It was late. Honeycrisp was asleep. If she knew that anything strange was going on, she hadn’t said. Jonagold sat in the kitchen, sipping a cup of coffee, staring at the door. The reply to her letter had come the day before, and she could feel the tension in the air. They were coming.
When the knock came she nearly jumped out of her skin.
She opened the front door and Cardamom strode past her into the room, silent as a breeze. She wore a dark cloak that covered her entire body, and when she pulled the hood down Jonagold was surprised at how much older she looked. A new scar ran down her face, and her muzzle was touched with grey.
“Where’s your sister?” she said, scanning the room.
“Still asleep,” Jonagold said.
“Wake her,” Cardamom said. “We don’t have a lot of time.”
Jonagold nodded and walked down the hall to her sister’s room. She pushed the door open.
“Honeycrisp,” she said. “Wake up. We’ve got to go.”
“Mmm,” her sister said, rolling over in bed. “Not now, sis. A few more minutes?”
“We’ve got to go now,” Jonagold said, her voice injected with a note of danger. Honeycrisp sat up.
“What’s the matter, Jona?” she said.
“We need to leave,” Jonagold said. “It’s not safe here anymore.”
“Is this about dad?”
“Sort of.” Jonagold stopped and turned towards her sister. “Hey.” She tried to smile. “It’s going to be okay. There’s a pony in the other room that I’d like you to meet. Come on, I’ve already packed your bag.”
Honeycrisp got out of her bed and followed her sister down the hall, her tough-girl façade struggling to stay in place.
Cardamom was waiting in the main room. She smiled at Honeycrisp. “Hello there, I don’t believe we’ve been acquainted.”
“This is Silten Cardamom,” Jonagold said. “She’s an old friend of dad’s. Here, take your pack.” She led her sister over to the bags and began to don her own. Honeycrisp wavered.
“How long are we going to be gone?” she said.
Jonagold looked at Cardamom.
“A while,” she said at last. “Come on, I promise it’s going to be okay.”
Honeycrisp nodded, beginning to put her own pack on. She sniffed, blinking back tears. Jonagold felt a burst of sympathy for her sister. This life was all Honeycrisp knew; by the time she was old enough to remember, the days of running and transient identities were all but over. For the millionth time she wished her brother was there.
Jersey, if I ever see you again, I’m going to kill you for putting me through this.
“Hey,” she said, walking over to her sniffling sister. She put a hoof under Honeycrisp’s chin. “It’s going to be okay, I promise. We’ll have to lay low for a bit, but Cardamom’s promised me that where we’re going isn’t far and it’s safe. They’ve even been able to get some school supplies so you can keep your studies up.”
Honeycrisp sniffed and tried to smile. “Aah, shoot. I was hoping there’d be something I’d get out of it.”
“You’re not getting off the hook that easy,” Jonagold said. “Now, buck up and let’s go.” Honeycrisp nodded and finished putting on her backpack. She walked up to Cardamom and swallowed.
“Ready, ma’am,” she said.
“Look at you,” Cardamom said, smiling at her. “Here. I, ah, couldn’t remember how old you were so I brought this. Sometimes they help.” She removed a small stuffed teddy bear from her cloak and gave it to Honeycrisp, who clutched it tight, suddenly looking much younger than her fourteen years. “Let’s go,” Cardamom said.
Jonagold thought they must have made a strange sight, three mares like ghosts, the smallest clutching a stuffed animal to her chest. Cardamom led them down the street and towards Cinnamon Park, where a new pony was preaching the coming apocalypse to a nonexistent crowd. Cardamom grinned, dropping a few coins in his tin cup. He winked at her.
Before Jonagold could inquire about the interaction, Cardamom led them again, through the turning passages and tall, narrow alleys that wound between the overflowing structures of Red Town. Jonagold tried to keep track of where they were going but was soon lost.
After an uncertain amount of time, Cardamom stopped in the back of a nondescript alley. It smelled like garbage.
“What’s—“ Jonagold said, but Cardamom shushed her. Then she rapped three times on the back of the door. A moment later, it opened, and a grim face peered out at her. Jonagold realized that she recognized it.
“Evening, Rocky,” Cardamom said. “I’ve got the Winesaps with me.”
