Beyond The Sea

Chapters

Prologue
A Long Overdue Reunion
La Mer
S.O.S
Into The Deep
Welcome Party
Equalize
Old Friends, New Friends
Convergence
Complications
La Mare
Doozy

Prologue

PROLOGUE

The prisoner was hurled into her cell. A looming figure behind her, the guard, slammed the rusty door shut without a word. His keys jingled together as the heavy padlock clicked the cell shut tight, leaving it in total darkness.

The prisoner could hear muffled hoof-steps echo down the hall outside. A door opened and closed, leaving only the sound of her ragged breathing. She lifted herself weakly off the cold, metal floor and felt her way to the corner of the room where a pile of soiled rags made up her bed. She dropped onto them heavily and closed her eyes tight.

For what must have been the millionth time, she thought about her old friends. It was her only solace in the small, dank room. Sometimes, if she really concentrated, she could almost feel them, like they were somehow in the cell beside her. She’d shoot awake in the dead of night, positive someone else was with her; but nopony ever answered her calls from the blackness, and she’d fall back into a fitful sleep. Perhaps she was losing her mind. That would hardly be surprising after all she’d been through in this horrid place.

Around her, the prison groaned and moaned in its deep, resonant voice. It sounded like it was in pretty rough shape. The whole place did. Maybe if she was lucky it would all fall apart and she could escape... in either one way or another.

She rolled onto her side, ignoring the perverse feeling of her own body. The dark thoughts in her mind weren't so easy to deal with, and fleeing to the memories of her youth was her only escape. How long had it been since she had last seen her friends? Even in her strained mental and emotional state, she was able to quickly do the math in her head. She whimpered in shock as she calculated the answer.

It’s been almost 16 years...

The thought was like an icy spear through her heart. Unable to hold it in any longer, she broke into tears. They fell onto her putrid rags; already saturated from the previous months she’d spent crying into them.

Since it was impossible to tell time in the black cell, she couldn’t know for sure how long she’d even been a prisoner for. At a rough estimate, it had been at least 9 months. She spent half of that time in the cell, and the other half...

The other half was spent in the medical lab, where stone-faced, so-called doctors had free reign to poke and prod. Inject and mutilate.

The prisoner shuddered at what she knew they'd done to her. All the surgeries and mutations... She considered the darkness of her world a blessing. It meant she didn’t have to look at their heinous work, and the abomination she’d become.

She closed her eyes tighter in an attempt to cut off the tears, retreating back to the comfort of her memories. Suddenly, she was at a party, in a barn in her old hometown. Bright streamers and balloons filled the large room, a table with snacks and a huge bowl of punch sat off to the side. Her friends were there too, laughing and playing silly games without a care in the world... except, one of them was missing.

This was incredibly distressing to the imprisoned pony. More tears squeezed their way past her clenched eyelids.

This is her party, where is she? Why isn't she here with her friends? SHE SHOULD BE HERE!

The prisoner lifted her head and screamed into the indifferent darkness; unleashing her hate and anger, her utter misery and powerlessness. She screamed until there was no air left in her lungs and her throat was raw. The echo of the cry diminished into panting and quiet sobs.

They were gone.

They were all gone.

And she was alone.

A tiny sound came from the somewhere in the endless darkness. Her head shot up and she squinted into the abyss. “Hello?” she asked. Did I really hear it? It sounded like... giggling. Her only reply was more rumbling from the deteriorating prison.

No... just my mind playing tricks on me... She laid her head back down on the smelly rags.

Then she heard it again, and felt the faintest spark in response from her horn... Suddenly, she could feel her missing friend. She felt closer than any of them had in years.

Desperate, the prisoner shot onto her hooves and called out hysterically into the black ether. Once again, there was no answer.

But... I can still feel her. She could hear distant laughter, and a sing-song voice that almost brought her to her knees.

She’s so close! If only she could hear me...

She reached out with her magic, focusing with intense determination. Concentrating harder on a spell than she had in months. The small cell lit up with a glow of energy emanating from her battered horn. The bright light hurt her eyes, she had to close them, but kept concentrating. More and more power traveled through her horn, more than she imagined she had left in her broken body. It quickly drained her limited stamina. She fell to her wobbling knees, but the stream of magic kept going strong.

“Please...” she whispered, channeling everything she had across the immense distance between herself and her former friend.

“Please...

Help me...”

Author's Note

And so it begins.

A Long Overdue Reunion

Chapter I : A Long Overdue Reunion

Celestia’s radiant sun shone down on the busy streets from a deep, azure sky. The high-class ponies below bustled about with their daily business; some carrying shopping bags between fancy stores or sitting down for lunch in one of the city's many eateries. Though the scene may have appeared chaotic, there was an underlying order to the fast pace of Equestria's capitol.

For the most part, anyway.

A white unicorn, laden with numerous rolls of paper and fabrics, galloped through the throng of citizens at a pace that could only be described as irresponsible.

“Pardon me!” Rarity shouted at an elderly couple in her path. “Coming through!” She blew past them, weaving to the left at the last second. The old stallion shook his head at the reckless display, muttering something to his wife about the lack of manners these days.

Oh! I hope I’m not too late! she thought, as she continued her hurried gait through downtown Canterlot. She turned off of Hooften Street and her destination came into view; 115 Lower Croup Avenue; the headquarters of her burgeoning fashion company.

Rarity burst through the decorative front door and into the reception area of her building, ignoring her receptionist’s concerned glare and scanning the room for the clock that she knew hung on the wall... somewhere.

There it is! She spotted the device where it always had been and read its face, then gasped in horror.

“Is everything alright, Miss Rarity?” the young receptionist asked.

“No, Amber! Nothing is alright!” Rarity shouted, speeding off towards the administration offices.

“It’s Scarlett...” Scarlett muttered to the now empty lobby.

Rarity raced down the hallways, making her way to the conference room at impressive speed for a middle-aged mare.

Ohpleaseohpleaseohplease, I’m surely not THAT late! she thought as she plowed through the conference room door with the force of an exploding sun...

...And sent her personal assistant sprawling to the floor. The designs and sketches she held flew into the air and scattered all over the cozy meeting place.

“Oh! Noisette! I... I am sososorry!” Rarity stammered breathlessly, offering a hoof and helping up the bruised pegasus.

Noisette shook her head and blinked a few times, “It’s... alright. No permanent damage done...” She inspected her cream-coloured wings, rubbing her head with a hoof, “...I hope.”

“Please tell me I’m not... I mean, is she still...?” Rarity looked around the empty room and sighed with resignation. “She’s gone, hasn’t she?”

“Well, you are 35 minutes late...” Noisette said, checking her luckily unbroken watch. “Madame ChiChi is a busy mare. She said she’d schedule another sit-down but... well, it may be awhile before she can come back. What held you up so long?”

Rarity sat heavily, still trying to catch her breath, “The meeting with the ponies from Helping Hooves ran a little longer than expected... and as I was gathering the new designs from home, I noticed a few sketches weren’t quite perfect and... oh I was sure Madam ChiChi would just love these new drafts!”

Noisette began collecting said designs off the floor. “Of course she would! This is amazing work that she’d be a fool to let pass by.”

Rarity smiled a little and used her magic to lift the rest of the papers, placing them on the round conference table.

Noisette sighed. “Don’t sweat it, once she sees them, she’ll flip her lid. Then you’ll be the one ponies need to run halfway across Canterlot to speak with.”

Rarity perked up a little. Noisette had the uncanny ability to calm her down, no matter how stressed out she may be at any given time. It was probably why she got paid double what other assistants did. That, and while the Elements of Harmony may have passed on years ago, Rarity still considered herself the most generous pony in Canterlot. Her recent work with Helping Hooves and other charities like it were testament to that—not that she felt she had to prove anything.

“Thank you, Noisette,” Rarity said, choosing not to dwell on what she considered ancient history. That was all behind her now; her fashion line was her top priority in life, not running around Equestria wielding arcane magic and saving princes in distress. “You always know just how to cheer me up.”

“That’s my job, Miss.” Noisette smiled.

Rarity straightened up with renewed optimism. “Alright then, what else do we have scheduled for today?” Even if the meeting was a bust, she could still make the most of the day.

Her PA pulled a notepad out of the sling she wore around her neck. “Well, you need to approve an upcoming supply order, the quarterly sales meeting is at five... Oh! And this came for you.” She reached back into the sling with her teeth and pulled out a letter in a bright pink envelope.

“A letter?” Rarity asked in confusion, “I wonder who it’s from?” She turned over the strangely familiar envelope over in her hooves, before spotting who the sender was on the front.

“Hey! HEY LOOK! IT’S RAINBOW DASH!!!” shouted an enthusiastic mare. A crowd had gathered outside the Wonderbolts’ Las Pegasus hub, eagerly awaiting the arrival of the infamous aerial stunt team.

“WE LOVE YOU RAINBOW DASH!” another crazed fan screamed. The air exploded with the raucous sound of praise and stomping hooves.

Rainbow Dash strolled past the thrilled ponies on the other side of a velvet barrier, soaking it all in as she made her way to the front entrance with the rest of her team. She’d been a Wonderbolt for more than five years now, yet it still filled her with great pride to be loved and admired by so many fans all across Equestria.

Feeding off the energy from the crowd, she impulsively snapped open her blue wings and took to the air like a bullet, leaving a rainbow streak behind her for the awed spectators. The spry mare sped past the tall buildings and bright lights of the party town, flying to the nearest cloud. She circled the white mass with increasing speed, encasing it in a whirling rainbow. Reforming it with well placed hoof-bumps, she brought it closer to the crowd. The ponies on the ground whooped and hollered emphatically as Dash stopped spinning, then ducked behind the cloud, which was now in the shape of a big, fluffy heart. The center of the cloud sculpture burst open a split-second later, and out like an arrow shot Rainbow Dash. With all the colors of the visible spectrum in tow, she hit the ground in a slide, spreading her wings and skidding to a stop.

Stallions, mares, colts and fillies alike erupted into a cacophony of ecstatic cheers. She smiled and waved at the wild fans and continued to the entrance. Spitfire, the team's captain, was already there holding it open and rolling her amber eyes behind a pair of sunglasses. “Nice moves, show-off.”

“Whatever,” Rainbow Dash said, posing boastfully as she entered her temporary living quarters. “You’re just jealous that I have more fans than you ever will.”

“OooOOOooo,” Soarin sang out, following the mares inside inside.

“Button it, Soarin,” Spitfire snapped at her squadmate. He promptly shut his mouth with a snicker as she turned her attention back to Dash. “So, you think you’re pretty big, huh, hot shot?”

“Well... duuuh,” Dash replied sarcastically, then, after catching the hard stare of Spitfire, added, “I mean, well duh, Ma’am.”

Spitfire smirked, removing her shades and placing them in her jacket, “Okay, how about a little bet then? I bet I have more fan mail here than you do.” The rest of the team jabbered excitedly around the mares. This sort of interaction was in no way uncommon for the competitive flyers, but it always got their attention.

“Ha! You actually want to bet on that?! You’re on!” Rainbow said quickly. She received tons of mail from adoring fans. There was no way she’d lose!

“Great.” Spitfire approached the front desk of the hub and addressed its keeper. “Heya, Oats, got any letters for me?”

“Sure do, Ma’am! One moment...” The grey pony ducked under the desk, emerging seconds later with a large bundle of mail. “Here you go! I reckon there’s... oh, two to three hundred letters there.”

“That’s it!?” Rainbow exclaimed with a dismissive snort, “That’s nothing!”

“That’s more than I ever get...” Rapidfire said from the back. He was ignored by the others, as per usual.

“So, how much more do I have?” Rainbow asked Oats, a confident smirk adorning her face.

He disappeared under the desk again, then stood up with a frown. “Umm, well there’s... only... one letter for you,” he mumbled, placing the solitary envelope on the counter.

“WHAT?!” Rainbow shouted, lifting into a hover. The ten other Wonderbolts broke into a fit of laughter as she gaped open-mouthed at the pink envelope lying before her.

“Ha! I-I knew you’d forget to tell the f-fans we were coming back to Las Pegasus! Again!” Spitfire wiped a tear away and leaned against Fleetfoot to keep from collapsing from her episode of jeering laughter. "All your mail's still being sent to Trottingham!"

Rainbow Dash snapped out of her initial shock and swiped up the letter angrily. “Wh-Whatever! Laugh it up while you can, cheater!” She scowled.

They continued to laugh as she stormed off.

“Wait! Dash!” Spitfire called between her howls, “Aren’t you going to read it?”

Rainbow groaned, but glanced over at the singular envelope resting in her wing's feather's. The funky hoof-writing covering one side of it did look kind of familiar.

THUNK

Applejack bucked the thick tree with her back legs, still some of the strongest in Ponyville, shaking loose apples and sending them plummeting into the bushels placed in the leafy shade. Satisfied with a job well done, she removed her cowpony hat and wiped the sweat off her brow. It was only noon, but the midsummer sun was turning the orchard into an oven.

She trotted over to a nearby fence and propped herself against it, breathing in the sweet Ponyville air. She’d take a short break, then get right back to work.

“Jackie? You out here?” She heard Harvest Moon calling from somewhere within the trees. A smile grew at hearing the silly nickname he used for her.

“Ah’m over here, Harvey!” she shouted back with her own silly nickname. A moment later, the tan unicorn came into view, his horn poking out from under a messy, blonde mane.

“...Slacking on the job I see," he joked as he neared and sidled up on the fence next to her.

“Not on your life, mister," Applejack replied back curtly.

With a grin, Harvey leaned in over the fence and kissed her deeply.

Applejack had known Harvest for six years now, and had been married to him for less than one. She was just as surprised as everypony else when she fell for the stallion, and even more so considering the fact that he was a unicorn. Not that she was a prejudiced pony or anything, she just didn’t see it coming. Nopony had. But, despite the initial doubts and fears, she followed Harvey’s advice and listened to her heart. They’d been together ever since.

She abruptly broke away from the kiss. “Woah there, gettin’ a little fresh, ain't’ ya?”

Harvest smiled sheepishly. “Well, aren't you... you know? Isn't it the right time? For family building?”

Applejack blushed. Being open was one thing, but she didn’t like talking about this sort of thing out of the privacy of her home. “Well, yea... But there’s plenty of chores to do ‘round here first!”

“I knoooow," he said with a sigh and a pout that she could see right through. He acted like he hated doing chores, but Harvest Moon was one hard worker. She wouldn’t be married to him if he wasn’t.

Applejack slugged him playfully in the shoulder. He laughed it off and they nuzzled quietly in the warm sunlight.

Behind Harvest's boyish charms was a hardworking stallion with a deep side others rarely saw. His parents were both well-known astronomers in Canterlot, but that wasn’t the life for him. He did admire the stars for their mysterious beauty and poetic intrigue, but to him, knowing too much about them would only tarnish their allure.

Suddenly, a small cough came from behind the embracing ponies. They both looked to its source... and saw a pink-maned pegasus digging a yellow hoof into the ground.

“Dangit Fluttershy, how long ya been standing there fer?” Applejack asked, breaking shyly away from her lover.

“Oh... umm sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt...” she whispered. “H-Hi, Harvest...”

“Hello Fluttershy, how are you today?” he replied cheerfully. It had taken a while, but his wife’s timid friend had eventually warmed up to him.

“I’m fine...” Fluttershy said, “Um, I can come back later if you two are... busy.”

Applejack's blush deepened, “N-No! We were just... taking a little break, s’all.” She grinned sheepishly at her friend, then turned back to her husband. “Say, Harvey... would ya kindly find Big Macintosh and get him tah lend ya a hoof?”

“Sure thing, Jackie.” The unicorn perked up a bit. Sure he was being dismissed so the girls could chat alone, but Big Mac's help would speed up the chores... “I’ll see you later.” Harvest Moon said with a wink, making his wife blush again. Then he trotted back into the trees from whence he came, grinning the whole way.

“...I hope he didn’t think that was rude of me.” Fluttershy frowned.

“Ah'm sure he'll get over it.” Applejack replied with a sly smirk. “How’re things goin’ at the college?”

“Oh, very well!” Boasted Fluttershy, gliding delicately over to the fence, “This semesters new students are showing real progress with the animals.”

Applejack smiled. "That’s good ta hear!” What had started out as a few lessons on animal care for the community had grown over time into a full college. Students came from the far corners of Equestria to learn the art of animal care from Fluttershy and her hoof-picked professors. She had grown as a pony as well, opening up to the hordes of new faces who shared her passion for wildlife. “Any of the new students passing Squirrel 101?”

Fluttershy shook her head sadly. “It’s... a very difficult language to grasp... So many little clicks and so fast, too...”

“I’m sure they’ll get the hang of it.” Applejack said back, amidst wiping a foreleg over her brow. The sweat convinced her to make a mental note to wash up before meeting Harvey later. “So, what brings ya out to Sweet Apple Acres, ‘Shy?”

“Oh! Well... I got a strange letter in the mail this morning and I- I haven’t opened it yet. I think one was also sent to you.” Fluttershy said, making Applejack chuckle to herself. Even after all that had happened over years, it was nice to know some things stayed the same. “You... did get one too, didn't you?”

“...I haven’t checked the mailbox yet. We can go now if ya like?”

Her old friend took to the air with a smile, “That would be lovely! Thank you so much, Applejack!”

“Uh, don’t mention it?” She hopped over the fence and trotted down the path to the farmhouse with Fluttershy floating closely behind.

“So, what’s so strange about this letter?” AJ asked as they went.

“I'm not sure, it just seemed... odd. And it came in a bright pink envelope.”

“A pink envelope?” That was strange. Who would use pink envelopes? It couldn't be... Pinkie Pie?

It had been months since she had heard from the party pony. She was the last of her old group of friends to leave Ponyville, moving to Manehatten just over a year ago to start a joke shop/party supply/catering business. It was good to see her finally moved out of Mr. and Mrs. Cake’s attic, but still, watching her leave had been difficult.

The mailbox appeared in the distance by the farmhouse, the red flag on its side raised. A little anxious now, Applejack galloped up to it and opened the little door. Inside were a few bills, some mail from relatives, and in the back... was a letter in a hot pink envelope.

Fluttershy caught up with the curious mare as she pulled it out and eyed it suspiciously. If it was from Pinkie, a little caution would be wise.

“Well? Are you... going to open it?” Fluttershy squeaked.

Carefully, Applejack tore the top off with her teeth. When nothing came flying out or exploded, she removed the note inside and read it over. “It’s an invitation!” she exclaimed, reading it over quickly in her head. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped as she finished.

“What does it say!” Fluttershy cried in an odd mix of surprise and terror.

“It's from Pinkie Pie,” Applejack said out loud with a bright smile, “Well I'll be, she... wants us all ta go out to Manehatten fer a week long get-together!”

“Oh! I simply don’t have the time!” Rarity placed the pink letter on the round table with her designs. It’s not that she didn’t want to go, at all. A week with her old friends would be splendid! Utterly sublime! Not to mention she hadn’t had a proper vacation in years...

But, it just wasn’t feasible.

“Oh come on! It’s only for a week!” Noisette protested, “I can watch over things here, what could possibly go wrong?”

Rarity leered at her PA dubiously, who returned the look with a coy grin.

“Look,” Rarity began, getting past her initial excitement, “The deadline for our Autumn clothing line is fast approaching and we’re hardly ready for it. I’m meeting with several prominent contributors to the Canterlot fashion scene this month AND, the Grand Galloping Gala is only a stone's throw away! My dress isn’t even close to being finished! I’ll be representing the whole company, I can’t be seen there wearing anything but the finest gown!”

Noisette considered all that for a moment, carefully constructing her rebuttal. “Okay then. The Autumn line is being made primarily by the design team upstairs. You can look over their work and make any changes as soon as you get back and still have plenty of time before Fall season hits. I can reschedule all your meetings and tell those snooty buggers you’re preoccupied with your charity work. They’ll eat that up and you know it. And lastly... maybe a week with your friends will provide just the inspiration you need to finish the dress?”

Rarity sat with awe written so clearly on her face a blind pony could read it. ...Wow, she’s good.

“I... I don’t know. It’s seems a little...selfish to just drop everything and leave...” Was Rarity’s counter. It was a weak one and she knew it.

Noisette rolled her eyes in a dubious fashion. “When was the last time you even saw them?”

Rarity had to pause and think about that, which was technically already enough to prove her assistant’s point.

Rainbow Dash was in Canterlot just recently, when The Wonderbolts performed... but they hadn’t actually met up with each other, so that didn’t count. The last time she was in Ponyville was before Pinkie had moved away... was it for Applejack's wedding? No, she was in Baltimare at the time, so it must have been before that. And Twilight? ...Well, she’d been on assignment all over the world for years now. Besides the occasional letter, none of them had seen her at all...

It had been too long.

So, Rarity made up her mind.

“Give me a pen," she said calmly.

Noisette squee’d in excitement as she lifted one out of her sling.

Rarity promptly took hold of it with her magic and began writing out her RSVP.

“There is NO way I’m gonna miss the show in Fillydelphia!” Rainbow Dash insisted stubbornly.

“Oh, you can, and you will,” Spitfire returned. She had followed Dash to her private room to apologize for the earlier embarrassment and found her staring at a pink letter in vacant disbelief.

“No, I won’t! I’m not gonna let down my fans!” Dash shot back. Even to see my old friends...

The Wonderbolt captain glared sternly at her insubordinate flyer. “I recall a time when they were there for you, Dash. At the Academy, when you almost quit. Remember that, huh?”

Rainbow crossed her forelegs and turned away. “Go away! I’m not going and that’s THAT!” She was shouting now, mad, and the tears welling up in her eyes only fueled her anger.

“Rainbow Dash... they need you now. You’re their friend, and it’s only one show.” Spitfire said, adopting a softer tone.

She’s right and you know it, the tiny voice in Rainbow’s head said. Come on Dashie, don’t you still have your loyalty?

She sighed. Of course Spitfire and her conscious were right, it was just... why a whole week? If it was only a few days shorter, she’d be able to make the show.

Rainbow’s eyes shot open and a cunning grin spread across her face. I’ll go for a few days- then amaze my heart-broken fans by bursting into the show right at the end with a Sonic Rainboom! That'll be awesome!

She turned back to Spitfire, “I guess. Fine, I’ll go. But I’m going for them, not you.”

The fiery mare eyed her for a second, then nodded. “Glad to hear it. I was worried I’d have to stick you in the Dizz-O-Tron till you begged to go.”

They shared a laugh, for two very different reasons. Jokes on you, cheater. Rainbow thought.

She could hardly wait to see the look on her captain's face at Fillydelphia.

Sitting at the stationary in her room, Applejack hoofed a pencil back in forth. The pink invitation and a blank page sat in front of her, awaiting her reply.

Fluttershy had already rushed off giddily to inform her faculty she’d be leaving next week. Applejack, however, had continued with her chores while thinking heavily about what she was currently trying to write.

On one hoof, seeing her friends all together again would be amazing. Catching up with them for a week sounded like a dream come true... but on the other hoof; what if it was just that; a wishful dream? What if it had been too long?

They were different ponies now, no longer the young embodiments of the Elements of Harmony. That title had been abruptly passed on one day, not long after Twilight left town to study abroad. To Applejack, it felt as if her defining virtue had suddenly been stripped away, and she was depressed for days afterwards. It signified the end to an important chapter of her life, and it seemed like the only thing left to do was grow old.

Then something incredible happened. The Elements chose a new set bearers. Celestia and Luna were the original two Bearers of the Elements, and just as two had become six for Applejack and her friends, six had become three for the newest generation.

At the same age Applejack had received her Element, Apple Bloom got hers, along with Rarity’s sister Sweetie-Belle and their friend Scootaloo. Instead of elements based on individual traits, the fillyhood friends were bestowed with three pieces that made up the Element of Friendship itself.

Apple Bloom was ecstatic, even more so than she had been the day she finally received her cutie mark. The depression Applejack had been feeling was replaced by pride, and she realized that even though she was no longer the Bearer of the Element of Honesty, she would never lose her virtue.

Life went on, a few years later she met Harvest and now, her family was her life. While her friends moved away, she stayed in Ponyville with Fluttershy, taking care of the farm and Granny Smith, her ancient grandmother. She constantly asked when she was going to get some great-grandchildren and Applejack could now reply that she was working on it.

She lifted the pencil in her mouth and began writing.

“Dear Pinkie;

It is great to hear from you, and this meet-up sounds like a swell idea! But I’m afraid-”

“Jackie?” Harvest appeared in the doorway, startling her so bad she almost swallowed her writing utensil.

“Dangit Harvey! Wh-Why’d ya do that fer?!” She coughed.

“I’m sorry- It’s just, well, Big Mac sent me into town earlier and I happened to run into Fluttershy...” he said. Applejack sighed and he entered the room, catching a glimpse of the note before she could cover it. “Whatcha writing?”

“None of yer beeswax!” she snapped.

Fortunately, Harvest Moon had known AJ long enough to recognize her hostility as a product of stress and frustration. “Okay, we don’t have to talk about it," he replied calmly, trotting over to the bed and taking a seat.

“Good. Cause I don’t wanna talk about it.”

A few moments passed in uncomfortable silence. The ticking from the grandfather clock downstairs seemed to get louder and louder, quickly becoming unbearably annoying.

“Ah ain’t goin’,” Applejack finally said when she couldn’t take it any longer.

“Oh,” was her husband’s reply. Then it was quiet again, save for the noisiest clock in the world, tick-tocking away.

“Well? You gonna say somethin’?!” she snapped again.

“Seems you already made your decision. Unless- you want to talk about it?”

“Ah said I don’t... didn’t I?”

Harvest leaned back on the bed with a casual shrug and silence took over once again. Applejack twitched, unwilling to cave in and break it, no matter wha-

The doggone clock chimed, marking the hour with a series of DONGs louder than a barn falling over.

“Ah'm-! Ah'm not goin' 'cause it's been too long and they've all moved on and I don't know uhm anymore!” Applejack shouted over the infernal clamour.

Once the ringing stopped, Harvest sat up on the bed. “Feel better now?”

She caught her breath and simmered down. “Yeah... Where’d ya learn to do that?”

“I have an uncle in Canterlot who’s a psychiatrist. He says all he does is sit there and ponies spill everything just to fill the awkward silence. Then they pay him.” He chuckled.

Applejack smiled and joined him on the bed, slugging him again for the fancy doctor trick.

“I deserved that.” He wrapped his forelegs around and held her close. “So, you’re really not going?”

“We drifted apart a long time ago, Harvey.”

“That seems like a reason you should be going to me.”

“What about the family? And the farm and Granny Smith and-”

He cut her off with a soft kiss. She resisted it at first, still mad he'd gotten her to talk, but in the end it made no difference. She melted into it, shedding some of the apprehension the pink letter had caused.

The kiss ended and he gazed into her green eyes. “Look Jackie, I’m not going to tell to go or not, that’s up to you. But I will say this.” He cleared his throat for emphasis and she snorted at his false showmanship. “Those friends of yours may have moved away to start their own lives... but the kind of spark that ignites a friendship like that? It doesn't go out so easily. Even after all this time, those embers are still smoldering. You got a chance here to build that fire back up. Trust me, if you do let those coals die out, you’ll never be able to relight them.”

They continued to hold each other tight, enjoying the silence together. Even the clock downstairs seemed to tick quieter.

Applejack lifted herself off the bed and walked over to her desk. She lifted the pencil and continued writing:

But I’m afraid it might just be too much fun for this old mare to handle! Still, I’ll see you in Manehatten a week from now, and you’d better whip up some of those delicious cupcakes of yours!

Your Friend Always;

Applejack

She sealed the envelope and gave her beaming stallion a genuine smile.

“Soooo... all the chores are done...” he said with a coy smile.

Applejack rolled her eyes. How can anypony go from being so sweet and poetic to... that so gosh darn fast? Maybe that’s what made him so special.

“Actually, ah think ya got one more...” she replied, closing the door to their bedroom.

Author's Note

And so it... continues!

La Mer

Chapter II: La Mer

It was just after noon and Grand Galloping Central was teeming with busy commuters. As the largest train station in Equestria, there was a constant flow of ponies moving in and out of the busy Manehattan terminal. Its elegant decor and grandiose demeanor went largely unnoticed by its more frequent users, but the odd tourist could be seen taking in the sight for the first time, reveling at its beauty while others shuffled past obliviously.

Pinkie Pie stood in the arrivals section of the station, shifting restlessly on her hooves. She remembered when she first arrived in the big city and took in the sight herself. She had bounced around like a maniac, looking at all the new things to see and meeting all the new ponies to talk to. None of them had really wanted to talk to her though, and she was mostly ignored or told to go away.

That was something Pinkie never really got used to; the lack of compassion all city-folk seemed to share. She had been friends with everypony in Ponyville, and would casually chat with a few of them on her walks about town, or throw them parties to celebrate pretty much any occasion. Or just hang out and have fun with them! In Manehattan however, everypony tended to keep to their own circles.

It was hard to cope at first, and Pinkie considered packing it in and moving back many times. But then, as her business began to grow, she started meeting some very nice ponies who thought she was just the 'bee's knees'. She built up a base of loyal customers and soon enough, “Pinkie Pie’s Pastry, Party and Prank Emporium” became a common name among entertainment contractors and private party-holders alike.

“10:15 from Canterlot! 10:15 from Canterlot, now arriving,” a loud voice echoed over the sound of hurrying hooves.

Oh! Oh! That’s Rarity’s train!! Pinkie’s thoughts returned to the present and she started bouncing with excitement. This is going to be soooooo super-ificly FUN!!

Looking across the steamy platforms, Pinkie watched as the train pulled in and slowed to a stop. It was one of the newer engines, the kind that didn’t need ponies to pull it. She remembered hearing some hubbub about how the new trains needed unicorns to work the furnace that powered them, and that earth ponies were getting mad 'cause they were losing jobs. But ponies pulling trains had always seemed silly to her, and the new ones were way faster too.

Pinkie had to refocus again; in all the excitement her mind began to wander. She had way more important things to think about today than boring old trains and high tech stuff.

Though Pinkie’s hyperactivity had been diluted with age, and moving to a new city helped reign in her excess of emotion, the instant the beautiful purple mane of her friend came into view, she just couldn’t hold it in.

“RARITY! HEY! OVER HERE, RRRRRRRAAAARRRITY!!!!!!” She waved her forelegs frantically, drawing confused and annoyed looks from all around.

Standing by the train's exit, Rarity heard a familiar voice. She instantly spotted her in the crowd and noticed the stares being attracted. She looked embarrassed, but only for a brief moment. A huge smile replaced the quick falter, and she trotted over to her old friend double-quick.

“My, my, if it isn’t Pinkie Pie! How have you been?” Rarity beamed, speaking in a tone almost as thrilled as Pinkie sounded. She locked the giddy pink mare in a passionate hug.

“AMAZING! Ohmygosh, I can’t believe you’re here! I have been SO. EXCITED.” Pinkie gushed, happier than a filly at a toy store. Or even herself at a toy store! Finishing the long hug, Pinkie’s eyes shot to her friend’s lone suitcase. “Huh, I thought you’d have... more of those.”

“I decided to travel light.” Rarity said, then quickly changed the subject. “So, how are you handling the big city? Or, perhaps I should ask how it's handling you?” Pinkie laughed at the remark. Such a beautiful sound, I never realized I missed it so much, Rarity thought, basking in the potent sense of nostalgia.

“It’s great! Took a little while to get used to it, but now I’m a regular city slicker!!” Pinkie all but shouted, earning more looks of disapproval from the ponies around her.

For once, Rarity was willing to forgo her image and ignore them. She was on vacation after all. “And what shenanigans have you planned for the week, Madam Manehattan?”

“It’s...... A SURPRISE!” The pink pony’s grin was so big it nearly split her face in two.

Concern flashed over Rarity face. That could be a good thing.... or a very, very, VERY bad thing...

“10:25 from Ponyville!” The voice from before called. "Now arriving!"

“Oh! That’s Applejack and Fluttershy’s train!!” Pinkie bounced even higher in uncontrollable glee. There was now a clear path of commuters going around the two ponies.

Here we go... Rarity thought nervously. She was still a tad apprehensive about seeing all of her friends again, but it was far too late to turn back now. Noisette had been so sure this was a good idea, and she’s always right...

Soon, a very out-of-place looking cowpony with a timid tag-along appeared, eliciting another overjoyed outburst from Pinkie. The two quickly trotted over to their energetic friend and Rarity, ready to exchange a round of hugs.

“Pinkie Pie! I ain’t seen ya in a dog’s age!” Applejack exclaimed, grinning. “And, why, if it ain’t Rarity! It's great to see you both. How’s big city life treatin’ the two of yah?”

“Very well, Applejack,” Rarity said politely. “And- how are Harvest Moon and yourself doing?” She still felt awful about missing their wedding, but if this week was good for anything, maybe she could make up for some lost time.

“Oh... uhh, he’s just fine. We both are!” AJ smiled awkwardly, and Rarity smiled back, then gave her a sincere hug. Maybe everything will be okay after all! The two mares thought.

At the same time, Pinkie greeted her third long missed friend. “IS THAT FLUTTERSHY?!” Pinkie screamed, jumping onto the nervous pegasus hiding behind Applejack. They rolled onto the ground, but instead of recoiling with fear, Fluttershy was laughing her adorable little laugh, triggering another wave of nostalgia.

“Oh Pinkie! It’s just wonderful to see you again!” Fluttershy said, catching her breath and standing up. They shared a laugh and moved in for a group hug in the middle of the concourse.

Opening her eyes, Rarity noticed a security pony was now watching them intently. “Umm, perhaps we should move our little soirée outside?” She said when the hug persisted.

“Oh yeah! We gotta go meet Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie broke away from the group and lead them towards the exit. “Come on! Time’s a-wastin’!” They quickly gathered their assorted baggage and began to follow, when a stallion in a porter’s uniform stepped out of the horde of travelers.

“Excuse me, Miss Rarity?”

“Oh, yes, that’s me.” She replied. The others looked on in confusion.

“Here is the rest of your luggage, Ma’am.” He gestured behind himself where a veritable mountain of bags and suitcases were piled, all with a matching floral print.

Sensing the looks from the others, Rarity turned to face them. “What? I may be traveling light, but I’m not a savage.”

They burst into a giggling chorus at the unicorn’s expense. While most of the bags were full of spare clothes, accessories and several sun hats, the others contained notes, sketches and fabric samples. Rarity was planning to work on her Gala dress during the week, hoping for the inspiration promised by Noisette.

While the others laughed, a smile appeared on Rarity's face, replacing her momentary scowl. She joined the infectious laughter, going with the joke rather than spoiling the lighthearted mood it produced.

The four mares were still chuckling when they walked out the massive entrance to the station and into the warm summer sun. The beautifully engraved double doors had barely shut behind them, when a shout from above brought the waning snickers to a grinding halt.

“IIIIINNNNNNNCOMING!!!”

They all snapped their attention to the sky as a rainbow streak crashed into Pinkie. She flew backwards with her assailant, slamming into the finely crafted entrance and causing quite the raucous. Rarity winced, looking around for more security stallions.

“Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie cried, apparently unvexed by the vicious assault.

“The one and only!” the prismatic pegasus boasted

"I have miiiissed yoouuu," Pinkie cried. Despite being trapped beneath her friend, she leaned up and gave a rib-crushing hug. "Finding other ponies to prank with over the years has been impossible! Lyra was okay for a while, but you were the best!"

Rainbow Dash wheezed, her eyes slightly popping out from the pressure. "Ho- Easy, Pinkie!" She managed to take a deep breath after being released, and helped Pinkie stand back up. “Ehheh, so, did I miss anything?”

Pinkie shook her head. “Nope! You really made it here from Las Pegasus fast.”

“Wait, ya’ll flew here all the way from Las Pegasus, Rainbow?” Applejack questioned, “What the hay fer?”

Rainbow smiled uncomfortably. In truth, she had been training. Las Pegasus was way on the west coast, so she had divided the trip into segments, each the same length as the distance between Fillydelphia and Manehattan. After some trial and error, she was now sure she could cross the distance fast and still have enough energy to perform a Sonic Rainboom upon arrival. This meant she could spend three days with her friends, then take off for Fillydelpia to make the end of show.

She couldn’t tell them that, though. “I... just wanted to see how fast I could do it,” Rainbow lied.

Applejack eyed her skeptically for a moment, then smiled and pulled the stunt flier in for a combination hug/noogie. “Same old Rainbow.” Applejack laughed, taking in her reunited group of friends... but somepony was missing. “Hey, wait- where’s Twilight?”

“Yeah! Where is that egghead, huh?” Rainbow added, shrugging off AJ’s prolonged hold and leaping into a hover.

Pinkie’s bright smile lost a touch of its cheer. “Oh- well, in her last letter she said she was in the Griffon Kingdom, so I sent my invitation to the return address there... but, I didn't get a reply back.”

The whole group drooped at the news. None of them had seen Twilight in years, and she was the one who sparked their friendship in the first place! It just didn’t seem right for her not to be at their reunion.

Why did Celestia have ta send her off like that, anyway? Applejack thought, recalling the day Twilight told them she was leaving to study magic abroad at Celestia's personal request. It was the first time she'd ever felt upset towards the princess, and it never quite went away.

“Hey, don’t you girls frown!" Pinkie said, bouncing back to her normal, cheery self. "Maybe she’ll show up when we least expect it and surprise us all!”

“Oh yes, I believe you mentioned something about a surprise earlier?” Rarity asked. The others perked up with intrigue.

“A s-surprise?” Fluttershy asked warily. “It’s not a scary surprise, is it?”

“Oh yeah!” Pinkie grinned, causing the pegasus to gasp. “I mean, oh... no!” She giggled at Fluttershy’s visible relief.

“Well, what is it then!” Rainbow asked impatiently yet with a grin.

“The surprise? It’s what we’re gonna be doing this week!” Pinkie sang, clapping her hooves together.

“An’ that would be...?”

“We’re going... ON A CRUISE!” Pinkie shouted. She stomped her back legs hard on the marble stairs that lead into the station and an explosion of confetti shot out of her hooves. The others jumped back as the pink projectile shot straight up, did a somersault and landed in front of the dazed group. “SURPRISE!” Colourful paper fluttered down around her.

“Wh-What in tarnation... How in the hay...?” Applejack recovered first, stammering the question they were all trying to form.

“Pinkie Pie’s Exploding Horseshoes!” she boasted. “It’s a new item at the store, I came up with them myself! Only 10 bits a shoe! Ages 18 and up.”

“A... cruise? On a ship?” Rarity said next, regaining her composure. “Oh, I wished you would’ve told us, I would have packed completely different...”

“A... cruise?” Rainbow repeated. “Like, on the ocean?” Uh no, this could ruin everything... Her mind was already racing.

Fluttershy was still shaking on the ground, her face buried under her hooves and wings. Loud noises were not a forte of hers.

"Excuse me, I’m going to have to ask your party to leave the premises.” A burly stallion wearing dark sunglasses growled. He was flanked by two other large ponies and wore a shirt that read ‘Head of Security’.

“Good idea!” Pinkie cried to them, grabbing as many bags of luggage as she could, “We got a boat to catch!” Loaded with a dozen suitcases, she hopped down the steps and onto the busy Manehatten street, motioning for the others to follow.

Same old Pinkie, Applejack chuckled to herself. She tipped her hat to the guard, then calmly followed after her four friends.

A cool wind blew in from the east, bringing with it the wet, salty smell of the sea. Gulls squawked at each other and sailor ponies moved about the maze of criss-crossing planks that made up Manehatten’s harbour with practiced ease. Many boats were moored around the busy port, but one ship stood out, dwarfing all the rest.

"Booooooooy howdy.” Applejack whistled as she laid eyes on the massive ocean liner. “How does somethin’ that big even float?”

The ship towered above them, its high metal side was speckled with portholes and three monstrous smokestacks made the thing seem even taller. The five friends gaped at the behemoth from the dock in awe. None of the ponies were very familiar with the sea or the vessels that crossed them, but surely something like this was impossible.

“There must be some sort of magic at play... yes?” Rarity asked, eyes wide in amazement.

“Nope!” chirped Pinkie, “They only use magic to run the biiiiig engine inside. It floats all by itself!”

“But... how?” AJ asked, tearing her gaze from the steamship.

“No idea! Mr. and Mrs. Brulée asked me to help them plan their 40th anniversary, so I looked into White Line Cruises and learned a little about their boats, but I didn’t really understand the sciencey mumbo-jumbo.” That was Twilight’s thing... Pinkie ignored the pang of sadness that came with the involuntary thought. This week was about fun and friends, not being a mopy-pony-sad-pants.

“Oh... oh my.” Fluttershy whimpered quietly, “It’s... very big.”

“They have even bigger ships, too!” Pinkie smiled. Fluttershy shuttered at the thought.

“All aboard! Ship sails on the hour!” A pony called from the gangway, signaling they were ready to load up the passengers.

“Come on, let’s go! I know some of the ponies at White Line, and they gave us special tickets that let us get on first! And don’t worry, according to the Brulée’s, this ship’s 100% safe and 200% FUN!” She skipped quickly down the dock with her nervous friends in tow.

The group reached the plank that lead into the ship and Pinkie passed the tickets to the pony out front. He glanced them over and allowed them to pass, to the chagrin of the long line of passengers waiting their turn.

“Well, as long as it’s safe...” Applejack said under her breath, taking a careful first step onto the gangplank. "This is quite the surprise, Pinkie Pie. Thank you."

Pinkie grinned back over her shoulder. "Dooon't mention it!" she sang, already bouncing up to the ship.

Spotting the chance to speak privately with Pinkie, Rainbow Dash flew up ahead of the others. “Soooo Pinkie; how far does this thing go out anyway?” She’d never flown over open ocean before. This little ‘surprise’ had a chance of ruining all her plans to slip away early.

“What’s the matter Dash? Scared of a little water?” Pinkie joked, smiling with one part friendliness and two parts comfortingness, just in case her friend was afraid of water.

“Pssshhh, no," Rainbow shot back. "I was... I was just curious, is all.” Of course she wasn’t scared of the ocean, she was just being thorough.

“Don’t ye fret, landlubber!” Pinkie said, closing one eye and putting on a pirate voice, “Cap’n Pinkie won’t make ye walk the plank!” She burst into a fit of laughter and Rainbow found herself joining in.

Whatever, I’ll figure it out later, Rainbow decided with confidence. She could fly for miles without landing, after all! Unless they were headed for someplace like Saddle Arabia, she was positive she’d be fine.

Meanwhile, Rarity uttered constant apologies to other ponies that were behind her and Fluttershy, who were very patiently waiting to go aboard. Rarity did her best to hurry Fluttershy, who was slowly moving up the slanted plank and trying not to look down at the increasing distance from the water below.

“Come now, dear, I’m sure it will be fine once we get inside,” she said reassuringly. In truth, Rarity had never been on a ship before, though she did have some clue what to expect from the inner furnishings. Being in the-know constantly at Canterlot included not just fashion, but what the top socialites enjoyed. Cruises were one of the latest crazes. Whether this ship in particular was quite as fancy as some of the magazines she had read was left to be seen.

“Welcome aboard Our Majesties’ Ship: Endless Horizon.” the sailor at the top of the incline welcomed cheerfully. He turned the crank that opened the heavy door on the ship’s side and ushered the ponies inside. Fluttershy hurried on, ignoring the now distant sounds of water churning below her. She ran blindly into something and opened her eyes to see Applejack sitting there with the others, just staring at-

Fluttershy's eyes went wide as dinner plates as she took stock of the room she was standing in. It was positively beautiful, and an entirely different feel from the cold metal exterior. Twin spiraling staircases ran along the walls of an open shaft, leading to lower levels of the ship. Hanging down its center was a crystal chandelier the length of several floors that bathed the area with a soft and magical light. Every inch of wall space was covered in artwork and engravings.

“Oh my... Pinkie...” Rarity gasped, entering behind Fluttershy. “How did you get these tickets?”

Pinkie looked back and smiled. “I told you! I know ponies in the cruise game!” she chimed. “Okay, so I booked us three double rooms for the week.... but I guess that means somepony has to be by themselves.” Despite her wide smile, she sighed to herself. I was so sure she’d be here, too...

“Ah suppose Rarity should bunk with all her luggage,” Applejack said, getting a few snickers from the others.

Rarity, however, scoffed at the remark. Well, I am a fashion designer... what did you expect? She shook the thought away, surprised at the quickness of her own hostility. Now, now Rarity. It was just a joke after all. She managed to join in once again with a laugh, though it was a bit late.

"Yes... I suppose I shall require the extra space, thank you, Applejack,” she said dourly. Her baggage had been sent over from the station and was already loaded onto the ship. It would be waiting for her by the cabin she would now be alone in. I guess I’ll just have to do all my rekindling during the daytime.

“Gravy. Ah suppose Ah’ll stick with Fluttershy... so that leaves Rainbow with Pinkie,” AJ finished.

Rainbow Dash, busy looking around, gave a nonchalant nod and agreement, while Fluttershy did the same.

“Perfect!” Pinkie exclaimed. “Let’s get all our stuff stowed away, then we can head up to the dining room for supper!”

“Sounds good ta me!” Applejack said. “All Ah’ve had today is train food...”

The five mares picked up their bags and made their way down to their rooms, admiring the ships immaculate interior. After taking the stairs to deck E, they found bronze sconces lighting the way down carpeted hallways to the passengers quarters. Other guests passed by on their way to their own rooms and the friendly crew members were happy to give directions when needed.

“This is us, roomie!” Pinkie sang to Rainbow as they reached room E33. “You guys are just down the hall there, number 34 and 35. Dining room’s on deck B!”

“Splendid! I shall see you all at dinner then.” Rarity said, trotting off to the room with a pile of luggage in front of it. Applejack and Fluttershy moved onto their room with similar sentiments as Pinkie used her room key to open the cabin door.

She rushed in as soon as it was open and began jumping on the closest bed, giggling like a lunatic. “Ta-Da! Whaddya think, Dashie?”

Rainbow followed her in, still worried about her carefully laid plans. Despite her inner turmoil, seeing Pinkie having so much fun brought a smile to her face. Pinkie was a blast to hang out with, and she should be enjoying it. All her thoughts and worries about the Fillydelphia show would only lessen the experience, so Dash pushed them aside for the moment. She'd worry about it in three days.

With a powerful flap of her wings, Rainbow leapt onto the other bed and began jumping and giggling just as crazily as the mare beside her. Someone in room E32 banged on the wall to get them to keep it down. He was pointedly ignored.

“Pinkie, this is 100% AWESOME!” She shouted, jumping higher and taking in the cabin. It was compact, but not overly cramped, and decorated in the same fashion as the rest of the boat. Everything was designed to save space, from the small writing desk to the attached bathroom. It was sorta like a train car, though much fancier.

“I know right! I’m SO glad we’re sharing a room by the way! I was actually kinda sorta maybe worried you wouldn’t show up at all...” Pinkie said, jumping off the bed and landing heavily on the carpeted floor.

Rainbow stopped jumping as well. “Really? What made you think that?”

"Well, isn’t there that Wonderbolts show in Fillydelphia soon? I wasn’t sure if you’d be willing to miss it... but then I thought, hey! This is Rainbow Dash we’re talking about!” Pinkie finished with a giggle.

With a twinge of guilt, Rainbow laughed nervously. “Hehe... yeah, I wouldn't miss this for the world!”

“I know it! Come on, let’s unpack so we can meet up with the girls!” She bit down the bag Rainbow had left by the doorway and tossed it across the room towards her friend.

Still lost in guilt-ridden thought, the normally quick-reflexed pegasus didn’t notice the flying luggage until it slammed into the bedside table next to her. The crash brought her to full attention... just in time to see her belongings spill out onto the floor.

“Oh! I’m sorry, I’ll get that!” Pinkie cried, running over to administer her special brand of ‘help’.

“Pinkie! No, it’s okay... I ...!” It was already too late. Before Dash could even get off the bed, Pinkie was leafing through her personal effects. It only took her a second to find the bombshell hidden within.

“It this- You brought your Wonderbolts uniform?” Pinkie asked, holding up the incriminating garment. “But... why would you bring this?”

Dash was about to open her mouth and attempt to salvage the situation... when out of the folds in her blue uniform fell a map. It was marked from Las Pegasus to Manhattan with timed intervals, and an air route to Fillydelphia penciled in. Pinkie looked down at it, then back at her roommate with a sad frown.

“Okay, fine! I was planning on leaving a just a few days early to make the show,” Rainbow blurted out, knowing when her goose was well and truly cooked.

Pinkie gasped out loud, clutching the flight suit to her chest. “So that’s why you were asking about the boat...” she said, processing Rainbow’s betrayal. “How could you plan to ditch and not even tell us!”

Flapping her wings gently, Dash lifted up off the bed, “I’m sorry! I didn't want you guys to be upset! And I wasn't just going to up and go, I was gonna tell you before I went! I swear!”

Pinkie looked at the costume, then back at her floating friend. “Is that show is really more important to you than your friends?” Her lip quivered, she looked close to tears.

“No way!” Rainbow swooped down and wrapped a wing around Pinkie. “I’m here, ain’t I? I just... I can’t let down my fans. Think of all the little fillies and colts who’d be sad if they didn’t get to see their hero! You wouldn't want them to be sad... would you, Pinks?”

With a sniffle, Pinkie placed the suit back in Dash’s bag. “I... I guess not... You should have told us though!”

“I was! I will! Just... not yet. I want everyone to have a good time, yah know?” Pinkie nodded. “That’s why they can't know yet! It would ruin the whole reunion. This way, we can all have fun, and when the right time comes, I’ll tell them, okay? I'm still gonna be here for most of the trip.”

Pinkie turned and hugged Rainbow back so hard they both fell over. “Okie dokie, Dashie. I won’t tell them, but you should. And soon.”

Rainbow squirmed in Pinkie’s crushing grip. “T-Thanks, I’ll... play it by ear. Now, whaddya say we go get some grub?”

“Uuuh... Ah’d like ta propose a toast,” Applejack said, rising to her hooves and raising her glass.

The four other mares were seated at a round, white-clothed table in the center of the opulent dining area. A roaring fireplace gave the whole room a homey feel, and the warm orange glow of the setting sun shone through a large window behind them. The tall buildings of industrial Manehattan were slowly shrinking into the distance as the ship moved on its way far out to sea.

Looking around the table, Applejack had noticed a slight change in the group's demeanor. Pinkie Pie kept flashing worrisome glances at Rainbow Dash, who was trying to ignore her by looking out the window. Rarity seemed distant, and was doing a good job of keeping her wine glass empty. Fluttershy seemed scared and intimidated, but then again, she usually did.

“Uhhh, to the best friends a mare could ask for!” AJ continued her toast, hoping it would raise the group’s collective spirits. “Ah think Ah speak fer all of us when ah say it’s been too long since we’ve last been together.”

“Oh yes...” Rarity said, taking another healthy sip of wine, “I’m so glad we are all here, together.”

“Yeah... That's right...” Was that sarcasm? It was hard to tell with Rarity sometimes. Unperturbed, Applejack went on, “Well, Ponyville ain’t been the same since ya’ll left... I really mean that. Though, it’s been a might quieter since you did, Rainbow.” Maybe a little humor’ll do the trick?

“And what’s that supposed to mean, huh?” Dash asked defensively, meeting Pinkie's eyes and immediately looking back at the distant city.

Shoot, guess not... “Uh, n-nothing! Heh, ya'll remember when she started reading them Daring Do books?" Applejack laughed, hoping the others would join in. "She sneaked her way back into a hospital just ta get her hooves on one!" They did not.

"It would have been better if she just told us what was going on." Pinkie said, before folding her forelegs and burying her muzzle in them on the table.

Applejack coughed. This is ain't going well. "Uhh, yeah. That's right too... Ah just, well, Ah wish ya’ll would visit more is what Ah’m trying to say here. Ah think about ya all the time and well... Ah missed ya.”

Rarity scoffed. “Humpf! Not enough to actually come out to Canterlot yourself.” There was undoubtedly venom in her voice.

Applejack blinked. “Huh? Now hold on Rarity, I got a farm to take care of, and a husband. I can’t just take off to other cities all willy-nilly," she told the confrontational unicorn. What’s her problem anyway? “And last ah checked, you were the first one ta move away, and ya only came back... what, three times since?” Despite her better judgment, Applejack felt her own anger rising. She didn’t even come to mah dang weddin’...

“I was facing bankruptcy!” Rarity replied in a harsh whisper that was loud enough for surrounding tables to overhear. “I had to move to a bigger market! And I wasn't the first to leave, Twilight was.”

“Umm, maybe we should all just, calm down a little bit...” Fluttershy tried to say, but was drowned out by the bickering mares. Pinkie and Dash watched on in stunned silence, before again avoiding eye contact with one another.

“At least she takes the time ta send letters!” Applejack matched Rarity’s heated tone.

"At least I don’t boss everypony around!” Rarity hissed louder, still angry at her forced solitude. She had heard the others talking and laughing and having fun in their rooms while she unpacked her designs, and that had kept that anger simmering.

“Please, let’s just enjoy each other’s-” Fluttershy began again, only to be cut off by Pinkie.

“RAINBOW IS DITCHING US FOR THE WONDERBOLTS!” she shouted, unable to keep the secret a moment longer.

“Pinkie!” Rainbow finally met her eyes. “You said you wouldn’t tell!”

"I- I'm sorry! Uggh, shoulda Pinkie Pie promised that one..." Pinkie rubbed her shoulder sadly.

"Leavin'?" Applejack repeated.

Stares were passed around the table, then, but words failed them. A hush fell over the table and five of the former Elements of Harmony sat without making a sound. Outside, the sun continued to slip slowly behind the far-off city, turning the sky from orange, to pink, to dark purple.

Applejack stood first, leaving the table and her unfinished meal without a word.

The others followed shortly after.

Waves hit the side of the ship far below with a gentle rhythm. With the sun gone, the sky filled with Luna’s stars and her pale crescent moon. The twinkling lights reflected off the dark water’s moving surface, making it impossible to tell where sky ended and ocean began.

An endless horizon.

Applejack leaned against the railing of the ship’s topmost deck, looking out at the beautiful illusion. She couldn’t help but think about Harvest Moon.

Build the fire back up... her thoughts recalled. But what if the embers have gone out already?

She sighed into the night, wishing he was there to give her advice and promise her things would work out okay. She’d asked him to come, but he refused, saying this was a 'no boys allowed' kind of thing. That wasn’t true at all though; the letter said nothing about bringing other ponies along, and Pinkie really liked Harvest. If she had asked, Applejack was sure she would have let him come.

Harvey wouldn’t have it though, and now everything had gone sour. Within the first day, no less.

“Hey, Applejack?”

She spun at the noise, finding Pinkie Pie standing alone on the deck behind her. “Pinkie? Ya'll shouldn’t sneak up on ponies like that!” Applejack said, turning back to the stars and her troubled thoughts.

“Sorry- I just... Are you okay?” Pinkie moved closer, her pink hooves clicking softly on the wooden deck.

“Ah’m fine, just... a little queasy, that’s all.” It wasn't a total lie, the slow rocking of the ship was starting to upset her stomach. She was a farm pony after all, not a sea pony.

Pinkie took position next to her on the railing, admiring the night. “It’s pretty, huh?” She said, much lower than her normal volume.

“Look, Pinkie.” Might as well be honest... “Ah think this reunion was a great idea, and Ah want things to be like they used to just as much as you do, trust me. It’s just, well, you saw what happened in there. We’ve grown apart. There’s no denyin’ it. We ain’t the same mares no more...” She trailed off.

The two stood next to each other for a moment, listening to the bubbling surf and gusting winds. “I don’t think that’s true, Applejack.” Pinkie broke the silence.

“How do ya figure that?” She replied, grabbing hold of her hat to keep it from blowing away in a sudden gust. “We ain’t even the Elements of Harmony anymore.”

Lifting a pensive hoof to her chin, Pinkie said, “We may have changed a little, but we’re still the same ponies. I’m still Pinkie Pie, and you’re still Applejack, right? And we’ll always be the Elements of Harmony too, we just... need to remember how, I think.”

Pinkie smiled reassuringly, but Applejack wasn’t so certain. The friendship the six ponies had once shared was so much simpler. So many things were complicating it now, unspoken thoughts and feelings made everything said a gamble likely to set off one of the others.

“What if our friendship is beyond savin’ now?” she asked, looking out across the endless ocean.

“It’s never too late, Applejack!” Pinkie chimed. “You’ll see! Once Twilight gets here, things will be just like they used to!”

“...Twilight?” Pinkie nodded back to Applejack with another smile. “Ah hate ta tell ya this, but she ain’t coming Pinkie, she’s off doing her own th-”

Applejack was cut off by an abrupt lurch of the ship. She flailed her forelegs wildly at the railing to prevent herself from flying over it. Pinkie made a similar movement as the metal framework of the ship groaned, rocking with a metallic whine.

“What the hay just happened?!” Applejack cried.

S.O.S

Chapter III : S.O.S

Fluttershy lay alone on the comfortable bed in her cabin, sobbing quietly into its finely quilted sheets. Applejack had yet to return after their disastrous dinner, so she had the whole room to herself.

Oh, why did they have to get so worked up? she thought, reliving the dreadful meal in her mind. Why didn’t they just listen to me?

The whole idea for a reunion had greatly excited Fluttershy from the moment she knew of it. Unlike some of the others, she had no doubts that the old friends would hit it off and everything would be like it was before they all moved away. Things had started out well enough, but she just didn’t understand where all the hostility had come from. How could friends who’d been through so much get so mad at each other?

