The Storm Alicorn

Chapters

What Was Once My Home
Earthaven
Nightmares of Two Different Kinds
A Whole Lot of Darkness

What Was Once My Home

By Readthestory

Disclaimer: I do not own MLP: FiM or any of its characters, or other things.

A/N: It is not my practice to put A/N at the start of stories, but I just want to make it clear that the story picture is not by me, but rather by Merran Eby on Elfwood.com.

Chapter 1: What Was Once My Home

The shaky orange glow of sunlight flicked through the smoky fog that was ever present in New Ponyville, glinting on the unhealthy plant life below. From the former Cutie Mark Crusader’s hiding place in an alley dense with bushes, Scootaloo peered through the fog, binoculars held up in one hoof. New Ponyville, as the Griffons insisted on calling it, was as dreary as ever. What little light the town ever got these days was usually cut off by the dusty fog, or the shadow caused by the Wreckage.

The Wreckage… just thinking of the word was painful in itself. It was a gigantic heap of broken stone, marble, wood and all things in between that lay still on top of what used to be Ponyville’s eastern district, but that was hardly the worst thing about it. The mass of rock used to be the “Greatest City in the Sky”… Cloudsdale. Like some cruel irony, The Sky City’s final resting place was the ground that it had smashed as it fell from the sky.

Scootaloo’s eyes wandered to the base of the Wreckage, fighting back tears as they scanned up the heap. So many Pegasi... lost forever. As if it was not enough that Cloudsdale was gone… it had to fall and destroy half of Ponyville with it. Somewhere under that heap was Twilight Sparkle’s library, Sugar Cube Corner, Miss Cheerilee’s School… memories of the past.

Curse you Tempest, and all your Griffon scum! Scootaloo thought for perhaps the umpteenth time.

The rest of the town was only a shadow of what it once was. The houses were scarred by the vestiges of the war. Some were gaping with holes, most were worn down to the foundation. A huge amount of houses had boarded up windows… and a fair few had boarded up doorways. You couldn’t have paid a Pony to set foot in those homes. Not when they knew what they’d find inside.

Scootaloo ducked low in the drying bush as a platoon of Griffons marched down the street, laughing and joking with each other, their Legion armor making metallic clinking sounds with every step. Any windows which weren’t boarded up on the street were quickly concealed by snapping shutters.

Completely unbidden, a memory flared up in Scootaloo’s mind. She distinctly remembered being hauled into a store by a brown Earth Pony with an hourglass Cutie Mark just before the owners locked the doors and hid behind the store counter. Just as Scootaloo was about to ask what was going on, the Earth Pony put a hoof over her mouth and whispered:

“That evil enchantress Zecora is back! Haven’t you heard the song?”

The flashback almost made Scootaloo smile. Everything was so much simpler back then. If only a harmless Zebra were the only thing Ponies had to worry about these days…

Scootaloo shook her mane, returning to the present. She had a job to do, and if she did it right, it would be a great triumph. The Pegasus focused her attention on the dirt road that ran alongside the town that led to Sweet Apple Acres and the other farms. That was where the work gang would appear.

“See them yet?” Sweetie Belle whispered, her eyes trained on the Griffons as they rounded the corner.

“Nope, nothing yet.”

“We can’t stay here forever.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Scoot shot back, irritated.

Scootaloo nearly jumped out of her skin as a soft touch of water dropped on her flank. Her eyes quickly scanned the area in panic as she lay frozen, completely silent. After a minute or so, she decided it was just ordinary rain… this time. It suddenly struck her that she had just thought of the new “automatic” weather as “ordinary”. All her life, Pegasi had manually changed the weather, and yet, since Tempest had taken over, automatic weather was already considered normal. The thought troubled the young Pegasus, she certainly did not want things to stay the way they were, nopony did.

“Apple Bloom… are you OK?” She heard Sweetie Belle say, gently.

The yellow mare was shaking with anxiety, staring through the fog at the townside road like her life depended on it.

Poor Apple Bloom, Scootaloo thought, At least I've had family to keep me going through all this. I hope everything goes well today...

“Apple Bloom, don’t worry! It’s going to be fine. Keep your chin up!” Sweetie Belle said softly.

“Keep your mind on that spell, Sweetie! We can’t blow our cover now!” Scootaloo whispered.

“Yeah, alright.” The Unicorn refocused her efforts on the Conceal Spell, a tricky piece of magic that discouraged anypony from looking in the direction of the caster.

“How do y’all know…how do you know it’ll all work out?” Apple Bloom asked, her voice quiet and shaky.

“I just know.” Scoot replied.

The soft drizzle ebbed and finally stopped as the former Crusaders waited in the alley, watching the dirt road intently. Apple Bloom began to nervously dig at the ground with her hoof while Sweetie Belle shook her mane, scattering water drops. Still, they continued to wait.

Scootaloo’s eyes wandered, as they always did, down to her flank. She always dreamed of the day her Cutie Mark would appear, highlighting her special talent. How naïve and childish those adventures seemed now! But this Cutie Mark… it was something nopony wanted. But every growing mare and colt seemed to get it now.

It was a blood stained hoof, grey and forlorn. It was a Cutie Mark of war… of war and defeat. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom had identical marks.

Suddenly, the New Ponyville dust haze lifted for a moment, and there in the sky was what they wanted to see- and what they hated to see. There, in the no-longer blue sky of Equestria, was the sun. Or what used to be the sun.

The orange, mediocre orb of light cast a dull glow that didn’t even half its once-majesty. Like Equestria below it, it was no more than a shade of its former glory. And also like Equestria, the reason for its lack of brilliance was simple.

Princess Celestia… was dead.

The Crusaders bared their teeth, ground their hooves in the dirt and became consumed with bitter rage… but only for a moment. A growing sound of rhythimically stomping hooves and talons was coming from the dirt road. The work gang was finally here! They had a job to do, and the time had come to do it.

“Light the signal, Sweetie Belle! We’re gonna have company.”

/**/

“March! March! March!” roared Captain Talondash as he strode through the drought-brown grass that ran along the road.

The Ponies who had been enslaved, those who had fought the Griffons in the war, were forced to work almost all day, every day. This particular group comprised of Earth Ponies who worked the farmland… trying to grow crops in the dead sunlight. Even the pitiful amount of plants they did procure were greedily consumed by the Overseers, and the rest was carted off to Canterlot. The Earth Pony slaves were fed just enough to keep them from starving, but only just.

It was, in fact, one of the lighter jobs. Pegasi and Unicorns were put through much worse, their gifts of magic and flying becoming curses which bound them to harder labor. Blood curdling rumors of Overseers cutting off the wings of rebellious Pegasi constantly circulated the camps, and the Griffons encouraged the stories in order to effectively break down any revolting. No one knew what the Unicorn slaves were forced to do, only that they were separated from the bunch and hauled off to Canterlot for whatever reason. Those that were taken were never seen again.

With a sharp gasp of exhaustion, Applejack’s legs finally gave out and she toppled to the ground. It was too much. She couldn’t work anymore…

“Get up!” whispered Big Macintosh urgently, holding out a hoof. “The work-gang is moving… if the captain sees-”

“Ah can’t do it no more Big Mac…” Applejack wheezed pitifully. “Ah can’t work another moment. The bird folk can do what they want to me…”

“No! Applejack, get up! Don’t you remember what…what they did to Granny? Ah won’t let…”

The Apple siblings paused for a moment of grief at the memory of Granny Smith. It was that bad hip that made the Griffons take her away…. And nopony ever saw a Pony again that was taken away. The last row of Ponies had moved past them now, leaving the brother and sister in plain sight on the road.

“I’m sorry… Big Brother... Ah just can’t…”

“What’s going on over there?” barked Talondash as he stalked towards the Apple siblings, menacingly extending his wings.

“Applejack! Get up, NOW! Apple Bloom… remember? If you die… she won’t forgive you, AJ! We can’t leave her alone!”

“A-Apple Bloom?”

“Yes! She’s going to save us… Ah just know it, so you can’t give up!”

With a tremendous effort, Applejack pushed herself back to her hooves, just as Talondash got to her.

“I seriously recommend…” the Griffon spat, as he lifted one talon threateningly. “That you don’t take any more breaks. Understood?”

“Eeyu-” Mac began to say-

Talondash swiped a talon across the air in front of his face, causing the big stallion to flinch.

“Yes! It’s YES!”

“Y-yes.”

This time, Talondash slashed a shallow line across Big Mac’s forehead, causing him to grunt with the unexpected pain. Talondash’s beak curled into a sadistic grin.

“Yes, sir.”

“Yes sir.”

“Move along then!”

