Chapters The snow was falling heavily but it proved no obstacle to the unicorn as he lay silently in the small dug out trench he had made. The still glint of shining metal extended from the hole, the rifles barrel carefully aimed. The unicorn lay still, his right eye glued to the scope mounted atop the rifles barrel. It wouldn’t be long now.
Why was he here? What was the reason for this conflict? He didn’t even remember any more. Glory? Land? Profit? Because they could? Did it really matter any more? Probably not...
He continued to lay still, the wind starting to pick up as it continued to snow. Behind him a number of red coloured streams of fabric began to flick in the wind, the tight knots around his head and tail keeping them from blowing away into the gather dusk. He sighed slowly to himself, he knew this was his forte but...why? What would one more death accomplish? He was already disillusioned but what else could he do? It was kill or be killed. The enemy would not listen, refusing to even answer the most basic of negotiations. Were they really just going to fight until only one side remained? Did it really matter anymore? Probably not...
Just then a spec appeared in his vision. A glint of metal in the sky above. They were flying higher than anticipated! A quick shift of his position aimed the rifle muzzle further up and the unicorn took a deep breath. His earlier thoughts had already been forgotten as an uninterested look fell across his face, this wasn’t the first and probably wouldn’t be the last.
His horn gave a small glow and a magical aura surrounded the tip of the barrel. Waiting but a moment he allowed his target to enter his sights before another magical glow caused the trigger to depress. The shot rung out, heavily muffled by the magical glow surrounding the end of the rifle. It wasn’t a perfect shot...but then again it didn’t need to be.
A scream rung out in the gathering storm as the bullet hit, tearing into the left side from the receiving Pegasus pony and separating his left wing from the rest of him. The unicorn smiled as he watched the Pegasus plummet from the sky accompanied by the sky wagon he was pulling behind him. Phase one complete.
He moved quickly, the blue coloured unicorn darting from his cover and galloping towards where the Pegasus and wagon had crashed. Behind him the rifle he had used, encased in his magic’s glow, slid itself back into a holster on his back and two small sidearms took its place, one hovering on either side of his head. It didn’t take long to reach the crash site, a little more than it took for the Pegasus to reach it in fact.
As he approached he slowed, edging carefully over the last snowy hill. It was a mess. The wagon lay smashed a little way off, pieces of its frame scattered around the crash site. The Pegasus himself lay at the end of a long channel that had been carved out of the snow as he had landed. The white ground was stained red from the point of impact to where he lay. Even without getting close it was clear to see that two of his legs were broken and the gaping wound in his left side was slowly oozing more blood into the pool that already surrounded him.
There was nopony else there, not a sight or sound. Carefully the unicorn moved forwards, his eyes flicking one way and then the other as he approached the injured Pegasus. He seemed to notice as the unicorn approached, giving a small cough which brought fresh blood to his lips.
“Damn you Lunarians...” he spat as forcefully as he could given his condition.
The unicorn didn’t even seem to acknowledge his words and kept moving forwards, heading in the direction of the cart.
“What? Too chicken to face me?” continued the Pegasus.
The unicorn stopped and looked back in an uninterested fashion, “Face you? I don’t need to; you’ll be dead before anyone finds you.”
The Pegasus’ face twisted in rage causing a fresh bloody cough to erupt from his mouth, “You think you’ll get away with this?”
“Why not?” replied the unicorn as he turned back towards the wagon.
“Don’t go near that wagon!”
The unicorn stopped again, looking back with an expression of twisted annoyance, “I was going to let you live...you know somepony may have found you...but now...”
One of the sidearms following the unicorn broke off and sailed over to where the Pegasus was lying. It hovered in front of his face for a moment before the muzzle pressed itself firmly against the pegasus’ forehead.
“Say goodnight...” finished the unicorn.
“My life for Celes...”
The gunshot rung out around the snowy hills. As the sidearm floated back towards the unicorn the pegasus’ body finally slumped to the ground, lifeless at last. Now there was only one thing left to do. The unicorn slowly approached the crashed wagon, carefully avoiding the broken fragments that stuck up from the ground. Everything was silent as he opened the side door, both his guns levelled at the opening in case anything was inside. There was nothing, nothing at all.