She thought about the adventures of their youth. Together with Twilight Sparkle, they had defeated Nightmare Moon, brokered a peace treaty between Appleoosa and the Buffalo tribe, stopped and reformed Discord, the god of chaos, and saved all of Equestria from a Changeling invasion. They were able to accomplish so much when they worked together...

So why can’t we put the past behind us and get along?

The yellow pegasus rolled onto her back and wiped her teary eyes. We can... and we will! She sat up on the bed and spread her wings.

“Yes! If we just put in the effort and work together, there’s nothing we can’t overcome!” Fluttershy said out loud to the empty cabin with new-found optimism. She decided to go find the others and begin patching things up right away. They only had a few days to make things right!

Without warning, the ship lurched.

Sliding over to the side of the bed, she was suddenly flung off of it, landing hard on the carpeted floor with a whimper. The whole ship shook violently and several ponies in the hallway screamed.

Wh-What was that?! Fluttershy quivered with fear, her flare of confidence evaporating in an instant. The ship continued to heave. The screams outside turned into a clamor of voices and quick hoofsteps, all of which frightened Fluttershy further.

“O-On second thought, maybe I’ll just keep waiting for Applejack...” she squeaked, crawling to the door and locking it with a trembling hoof.

“That weren’t no iceberg, you moron!” one of Endless Horizon's crew members shouted. “We’re too far south and, it’s the middle of summer!”

“Well it weren’t no rocks, neither!” Another shouted back. “Ocean’s too deep here.”

Applejack and Pinkie Pie listened to the two crew members bickering pointlessly. They found them on deck soon after the ship had almost thrown them overboard to find out what was going on. The two had been arguing about it ever since.

“Then what did we hit?” the first sailor huffed angrily.

“I don’t know, maybe it was your mother?”

Applejack sighed. “Alright fellas, let’s get back on track here...” It was no use, they continued their verbal fistfight, reinforcing the age old stereotypes of foul-mouthed sailors.

A murmuring crowd was gathering on deck now; other ponies were leaving their cabins and trying to find out what was happening. “C’mon Pinkie, we ain’t gettin’ any answers from these two...” Applejack was ready to move on, when a third sailor ran up from the interior of the ship.

“Sir! I have a report from the lower deck!” he breathlessly informed the pony in charge.

“A report? Well go on then!” the first pony said, cutting his insult on the other’s lineage short.

AJ and Pinkie waited, leaning in closer.

“Sir, the underside of the hull has been breached on the port side!” he said in a panicked whisper. “Something tore the three layers of sheet metal down there to shreds, we're taking on water at an alarming rate and half the watertight doors are still open! Sir... we couldn't stop it in time! What do we do?”

The first pony’s boyish anger vanished, and the sneer on his face was replaced with stoic determination when he spoke. “Holy Mother of- We need to get these passengers off the ship! Order a deck by deck evacuation and prepare the lifeboats. On the double, sailor.”

That was all Applejack needed to hear. She grabbed Pinkie and moved away from the crew members as they continued their hasty planning. “Ah thought ya said this ship was 100% safe!”

“It is! Well, at least that’s what the Brulée's said...” she replied as they pushed through the increasing number of worried ponies. "But they're dessert chefs, not sailors."

“Riiiight. Well, if the situation is really as bad as that report made it sound, Ah think it's fair to say things are about ta go south mighty fast here. See if ya can’t get us one of them lifeboats. Ah’ll go round up the others, got it?”

“Got it!” Pinkie said with a salute.

“And try ta be discreet, the last thing we want is fer everypony ta start panicking. I’ll be back as soon as Ah can.” AJ galloped straight for the spiraling staircase that would take her down to their rooms, when a voice cried out above the building commotion.

“Attention all passengers!” It was the sailor pony from before.

Oh no, please don’t...

“Everyone, please remain calm. Everything is alright, but if you could please put on a life vest and calmly make your way to the nearest lifeboat-”

“DEAR CELESTIA WE’RE SINKING!” somepony shouted, "EVERYPONY FOR THEMSELVES!" The crowd up on deck immediately transformed into a boiling mass of terrified ponies scrambling over each other like insects.

“Please remain calm! There are enough lifeboats for everypony, just- hey! Watch it!” The announcer was knocked over by the rabble of passengers, greedily snatching up vests and rushing into the white rowboats hanging over the sides of the ship.

So much for remaining calm... Applejack pushed through it, entering the listing ship.

“Uuugh, wh-what happened?” Rainbow Dash sputtered, blinking her eyes and rubbing a fresh bump on her head. Why am I so sore? Also, where the hay am I?

Rainbow brought her hoof in front of her face and saw it was dripping wet. So was her multi-hued mane and blue coat. As her blurry vision cleared, she noticed she was lying in a big puddle on the floor of some hallway.

“Huh? Where’s all this water coming from...?”

The memory of the dinner fiasco came back to her, and she recalled going off to wander the ship alone. Anything to put off heading back to her room... and Pinkie...

Rainbow remembered hearing a loud explosion and the ship jerking violently. She had been so lost in her thoughts when it happened, she figured she must have fallen over and hit her head. She checked the wall to her left and, sure enough, found a head-sized dent in the fancy paneling.

Dash rubbed her head again. Well, that's one mystery solved, but what about the water...?

Down the hall, a door flung open and a family with two small fillies rushed out. The father was shouting frantically, “There’s no time! Just leave it, we need to go. NOW.”

“Hey buddy! What’s going on here?” Rainbow yelled down the hall, getting up and moving towards the rushing family.

“The ship’s been hit! W-We’re going down!” The mother cried. In her forelegs, she clutched two scared foals so tight they appeared to be having trouble breathing.

“Wait, what?!” The family left their room without closing the door and splashed away down the hallway. “I... I don’t believe it!”

“Believe it or not lady, don’t make a lick o’difference,” the stallion yelled back as he disappeared around a corner with his loved ones, leaving Dash alone in the wet corridor.

She sat in the cold water, trying to stay calm and figure out what to do. I gotta... I gotta get outta here! I should find the others... but where are they? Hay, where am I? She looked around, trying to keep her cool and remember how she had gotten here.

Stairs! I gotta go up the stairs to the top deck! With that simple goal in mind, she took off down the hall after the family.

Turning the corner, Rainbow found a closed metal door with a big crank and a golden plaque with the word ‘stairs’ etched on it. “Great. Did they really have to shut this thing? They knew I was here and everything...” Dash stood on her hind legs and grabbed hold of the stiff crank.

As she fought to get the metal ring to turn, a low rumbling reached her ears... coming back from the way she came. “Huh? What now?” Leaving the stubborn crank, Rainbow poked her head around the corner in time to see a huge wave of angry seawater surging down the hall... directly at her.

“Eep!”

Rainbow zipped back to the door and grabbed hold once again. She pulled with all her might, but it was stuck fast, and the sounds of crashing water were getting closer every second.

“Comeoncomeoncomeon!” she said through clenched teeth. The wheel slowly began to turn, inch by painstaking inch. The frigid wave cascaded into the small offshoot of hallway. Rainbow kept turning, ignoring the cold water climbing steadily up her legs. After the initial stiffness, the crank spun with ease, and she whipped it around as fast as it would go.

“Got it!” Flinging the door inward, Rainbow rushed into the double staircase, before wheeling around to shut the hatch. She pushed hard against the oncoming ocean as it tried to force it’s way through and with a final shove, the door closed. Dash turned the crank again, locking the sea water behind water tight seals.

“Whew- that was a close one,” she heaved, leaning against the secured door. Taking a moment to catch her breath, she noticed the stairs higher up were full of ponies, all moving upwards with as much as they could carry. Rainbow staggered up to the decorative railing and looked down, confirming her fears. The decks below her were already flooded, and the water levels were still rising.

This is actually happening! We’re really SINKING! She thought, looking up to see the huge chandelier was no longer hanging straight down. The ship was slanting so badly, the big crystal fixture was now resting against one of the stair cases. The family from before was ducking under it; the father still shouting, the mother still crying.

“Rainbow Dash! Up here!” somepony yelled, snapping Dash out of her near panic. She shook her head and looked in the direction it came from, spotting Applejack leaning over the banister one deck up.

“Applejack! We’re... we’re sinking Applejack!” she stammered.

“Ya don’t say?” replied the cowpony. “C'mon, Pinkie’s got us a boat up top. Git up there an’ find her, Ah’ll take care of the others on deck E, okay?”

“Gotcha!” Rainbow said, opening her wings and shooting up the staircase.

Applejack watched her fly off with a partial sense of relief. Alright, one down, two ta go...

A deep groan came from below, and suddenly the door Rainbow sealed blew off its hinges. Water spilled forth, adding to the pool at the bottom of the stairs and causing it to rise even faster.

Better pick up the pace. AJ thought, opening the door to deck E.

“Is there anypony in there?” a voice called again, banging on the cabin door. “The ship is being evacuated! Hello? Is somepony there!”

Fluttershy ran into the cabin’s small lavatory, closing the door and locking it behind her. “Oh, it’s okay, I’m waiting for my friend, just go away please...” she said in a whisper that didn't make it past the first door. She just wanted it all to go away. She wanted to be helping her friends.

The floor was slanting terribly, which scared Fluttershy out of her wits. She flapped her wings and hovered in the middle of the bathroom, forelegs wrapped around her waist and eyes clamped firmly shut. Clear of the floor, she stayed like this long after the pony outside gave up and left. She could hear the ship creaking and the occasional scream under the flapping of her wings. Fluttershy thought she could hear water dripping too, but was too scared to open her eyes to check.

Applejack’s coming... she wouldn’t leave me, she was the only one who didn’t...

Floating in the bathroom, Fluttershy sobbed again. Before long, her wings started getting tired. She was never a strong flyer, and she could feel herself slowly losing altitude. Her rear hooves touched down... into several inches of water.

Her eyes shot open, and she saw it leaking in under the door.

Fluttershy screamed, flinging out her arms and flailing wildly. She slipped on the wet floor and fell, hitting the ground hard.

Everything went dark.

“Buzz off lady! This boat’s full.” A gruff-looking stallion barked, barring Rarity from boarding the vessel.

“How rude!” Rarity huffed back as he lowered the boat into the water below. “Have you not heard the ‘Mares and Foals first’ rule?”

“Can’t say that I have,” he replied. The boat full of ponies disappeared over the edge of the ship, taking with them Rarity's ticket off the doomed ship.

It was the same story all over; lifeboats were filling up fast, and launching even faster. Pretty soon there would be none left.

Oh, you just had to go back for your designs... Rarity thought, staring disdainfully at the three bags slung over her shoulders, all full to bursting. She meant to grab only her notes and sketches, but her hats and dresses were just too beautiful. It would have been a crime to let them sink to the bottom of the ocean!

She paced back and forth in small strides, Oh dear, I’ve wasted too much time and now there’s no boats left and I-

“Rarity!” Pinkie’s cheery voice rang out over the frantic din. She was waving from the far end of the ship, and standing next to an unlaunched lifeboat!

Thank Celestia, I'm saved! Rarity galloped over at full speed. “Pinkie! You managed to get a boat for us!”

“Sure did!” Pinkie beamed, amazingly at ease considering the catastrophe unfolding around her. “Help me get this tarp-thingy off the boat-thingy, Applejack should be back any minute with everypony else!”

Applejack... While Rarity wasn’t looking forward to sharing a small boat with the pony she'd been arguing with minutes ago, it sure beat drowning. “Alright then.” She said, tossing off her heavy baggage and yanking on a rope with her teeth.

“Did you... go back to the rooms for your stuff?” Pinkie asked, eying the bulging bags. “Did you see Fluttershy or Rainbow?”

Rarity averted her gaze and bowed her head in shame, but made no reply. In truth, she hadn’t even considered checking the two rooms next to hers as she cobbled together everything she thought was important and made a mad-dash for the stairwell.

The mare’s silence was answer enough for Pinkie. She frowned and faced away from Rarity, grabbing a rope on the tarp and tugging angrily. They continued to work on the boat without speaking.

“Hey, this thing full yet?” A red pony butted into the awkward silence. There were four others behind her, all wearing the same fearful expression.

“Oh, n-no, there are only five of us.” Rarity said. Pinkie didn’t even look up. “We need to wait for the other three before we leave.”

“Wait?! We’re sinkin’ here, there ain’t time for waiting!” The stranger snapped, grabbing hold of the loosened tarp and ripping it off the boat.

“Now, wait just a minute!” Rarity began to say.

“Pinkie! Rarity! There you guys are!” Rainbow Dash flew over and landed on the deck, panting hard. “Uhh, who’re they?” She asked, pointing at the ponies loading themselves into Pinkie’s lifeboat while she was distracted.

“Hey! Just what do you think you’re doing!” Rarity shouted at the red mare.

“Abandoning ship! You can either come with us or stay behind.” She replied, passing a young colt to another mare already on board.

“HEY! I WAS HERE FIRST, AND I SAY WE’RE NOT LEAVING YET!” Pinkie roared. She marched up to the mare and forced their noses together. “So you can just sit down and ZIP IT!”

The stranger buckled under the glare, not daring to utter another word. Everypony else gaped at Pinkie in the wake of her sudden outburst. “That’s better.” She spat, turning her back on the stranger. “Now, we are gonna wait for the other two and then we can... we’re gonna just... huh.” She stopped mid-sentence, standing in place and swaying slightly.

“Uhhh, Pinkie? You still in there?” Rainbow asked cautiously. Pinkie didn’t answer, she just stood there in a daze. “C’mon, snap out of it!” Rainbow flew in front of her and gasped in shock.

“What? What’s the matter?” Rarity asked, moving next to Rainbow and gasping in turn at what she saw.

Pinkie’s eyes were wide open, but stock white. Her pupils were just visible, peeking out from under her top eyelids. Her mouth hung open and twitched at it's corners.

“Twi... light?” She mumbled.

“Fluttershy! Open up, it’s Applejack!” AJ pounded on the door to cabin E34. The hallway was slanting hard with the sinking ship, and there was water up to her knees. No answer came from inside.

Dangit Fluttershy! Rarity’s room was open, but it’s occupant was nowhere to be seen. With luck, the unicorn was up top with Pinkie already. This ship ain’t gonna last much longer...

She spun around and bucked the locked door repeatedly with her hind legs, kicking up a spray of water each time. The door cracked down the middle, and with a final buck, it exploded into splinters. “FLUTTERSHY!” Applejack called as the water from the hall poured into the empty room. “WHERE ARE YA?!”

Over the rushing water, she heard a tiny whimper.

The bathroom! AJ waded over to the door, finding it was also locked. “Hey, you in there Fluttershy? Open this door, we gotta get outta here!” The tilted room was flooding fast now, submerging Applejack from the chest down. “OPEN UP FLUTTERSHY!”

There was another soft whimper from inside, followed by a fit of coughing. Then the click of the door unlocking. Applejack ripped it open, fighting the water that filled both rooms. Inside she found a soaked yellow pegasus with a nasty gash on her head floating in the half flooded bathroom.

“You... came back for me...” Fluttershy squeaked before coughing again.

“Course I did, sugarcube. Now let’s get the hay outta Dodge.” She threw Fluttershy on her back and swam out of the cabin and towards the deserted stairwell.

“STOP SAYING THAT!” Rainbow shouted, shaking Pinkie Pie forcefully.

“Twilight! Twilight!” Pinkie continued, unaffected by the vicious jolting. It had been several minutes since she’d blinked.

“It's like she's in some sort of trance,” Rarity said. They were the only ones on the deck now; their lifeboat had left without them when Pinkie’s mind stopped working. Not a single one was left that they could see.

Despite this, Rarity and Rainbow’s concerns lay with their friend and her mysterious affliction. “Twilight...” she moaned again.

“Please! Please snap out of it, Pinkie...” Rainbow said. She stopped shaking her and wrapped her in a hug.

Pinkie's moaning stopped abruptly. “Hey, what happened to our boat?” she asked calmly.

“Pinkie!” Rainbow let go and found herself face to face with a very confused-looking pony. “You’re... alright?”

“Why wouldn’t I be? Besides the fact that our boat is gone!” She pushed past a stunned Rainbow and went to the ship’s railing, squinting into the darkness.

“You... don’t know what happened just now?” Rarity asked cautiously, exchanging a confused look with Rainbow. Pinkie Pie was anything but a normal pony, but this was strange even for her.

"I know you grabbed your stuff and abandoned Fluttershy!” Pinkie said, thrusting an accusatory hoof at Rarity. “And YOU were gonna take off to Fillydelphia!” She swung her gaze to Rainbow, getting louder and angrier. “And now our Celestia-damned lifeboat is gone and the whole week is RUINED!”

The two ponies watched Pinkie’s mane as it appeared to inflate, then pop and go completely flat. They could only stand there, made mute by their guilt and Pinkie’s vicious scowl.

“What in tarnation is goin’ on here?” Applejack said, emerging behind the tense group with Fluttershy passed out on her back. “Pinkie, I told you to get us a boat!”

“Don’t YOU start with me,” a straight-maned Pinkie growled, turning away from her ashamed friends. “These two nitwits somehow managed to lose it!”

“They... what? Pinkie what’s wrong with you-”

“I said DON’T. START!” she barked, glowering out over the black water.

“There... were other ponies. They took the boat while- while we waited for you.” Rarity said quietly. “I don’t think there are any left.”

Applejack’s mind reeled at the news. None left? That's not good...

She scanned her disgruntled friends. It looked like things hadn’t gotten better since dinner. Even Pinkie appeared to be angry now, and she was so sure things would be okay.

It seemed like Applejack had been right about her friends; though the realization brought her no joy.

We... we got more important things to worry about right now, she thought. If there was still any chance of patching up their friendship, it would have to wait till they were safely off the ship. And just how do we do that?

Time was quickly running out. The ship’s bow was beginning to slip into the sea, and water was making it’s way up the far end off the deck, and towards them. The port side of the ship was also dipping heavily, lifting their side high above the ocean’s surface. The deck itself was a mess of discarded baggage, personal effects, and bright orange life vests were scattered about everywhere.

“Somepony get me a rope, ah think ah got an idea.”

The tail end of the massive ship’s stern vanished beneath the waves with a slurp and a gurgle. Only the sounds of the tumultuous ocean remained, and soon those too faded into a still, eerie calm. None would guess that only moments before, a huge, metal epitome of pony engineering had floated proudly in that exact spot.

Bobbing on the water’s surface, fives mares clung to a makeshift raft built entirely of loosely tied life vests. A sliver of moon was the only source of light, and it was barely enough to make their faces visible, let alone the black ocean water around them. For several minutes they tried calling out to other lifeboats, hoping to move to more sturdy crafts, but they got no replies. Cold, salty water leaked through the many gaps in the hastily tied craft as it drifted aimlessly in the dark.

“This water is positively fr-freezing!” Rarity complained. “And I had warm coats in my bags, too...”

“Ah told ya, those bags were too heavy," AJ said flatly. She was way too tired to put up with Rarity’s uppity-ness right now, especially concerning her precious luggage. “You’ll just have ta deal with it like all the rest of us.”

The brooding unicorn offered no rebuttal, coping with the loss of her dress designs with silent devastation. I suppose I'll have to restart from scratch... At least we all made it.

“I could fly up and look for the lights of Manehattan!” Rainbow Dash offered, “I bet you could see ‘em from miles away!”

“You sure you wouldn’t be too tempted to fly off to Fillydelphia?” Pinkie's silhouette scowled back. In the wane light, the others could tell her mane was still flat, but she thankfully hadn’t relapsed into a weird trance-state.

“Can everypony just be quiet for one stinkin’ minute!?” Applejack snapped, effectively ending the inane squabbling.

Rainbow crossed her forelegs and settled back on the raft with a wet squish. I was just trying to help...

The five cast-aways relented, and for a moment, the former friends sat in strained silence.

Applejack sighed inwardly, but remained focused on her primary goal: Getting them to safety. But how? We got no paddles, and we don’t even know which way ta go! She was frustrated and exhausted, not a good combination when trying to think.

“S-s-s-so... what do we do?” Fluttershy squeaked, having regained consciousness after being splashed by the icy water a few times. Her question went unanswered.

Failing to come up with anything herself, Applejack was about to admit she had no ideas, when a bright light lit up her terrified friend’s wide, teal eyes. The group simultaneously snapped their attention towards the source. Not too far off, a blinding spotlight shone in their direction, rising high out of the water.

“It's a rescue boat! Were saved!” Rarity cried, standing with a jolt and rocking the whole raft.

“Too bad it’s not a mall,” Pinkie jeered.

“It looks too high up to be a boat...” Applejack noted, giving no attention to the scornful jab, but not disagreeing with the sentiment. "Air ship?"

“I could go over and-” Rainbow began, but caught a hard glare from Pinkie, clearly visible in the bright beam of light. “I mean- I could pull us over there?” she corrected with a sheepish smile.

“Well, it’s the best we plan got, Ah suppose,” AJ said, untying one of the ropes holding the craft together and looping it around Rainbow’s neck.

A few knots later, the cold, wet ponies were being hauled towards the mysterious light source. Progress was painfully slow, and the mares couldn’t help but think back on their ill-fated reunion. In the ensuing quiet, it became harder and harder for them to ignore the increasingly obvious fact that their argument had eluded to:

Their friendship was beyond restoration.

It occurred to them the Endless Horizon was to suffer a similar fate. She would find a place on the ocean floor and sit there alone as salt water and age turned the beautiful liner into a slumping pile of rusty metal and rotting wood. She’d become a phantom, a mere shadow of her glorious, former self. Nothing more than a wretched parody of what she once was.

The thought swam through the minds of the five castaways as they paddled and pulled their way across the empty ocean. Concentrating on the task was the only thing that kept the bleak realization at bay, and with resolute focus, they crept closer and closer to the strange light. It rose higher and higher above the water as they did, and it soon became undeniably clear that it was not a boat at all.

It’s a... lighthouse? Applejack concluded, But, aren't those supposed to be by the shore?

As if on cue, the light flicked out of existence, and the former friends were cast into complete darkness once again.

“What gives?” Rainbow cried from somewhere above. “Who turned out the lights?”

Applejack rubbed her eyes, trying to readjust to the dark. “Just, keep goin’ forward, we’re almost there!”

“Forward?! I can’t see my hoof in front of my face! Can’t you do a light spell or something Rarity?”

“A light spell? Do I look like Twi-” She gave Pinkie a wary look, then started over, “I’ll... see what I can muster.”

As a fashion designer, Rarity hadn’t much use for light spells, and so had not actually used one in quite some time. While casting any spell causes a unicorn’s horn to glow, the trick to light spells is casting one that doesn't actually manipulate anything physically, yet still produces a concentrated glow.

If it will get me off this leaky barge, then I suppose I may as well try. Rarity stood on the unsteady layer of vests and attempted the spell, but casting without casting proved a little advanced for the out of practice unicorn. Try as she might, the magic refused to stay at the tip of her horn and the spell failed to manifest.

“What’s the holdup!” Pinkie broke in.

“It’s so dark...” Fluttershy whimpered.

Rarity lost her focus and scoffed, “I'm trying, and you're not helping!” She decided the spell was too difficult for her, so instead she focused on the wet rope tied to Rainbow Dash. It lit up with a pale blue light and floated up out of the water. Levitation spells was something Rarity used on a daily basis, and she was able to create just enough light to illuminate the small raft and Rainbow’s backside. The base of the lighthouse also became partially visible, now much closer to the drifting ponies.

“I can see stairs!” Rainbow noticed. The others squinted through the black veil and saw them as well.

“Well, what are you waiting for? An invitation?!” Pinkie chimed in cynically.

Rainbow closed the gap with a few more wing beats and yanked the craft onto the base of the stairs. She touched down on the stone platform as the others piled off the raft, leaving it moored at the bottom.

Rarity was next to venture onto the steps, the glowing rope floating in the air above her providing meager illumination. “Oh, dry, solid ground!” she said, wringing out her drenched mane. “Thank goodness this tower is here... whatever it is.”

“Ah’ll say,” AJ agreed. “Ah don’t know how much more of that I could... Ah could’ve- Whoa nelly.” Without warning, she raced back down the stairs and heave-hoed into the black tide.

“Gross," Pinkie croaked. She shook all over like a wet dog, splattering Rarity with a fresh coat of water.

“Applejack! Are you alright?” Fluttershy rushed over and held back the other mare’s blonde ponytail.

“Ah’ll be fine... It’s just all that rockin’ and bobbin’ and-” She turned back to vomit up what was left of her brief dinner.

“Hey! There’s a door up here!” Rainbow cut in. She had gone ahead to see if there was a way inside and sure enough, huge brass double-doors stood at the top of the short stairway. One of them was already ajar.

“Seems a bit fancy for such a dump," Pinkie said, reaching Rainbow at the top and inspecting the detailed engravings with only mild interest.

Rarity came up behind her, meeting Rainbow’s gaze and looking away quickly. Whatever happened to Pinkie during Endless Horizon’s final moments really put a damper on her mood.

“Ah’m okay 'Shy, let’s get inside ‘fore we catch hypothermia.” Applejack wiped her muzzle and with Fluttershy’s aid, they made their way up the slippery steps, joining the others at the top.

When none of them made a move, Applejack took her foreleg from around Fluttershy and approached, rolling her eyes. She pushed open the heavy door and crossed the threshold into the darkness inside, motioning for the others to follow. “Rarity, where’s that light?”

“Oh! Right.” The unicorn lifted the soaking rope with her magic, following Applejack inside with the dim light.

“Anypony home?!” Pinkie shouted, pushing past the others.

“I don't like this place...” Fluttershy whined, bringing up the rear. “Maybe I can just wait by the door-” She spun around to leave, and almost ran right into it as it slammed shut in her face. She gasped in horror and the light suddenly went out.

The rope hit tiled floor with a wet splat.

Into The Deep

Chapter IV : Into The Deep

“Rarity! What happened to the dang light!?” Applejack demanded.

“I dropped it! Excuse me for being startled," she snapped back, feeling around with her magic for the lost rope in the pitch-black lighthouse. If I could just cast a light spell, this wouldn’t be an issue... she chided herself mentally.

"Maybe Rainbow Dash can fly to Fillydelphia and get a new one?” Pinkie’s voice suggested further inside. “But she probably wouldn’t come back till after her stupid show...”

“Hush up, Pinkie,” Applejack said, adding an edge to her words. Though she was still disappointed with Rainbow, Pinkie’s new attitude was getting old fast.

Small sobs that could only belong to Fluttershy echoed somewhere in the darkness. “Fluttershy! Where are you?” Rainbow asked, ignoring the pink pony’s heckling.

“I’m h-here...” Fluttershy murmured in response. Dash zeroed-in on the faint sound, finding the group’s other pegasus cowering by the door they had entered from. Fluttershy gasped at the sudden contact.

“It’s okay, Dashie’s got ya.”

“Oh geez, get a room you two,” scoffed Pinkie.

Okay, that’s the last straw. “What is the matter with ya, Pinkie?” Applejack said, finally calling attention to her standoff-ish behavior. “You’re acting like a pig with a knot in his tail! It’s not like ya at all...”

“You don’t have to worry about me AJ,” Pinkie answered, her caustic voice directed towards Applejack. Hoof steps clicked on hard flooring, moving closer and closer. “That’s something only friends have to do.” There was something malicious in Pinkie’s tone that actually frightened Applejack. She backed away, only to find herself pressed up against an unseen stone wall.

Suddenly, the room filled with lights. Standing two inches away from her muzzle was Pinkie’s sneering face. Applejack jumped in surprise, barely catching a frightful shriek. Pinkie grinned with satisfaction, then trotted away casually.

“What in the world is this place?” asked Rarity as her eyes adjusted to the light and took in their surroundings.

The round room the middle-aged mares stood in seemed to go all the way up the inside of the tower. It was also finely decorated and furnished, very much in contrast with its rough stone exterior. Light radiated from elegant fixtures set atop marble columns that ran along the curved walls. A bundle of crystals within each cast pale blue lights, reflecting in a myriad of shades off polished tiles that covered the floor.

In the center of it all stood an eight foot statue of a dignified pegasus mare, surrounded by flowing red banners. Her mane and tail were done up in old-fashioned ringlets, which matched the odd, anachronistic feel of the structure’s atmosphere.

“Oh my!” Rarity exclaimed, “It’s all so very...” She surveyed the vintage stylings of the place, trying to put into words exactly how it made her feel. “So very... tacky. These designs are decades out of date! I mean, just look at that mare’s hair-do! It’s simply archaic.”

Applejack trotted over to the statue in question, keeping a wary eye on Pinkie. “Who do ya’ll reckon this is?” She asked at its base. The marble mare’s short, curly mane reminded her of something from Granny Smith’s old photo albums.

Rainbow flew up for a better look, inspecting the statue closely and poking it with a hoof. “Just looks like some old mare to me...” She hovered around the stately figure, getting a good look at it from all angles. “Huh, whoever she is, she’s got a blank flank.”

“Oh, Rainbow,” Rarity rolled her eyes, “Just because the statue doesn’t have a cutie mark, that doesn’t mean she’s a blank flank!”

“Maybe the sculptor was selfish and only thought about herself?” Pinkie snorted absently as she wrung the leftover water out of her straight mane.

“Wh-What do those banners mean?” Fluttershy squeaked, cautiously eying them from the floor.

After shooting Pinkie an icy glare, Rarity turned her attention to the vibrant read velvet handing proudly above, “Hmm. Let’s see here, ‘Unbind thyself from the chains of fate’? Some sort of motto, perhaps?”

“Uh, guys?” Rainbow hovered by the statue’s flank, her face suddenly pale, “Something tells me the sculptor who did this wasn't lazy...”

“Come on Dashie, there’s no way a mare her age could have no cutie mark!” Rarity said dismissively.

Rainbow shook her head, “I’m not saying she didn’t have one. I’m saying she... doesn’t have one anymore.”

“Doesn’t have one anymore? What makes ya say that?” Applejack asked, circling around to see whatever Rainbow was going on about.

“Just look! There’re scars all over her!” Rainbow said, pointing out the thick lines on the statue where its cutie mark should have been. “The sculptor wasn’t lazy, he was like, the best statue-maker-guy ever! This pegasus... I think she cut off her cutie mark!”

There was a round of gasps, and a shrill scream from Fluttershy. Using her long, pink tail, she hid the butterflies on her sides. If she had been scared before, she was outright petrified now.

They starred up at the deformed mare with the words on the banners echoing in their minds.

‘Unbind thyself from the chains of Fate...’

“Maybe... we should go back outside?” Applejack suggested, beginning to feel queasy all over again. “I'll bet some other boats saw the light, maybe we can wave one down and get outta here. C’mon, help me get this door open.”

With a few backwards glances at the unsettling statue, the mares lined up along the door. There didn’t seem to be a handle on it, so together they pushed on the heavy brass with their collective shoulders. After several minutes of pushing, and a few bucks from Applejack, it had not budged an inch.

“W-We’re trapped in here!” Fluttershy wailed, feeling a panic-attack coming on, “Ohhhh nonono no no!” This is bad, this is BAD!

"Calm down ‘Shy! We just gotta push harder!” Applejack huffed, “Come on ya’ll, one more big... wait- why ain’t Pinkie Pie helping?” She peered around the statue’s plinth to where Pinkie had been sitting moments ago. The moody mare was nowhere to been seen.

“Where’d she go?!” Fluttershy gasped, covering her butterflies again, “Y-You don’t think- They wouldn’t... cut off her cutie mark? W-Would they?!”

“Ah said calm down, not 'make wild assumptions'. Ah’m sure she’s just... wandered off. You've seen how she’s been acting up.” Applejack placed a hoof on her quivering friend.

“You think she went deeper into this creep-factory?” Rainbow piped, giving the door one last ineffective shove before giving up. "And you expect us to be calm about that?"

“C’mon, nopony else is even in here.” Ah hope... ”...We’d better go find her.”

“N-No!” Fluttershy cried, earning confused looks from the other three. “I mean... I’ll just wait here, okay?” She wanted to be as far away from this place as possible, not explore its hidden inner depths.

“Sorry, but we ain’t splittin’ up. That's never a good idea.” Applejack said, glancing apprehensively at the ominous statue.

“Don’t worry ‘Shy, you got me to protect you!” Rainbow swooped to Fluttershy’s trembling side. “I won’t let anything even look at you the wrong way. It’ll be just like old times, okay?”

“I... I... can’t...” she stammered, trembling from her feathers to her fetlocks.

“Come now dear, Pinkie could be in trouble. She needs you,” Rarity said, recalling Pinkie’s psycho-breakdown on Endless Horizon’s deck. “I think... she needs all of us.”

Fluttershy looked close to tears. It was like she was on the sinking ship again, locked in her bathroom alone while it filled with water. Except, this time she wasn’t alone. She turned to Applejack, who gave her a little smile and a nod.

With a deep breath, Fluttershy nodded back. “Okay... I’ll try.”

Rainbow helped her off the hard tiles, and together, they passed by the offending statue. From this close, Fluttershy could clearly see the scarring under its closed wings. She stifled a yelp and focused on the smooth floor. At the back of the room, the group found a small stairwell leading down to another level of the strange lighthouse.

“Pinkie!” Applejack called from the top, “Pinkie, ya down there?”

“Does anypony else hear... music?” Rarity’s ears perked up. She swore she could hear a fiddle playing somewhere below.

“We’re going down there, aren’t we?” Fluttershy sighed in resignation.

Rainbow wrapped a comforting wing around her, “Come on, whatever’s down there can’t be worse than that time with the dragon in Ponyville, right?”

Fluttershy gasped, fixing Rainbow with a horrified gaze, “You don’t think there’s a dragon down there, do you?!”

“Seriously, I think I know this song...” mused Rarity.

Applejack placed a hoof on the first step. “Ah don't hear nothing. And there ain’t no dragons on the ocean, Fluttershy. Let’s just get this over with so we can get outta here. I'll bet we can try'n climb out the top of the lighthouse next.” She continued down the first flight, stopping at the bottom and looking up at the others. “Well? Ya’ll comin’ or what?”

Rarity, Rainbow and Fluttershy exchanged uneasy glances, then carefully stepped down towards Applejack and the lighthouse’s lower level.

“Pinkie? Where are ya?” AJ called again as they reached the floor below. “Where did she get off to now?” The staircase split and ran down either side of a round room to a flat landing. In its center sat a large, bronze sphere, lit by more of the strange light crystals.

“That is one weird-looking bathtub.” Rainbow said, reaching over the banister and tapping the metal contraption from the stairs.

“Do ya hafta touch everything?” Applejack snapped. It had been a very long day for her.

Rainbow cast a frown her way, then took to the air for a better vantage point... and to get away from the frazzled orange mare.

“Huh, the music stopped...” Rarity noticed the fiddle forged tune had faded away, leaving the four in an eerie calm. Even the ocean outside was silent behind large, stone bricks.

“PINKIE!?” Applejack called once more. She reached the landing and rounded the bronze... thing, finding a wide opening on its side. “Pinkie?” She peeked into the sphere, and sure enough, there sat an unresponsive Pinkie Pie. “Girls! She's in here!”

“Does she still have her cutie mark?” Rainbow zipped to Applejack’s side, followed shortly by the other two.

“Yeah, she’s still got her balloons,” Applejack snarked back, spotting the yellow and blue party balloons on Pinkie’s flank. To any outside observer, she would appear to be fine; just casually sitting on her haunches with her back to the sphere’s entrance and the four mares crowding around outside of it.

“Umm, Pinkie, dear, are you quite alright in there?” Rarity asked hesitantly.

“...Twilight,” Pinkie replied flatly. Rarity and Rainbow swapped a pair of nervous looks.

“What? Pinkie, look, we gotta get out of this place. Come on!” Applejack tried.

“...Twilight,” Pinkie repeated.

“Umm, AJ?” Rainbow said, “I don’t think she can hear you right now...”

“Whaddya mean? She’s standin’ right there!”

“No, you see... What Dash means is...” Rarity sighed, “Something just like this happened earlier.”

“It did?” Applejack growled, rounding on the guilty-looking pegasus and unicorn.

“On the ship, right before it sank!” Rainbow jumped in. “She kinda lost her temper and went all space-case wacko and wouldn’t stop saying-”

“Twilight,” Pinkie interrupted.

“Exactly, she snapped out of it right before you and Fluttershy showed up, and she’s been... a tad temperamental ever since,” Rarity finished.

Applejack closed her eyes and placed a hoof on her forehead, “So let me get this straight; Pinkie blows a gasket and has a complete change in attitude... And ya’ll didn’t think ta mention it till just now?”

“Well, there were more important things happening at the time!” Rarity said in her defense.

“Like gatherin’ up all your precious clothes?” Applejack asked, matching her agitated tone.

Uh! The very nerve! “THOSE WERE MY GALA DRESS DESIGNS!” Rarity’s pent up anger exploded. She was getting pretty sick of having that luggage thing thrown in her face.

The high-strung mares broke into a heated argument. Dash tried to break it up, but somehow managed to get involved herself and soon, she was shouting just as loud as the other two.

Fluttershy looked from the bickering mares to her catatonic friend. She swallowed the growing lump in her throat and stepped shakily into the strange metal ball. To her shock, it bobbed slightly, as if it was floating. She pulled back her hoof with a startled gasp.

She needs you...Fluttershy reminded herself. With a resolute nod she stepped in, ignoring the slight movement. “Pinkie?” It was little more than a whisper.

“Twilight?” Pinkie whispered.

“Ummm, no, it’s me, Fluttershy...” She cautiously approached her motionless friend. The inside of the bronze sphere was furnished in a style similar to the rest of the strange tower, and plush seats ran along its close walls. It almost looked cozy.

“...Twilight,” Pinkie droned again.

Fluttershy came to a stop behind her. “Listen to me. I... I know things haven’t been going great so far this week...” She began, feeling a hint of the confidence she had experienced alone in her cabin. Before things had gone so horribly wrong.

“I was GOING to tell you before I LEFT!” Rainbow's voice shouted.

Tuning out the shouting match, Fluttershy moved to Pinkie’s side and caught a glimpse of her blank, white eyes gaping at a lever sticking out of the floor.

“I- I know it may not seem like it right now...” Fluttershy forged on, “but we are still your friends.”

“... My... friends?” Pinkie's head slowly turned to face Fluttershy with pupil-less eyes.

She had to quickly look away, but forced herself to keep going. “Y-Y-Yes! An- and right now, we need your help; first to get out of here and then... we need to repair our friendship.” A few strands of Pinkie’s flat hair curled up, and it seemed to brighten just a little bit.

“Do you have ANY idea how long those designs took me to make?!”

“...Twilight,” Pinkie’s attention slipped back to the strange lever.

“Pinkie, please. I know we can do it... Won’t you help us?” Fluttershy reached out and put a yellow hoof on the bewitched mare’s pink one.

Pinkie slowly glanced down at it, “We need... Twilight.”

“Twilight? What do you mean?”

“She’s going to help us....” Pinkie muttered as the fighting outside reached a fevered pitch.

“WELL YOU SKIPPED OUT ON MAH WEDDIN’!”

Applejack shoved Rarity, who voiced her offense with a sharp huff and shoved right back. A second later, they were on top of each other, throwing wild punches and insults. Rainbow, either to stop the violence or work out her own frustration, threw herself at them in a flying tackle. The three tumbled backwards into the bronze sphere with Fluttershy and Pinkie.

“...But we have to help her too.” Pinkie finished, reaching up and pulling the lever in front of her.

With a series of quick, mechanical clicks, the opening of the sphere was sealed shut by a sliding, glass-paneled door. It closed with a loud clack; effectively ending the fight inside.

“What the...? Pinkie, what’d ya DO?” Applejack flung Rarity off of her and went straight for the door. Push, shove and kick as she might, the door remained closed.

Pinkie blinked dumbly at thin air, as if she had just awoken from a deep sleep. “Me? I didn’t do anything,” she said, her eyes returning to normal. She took in her current surroundings and frowned. “It looks like one of you dummies got us locked in this... this whatcha-ma-thingy.” Wait, how did I get here?

Applejack wheeled on the pink pony, breathing hard. “Now, you listen here, you-”

The sphere clicked internally again, and suddenly, it dropped into the water below it. The five ponies inside jumped as the craft promptly began to sink. They could only watch through the window as air bubbles floated past and they submerged completely, continuing down a dark shaft beneath the lighthouse.

“We-We’re sinking!” Fluttershy tore herself from the horrifying sight and cowered on the floor, hyperventilating immediately.

“Not if Ah can help it!” Applejack ran to the back of the sphere, leaping over Fluttershy and shoving Pinkie out of the way. She grabbed hold of the lever and pushed it back to its original position. When that produced no results whatsoever, she did it again, then again as they descended. Markings on the shaft’s walls indicated they were already several fathoms below the waves.

“Way to save the day.” Pinkie dusted herself off bitterly.

Applejack bucked the controls, destroying them with a spray of sparks. “YOU!” She stormed over to Pinkie. “Ah don’t rightly know how, but I KNOW this is YOUR fault.”

“Pshhhh, what are you talking about?” Pinkie said, acting cool despite the furious mare bearing down inches from her face. Outside, more markings passed and they sank further into the ocean.

Applejack snorted, “The reunion. The cruise. And now THIS. It was all your doing!"

“Oh?! And what about you?” Pinkie growled, “You’re the one who doesn’t want to be friends anymore!”

“Ah never said that! I mean- yer twistin' mah words!” Applejack gasped.

And just like that, the argument started back up. Rarity and Rainbow joined in, filling the small space with harsh yelling, despite the current emergency.

“Please...” Fluttershy squeaked, “I just- I want to go home!”

Applejack turned to tell the pegasus to hush up... and noticed she was crying. In the dim light of the cramped sphere, she could clearly see the same desperate fear and worry on each of her old friend’s faces.

She inhaled and exhaled deeply. “Girls...” The mares around her kept arguing, but with one less voice they began to quiet down. Applejack waited, then repeated herself, maintaining her calm tone. “Girls, Fluttershy is right. Let’s all try ta... ta calm down here and figure a way out of this mess.”

Fluttershy whimpered into her hooves, while the other mares swapped frightened looks with one another.

Suddenly, a metal shutter slid over the window, and the light crystal on the ceiling went out.

Great, now what? Applejack thought, too exhausted to be properly worried.

The crystal reactivated, only this time with a much more concentrated light. It shot a white beam from the ceiling down to the floor, which widened out into blurry image floating in the middle of the sphere. It was some sort of moving picture spell.

The ponies stared in awe as the image took the shape of a black and white mare, sitting comfortably with a glass of wine. Rainbow Dash recognized her as the mare from the statue, now several dozen fathoms above them, but before she could point this out, the ghostly image began speaking.

“Hello, my name is Summer Rain.” It said through speakers hidden in the craft's walls. “You are here because you share my desire for freedom; to break away from the chains that bind you.”

“It’s some sort of crystal magic!” Rarity murmured, amazed by the impressive enchantment.

“So, she’s not really here?” Rainbow crouched low and moved in closer. She tried to touch the mare, only to have her hoof pass right through. “Wooooah.”

“Quiet! She’s still talkin’,” AJ ordered.

“I speak of the chains of fate.” Continued the emanation. “For how can you be free when an image on your flank determines your destiny? How can you be free when your very name is a condemnation? How can you be free when you are ruled by an immortal monarch with unquestionable authority?”

“Hey, is she talking about Celestia?” Rainbow asked, still prodding with a hoof.

“Ah said hush. And stop that!” Applejack barked, then smacked away Rainbow’s distracting limb.

“My time on the surface taught me that you simply cannot, and so I made a choice. I removed my mark and broke my bindings. I chose freedom, I chose; Rapture.”

The illusion fizzled out and the shutter over the sphere’s only window slowly reopened. The mares eagerly crowded around it and shared a gasp of amazement at what lay before them.

Out of the murky haze sprawled a massive, sunken metropolis, sitting the floor of the ocean. Glittering neon lights of every colour and tall buildings of stunning architecture made up its entirety. The city’s magnificence illuminated the dark waters surrounding it, creating a blue-green aura around the whole thing. It was like something out of a fairy tale; a fanciful story told to foals before they went to bed.

The mares gaped open-mouthed at the marvel before them. As they approached the looming buildings, Summer Rain’s smooth voice went on, “A place where ponies make their own destinies; where shackles and blinders are cast aside, where we are free from the tyranny of fate.”

The bronze sphere entered the city proper, travelling between buildings through flooded streets. Schools of fish swam through as well, over and under glass-covered walkways that linked the towering metal structures.

“You are here because you reject the way things are up above. You have been deemed worthy to join our ranks, and so I say, welcome! Welcome, to our city.”

The sphere turned sharply, diving and picking up speed. Its occupants fell onto each other, creating a writhing pile of limbs and cursing.

“Get off of me, Rainbow!” Rarity shouted from under the blue pegasus.

“I can’t! Pinkie is sitting on my wing!” she replied.

With much effort and plenty of shouting, they untangled themselves and returned to the window. They were moving fast now... directly at one of the Manehattan-esque skyscrapers.

“WE’RE GOING TO CRASH!” Fluttershy shrieked. She ran to the smashed lever, hoping to use it to stop the sphere, or change its direction, or something; but it had already proven to be useless, even before Applejack destroyed it.

She banged away on it to no effect as the sheer grey wall sped closer. “WE’RE GONNA- huh?” The craft turned on its own accord, bringing it alongside the wall they narrowly avoided smashing into. It slowed down, and the mares were able to take in the city as it leisurely drifted by.

“Well Ah’ll be... a whole city underwater? That just don’t make no sense.” Applejack read one sign with ‘Lucky’s Bar & Casino’ written in neon green letters. A pipe smoking buffalo held up a deck of cards next to the glowing words.

“It’s no more ridiculous than a city in the clouds,” Rarity remarked, recalling her various visits to Cloudsdale. Not being able to walk on the city made of clouds made business trips there such a hassle.

“Hey, Cloudsdale is not ridiculous! You only think that cause you’re not a pegasus," Dash scolded. It was her hometown, after all. There’s nothing ridiculous about a city that floats, but one that sank? That’s way more ridiculous.

“Maybe Seaponies live here?” Fluttershy said, moving back to the window now that they had slowed down.

Pinkie snorted, “Seaponies aren't even real.”

“Woah! Did you guys see that?!” Rainbow pushed her face on the glass window.

“See what? There’s a lot to be seeing right now.” Rarity said, admiring the beautiful, albeit very retro, design of the city.

“Up there in that tunnel- I saw something move!” She pointed to the walkway, but the sphere was underneath it now and their view was blocked. “I swear I saw something...”

“Well, who would live in a place like this?” Fluttershy asked, her growing curiosity outweighing her crippling fear. What if Seapoinies are real? What if they’re not friendly?!

“It doesn't look like anypony or anyone even lives here, now that you mention it.” Rarity had been wondering the same thing, but she couldn’t spot any of the city’s inhabitants through the numerous windows that passed by. As beautiful as the city was, she noticed parts of it were badly in need of maintenance. Rust crept up the dull grey siding, and a dark green algae dotted the glass windows she eagerly tried to peek through.

Applejack pointed ahead out their window, “Ah think we’re ‘bout ta find out.”

A doorway with ‘Rapture Transit Authority’ engraved around it irised open in an approaching wall. The bronze craft entered a tight-fitting tunnel within, stopping at its end at the bottom of a vertical shaft. From inside, they heard the doorway grind close behind them, and the sphere began to rise up the dark cylinder with a rush of air bubbles.

A tense hush overtook the vessel as it ascended, even Fluttershy’s whimpering faded into silence. Up they slowly went, each pony anxiously holding their breath. They huddled around the window as the sphere crested out of the water and rose out of the floor into a dim, open space, then came to a jerking stop.

Everything was dead still in the city. The ponies inched closer to the glass as water streamed down its exterior and peered out into the dark docking bay. Through the limited view their window provided, they assessed their surroundings.

Directly in front of them, a slim panel of glass granted them a view of the watery path they had just taken through the city. Blue-green light filtered in, giving everything it fell on a sickly tint. Somewhere behind them, another light was flickering on and off randomly. For the brief seconds it was on, a soiled red carpet could be seen just outside the sphere’s door, leading to the window, then off to the left.

Even as she took in the sights before her, Fluttershy could feel her anxiety rising again. “Oh... okay, how nice. So- I'd like to leave now. H-how do we go back up?”

Applejack glanced back at the broken controls. “Heck if Ah know,” she grumbled.

“Oh, but... I, oh no...” Fluttershy’s nervous thoughts took over. Applejack always has a plan. But she doesn’t now... Girls, what if we’re stuck here forever and Seaponies cut off our cutie marks? What if they’re coming to get us RIGHT NOW?! Oh no, oooh nonon-."

“Don’t worry,” Dash cut in before Fluttershy had a breakdown. “As long as we’re in this thing, we’re safe!” She tapped the sliding door, producing a metallic clang.

It replied with a series of clicks, making the tightly-wound mares jump halfway out of their hides. With a sharp hiss, the door slid open.

The group beat a hasty retreat to the back of the sphere, their metal and glass barrier no longer separating them from whatever lay beyond. They huddled together for what felt like an eternity, and when nothing burst in with knives or hacksaws, Applejack spoke up.

“Didn’t ah tell you ta stop touching stuff?!” She whispered harshly at Rainbow Dash.

“Come on, that totally wasn’t my fault!” She whispered back.

“Oookay, I’m out of here,” Pinkie said, then shouldered past Rarity and trotted up to the exit.

“Pinkie! We don’t know what’s out there!” Applejack said, increasing the volume of her whisper so it matched that of a normal speaking voice. Rarity recovered from the shove and scowled.

“You know what’s not in here? A way back up. Somepony lost their temper and broke the controls.” Pinkie turned back to the door and craned her neck around its edges. “Plus, you guys smell like a bunch of wet dogs.” Her muzzle turned up as she hopped out onto the red carpeting and trotted away.

“There’s gotta be some other way out of here, right AJ?” Rainbow asked, remembering her carefully set plans. How am I going train for the Fillydelphia show if I’m trapped underwater? "Maybe we should, you know... start looking around?"

Applejack sighed heavily, “Ah suppose that’s better than sittin’ on our hooves in here... Ah sure don't expect to get help, neither. This place looks really abandoned...” She slowly stepped up to the opening. From outside, a stagnant odor of dampness and seawater reached her nostrils, underscored by a hint of smoke.

Here goes nothing... She steeled herself, then took her first steps into Rapture.

It was like walking through a portal to another world. The air in the large space was warm and musty; she could feel the moisture sticking to her orange coat. The place was utterly deserted, giving it the distinct feel of a ghost town. She continued down the carpeting, each hoofstep producing an soft squish. Water was pooled everywhere, and she noticed bits of rubble and refuse lying around haphazardly. In a far back corner, a small fire burned quietly. There was no sign of Pinkie.

Something about all this is a little... off . Applejack warily walked up to the glass panel and scanned the sunken cityscape beyond with curious fascination. She couldn’t help but wonder why this place was even here. Though she didn't consider herself much of an architect, surely building a whole city underwater was insanely difficult. Why go through all the trouble? Her gaze tilted upwards past the towering, grey spires to the endless sea of green and a more important thought struck her. How are we gonna get out of here?

From behind, Rarity cautiously exited the craft while Dash attempted to convince Fluttershy to do the same.

"Oh my word...” the unicorn exclaimed, taking in the mysterious city’s interior with another wide eyed stare. “I know this probably doesn’t look like much now, and the designs are simply ancient, but on second thought I am positively stunned by the beauty of this place.”

“Beauty?” Applejack repeated incredulously. All Ah see is a dingy, dirty wreck.

Rarity bristled at the remark. “Oh yes! If you could just see past this layer of grime... and that fire- you’d see a grand terminal, one to rival the elegance of Grand Galloping Central! If only we could have seen it when it was new...” She closed her eyes, trying to picture it in her mind. The smell made it more difficult than she cared to admit.

Applejack scanned the area again, but still only saw an under-maintained disaster zone. A burning fire was a hard thing to see past, but then Rarity had always had an eye for... extravagance. “Yeah... right. From the looks of it, Ah’d say we’re a little late to this party.” What Harvey would think of all this... she wondered. He'd probably find it pretty too, though he wouldn't be able ta stargaze from way down here.

With a very nervous Fluttershy at her side, Rainbow finally left the sphere. “Is she still going on about the design? I think the real question here is... what reeks?” She covered her snout with a blue hoof.

Applejack gestured with a hoof. “Just take a look ‘round, the whole place is in ruins.”

“So, is there a-anyway out...?” asked Fluttershy, ignoring the decor Rarity was still admiring and looking for any means of escape from the dilapidated wonder. She was soon able to answer her own question, when her eyes fell on a dock for another bronze sphere thing. This one, however, was empty... and completely blocked off by broken chunks of cement. “Oh dear...”

Following her gaze, the others took stock of the destroyed bay.

“That’s... not a good sign,” Rainbow declared.

“It’s okay everypony, “ Applejack said with false conviction, “We’ll find another way, okay?” Oh, please let there be another way... She suddenly missed Harvest Moon very much. "Maybe Rarity can use magic to get the pod to go back or somethin'?"

Rarity hmphed softly. "Thank you for the vote of confidence, Applejack, but I can promise you I'm capable of no such thing."

“HEEEEEEEEEELLOOOOOOOOOOO?” Pinkie interrupted, her shout coming from somewhere further within.

“Anyway, we can’t leave without Pinkie,” Rarity reminded them. “Perhaps she’s even found something useful?” Like a muzzle...

“Sure... everypony stay close, and keep yer eyes peeled.” Applejack started down the dock towards its far end, her friends trailing close behind. Together, they followed the soggy carpet past the obstructed bay and the still burning fire.

You’d think all this water would have put that out, thought Rarity as she stepped over hastily discarded luggage and the occasional puddle. She eyeballed the site of baggage piles every so often. What happened here to make them leave in such a hurry?

The worn wood beneath the carpet gave way to a staircase that lead up and out of the dock. A thin trickle of water flowed down its uneven steps. “That call came from up here, ah’m sure of it.” Applejack said, leading the way up the slippery stairs.

At the top, she rounded a corner to find a long hallway suffering from the same mistreatment as the docking bay it overlooked. Fallen marble columns lay broken on the floor and more trash and baggage was scattered all around. At the very least, it was partially lit, and sitting at its far end was a pink, flat-maned pony. She was trying to clear away a pile of rubble blocking the hall’s exit.

“Pinkie!” Dash shouted, “What are you doing? Come back here!”

“Nope, I heard voices this way,” Pinkie replied without looking back. She stood on her hind legs and grabbed hold of a large piece of fallen wall siding.

Voices...? That can’t be good, whether she imagined them or not... thought Applejack. “Pinkie, get over here now! We need to find a way out!”

“What does it look like I’m doing?” The obstacle crashed to the floor. Pinkie climbed over its shattered remains and up the staircase it concealed.

“Oh no you don’t!” Applejack roared, breaking into a full gallop down the gloomy hall; leaping over the broken columns and sidestepping a discarded pipe wrench. She flew up the stairs, paying no heed to Fluttershy’s distressed cries. Pinkie’s up ta somethin’, I know it! She ain’t getting away from me!

The long staircase brought her to what looked like a reception area. ‘Welcome to Rapture’ was scrawled above another doorway in a wall comprised entirely of glass panels. Ignoring the breathtaking view, Applejack darted in and surveyed the beat up welcome center. The irate farm-mare quickly found what she was looking for.

“There ya are, ya little varmint!” She exclaimed, spotting Pinkie with her back turned... staring at something on the wall in front of her.

She made no reply as Applejack closed in. “Well? Ya gonna start talking now, or what? Hmm?”

“...Twilight,” Pinkie said flatly.

“Oh great, she’s gone all loopy again...” Applejack removed her hat and rubbed her temples. This keeps getting better and bett-

“Loopy? What do you mean?” Pinkie turned her head to face Applejack, her blue eyes meeting AJ’s with an annoyed glare.

“Wait you’re... fine? Then- what are you doing staring at the wall?”

“Applejack? Is that... is that really you?” A third voice said, seemingly coming from nowhere.

“Woah! Who said that?!” Applejack spun around. Nopony else was in the area. She could hear the others making their way up the stairs, but this voice had been much closer...

“Applejack...” The same voice came from behind her. She spun back to face the wall. Pinkie was staring at it too, or more accurately, at the box full of glowing crystals mounted on it. “I... I can’t tell you how good it is to hear your voice.”

She sounds so familiar... almost like- “It can’t be...” Applejack deadpanned as the realization slowly dawned on her. “It’s just not... but how could...?”

“What’s going on?” Rainbow landed next to a dazed AJ, flying ahead of Rarity and Fluttershy.

Despite her best efforts, Applejack just couldn’t organize her thoughts into words. Her exhausted mind was buzzing with questions, all jockeying to be asked first. She faced her friend with a glazed over expression, but was unable to say anything other than a few dumbfounded grunts.

“Uhhh, you're not gonna barf again, are you?” Rainbow asked, taking a step back from the stupefied pony. “Pinkie, what did you do to her?”

“Rainbow Dash!” The mare’s voice said again as the rest of the group arrived. “Rarity, Fluttershy! I can’t believe you’re all really here!” The three mares shared confused looks. The voice was slightly distorted from whatever spell was allowing its transmission, but they all knew they’d heard it before.

"...Twilight,” Applejack finally managed to squeak.

