Outskirts

Chapter Two

Skipped Formalities

“Still not gonna work.”

“What? What do you mean ‘Still not gonna work’? It’s a foolproof plan!”

We had been at this for hours. I’d detail a strategy for getting an audience with the him being held underground, and Vanity would somehow find a way to reason out why it was destined to fail in a manner so eloquent that I couldn’t even think to rebut her. Of course, that didn’t mean I couldn’t try.

“Peri, you basically just said that we should sneak in and try not to get caught.”

“Yeah, I did. Would you rather we just run in and hope he’s waiting there for us?”

“You know what I meant. And plus, you could make the best plan in the world, but we still wouldn't even know where this ‘underground testing lab’ is.”

Dammit, she was right. I had of course known of this problem while formulating my plans, but I was actually hoping that it would somehow resolve itself. Those agent ponies had coughed up just about everything just a few hours ago, but had conveniently left out the location of the lab. This meant that either the Mayor already knew, or that those government ponies didn’t want her to. Either outcome posed its own set of problems. If the Mayor did know, there was the dilemma of somehow getting her to spill it to us; and if she didn’t, we’d have to figure out a way to either follow the suits there or get them to tell us where it was. This did not look promising.

“Didn’t you say they mentioned moving…’him’ to Canterlot?” asked Vanity.

“Yeah, so?”

“We could always wait till then. I doubt we could miss them moving something out of Raincap’s one exit,” she clarified with a sense of accomplishment.

“No. We need to get in there tonight. We have no idea when they’re gonna move it, and mom and dad will notice we’re gone by then.”

“Oh, right.” said Vanity, her head sulking.

I was having a hard time reading her tonight. I could usually tell exactly what my sister was thinking. It was how I had become so good at manipulating her (I got myself out of a fair amount of trouble in this way). But this was different. I could tell she was sad, that was obvious; but I couldn’t figure out why. She was the one who had insisted on coming with me, so I doubted she was feeling bad about leaving Raincap. And it wasn’t like she had anything else to be depressed about. I mean, she was her. Still, I could tell she was feeling bad, and I couldn’t have her slowing me down if I was going to be sneaking into a super secret government lab. I suddenly realized something I had already known, but just never took the time to ponder over.

“Duh!” I sighed, facehoofing.

“What is it?” Vanity asked softly.

“When the agent pony called the thing a he, the Mayor didn’t seem surprised at all. She must have already known.”

“So?”

“So, she probably knows who ‘he’ is, and thus, where the lab is. Come on Vanity, you gotta put two and two together.”

She regarded me cautiously.

“Four?” she offered in her confusion.

I facehoofed once more.

<<-------------------------------------------------->>

My brain was able to work much more efficiently now that I had a plan. I didn’t plan on coming back to Raincap once I got past the fence, so kidnapping the Mayor really came at no consequence. Barring of course, the effort it would take to actually capture her.

Vanity and I had been following Mayor Misty Shores’ hoof prints for over an hour. I started to wonder if she had expected to be followed and purposely took the most complicated route from the coffee shop to her house. My suspicions took on a different color when I noticed the tracks led into the Raincap public park. Vanity and I exchanged quizzical looks and proceeded onto the perfectly trimmed lawn. The trail went dead in the grass, which was much less susceptible to transform under the weight of a pony’s hoof than the dirt roads of Raincap.

“What do we do now Peri?” asked Vanity, a hint of defeat in her voice.

“Just give me a second to think,” I answered.

I had no idea what to do next. The trail had gone cold. For all I knew, Misty Shores could have trotted into the park and just suddenly disappeared. I surveyed the park, looking for anything that might serve as a lead to the Mayor’s whereabouts, but saw nothing but trees and that ostentatious pageant show piece.

“Peri. You do realize that the Mayor was probably home by the time we started looking for her right?”

“Well then how do you explain her tracks leading to the park? Trust me, just look for anything out of the ordinary.” The task seemed mundane enough to keep her quiet while I pondered my next move.