Rocky nodded and stepped back, and the door fully opened. Cardamom gestured, and Jonagold stepped in. They were in the back of what appeared to be a restaurant, or a tavern. She saw barrels of ale and sacks of produce and flour stacked against the wall. She looked back, to where Cardamom was standing.
“What is this place?”
“It’s a tavern,” Cardamom said. “We use it as a base. Come on.”
She walked over to the corner of the room and pushed a crate that looked much heavier than it was out of the way to reveal a trapdoor. Then she beckoned.
“Down here,” she said, opening the trapdoor. The low sounds of conversation drifted up to them. “You might recognize a few of them.”
Jonagold glanced to Rocky, who hadn’t said a word. Then she walked to the trapdoor, Honeycrisp following. She began to climb down.
The room that she found herself in was another basement, of sorts, older and perhaps from a different era. It was brightly lit and cheerful, with enough bedding for several ponies. A table was set up in one corner and a number of ponies sat around it, playing cards. They’d stopped the game, turning instead to look at the newcomers.
Jonagold shifted. “Howdy,” she said.
“Well, I’ll be,” one of the ponies said, a smile on his face. He looked vaguely familiar. “It’s Jonagold Winesap. My, you’ve grown up!”
The words broke the ice, and soon the whole crowd had surrounded her, smiling and offering hooves to bump. She did her best to smile and greet them, but was relieved when Cardamom raised her voice and said “Alright, everyone, Jonagold and her sister are very tired. Also, I don’t imagine they have any idea who any of y’all are. So it’d be much appreciated if we held off on the introductions for now until they get all settled in.”
There was some grumbling, but the crowd took the hint, meandering back to their table and picking up the cards. Soon, their game had resumed as if nothing had happened.
“Thanks for that,” Jonagold said.
“You’re welcome,” Cardamom replied, a smile on her face. “You’ll get plenty of time to meet the rest of them later.”
“What is this place? Are y’all some sort of resistance?”
Cardamom’s smile faded. “I wish. This is just a bolt hole for people considered enemies of the state. The owners put it together themselves, but it’s not connected with anything.”
“So we’re enemies of the state now?”
“Technically, no,” Cardamom said. “Really it was your dad, but the government doesn’t really care that much about the details.”
“Guess not,” Jonagold said.
“You can stay here as long as you like,” Cardamom said. “Don’t worry about that. You might have to pay for food but we’ll give you a good discount.”
“I can pay my way just fine, thanks.”
“If you’re sure,” Cardamom said. “In any case, you might want to talk to some of these ponies, get to know them. Most of them are here for press-related offences, like your father, and we’ve got some pretty good minds in the bunch. If there ever was a resistance, I wouldn’t mind seeing them start it.”
There was a silence after that. Jonagold looked down at her hooves. “Listen, Cardamom, I really appreciate you bringing us here. Can’t tell you how much, actually. But I don’t want nothing to do with any sort of rebellion or resistance or what you call it. I just want to lay low and keep Honeycrisp out of trouble.”
“Hey,” Honeycrisp said. “I’m right here.”
“And that’s where you’re gonna stay, too.”
“It’s okay, Jona,” Cardamom said, holding up a hoof. “You don’t have to worry about that. Not everyone’s cut out for a fight, and I certainly wouldn’t make anyone put themselves out on the line.”
Jonagold sighed. “Thank you, Cardamom.”
“It’s alright.” Cardamom shrugged. “Who knows? You might even change your mind at some point. Some of these revolutionary types, you’d be amazed what they can do with words.”
“I’m sure they’re impressive,” Jonagold said.
Honeycrisp yawned, and Jonagold turned on her like a hawk. “Bed,” she said.
“Aww, but I’m not even tired!”
“Not true at all, and you’ve still got some work you’re going to have to do tomorrow, missy.”
“We’re living lamb,” Honeycrisp said. “We don’t have to do any work.”
“It’s on the lam, girl,” Jonagold said, ushering her towards one of the mattresses. "And don’t think your big sister is going to roll over just because of that. Cardamom’s got some schooling for you tomorrow, isn’t that right?”
“That’s right,” Cardamom said. “Or rather, he does.” She jerked her head over to one of the ponies playing cards. Jonagold sized him up.
“Looks like one of those intellectual fellows,” she said.