The effect of the single utterance was gradual at first. All three faces slowly shifted from confusion to disbelief and finally awe. They gawked at the glowing box, unable to accept who they were talking to.

“I am so happy you made it.”

Welcome Party

Chapter V: Welcome Party

A reserved quiet descended on the worn-down welcome center. From outside its large, glass-panes was a soft green light that poured in onto the wall's faded posters and advertisements. Nearby, a pair of destroyed staircases stretched out of the light and into blackness, leading to a second level. A whale glided peacefully between the tall skyscrapers of Rapture, singing a deep, resonate song that harmonized with the strained groaning of the underwater metropolis.

“Ummm, hello? Are you guys still there?” Twilight’s distorted voice filled the stock-still room.

Her five old friends from Ponyville sat slack-jawed around the ornate, crystal-filled box it originated from, too dumbfounded to articulate their shock. It had been more than 15 years since any of them had seen Twilight Sparkle, and the bottom of the ocean was the last place they expected to just run into her.

Pfffffff- POOF!

The delicate silence was utterly shattered when Pinkie Pie's flat mane suddenly re-inflated with a hiss and a pop; and she brightened back to her vibrant, rambunctious state of being.

"Twilight!" the pink earth pony exclaimed with a huge, open smile. "Oh my gosh- I can’t believe you’re really here! Why are you here!? Oh- wait! Tell me all about Saddle Arabia!” Her face fluxed between thinking of what to ask and gesturing wildly with absolutely no pause for breath “No, wait- tell me about the Griffin Kingdom! No- Aaah! It’s just so amazing you’re here!” She began to bounce excitedly around the glowing box and her bewildered friends as they slowly regained their wits.

“It’s good to see you too, Pinkie!” Twilight’s voice said with a hint of relief. “It’s good to see all of you. Really, it is.”

“You... you can see us?” Rainbow Dash stammered her reply, still working through the initial shock. She looked around the empty welcome center for any sign of her favorite egghead, but came up empty.

“Yes, I’m monitoring you through Rapture’s security system. I’ve been watching and listening since you arrived in the Bathysphere, but I can only speak to you through these crystal Talk-boxes.” Twilight took on her age-old lecturing tone while she spoke. She didn’t notice, but the other five mares all adapted calm, reflective looks upon hearing their old friend in her element. As per usual, they didn’t understand much of what she was actually saying, but she had given the strange, bronze craft and glowing crystal communicators equally strange names.

There was a long pause once she finished speaking. No-one knew how to follow up, and Pinkie was still busy giggling, smiling and bobbing up and down.

Rarity was the next to regain some semblance of composure and speak to the unicorn. “Twilight... my word, how have you been? And what in Equestria are you doing in this dreary place? In your last letter, I believe you said you were in the far West, not stranded underwater.” How many months ago had that been? She couldn’t remember exactly.

“Hi Twilight!” Fluttershy said quietly, her fear momentarily forgotten, “I hope you’re doing well, I’ve really missed you!” The yellow mare was incredibly relieved she had a friend in this frightening place; one who could help them get back to the surface.

“Hello Rarity, Fluttershy, I’ve missed you both, too.” Twilight said, a smile evident in her tonality.

“Uhh, Twilight... it’s great to hear from ya and all, but Ah think ya got some explaining ta do here.” Applejack cut in, changing the subject. As happily surprised as she was, it was well past time for some answers. “Fer starters, what is this place? Why are ya here? And why are we here!?”

“I know you have lots of questions, and I will answer them...” Twilight answered her with a soothing voice, before moving onto a more serious tone. “...But there’s no time to get into it right now. I can tell you that I was sent here by Princess Celestia herself.”

Celestia, Applejack thought with a snort. Ah guess the Griffon Kingdom wasn’t far enough, she had to send mah friend to the bottom of the sea...

“OH- TWILIGHT! Where’s Spike?!” Pinkie cried, peering into the strange box as if they were both hiding inside of it. “I bet he’s soooo big now! I’ve missed so many of his birthdays... and yours too! OH! We should have a BIG party for you guys!”

It appears Pinkie’s back to her regular, old self, Rarity thought, glad she was no longer handing out insults like candy on Nightmare Night.

“Spike? He... isn’t with me right now.” She sighed, her voice getting heavy as she spoke, “As you can probably tell, things went very bad around here. They started out well enough, you would have loved this city in its prime, Rarity! Even I was astounded by its beauty... But- everything fell apart; I was captured and held prisoner by Summer Rain, Spike too. I eventually managed to escape, but he's...”

“You were captured?!” Rarity gasped, “Whatever for!? Where are these scoundrels? I’ll give them a piece of my mind!”

“They’re not... still around here, are they?” Fluttershy whimpered, scanning the corner's of the room nervously.

“I was... look, it’s not important right now. I really need your help, and so does Spike. Rapture lies in ruins, but it’s still alive and under Rain’s crazed rule. She controls what’s left of the population with promises of freedom and salvation, though they’re essentially her mindless slaves. What I’m about to ask of you all is possibly the hardest thing I’ve ever done... I need your help, I’ve all but failed on my own, girls. Now that you’re here, we can save this whole city, together.”

The haunting voice of their missing friend hung in the air for a beat. In the background, a plank of wood paneling peeled off a wall and fell to the ground with a loud clatter, once again breaking the silence that had settled in.

“Really?” Applejack asked flatly, arcing an eyebrow.

“Yes.” Twilight replied calmly.

“Uhh, how long you think that’ll take?” Rainbow asked, remembering her prior engagements. Her question earned her a round of hard stares from the other four. “What?”

"Well... it shouldn’t take long once you’ve found the Elements of Harmony,” Twilight said, drawing everyone’s attention back to the Talk-box.

“The Elements?” Rarity repeated, “But... we aren’t their Bearers anymore...” Rarity had made peace with the loss long ago. She didn’t need a piece of jewelry to tell her she was generous, and she was too old to be going on ridiculous adventures... Like the one she was currently on.

“Plus, aren’t they in Canterlot?” added Pinkie, tilting her head in typical, wondering fashion.

“Actually, I think Scootaloo and the other Crusaders have ‘em,” Dash corrected. Scootaloo was her biggest fan as a filly, but once she earned her portion of the Element of Friendship, the little pegasus began believing in herself. Dash had never been so proud to be her mentor.

Applejack was getting suspicious, and worried. "Twilight, are you sure you know what you're talkin' about?"

“Not the Elements of Harmony,” Twilight began,. “Before I was taken prisoner, I helped create a set of artificial Elements, based on my direct experience with the real ones. The idea was to generate power out of feelings and emotions, such as friendship. It worked... and they are very powerful tools, which contributed to things going so wrong around here. I hid all of them but one when I escaped, to keep them out of Rain’s hooves. I have the Element of Magic with me, I need you to find the other five and bring them to me as fast as you can.”

Applejack mulled that over, then shook her head, “Wouldn’t it be a better idea ta get outta this place, double-time? Get the Princess maybe? Ah’m sure we can rescue Spike, too, but it just seems-”

“I'm afraid not; there’s just no time to lose- I need to make things right here; you have to-” Twilight was cut off by a burst of distorted static that made the others flatten their ears to their skulls.

“What happened? Twilight, you still in there?” Pinkie inspected the box closely, when more static made her fall back on her pink rump with a start.

“Leaving so soon? But you’ve only just arrived.” Another familiar voice emanated from the box.

“It’s Summer Rain!” Rainbow cried, flapping into the air.

“Th-The mare who cut off her cutie m-mark?” stammered Fluttershy fearfully, covering her own mark once more.

“Right you are, my dear,” Rain replied to them, her voice cool and stoic. “Which means it is my city you’re trespassing in. So, what am I to do with such unwanted guests? Guests who happen to have been Celestia’s personal lap-dogs, no less. What would my citizens think of me if I just allowed you to run amok?”

“Now, look here Miss Rain,” Applejack stormed up to the Talk-box. “Ah ain’t the threatening type, but if you don’t give us Spike and let me and mine go on our merry way, you and Ah are gonna have a big problem.” She punctuated the second to last word with a stomp, hard enough to crack the rotting floor.

After a brief pause, staticy laughter erupted into Applejack’s scowling face. “You forget yourself, my dear. Rapture is mine, you see; I make the threats here, and unlike yours, they are far from idle.”

“Idle? I’ll show you idle!” Rainbow flew in, wings spread and ready for combat. The others fell in behind her, forming an intimidating fighting stance. Even Fluttershy managed to put on a brave face, though her trembling legs somewhat spoiled it.

Rain’s silky laughter came once again from the wall. “How deliciously droll. Tell me, Bearers,” she said, her sarcasm clear through the distortion, “I’m sure you consider yourselves a rather ‘big’ deal, but if that were truly the case, how do you think Equestria managed to survive in the thousand years Luna was banished, and the Elements were absent?"

The mares held their tight position while Rain’s odd implication sunk in. Despite their tough front, not a single pony in the group could come up with an answer, they couldn’t even make sense of why that was important. So they stood, staring daggers into the crystal box while their minds twisted over the question.

"I thought as much." Rain continued, "Your little claim to fame is no more than a parlour trick, I’m afraid. A distraction from Celestia’s sickening power, meant to keep the masses placid while she plays benevolent princess. To maintain the status quo! There is nothing beyond her ability, and none who can oppose her.”

"That’s not true!" Rarity’s dampened curls bounced as she cried out. She may not be one for adventures anymore, but she wasn’t going to just stand there and listen to someone slander her Princess.

"Isn’t it? Even her own sister fell under her wrath. Equestria is her’s to do what she wants with, just as Rapture is mine. Her land, however, is stagnating, locked in a never ending dark age, and when it ultimately falls, we shall rise from the depths and create a new world order. One based on progress and the creative Pony spirit. Not silly gimmicks that determine one’s fate."

All five of the mares wore their own expression in response to the mare, Pinkie and Dash wore grim determination, while Rarity and Applejack wore a deepening fury. Fluttershy cringed... but her face hardened towards the end of the villainous speech, away from the fear that had sunk into her.

"Not if we stop you first!" Dash snapped her wings shut and she landed hard on the creaky floor with a snort.

Summer Rain chuckled softer this time. "And what if you should fail, hm? What if friendship cannot save you?"

A loud clanging echoed up the stairs behind them from the docking bay. The five spun around in formation to face the sudden noise.

"Wh-What was that!?" Cried Fluttershy, her eyes were darting to and fro trying to find the source. Behind her, her wings buzzed continually in a state of renewed panic.

"Well, seeing how you’re new to Rapture, I’ve arranged a little welcome party for you. That’s all...” Summer replied wryly.

“A party!” Pinkie Pie abandoned her grimace for a toothy grin and hopped in front of the others towards the noise.

Applejack bit down on the excited, pink party animal’s floofy tail and reeled her back in. “Ah don’t think you want anything ta do with this party, sugarcube.” From downstairs, she could clearly make out several sets of hoofsteps rushing towards them.

“No need to thank me for the hospitality, now if you would all be so kind as to excuse me, I must go deal with my other little stowaway problem. Try not to get killed now... Ta-ta.” Summer Rain’s voice fizzled out with another burst of static as the galloping steps got closer.

“Killed!? What did she mean by killed!? Nopony kills, that’s just- Oh no, what do we do!?” Fluttershy wailed, pressing her face to Rarity’s equally fear stricken face. “They’re getting closer, oh no, everypony what do we do!?”

“Cool it ‘Shy, we ain’t lookin’ fer a fight.” AJ remarked, trying to keep her own cool. That Summer Rain nag was obviously bluffin’, tain’t nopony that would just kill wantonly... She scanned the broken steps leading upwards, but even from her position by the far wall she could tell they were unclimbable. Dash could fly us up... but that would take too long, and maybe they got a pegasus with ‘em... Her mind struggled to find a solution.

“If anypony comes looking for a fight, they can count on getting one from me!” Rainbow pumped a hoof, taking a position above the orange farmer.

The five ponies readied themselves, swapping looks of equal parts worry and determination. All the while the noises got closer and closer and closer...

Suddenly, the Talk-box cracked back to life behind them. “Girls! A group of Splicers are coming! You need to get out of there, now!” It was Twilight again, her voice quick and frantic. “Like NOW-now!”

Applejack rounded to face the box, “Twilight! What the hay is a Splicer?” There were voices now, her eyes fixed back on the room’s only viable exit, becoming more fearful of the wicked taunts and jeers that floated up.

“They’re what is left of the population; you do not want to fight with them!” Twilight sounded deadly serious about that.

“Speak for yourself, egghead,” Dash shot back stubbornly, flapping her wings with more fervor. She prepared to take off and meet these ‘Splicers’ head on. Before she could, Applejack chomped down again, this time getting a mouthful of Dash's rainbow-hued tail. “Hey! What gives?!” The hovering mare cried.

Applejack spat out the tail after jerking her back a whole stride. “Ah already said we ain’t splittin’ up, or fightin’!”

While Rainbow and AJ exchanged harsh words on strategy, Rarity tried to calm down and get more information from Twilight. “So... what happened to the rest of the population?” Rarity asked in a whisper. She had a feeling she wouldn’t like the answer.

“Some of them escaped, I think... That would explain the missing Bathyspheres. As for the rest, they were... all murdered by Splicers.”

“WHAT?!” Five mares all looked up from one another and gasped in unison.

Pinkie Pie bit her bottom lip, looking around frantically in perfect form with Fluttershy, then held the velvet box between her hooves and yelled into it. “Twilight, you gotta help us, there’s no way out from here!”

Twilight made a pained ‘ow’ through the speaker, then replied. “Okay... Just hang on girls, I’ll try to get that door to your right open!” With another burst of static, and Twilight’s voice was gone, leaving her friends alone with the fast approaching killers.

Applejack took charge immediately, “Come on! Everypony to the door!” She charged away from the oncoming noise, leading the way to the closed metal entryway embedded in the glass wall.

Oh no, this is bad! Fluttershy’s thoughts were chaotic and frenzied. She stood there, frozen in place and unable to do anything but tremble with fright while the others ran to their only hope for escape. They... They killed everypony!? Now they’re coming this way!

“Come on, Fluttershy, get yer rear in gear!” AJ shouted back to the petrified pegasus.

Fluttershy blinked and stared back vacantly. She gulped, then took a slow, shaky step towards her friends. Her hooves managed to get into something that resembled a trot, while the rest of her began sobbing. From behind, a deep, raspy voice caused her to stumble and freeze in place.

“Heeeeeeere fishy, fishy, fishy!” The sickening voice echoed from somewhere below. “I got a little surprise for yah!” A cacophony of laughter followed the jeering catcall.

That was more than Fluttershy could handle. Now in full-on panic mode, she pumped her yellow wings wildly, sputtering fearful gibberish and desperately searching for any means of escape. Her hooves flailed underneath her, and suddenly a wall appeared out of nowhere and smacked her senseless.

The yellow mare shook her head, gasping for air in gulps while trying to clear the pain and disorientation. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a corridor on the upper level of the welcome center. Without a second thought, she soared over the crumbling steps and shot blindly down the hallway to her left.

Pinkie turned in time to see the pegasus disappear around a corner. “Fluttershy! Come back!” she called out, face wilting as the severity of things sunk in more and more.

Applejack weighed her options, then made a call. “Dash, you gotta go after her!” The orange mare faced the locked door and frantically began trying to buck open the stubborn steel obstacle.

Rainbow Dash grimaced down at her. She was used to calling the shots these days... After a brief moment of hesitation, she relented and answered the farmer. “Yeah, I’m on it!” Air vacuumed the spot she had been in as she took off in a streak of rainbow light.

The Splicer's voices called from down the hall and the hoof-falls slowed. They were climbing the staircase now. “I smell fishies!” a different voice than the one before grumbled, another stallion.

“Maybe they gots some ADAM!?” Another crazed voice replied, this one definitely female.

“Adam? We don’t even know who Adam is!” Pinkie Pie called back fearfully.

“Be quiet!” snapped Applejack, sending one last futile buck at the solid metal door. “Both a' ya, get behind me. As soon as that door opens, make a run for it.” Come on Twilight, any day now would be just gravy...

Just then, a strange pony crested the top of the stairs, panting heavily. For a moment, he did nothing, just glowered at the three remaining ponies from behind a masquerade mask shaped like a rabbit’s face. It may have been white at some point, but was now stained almost as much as the stallions matted coat and mane. He wore the dirtied remnants of what was once a semi-formal outfit. In his front hoof, he clutched a rusty length of pipe, covered in dry, red flecks.

“Hello, little fishies,” the menacing shape snarled. Behind him, two others of similar appearance ascended the stairs; another stallion in a bird-shaped mask and a mare, whose face was completely wrapped in soiled bandages. A horn peeked out from under her gauze, glowing faintly with a pale, sickly green. They were similarly armed with assorted plumbing equipment and tools.

“Stay back, ya hear!” Applejack called to the bloodied marauders.

“Well, lookie what we got here,” the female Splicer jeered to the others. “This fishy fancies herself a lion!” They shared a sardonic laugh, then began to slowly advance.

“Ah’m warning ya!” Applejack yelled, backing up with Pinkie and Rarity against the fixed door.

“You’re gonna need a lot more than a warning, sister.” The first stallion raised his pipe and broke into a three-legged charge directly at her, laughing maniacally.

“Fluttershy! Come back!” Rainbow called down the cramped, carpeted passageway. Where is that little spaz? She rounded another corner of the unfamiliar complex, but found no sign of the pink-maned pegasus. Gaaahh, I could’ve sworn she came this way... It became annoyingly clear she’d just have to press further onwards with no idea where she was going or how to get back.

After another hundred wing-beats, Rainbow could make out a rhythmic tapping. Her ears perked up at the sound; like hooves pounding on metal.

Fluttershy! She sped up, tearing down the hall’s gilded red walls. A closed metal door like the one in the welcome center came into view, turning the would-be exit into another dead end. Slamming against it with all her might was a terror-stricken Fluttershy.

“There you are! Come on, we gotta go back, the others are in trouble!" Rainbow spoke in a dour voice as she landed behind the hysterical mare. "Not to mention there’s no way out here either...”

"No! I can’t go back! Those- those monsters... they’ll kill me! Kill me dead!” Fluttershy sputtered, sobbing even harder in the face of the abysmal situation. “I need to get out of here, I need to get home!” The mare hit the door one last time, then gave in to despair. She crumpled into a ball on the ruined carpeting, panting hard between weeping.

Rainbow stepped closer, “Hey, come on, we're here for you, ‘Shy. Now let’s go back already, we can’t just abandon our friends.”

“Y-You were going to.” A bloodshot eye poked through Fluttershy's pink mane, looking accusingly at the other pegasus.

Rainbow’s jaw dropped and she stopped in her tracks. “H-hey now-” she began, but was cut off by more tearful blathering.

“What if one of those... one of those monsters tries to... to kill me, and you abandon us? No, I need to leave. Now!” Fluttershy rose to an upright position and began bucking on the sealed exit again, while Rainbow watched too stunned to interfere.

Rainbow tried to regroup her thoughts, but the stinging comment was hardly the first her decision inspired. Pinkie had thrown the whole ‘Fillydelphia’ thing in her face a dozen times since finding out about it; but this was Fluttershy, Dash’s oldest friend, from flight school back in Cloudsdale, and the Element of Kindness. Was what I was going to do really that bad?

Rainbow sat, staring absently at the other mare while she continued her attempt to escape.

Fluttershy wailed in a final cry of defiance. Then, to the surprise of both mares, the door suddenly squealed and opened up a little, revealing a way out of the twisting hall. Both mares gasped and stared at the unexpected exit hole.

Before Rainbow could stop her, Fluttershy squeezed through with a giddy shriek.

“Hey, wait! I- I’m sorry, okay!” She took off after the crazed pegasus, only to have the door slam down in her face. “Hey! Open up!” She smashed her hooves against it, as Fluttershy had done not moments before, but the door remained stubbornly closed.

“How touching,” a voice said with a hiss of static, “and most unfortunate.”

“Rain!” Dash examined the walls and found a glowing Talk-box off to her side. She flew over to it and shouted into the crystals within. “You open this door RIGHT NOW! Ya hear me?!”

“Loud and clear, with extra emphasis on the loud bit.” Her sultry voice replied. “We’re indoors, darling, room tone will suffice, if you please.”

“OPEN. IT. NOW!" Rainbow roared.

“Or perhaps I won’t... On a side note, were you really planning on abandoning your friends?” Rain continued, undeterred by Rainbow’s demands. “Seems like a rather odd thing for the Element of Loyalty to d-”

The haughtily spoken sentence was cut short by Dash’s hoof driving through the ornate box, sending sparks and shards of crystal everywhere. Rainbow stood alone in the quiet hallway now, barely containing her seething anger. It wasn’t from Rain’s taunting, or the fact that she'd lost Fluttershy. She was mad at herself, because they were both right.

'Come on, Dash, don’t you still have your loyalty?' her own thoughts asked, echoing in her mind. Did I really lose it with my Element?

“No!” Dash flared her wings and cried out loud. “I- I can still help the others! We’ll work together and find Fluttershy. I’m still loyal, I am!” She snarled, then took off back down the long, winding hall. As she sped in a direction she hoped lead back to the welcome center, she looked sadly at the steel door one last time.

I’ll be back for you ‘Shy, I promise...

Clack!

The Splicers pipe slammed down on the floor, sending chunks of wooden splinters flying into the air. Applejack dodged at the last second, barely avoiding the crazed pony’s vicious blows. He laughed wildly as he raised the bludgeon once more, attacking again and again.

“Quit squirmin’ fishy!” he shouted in between cackles.

“Quit tryin' ta hit me!” AJ shouted back.

He roared in frustration and readied his weapon for another blow... but was stopped dead in his tracks by a rib-crushing buck, perfected by years of apple harvesting. He cried out in pain as he flew backwards, losing his weapon and crashing into a glass case in the center of the room that contained a scale model of Rapture. Broken shards rained down on the injured Splicer as the container shattered, and he collapsed into a bloody heap.

“Ah warned ya, didn’t I?” AJ shouted at her downed attacker, feeling the adrenaline pumping hot through her veins.

“Applejack! Watch out!” Pinkie yelled.

The farmer turned her head and ducked, narrowly avoiding a speeding wrench. The bandaged unicorn moved in, horn glowing, flanked by the other stallion. Her glowing weapon dive bombed from above, floating where AJ couldn’t see it coming. Darn unicorn magic trick, she grumbled to herself.

Having foiled the incoming ambush, Pinkie charged forward with a shrill war cry and tackled the mare outright, while AJ followed suit and locked hooves with the bird-masked stallion.

From the closed door, Rarity watched the fight unfold before her, too afraid to join in herself. I’m no pugilist, I’d only get in the way. I can’t believe we’re really fighting other ponies! Turning, she pounded on the door again. Oh, come on! Please open up!

“Get offa me!” The Splicer shrieked at Pinkie, who sat on her chest, pinning the strange mare’s legs to the ground soundly.

“Not until you stop acting all loko in the coco!” Pinkie Pie scowled down at what she decided was the worst case of waking up on the wrong side of the bed ever. The bandaged mare snarled and snapped her teeth, struggling violently.

Suddenly, she stopped, and her horn lit up again. Pinkie’s eyes widened, and a second later the whole room was filled with a blinding white light.

“What the- Hey!” Pinkie squawked, just as the Splicer broke free of her hold. She flipped Pinkie onto the ground with her magic and starting beating at the pink mare’s face and torso, landing several blows despite Pinkie’s best attempts to block. “Ouch! Hey, stop! What is wrong with you!?”

Rarity heard the increased commotion from her friends, and turned away from the door. Her expression darkened immediately. Pugilist or not Miss Rarity, Pinkie is in trouble. With a look of pure steel, Rarity gritted her teeth and galloped fearlessly into the fray, directly at the bandaged mare. “rrrrr-aaaAAAAA!” She screamed, prepared to knock the unicorn into next week, or possibly next month.

The cry, however, only alerted the other unicorn to Rarity’s incoming attack, and she was able to spin around and counter.

Rarity winced in pain as a hoof connected with her snout. She veered to the right, missing her target entirely, and slammed into a wall beneath the glowing Talk-box. The world spun in her vision along with her dazed eyes.

From the smashed glass case, the injured Splicer with the rabbit mask fought to get back to his feet. “Noir! Give ‘em ah taste o’fire already, will ya!?” He lept at Pinkie from behind, starting a double-team.

The bird-faced stallion swung at Applejack, missing the agile farmer yet again. “It would be my sincere pleasure.” He threw his wrench at the orange mare, using the distraction to pull out a large, blue syringe from his coat pocket. “You’re in for it now, little fish.” Noir stabbed the needle into his forearm, injecting himself with its luminous contents.

“What now?” Applejack asked, evading the sloppy throw and picking up the tool ‘Noir’ had been kind enough to lend her.

The stallion snickered grimly, then without warning, his leg burst into bright, yellow flames.

“In the name of all things apples...” Applejack’s eyes teared up as she tried to make sense of the horrific scene before her. The other pony’s flesh crackled and peeled, but he didn’t even flinch. He laughed.

“Take this!” There was no warning; the stallion thrust the blistering leg forwards, sending a stream of blazing fire at Applejack.

“Woah Nelly!” She gasped and dropped to the floor just in time. The fireball flew over her head, incinerating what was left of the center’s reception desk and singeing the tip of her long, flailing ponytail.

“Hold still, little bugger,” Noir growled, swallowing and resetting his stance. "I like my fish fried to a crisp!"

A few strides away, Rarity blinked away the pain in her face. She could feel blood pouring out of her nose and an intense heat to her left. “Please...” She hoisted herself up to the Talk-box. “Twilight, you have to open that door, now!”

“Got it!” A distorted voice responded. The stubborn door finally lifted, opening a way out of the burning room. “Go! Get out of there, now!” Twilight ordered.

You don’t have to tell me twice! With renewed purpose, Rarity scrambled to her hooves and made a mad dash to the exit. “Pinkie! AJ! It’s time to go!” She shouted as she ran out into the glass-covered tunnel beyond, leaving a broken trail of blood.

“Wait for us!” Applejack called, dodging another fireball a little too late and losing more hairs. “Ahh! Pinkie, we gotta go!” Frustrated and having had just about enough, Applejack hurled the pipe she'd acquired straight at the bird-masked feller.

The rusted tool slammed the stallion's shoulder with a crunch, and ceased his pyrotechnics. "Gah!"

“Okie... DOKEY!” Pinkie shouted back to Applejack. She punched through the bandaged unicorn’s defenses, landing a stiff blow to her exposed chest. An explosion of confetti shot out of her horseshoe, and sent the crazed mare rocketing away, right into a furious Noir. The two other Splicers collapsed in a tangled pile on the far side of the floor.

Pinkie let out a breath of relief, then hmphed and hopped into the long tunnel, following Applejack's scorched tail.

“Get up! They’re getting away! And where are the others ones!?” The first Splicer shrieked, somehow able to stand after his savage bucking. He kicked at his comrades, and in a heartbeat, they were up and giving chase down the underwater tube, heaving ravenously.

Applejack paused at the door to shut it, but it wouldn’t budge. “Twi’, can you close thi-” Her friend cut her off.

“It’s no use! Run Applejack!” The three pursuers were limping closer.

AJ and Pinkie turned and ran as fast as they could between Rapture’s buildings, closing in on the flailing purple tail of Rarity just up ahead and pulling away from their injured pursuers.

“Keep running!” Applejack bellowed. She spotted an open door at the end of the tunnel, just past a fork leading off to another large building. “There! Straight ahead!”

“Noir! Stop them!” The bandaged unicorn screamed.

The stallion panted, but raised his flickering, yet still burning leg again and fired at the fleeing mares.

Applejack heard the roar coming. “Watch out!” She jumped on Pinkie and forced her to the green-tiled floor. The flames soared over their heads with mere inches to spare, hitting the glass walls ahead and setting them ablaze. The thick panes quickly heated up and began to crack, then melt.

“Uh, oh...” Applejack muttered.

Behind her, the Splicers came to a screeching halt. “Nice shot, Noir.” The one in the bunny mask said, slugging the other stallion’s shoulder. “Let's scram, see if these fishies can swim, eh.” He turned tail and sprinted back towards the welcome center, his cackling companions close in tow.

The glass cracked loudly, springing leaks in numerous places as the plasma like fire clung to its surface and continued to burn.

Up ahead, Rarity made it through the open door and wheeled around in time to see the glass shatter under the tremendous outer pressure. Gallons of angry sea water surged in. “Applejack! Pinkie Pie!” she cried, tears already re-filling her eyes. Her hooves galloped back in to save them.

Or they would have, if the door didn’t slide shut right in her bloodied face, cutting her off from the two earth ponies trapped inside.

“C’mon Pinkie!” Applejack shouted over the gushing water. She grabbed her terrified, pink friend and made to sprint back the way they came... only to see that door slide closed too. Through the glass, the vicious group of Splicers pointed and laughed at them as the tunnel quickly flooded. That left only one option. “We gotta go the other way!”

“Okay! Let’s go! Hurry!” Pinkie fought against the strong current, following Applejack down the off-shooting tube. The water was already up to her neck when they got to the end of the passage... and found the door at the final direction's end shut tight.

“Dagnabbit!” AJ splashed a hoof in the rising water. Why are there so many locked doors in this dang city?!

“What do we do?!” Pinkie was panicking now, the frigid water was up to her chin and she had to do the pony-paddle to keep her muzzle above it.

“Ah... we...” Applejack didn't have a clue. The situation was hopeless; her hooves weren’t even touching the floor anymore, and the small tunnel’s ceiling was getting closer and closer. No, no! This can’t be it! She felt sick to her stomach all over again.

The distinct sound of buckling metal came from the door, drawing the immediate attention of the desperate mares.

“The door! It’s gonna give!” Diving under the churning stream, Applejack braced herself against the creaking metal and slammed her shoulder into it over and over. She resurfaced, inhaling the vanishing air left in the tube, “Take a deep breath and help me push!”

Pinkie nodded, sucking down the precious air and going under with AJ. Together, they pushed as hard as they could, causing the metal to dent and bulge inward, but it refused to rupture. Even the two mare’s combined strength wasn’t enough.

They came back up for more air, but found there was hardly any left.

“Now- What?” Pinkie gasped, her muzzle the only part of her unsubmerged.

Not much left to do now... Applejack thought about Harvey’s smiling face and messy mane, “Pinkie, Ah’m sorry but, ah guess this i-”

The last few words came out as a stream of bubbles. Opening her eyes she saw Pinkie floating in the green abyss, a panicked look etched on her face that made Applejack want to cry. Instead, she put on a brave smile and swam over to her slowly drowning friend, reaching out for a hug. Pinkie grasped at the outstretched arms and pulled herself close in the cold water. She tried to speak, but her words were lost, floating away as a swarm of bubbles. They held each other tight in the cold, muffled silence.

Goodbye, friend. Applejack thought as her lungs emptied. Ah’m sorry ah couldn’t save us.

…

…....

The tunnel bent and cracked around them, and with a thunderous crash, caved in. The door blew off its steel track, and they burst through on a tidal wave of seawater.

Applejack faintly registered that she was moving. Seconds later her head was in the open air again. She gasped desperately for oxygen, kicking her legs frantically with all the energy she had left to keep above the torrent cascading around her. “S-Swim!” She coughed at Pinkie, unsure if she could even hear her over the current.

Riding the speeding river, the two ponies were carried into another wide, open foyer, the water pouring in with them.

“Warning! Flooding detected.” A flat voice resounded over the din. “Initiating containment procedures.” A thick shutter slammed into place around the small concave antechamber connecting the room to the tunnel, effectively cut off the flow.

Inside, the water began to drain out through gutters along the sides of the empty room, leaving two mares splashing around on the wet, marble floor, gasping for breath. Around them, several unlucky fish flapped in the remaining puddles, along with a strange rainbow-patterned sponge.

“That... w-was too close,” sputtered Pinkie. She slowly stood, cocking her head and tapping it to clear the water clogging her ears. “I don’t think I like the parties this place throws.”

“You can say that again...” Applejack coughed, trying to do the same, but felt too nauseous to even stand.

“That was too cl-”

“Pinkie, I was being sarcastic...”

“Right! Sorreee.” Pinkie offered Applejack a hoof and helped her off the slippery floor. “I’m just a little shook up. You know, from almost drowning and stuff.”

AJ sighed, “Ah know... so am I. I’m sorry, too-”

Static interrupted the mutual apologies, followed by Twilight’s anxious voice, “Girls! Oh my gosh, are you two okay?!”

The two drenched ponies tracked the sound to another Talk-box, the glowing device providing the only source of light in the unfamiliar area. The strong smell like that of a greenhouse spread from the darkness beyond, overpowering the pungent odor of salt water.

“Twilight...” Applejack stepped up to the box, a look of pure anger creeping onto her face, changing it from pale to red hot in seconds.

“Applejack, I’m sorry, I should have warned you better-”

“Ya THINK?!” she exploded, her furious voice reverberating off unseen walls, “We nearly drowned in there! Not ta mention those 'Splicer' creeps... And what happened to everypony else?”

“I’m sorry! Don’t worry, they’re fine and I’ve got my eye on them, but I can’t speak too long. If I do, Rain will be able to trace the signal back to my hiding place! She’ll recapture me, take the Element of Magic and all this will be for nothing! I know things are rough, but we need to push forward, it’s the only way we can beat her!”

The farm mare ground her teeth together audibly. “Yeah, we. Guess that means ya ain’t gonna give that explanation ya owe us.”

“I’m... sorry. But I can’t risk it yet. No time!”

Pinkie put a wet hoof on AJ’s shoulder, “Okay, everypony caaaaaalm down, I’m sure nopony wanted anypony getting hurt... Or drowned... Or set on fire...” She thought it might be best to change the subject, hoping to break the tension and still her own curiosity. “Oh hey, Twilight! How come that earth pony was casting fire spells? I thought only unicorns could do that!”

“He... must have found an Incinerate plasmid. They were designed to give earth ponies and pegasi the ability to use magic, just like a unicorn. I... kinda helped create them...”

“Ya don’t say...” Applejack snorted, removing her soaked hat and wringing it out as best she could.

“Yes... But you’re in luck! I know where you can find another one.”

“Really?!” Pinkie hopped with overt excitement, already over her recent near-death experience. “You mean I could throw fireballs and stuff?”

For the briefest of moments, Applejack pictured her pink friend with the power the Splicer pony had attacked her with. She shuddered and felt sick again. “No way!” she exclaimed. Uuugh, I’ll be havin’ nightmares about that for months... “That stuff ain’t natural, and it sure as Celestia didn’t look safe, neither! We don’t wanna be like them.”

“You’re going to need it if you want to survive down here Applejack.” Twilight urged the stubborn earth pony, “Didn’t you see how quick that fiend got up after you bucked him? Splicers are genetically altered; they’re strong, fast, and utterly insane. You’ll need every advantage you can get until we gather the Elements, trust me.”

Applejack thought back on the fight, and her inability to put a stop to the onslaught. She replayed what could have been her final moments in the glass tunnel, and realized there was no good decision to make here.

“Alright, fine,” Applejack relented. Pinkie jumped into the air with a gleeful cry. “But Ah’m the one who's usin’ it.”

“Awwww, no fair," whined Pinkie. AJ recalled her brief vision, and knew she’d made the right choice, if not the most ideal. At least this way, she’d be the one taking the risk.

“One thing though Twi’, is this plasmid business... dangerous?” Applejack raised an eyebrow suspiciously, waiting for the unicorn to answered her.

“Only in large amounts. The Splicers got that way from abusing it," Twilight explained, then comfortingly added. "So don’t worry, you’ll be fine. Now then, let’s go find you some Adam! Head into the Gardens, I’ll contact you when I can, but the others need my help right now.” The box flickered out, leaving the two mares alone in the dark.

After a moment, true light entered the space.

The light filled up the massive interior of a grand, marble foyer. A blue and green neon sign winked to life, the words “Rapture Gardens” prominently displayed above a line of boarded up turnstiles. The powerful smell of plant life wafted through from behind the entrance.

The two dripping wet ponies stood and stared, still unsure about their course of action, when the pink member of the duo spoke up.

“Wait, so then, who’s Adam?”

Author's Note

Ain't no party like a Rapture party, 'cause a Rapture party don't stop!

Equalize

Chapter VI : Equalize

The stink was just awful.

Curled up in the fetal position on the damp floor, Fluttershy held her slight frame perfectly still. She was utterly paralyzed with fear, so much so that she wasn’t even trembling. Unmoving, unblinking, she waited; for what, her frayed mind wasn’t even sure of.

Maybe my friends will come and find me? The thought bubbled to the surface of her mind. It was comforting, though not very encouraging. She was horribly lost in a strange place, and nopony knew where she was. How can something smell so bad? she wondered, unable to process the dire hopelessness of her situation.

Though her head and eyes remained locked in place, Fluttershy was able to take in bits of her surroundings using her peripherals. She appeared to be on a round floor that circled an elaborate elevator shaft. Numbered doors dotted the walls, leading to what she assumed were offices. At the top edge of her vision, she could see one of the lifts a few floors above on the other side of the open shaft. Though tarnished now, the cage seemed to be made of interwoven lengths of gold; as were the tracks that it clung to. A shower of blue sparks rained down from beneath the cage, crackling to life every few seconds with a static popping.

More banners like the ones in the lighthouse hung around, bidding readers to “Unbind thyself from the chains of fate” proudly, and compounding Fluttershy's fears beyond her capacity to cope.

And so, she remained lying still and waited, trying to ignore the overpowering stench surrounding her. It wasn’t the same wet, moldy smell the rest of the stagnant city produced. It was the organic smell of rot and decay, and it stemmed from a partially-rotten corpse lying a few feet in front of her frozen form, locking her in place with an open-eyed stare.

The dead pony laid on his stomach with his legs sprawled out in every direction and his chin flat on the ground. He wore fine clothing; complete with a wilting flower pinned to his lapel and a square handkerchief still tucked in his breast pocket. A tattered, brown bowler hat sat next to him in a puddle of his dried blood. Light from the sparking elevator glinted off a serrated knife jutting out of his back.

Fluttershy stared directly into his glossy eyes, unable to look away. And they stared back, cold and unseeing.Though she wanted to run, or scream, or call for help, she couldn’t. The blank face of death had glued her in place.

It always made Fluttershy sad to find deceased animals on her various walks through the Everfree Forest or Whitetail Woods... But this was different. This was a pony, and he had been murdered.

“Monsters...” The tiniest of whimpers escaped Fluttershy's tightly closed lips.

The deathly stillness of the shaft was suddenly broken by the sharp, grinding sound of a door opening, then a gravelly voice from within. “...and when Deco tried to run, we hit ‘em with a Swarm. I swear, those bugs ate half his face off before he hit the ground! It was hilarious!” The voice was followed by a bout of laughter that degenerated into a hacking cough.

“You twit, I was bloody there!” A smoother voice replied. "You need new stories..."

“Ha, oh yeah.”

Somepony was out there on the same floor as Fluttershy and heading her way. Survival instinct tried to illicit any sort of self-preserving reaction, but it was drowned out by the pair of dull eyes before her. She didn't move a muscle as the stallions neared.

“What about that one time in the Gardens when I stabbed...” The pair casually trotted into view behind the corpse and instantly spotted the helpless pegasus cowering on the floor. They came to an abrupt stop, and after swapping surprised glances, the Splicers looked down on their easy prey with vile, toothy grins.

“Well, well, well, would ya' lookit what we got here, Spade,” said the owner of the less gruff voice.

“Ooooh, looks like one that’s dead, and one that thinks it’s dead.” The other chuckled, a sound not unlike rubbing two bricks together. “Whatcha think Ace, should we finish the job then, give ‘er skull a good bashin’?”

Ace shook his head at his boorish companion, “Now, that’s no way to treat a lady. Watch and learn.” He straightened his filthy vest and flattened his greasy, black mane, then approached the comatose mare. “G’day, Love, my name is Ace, and this troglodyte here is Spade. How may we be of service to you on this fine evening?”

No... please go away... Fluttershy tried to say, but only managed a quiet, terrified squeak.

“What’s the matter, eh? Catfish got yer tongue?” Spade teased, leaning casually against a cracked wall. “Say, we outta call you Chicken Wings!”

“Button it, you ruddy hooligan.” Ace kneeled on the floor next to Fluttershy and spoke softly. “Now, you just tell ol’ Ace what’s wrong and he’ll make it all better, Love. Scout's honour!"

“I- I...” She tried again, the words catching in her dry throat. I'm waiting for my friends...

“Whazzat? Didn’t quite catch it, Chicken Wings,” Spade chided from the side.

“I thought I told you to BUTTON YER BLOODY TRAP.” Ace roared at his uncivil companion.

Fluttershy flattened her ears and closed her dry eyes, finally blocking out the macabre image in front of her. A tear rolled down her yellow cheek as she quickly whispered, “I- I just want to go home!”

“Home!” Keeping her eyes clamped shut, Fluttershy listened as Ace stood up and trotted nonchalantly back to his friend. “She wants to go home!”

They laughed heartily for a moment, then Spade removed something from his grubby blazer. It clunked heavily against the floor. “I just so happen to know a shortcut... of sorts,” he croaked, dragging the heavy instrument along the floor towards the prone pony.

“Now, you just hold still, Love. It’ll all be over soon.” Ace snorted from behind the advancing Splicer.

Spade came to a stop, looming over her now, yet Fluttershy was still unable to move or even open her eyes. “Please... I want to go home!”

“And I want a golden lou, but that just ain’t in the cards, is it?” Spade sneered.

“What is wrong about wanting to go home?”

What? Who said that? Fluttershy’s eyes flew open. The voice did not belong to either of the ponies she saw standing in the small hallway. It was heavily accented with a musicality that would sound odd coming from any pony's mouth.

“Yeah, what’s so... huh?” Spade looked back a Ace, lowering the hammer he had raised in the air, “What did you just say?”

“I didn’t say nothing.” Ace looked around the hall, but saw no others. “Who’s there? Show yourself, ya coward!” he shouted, pulling a sharp pair of scissors out of his vest.

“Forget it,” Spade turned his attention back to Fluttershy on the floor. “Now where were we?”

He brought the hammer up again, only to have it fly out of his hoof’s grip and embed itself claw-first into the peeling wallpaper to his left.

“What the f-” His vulgar outburst was interrupted by a heavy thud.

Fluttershy watched with bleary eyes as Spade stumbled to the side, fighting to keep his footing as a trickle of blood ran down his split cheek. What... what's going on?

“How does one who attacks the helpless dare call me coward?” the voice from before asked. Fluttershy was sure it came from close by, but all she saw was the two confused Splicers and a dead body on the ground.

Spade wiped the blood off his face with a sleeve, then yanked his hammer out of the wall. “Where are ya? I’ll smash your damn head in you son of a-” He was interrupted again. Not by a strike, but an ominous bellowing. From back the way they had come, a deep, rolling moan came forth, rattling Fluttershy’s bones and freezing the blood in her veins.

The two stallions’ eyes widened to their utmost. “Big Stag!” Spade cried, his anger instantly turning to fright. “W-We gotta get outta here!” Without waiting for a reply, he dropped his hammer and bolted away as fast as his legs would take him.

“You craven, yellow, COWARD!” Ace called after him, still scanning the rounded floor for their unseen attacker. Heavy footsteps echoed up and down the derelict elevator; shaking the walls as it drew closer. Ace's hooves carried him backwards slowly, “You got lucky, Love,” he said, pointing his scissors at the unmoving Fluttershy, then he wheeled about and took off after his fleeing comrade. “Or maybe I should say unlucky.” The words echoed down the hall, mingling with his crazed laughter and another, horrendous moan.

Fluttershy was alone with the corpse once again, with a slowly approaching monstrosity.

“Pl-Please... I just, I just want...” Her breath quickened as her gaze flicked around the end of the passage and fell on the reeking cadaver. She felt a scream clawing its way up from her lungs to her throat. Her eyes closed and her mouth opened to let it out, but a hoof clamped over it just before it could escape.

“Quiet. Make no sound, make no movement.” It was the accented stallion who saved her from the Splicers! Fluttershy opened her eyes to look upon her saviour, but found she was still alone.

“Don’t. Move.” The voice came from the thin air above her head to the right.

With a muffled gasp, Fluttershy made to pull away from whatever was holding her, when the stomping monster stepped into full view.

Though Fluttershy couldn’t see the limb covering her mouth, it was the only thing that held back the loudest, shrillest scream her lungs could muster.

Applejack and Pinkie Pie cautiously trotted through the strangest garden they had ever seen. Sure, Canterlot had a beautiful greenhouse and a sprawling maze of flower beds and hedges perched on the side of a mountain, but building one under the sea? Even to the well-traveled mares it seemed a little far-fetched.

“Ooooooh, it’s so pretty!” Pinkie beamed, admiring the overgrown flora as her hooves crunched on fallen leaves. The garden was in a chaotic state of neglected upkeep, but the lofty trees and unfamiliar flowers were still a nice change from dim, metal hallways. “I wonder if any animals live here? Oh! I bet Fluttershy would just love this place!”

Shuffling along next to the excited mare, Applejack nearly stumbled at Pinkie's sentiment. Worry instantly replaced her budding fascination with the sunken garden. “I sure do hope she’s okay...” she muttered drearily.

“Don’t worry, Twilight said she was fine! I’m sure Rainbow found her, they’re probably on their way to find their Elements right now!” Pinkie chimed hopefully. She had been trying to lift the overtaxed farmer’s spirits, something she used to be quite good at, but her best efforts just weren't cutting it. Applejack continued to sulk, staring at her hooves as she trudged through the amazing garden. If the bags under her eyes were any indication, she looked about ready to pass out.

When Pinkie's optimism got no response, she tried again. “Soooo,” she began in her cheery, party-pitched voice, “why do you think they built and tilled and planted and grew a garden like this here, AJ?”

Her mopey friend lifted her head to glance at the surroundings from under the edge of her damp stetson. “Ah reckon they needed some source of oxygen... Not ta mention food.” Applejack inspected the plants, noticing several apple trees bearing fruit the size of a pony’s head. That... just ain’t natural.

Giant fruit aside, there was a lot on Applejack’s mind at the moment. She had experienced more craziness in the last 12 hours than the last 12 years. There were still many questions she had no answers for, all of which spun around in her head like a swarm of fruit bats. Why was Twi’ really down here? And what does Celestia have to do with it? Summer Rain sure seemed to have a problem with her... But why? And if she loves her city so much, why'd she let it fall inta such bad shape?

“Uhhh, Pinkie Pie to Applejack, come in Applejack...”

Applejack snapped out of her thoughts to find Pinkie staring her in the face, matching her pace while walking backwards.

“Oh! Sorry Pinkie, just... thinkin’...” Ah may not be able to get answers from Twilight... but maybe Pinkie knows something. “Say, can we talk about what happened to ya back on the Endless Horizon? Ya got all snarky on us... It wasn’t like you at all."

Pinkie’s bright smiled faded at the mention of the memory. “I don’t really know...” she responded timidly. So much for making her feel better... With her attempts to lighten the conversation failing, Pinkie fell in line beside AJ, stepping over the wild bushes and onto a barely visible stone path. I guess I'm really out of cheering-up-AJ practice. With no better ideas, she began replaying the disaster out loud. “I guess, well, when I found out about Rainbow’s plan to leave early, I was so disappointed... But I tried to keep it inside ‘cause I wanted this reunion to be PERFECT! But then everypony was mad at each other and Rarity just left Fluttershy behind and I just... I couldn’t hold it in anymore. It was like a little voice in my head was telling me to be angry, even though all I really wanted was for everypony to be happy. I got mad enough and it kinda took over.” Now it was Pinkie’s turn to hang her head. Losing herself to anger was not something Pinkie was proud of doing.

Applejack nudged the pink pony with her shoulder. “Hey, Ah understand. Ah wanted everything to work out, too... But what about this place? Ah’m not blaming ya anymore or nothin’, but ya did kinda did bring us down here... How’d ya even know what that thing was? What’d Twi call it... a ‘Bathysphere’?”

Pinkie smiled, thankful for Applejack's emptathy, then she placed a hoof under her chin, “Well you see... there was another voice in my head too, a really quiet one, but friendly and... real. It told me to go to the bottom of the lighthouse and pull that lever when everyone was on board. I don’t know why, and I probably could have ignored it, but it felt like things would work out okay if I listened, so I did. Plus it was better than listening to the other voice, and being mean to my friends.”

“Voices in yer head? That’s why we’re here?” Applejack asked, raising an incredulous eyebrow.

“And that Bath-o-tub!” Pinkie laughed at her pun, her high-pitched giggles echoing off vine covered walls. The thick green tendrils were everywhere, snaking up support beans and spreading over the ceiling.

Despite her anxiety, AJ chuckled along with her old friend, though at a much lower volume. More Splicers could be lurking around anywhere after all, and she wanted to avoid more fighting if she could. And what if we can't avoid it? She sighed to herself. It seemed her list of questions with no answers was still gaining length.

“Hey, look!” Pinkie charged ahead, leaping over an unkempt hedge with budding purple bulbs to a doorway completely covered in a tangle of thick vines.

“That must be the way to the Garden's irrigation system,” Applejack deftly noted, remembering the instructions they’d received over the Talk-box. “Accordin’ ta Twilight, that’s where one of the Elements is hidden, but we can’t get in withou-”

“Without burning up these vines with the super-fireball-magic-SUPERpower!” Pinkie finished with a shout that resounded through the whole the garden.

In the blink of an eye, Applejack yanked her low to the ground and forced her mouth shut, listening for any sign of movement in the dense grass. After several tense seconds of silence, she released her grip on Pinkie’s muzzle and got back to her hooves. “Would ya mind keepin’ yer voice down!?” Applejack whispered harshly.

“Sorry! I’m just really excited... and, kinda scared too, hehe,” Pinkie admitted, joining AJ by the hefty vines that blocked their way. “Are you still positively positive you don’t want me to use the plasmid?” She grinned hopefully.

Applejack dropped the vine she was examining and stuck Pinkie with the sternest look her face would allow. It was colder than ice, colder than dry ice; a stare even the stare-master Fluttershy would be proud of. Pinkie’s resolve staggered and buckled under the sheer weight of the gaze.

“Fine! I’ll stop asking...” she relented, crossing her forelegs and plopping her rump down on the damp soil.

“Glad ta hear it.” Applejack softened her features and looked around the rest of the wild garden. “So, we’re lookin’ fer a red needle looking thing. Twi said it should be somewhere 'round this here doorway, in a kind of... dispensin’ machine.”

“OVER THERE!” Pinkie cried as loud as before, earning another hard scowl from AJ. “I mean... over there,” she repeated with less enthusiasm, pointing off into the dense foliage where a pale, pink light shone through the leaves of a gigantic fern.

The two explorers warily made their way over to the light and pulled back the plants obscuring it, finding an odd machine with two plastic fillies smiling happily at its sides. Sitting in its receptor slot was a large needle, similar to the blue one Noir had used on himself, only this one was filled with a weird red substance.

“Ooooh, you think that’s it?” Pinkie gawked at the strange cartage. She extended a pink hoof towards it, which was promptly slapped away by Applejack. “Hey! I just wanted to touch it...” Pinkie winced.

“Sure ya did. Ah thought we had an agreement.” Applejack rolled her green eyes, then reached out and carefully lifted the luminous object.

“Applejack... are you sure you're okay with this? Like, really, REALLY sure? What if it's dangerous?!”

“Twilight said it would be fine... and we need this if we wanna get to that Element...” AJ repeated the unicorn’s words, convincing herself more than Pinkie.

What are you getting yourself into, Jackie? Harvest Moon’s voice said in her mind, drowning out all the swirling questions. In truth, she wasn’t sure herself, but she knew it would help her friends. They may have their differences, but they needed her, and that was motivation enough.

“Well, here goes nothin’.” Not wanting to wait, the orange mare jammed the syringe into her left foreleg and pressed the plunger all the way down.

“STOP SHOOTING AT ME!” Rarity screamed at the top of her lungs.

Chunks of splintered oak rained down around the unicorn, blown loose by speeding projectiles a strange chair-mounted machine launched in her direction. The thunderous booms it produced with every shot turned the deserted restaurant it occupied into a concert hall of ear-splitting noise.

With both ears plastered to her skull, Rarity covered her flowing mane with a hoof as the sentient, and apparently malicious office chair destroyed the finely-crafted countertop she hid behind. It wasn’t clear to her what it was using to do so much damage, but it was obvious they could badly injure a flesh and blood pony. Maybe even worse.

In her other hoof, Rarity clutched the glowing ADAM needle she had found in the restaurant's kitchen, shut away in a freezer. Twilight had promised it would help get Rarity through the city as long as she stayed stocked with blue EVE 'hypos', then left abruptly to help Rainbow Dash without explaining what that meant. Not long after, she stumbled into her current predicament.

It had been a very close call; after entering the eatery, the machine pointed itself in her direction, almost like it was studying her. The second she moved again it had fired, and only the large number of tables and furniture between her and it had shielded her. Rarity tried to use her magic to knock it over, but it was too far away, and she refused to expose herself to the relentless barrage long enough to get a solid telekinetic fix.

And so, Rarity remained hidden under heavy fire, clinging to her mystery plasmid, but not daring to use it. Her eyes flicked to it now and then, only to turn away each time. Twilight had been in such a hurry, she failed to mention what it would actually do to her when injected; only that it was very powerful, and would help her defend herself.

Rarity’s thoughts ran over what she did know, recalling the fight from before. That earth pony was throwing magic fireballs... will this give me the same power? What if it does something entirely different? What would that kind of heat do to my hair! Imagine the split ends!

Suddenly, the chair-turret fell silent, ending its unprovoked barrage with a metallic whine, and leaving the battered restaurant in an uneasy quiet.

“It... stopped?” Cautiously, Rarity rose to a crouch and peeked over the mangled countertop. A thin trail of smoke wafted off the machine’s barrels, but it made no motion to attack.

Rarity let out a sigh of relief, taking a step out from behind the bar. “Thank Celestia, and here I thought it-”

The second the shaken mare exposed herself, she heard a noise that made her grind to a halt. The machine came back to life with another whining churn of gears and mechanisms. Lifting its iron barrels, it pointed them right at Rarity’s head.

The fashionista’s eyes widened and her pupils shrank, but the rest of her remained frozen out of fear. That’s not good... The thought was immediately followed by the reawakened roar of the chair-mounted machine’s unconventional weaponry.

The once-elegant diner was again alight with a spray of bullets and muzzle flashes. Glasses from the shelves shattered and sent their sharp remains scattering across the bar and floor.

Rarity dove back behind her severely damaged cover, only just avoiding the hot, flying bullets. She felt a pull at her backside, and immediately feared the worst. I’m hit! Oh Celestia, I’ve been shot!

As soon as she was safely behind the thick bar of the rundown establishment, Rarity fearfully inspected her precious posterior. A stream of smoke rose off her purple tail. She found several frayed and singed bits where red-hot bullets had passed through the delicate hair’s immaculate form. Her response was swift, and appropriate. “My tail! My beautiful, perfectly-styled tail! You-! I-! How could-!” She cried, completely ignoring the roaring gunfire that entirely drowned out her words. “Oh. That is it.”

Raising the glowing needle, Rarity held out her foreleg and slid it gingerly into its soft tissue. After a moment’s hesitation brought on by the sting of the pointed instrument, she forced the plunger down with her magic. Rarity screamed out over the surrounding ruckus at the initial pain of the drug entering her system. It quickly spread across the unicorn's entire body; her vision blurred and she shook violently, trying desperately not to sick-up.

Frantically, Rarity pulled the needle out and threw it to the floor, breathing heavily as her body protested the foreign chemicals coursing through her veins. The room soon began to sharpen in definition and the pain subsided, lingering slightly in the puncture wound and the flesh surrounding it. Rarity held the trembling leg up to her face and gasped in amazement at what she saw transpiring before her wide, blue eyes.

A delicate lattice of ice crystals was spreading from where the needle pierced her skin. Rarity watched as it slowly covered her whole leg in a thin layer of glistening frost. She was captivated by the beauty of it, until a series of icy spikes burst out of her flesh. Blood tried to pour forth, but was instantly frozen around the wounds.

“BY TARTARUS!” The mare cried out at the sudden, intense pain; holding the frozen limb steady. “H-How is self-mutilation supposed to help me?!” The pain in her leg was already numbing from the cold it produced, though the horrible protrusions remained.

Hoping to shake loose the unsightly things, Rarity waved her hoof around in the air. “Oh, get off! Twilight, how could you do this to me!?” The spastic motion sent a stream of ice at the cash register sitting on the bar above. A second later, it was encased in a thick layer of ice. A stray bullet from the overactive turret collided with the newly made ice sculpture, smashing it into a thousand tiny shards.

Rarity gaped at the destroyed register, then at her disfigured leg in amazement. Still, she couldn’t help but wince at the ghastly sight her body had become. From behind, the machine stopped shooting again, bringing strained silence back to the large dining room.

The panicked unicorn took the momentary ceasefire as a chance to settle her nerves. “Well,” she breathed out in a sigh. “This certainly is powerful magic, just as Twilight promised, and I can see how it could help us alright...” Her eyes and lips drew themselves down into a concerned look at her poor foreleg, before growing more determined. “And that wretched machine certainly deserves a good dismantling after... after,” she glared at her charred and disheveled tailed mournfully. “This travesty!”

The last straw had been pulled from the Crystal Empire headdress, so to speak. Rarity pushed herself over the destroyed bar and leaped onto the pock-marked countertop.

