The Monument to All Your Sins.

After Twilight told them the impossible story the scarred mare had shared with her, everything made sense, or at least her friends stopped treating her like she was crazy.

Fluttershy had had to stay in Ponyville, receiving medical attention due to her injuries, Starlight had assured them that she would personally take care of her, which had reassured them all to some extent.
Spike had also stayed behind, the little dragon was too shocked, knowing that he wouldn't be able to see the princesses without losing his composure and with two days without sleep behind him, he decided to stay and rest, but not before wishing Twilight and her friends luck.

The alicorn was sitting against the window of the train, staring absentmindedly at the night landscape with the mountains in the distance. The carriage was empty, hardly any ponies were taking the midnight train, they were the only ones there.

At one point Twilight looked away from the window, watching her friends; In the row of seats on the other side were Rainbow Dash and Applejack, the little blue pegasus was lying on the lap of the farmer pony, sleeping, the orange mare was also sleeping, leaning against the window, one of her hooves was standing on Rainbow's head, tangled in her mane, Pinkie Pie, right in the place in front of her friends, was sleeping occupying a whole seat, stretched out exaggeratedly on the backrest, her fur remained a very dull pinkish gray and her mane, though slightly fluffy, still hung cold and lifeless, finally, Rarity, sitting a couple of seats in front of the alicorn was wrapped in a very thick turquoise blue coat, a black beret adorned her head and she wore sunglasses, Twilight didn't know if she was asleep or not, but noticing that she didn't make any sound or give any indication of movement she guessed she was.

The trip lasted several hours, when finally the whistle announced their arrival at the capital, the sun was not yet peeking over the horizon, keeping the place under calm blue and purple tones.
The five mares walked through the newly awakened city in silence, some of the businesses were beginning to open their doors, others were closing them after a hard night's work, there were some ponies walking down the street, some working and others seemed to be just taking an evening stroll.

“Could someone remind me...why we decided to come so early?” asked Rarity, recovering her usual complaining tone for a moment.

“Because we have to find out what happened to the unicorn...” replied Twilight without turning to look at her friend.

“Yes that I understand but...that doesn't explain the terrible travel schedule, Celestia hasn't even raised the sun.”

“Exactly” replied the alicorn seriously confusing the white unicorn and the rest of her friends.

“Celestia will be busy for quite a while making the sun rise shortly so this is the perfect opportunity to get answers as to where she is...”

The plan they had hatched still worried the group a bit, even Twilight wasn't entirely sure, but, a feeling in the back of her head told her that there wasn't much time to act.

“Are you sure this is a good idea Twilight?” asked Applejack behind her back, the alicorn took a moment to answer.

“I was researching, writing to all the detention centers and psychiatric institutions in Canterlot, asking for some scarred unicorn mare, no one knew how to give me an answer...” they all fell silent.

“No one knows anything about her, as if she was never captured, so after weighing the options, the only place she could be is...” Twilight was trying to speak quietly so as not to attract the attention of the ponies that were passing them by, as they rounded a corner the mares stopped as they stood before the imposing royal castle which loomed imposingly with the horizon just behind them.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

In the deepest part of Canterlot castle, in the ancient catacombs, used in very ancient times, walked a smiling princess Celestia, her radiant smile contrasted with the gloomy environment around her, she was not escorted by any guard nor wore her usual necklace and crown, she walked through the dark corridors shining her horn and almost jumping with each step as if she was dancing.

The great alicorn turned in several corridors, again and again, further and further away from the habitable areas of the castle, finally arriving at a rickety, but very solid, dark wooden door, Celestia shone her horn making its wood glow and an unlocking sound was heard. to later push lightly with her hoof giving way to a room.
The same was in complete darkness which was broken little by little as the princess entered the same, revealing several artifacts made of wood and metal scattered and dusty, for the vast majority of ponies today all these machines would be completely alien, making it impossible for them to know what they were and what they were for, but for a pony as old as Celestia its purpose was more than clear.

In an instant the alicorn shone his horn more brightly, creating glowing spheres which flew in different directions, placing them on the walls and causing the room to fill with a uniform and intense light.
With the illumination the old instruments of torture were perfectly visible in their entirety, spikes and blades long since rusted and barely standing, all the walls were made of rock and from them hung corroded chains and filthy hooks, finally, on the left wall a pony could be seen hanging from its front legs, The chains that held her seemed to be the only thing recently added to the room, she was completely unclothed, revealing each and every one of her wounds and on her horn there was a ring of magical suppression, the sun princess seeing the unicorn hanging, apparently unconscious, could not help but widen her smile even more, exclaiming with a shrill cry.

“Good morning sleepyhead!”
The unicorn didn't seem to react to Celestia's words, causing Celestia to frown, taking a couple of steps towards the unicorn, the regent of Equestria watched her for a second before unleashing a powerful blow that hit her in the stomach and made her cough and spit.

“I said, good morning...” the princess' tone had changed to one that seemed bitter and annoyed, with a serious expression on her face, the unicorn must have taken a few moments to make the pain bearable before responding.

“Ouch, ahem...wow, I had forgotten what it was like to be woken up like that...” the mare kept her head down, her face covered by her matted red hair and with a tone in her voice that indicated haughtiness.

“A thousand apologies it's just that I don't have much time and I wanted to come and give you the good news” Celestia said as she forced a smile again.

“Wuu, great, you'll tell me you finally got rid of that horrible vaginal infection you got from fucking diamond dogs? hahahahahahahaa....” another punch to the mare's stomach that made her let out a gasp, if only she had eaten something recently, she was sure her stomach would have returned it by now.

“That's funny, I didn't remember you being so eloquent...” started to say celestia letting out another punch this time in the direction of her ribs, which crackled with the impact ” No no no no, I came to tell you that today I will give notice that you were finally captured and referred to the authorities.”

The unicorn forced herself to let out a raucous laugh.

“Wow is that the best you could think of, even I can see how unbelievable that is, you're going to be flooded with questions and you'll have to present evidence and...explanations” the mare found it hard to breathe.

Celestia turned and walked to the other side of the room slowly as she continued to speak.

“A very insightful observation my dear, but don't worry I already have it covered, I will say that during your transfer to a psychiatric facility you resisted, there was an altercation and unfortunately you ended up dead” the princess began to search for something amongst the large amount of medieval machinery.

“Something more credible but there will still be questions...” the mare reiterated.

“Questions that will be quickly ignored and filed away my dear, nothing to worry about, maybe it will last a little longer but, as I told you, they will eventually forget it, that's how ponies are nowadays...” the alicorn was shining her horn, pushing aside large chunks of rotten metal and wood.

