Dash stood, her shoulders shaking in anger, her eyes locked on the prone form of Queen Chrysalis. Twilight gingerly pulled herself to her hooves, her head turning to see Chrysalis stand, a trickle of blood dripping from the corner of her mouth.
"Take another step and I will break you!" Dash snarled, her wings bared as she crouched protectively over her marefriend. Rainbow’s fur stood on end, her eyes wide as she stared at Chrysalis.
Twilight sucked in a deep breath, gritting her teeth as she forced herself to her hooves.
She gingerly stepped forward to stand next to Rainbow, stumbling as a fresh wave of pain shot through her body. She gasped, her breath coming short as she looked up, her heart fluttering as she took in Rainbow's concerned expression.
"Are you okay, Twi?" Rainbow asked, her voice cracking as she looked into the unicorn's pain-filled eyes. Twilight slowly nodded, keeping a wary eye on the changelings surrounding them.
Dash’s eyes trailed across Twilight's chest, her eyes lingering on the dark bruises already visible beneath her bloodstained and matted fur. She turned, her eyes narrowing as she glared at Chrysalis.
Chrysalis stood, staring almost uninterestedly at the two, a smirk on her muzzle. She stepped forward, her hooves kicking up small puffs of dust as she stalked closer to the pair. Rainbow snarled at her, her clear and unspoken threat echoing across the small clearing.
“Oh, how intimidating.” Chrysalis said in mock fear, her eyes rolling as she flared her wings behind her. “Let's see if you can last as long as your little friend here.”
Twilight swallowed heavily as the changelings stepped forward, their eyes shining menacingly. Rainbow smirked, rolled her shoulders, and cracked her neck as she prepared for the imminent fight. A changeling threw itself forward, it's mouth open in a snarl as it bared its fangs at her.
“Rainbow! Look out...” Twilight screamed, trailing off as the pegasus spun around, her back hoof slamming into the creature’s muzzle with a resounding crack. The creature flew back several yards and fell to the ground in a heap.
Rainbow jumped out of the way just in time as a changeling slammed into the ground where she had just stood, its wings buzzing as it lifted itself into the air for another attack. The creature suddenly froze in the air, its body surrounded by a magenta glow. It yelped in surprise and pain as it was suddenly thrown through the air, slamming into a nearby tree with a wicked crack.
Twilight stepped forward, breathing slowly as she gazed at the creatures surrounding them. She closed her eyes; her horn flaring as the wind suddenly picked up, making debris circle around her in a terrifying display of power.
Her eyes snapped open, a bright white glow replacing her lavender eyes. Her horn flared brightly, sending the debris circling her flying through the air like missiles. The rocks slammed into most of the changelings, knocking them off of their hooves.
The sound of her magic echoed through the courtyard as her horn grew even brighter. Several sections of the ground started to crack, a bright white light spilling from them. Twilight grinned savagely as she slowly rose into the air, followed by large sections of the ground.
A sudden snap rang through the clearing, a scream of agony following a second later. Twilight’s eyes changed back to their usual color, and her horn went dark. She slowly fell back to the ground, and her heart jumped in her throat as she saw that Chrysalis had pinned Rainbow to the ground.
Rainbow was pinned beneath Chrysalis, her back leg twisted at an impossible angle. The Queen sneered, grabbed Rainbow’s back legs, and twisted the broken bone as Twilight watched in horrified shock. The pegasus screamed in agony, her cries echoing across the silent clearing.
Seeing her marefriend being tortured like that in front of her pushed her over the edge. Her horn flared suddenly, a magenta light forming and tightening around Chrysalis's throat. Chrysalis yelped, her front hooves scrambling at the light surrounding her throat.
Twilight lifted her head, her horn flaring brightly as she slammed Chrysalis into the ground with an earth-shaking crack. Twilight breathed heavily, her sides shaking as another changeling stalked towards her. She turned, her back leg lashing out as the creature jumped at her, a sharp pain ripping through her body above her hip.
She yelped, collapsing to the ground as the creature flew back into the crowd, slamming into several of its companions. Chrysalis stood, her eyes flaring a sickly green. She stepped forward, her eyes locked on Twilight.
“Twilight; I’m coming!” Rainbow screamed, her voice full of pain. Twilight gave her an odd look, her eyebrow raised as Dash lifted herself into the air. Rainbow darted forward, wincing as her broken leg flopped uselessly in the wind. She scooped Twilight up in her forearms, a jolt of pain shooting through Twilight's body as Rainbow’s forelegs slipped under her belly.
Rainbow Dash panted, her wings beating heavily as her head twisted and turned, searching for something. Her eyes narrowed, staring at the ruins before her. She darted forward, her wings flapping against her side as she darted into the castle, the cries and shrieks of anger slowly fading away.
“Where are... we going?” Twilight asked, wincing at the dull pain in her side. She twisted, trying to see her side, only to flinch as pain wracked her body once again.
“We’re going to hide.” Dash said, biting her lip as she glanced down at Twilight. She stopped, her eyes sweeping over the room for a moment, and saw a large hole in the floor. Behind her she could hear the changelings closing in, the buzzing of their insect-like wings vibrating through her bones. She darted into the hole, her eyes scanning the passageway as she pulled Twilight close to her chest.