“That’s right. He’s the best in the business.”
“We’ll see about that tomorrow,” Jonagold said. “For now, Honeycrisp, we’re both going to bed.”
She led her unhappy sister over to the mats and picked one out. From within her pack she withdrew a large, faded quilt, fraying at the edges. Honeycrisp perked up.
“You brought Mom’s quilt!”
“You wouldn’t think I’d leave home without something important like this, would you?” Jonagold said, winking. She set the quilt out on the mattress, careful to lay it just the way it was set at home. Honeycrisp laid down and Jonagold tucked her in.
“It’s going to be okay,” she whispered, stroking her sister’s mane. “Don’t worry.”
“You’re not going to leave, are you?” Honeycrisp murmured, already drifting off to sleep.
“Never,” Jonagold said. “I’ll be right by your side the whole time.”
“Mmm, good.” Her sister’s chest began to rise and fall. She was fast asleep. Jonagold stood.
In the corner, the other ponies were still playing cards. She looked at the stallion who was supposed to start teaching Honeycrisp tomorrow. He was out of the game, watching the others with an amused expression on his face. His eyes flicked up to Jonagold, who motioned to talk to him. He stood.
“Those ponies are going to play me out of house and home,” he said, trotting over to her. “I swear, they can’t do anything right except for cards, but they can do that damn well.”
“Hmm,” Jonagold said.
“But where are my manners?” The pony held out a hoof. “Sunlit Sage, at your service.”
“You’re Camargue?” she said.
“Is that a problem?”
“Not at all. I was just curious as to how many Camargue are here.”
“Well,” Sunlit said, “considering the fact that the vast majority of Red ponies in Hub City are Camargue, I’d imagine the ratios are similar here. Your name sounds Fjord, if I may be so bold.”
“Half,” Jonagold said.
“That would be the famous Hayward Winesap, then.”
“Is that a problem?”
He raised an eyebrow. “Not at all. I have great respect for your father, Jonagold. The Red Review was what got me into politics in the first place.”
“It was a dangerous magazine,” she said.
“Sometimes telling the truth is dangerous. Doesn’t mean it’s not important.”
“It didn’t matter anyway,” Jonagold said. “The Blues thought he was too dangerous and the Reds thought he was too tame.”
“It sounds as if you empathize with that position,” Sunlit said.
“I wouldn’t be here if I had any other choice,” she replied.
“That’s the case with everyone here,” he said.
“Including you?”
“Nope,” he said. “I just like camping out in musty basements.”
She looked at him. His smile grew wider.
“That’s a joke,” he said. “Helps to lighten the tension.”
“I feel so light right now.”
“I can tell.” Sunlit sighed. “No, it’s the usual story. Poor family. Got on the wrong side of the law. Did some things Hub City would consider rather… ill-advised in my youth. Came out of it okay, but eventually my past caught up to me and… now I’m here.”
“Does your family know?”
“Nope,” he said. “At least, not the ones that matter. But for the record, I am trained as a professor and I’ll be able to teach your sister whatever it is she needs to know. I can teach you too, if you’d like.”
“I don’t need to be taught anything,” Jonagold said. “I finished my schooling just fine. Never really did me much good either way.”
“Suit yourself,” Sunlit said. “The others over there would probably agree with you. Maybe you could win some money back for yourself.”
“I’m not really a gambler.”
“What are you, then?”
Jonagold shrugged. “Just me.”
“Well, just you, good to have you onboard,” Sunlit said.
“I’m not ‘onboard’ with anything. If you ponies try to make me fight, I’ll leave.”
“If you fight,” Sunlit said. “It won’t be because we make you, and if we do, we’ll have already failed.”
“You’re too idealistic,” she replied. “Ponies never give anything for free.”
“If you say so.”
Across the room, one of the ponies cheered. Jonagold glanced over at them.
“It was nice meeting you, Jonagold,” Sunlit said. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go and try to win some of my money back. We’ll talk more tomorrow.”
Jonagold nodded, and he turned and walked back to where the others were. She returned to the mats, where Honeycrisp was sleeping. Jonagold sat down next to her and closed her eyes, but it was a long time before her mind sank into sleep.
“…Applejack, we have to go now!”
