//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Memoirs of a Crusader // Story: Harmony's Wake // by HypnoticGemini //------------------------------// Chapter 5: Memoirs of a Crusader Trottingham Arena had been in chaos all morning. After the escape was discovered, the humans began scouring the arena and the city, in hopes of finding the fugitive ponies or at least finding a lead. However, the humans were reluctant to search the wilderness. And for good reason. Those were the observations of the cloaked and hooded unicorn mare who watched the humans from afar, concealed by the trees. Instead of blindly searching the surrounding area, she opted for observing the humans and eavesdropping on their conversations by magically enhancing her hearing. In doing so, she was rewarded with information to piece together the situation and figure out where she should search. After all, anything was possible through knowledge – or “omnia per scientiam,” as the saying went. She was glad that she decided to stick around for espionage. From what she gathered, it was abundantly clear that her target had ventured into the wilderness. Even at the best of times, wandering the wilderness was dangerous for those who didn’t know how to survive out there. She counted herself among the few that did, but even so, she didn’t want to risk trekking through them at night. From poisonous plants to vicious predators, there were a hundred terrible ways to die out in the middle of nowhere. So she needed to move, lest her objective befall any one of them. One of the humans glanced at the trees, directly at where the mare was standing. However, there was nothing there. *** “So tell me, what’s with those marks on your flanks?” Prisma smiled in acknowledgment of the latest in Splinter’s seemingly never-ending stream of questions. “Oh, those? Those are our cutie marks.” “What’s a cutie mark?” For the past hour, they had been hiking through the wilderness towards what Scootaloo promised was a safe refuge, and in that time, Prisma came to realize exactly how little Splinter knew. Granted, he could pack quite a wallop (as the ache in her ribs and what she believed was her pancreas constantly reminded her) and he could speak Equestrian, but that was about it. The fact that the chestnut stallion didn’t even know what a cutie mark was made it quite clear that he had spent much of his life in captivity - as if there was any doubt in the turquoise pegasus’s mind in the first place. Splinter may have been through more than her, but he was just a foal when it came to the world around him. Quite frankly, Prisma was surprised that he wasn’t completely mind-blown by the hour-long question-and-answer period. “Well,” Prisma began, in the slow and deliberate tone of voice as a teacher introducing foals to long division, “a cutie mark is different for everypony, but it’s basically a small image on your flank that indicates your special talent.” Splinter couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed as he looked at his own blank flank. “So, if I don’t have a cutie mark, does that mean that I don’t have any special talents?” Prisma giggled. “Nopony is born with a cutie mark. You have to find your special talent, and then you get your cutie mark.” Splinter was still curious. “But how do I find my special talent if I don’t even know where to start? My cutie mark could be anything!” “My advice?” quipped Scootaloo. She had left Prisma with the task of sating Splinter’s curiosity, telling her that it was a good way to build character. However, she found the discussion on cutie marks quite interesting. “Just do what you love to do.” “But I don’t even know what I like to do,” replied Splinter. Scootaloo smiled kindly. “You know, when I was a little filly, I had the cutie mark problem too, and so did two of my friends. So, we would try loads of random crazy stuff all the time to try and earn them. We called ourselves the ‘Cutie Mark Crusaders,’ and every time we went ‘crusading’ for our marks we would shout something like, oh I don’t know...” She filed through the many memories she had forged with her fellow Crusaders, and finally settled on the one where they had witnessed a staring contest between their part-time foalsitter Fluttershy and a cockatrice. “‘CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS CHICKEN HERDERS!’ Or something like that. We change the last bit depending on what the hay we were doing.” She sighed nostalgically, reveling in the fond memories of her foalhood. “Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and I, we were practically a three-filly hurricane. It’s a wonder the town’s still standing with the three of us around.” “So, auntie... you made Twilight incredibly miffed by almost setting the library on fire just to find your cutie mark?” asked Prisma, raising an imaginary eyebrow. “What? I thought our special talents might have something to do with fireworks!” Scootaloo retaliated. “And I also kinda forgot that trees could catch fire, but that’s not important. Then again, most of the stuff we did was pretty stupid in retrospect... Where the hay am I going with this? Point is, you should try as many things as you can. Even if it takes forever to find your talent, you’ll probably have a lot of fun in the process. I know I did.” Splinter had been listening