“I see then that your work paid off...” the unicorn began to say ”When I left your empire was crumbling, your enemies were overwhelming you and your people were revealing themselves... How did you manage all this?”

“I'm so glad you asked!” exclaimed the princess as she continued rummaging ”It's been so long since I've been able to have this kind of conversation... My sister doesn't like to reminisce about the old days, you know?”

“Are you talking about Nightmare Moon?” he asked with an irritating tone, the princess couldn't help but grit her teeth before answering him.

“We go by a different name now...” began Celestia.

“Ahhhh right!” false surprise emanated from the mare's mouth ‘I forgot, your real names may be somewhat..shocking to your paper pony society What were they?...’ she pretended to ponder ”Ah yes! Celestia and Luna, seriously now whose idea was that? they sound like names chosen by a foal!”

The regent didn't respond to the provocation, instead she continued to rummage through the muck until she hit upon what she was looking for.

“Answering your question...” said the princess as she walked back to the mare with a wooden bucket levitating at her side ”It's true that I found myself in a difficult situation for a while and it took me even longer to realize what I was doing wrong...” Celestia dropped the bucket shatteringly in front of the pony, revealing that it had huge iron nails inside.

“I realized that the more I oppressed the freedoms and attempted against the lives of the ponies the more discontent there was and the more airs of rebellion arise among them...” the alicorn said this while with her magic she lifted two of the nails from the bucket, she held them in front of her face and they began to redden.

“No matter how much terror I instilled in their hearts it ended up turning into courage and bravery, so I decided to do something completely different...” the princess related this with a thoughtful expression, her gaze lost on the nails that were increasingly glowing as if they were being fanned by invisible embers.

“It took me a long time and many generations but I finally managed to cleanse my image from being a tyrant to a savior...” once the nails were hot enough Celestia levitated them in the direction of the mare's hind legs, more specifically to her inner thighs, holding them just a few centimeters from her skin.

“Of course it required many sacrifices on my part, including my dear little sister, poor thing had to bear the guilt of years of torment and, to make it believable, I had to impose a real punishment on her” the alicorn drove the slamming nails deep into the mare who, despite gritting her teeth couldn't help but let out a cry of pain as she felt her muscles burn inside.
“But in the end it was all worth it, I managed to build a perfect kingdom full of harmony and, more importantly, control, I finally didn't have to worry about wars, rebellions or riots because everyone was happy and content with the life I had given them, which gave me more than enough time to be able to dedicate myself to the most important thing of all...”

“Your damn obsession with yours...” said the mare with a hoarse voice while still gritting her teeth in pain, the celestial princess looked surprised.

“...Yes...” she finally replied as she pulled the nails out forcefully eliciting a gasp from the unicorn ”Looks like she shared more with you than I thought, how sentimental of her...” Celestia admired the wounds she had inflicted on her prisoner, taking a long look at the pair of holes but pausing as she noticed how, despite the fact that these did not close, the external burn seemed to fade quickly.

“I see you still retain some of my sister's power...” she said as he levitated two more nails from the bucket and began to heat the ‘But it's nothing compared to what it was before...your connection is weakening’ he quickly drove the four red-hot nails this time into the unicorn's belly, making her squeal again.

“Soon you won't be able to heal any more wounds and not only that, soon your old wounds will start to reverberate in your body...” she began to say as she drove the hot iron even deeper into the mare's insides this time leaving them there ‘The more time progresses you will start to feel more and more pain until finally your body can't take it anymore...’ the princess pulled another six nails out of the bucket.

“Can you imagine that, dying of pain...” she inserted the nails into the mare's armpits, who held back her scream as best she could, mustering enough strength to respond.

“Ughhhhhh.....I can't imagine a better way to die that would make you smile like that...” said the pony finally looking up a bit and pinning her eyes on Celestia's who was smiling widely.

“You're absolutely right, I would love nothing more than to leave you here until you finish aging and die in agony...” the princess paused making a strange grimace ”But...unfortunately, you're a risk that threatens everything I've worked so hard to achieve, so we'll end this quickly.”

The alicorn flashed her horn and a heavy clatter went through the room, in a moment a huge iron brazier was placed at the regent's side bursting into flames and igniting violently.

“Look I wouldn't want to have to kill you so quickly, so we'll make it more fun, after all what I told you the other night was true...” Celestia drew large iron rods towards her from across the room and began placing them into the fire one by one “It's been ages since I've had the opportunity to have fun with a pony like you, one worthy of enough time and effort for a good play session.”

The mare watched impassively as one by one the rods were placed among the embers and began to heat up.

“But don't worry, even though it will hurt a lot, I've decided that in the end I will give you a quick death...”

“Oh wow and to what do I owe this incredible gesture of benevolence?” the unicorn couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

“Well, I figured it was the least I could do for a pony who sacrificed so much for me and my kingdom...too bad the kingdom you helped build will never know of your sacrifice” the princess said this last with a mocking tone, taunting the unicorn who gritted her teeth in anger.

“Indeed look!...” exclaimed Celestia enthusiastically as she lifted a couple of the rods from the fire and showed them to the mare, these, now with the glow of the embers, showed that on their tips they had designs to mark, one of the rods had the word in large letters ‘WHORE’ and the other read the word ‘TRAITOR’.

“I hadn't used either of these for a long time, it will be good to finally put them to use again” the princess placed the rods back in the fire.

“However our fun will have to wait, particularly today I have endless tasks to accomplish, very important tasks, so perhaps you should wait for me until sundown, I hope you don't mind.”

The unicorn didn't answer just kept her gaze fixed on Celestia's face, with a frown and a furious look. Celestia gave her a smirk and a smirk.

“Oww don't be sad, look on the bright side, in the end, you'll end up dying at the hooves of someone of your time” the princess couldn't help but let out a chuckle at his comment, turning around to start retreating.

“You know, believe it or not, it does comfort me...” the regent heard from behind her back, turning to look at the mare.

“For a moment I actually thought you had changed, I saw your face, with that smile talking to your beloved ponies and for a moment I doubted...it's good to know you're still the same sadistic bitch you always were...” the unicorn let out an emotionless laugh and spit some blood on the ground with disdain.

Celestia looked for a long moment at her prisoner, noting that she was exhibiting a wistful smile before turning and walking out the door.

Just as she crossed the threshold the sun princess was startled, standing in front of her was her sister Luna, who had a serious expression and was wearing her princess ornaments.

“Wow! Luna, you scared me!”