The wind pushed through her mane, making her eyes tear up and almost forcing her backwards. She turned. Rainbow Dash had landed next to her, mane whipped up, wings struggling to stay at her sides. Her eyes were wild.
“We can’t leave!” Applejack shouted, her voice barely legible over the din. “Twilight’s still in there!”
“She can take care of herself!” Rainbow shouted. “Look I appreciate the effort, but you being more loyal than the Element of Loyalty isn’t good for my image! There’s no one else who can handle the princess like Twilight! We’ve got other things to worry about!”
Applejack gritted her teeth. Above her, the dark storm clouds swirled around the highest spires of the castle, where an unearthly glow emanated from the windows. She thought she could hear a laugh on the wind. She opened her mouth to tell Rainbow to go without her when a shattering boom exploded from above. The tower had burst, great pieces of stone falling towards the ground below.
“There are still ponies down there!” Rainbow shouted.
“Go!” Applejack said. “I’ll get the ones here.”
Rainbow nodded and took off, her contrail stuttering in the hurricane-force winds. It was astonishing that she could fly at all. Applejack turned towards the falling pieces of stone. In the courtyard she could see ponies running, panicking, unaware of the death that was falling towards them from above. She began to run, hooves pounding the ground. She jumped off the wall she was standing on and braced herself for the fall, summoning her magic to strengthen her bones and weather the impact.
She landed, a small crater forming around her. The stone blocks began falling around her, knocking over other buildings and sending dust and fire into the wind. She ran forward. A scream came from her side. A red unicorn struggled, a broken, burning log covering his legs. He twisted and cried out, eyes wild.
“I’m here,” Applejack said, running to him. She dug her front hooves under the log and heaved, planting her back hooves into the earth with the power of her tribe. The log began to move. Slowly, inch by inch, it came off of him.
“My leg is broken,” he panted, struggling away.
“My friend can get you to safety,” Applejack said. “Here.” She picked him up and trotted to an area free of debris. She set him down. “Rainbow will get you here,” she said. “Can you send a flare?”
He nodded, closing his eyes. From his horn a single bolt of sparks fired into the air, exploding in the sky. Applejack nodded. “Good. I’ll be back.” She turned, but paused. “Hey, don’t I know you from somewhere?”
“Yes,” he said. “Sunburst, royal ambassador from the Crystal Empire, at your service.”
“That’s right,” Applejack said. “Well, Mr Sunburst, you sit tight and we’ll get you out of here in a jiffy.”
He nodded, and she turned around, plunging back into the chaos to find more ponies to rescue.
She was woken the next morning by the shuffle of ponies. At some point in the night, those playing cards had returned to the mats as well, and now they were all around her, yawning, talking, rubbing the last bits of sleep out of their eyes. Beside her, Honeycrisp stirred.
“Good morning!” Cardamom half-sung, climbing down the ladder from the tavern above. “I brought y’all breakfast.” She was carrying a large platter full of sandwiches. “They’re the best we’ve got at the moment, but that doesn’t mean they’re not good!”
She set the tray down and the ponies began to eat. Jonagold took one for herself and tried it out. Cucumber dandelion. Not bad, all things considered. She munched on it while she waited for Honeycrisp to wake up.
“Now,” Cardamom said. “Hope everyone’s rested up. Couple of things about today. There’s going to be a meeting upstairs tonight about possible protests and actions for the coming week. Y’all are welcome to come but there’s no guarantee that you won’t be recognized. Otherwise, stay low and do whatever it is you normally do. Burlap, you were going to do a combat training exercise later, weren’t you?”
The earth pony in question nodded. “If anyone wants to learn how to defend themselves, I can help,” he said.
“Burlap used to be in the guard,” a voice said. Jonagold turned to the side and saw Sunlight sitting next to her. “If you want to fight, he’s the guy to go to.”
“Good to know,” Jonagold said, looking back at him. Burlap was roughly the size of a mountain, a thick layer of fat failing to hide the enormous muscle beneath.
“That’s all I’ve got,” Cardamom said. “If you need anything, knock on the trapdoor and one of us will come get you. Until then, I’ve got customers to serve.” She climbed back up and disappeared into the tavern above.
“What’s going on?” a sleepy voice murmured, and Jonagold turned to see Honeycrisp sitting up, looking around with bleary eyes.