Time for some payback!

The machine whined and whirred to life once more as its magic sensors detected movement. It settled into shooting position, locking its cross-hairs on the target before it.

“Not this time, chair!” Rarity shouted at the machine, then shoved her hoof in its direction. A gust of icy wind flew through the warm air, freezing the hateful thing solid before it could get off a single shot. Ethereal motes of frost glittered in the light, creating a cold mist around the deep-chilled turret.

Cracks began to spiderweb through the machine, even as Rarity hopped off the bar and casually walked past the spiteful contraption. She stopped to look at it disdainfully, then prodded it lightly with a rear leg. It slowly tipped over and shattered on the ground just as the cash register had done. A smirk perked her lips up at the sight.

With the diner now empty of any threat, Rarity admired her frozen leg again. It wasn’t totally hideous, she decided. Upon relaxing, the icicles retracted back into her skin, the puncture wounds freezing over and closing as they went. She gasped in shock, but maintained her cool, in more ways than one.

“W-Well, this should prove very useful indeed, if a tad unrefined...” Rarity was glad the spikes were gone, but the leg itself remained cover in a thin layer of ice. It was numb and shaky as well. I suppose I can live with this for now... Hopefully there is a way to reverse the effect; I’d hate to go back to the office like this... What would Madam Chichi think?

With the area cleared of hostiles, Rarity pushed away the thought and decided to look around for any useful supplies, recalling the blue substance the fire-wielding pony had used earlier to refuel. That must have been one of the ‘hypos’ Twilight mentioned... however briefly. I’ll have to find some; wouldn’t want to run out of this... 'EVE’ stuff.

After exploring the diner for a few minutes, her tenacity bore fruit in the form of a glowing, blue needle found under an overturned table. Rarity quickly fashioned a saddle bag using a white table cloth and carefully stored the pointed item inside. “It’s not really up to my standards... but it will have to do I suppose.” Until I can find a sewing machine and some decent fabric, at least.

On her way out, Rarity spotted another curious device sitting on a table in the back. Thankfully, this one wasn’t of the death-dealing variety. It kind of looked like a phonograph, only all the components had been compacted to fit onto a small, portable device and the horn was missing entirely. She trotted over to it for a closer look and saw a vinyl record was still inside it, labelled ‘The Rapture Dream - Summer Rain”.

Hmmm, some sort of recorded diary perhaps? Rarity lifted the device with her un-frozen leg. I suppose it couldn’t hurt to learn more about this crazed mad-mare. Her hoof hit the button on the front and the disc inside began to spin. A moment later, Summer Rain’s smooth voice filled the vacant eatery.

‘The Rapture Dream’

By: Summer Rain

I’ll never forget the day I received my cutie mark. All the other fillies at school were so excited to get theirs, but mine only filled me with dread. ‘Don’t fret,’ Mother told me, ‘There are plenty of weather ponies in our family; you’ll get used to it.’ I was revolted! Get used to it? What if I didn’t want to be a weather pony? Did I not have any say in the matter? It was her words that ultimately drove me away from my supposed fate, all the way to Canterlot’s Royal Council. I was the only pegasus in a sea of pompous unicorns, who repeatedly shot down my so-called ‘radical’ ideas for progress in Equestria and openly mocked my heritage. Like my Mother’s words, they only fueled my desire for change. I pushed on, my years of hard work eventually earning me a meeting with Celestia herself, and how does our mighty ruler repay my diligence? By calling my life’s work a ‘risk to the Equestrian way of life.’ The same way of life that would smother a filly’s dreams and lock her in a future she despises? I’ll never forget that day either, for it triggered the beginning of the Rapture dream. I removed my disdainful mark and left the capital that very night. I need only look upon these scars on my flank to see the very blueprints of Rapture, as clear as the dark storm clouds that had once been in their place. I do so often... and I smile each time.

Rainbow Dash’s muscles spasmed again and again as bolts of electricity sprang into being and danced across her nerves, then down through her veins. She closed her eyes tight and tried not to scream as the empty ADAM syringe fell from her grasp and rolled down a flight of broken stairs, landing with a plunk in the half-drained floor below.

“What’s... happening!?” Rainbow forced the words out from behind clenched teeth. It felt like she was being struck by lightning. Repeatedly.

“Calm down, Rainbow! It’s just you’re genetic code being rewritten.” Twilight spoke from somewhere beyond the veil of pain.

Gee, that’s comforting...

As quickly as the agonizing pain had come, it suddenly dissipated. Rainbow blinked in confusion, then lifted herself carefully off the floor. Her breath was heavy and rapid, working to restore metabolic balance. While her senses gathered themselves, Rainbow reaffirmed her surroundings.

She was back in the welcome center on the upper level. A large portion of the room was on fire, and the floor below was flooded with several inches of seawater, but her friends were long gone. Instead, only the likenesses of two plastic fillies stood before her, smiling from ear to ear like Pinkie Pie after a good pranking.

“Uuugh, what the hay Twilight? I hope I just electrocuted myself for a good reason...” Dash turned away from the creepy statues, lifting a hoof to sooth the splitting headache she was developing. As she did, Rainbow found her multi-hued mane frizzed up at the slightest touch. “What in the- WOAH!”

Snapping the appendage as far away from her face as she could, Rainbow stared at it bug-eyed. Beneath her cyan coat she could see a patchwork of veins and arteries, all glowing bright blue and crackling with electricity.

“That was the electro-bolt plasmid, Rainbow,” Twilight explained from the Talk-box on the floor below, “As long as you keep your EVE levels high enough, it will allow you to create a static discharge that will stun enemies and-”

“You mean I can shoot lightning!?” With two powerful wing beats, the excited pegasus flew off the upper level, landing before the Talk-box with a splash. Small flashes spread to the water, arcing in every direction in short bursts.

“Not exactly, it’s more like releasing the built up electricity your body's naturally generat-” Twilight was cut off again when Rainbow accidentally zapped the ornate box with a blue bolt. The crystals inside exploded with a hiss and a plume of smoke rose out the top.

“That. Is. AWESOME!” Rainbow cried out, admiring her leg with new-found excitement.

“Rain...ow, wha... you do?” The destroyed Talk-box sparked and smoked, reducing Twilight’s question to a garbled mess.

“Huh? Twilight, you’re breaking up... oh.” Tearing her gaze away from her amped up limb, Rainbow finally noticed the damage she had inadvertently caused, “Ummm, oops? Hehe, sorry Twi.”

“I can’t bel... do something like....! Oh no...” The laboured voice cut out, leaving only a low static hissing.

“Hey, can you hear me? Everything okay in there?” She approached the fried Talk-box and tapped it with her non-electrified hoof. "Did something happen to the others!?"

“Splicers!” Twilight cried through the static. “They... coming!...hind you!” And with that, the box cut out completely, the residual glow of the crystals faded and the hiss died out.

“What?! Twilight! Come in, Twilight!” She hammered in the burnt-out box, but got no reaction.

A raspy stallion's voice echoed up to Dash’s ears. “Huh? Did you hear something?” it asked. He was close, somewhere below in the docking bay she’d arrived in.

“Sounds like our runaway fishies came back,” a mare’s voice replied. “Maybe Noir won’t let ‘em get away this time...”

“Like you two dimwits were any help!” another stallion snapped back at the mare.

Oh no! Them again! Rainbow frantically scanned the burning room for any means of escape. The main exit was sealed with water tight doors, and the walkway beyond was flooded, so that was out. That left two options; go back down the dead-end hall she came from, or...

Dash inspected her hoof again, feeling the power surging through it. A roguish smile etched itself onto her face and her foreleg crackled with anticipation.

They’re the ones who attacked my friends, Rainbow reminded herself. Without a second thought, she flared open her wings and took off down the stairs, back to the catwalk overlooking the docking bay.

Moving in her direction, Dash found a group of Splicers in the warped hall leading to the welcome center above. She didn’t hesitate; as her eyes struck them, she dove forwards with a burst of speed. Her wings grazed the catwalk before she barreled into the stallion wearing a bird-shaped mask in a streak of multicoloured light. Her cyan shoulder buried itself into her target’s gut and slammed him into a wall before he could even register what had happened.

The Splicer crumpled to the floor, leaving a large dent in the crumbling plaster. The commanding figure of Rainbow Dash hovered over him, ready to kick some serious flank, her empowered leg buzzing and sparking. She turned to the others, the shock of their companion’s savage beating already fading.

“Well, looks like one of our little fishies came back after all...” the other masked stallion said, crouching low and circling around Dash defensively.

“A filthy pegasus, no less.” The unicorn mare said from behind her bandages, mimicking her partner and adapting a defensive stance. "Time to buzz off, horsefly!"

Rainbow leveled her foreleg, switching between the two moving targets. If she was angry before, she was furious now. "Hey, I'd rather be a pegasus than a murderer! You tried to hurt my friends!” She roared through bared teeth, remembering what Twilight told her about their short fight. The thought served to fuel her growing rage. “There’s no way I’m letting you get away with that!”

Suddenly, the rabbit-faced stallion lunged for her side.

Acting on instinct, Rainbow aimed her newly acquired weapon at the attacker and released the charge it held. With a clap of thunder, a blue bolt arced directly into his masked face.

His wild scream rang off the bay’s high ceiling and glass windows as the electricity spread across his head and torso. Once the ribbons of high-voltage lightning ceased, he fell to the floor hard, twitching as it continued to zap him internally.

Rainbow watch him convulse with triumph, her blind rage and adrenaline working to block out any immediate feelings of remorse or guilt. She panted heavily, amazed at the plasmid's efficiency. Wow, I wish I had this in flight school...

The mare charged in next, galloping at full speed with her horn trained on Rainbow’s neck.

Snapping her attention back to the fight, the pegasus loosed another bolt at the unicorn without missing a beat.

With a cocky smirk, the charging mare fired up her horn and raised a tiny magic barrier that easily deflected the concentrated energy. Dash fired twice more, gliding back as she did, but her efforts did nothing to slow the frenzied Splicer.

Dissipating her shield, the unicorn lowered her head and dove, shrieking like a maniac.

Rainbow shot upwards at the last second, clearing the crazed Splicer and sending her crashing into the cracked wall next to her fallen companion.

Flying through the air like the professional stunt performer she was, Rainbow twisted her agile body around and landed behind the stunned foe on three legs, the fourth raised and pointed at her opponent’s bandaged face.

“Feel the thunder!” Dash taunted, then released a bolt into the horn that almost flayed her. Or at least, she tried to. Sparks hopped daintily off her cyan hoof, and the pulsing veins that had ran beneath its fur tapered out. “What the? Where’s the thunder?” She shook her hoof in frustration, beating her wings to back away from her stirring enemies.

“Ha! Short on EVE, are we?” The stallion in the bird mask chuckled, dusting off the remnants of wall plaster from his torn suit. Still wincing from his prior date with the wall, he reached into it and removed a blue syringe. “That’s quite careless of you, after picking a fight with all three of us.”

He jammed the syringe into his leg, which erupted in a flourish of fire.

“You’re in for it now, you little tart,” the mare said, cringing as she stood and advancing with the flaming stallion.

This is not how I pictured this fight going, Rainbow thought as the electrocuted Splicer also lifted himself slowly off the ground, his fur and clothes still smoking.

“TEAR HER APART!” Rabbit-mask bellowed at his companions.

With a thrust of his plasmid-infused leg, Bird-brain sent a fireball flying across the hall at Rainbow.

Well, that’s just great. Backpedaling her wings vigorously, Rainbow flung herself away from the inferno, which exploded in front of her and set the tight hall on fire.

“Woah... ha! You missed me! Is that the best you got?” she jeered at the stallion, letting her competitive side get the best of her, despite the extremely close call.

He responded by reaching into his jacket again and pulling out several more full hypos. “There’s plenty more where that came from, sweetheart.”

Dash’s confidence waned at the sight; she needed EVE, and that meant finding more hidden among Rapture’s ruins or stealing some from Bird-brain.

Dodging the flames as she flew haphazardly through the air, Rainbow smiled, a plan beginning to form in her head. From this position, the Splicer’s continued assault was easy to avoid, and soon enough, he needed to refuel.

“Out already?” Rainbow scoffed while he injected himself again, “Your aim is worse than a blindfolded filly playing pin the tail on the pony!”

“I’ll show you- huh?” He tossed the empty hypo and aimed back at his target, only to find the air space she once occupied empty.

“Over here, Bird-brain!” Rainbow called, hovering halfway up the staircase up to the welcome center. “You’re gonna have to catch me first, jerk!” She zipped back up and hid on the second floor in ambush. From the sounds of angry cursing and rushing hoofsteps, she knew he'd fallen for her trap.

Ha! This’ll teach you to mess with Rainbow Dash!

An instant later, the disheveled pony appeared below, holding his burning forelimb out of the residual flood water. “Alright, you little chicken, come on out so I can roast you.”

With a roll of her eyes, Rainbow silently leaped off the broken steps and angled downwards into a perfect swan dive. She closed her wings, stuck out her front hooves, and took the stallion unawares for a second time. She slammed into his back, causing him to crumple into the ankle-deep puddle he stood in with a huge splash. A wave of steam hissed off his fiery leg as it made contact with the frigid ocean water.

Before he could recover, Dash dug into his tattered clothes and swiped all the hypos she could hold. The other two Splicers were tearing up the stairs towards them both, so she sprung off her incapacitated victim, took a deep breath and dove into the billowing, black smoke gathering above.

“Noir! What happened? Did you lose another one?!” the mare yelled as she entered the burning room.

Noir coughed and sputtered as the others lifted him out of the water. Above, hidden in the building smoke from multiple fires, Rainbow pumped her leg full of EVE, reigniting its inner electrical glow.

“She’s- she’s up there!” Noir coughed, shaking the water off his foreleg. It re-lit with a bright gout of orange flames. He raised his arm up as quick as he could and launched a fireball into the smoky blackness the pegasus had disappeared into.

His target, however, had once again moved while he was distracted, and took the opportunity to flank her foes.

“Hey, jerk-wads!” Rainbow’s raspy voice called out from behind. The three marauders wheeled around to find her floating above them with a smug smile on her face. “This is for hurting my friends.”

The thunderclap was ear-splitting. Rainbow Dash unleashed all the electricity in her limb, sending it arcing into the three ravenous lunatics below. They screamed out in pain as the puddle they stood in lit up; coursing with blue bolts that blackened their coats and sent them into spastic fits of flailing limbs.

Rainbow watched with gleeful vindication from above as the three shapes dropped into the conductive water one by one.

“Yeah! Take that you psychos, not so tough now, huh!” She mocked, landing once the charge surging through the water subsided, “How’d ya like a taste of your own medicine?”

Pretending to blow dust off her electrified hoof, Rainbow waited for a reply, but heard nothing but quiet sizzling.

“Uhh, hello? What’s the matter, you clowns got nothing to say?”

Again, there was no reply.

The acrid smell of burnt hair reached her nose.

As the adrenaline wore off, realization slowly set in. Rainbow dropped onto her haunches, raising her hoof and fixing it with a look of horror. The room continued to fill with smoke as it burned around her and the three ponies she’d killed.

“What... what have I done?”

The hulking beast loomed over Fluttershy as she wheezed into the invisible hoof clasping her muzzle.

Between living beside the enchanted Everfree Forest and her time spent as an Element of Harmony, Fluttershy had seen some truly frightening monsters of all shapes and sizes; manticores, timberwolves, hydras, and worst of all, dragons. But what currently stood above her was more terrifying than all of them; solely because she had never seen anything remotely like it before.

It must have been a deer at one point; it stood on four slender legs and a pair of antlers jutted out from the large, metal diving helmet it wore. The rest of its tall body was covered by a thick rubber suit. The uniform was dotted with armoured metal plating and secured to the helmet with heavy bolts and welding. A large oxygen tank was slung on its back, next to a mounted turret holding two barbed harpoons. A yellow light shone from within the helmet itself, flowing out of three barred portholes, two at either side and one in the front.

The thing moved with slow purpose, positioning itself behind the dead pony with heavy hoofsteps that shook the crumbling hall. The piercing, yellow eye behind the front porthole fell on Fluttershy, and the giant creature groaned in a long, ghoulish note.

Fluttershy whimpered, unable to look away from the towering monstrosity.

“Not a sound,” an accented voice whispered into her ear. Fluttershy obeyed, forcing her lips together under the unseen restraint covering them.

The 'deer' made no move to attack, it just stood there passively; wary of her presence, but otherwise uninterested. After inspecting the rest of the area, the harpoons on its back lowered with a click and it groaned softly back the way it had come. Fluttershy heard smaller, softer hoof steps patter swiftly across the slick floor.

“Did you find an Angel, Mister Dee?” a tiny voice asked. Whatever was approaching, it sounded like it belonged to a filly.

Sure enough, a young unicorn skipped up beside the lumbering monster a moment later. She wore a filthy, old-fashioned dress full of poorly mended holes, with a matching bow tied in her mane. The little thing skipped around the deer's legs in apparent excitement. She would have looked like any other foal her age, if it wasn’t for her clammy, gray skin and alert eyes, glowing with a strange orange light.

“You found two of them! Oh, you’re the best, Daddy!” There was something unsettling about her voice; it echoed out of her mouth and somehow sounded close by, but far away at the same time. She stood on her short hind legs and gave the encapsulated deer a loving hug, then lit up her horn with a smile and produced a pump-like device with a sinister needle from the folds of her tattered dress. Levitating the device above her, the filly approached the well-dressed stallion’s corpse and stabbed the sharp point deep into his back, right next to the knife that killed him. She hummed softly as she worked.

E-Even the children are monsters here! Fluttershy was unable to stifle her gasp this time. She tried to squirm away, but was held firmly in place.

Her muffled whimper immediately drew the grotesque filly’s attention, “Look, Mister Dee! This Angel is still breathing.” She locked Fluttershy in place with her bright, pupil-less eyes as her pump did its job of extracting a luminous, red substance from the body and filling a glass tube on its opposite end. When the tube was half full, the flow stopped and she tore the pump from the dead stallion dispassionately. “Maybe we’ll see her later?”

The filly giggled and tucked her instrument back into her dress, then hopped up and onto the Stag’s back behind his turret. He groaned once again, in a way that implied a deep affection, then they slowly lumbered off and out of sight.

“See you later!” The small unicorn sang back as the heavy steps moved further and further, fading into a distant thudding.

The hoof covering Fluttershy's mouth was gently removed, and she let out the deep breath she’d been holding.

“One would be wise to take more precaution.” The accented voice of Fluttershy’s rescuer cautioned as it floated away towards the elevator shaft.

“W-Wait,” Fluttershy called after it. “I wanted to say... th-thank you.” She tried to stand and follow, but her legs were shaking too much and she fell over. Her eyes fell on the corpse again, and the new, gaping hole in his back; still oozing residual drops of that strange, red liquid.

The events of the last few minutes repeated themselves in Fluttershy's mind, finally sinking in now that the coast was clear. Th-That pony had a hammer! He was going to k-kill me!

She covered her face with stained, yellow hooves and she weeped deeply into them, “I- I just want to go h-home!” She sobbed and blubbered, wishing to both Princesses that she had never came to such a horrible place.

“Get up.” Her saviour’s voice came from the left. “You need to move. With Big Stag gone, Splicers will come.”

“Wh-What was that thing? And that filly, her eyes were s-so...” Fluttershy sputtered as unseen arms helped her up onto her unsteady hooves. “And, wh-who are you?” She added fearfully. So far, nothing in this awful place had been friendly; who was to say this invisible pony was any different?

“That thing is one of this city’s unholy creations. An obedient slave, made to protect Little Fillies, with its very life if it must.”

Fluttershy tried not to look as she was lead past the deceased stallion. She focused on the pony’s voice, his deep accent made him a little hard to understand, but she realized she recognized it. She used to hear it all the time back in Ponyville. “Are you a... Zebra? Who are you?” Fluttershy asked again. Her closest neighbor, Zecora, was a zebra. She lived inside the dense and dangerous Everfree Forest, and spoke with a very similar accent. Though Zecora only ever spoke in rhyme, unlike the invisible zebra escorting her. “Wh-Why can’t I see you?”

“The pony asks many questions...” the zebra mumbled as they left the hallway. “I cannot tell you my name, but you are correct, I am a zebra. I came here to steal secrets, for who I may not say. You cannot see me because it makes my task much easier. I am meant only to observe and relay.”

“You’re... a spy?!” Fluttershy gasped. She'd never met a real spy before ...But aren’t they supposed to keep being a spy a secret? “Why would a spy tell someone they're a spy? Unless, unless they’re not a spy!” She wasn’t usually so untrusting, but this place, it was bringing out her inner skeptic.

“I am the greatest operative in all the kingdoms, little pony,” he boasted. “I tell you only because doing so poses no threat to me or my mission.”

“Oh,” Fluttershy said, casting a despondent glance down the gilded elevator shaft. Though the zebra’s remark was somewhat insulting, he did have a point. “Then... why did you rescue me? That wasn’t part of your m-mission, was it?”

“Of course not, I was not to reveal myself to anyone, and in the nineteen months I’ve been here, I have not...”

Fluttershy looked to where the voice came from with confusion, “Then... why? Why me? I don’t understand...”

“Because of what you say, little pony.” Two hooves grabbed hold of Fluttershy's shoulders, making her grimace. “You see, we want same thing. I have been trapped in this mad-house too long. I crave open air, and the smell of home. Tell me, you have friends here, yes?”

Fluttershy gasped again, “How did you kno- I mean, n-no, I’m here alone...” Oh, I'm no good at this...

A deep chuckled came from the thin air before her and the weight of the zebra’s hooves slid off Flutterhsy's shoulders. “Do not lie to me, I have been following you since you arrived in Bathysphere. You have no idea how disappointed I was to find it broken. The one who spoke on the Talk-box was Twilight Sparkle, yes?”

“It-It was...” Fluttershy didn’t know what to say. She wanted to trust him, but how could she? He did save me from those monsters, and he wants to go home too. Even in a place like this, not everything had to be evil... surely? “Y-Yes. She is an old friend. We’re g-going to help her fix this place up.” She had decided to go with the truth.

The voice laughed again, this time with a distinctly mocking tone. “That is tall order, as there is much wrong here. You will need the help of one who knows this place well, one such as myself.”

“Y-You want to help me?”

“I am willing, for you will not last long alone. I ask only one thing in return...”

The zebra’s invisible hooves grabbed hold of Fluttershy’s cheeks, holding them in place. She winced uncomfortably at the exceedingly odd sensation, staring ahead where she guessed his eyes would be.

“When you leave this forsaken city, you take me with you.”

Old Friends, New Friends

Chapter VII: Old Friends, New Friends

The improvised hideaway/security hub was crammed full of humming machinery, along with enough clusters of glowing crystals to power them. Though it may have been an unused storage unit when she found it, Twilight had turned the inconspicuous space into a fully functional, completely undetectable safe house. It wasn’t a huge room, but it was a great deal bigger than her cell had been.

“And this place even has a real bed!” Twilight said to herself cheerfully, concluding the unwelcome reminisce of her time as a prisoner. The busy mare didn’t have time to linger on the skant amounts of good luck she came by. She squeezed her way across the packed room to its primary source of light; a series of floating display holograms. The projected images gave Twilight eyes all over Rapture, and a quick scan was all it took to check the progress of her old Ponyville friends.

They were a big part of Twilight’s recent fortunes, too. She knew it well, and felt a deep guilt for being happy they were stuck in such an awful place, but she also knew it was necessary if she wanted to fix things. Whether they’d forgive her was yet to be seen.

“Let’s see, what is everypony up to?” Twilight said, speaking out loud again. It was a known habit of Twilight’s to speak to herself, ever since she was a filly. Spending the better part of a year alone, however, had only encouraged the compulsion's return. “Oh! Looks like Fluttershy is finally up and moving... and Rarity’s drawing close to the first Element!” Her hooves clicked together excitedly while she watched her friends success eagerly.

On the glowing display, Twilight could see the white unicorn was well on her way to the shopping district. Rarity would have the Element hidden there in no time. “If she can resist her urge to shop, anyway, hehe!” Twilight giggled manically, already scanning the other displays for the rest of her friends and spotting an orange mare sleeping beneath an overgrown bush. “Hmm, Applejack is still passed out... good thing Pinkie positioned her foreleg away from her body; don't want any accidental burns! Wait, where is Pinkie Pie anyway?”

Twilight channeled her magic into the crystals below the floating images and flicked through all the cameras in the area, but found no sign of the pink party animal. “That’s odd, but I can’t say I’m surprised.” She giggled again, fondly recalling the whole ‘Pinkie Sense’ debacle from back in Ponyville.

Her laughter ended abruptly when her gaze fell on another display, and her remaining friend. Rainbow Dash had not moved since zapping those Splicers. And since they had not either, Twilight formulated a guess as to why that was.

“Oh Rainbow, I really hoped this wouldn’t happen...” Twilight hung her head low. Rainbow may have done the deed, but a large portion of the guilt fell on Twilight’s shoulders. It was because of her that Dash was here, and had the plasmid at all. It was because of her Dash would carry a weight in her soul for the rest of her life.

When it first happened, Twilight had bolted to the sealed exit of her hideaway. She was ready to rush to her troubled friend's side, but she couldn’t. Rain was looking for her; scouring Rapture from top to bottom, and the only reason she remained free was because she stayed in her fortress, where she couldn’t be found.

Twilight sighed in exasperation. “It may be a bigger and have a proper bed, but a cell is still a cell.” She left the master console, turning as she had done many times before to the hub’s main energy source, and the linchpin of all her planning.

In the center of her room, encased in magic-resistant glass, sat a plain tiara made of polished bronze and a large, azure crystal embedded in its band. A pale blue aura emanated from deep within the trillion gem, signifying an incredible, yet mostly dormant power. Even in this state, it generated enough magical energies to be easily detected by a perceptive unicorn, but the enchanted glass containing it masked the signal enough to be inconspicuous.

Twilight pressed her hooves on the glass and looked in at the artificial Element of Magic she had helped create. To Rain, it was a weapon to be used against her enemies on the surface, but to Twilight, it was a beacon of hope; for her, her friends and all of Rapture.

“If we can just get all the Elements together, I can fix everything,” Twilight said, the blue glow reflecting back in her sad, purple eyes. “Everything they did, everything I did...”

Even in the dim room, Twilight could feel her aberrant form. She shuddered at the slightest touch; blocking out horrendous images of being strapped to a table. She could see the faces above her again, working away at their vile task.

Dr. Hoofhardt held the scalpel, going about his depraved surgery with robotic, clinical detachment. The sociopathic stag had been banished by his herd for his experimentation, and for good reason. He did not see a pony on the table before him, he saw meat, with the promise of being a successful trial in medical science.

There was another face, lurking behind the mad deer. An earth pony, grinning at the villainous acts unfolding before him. Chicane was his name. He'd been Rain’s second in command, and he was suspicious of Twilight from the moment she’d arrived in the underwater city. She was positive he’d convinced Summer to turn her into a lab rat.

Twilight whisked the unwanted memories away. What did they matter? Dr. Hoofhardt and Chicane were both dead now. She had seen them die; the pony was exiled for insubordination, but Rain blew up his Bathysphere as it left for the surface. The deer had been fittingly killed by his own horrid creations. Knowing this brought Twilight more relief than she felt comfortable with.

“No. They made their mistakes without remorse and got what they deserved.” She tried to force the thoughts back into the recesses of her mind where they belonged, but the feel of metal on her skin was impossible to ignore. “...And so did I.”

Many changes had been made to Twilight’s body, first to reduce her magic capacity and keep her locked up. She found a way around that though; by channeling what she could into objects for storage. It was how she had escaped in the first place, slowly enchanting a soiled rag with enough energy to teleport out of her cell. The other changes were harder to deal with. The iron clicking together behind her was a constant reminder of what she was.

Chicane had a cruel sense of irony, it seemed. It was his idea to give Twilight iron wings, a task Hoofhardt was more than willing to attempt. Together, they transformed her into a mockery of the alicorn Princesses she worshiped so much.

The hub was kept dark of a reason. The hideous things jutted out of her back like she had been stabbed, then left to die. The good doctor was more ambitious than that though. His little experiment had left her with full control of the vile parodies, and forwarded implant tech by leaps and bounds. At least that was what he told her.

For an instant, she remembered his face as she’d last seen it. Split between his eyes, through his nose and muzzle, and out down his chin.

Twilight opened her eyes, unaware she had closed them. She was sweating and breathing deep, struggling to focus. “Th-That was months ago. Dead is dead, and I've still got work to do.” She panted. Leaving her precious Element, Twilight made her way back to the displays. Her eyes did a quick sweep on her friends' positions and fell on the last panel. The one she never flipped away from.

The projection was of a large scientific lab, with a huge cylindrical vat in its center. Tubing ran out along its bottom, hooking it to pumping machines. Inside was a hulking, grotesque shape, obscured by the red liquid it floated in.

Twilight stared at the form in the tank. Fighting the tears trying to force their way out of her tired eyes, she smiled just a little. “Well, things aren’t going exactly as we planned, Spike, but with the girls split up, they should gather the Elements even faster than I hoped! Rarity’s almost got the first one already! We’ll have you out of there and back to normal in no time, I promise.”

With a slight sniffle, she approached the floating image of her number one assistant. “Just... hang in there a little longer, okay? I’m going to make this right.” She extended a trembling hoof to caress him, as if he could somehow feel the loving touch through the hologram. It merely passed through to the other side, as it always did.

“Ummm, hello? T-Twilight? Are you there?” A small voice came from the master control console’s speaker.

Twilight jumped at the sudden sound, then with one last mournful glance back at Spike, she galloped over to the console and pressed the button to reply, automatically engaging the protocol to scramble her signal and keep her position a mystery.

“I read you, Fluttershy, what happened back there?”

Fluttershy sighed with relief. Hearing a friendly voice in such an unfriendly place calmed her strained nerves by a considerable degree. “Oh, back there, I- I was... just resting.” She lied. The last thing Fluttershy wanted to think about was those monsters, and what they had done to other ponies. She didn’t like lying, especially to her friends, but this way was just... easier. For now, at least.

“Thank goodness! I was trying to remotely hack some security bots to help you, but I couldn’t crack them in time. It’s a good thing that Big Stag scared off those Splicers! How’d you manage to distract them that long?” Twilight eagerly asked over the Talk-box.

Fluttershy shot an unsure look at the spot she assumed her zebra ally was, then back at the glowing device, “Ummm, I said... I politely asked them to leave me alone, and they did.”

From her right, Fluttershy heard the distinct sound of a hoof hitting forehead. She had agreed not to tell the others about the spy helping her, at his insistence, but unfortunately she wasn’t much of a liar.

“Really? And that worked?”

“It sure did!” Fluttershy said in a hurry, then no-so-subtly changed the subject. “So, uhh, you need me to find an Element for you, right?”

“Right! Hmmm, let’s see...” the distorted voice of her friend replied. “You’re at the main elevator of apartment complex 7-A. If I can get the elevator working, it will take you right down to maintenance, where you'll find the closest Element. Give me a minute.” The voice hissed out, leaving Fluttershy seemingly alone in the derelict shaft. Above her, the gilded lift continued to spark every few seconds.

“You asked them to leave? Politely? That’s not how I remember it...” An unseen voice with a thick accent replaced Twilight’s static-y one.

“Y-Yes. That’s how ponies are supposed to deal with their problems. With words and kindness, not v-violence,” she said in her defense. “Not that monsters like them would ever listen.”

There was a brief silence, punctuated by the malfunctioning elevator a floor above.

“You believe those things to be monsters?”

The animal lover was taken aback. “Of course! Ponies don’t go around k-kill... hurting one another. What else could they be?” she retorted, turning away from the disembodied voice.

“Ponies are capable of much that would surprise you, little pony,” it said, moving closer to the pegasus. “I have seen many things, yes. Many monsters. The creatures here? These, Splicers? They are simply ponies set loose, free of any morality or consequence. They are what lies at the heart of all creatures.”

“No! Ponies are good on the inside!” Fluttershy wheeled around and bore down on the invisible spy. “Every creature can be good if they try! Even the God of Chaos chose good over evil in the end!”

“And what of those unable to choose?”

Fluttershy’s answer caught in her throat, “Wh-What do you mean? Everypony has a choice...”

“Not always. ADAM has taken everything these ponies had. Their thoughts, their memories, their guilt. I watched it happen; couples turning on each other as their minds turned to mush. SIblings, friends... Families. As I say, they are not monsters, just... very unfortunate.”

Fluttershy let that sink in as she thought up her response. “What about those deer-things? And that filly! Those must have been monsters. I’ve never seen anything so scary!” She said the words, but wasn’t sure if she believed them herself. If Rapture was anything, it was complicated, and she didn’t understand any of it.

“Do not be so quick to judge, little pony. The tale behind those creatures is tragic, and they are more deserving of your pity than fear. They were betrayed by one of their own kind, signing away their very souls without realizing it until it was far too late. And the Fillies? They weren’t even given a choice. Now, they scavenge Rapture and collect ADAM for Rain. The Stags protect them. They have no choice, it was taken from them. So tell me, does this sound like any monster you know?”

There was another heavy pause while Fluttershy digested the information. It wasn’t like her to label something as evil outright; her approach was always with kindness, it was her Element of Harmony, after all.

At least, it had been.

There was an evening years ago, right after the Elements had left her friends, that she was approached by Applejack. The depressed farmer was worried that she had lost a part of herself, that somehow, not being the Element of Honesty anymore made her honesty less genuine. Fluttershy told her what she felt; that they would always represent their Elements, but it wasn’t until new Bearers were chosen that Applejack truly began dealing with the notion.

What if AJ was right? What if I’m not as kind as I used to be? The implication hung heavy in her mind. Her questions had no answers, so they circled back to where they started and repeated over and over in a vicious loop.

Before they had a chance to drive her crazy, Fluttershy was pulled from her deep thoughts by her new friend’s deep voice. “Also, you are scared of everything, little pony.”

“I am not!” Fluttershy huffed back, her uncertainty shifting easily to annoyance.

Suddenly, the elevator jerked to life with a sharp squeal that caused Fluttershy to nearly jump out of her skin. A high pitched “Eeep!” escaped her pursed lips before she could smother it.

“Got it!” Twilight said through the Talk-box. “Take this lift down to the bottom floor and head for Maintenance, I’ll contact you when you get there. I gotta go help the others now, are you sure you’ll be okay?”

Fluttershy could hear the muffled laughed of her companion as she relaxed her clenched jaw and steeled her resolve, “Y-Yes. I’ll be fine. Fl-Fluttershy, out.”

“Okay, I’ll be watching just in case. Good luck.” The box powered down as the elevator arrived and its tarnished, gold doors opened.

“You are funny, little pony.” The zebra said, following the jumpy mare on board.

“My name is Fluttershy,” she said, hitting the lowest button before her as fearlessly as she could. “I know you won’t tell me your real name, but there must be something I can call you?”

The lift began to descend, lowering into the dying city, but the yellow pegasus found she was not as scared as she should have be. There was a solid confidence welling up inside her; a feeling that what she was doing would truly help make things better, for everypony.

“You may refer to me as Galt, if you like," he said, several floors later. "It is a pleasure to formally meet you, Fluttershy.”

“Alight then, Galt. I want to help those Fillies, and the Big Stags too. You know this place better than I do; is there any way...?” She asked hopefully. I’m not going to lose my kindness, just as Applejack never lost her honesty!

Galt grunted. "You're kidding?"

At Fluttershy's resolute response, Galt hummed thoughtfully for a moment. “Well, okay then. There may be one way.” He shuffled around in the tight elevator, and suddenly, a floating patch of black and white, striped fur appeared. From within, a red syringe floated out, and the fur quickly disappeared again. “I found this in an abandoned lab. It is a plasmid. From what I gathered, it gives the one who uses it the power to cure Little Fillies, and release them from their torment.”

The syringe floated closer, and Fluttershy plucked it out of the air with a steady hoof. “What about the deer?”

“...There is only one way to end their suffering. Leave them to me.”

“No!” Fluttershy gasped, almost dropping the needle between the thin bars of the lift, “No, you c-can’t! I won’t let you!”

“Fluttershy,” Galt was close, holding her steady in his unseen forelegs. “The process that births Big Stags is irreversible. I have seen it done. Trust me when I say death is a kindness to them. This is the only way to get close to Filly in one piece.”

Tears were already flowing when Galt let her go. The lift reached the bottom floor; stopping with a slight jolt and a metallic ding.

Fluttershy looked down at the glowing syringe in her hoof warily, “Will it h-hurt?”

Galt made no reply. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Fluttershy positioned the point of the long needle on her foreleg and closed her eyes.

Its okay, it's just like getting a shot at the doctor’s office, she told herself, even though getting shots at the doctor’s had always terrified her.

The point pierced her skin, and Fluttershy cried out in pain.

Rarity froze over the door controls the instant the metal shutter slid into place. For good measure, she also levitated a nearby bench over and stuffed it under the door jam.

She slumped against it and let out a sigh of exhausted relief. A heartbeat later, there came a thunderous pounding from the other side which made Rarity spring away from her makeshift barrier. She had just learned the hard way that natural body heat meant frozen ponies don’t stay that way for extended periods of time.

Thanks again for the heads up, Twilight, she thought, sticking a fresh EVE hypo into her leg and replenishing the frost encasing it. Ouchouchouch! Oh, I hope all these needles don’t leave me covered in hideous scars.

Once the syringe was empty, the middle-aged mare tossed it aside and checked her supplies. She had ample stock; the transit terminal she emerged from had proven to be a cornucopia of hypos and snacks, despite the murderous efforts of a certain Splicer who refused to remain an ice sculpture.

“Oh, and that awful dress she wore! I mean really, anypony caught wearing that shade of green must be well and truly out of their minds.” Rarity shuddered as she trotted—at a brisk gait—away from the wedged bench. “You’d think a city this elegant would at least have a decent spot for-”

As she exited the narrow passageway leading away from the terminal, she gasped in awe. She was standing in a massive concourse, lined along its edges were a slew of abandoned shops of all kinds. Wide staircases led up to another two levels, and even more stores.

“...shopping.”

The beauty of Rapture’s shopping district took Rarity’s breath away. It was like Canterlot’s outdoor plaza, only she had the whole place to herself and unlimited bits. Checking for hostile Splicers never even crossed her mind as she walked down the empty street, looking with eager eyes at what each store had to offer, and wondering which she should visit first.

Deciding on a nice little dress shop to her right, she trotted merrily over, feeling like a filly in a candy store. She spotted a white, silk dress with a red floral print and accompanying ribbon on a pony-quin out front. Suddenly, this vacation doesn’t seem so dreadfully awful.

Halfway to the unattended boutique, Rarity stopped, her smile fading. Something was nagging at her from the back of her mind. It was Pinkie’s voice, accusing her of saving her clothes instead of helping Fluttershy. The voice was accompanied by a look of utter disappointment from Applejack, and the rest of her friends behind her. The looks cut through her heart, filling it with disappointment in herself.

“I... suppose I mustn't. I’m on a mission here, and there’s just no time to shop.” Rarity breathed a sigh, amazed at her own restraint as she trotted away from the store with only one or two backwards glances at the lovely dress. She wasn’t happy with the decision, but perusing a mall while her friends were out there trying to save Spike and Twilight was something she couldn't bring herself to do.

The glowing lights above flickered slightly as she continued through the mall of her dreams, trying not to look at all the pretty things she couldn’t have, while still keeping an eye out for anything useful. It was quite the juggling act, but the fashionista had a very discerning eye.

“Rarity! You made it!” A voice echoed in the open shopping center.

“Twilight! Where are you?" she asked the empty mall, looking around the concourse for the source of her voice—and ignoring the beautiful display in a hat shop to her left. "I mean, where is the... Talk-box, was it?”

“It’s in the back of the liquor store, just to your right.”

Rarity shifted her gaze one hundred and eighty degrees, and easily located the alcohol distributor. ‘Booze and More Booze’, a sign above its awning dubbed the shop.

How clever... With a roll of her sapphire eyes, the unicorn entered the ransacked store. The sparse light filling the rest of the mall was soon blocked out by a green canopy hanging above the entrance, leaving the place in near blackness only a few steps in. Rarity carefully stepped over the broken bottles that littered the barely visible floor, looking for the telltale glow of the nearby Talk-box.

“Twilight? Am I getting warmer here?” Rarity asked sardonically. Denying herself a shopping spree had really put a damper on her mood.

“Back here! In the manager’s office,” Twilight said from beyond the veil of darkness.

What do you know, another situation that calls for a light spell, Rarity thought stoically. She passed the store’s counter and moved into the area behind it. I wonder if there’s a plasmid for that?

Feeling around with a hoof—the one that wasn’t completely numb—Rarity stumbled upon an open doorway and pinpointed the glowing box on the far wall. It lit up just enough of the office that she could make out a large desk covered in empty bottles.

“Found it! Don’t any of the light’s work in here?” Rarity said with a little more scorn than what was called for. Huh... Maybe Noisette was right; I am a shopaholic!

“I’m sorry Rarity... I think the power grid in that area is failing, I’m getting some odd readings from the surveillance tech.”

“That’s... quite alright, dear,” Rarity answered, exhaling away her frustration. “So, where shall I go next then? I must be near by now.”

“Yes, you’re very close to the Element, but you have to make sure nopony else is around when I tell you exactly where it is. We can't risk losing a single one to Rain.” Her voice bounced around the dim office, creating a reverberating echo. Rarity glanced warily over her shoulder, then back at the box. It was silly, but the full-grown mare found standing there alone in an abandoned office suddenly very unnerving.

“That shouldn’t be a problem; as far as I can tell, this place is a veritable ghost town.” The poor choice in phrasing only increased Rarity's anxiety, and she felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise. In her head, images of wandering spirits and ghoulish monsters swirled around, and she swore she could feel a cold breeze flowing through the store. Nonsense, just my mind playing tricks... Or possibly my frozen leg...

“A ghost town? Really?” Twilight asked, regaining Rarity’s somewhat divided attention. “I knew these readings were off. I was monitoring movement in the mall earlier, so I could warn you if there were any Splicers waiting in ambush, but the signals I saw kept blinking in and out. Isn’t that odd?... Rarity?”

Rarity had gone completely quiet. Outside, in the darkness of the liquor store, she was positive she had heard a small chink, like a glass bottle lightly tapping another. She peered out the indistinct entrance to the office for several tense seconds, listening for any other sound. The cold breeze around her suddenly vanished.

“Twilight,” Rarity said as quietly as she could, “Are you still watching for movement here?”

There was a brief pause, “Ummm, yes?”

The cold air and accompanying breeze returned, chilling the dark office. A new noise reached Rarity’s anxious ears, the soft, rhythmic sound of air moving in, and out.

“A-Am I alone?”

“What do you mean?... I’m looking at-” The Talk-box went dark, plunging the room into total blackness.

“Hello, beautiful.”

A voice from inside the office broke the deathly silence that enveloped it, sending a chill down the entire length of Rarity’s spine.

Before she allowed the crippling fear to set in, icicles burst out of her foreleg. She whirled around and blindly let loose a torrent on icy magic where the snarky voice had arisen. Without waiting, she darted around the wooden desk and slammed into a black wall before bolting out of the office, back towards the light of the concourse.

“Hey! I Just wanna talk!” Another voice said from one of the levels above.

“Where are you going? Hahahahah!” A third voice echoed, coming from somewhere behind.

Rarity cursed herself for letting shopping distract her enough to blunder into an ambush. Drat! I should have been more careful! Wandering in here like a foal, mesmerized by all the pretty things... Why does my secretary have to be right all the time?

“Run, run as fast as you can! Hahahaha!” The taunting voices were everywhere, bouncing around the cavernous mall. It was hard to tell where the assailants were; they all sounded strikingly similar.

Suddenly, a masked pony stepped out of a flower shop up ahead, and Rarity screeched to a halt. Unlike the white animal masks the Splicers from the welcome center wore, this one seemed to be made of interwoven twigs with crude antlers on top.

“Hello again.” He sneered, tilting his head back and rising to his hind legs. Standing tall above his terrified prey, the Splicer held his hooves out to his sides and all four burst into blood-red flames. With a vicious cackle, he set his gaze upon the unicorn, then thrust his burning forelegs in her direction, sending a series of fireballs her way.

Great, more fire. Rarity thought, realizing shortly after she should have moved out of the way instead of making sarcastic quips. She dove into a flower bed of wilting tulips, dodging the searing ball’s heat by a fraction of a hair.

That fraction, however, was closer than she was willing to allow. What does this rotten place have against my FABULOUS HAIR?! Rarity sprang from the dead plants, spotting her attacker sprinting for another shop to hide in. "Oh no you don’t!"

Ice flew from her spiked hoof again, aimed right at the fleeing Splicer... but he was no longer there.

“Gone? But... how?” Rarity pondered out loud, frantically scanning around with her icy hoof. He was just there...

“Close, but no cigar!” the same Splicer taunted, peeking his masked face over the railing one floor up.

It is the same voice! Rarity realized, There’s only one of them... He must be teleporting!

Of all the unicorns she had ever meet, Twilight Sparkle was the only one she knew who could do that with such ease. And at least when she did it, there was a flash of light. This Splicer had vanished between the blinking of Rarity’s eyes.

Hacking laughter echoed around her. “Are you scared, little pony? 'Cause you should be. I haven’t had fresh meat in ages. And you look tender.”

Rarity did her best to ignore the boorish comment, concentrating on the resounding voice and trying to pinpoint its location.

”Oh, I am enjoying this," The voice went on. "Ha!I could be aaaaanywhere; above you, below you, or even right behind you-”

A chill arose in the air, and Rarity spun around and cast her ice, hitting the teleporter as he tried to catch her by surprise. He was frozen solid two seconds later.

“Yes!” Rarity hoof pumped and whooped, then trotted victoriously towards her captured attacker. “Nice try, lover-boy, but Ms. Rarity is not one to fall for the same trick twice.” She finished with a flick of her tail, mocking the pony popsicle with a dismissive humpf!

Turning to head back to the liquor store to continue her oh-so-rudely interrupted conversation, Rarity heard another mortifying sound. Cracking ice.

“Shoot, that's right! The ice melts!” Cursing cruel irony, she galloped back to the Splicer, ready to tip him over and smash him on the ground.

From this close, Rarity could see the cracks forming. If she waited a moment longer, the Splicer would break free and continue his avid attempts to burn her to death. She had no choice, fear and instinct was telling her what to do now. It was either him, or her.

Placing both hooves on the icy surface, Rarity readied to push... but faltered.

“No! I won’t do it! I just can’t!” She backed away on the verge of tears. She knew what was at stake, but she could not bring herself to kill the maniacal teleporter. Any second now he would be free. Rarity wasn’t sure what she’d do when that happened.

A buzzing noise rose above the chipping ice, followed by a loud bang and what sounded like shattering of glass an instant later. The Splicer broke apart, frozen chunks spilling around Rarity’s hooves.

“Got him! That was a close one!” Twilight said, speaking from above over the growing buzzing sound.

Rarity tore her eyes off the morbid sight before her towards it, finding a peculiar machine with a spinning fan and a smoking barrel hovering in the air.

“Twilight? Is that... you... you just...”

“No need to thank me!” her voice was so chipper, it made Rarity feel sick to her stomach. Or maybe it was the thawing pieces of pony strewn across the floor.

“Now, let’s go find that Element!”

“Jackie? Are you still sleeping?”

Applejack groaned out loud. “Dangit Harvey... Gimme five more minutes, would ya?” She rolled onto her side and curled up.

“Oh, Applejack...” She felt him lean in to kiss her cheek like he always did in the morning... but he missed, going for her ear instead for some reason. “WAKE UP!”

“AHH!” Applejack shot awake with a start, flinging the hat off her head and into a bush that was definitely not her bed.

“AHHHH!” Pinkie Pie screamed as well, leaping back away from the startled farmer.

“Pinkie?! What in tarnation was that fer!” Applejack demanded, clutching at her chest to slow her racing heart before it burst out of her rib cage. As it began to resume a normal tempo, AJ rose her other hoof to wipe her blonde mane out of her eyes and found her brow as feverishly hot.

That’s odd ah don’t feel like Ah gott....”AHHHH!” She screamed again upon seeing her foreleg.

Within her orange hoof, a bright, yellow light was glowing, and emitting a heat so intense it distorted the air around `it. Despite the searing temperature, Applejack’s fur was unburnt. There weren’t even any blisters, which anypony dumb enough to touch something this hot would undoubtedly receive.

“I know, right! Now you can totally shoot fire and stuff! Isn’t that cool?” Pinkie said, imitating the act with her own hooves. “Actually, I guess it’s the complete opposite of cool... So, can I see you do it!?" she asked excitedly, unslinging a full bag from her pink shoulder. "Pleeease!”

Applejack fought to stay calm. There was a lot of crazy going on at the moment, and having Pinkie around only served to compound the effect. Focusing on even breathing, AJ placed her smoldering leg on the ground, which immediately turned the long blades of grass nearby black.

That’s... gonna take some gettin’ used to, she thought, turning to her wide eyed companion. “What happened? Last thing Ah... Quit staring will ya? This is strange enough as it is.” She placed her hot hoof out of sight. “So, what happened? Last Ah remember... Ah shot up that plasmid. Ah'm guessing it worked.”

Pinkie tore her gaze from Applejack’s leg and met her green eyes as the farmer trailed off. “Yep! And then you fell asleep! I guess you were reeeally tired, because you wouldn’t wake up, and I was really, reeeeeally loud when I tried to wake you up. Then I remembered I had to be quiet, so I hid you under this bush, but you still wouldn't wake up, so I went to get some food and stuff!” She emptied her bag then, pouring out various snacks and even a few EVE hypos like the one the Splicers had used.

Applejack strained to pay attention and shake off the last of her substance-induced power nap while Pinkie spoke a mile a minute. It proved very difficult; dealing with Pinkie was something that required delicate conditioning, and AJ was sorely out of practice. “Slow down, girl! I just woke up, and that ADAM junk’s got mah head all woozy.”

“Sorry, AJ! I’m just super pumped right now! While I was scavenging I drank some coffee I found in a trash can and I-”

“You what?”

“Oh! Here, let me get your hat...” Pinkie pointed a hoof at the stetson and giggled again; at what, Applejack had no clue.

AJ placed a hoof on the bridge of her orange snout. “Pinkie... ya really shouldn’t eat or drink stuff ya find in the trash. You could get... What the-?” Applejack’s sanitation lecture was cut short when her vision was suddenly obscured by brown fabric. “Hey!” She wrestled her hat off her face and fixed it properly atop her blonde mane, “Pinkie, what’s the big idea... Woah!”

Pinkie Pie stood before the amazed mare, the supplies from her pack floating in the air around her. “Ta-Da!” She boasted with a wide grin, “Isn’t this AWESOME?!”

Applejack fell back on her haunches, her jaw wide open as she slowed pieced things together. “Pinkie! Did you inject yourself with a dangerous, never-seen before substance.... From a needle you found in the dang trash?!”

“Of course not!” Pinkie scoffed, crossing her arms and setting the various floating items to orbit around her. “I found the syringe behind a toilet!”

Failing to come up with any sort of intelligent reply, Applejack sat fuming on the unkempt grass. She wanted to shout at the pony before her; get her to take things as seriously as they were, but she was too angry to speak.

“Uhm, are you okay, Applejack?” the infuriating mare asked.

At that moment, AJ’s glowing foreleg erupted in flames, setting the overgrown bush she had slept under ablaze.

“Woah! AJ, watch it!” Pinkie cried, dropping all her supplies and grabbing hold of the fiery farmer.

Rage took a back seat to surprise, and Applejack leaped from the burning bush with Pinkie, landing on a patch of daisies and setting them on fire as well. Applejack shoved Pinkie out of the inferno and rolled off the other side, immediately blowing on her foreleg in a vain attempt to put out the flames engulfing it.

Once clear of the flames, anger made a valiant comeback. “Darnit, Pinkie! What the hay is the matter with you!?” Applejack exploded, breaking her own ‘indoor voice’ rule. “Do ya think this is a game or somethin’? What part of this is fun to you? Maybe when we almost drowned, or got attacked by those Splicers? Can’t you take things seriously fer once in yer life!”

On the other side of the flaming flowers, Pinkie looked dejectedly at her telekinetically-empowered hoof. “I- I’m sorry AJ...”

“Well, that’s just dandy, but it won’t stop us from gettin’ killed down here. Is that what you want?” Applejack swung her arm around in another gesture, sending a ball of fire onto a wooden bench and reducing it to ashes in seconds. “Dang it all!”

Pinkie looked up at the flailing mare with tears in her big, blue eyes, “O-Of course not! I’m scared, okay! When you passed out, I didn’t know what to do! I went to get something to help protect us and I found that plasmid thingy and I...I just wanted to help!”

“You just... wha-?” Applejack stopped waving her leg around and met Pinkie’s sad eyes. She was trembling, AJ realized. She uses humor to deal with fear, ya thick-headed meanie, her subconscious berated her. Or did ya forget?

Closing her own eyes, Applejack counted backwards from ten in her head, bringing her breathing under control in the process. She was the one yelling at a friend; what the hay was the matter with her? Once her temper was back under control, she noticed the heat in her leg wane, then the flames went out by themselves leaving only an inner, yellow glow.

Relieved to not be on fire anymore, she tracked over to Pinkie’s slumped, sobbing form. Applejack wrapped her non-altered leg around in a loving hug. “You’re right, I’m acting like a grade-A moron. Ah’m sure that unicorn magic ya got will be useful...”

“Really?” Pinkie sniffled.

“Yeah, and I'm sorry Ah said ya don't take things seriously. Ya got a whole business goin' in Manehattan, after all. Just, try to be more careful from now on, okay? Ah’d hate ta see something bad happen to ya.” With one last squeeze, she let go of the pink mare.

“Thanks Applejack, I will... But you have to be careful too. No offense, but you don’t look so good.” Pinkie replied.

“Ta be honest, Ah don’t fell so good either. I thought it might be from the ADAM, but you seem fine...”

“And I ate cake from the garbage can, too!” Pinkie laughed, receiving a disapproving glare from AJ.

“Ah thought you said ya drank coffee from the garbage.”

“Well, I had to wash it down with something.” She smiled sheepishly.

Ignoring the writhing feeling in her stomach and fighting the urge to vomit, Applejack smiled at her friend, “No more eating from the trash either. Now c’mon, we got an Element ta find.”

The two ponies walked away from the smoldering portion of the gardens Applejack had inadvertently scorched and headed back towards the vine-covered entrance to the irrigation control room.

“Oh! I almost forgot,” Pinkie’s sang, digging into her bag once again. “I also found this thingy. Don’t worry! It’s not food or dangerous drugs or anything.” She spoke mostly in response to AJ’s glare, pulling out a some sort of miniature phonograph.

“What is it?” asked Applejack, reading the name written on the record it contained. “And who’s ‘Chicane’?”

‘The Folly Of Rain’

By: Chicane

I may have been no more than a lowly magician when I came to Rapture, but even I can see Rain is running this place into the ground. I warned her! That Twilight Sparkle is no good, I said! How can we trust our enemy’s personal protege? It’s insanity! Turns out the little snitch was reporting back to her mentor the whole time, just as I suspected. So, what does Rain do? She places her under supervision and has me write up fake reports to avoid arousing the Princess’ suspicion. Seriously!? Place her under lock and key? That's how you choose to use her? I believe in Rain’s vision for Equestria, it's a dream come true for an outcast like me... Ever since I was small, all I wanted was to do magic, but without a horn, I had to settle for cheap tricks and illusions. I was the laughing stock of a proud family. But, this place changed my life. I finally got what I wanted. Plasmids were my brainchild, and with Dr. Hoofhardt’s help, they were made a reality and I was able to fulfill all my wildest dreams. All but one. We have everything we need to go back to the surface and carve out a glorious, new Equestria. What exactly are we waiting for?

You need to move. NOW.

The nagging voice in Rainbow’s head said again, vying for her attention. She had lost track of how long she’d been sitting in the cold puddle, staring at three floating bodies. Judging by the numbness of her backside, it had been some time.

Move!

“I can’t,” Dash choked out in a weak whisper. “I... killed them. I didn’t even know who they were. I’m a murderer!” Around her, several hypos floated lazily in the freezing waters. Her leg had gone dark after the thunderous discharge that killed the Splicers, but she wouldn’t touch the full vials of plasmid fuel.

This isn’t just about you. Your friends are still in trouble! While you sit here feeling sorry for yourself, they’re out there fighting, probably in danger!

Dash couldn’t ignore her grating subconscious anymore, not when it was being all logical. It was time to go. She lifted her foreleg and looked at it with contempt. There was no way she was using the electro-bolt thing again.

Pulling her cold behind out of the seawater, she splashed across the flooded welcome center, leaving Noir’s unused hypos where they were. She tried not to look back at his charred body as she did, reminding herself of the promise she’d made Fluttershy.

I... I did what I had to, she told herself, focusing on placing one hoof in front of the other until she reached the stairs down to the docking bay. That’s all there is to it. There’s no time to feel bad. I still gotta find Fluttershy... and Twilight's fake Elements. She glanced around at the ruined stairwell that had been her battleground. But how do I get out of here?

All the exits from the welcome center were blocked or destroyed, and she didn’t remember seeing any downstairs. Wait... But, then how did those ponies- I mean, Splicers- how’d those no-good murderers get in?