He paused slightly, this wasn’t right. Had this wagon been a decoy? No, he couldn’t have made that mistake...something else was going on. He swung his head back outside, carefully moving round the back of the wagon looking for clues. He found them rather quickly, hoofprints in the snow leading away from the crash site.
The unicorn’s face twisted with anger, how could he had missed this? Was that what the Pegasus had been trying to do? Distract him long enough to allow his companion to escape? Still, if there were hoofprints it obviously wasn’t a Pegasus he was dealing with...or at least they had the common sense not to try and outfly a sharp shooter.
He set off after the hoofprints, edging further into the blizzard around him. Whoever this pony was they were clearly injured, specs of fresh blood evident on the snowy ground. Just then he stopped dead and lowered himself to the ground. There they were.
A short way off, struggling against the oncoming snow, was a small pegasus filly. She seemed quite young, not a foal by any means but certainly younger than he was. Her coat was a light pink colour that complemented her mixed purple and white mane and tail. In her mouth was a large gold plated chest encrusted in different coloured gems. It seemed heavy, the filly’s head low as she almost dragged it through the snow. The unicorn smiled to himself, this was going to be easy.
“Stop right there!” he spoke clearly as he stood up, making sure both his sidearms were hovering beside him.
The filly froze, looking back with panic stricken purple eyes. Her jaw started to quiver as she tried to work out what to do. A wound could clearly be seen on her neck, the red line of blood matting her coat. In a flash of panic she bolted, trying her best to push the snow aside. The unicorn grinned, the game was afoot.
Without a second thought he fired, the round striking the ground just ahead of the panicked filly. She stopped dead for a moment before changing direction. Another round hit the snowy ground in front of her and again she stopped dead. Looking back she watched as the unicorn crept closer.
“Don’t be an idiot like your friend and you might just walk out of this alive,” he said bluntly as he approached.
The filly whimpered, slowly edging backwards as the unicorn approached.
“I was told this was a special convoy,” he continued, “completely off the grid, nopony was to know about it. Pity you Celestans can’t keep your secrets secret isn’t it.”
The filly didn’t reply for a moment, her eyes locked on the approaching unicorn, “P-please don’t hurt me...”
“Huh! I’ll decide that depending on how you act...now put the case down and back off.”
The filly nervously lowered the chest to the ground and edged back slightly, casting nervous glances at the sidearm that was following her movement. The unicorn stepped forwards, flicking his front hoof at the chest causing it to spring open. Inside was a single object; a round circular stone with a small raised diamond pattern in the centre.
The unicorn looked up at the filly with a curious look, “What is this?”
“It’s...it’s...an Element of Harmony.”
“Element of Harmony?”
The unicorn frowned slightly. They were just a myth, a story that mothers told their foals to inspire hope and courage for the future. Stories of good versus evil and the value of true friendship. Huh! Good versus evil...what a joke. There was no good or evil in this world, just endless suffering and death. The unicorn shut the case and quickly levitated it onto his back next to his rifle.
“Alright move,” he said bluntly, motioning with his sidearm as he did.
“But...but you said you’d let me go...”
“I said I might let you live, didn’t say anything about letting you go. Now move, my superiors will want a little talk with you.”
“Metaphor, hey Met!”
The blue unicorn looked up slowly from his drink. The rosy glow on his cheeks gave a clear sign of his current level of intoxication, the half full mug of cider in front of him adding to the image. A brown coloured earth pony was addressing him, a pony he usually tried to ignore.
“What is it Shard?” he replied gruffly, keeping his tone as neutral as he could.
“Heard you just got back from the Southern Wastes,” continued the earth pony, “You brought something back didn’t you?”
“What of it if I did?”
“Oh nothing, just keeping my nose in.”
“More like sticking it in where it doesn’t belong.”
Metaphor huffed and quickly raised the mug to his lips using his magic. His coordination was a little off though and a portion of his drink ended up hitting the table top as he upended the glass.
“Hahah! How many drinks is that?”
“Two...and what does it matter?”
Metaphor had already had enough of the idle chatter. He rarely used the soldiers bar and he usually ended up regretting it later. With a shake of his head he got up and started walking towards the exit. The earth pony continued to throw words at him but Metaphor didn’t pay them any heed and simply continued on. He wanted some sleep.