“I'm sorry sister, I came looking for you because it's almost time for you to raise the sun “Luna didn't react to her surprised gesture and laughter.

“Yeah yeah sure, don't worry, I was on my way” Celestia noticed how her sister had a somber expression and apparently looked over her shoulder in the direction of the cell.

Silence reigned for a moment before Celestia exclaimed with resignation.

“Don't take too long, remember we have to get everything ready for Twilight's coronation” the alicorn said as she stepped aside making way for her sister, just as Luna was about to enter the room Celestia called out to her again.

“And Luna...”

“Yes Celestia...?” the princess of the night turned to look at her sister.

“Don't break down,” she told her with an authoritative expression before turning and walking away down the hallway until she was out of sight.

Luna stood for a moment in front of the door pondering whether or not it would be a good idea to go inside, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, she finally took a step into the room.

“Oh! Back for your crabs?” exclaimed the unicorn with her head down.

“It's me...” said Luna as she slowly approached.

“Oh great, what I was missing, miss sweet ass and snake tongue” the mare let out a sigh of annoyance as she shook slightly trying to ease the pain of the nails embedded in her body.

Luna flashed her horn carefully pulling out all the iron pieces and dropping them on the ground, this caused the unicorn to whimper slightly before falling silent.

“Why?” the alicorn finally asked, to which the chained mare replied eloquently.

“Well I messed with your sister's pussy and then she got mad and then...”

“I mean why, why did you do it?” the question immediately fell to the unicorn who let out a sigh and cleared her throat for a second before answering.

“Why?.....why?...you know I don't even think I know very well.”

“No, you don't!” exclaimed the alicorn aloud ”I want you to tell me why you kept fighting, you could have had a good life, away from this shit, the war is over...”

At that moment the princess of the night was interrupted by a scream that echoed throughout the room and even outside.

"¿¡OVER!? ¡¡¡BULLSHIT, FOR ME THE WAR CONTINUES!!!" Luna was so thrown off by the shout that she couldn't respond immediately.

“I fought!!!I fought and suffered as you ordered but I couldn't win!!!And when I finally returned home what did I find!!!A fucking lie formed over the corpses of my comrades!!!With a people who don't even know of their existence!!!”

“It was.... It was a bad time” Luna said with her head down not daring to look at the mare.

“A BAD TIME?!!!To you it's just that, just a bad time in a distant memory!!!To you all those deaths meant nothing!!!And why would they?!!!You're a goddess...”

Luna tried to protest but she was met by another caterwaul of screams.

“At least on the battlefield I had friends!!!....” the unicorn writhed furiously in her chains, pushing at the wall with her hind hooves stretching in Luna's direction.

“The leader of my personal guard seriously chooses to die here?” asked Luna trying to appeal to the mare's nostalgia.

“I learned to fight against all kinds of beasts!!!!! I endured indescribable pain because I believed in your cause!!! I BELIEVED THAT IF I FIGHTED HARD ENOUGH, IF WE GAINED VICTORY, EVERYTHING WOULD GET BETTER!!!”

The unicorn seemed to lose her breath and strength, dropping back down as she hung from the ceiling, after a minute her broken voice filled the air again.

“I shouldn't have come back...” she began to say as tears streamed down her face ”I should have died like the others...they were all gone...they were good ponies...they were all good!!!”

Luna felt her heart compress in her chest at the scene, there was a lump in her throat and she felt unable to say anything, letting silence reign for a long moment until the pony spoke again.

“Have you even seen my dreams...?” she asked suddenly looking at Luna and noticing a dismayed expression on her face ”Heh...of course not...you don't have the courage...”

The alicorn stood still where she was, this as a cold sweat began to be reminiscent of her forehead.

“Every night I dream I search for their remains on the battlefield, the parts they lost to your enemies...they were all my family....and they are gone.”

Luna finally mustered enough strength to continue her approach as the mare sobbed silently.

“The least I could have hoped for was that a monument would be erected in their honor, out of respect for all the lives they sacrificed...but they couldn't even give them that, they just buried them where no pony could ever find them and left them there to die...”

Luna raised a hoof in the mare's direction, intending to wipe the tears from her face, but the moment the unicorn felt the brush of her touch she jerked back in a blind rage.

“DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH ME DAMN YOU, IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT, YOURS AND YOUR BITCH OF A SISTER!!!”

Luna recoiled in fright as it looked like the pony's chains would come off the wall.

“YOU AND SHE DESERVE TO DIE YOU AND SHE DESERVE TO DIE!!!” the mare continued to thrash and scream at the top of her lungs for quite a while until she finally ran out of strength and collapsed from exhaustion.

Luna stood still just a couple of steps away from the distressed mare, not knowing what else to say she simply let her emotions take over.

“Bek...” she called to the unicorn who looked up weakly.

“I'm sorry...I'm really sorry...” tears were beginning to fall down her perfect face, staining it and making her lose her composure.

The mare had expected any reaction but this one, she simply stood silently watching the once one of the greatest tyrants the world has ever known collapse on the ground crying like a little foal.
The weeping lasted for long moments with nothing but sobs as the only sound in the room, until finally the princess recovered enough to stand up again and look at Bek with a look of deep sadness.

“What good are your tears to me...” the mare finally replied with a scornful expression and a lost look.

In a moment Luna flashed her horn pulling something out from behind her wings and showing it to the captive, who couldn't help but open her eyes in surprise.
It was the hilt of her sword, which remained exactly the same as she had left it with the exception that it was now clean and polished, the unicorn looked quizzically at Luna.

“I figured...you'd want to at least have her around, when...it happens...” the princess said with a sympathetic expression.

The unicorn said nothing simply looked back down at her sword and Luna could tell she was smiling slightly.

“I'll leave it, where my sister won't find it..” Luna levitated the hilt to the other side of the room, climbing up the wall until she placed it in a recess near the ceiling that hid it perfectly,far from the pony's reach but also from Celestia.

“There, now at least you won't leave this world without her...” said Luna finally looking back at the mare whose face was drooping to the floor without looking at her.

After another moment of silence Luna finally let out a sigh and started to leave the room, just as she was about to cross the threshold she stopped dead in her tracks and looked over her shoulder.

“If it's any consolation, I still carry them all in my mind, so they will never truly be forgotten...”

“That's no consolation...” replied the mare without looking at her ‘That you remember them is the worst insult...’ and without further ado Luna left the room and closed the door.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Luna walked through the corridors in a daze, her head spinning a thousand times over the situation between her hooves.