“I don’t see anything here that I don’t see every day,” she said wryly. “The only thing in this park is grass, trees, and the runway. And all those things have always been here.”

It was as if both Vanity and I had simultaneously come to realize the same set of implications. I had never questioned why the pageant stage stayed up year round. It had been such a familiar sight that it would have seemed odd for it not to be laying there smack dab in the center of the recreational grounds. Vanity and I exchanged a confirming nod and galloped over to the robustly decorated catwalk.

“Well…what are we looking for exactly?” Vanity asked. That was actually a fair question, I had no idea exactly what it was I thought was odd about the runway being present in the park year round. Maybe it was too heavy to move, or maybe the city council felt there was no reason to move it since there was a pageant every year.

“Look for anything unusual,” I suggested.

“Like what?”

“I don’t know, anything that looks like it might lead to an underground lab.”

Vanity flapped up onto runway and began inspecting the glittery path as if expecting to find some sort of clue hidden in plain sight. I turned my attention to the crisscrossing of bars underneath the structure. I squeezed between the support poles and began crawling around in the space beneath the runway. The support structure of the catwalk was much less glamorous than the actual walk way. Down here it was dank and crowded. Surely anypony tasked with having to repair any of these bars would have to be at least as small as I was, and even then it was cramped. But as luck would have it, sunlight could not reach the space below the walkway. And as such, grass gave way to firm mud.

These tracks didn’t belong to Mayor Misty Shores. The hoof prints in the mud had been slightly faded, suggesting they were at least a few hours old. I shimmied through the maze of metal rods, trying to follow the trail of shallow tracks. My heart jumped from my chest as a sudden flash of light snapped across my eyes.

“Unauthorized occupant, request for access denied.”

I leapt back and struck my head against one of the support bars. The voice was inorganic and thoroughly awful to listen to. It’s monotonous, emotionless buzz slowly repeating the message several times before silencing. I rubbed my head gently while examining the odd looking panel which housed a glowing glass orb that must have been the source of that far too bright light. I could hear Vanity hop off of the catwalk, no doubt having heard my head acquainting itself to the support railing.

“Peri? Are you okay down there?” She shouted in a whisper. “It sounded like something got hit.”

“I’m fine, that was just my head.” I tapped the glass of the panel and the thin beam of light shot out again, this time catching only the bottom of my hoof.

“Invalid entry, request for access denied.”

“Did you say something?” called Vanity’s voice.

“No. Well wait yeah, come here.”

Vanity eagerly squeezed through the railing under the runway, quickly making her way through the crisscrossing to meet up with me. As she approached, the bright beam shot out and flashed in her eye. She shrieked and leapt into the air, just avoiding smacking into the same bar that had struck me.

“Unauthorized occupant, request for access denied.”

“What is that thing?!” She squeaked.

“Well, as far as I can tell it’s something that scans ponies’ eyes, and obviously our eyes don’t work.”

“So whose eyes do we need?”

“Anypony’s who’s been here, duh.”

“Well then I guess we have to give up. Let’s just go home and pretend like this never happened.”

“So much for not liking Raincap anymore,” I retorted insultingly. Vanity bristled.

The truth was I knew exactly what we had to do, for once. I just didn’t like it. Vanity knew all manner of cosmetic spells. Changing the color and shape of her iris would be as easy as a wave of her horn. And I knew if I asked her to help me she’d do it without hesitation, but it would show that had I not taken her I’d have had to give up and go home. It would prove that I needed her. But I really wanted to know what was down here.

“Hey listen Vanity,” I said, rubbing the bridge of my snout with my hoof “I didn’t mean that…I’m sorry.”

An elated smile spread across her abnormally cute face.

“Don’t let it get to your head!” I spat, turning to hide reddened cheeks “Anyway, I need your help.”