Taking careful steps down the wet stairs, she cast one last guilt-ridden look back at the motionless forms lying in the puddle. But am I any better? The thought weighed heavily on her mind as she turned her back and continued on her way.

Back in the hallway above the docks, Rainbow had a clear view of the ruinous terminal and busted Bathysphere. It was oddly calming to see; a simple reminder that not long ago, she had been laughing and catching up with old friends.

“We’re finishing that reunion,” she decided on the spot. “Once we fix things here, all six of us are spending quality time together. Spike too! I don’t care how many shows I have to miss...”

Rainbow’s eyes went wide at that; she had completely forgotten about the Fillydelphia show. She also had no clue how long she’d been in the accursed city. An few hours? Maybe more? It hardly seemed to matter any longer.

I’m not leaving until my friends are safe.

Returning to the spot where she’d first engaged the Splicers—it was easy to find, the carpeting was covered in scorch marks—Rainbow looked around. They must have been trying to go back the way they came. There were no doors leading away, but leaning against a peeling wall on the floor was a metal vent cover sitting next to a hole just large enough for a pony to squeeze through.

“Bingo!” Dash exclaimed, kneeling down and inspecting the small opening. “It won’t be comfy, but it’ll have to do.” She folded her wings in tight and entered the small vent, trying not to dwell on the last ponies who had done so.

“One hoof in front of the other, keep going, don’t look back. Move,” she chanted out loud to herself.

On and on Rainbow crawled through the black tunnel, repeating the mantra to keep her mind preoccupied. She continued this way for what felt like a long time, scraping up her knees and elbows until they felt raw.

“Don’t look back. Move. Move. Move...”

When a light finally appeared up ahead, Rainbow was a panting, bloodied mess. She pushed through the pain for the last dozen feet and stuck her rainbow-maned head out of another vent, gasping for fresher air.

“...Huhh... Piece of cake,” she heaved, dragging the rest of her body out into the open and rolling onto her back. “Now I... huhh... just gotta get in touch with...”

Off to Rainbow’s side, noticed something strangely familiar, disrupting her orated plan of action. Plastered all around a large, turn-stiled entranceway hung posters she instantly recognized. Still breathing hard, she flipped onto her stomach and up to her hooves with a grunt, moving in to get a better view.

The posters were nearly identical to the ones the Wonderbolts sold. She must have stamped thousands of them with her hoof-mark during her time with the stunt team. These ones were coloured all wrong though, painted in black and red instead of blue and gold.

Rainbow approached the nearest one, lifting a dog-eared corner, and read the poster out loud. “‘Come see the amazing, death-defying aerial stunts of the Plunderbolts’?” The confusing advert was written beneath an image of silhouetted pegasi decked out in pirate gear. “This weekend at the Plunder Dome. The best fliers in all the seven seas’?!” Rainbow stood gaping at the counterfeit poster in disbelief. “Of all the- who do these chumps think they are?”

Uh, aren’t you supposed to be doing something? Rainbow's conscious sighed. Like, I dunno, something important?

“Oh right, Talk-box...” Rainbow remembered, putting a lid on her temper before it got too hot to control. “No time for these posers, gotta talk to Twilight and figure out where I am... Oh, this must be the Plunder Dome.” Letting the poster fold back over itself, she looked around at the cavernous room again, then at the glass ceiling above and the top of a huge dome. On just the other side was the murky green of the ocean water.

Well, that’s one mystery solved... Still, I should contact Twi’. A quick sweep of the massive arena’s lobby yielded no communicative fruits, and Rainbow felt the pangs of depression in the face of defeat welling up inside her.

“Now what? How can I find the Element if I don’t know where it is!” Things weren’t looking so good. Rainbow was hopelessly lost and had no way to contact Twilight. Not to mention the crushing guilt she felt every time she let her mind start to wander.

“Gahhh! I hate this stupid city!” Dash cried out, stretching her cramped wings and staring at the posters once again. “What kind of pegasus would want to live underwater anyway? There isn’t even anywhere to fly around down here...”

Looking back up at the glass dome outside, she realized that wasn’t entirely true. “You know, I bet there’s a Talk-box in there somewhere... And if I could fly around just a little bit, I bet that would help clear my head.”

Even as she spoke, Rainbow found herself moving towards the grandiose dome’s entrance and hopping over the turnstile. The very notion of working her wings in an open space was enough to lift her spirits.

Passing abandoned ticket booths, Rainbow found herself at the entrance to a wide walkway. Its walls were covered with more posters advertising other shows happening around Rapture, various plasmids and the copycat flight team. Despite what was going on, Dash couldn’t help but be annoyed at the blatant display of plagiarism.

Task at hoof, Dashie, she reminded herself again as she entered the dome proper. What she saw before her made her jaw drop.

The dome interior was huge, and its ceiling made of clear glass panels let in a blue-green light, giving an astounding, panoramic view of Rapture. The best part, however, was sitting in the middle of the dome, surrounded by rows and rows of plush seating. At the bottom in a pool of water was a full scale pirate ship, complete with numerous rings, tunnels and other obstacles. Black sails hung from a tall mast that almost reached to top of the dome, and a jolly roger flew menacingly far above.

It was a stunt flier’s dream come true; a pirate-themed playground with unlimited options for tricks and combos.

Rainbow eyed the structure intently, already subconsciously planning her first maneuver. “I bet I could dive off the crow’s nest, circle the mast, and hit all three loops before pulling up and skimming that deck...” Her wings opened and she prepared to take off.

Uh, ‘scuse me, lil' Ms. Hot-shot? It was her pesky subconscious again. Weren’t you finding a Talk-box? Ya know, to help your friends?

“...Horsefeathers...” Rainbow sighed, folding her wings to her sides dejectedly. “I wonder if everypony has a subconscious as bossy as mine?”

Beats me, the voice in her head answered.

Turning away from the spectacle sitting in the dome—just waiting for her to tear it up—Rainbow followed the circular ring around the arena. She passed concession stands, merch tables, stray hypos—which she ignored—and more of those shameful, offensive posters, but no Talk-box.

Anxiety began to take hold once again, the high stress of the last few hours was bearing down on the blue pegasus. What do I do? What do I do!? Uuugghh, is nothing easy here?

Rainbow sat heavily on the dirty flooring. She hated not being in control, even feeling like she wasn’t in control bothered her. She needed to take action; to make a choice and have it bring instant gratification. Unfortunately, being lost in a strange place she didn’t understand, Dash was left feeling unsure of herself, and the image of face-down bodies was still fresh in her mind.

“That’s it!” Rainbow decided, standing up and flaring out her wings. "Just a few laps, it’ll help clear my head, and maybe I’ll see one of those boxes from above?" It wasn’t much, but to her, any action felt better than none. If the voice in her head had any objections, they were drowned out but rushing air.

With a flap of her wings, Dash took to the underwater skies, soaring straight to the top of the ship at an altitude she hadn’t reached in what felt like an eternity. She closed her eyes and let the air blow over her dirty feathers. A calming breath finally released itself from her, then she dropped into a sharp, vertical dive.

Speeding down the height of the ship, she easily passed through the three bronze rings jutting out of the main mast and skidded across the deck, brushing it with a wing.

“YahooooOOOOOO!” she cried, banking hard to the left into a tight barrel roll that brought her along the ship’s side. She then went straight up and tucked her wings, slowing to stop at the height of the climb and letting the momentary feeling of weightlessness wash away the rest of her fear and doubt.

“Hey! You!” a voice cried out angrily.

Rainbow’s revelry was shattered by the gruff voice. She reopened her wings to catch herself before gravity started pulling her down, but a sudden gust of gale-force wind knocked her out of the air.

“Woah!” the stunt mare cried as she spiraled towards the ground, unable to break out of the violent tailspin before hitting the water. She splashed into the pool, flailing her limbs wildly and kicking her way back to the surface. Rainbow burst out of the drink coughing and sputtering, ready to pulverize whoever hit her with such a cheap shot.

“Well, what do ya know...” the voice said again.

Treading in the cold water, Rainbow’s hostile glare shot up to the ship’s deck where four forms had appeared.. They were all pegasi, wearing black and red flight suits adorned with pirate paraphernalia.

“...Ain’t it a small world after all.” One of them stepped forward, a mare. She removed the goggles and black bandana from her head and let loose a long, golden-yellow mane. The mare spread her light green wings and glowered down at Rainbow with contempt.

“No way...” Dash gasped, realizing who it was under the pirate get-up, “Lightning Dust?! I-Is that really you?”

“The one and only,” Lightning replied, laughing to her squad mates. She stamped her front hoof on the deck and it lit up with crackling blue energy, then was aimed down at the bobbing pegasus below. “And here I thought I would never get a chance for a little payback.”

Author's Note

Finally done! And it's another long one.
I probably should have pointed out that I came up with this story before the whole alicorn princess stuff, so Twilight is not a princesses in this little tale.

Also, thanks to Merlos for editing and for suggesting I use a certain, snarky pegasus to lead the Wonderbolt doppelgangers. Be ready for some action next chapter!

Convergence

Chapter VIII: Convergence

The clicking of Rarity’s hooves resounded throughout the empty shopping center as she galloped back to the mall's liquor store, and the Talk-box within. She was alone again; the flying security robot Twilight hacked into earlier had only power enough to direct the hurried unicorn to the prize she seeked before running out of fuel and falling lifelessly to the ground.

Despite its own demise, the security bot had fulfilled its purpose. The artificial Element of Harmony hung around Rarity’s elegant neck, bouncing against her chest as she ran. It wasn’t nearly as opulent as the Element of Generosity had been, and it was a good deal heavier. It also lacked the beautifully set purple diamond that matched Rarity’s cutie mark. Instead, a plain blue, brilliantly cut gemstone adorned the modestly dull metal of the necklace.

It’s hardly the majestic piece of ancient magic I once wielded, but I suppose it will have to do, Rarity thought as she sped down a flight of stairs to the mall's lower levels. Though it wasn’t much to look at, she could feel the waves of energy emanating forth from the otherwise gaudy device. If Twilight was to be believed, it held a great power. I’ll have to take her word for it...

Reaching the bottom floor, Rarity made straight for ‘Booze and More Booze’ and plunged into the darkness within. She slowed to a stop, once again using a hoof to find her way.

Perhaps this time I won’t be jumped by over-presumptuous Splicers, she hoped as she felt her way into a room she thought was the back office. I don’t think my heart could take that kind of... stress?

The thought trailed off as the blackness parted in the wake of a pale, white light. Rarity’s eyes widened as a messy storeroom came into view around her, and she realized where the glow was coming from.

“I’m... using a light spell?” she muttered to herself in confusion. Her eyes shot up to the glow coming off her horn. With controlled precision, it was casting magic without directly manipulating anything physical. “I’m using a light spell!” Rarity repeated with excitement. But, how? It doesn’t even feel like I’m using magic at all. Where is it coming from? Looking down now, Rarity noticed the gem on her neck was also glowing softly, adding a blue tint to the pale light around her.

“Simply remarkable,” Rarity mused, turning away from the stockroom and using the light to easily find the back office. “I really must give Twilight her due credit.” Standing before the room’s communication device, the glowing mare remembered it had been powered down, presumably by Summer Rain.

Hmmm, it’s still undamaged, though. Perhaps all it needs is a little jolt? Rarity inspected the machine. Prodding it with a hoof, she was able to remove its clear paneling, leaving the dark crystals within exposed.

“Alright, all I need to do is channel a little bit of magic into them... I think.” Closing her eyes, the mare gave all her focus on the dead gems. She summoned the smallest bit of magic she could, barely enough to levitate a threaded needle, then cast it with her horn. Rarity felt a surge on her neck, and the tiny spark of energy shot into the Talk-box.

It flared to life with a shriek of static and an angry hiss. The sudden outburst obliterated Rarity’s concentration and sent her sprawling backwards, over the office’s desk and onto the floor, taking the various clutter on top with her.

“Shhhhkrtshhk-arity?! Are you there? Did you get it?” The reactivated Talk-box asked with Twilight’s eager voice.

Regaining her composure quickly, Rarity got up and used her cold foreleg to nurse the bump that would soon grace her head. “Yes Twilight, it’s me. And yes, I have it.” And I’m fine, thanks for asking...

“That’s great! That’s really, really great. Great!” Twilight replied, speaking with an over-abundance of enthusiasm that drained the statement of any real sincerity.

“Is... everything quite all right?” asked Rarity, catching her old friends strained tone. Twilight was never good at hiding her emotions, which made it very easy to tell when something was wrong.

“Of course! Everything is just fine! E-Everypony is up and moving, and Rainbow’s almost got our second Element... It’s just, well, she’s in a liiiiiittle bit of trouble right now.”

Rarity let out a sigh. “Just a little? What has that madmare gotten herself into now?”

“Oh, nothing really, and I'm sure she can handle it, it's just... she's kind of being attacked by four of the most vicious killers in all of Rapture.”

Rarity gaped. “What!?”

“Aaaaaand one of them happens to be Lightning Dust. You remember? That mare who hates Rainbow’s guts because of what happened at the Wonderbolt Academy? The one who almost accidentally killed all of us with a tornado?”

“How are you so calm about this!?” Rarity shouted at the box. “Where is she?”

“They're in the Plunder Dome," Twilight answered hastily. "It’s a big glass dome in the eastern quadrant of Rapture, you literally cannot miss it. I've hidden an Element near there, too. So you’ll need to take care of the Plunderbolts before you can get it. I was really hoping to slip in and out of there with out alerting them... You can get there through the upper level of the mall, but please, whatever you do, DO NOT let them get their hooves on either Elements!”

“Right, wouldn’t want a group of lunatics running around with powerful magic enhancements, would we?” Rarity made for the exit, noticing something she hadn’t before in the office’s darkness. Another mini phonograph was sitting on the cleared-off desk.

As she bolted out of the office and back the way she’d come, the little device floated with her, playing a recording of an old-sounding buck as her frantic hoof falls filled the concourse once again.

“My Newest Creation”

By: Dr. Hoofhardt

When we first discovered that the bodies of deceased Splicers retained a large quantity of ADAM, I was tasked with developing a way to harvest it by Rain herself. An extraction device was quickly assembled with spare plumbing equipment, but the first real problem I encountered was divining which subjects held usable amounts of the substance. As every scientist in Rapture knows, ADAM is secreted by a parasitic slug found here on the ocean’s floor. Its biology contains magical properties unseen in any other organism, so naturally, my first idea was to combine it with a host to properly test these properties. We found that not all ponies were able to survive the painful coupling process; the high-levels of aberrant magic are just too intense... except, as luck would have it, in the case of unicorn fillies. When a young unicorn first starts using their magic, they experience huge magical surges in their horn, especially in prepubescent females. This, I theorized, makes them perfect for surviving the excess magic produced by the slug. Just as I thought, the coupling with a filly was a complete success, and with a little bit of conditioning, Rain had her ADAM collectors. As the situation in Rapture... complicates, the need for armed security escorts also became apparent. For this, I turned to my own species. How useless they are, the deer living in Rapture. Like me they denied our old ways and came here, but they do not embrace our new ideals. They are too stubborn to really change, so I found a way to unlock their potential for them. Though my kind cannot cast magic like a unicorn, and plasmids have very little effect on us, we can sense strong sources of magic, like that produced by natural energy pools hidden deep in the forest or, in this case, a magically overcharged filly. The brain is a wonderfully predictable piece of work. A little tinkering was all it took to hone this sense; add in a dash of chemical dependency, and you have a loyal bodyguard. Add in a vial of anabolic steroids and advanced weaponry, and you have and unstoppable, loyal bodyguard.

The thick vines crackled and burned as they fell to the scorched earth, peeling away from the heavy steel door they enveloped.

“Holy Mother,” Applejack cried as the torrent of flames leaping off her leg died down. Holy Mother, she repeated mentally as a wave of nausea overtook her. Her burning hoof fell to the ground heavily as she teetered back and forth, only just keeping her balance.

The whole door was on fire now, with an excited Pinkie Pie watching intently as if a Sonic Rainboom was exploding in her face. Applejack managed to stop swaying on her hooves just as the last of the vines burned off and smoldered on the ground.

“All right! Let’s get this fetch-quest train a-movin’!” Pinkie cried as she bounced over the crackling vines and activated the door's controls with her newly acquired telekinesis powers. It slid up into the ceiling with a grinding screech that mercilessly assaulted AJ’s flat ears. Pinkie hardly seemed to notice.

How come that ADAM made me feel so rotten, but she’s still got a spring in her step? the ill farmer griped to herself as she followed her hyper companion into the small corridor beyond. As if to add further insult to injury, Pinkie floated a candy bar out of her bag, tore off its wrapper and ate the whole thing in one bite.

“So, how far to the control room?” she asked between noisy munches, followed by a monstrous belch. “Oopsie, ‘scuse me...” she added with an apologetic grin.

“Ah’m not sure,” AJ replied absently, still deep in her own troubled mind.

“Hey, wow! Would ya look at those huge roots!” Pinkie exclaimed, pointing at a bundle of large, brown tendrils that snaked their way down the small tunnel towards the pair. “Think we should follow them?”

“Yeah, fine, sure,” Applejack said weakly and returned to her thoughts, ignoring Pinkie’s ongoing commentary on every little thing to see in the empty, metal hall.

There’s got to be a reason fer this... Maybe Ah’m allergic or something? She was still convinced it was the ADAM that made her feel so ill. And before that, Ah was just plain seasick... Right? Applejack tried to think of another time when floating on water had made her feel so green around the gills, but couldn’t come up with anything. Dangit, where’s Harvey when ya need him? He’s got a knack fer puzzling stuff like this out.

The face of her husband appeared in Applejack’s mind; his tan coat, his deep blue eyes, his short horn peeking out from under an unkempt mane. Come on Jackie, this is an easy one, Harvest said, smiling a smug little smile that usually meant he knew something she didn’t. As much as she hated that smile, Applejack couldn’t help but miss it. It hadn’t been long, but it felt like ages since they’d been together.

Pinkie continued rambling about some spot of rust that looked vaguely like a something or other while AJ smiled inwardly. She recalled her last night in Harvey’s company. As quiet as he tended to be around others, he was a hopeless romantic at heart. He’d pulled out all the stops to make Applejack feel special, knowing she’d be away for a week. They had a wonderful dinner Harvey cooked himself, shared a bottle of fancy champagne from Prance, he even scattered rose petals all over their bed, before they’d...

Applejack’s face suddenly lost all its colour.

"I think she’s got it! Sorry I can't be there for you right now," Harvest’s voice said in her mind. "I know you'll get through this, you're strong, and you got your friends. BE careful, Jackie."He smiled, with just a hint of regret, and was gone again.

No... Ah can’t be... It’s too early to tell, ain’t it? Applejack’s pace slowed as she pictured a calendar in her head and frantically did the math, trying to recall all the times she'd been with Harvest Moon in the last month. It wasn’t long before she started falling behind.

“Keep up, Applejack! You wouldn’t want to get...” Pinkie began, looking back at her pale friend, “Woah, you feeling okay? You look like you just saw a ghost! Oh! Did you see a ghost? I knew this place was creepy, but creepy and haunted? That would be too much!”

“Pinkie, please, just be quiet a sec.” Applejack pulled herself together, filing away her scattered thoughts so she could worry about them later. Let’s not jump to conclusions here; there’s a strange drug in yer system and you're legs on fire... Just 'cause yer feeling under the weather don’t necessarily mean yer pr-

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Pinkie was right beside AJ now, with genuine concern etched on her bright face.

“Ah will be... Ah mean, Ah am...” She mustered a small, sincere smile. She doubted Pinkie would buy it, so she changed tactics, “So, uhhh, what were you just saying? Something about... rust?”

Pinkie’s concern didn’t dissipate entirely, but she went along with it, “Nooo, that was, like five minutes ago. I just said, ‘Hey look, there’s the control room’, then I pointed with my hoof, like this.” She pointed down the hall to another doorway. This one was open, with thick roots pouring out of it, leaving barely enough room for a full grown pony to squeeze through.

Applejack swallowed hard, removing and re-positioning her hat awkwardly. “Oh, whaddya know. That’s where Twi said the Element is. So, uhhh, let’s get this train a-movin’?” She smiled weakly again and brushed past her vibrant friend.

“Applejack, are you...” Pinkie began, but stopped herself. The inquisitive mare considered herself an expert on making friends, and keeping them, too. In all her years of knowing Applejack, she’d always been... stubborn. Very, very stubborn. If there was something she didn’t want to tell you, which was plainly the case here, she never would.

Not until she’s ready to open up about it. “Okie dokie! Let’s mmmmmmmove!” Pinkie sang, following her tight-lipped companion into the tangle of tree roots.

With much maneuvering—and a small mishap that nearly set the whole thing ablaze—the two mares forced their way into the irrigation control room.

A dirty window overlooked a section of the gardens behind a big panel of pumps, valves and levers that must have been the master controls. Little blinking lights dotted the interface, though many seemed to have burnt out long ago. The rest of the room was mostly hidden under a blanket of brown; the roots filled every available space they could, covering walls and furniture alike. They all lead back to a massive tree, which took up two corners of the room with the grotesque bulk for its twisted trunk.

“Jumping jackalopes! Do you see that?” Pinkie cried, pointing at the impossible-to-miss tree.

“As a matter of fact, Ah do,” Applejack deadpanned, “and it sure ain’t the Element we’re lookin’ fer. Now come on, Ah reckon it’s under these here roots somewhere.” All we gotta do is find the darn thing, then we can get outta here fer good. Then I can... figure things out. With Harvey. In the privacy of our home.

Pinkie opened her mouth to reply, then closed it again. I guess she’s not ready to talk yet...

Abruptly, something broke both mares out of their thoughts. It was a voice.

“Who goooes therrre?” A quiet, rolling tone asked.

The two mares jumped at the sudden intrusion of sound, both fretfully seeking its source, but found the room empty.

“I knew it! This place really is haunted!” Pinkie shouted with a mix of fear and excitement, eying a half-covered portrait on the far wall suspiciously.

Applejack rolled her tired eyes. “It ain’t no ghost Pinkie. Somepony must be spying on us.” She turned to address the deceptively empty control room. “Now, who said that? Come out peacefully, we won’t hurt ya 'less ya make us.” Her leg had already flared up again and she could feel the heat on the underside of her barrel.

“I... diiid,” the voice came again, speaking slowly. Each drawn-out syllable was punctuated with a creak or groan. “Who arrre yoooou?”

Zeroing-in on the sound, Applejack faced the corner next to the malfunctioning control panel, where the trunk of the giant tree sprouted from. After a lifetime spent growing and tending to trees, AJ knew enough to see something was off about this one. Firstly, there was no soil for it to get nutrients from, or a visible source of water. A tree that large would require plenty of both. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, it had an equine face carved into its trunk.

“Hellooooo?” it asked, its crude wooden mouth slowly forming the word.

The orange mare jumped back. “How in the- it’s the tree! It's talkin'!”

“The tree is alive? Oh! Is its bark worse than its bite?” Pinkie giggled, her fear all but forgotten in the name of humor.

Applejack groaned. “Dangit, Pinkie, this is no time fer-”

“Tree, yesss...” the plant moaned, drowning out all other sounds in the room it filled. “Ponyyy, once.”

“Did you hear that, AJ?” Pinkie jumped up and down with pure excitement. “It used to be a pony! How cool is that?” She buzzed past Applejack and ran right up to the engraven face, which stared back in stark confusion. “What happened? Did you make a wizard mad? Or did you drink an unmarked magic potion by accident? Oh! Did a wizard accidentally make you drink an unmarked magic potion? Cause he was mad!?”

“Pinkie! Ease up will ya?” Applejack said, rubbing her forehead with her normal hoof. Why couldn't it be Fluttershy instead? At least she's quiet...

“Raaaaaaiiinnnnn!” the tree moaned sadly. Though the voice came from the mouth on the trunk, the rest of the tree stirred and shook as it spoke, creating an eerie, whispering-echo effect.

“Wait, Summer Rain did this to you?” Applejack asked, a definite heat rising in her tone.

“Yesss,” the pony turned plant replied. “I was... A botanisssst. Rain wanted... perfectionnn.... Nothing was goood enough. Sabotaged my wooork, and now... It has beeen soooo looong.” The room filled with the sound of rustling branches as the tree flexed its stiff, wooden muscles. After a short pause, it spoke again. “You seeeeek... Ellemeent?”

“Yes! We are totally seeking an Element!” Pinkie blurted out. “You know where it is? Is it... locked away in your trunk?” Pinkie burst into another giggle fit at her joke, rolling on the ground and holding her sides while Applejack pressed a hoof to her face and sighed.

A horrible grating noise that could almost be laughter filled the room. “Herrreee,” the tree chuckled, its soft words followed by slow scraping. A patch of roots gingerly retracted off the broken control panel, revealing a tiny compartment in its underside.

The mares crouched down and peered in, finding a bronze necklace with a single blue gemstone embedded in it. It was wrapped tightly at either end with branching roots.

“That’s it! I think that’s it... That’s gotta be it!” Pinkie exclaimed. Before Applejack could tell her not to, she dug her hooves in to grab it, but when Pinkie tried to yank it out, she found it was held firmly in place by the tree. “Hey, it’s stuck!” She pulled harder, yanking like she’d never yanked before.

“Hold on Pinkie before ya-” Applejack’s warning came too late, as Pinkie lost her grip and went flying backwards, the necklace still firmly in place. “...Saw that coming. Hey tree-pony, ya mind letting go so we can be on our way?”

“I do, I die,” it replied, meeting Applejack’s annoyed stare with its slow-shifting pupils.

“Die! Like, die-die? Oh no!” Pinkie was back on her feet and in front of the tree in a flash. “That’s awful! What are we gonna do? Applejack, we can’t let her die! Or... him... Are you a her or a him?”

“Not real important right now, Pinkie.”

“Tellll mee, ponies,” the tree cut in. “Whyyy do yyyou want it?”

“...We need it to help a friend,” Applejack replied curtly. They were already wasting too much time on what should have been a quick retrieval.

“Two friends, actually,” Pinkie added, “and then we’re gonna take out Summer Rain, aaaaand save this whole city too! It’s kinda what we do you know, defeating meanies and spreading friendship and all that jazz.”

Around them, the tree rustled its leafless branches once again. “I seee. Rain neeeeds to be stopped. If you can avenge meee, then... I give it freeeely.”

“What? No! You just said you’d die without it! We can’t let that happen!” Pinkie cried, planting her hooves on either side the tree’s carved face. “There’s got to be a better way, right AJ?”

Unable to meet Pinkie’s pleading gaze, Applejack looked at her hot hoof instead and said nothing.

“It would be a blesssing... I loooong for releassssse...” The tree sighed as Pinkie’s huge eyes filled with tears. “I havvee, one more requessst...”

“Wh-What is it?” Pinkie asked quietly with a sniffle.

Applejack looked up when no answer came, and found the talking tree’s gaze fixed on her. “You... havve Incinerate?”

Momentarily taken aback by the odd question, Applejack quickly realized the implication and gasped.

“Her plasmid? What about it....” Pinkie began, before catching on herself. “What!? Y-You want her to... burn you down? W-Why?”

“Take Elleement... Die slow. Aaaagony. Fire isss... Quicker. I will not feeeeel.”

Applejack was at a loss. On one hoof, they needed the Element as soon as possible and at any cost. If there was no other way, the tree-pony would die regardless... But on the other hoof, could she willingly kill another being? Even one that longed for death?

Ah... ain’t got no choice.

“St-Stand back Pinkie,” the farmer said flatly.

Pinkie said nothing, but clung tightly to the tree with both of her forelegs. Tears ran freely down her cheeks.

“Piiiinkie...” the tree spoke again, addressing the mare wrapped around it directly, “Thhank you... for carrring. Please, go to your frieeend.”

Rubbing her moist eyes, Pinkie complied. She dropped heavily to the floor and sullenly backed away. “I... I’m sorry we never got the chance to be friends.”

“As am I....”

“What was yer name?” Applejack asked suddenly, hoping to offset the guilt already building up in her gut.

“Doctor... Petal Blossom. Yess, that’s who I was...” There was another long pause, accented by fidgeting branches. The cacophony petered out, and the control room became uncomfortably silent. “...Rrrready?”

Applejack lifted her hoof and aimed it at the former botanist, “Thank you, Petal Blossom. Ah... we won’t forget whatcha did, helpin' us out like this...”

“G-Good- goodbye Doctor Petal Blossom,” Pinkie stammered.

“Goodbye.”

The roots ensnaring the Element unraveled themselves and released the bronze band. Dr. Blossom wailed in immediate agony as her only source of nourishment was cut off and she began to slowly die.

“Do it, AJ! You have to- to help her!” Pinkie shouted above the noise.

Celestia forgive me. Applejack released her mighty fire. It took to the tree like a spark to dry tinder. In a heartbeat, the whole thing was aflame and filling the room with a thick, black cloud of smoke.

“Get the Element!” AJ yelled over the furious crackling of burning wood.

“R-Right,” Pinkie reached out with her plasmid-granted powers and pulled the necklace from behind the wall of fire. “Got it!”

“Let’s get movin’ then!”

They forced their way past the slackening roots covering the exit and galloped full speed down the corridor back to the gardens. A final moan followed them as they went; but not one of pain or suffering. It was hard to make out over the growing din, but its message was clear.

“Good. Luck.”

“Adios, Dashie.” Lightning Dust sneered from the deck above; blue electricity enveloping her foreleg arcing eagerly around it. She motioned towards the mare in the waters below and it jumped off her appendage with hungry conviction.

Rainbow Dash kicked her legs and pumped her wings as her one-time friend launched the deadly attack, pulling herself out of the drink a microsecond before the lightning hit. Just like in the welcome center, the blue bolts spread across the entire surface of the pool, creating a bright flash of light and delivering only a minor shock to the dripping Dash hovering just above.

Yikes! Note to self, stay out of the water, she thought, then turned a ferocious scowl towards the mare who had tried to fry her. “What is wrong with you! I could have been ki- kill-”

“Killed? That was kinda the point.” Lightning laughed, fixing her goggles and black bandana back over her face, “Have at 'er, team. No mercy!”

Dash frowned. Ponyfeathers...

The three pegasi next to Lightning Dust simultaneously spread their wings and took flight, flying up to the top of the dome and circling the pirate ship’s mast like ravenous vultures.

“I’d start flying if I were you,” Lightning taunted, her leg once again alight with electricity. “Or are you too scared to fight us, wingpony?”

“Hey! Last I checked, I was the one flying with the Wonderbolts while you play pretend at the bottom of the ocean!” Dash shot back. She kept a wary eye on the ponies above, waiting for their attack to come while keeping a lid on her flaring temper. Stay cool, Dash, you can’t take ‘em all at once; so divide and conquer, yeah, that’s the plan. That's a good plan!

“You’re also the one who’s about to be eviscerated.” Catching Rainbow’s upward glance, the green pegasus shot another bolt of blue lightning at her hovering rival.

The tell-tale flash of energy was easily spotted, and Rainbow nimbly dodged the attack by closing her wings and diving under it, making sure to stay out of the deadly pool of water. “Nice miss, you call that an attack?” she mocked, flying back up to Lightning’s eye-level.

The other mare smirked and spread her own wings. “Nope, I’d call it a distraction!” With a mighty leap backwards, she flipped off the wooden deck and over the ship’s starboard side. The second she was clear, the deck exploded in Rainbow’s confused face, propelling her back down towards the pool in a hail of splintered wood and smoke.

“Water! Bad!” Rainbow stopped her tailspin and pulled up as the water once again erupted into arcing electricity just below her, half a second after she would have plunged into it. All that time on the dizz-o-tron actually paid off...

“Nice shot, Ahab!” Lightning Dust said to her squad mate as she joined their formation. A large stallion grinned, holding up his smoking peg-leg and loading another projectile into it. “Mr. Marlin, seal the exit, Eagle-Eye, you’re up.”

“Aye-aye, Captain!” Two other pegasi split off from the group; a mare wearing an eyepatch and a shrimpy stallion with two swords crossed on his back. Side by side, they took off towards the Plunder Dome’s only exit.

“Nopony boxes in Rainbow Dash!” Rainbow barked, then sped after the pair in a prismatic streak. Except, it was only the small stallion waiting for her at the door.

“Not so fast, me bucko!” The mare, Eagle-Eye, appeared out of nowhere and chucked a knife in Rainbow’s path.

"Yikes!" Rainbow screeched to a halt as the razor-sharp blade embedded itself deep into a concrete wall, inches in front of her muzzle. Up ahead a metal shutter rattled closed as Mr. Marlin sealed the exit.

“Next one’s going between yer eyes, ya no good landlubber!” Eagle-Eye spat the words,drawing another throwing knife from her belt. Her eyepatch lit up with a red glow that focused into a moving cross-hair, and locked onto Dash’s shocked face.

Not willing to call that bluff, Rainbow sped off in the opposite direction, desperately trying to figure out a way to put her plan into action, How am I supposed to divide and conquer when they have plasmids and cyborg-robo-eyes? That’s just... that’s just not fair!

Looking up as she sped past the pirate ship’s hull, Dash noticed the other two Wonderbolt wannabe’s were now gone. Before she could find them, another knife zipped past her head, cutting loose a few red strands. Pony-feathers! I need to find some cover! Yeah, the plan's still good!

Adjusting her course, she took to the concourse circling the over-exposed performance and seating area, kicking up a torrent of litter as she went. Sparing a backwards glance, Rainbow found her pursuers had vanished.

“Mr. Marlin, see if you can’t bring that scalliwag back out here, would you?”

Wow, Lightning’s really into this whole pirate thing. Rainbow rolled her eyes. She whipped around a bend and came face to face with the petite swordspony, his dual sabres already drawn. He was blocking her path, leaving an opening to her left back into the dome. Unless she wanted her guts sliced open or her head chopped off, she’d have to fall for his trap.

Too bad you don’t have a plasmid of your own to fight back with... Rainbow raised her leg, ready fire back with lightning of her own, but stopped, gritting her teeth in dismay and anger. "No!” she cried as she veered into the opening the pirate had left for her. I can deal with whatever these losers throw at me on my own! She blasted back into the main arena, and was hit with a paralyzing shock micro-seconds after clearing the gateway.

“Gotcha!” Lightning Dust boasted triumphantly. Energy flowed freely off her foreleg, locking up Rainbow’s muscles and making her convulse uncontrollably. Her rigid body began losing altitude, but Lightning stayed on her, pumping Rainbow with jolt after jolt of raw power.

Falling from the sky, Rainbow crash-landed onto the hard deck of the massive ship with a heavy thud. She cried out in pain, still twitching from the surprise shock attack. Four more thuds, and the Plunder Bolts stood tall over her splayed form.

“Looks like you’ve gotten rusty, Dashie. And to think, the Wonderbolts took you over me!” Stepping away from her squad, Lightning Dust removed her goggles once again and approached her downed enemy.

Calling on all her remaining strength, Rainbow forced her legs beneath her and tried to stand.

“Going somewhere?” In the blink of an eye, Lightning leaped into the air and landed on Rainbow’s spine, sending her sprawling back to the floor with a cry of pain. “Whaddya say, maties? Should we make her walk the plank?”

There was a resounding cheer from the others. Lightning hopped off Rainbow's back and the large stallion with the peg-leg, Ahab, hobbled over. He effortlessly lifted her bruised body with a series of buzzing wingbeats. “Come on swabbie, time for a little swim,” he chortled as he drifted over to a thick board protruding from the side of the ship. Rainbow's hind legs were dragged along the rough, splintered deck, and she was positioned on the plank.

“Any last words before electro-bath time?” Still in a daze, Lightning's condescending voice sounded much farther away than it actually was. Dash wanted nothing more than to shut it up for good; to wipe off the pompous smirk her Academy ‘friend’ undoubtedly wore.

Clenching her teeth and fighting through her shot nerves, Rainbow growled as loud as she could, “I hope you rot down here.”

“Oh, don’t be like that. I always knew I was better than you; and now, we both know it.” The smirk, it shone through her words, it defined them. It boiled under Rainbow’s skin, more than the pain of an Electro-bolt shock ever could. “Mr. Martin, if you would be so kind?”

Light hoofsteps moved around behind Dash’s slumped back, followed by a sword being unsheathed. A sharp point pricked Rainbow in the soft tissue between her wings, spurring her forward on her hooves. “Off ya go, Missy.”

I’ve pulverized ponies for saying less than that, Rainbow thought as she inched towards the end of the plank. So, how am I getting out of this?

The situation was seemingly hopeless. Outnumbered, outgunned, and injured, her options were sorely limited. How would Daring Do handle this? she thought, picturing the heroic, fictional pegasus from her favorite book series. The adventurous mare would always find herself in hopeless situations, yet somehow, she always came out with the upper hoof.

Rainbow slowly neared the edge of the plank, and the certain death that awaited below. She frantically looked for something, anything she could use to her advantage, like Daring would; a low-hanging vine to swing away on, a conveniently placed statue that was just a little too top heavy, a chandelier fastened to the ceiling directly above her enemies, anything!

When her search came up empty, crushing reality set in.

Those are just stupid books. All make believe. Rainbow was at the end of the plank now, a sword point ready for the final push that would send her down to an untimely death via electrocution. Real life is way less awesome...

“Rainbow Dash!” another mare’s voice screamed, loud enough to pull Dash from her final thoughts. She opened her magenta eyes, and through blurred vision, spotted a white form with a purple mane.

“...Rarity?” Rainbow all but whispered. She squinted, and the shape of her friend became more defined. She was wearing a weird necklace... and her leg was smoking.

“Jump! Now!” Rarity shouted, lifting her smoking foreleg and pointing it at the pirate ship.

A grin flashed across Dash’s face. Before the others had a chance to react, she pushed down on the springy plank with all her weight and shot straight into the air. Not a moment later, an icy wind enveloped the deck with a rushing gust.

Rainbow looked back and her jaw dropped. The whole deck was covered in solid ice, including the four pirates; their awestruck faces literally frozen in place. Daring Do, eat you heart out!

“Rarity- that was amazing!” Dash stammered as she landed beside her old friend, eyes still locked on the S.S. Winter-Wonderland. “Guess you got a plasmid that makes things cool, huh?” She grinned wider, both from the joke and the revelry that came with beating Lightning Dust once again.

Rarity nodded with a smile, and the icicles retracted back into her leg, “Indeed. It has proven quite useful in such a dreadfully hostile place,” she replied, trying not to recall the shattered pieces of the teleporter pony who died at her hooves. Instead, she focused on the jewelry hanging on her neck. “I’ve also located one of the artificial Elements! Have you found yours yet?”

Rainbow’s attention turned to the necklace as well, but her wonder was quickly replaced with confusion. “What do you mean? I don’t even know where it is! I was looking for a Talk-box thingy when these guys attacked, and before that I was back in the-” she stopped before her previous fight replayed in her mind, and started over. “Yah, I don’t know where it is.”

Before Rarity could inquire further, a distinct cracking sound came to her ears. “Oh dear! This complicates things...” she said nervously. Any minute the most lethal killers in Rapture would be on them. And they would not be happy.

“What’s wrong?” Rainbow asked, focusing on Rarity’s problems instead of her own. “How’d you get in here anyway, the door was locked.”

“Hmm? Oh, I lifted it with my magic. Wearing the Element seems to over-clock plasmids and-” another crack brought Rarity instantly back on track. “Eep! Look, those ruffians are going to be free soon. Twilight told me there is another Element in here somewhere, so we need to get rid of these tacky pirates. You have a plasmid, yes? Do you need some EVE?” she offered, eyeing Dash’s plain foreleg.

“NO!” Rainbow blurted out, startling the other mare. “I mean, that’s okay, I don’t need it to beat these chumps. That would just... it wouldn’t be fair. For them.”

Rarity raised an eyebrow at the sudden outburst. Even after all this time, I can still read my friends like children’s books. “Are you... quite sure? I think I saw at least one of them using some-”

“Yes, I'm positive,” Dash interrupted, then flexed her wings as the ice encasing the Plunderbolts continued to chip away. “Watch out for the one with the eyepatch, Eagle Eye, she’s got throwing knives and a robo-targeting eye thing. Mr. Marlin is the one with the swords, small but quick. The big one is Ahab, he’s got a bazooka leg or something, and then there’s Lightning Dust...” Turning to face Rarity, the pegasus grabbed her by the shoulders, punctuating each point with a stiff shake. “Whatever you do, don’t fall in the water. She’s got an Electro-bolt plasmid and she’ll zap the pool if you’re in it. One dip and you're done, got that?”

“Yes! Yes, I got it!” the fashionista said, pulling away from Dash’s iron grip and trying to stop her head from spinning.

“Take cover behind the stands, I’ll draw them in and you freeze ‘em.” A new plan was forming in Dash’s mind, building off her previous ‘divide and conquer’ idea. This way, she would still be the one in danger and all Rarity had to do was spring the trap. It’s safer that way, I don’t want her to get hurt because of me.

“So I’ll be- yes. That... sounds like a good plan.” Rarity reluctantly agreed. It really was a good plan, and would keep her mostly out of harms way. But it also meant she’d be seeing more frozen pony chunks. And this time, Twilight wouldn't be around to do the shattering.

If Dash had noticed her old friend’s apprehension, it was completely forgotten when ice cracked on deck, closely followed by a deep growl. “Okay! Ahab is free, get back there now!” shouted Dash as she took to the air.

“R-Right!” Rarity shot back, making a beeline for the concourse. She floated a blue hypo out of her bag and refuelled as she ran, taking cover behind a confectionery stand and waiting for her prey. Prey... That would make me a predator. The thought sat uneasily in her mind.

Out in the dome, the other Plunderbolts were quickly thawing. If Rainbow wanted to divide them up, it was now or never. “Hey! Tubby the Pirate!” she called to the dazed flier slipping around on the deck, “Wow, look at all that ice. Guess you’ll have a tough time swabbing the poop deck now, huh?”

The taunt seemed to do the trick; the stallion’s face was boiling red hot, which was impressive considering it had been blue not moments before. “You l-l-l-l-little harpy- I’ll knock the teeth out of y-y-y-your scurvy-filled mouth for that!” He worked his black-feathered wings like mad, lifting his dense body off the icy deck as his squad mates came closer and closer to escaping from cold storage.

Ahab pumped his wings and flew straight at his multicolored target, aiming his loaded leg-cannon at her smug face. Rainbow quickly ducked out his line of sight, never staying in one place too long so he had to continually readjust his aim.

“If anyone has scurvy, it’s you big-guy. I can smell your breath from here!”

If Ahab was mad before, he was furious now. With an angry roar, he dove at the more agile flyer. This way dummy! Rainbow immediately made for the concourse, the enraged pirate following close behind.

“I’m gonna skin ye’ alive, ya flea-ridden, fillyfooler!” he bellowed, taking aim again in the close hall.

“Maybe you should cool off a bit!” Rainbow teased, smiling deviously upon spotting Rarity, hiding behind a snack counter up ahead. Closing her wings, Dash transitioned smoothly into a slide, landing when Rarity popped out and launched a torrent of frost.

Despite his large bulk, Ahab jerked to the side with astonishing speed, and was able to narrowly avoid the cold wind. His furious gaze fell on the unicorn responsible, as did the barrel of his peg-leg. “Fool me once, little harlot, shame on me,” he smile, contorting his face into a wicked scowl, “Fool me twice, shame on you.”

“Get down!” Rainbow called, reaching back to shock the brute with he plasmid... then remembering her lack of EVE. No! Oh, please Celestia no!

Rarity ducked behind the counter, casting a shield spell with her enhanced magical abilities just as Ahab fired. His rocket slammed into the protective wall, the explosion only just drowning out his bellowing laughter.

Rainbow sat with an open mouthed gape. She couldn’t even begin to process what had just happened. Rarity just made a... because of... wow.

Still chuckling out loud, Ahab loaded another rocket into his hollowed-out limb as he circled around for another pass. “You're turn, scurvy-lips. Hope you like being fish-food, wench!” he screamed.

Ahab leveled his cannon, when the dark smoke was suddenly blown away by a sub-zero wind. Rainbow lit up with relief as Rarity emerged from the smoke unharmed.

"Oh, you did not just call me that," Rarity breathed, then jutted her hoof at the large Stallion with a snarl.

The ice caught the side of the flying pirate’s body and spread with amazing speed.

“Yes! I hope you like being a fish stick!” Dash shot back, pumping a hoof in the air with a smile.

Rarity, however, was not smiling. She closed her eyes and looked away when the floating ice-pony began to lose altitude. She knew what was coming next. Rainbow, still pleased with her brilliant one-liner, turned back just in time to see Ahab hit the ground and smash into a million pieces of frozen gore. Her smile dissolved.

More ice shattered, and Lightning Dust’s voice flowed into the quiet hall, “Uuugh... Where’d they go? And where’s Ahab?" She spotted her other two subordinates, busy coughing and shivering on her ship's deck. "You t-t-two, find them now!”

Rarity’s eyes flicked open, landing on Rainbow’s still form. She was sitting near the stallions remains, hooves placed over her face.

“Dash... They are coming this way,” she said as calmly as she could. Her whole body was shaking again. I did what I had to. I did what I- And it saved Rainbow’s life. He was a killer... So why do I feel so sad? “I- I don’t think I can do that again.”

Slowly, Rainbow removed her hooves from her face. She looked at the carnage around her, and as much as it made her want to vomit, another thought made her feel even sicker. You made a friend kill for you. Dash had experienced first hoof the crushing guilt taking a life created, and now Rarity had as well. “Give me one of those hypos.”

“Darling... are you-”

“Yes! Just give me one so we can end this!” Dash hissed.

“They’re behind the stands!” Lightning voice called out. “Flush ‘em out, and watch out for the unicorn, she’s got Winter Blast!”

Meeting Rainbow’s hard glare with a small nod, Rarity tossed one of the last EVE syringes left in her bag to the pegasus. She caught the glowing, blue needle and stabbed it directly into her leg. If Lightning Dust wants to hurt my friends, then I have to stop her. End of discussion. Her blue hoof pushed the plunger all the way down, and her foreleg once again exploded with deadly sparks.

An instant after she pulled out the hypo, Mr. Marlin tore around the corner with his sabres drawn. Without an iota of hesitation, Dash sent him sprawling to the floor in a convulsing heap. The debate was settled in Dash’s mind now; there was too much at stake to hold anything back.

“Rainbow? What are you doing?” Rarity asked as the pegasus moved over to the fallen pirate, his barding still smoking.

“He’s gonna get up. I have to stop him.” She raised her hoof, ready to shock the rest of the life out of him.

A tiny voice of protest formed in Rarity's mind, but failed to vocalize. She held her tongue instead.

Dash motioned for the killing blow, when a knife flew over her shoulder. It plunged into the flesh between her foreleg bones all the way up to its hilt.

“Blimey, they’ve killed Ahab!” Eagle-Eye gasped as Rainbow screamed out in pain and fell to the floor. The pirate’s uncovered eye scanned the scene, landing on the purple maned unicorn. “You’ll pay for that one, Prissy Missy. I’ll personally see to that.”

With another cry of agony, Rainbow yanked the knife out of her erratically sparking leg. “Run for it, Rarity!” She threw the knife back at its owner, distracting her long enough for Rarity to make a clumsy dive over her cover and sprint back into the seating area.

“Good work, Eagle Eye!” A green mare slammed into the ground in Rarity's path, an electrically charged hoof pointed her way. “I’ll make sure to save this one for you... If I can.”

Not good! Rarity searched for any means of escape, spotting the crow’s nest of the pirate ship high above. If only I could teleport like Twilight, I wonder if this necklace grants that power too? She closed her eyes and focused on making a controlled jump through space-time, when a flash of blue light told her she'd run out of time.

The flash, however, was not followed but the sharp sting of electrocution, but angry cursing from far away.

“What?! How! Where did she GO!?” Lightning screamed. Rarity’s opened her eyes, and she found herself looking down from a wooden basket perched atop the ship’s tall mast. Well, that is an interesting development...

A split-second later, Rainbow burst onto the scene, with Eagle-Eye hot in pursuit. Lightning joined in the chase as well, her unbridled rage apparent in her booming voice.

“YOU’RE DEAD DASHIE, YOU HEAR ME?”

Rarity watched as Rainbow did her best to stay ahead, but she was bleeding badly from her foreleg and losing speed. The remaining Plunderbolts were closing in for the final strike. I have to do something... but what? If I attack one, I give away my position to the other! Oh, why do strategic tactics have to be so atrociously black and white?

Eagle-Eye’s bionic implant locked onto Rainbow’s slowing form, and she pulled out three knives with each hoof. “I owe you a head wound, let’s see if I can’t get at least four out of six.” Twisting her whole body, Eagle Eye unleashed a storm of sharpened steel.

Steel! That’s it! Rarity poked out of her safe spot and wrapped the flying weapons in the glow of her telekinetic grasp, redirecting them like a school of fish back at the surprised mare. “Rainbow! Zap the knives!”

Glancing back, Dash quickly spun around and took aim at the swarm of metal knives darting towards her pursuer. She launched a bolt, gritting her teeth as the power surged through her open wound. Blood poured out with renewed vigor, raining down on the icy deck far below.

The hungry electricity jumped eagerly to the conductive blades, and the pegasus they floated towards. Eagle-Eye screamed, slamming on the brakes far too late. She was pelted by her own knives, and electrocuted from the inside out. Her mechanical eye exploded with blue sparks, and her screaming ceased. Her limp body plummeted to the ground, landing on the concrete flooring that surrounded the pool.

“I gotcha now, little harlot!” Lightning Dust screamed, spotting Rarity in the crow's nest and moving in with a flash of light. Her foreleg crackled furiously with electricity, ready to lash out. There was no time to teleport away to safety.

“Hold it right there, Lightning Dust!” Flying up behind the livid mare, Rainbow took aim with her own empowered hoof. They both stopped, hovering in a midair standoff. “You’re done Lightning. Make one wrong move and I will drop you so fast, you’re stupid head will spin.”

Never taking her fierce golden eyes off Rarity, Lightning chuckled back her reply. “Oh, the Plunderbolts aren’t done pillaging just yet.”

“Again with the pirate talk? Geez, that’s sooooo lame, I can’t eve-” Rainbow was abruptly cut off by a flying tackle from below.

“Time to visit Davy Jones locker! Hahahahaha!" Mr. Marlin cackled, tightening his grip around Rainbow’s wings and diving straight down.

Lightning Dust shot Rarity a devious smile. “Don’t go anywhere, I’ll finish you off once Dash is a charred husk floating belly up.” She sent a bolt at the crow’s nest, zapping its inhabitant with thousands of volts.

Rarity cried out and collapsed in a pile. Her whole body was twitching with energy, but it wasn’t nearly as painful as it should have been. If anything, she felt stronger than before. One downwards glace confirmed her suspicions; “The Element absorbed the magic of the attack!” she said out loud, noticing the intensified glow coming from its crystal. She shot back to her hooves and peeked down at the scene below, hoping to take advantage of a second surprise attack.

Dash was still wrestling with Mr. Marlin and trying to stay dry while Lightning injected herself with a hypo. If Dash falls in that water, she’s done for! Thinking fast, Rarity was forced to give herself away yet again. Using up all the EVE she had left, Rarity sprayed frost downwards in a wide arc, and removed the threat posed by the open water.

As the pool froze solid, Rainbow kicked free of Marlin’s grapple by snapping her athletic wings open wide. Before he could recover, he fell into the water as Rarity’s frost swept its surface and trapped him there. Only the pirate’s head remained above, desperately gasping for air as his body temperature rapidly dropped.

“Ah! C-c-captain! Get m-me out!” he whimpered through chattering teeth.

“I don’t think so, pal.” Rainbow landed on the solid ice, standing tall above the trapped head. She bucked, hard, feeling the bones under his face snap like twigs. The head slumped over, blood flowing over the pool’s white surface.

“Swabbies! The lot of you!” Lightning Dust cried, landing on the ice to meet her nemesis, “I have to do everything around here myself!” With burning malice she launched her bolt at Rainbow, who launched one right back with her injured foreleg.

The opposing energies met, arcing off each other between the pegasi before reaching either target. Rainbow’s bloody leg screamed in protest, but she kept pumping out the power. Beads of sweat formed on her blue-furred brow, dripping into her eyes and stinging them. Her bolt was weakening, losing power as her EVE was consumed.

“You can’t win this one,” Lightning Dust sneered, “You’re bleeding like a stuck pig and my EVE is fully replenished. This is how I finally beat you, Dash!” She met all the power Rainbow was casting and doubled it, her bolt overpowering Rainbow’s and forcing its way closer.

Rarity watched in horror as it neared her friend. Lightning was right; Dash wouldn’t last much longer without her help. After freezing the pool, she was fresh out of EVE herself, and a quick supply check told her she had no hypos left. That only left one option. "Sorry about this, Twilight..."

Rarity focused on her Element, and it floated off her neck. She felt a sudden exhaustion as it left her fur, like she’d just worked on a dress for hours without eating or taking a break. Her horn's magic felt weak, and keeping the heavy necklace aloft became a struggle. With careful concentration, she floated it down past the oblivious pirate to her friend in need and only just managed to clip it around her neck.

“A... necklace?” Rainbow grunted when she felt the jewelry latch on. “Rarity, this isn’t the time for accessorizing- WOAH!”

The blue gem lit up with a brilliant light, and a new bolt of white hot electricity spewed from Rainbow’s injured limb. The bolt spiraled around the opposing beams, making its way straight to the target beyond.

“No. NO! I can’t lose again!” The bolt connected with a deafening crack of thunder and Lightning was flung backwards in an explosion of light and energy. She bounced off a row of plastic seats, which melted upon contact with the lightning still sparking off her body.

Only after slamming into a concrete wall covered in Plunderbolt posters did she come to a stop, creating a pony-shaped impression. The Captain of the best fliers in the seven seas slumped out of the groove, falling to the hard floor.

“Hello, little one! Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you,” Fluttershy whispered in the most soothing, friendly whisper she could. “My name is Fluttershy. What’s your name?”

The Little Filly hardly seemed to notice Fluttershy’s attempts at conversation. She skipped down a steamy corridor, humming a song to herself. Her filthy, pink dress and matching bow bounced along as she went, seemingly oblivious to her surroundings.

“Ummm, hello? Can you hear me? I want to help you...” Fluttershy tried again, but got the same indifferent response. “What are you doing down here? Wouldn’t you rather come play with me and my friends?”

The filly paused a moment, before continuing as she answered. “I’m looking for Angels!” she said in her eerie, echoing voice, not missing a skip in her step. Her pupil-less eyes continued to scan the area as she spoke, on the lookout for ADAM-filled corpses.

From nearby, a deep groan shook the strained pipes in the dim maintenance tunnel. Galt was back there somewhere, distracting the filly’s accompanying Big Stag. So far, he was doing a good job; the hulking deer was not the brightest of foes, and sound proved effective for drawing away its attention, but unless Shy did something soon, it would come back and find her.

“Oh, that’s... nice.” Swallowing the lump in her throat, Fluttershy reached out to the strange foal. “But I really think you should come with me, so I can help you, okay?”

Laying what was supposed to be a comforting hoof on the child’s shoulder, Fluttershy immediately drew it back when it screamed like a banshee, turning and meeting her wide eyes at last. “Daddy! Save me from the monster!”

Fluttershy pulled away in horror. “Monster? No! I- I want to help! Please be quiet before-”

It was too late. With a monstrous roar, the unmistakable thumping of an angry Big Stag rushed towards them.

“Over here! Hurry!” The filly cried, tears streaming down her soiled face.

Opening and closing her mouth, Fluttershy found she was unable to speak. I- I don’t understand! How can I be so scary to her? I just want to help!

At the far end off the hall, the Stag lumbered into view, its eyes glowing blood red. It dug an iron-clad hoof on the sheet-metal floor, then broke into a full charge. The filly ran off, but Fluttershy remained entrenched in the Big Stag’s path of destruction.

The harpoons mounted on its back lowered, aiming at the unmoving pegasus as the beast neared, when suddenly, a heavy hit made him lose his balance. He jerked hard to the left, firing both harpoons just wide of Fluttershy’s pink-maned head.

“Get the filly! Use that plasmid to kill the slug in her belly. GO!” Galt ordered, hitting the Stag again and again while dodging its blind swings.

“Oh-okay!” Fluttershy stammered, tearing herself away from the conflict. Regaining some of her senses, she took off after the filly, stifling a gasp as she passed the two giant spears sticking out of a wall behind her. Th-Those were going to... Oh my.

The shaken pegasus galloped past the whirring and steaming machines that kept Rapture habitable, by the loosest definition of the word. The angry moans and heavy impacts of the fight faded behind her.

“H-Hello?” Fluttershy forced herself to speak loud enough to be heard over the pumps surrounding her. She’d stepped into a room full of them, and spotted the ragged filly struggling to climb into a hole high on the wall. “There you are! Please, come with me...”

“No! No, no. no, no, NO!” the filly’s efforts quickened as Fluttershy approached. She squirmed as hard as she could, grabbing onto the hole and pulling herself up slowly.

Before she could disappear entirely, Fluttershy ran up and grabbed hold of the young unicorn’s hind legs. She screamed for the Stag as she was pulled from the tube.

“I’m sorry, just hold still for a moment... Please!” Tightening her grip on the struggling creature, Fluttershy brought up her empowered foreleg.

As if on cue, the veins and arteries within began to glow with an inner light. Though utterly terrified, the warm glow was comforting, like sitting by a nice fire during winter. Fluttershy pressed her warm hoof to the foal’s forehead, directly below her horn. The inner glow spread to her, spider-webbing across her little body until it was completely enveloped in light. Her struggling slowed as the light intensified, and with a burst of energy, it dissipated.