As he walked he found himself musing on his previous mission and the events that had unfolded following it. The young filly hadn’t put up any resistance on the way back to the base, she hadn’t even spoken. Metaphor had found it a little unnerving at first but had soon blocked it out. He hadn’t seen her since they had arrived, two security guards escorting her elsewhere as Metaphor had been summoned for debriefing.
He had been told not to say anything. He didn’t need to be told though. It was a well-known fact that Metaphor didn’t speak to many ponies, he simply did his job and that was that. Even so he couldn’t help but feel a little curious about this mission more than the rest. An Element of Harmony? Could such a thing actually exist or was it just a clever lie to try and throw him off guard?
In the end it didn’t matter, it wasn’t his problem anymore. Command would take care of both the chest he had found and the filly while he would just be given another mission to complete. It was just how it was...how it had always been.
Metaphor sighed as he arrived at his dorm room. At the very least his skills in completing assignment did have its perks, the main one being his own private room. He couldn’t stand sharing a room with other ponies. The snoring, the idle chit-chat, the constant pranks and stupidity. Here he could be alone and sleep peacefully.
The room wasn’t big, barely large enough to fit a single bed in it. A small window was set high up on the wall and at the foot of the bed laid a small trunk. Metaphor stumbled towards the bed, his magic activating just long enough to levitate the blanket so he could slide himself under it. It wasn’t the lap of luxury but then he wouldn’t have known. Metaphor’s earliest memories were those of military service; it was all he knew, it was all any pony knew in this age. He always felt there was more to life than this but he had no idea how he could find out or where to even start looking.
As he lay still the effects of the alcohol started to take effect as he felt himself sliding into the realms of sleep. He yawned and closed his eyes; the image of the young filly’s face flashing before his eyes for a moment but it did little to prevent the unconscious state he had already succumbed to.
It was a few hours later when the door to his room clicked and slowly slid open. A pony stood in the doorway, dark against the unlit corridor behind him. Slowly he crossed the room, carefully placing his hooves so they made as little sound as possible. He looked down at Metaphor, the drunken pony sleeping soundly. The pony smiled to himself as he reached out with a hoof, a long needle held carefully in his grip.
Just then he paused as a sparkle lit up the air. At the tip of Metaphor’s horn a single point of light blue magic hung in the air. It happened quickly, Metaphor snapping to his senses and lashing out sideways with a hoof. The needle was knocked from the ponies hoof and he jumped back in alarm. Metaphor was also moving, rising to his hooves as he turned to face the newcomer. From a pack at the side of the room two small sidearms appeared surrounded in a magical glow as the point of light at the tip of Metaphor’s horn increased in magnitude.
“Who are you?!” he demanded quickly.
The other pony just grinned and started to chuckle to himself slightly. Metaphor was perplexed, what was going on? Before he had time to think though a sharp pain filled his head. His magic faded in a moment as the sidearms clattered to the floor. Metaphor quickly glanced to his side as a new chuckle filled the air. A unicorn stood in the doorway, his horn glowing with a light yellow tint. Metaphor knew what it was, a magic dampening field. He and every other unicorn had been through rigorous training to help them counter the effects of such a spell. He had to focus!
Unfortunately he didn’t have the time to counter the spell. The earth pony who was stood not a few feet away made a grab for one of the dropped handguns and in the moment that Metaphor looked away he struck. Metaphor felt the cold impact of metal against the side of his head followed be another blow as he struck the wall and collapsed to his bed. He was still conscious but the blow gave the earth pony enough time to recover the needle he had been carrying earlier and jab it into Metaphor’s neck.
The content was injected long before the blue unicorn could knock him away again. It was also fast acting, the drug fogging his mind as he collapsed fully onto the bed and passed out.
Metaphor gave a light groan as consciousness slowly returned to him. He could feel a slight tapping on his shoulder, almost like a nudge, but as he woke the touch vanished. A small ‘meep’ like sound filled the air followed by a shuffling sound that caused Metaphor to slowly look round. He blinked slightly as his vision focussed on a pink coated young mare with a purple mane. The unicorn moved suddenly, jerking upwards at the sight of the filly.
“How did you get here?! You escaped didn’t...”
Metaphor felt his head spin from the sudden movement, the unicorn stopping mid-sentence as his front legs collapsed on him. The same pain he had felt before swam round his head. As he looked back up he found the filly looking at him again with nervous eyes.
“Y-You should’t move...” she murmured quietly.