Her smile gave way to a smirk of realization. Then she seemed to ponder a moment.

“Fine, I’ll help you.”

Before I could say anything she pushed past me and stared into the glass orb on the small panel. The beam of light shot out and scanned over her eye.

“Registered occupant: Mayor Misty Shores. Request for access granted.”

A door that must have been camouflaged next to the panel slid open with a squeak. Vanity held her snout up and pranced past me into the open doorway, that devilish smirk worn across her mouth.

<<-------------------------------------------------->>

“Ah, watch the tail!”

I squished back as much as I could against Vanity in the confined broom closet as the sound of galloping hooves clopped by the door. We had gotten ourselves into quite the mess. Entering the base under the identity of Misty Shores hadn’t been as brilliant as we had thought. A small troop of armed ponies had come to greet the Mayor upon her supposed entrance. Vanity and I had made tracks down the adjacent hall and into the janitor’s supply closet to avoid detection. Based on what I could here from the hall beyond the door, the absence of Misty Shores was causing a stir.

A set of galloping hooves stopped in front of the closet; four small breaks in the light pouring in from beneath the door. An ice cold chill passed through my spine and a lump blocked up my throat. Behind me Vanity had gone stiff. Just as I had convinced myself that we had been found, the pony began to speak.

“Cheshire, hold up!” called out the gruff voice from just beyond the door.

I heard a brisk trot, then noticed a new set of hooves outside the closet.

“Yessir.” This voice was sprightly and enthusiastic, no doubt belonging to what I figured must be a ‘new guy’.

“Are you nuts leaving your post?! Get your flank back to the lab and guard the package!” roared the seasoned voice of the commanding officer.

“I…I’m. Sorry Sir, but I thought in lockdowns we…”

“In lockdowns you do as you’re told! Y’hear?! We need someone looking after the package, no chances can be taken.”

“Yessir!” shouted the young soldier. I could hear the sound of heavy clops as he and his officer galloped down the hall in opposite directions.

I pulled myself away from Vanity and pressed my ear against the door. All clear.

“Okay, here’s how we’re gonna do this,” I said, turning back to Vanity. “I’ll go and get ‘him’, and you stay back here and keep watch. If you hear those ponies coming back, use this.” I pulled one of the short range radios out of my backpack and gave it to her. “I’m on channel three.”

She stared at the device morosely then turned her gaze at me. “Peri, what are we doing?” The corners of her mouth bent into a frown.

“What?”

“What are we doing? And better yet, why are we doing it?”

I was taken aback. I didn’t know how to answer her.

“What happens when you do find this pony? We’re just supposed to assume that he’ll wanna be our friend? For all we know he’s down here because he’s a criminal,”

My mind seized, realizing it hadn’t even considered this very real possibility. Vanity didn’t let up.

“So, what? Are you gonna sneak in just to see what it is? Is that what this is about? I just…I don’t get this Peri, and I’m not sure you do either.”

My lower lip quivered.

“Why am I doing this? Because of you Vanity.” Her eyes shot open then sunk into a distraught expression at the accusation. “Because I can’t go back home and be the Raincap Pageant Queen’s poor crippled sister. I can’t go back to being the laughing stock of a whole town because of something I didn’t even get a Celestia damned choice in!” I whipped my face up to meet her stare. “I’m doing this because maybe…maybe if I can save this thing…bring it back to where it belongs. Maybe then I might actually be able to be somepony.”

There was an odd, eerie silence. Vanity seemed to be searching for her voice.

“I…you’re somepony to me.”

I shrugged.

Her eyes went wide, her frown fading into straight face. She regarded me momentarily, then began to nod.

“Okay. I’ll stay in here, but remember that there is somepony guarding the lab.”

I smirked, unclasping my backpack.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got that covered.”