Fluttershy blinked a few times to clear away the residual glare in her eyes. When her vision cleared, she saw a normal, though still incredibly dirty, filly standing before her, looking up with bright, green eyes. Timidly, and with a look of pure confusion, she turned her head around to look at herself, then patted down her torso with both front hooves. Her look of disbelief only grew when she looked back up.

“Th-thank you,” she stammered sheepishly, then gave Fluttershy a bashful curtsy.

“Y-You’re... welcome?” Fluttershy replied. With only a touch, she had saved this foal from a life of unwilling servitude. Can it really be that easy?

Without warning, the unicorn jumped in and wrapped her savior with a hug. "Thank you," she repeated, sounding entirely heartfelt.

A furious roar reminded the hugging ponies they weren’t done yet. The filly let go with a gasp and ran back to the hole she’d been trying to escape into earlier.

“Wait! Where are you going?” Fluttershy asked, casting a nervous glance back the way she’d come. Judging by the angry stomping, she was about to have company.

“I gotta tell the others what happened!” The filly pleaded. “They need to know somepony can save them, too.”

The stomping was getting closer. Fluttershy made a quick decision and lifted the light pony into the tube. “Be careful, okay? Send the others to me, and I will help them.”

“I will.” The filly crawled inside, vanishing into the darkness. “Thanks again, Fluttershy,” her voice echoed back, then she was gone.

Fluttershy hovered by the hole, a blissful smile on her face, then the Big Stag found her. The smile faded once she realized that besides the tiny hole, he was blocking the pump room's only exit. “Umm, hello...” she said quietly. “Pl- please don’t be mad, but I f-freed the Little Filly. You d-don’t have to protect her anymore.”

The beast seemed to consider this for a moment, his eyes turning a less threatening shade of yellow as he surveyed the pump room for his charge.

“Sh-She’s not here anymore, but she’s safe. Isn’t that what you want?”

The Stag finished its search, finding no sign of the filly. His eyes shifted back to red.

I don’t think he’s too happy... Fluttershy gulped.

With another bone-rattling roar, the Stag made for the floating pegasus once again. He wasn’t halfway across the room when the valve on the oxygen tank on his back popped open. The deer roared again as O2 flooded out in a cloud of white steam, flailing desperately to stem the flow.

“GET BACK!” Galt shouted over the hissing gas.

Fluttershy obeyed straight away, hiding behind a pressure gauge and peeking out fearfully to watch. Something small was floating in an invisible hoof, but she was unable to make it out. It jerked and a tiny flame appeared in the air.

With a little flick, the lit match flew towards the frantic Stag, igniting the concentrated oxygen and turning his spewing tank into a flamethrower. A second later it exploded in an intense wave of heat. If it wasn’t for her cover, Fluttershy’s flowing, pink mane would have been reduced to ashes.

The stag was badly injured in the blast, his dive suit and the flesh beneath was torn open and stained red. With a final moan, he fell heavily to the floor. His glowing red eyes dimmed to blackness, and he was freed as well.

Abandoning her hiding spot, Fluttershy flew to the dead Stag’s side, avoiding the patches of fire burning around his corpse. “I’m sorry... I’m so sorry there wasn’t another way.” Tears dripped off her muzzle onto his blackened flesh, sizzling into steam upon contact.

“I’m fine... By the way...” Galt coughed out, somewhere from the far corner.

“Galt! Where are you? Are you hurt?” Fluttershy left the deer's side, following the sound of her injured companion's voice.

“I’m here. And I’ve been worse,” he replied, the strain evident in his voice belittling his claim.

To Fluttershy’s horror, a puddle of blood was forming on the diamond plate steel that made up the floor where she assumed he laid. “You’re bleeding! I can patch you up, but not if I can’t see you. You need to take off your-”

“I cannot do that,” he interrupted. “I will be... alright. You must leave, and find the Element.”

“There is no way I’m leaving you here all alone!” Fluttershy protested, her initial shock giving way to anger, “Now take off that cloak and let me help you!”

Galt chuckled, wincing as he did. “I take back what I said; you are far from weak.” He erupted into another fit of coughing then continued. “You saved that filly, and I believe you can save this city as well. I will not slow you down in this. So go.”

Fluttershy fell back onto her haunches, tears still flowing. “I- I am weak. I can’t do this without your help, I’ve been scared since I got here!”

“Yes, and you push on.” Galt shuffled on the floor, and the flow of blood slowed. “Your virtue drives you to your goal, as does mine. This is why I cannot reveal myself to you, even if it puts me at risk. My loyalty to those I serve can’t allow it. Do you understand?”

Wiping away her tears, Fluttershy got back to her hooves. “Yes, Galt. I do understand. You have to do what you have to do. Just like me. Are you sure you’ll be alright?”

“Like I say, I’ve been through worse. Go find the Element and find your friends. I will find you when I can.” He grunted, adjusting his position to patch up his wounds once he was alone.

“...Galt. Thank you for all you’ve done for me.”

“No thanks required, Fluttershy. Now go, before I bleed out.”

Fluttershy winced, but couldn’t help but smile. “You should meet my friend Rainbow Dash. She’s too loyal for her own good as well.”

“Perhaps I will meet her,” Galt said as the pegasus walked to the pump room’s exit. “But she will not meet me.”

“What do you think you’re doing!” a raspy voice cried out. It sounded like it was distant, or the speaker was underwater. Lightning Dust tried to move, but she couldn't feel her own body at the moment. A dull throbbing was making itself known in her head, gaining momentum like a speeding train with no brakes.

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m restraining her.”

“Why! You think she’d do the same to you?”

“Doubtful... but we need information, or have you forgotten about the Element already?”

“Uuuuugh,” Lightning groaned through the fog in her mind. Every second her headache was getting worse, and the feeling in her body was slowly beginning to return. It felt like she had been crushed. “Would you two do me a solid and shut up?”

“Looks like she's awake. Can you hear me, Lightning Dust?”

The pegasus opened her golden eyes, and the blurry forms of two ponies confirmed her suspicions. “You two! You cheating tricksters! You no good land-lubbers! You-”

“Aaaand back to the pirate talk...” Rainbow complained with an eye roll. 'That’s just great. Have you totally lost your marbles or something?”

“Rainbow Dash! You just wait till I get my hooves on- AH!” Lightning struggled against her binds, stopping an instant later when her body exploded in agonizing pain.

“Easy now, “ Rarity cautioned, stepping back to a safer distance. “You’ve broken most of your ribs, and lost a lot of blood. We can patch you up, but not out of the goodness of our hearts.”

Evening out her labored breathing, Lightning forced herself to stay conscious, “You... want me to help you? After you killed my whole squad! Fat chance!” She spat at the the unicorn, hoping to stain her white coat with a spray of blood, but only managed to dribble weakly onto her torn flight suit.

“How very civil...” Rarity said flatly.

“Alright, Captain,“ Rainbow jeered, taking a step forward. “We need info, and you’re gonna give it to us. Capiche?” She raised a bandaged foreleg and it crackled to life. “Now, as you were saying Rarity?”

“Ahem, yes...” the unicorn said, moving up beside Dash. How very civil indeed... “Now, Ms. Dust, we are looking for one of these artificial Elements.” She tapped the bronze necklace that was back around her neck. “We have it on good authority that one is here in this dome. Would you be so kind to tell us where?”

Lightning barely heard the question through her pounding headache. Not like she was planning to comply anyway. “Ha! I ain’t spilling nothing. You may as well kill me now and save yourselves the effort... But I doubt you have the guts.”

Rainbow’s leg erupted with sparks again. “Try me.”

“Just tell us where it is and we’ll treat your wounds. Please, Lightning!” Rarity begged, but received only mocking laughter in return.

“I told you jokers, I ain’t talking. So you can take your question, and your lousy Element, and shove them both up your-” A deep growl drowned out the rest of the ex-Captain’s insult. Her jaw dropped, and all the blood left in her face drained away, leaving it several shades paler.

“What in Equestria was that?” Dash asked no one in particular, dropping her awful bad-cop routine.

“Untie me,” Lightning whispered quietly. The other mares met her fearful gaze with surprise.

“What? That’s not how this works, dear; you haven’t answered our questions yet-” Rarity began, only to be cut off by her captive.

“Look! I- I don’t know nothing about no Element, okay? That egghead was working on them I think! But- but- Just untie me already, please!” Dust stared around, eyes going crazy as she looked for ways out.

Rainbow and Rarity exchanged uneasy glances, neither quite sure what to do. A sharp clang snapped them out of their combined confusion. It was followed by another reverberating sound in the enclosed area from its re-sealed entrance. Something big was trying to get inside the Plunder Dome.

“Uhhh, that doesn’t sound good,” Rainbow said as another bang echoed around them.

“Untie me, now!” Lightning Dust was frantic, struggling against her bindings in spite of her serious injuries. “Please! I swear I don’t know about the Element!” There was another bang and the sound of shearing metal. The three turned to look and found a metal point poking through from the other side. “Oh Celestia, it’s a Bouncer...”

“A what?” Dash and Rarity said in unison.

“A Big Stag!” They both got one last look at Lightning’s now tear filled eyes before a crash shook the room.

The solid steel shutter was shredded to ribbons as if it were made of paper; the roaring sound of some sort of engine coming through the opening. In the opened doorway stood a hulking deer, which forced its way in with a huge drill encompassing one of its forelegs. The motor revved and the rest of the door was ripped away.

“Rainbow, I think we should vacate the area,” Rarity told her tense friend, touching her shoulder with a cold hoof, “Trust me. We really don’t want to mess with that.”

A filly followed the stag into the dome. Both seemed disinterested in its other occupants as they casually sauntered in. “Do you smell Angels, Mr. Dee?” she asked, skipping happily into the horrifying scene within.

Rainbow shrugged off the frosty limb and entered her fighting stance. “Why not? We took out a whole squad, and this guy can’t even fly!”

“I know Dash, but not everything has to be a fight, even down here. I listened to a strange recording earlier; believe me when I say they have suffered enough. If we just leave them be, they’ll do the same.”

Remember the last fight you started? Rainbow reminded herself, as the image of three floating bodies surfaced in her mind. “Okay! I- I trust you,” she said, lowering her foreleg while keeping a wary eye on the pair of intruders. “But if they make any sudden moves, we do things my w- I mean... we do what we have to.”

Rarity used her unaltered hoof to turn Rainbow’s eyes to meet hers. “Listen. We don’t have to fight this time. I promise.”

“Can you please untie me before I barf?” Lightning chimed in, also watching the stag closely.

“Shhhh!” Rarity whispered as the filly approached Eagle-Eye's broken body. “He will only attack if she is threatened, so do us all a favor and shut it!”

The green pegasus grudgingly complied, and the three watched the Little Filly go about her macabre work. She levitated her ADAM pump and stabbed it into the dead pirate, extracting a vile of the glowing red substance.

“Come on, Daddy! There’s more over here!” The little unicorn sang, pulling her protector by the hoof towards Mr. Marlin’s split head... and the tense trio.

“Everypony remain calm,” Rarity hissed under her breath. “We’ll be just fine as long as no one does anything stupid.”

The filly stepped onto the frozen pool, readying her pump.

Then, in the blink of an eye, the stag erupted into a hailstorm of angry flames so hot, they sent a crack through the thick ice. The extreme heat from the blaze spread and set alight the pirate ship’s black sails as well, filling the room with an orange glow and gray smoke.

The filly began to scream hysterically as her stag fought to put out the flames, his eyes glowing redder than the fire clinging to his diving suit.

“Got ‘em! Rainbow, Rarity, get away from that crazy thing!” Applejack called to her friends, stepping through the busted door with Pinkie Pie close behind.

“Applejack! You foalish farmer!” Rarity shrieked. “Do you have any idea what you just did!?”

“...Ah saved ya’ll from that monster?” The cowpony said incredulously as she trotted down the stands, an Element fixed around her neck and flames swirling around her foreleg. “Honestly, Ah thought ya’d be happier 'bout that.”

The stag roared again, locking its crimson eyes on the nearest opposition; two mares and a tied up pegasus.

“Get me outta here NOW!” Lightning Dust screamed, renewing her self-detrimental attempts to escape.

Rarity pounced on the chair Lightning was fixed to, working the knots she'd tied only moments ago with her magic. “Stop struggling, this is hard enough as it is!” Before even one of the knots was undone, the stag charged, closing the distance with shocking speed. “Rainbow, stop him before he-”

The rope was ripped from Rarity’s enhanced field of magic as she and Rainbow flew out of the stag’s path.

“Don’t worry, I got your backs!” Pinkie shouted excitedly, using her plasmid to pull her friends to safety... which left only-

“AHHHH!” Lightning Dust screamed in vain as the stag lifted his drill and started the motor. He lunged; the pegasus’ squishy body and the plastic chair holding her in place offered very little resistance for the spinning auger.

Author's Note

Damn, that's one beast of a chapter.

Thanks again to Merlos the Mad for helping, you should be reading his stories right now. Seriously, they are out of control.

EDIT: I guess Daring Do isn't so fictional after all...

Complications

Chapter IX: Complications

Flames flickered around charred patches of flaking rubber on the Big Stag’s diving suit. He howled out a deep, reverberating note before tearing his drill leg out of Lightning Dust’s chest and the chair she had been tied to. The mare’s eyes rolled back and she slumped out of her shredded bindings, falling to the floor with a heavy, wet thud. Her crimson blood coated everything, painting her light-green coat a deep shade to match the Stag’s glowing eyes.

With his immediate target no longer a threat to the Filly he protected, the red faded back to yellow and the Stag lowered his stained drill. He lurched away, chipping the concrete floor with each step.

From a safe distance, four ponies stared at the scene with horror stamped onto their faces. The huge glass dome they stood under felt quieter than a cemetery; though it was filled with the sound of the pirate ship’s black sails burning, the deer’s haggard stomping, and blood dripping rhythmically to the floor.

“I- I don’t believe it!” Rainbow Dash whispered to herself. “She’s gone. Lightning Dust is... Gone.”

Applejack turned away from the gruesome sight and rubbed the back of her head remorsefully, “Dash, A-ah don’t know what to say. Ah’m sorry! Ah didn’t know th-that thing would... Dang...”

Rarity was fighting back the strong urge to scream at the farmer and her idiotic blunder. She was also fighting the urge to vomit. “Applejack, you- You foalish- It didn’t have to be this way! She could have helped us. Those brutes only attack when provoked, which is exactly what you did, and now she’s gone." She spoke as evenly as she could, barely keeping a lid on her anger.

Pinkie Pie, however, had less of a handle on her emotions, “HOLY HORSEAPPLES!” she exclaimed, drawing shocked scowls from all her friends. And the Stag's attention.

The monster’s masked head whipped in their direction, its eyes locking onto the remaining mares and returning to an angry red.

"Dagnabbit!" In a heartbeat, Applejack raised her hoof and set the creature alight once again. The gem set in the artificial Element of Harmony around her neck shone blue, charging her flames with extra power, and draining the last of her EVE.

Rarity stomped her frost coated leg, now inert from lacking the blue substance, and locked Applejack with a furious scowl. “What is the matter with you!? Stop. Provoking it!” she bellowed over the deer’s wailing groans. If there had been any chances of avoiding this fight, they had surely gone up in smoke.

Before AJ could shout a comeback at the unicorn, the metallic clanking of the burning beast’s drill signaled it was rushing towards them. Kicking up more chucks of concrete, he left a streak of blistering flames that only seemed to fuel his rage, rather than slow him down. He lowered his head, leveling six spear-tipped antlers at the group of frightened mares.

“Watch out!” Applejack screamed a warning instead of an insult, grabbing a shell-shocked Pinkie and leaping out of the way as the burning deer plowed through row after row of plastic seats like a combine harvester through wheat.

The other mares followed suit, though Rainbow opted to go over and land a quick Electro-bolt to the monster’s backside. His charge stopped, giving way to convulsing spasms. “Gah! I’m running out of EVE here!” Rainbow called as the Big Stag growled, stuck in place by swirling rope of electricity. “We need a plan!”

“Yes, now that we’re trapped in this pointless conflict...” Rarity fumed out loud, searching her bag for more hypos and finding none.

“Now wait just a cotton-picking minute!” Applejack threw back, “Th-There was no way Ah could have known about these things and how they behave!”

Rarity tossed aside her bag and glared at her ‘friend’. “You didn’t think attacking a monster would make it angry? I suppose that shouldn’t come as a surprise...”

Applejack’s face went red with rage, but before she could launch a punch at the condescending fashionista, Rainbow’s EVE ran dry and the electricity holding the Stag in place fizzled out.

It shook off the lingering charge and resumed attacking the hovering pegasus flapping just out of its reach. “Cut it out you two, I can’t distract this guy forever ya know!” It threw back its head, the sharp points on his antlers just missing Dash’s underbelly.

With a mournful glance at her useless, powered-down foreleg, a plan formed in Rarity’s mind. “Okay! What we need is more of those blue needles. I saw a few laying around the vendors area behind the seating. If somepony can keep the rest of us supplied, we can wear this brute down without getting too... close.” She finished her plan, trying not to look at the green and red figured slumped on the floor.

“Me! I’ll do it!” Pinkie shouted quickly, snapping out of the shock state she’d slipped into. Anything to get out of here, I- I don’t like this place. It smells like... Like I don’t want to think of what it smells like. She turned away, unwilling to continue that line of thought. “I can use my unicorn powers to get those needles to you guys while you... Are you going to kill him?” The shaken mare gestured at the flailing Stag, who was desperately trying to impale Rainbow Dash.

“It would appear we have no choice.” Rarity deadpanned.

“I swear to Celestia, Rarity, if you-” Applejack’s retaliation was cut off by a loud, whale-like moan.

The Stag lifted itself off its forelegs, rising up on the rear two and taking Dash by surprise. Flapping desperately, she tried to gain altitude, but was nicked by a spear point that tore off the field dressing on her leg and reopened her deep knife wound.

“PINKIE! GO!” Rainbow shouted, darting over the red-eyed fury while staying out of his reach. Blood flowed from her leg, splattering his indifferent face mask.

“Okie dokie, Dashie!” Pinkie saluted, then galloped towards the hall encircling the Plunderdome at breakneck speed. Whew, okay much better. Now I just need to find some- She slipped on the slick concrete floor, noticing it was covered in a wet puddle, littered with chunky bits of thawing-

Pinkie expelled everything she had eaten since coming to Rapture.

In the stadium, Rainbow Dash zipped back and forth above the Stag, keeping the monster’s full attention. It tried swatting at her with its heavy drill, but he kept tripping over chairs and couldn’t hit the nimble pegasus. He stood on his hind legs again, swinging his sharp antlers wildly. Rainbow flew higher, avoiding the repeated maneuver, but only just.

”We need more time!” AJ cried after the close call. “Can’t you freeze it again ‘er something?” she asked, turning to the group’s only unicorn.

Rarity rolled her eyes, frustrated with the farmer all over again. “But of course, would you please lend me one of the hypos you were wise enough to collect on your way here?” Applejack’s face went beet red, though whether from anger of embarrassment, Rarity could only guess.

Maybe I was too preoccupied with finding out Ah'm pregnant... Applejack thought, but dared not say out loud. Thinking the words was bad enough, actually saying them would make them too real.

Another surprised shout came from Dash as she regained the things attention from straying to her friends. Worse, the Stag was learning her flight patterns and moving every time she darted in, placing the razor points on his head directly in her path with increasing accuracy.

Applejack was pulled from her mind again. “W-Well, we can’t just stand here! Is there anythin’ ya can do?”

Rarity was about to give Applejack a piece of her mind, when she was struck by a brilliant idea. The Element let me teleport, just like a powerful unicorn. So, what would a powerful unicorn do at a moment like this? She thought about her adventures with Twilight, recalling her brother’s wedding in Canterlot and the disaster that had devolved into. An army of Changelings invaded the capitol city, and Rarity, with her five friends, cut their way through a whole legion of them. She recalled Twilight using her horn to blast away the shapeshifters, with Pinkie using her tail as a turn crank.

Well, I wouldn’t really want Pinkie messing with my tail, but here goes nothing...

"Rainbow!" she called out. "Toss me back the Element!"

The pegasus glanced over. "Alright!" hastily, she ripped off the necklace she still wore, then hucked it her friends' way.

Rarity caught it in her weakened magical grip, and refastened it quickly. Energy poured back into her.

"That'll do." Patching into the Element’s stored power once again, Rarity was easily able to collect her magic and focus it into the tip of her horn. Releasing the pent up magic, it surged forth as a pale blue beam, right at the Stag’s head. He turned to look just as the laser hit... but the shot only glanced off his mask’s glass lens, leaving a sharp crack down the middle. The beast roared furiously, clutching at his damaged eye-wear, while the reflected beam kept going, impacting the dome's concrete wall just below the its glass panels.

“Be careful Rarity!” Applejack chided, eyeballing the misfire. “One foot higher an' we’d all be swimmin’ right now!”

“I was trying to help!” the unicorn cried back, shocked at her newfound ability, and how weak it had seemingly been.

So was I when I sent that bugger on fire. Talk about double standards, thought Applejack. She would have said it aloud for the purple-maned hypocrite to hear, but the Stag was on the attack again, no longer being distracted by Dash’s antics. The shouting and laser shooting mares had captured its attention, and its building rage.

“Guys! Focus!” Rainbow Dash was rushing back to them, trying to regain the Stag’s ire unsuccessfully.

It barreled towards them, head lowered, but without magic or EVE to save them, there was very little they could do to stop the angry juggernaut.

Luckily, before the Stag could turn its defenseless prey into pony-kebabs, they were saved by a the most unlikely of projectiles. Out of nowhere, a flying plastic chair collided with his face hard enough to throw his charge off course and sent him crashing into more of the red seats.

“Did somepony order some EVE?” Pinkie shouted, a cloud of blue syringes hovering around her. Though she wore a wide smile, her old friends could see cracks in her mask of happiness as clearly as those in the Stag's. Pinkie didn’t wait for a reply, but sent the hypos flying at the forelegs of her friends. They punctured the ponies’ skin with gusto, except for Rarity, who still had enough magic power to catch hers before getting stabbed by the soaring needle.

“Dangit Pinkie! Was that really necessary?” Applejack winced as she injected the glowing blue serum, causing her leg to erupt in orange flames. The other mares did the same, Rarity wearing a cheeky grin the whole time.

The Big Stag quickly recovered, regaining his footing and eying the four targets before him with his broken lens.

“Get’ em, Daddy!” the Filly cried from somewhere in the stands.

The Big Stag roared with renewed conviction and surged forward... only to be stopped in his tracks by a storm of ice that froze him solid where he stood.

Rarity panted hard from the exertion, blowing the foggy aura off her re-frozen leg. “Much better. Now, if everypony’s bloodthirst is quite satisfied, may I suggest we take this chance to leave?” Her words were calm, but on the inside, she was screaming. There is enough blood on my hooves already.

Applejack shook her head slowly. “And have this... thing chase us down and take us unawares? Ah don’t think so. That spell of yours ain’t gonna last forever.” As if to prove her point, a large fissure cracked open down the deer's flank. “We’d be better off... finishing what we started.” She said firmly, but with a distinct air of sadness.

“You mean what you started...” Rarity scoffed.

Rainbow landed between the mares, holding them apart with both hooves before they could go at each other's throats. “Woah! Cool it, nopony wants to do this, but I gotta go with AJ on this one. This guy is a loose end, a very dangerous one. I say we stop him while we can.”

Rarity reeled back, putting distance between Rainbow’s recharged hoof and her muzzle, “I don’t believe this! Have we really fallen so far as to consider killing before a retreat? Haven’t you had enough of that?”

The Stag cracked again, and so did Rainbow. “Don’t sound so innocent, little miss freezy-pants. I did what I did to save my friends, or the ponies who're supposed to be my friends. You’re the one who chose clothes over Fluttershy.”

“Back to that again, are we?” Rarity growled, turning away from the crazed mares.

“STOP IT!” Pinkie shrieked, unable to bear a moment more of the pointless arguing. The three mares complied, mostly out of shock, fixing the panting pony with confusion in their eyes. “Just stop! We are supposed to be friends! HELLO! Did you forget about the Elements? Twilight basically told us they run on friendship, which we seem to be completely out of. We need to work together if we want to get out of this room. We have a dragon to save, and Twilight, and a whole city. So, get it together!”

The arena fell back into silence, punctuated by breaking ice. Rarity and Applejack stared at their hooves in shame; their tempers quickly extinguishing by Pinkie’s sudden outburst. If it took a pony as silly as her to point out the ridiculousness of their behavior, something had clearly gone wrong.

“Now then,” Pinkie continued, oblivious to the increasing cracks coming from the Stag. “Rarity, you know about these guys right? Is there anyway we can... reason with it? Or maybe even help it?”

Thinking back to Dr. Hoofhardt's recording, Rarity slowly shook her head. She knew what the Stags had been through, and that there was no going back for them.

This was not the answer Pinkie was hoping for. She sank to her haunches with a sigh, then jumped back onto her hooves as the monster smashed out of its ice encasement.

Rainbow instantly jumped into the air. “Guess we do this the hard way, then.” She sent a barrage of lightning at the deer before it could get its bearings and attack. I need to protect them, and that means this guy is going down. She was only a little worried about her quickness to condemn. No. This is the way it has to be. No room for second guessing here.

Applejack watched her prismatic friend rush into the thick of things, and found herself once again unable to help. Ah can’t get close, and Ah can’t use mah plasmid without hitting Dash! She glanced down at her Element, finding that the gem had gone completely dark. As crazy as it sounds, Ah think Pinkie might 'ave been right about these things.

Swallowing her pride, the stubborn farmer turned to Rarity, whose necklace was also dim, “Hey, Ah didn’t mean to shake up this bag of rattlesnakes so bad, and if Ah thought we could get away from this without fighting, Ah would have done just that... But in any case, that’s not happening now.” She nervously adjusted her hat, avoiding the unicorns faltering glower. “Ah’m sorry, okay? Ah was wrong ta instigate ya.”

The desire to shout ‘I told you so’ was incredibly strong, but Rarity knew what little good that would do, and opted for the higher road. She really didn’t know, after all. “Yes, well, I accept your apology.” The heated mares met eyes at last, and small, coy smiles spread across their faces. "I'm sorry for everything, too."

"Seems we're pretty good at gettin' under each other skin, huh?" said Applejack.

"Seems to me we we're always rather good at that," pointed out Rarity, recalling an ill-fated slumber party from long ago. "But we're still best friends."

Their smiles grew, but their eyes shifted downwards when the jewels around each other’s necks began to glow once again.

"Well I'll be a-" Applejack had been about to say.

A cry from Dash refocused their attention on the fight. She was still bleeding from her foreleg, and slowing down in her evasive maneuvering. The Big Stag reared, grazing Rainbow’s wing and removing several long, blue feathers. She flew away from the beast, spinning wildly out of control. Rainbow tried to straighten out, but curved into the sails still burning away the Plunderdome’s main attraction.

“Yikes!” she cried, angling down towards the still flaming ship’s deck for a crash landing.

With one enemy down, the enraged deer revved up his drill and raced at the others.

“Uhh, guys?” Pinkie said, “I’m really proud of you and all for working things out, but... we’re not done here.”

AJ faced Rarity with a sly grin. “Care ta try that laser beam again? I got a feelin’ it’ll be a might stronger now. Try and knock this sucker out.”

Rarity could feel the energy once again radiating off her Element. It surged with power at the orange mare's suggestion. “Capital idea, Applejack. And I’ll be sure to watch my aim this time.” Sticking her tongue out playfully at the farmer, she channeled her supercharged magic into her horn once again.

With a brilliant flash, she released the built up beam of power, hitting the deer square in the chest with full force. It staggered backwards, crushing plastic seats and moaning in pain. Rarity cut the flow of magic, amazed at the sheer amount released and the damage caused by the short burst. The front of the Big Stag’s rubber suit had seemingly absorbed much of the blow, but it was enough.

As brutal as what she had just done was, an opening had been made. “You’re up, Darling!” Rarity called to Applejack.

Applejack nodded and pulled the brim of her hat low. She charged in, her Element glowing bright blue. Swiveling at the last second, AJ bucked with enough force to completely uproot a fifty foot tree and send it all the way to Appleoosa faster than any train ever built by ponies.

The kick connected with the Stag’s chest, and it coughed out a labored moan as it sailed away, flying backwards over the front rows of seating and the frozen pool... and towards the ship Rainbow was still lying on.

“Oh no! Heads up, Rainbow!” Pinkie cried.

Dash, recovering from her rough landing, looked up in time to see the injured deer rip through the flaming remnants of the ship’s sails and slam into its tall mast. The impact cracked the thick wood, and the whole thing slowly began to tip and fall like a chopped tree. Rainbow dove away as the Stag fell onto the deck and crashed straight through the spot she’d been sitting an instant earlier.

Feeling the stings of several splinters enter her underbelly, Rainbow glanced back at the gaping crater the deer's bulk had left behind. Suddenly, a few splinters didn’t seem so bad.

“We need to get Dash out of there!” Rarity gasped from the ground, galloping to the frozen pools edge with the others following closely, “Pinkie, can you levitate her from here? I think her wing may be injured from that nasty hit!”

“No problem-o, just give me a-” Pinkie began, when a sharp snap echoed through the dome.

The mast was falling over, and gaining speed; pulled down by the weight of various metal rings and a top heavy crow’s nest. Applejack gasped as she came to a grievous realization: there wasn’t enough room in the dome for it to harmlessly topple. It was going to smash into the dome's glass panels long before hitting the floor!

“The mast!” she screamed at her magically inclined allies. “Somepony catch it, quick!”

The huge wooden beam snapped at the base and fell freely towards the glass as Rarity galloped closer. Her Element flared to life with blue energy as she aimed at the falling mast. A brilliant glow faded into existence around Rarity’s horn, and the whole structure was encompassed by a shimmering blue aura. Its deadly plummet immediately slowed, then stopped in the unicorn's reinforced telekinetic grasp.

Once her hold was secure, Rarity turned to her awestruck friends. “You two, go help Rainbow!” she managed to grunt under the immense mental strain.

Applejack and Pinkie nodded in unison, then ran to the damaged ship, hopping onto the frozen pool it sat on and sliding the rest of the way.

“Hey, Dash!” Applejack cried after stabilizing herself with more than a little effort. “You okay up there?”

When no reply floated down, Pinkie came up with an idea that could only be called pure, unbridled genius. “I got it! AJ, I can float you up there with my freaky unicorn powers!” Pinkie skated up, sliding effortlessly on her hooves and adding in a double mid-air spin before landing with a flourish. After bowing to a non-existent audience, she met Applejack’s flat, unamused stare.

“Seriously?”

Up on the deck, Rainbow Dash attempted to stand on her sore, weary hooves. It proved to be a difficult task; she was dead tired and her head was pounding relentlessly from one too many crash landings in the last twelve hours. Standing very unsteadily, she noticed her damaged leg had gone numb from the knee down. Blood had dried into the blue fur around her ugly, purple stab wound. That can’t be good. Dash thought, then recalled the pony who had done the stabbing, and reminded herself again that things could be much worse.

“There ya are, Rainbow!” Applejack’s voice buzzed over Dash's ringing ears. Swinging her head over to the broken ship’s side, Rainbow noticed the orange mare... floating in the air while kicking her legs as if she was swimming. “Come on! We gotta get away from this thing!”

Poor flying form and technique aside, the farmer had a point. “Right! Let’s get some distance from this jerk and finish him off.” Dash spread her wings and did a quick spot-check on the feathery blue appendages. Looks like I lost a few secondary guidance feathers... I won’t be doing barrel rolls, but I can still get out of here. She ran towards her friend and the ship’s starboard side. Just as she was about to jump off the side, she recalled the Wonderbolts show in Fillydelphia only a few days away. She gasped, missing a crucial step.

At the same moment, the Big Stag’s drill smashed through the ships hull, effectively cutting the whole thing in half. Rainbow lost her footing and, instead of the graceful leap into the air that she’d originally planned, she fell to the ice below with all the finesse of a boulder with wings. Desperate to avoid more head trauma, she pulled hard to the side at the last moment, sending her crashing into the plastic seating. She landed perfectly in one of the padded seats in the front row... Upside down.

The raging monster continued to thrash at the wood around him, sending flying debris every which way. Pinkie, standing closest to the blast zone, was forced to duck under a speeding 2x4, an act that severed her concentration and broke the hold she was levitating Applejack with.

“Darnit Pinkie!” cried Applejack when she suddenly found herself falling with increasing velocity towards the hard ice below.

“Oops! I'm sososossorry!” Her pink hoof shot back on target, and with the skill of any practiced unicorn, Pinkie caught her falling friend and set her down gently on four hooves. “Hey, this is really useful! I tell ya, you unicorns don’t know how easy you got it, Rarity. Do you have any idea how tough tying balloons with hooves is?” She yelled back to Rarity, who was too busy pushing her magical limits to their extreme by levitating the mast’s substantial weight.

Dash righted herself and staggered away from her crash zone, positive there were little stars orbiting her rainbow-maned head. A terrible crash dissipated the hallucination, as the furious stag decimated what was left of the previously beautiful stunt course and pirate ship. “Yo, guys! I think he’s still pretty mad.”

“What gave you that impression?” Applejack asked, thankful to be on the semi-solid ice again and out of Pinkie’s direct care.

In the pool’s center, the Stag finally broke free of the crumbling wreckage. He stood tall before the mares, panting deeply.

“What’s it take to stop this guy!?” Pinkie shouted in disbelief. “Is it too late to try cake? Cause I’m pretty sure-”

“NO!” the other mares shouted together.

The deer rose onto his back hooves and brought his drill down hard. Thick ice cracked under the oppressive force, splitting all the way to the three pairs of hooves standing on it. The resulting shockwave made Applejack lost her tentative balance. She slipped clumsily and feel to her side.

Rarity also felt the tremor, moments after setting the broken mast safely on the ground. Turning her aching body to the ship, or rather, what was left of it, she spotted the others lined up in front of the intimidating monster. Why is Applejack lying down? she wondered, when something else caught her trained eye. Something shiny. It was sitting in the ship's broken hull, giving off a distinct magical pulse that she could feel even from thirty meters away.

Kicking her legs into gear, Rarity sprinted down the last rows of seating between her and her friends, shouting, “There’s an Element inside the ship! Rainbow Dash, if you get it, we can put an end to this!”

After helping Applejack up off the ice, Rainbow shot Rarity a glance, then turned back and craned her neck to look around the Stag. Sure enough, enclosed in a small glass case, sat a necklace identical to the ones Rarity and Applejack wore. “I see it! You guys keep him busy, I’ll swoop in and grab the Element before Dumbo even knows what’s going on.”

“You got it, partner!” Applejack ignited her flames, turning the ice around her into hissing steam. Her Element activated and the flames grew even hotter, tinted red with power. Pinkie took a step away from the scalding heat, and Rainbow took haphazardly to the air.

With a defiant roar, the Big Stag took a single step forward, and was greeted by the searing heat of Applejack’s amped up plasmid. His roar intensified as the flames swept over him.

Taking advantage of the opening, Rainbow made for the gash in the ship’s side while keeping clear of the angry, burning monster.

“Piece of cake...” she growled though barred teeth, struggling to fly straight and narrowly avoiding the Stag. He flailed blindly, but was too busy being on fire to land a hit. Dash kept her distance, and entered the ship’s dark, gutted interior.

On the ice, Rarity reached Pinkie Pie and took a place beside her. They watched in awe as Applejack pumped a stream of blood-red fire into the beast. “Keep it up AJ... We almost... have it beat,” she panted, then fell to the floor in a sweaty heap.

The Stag lifted his drill, placing it between himself and the fire-powered mare. The stream of flames split around the deer, clearing him on either side. He advanced once again, pushing against a wall of fire towards the shocked ponies with malice dripping from his cracked lenses.

“This looks like a job for, A WONDERBOLT!” cried Rainbow Dash as she emerged for the hull, sporting a new piece of glowing, magical jewelry. “This is it AJ, let him have it!” Dash slid out from behind the beast and took aim with her sparking, blood-drenched foreleg. The recovered Element she wore shone deep blue, and the electricity crackling around her leg intensified. Shoving it forward, Dash added a super-colossal bolt of white lightning to Applejacks blazing inferno.

The beast bellowed again, not a guttural cry of anger, but a devastating wail of pain. It dropped its guard and fell to its knees, and Applejack had to look away. Soon enough, she heard the thunderous lightning cut out, and she ceased her fire as well. Everything was quiet, so she cracked an eyelid to confirm what she already knew was waiting beyond the thin veil of orange flesh.

The scene before Applejack was even more horrendous than she’d imagined.

The combined heat from the two attacks had melted a ten foot hole in the ice where the Stag had been. Its floating body was barely recognizable, just a charred pile of smoking refuse and blackened antlers. Twin trails of black smoke and white steam collected at the top of the dome, carrying and acrid stench of burnt rubber and flesh that none of the four ponies would ever be able to forget.

“What A City!”

By: Twilight Sparkle

This place continues to amaze me! Spike and I have been living comfortably in Apartment Complex D-1 for some time now, and I’ve been working with the top minds of Rapture on some big things. And I mean really big, like change-life-in-Equestria-as-ponies-know-it big. Can you imagine what the world would be like if anypony could use magic, regardless of their race? Think of the possibilities! That’s what I’ve been working on the most, along with Chicane and Dr. Hoofhardt, two of the leading scientists down here. It is outstanding how highly this place values the sciences; I can hardly contain my excitement! We are on the cutting edge, nay, the bleeding edge of something amazing; combining magic and technology in ways I’ve never thought possible... And therein lies my problem. As per my original assignment, I’ve sent detailed letters to the Princess about everything being worked on down here. But... I’ve been leaving out my own enthusiasm with these projects. I know her, after leaving Ponyville, she was the closest friend I had besides Spike. This is the type of thing that would only make her worry. And what if she ordered me to come back? There’s no way I could leave this work unfinished, it’s just too fascinating! I’m worried if Celestia knew how much my work meant to me- she’d think I’m turning into Rain or something equally nonsensical. The Princess told me all about Summer Rain before I left Canterlot, but when I met her myself, I can admit to being awestruck by her personality. If anypony could take over Equestria via invasion, it would be her. She’s one of the smartest ponies I’ve ever met, and she’s got enough passion to build and populate a whole city at the bottom of the ocean. I know she’s evil, and probably insane, but I can’t help admiring her. We get along very well, too. I can't say I buy her more wild theories, but maybe there is more to this pegasus than Celestia thought?

The recording playing from the strange device stopped, and Fluttershy nearly tripped over her own hooves. She reoriented herself, recovering her footing and continuing her gallop through Rapture towards her friends. Twilight had told her where they were shortly after she had found her Element. And it was just after that when Fluttershy found the recording machine with Twilight’s name written on it.

That- That couldn’t have been her. Twilight would never help create something like... like any of this. She’s my friend, and a good pony... Fluttershy told herself as a huge glass dome came into view, rising high between the tall, grey structures sitting on the ocean’s floor. “Oh, this must be it. I hope there are no more Splicers in there,” she said out loud, recalling the crazed, ADAM addicts she’d encountered after taking the elevator back up from maintenance. Thankfully, using the Stare had taken care of them this time; her animal-controlling ability was seemingly enhanced by the glowing gem bouncing around on her neck.

“I bet Galt would have been so proud of me,” said the mare as she reached the dome’s deserted entrance. She paused at the turnstile, scanning the area intently, “...You’re not here, are you? Galt?” Fluttershy asked, taking a moment to listen for her invisible ally. When the lobby remain still and empty, she moved on. I hope he’s okay. I still feel bad for leaving him like tha-

A new sound reached Fluttershy’s perked ears. They swiveled on her head, pointing down the short hall that lead into the Plunderdome proper. Fluttershy glided over the closed gate, landing softly on the other side and advancing towards the sounds. Up ahead, and getting louder with each step, she could hear a pony crying. A young pony.

Passing through a metal shutter that looked like a train had smashed through it, Fluttershy emerged into the open dome, and her breath caught in her throat.

The arena was a disaster. Sitting in its center was a half frozen pool and the wreck of a big, wooden ship. Its mast had broken off, sitting across several rows of broken red seats off to the side. In front of the ship, the body of a Big Stag was floating in an exposed patch of melted ice. A Little Filly laid at her fallen protector’s side, crying her pupil-less, eyes out and wailing like an angry Windigo. And finally, positioned around the foal was the four friends Fluttershy had foolishly ran away from in Rapture’s welcome center. They looked completely wretched; starring down at the bawling filly with pity, and no idea what to do.

Fluttershy’s plasmid-empowered leg twitched, and she felt a heat in her veins. Right, it's a good thing I got here when I did. I hope the others didn’t have too much trouble fighting the Big- Her thought was interrupted when a familiar smell reached her nose; the harsh, metallic scent of blood.

That’s when she noticed the other bodies. Fluttershy’s jaw dropped and her eyes went wide, darting between each as she spotted them. There were three; a burnt-up pegasus with a missing eye and several knives jutting out of her body, a pony’s split-open head slumped to the side stuck in the ice pool, and a red puddle with the eviscerated body of another pegasus splayed on the ground.

A tiny shriek escaped Fluttershy’s frozen form as she took in the horrors around her.

Down below, Rainbow Dash instantly recognized the miniscule squeak and whipped her head around, where she spotted the mare she’d been trying to save recoiling in horror. Dash’s face lit up as she pumped her blue wings, leaving the others behind and flying with some difficulty to her lost friend.

“Fluttershy! Thank Celestia you’re okay! And you even found a-” Landing before the yellow pegasus, Rainbow moved in for a hug, but was confused when it was not returned. Fluttershy backed away, closing her forelegs around herself. “Hey, what’s wrong? It’s me, your best friend, Rainbow Dash! Are you okay?”

“M-My... friend. Rain- Rainbow. D-Did you...” She whimpered, pointing a shaking hoof at the nearest atrocity. “You... D-Did you- kill these ponies? What happened here?”

Following the gesture, Rainbow found herself looking at Lightning Dust’s mutilated remains. She quickly snapped her head in the other direction, “No! That was... th-that deer. We h-had to take it out.”

“O-Oh. He d-did all this?” Fluttershy’s hoof slowly moved over to another body, the one-eyed mare.

"No... I-" Feeling anger boiling beneath her fur, Rainbow threw up her forehooves and started shouting. “They were going to kill us! One of them tried to blow up Rarity, and that one stabbed me with her stupid knives!” She held up her re-wrapped foreleg for emphasis. “It’s not like I wanted to do it, we had no choice!”

Overhearing Rainbows shouts, the other mares joined her by the dome’s entrance, gathering around Fluttershy. Applejack stepped up, placing a comforting hoof on Rainbow to calm the worked up pegasus. “Alright, let’s simmer down here.”

“N-No!” Rainbow pulled away. “She wasn’t there, she doesn’t understand! Rarity, tell her how they tried to kill us!”

Fluttershy turned away, hiding behind her long, pink mane. She did understand, the logic was perfectly sound. They did it to survive, plain and simple. Some of the animals she took care of back home killed for food, and she would never dream of holding it against them. But these were her true friends, and fellow Elements of Harmony. And this was different. Now, they were killers, too.

Rarity caught onto the inner turmoil raging in her old friend’s mind and spoke up. “Fluttershy? I’m... very glad to see you. Are you alright, dear?” Rarity asked carefully. She looked ashamed, just like all the others. Even Rainbow, despite her attempts at justifying her actions, couldn’t hide her guilt.

“I- I’m, yes. I’m fine.” Fluttershy stammered the words, mostly for their sake. If fine was a town, she'd be in another country. “I just need- I mean, I can help that filly. W-With a plasmid I got.” She forced her legs to move, taking one step at a time past her downcast friends and towards the wailing child below.

“Ya’ll got a plasmid and an Element?” asked Applejack, falling in line behind the pegasus with the others. “Well hot dang, w-way ta go ‘Shy! Ah always knew ya had it in you.”

“Y-Yyeah! You go girl!” Pinkie added, forcing a smile that utterly lacked her usual merriment.

It was not returned. “Yes, ummm. Thanks, g-girls,” she said quietly, glancing back from behind her mane. She stepping onto the ice, leaving the others at the pool’s edge.

They watched her approach the filly, whispering softly to try to calm it down. She then extended a hoof, which the foal tried to swat away. Fluttershy pushed past the attempt, touching the filly’s forehead below her horn. The hoof glowed orange, lighting up from within and spreading up Fluttershy’s leg. The glowing intensified into a bright flash, and when it subsided, a normal filly in a tattered dress sat where the bug-eyed monster had a moment prior.

The four witnesses to the transformation gasped in amazement at the sight. The feeling was promptly sliced to ribbons however, by a fresh pang of guilt that cut through them as they began to understand what happened. True to form, Fluttershy had found a way to help others, while all they had done was hurt, and kill.

Pinkie was especially touched by the display. She hadn’t done any of the actual killing, but she played her part in the fight, and felt like a vile demon next to Fluttershy.

And then there was Rainbow, who felt far worse. Fluttershy waltzes through this crummy place a saint, and I-I’ve killed.... s-six. Now that she’d taken the time to count, the number shocked her. It had been a necessity, or so she told herself over and over. Rainbow lifted her gaze, finding the bodies of the fallen Plunderbolts. We took out her whole squad. They were probably the closest thing she had to friends down here. Her magenta eyes landed on Lightning Dust last; her collapsed form obscured by red plastic, sparing Rainbow from the horrific sight she knew was there. And I took them away, just like she was trying to do to me. What makes me any better?

After a few kind words, the cured filly turned tail and cantered away. The angelic pegasus returned to the four mares staring sullenly at their hooves. Each looked even worse than before, their muzzles hanging inches above the ground.

“Fluttershy, that was... really good,” Pinkie said, tilting her head up slightly and sniffling. “We- we all feel just awful. I feel awful! We attacked first, like a bunch of bullies, and- and now, well-” She paused to take a breath, wiping the tears flowing down her pinks cheeks, “I-I know it’s a lot to ask, but is there any way you could... ever forgive us? E-Even if it took you a million-kajillion years?”

Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow looked up, sad and tired. Fluttershy felt all eight eyes bore into her, and tear up her insides. Even if I did forgive them, can they forgive themselves? “I- I know you didn’t want to do it. You’re... good ponies, and my f-friends.” Just like... Twilight. Fluttershy winced, still unsure what to think of the voice recording. She turned her attention back to her hopeful friends. “Forgiveness might... take a little while. But I understand why you felt you had to do it. From now on though, there will be no more, understood?”

The mares nodded slowly. Fluttershy’s decision, while harsh, was the best they could have hoped for, and managed to lift their collective spirits, if only just a little. If she still had faith, then maybe they were not as lost as they thought. Plus, with four Elements found already, their goal was well within sight. No matter how far redemption seemed, saving Twilight, Spike and the rest of their city was a good step in the right direction. The only question left was; what to do next? But since, none of them really knew the answer, the quiet that befell the dome was sustained.

Until a sharp squeal replaced the heavy silence with a blaring symphony of permanent ear damage. The five ponies flattened their ringing ears tight, clamping them down with hooves in a fruitless attempt to block out the vicious resonance.

“Twilight here, you guys all found each other! That’s great, now we only have one Element left, and it’s very close by!” Twilight’s voice emerged from the squeal, booming over the announcer’s speakers that circled the arena.

The loud noise made Fluttershy flinch. The pony speaking made her wince.

“So, let me get this straight,” Applejack said, rubbing her aching temples with her hooves. The warmth of her plasmid leg was actually quite soothing to her rattled brain, but all the aspirin in Equestria would be no match for Twilight explaining something in the Royal Canterlot Voice. “You decided to hide the last Element outside the city?”

“That’s correct.” boomed Twilight, sending sound waves bouncing through Applejack's cerebellum. “It’s just outside, at the top of this dome. One of you will have to go out there to get it. There is an emergency airlock with an extra diving suit just off the main concourse-”

“Okay, we get it!” shouted Rainbow, clutching her ears desperately. “Geez Twilight, I forgot how much you talk.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. When I hacked into this thing, I tried to find the volume controls but-”

“AAAAAHHHHHH!” All five mares screamed at once.

“Sorry!” Twilight whispered loudly.

Rarity rubbed her sore ears, “Well, perhaps I shall invest time into designing a stylish ear horn, since I will no doubt be needing one now.” She shook her head, glad to be back on track with their quest despite partial loss of hearing. “But before I go deaf, let’s decide who’s going out there. Because I certainly am not; I’m a dreadful swimmer. Plus it must be positively freezing out there.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes and jumped on the chance to start making up for her heinous actions. “I can do it! I’ve dealt with way colder conditions up in the clouds.”

“Not with a hurt leg ya haven’t.” AJ cut in. She had applied new bandages herself, and saw just how bad the wound was. “You need to take it easy; lose anymore blood and you’ll be in big trouble. Especially out there by yourself.”

“I- I don’t want to go.” Fluttershy squeaked. She may have gained some confidence from Galt, but there was no way she’d go out alone into the deep, dark ocean. I’d rather stay in the city full of murderers...

“How about you, Applejack?” asked Rarity, “You’re the toughest mare I know. If anypony can do this, I believe you can.”

Applejack smiled modestly. “O-Oh, well, thanks Rarity. Ah guess somepony’s gotta do it...” She was a good swimmer, so it only made sense. When she was a foal, she’d go to the pond near her farm with her older brother almost every day in the hot summer. Foals... Applejack recalled her abandoned line of thought from the garden. The nights she’d spent with Harvest Moon before leaving Ponyville, and the possible reason for her uneasy sickness. “Uh, that is, unless anypony else wants to jump in. Wh-What about Pinkie? She never got a chance to uh, volunteer. May as well be democratic, right?” A bead of sweat formed on Applejack’s brow as she forced a smile at Pinkie.

One look at the nervous farmer’s face was enough to tell Pinkie what was going on, no Pinkie Sense required. This has something to do with the secret she still won’t tell anypony! It must be really important... “Okay, I’ll go.” Pinkie chirped, to the surprise to everyone around her. Especially Applejack.

“You... will?” she asked incredulously. “Ah, you don’t have to, ya know. I was just sayin’...”

Pinkie smiled as brightly as she could at the moment, then flashed a wink. She may still feel terrible on the inside, but helping her friends was something she always loved to do. “It’s okay! I know you're a super good swimmer and all, but you’ve already got your Element. You all do, so this one is mine. I can use my plasmid to carry it back more easily, too.” Pinkie demonstrated said plasmid by lifting Applejack’s simmering foreleg. “And you probably don’t want to be stuck in a diving suit with this.”

“Well, those are all very good reasons, and if yer sure about this...” Smiling, Applejack wrestled her leg away from Pinkie’s invisible hold and set it back down. “Thank you.”

“Anytime!” Pinkie replied.

“Great! Then it’s settled!” Twilight bellowed, causing everyone to cry out again in agony.

Once the ungodly ringing stopped, the group made their way up to the circular concourse. Rarity lead them the long way around, avoiding the thawing pieces of the first Plunderbolt to fall. Most of the others had already seen it, but Rarity really wanted to spare Fluttershy the sight. And herself the memory.

Before guilt could bubble up again, the airlock came into view. “Look, that’s it there.” Rarity pointed out, coming to a halt.

“Let’s go then! Even with unicorn magic, there’s no way I could put on a whole diving suit by myself.” Pinkie leaped ahead and unhitched the heavy metal door.

Rarity waved an icy hoof. “Oh, it can’t be that difficult. A suit’s a suit, and considering I’ve designed dozens myself, this should be-”

The door swung open. At the back was the airlock, a watertight room separated Rapture from the ocean with two glass paneled doors. On the left side were the knobs and levers that controlled the airlock, and across from that was the diving suit itself. It took up most of the right side of the room, comprised of various layers of waterproof rubber, a multitude of hoses, tanks and pumps, and a complex helmet system.

“-easy as pie,” Rarity finished dourly.

Several minutes of squirming, squeezing and squishing later, and the airlock was filling with water. Pinkie stood inside, wearing the bulky suit and waving at her friends through the small window in the door. The bubbling sea water rose past her head, and her body lifted gently off the floor. A red light on the control console changed to green, signalling the room was full and pressurized.

“Okay, we’re ready to go.” Applejack said, taking the time to learn the control system while Rarity struggled to prepare Pinkie. There had been plenty of time.

“You okay in there?” Rainbow asked, tapping on the glass three times. Pinkie swam up to glass, giving the all-good signal by knocking back twice. “All clear AJ, she’s ready.”

“Roger, Rainbow.” Applejack pulled a brass lever, and the outer door swung upwards with a low hiss. With a final salute back at her friends, Pinkie paddled out into the open ocean and disappeared from view.

Rather than sit and wait, the other mares ran back into the domed arena, eagerly scanning the bottom edge of the glass. “D-Does anypony see her?” Fluttershy asked first, looking for any sign of the rubber-clad mare.

“There! Air bubbles!” Rainbow cried, pointing across the destroyed stadium. They all looked and soon, a brown figure swam into view. It waved at the crowd below, then continued up towards the top of the dome.

“How’s she doing out there?” Twilight roared, reminding the others she still controlled the fate of their eardrums.

“Just fine, Twi!” Applejack shouted, in what sounded like an inside voice at the time. “She’s halfway there and moving fast. Huh, Ah never knew she could swim like that.”

“Are you kidding me?” Rainbow said. “I saw her swim through sand once. Though, I think that may have been one of her mirror pond, fun-addict, clone thingys.”

“Oh, I remember when that happened,” Rarity chuckled. “A swarm of them rampaged through my shop, put on all the fancy dressed and performed a scene from ‘The Merchant Of Mustangia’. It was actually quite good, until they decided to raid my pantry instead of finish.”

They all laughed softly at the old memory from when they all lived in Ponyville. Even Fluttershy joined in, though all it took was a quick look around to remind her of what had changed since then.

“Hey, she’s almost at the top!” Rainbow cried, pointing upwards.

Fluttershy’s eyes shot back to the shape outside. Pinkie was casually trotting up the exterior of the glass, rounding the downward slope and continuing to the apex. Once there, she stopped for a moment while doing something with her hooves, then she reappeared with a small box, just like the one Dash had found in the pirate ship. Inside was the final artificial Element of Harmony.

“That’s it! She’s got the last Element!” Rarity shouted in excitement.

“Yee-haw! Ah never doubted her for a second!” Applejack added.

“Yay!” Fluttershy whispered quietly.

“Yahoo!!!” Twilight thundered, shaking the entire Plunderdome. The mares inside fell to the floor, writhing in pain.

Even Pinkie wasn’t spared from the trauma. A stream of bubbles erupted from her breathing apparatus, and she shook her head violently. The encased Element was released from her grip, falling slowly away before Pinkie recovered enough to take hold of it again.

“Twi...” Applejack groaned. “Wh-Why?”

“Oh! I’m so sorry!” she said much quieter than before, though that may have been a result of ear damage. “But we have all the Elements now! And that means it’s time we meet. Once Pinkie gets back inside, I want you to head to the-”

The voice cut out abruptly.

The pain in their ears was immediately forgotten as the four mares shot back to their hooves, and another voice spoke from the dome’s speakers.

“Hello again, my little intruders. Long time no see,” Summer Rain said. Though her voice was at a normal volume, this was only a minor relief to the mares listening. “My, you have been quite busy, it seems.”

“Not long enough,” Applejack shot back scornfully. The image of a burning tree surfaced in her mind, and her scorn turned into full-blown anger. “If ya wouldn’t mind, Rain, we’re still a little busy here. So, if you could please get to the point, we’d like to get back to tryin’ to put a stop you.”

Rain’s silky laughter flowed into the glass dome. “Straight to the point, I see. That’s why I like you Applejack, you speak what’s on your mind. I’ll do my best to keep this short.”

Rainbow stomped her hooves, barely noticing the flare of pain from her injury, “Why don’t you make things even shorter by coming out here, you coward.”

“Rainbow!” Fluttershy gasped. “Y-You promised there would be no more... killing.”

“I- well, yeah- but... she’s the bad guy, right?” Rainbow said lamely, sighing and lowering her head. "So, we gotta arrest her and stuff."

“Fluttershy is right,” Rarity agreed with the passive pegasus. “Rain may be the villain here, but that does not give us the right to condemn her to death.”

“Simply adorable. You are unwilling to decide my fate, yet you allow others to play with yours as a child would with cheap toys,” Rain remarked, a condescending smirk evident in her voice. “Fortunately, I have devised a solution to our disagreement, one that frees you from the burden of having to chose. You see, I’ve been quite busy myself while you terrorized my city, and so I submit to you now to my final ultimatum.”

A low rumbling began, quiet at first, but getting louder every second. The mares felt the vibration in their hooves, but were unable to locate the source. Up above, Pinkie started pounding frantically on the dome’s glass, pointing wildly off to her side.

Between two towering apartment complexes, a larger, meaner-looking version of the Bathysphere they came to Rapture in appeared. It glided in slowly through the water, the rumbling increasing as it took position above their defenseless friend.

“Pinkie Pie!” Applejack’s rage reached a boiling point, pushing her strained nerves over the edge, “Summer Rain, you dirty, no-good coward, if you so much as lay a hoof on her-”

“I will not. You see, this is my ultimatum, my way of removing any choice, and therefore guilt,” as Rain spoke, her bathysphere tilted down at the mare struggling to swim away. Two panels slide away from the vessels underbelly, revealing a set of barbed spears, loaded into long barrels.