Right there, locked up and hidden in the darkness, was trapped one of the ponies she had come to love the most, doomed to suffer a horrible death at the hands of her older sister, it was unacceptable, any pony would do anything to stop this barbarism and fix the situation and yet she did nothing.
She had asked herself this question since the day she saw her again at Twilight's coronation, she asked herself when she fought with her that same night and she asked herself now that she had seen her crying and suffering chained to that wall, why, why didn't she do anything to stop this?
She shuffled through all the possible answers to that question, each one more far-fetched than the last, but finally one very simple reason overcame the others, fear.
She was afraid, afraid of what her actions could unleash, afraid that her efforts would not be enough, but above all and most importantly, she was afraid of what could happen to her if she was discovered and judged by her sister, that was the main reason, the pure and genuine terror she had for her older sister, one that she had not felt since more than a thousand years ago, when she was banished to the moon and condemned to live in the shadow of eternity.

She did not want to provoke Celestia's fury, she knew it was not a simple matter of a difference of opinion or a simple reprimand, to do so was to play with fire, a vengeful and powerful fire that, if she was not careful, could sweep away everything in an instant.

Therein lay her dilemma, the reason for the feeling of helplessness that gnawed at her, the reason why she could not muster the courage to save that wounded mare who knew nothing but war, she was simply too much of a coward.

While the princess was walking aimlessly through the corridors of the catacombs, lost in her thoughts, she heard a voice in the distance. At first she thought it was her imagination but the sound became clearer, it wasn't just one voice it was five and it wasn't just five voices, it was five voices she recognized.

“I told you Twilight, we're lost.”

“We're not lost Applejack we're taking a back way to avoid running into any guards” Twilight replied to her farm girl friend as she tried to locate herself in the complex maze that was the catacombs.

Princess Luna watched them intently from the shadows.

“Well, I'm no expert on catacombs...” said Pinkie Pie in a more muffled voice than usual ”But even I'm sure we must have gotten somewhere by now.”

“Haghh! I can't believe it!” exclaimed Twilight frustrated ‘You say that as if it wasn't hard to locate with outdated maps and blocked roads!’ the alicorn looked nervous, despite trying to keep order the group of friends were becoming increasingly dissatisfied, it got to a point where the discussion began to take on more aggressive overtones.

“I knew this trip was a waste of time, we were supposed to be on a rescue mission and now we need to be rescued” exclaimed Rarity indignantly.

“How are we even going to know if she's somewhere in the castle if we can't talk to anyone?” asked Rainbow Dash as her tone became more haughty.

“And even if we do find out, we have no idea how we're going to get her free” Pinkie Pie concluded with a pessimistic tone.

“And if Twilight can't figure out that our plan doesn't have a leg to stand on, then maybe she's not fit to lead this operation” said Applejack finally, looking directly at Twilight.

Faced with the avalanche of discouragement Twilight couldn't take it anymore and exploded, with a furious look that made her friends take a step back she exclaimed.

“In condition...of course I'm not in condition!!!! Do you think I'm functioning well after everything we saw!!! All you do is complain, complain, complain!!! For fuck's sake!!! Do you think I have all the answers!!! Obviously not!!!!!!” After that Twilight dropped to the ground disconsolate and on the verge of tears.

“I have no idea what we are doing...I have no idea even if what we are doing makes any sense...” the alicorn's friends looked at each other embarrassed and saddened at the injustice exposed, silently before their friend spoke wiping her eyes.

“All I know, is that we must do something, we have witnessed secrets important to all of Equestria and as its protectors we must do all we can to bring these secrets to light...” Twilight rose from the ground with determination in her eyes.

“That is why we must rescue Bek, we must find her, we must give her the voice and support she needs to let the whole world know what the princesses have been hiding from us, the secrets they decided to bury...”

At those words Luna's eyes widened with surprise and panic had these ponies discovered everything? How was it possible? This was very serious, if the elements of harmony were already aware of her secrets, this would get out of control very quickly.
She had to do something, tell Celestia? no, surely she would kill them or disappear, besides she didn't know if they had already told more ponies about this, Spell them to forget? risky and very problematic, if she started to play with the memories of the mares it would be very notorious and her sister could notice it making retaliation against her, Luna thought quickly what she could do to solve this situation cleanly until an idea went through her head.
It was crazy, possibly the craziest she had ever thought of in her entire long life, it was absurd and inconceivable, but it was an opportunity.

“I think I can help you with that Twilight Sparkle” the princess' voice echoed in the compound causing the five mares to become alert and move into a defensive position.

Slowly Luna advanced towards the ponies entering the light range of Twilight's horn with a solemn expression, seeing the imposing figure of the princess of the night the purple alicorn panicked, for a moment all the worst scenarios went through her mind, she imagined herself and her friends being arrested, She even thought for an instant that Celestia would have her wings revoked for having betrayed her trust, while she was thinking about that Luna stopped just a couple of steps away from them, looking at them without saying anything.
They were all silent for what seemed like several minutes until Luna, finally having thought through the words she was going to say, spoke.

“I can help you find what you are looking for...” at the princess's non-hostile and seemingly passive response they all relaxed and Twilight was the first to raise her voice.

“What?...What do you mean princess...?”

“I know where Bek is.”

The words of the alicorn froze everyone's blood, suddenly what until now could have been described as a terrible nightmare ended up consolidating and taking shape, there they had Princess Luna, according to Bek's story, one of those responsible for the horrible barbarism they had witnessed, confirming the existence of the pony they had come to look for and that, indeed, she knew her.
It took them a moment to recover from the initial shock long enough to heed what the princess was telling them.

“She is in these very catacombs, trapped in a cell fitted out by my own sister for her specific confinement...”

The more Luna spoke the more intrigue and fear the mares felt, this was really happening, the words, seemingly meaningless in an impossible story, took on validity and shook the world of the elements of harmony.

“If you come to rescue her you need to know that the door to her cell is enchanted with a powerful magic that can only be activated by an alicorn...”

They all looked at each other quizzically for a moment being interrupted by Pinkie.

“I think we have that covered...” said the pink pony before being interrupted by the princess.

“You don't understand, the spell was cast by my sister, so she is able to sense when it is activated, if you open that door you must be quick to help her get out and escape the city before my sister comes down to investigate.”

They all went cold, suddenly the trip had taken a sinister turn, the way Luna describes Celestia left a hole in the ponies hearts.

“They need an escape vehicle and a safe route away from the beaten path...” the alicorn kept saying, more to herself than to Twilight and her friends, finally her ramblings were interrupted by the same purple alicorn looking at her with a seriousness never before seen in her eyes.

