl insults at him, shaking the bars in futile anger. Zitrus, however, was well aware that we couldn't touch him. He stood there, a smile on his face, soaking in all the insults we had for him. The hatred we felt for him burned in our eyes, and tears welled up involuntarily.

“YOU ARE A FUCKING ASSHOLE! BETRAYING OUR SISTERS! THEY TRUSTED YOU!”, Our tirade only ceased because of sheer exhaustion.

There was a momentary pause between Zitrus and me. We panted for breath, and he simply looked at us, his gaze unwavering.

"Indeed, I did. And they did," Zitrus said calmly. "Blueberry and Crystal trusted me enough to fall into the trap. But you, you never trusted me. You were always suspicious. It's a shame you never took action before it was too late."

We wanted to respond, but we were still catching our breath. We could only watch as Zitrus turned his head and rummaged in his saddlebag. He retrieved his pistol, gripping it tightly in his mouth. Then, facing us once again, he aimed the gun directly at our forehead. This was going to be our end...

Author's Note

*dramatic dum dum duuuum noises*
A brutal chapter, yes i know. But well... that's the wasteland i guess.
Feel free to write feetbacks. Positive and negatives are welcome.