Just as Big Macintosh was about to support his sister along the path, a line of blue light shot across the sky, and arced downwards toward the Everfree Forest.

Without hesitating, Talondash screeched a hawk call and bounded towards the source of the light with his powerful wings, closely followed by several other Griffons. Just as the work gang began to contemplate escape, a few Griffons returned, quickly forcing the Ponies into a close huddle.

“Big Mac! That’s Sweetie Belle‘s flare spell!” Applejack whispered as they rejoined the main group on the road.

“Dang, I think you’re right!”

A grey Pony near the front of the line lost his head entirely and began to jump up and down, shouting “It’s them! The resistance! We’re sav-urkkk!”

The large grey Griffon extracted his talon from the colt’s chest and casually wiped the blood on the brown grass as the Pony’s body thumped on the road. The gang quickly became silent.

Applejack silently began to pray, to hope, that Sweetie Belle would make it out of there. But she wasn’t stupid. That light was clearly a signal of some sort… but what in tarnation did it mean?

Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, the air was swarming with Pegasi, armored to the teeth in Wonderbolt and Royal Guard armor. The remaining Griffons were quickly put down with a few well-placed kicks to their heads, and the Pegasi dropped to the ground. The whole thing happened in less than ten seconds.

“C’mon, this way, follow me!” said a strangely cross-eyed grey Pegasus, before promptly flying head first into a tree.

One of the Wonderbolts, who AJ recognized as Soarin after a moment, put his hoof over his forehead in annoyance. “No… follow me.”

Only a few Earth Ponies made it into the Everfree foliage before an angry cry sounded from New Ponyville.

“A trick! A trick!” It was Talondash, and with another screech he and a regiment of Griffons turned in the sky and bolted towards them. Along with the Overseers who had been accomponing the work-gang, several other soldiers of the Griffon Legion who were stationed in the town joined the attackers.

“Go! Move!” Soarin cried. “We’ll hold them off!”

“No! Ah ain’t gonna just let ya’ll… hey!”

Big Macintosh had thrown Applejack on his back and charged into the forest, ignoring her protests in his drive to get his sister out of harm’s way.

The Pegasi and Griffons smashed into each other in mid-air, fighting bloodily as the last remaining Earth Ponies charged into the forest. The Royal Guards slashed with their powerful wings, cutting down several Griffons, while the Wonderbolts used their agile flying to avoid direct confrontation in favor of kicking out at soldiers with their guards down.

“There’s…too many…!” shouted Fleetfoot the Wonderbolt as she ducked and weaved around the sharp Griffon talons and beaks, occasionally kicking out with her hooves.

Talondash was a whirl of destruction, cutting down Pegasi left and right and laughing maniacally. What the large beast lacked in strategy and troop inspiration, he made up for in brute combat prowess and general fear mongering to his slaves and troops alike.

“Is this the best you can do, Equestrians?” he taunted.

In a flash, what looked like a solid, colorful bullet smashed into the great Griffon, and he was flung to the ground in a cloud of feathers.

“No, I’m the best we can do!” Rainbow Dash cried in victory.

The remaining Griffons panicked and retreated back to the town, fully aware that “the blue scary one” was not to be trifled with, especially with the Captain being down for the count. Several soldiers swept up their dead and wounded before heading back to New Ponyville, while four Pegasi had to keep Dash from flying after them.

“IS THAT ALL YOU GOT? IS THAT ALL YOU GOT?!” She shouted at their backs.

“General Dash, let’s go, we’ve done it! Let’s get back to the forest!”

“No! I‘m not finished with them!” the blue Pegasus cried.

Suddenly the sky went dark, angry clouds rolling into a circular storm head in mere seconds as heavy rain drops began to fall to the earth. The eye of the flash storm circled over the jagged mountain in the distance, throwing it into sharp relief. In the next moment, a jagged bolt of unnatural blue lighting tore down from the heavens, striking the top of the mountain with a resounding boom.

Without hesitation, almost all the remaining Pegasi immediately turned tail and bolted into the trees in full blown panic.

“Now is a great time to leave!” Soarin called out as he carried an injured Fleetfoot into the Everfree.

Not good… Not good! Rainbow Dash thought desperately as an echoing crash sounded from the mountain.

“Go! Get in the trees!” Dash commanded, and the remaining Pegasi took flight, some carrying companions.

Just as she was about to follow them, a set of talons clamped down on her wings from behind, and she and her attacker fell to the ground, struggling to get the upper hand.

An ear splitting roar reverberated through the air a gigantic shadowy figure crawled out of the mountain cave, stomping angrily. The figure took flight, pointing itself in Rainbow’s direction. Rainbow Dash struggled to free herself from her assailant but she was simply too strong.

“Do you want to get eaten, you stupid bird?!” Dash screamed as the shadow zoomed into focus, and the Griffon continued to slash at her.

The Griffon froze for a moment, then- “…Rainbow Dash?”

“…Gilda?!” Rainbow Dash just barely held back a kick directed at her ex-friend’s face.

Gilda had changed. In the five years since they’d seen each other, the Griffon had nearly doubled in size, bearing an imposing figure even for one of her species. Her eyes were much deeper, full of a swirling mix of emotions that weren’t there before. Her armor revealed her as a Legionnaire, a Lieutenant, in fact.

There was no time, the dragon (for it was a dragon) was getting closer by the second.

“You… joined the Legion?” Rainbow Dash shrieked, her rage growing.

“Yes! I did! You don’t understand… my kind has never been liked by anyone! You… Dash, you turned your back on me… you could have… you could have…”

Rainbow Dash was shocked to hear Gilda’s voice laden with pain and remorse. Whatever she was holding back, it must have been bearing down on her for quite some time. The dragon grew ever larger as he zoomed in on them.

“Gilda… let me go. That dragon is going to kill us!” Rainbow growled, all sympathy lost in the face of death.

“You don’t understand, Dash. You are Number 5… a wanted prisoner back in Canterlot. If I get you killed… I’ll be rich. I’ll be famous!” Gilda’s voice began to grow with excitement.

“You’ll be dead too, you idiot!”

“So what? If I don’t die this way… no one will ever remember me… never. I’ll be just as much of a nobody now as I ever was…!”

“Are you actually hearing yourself right now? YOU’RE G-“

The rest of the sentence was completely drowned out by the dragon as it bellowed, shooting hot steam from its nostrils at it descended on them.

“Gilda… please…” Dash pleaded. “For old time’s sake…”

“I…” Gilda stuttered.

“Gilda… you weren’t a nobody to me… you were a friend.”

Gilda’s eyes grew wide as her pupils dilated with shock.

Smoke was now plainly visible, curling off the dragon’s snout as it loomed over them. Gilda hesitated, her eyes flicking between Rainbow Dash and the dragon.

“…Just go, Dash. I’ll pretend you got away.”

“Gilda…”

The Griffon’s eyes were full of anger and hesitation… but they were also filled with tears.

“I’m sorry… I didn’t want this war either.” she said simply. “But if we ever meet again… I’ll have to kill you” she whispered.

The dragon was now bearing down on them at an alarming speed, and would soon be in fire breathing range. Gilda leaped from the ground, and flung herself towards New Ponyville, while Rainbow Dash did the same towards the Everfree Forest. A single moment later, the ground they lay on was bathed in green flames. The fire-breathing beast howled with frustration as its prey got away… before it began to feast on the Pegasi and Griffon carcasses that were piled in the grass.

/**/

A few minutes later, just as the dragon began to grow disinterested in its meal, Tempest appeared and corralled it back into its cave and enchanted sleep, before promptly returning to Canterlot. However the Griffon troops still felt a strong impulse to run after seeing the look on their captain’s face.

Talondash was well known for his psychopathic methods and behavior, but that was nothing compared to the state he was in now. The Ponies had gotten away, and his whole division had been made a fool of by a simple trick. The swelling, hoof-shaped bruise on his forehead and the black eye he had received from falling didn’t help his mood either.

“Lt. Gilda.” He said coldy as he glared ice daggers into the Griffon’s eyes. “You had Number 5 here, in your talons, and you did not finish her off. Explain yourself.”

As every Griffon who ever served under Talondash knew, when he appeared calm was when he was at his most dangerous. The troops watched silently and apprehensively as the interrogation continued.

“Sir, she took advantage of the dragon’s appearance to escape sir. My apologies, sir.” Gilda said, refusing to blink, her voice stubbornly refusing to crack.

“Lieutenant…” said Talondash, an unsettling grin appearing on his face. “What is the code of The Griffon Legion?”

Gilda gulped. “V-victory, or death, s-sir.”

“Then we understand each other.” he said, and tore a hole in her throat with a single slash.