“Princess Luna...” started to say Twilight making the alicorn stop and look at her with her deep eyes ”So...everything is true...?”

The princess didn't need any further explanation, she knew exactly what she was referring to, after a long pause and without stopping staring into Twilight's eyes the princess of the night answered.

“Yes” cold and forceful.

Twilight's mind threatened to collapse at the revelation, her last glimpses of stubbornness that screamed at her that everything she had seen and heard was impossible dissipated, for the first time since receiving the unicorn's visit her mind cleared of any doubt and fear, clearing the way for understanding and finally, allowing her to begin to process the information. She couldn't say for sure but she was sure her other friends felt the same as the room seemed to be freed from a heavy shackle.

“Well...” said Twilight recovering the solemnity of her voice, something that surprised all her friends and even her ”How do we stop Celestia from coming down here?”

Luna recovered quickly from Twilight's sudden change of attitude and continued.

“In a few moments my sister will make the public announcement of the criminal's capture in front of the entire city, there is the perfect time for you guys to break into the cell and rescue her..”

“But what if the princess sensing our intrusion decides to quickly end the announcement and come down here?” asked Applejack regaining her thick country accent.

“I'll see to distracting her as much as possible” replied Luna determinedly.

“I don't guarantee to be able to do it for long, but I'll give them as much as I can.”

“Okay, now how do we get her out of town?” asked Twilight to her friends.

“Let me have the transport procurement!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash enthusiastically, Twilight couldn't help but smile at her friends' renewed spirit, gaining confidence and continuing.

“Okay now the route back to Ponyville...”

“We can go through Everfree Forest!” squealed Pinkie, her mane, though not fully recovered, had taken on a brighter hue as had her fur ”It's full of old roads that hardly anyone uses these days, we'd get to Ponyville by tomorrow afternoon!”

At the plan in progress Luna felt hopeful for the first time in a long time.

“Alright, follow me, I'll show you where the cell is and a shortcut to an exit that leads to the main street.”

All the ponies followed the princess down the corridors back to the shadowy dark wooden door, once the directions to the exit were explained and Rainbow along with Pinkie ran off in the direction of the exit to find an escape vehicle, Princess Luna prepared to leave.

“Alright, don't forget, when you see the door glow white that will be the signal for you to enter, you must be very quick to free her and get her out of the catacombs, once my sister knows you are on the outside she will send guards in search of you, under no circumstances must she know that you were here that is the most crucial thing Understood?”

Luna's nervousness was palpable, she really was doing this, she really was acting behind her sister's back, once again conspiring in the shadows, her thoughts were interrupted by Twilight who was looking at her with concern.

"Princess Luna, not that we don't thank you for this but, if everything she says...is true why are you helping us?" the question threw Luna off, truth be told, even she wasn't sure why she was doing it or maybe she did know, but she didn't want to accept it.

“It's because this is my fault Twilight Sparkle, I caused all of this with my actions, the least I can do is try to fix it...” She paused in deep thought.

“Twilight Sparkle, I have one more favor to ask of you...” the princess began to say drawing the alicorn's attention.

“Sure princess, anything...”

“When you manage to get her out of this and you are already safe queiron that you help her leave everything behind, I don't care how you do it just convince her to stay away, to leave and never come back, only then she will be safe...”

Twilight looked seriously at the princess's face, trying to deduce if this was a trap but found no falsehood in the request.

“I will princess...I will.”

And once that was said, Luna smiled, turned and walked briskly away.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Luna had quickly climbed back up to the castle which was beautifully lit due to the radiant sunlight streaming through the windows, she ran through the corridors in the direction of the balcony that led to the outside of the palace, dodging guards and cleaning staff deftly.
She finally reached the door leading to the balcony, stepping inside without thinking and bumping into Celestia with an annoyed expression right in the center of the room.

“I told you not to take too long, the crowd has been gathered for over five minutes...” celestia's expression relaxed as she saw how agitated Luna was, giving a mischievous smile.

“Couldn't you wait any longer and have fun with her, what a dirty little sister, but I respect that, after all she was your former whore.”

Luna did her best not to answer the nasty remark as Celestia walked in the direction of the balcony and she followed.

As soon as Celestia stepped outside, with her wings outstretched and a comforting smile on her face Luna flashed her horn slightly, sending a spell into the depths of the castle that made the large wooden door glow with a very faint white light.

“It's the signal!” exclaimed Applejack.

Twilight approached the door shining her horn, the moment it touched the wood it let out a purple flash, causing it to click and swing wide open.
The room was still illuminated by the glowing spheres of light which danced a little as Twilight stepped through the threshold, appreciating the enormous amount of torture artifacts and feeling horrified, looking around frantically and coming across the figure of the mare hanging and chained.

“Here she is!”

Meanwhile, upstairs, Celestia was giving a very elegant speech about security and how peace had been restored when she felt a shiver run down her spine, she knew what it was instantly, but she couldn't give her sister warning, she was still talking.

Downstairs Applejack and Twilight were doing their best to free the mare while Rarity watched the escape route.

“These chains are welded to her hooves Twilight, we need tools to open them.”

“No time!” Twilight looked up at the joint that attached the handcuffs to the ceiling, it looked worn, quickly Twilight fired a bolt of lightning with her horn, destroying the anchor and releasing the entire chain.

Upstairs Celestia was getting more and more nervous, she did her best to quickly finish the speech, receiving applause and cheers as she retreated into the room, immediately turning to her sister.

“The door” she said coldly as she walked out into the hallway followed closely by Luna.

“Are you sure sister?” she asked feigning surprise.

“I'm sure, I felt the seal unlock” she said as she came down a staircase at full speed.

“But, it's a spell you haven't used in a while, you may have forgotten the feeling...” Luna struggled to keep up with her sister who was getting closer and closer to the entrance to the catacombs “Or maybe...I forgot to lock the door.”

Celestia stopped abruptly, turning her head slowly to look at the princess of the night.

“What thing?”

The terrified look on Celestia's face made Luna swallow saliva, unable to answer.

“You forgot to lock...the door?” repeated Celestia with a stern tone.

“Well I...maybe I did close it, but...maybe I didn't close it properly...”

Both mares struggled to drag the heavy pony out of the room, who could barely stand on her legs, before they could get out the door the unicorn complained.

“No...no, wait...”

“What, what's wrong?” Twilight asked confused as she watched as faintly the chained pony pointed in one direction, as she followed it with her eyes Twilight noticed it was pointing to a hole high up on the other wall of the room, she quickly flew there. sticking her hoof into the opening and pulling out the hilt and looking at it for a second before turning back.