<<-------------------------------------------------->>

I slipped past another hallway as the security camera spun to scan the opposite end of the path. The walls of the underground base were a deep steel grey, looking nearly black in the low light provided by hanging lamps spaced out wide enough that they might as well have been kept out of the final design all together. Large metal sliding doors adorned the base’s narrow hallways, which were all home to at least one ceiling affixed swiveling camera. I was trying to track where the young soldier pony had run off to after being ordered to guard over the package in the testing lab. The wall mounted signage did little to aid in my attempts. The labyrinth of thin, intersecting hallways had had me travelling in circles…or rather squares, since leaving the broom closet. If the guard troop had decided to forgo their search for Mayor Misty Shores, spotting me darting up and down the halls would be an inevitable certainty. This raised the question of why seemingly everypony down here had gone rushing to the main entrance, leaving only one to guard their precious find. Had the discovery not been as important as I had thought? It was apparently still worthy of at least one armed guard, but given the gravity I had placed on this because of its link to an event outside of the Raincap fence, I would have at least left a troop of ponies to guard it. Not that more than one would be needed to incapacitate the likes of me.

I stopped in a corner hidden from the sight of the swiveling eyes and brought out the syringe I had taken from my first aid kit. The simple device was loaded with a powerful painkiller guaranteed to put a pony to sleep after just a few seconds; the medication I had been given when I tore open, and subsequently broke, my right hind leg while trying to fly from the roof of my house. My mother had taken the majority of the serum from me out of fear that I would grow too fond of its narcotic effect, making for the most painful six weeks of my life. But finding her stash had been an easy task, and I pilfered a tidy bounty of the medicine just in case of emergency situations. I figured this one was pertinent enough to qualify. I tested the syringe’s pressure then grasped it in my mouth.

The mounted camera swiveled around to monitor the other end of the hall, its flashing green light disappearing from sight. I swiftly crawled out of the corner and threw myself against one of the many unmarked doors along the long, narrow hallway. It hadn’t been lock. I burst into a room full of high shelves lined with all manner of unpronounceable medications and the types of tools you hoped you’d never need used on you in the hospital. I reeled, trying to avoid crashing into a shelf stocked with what looked like the devil’s cough medicine, and managed to only bump it slightly, causing the jars of syrup to rattle against each other like a wind chime.

I was breathing heavily. An inch more and I would have drawn far too much attention to myself.

Click. The door opened.

“Hello? Is there someone in here?” asked the voice of the young soldier who ought to have been guarding the lab.

Fear gripped me. My sinuses felt clear as mountain air and my lungs tightened in my chest. I slid behind one of the tall shelves and ducked as low as I could. As he entered the room I had to struggle to keep from gasping on my own stifled breath.

“Hello?” he asked again, this time with an edge of concern.

Beads of sweat trailed into my mouth and mixed with the cold taste of the syringe. The guard pony’s eyes narrowed and he began to walk between the isles of medical supplies. My heart was racing. I began to backpedal as he neared the shelf I was hidden against. He stopped in the next aisle over, noticing that the jars of red syrup had shifted from their organized norm. He straightened them with a gentle tap of a hoof then let out a sigh of relief.

“Jeez, I really gotta calm down,” he said with a smile. “Just keep it together Che…”

Thud.

A few seconds of convoluted mumbles were all he was able to muster before slipping into the warm embrace of unconsciousness.

<<-------------------------------------------------->>

The inside of the air ducts was cold and uncomfortable.

After taking care of the lab guard (who wasn’t much of a guard really, since he strayed so far from his post) I slipped out past the nosey camera and down the adjacent hall, which was generously devoid of wandering eyes. Then there it was; at the end of the hall stood a large metal door labeled ‘SM182 Testing Laboratory’. The glee of my discovery had gotten the better of me, and I dashed into the door. It had been locked.

All around me I could hear the dull buffeting of fans. The distance from the vent entrance to the lab wasn’t more than a few yards at most, but slithering through the tight corridor made the trip feel like an eternity.