with rapt attention the whole time. It wasn’t hard for him to imagine the mare in front of him as a filly running amok in town... the same one he had suddenly visualized before. “What other kind of weird stuff did the CMC do?” Prisma was curious as to what foalhood secrets Scootaloo had kept from her. “All kinds of stuff，” replied the mare. “For starters: pig farming, taffy making, hairdressing, mind-reading, mountain climbing, underwater exploring... we even argued about whether our talent was arguing, which it wasn’t. Of course, none of that earned us our marks.” “So, how did you finally earn your mark?” queried Splinter. “Yeah, good question,” Prisma agreed. Scootaloo took a deep, calming breath before continuing. “My family was often out of town, so I didn’t really see much of them. I could take care of myself well enough, and in Ponyville, everyone watched out for each other, so I felt safe. What I really wanted was company. True, I did have the CMC, but I wanted somepony to call family while mine was out. Somepony I could look up to. Somepony who was always there for me. “And I found that pony. A local weather pegasus called Rainbow Dash. She considered herself the fastest flyer in all of Equestria, and I didn’t doubt that claim one bit – especially after witnessing her Sonic Rainboom at the Young Fliers competition. I enjoyed riding really fast on my scooter and aspired to become an ace flyer myself, so I looked up to her as a role model like nopony before. She always radiated confidence and a touch of arrogance as well, holding herself just a bit aloof from everypony else in town. But, beneath that exterior, Rainbow was just like me. She had quite the home, courtesy of her parents, but she lived alone. She had quite the friends, but she did confide in me that she felt somewhat lonely, but never told anypony because, according to her, she was ‘too cool for that.’ “Anyway, Rainbow and I became as close as sisters. She was always there whenever I needed help, and she lent me her shoulder to cry into when I was holding back tears. Most of all, when I was old enough to fly, she would always be there to watch me practice, and whenever I fell, she would help me up, dust me off, and remind me each time to never, ever, give up. With Rainbow’s support, I learned that I could fly much better, faster, and higher than I ever imagined I would be able to. That was when I finally earned my mark. My talent... was flying.” Scootaloo cast a fond look at her flank and smiled. However, Splinter and Prisma both noticed tears starting to well up in the corners of her eyes. “Of course,” Scootaloo continued, in a voice starting to become choked with emotion, “Rainbow Dash did have her own aspirations. All her life, from the first time she saw them perform, she wanted more than anything to become a member of the pegasus aerobatics team, the Wonderbolts. If ever there was a devoted fanfilly, it was Rainbow Dash. She attended every single one of their flight shows that were held anywhere near Ponyville. When she got older, she began to show off a little around them, hoping to get their attention. “Eventually, of course, she did. After Dash helped save Canterlot from a bunch of wedding-crashing bugs, a Wonderbolt called Soarin took a particular liking to Rainbow. He was fairly young when they met – all the Wonderbolts were – and he was a fairly nice colt. Charismatic. Great sense of humour. Big eater. Lousy tipper too, for some reason. Well, one thing lead to another, and they tied the knot. Soon, Rainbow Dash named me the proud aunt of their newborn daughter.” “Me.” “Yes, Prisma. You.” Now both Splinter and Prisma were listening in stunned silence. A tear ran down Scootaloo’s cheek, and Prisma felt moisture starting to gather in her own eyes as she took in what she had just heard about the parents she never knew. “So... What happened to them? I want to know.” Prisma somehow dreaded the answer, even as the question left her lips. “Humans happened. We’ve never even heard of them before then, but one day, they somehow just showed up on our shores, in some of the biggest ships I’ve ever laid eyes on. I tell you, they seemed just as surprised to see us as we were to see them. They managed to make a good impression on the Princesses, and we actually lived with the humans in harmony... for a time. “Then... everything changed. They captured the Princesses and began to enslave us to work for them. Of course, not everypony took that lying down. Some rose up against them, and leading this resistance was the Wonderbolts. Those who were willing to fight attempted to drive the humans out, and as a Wonderbolt, Soarin was one of those who lead them. He wanted Rainbow to stay home and take care of you, but she would have none of it. She wanted to get back at them, no matter what, and nothing could make her change her mind. “So, she left for the fight. I can’t say I agreed completely with her decision, but I did admire her spirit and devotion to Equestria. Because of that, she was named an honorary Wonderbolt and helped command the attack. I was happy for her, because after all these years, her dream had finally come true. As for you, Rainbow and I agreed that I would take care of you until she and Soarin came back.” Scootaloo swallowed, and her voice broke. “But they never did.”