Celestia was running down the halls with fury in her eyes as she was chased by Luna.

“No need to get upset sis, I just said it was a possibility, because I'm sure I shut it down well....” both alicorns turned down hallways and down stairs.

“It could very well be nothing, I really don't think we should go to....”

“Shut the fuck up Luna!!!!” Celestia's shout stopped Luna in her tracks right in front of the entrance to the catacombs,it was only a second before Celestia spoke.

“I don't care if you left the fucking door open or if someone else opened it the point is it's open!” Celestia shifted towards the entrance with the intention of going down before stopping and turning to look at her sister.

“Put all guards on alert” she ordered before moving deeper into the darkness.

Twilight led the group while Applejack carried Bek on her back and Rarity was right behind her, running as they followed the route Princess Luna had provided, turning at intersections and going down long corridors, finally they caught a glimpse of a light, picking up their pace and finally making their way outside.
For an instant they saw no trace of Rainbow and Pinkie but the next second they both appeared from the side, both had colorful balaclavas covering their faces and accompanied by an old cart with remnants of straw and dirt.

“This is the escape vehicle!” asked Twilight in excitement.

“It's all we got!” exclaimed Rainbow in response.

While in the distance could be heard the cries and complaints of an old pony, clamoring to have his wagon back.

“There's no time!” cried Pinkie as everyone rushed to get into the wagon.

Finally Celestia after a frantic run to her prisoner's cell stopped short in front of the open door, the lights inside had been extinguished and now only the large iron brazier illuminated the interior, the alicorn very slowly peeked inside the cell, She hoped that everything had been a simple slip without consequences, but no, the only thing that greeted her was an empty room, the space previously occupied by her prisoner was completely abandoned, only the mark on the ceiling where the chain had once been attached and some dried blood on the floor remained.
The princess stood there for a moment, appreciating the panorama and the next moment the room was engulfed in flames and a powerful scream echoed throughout the catacombs.
When the dazzling flash disappeared, everything in the room had been reduced to ashes except for the iron objects that glowed red-hot, semi-melted, including the heavy door of which only the hinges remained, and there stood the princess, breathing heavily, with an expression of fury and an orange gleam in her eyes.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The ponies were driving frantically through the city,Applejack and Rainbow Dash were pulling the wagon with all their might,both wearing balaclavas,while the rest stayed on board trying not to fall. Bek lay on the wooden floor unconscious while Twilight struggled to check her vital signs, which was difficult with the heavy goose mask Pinkie had given her to hide her face, Rarity had a carnival mask and Pinkie Pie an absurd clown mask, the alicorn found the situation ridiculous and prayed with all her might that the masks did not have the opposite effect and make it easier for them to be recognized.

Everything seemed to be going perfectly, up to the point where Twilight thought they had made it, but suddenly on the final stretch towards the exit of the city the situation took a turn for the worse.
Right at the archway that marked the end of the outer wall and gave way to the outskirts of Canterlot there was a group of guards settled, which seemed to stop anyone who wanted to cross, the moment the guards saw the carriage approaching they got into formation to block the passage.

“Halt!” they all shouted almost in unison.

“Twilight...!” began Applejack.

“What do we do!!!” term Rainbow.

Twilight thought about it for a second, adrenaline filling her body, finally she exclaimed.

“Don't stop!!!” and so they did.

The carriage didn't slow down a bit, ready to ram the guards that were blocking the exit, they looked confused at first, then worried and finally scared to see that the mares had no intention of stopping, for a second Twilight wished they would move away with all their strength, luckily, they did.
Just at the last second the group of guards broke formation and dashed in time to dodge the carriage which passed them by and quickly moved off down the road in the direction of the forest.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Luna was running through the corridors of the catacombs with a worried expression on her face, she was sweating thinking of all the things that could have gone wrong and wished with all her might that none of them were the case.
Her heart stopped for an instant when in the middle of the darkness she felt a scorching heat, she turned the last corner with her lungs about to burst in her chest and stopped his advance when she peeked out and saw the room burning and completely destroyed.
The rock on the walls glowed a deep red and the floor was covered in slowly expanding pools of molten metal.

In the middle of it all was Celestia who was completely still even looking in the direction where the afflicted pony used to be, she seemed not to have even noticed Luna's presence who, without courage to try to enter the hellish artificial furnace could only speak to her from outside the room.

“The...the guards have already been informed of the situation, they are on high alert and have blocked all the exits of the city” her cordial tone was rudely interrupted by the deep voice of celestia who spoke as if she was on the verge of a rage attack.

“Someone released her...”

“What?” asked Luna feigning surprise and trying to remain stoic.”

“Someone helped her out” Celestia was still staring at the wall.

“But...how is that possible?” Continued Luna taking a step back as she noticed the heat inside the room increasing.

“She must have convinced someone that she was telling the truth...” said Celestia as her necklace and crown could be seen glowing in the intense heat but not melting.

“But...” began Luna determined to continue with her plan ‘If that were the case who in all of Equestria would be crazy enough to come here?’ the younger sister left this question in the air, knowing that it would put her sister on alert, she had to keep her conspiring, pensive, to gain as much time as possible.

Celestia remained silent, her thoughts beginning to fill her with paranoia, she knew this was a possibility, but she didn't think anyone would be stupid enough to blindly believe in the ravings of a crazy pony, she had underestimated the unicorn's persuasion skills and now, the problem had escalated a bit more, creating new possible variants and further threatening everything Celestia was trying to protect, now, she would be forced to take more extreme measures, measures that were just as or even more risky than her current situation.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The mares had managed to evade several guards and even though the guards had followed them into the forest, they had managed to lose them by going into the trees.

They had been running for most of the day, the sunlight filtering through the treetops was already dull, heralding the impending dusk.
Finally Twilight ordered Rainbow and Applejack to stop, bringing the carriage to a halt in a small clearing on the banks of a river.
They all removed the masks Pinkie had given them panting from the adrenaline and sweat the masks had caused them, they took a moment to catch their breath before calmly assessing their situation.

“All right!” exclaimed Rainbow taking flight ”We made it!...now what?”

“One thing's for sure...” began Applejack as she unhitched herself from the wagon ”We won't be able to show up in Canterlot again for a while so as not to arouse suspicion.”

“That was..the best wagon chase ever!!!” shouted Pinkie excitedly, jumping off the side of the wagon and landing squarely in the water, splashing a little.

“And is she..okay?” asked Rarity as she saw the unicorn on the wooden floor.