Metaphor studied her for a moment. She looked even more afraid than she had done in the snowy wastes outside. Her eyes were red with tears, her coat matted in places with thin red lines of blood from cuts under the hair. It also looked like her mane had been torn in places, the ends looking ragged. Around her front and back legs sat two heavy looking sets of shackles.
For a moment Metaphor let his mind work, what was going on here? He looked up, he was surrounded on all sides by metal bars, each about three inches thick, easily strong enough to resist the powerful force an Earth Pony could call upon and more than enough to stop a Pegasus or Unicorn. Looking back down he found a similar set of shackles around his own legs. It was all clear now, the filly hadn’t escaped...he was now incarcerated too.
His head still didn’t feel right though. Slowly he lowered his head so he could reach up with a hoof and touch it. Curiously he ran a hoof along his horn, coming to a stop as he reached the base of it where a thick metal band sat; a magic dampener. Metaphor sighed, he was definitely in trouble now. Magic dampeners were used to completely supress the magic output of a unicorn so they couldn’t cast spells. It was the same as the spell that had been used on him earlier but much more potent due to the proximity. The problem was that long term use of such a device tended to bottle up a unicorns power until they literally went crazy from being unable to expel excess magic from their body.
The dampener around his horn though did not seem to matter at that moment, there were far more pressing matters at hand. Namely what was he doing here? He looked back at the earth pony and gave a small sigh.
“What’s your name?” he asked bluntly.
“M-My name? I…I don’t know...” she replied, still looking afraid.
“You don’t know? What kind of…urg! Fine! If you don’t want to tell me I don’t care.”
“Are you going to hurt me?”
Metaphor paused, “Hurt you?”
The filly just gave a small nod as she remained pressed up against the bars at the far side of the cell.
“Please don’t hurt me,” she continued, “I don’t know anything...I keep trying to tell them but they just keep saying I’m lying and hurt me more. I...I...just want to go home...”
She stopped and began to sniff, the damp hair beneath her eyes receiving fresh tears as she curled up slightly on her haunches. Metaphor just watched silently. He had seen many prisoners in his time; he’d help capture them, he’d helped bring them back to base, he’d even helped in interrogating one of them once. And yet this earth pony didn’t seem like any other type of prisoner he’d seen before. It almost appeared as if she had no knowledge of the war, was she even a soldier?
“What did they want to know?” he asked curiously.
“About the Element of Harmony and where it was found...” murmured the filly, “I don’t know any of that...I don’t even remember who...”
“So you’re finally awake.”
The filly stopped talking and Metaphor turned to look behind him as a new voice split the air. And yet it wasn’t a new voice, it was one that Metaphor knew well.
“Topspin?” he asked in a surprised tone.
On the other side of the bars, flanked by a pair of earth pony guards, stood a yellow tinted pegasus. Her orange mane was cut short, as was her tail, giving her a very masculine appearance despite her feminine figure. She wore an amused smile.
“Well I must say, of all the ways I saw your future this wasn’t one of them,” she commented plainly before giving a small chuckle.
“Topspin? What the hay is going on?! Get me out of here already!” replied Metaphor as he turned to face her fully.
“Get you out? I’m sorry but that’s not possible.”
“What?”
“Well if nothing else I owe you an explanation, you’ve been a very useful tool over the years,” replied Topspin, “Simply put you’ve seen too much Metaphor. This filly, the Element of Harmony…you really have no idea how deep all of this goes. Neither do I for that matter…but I do know you’ve seen things that go above your station.”
Metaphor glared at the Pegasus. He had known Topspin for a number of years now ever since she became captain of his unit. They had been through a lot together but it seemed that mattered little now.
“So what? You’re here to kill me?” he asked calmly.
“Kill you?” chuckled Topspin, “Not at all, as I said you’ve been a useful tool over the years and you don’t simply throw away useful tools until they are completely broken.”
“Broken…?”
“Our superiors have decided to use you to test a few new ideas they have been having.”
Metaphor looked away for a moment refusing to believe this was actually happening.
“Well either way I have to go,” finished Topspin, “Good bye Metaphor, you’ve been a loyal soldier.”
Topspin turned to leave, the two earth ponies beside her turning also but not before giving a small smirk each. Metaphor didn’t say anything, he knew it was pointless right now; it wouldn’t change his situation. He watched the three ponies leave until a large metal shutter slid down across the doorway blocking his view. For a moment he simply stood in thought. What had Topspin meant? Why was all of this happening?