As Gilda fell to the ground, gripping her neck in a fruitless attempt to halt the fountain of blood, Talondash gazed around at his remaining troops.

“I assume we all understand each other now?”

/**/

Rainbow Dash bolted through the forest, dodging trees with a few tricky maneuvers. Her eyes were full of tears, but not only because of Gilda. Their mission had succeeded, and if all had gone according to plan, the Crusaders should have made it out as well. But it still felt like a defeat. Because the dragon that looked upon her with cold, unfamiliar eyes…

… He used to be Spike.

/**/

A/N: Yeah, I hope you’ve got the feel for what this story will be like now. Rest assured, it’s not all bleak battles, desperate struggles for survival, death and destruction, etc. etc. Pinkie would never allow it!

I’ll be joining you with the rest of the Mane 6 soon enough, and I intend to provide a little more depth and back-story into the war itself, and of course I’ll talk about Tempest and his whole background. Hope you stick around to see the rest!

-Readthestory.

PS: I’m not entirely sure yet whether this story will have pairings, but I’ll keep your opinions in mind. But rest assured… It’s not going to become a bucking clopfic.

ADDITIONAL EDIT: 1/28/12- If anyone actually read this when it was first released, yeah, I’ve edited it and made it 20% cooler. So…yeah.

Earthaven

By Readthestory

Chapter 2: Earthaven

The Royal Guard Pegasus poked his head out from behind the Everfree pine, narrowing his eyes at the path ahead, before giving the all clear sign by crossing one hoof. Behind him, the long line of Earth Ponies shambled along in his wake, making sure to not veer from the established path. Everypony knew the dangers of getting lost in Everfree. Still, many of the Earth Ponies were being held up by the Pegasi leading them, being so exhausted from their past labor.

"Let me go, Big Macintosh! Ah can walk on mah own!" Applejack protested weakly as her brother struggled onwards.

"Nope." He said simply, refusing to let her down.

The siblings were suddenly standing in shadow as a cyan Pegasus soared over them, returning to fly parallel to their path.

"Rainbow Dash!" Applejack cried. "Oh sugar cube… it's so good to see you!"

"Uh… yeah, OK." Rainbow muttered, trying (unsuccessfully) to hide her elation. "I couldn't exactly let Ponyville's second strongest Pony just work her hooves raw, now could I?"

Applejack grinned weakly. "Yeah… second strongest… you keep… telling yourself that."

The stubborn Earth Pony finally gave into her tiredness and collapsed on Big Mac's back into a deep sleep.

"Big Mac, it's good to see you to…" Dash added.

"Eeyup." He agreed.

"I can carry her, you know, you really need to save your strength."

The large red stallion hesitated for a moment, and then nodded in agreement. Rainbow Dash swept down and lifted Applejack into the air, before flying up to the front of the line.

"Not much farther to go now!" Soarin called from the head of the line. "Watch your hooves; there are some Poison Joke patches around here…"

"Uh Oh…" said the grey Pegasus who had smacked the tree earlier. "This isn't good…" She had flown straight into a square of Poison Joke.

The Earth Ponies made a visible effort to avoid the annoying blue flower before continuing their shambling walk. High above the Everfree canopy, the weak sun was beginning to descend over the horizon. The line stopped in front of a rickety old hut with some odd masks attached to the front. A Royal Guard strode up to the front door, rapping the wood with one hoof in a combination of taps.

Rainbow Dash uneasily looked behind her, straining her eyes for any signs of Griffon pursuers. Although she knew they avoided the Everfree Forest when they could, she wouldn't put it past Talondash to force his troops into the undergrowth.

After about five minutes of standing in front of the hut, the door was cautiously opened, and a Zebra poked her head outside. After confirming the signal, she smiled wildly.

"The mission, a success I see! Now come Ponies, follow me!" Zecora said in her typical accent, beckoning the Ponies to follow her to the yard behind her house.

The Earth Ponies looked at each other uncertainly, wondering what could possibly be going on, but they still followed the Zebra and Pegasi around the hut. Applejack began to stir in Dash's legs, mumbling something about cider and "crazy contraptions".

The eighty or so Ponies gathered in the large back garden of Zecora's home, now more confused than ever. It seemed a garden like any other, if containing a few alchemic plants in addition to edible ones. Zecora smiled and walked over to a crystalloid formation of stones and tapped one of the rocks three times, causing a faint chink sound each time. Then, without warning…

"Password?" came an extremely muffled, gruff voice from an indiscernible location.

"Equestrian Ponies need to go inside! Loyal brave ones need a safe place to hide!" Zecora announced, her head still pointed at the rock.

To the utter shock of the Earth Ponies, a single furry paw burst from the ground, soon accompanied by several others. The sounds roused Applejack from her sleep, and she cracked open her eyes. Soon, the digging paws formed a Pony-sized hole in the ground, and a furry animal poked his head out of it.

"Are those… Diamond Dogs?" Applejack said in disbelief, quickly becoming alert.

"Heh… that they are!" Rainbow answered, chuckling at the expression on her friend's face.

One of the Dogs clambered out of the hole, quickly glancing at the assembled group, before calling back to his companions, "No horned Ponies here."

From within the hole, a general synchrony of groaning and whimpering was heard.

"Well… come on Ponies, inside hole, slide down, then follow!" The first one grunted, before leaping back into the earth.

"Uh… really?" said a blue-grey stallion as he unenthusiastically glanced at the rough patch of earth. "We have to go down there?"

"Above the ground you're allowed to stay, but you won't live to see another day." Zecora said simply. "Down the hole, to join your friends, while I stay here, to guide and send."

"Alright alright…" the stallion said, before hopping into the hole.

Instead of the thump they were expecting, they heard a lot of wild squealing that quickly grew faint.

"Don't worry, it's quite safe." Fleetfoot the Pegasus said, before jumping into the hole herself.

A single file line was formed up and one by one, the Ponies clambered into the ground, disappearing from sight. Applejack turned to Rainbow Dash after a few minutes in line.

"Rainbow… is Apple Bloom OK? We saw Sweetie Belle's signal before, what in the name of all things cinnamon was that barely grown filly doing in New Ponyville? Was Apple Bloom with her? Why are we working with Diamond Dogs? Where are we being taken? How did you-"

"Ah! Stop it AJ! You're giving me a headache! Not even Scootaloo asks me this many questions! I'll explain everything later, but yes, Apple Bloom is fine; we've all been taking care of her. She should be waiting for us down there."

A mental weight seemed to physically lift from Applejack's shoulders at the words, and her face flooded with relief.

"Did you hear that, Big Mac? Apple Bloom is OK!" she called to her brother, who was standing a few feet away.

The stallion looked just as relieved as his sister, and he nodded in acknowledgement. Soon, it was time for Rainbow and Applejack to descend.

"Ah can walk, RD, thanks. Ah'm feeling better" Applejack said quickly as they neared the hole.

The Pegasus lifted one eyebrow but put Applejack down anyway. The tan Earth Pony carefully strode to the edge of the hole, and squinted down into the darkness. After a few seconds, a Dog poked his head up to look at her.

"C'mon Pony! Don't have all day! Move!" he barked.

"Alright, alright! Ah'm going!" Applejack responded, then leapt past the dog and down into the blackness.

Instead of falling straight down, the tunnel quickly turned into a dirt slide, very similar to the one they had travelled on when they had gone to rescue Rarity. Applejack could vaguely make out passages going in each and every direction, sloping or straight, leading who knows where. At one point, Applejack could've sworn she went off a ramp and went airborne for a few seconds. The tunnels speeding past on her journey quickly made her feel nauseous and she shut her eyes, wishing for it to stop when…

Thump

The Pony found herself face down on a soft pile of dirt clearly placed to halt their movement. Before she could look around, a Diamond Dog pulled her away from the pile as Rainbow Dash zoomed in and hit the dirt where AJ had been, seconds before.

"Ha! I love doing that!" the Pegasus said as she quickly made way for the next Pony.

They were standing in a big octagonal cave with several passages leading away from it, and almost every Earth Pony was lying down in the cool earth, relishing in the chance to finally rest. Before too long, everypony had gathered together. The lead Dog, after concluding that everypony had arrived, stood on the dirt pile to address them.

"OK! You, Ponies, follow! Stay close, if you get lost, hard to find! Understand?" He barked, in a grating voice.

The Ponies nodded in a general acknowledgement, groaning slightly about having to get back up, before following the Dog into one of the passages. After about 5 minutes of travelling straight, the Dog switched to another tunnel, the Ponies trailing behind.

"Alright RD, now you have to tell me everythin'" Applejack said. "You can start by telling me where we're goin'… and why them Dogs are leadin' us there."