Twilight approached Bek, inspecting the, after a moment she let out a sigh of relief and stood up.

“She's unconscious, looks like she was just very tired” she said and a relieved expression came over everyone's face.

“That's very good...now can we talk about What pens was that place?” asked Applejack putting her hat back on.

“I'm not quite sure, it looked like one....” Twilight didn't want to complete that sentence, she knew what those horrible things they had seen were, she had read about them in many history books, but she always thought they were exaggerations written by some ponies with too much imagination “ a torture room” she finally said.

They all fell silent at the idea, they all knew what the word “torture” meant but, like Twilight, they had only heard of it in references to a time when ponies were less civilized, a time that seemed so far away that it had never had an impact on any of them.

Shock took over the atmosphere for a moment before Rarity cleared her throat and contributed to the conversation.

“So where are we taking her?” she said quietly snapping her friends out of their trance and making them really question that tricky conundrum.

“I...I don't know” Twilight finally answered ”It's not like we could take her to any hospital or general help center, they would recognize her instantly and report it to the guard..”

“We could hide her somewhere for a while...” began Applejack thoughtfully ”I could make a space for her on my farm perfect for her to recover...” Twilight interrupted her.

“No, Sweet Apple Acres is a busy place, no matter how careful you are it's likely that some pony will see her and notify to the royal guard.”

“Maybe, we could convince her to stay at Fluttershy's cabin just outside of town...” said Rarity with some hope.

“The way things are now I doubt Fluttershy's animals would enjoy the company of a pony who looks like an ex-con while she's agonizing in a hospital bed” said Rainbow Dash curtly.

“We must make sure we get a place so we can keep her safe and guarded...” started to say Twilight, just as she was about to come to an appropriate resolution a shrill sound made them all go on alert.

For a moment the sound of the river water was all that could be heard, but in an instant all the surrounding bushes began to shake violently, it seemed that something was approaching and all the mares positioned themselves close to the wagon.
Just when the sound and movement was at its peak everything stopped suddenly and a little squirrel came out of the bushes, looking strangely at the ponies while licking his whiskers, the friends could not help but let out a sigh of relief at what seemed a false alarm, but suddenly from the bushes jumped several plump figures, screaming outrageously and scaring the squirrel who ran away.

The beings were strange and bulbous, appearing to be giant toads with arms too long and legs too short, emitting grunts and gurgling gurgles as they approached the mares holding weapons made of sticks and sharp stones.
The friends were alarmed at the presence of the weapons and tensed even more where they stood, the beings seemed to number twenty or so, circling the wagon with the river at their backs, they came closer and closer with a steady gaze on the mares in their bulging, yellowish eyes.

“Twilight what are these things?” asked Applejack as she backed up another step, bumping her flank against the wagon.

The alicorn searched her memories for any creature that resembled the ones in front of them, it took her a moment but she finally exclaimed.

“They are goblins!” they all looked at her quizzically ”Creatures that long ago assaulted the caravans that used to go deep into the forests, Celestia herself started a campaign against them expelling them and making them flee to the Everfree forest...”

Twilight's long explanation was interrupted when a goblin, who seemed to be even more wrinkled and bulbous than all the others, spoke in a voice that seemed to gargle.

“Prraaa Www ponies....ahgs ajjjjjj ponies hand over everything they have...” the strange voice made them all shudder but as they analyzed the situation a bit more they came to the conclusion that, if they stood up to them, they could be victorious.

“We won't give them anything!!!” shouted Rainbow Dash emboldened.

“Yes!...” continued Applejack ”Why would we even give them any of our stuff?”

“Because if you put don't give us stuff you put lose pink pony waaagh...”

Hearing that they all became aware of the sound of a muffled scream behind them, turning around they were met with a scene that made their blood run cold, right on the shore of the lake there were two other goblins, both of whom were wet and holding Pinkie Pie firmly covering her mouth, the pink pony was flailing and writhing violently trying to free herself until one of the goblins raised his hand and rested a dagger made of rock against Pinkie's neck who instantly went still.

They all watched in horror as the goblins moved even closer to the wagon.

“Pinkie no...” said Twilight with tears threatening to spill from her eyes as the lead goblin spoke again.

“Ponies stay very still Bluaghhh... if you ponies move pink go away...”

The friends had no choice, heeding the goblins' gestures they dropped their saddlebags, climbed down and away from the wagon, surrounded by a small group of four and with the goblins holding Pinkie right beside them, as the goblins began to dismantle the outside of the wagon, ripping off its wheels and emptying the mare's bags.

“Twilight...” whispered Applejack to the alicorn, causing the alicorn to look up at her.

“Bek is still on board...”

Twilight watched in fear as the goblins began to climb up to peek inside.

At one point the goblin leader, rummaging through Twilight's saddlebag, fell silent and then exclaimed with great joy, he raised what he was holding and it was seen that it was the hilt of Bek's sword, which glowed under the little light that still seeped through the branches, all beings came to see and began to jump while saying things like “Brilliant!” or “Nice!”suddenly a coarse voice interrupted the festivities.

“Get your filthy hands...off her...”

All the goblins turned to see a brown unicorn rise from the back of the wagon, scrambling down the side and taking a couple of steps towards the small crowd, the goblins looked on in curiosity and some surprise as the wobbly pony leaned against the side of the wagon, dragging the chain attached to her front legs.

They all watched in silence as the unicorn, panting heavily, managed to utter more words.

“She is too good for you...I will not let you sully her...”

The goblins looked at each other for a second in confusion before exploding into what seemed to be grotesque laughter, in less than a blink of an eye a move was made and before the unicorn knew it, she had a large spear thrust into her chest.
All the mares screamed at the sight, as Bek collapsed to the ground, shock overcame the friends as they tried to assimilate how, apparently, the pinkie they had gone to rescue had died.

The goblin leader sneered one last time as he exclaimed in a thick voice and he and his group turned around going back to looting.

“Ponie stupid...asnghueaggg...”

But shock was replaced by fear when suddenly, Bek seemed to move and not only that but he slowly struggled to his feet unnoticed by the goblins, finally standing upright.
He still had the spear buried in his chest but, as if this was nothing, he placed his hooves holding it and gave a tug pulling it out, to the surprise of Twilight and her friends, despite the tip being stained, not a single drop of blood spurted from Bek's body.

“Hey...” the unicorn said weakly again, suddenly causing the goblins to startle and look at her in confusion.

“Seriously, they don't want to do this....” At that moment Bek tried to use his magic but it didn't manifest, just then he remembered that he still had on magic override ring.