He lowered his head so he could raise a hoof to his horn again. He ran it slowly across the cold metal, a faint twinge running through his mind. He looked back at the young filly still cowering at the back of the cell they were in. He sighed and shook his head.
“Why me?” he asked himself plainly before addressing her, “Hey, come here!”
The earth pony jumped, clearly startled by his voice. Slowly she raised her head and looked back at him, the fear evident on her face. Metaphor sighed again; he wasn’t good at speaking to ponies normally never mind dealing with a scared mouse like this one.
“Look, I’m not going to hurt you,” he continued, trying to keep his tone gentle, “I need your help alright…if we’re going to get out of here we need to work together.”
It seemed comical really; asking the prisoner he had brought in himself for help. What kind of pony would agree to that? No pony he knew that’s for sure; everypony was always looking out for themselves alone…it was a diamond dog eat diamond dog world.
“…Y-You mean it?”
The filly was looking up at him from the corner of the cell. Fear still surrounded her but in her eyes hung something that Metaphor had not seen in a very long time…hope.
“I…yes…sure…”
Metaphor almost felt like he was in a trance as he stared into her eyes. Her gaze was soft but to him it felt like she was boring into his very soul. For a time neither of them said anything, each trying to work out what to do next.
“W-What should I do?” she asked quietly after a time.
“Huh? Oh right,” stammered Metaphor as he snapped himself back to reality and lowered himself to the ground, “I need you to take a look at this dampener on my horn.”
For a moment the filly didn’t move but eventually she raised herself to her hoofs. For a moment she stayed still, almost balancing herself before she moved, and then shakily walked across the cell towards him. She stopped a few feet away, seeming reluctant to come any closer. Eventually she took the final step and stopped next to Metaphor. He gave her a final look and then turned his head to the side, angling it so she could get a clear view of his horn.
“What does it look like?” he asked.
“Um…well…it’s metal and…there a red line all around it,” she murmured quietly, “There a few small lights on it and…”
Metaphor let out a long sigh, “Sounds like a type three…hay seeds!”
The filly backed off a little, still nervous of Metaphor. The unicorn didn’t move other than to raise a hoof to his head, a new throbbing pain was starting to pound back and forth between his ears.
“Maybe I just need to think about it a bit,” he said, “I’m going to try and get some sleep.”
With that he lowered his head to the ground and curled up. The filly didn’t seem to know what to do, staring at Metaphor for a moment before slowly moving back across the cell and settling herself down at the far side. She looked a little dejected as she looked back at Metaphor with a small whimper.
The minutes ticked by, slowly turning into hours as time seemed to merge into one mass of nothingness. Despite his earlier statement about sleep Metaphor had yet to get any. He was still sat in the same position, his eyes closed but sleep escaping him. Pain throbbed in his mind and he could feel himself shaking slightly as the early effects of the dampener started to take effect. He gritted his teeth, grinding them harshly against each other as he continued to try and think of a way out.
Despite the hours he had sat there though nothing had come to mind. He knew all the ins and outs of the base he was in but he also knew the security levels and the history of all prisoners who had tried to escape before. Even ignoring the dampener on his horn and the bars that surrounded him there was more than enough to stop him from escaping.
Even if he did escape what would he do? He had been sentenced by those who he considered allies at the least. It was unlikely he would survive long in the frozen wastes on his own and the Celesteals would just shoot him on sight…so would the Lunarians now. If he managed to escape he would be nothing more than a lone pony against the world.
He raised his head slowly and looked around. The earth filly was curled up at the far side of the cell. She appeared to be asleep but she twitched and shuddered as she did, an occasional murmur escaping her lips. What was going on?
Metaphor felt a well of rage and anger building inside him. The magical suppression didn’t help either, the pain from the pent up magical energy in his body starting to take its effect on his mood as well. Slowly he pulled himself to his feet, almost falling due to a wave of disorientation that passed over him. For a moment he leaned against the cell bars and gave a sigh. He could feel a tear forming in his eye as a single question filled his mind once again.
“Why…?” he murmured to himself.
He moved his head slightly, hitting it against the bars gently as the tear began to grow in his eye.