“Here,” she said, holding out a sandwich. “I saved you one.”
Honeycrisp munched on the food and looked at Sunlit. “Who are you?”
“Your new teacher,” Jonagold said. “So show some respect.”
“It’s alright.” Sunlit held out a hoof. “My name is Sunlit Sage,” he said. “Pleasure to meet you, Honeycrisp.”
“Likewise, sir,” she said, tapping his hoof.
“I’m ready to start whenever you are,” Sunlit said. “Jonagold, would you like to sit in?”
“No, that’s okay. I’m going to see who else is around,” Jonagold said. “Thank you for doing this, Sunlit.”
“My pleasure,” Sunlit said. Jonagold stood, and her sister turned back to her, a note of worry again on her face.
“You’re not going far, are you?”
“Not at all,” Jonagold said. “Just over there to talk to the other ponies. If you need anything, just give me a holler.”
Honeycrisp nodded. Jonagold ruffled her mane and walked over to where a group of ponies were standing around Burlap. They were talking about fighting.
“…now,” Burlap was saying. “Your back hooves are your most powerful fighting tool, but they can be difficult to utilize properly. One solid buck will knock out any pony, and that’s why the majority of hoof-to-hoof combat revolves around making sure that your opponent can’t buck you, while trying to get into a good position to buck him instead.”
Jonagold stood to the side of the group. Burlap glanced at her but didn’t stop talking.
“Some of you might know about different martial arts: Akhal-Khan, Durindam, Hvorstfell. All of those have something in common: they’re sports. Some of the most powerful moves aren’t taught because they can kill. If you’re in a real fight, that won’t matter. Win at any cost. That’s why I’m going to teach you what they teach the guards: Ursan, or Bear Fighting. I need a volunteer.”
There was silence for a moment. Jonagold stepped forward. “I can,” she said.
Burlap looked at her. “You’re the new one,” he said. “Winesap’s kid.”
“Jonagold,” Jonagold said. “Seems like everyone here knew my father.”
“It’d be hard for us to not,” Burlap said. He took a step back. “Show me your fighting stance.”
Jonagold crouched slightly, her left two legs in front of her right ones. “That’s good,” Burlap said, walking to the side of her, “but keep your weight on your back legs more. The whole point of the opening stance is to make it easy for you to rear. In the beginning of the fight, that’s what you’ll be doing. And if you’re good, you won’t even have to do anything else.”
Jonagold crouched and reared up, testing her balance.
“That’s good,” Burlap said, but be careful. You don’t want to be caught halfway. You can’t balance there.”
“I know that,” Jonagold said. “I’ve been around the block too, you know.”
“That so?” Burlap said, grinning. “Get in fights at school? Punch some bullies?” With a speed she didn’t think was possible, he ducked in under her guard and kicked her feet out from under her. She fell down with an uncharacteristic oof. “You’ve got to be more careful. Street fighting is tough, sure, but it’s no match for anyone who’s trained.” Raising his voice, Burlap turned back towards the rest of the crowd. “Everyone, get in a line, now!”
The ponies scrambled to do so as Jonagold picked herself up from off the ground, grumbling. A hoof entered her vision, and she looked up to see Burlap standing there, a small smile on his face.
“For what it’s worth,” he said, hauling her to her feet, “you did a good job trying to anticipate me at the end there.”
Jonagold nodded and took a spot in line. Burlap walked along it, correcting stances as he went.
“Good,” he said, “now, I want you to rear, punch with left hoof, down. Rear, punch with left hoof down. Just like that. Good. Remember, your job is to get into the fight, attack, get out of the fight before the enemy can get you back. Rear, punch, down, good….”
Two hours later, her coat slick with sweat, Jonagold returned to where the mats were, panting and trying not to look as tired as she felt.
Next to the sleeping area, Sunlit had erected a makeshift desk with some of the boxes and was lecturing Honeycrisp on the rotations of the celestial bodies in a clipped voice, pausing ever minute or so to make sure the filly was taking adequate notes. Jonagold slogged over to them.
“Ah, Jonagold,” he said, pausing the lecture and giving her a small bow. “Good to see you. You’ll be pleased to know that your sister is taking to the material quite well, in spite of the fact that her education has some remarkable holes in it.”