“Ho no...” she didn't have a second to react.

All the goblins rushed at her, with the exception of the leader, knocking her down and starting to attack her, some thrusting their spears at her again and again while others just hit her.
They all watched in horror as the unicorn disappeared in a storm of green warts, at one point Twilight tried to step forward to try to help her but was stopped by a subtle reminder in the form of a growl.
The goblins still holding Pinkie pressed the dagger a little harder against her skin making the pink pony squeal and cry out in fear, the alicorn could do nothing but watch helplessly as the mare was bludgeoned relentlessly.

For an instant it seemed as if tdn was about to end in a sepulchral silence but suddenly a powerful scream of rage filled the air.
They all watched in surprise as Bek stood up suddenly sending the goblins flying a couple of meters away, feeling her body full of new wounds.

The unicorn spun on herself and it could be seen how the expression on her face reflected an indescribable rage.

The goblins charged at her again but this time they were repelled, skillfully the mare disarmed the creatures, piercing them with her own spears or striking them with her hooves so hard that you could hear their bones break on impact, even going so far as to use her own shackles to power her blows.
One by one the goblins fell dead to the ground, but not before managing to deliver more cuts and a couple more blows to the unicorn, which despite this continued to fight.
Even the Goblins that surrounded Twilight and her friends moved away to try to stop the mare and although at that moment they could have taken action to rescue Pinkie, they were all paralyzed admiring the carnage that was being unleashed before their eyes.

Finally the last of the goblins fell with a broken neck and the unicorn then, breathing heavily, walked in the direction of the leader, he had a strange expression of horror on his face, you could see how his legs trembled and gave way and fell backwards to the ground.
The unicorn approached until she was right in front of him, removing the blocking ring from her horn in her last two steps.

The two exchanged silent glances for a moment before the unicorn pointed her hoof at the hilt of the sword the goblin leader still held in his hand. Noticing this the leader quickly extended his arm, offering her the trembling object.

The unicorn shone her horn, in a green flash that raised the hilt in the air, the mare inspected it closely, noticing how it had a small ark made by the goblin's claws, in a second her expression turned back to anger and, before the goblin could say anything, the magical blade of the sword decapitated him.

The head rolled on the ground with a disgusting noise, stopping right in front of the two goats that were still holding Pinkie in terror, they looked up and met the unicorn's gaze which only gave her a frown and, in an instant, Pinkie fell to the ground and both goats ran away terrified to the depth of the forest.

All was silent again, none of the mares felt able to move after what they had seen, they just stood there, appreciating the massacre and the responsible pony standing in the middle.
This one was breathing heavily, staring blankly ahead, still with her sword lit and full of holes running all over her side, these were barely bleeding but clearly caused the mare a lot of pain, in one swift movement the sword cut the shackles from her hooves, falling to the ground with a thud.
After a moment more controlling her breathing the unicorn turned to look at her rescuers.

“I uh...I'm so sorry about the mess” was all she said before turning around and starting to walk away.

This finally managed to snap everyone out of shock, Twilight being the first to react, running after the mare as she dodged the goblin corpses.

“Stop!” shouted Twilight, causing Bek to stop though without looking at her.

“I...we, we, came to rescue you” she began to say nervously.

“I know...and I thank you very much, now I must get back to finish it...” she tried to get going again but Twilight stepped in front blocking the way.

“We didn't get you out of Celestia's dungeon to immediately try to return so she can kill you!” she shouted imposingly looking into the wounded mare's eyes, surprising a little noticing that her gaze reflected nothing but tiredness, she let out a sigh before answering.

“And so what was the reason you pulled me out of there?” the question threw Twilight off a bit, it took her a minute to sort out the words.

“I...well, we thought...” Twilight remembered the request Princess Luna had made to her “...we did it so you could go far away to a safe place...”

A shrill laugh interrupted Twilight's ranting, making her startle.

“HA! a safe place?...” the mare began shrill but her voice quickly faded ‘...That you still don't get it? there is no safe place, not while they are still alive...’ she paused again ”...That's why I must kill them.”

“You can't kill them!” exclaimed Twilight startling the unicorn.

“This is just a...sick excuse to justify you! You know you're not capable of killing them! You know you're going to die!”

The display of truths unsettled Bek, the alicorn's deduction skills were impressive, she now understood why the solar bitch had chosen her.

“Yeah...so what?” replied Bek listlessly.

“So what!!!” began Twilight increasingly upset ”You won't accomplish anything with that, you'll get your death but you won't accomplish anything, nothing that will help the rest of Equestria...”

The alicorn's words piqued Bek's interest, he wanted to know what she was getting at.

“If you die no one can ever know what happened, no one can ever know the truth!”

The unicorn's expression finally changed, her features relaxed and Twilight could see a genuine gleam of hope in her eyes.

“If it's all true then...” continued Twilight ”Then everyone deserves to know...”

Bek couldn't believe it, truly her pathetic attempt to tell the truth had worked, the princess of friendship herself had believed her and was now sticking up for her, the mare felt her heart shrink feeling a great and liberating relief, finally, after a long time, she was not alone.

“Okay...” said Bek finally, taking a couple of steps back and sitting down on the floor.

At that moment the others came over, rolling over to the pony and joining Twilight.

“So is she going to help us?” Applejack asked Twilight.

“Yes” Bek answered quickly ”If they truly believe my story, then I will do everything in my power to help them reveal the to the whole world...” Bek looked at the ground thoughtfully.

“So now we have a super pony on our team?!!!! twenty percent cooler no doubt!!!” exclaimed Rainbow as she flew back and forth causing Twilight to remember that the unicorn was badly injured.

“Oh for Celestia's sake, we must get you somewhere to treat your injuries...” she began to say worriedly.

The mare frowned slightly at the mention of the name but restrained herself as she understood the idiom.

“It's not necessary” Bek said as he stood up again.

“But, you have a lot of injuries, they need to be treated or you could die...”

“I always heal” he said in a nonchalant manner before turning and heading back in the direction of the wagon.

At this they all looked at each other again thinking about what to do next.

“Still ahem...” began Rarity ”You obviously need to rest, you need to be taken somewhere safe so you can get properly...just think of a suitable place...”

They were all silent for another moment until Twilight finally spoke with resolution.

“I think I already have the perfect spot...” they all looked at her curiously before Bek interrupted once more.

“That's great but...” the mare stretched making some of her bones thunder ”If you don't mind and before we go...” Bek looked at the crystal clear water of the river before finishing “I'd like to take a swim...”.