Creeeeeek…

The duct gave out an agonizing whine as I neared the vent over the lab. I froze, but even my lungs’ gentle pulsation was enough to coax tiny squeaks from the shifting metal. I had to work quickly. I shimmied to the vent and tried to pull my foreleg up from my side. My struggling forced another whimper from the duct and I gave up on the campaign.

“Well shit,” I said with a sigh. “Guess it’s time to use my head...literally.”

I pulled my head back as far as I could in the narrow tube and brought it down on the vent. I didn’t expect this to work as well as it did. My momentum sent me spilling out of the duct as the vent detached from it’s hinges and crashed to the floor below, myself only a split second behind.

My everything hurt. The fall was an easy twenty feet, and I hadn’t exactly had time to brace myself. I squirmed to my hooves and took in my surroundings. The room was dimly lit, bordering on dark. The walls were colored a slightly reflective grey dull enough to be the inside of a mental ward. Dents and deep gashes populated the far wall around a chained closed emergency exit. Tall rolling trays scattered with surgical tools took up spots next to stained medical beds. This was not a testing lab meant for any form of science I knew of. This wasn’t even a lab, it was a torture chamber. My gaze followed the rows of gurneys, and then I saw it. Under the room’s one ceiling mounted lamp stood an upright metal slab. Strapped to the chunk of steel was…

Him.

My eyes fixated on the stallion. He was unlike any pony I had ever seen. His coat was blacker than the darkest night sky. His short cropped mane even darker, save for a thick orange stripe cutting through it. He was heavily restrained. There were thick leather straps fastened over his chest and legs, and an odd metal restraint fitted to his torso. It looked as if he was asleep, but the trolley in front of his slab told a different story. The blood stained scalpels and slightly damaged pliers made it apparent that this pony had been tortured. I was so taken by his striking (and actually kinda hot) features I didn’t even notice that I had begun to shift around the room. That is, until I bumped into a medical tray, sending its contents falling to the cold ground in an orchestra of clinks and clacks.

The stallion stirred awake. I froze in place, my jaw hanging agape as I gasped for breath. The buck’s eyes slowly opened and began to blink into life. Even his eyes were odd, being of a shape more common to zebras than ponies. They found me, and I noticed something even more strange. This pony had no pupils! Trapped within the whites of his eyes were balls of brilliant amber that glistened under the hanging light. His stare was pitiful, and for good reason, I thought. Over the past day this pony had likely suffered all manner of atrocities at the hooves of those government ponies. The sight of me must have seemed more insulting than intimidating. I found my voice and began to stammer.

“H-h-h-hello. M-m-my name is Periwinkle.”

His brilliantly exotic eyes narrowed and his head cocked slightly.

“I…would you like me to help you?”

For all we know he’s down here because he’s a criminal.

I remembered what Vanity had said, but I had never heard of police ponies torturing prisoners. This was something else, something wrong.

His head cocked even further.

“I mean, just, I noticed you’re stuck, and I- I was just thinking maybe you don’t want to be, or…”

He raised his head high, silencing me, then gestured towards the opposite wall. I followed his gaze to see a small control panel. I nodded to him with a smile and scurried over to the mounted computer. The controls were overly simplistic. I pressed the large red button labeled release and heard a loud thud behind me. I turned to see the buck struggling to his hooves, and was startled by yet another revelation. The odd metal torso piece was not a restraint. The slick black onyx colored cuirass hugged the stallion’s chest, a small neck guard collaring around his lower crest. I stared, half admiring how snugly it fit him and half marveling at how bewildering this all was. As he wobbled to his hooves, my gaze washed over the armor, and then I saw them. On either side of the sleek carapace were…wings. Edged, angular, unimaginably sharp wings made of the same material as the armor itself. The buck began to stretch, spanning the things in his new freedom. The sight of these wings filled me with emotion. Mostly fear. My own limp appendages twitched slightly as I slowly stepped back. The stallion smirked as he postured himself, blinking his brilliant pupil-less zebra eyes as they adjusted to the low light. I noticed that a similar orange stripe ran through his short cut tail. As he scoured the room with his gaze, my own fell on his flank, which was adorned with the image of an ember of flame. I looked up and noticed him staring at me. Oh goodness! He thought I was staring at his flank…well I was, but not that way!