“Holes?” Jonagold said, flashing a look at Honeycrisp.
“Not her fault, of course,” Sunlit said. “I’d wager the dismal state of the Hub City educational system is more to blame. Can you imagine that she’s covering the constellations without learning of the circuit of Elu?”
“Sunlit, I don’t know the circuit of Elu,” Jonagold said flatly, fixing the teacher with a steady eye. “And honestly I can’t say what good it would do me to know it.”
Sunlit blinked at her a few times. “I’m beginning to wonder if I shouldn’t be teaching you both,” he muttered.
The creek of the trapdoor above made them all turn. Cardamom’s face appeared at the top and she began to descend again, carrying another platter. Behind her came a second pony, a Red pegasus with one wing wrapped in a tight brace. They were still talking as Cardamom descended.
“All I’m saying, Cardamom, is that you’re going to need more space. The number of ponies coming here tonight is much bigger than I think you understand.”
“And I’m saying I can’t spare it, Rika. I do have a business to run, and besides I don’t want any more trouble than I can take. I don’t want this place getting shut down. There’s too much precious cargo.” She looked at the assembled ponies. “Which reminds me: lunch!”
She opened the plate to reveal another batch of simple sandwiches. The ponies around her began to take them. Cardamom set it down and turned back to Rika. “Look,” she said, “I don’t want a huge public meeting. This simply isn’t the place for it. Bring some leaders if you want, by all means, but this place is primarily a sanctuary, not a launching ground for resistance.”
Rika didn’t look too happy, but she nodded. “I’ll send the word out,” she said. “Trust me, they’re all well-behaved.”
“What about the friend you mentioned?” Cardamom said, grabbing one of the sandwiches for herself. “The scholar?”
Rika shrugged. “No one’s heard from her in a while,” she said. “I don’t know what happened. But I don’t think she’s coming tonight.”
Jonagold reached the front of the line, still looking at the two ponies. There was something familiar about Rika, but she couldn’t put her nose on it. She took a sandwich. “Thank you for the food, Cardamom,” she said, grabbing another one for later.
“My pleasure, Jonagold,” Cardamom said.
The other pony, Rika, glanced up at Jonagold, and their eyes connected. A spark of connection passed between them, and Rika’s eyes widened. Jonagold turned away.
“Oh, Jonagold,” Cardamom’s voice said. “I haven’t introduced you.” Jonagold turned around again. Rika was still staring at her in shock. Cardamom put a hoof on her shoulder. “This is Florid Paprika, an old friend of mine. Her nightclub was the one that was raided last week."
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Jonagold said.
“Rika, this is Jonagold Winesap. Her father was a very old friend.”
“Hayward Winesap,” Rika murmured. “Of course. Old revolutionaries....”
Jonagold coughed. “It was nice meeting you, ma’am,” she said.
“Huh? Yes, good to meet you too,” Rika said, her eyes fixed on some point behind her. Cardamom looked between them, a note of concern on her features.
“You two haven’t met, have you?”
“Can’t say so,” Jonagold said.
“No,” Rika said. “I just… knew of your father.”
“Seems like everyone does around here.”
“He made a lot of waves, you know,” Cardamom said.
“That’s not how I remember it, but thanks for the complement, I guess.” Jonagold left the group, aware of Rika’s eyes boring into the back of her head. She didn’t turn around again.
“What was that about?” Honeycrisp asked, munching on her own sandwich.
“I don’t know, little sis,” Jonagold said. She sat down next to her and the two ate in silence. Across the room, Rika and Cardamom had returned to the upstairs compartment, but the memory of that conversation stayed with Jonagold for a long time after.
She spent the rest of the day dozing, listening to Sunlit’s lectures, and playing card games with some of the others. The lack of outside light began to affect her, and the lack of clocks in the room made it difficult for her to tell the passage of time It was in one of her naps that she was woken up by a loud crash coming from above her. She jumped up with a start.
Around the safe house, other ponies were looking up at the ceiling. Loud voices could be heard from above. They were arguing about something but the muffling of the floor distorted the meaning. Jonagold looked around for someone to ask.
Burlap was sitting up in his mat, listening to the din with a thoughtful expression on his face. Jonagold walked up to him. “What’s going on up there?”