Rainbow Dash smiled and shook her head. "We're heading to Earthaven, where the rebellion is based. Back when we found out that the Princess… that we weren't going to win the war, Rarity struck a deal with the Diamond Dogs…"

The canine guide switched to another tunnel and the group marched on.

"To dig a gigantic cavern, big enough for the headquarters of a resistance group made of the free Ponies of the Cloudsdale/Ponyville/Canterlot area. Of course, not everypony down there fights the battles; Earthaven is also a refuge, a sanctuary to everypony that manages to make it out here. "

"You mean to tell me there's a cavern big enough to hold that many ponies, right below the Everfree Forest?" Applejack asked, amazed.

Rainbow Dash nodded. "That's right. Zecora and the Dog up there, Fido, change the code every so often to get a hole dug for anypony who makes it out there. I think they use something called Horse Code or whatever. Of course, Zecora also supplies for the Griffons, so they'll leave her house alone. But most of the potions she gives them have no effect and sometimes hurt them, Ha!" she paused for a breath. "We've been leading raids on the work gangs, sabotaging Griffon supplies, and general making hell for those bucking animals ever since they took over! And we're living right below their feet!"

"But how in tarnation did you get these greedy gem diggers to go along with this scheme of Rarity's?"

"It was a work of beauty, really. Rarity started teaching as many Unicorns as she could how to use that gem tracking spell of hers, and now the Diamond Dogs accommodate us as long as we keep finding gems for them. They may be greedy, stupid, ugly, and smell like wet fur, but you should see their paw-work!"

Applejack shook her mane, still processing the unbelievable information. Of course, she didn't deny that it was true; she could always spot a lie. Being the Element of Honesty had its benefits. The mare looked around her and was surprised to see that many other Ponies had been listening in on the conversation, and were now whispering amongst themselves. Fido once again veered to a different passageway, this one slanting upwards slightly.

"Dash, how did Sweetie and Scootaloo and sis get out of that spot in New Ponyville?"

"Also an awesome thing. Sweetie Belle learned that spell you guys used when you visited Cloudsdale to make them lighter, and Scootaloo carried them out of there. Operation went off without a hitch!"

"But then… why did they need to bring Apple Bloom with them?"

"Gee… I don't know… maybe because she missed you and Big Macintosh? Unlike a lot of Ponies, she had a chance to save her family…"

The group sunk into an uncomfortable silence, and for a little while they walked along quietly.

"One last thing, Rainbow Dash." Applejack muttered.

The Pegasus threw up her hooves in mock exasperation, before nodding to let her continue.

"How many of our friends are… OK…?"

Rainbow Dash's face fell at the words. "You'll see…" she said simply.

Applejack's chest shrank in apprehension, but just before she was about to ask what her friend meant, Soarin called out from a few rows up.

"General! We have some Earth foals up here that need someone to help them, and our hooves are kind of full here…"

"Got it." She said, and sped off without a word.

Over the next hour, Fido led the group along so many different passages sloping in every direction imaginable. Applejack could only wonder how such a seemingly dumb creature could possibly navigate a system that would have confounded anypony, but she had learned over the years to expect the unexpected. Just as it felt like her legs were about to give out again, Fido came to a halt in front of a giant wooden door built into the rock.

"Earthaven, Ponies!" He said simply, and pushed open the door.

Applejack was just crossing the boundary and about to take in the incredible sight when something warm and sweet smelling smashed into her at top speed.

"APPLEJACK, APPLEJACK! Oh Oh! You're here, I mean, I knew you would be fine because my back has been itchy all day and that means everything would go well but I didn't know for sure and then ear-flop and eye flutter and knee twitch and I just KNEW somepony was coming inside and-"

"Pinkie! I can't breathe!" Applejack gasped, but unable to keep the gigantic grin off her face.

"Oops! My bad!" the pink Pony hopped off the farm Pony and simply stood there with an adorable smile.

"It's good to see you Pi-"Applejack began…

"GOTTA DANCE!" the party pony shrieked, and began bouncing up and down in circles around the bewildered Applejack.

"Sweet Celestia…" Applejack gasped as she finally looked at Earthaven in front of her.

They were standing on a hill over a massive construct. The cavern was a Canterlot palace sized opening, with artisan crafted smooth walls, and even fancy engravings. At the center of the room, two waterfalls poured into a shiny pool of clear water from small openings at the top of the walls. All across the walls, as well, were carved out trails which clung to the rock, which allowed access to holes in the wall which she guessed were residences for the Ponies.

Far away on the opposite side of the room, she could make out tiny pinpricks of light which indicated Unicorn magic, as well as the sound of frantic digging. She could just make out covered wagons stuffed to the brim with precious gemstones being lugged across the room… enough gems to make a full grown dragon lie down and beg. But easily the most awe inspiring sight was at the ceiling, hundreds of feet above them. A gigantic ball of light was suspended there, bathing the cavern in light and warmth that Applejack hadn't felt since Celestia had been killed three years ago.

It's… a miniature sun! She realized.

And so it was, because lining the reflecting pool were giant fields of green, crops, and grazing animals. Earthaven had food, water, safety and security… it was truly a sanctuary.

Applejack was just beginning to gaze at the Apple orchards (while tuning out Pinkie Pie's singing) when she heard the beating of powerful wings. Instinctively, she flinched, used to the sound being tied to a Griffon overseer. Instead, she felt a reassuring hoof being put on her shoulder. She was vaguely aware that around her, the other Ponies were bending to the ground and whispering in awe.

"Applejack… Element of Honesty. And all of thou brave subjects!" Princess Luna boomed. "Welcome to Earthaven!"

/**/

"Finally made it, huh?" Sweetie Belle said, out of breath.

"Yeah… that wasn't fun. Even with your magic you guys weigh so much!" Scootaloo complained as they kicked open the door to Earthaven, ignoring their Dog guide.

"Ouch!" came a startled voice from behind the door, and they realized they had flattened a mare with the door.

"I warned you! I warned you! Ear-flop eye flutter knee twitch always means…"

"APPLEJACK, BIG MAC!" Apple Bloom cried, throwing herself into their embrace.

"I missed you guys so much… I…I…" Apple Bloom sobbed, crying with relief.

"I missed you too…" Applejack said into her mane.

"Eeyup…" Big Macintosh softly agreed, blinking away tears.

Princess Luna smiled as she watched the heartfelt Apple reunion, her starry mane flowing softly. Pinkie Pie cried with emotion for a few seconds before effortlessly breaking back into a grin, while a few feet away, Rainbow Dash struggled to contain her empathy as well. Soon hoards of Earth Ponies began to gallop up the hill to embrace lost family members (scout reports had confirmed everypony in the work gang beforehand). For a few minutes, everything was forgotten as families joyously reunited.

Silently, a regiment of ninety or so strong Pegasi descended towards the group on the hill and landed behind the Princess. The family members quickly whispered promises to meet up again later before returning to the field.

"The journey has doubtless been an endeavor, but thine torturous life of enslavement has reached its end!" she declared. "There is much to be done, but for now I say unto you, go, eat and rest!"

The crowd broke into appreciative cheering and the Pegasi quickly swooped down to carry the exhausted Earth Ponies off to the cliff walls for a quick meal before they slept. Applejack finally allowed herself to simply be carried off without a word, still clinging to Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom as tears ran down her face.

Back on the hill, only the Princess, two of her guards, Fido, Pinkie Pie and the Pegasi who had lead the raid remained.

"You know what this calls for?" Pinkie Pie asked, excitedly. "A-"

"…party?" The princess asked, already used to the Pony's antics.

"Yes! Wow… you can read minds? Well, I'm off to start planning; oh we'll need balloons, and streamers, and fairy lights and pinwheels and piñatas and pincushions and pin the tail on the pony and sweets! I'm going to go talk to the Cakes, bye Nightmare Moon!" she squealed and bounded away.

"Please do not call Us Night- ah what's the use…" Luna said, shaking her head. "General Dash, report."

"Operation Apples Jack was a complete success ma'am!" she bellowed, saluting. "We had nine Pegasi casualties, and lost no Earth Ponies."

"Excellent work, Rainbow Dash, report back to Supreme Air General Spitfire with your report. We are off to go check on the status of the party… if you'll excuse Us…"

Luna and her two personal guards (usually referred to as Shade Guards, who were on par with the old Royal Guards) soared off, with Rainbow Dash and the other Pegasi close behind, veering slightly away from them.

"Ah… at last Ponies get out of my face… off to count more gems!" Fido barked.

/**/

A/N: Many thanks to my trackers and the reviews, I really enjoy criticism as a want-to-be writer some day.