“Why?” he questioned again as he hit his head against the bars once again.
Clenching his teeth he brought his head back again, slamming it back against the bars aggressively.
“Why? Why? WHY?” he cried, each call getting louder and louder as he continued to slam his head against the bars.
Then it happened. A slight move of his head caused him to slam the magical dampener against the bars. Metaphor stopped dead as if he had just been shot through the heart. Pain raced through his mind, a spike so high that he couldn’t even bring himself to scream at first. As his knees gave way though his voice returned; his scream echoing around the room with explosive force. The earth filly was awakened immediately, looking around in a panicked state as she tried to work out what was going on.
As her eyes finally settled on Metaphor she froze, the sight chilling her to the bone. Metaphor was on the ground, his body rigid in pain as sparks of magical energy ripped across his body. In the brief moments that his eyes shot open in pain she could see that his pupils were aflame with magical energy. He continued to scream, each one accompanied by a sharp twitch or a new bolt of energy.
She had never seen anything like it and that was more than enough to scare her. As she watched a bolt of energy shot from Metaphor, striking the ground not too far from her and leaving a large black scorch on the concrete that made up the cells floor. This was enough to make her panic, she spun, beating her hooves against the bars as she tried desperately to escape. It wasn’t any use though, the bars stood firm and the filly turned to look back at Metaphor.
He lay still now, his twitching having subsided to nothing. The filly remained still, afraid to do anything. What was going on? It was about this moment that the alarm started sounding around the room. As two large earth ponies charged into the room she pressed herself against the back of the cell in a vain attempt to go unseen.
“What’s going on in here?” questioned one of the earth ponies as he glanced around the cell.
“Like it matters,” replied the other, “That idiot unicorn probably tried to break out, you know what they told us about him.”
“Yeah but…woah! Hey get over here now!”
The filly watched as both ponies approached Metaphor on the other side of the bars. For a moment they just looked at his seemingly lifeless body before glancing at each other in a panic.
“Get this cell open now!” cried the first pony.
“That idiot better not be dead!” cursed the second as he rushed to the side of the room and slammed his hoof against the cell release mechanism.
A part of the cell shifted and then quickly swung out of the way as the two ponies entered the cell. The filly didn’t make a move, well aware that one of the ponies was watching her closely as his companion approached Metaphor. He stopped short, examining him from a distance, before approaching and lightly tapping him with his front hoof. Metaphor didn’t move.
“Buck!” he swore, “Nothing, not a thing.”
He twisted his face, raising his hoof once more but this time smashing it hard against the side of Metaphor’s face. The strike caused Metaphor to roll over and hit the ground on his other side with a thud. A metallic tinkle sounded as the dampener from Metaphor’s horn rolled off and settled on the floor a few feet away. The earth pony spun towards his companion, his face twisted in rage.
“Bucking hay seeds!” he sword again, “It had to be my shift didn’t it?! Topspin is going to have my flank for this mark my words!”
“You and me both!” added his companion, “I…wait…Swift? Did you hear that?”
“What?”
They both turned back towards Metaphor. The unicorn was still unmoving but there was a noise coming from him…a chuckle. The noise continued, slowly growing in volume over the next few seconds before suddenly Metaphor moved. His front hooves flicked out, the metal shackles clinking together as they were stretched to this limit. The two earth ponies realised their mistake and both made a jump for the still ground bound unicorn. However the unicorn himself wasn’t as slow as they would have liked him to be.
He sprung up, jumping clear of them as they landed where he had been lying a moment ago. For a moment he stood on all fours staring at the far wall. As he turned though the young filly, who had remained completely still and silent the whole time, finally gave a scream. Metaphor’s eyes were completely black, apart from a burning blue flame in each of them, light seemingly being sucked from the room as he stared at the two earth ponies. His face was twisted in an odd smile, his right cheek swelling up and turning purple from where the earth pony had struck him a moment ago. All of this didn’t seem to matter though as the earth ponies both realised a bigger problem.
“Buck! The magic dampener! It’s gone!” cried the first.
“It must have been shaken loose when you hit him you foal!” replied the second as he began to back off.
They both began backing away, each well aware of the danger they were both now in. Metaphor’s smile broadened turning into a grin.