“The many illustrious figures of the Red Underground are discussing what to do in light of the nightclub fire,” he said.
“Sounds to me like there’s not a whole lot of discussion going on.”
“No, it doesn’t, does it?” he said, a faint smile on his face. “It’s funny, for a group that supposedly cares so much about Red liberation, they don’t like each other very much, do they?”
“What are they arguing about?”
“Want my guess? Something extremely trivial involving the allocation of funds. Problem is that everyone up there has their own project or thing they think is going to save everyone, and as far as they’re concerned everyone else is just in the way.” He blinked. “Not that they’re not noble projects, mind you. But asking if more money should be sent to drug houses or to distribute flyers for disruption actions is sort of a moot point.”
Jonagold looked around, realizing suddenly that half of the ponies in the cellar were gone. Burlap noticed her look and grinned. “Don’t think that the ponies you’ve met so far are any different.”
“I don’t,” Jonagold said. “One time my dad met with Cardamom and a few others, probably a similar situation to this. It didn’t turn out well then either.”
“It never does,” Burlap said. “If you ask me, the main reason the Blues don’t fear us at all is because there’s nothing to fear. We’re a wreck.”
Jonagold stood up again. Burlap fixed her with a steady gaze.
“Where are you going?”
“To see for myself,” she said.
“Tell them I said hi,” he called after her. She snorted.
To her mild surprise, the trapdoor opened into another basement, this one full of produce and kegs of beer. She stood, noting the keg that could be easily shifted over to cover the trapdoor if needed. Perhaps it was wise to not simply use the basement as the safe house. The floor now was wood; she could see shafts of light coming through it, and shadows moving between the boards. The voices resolved themselves further.
“…say what you will, Copper, the point remains that what you’re suggesting is impossible!”
“That’s exactly what you would expect coming from a pony who’s been coddled in the blue cradle for most of his life!”
“That has nothing to do with what we’re talking about at all! Don’t change the subject—“
“I know that the conditions you’re in now are hardly your norm, professor, but for hundreds of thousands of ponies this is our entire lives! You wouldn’t be so dismissive if you know what we were going through!”
“I do know what our people are going through, Copper! But forgive me if the thought of raising an army sounds like an absurd notion! You seem to think that the Red ponies of Hub City, who, may I remind you, make up maybe twenty percent of the population, would all rise up together and destroy the much better funded, more disciplined professional army of Hub City.”
Jonagold walked through the doorway and the scene came into focus. There were maybe thirty ponies in the room, most of them seated in concentric circles and facing the middle. A second, smaller circle, consisting of seven ponies, sat in the middle. Jonagold recognized Cardamom, but otherwise the faces were a mystery to her. Two of the ponies in the middle were standing. With a jolt, Jonagold recognized Sunlit as one of them.
The other pony she remembered from much longer ago. The same rust-colored fur. The same furious expression. His eyes were bleary and red rimmed, and his physique had lost much of its former shape, but she would never forget Copper Felt.
Copper glared at Sunlit. “Say all you will, but everything else has been tried. We have no choice but war.”
“Copper,” Cardamom said, “that’s enough.”
“Why was he invited anyway?” one of the other ponies chimed in. The pony next to him, who looked so much like him they could only be twins, scratched his chin and shook his head.
“Unqualified,” he said. The first brother nodded. Copper glared at them.
“I don’t need a couple of sell-outs to tell me what’s right,” he said. “Why are they here again?”
“Because we’ve got more money in one of our hooves than you do in your whole body, old timer.”
“One part of our hoof!”
“Indeed.”
“This is a meeting of the entire community,” Cardamom said. “The Fennel Brothers are here for the business interests. Please, Copper, sit down.”
“I’m not the only one that thinks this way,” Copper growled. There were grunts of affirmation from the ponies in the wider circle. “You’re going to have to listen to us sooner or later, Cardamom. The workers can only be held down for so long.”
“Noted,” Cardamom said. “Now, please sit down. Mr. Sage has not yet finished his presentation.”
“Thank you, Cardamom,” Sunlit said. He cleared his throat. “Now, as I was saying, a litmus test of the general Red population indicates increased motivation and political will. Hub City has overplayed their hoof; if we focus our actions properly, we can make a concerted effort to press for our rights and….”