If anypony is wondering, I really enjoyed this weekend's new episode (The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000), plenty of Applejack aim, a line from Big Mac that was more than two syllables, and the references! Not to mention that hilarious letter at the end, well done to Hasbro and all that.

Next Time: What is next for the Ponies of Earthaven? Who exactly is still alive and kicking? Where are Twilight Sparkle, Rarity and Fluttershy? All these answers, and more, on the next chapter of The Storm Alicorn.

-Readthestory

PS: It's a nightmare to go back and read over these chapters three times because I have to change all the accidental "everypony" "anypony" and "nopony" to "everypony" and "anypony" and "nopony". Ugh.

Additional Edit: 1/30/12- Only now do I remember the Search and Replace command. FFFFFFFUUUUUUUUU….!

Nightmares of Two Different Kinds

By Readthestory

Chapter 3: Nightmares of Two Different Kinds

The sun beat down on Sweet Apple Acres, illuminating the incredible sight of the Equestrian Army. Silently they stood, nearly 5,000 Unicorns, Pegasi, and Earth Ponies, shoulder to shoulder. It was eerily quiet in the ranks as the amassed soldiers and militiaponies waited for a sign. High above the fields, Cloudsdale hovered, slowly makings it way towards the sky above Ponyville- to act as a buffer against any Griffons who might try to enter the town from above.

In the sky, the Royal Guards hovered in close formation, encircling the seventy or so Wonderbolts. Alongside the trained warriors were hundreds of other Pegasi, volunteers and drafted soldiers alike from Cloudsdale. Below them, the bulk of the army- Earth Ponies- waited in similar discipline. Among them were assault weapons- catapults and ballistae primed to fire. Slightly above them on a hill were the Unicorn sorcerers and magicians, who would fight from afar while aiding their fellow Ponies. And finally, at the head of the line, stood Celestia and Luna, motionless and composed.

Applejack impatiently ground her hoof into the dirt near the front line, waiting impatiently for the battle ahead. Despite her protests, the Generals and other military heads- even Princess Celestia- had seen fit to divide herself and her friends amongst the crowd. She one again tap her necklace within the Element of Honesty- useless on its own. She just hoped it wouldn't be needed.

Applejack could just make out Twilight near the Princesses, her horn glowing slightly with anticipation. Rainbow Dash was somewhere above her head, being the vice-captain of the Wonderbolts and all. Rarity was nowhere to be seen, perhaps working on that secret project Zecora had hinted at. As for Pinkie and Fluttershy, they had hung back in Everfree, working on some kind of trap.

"You made sure that Apple Bloom and her friends were with the Cakes, right?" AJ asked Big Macintosh for the thousandth time.

"Eeyup."

"OK then…"

The sun had just started to descend from its zenith when a black wall of clouds flashed into being over the distant mountains. The militiaponies collectively gasped, nervously prancing.

"Keep calm, everypony!" Celestia shouted. "We will stop them here. Keep to your formations and follow your leaders. We will make them pay for the slaughter at Fillydelphia! Do not give them an inch of ground, do not let them even set foot in Ponyville! Fight for your homes, and for Equestria!"

"FOR EQUESTRIA!" the army echoed.

The Princesses took the sky, and a moment later, all hell broke loose. Thousands upon Thousands of Griffons poured from the cloud wall, advancing as a single many headed beast. The armies advanced towards one another, and just as Celestia was about to take her first victim, time seemed to freeze.

Applejack was blown backwards onto the ground with a cry, along with the entire column. Above, the Pegasi were buffeted by the air, spiraling backwards through the sky. An invisible wall of force divided the two armies, who were unable to do any more except glare at each other in hatred.

Only the Princesses were unaffected, hovering next to the barrier with narrowed eyes. In an instant, a circle of clouds enveloped the Alicorns, nearly concealing them from sight.

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight cried, trying in vain to reach her.

And then Applejack heard it… a dark and ancient voice which hissed words that seemed to pierce her very mind with their intensity. Words full of malice and sarcasm.

"Luna… Celestia… I've missed you…"

Applejack shot up in her bed, screaming and kicking out with her hooves. Her body glistened with a cold sweat and her heart was racing at a mile a minute. She covered her ears with her hooves, holding back sobs.

The old nightmare again… if only it wasn't real.

/**/

The Griffon shot towards her, its talons outstretched, its eyes filled with malice, it was only an inch away and…

"Ow! Applejack! That hurt!" Pinkie Pie squealed, rubbing her nose with her hooves.

"Oh, jeez, Pinkie! I'm sorry… I…" Applejack said, distracted.

AJ concluded that she must have kicked out in her sleep and landed a blow on Pinkie Pie.

"What are you even doing in here, Pinkie?" Applejack asked, trying to repress the memory of the bloodthirsty Griffon.

"I'm getting you silly! I was sampling the chocolate and the cupcakes and other goodies that the Cakes made and then they told me 'Pinkie why don't you go show Applejack around' and I was like 'Oki-doki-loki!' so now I'm here!" she said, without skipping a beat.

"Um…"

"C'mon let's go!" she said, grabbing one of Applejack's hooves and pulling her from the room.

They were standing on a narrow rock path- one of many which clung to the walls of Earthaven. Along the path were several cave entrances- homes for the Ponies as AJ initially expected. Each cave contained one resident, one bedroom and a bathroom (including running water, which perplexed her). While not completely rustic, the cave homes allowed for very little luxury besides a vase of flowers from the giant meadow on the cavern floor.

"Should I get my brother too?" Applejack asked her friend, tilting her head towards the neighboring cave where he was sleeping.

"No, let him sleep. I want you all to myself!" the party Pony answered in that cute but creepy way of speaking she was known by.

"Well uh… alright. Lead on then…"

Without moving, Pinkie Pie pointed a hoof at the miniature sun on the roof.

"Loony did that, with her magic. She says it's not too hard, like raising the moon but smaller and more contained. And over there…" she pointed to the waterfalls. "She does that too! Even easier, since…something about being in charge of the moon means… power over tides, I wasn't really paying attention."

Applejack was once again struck by the power of the Alicorn magic. It was truly unbelievable what they could do. Of course, it did answer the question of how the caves had running water.

"C'mon Applejack!" Pinkie squeaked, and began hopping away.

Slightly annoyed, but unable to keep the smile from spreading across her face, the cowpony followed her friend.

"Pinkie… Rainbow Dash wasn't really clear on this but… where are the others? Where are…" she didn't need to finish. Rarity, Fluttershy, Twilight Sparkle. She was almost afraid to know the answer.

For one of the few times since she had ever met Pinkie, the Pony's face dropped in sadness, even her hair looked less poufy.

"They took them…" she whispered. "No one knows…."

Applejack's heart dropped in her chest. Everypony knew how much harder life was for enslaved Pegasi- and no one even knew what horrors they enacted on the Unicorns. They might even be…

No. she thought stubbornly. I refuse to believe they're dead. Not until I'm sure.

"Rarity… gone. Fluttershy…gone." She muttered. "And Twilight…"

To her surprise, Pinkie shot back up, her expression slightly happier.

"No, silly. Twilight is here!" She said.

"What? But why didn't… why didn't she…" AJ sputtered.

"I… I'll let you see for yourself." Pinkie replied.

Something in her tone of voice made AJ fear the worst. If it took Griffon enslavement to keep her group of friends apart, what would it take to keep Twilight Sparkle from even greeting her at the door?

/**/

Rainbow Dash was flying in an endless loop through the meadow. Around the crooked tree, over the sheep pen, dodging the waterfall, making a beeline back. The pattern was something she had started doing from almost the moment she arrived in Earthaven. It was in equal parts a way to relax her mind, to think clearly, and to confront her worries… and though she would never admit it- fears.

Rescued Applejack. Good.

Safe place for everypony. Good.

Tempest still sitting on the throne. Bad.

Couldn't save Rarity. Bad.

Couldn't save Tank. Bad.

Around the crooked tree…

Can't find Fluttershy. Bad.

Cloudsdale totally destroyed. Bad.

Twilight still won't…

The cyan Pegasus forced herself to stop for a moment, containing the depressing thoughts before they all came down on her. She wouldn't lose control. Not again.

The sound of a tree being bucked… it brought back happy memories. Rainbow Dash flew off in the direction of the sound to find Applejack and Pinkie Pie standing in a small apple orchard, where the farm Pony was kicking apple trees. They hadn't noticed her yet. Her eyes narrowed, and on impulse she decided to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"You were right, Pinkie Pie!" Applejack chuckled, catching apples in a nearby bucket. "This does make me feel better. In the camp all they told us to do was dig, dig, dig, dig, like that would solve their draught problems. Damn Griffons."