“Leaving?” he questioned as a faint glow began to encase his horn, “But you only just arrived…”
The two earth ponies bolted, neither seeming to care what happened to the other as they ran for the cell block door. What happened next happened quickly. The whine of metal being twisted beyond its stress limit echoed around the room as several of the cell bars were torn from the ground. One of the earth ponies dared a look behind him as three of the bars sailed across the room towards him.
The screams of both ponies were loud but short lived. The metal bars slammed into the ground, the blood soaked ends embedding themselves in the concrete floor as the magic glow surrounding them finally faded away. Metaphor didn’t even seem to flinch, his smiled appearing once again as he looked at the scene with a tilted head.
The young filly finally reached her limit, screaming as she bolted across the cell towards the door. Metaphor didn’t miss her, easily picking up the filly with his magic as she tried to run.
“What do we have here?” he chuckled as he held her up in front of himself.
“Please don’t hurt me!” she wailed, kicking aimlessly against the magic that was holding her in the air, “No…please…no…you said we had to work together…let me go…please…no…”
“Myst…hey Myst, time to wake up, come on now.”
The swirling patterns of grey and black started to fade as consciousness slowly returned to the young filly. Her eyes fluttered, the darkness of the room making the transition easier than it would have been. A large blue coloured blur filled her vision looking roughly pony shaped but the details escaped her. She blinked hard, giving a small moan as she did, causing the room to focus a little. Another blink and the trail ends of her slumber ebbed away and left the world clear once more. Stood over her was a blue pony, his eyes looking concerned and worried, but for the young filly only one sight filled her gaze. She screamed, shuffling backwards and crashing into a nearby wall.
“No!” she called, pressing herself against the wall, “No let me go! Don’t hurt me! Please!”
“Myst!” responded Metaphor, the unicorn making a move to step forwards but withdrawing slightly, “It’s ok, I’m not going to hurt you. You’re safe! Calm down…please?”
His voice was soft, different to how it had been earlier. The tone cut through the young filly’s fear, silencing her screams. She was still shaking as she stared back at the unicorn. Metaphor sighed and slowly turned away slightly, his head and tail drooping.
“I’m sorry,” he continued, “I didn’t mean to do what I did earlier. I was crazed and…no, that’s no excuse. I know what I nearly did.”
Metaphor wasn’t quite sure what to say. He turned back toward the filly, raising his head slightly, “I know you’re scared but please believe me…I’m not going to hurt you.”
The filly looked at him for a moment, unsure as to what to believe. And yet despite what had happened earlier she felt compelled to believe him. Slowly she stood up, taking a few nervous steps across the room towards him. It was then that she stopped, looking around the room they were in. There were no bars, no dead security stallion, no blaring alarms.
The room was small, barely a couple of pony strides across each side. In a corner of the room sat a pile of dry hay that looked like it had been slept on. A small table occupied one wall, on it a burning candle sent flickering flames across the surface. Opposite the table was a single metal locker, the door half open allowing the filly to see a couple of winter jackets and other supplies that hung inside it.
“Where are we?” she asked slowly.
“Some old survival bunker on the outskirts of sector four,” replied Metaphor as he gave a glance around the room, “Didn’t even know these things still existed…but it’s a good job it does…don’t think I would have made it much further if I hadn’t stumbled on it.”
“But…what…”
Metaphor gave a sigh, “What happened? You deserve to know at least.”
Metaphor crossed over to the pile of hay and slowly lowered himself down onto it. As he did the filly easily caught sight of the bandages that were wrapped around his middle; the dark red stain of dried blood easily visible through the fabric. He gave a small cough as he settled himself into the hay.
“I was seconds away from killing you,” he started, his tone ashamed and saddened, “If you hadn’t flailed like you had you wouldn’t be here right now…and neither would I.”
“What do you mean?” asked the filly, edging slightly closer as she spoke.
“You kicked me. My magic might have been holding you in the air but it wasn’t holding you still,” he replied raising a hoof to his horn, “I don’t know how it happened but you managed to kick my horn. Sent my magic into another panic attack, guess it must have shorted out the effect.”
“Effect of what?”
“The magic dampener. We unicorns are always expelling magical energy. You can’t see it but it’s there, like a safety valve I guess. If we don’t use magic for a while we have to expel it or…well, that’s what the dampener was designed for. By stopping a unicorn from expelling magic you could not only control them but it would eventually cause madness…but not before the unicorn goes through such pain that they will do anything to stop it.”