“You will give me the Elements. And I will let her live.”

Author's Note

FINALLY.

That is all.

La Mare

Chapter X : La Mare.

A heavy silence descended on the broken remains of the Plunderdome. Even the crackling fires eating away the pile of scrap wood and ashes that had once been a proud ship faded away, leaving only a buzzing rumble coming from the large bronze craft floating just outside the glass ceiling high above.

Inside the dome, standing next to a thawing pool of icy water, were four dirty, bruised and bloodied ponies. The various scrapes and injuries dotting their exhausted bodies were the furthest thing on their minds, however, as they all gaped upwards with wide eyes at the lone swimmer trapped on the other side of the glass with the submarine. A trail of bubbles streamed from the facemask of Pinkie’s diving suit as she tried to put some distance between herself and the Bathysphere, and the six barbed harpoons it had trained on her. Floating with Pinkie, wrapped in her telekinetic hold, was a glass box containing the final artificial Element of Harmony.

As Pinkie slowly inched away from the attack sub, one of its spear’s took flight, missing the pink diver by less than a foot before she had a chance to so much as blink. Bubbles surged from her mask as the stray bolt disappeared into the murky sea behind her.

“Well, you all must have cotton in your ears,” Summer Rain cooed over the dome’s loudspeakers, drowning out the shocked gasps of the mares inside. “Perhaps I was not clear enough? Surrender the Elements to their rightful owner, and your friend here doesn’t get skewered. Do not test me, and do not think you can outsmart me.”

The submersible re-aimed and a fresh spear replaced the cleared barrel. Pinkie stopped her spastic movement abruptly, opting to hold her rubber-clad hooves above her head instead while keeping her Element floating close by.

Down below, Applejack turned to face the others, scanning their faces for any hint at a way out of their newest predicament. Unfortunately, all she found was fear and uncertainty, something she herself was feeling in equal measures at the moment.

If we do what she wants, we doom Twilight, Spike and everything else down here... AJ’s gaze fell to the bronze necklaces, and the blue gems glowing on each of their necks. And if we doom Pinkie- She shuddered at the very thought. Then we don’t got enough ponies to use these things anyway.

Fluttershy and Rarity grabbed hold of their Elements, ready to throw them to the ground at Applejack’s command. Ready to throw away all the hardships they’d been through to get them, and any hope of saving Rapture...

Maybe that’s all there is to do, Applejack thought, staring at the bright blue gem on Rainbow’s neck. We tried our best, but Ah guess that ain’t good enough any more.

Following the apple farmer’s stare, Rainbow Dash looked down at her own Element, then up to her helpless friend and Rain’s Bathysphere. Dash’s eyes narrowed, and her foreleg crackled with electrical energy. “You twisted piece of scum,” she growled, crouching down low and spreading her wings wide. “You think you can threaten my friends and get away with it?”

“Rainbow, please!” Rarity hissed, releasing her necklace and stomping. “Do not antagonize the crazy pegasus with harpoons pointed at Pinkie Pie!”

“Why not?” Rainbow asked, taking flight above her friends and pointing over her shoulder at the sub. “ It’s not like we’re actually gonna hoof over our Elements to that psycho just like that, right?”

“Actually, dearie, you will,” Rain said. “Do you need me to remind you what’s at stake?” Even through the arena's worn speaker system, the dulcet tone of her voice carried a distinct hint of venom.

“Everypony, just calm down for a sec.” Applejack spoke up, taking the role of moderator, “Now, Ah know we can work this out like adults here, so long as nopony gets hurt or does anything-”

“I’m sorry, but it sounds like you’re giving out terms to me,” Rain cut in with a hiss. “The terms have been laid out, and shall remain as they stand. I will get my Elements, one way or another.”

“Over my dead body!” Dash cried as she flew up to the top of the glass dome, ignoring the protests from her friends. From this close, there was only a few feet of ocean water and a thick glass panel between her and Pinkie. She may as well have been in outer space.

“No no, dearie. Over hers,” Rain corrected, chuckling to herself. “Now get away from the glass and go back to you friends like a good Little Filly. Go on, off you go.”

A torrent of molten fury burned under Rainbow’s fur. From this close, she could see the worry in Pinkie’s blue eye’s, behind her clear goggles. I won’t let her hurt you, Dash thought, grinding her flat teeth together as she slowed her wing beats and drifted back to the dome’s floor, never looking away from the Bathysphere.

Once the blue pegasus landed, Rarity placed on hoof on her shoulder. “Calm down Rainbow, she’ll be alright as long as we keep our heads,” she said softly, dampening Rainbow’s flaring temper just enough to slow her breathing to a normal rhythm.

“She will be if you do as I say, and then we can put this whole mess behind us," Rain said, a measure of coolness returning to her echoing voice. “The five of you will be free to return to the surface unharmed and unopposed, I swear it on my city. I implore you, do not force me to do this; I am far less cruel than you would believe.”

The voice struck a chord in Fluttershy’s head. The patronizing, egotistical tone. The arrogance of a pony who thought they could do anything, or say anything they wanted and get away with it. She’d heard it before, as a young filly getting picked on at flight school by the better flyers. Bullies talked the same way when they knew no instructors were around to punish them.

Even in her own school in Ponyville there was the odd bully. Somepony who thought the rules didn’t apply to them, or that they could beat the system by extorting other students. Her own school had a zero-tolerance for this sort of behavior, and Fluttershy herself had suspended several ponies with attitudes similar to Rain’s.

There was a point in her life when she would allow others to walk all over her, but this kind of malicious advantage-taking was something she had long ago lost all patience for.

“You- you are cruel!” Fluttershy shouted through the quiet around her. “How can you say you’re not? You hurt others like it’s okay, but it is NOT. You do not threaten ponies! Or experiment on them like they’re some sort of science project! You- you’re nothing but a big, mean bully, and bullies always get what they deserve!”

Fluttershy snorted, panting out the last of her fury. Her friends reeled back around her, stunned in the wake of her outburst. Rainbow had even jumped into Rarity's forelegs out of pure shock. The fashionista dropped the other mare unceremoniously a moment after.

There was a brief moment of silence before Rain spoke, abandoning all subtlety. Venom dripped from each and every word. “Actually, Sweetie, your friend the traitor, Twilight Sparkle, did most of the experimenting around here. I’m not much of a scientist, more of a supervisor really.”

Everypony’s eyes went wide at the slanderous accusation, save for Fluttershy’s. She held her ground as best she could while her nerve faltered, and Rain continued to speak. “Oh, she was so dismayed the day she lost her first subject, it took her months to get over it... It’s funny though, after it happened the fifth time, I don’t recall her blinking much of an eye.”

Inspired by Fluttershy’s speech, Dash flew in and took place by her side. “That’s a load of buffalo patties and you know it! Twilight isn’t a basket case like you are, she’d never do something like that, right ‘Shy?”

There’s no way I could leave this work unfinished, it’s just too fascinating! Twilight’s recorded words replayed in Fluttershy’s head. We are on the bleeding edge of something amazing... Her mouth opened and closed, but she couldn’t force anything out.

“Shy?” Applejack asked, joining her side with Rarity. “Is there- Are you okay?”

“N-No, I mean...” was all she managed to squeak before her windpipe closed itself completely.

Rain laughed again. It was the same condescending tone that triggered Fluttershy’s rage, but this time it only made her feel small. “It seems at least one of you is not so naive,” she all but snarled. “And why wouldn’t you be? You lot haven’t seen Equestria’s dark side. The slums and ghettos of Manehattan, overflowing with the unfulfilled. The traveling herds of earth ponies that teach their foals to hate those who are different. And the hedonistic greed of the Canterlot elite, who host lavish feasts while ponies starve just outside their high castle walls.”

“You... are a real downer, huh?” Rainbow scoffed, puffing out her chest heroically. “You should see the Wonderbolts sometime, then maybe you wouldn’t be such a loopy, ‘glass half empty’ kinda of pony. We’re just too awesome.”

“Yes yes, joke away the truth while you’re still able to,” Summer Rain replied. “But know that in the country you love so much, a tear is shed for every laugh. Equestria needs my revolution. It is the only way things can ever change up there.”

I will not listen to this trollop a moment longer, Rarity thought, boldly taking her place next to the others. “This place isn’t exactly Shangri-La either, you know. Equestria has its fair share problems, just like any other nation does,” she confessed, casting a nervous glance up at Pinkie, who still had her arms up and was now floating upside-down. She smiled to herself. “But as long as there are good ponies around to make things better, even with something as simple as a laugh, there is hope. There are ponies who care about others, even I do my part to fund several charities in Canterlot itself. What would someone like you know about philanthropy?”

Rain’s reply was much quicker now, gaining heat with every word. “Listen to yourselves! You sound just like the pin-headed nobles who give Canterlot such a foul stench. You’ll stubbornly hold onto your views against something as inevitable as an incoming tide. It’s only when the waters reach your muzzle do you begin to reconsider your position. What I preach is equality throughout the land, not the false illusions that make you think the world is just fine the way it is, and lets you sleep well at night. Change is coming, the beginning of a new age of prosperity in Equestria. A new renaissance that will purge away the cancers that plague those above, and I will be its herald!"

“As if! You really think you can actually conquer Equestria?” Rainbow asked skeptically. “No way! Even if we don’t stop you, which we totally will, Princess Celestia-”

“Is the most rotten of them all!” screamed Rain, her composure completely abandoned. “She’s the one who watches it all happen, and allows the tumors in her country to spread. I was not the first to question her rule, but that’s the beauty of being a goddess; her rule is unquestionable. How can you serve such a tyrant?”

“Now that- that just ain’t the truth,” said Applejack, surprised by her own quickness to defend Celestia. She was the one who drove the first spike into our friendship... Twilight left, then Rainbow left, then they all left. By her sides stood the friends she’d been separated from, all with her now, where they used to be. Where they should have always been. But... what did we do to stop it? What did Ah do about it? It never had to be this way, but we let it happen.

Her resolve fortified, Applejack continued defending her ruler. “Celestia... well, she is Equestria. And a part of all of us. Ah know she’s sure helped us through some tough times... and for a long time I was mighty upset with her for makin’ a choice Ah didn’t understand. But, even when we weren’t there for each other, she was always there fer us.”

“Not just to us, but for all her subjects,” Rarity added.

“She may be a princess, but she’s still a pony. The kindest, gentlest, wisest pony there is!” Fluttershy yelled, regaining a mote of her former confidence.

“And she’s not off her rocker, unlike a certain cutie-mark-slicing wacko...” Rainbow finished.

The four mares stood together, strong and unwilling to be intimidated. The gems on their necks outmatched their former brilliance, beaming like a constellation of blue stars. The combined glow filled the dome’s shattered interior, creating an island of light around the mares in the ruinous scene.

For a long while, Rain made no reply, maintaining the sub’s position as the mares held fast. After several tense moments, her velvety voice poured forth once again. “Your ignorance astounds me.” The slightest of tremors were audible beneath the surface of her words. “Such a pity your narrow viewpoints will not be enough to stop the change Equestria ever-so desperately needs. I’ve had enough of this nonsense. Remove the Elements from your insipid little necks, or this one gets a spear through hers. This is the last time I will ask nicely!”

With a quick burst from the engine, the Bathysphere abruptly readjusted itself. Pinkie, frozen in place, had begun to drift back over the side of the dome she’d come from. Rain moved in close to re-aim, placing the sub just above the glass.

Applejack caught the slight movement, and a crazy idea popped into her head. Might be it’s crazy enough ta work... A smirk crossed her lips as she addressed the group. “Rarity, think you could put one of them shield spells around us all?” she whispered to the unicorn.

The question was met with confusion, then Rarity glanced up and took note of the sub’s change in position. Her eyes flicked back to AJ wide. “If you’re thinking what I think you are... then I should certainly hope so,” she whispered back with a slight nod.

Returning the subtle gesture, Applejack put on the straightest face she could, “Alright Rain, looks like you got us beat. Oh... darn it.” She outright lied, much to the surprise and horror to the others. Apples were not known for their ability to lie, and the former Element of Honesty’s efforts were cringe-worthy at best. “Ah’m taking off the Element, now. Boy, this is just awful...”

As she lied, she slowly lifted a foreleg to the glowing gem around her neck. The second the hoof passed her chest, Applejack activated her plasmid and it was enveloped in flames. Ah hope the glass ain’t much thicker than that tunnel’s was... She thrust her arm up at the submarine and red hot flames shot across the dome, reaching the glass ceiling in a heartbeat. The glass instantly bubbled, and the thick steel holding it all together glowed red hot in the intense heat, supercharged by AJ’s Element.

“I’m afraid that was a bad move, dear-” Rain began, when the ceiling cracked and gave way. The weight of the ocean smashed through the weakened ceiling and flooded into the dome, right underneath the armed Bathysphere.

The sub unleashed its payload at Pinkie as the sea water below it spilled into the growing hole. The first spear flew right at her chest, only to be blocked by the solid casing containing the Element. The rest shot off and sailed over Pinkie's masked head as the sub was pulled off-target and drifted towards the dome.

“Uhh, please tell me there’s more to this plan, AJ?” Rainbow asked, taking a step back from the cascading water flooding in across the open room. They retreated to the upper levels of seating as the rest filled with water. Loose plastic seats rose up with the water level, floating up on a turbulent tide.

Stopping at the top and facing the incoming tidal wave, Rarity’s horn light up, “I’m on it, just let me concentrate.”

“No! I will not be stopped!” Rain cried over crashing waterfall. Her drawn in sub collided with the broken ceiling, tripling the size of the hole and bringing in a whole new downpour of seawater. With a monstrous crash, the water spilled in and spread across the arena with shocking speed.

“Any time now, Rarity! Before we all drown, if you’d please!” Applejack cried, the cold water clawing its way to their hooves. It blasted through what was left of the pirate ship, tore up the stairs to the concourse-

-And stopped, a mere foot away from Rarity’s illuminated horn.

“Is that how you let somepony concentrate?” She smirked back at the group, watching the waves crash around the perfect sphere of pale, blue magic surrounding them.

“Yeah, nice job and all Rare, but maybe a little warning next time...” said Dash, pointing to the floor where Fluttershy was curled up in the fetal position and trembling.

Applejack scratched the back of her neck. “Oh, sorry ‘Shy. Shoulda gave ya a heads up...” She chuckled sheepishly, then yanked her smoldering hoof away when she smelled her hair burning.

A sudden and incredibly loud boom made Fluttershy shoot up off the floor and halfway out of her skin with a shrill “Eeeep!” The others wheeled around as Rarity fought to keep the shield up. Across the way, Rain’s submarine had fully sunk into the dome, before coming to rest on top of the Plunderbolt stunt ship, crushing the few unbroken timbers left hanging off the wooden structure.

“Flood detected in vicinity,” a mechanical voice said over the speakers, muffled by the forcefield. “Containment activated, sealing water tight doors.” A thick shutter fell over the one damaged by the Big Stag, blocking off the dry route out of the flooding arena.

“Dang, should have figured that would happen,” Applejack said after she made sure her mane wasn’t on fire.

Rarity laughed through grit teeth. “Sounds like you really thought this through.”

“Well, we’re alive, ain’t we? And look, here comes Pinkie with the last Element, also alive,” AJ said, pointing to the diver swimming through the gaping hole in the destroyed dome.

Pinkie paddled in and right up to the shield, holding up the Element and waving at the mares inside.

Rainbow slowly waved back, then shook her head and put a hoof around her muzzle. “PINKIE! THE DOORS ARE SEALED. WE CAN’T GET OUT.”

Rarity flattened her ears and hissed. “Still trying to concentrate here!”

“Oh! Sorry... Umm, keep up the good work,” Rainbow said, covering her loud-mouth.

“L-Look!” Fluttershy said quietly. “I think she’s trying to tell us something.”

Outside the shield, Pinkie was gesturing wildly with her hooves like a pony possessed. She waved them madly above her head, her whole body flailing this way and that with the motion of her arms, while the others looked on in confusion.

“Is it... IS IT TWO WORDS?” Applejack shouted.

Rarity flattened her ears again, “Do. You. Mind?”

Seeing she was getting nowhere, Pinkie stopped flailing and shook her head vigorously, then put a hoof pensively under her chin.

“IS THE FIRST WORD 'THINKING'?” Rainbow guessed.

“Oh, what’s the use...” groaned Rarity.

Pinkie released a puff of air bubbles and swam away from her dry friends. She zigzagged around the floating debris, over to the downed sub, where she stopped and continued her random flailing.

“Sh-She wants to go in there?!” Fluttershy gasped.

“Well, the air in here ain’t gonna last forever, so I guess we’re going in that... underwater boat.” said Applejack.

“You mean the submarine?” Rarity asked as Pinkie swam the rest of the way and casually sat on the bronze armor. “...Summer Rain is still in there.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Rainbow's leg crackled with energy anew. “When I get my hooves on her, I swear I’m gonna give that sorry excuse of a pegasus the worst-”

“Rainbow...” Fluttershy breathed, looking up at the other pegasus with sad, wide eyes.

“-Uhh, the worst... talking to ever?” Dash gave Fluttershy a sheepish smile, then slammed her front hooves together with a burst of electricity. “It’ll be brutal.”

Fluttershy sighed.

Rarity guided the pocket of air containing her friends around the flooded Plunderdome to the lifeless Bathysphere. It seemed to have been damaged in the crash, since its rumbling engines had fallen silent and it made no further movements. Summer Rain had made no visible attempts to flee, either. She remained inside, likely doing everything she could to get it up and running again.

They took the long way around, avoiding the harpoons still jutting out of the hull. Just in case she was successful.

When they reached its side, Rainbow and Fluttershy hovered in the shield’s center, and Pinkie, using the Element she’d removed from its casing and slapped on over her suit, easily lifted the two non-fliers up onto the top of the sub.

“How are we going to get in there?” Fluttershy asked, closing her wings and touching down on the shimmering carpet of magic.

Two streams of bubbles poured out of Pinkie’s mask consecutively, carrying what sounded like a ‘ta-da’ with them. Pinkie move to the side, revealing a circular hatch with a ring-shaped crank that she promptly started turning with her telekinesis plasmid. The metal ring spun around and the hatch popped open, revealing a small air lock inside. Pinkie pointed downwards and more bubbles floated up to the top of the filled dome saying, “You first.”

Applejack peered down into the opened space. “It’ll be tight, but Ah reckon four ponies’ll fit. Ya’ll can hold yer breath for a while, right?”

Rarity sighed, “Is there anyway we can do this and stay dry?”

“It’s just a little water.” Dash rolled her eyes. “...Actually, there’s a lot of it. And it’s like, super cold. But Pinkie has our backs!”

With another sigh, Rarity moved the shield forward, until she was standing directly over the open air lock. “Everypony get close, I’ll count to three, then drop the spell. Hopefully Pinkie can close the door before we all get hypothermia... Ready?”

The three mare’s inside nodded, and Pinkie did a salute.

“Alright.” Rarity closed her eyes and began the countdown,“One... Two...” I suppose I needed a shower anyway... “THREE!”

Her horn when dark, and the pale walls around her vanished. Her eyes shot open as ice cold seawater rushed over her whole body. It felt so cold it hurt, like getting bucked everywhere at once. Her ears popped painfully, and air poured out of her lungs before Rarity could clamp her lips closed, preserving what was left in her chest and hoping it would be enough.

Before she could start panicking, Rarity felt something tap her shoulder. She turned to she Pinkie, pointing down at the airlock and the others floating around her. They were kicking their legs with puffed out cheeks... waiting for her to get inside already.

I should probably get a move on... Rarity thought as a icy chill ran up her spine. With Pinkie’s help, she was lowered into the dim space. While Pinkie guided the others in, Rarity searched for the lever that would drain the water.

Here it is, the ‘Main Purge Valve’. She placed a hoof over the switch as Fluttershy swam in with Rainbow. They both looked a tad purple in the face, whether from oxygen deprivation or exposure to cold, Rarity couldn’t tell.

They crammed in close against Rarity then Applejack entered, gripping her cowpony hat tightly and filling the last of the cramped space. Fluttershy coughed, sending a plume of precious air floating away.

Close the hatch, Pinkie! Rarity thought as loud as she could, clutching the purge lever tight.

Pinkie must have seen the bubbles, because the door slammed closed a second later, followed by the squeaking of the crank turning.

Fluttershy coughed out more oxygen as the exit was sealed. Feeling the strain on her own lungs, Rarity threw the switch the instant the squealing stopped, and a light on the control panel changed from red to green. A sharp hiss resounded in the chamber, and the water drained out through the floor. Each mare gasped for as their heads poked out of the receding water.

“Th-th-that was-sn’t s-s-o bad...” Rainbow shivered as the last of the water disappeared. “N-Now let’s f-f-find-d-d Rain.”

After a few minutes of searching for the door control and warming each other up, the four soaking mares tumbled out of the overcrowded tube and into the sub’s darkened interior.

A bare passage ran down its extended length, connected to various compartments and storage drawers. Just like its smaller counterpart, a row of seating lined one side of the Bathysphere, along with decorative patterns displayed prominently on the close walls. At the far end, the backs of two leather chairs were visible in what was likely the command bridge.

Untangling herself from the pile-up, Rarity took the lead, her mane dripping into a growing pool on the floor. “Everypony behind me. Especially you, Dash.” Icicles pushed through the fur and skin on Rarity’s foreleg. “We’re going to handle this like civil ponies.” She stepped forward, breaking away from the water freezing around her hoof with a sharp snap.

Rainbow got up and snorted. “What’s that supposed to-”

“Hush!” AJ whispered harshly.

Getting the message, Rainbow buttoned her lips and followed Rarity towards the bow. Behind them, the airlock gurgled and hissed as it was refilled with water.

“Wh-Where is she?” Fluttershy asked, carefully eying any side compartment large enough for a knife-wielding pegasus to hide in. She stuck close to Rainbow, letting Applejack take the rear.

“Can you hear me, Summer Rain?” Rarity asked as she neared the cockpit. She brought up her frosty foreleg. “Please, do us all a favor and come quietly. We don’t want to hurt you-” Rainbow snorted again. “-We don’t, but we are prepared to defend...” Rarity spun one of the chairs around, only to find it empty. She checked the other and found it vacant as well. “...ourselves.”

At the back of the group, Applejack spun around and ignited her plasmid, casting a flickering orange light into the sub’s dark corners. “Keep yer eyes peeled gals, she could be hiding in here somewhere...”

“Ooooh no, oh no...” Fluttershy mumbled.

“Get behind me ‘Shy.” Dash said, adding a crackling blue to the orange glow.

“Hold on, something is... off.” Rarity inspected the control panel before the captain’s seat. There wasn’t much there, just a simplistic control stick and a destination selector, hardly enough to maneuver the bulky thing with the finesse Rain had. The craft had likely been originally designed to ferry ponies around Rapture, as opposed to being steered manually by a pilot. A thick antennae protruded from the console’s center supported Rarity’s suspicions, “I think this thing is... controlled remotely,” she said out loud.

“You mean, she’s not even here!?” Dash cried back in exasperation.

Retracting the ice spikes into her foreleg, Rarity used her other one to feel the seats. They aren’t even warm... “I don’t think she ever was here. She must have been controlling it from somewhere else.”

“Y-You’re sure?” Fluttershy asked, peeking out from behind Applejack and peering down the dim passage.

“Ah wouldn’t put it past that coward,” AJ said, looking back at the trembling mare and extinguishing her own flames.

Just then, Pinkie swung the airlock open and slammed it into the sub’s metal walls. Fluttershy dove for cover.

Pinkie tore off her face mask, a huge smile on her face. “Hey guys! What’d I miss?” She shook off the rest of the diving suit like a wet dog, sending pieces flying all over, then placed her glowing Element proudly on her bare neck.

“W-We were almost drowned, almost crushed, and you almost got sh-shot at...” Fluttershy whimpered, “...I- think I need to sit down.”

“Here, let me help.” Rainbow guided the other pegasus back towards Pinkie, setting her down on the padded bench.

Pinkie bounced up and gave the trembling pegasus a hug. “Hey, I’m okay now, see?” She pulled back and did a twirl, showcasing her un-perforated sides.

Fluttershy smiled a small, shaky smile.

Up at the front, Applejack joined Rarity at the bridge and slipped into one of the seats. “If ya’ll are done prancin’ around, Ah’d like ta find the radio on this thing.”

“This is hardly the time for that dreadful ‘country music’, Applejack,” Rarity replied, sliding into the other chair.

“Now wait just a-” Turning to give the uppity unicorn a piece of her mind, Applejack found a playful smirk on Rarity's face. Her Element pulsed, and Applejack returned the smirk. “Least it’s got a beat, not like that snobby classical stuff they like so much in Canterlot. Now, we need ta contact Twi, we got all the Elements after all. So let's go deal with Rain, save Spike, and take this thing back to the surface.” Then Ah can get myself to a doctor, she added in her head.

“Yeah! Let’s go find her right now!” Rainbow said, leaving Fluttershy sitting comfortably and squeezing in between the chairs.

“We don’t know where she is, remember?” said Rarity.

“Oh, right,” Dash replied. “Where is the stupid radio on this thing?.”

“I’ll help look!” Pinkie chimed in, forcing her way in with the others and increasing their discomfort.

Sitting by herself, Fluttershy watched them crowd around the controls, poking this button and that switch to little effect. She couldn’t help but notice the blood splattered on Rainbow’s coat had been washed away during her brief swim. Suppressing a shudder, Fluttershy hoped the blue fur would stay that way.

“Hello again, my yellow friend.”

“Eep!” Fluttershy yelped at the sudden intrusion of her thoughts. Her eyes snapped in the direction the voice came from, but instead of finding a crazed pegasus she found.... nothing. “...Galt? Is that you? Y-You’re okay?” she whispered, making sure the others hadn’t heard.

“This one lives another day, with nothing but a few more scars,” the disembodied voice said from the bench to Fluttershy’s right. The cushion depressed under an unseen weight.

“But, how did you even get in here?”

“One of the benefits of invisibility. I was in here the whole time,” the zebra replied. “After you left, I found it refueling in Maintenance. I boarded to monitor the radio chatter, maybe see what trouble you were causing, when the thing started moving.”

Fluttershy nodded at the vacant space Galt occupied. “...Then, why didn’t you try to help Pinkie? Couldn’t you... turn it off, or move it away? Why didn’t you help!”

“Would have blown my cover,” Galt answered simply.

“Here it is! I found it!” Rainbow cried from the bridge.

“Dash, Ah think that’s a cupholder...”

“Besides, you four did well without me,” continued Galt. “I saw how you stood up for your friends, little pony. It was... noble.”

Fluttershy sighed, “Oh yes, thank you...”

“You... are not glad?” Galt asked in his thick accent. “I do not understand. You are with those you lost, and almost at your goal.”

Fluttershy sighed, “I- well, they... did some things while we were separated. Bad things. And I don’t know if- if I can just forget about that,” she said demurely, staring at her hooves. “And then there’s Twilight... You must have learned what she did down here, while you were... spying.” She faced her faceless companion, uncertainty in her eyes, “It’s true, isn’t it? What Rain said about her?”

Galt made no reply.

“Oh dear...” Fluttershy sighed.

“Why would a submarine have spare towels just laying around?” Rainbow asked from the front, halting Fluttershy’s runaway thoughts.

“What? I was just asking you to keep an eye out for one...” Rarity said, ringing out her damp purple mane.

Beside Fluttershy, Galt chuckled, “I don’t think they are such bad ponies, as you seem to think. Even this Twilight. Trust me, I know these things.”

“Is that because you’re bad?” Again, the zebra spy didn’t answer, and the conversation lulled. I guess that’s another benefit of being invisible... Fluttershy thought, “B-but, they killed other ponies, Galt! My best friends! Even if I wanted to, how could I ever forget about something like that?”

Before she got an answer, Applejack called back from the bow, “Hey Fluttershy, if ya feel up to it, think you could... help us look?”

“Because, they need you to,” Galt whispered in her ear.

Fluttershy’s voice caught in her throat as four of her dearest friends looked back at her with hopeful eyes. “I- I can try,” the timid pegasus replied, slipping off the bench and onto her shaky hooves.

“Radio is under the console, in a latched compartment,” Galt added quietly. She nodded and made her way over to the sub’s visible occupants.

Pinkie shuffled out of the way, allowing Fluttershy a small piece of viewing space. “So, umm, we are looking for the... radio?”

“And some shampoo...” whined Rarity, still fussing over her mane.

“Uhhh, did you.. check underneath? M-Maybe there’s a compartment or... something?”

“I’ll look!” Rainbow declared, diving under Applejack’s seat with gusto.

“Darnit Rainbow! Didja really hafta-”

“Alright, I found it!” Dash popped back out, pulling open a drawer containing a box filled with glowing crystals with a microphone attached to its side. “Good call ‘Shy, you were right on the money!”

“Oh, I- it was just a lucky guess...” she said, glancing back down the length of the ‘empty’ sub.

Shoving Rainbow out of her personal space, Applejack wasted no time lifting the communication device and speaking into it. “Uhh, Twilight? Can ya hear me? Hello?” she tapped it with a hoof, then placed it to her ear and tried again, getting no reply. ”Any idea how we... call her up or something?” AJ asked the group of onlookers.

They looked on with stares as blank as a newborn’s flanks.

“Well, guess I’ll have to drive,” Pinkie stated, jumping onto Applejack’s lap and pressing buttons at random.

“NO!” shouted her friends, with Applejack being the loudest as she tried to spit Pinkie’s wild mane out of her mouth.

“‘No’ what? What’s going on in there?” Twilight’s distorted voice asked over the ensuing chaos.

Applejack managed to shift Pinkie off her lap to her own half of the seat, when Rainbow poked her head between them. “Egghead! We got all the Elements, and our own submarine!” she said whipping the other mares with her prismatic mane as she spoke. “...Please tell me you can control this thing from... wherever you are.”

Applejack smacked Dash with her hat, and Twilight sighed with relief. “That’s great news! I was so worried when Rain cut off my broadcast earlier. That’s when I noticed her personal Bathysphere had disembarked and was heading your way. I saw the whole thing...”

So, she didn’t do anything to stop it either, Fluttershy realized, casting another nervous glance backwards. Was it to stay undercover too?

“Yes, we were very fortunate I’d say.” Rarity leaned in, mentally reassessing her definition of ‘fortunate'. “So, what’s our next move? Are we finally going to see you again?” she asked hopefully.

There was a short pause on Twilight’s end. “...Yes, I suppose the time has come for us to meet up.”

“That’s fan-TASTIC!” exclaimed Pinkie, bouncing in her shared seat. “Once we’re all back together, we can really get this reunion going!” She tapped her hooves together joyfully as recollection slowly dawned on the others.

“Reunion?” said Rainbow, before her face lit up. “Oh yeah! That’s the whole reason we’re here! I totally forgot with all the... you know, insanity.”

“You were having a... reunion?” Twilight asked from the radio’s built-in speakers.

“Ah guess Twilight wouldn’t’ve got the invitation, being under the ocean an’ all.” said Applejack, fighting Pinkie for sitting room.

“That’s right!” the oblivious pink mare said. “I had the idea a month or two ago, to bring the gang back together in Manehattan, that’s where I live now Twilight, ‘cause we haven’t really seen each other much since... well since you... left.”

“Since I- you haven’t been seeing each other?”

Pinkie jumped out of her seat again. “Nope! But now we’re all gonna be back together and once we get this whole underwater-city-madmare-trying-to-takeover-Equestria thing taken care of, we can all PARTY! But what kind of decorations do I use? I’ve never planned a underwater-city-madmare-trying-to-”

“Alright Pinkie, I think we get the idea," Rarity said, offering her seat to the rambunctious party-planner. Much to Applejack’s relief.

“That... sounds great, Pinkie,” answered Twilight, the sincerity of her words clear through the static.

“I’m thinking... streamers!” Pinkie mused. "Lots'n lotsa them."

The girls all chuckled at Pinkie's dreamy look over the mention of simple party streamers.

With a sudden jolt, the Bathysphere’s engine rumbled back to life. “Okay, the sub’s back up and running. You girls get comfortable, I’ll guide it to my hideout. I’ll- have to cut radio contact though, so I can mask the sub’s signal and stop Rain from tracing it to me, or regaining control. So it'll be on auto-pilot.”

The Bathysphere gently rose off the ground where it had fallen, angling upwards and out of the flooded Plunderdome, leaving behind the horrors within.

Applejack was glad to be leaving, but apprehensive of her destination. “Okay Twi’, but you still owe us some answers. Then we can sort this whole mess out.”

“...Yes. I haven’t forgotten, Applejack.” From the sound of her voice, AJ wasn’t the only one feeling a sense of dread.

“I’ll... see you girls really soon, okay?”

The radio hissed out and its light faded as the sub drifted out of the ruinous dome and into the open ocean.

Rapture was surprisingly beautiful for a dead city.

Once again, five ponies from the surface found themselves encapsulated as the wonder drifted past their craft. The brilliant neon signage and breathtaking architecture was a stark contrast to the horrors contained within.

The mares let the deep humming of the sub’s engines fill its interior, content to watch the city slowly pass by in silence.

Except for Pinkie. She sat on the comfy bench with her mind abuzz with thoughts of her friends. In all the craziness, she herself had allowed the whole point of going on that cruise to slip out of focus. We’re supposed to be reconnecting, duh! she thought, adding the sound of her bright voice to the sub’s rumble. Although, I guess we sort of are.

Pinkie, now beaming a smile, turned to one of her friends. “So, Applejack! How’re things at Sweet Apple Acres?” she asked suddenly.

Applejack, still sitting in the captain’s chair, looked back in confusion.

Pinkie leaned her way. “I never got the chance to ask while we were running around fighting Splicers and almost drowning and stuff.”

The farmer nodded, pulling her gaze from the marvel outside. “Oh, uhhh, well I suppose things are fine. Er, they were when Ah left. Zap Apple season’ll be here ‘fore we know it, so the family’ll be good and busy.”

“Has that... brother of yours come out of his shell at all?” asked Rarity, sorting through the various supplies she’d pilfered from the sub. “Maybe... found his special somepony?” she added, trying not to blush as she recalled the large stallion’s shaggy mane and brilliant red coat.

“Big Macintosh? Naw, he’s just as quiet as always.” Applejack laughed. “...How’s the fashion business in Canterlot? Must be much tougher than patchin’ clothes for the folk in Ponyville.”

Pinkie smiled as the conversation took off. Start catching up. Check.

“Oh yes, I am always working on something, revising designs, meeting with suppliers and buyers. It’s a lot more work than before, but it is a labor of love.” Rarity smiled to herself. “Plus I have the world’s greatest assistant.”

To Pinkie’s continued happiness, Fluttershy joined the conversation from the co-pilot’s seat. “And... you said you were doing charity work in Canterlot too? How do you find the time?”

“Like I said, my assistant Noisette is truly amazing.”

“Speaking of things that are truly amazing,” Dash said, flapping back to the group with new bandages on her leg and wing. “Did you guys hear about that Wonderbolt show in Cloudsdale last year? I did a triple axel spin into a Sonic Rainboom, and rolled when the mach cone broke, so the colors spiraled away and across the stadium.” Even injured, the heroic pose she struck looked as stately as ever.

“I heard about that!” Pinkie beamed. “You’ll have to show us sometime! That’s sounds like the most awesome thing ever!”

“Well, that’s cause it kinda is.” Dash boasted, earning a round of eye rolls. “Hehe... so uhh, hey AJ... how’s that stallion of yours... ummm, what's-his-face, you know who I mean.”

“Harvest Moon is the name yer lookin’ for,” Applejack replied coyly.

“That’s the one! Sorry, I’ve only met him... like, two or three times...”

Applejack waved a hoof. “It’s no biggie, Dash, Ah understand. He’s great, helping out around the farm and at Fluttershy’s school. He even stopped a pack of Timberwolves from coming ‘round, after taking one of her classes.”

“Harvest was a great student!” Fluttershy said, “And... he’s a very nice pony.”

“Thanks fer sayin’ ‘Shy, I think so too.” Applejack brought a hoof to her belly and rubbed it softly. She completely ignored a beautiful school of colorful fish as they swam by, instead picturing the look on Harvey’s face when she told him the good news.

“You two are still... working on starting a family?” asked Fluttershy, blushing deeply. Despite having similar conversations with AJ in the past, she still felt uneasy discussing something so personal.

“You’re trying to have a foal?” Rarity gasped before Applejack could respond. “That’s simply splendid! Congratulations!”

Dash sat back on the metal floor, looking stunned. “Wow, I can’t believe one of my friends is gonna have a kid...” she said, suddenly feeling much older. “...say, Harvest Moon doesn't have any pegasus's in his immediate family, does he?”

Applejack couldn’t help but laugh. “Sorry Rainbow, but he’s a unicorn through-and-through. And thanks for the support guys, it means a lot to me.”

“OH MY GOSH, I CAN THROW YOU A BABY SHOWER!” shouted Pinkie, exploding from her seat.

Rarity chuckled, “She’s not even pregnant yet Pinkie...”

Pinkie shrugged, already planning the shower in her mind. “As soon as you are, you let me know! I’ll drop everything and zip down to Ponyville and take care of everything!” I bet I could bake a baby-shaped cake! No wait, that’s... just awful. She mentally trashed the idea.

Distracted as she was, Pinkie didn’t notice AJ’s smile falter as she glanced down at herself. “Well, of course Pinkie, you’ll know soon as Ah do.” It wasn’t really a lie, at least, and close enough to the truth to only bother her a little. She tried to perk up and mask her unease. “A baby shower thrown by you sounds... dang-near perfect.”

Dash snorted. “A free Pinkie party for a kid that hasn’t even been made yet? How is that only near perfect?”

Applejack grinned. “It’ll only be perfect... if all mah friends are there.”

The remainder of the trip was spent fondly reminiscing about the old days in Ponyville, recounting their many adventures together and laughing. The intervening years of separation seemed to melt away, along with the bleak grimness of the last twenty-four hours. For a few precious minutes, the old friends were able to put aside their worries and actually enjoy each others company in a way they hadn’t in far too long.

They didn’t even notice when the sub came to a stop next to an extending bridge that connected to the craft with a sharp click.

After a moment, the crystals in the radio reactivated. “This is it... girls?” Twilight began, stopping at the sound of jovial laughter. “Is everything okay in there?”

Wiping away a tear, Rainbow grabbed hold of the microphone. “Tw-Twilight! We were just- pffft, do you remember that one time you hexed all of Ponyville into loving your doll?” she said between uncontrollable giggles.

“You mean... Smarty Pants? How could I forget! That was not one of my best ideas...” Twilight said airily, eliciting another round of giddiness from her friends. Once they finished laughing at her expense, Twilight spoke again. “Gosh... I can’t believe how long ago that was... ” she said remorsefully, causing the joyful atmosphere to wane slightly, “But you’re here now! And we have a lot of catching up to do.”

Unwilling to let the mood slip, Pinkie hopped up and raced to the sub’s exit. “What are we waiting for then! Let’s go, go GO!”

“Where exactly are we going?” Rarity asked through the mic. The last thing she wanted to do was go blindly wandering through Rapture. Again.

“Right, when you exit the sub, follow the signs pointing to the ‘Pony Plaza’. It’s an open marketplace and recreation area. Once there, listen for a phonograph playing Marezart’s Fugue in G Minor and look for a poster for the Electro-bolt plasmid. Knock on the wall four times, then come on in. I’ll be ready for you.”

Without another word, the radio clicked off and the crystals inside died out.

Rainbow blinked, “Huh, seems a bit overkill to me...”

“Is the pot calling the kettle black, Miss Spiral Rainboom?” Rarity joked, joining Pinkie by the door opposite of the airlock.

“Plus, she was thrown in a dungeon before. Makes sense she’d be extra cautious,” Applejack pointed out.

While the others gathered around Pinkie, Fluttershy hung back by herself. Her apprehension was rising; soon she would see Twilight face-to-face, and she’d tell them all what Fluttershy had already found out. Then there would be no denying what she’d done anymore.

Fluttershy sighed, thinking back on the wonderful time she had chatting with the others moments ago. It’s a shame it couldn’t last...

“Do not be scared,” the deep voice of Galt whispered in her ear. Galt! She’d forgotten he was still on board. “This friend of yours may be lost, but if you are willing to light the way, she may be found.”

The metal door opened with a squeak. “Didja say something ‘Shy?” asked Applejack, looking back at her worried-looking friend. She must be real nervous bout goin’ back in if she’s talking to herself like that...

“Oh, umm, I said... we should get going. Don’t want to keep Twilight waiting,” Fluttershy replied, deciding to take Galt’s advice. I haven’t even heard her side of the story yet. Maybe it’s not so bad?

Maybe it’s worse...

“Fluttershy is right! Onward, friends!” Pinkie sang, hopping boldly into the city of horrors as if it were no more threatening than a Nightmare Night attraction for foals.

Rarity shook her head. “How can she possibly be so peppy without so much as a wink of beauty sleep?” she asked, quickly realizing the pointlessness of doing so, and reluctantly following.

Leaving the relative safety of the Bathysphere once more, they stepped into a dilapidated side corridor labelled, ‘Loading Bay’. Like the rest of the city, the combined effects of age, neglect and a population turned mad by substance abuse had ravaged even this un-noteworthy section of the city.

Paint chipped off the walls in large sections, collecting as a layer of colourful dust on the floor below. A thin stream of water sprayed through a small leak in the bridge connecting with the sub, disappearing into the numerous cracks in the warped floorboards.

Pinkie Pie bounced into the musty hall, her high spirits clashing with the ruins around her. The others were not feeling quite so upbeat. They slowly stepped out of the sub and followed their bubbly friend.

Applejack was the last one out, bringing up the flank. She took in the destroyed landscape, gagging at the smell of rotting wood. This apple may look good on the outside, but it’s rotten to the core, she thought. Why exactly are we trying to save it again?

“Pony Plaza, this way guys!” Rainbow said, pointing out a worn out sign depicting a prancing pony.

“Not so loud Dash, we may not be alone here.” Applejack replied, wary of hidden enemies. “Everypony, stay frosty.”

“Shouldn’t be a problem,” Rarity said as the ice on her leg intensified.

“I hear music!” Pinkie cheered. She approached a door hanging loosely on broken hinges, then opened it with her telekinesis and a soft tune flowed through. The haunting notes of classical organ music met the ponies' ears as they entered what was left of the Pony Plaza.

Though horrendously marred, the Plaza bore a striking resemblance to the outdoor markets of Canterlot, with the clear blue sky replaced by sickly green seawater. Shops, cafes and eateries lined cobblestone streets, complete with lamp posts, benches and even patches of long-dead grass.

Following the sweeping melody of the old music, Rarity tried to imagine the place teeming with ponies, chatting idly about whatever the citizens of Rapture would idly chat about. An image of the Canterlot marketplace surfaced in her mind, as dead and empty as the dust filled tomb before her. She felt a chill run down her spine.

The place was utterly deserted, minus a few bodies lying on the ground behind stalls. Fluttershy tried not to look at them, concentrating on the music. I wonder if Galt is following us? she thought.

The organ got louder as it reached its crescendo.

“Can’t be much further now...” Rarity whispered.

They turned a corner, onto a street designated ‘Frolic Way’ by a sign hanging off a lamp post. Sitting in the middle of the road was the source of the music; a lone phonograph with a large chip missing from its amplifying horn. Its crank slowly turned on its own, spinning the record and creating a ghostly appearance that matched the surroundings.

On the adjacent wall of a grocery was the poster. A smug earth pony was zapping a pegasus with a bolt of electricity under a bold tagline. ‘Feel the thunder! Evolve Today!’

“This must be the place,” Applejack said as the music ended and was replaced by the looping sound of a scratching needle.

Pinkie lifted it off the vinyl disc and prodded the poster tentatively. It was solid. “Now that’s a neat trick.”

“Let’s not keep our friend waiting, shall we?” Rarity said, approaching the image and tapping the wall four times.

The noise resounded through the dead market, and for a moment nothing happened. Fluttershy shifted uneasily, looking around again for her invisible morale support.

The poster shuddered with a quick flash of light, then returned to its original depiction of assault. Pinkie touched its surface once again, and this time, her hoof passed right through. “That’s a really neat trick! Imagine all the pranking I could do by hiding in a poster!” She smiled to herself and hopped into the wall, disappearing behind the unhappy pegasus’ burnt tail.

“Wait for us, Pinkie!” Dash called after her, steeling herself and passing through the poster.

“Here goes nothing...” Applejack said, following the others and leaving Fluttershy and Rarity alone on Frolic Way.

“Are you ready?” Rarity asked, offering a hoof to her nervous friend.

With one last look around, Fluttershy swallowed hard and nodded, taking the hoof and stepping through the poster with Rarity.

When Fluttershy reopened her eyes, she found herself with the others in a dark room. It was a small space, packed with all sorts of machinery she could only just make out in the dim light. Against the back wall, a row of images provided all the light.

“Twilight! Twilight? Where are you?” Pinkie called excitedly into the darkness. She was bobbing up and down on her hooves, scanning the place for her long lost friend.

“I’m... here,” a tiny voice replied. The dark silhouette of a unicorn appeared before them, backlit by the glowing monitors behind her.

“Twilight! It’s really you!” shouted Pinkie, rushing towards the dark figure.

"Wait!" it moved away suddenly, holding up a purple hoof that halted Pinkie in her tracks, “...Yes, it’s me, but- well, you girls should know that I’ve- A lot has happened to me in the last two years, and I’ve been in a jail cell for a long time. It’s me, but I don’t exactly, I don’t... look the same as I used to...”

The mares exchanged uneasy glances in the dim light. The voice undoubtedly belonged to their old friend, but there was something in her tone that weighed down her words. She shifted in her shroud of darkness.

Rarity spoke, offering what reassurance she could. “We understand, you must be a complete mess, darling, but that’s alright. We want to see our friend, no matter what she looks like.”

To her side, Fluttershy breathed heavily. She couldn’t shake off the feeling of standing before some monster hiding in the shadows, waiting to lunge out and strike. The strange metal clicking of the machines around her only made things worse; it sounded as if Twilight was in chains.

“I- Thank you Rarity. You have no idea how much that-” Twilight’s voice caught in her throat. She sniffled and continued. “Just... be prepared for a shock...”

A violet light illuminated her horn, lighting Twilight’s frayed purple mane and sad eyes brimming with tears. Beside her, in a glass case, another source of light began to glow. Inside, a tiara of similar design to the artificial Elements came to life, filling the room with a pale blue light.

The other mares gasped at what the saw.

As Rarity had suspected, Twilight’s fur was dirty and matted, and the bags under her eyes spoke of many sleepless nights. But the biggest surprise was something none of them could have guessed at.

Folded on each of her sides, embedded right into her skin, was a set of iron wings. Twilight looked away as her first tear fell. She spread the wings wide for her old friends to see, creating a cacophony of metallic clicks.

Not knowing how to respond, they simply gaped at Twilight’s deformed add-ons in silence; mouths open, eyes wide.

“I... told you so," she whimpered, unable to meet their shocked faces. Twilight covered her face and sobbed into her filthy hooves. She heard hoof steps approach, then felt something she hadn’t felt in far too long. Somepony wrapped her in a hug.

“I’m- it’s really good to see you again, Twilight,” Pinkie said quietly, embracing the strange pony that had once been her friend.

Twilight flinched at the unfamiliar contact, then threw herself into Pinkie’s embrace and returned the hug. “Th-thank you, Pinkie. I’m so glad you’re all here.” She smiled genuinely and looked up at her other, shell-shocked friends.

Their expressions slowly shifted to confusion, and Twilight’s smile faded. Reluctantly, she broke out of Pinkie’s hug and took another step back. “But, I’m so sorry as well. You’ve been through so much, and I have a lot of things to tell you. Maybe we shouldn’t be hugging just yet.”

Biting at the chance to finally get the answers she wanted, Applejack found her voice. “Twilight. Maybe you should start at the top and take it from there?”

“You... have wings? Made of metal?” Dash blurted you, still enthralled by the iron appendages.

“Hush, Rainbow. Let her speak.” Rarity scowled, though she herself was still staring at the outstretched wings.

Feeling the stares, Twilight folded the loathsome things to her sides and composed herself. She sat down with a sigh and began, as Applejack suggested, at the top, “As I told you already, I was sent here by Celestia to, for lack of a better term, spy on Rapture. She knew Summer Rain, and what she was capable of, so when Manehattan intelligence heard rumors of supply ships disappearing out on the ocean, the Princess began to investigate.”

“Do they... work?” Rainbow asked, cocking her head to get a better look.

Twilight crossed her forelegs and rolled her damp eyes. “I’ll get to that, Rainbow. As I was saying, those rumors turned out to be true, as well as Celestia’s suspicions. Summer Rain exiled herself, and with the help of some of her supporters from Canterlot, she built this place in secrecy. I was in the Far West at the time, but quietly returned at her request.”

Twilight paused for a moment, gauging how the others reacted to the news.

So the Princess did have a reason for sendin’ her to this hell-hole... Applejack thought, feeling bad all over for her poor assessment of Celestia’s actions. “...But, you couldn’t even tell us you were back?”

“Believe me, I wanted to... but we just couldn’t risk it. It was hard enough getting in contact with the ponies down here inconspicuously, let alone getting them to grant me entrance. Rain may be crazy, but she isn’t a fool. Her spies are everywhere, and one little rumor would be enough to doom the mission before it started.”

“You... put Equestria before your friends,” Rarity said quietly.

“It was my duty to the Princesses,” Twilight replied weakly. “But as you can tell, things didn’t go exactly as planned.” She flexed her synthetic wings again. “They caught me sending letters to the Princess through Spike, and we were locked up. Then they- they experimented on me, and him too, I found out. She said it was m-my punishment, for betrayal.”

“Who did? Summer Rain?” Rainbow asked, her curiosity replaced by renewed anger.

Memories of her incarceration and medical torture flooded back into Twilight’s mind, and she began to cry again. “I c-couldn’t believe she would do something like this to me! We, got along well. I didn’t agree with her on most things, but I... respected her. She was smart, and kind to me, even when I was locked away, she seemed more disappointed than upset...”

Twilight sobbed into her hooves, and Fluttershy’s jaw fell slack. “You- You respect her?” It’s all true, the recording, the things Rain said... It’s all true. “How? She’s so horrible, and she’s done so much to hurt us, and you!” Fluttershy could hear the heat in her words, hardly recognizing them as her own.

“Woah there, settle down ‘Shy,” Applejack said. “She’s been through a lot-”

“You don’t understand, Applejack!” Fluttershy interrupted. “Wh-When we were separated, I found a recording. It was Twilight’s voice- I didn’t want to believe what she said...” Her body shook as and golden light ran through her foreleg as she pointed it at the monster sitting before her. “She helped them make all this. The plasmids, the Stags, the Splicers, the Fillies, everything. And not only that, she enjoyed it. She didn’t tell the Princess, because she wanted to stay here and FINISH!”

The implication hung in the air like fog over a graveyard. All eyes fell on Twilight, searching for any sign that the accusations were false. She fell to the floor and cried harder.

“Is it true, Twilight?” Rarity asked, already knowing the answer.

“Y-Yes.” the broken unicorn whimpered, “I got... swept up by it all. When this place was new, it felt like a utopia, a whole city built on progress and scientific advancement... It went to my head, and I- I stretched my ethics a little too far. I never wanted what happened! What we made!”

It’s funny though, after it happened the fifth time, I don’t recall her blinking much of an eye, Rain’s taunting voice echoed in Applejack’s mind, and she felt sick to her stomach. “Th-That’s it? That’s all you got to say fer yourself? You went ‘a little’ too far?” she managed to croak, fighting mental images of Twilight torturing children and the intense urge to be sick.

“I’ve had a lot of time to think of what I did, Applejack,” Twilight sobbed. "Years, in fact." Her flat tone made it clear she wasn’t trying to defend herself or seek forgiveness. She was just stating the facts. “I got what I deserved, as did all the others I worked with...”

Pinkie backed away from the crying heap on the floor. “...No, I can’t- You really did...” She sat heavily, her poofy mane losing some of its spring.

“I’m afraid so.” Twilight weeped, forcing herself back to her hooves and continuing her story. “As Rapture’s population drove itself insane with ADAM, Rain’s control weakened and the whole place came apart at the seams. Most of those in charge, including Rain herself hid away with hopes of riding things out. Her advisers started to doubt her, and she ended up banishing a pony named Chicane for questioning her. Then she blew up his Bathysphere as it carried him off as an example. It was the final nail in the coffin; Rapture slowly died, while I wasted away in a black cell feeling sorry for myself.”

“Maybe you should have felt sorry for those fillies and stags you mutilated.” Fluttershy blurted.

“I- took no part with that... But I did, and still do. I will never be able to forget the things I did, or forgive myself for what you had to do to get here.”

Her old friends fell silent as Twilight got to the parts of her story she had truly been dreading.

“I- I’m not the same. Not just in appearance,” Twilight continued. “When I escaped, I thought I had changed... but- then I happened to run into him when I was hiding the Elements. Dr. Hoofhardt.” She spat the name like it burned her tongue just to speak it. “He was the one who turned me into a parody of the princesses. I figured he would have cleared out long ago, or been killed by the mobs... But there he was in Medical, still working away on his latest travesty. When I escaped my cell, I thought I had changed... but when I saw him I- lost it all over again."

I've never been so proud... Hoofhardt said in Twilight's mind. The words stung more and more each time they replayed. They were his last, but even that consolation had lost any meaning.

"I put a bonesaw through his face," Twilight choked out, visibly shaking. "It- nearly cut his head in two when I pulled it out.”

Applejack couldn’t hold it in. She ran to the nearest corner an emptied her stomach into it.

We've all done things we regret down here... Rarity thought, her own mind troubled. And not just from her guilt. “There’s... more, isn’t there?” she said after a moment. There was still a question that had not been answered. “You say you escaped, but... how?”

By doing the one thing I regret above all my other sins, Twilight closed her eyes, “I- I was so alone, and sad and angry, for so long. I didn’t think I deserved to escape, but one day, when I had lost all hope, I felt... something. It was a friend, and she was close. The feeling kept me going, restored a tiny speck of hope, and I started to plan. I took the meager remnants of magic I had left after each day of experimenting and poured it into the tiny pebbles and flakes of rust in my cell. It took months, but I eventually built up enough to teleport, and I vanished. Things had gotten so bad, they hardly seemed to notice. I gathered supplies, hid away the Elements from them, and set up this place.”

“You... felt a friend?” Pinkie asked, feeling something turn over in her gut.

Twilight opened her dull eyes and looked at the confused pony. “It was you, Pinkie. I felt your spirit.”

“M-Me?” Pinkie stammered, “You felt me... from all the way down here?” Her mind reeled, slowly piecing together what Twilight was saying.

“It was very faint. You said you live in Manehattan now? Did you move there about a year ago?” Pinkie nodded. “That’s when it happened. You were closer than any of the others and I was able to make a connection with the small bits of magic I had. I got- inside your head... I pleaded for your help... And persuaded you to- I’m, so sorry.”

Pinkie fell silent.

Fluttershy gasped and looked away.

Rarity covered her open mouth with a hoof.

Rainbow gaped, unsure if she was shocked or mad.

Applejack was very mad.

“It was you, then,” she growled, wiping the sick off her muzzle. “Pinkie decides ta get the gang back together outta’ the blue, because of you. She takes us all on a cruise, because of you. You brainwashed her. Your own friend...”

Twilight nodded, scolding herself for letting Pinkie hug her earlier.

“The Elements were the only way I could hope to fix my mistakes, and there are six of them. She was my only connection to the surface... I used you, Pinkie. It took awhile, but I wormed my way into your head from way down here."

"I got you, to bring them, to me.”

Author's Note

I... could have done this much quicker.
Wrote all the dialog first, which works great for dialog heavy stuff, here, not so much.

Doozy

Chapter XI : Doozy

Grimy, bronze walls were just barely visible in the dim compartment Pinkie Pie had confined herself too. She glared contemptuously at the blank wall with damp eyes filled with unshed tears trying to force their way out. But Pinkie wouldn’t let them; she wanted to be angry, and bawling like a foal would only make her feel sad.

On the other side of her sealed-off retreat, the depths of the ocean groaned and bubbled dully, as if to remind her exactly where she was. And why she was there. Still, Pinkie did her best not to think about it; as it would distract her from being mad. She had purposefully separated herself from the others to avoid snapping at them again. As mad as she felt, she knew taking it out on them wouldn’t make her feel any better. It certainly hadn’t during her last episode, back on the Endless Horizon.

The trip to Summer Rain’s personal office wasn’t a very long one; it was in a nearby district of Rapture called ‘Minerva’. Not that Pinkie actually gave much of a hoot about that, as far as she was concerned, the whole city could be swallowed up by the ocean and disappear forever.

I hate this stupid place, with its stupid mad scientists and its stupid... stupid art-deco aesthetic... Pinkie brooded to herself.

“Yeah! That’s the right idea!” someone replied in the darkness. “Forget about this rotten place, and that no good Twilight Sparkle. She’s a trickster, she is; a twisted trickster I tells ya!” The voice came from the seat next to where Pinkie steamed by herself, where a white first aid kit sat. “You should march out there and give that nosy-noser a piece of your mind!” it said, flapping its lid wildly to speak. An unspooled roll of bandages flopped around inside like a linen tongue.