She gave the tree a slightly more violent kick, causing another flurry of apples to fall.

"Yeah, and now that you and Big Mac are back, we don't have to make Apple Bloom and those carrot farmers do all the apple picking work!" squeaked Pinkie. "But I still have a lot of things to show you before the party, so we have to…"

"Party?" Rainbow Dash crashed out of her perch in the tree, unable to contain herself anymore.

"Dashie! You're just in time to-"

"Shut up, Pinkie! Shut your mouth for five seconds!" Rainbow Dash shouted. "All you care about is your bucking parties! We're fighting a WAR here! Thousands of Ponies are dead, our own friends are missing, maybe gone, and… and…!"

Pinkie's face was filled with hurt, while Applejack's was growing angry.

"Look missy, you don't get to act like-" she began.

The Pegasus ground her teeth and took off, unable to look at them anymore. They didn't understand… nopony understood. They should be up there, fighting for their land and instead they choose to hide underground like a bunch of stinking dogs… literally.

She decided to make a journey to the Earthaven hospital, sure that the sight of the wounded would strengthen her fading resolve. Pinkie Pie's hurt face wasn't easy to get out of the mind. Soaring over the Unicorns and Diamond Dogs digging at the far end of the cavern, she took the system of twists and turns on the way to the hospital.

Upon arrival, the place was packed- as usual. The hospital had a large cave entrance, with a hospital lobby built directly on the inside. It was one of the few rooms in Earthaven that didn't look distinctly… cave like. It had been meticulously dug out into a box shape and tiled with a comforting blue. The lobby contained a lot of room but there were always Ponies sitting around in it, waiting for their turn. They were the luckier ones- the ones who could live with their injuries while waiting in a line.

"Um… Rainbow Dash?" she was caught off guard by a small mare who had tapped her on the back.

"Huh?" She turned around. "Hey… you look familiar. Yeah, you're the one who used to bully Scoo-" she stopped abruptly.

It was indeed Diamond Tiara, and she was walking with a fake back leg. Dash immediately felt guilty for starting off with a mean comment.

"Yeah… Scootaloo. Um… I heard the mission went well and… you saved Apple Bloom's family, right?"

She was caught off guard by the question. "Well, yeah…"

"Oh! Um… yeah, thanks." Diamond Tiara quickly slunk away.

What was that all about?

She had to wait for about an hour before the injured Ponies had all been treated, and visitors were allowed in. Dash trotted up to the desk.

"Here to see Miss Sparkle again?" Nurse Redheart asked, barely looking up from her chair.

"Yeah."

"Go on, you know the room."

Rainbow Dash quickly navigated the Hospital hallways, pausing only to wave at Derpy, who was recovering from a bad case of Poison Joke in a large foamy tub. She also nearly collided with Berry Punch as she returned from a visit of her own. Finally she reached Twilight's door, and knocked on it with one hoof.

There was no answer, as usual. The Pegasus took a deep breath before she opened the door and stepped inside.

"Twi… you awake?" she asked tentatively. "It's me again."

They were in a rather sumptuous room, quite unordinary in the middle of a hospital. There were shelves of Twilight's books stacked against the wall, and a soft carpet on the floor. On the opposite side of the room was a large bed with drapes and a canvas, and a large bulge was visible underneath the covers. Dash's eyes wandered, as they always did, to the framed photograph on the night table of Spike and Twilight on Nightmare Night five years ago. It was too painful to look at for too long.

The purple Unicorn stuck her head out from underneath the covers, and spotted Rainbow Dash with barely a flicker of recognition. Her mane was a mess.

"Twilight, we rescued Applejack today! Isn't that great?"

For a moment, the corners of the Unicorn's mouth twinged upwards, only for her to return to her gloomy stare. But for Rainbow that was like a grin from ear to ear.

"See? Twilight, I told you. I'll fix everything… Everything will go back to normal someday." She lied.

For the next thirty minutes RD described the rescue mission with as much positive emphasis as possible, by the time it was over it sounded like something out of Daring Doo. She didn't mention Spike. That would only upset her.

A doctor Pony poked his head in the door, and quietly signaled that visiting hours were over.

"Ok…" she said, turning back to Twilight one last time. "I need you to get better… we all do."

Twilight Sparkle closed her eyes, one tear sliding down her cheek. Dash couldn't stand there for one second longer. She turned and ran, fighting back sobs as she passed by the sign of the Ward she was in, not reading it.

Psychiatric Ward- Clinical Depression

/**/

As Rainbow Dash flew back to the main cavern in Earthaven, she was struck by a strange noise. It was the sound of pleasant music playing- the kind Rarity would have liked. Fancy shmancy stuff. Not just one player either, a whole quartet.

What in Celestia…? she thought.

She tracked the sound of music to a side passage, ducking and weaving around a lot rock debris. Clearly this was not a very travelled path. Finally she arrived in front of a gigantic stone door, much like the one at the entrance to Earthaven. Two Royal Guards stood before it, and raised their wings at the sight of her.

"Halt! This is an unauthorized area. Go back to the main Hall." The one on the right intoned.

After a moment of hesitation, Rainbow Dash spoke up.

"I'm General Rainbow Dash, second in command of the air infantry. Open the door!" she said with as much authority as she could muster.

The Guards narrowed their eyes, and the one on the left pulled out a scroll from the side of his armor, and began to read down a list. Finally, he nodded.

"Yes, she matches the description, let's get this open…"

The two Guards spun around and heaved open the door to reveal an amazing sight. It was a large botanical garden, complete with hummingbirds, butterflies, and a cool babbling brook running alongside the outer edge. In the center of the garden was a courtyard with a large stone block sitting in the middle. The quartet she heard earlier was playing in the courtyard- a peaceful song. To her astonishment, a second miniature sun, significantly smaller than the first, hung on the ceiling high above.

"Be careful…" warned the first Guard, and the door slammed shut behind her.

What does he mean by that? This place is… amazing.

Still, the warning left her with an ominous feeling. The serenity of the garden contrasted with it in a way that made the whole place seem eerie. She had the sudden urge to turn around and leave.

Oh… what am I afraid of?! There's nothing going on in here. Those Ponies over there are fine…

Rainbow Dash cautiously approached the stone slab, her eyes shifting from side to side in case of any danger. The quartet kept playing their song; if they were aware of her presence, they certainly didn't react to it at all. She finally made it to the very edge of the slab. It was covered in weird writing… and unless her eyes were deceiving her the type was glowing softly. Curious, she stuck a hoof out to touch it.

"No!" shouted one of the band members, dropping her instrument with an unpleasant crash. "Are you insane?"

"What? What are you talking about?" the Pegasus replied, alarmed now.

"What do you mean? … you really don't know?"

The other band members kept on playing, completely unperturbed by the drama going on near them.

The cello player, for she was a cello player, trotted over and stood next to Dash, and leaned in close. Upon close examination, Rainbow Dash identified her as Octavia, the mare who used to play at classy parties.

"Inside that stone slab…" she whispered softly. "Is the statue of Discord."

/**/

A/N: DUN DUN DUN! Bet you weren't expecting that… or maybe you were whatever.

This chapter was actually like a lot longer before the editing process, but I thought here would be a good place to leave you with a nice little cliffhanger. On a positive note, all the things that I wrote after this are in the next chapter already so my next update should be here sooner… if I don't intentionally keep you waiting. Mu-ha-ha!

Again, thanks for all the kind reviews, they're what drives me to keep writing. If your wondering why it took me so long to update this, I have a lot going on in my life that I'd rather not get into personally.

Next Time: Why is Rainbow Dash so angry at Pinkie? What caused Twilight Sparkle to get like that? Why did this fic just take a sad turn- I don't know! Wasn't originally intended! But, answer to all these questions and more, next time.

-Readthestory

PS: Brother ordered a horse meat sandwich at a foreign restaurant the other day. Needless to say I was horrified.

A Whole Lot of Darkness

By Readthestory

Chapter 4: A Whole Lot of Darkness

Fluttershy was feeling helpless again.

In the dark tunnels of the Pegasus coal mines, they were forced to work ceaselessly, with very little time for food and sleep. The Griffon guards were ruthless in their labor driving, not hesitating to crack the whip or- in extreme cases- drag a Pegasus into their quarters, from where they would return with one or both wings cut off. The meager bandages hastily slapped onto the wing slots did very little to staunch the blood or the screams of the unfortunate Pegasus.

The coal was of little importance to the Griffon army. Sure, they could use it in their Canterlot forges to craft more armor and war machinery, but the real reason the Pegasi were forced to work in the caves was simple- to break their spirits. Not only that, but the dark, claustrophobic areas they were forced to mine in were psychological torture for the sky borne Pegasi, and flying to escape was not an option.