~Canterlot~
It had been a good day. The nobles had been strangely silent, and very few ponies had visited her in the day’s court session. Princess Celestia trotted through the hallways of the palace, a serene smile on her face. She passed by guard after guard, greeting each of them by name.
She stepped out of the hallway, emerging onto one of the castle’s numerous balconies. She gazed down at the courtyard below her, smiling as she watched several ponies cross the greenery.
Her smile grew as a familiar green wisp faded into view, a scroll appearing a moment later. She caught the scroll in her magic, quickly unfurling the scroll as she walked. She read the scroll, her smile fading as her wings flared suddenly, the scroll falling forgotten to the floor. Her mane whipped through the air, darting back and forth as if angry, almost as if her mane was alive.
A guard stepped forward, his eyes narrow as he looked toward the fallen scroll. He gripped the scroll in his magic, re-rolling the scroll and floating it before him.
“Is everything alright, Princess?” The guard asked, snapping to stand at attention as Celestia turned toward him. She stared at him for a moment, her gaze seeing through him, before she spoke.
“No, Iron Side. Alert the guard; we must head to Ponyville at once!” She turned, galloping through the halls of the palace; her hoofbeats fading off into the distance.
Iron Side turned, sharing a glance with the guard beside him. As one they turned, galloping through the palace, heading toward the barracks to report the Princess's orders to their commander.
~Castle Ruins~
Ahead of the pair was a small staircase, partially blocked by fallen rocks. There seemed to be a gap just large enough for her and Twilight to slip through, and hopefully remain hidden until the changelings left. Rainbow slipped through the dark hole, pinning her wings tight against her side.
Rainbow awkwardly pulled her marefriend through the hole and set her down, wincing as the unicorn gasped in pain. Dash sat down beside her, her back leg held at an awkward angle. She glanced ahead, her eyes trailing across the opposite wall, large cracks and sections of the wall missing.
“We should be safe here...” Dash said, trailing off as she studied her forelegs. Her cyan fur was speckled with blood, soaked through in different places. Her eyes widened, her head snapping to Twilight. The unicorn laid limply on the floor, her side glistening in the dim light.
“No... No no no no no...” Rainbow said, limping over to her marefriend as quickly as she could. Her eyes trailed down her marefriend’s side and saw a gaping hole on the side of her chest, just under her rearleg. Blood slowly dripped from the wound, staining Twilight’s fur a deep crimson. Tears sprang to Rainbow’s eyes as she applied pressure to Twilight's side, nearly laughing in relief as Twilight hissed in pain.
“Rain...bow...” Twilight said weakly, her voice rasping as she attempted to lift her head. She turned her neck, gazing at Rainbow with glazed over eyes.
“No! Stop it Twilight!” Rainbow cried, tears springing into her eyes as she stared into Twilight’s eyes. Beneath her fur, the mare was unusually pale, slight tremors running through her body.
“I... love.. you... I always will... and... I'm..sorry...” She said, her voice growing weaker. “Please... run... You can still... fly out of here...” She coughed suddenly, a deep rattling cough, fresh blood leaking from the corner of her mouth.
“No! You can tell me how sorry you are when we get out of here!” Dash said, tears streaming down her face as she glared at the unicorn below her. She wiped her tears away; Twilight’s blood smearing across her cheeks.
Twilight screamed as a changeling suddenly appeared in the hole, a snarl on his lips. A magenta glow weakly formed around him, shoving him away from the hole. A second passed, and a dull magenta glow covered the hole, humming slightly. The changeling threw himself at the light, bouncing off the shield with a dull ring.
“Stop it, Twilight! You need to save your strength!” Rainbow screamed, staring at the weakly-breathing unicorn.
“I... saved... you this... time... go!” She said, life returning to her eyes as her horn flared brightly, the opposite wall crumbling under her magic. A hole appeared just large enough for the pegasus to squeeze through. Behind them, changelings beat their hooves across the shield, causing a small crack to form in the magical shield.
“I won't leave you, Twilight.” Dash said, eyeing the hole for a moment, before shaking her head. “We'll hide here until they lose interest and leave.” She said, her gaze returning to the shield covering the small entryway. “Then I'll get you to the hospital, and everything will be fine!” She said, lowering her puffy eyes to gaze at Twilight.
“Right?” She asked, panic creeping into her voice as Twilight remained silent. She sobbed openly, her shoulders heaving as she pressed against Twilight. She watched as the shield started to crack under the assault of the changelings.
“Right..?” She repeated, begging for an answer to her question. She glanced down, her eyes watering as she took in Twilight's closed eyes. If it wasn't for the feeling of her side moving beneath her hooves, she would have thought...
“Right.” A voice whispered weakly, a forced smile on Twilight's face. Twilight lifted her head, her tail flicking weakly as Rainbow chuckled hysterically, relieved that her marefriend was still holding on. Twilight's leg twitched, pain shooting through her body as she whimpered.
Twilight gasped as her vision blurred, blackness slowly spreading across her vision. She shuddered, her vision fading as a bright light exploded outside the hole, filling the small room with the bright light of the sun. Rainbow shouted something, but her words were muffled, and all sounds faded away as she blacked out.