A hoof tapped her on the shoulder. Jonagold turned around to see a pony she’d never met before; a Camargue unicorn with a red and yellow mane. The unicorn smirked at Jonagold and nudged her head towards the room, as if the two of them were conspirators in some joke.
“Watch,” the unicorn whispered, before stepping forward.
“And what, Sunlit, would you know about motivation or effort? I seem to recall dragging you through most of our studies together.”
Every head turned towards the newcomer, but she seemed unbothered by the sudden attention. Her gaze was fixed on Sunlit, who was looking at her with an expression of disbelief. “Ashen?” he said.
“Hello, little brother,” the unicorn said. She walked forward. “You’ve gone up in the world since being declared an enemy of the state. I wonder what got you in the end, some pamphlet, or did you actually get some guts and hit someone?”
“Enough,” Cardamom said, standing. “Who are you?”
“This is Ashen Sage,” Sunlit said. “She’s my older sister.”
“Older and smarter,” Ashen said, stepping closer. “Basically better in every way.”
Sunlit rolled his eyes. “Also more modest,” he said.
“Well, family aside, this is a private meeting,” Cardamom said. “Since you are family, you can stay and observe if you want, but the proceedings must continue as planned.”
Ashen tapped a hoof on her chin and shook her head. “Nah,” she said. “I don’t think so. You see, I’ve been thinking about this whole business a lot this past week, ever since I was in the fire that burned down my friend’s club. And you know what I realized? Every single time Red ponies have tried to get together, they’ve failed because of things like this. A catastrophe happens, everyone scrambles to organize, and they fail because they can agree on nothing except that everyone else’s plan is a failure. So we’re not going to do that anymore. Instead, I’m going to be in charge.”
A pony in the circle actually burst out laughing, but Ashen didn’t look at her. A few others chuckled to themselves.
“Ashen,” Sunlit hissed, “not that I’m not thrilled to see you, but this is not the time.”
Ashen ignored him too. “The first thing we’ll do,” she said, louder now over the murmur of the crowd, “is press back against Hub City. I’m talking a citywide strike. Meanwhile we’ll train, organizing into battalions and teach the population how to fight. And—“
“—Look, lady,” Copper cut across, himself now laughing. The whole room was stretching, languid, waiting for this interloper to be kicked out. “Not that I don’t admire your gumption; we could use more of that around here. Now get out and wait for us to tap you. Maybe you’ll get somewhere someday.”
Ashen fixed him with a cool gaze. “You’re Copper Felt,” she said. “You lead a failed insurrection in Red Town, got a lot of ponies killed. Now you’re just a washed-up alcoholic has-been. Sit down before you embarrass yourself further.”
Copper’s good humor vanished in a second. “You little bitch,” he growled, standing up. He lunged for her. Cardamom shouted—
Ashen’s horn lit up with a violent cyan glow and froze Copper in his tracks. Complete silence took over the crowd. Jonagold’s heart stopped cold.
Ashen lifted him up and moved him backwards, advancing into the center of the room as she did so. The crowd fell away from around her, watching with horrified eyes. Slowly, Ashen entered the center of the room. Her brother flinched as she approached, scattering to the side. A strange, twisted grin lit up Ashen’s features. Her shadow flickered in the light of the magic.
“You want to know why I’m going to be in charge?” she said, pressing Copper against the back wall. “Because I can do this.”
The magic around Copper faded and he leaped to his feet, trying to get away. But Ashen wasn’t finished. She twisted around, and from her horn a jet of white-hot fire exploded outwards. Ponies screamed and ducked as the flames licked over the room. They landed on chairs, walls, floors, but before they could so much as singe, Ashen recalled them to her person, reabsorbing them into her horn. It glowed for a moment then exploded in a stream of light, illuminating her and everyone in the room.
Ashen opened her eyes and looked at the magic she had cast. For a moment, she seemed almost tired. Then her face lit up and she began to laugh. The magic flowed from her horn, bathing the room in golden light. One by one, the pones stared at her in awe, stepping forward, trying to get closer, to see what she was doing.
Jonagold’s body felt locked, immobile. She didn’t understand what she’d seen, but she knew she didn’t have to. She knew Ashen had won. And she knew nothing was going to be the same.