Fluttershy had no idea where exactly they were, none of them did. After her capture at the last battle near Ponyville, she had gone in and out of consciousness and finally woken up here in her new home. The conditions were particularly brutal for her, and she had almost given up until the incident happened.

A cave-in had occurred in one of the shafts, trapping several Ponies under piles of ash and dirt. Despite the risk, many of the Pegasi, including Fluttershy, had gone straight for the shaft to try to save anypony they could.

"Back off, slave scum!" the Griffon overseer had screeched. "We're doing our best here…"

Any idiot could see the Griffons were barely making any efforts to free the trapped miners though, and things were about to turn ugly. Pegasi were pressing in on the Griffons in anger, but the overseers began to bare their claws and pointed beaks, trying to prevent a riot.

To this day, she wasn't sure what force caused her to do it. Throughout the whole war she had tried to avoid the Griffon army and stay out of harm, but something in her snapped at that moment. Perhaps it was the fact that Ponies were suffocating in the shaft and nopony could help them- perhaps it was the final straw.

"Out of my way!" she had shouted, her voice cracking from lack of use.

Before the Griffons could even realize what was happening, the shy Pegasus had zoomed past them and begun digging fruitlessly into the dirt pile. Bolstered by her confidence, the other slaves barreled past the Griffons and began to help her, some of them forming a blockade against the stunned overseers who tried to break up the attempts. Before long, the trapped slaves had been freed, and even though many slaves (including Fluttershy) had been whipped fiercely for their actions, she had gained a nickname amongst the slaves: "Shackled Angel."

Ever since that day, Fluttershy began to notice that whenever she grew exhausted and started attracting attention from the guards (who tended to "remove" useless workers) some slaves would start doing her assigned work for her. No matter how much she pleaded them to stop, to work on their own already backbreaking jobs, they wouldn't back down. The Ponies would simply give her that look, a look full of hope and reverence.

She hated that look, because it filled her with guilt. She hated that she had become the symbol of Freedom for the slaves- because she wasn't. She wasn't strong, or brave, or even a good leader. She just hadn't wanted to watch while her fellow Ponies died that day. But for reasons she still couldn't quite determine, that act of defying the Griffons had made her their Angel.

So as usual, Mares, Stallions, and even children were all digging into her spot in the wall for her (when the guards backs were turned). And as she watched, unable to move from sheer exhaustion, she began to hate herself, too.

/**/

Rainbow Dash just stood there and gawked at Octavia, filled with disbelief.

"Discord?" she whispered.

Octavia bowed her head. "When… when the Princess was killed, we saw everything. You know, us, the Ponies in Canterlot who didn't fight. Even though most of the Canterlonian Unicorns galloped around in panic, packing their things and running for the hills, we knew what we had to do. Before she had gone to the battlefield, Princess Celestia had given us, the palace staff… a job to do."

"A job?"

"Yes. She said: If the worst should happen, and the Griffons defeat our army, you must do this, for all of Equestria will go to ruin if you do not. There is a statue of a Draconequus in my quarters. Take it, and head for the home of the Zebra healer, Zecora. She will give you more instructions."

Octavia shut her eyes for a moment, lost in the past. "Of course, we didn't understand at the time, but the Princess had never let us down before. So when the battle was lost, the band and I, with a few of the garden keepers, raced up there and grabbed the statue. When we emerged from the palace with it, things had already started to go downhill."

Rainbow Dash knew exactly what she meant. The last, desperate skirmishes in Canterlot were nothing more than a way to buy time for its citizens to escape. Hundreds more soldiers had died in the hopeless battle in the streets, completely overwhelmed by the surge of Griffon legionaries and his awful magic. A large part of the city had burned to the ground, and one neighborhood actually broke off the edge of the city and tumbled down the mountain.

To this day, Dash was uncertain how she had made it out alive- for when the dust finally cleared, Canterlot was in the talons of the Griffons, Cloudsdale had dropped to the earth, and Equestria was lost.

Octavia continued, "We managed to avoid the fighting, taking side routes and secret passages out of the city. But then the statue started to… shift. Of course, we didn't know back then that Discord was starting to awaken, fueled by the chaos of war. And…somehow… we got away."

Octavia hesitated and looked in the distance, as if she were trying to forget something. Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes suspiciously, unable to shake the feeling that Octavia was leaving something out of the story.

"And… then what?" she pressed.

"Well, after Earthaven was hollowed out, Princess Luna told us the secret. She said that she would build a sanctuary of peace in the caves, in order to keep the influence of war from awakening Discord. To be careful, she used a sealing spell and trapped the statue inside this block." She glanced at the magically inscribed stone. "And… we play to it, every day. Soothing music…"

Rainbow wasn't quite satisfied with this story. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was being left out of it. Subconsciously, she leaned towards the block.

"Why aren't you telling me- ah!" the Pegasus fell against the stone.

A flash of white light. Rainbow Dash was frozen, completely transfixed by the blinding glow around her. The chamber she was in was gone.

"This is bad. Like, really bad." She whispered to herself.

There was another flash, and in in a moment she was somewhere completely different. It was a magnificent chamber, complete with tiled floors, ornate pillars, and a happily streaming water fountain in the center of the room. Sunlight, real sunlight, was streaming through the curtained windows, bathing her with warmth.

"Where am I?" Rainbow Dash gasped, baffled.

Then it hit her. But… it was impossible. The room looked exactly like the atrium of the Ancient Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters… but new! Like it had been before it became a lonely ruin. Sure enough, when Rainbow Dash glanced out one of the windows, there was a cheerful forest surrounding the Castle. Not the ancient, dark labyrinth of Everfree but beautiful woods.

"OK… so I'm in the past. No problem, no problem." She said to herself, as though being thrown into the past was a totally normal event.

She was alone, the atrium was empty. Hesitantly, Rainbow Dash walked around the fountain, peering behind each pillar. But she was truly alone.

"OK… this is starting to creep me out a little."

A horrible scream pierced the air, almost giving Rainbow Dash a heart attack. She ran to the window and glanced upwards to the other section of the Castle; where the Elements of Harmony had been restored those five years ago… well, five years ago in her timeline. Just like that night, magical light was pouring from the windows.

Before she could even call out, the air around Dash exploded. She was vaguely aware of falling… falling… and then…

Wake up…

WAKE UP…

"Wake up!"

Her eyes shot open. She was back in the Peace Sanctuary, and the Canterlot band was leaning over her with expressions of concern.

"Did you see that?" she gasped, rising to her hooves.

"See what? Rainbow Dash, you just… touched that statue and you fell over. You were…writhing and foaming at the mouth. We tried to wake you but…"

So, it had all happened in her head, as she predicted. But it had all seemed so real… whatever that was, it was more than just a dream.

"Um… maybe you should get some rest, Miss Rainbow Dash. You look kind of pale." Octavia said, gently.

"Y-yeah. I'm gonna go do that…" she replied. "Thanks… you know. For telling me, Yeah…"

Before they could say another word, the cyan Pegasus turned and flew toward the exit of the Sanctuary, her mind still spinning with questions.

/**/

The large, stone, open air pavilion in the Earthaven valley certainly did not compare to its mystical surroundings, but it was a sight-for-sore eyes for the Ponies who ate there. Each and every Pony in Earthaven ate at the same time, so new tables were constantly being squashed into the pavilion as more raids were made against New Ponyville and the surrounding area. Even though food was scarce and everypony only got what they needed and nothing more, the pavilion was always a welcome sight at each meal.

And today was even better- for the tables were heavily laden with a feast. Everything a Pony could want was there; Scrumptious servings of vegetable dishes, everything from daffodil to violets, warm, buttery rolls of bread, heaps of hay fries, cool pitchers of cider, water, and all kinds of drinks- and the smell of something sweet cooking in the kitchen caverns nearby. Although the Ponies hadn't been called to eat yet (via a big bell on the pavilion), some meadow workers were attempting to casually wait around near the food, failing to look indifferent.

As usual, the decorations were completely over the top and strewn about- Pinkie Pie's hoofwork. But although her large, toothless alligator was happily chomping on balloons, Pinkie herself sat on a nearby bench, miserable. Applejack put a reassuring hoof on her friend's shoulder.

"Cheer up Pinkie… I'm sure she didn't mean nothing by it. Everypony is just tense and all with the-"

"No. Dashie has been like that for a long time! She's always mean to me and I don't know why!"

"Well, have you tried talkin' to her about it?"

"Yes! She always shuts me out… I don't know what to do!"

Applejack narrowed her eyes at Rainbow Dash's seemingly hostile behavior (although she knew Pinkie to exaggerate in the past).