“So that magic thingy…”
“Yes, that’s what caused me to go crazy…but if it wasn’t for you I would be dead right now. Thank you.”
I felt strange to be thanking the filly. Metaphor rarely spoke to anyone, never mind thanked anyone for what they may have done. The filly edged closer still, her nerves slowly leaving her as Metaphor told his story.
“I must have passed out for a moment and when I came to all I could see was the devastation. The alarm was blaring and I knew I didn’t have much time. I tried to wake you but you were unconscious. All I could do was scoop you up and run. I managed to find a way into the service tunnels below the base and made my escape from there…but not before I was given this,” Metaphor motioned to the bandage round his middle, “As I said I was lucky to find this place when I did.”
“Does it hurt?” asked the filly.
“Like nothing you can imagine, it was a .3 round from near point blank range. I’m amazed it managed to miss everything vital but that doesn’t mean it’s not done any damage.”
“What will you do?”
“What will I do?” asked Metaphor before giving a small unamused chuckle to himself, “Nothing I can do. I was sentenced to death by those who were, for lack of a better term, family. The enemy will shoot me on sight. I’m wounded, have nowhere to go and the food supplies we have won’t last more than a day or two if we’re lucky.”
Metaphor gave a sigh and shifted his position slightly, curling up into a ball in the hay.
“Look, it would probably be best if you just go. Take some of the food and leave,” he continued, “There’s no point in you staying here with me. It’s only a matter of time before someone finds us and when they do they’ll kill us both…if we don’t die of starvation first. I’m sorry about everything that’s happened to you. Go on, just leave, there’s nothing left in this world for me now.”
As the filly watched a single tear formed in the corner of Metaphor’s eye before he closed it causing the tear to roll down his cheek. For a moment she just stood there and looked at him. What was she to do? She looked at the door, the small window in it bordered with a layer of snow. She was free again…but what was she free for? She couldn’t remember anything. It was like her whole life before being found by the Celestians had never happened! And yet she felt drawn to something, something important. The Element of Harmony! That’s what it was…she didn’t know why but they were important. She needed to find them, to protect them, to bring them all together!
She looked back at Metaphor. He was a sorry sight to behold, a broken pony with no reason to care or live any more. Had he even had a reason before all this? Had he simply been doing what he was told? An automaton who’s only purpose had been to kill because he was told to. Another tear rolled down his cheek as she watched.
No, she couldn’t do this alone…she didn’t even know what she really had to do. But maybe he would…
As Metaphor lay still he felt a slight warmness snuggle up beside him. Opening his eyes he found the young filly lying beside him, her small body pressed into his. Once again he didn’t know what to say.
“I don’t want to go…” murmured the filly, “There is something important I have to do…but I can’t do it alone. I don’t know how, I can’t remember. Will you help me?”
“I…what do you mean something important?” asked Metaphor.
“Do you remember the Element of Harmony?”
Metaphor was silent for a moment, “Is it real? I mean…the Elements of Harmony…are they real?”
“I don’t know…but they are important. Something is telling me they are important. I need to find them…all of them…will you help?”
Metaphor remained silent for a moment. Tales of the Elements of Harmony flooded back to him. Stories of friendship and good versus evil. Stories of triumphs of light over dark and of love over pain. Could they really be true? Was there really more to this world than what he knew right now? Was there even a chance?
He looked at the filly’s eyes next to him. She was looking right at him, her earlier fear gone and replaced by that one emotion he had seen in them back in the jail cell…hope. With a small sigh he gently nodded his head.
“Thank you…” she murmured as she pressed herself harder into his side.
For a moment the pair stayed silent, the occasional howl of wind outside breaking the silence. Metaphor was starting to feel the tide of sleep approaching as the filly spoke once again.
“Earlier…when I woke up…why did you call me Myst?” she asked.
“It was the name of a friend of mine from a long time ago,” replied Metaphor after a moment, “She was a good friend and…well I know you said you couldn’t remember your own name…so I thought…”
“I like it…thank you…”
Metaphor felt an odd sensation pass over him, a warmth that didn’t come from the heat of the filly’s body. Unconsciously the corners of his mouth turned upwards slightly, a faint smile spreading across his face for a moment.
“Rest for now, we’ll talk later,” he said after a moment.
“Ok…”