My embarrassment was seized by the blasting of an alarm. The room erupted into a show of red light and blaring sound. The black buck went into a defensive position and I began to trot in place anxiously. What happened? I hadn’t been seen by any cameras. Had they found the guard pony in the medical supply room? Or…had they found Vanity? Curse my luck. I conjured up an image of her jauntily prancing out of her hiding place looking for me, only to be intercepted by the returning guard troop. No, that was ridiculous. I had given her a radio. Surely she would have contacted me first. But what if she…

My mind cut itself short as the stallion pulled out of his combat stance, his expression softening. I turned and my suspicions faded.

Vanity.

She was standing in the doorway of the lab, a dreadful expression on her face. She seemed stunned. Her mouth hung open, quivering as if she were trying to speak, but no words could find their way out. Her flaxen mane was undone, and her big blue eyes glistened with tears. Even in my confusion I couldn’t help but notice how in the dim light, her brilliant white coat took on a very pretty smoky hue.

“They…they killed them…” Her voice was a forced whisper, barely escaping her.

The strange buck pushed past me to Vanity, placing a hoof under her chin and making her eyes met his.

“What is it? What killed them?” His voice was calm yet urgent, the very slightest hint of masculine gravel underlying his smooth whisper with a cool rasp.

Vanity just stared at him, her lips trembling as tears trailed down her reddened cheeks.

Krak! Krak! Krak!

A wicked sound echoed through the entire facility, vibrating my eardrums painfully. The stallion perked up at the report.

“Gunfire…” He moved his hoof from Vanity’s chin, and with a growl, galloped past her into the maze of hallways. I scampered over to my little sister and placed a hoof on her swollen cheek.

“Vanity,” I began, myself on the verge of fear driven tears. “We have to go. Okay? Come on little sis.”

She looked down at me, her shock melting into a smile. “Peri.” She threw her forelegs around me, sniffing away her sadness. I squirmed out of her embrace and met her eyes with mine.

“Listen Vanity, we have got to go. Now!”

Her trance seemed to break, and with a few quick nods she joined me out of the lab and back into the bowels of the morbid place.

<<-------------------------------------------------->>

The stench didn’t hit us until we emerged from under the catwalk. I began to gag as the odor stifled the air around me. Rot. The only word that could describe it was rot. The world reeked of rancid milk and sour apples, wrapped in the horrific pungency of putrefaction. A constant droning buzz filled the air, almost fully drowning out the sounds of muffled screams coming from the town proper. The thickness of the atmosphere was enough to make movement, and even breathing, difficult. Behind me I could hear Vanity violently heaving. I looked back at the abnormal state of my sister; her mane was disheveled, and her swollen face was speckled around the lips with chunks of vomit, her trademark cheer replaced with a dour distance. I nodded for her to follow me and quickly weaved through the runway’s criss crossed beams. Vanity followed with urgency. Whatever she had seen, it had frightened her enough that she clearly did not want to be left alone. We galloped out of Raincap Public Park and beamed towards town center, cutting through the sickly greenish haze filling the air. Within the mist swarmed thousands of screeching insects blitzing around in tufts of rabid consumption, devouring any trees and shrubbery in their wake. The sounds of chaos filled the air; screams of agony and the wicked echo of gunfire filling me with fear. I wanted for this to be a dream, a terrible nightmare that I would jolt out of to find myself safely in my bed. I’d gladly accept the unfairness of my parent’s punishment if it would mean the end of this bizarre and cruel turn of events.