"Well then, ah'm gonna have to talk to her. This ain't acceptable!"

"Oh please don't-"Pinkie began

"My mind is already set."

Pinkie knew it was useless to argue after that.

/**/

"OK team! I want you to watch those entrance caves like your life depends on it! Go, go, go!" Rainbow Dash called out.

The Wonderbolts muttered protests but flew off as their sub-captain ordered. Soarin' even rolled his eyes- a habit he knew Rainbow Dash couldn't stand.

"You don't have to be so harsh with them you know… they work hard." Spitfire said, hovering next to her.

"Not hard enough! It's like everypony forgets we're at war sometimes!" Dash replied, trying to keep the venom from her voice.

"Look Rainbow Dash, nopony has forgotten about the war. But even the great General Hurricane relaxed after the Battle of Dragon Summit-"

"Yeah well, she lived a long time ago didn't she!" the cyan Pegasus sulked.

Spitfire sighed. It was every day with this argument. She remembered when her young apprentice was still a desperate filly looking to fulfill her dreams, then proving herself over the years with her unmatched flying. But even after she was welcomed to the group, she was still as laid back and care-free as she had ever been.

The war had really changed a lot of things.

"Captain, permission to oversee the patrol groups?" Rainbow asked, saluting.

Spitfire shut her eyes, accepting the inevitable. "Yes, sub-captain Rainbow Dash. BUT FIRST!"

The cyan Pegasus stopped in mid-dash.

"I want to tell you something- not as your officer, but as a friend. I've noticed you distancing yourself from your old friends, and… I don't want you to lose sight of what's important."

Rainbow Dash glared back defiantly. "With all due respect, Captain, I already know what's important. And maybe if Pinkie Pie did too, she would still be important to ME!"

The Pegasus flew off as Spitfire sighed and shook her head.

/**/

Rapidfire slowly stumbled through his patrol route in the cave network surrounding Earthaven, exhausted from the day's long events. He was sweating despite the cool breeze in the caves, and his Wonderbolt uniform was getting sticky and uncomfortable.

"Sweep the barracks Rapidfire! Patrol the routes Rapidfire! Bathe regularly Rapidfire!" he mocked in a rather bad impersonation of Rainbow Dash. "Honestly, I'm not her servant!

His muttering was interrupted by a disturbing skittering noise. Rapidfire protectively raised his wings, eyes sweeping the area. That sounded like a bug. He REALLY didn't like bugs. After a moment of panic, the Pegasus resumed his shambling patrol route.

He didn't even see the pincers before they're burrowed into his neck.

/**/

All of Earthaven was being subjected to the ear bleeding cacophony that was the Royal Canterlot Voice.

"LOYAL SUBJECTS! TODAY IS A GREAT DAY FOR-"Luna paused as one of her guards began to whisper into her ear. "WE ARE NOT SPEAKING TOO LOUD! WE- um… OK maybe a little quieter…"

The Ponies sitting around her lowered their hooves from their ears gratefully.

"Our Pegasi squadron was successful in their mission, and rescued many slaves from Griffon talons- and for that we must honor them!"

There was a round of stomping as the assembled Earthaven populace cheered and gave thanks to the soldiers.

"As ever, thank you to our most esteemed Diamond Dogs for hosting us in this dark time-"

Another, more polite round of applause- it was no secret that many Dogs resented their presence in the caves.

"And may our continued efforts one day drive these invaders from our homeland!" Luna raised a glass. "Equestria!"

"Equestria!" chorused the Ponies, and the feasting began.

For a while, there was only the sound of enthusiastic eating as the constantly hungry population tucked into their food.

"Princess Luna, it was oftly kind of ya to let all us freed slaves sit at the top table with you and all-"Applejack said, ravenously chomping down some hay fries. "But surely there are more important ponies who…"

Luna shook her mane, "There is nopony more deserving of this place but thee! After thy suffering in the fields, surely you must enjoy this privilege. Dost thou and thy family enjoy thy lodgings?"

Luna often swapped in to and out of the medieval Equestrian dialect when speaking to crowds and having personal conversations.

"Uh… I don't know what you're s- oh! Yeah… yes, very much so. Thanks a million Princess."

For the umpteenth time that night, AJ wrapped Apple Bloom in her front leg, overjoyed that they were finally re-united. Apple Bloom nuzzled her mane affectionately, while Big Macintosh wrapped both his sisters in a reassuring hug.

For the next hour or so the Ponies ate and talked and laughed together. Whenever Applejack tried to bring up the war- particularly news from any of the other towns in Equestria, Princess Luna would only hush her and reply "It is not time for such talk."

In a moment of guilt, the farm Pony suddenly came to a realization. "Hey… where's Pinkie Pie-"

The kitchen cavern entrance shot open as if in answer, and Pinkie Pie bustled out the door carrying the most massive cake Applejack had ever seen. Behind her, the Cakes pushed trolleys of pastries and sweets, followed by Pumpkin and Pound Cake, who were pulling large wagons of cupcakes.

"Where… do…these…go… Dad?" Pound cake gasped, struggling to hold onto his wagon.

"Right up there…"

Soon, the desserts were all dispensed among the tables to much appreciation, and everypony began to tuck in.

"Feeling better now, sugar cube?" AJ asked as Pinkie plopped onto the chair next to her.

"Absolutely positively!" Pinkie replied with all her old gusto. "I'm going to talk to Rainbow Dash if it's the last thing I do!"

Applejack chuckled, knowing full well that it was impossible to avoid Pinkie Pie for too long.

"Good for you, Pinkie!" She said, smiling.

"Thanks! Cherrychanga?… or wait, was it Chimmicherry?" she asked, offering her a plate.

Gummy slithered around his owner's chair before curling up around her hoof, much to the alarm of most of the Ponies sitting near her.

/**/

"Rapidfire! Rapidfire!" Rainbow Dash yelled, flying along Rapidfire's patrol route.

It wasn't unusual for him to get lost in the caves, but he was very, very late in returning from his rounds. Spitfire had sent her to go look for him after a three hour absence.

"Rapid-"Rainbow Dash was suddenly jerked back in midflight and to her shock, she remained hanging there.

"What the buck?" the Pegasus cursed, flailing in desperation.

Rainbow looked up to see something which puzzled her. One of her wings had gotten caught in some kind of sticky mesh, and she was hanging from the trapped feathers. Something skittered from behind her, and Dash turned just in time to see 8 enormous black eyes staring into her face.

"AIIIIIIIEEEEEEYYYAAAAA!" She shrieked, losing it completely.

The gargantuan spider lunged at her with its pincers, but Dash managed to rip herself from the ceiling just in time, losing several feathers in the process. Without a moment of hesitation, the Pegasus bolted down the cave in the opposite direction, heedless of where she was going.

Skitter, skitter, skitter! The spider pursued her relentlessly at every turn, moving at a ridiculous speed. Rainbow Dash wanted to turn and fight, but the darkness was disorienting, she was completely outweighed and outsized and… spiders. She couldn't stand spiders.

The spider hissed in frustration as its prey continued to avoid it, despite its best efforts. The black Pegasus had made a nice meal but this one looked more succulent and savory. Just as the beast finally began to gain on Dash, excruciating pain in its back leg caused it to fall to the ground.

Rainbow Dash did a 180 turn as the spider fell, using the brief window of time to smash her hooves directly into the beast's eyes- causing it to squeal in rage and pain. Before Dash could stop it, the spider bulldozed past her and skittered into the cave network- and was soon out of sight.

"Quick, Pony!" whined a voice in the dark. "Follow me! Before the beast comes back!"

"Did you bite that thing's leg?" Rainbow Dash gasped, still alarmed by the encounter. She saw her savior was a Diamond Dog with a brown spot over its eye.

"Yes, yes, I bite. Nasty creatures, Arachnaeons. Come here sometimes- very hard to kill! Now follow, Pony! They are coming, lots of them! Coming to Earthaven!

/**/

A/N: Readthestory's check-list of apathy:

Late Update – check

Shortest Chapter so far – not check.

Well, that's good at least.

Well OK, it's not exactly apathy, but I do have a lot less time on my hands as I mentioned before. It also seems a bit silly sometimes to much effort into something that I think MAYBE one person reads regularly, but I digress. New ep tomorrow, can't wait!

-Readthestory

PS: Smile smile smile!

PPS: There's one thing I feel I should mention, because this is pretty important. I always post these chapters to fanfiction first, which is just direct uploads to the site instead of manually like on fimfiction. As a result, I might occasionally make mistakes when putting those (i) things before and after each italic phrase, and other small errors like that. I try to spot them all, but nopony is perfect, right?