Pinkie made no reply; she was in no mood to hear the opinion of some inanimate object, and a first aid kit that wanted to hurt somepony clearly wasn’t worth listening to. She kept her glare locked on the bronze wall, wishing it at least had wet paint on it she could watch dry. Any distraction was welcome from the angry thoughts storming in her mind.

“Daa, she doesn’t deserf a friend like yoo,” agreed a corked bottle of vodka sitting up on a high shelf, speaking in a Stalliongrad accent. “I think yoo should drink me up, den smash dis bottle on her silly purple head. Dat is vat I would do.”

On the same shelf next to the bottle, a dusty sea captain’s hat popped out of its box and laughed heartily. “Wait, you’d drink yerself? Now that I’d like ta see, Comrade.”

“Stop,” Pinkie said quietly over the growing collections of voices in the small space. Is a little alone time really too much to ask for?

“Yarr, Pinkie my dear, ya need ta listen ta Kitt and I,” the hat said, turning away from the vodka. “Yah need ta get out of here and ditch these bottom feeders pretendin’ ta be yer friends.”

“Admiral Hatty is right! Listen to us, we just want to help you get out of here,” flapped the med kit.

“Nyet! Not vithout getting glorious vengeance first!” protested the vodka, jumping for emphasis and nearly tipping over the high ledge.

“Well duh, how else is she supposed to get control of the sub?” shot back the first aid kit.

Admiral Hatty barked another deep round of laughter. “Great idea, Kitt! I always knew ya had it in ya, ya bloody pirate.”

“Stop,” Pinkie said again. I just need some quiet time to calm down...

The assembled objects ignored her and continued their mutinous plotting. “First, ve take out ponies. Den, ve take sub to surface. Den ve have party happy-times!” said Comrade Vodka, clear liquid sloshing around inside excitedly. “Is bulletproof plan!”

Kitt’s lid curled up in a evil grin, “So long as purple goes down first.” The others chortled in malicious agreement.

Something inside Pinkie snapped. Her whole body started to shudder and the small room was filled with a red glow, emanating from the gem in her artificial Element of Harmony.

“I said STOP,” hissed Pinkie. She tore her gaze from the wall, only to find normal objects of the non-talkative variety littered around her cramped hiding place. She also found herself panting heavily as her tears finally rolled down her cheeks. With a sigh, Pinkie turned her attention back to the wall, her body trembling all over.

“I am so sick and tired of hearing voices in my head...” she murmured quietly.

It took all of her concentration just to keep her mane from straightening out.

Up in the Bathysphere’s cockpit, Twilight also found herself excluded from the rest of the group. Sitting in the comfy captain’s seat with a heavy bronze tiara on her head, she listened to the rhythmic sonar pings and watched the ocean floor slip by below. She deftly steered the craft towards Minerva, keeping low under the city to minimize the risk of detection.

Scattered about the submarine, behind the tall back of her chair, were the friends Twilight had placed in harm’s way by luring them out on to the ocean, and into the range of Rapture’s defenses. More than anything, she wanted to sit with them, to laugh with them, and reminisce about days gone by... but there was no way she could do that now.

So, she focused solely on steering, pretending the quiet shuffling behind her was being made by some other ponies, and ignoring the stiff metal joints of her ‘wings’ poking into her back.

Somepony in the hold muffled a delicate sneeze, shattering Twilight’s mental illusion. I bet that was a Fluttershy sneeze! Actually, no it was too lady-like, could it have been Rarity? She bit her lip, fighting the urge to take just one quick peek back at her old friends. But she couldn’t, she didn’t want to see them look back at her in anger, or disgust, or worse, pity. The sonar pinged, and she used the minimalistic controls to move the sub away from the dangerously close ocean floor.

Another sneeze came from behind. Okay, that was definitely Rarity...

It was torturous; like being imprisoned all over again, only worse because they were all so close. Unable to resist, Twilight risked a glance back down the length of the sub. In a quick scan, she saw Rarity rubbing her muzzle on the floor, busying herself with sorting the additional supplies Twilight had stored in her security hub. Rainbow Dash was sprawled across a padded bench, snoring loudly. Cuddled up to her was Fluttershy, sleeping soundly despite the grating noise. Applejack was sitting upright with her legs crossed and her hat pulled down over her face. She sat as far from Rainbow’s snoring as she could, also trying to get some sleep, though the distance did not appear to be helping her to that end.

Pinkie Pie was nowhere to be seen.

Taking in the scene with a mournful smile, Twilight suddenly noticed a pair of green eyes peering at her from beneath AJ’s hat.

“Eep!” Twilight cried, spinning in her seat so fast her metallic wings tore into the chair’s padding. “Oh for the love of Celestia...” she muttered, trying desperately to force the stuffing back inside. The movement had the duel effect of shooting pain up her shoulders; pain she hardly noticed any longer.

From her position on the bench, Applejack frowned. As bad as she felt watching Twilight struggle with her wretched situation, she was reaping the seeds she’d sowed. She had been for a long, long time. Twilight's a big girl. She made her bed, Ah don’t gotta feel bad watchin’ her sleep in it.

Closing her eyes and tuning out Rainbow’s zealous log-sawing, AJ refocused on getting some well needed shut-eye. Another rip came from the front, followed by another and lowly muttered cursing. Cracking an eye open, the apple farmer noticed Twilight had managed to tear out some of the yellow stuffing from her chair and was now trying to preen it out of her iron wings and shove it back in while controlling the sub at the same time.

“You’re always there to help anypony in need...”

Twilight’s words from forever ago floated across Applejack’s mind. It was applebuck season, shortly after the Nightmare Moon incident; and she’d bitten off more than she could chew. In an act of bull-headed overconfidence, the younger farmer vowed to buck every apple tree on her own, and proceeded to work herself to exhaustion. Twilight was the only one trying to help her. Even after she’d repeatedly told the unicorn she didn’t need help. It was only when she stopped being so stubborn and accepted that help did she manage to finish the harvest.

Doesn’t change what she’s done since then, Applejack reminded herself. Another image surfaced in her mind: Twilight alone and mutilated in a jail cell, crying out for help.

“...maybe you could put aside some of your stubborn pride?” Finished the echos of Twilight’s words in Applejack’s head.

Dangit all, Applejack sighed and pushed her hat back up onto her head. It ain’t like Ah’ll be getting any sleep now, anyhow...

With a disdainful glance back at Rainbow, Applejack slid off the bench and made her way to the front of the submarine. She slipped quietly into the seat next to the winged unicorn, and Twilight jumped in surprise at the sudden company. They both stared out the front window in silence; neither knowing what to say, or even where to begin.

Clearing her throat, Applejack threw caution to the wind and pointed out the figurative Manticore in the room. “So, do those wings... hurt at all?”

The hopeful look in Twilight’s eye died, and AJ pointedly buttoned her big mouth. Nice going AJ, way ta ease into the conversation, she thought, kicking herself mentally.

Though she couldn’t hide her grimace, the possibility of talking was enough to draw Twilight out of her shell. “They do... sometimes. And I really don’t like it when they touch things,” she replied in a hushed whisper, as if openly discussing them made them more real. Not wanting to inspire any undeserved sympathy, Twilight quickly added, “I’m pretty much used to them by now, though.”

Applejack nodded slowly. It was all she could do. What happened to Twilight was just plain wrong, even after all the things she’d done...

The pair fell into another awkward silence, AJ shifting uncomfortably while Twilight pretended to concentrate on steering. She glanced to her left every few seconds; watching the earth pony, hoping she wouldn’t leave again.

As the quiet quickly became unbearable, two questions formed in Twilight’s overactive mind. She hypothesized at the likely answers, but there was only one way to know for sure. With a deep breath, she forced herself to speak, “Did- is what I did... to bring all of you down here... was it really so unforgivable?” Twilight asked helplessly. Of course it was, you selfish monster, her brain instantly chided. She wished AJ would yell at her for even asking, or buck her in the face over and over like she deserved.

The farmer, however, did neither. She contemplated the question calmly and gave the honest answer, as Twilight knew she would.

“Yes, Ah think it was.”

The response didn’t seem to surprise Twilight. If anything, she just looked tired, even more so than the sleep deprived ponies around her. With a slight nod, she turned back to the window and the green-blue sea outside.

But AJ wasn’t done. She’d had some time to think on it, and now that she’d started to vent, there was no stopping short. “Look, ya got ta understand that you crossed a line,” she began, doing her best to keep her voice low and even. “Not only did you sink a whole ship full of ponies to get us down here, ya tricked us into it instead of just asking for help. And now, we’ve all got a pile of regrets hanging over our heads that we ain’t never gonna get rid of. Not after what we seen and done here. You’ve seen it in us, in Rainbow. Guilt is gonna follow her around forever, and as for Pinkie...” Applejack trailed off. There was no telling how Pinkie would come out of all this. She’d had it the worst by far, used like a puppet by a voice digging at her very thoughts.

“Regret, guilt... The walls of Rapture are comprised of equal measures of the two,” Twilight said weakly, her eyes locked on the city above. As much as she wanted to, she was unable to bring herself to check back where Pinkie had shut herself away.

“And what about you?” said Applejack, asking the question at the forefront of her mind. “Do you feel regret, or guilt?” In her mind, she pictured a huge tree wreathed in flames. “Doctor... Petal Blossom. Yess, that’s who I was...” it whispered, then cried out in agony as the flames spread along its branches

“More than you could possibly imagine,” Twilight replied with a heavy sigh.

The words sounded genuine, but Applejack could feel a burning anger flare up inside her. “Oh really?” she hissed, her foreleg sparking to life with yellow flames. “Tell me. Where was that guilt when you were slicin’ up ponies?” The leather armrest bubbled as the heat around her hoof intensified. “Did the regret come into play before, or after ya tinkered around in Pinkie’s noodle?”

Twilight finally turned to face the orange earth pony, her own anger rising, “She was my only chance to escape and make things right! My only source of hope! How would you-” as quickly as it came, her rage faded. She knew there was no excuse for what she’d done, nothing that could actually justify what she did to her friend. She slumped low in her seat. “I just needed her so badly...”

Another flash of anger hit Applejack like a whip. She turned to lay into the sick fraud disguised as Twilight, but that was not what she saw sitting in the chair next to her. Piloting the sub was a broken husk of a pony, a shadow weighed down by an endless stream of increasingly bad choices that would take several lifetimes to properly atone for.

The flames slowly dissipated as Applejack regained control of her fury. She watched the city above drift by. Twi’s wrong; this place ain’t made of regret or guilt. It’s poison, and it turns good ponies bad and bad ponies worse. AJ sighed, and decided to return an old favor by helping the broken unicorn. “I want you ta listen to what yer sayin’ Twi; you needed her. So you used her. Like you used those ponies for your horrible science experiments, and look where that gotcha.”

“I- it wasn’t like that...” Twilight stammered, though she didn’t look too sure. “I was so alone, how else could I get help?”

Applejack lowered her voice to a sincere whisper. “Ah understand why you did it, really Ah do. Loneliness is like a sickness you just can't get over." She thought about the day Twilight left Ponyville. Then Rarity moved away, then Rainbow, then Pinkie... "But that just ain’t how you ask fer help, especially from your friends.”

Twilight shied away. Friends... The word brought her second question to mind. The big one. She had a probable answer for this one too, and it absolutely terrified her. “Do we- Do you think all of us could ever...” Twilight began, meeting AJ’s piercing gaze. She faltered and had to look away. “Could we ever all be friends again? Is there even a remote possibility of things going back to the way they were?”

No words came out of Applejack’s open mouth. She’d wondered the same thing many times since that pink letter appeared in her mailbox. Harvest Moon thought they could do it, and it had always been her hope things would work out. There were times when it even seemed possible. Through all the hardships Rapture had thrown at the group of old friends, they had somehow managed to regain some of what they’d lost over years of separation.

But even if they accomplished their quest and saved the city, they still had their lives to return to on the surface. Rarity still had a fashion line to produce, Dash was still a Wonderbolt, Pinkie still had her growing party business, Fluttershy still had her school, and Applejack still had her family...

She rubbed her belly tenderly with a warm hoof, and she realized the harsh truth she’d been trying not to think about. “To be honest... Ah don’t. There might have been a time when that was possible, but Ah think we’ll be more keen ta forget about what happened down here. We’ll go back to our lives... and that‘ll be that.”

If Twilight looked broken before, she now looked completely shattered. “You r-really think there’s no hope at all?”

“At least, not till we can forgive ourselves, and each other,” said Applejack with a wave back at where Pinkie was hiding. “Till then, we should focus on doing what we got to and gettin’ the hay out of here. What happens after that? Well, Ah suppose we’ll just have ta see.”

Without another word, Applejack left the partially melted chair and made her way back to her spot on the bench. Rarity quickly went back to her supplies, pretending she hadn’t been listening while the others slept. Her damp eyes betrayed her feigned ignorance.

Alone in the cockpit once again, Twilight thought she’d be fighting back tears as well, but there were none to shed. Applejack’s words resounded in her head, but only confirmed what Twilight already assumed. The loss of her friends didn’t make Twilight feel sad, or even depressed. She simply felt numb.

The sonar pinged again and recalled Twilight’s attention. She grabbed hold of the control stick and leveled out the bronze craft with a blank expression. In the murky distance, a castle-like structure jutting out of the ocean floor came into view. Minerva; the private workshop and living quarters of Summer Rain. The water around the miniature Canterlot was tinted a deep red by the pollutants it expelled, giving the beautiful work of architecture the feeling of a forsaken fortress.

Well, this is it. Looks like my plan worked out, thought Twilight as she mechanically steered towards the castle's docking port.

All it cost me was my friends.

I really don’t want to be here...

Fluttershy followed a line of former friends as they approached the intimidating undersea castle. It was the exact opposite direction she wanted to be going. Though, as much as she wanted to wait in the Bathysphere, Fluttershy knew that just wasn’t an option. It had been many years, but she found herself the Bearer of an Element once again, and even if it was artificial, she still had a job to do.

The bronze Element hung heavily around her neck. The blue gem set in its center had gone dark, taking away any elegance the jewelry once possessed. In fact, all the Elements had gone dark, save Pinkie’s which glowed with an eerie red light similar to the surrounding waters. Rarity had noticed as well, and was eyeing the plain metal band she wore contemptuously, like she was one glimpse at a mirror away from tearing it off.

Fluttershy was more concerned with the ominous light shining all around her through the glass tunnel walls. The sea water here looked angry. She felt like it was actively trying to get in at her, and glass panels just weren’t enough to keep it at bay.

I really, really don’t want to be here...

Pinkie seemed to be thinking something similar. “How much further?” she growled, sulking behind Fluttershy at the very back of the group. Though she was trying to hide it, it was hard to miss her trembling body. She hardly even seemed to be walking, the shakes were bad enough to propel her forward on their own.

Poor thing, she must feel so betrayed... Fluttershy thought. If anypony had the right to be somewhere else, it was Pinkie. Fluttershy could hardly imagine what she’d gone through. Somepony’ else in my head... telling me what to do. The rattled pegasus shuddered as well. As much as the unsettling water worried her, it had nothing on the unicorn leading them.

“It’s not much farther now,” Twilight said without looking back. It was the most words the two had exchanged since they set out to from the Pony Plaza.

In front of Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash stomped along with enough force to crack the ceramic tiles under-hoof. “Oh, when I get my hooves on that featherhead...”

That was another reason Fluttershy couldn’t stay behind. She cleared her throat and Dash’s snide grin vanished. If it came down to a fight, she wondered if there would be any way of holding back the unpredictable pegasus.

“Is this way safe?” Rarity butted in, trailing an oddly quiet Applejack. “Most despots take extra care with ensuring they’re safe as they cower in their fortresses... no matter how pretty the fortress may be.” Her gaze wandered up the sleek, grey sides of the underwater castle’s walls while she spoke.

Twilight replied in a monotone voice devoid of pride. “There is a secured defense system in place, but I rigged it to shut down when prompted. I can switch it offline from any control panel hooked into the power grid.” The others made non-committal replies as they were lead towards the end of the glass gangway.

“Wh-What about Spike? Will he... is he okay for now?” Fluttershy asked quietly. Just the thought of the little dragon alone in a place like this made her skin crawl.

“He’s... stable,” replied Twilight. She could feel the questioning eyes burrowing into the back of her head, so she carefully added. “He’s being kept in stasis in the main ADAM production labs. He’s not in danger; they need to keep him alive or the slug they implanted in him will stop producing-”

“WHAT!” Rarity shouted, breaking the delicate quiet in the tube and making Fluttershy jump out of her crawling skin. “Twilight, how can you let them use him like that! I insist we go to him now! This very instant! Rain can wait,” the white unicorn said, literally slamming a hoof down and cracking more of the expensive-looking tiles.

Twilight stopped with a sigh and lowered her head. “We can’t. The doors are sealed with the most sophisticated lock in all of Rapture. A safety precaution to keep out ravenous Splicers. You need a special key encoded with Summer Rain’s genetic information to get it open.” She spared a glance back, catching the look of horror Rarity wore. The others shared similar expressions. Her point made, Twilight sighed again and continued down the tunnel.

“Like I needed another reason to hate her guts...” Rainbow muttered, falling in line with the rest.

“He’s basically in an induced sleep state,” Twilight continued in what she hoped was some sort of consolation. “As soon as we deal with Rain, we can wake him up and get that... thing out of him.”

The objections at the forefront of Rarity’s mind where forced into silence. As much as she wanted to help the little dragon, there would be a time for that later. It was just one more crime Rain would have to answer to.

The group came to the end of the glass passageway, where a sign that read ‘Welcome to Minerva’ was mounted over a sealed metal door. On the left side was a deactivated Talk-box, its crystals dark, and on the other side, a sealed control panel. Twilight promptly went to the panel on the right side of the door and removed its covering with her magic, then began fiddling with the electronics inside.

The Talk-box suddenly sparked to life. It released a squeal of static that interrupted her work, followed by a familiar, sly voice. “Trying to break into my home, are you?”

“Rain!” shouted the four mares at the front of the group. Fluttershy fell to the floor at the sudden sound, covering her eyes. Pinkie hardly looked interested, scowling out the window at a group of fish that she decided were simply too orange.

The silky voice of Summer Rain chuckled. “I suppose breaking and entering isn’t much of a stretch for traitors, thieves and killers such as yourselves. But a mare’s home is her castle, quite literally in this case, and shall be defended as such.”

Rainbow’s wings snapped open and she dug at the ground with a sparking hoof. “We’re coming for you Rain, you hear me?! You’ll pay for threatening my friends!” She snorted, her Element regaining a fraction of its lost illumination.

“Oh yes, well in that case, it appears you have me beaten,” Rain’s soft voice teased through the Talk-box’s crystals. “I suppose I should just give up then. Here, allow me to get the door for you.”

“Everypony get back!” Twilight cried suddenly, abandoning the panel. “The defenses are still active!”

With a hiss, the large metal door retracted upwards. The room beyond was a destroyed entrance foyer, with two rows of marble columns reaching up to the high ceiling. Broken statues of ponies lay between the columns, and defaced paintings of Rapture's founders hung from the walls or lay smashed on the ground. The remains of several bodies lay scattered on the polished floors. At the far end was another heavy door, flanked on either side by a pair of active turrets mounted onto armoured desk chairs. Their targeting spotlights instantly focused on the mares and turned from green to red.

Four guns opened fire simultaneously.

“Move!” Twilight shouted, wrapping her iron wings around her body and stepping in front of the stream of bullets. “Now!”

Hot lead ricocheted off her artificial wings as AJ and Rarity dove to the left side of the opened doorway for cover. Rainbow, Fluttershy and Pinkie fled to the right, where they were joined by Twilight once they were clear.

With their targets no longer visible, the guns fell silent, and Twilight immediately went back to work on the opened control panel.

“L-Looks like we have to go back...” Fluttershy sputtered while the unicorn tried to hack the defenses. Getting shot at was still a new experience for the skittish pegasus; one she never wished to repeat as long as she lived. Fluttershy turned back down the red tinted hall, but felt a tug on her tail before she’d made it two steps.

Rainbow Dash yanked her back and spit out a mouthful of dirty pink hair. “We can’t just leave, Fluttershy!” Her foreleg crackled with blue electricity as she peeked around the door frame. “If that’s where Dumber Rain is hiding, I’m not gonna let some stupid chairs stop me from getting in!”

“Rainbow, don’t!” Twilight cried a second too late as they resumed shooting immediately, hardly taking a second to aim. Dash pulled her head back as the bullets narrowly missed lobotomizing her, then smashed through the glass walls behind them. Several streams of water sprayed through the fresh bullet holes.

“Leave them to me!” Rarity chimed, readying her own plasmid. “I had a run in with these awful contraptions already; one quick burst of ice should do the trick.”

Twilight shook her head, “No! Rarity, these are specialized turrets designed by Summer Rain herself; they can find targets and lay down suppressing fire in three-fifths of a second!”

“Then I shall have to freeze them faster than that,” Rarity replied with a confident toss of her regal mane. “Plus, I can use a magic shield to protect myself; I held off an ocean with one, after all.”

Twilight looked far from convinced, but their position wasn’t improving. A trickle of cold water touched her rear hoof and she reluctantly nodded across the deadly gap.

Rarity smiled and enveloped herself with a shimmering field of magic. With a deep breath, she stepped into the line of sight and lifted her icy leg. The turrets were already shooting by the time she unleashed a freezing torrent of magic at the machines to her left. Two of them froze solid and fell silent, but the others were too fast, and Rarity’s protection spell wasn’t strong enough to hold back the steady bombardment.

The faint glow of her Element went out completely as she aimed at the second set of gun/chairs. The shots connected and her barrier of magic shattered. Rarity let out a cry of pain and fell to the floor, three holes on her side turning her elegant white coat crimson red.

“Rarity!” Applejack jumped out of the safety of her cover to pull her injured friend back out harm’s way, leaving a bloody smear across the floor. Rarity wailed like a banshee while AJ quickly fished a medical kit out of her supply sling. “Fluttershy, Ah need yer help ta patch her up!” Applejack called across to the yellow pegasus, curled up as small as she could on the other side of the door. Ice shattered in the other room, telling them that both of the frozen turrets were back up and running.

“I- I can’t...” Fluttershy stammered, her legs unwilling to move. Rarity was bleeding badly, but to help, she’d have to step out into the path of the turrets! A sharp crack echoed from behind; more holes had opened in the walls of the tunnels and red sea water surged in avidly.

Twilight noticed the increased flow and gasped, “Girls! We don’t have time, if the gangway collapses then we’ll all be- GAH!” Her warning was cut short when Rainbow shoved her against the curved wall.

“Listen up, egghead. Rarity was just shot! We ain't’ moving till she’s been patched up, got it?”

“Not helping, Dash!” Applejack said as she dumped the medkits contents onto the floor and began unrolling gauze. She tossed the empty kit to the floor, where it stared up at Pinkie with a smug grin.

“Now’s you chance to get out of here!” it whispered to her. “Use one of these chumps as cover and make a run for the sub!”

“N-No...” Pinkie whispered, glancing back down the way they came. It really isn’t that far...

Twilight struggled in Rainbow’s grasp. “There’s nothing I can do! I’ve been locked out of the system!”

“Then unlock yourself out and shut the door!”

"That’s not how hacking works!” Twilight rolled her eyes, flapping her metal wings wildly.

“Do it! Do it! Do it!’ chanted the med kit.

“RAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH! I’ve had ENOUGH!” Pinkie cried from the back of the group. Her eyes flared with an anger she could no longer keep bottled up. “I don’t want to watch ponies get hurt anymore! I don’t want to see my friends argue, and I really don’t want to be used!”

Around her neck, the bronze Element flared with a fiery red glow that mirrored the look in her eyes. Pinkie barred her teeth and hopped past the others into the opulent deathtrap, crushing the empty medkit under-hoof as she went.

“Pinkie get back!” Applejack called, dropping the gauze as the guns roared back to life.

“Nopony gets to control me anymore!” Pinkie screamed. A immaterial glow distorted the air in front of her, and the four streams of hot lead seemed to weave around it, missing her entirely. “I don’t like being told what to think, not by the meanies in my head, not by ponies who’re supposed to be my friends, and certainly not by dusty old hats!”

“...Hats?” Rainbow repeated, releasing the pressure on Twilight’s neck.

Pinkie broke into a charge, fueled by her unbridled fury, and telekinetically lifted the four super turrets into the air as they fired wildly in vain. “If I want to feel mad, then I’ll feel mad! But I will not give in and let someone tell me how to feel!” and with that, Pinkie crumpled the death machines into metal balls of whirring motors and sparks. She effortlessly tossed them at the reinforced office door, where they exploded on impact in a fireball that dented the door inward and tore it from its hinges.

Clicking gears, spraying water and labored panting filled the quiet that ensued as the rest of the group dared to peek into the smoky room. Fluttershy ran over to Rarity and Applejack. Calling on her years of experience treating injured forest animals, she began to clean and dress the wounds. Twilight cautiously stepped in and approached the pink mare trembling by herself in the empty foyer.

“Pinkie? Are you... alright?”

“No,” Pinkie said without looking back. “I’m still mad. At you.”

Twilight stopped, halfway in. “Yes. As you should be. I’m so sorry for what I did to you Pinkie. I... I should have found another way.”

The pink mare made no reply, standing alone and trying to reign in her anger. With Rarity being taken care of by somepony more skilled than her, Applejack ventured into the foyer behind Twilight.

“She... stopped the bullets?” the confused farmer asked, observing the matching collection of smoking bullet holes on either side of the entrance. “How did she do that? Rarity’s shield couldn’t even stop ‘em, an’ she’s a proper unicorn. No offense, Pinkie...”

“It was her Element,” Twilight said morosely. “They are powered by strong emotion, just like the original Elements, though they're exclusively activated by the bonds of harmony and friendship.” She removed the tiara from her head and stared down at her creation with sad eyes. “These Elements are most sensitive to strong friendships, but they can react to other emotions too if they are strong enough, including... anger. That’s how they wanted them to work...”

She put the regal piece of technology back on with a resigned sigh. “What I did made Pinkie upset enough to supercharge her plasmid with the Element. The amount of pure rage she’d need to do that is... I- I’m so sorry I betrayed your trust Pinkie.”

The pink mare sighed heavily, finally getting control of her shaking. “Is Rarity okay?” she spat.

“...I’ll be alright,” the white unicorn said weakly, leaning on Fluttershy and Rainbow for support as she entered the bullet-riddled foyer on unsteady hooves. White bandages were wrapped expertly around her torso, and she clutched a bottle of painkillers tightly.

“You really shouldn’t be moving around like this...” Fluttershy grumbled under the weight of the injured unicorn.

“I’m fine,” Rarity assured them, earning a hard glare from the usually diminutive pegasus. “Well not fine fine, but we’re far too close for me to rest up now. Summer Rain is just beyond that door after all, and... being very quiet, actually.”

“You don’t think she made a break for it?!” Rainbow cried as she darted forward, dropping Rarity to her knees. “Oops, my bad, Rare!”

Twilight eyed the broken doorway cautiously. “The only other way out of there is by Bathysphere, but ours is the only one still operational.”

“Well then what are we doing out here?” Rainbow asked as she helped Rarity back to her hooves. The unicorn gave her a contemptuous glare. “What? I said I was sorry....”

“Let’s just get this over with,” Pinkie grumbled, sitting up and trotting over to the damaged door. With the added power of her Element, she easily swept away the twisted metal and sparking turrets. Peeking into the office beyond, her full body shakes returned in full force.

Applejack noticed the odd way Pinkie was moving without walking, and was struck with another memory from long ago. “Uhh, am Ah the only one who thinks the way she’s bouncin' around looks familiar?”

Rainbow looked up, but the jittery mare had already disappeared into the office. “Doesn’t she always do that?”

Twilight also vaguely recognized the erratic movement, but couldn’t quite recall the context relating to the last time she’d seen it. “I think AJ may be right. Wasn’t it... Something to do with her Pinkie sense, but...”

“Guys! Get in here NOW,” Pinkie called from within, ending all speculation on her erratic behavior.

Leaving the others to help Rarity, Twilight rushed into the spacious office. “Pinkie, what’s wrong, did you find-” she came to a full stop next to the friend she had so greatly wronged, her eyes going wide with shock as she took in the sight before her. “R-Rain?”

As with the rest of the grandiose city, the office of its creator was decked out with all the finest luxuries of excess. Safe from the increasingly psychopathic citizens, the workspace had retained much of its former glory; from the intricate frescoes running around the ceiling to the well stocked bookshelves and polished golf clubs in the corner.

Only two details insinuated that something was amiss; the first being a layer of dust that had settled on every surface, something that would be absent in a room under constant use.

The second was draped over a wide, mahogany desk and giving the stale air a foul smell that Fluttershy recognized the moment she entered the office with the others. She nearly fainted when she located its source.

“Is that her?” Pinkie asked Twilight, pointing at the decaying corpse of a pegasus mare sitting alone at her dusty desk.

“Well, this is just PERFECT!” Rainbow Dash laughed, throwing her forelegs into the air. “I can really feel the closure here...”

“R-Rainbow, just try to c-calm down...” Twilight said as she draped a blanket over the half-rotten body.

Rainbow laughed again, “Calm down?! You really must have lost your mind if you think now is the time to be calm.”

“Dash, please,” Rarity implored, resting on an exquisite rug from Saddle Arabia, and getting blood all over it. “Twilight didn’t know about this... isn’t that right?”

Twilight slowly shook her head. “I... no! It doesn’t make any... how can she be dead?!” She lifted the blanket and checked the dead mare’s flank. The scars were a perfect match to the ones Rain had self-inflicted.

“Funny, I was wondering the same thing,” Rainbow said, turning away from the grisly sight. All I wanted was to make her pay for hurting us... That doesn’t make me the same as Lightning Dust, does it? She pushed the thoughts away as fast as she could. What did it matter anymore? Lightning Dust was dead, and apparently Rain too.

Applejack shouldered past the brooding pegasus and got as close to the seated cadaver as she dared. “Twilight, what the hay is going on here?”

The sad unicorn gave an almost imperceptible shrug and looked away.

“I’ll tell you what’s going on,” Rainbow piped up again, pointing a hoof at Twilight. “She just wanted the Elements for herself! I mean, we’ve been here for what, a day and a half?” In a flash, she flew across the room and tore the covering off Rain’s decaying remains. “That doesn’t happen overnight. So there never even was a Summer Rain! Not while we were here, just Twilight getting us to do her dirty work so she could escape this dump! All we did here... All I did... Oh Celestia.”

Twilight flinched backwards in shock. “Rainbow! You know I- I would never...” betray the trust of my friends, she was going to say, but the words caught in her throat when she realized they weren’t true. Instead, she began breathing faster, panic and uncertainty beginning to set in.

Slowly, Fluttershy trotted over the the body. She picked up the blanket and re-covered Rain, noticing her skull had been violently caved in by something heavy. “Twilight, please... tell me Rainbow Dash is wrong.”

Twilight swallowed hard and forced her hyperventilating to an end. “She’s wrong, Fluttershy.” She looked the kindly mare in her relentless teal eyes and hoped beyond hope she would be believed. “I swear to you, on the friendship we once had, on whatever good is left inside me, on all the books in all of Equestria! I did not know she was dead! I didn’t know!”

Rainbow scoffed, pacing back and forth before the desk. “You said all we had to do was find the Elements, take care of Rain, and then we’d get out of here. Now it turns out we’ve been chasing a ghost this whole time!”

Someone laughed delicately in the back of the office. “And oh, what a merry chase it was.” It was the same smooth voice they'd heard many times, only only this time, there wasn't a hint of Talk-box static or distortion.

“Rain!” Rainbow ripped the covering away again, only to find the same dead mare as before underneath. “She’s... still dead? Then... what? I’m not the only one confused here, right?”

“There! Look!” Pinkie shouted, pointing at a shimmering shape moving out of a dark corner of the room next to a disused chemistry lab.

“Rest assured, she is quite dead, unless that foul thing has a pulse,” the invisible pony said as it neared the group.

“Then who does that make you? Show yourself!” Rainbow demanded, placing herself between the specter and the others.

Behind her, Pinkie’s shaking restarted with renewed strength. “I-i-i-it-t-t-t’s-s-s, it-t-t’s-s...” she tried to speak, but her chattering teeth turned her words into garbled gibberish.

“...Galt?” Fluttershy asked, noticing the obscure glimmering of an invisibility spell. “It can’t be!”

“That infuriating spy? I should think not,” Rain’s silky voice said, then its owner removed the invisibility spell. "And here I thought I'd killed him months ago." A mottled, brown earth pony appeared in the center of the office. He wore a smart, pinstripe blazer, and a strange silver contraption was clasped around his neck. The stallion smirked at the floored mares and slicked his short, black mane off to the side, “How nice to- Oh, just a moment,” he said with Summer Rain’s voice, then flicked a switch on the silver device and spoke again in a deeper tone more fitting a male. “Ah, that’s much better. How nice to finally meet you, face-to-face.”

“D-d-d-do-oo-ooo-z-z-z-eeee! D-d-doo-z-z-eee...!” stuttered Pinkie, her shaking reaching a fevered pitch.

“It... it’s a doozy!” Fluttershy gasped, finally recognizing Pinkie’s shakes for what they were. None of the others seemed to noticed, their attention focused solely on the new arrival.

Twilight was the first to shed the stupor his sudden appearance had caused. Her wings drooped and her eyes went wide, “Chicane? But, you’re the one who’s supposed to be dead! Rain blew up your Bathysphere when she banished you years ago!”

Chicane held up a condescending hoof. “Ah! Correction, you saw a Bathysphere I was supposed to be in explode,” he said with a smug smile, removing a red playing card from his jacket. “Any magician worth his weight in salt will tell you the importance of sleight of hoof.” With a wave of his hoof, the red card became black, and was neatly deposited back into a coat pocket.

“So, it's been you this whole time?” asked Applejack as she began to piece it all together. “Settin’ them Splicers loose and separatin’ us up? The one who shot at Pinkie?” She could feel a familiar heat rising in her foreleg, one she wouldn’t be able to contain much longer.

The dapper stallion seemed nonplussed by her fiery display. “Well, it certainly wasn’t the ghost of Hearth’s Warmings past over there,” Chicane replied, waving a hoof absently at what was left of Summer Rain.

“But, why? Why would you do this?” Twilight asked, her own temper rising. “She trusted you, Chicane! Took you in when you had nothing and gave you a chance to build the life you’ve always dreamed of!”

“You speak so highly of her,” the stallion rolled his eyes, trotting over to the golf clubs lined up on the wall. “I must say that’s odd for a traitor like you. And for the record, locking you up was her idea, that and those silly letters,” he said, levitating out a club and swinging it casually. “I wanted to simply toss you out of an airlock. But then that was the difference between her and I; action.”

“Wait, what letters?” Rarity asked, trying to follow everything that happened from her rug.

“My letters. I've been feeding lies to the Princess ever since her little spy showed up. Not to mention you lot.” Chicane replied evenly, “Have you not received the various tales of 'Twilight Sparkle’s world-wide adventures'? They're some of my finest works of forgery. Not to toot my own horn but... toot toot.”

“Well, yeah. Several actually,” Rainbow said, never taking her eyes off the smug earth pony. “I never gave them much thought, and then we came here... I assumed she’d been lying to us again.”

Twilight looked away, as if she had been struck.

Chicane’s smile grew. “Nope, that was all me. Rain wanted to make sure no outside interference would be involved. No cavalry coming over the horizon. Looks like she failed on that front, too.”

Twilight scowled and marched right up to the stallion. “I... She was many things. As insane as her visions for Equestria’s future are... were, I respected her!” she said, jabbing Chicane’s chest with a hoof. “She was a mare of substance, unlike you and that sadist Hoofhardt.”

“Oh please, you're no better than either of us.” Chicane swatted her hoof away with the club, then floated out a handkerchief and wiped the dirt off his dress shirt where Twilight had touched him.

“I came here to bring Summer Rain to justice,” Twilight said with a sharp edge to her words. “You bashed in her skull.”

“You make me sound like some common killer!” Chicane spat back, “You think I wanted things to end this way? She forced me to do it! There were none in all of Rapture who shared her ‘insane’ vision more than I, but she was too cowardly to make her own future a reality! We had everything we needed, but she was too weak to carry through with it. She got soft, she did nothing, and the city fell apart. Wanted to stay down here. But where she failed, I will succeed! Mark my words, Equestria will have its revolution, and I will lead the way to freedom!” He shouted, tossing the golf club across the office where it landed in place with the others.

The group fell quiet as Chicane’s speech ended. His eyes were filled with a righteous hatred that left no doubt weather he’d go through with his conquest. In the ensuing quiet, a new noise became prevalent, that of rattling teeth. All eyes turned away from the angry maniac to the trembling pink mare by the door.

“H-h-he-he’s-” Pinkie tried to say, when her violent shaking came to a sudden stop. She blinked in confusion, “Huh, guess he’s not the doozy then.”

Rarity raised an eyebrow, “Whatever are you talking about?”

“Oh, I guess you weren’t at Froggy Bottom Bogg that one time,” Pinkie said as she examined her steady limbs. “Neither was Dash, actually. You guys really missed out on a big adventure!”

“It’s her Pinkie sense,” Fluttershy explained. “Last time this happened we were attacked by a hydra!”

“Of course!” Applejack said, amazed she could forget such an insane afternoon, “But, if she’s sensin’ a doozy, and it ain’t Chicane-”

“Uh, I’m still here you know?” he cut in, drawing the attention of the room back to himself. “Don’t mind me though, feel free to keep reminiscing while I plot a hostile takeover...”

“Right, I think we’ve established that this dude is the bad guy,” Rainbow said, charging up her plasmid. “If we’re all done talking, can we please just zap this jerk and be done with it?”

“Hold up. Something about this ain’t right...” said Applejack. First Rain turns out to be dead, then this guy shows up and Pinkie senses a doozy? What're we missing here?

Rainbow gestured at the dead body and the pony responsible standing a few feet away. “No kidding! So let’s harmony-blast away till everything is fine! Twilight, turn these knockoffs on already, will ya?”

Chicane lept back so over-dramatically even Rarity had to roll her eyes. “Oh! How could I forget about the Elements! Looks like this is the end for me; no more cards up my sleeves, no sleeves at all now!” There was a poof of magic, and the sleeves on his jacket vanished. A whole deck worth of cards fell to the floor, all of them aces. “Guess you’d better do what little miss ants-in-her-pants says and fire away!”

“I’m not even wearing pants!” Rainbow snapped before she could think up a proper comeback.

“Girls, get in formation,” Twilight ordered. She closed her eyes as the others fell in behind her. Her tiara lit up with a brilliant white magic which spread to the dull gems around the necks of the other Bearers. “Chicane; as punishment for your grave crimes against the Royal Crown and all of Equinity, I find you to be guilty and thus sentence you to-”

“Oh get on with it,” he interrupted, “I have important things to do today. Regicide isn't something you do half-assed.”

“Twi, please, Ah’m telling you something is wrong here!” Applejack couldn’t shake the nagging feeling, and Chicane’s indifference in the face of what should have been certain defeat wasn’t helping.

“Yeah, and he’s standing right in front of us!” said Rainbow, glaring at the would-be tyrant.

The glowing intensified and the six mares lifted gently into the air. One by one, the Elements added their power to Twilight’s tiara. A faint blue light sparked off Rainbow’s, Rarity’s and Applejack’s, but a red one arced off Pinkie’s. It didn’t seem to add much to the overall light, if fact, it appeared to diminish it! Fluttershy’s Element remained dark, adding no spark of its own at all.

“Goodbye, Chicane.” Twilight opened her eyes, her pupils matching the brightness of her tiara. She tilted her head back and released the harmonic energy, firing a beam of raw power at the stoic brown pony.

The rainbow that was loosed from her crown was not what Twilight had been expecting.

Unlike the other times she and her friends used the real Elements of Harmony, the beam was off-colour and badly faded, like something out of an old photograph. It spread lethargically across the office, where it collided into Chicane’s raised shield spell and was repelled, leaving him completely unharmed.

“Hey, isn’t he supposed to turn into stone or something?” Rainbow pointed out as the white light dissipated and she returned to the ground.

“You think you lot are the only ones with plasmids?” Chicane chuckled as the magic swirled around him and coalesced into a ball of energy in the pit of his hoof. “I invented the things you know; always wanted to do magic as a colt, but had to settle for cheap tricks.” He focused his own synthetic magic on the ball, changing it into a crimson red. “And now, I believe it is my turn.”

He thrust his hoof forward and sent the ball of fiery energy back at the mares who’d cast it. The magic burst into hundreds of glowing insects that washed over them like a vengeful hurricane. They cried out in pain as the bugs bit and stung them relentlessly, each one felt like being pinched by red-hot pliers.

Thankfully, the spell didn’t last long. The bugs dissolved back into the ether; leaving Twilight and her old friends sprawled on the floor covered in raw sores and debilitating welts.

“Now, I will just be taking these back,” Chicane said coolly as the bronze necklaces floated away from the twitching ponies wearing them.

“No! I won’t let you get away with this!” Twilight gasped, reaching out to grab the crown and feeling pain dance across her whole body.

“Funny, that’s exactly what Rain said right before I showed her my long drive.” Chicane joked while he collected the six pieces of magic jewelry. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll just be taking these down to ADAM production, along with Rain’s genetic code. I’ve got a date with a Princess, and I’d hate to keep her waiting.”

“You’ll... never beat Celestia! She’s had bowel movements tougher than you!” Rainbow grunted, ignoring the crippling pain and raising her empowered hoof. Electricity arced along its surface, releasing blood and pus from under her cracked skin. She screamed and shut her eyes, but managed to send a short blast of blue lightning at Chicane before her EVE gave out.

The zap rolled off his shield like raindrops on an umbrella. “Wow, I’ve gotten worse shocks than that from doorknobs...” Chicane shook his head, then added, “Bonus points for imagery, though.”

“Don’t... encourage... her...” groaned Rarity.

“He’s going to use the Elements to increase ADAM production,” Twilight said, wincing as she attempted to get back to her feet. “And he’s going to pour it all into himself! Rain was planning on raising an army, but you’re going to attack all alone, aren’t you?”

“A magician never reveals his trick, Clap-trap,” said Chicane, rubbing a hoof on his jacket and magically reattaching its sleeves.

Applejack opened a tin of salve she got from Rarity’s medkit and slathered it over her wounds. “You can gloat all you want, but Princess Celestia’s still gonna stomp you into the ground! ...Right, Twi?” she finished weakly, passing the salve to Rarity.

“With that much power... there’s no telling if anything would be able to,” she replied, fully realizing the nefarity of Chicane’s plan. “He- he could burn down all of Canterlot without breaking a sweat-”

Chicane laughed again. “Yes, but then where would I put all the treasure ponies pay me to not burn their homes down?”

Rarity passed the salve to Fluttershy, but she didn’t take it. The small pegasus could only gape up at the stallion with disdain. “You, you really are a monster,” she breathed through her clenched jaw.

Chicane’s smile waned slightly, and his left eye twitched. “You fight a monster long enough and turning into one becomes inevitable. All I wanted from Celestia was the power to do magic, and what does she tell me? TOO BAD! You weren’t BORN WITH IT, TOUGH LUCK KID. She became my enemy that day, just as she became Rain’s, and now she will have to answer to ME.”

With that, the furious earth pony teleported away in a flash of light, his manic laughter resounding back through the hole in space-time. The mares left behind continued to administer the soothing salve, when there was another flash a few seconds later and Chicane reappeared.

“Oh, and please don’t try to follow me. I’ve sealed the exits and set Minerva to implode. I know that will likely make you want to follow me more, but there’s a teleport inhibitor on the whole building. Only works if you got the genetic code. Which you don’t. If you still feel like trying though, ask Twiley here what happened to the donkey we tested it on. Now, I really must go. God-hood awaits!” Then he was gone once again.

“Minerva destruction in, five minutes,” said a mechanical voice over the loudspeakers. “Please vacate the area. WARNING, teleport suppression field active. You now have four minutes, fifty seconds to evacuate.”

Acting on pure willpower, Twilight ignored her bug bites and went to Summer Rain’s desk. She felt around underneath and pressed the secret button Rain had showed her once before. The rich wood finish flipped over, and a terminal screen and input device rotated into place. “Rain should have control over all of Rapture’s subsystems from here. If I can bypass the encryption, I can stop the countdown and lift the inhibitor, then we can-”

“No!” Rainbow cried, covered in creamy salve and fighting mad. “Everything you say only leads us to more trouble, so guess what? I’m calling the shots now!”

“What?! But, what about Chicane!?” Twilight shot back, already picking at the keys with her hooves. “There’s no time, we- we can’t just let him get away!”

“There are now four minutes and thirty seconds to evacuate,” warned the loudspeakers.

The screen flipped back down into the desk under Rainbow’s blue hoof. “Forget him! We ain’t dying for a city that’s been trying to kill us since we got here! I say we bust the door down, take the sub outta here and warn the Princesses.”

“We don’t have time!” Twilight protested, but found no support in the eyes of the group.

“I’m afraid I must agree with Rainbow, for once,” Rarity said in answer to Twilight’s pleading look. “Things have gone quite awry, perhaps it’s time we hand things over to somepony who can handle this? Like the current Bearers of the real Elements of Harmony?”

“I think we should go, too,” whispered Fluttershy. She didn’t exactly know what ‘imploding’ was, but that only scared her more.

“But, we have to do this!” begged Twilight, “I have to do this! If we don’t end things here-”

Applejack sighed and shook her head. “Look Twilight... we tried, alright? I told you on the sub, we just ain’t what we used ta be no more.”

“If we leave now, then it will be too late! Chicane will become an unstoppable force of destruction that will bring pain and destruction to every corner of Equestria!”

“Pain and destruction, huh?” Rainbow sneered. “Say, what exactly did happen to that donkey Chicane mentioned?”

Twilight’s jaw dropped, but she was unable to cover an involuntary wince. “That was different, Mr. Chestnut knew the risks, he just wanted to help and...” Try as she might, the others didn’t look very convinced. “Look, I know what I did was wrong, but we need to fix things-”

“No, you need to fix things,” AJ cut in again. “That’s what all of this has ever been about. That’s why you brought us here in the first place. So we could save yer hide, and give you some sort of redemption you could cling to, then pretend everything was back to normal.”

“There are now four minutes to evacuate.”

“That’s not the truth!” Twilight said as her tears fell onto Rain’s desk.

“Then what is?” Applejack asked quietly.

Twilight closed her eyes, picturing the tiny cell she had spent months wallowing in. It was there that she’d assumed Rapture had broken her spirit, but in truth, it had happened long before then. “I lost myself down here. It happened gradually, so much so that I didn’t even notice until it was too late. Rain took me under her wing; got me involved with the other scientists in Rapture, got me working on my own projects. But I was changing, absorbed by the infinite prospects. I knew- I thought, that if I had my friends by my side... they could remind me who I used to be.”

The jail cell in her mind faded away, leaving her alone in an unending blackness, lost and alone for all eternity. Twilight opened her damp eyes and looked at the faces of those she’d wronged. Even with the five of them in the same room as her, the feeling of loneliness lingered.

“That’s not what happened though,” Fluttershy said, in the sternest voice she could muster. “Don’t you see? You’re still the same Twilight who experimented on innocent ponies, deer and apparently donkeys too. You expected us to make you better, but you just made us worse.”

“I never wanted that!” Twilight blurted. “You have to believe me when I say that.”

Rainbow stepped away from the desk, joining the others on the far side. “Maybe I would have believed the old Twilight, but now.... I don’t know.”

Twilight sat hard on the floor and sobbed. She glanced down at the decaying body of Summer Rain; an angry and confused mare, all she’d wanted was the chance at a better life. Not just for herself, but everypony. But she wasted her chance to do good on vengeance. Rain was furious because others wouldn’t see her point of view, but she was unwilling to see theirs, and she ended up dying alone, betrayed by one of her own supporters.

“I hate myself for what I did. I hate that I was weak enough to abandon my morals, and I hate that because of my actions, ponies are dead. There was so much pain in my cell with me, but there was one thing I held onto; that kept me going and reminded me of the good within myself.”

“What was-s-s-s i-it-t-t?” Pinkie asked, moving out of the crowd to the crying unicorn on rattling limbs.

“You. All of you!” Twilight looked up at Pinkie, smiling through her tears. “The memories of our time together in Ponyville gave me hope, and made me realize what was at stake, what I let slip away far too easily. I respected Rain, almost as much as I feared her and her vision of the future. I could see Equestria burning in my nightmares, and I was powerless to stop it. When I felt the connection to Pinkie, I knew I had to do something, anything to prevent the disaster.”

Her smile faded, and she had to look away. “I couldn’t imagine how much it would cost me, but I can’t give up.” Twilight flipped the screen back out of the desk. “I won’t let my mistakes spread, no matter what happens to me.”

“There are now three minutes to evacuate. Please vacate the area immediately.”

Out in the ocean, an explosion rocked Minerva’s foundations. The office shook, kicking up a cloud of settled dust and knocking the ponies inside off their hooves. “Secondary charges blown. Setting Primaries.” the automated voice droned as the aftershocks died down and the underwater castle became still, minus one pony who continued to shake all over.

“Come on, we have to go now!” Rainbow took to the air and flew to the broken entry to herd the others out, when she noticed Pinkie shaking like a paint mixer. “Uhh, you okay there Pinkie?”

The jittery mare didn’t seem to hear. She shook harder and harder, bouncing right off the ground and bulging out with a sharp pop. The others backed away as she settled back on the floor and stood perfectly still.

Pinkie briefly inspected herself, then cheerfully exclaimed, “I forgive you!”

Twilight blinked a few more tears loose, her mouth working to speak but only managing a feeble, “...What?”

Fluttershy gasped, “That was the doozy?”

“Eeeeeyep! I really didn’t see it coming, but there it is!” Pinkie said with a huge smile, then turned to the shell-shocked Twilight. “I forgive you! For hacking my brain, and for what you did down here. And for leaving us to travel Equestria in the first place.”

“WHAT!?” Rainbow fell from the air, landing on her rump. “Are you crazy Pinkie? How can you forgive her, just like that?!”

“Easy! Because she’s my friend. And I should have been there for my friend the whole time,” Pinkie replied, locking Twilight in a soul-crushing hug. “Maybe none of this would have happened in the first place if we’d been there for Twilight when she needed us most, like we can be there for her now.”

“Pinkie, I can’t- No, what I did to you is beyond forgiveness.” Twilight fought against the hug, but was unable to break free.

“Too bad! I’m not mad at you anymore, so you’re just gonna have to accept it!” Pinkie squeezed harder, ending Twilight’s escape attempt with a pitiful squeak.

“There are now two minutes to evacuate.”

Rainbow groaned, tugging at her bottom eyelids, “Uuuuugh, we don’t have time! We need to get out of here now!”

“Not till the job is done,” Pinkie said, finally releasing Twilight and sitting firmly at her side. “I’m going to help my friend make things right! I mean, Equestria and a lot of lives are sorta at risk from all this.”

“Ah’m staying too.” Applejack blurted, joining Pinkie and Twilight behind Rain’s desk.

“Good grief...” Rainbow groaned again, releasing her eyelids and snapping them back into place.

Unlike Pinkie, Applejack didn’t grab Twilight in a loving embrace. She locked the metal-winged unicorn in a hard glare and said, “I can’t rightly say Ah’m willing ta give ya a clean slate, but Ah will give you a second chance. Ya’ll need all the help you can get, and so does Equestria. This ends right here, right now.”

The farmer’s harsh, but honest words left Twilight momentarily speechless. She stifled a few more sobs and stammered, “Applejack, after what you said- I... Thank you.”

AJ’s hard glare softened. “Thank me when we’ve finished saving us all.”

Finding her group of supporters dwindling, Rainbow threw her forelegs up. “I don’t believe what I’m hearing! She’s the one that got us into this mess in the first place!”

“This mess is bigger than any of us on our own, Dash,” Applejack said. “Which is why we need ta stick together and see it to the end if we want what we had together in Ponyville to exist past tomorrow! Maybe we can get back what we had, and maybe we can’t. But Ah know for certain that Ah want my foal to have a chance at the life Ah had, not to live in fear of some ADAM-fueled monster!”

Rainbow responded by crossing her arms and grumbling to herself.

“Yeah! Applejack’s- wait...” Pinkie began as she started to tremble again, “Your... f-f-foal?”

Rarity gasped, ignoring the flash of pain from her bullet wounds. “Applejack! Are you pregnant?”

The orange farmer flushed a deep red. Guess there’s no point in hiding it now... “Ah... think Ah might be. Pretty sure, actually.”

Pinkie exploded into the air again, landing with a with a massive smile that split her face in half, “Woah! Double doozy! Also, APPLEJACK’S HAVING A BABY!!”

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Fluttershy asked. She temporarily forgot about the impending destruction and imagined how happy Harvest Moon would be when he found out. Despite how scared she was, Fluttershy smiled.

“Well, Ah wasn’t sure at first.” Applejack removed her hat and scratched the back of her head, making sure she used her normal forehoof. “Then, Ah was scarred, and Ah really didn’t want ya’ll ta worry, especially if it turned out Ah was wrong.” She put her weathered cowpony hat back on with determination etched all over her freckled face. “But Ah still ain’t quitting, and Ah can’t sit this one out anyway. If Ah can save my youngin' from a life lived in fear, yer darn-tootin’ Ah’ll fight tooth and nail for it.”

“Yeehaw!” cried Pinkie, earning a round of incredulous stares. “What? It seemed appropriate.”

“I will also be staying then,” Rarity declared. “That brute needs ADAM for his little invasion. And as I understand, that means he’ll be using my little Spikey-wikey. I shall not allow that.” She turned to Twilight abruptly. "Er, he is still little, right, Twilight?"

Dash watched the injured unicorn limped around the desk, then slumped in defeat. “Well... I can’t miss out on a fight Rarity is in on... so I guess I’m staying too.” She sulked over, then grimaced and rubbed the back of her neck. “And... sorry I snapped at you Twi, for the whole Rain being dead thing. I was... just being a little dumb.”

Twilight couldn’t help but smile at the ponies amassing around her. “You’ve always been a loyal friend Rainbow Dash, even when I don’t deserve it.”

“Yeah well, maybe you should start trying to deserve it from now on?” Dash said with the ghost of a smile.

“I will, you have my word.” Twilight nodded.

“AJ’s having a baby! Ooooh this is so exciting!!” Pinkie bounced around the others, “I can start organizing the shower as soon as we take care of Meanie-McBugs-Up-His-Sleeves.”

Applejack rolled her eyes, then noticed the one pony who hadn’t joined Twilight. “How about it ‘Shy? Feel like joining the old team one more time to put the baddies in their place?” she asked hopefully.

Fluttershy couldn’t move or speak. She had been so close to getting out of Rapture, but now it looked as though there would be another fight. “I... I...” I’m not ready to forgive any of you. She wanted to say, but she just didn’t have it in her to crush their spirits just as they were starting to rise. Instead, Fluttershy swallowed the lump in her throat and said, “I don’t know how to drive the sub...” The sheepish pegasus remained where she sat, to the surprise of the rest of them.

“I understand, Fluttershy.” Twilight said morosely. Even being able to speak with her old friends was more of a gift than she felt she deserved. Despite Fluttershy’s lingering reproach, a warmth was returning to her heart, one she hadn’t felt in almost sixteen years.

Another percussive explosion rocked the office. “Sixty seconds until total destruction.”

“Uhh, as great as all this touchy-feely stuff is,” Rainbow said, struggling to keep her balance. “Would you mind doing that hacking stuff and stopping this place from, you know, imploding?”

“Oh! Right. That would be rather pertinent...” Twilight said, snapping out of her hopeful reprieve. She hammered away at the keypad, pulling up the Minerva defense grid and disabling the encryptions on all active commands.

“Countdown aborted. Have a prosperous day,” announced the automated voice.

“There!” Twilight exclaimed. “Ha, Chicane may be a master of illusionary tricks, but his skill with security systems leaves something to be desired.”

“Way to go, egghead! Way to save our butts!” cried Rainbow.

“What happens now?” Rarity asked, returning to a sitting position.

Pinkie Pie jumped out from behind her, bouncing in a circle around the stunned unicorn, “Well, first I’m gonna have to get a cake, and have Mr. Headliner make up some banners. Then I’ll need to unbox the good confetti and-”

“Ah don’t think she was referring to mah baby shower, Pinkie...” Applejack chuckled.

”Oh. Oh! Stop the bad pony first, right rightrightright,” Pinkie said, filling away her mental checklist for later.

“Well, I’ll need to make a new copy of Rain’s genetic key." Twilight said, tapping her chin as a plan formed in her mind. "Actually, it might take a while, so we should take the time to gather up some supplies while I work. Also, the entrance to the ADAM labs is crowded with desperate Splicers trying to get in, so somepony will need to clear them out. Once we get inside, we’ll need to find Chicane, get back the Elements and take him down before he becomes too powerful and causes the fall of Equestria as we know it.”

“Is that all?” Rarity stammered.

Rainbow smiled. “You know, as awesome as the Wonderbolts are, which they totally are... I’ve missed this.”

Twilight took in the sight of all her friends together. Things might not be perfect between them, but they were working together for the salvation of Equestria, and that was more than she could have asked for.

I have too.

Author's Note

FIIIIIINALY!!!!
Wow, that took way longer than it should have, but we're in the home stretch now!
Stay tuned for the epic conclusion.

Thanks to MerlosTheMad for proofing and getting me to actually work on this.