I slid to a stop at the Raincap market square. Within the square, the town’s folk of Raincap bolted about in panic. The limp bodies of ponies littered the ground like a demonic mural, their corpses mangled and already festering. Intermingled with the fleeing ponies were something else. Hellish and putrid, the creatures were pony only in general shape: a head, four hooves, two eyes. The monsters looked like ponies that had been dug up from their graves and left to spoil in the sun for days. But they were alive, and they were killing the citizens of Raincap! Droves of the wretched beasts gave chase to the fleeing ponies, their lifeless eyes and razor toothed grins savoring the evil they planned to commit. I stammered, taking no more than a step back before Vanity collided with me. We both fell to the ground. I didn’t even have time to reprimand her. As I lifted my head my eyes fell on one of the debauched pony beasts. It hovered over me, rancid yellowish drool dripping from its decayed mouth. I tried to scream, but terror stole my voice. The creature railed up, its foul, fleshy hooves preparing to squish my head into mashed potatoes. My eyes squeezed closed, my muscles tensing in preparation for the eminent blow.

SHHHHPLUNK!

Warm, putrid smelling liquid splashed on my face. I opened my eyes, gagging in disgust. Before me stood the headless body of the rotted pony. It quivered for a moment, then slumped to the ground. I caught a glint of light from the corner of my eye and turned to see the black, metal winged buck crouched in the dirt, an outstretched wing dripping with the creature’s rancid life blood. The stallion spun around, glaring at Vanity and me.

“If you want to live follow me and stay close. And do not stop flying.” With a slash of his wings he launched into the air and began sailing through the vile fog.

I shot Vanity a look that we both knew the meaning of. She scooped me up in her forelegs and took to the sky, trailing the sharp winged pegasus as best she could with the added burden. Just below us a spectacle coughed up from the most vile horror stories was playing out as an unbearable reality. Armed townsfolk gathered alongside familiar suited ponies attempting to gun down the horde of corrupt creatures. They didn’t last long. Through the cloud of green mist and swarming insects I could see them panicking. At first a few civilians broke away from the group, then one of the government ponies was tackled and the others dispersed in frenzy, leaving him to be torn apart. I saw one of the demons sniff the air, and with a freakish grin it looked directly at our guide, and then at Vanity and I. It let out a broken, hellish shriek and a group of the monsters began to give chase to us on the ground. Vanity was a decent flier, but she wasn’t the strongest. Having to hold me, as diminutive as I was, was taxing her strength; and as such, forcing her to fly lower than she normally would be capable of. Low enough for the group of creatures to take furious bites at my dangling hind legs.

“AAAYEEEE!” I screamed as one of the beasts hit home, digging its razor sharp teeth into my ankle. Its fangs slid out of my flesh, taking in them a souvenir.

Vanity’s eyes grew wide, and with a high pitched grunt she flapped her wings with all she had, raising us out of the reach of the horde. I threw my stare away from my leg, the sight of my own blood making me cringe. In front of us was the Raincap fence. Through my tears I could see the black pegasus hovering over sand on the other side of the gate. He was shouting something at Vanity about not stopping, and waving a hoof. I noticed we hadn’t been moving. I looked over my shoulder at the town proper. A fire had broken out somewhere in the market center and was spreading throughout the town. The last of the town’s ponies were scrambling to wagons or just running as fast as they could to get away from this horror. In only a matter of minutes, Raincap had been turned into a scene out of a horror film, the likes of which would haunt you long after the spectacle had ended. I looked up at Vanity, we had no other choice now.

“Go,” I said in a low, heavy murmur. Vanity looked down at me, her face full of anguish. I stared back, unwavering. My sister let out a trembling sigh, and began to beat her wings; and just like that, we crossed over the fence. The black pegasus turned and continued to dash away from the city. Vanity gave chase, flying as fast as she could over the endless sands.

I looked back once more. The sounds of gunfire echoed on the red tinted horizon, and with each passing moment, the small town of Raincap grew smaller and smaller in the distance.