“I can’t believe it,” cried a happy Ruby Moon as she bounced next to Cadence. “We’re going to meet the Appleloosa bat ponies. T-This is just so exciting!”
Cadence chuckled softly to herself. After she talked to Blueblood, the first thing she did was gather her personal guard. It was then that she had found out about what had happened to them, causing the pink princess to feel a pang of guilt. If she had brought them with her, then they would not have been accused of murder. She was also very surprised when she found out that it was Blueblood who helped them out.
While Cadence apologized for not being there, she began to wonder what Blueblood was up to. What did he gain by helping them? The first, and most obvious, answer was that he looked good in front of Princess Celestia. But, there had to be more to it than that. She could feel it in her horn and wings that Blueblood was up to something more. But, sadly figuring out what would have to wait until after she returned.
“I take it you have heard about these bat ponies?” asked Cadence gently.
Ruby stopped bouncing and began to get a bit more serious. “Um, yeah,” she said a bit nervously. “I mean, all bat ponies have.”
“Ruby, is something the matter?” asked Cadence.
“Well, it’s,” began Ruby before she sighed and shook her head. She knew that information about the colonies was a heavily kept secret for the bat ponies. How could she explain this to her Princess without saying too much?
“Ruby,” said Cadence calmly. “I know that we haven’t known each other very long, but I’d like you to trust me. The more I know, the better I can help the bat ponies in Appleloosa. In fact, the more I know about bat ponies in general, the better I can help them. But, if you can’t tell me, I’ll respect that.”
“Princess Cadence,” utter a shocked Ruby as she stared at her. “I’m sorry; it’s just that secrecy has been what keeps us safe. But, if it will help you, then I guess I can tell you some things.”
“Thank you, Ruby,” said Cadence. “I promise that you won’t regret this.”
“I hope so,” said Ruby softly as the two turned a corner. “Well, for starters, the Appleloosa Colony is the youngest of all the colonies. It’s also the safest, since there were no pony towns close by. I remember back when I was younger, some of the ponies from my colony were talking about moving there. However, Lone Wolf said that if too many bat ponies moved there, it might draw unwanted attention.”
“Whose Lone Wolf?” asked Cadence.
“He’s the Flight Master of the colony I belonged to,” said Ruby. She then saw Cadence giving her a questioning look, so she decided to elaborate. “A Flight Master is basically the leader of a bat pony colony. He’s also the pony that brought me to the colony.”
“So you weren’t born there?” asked Cadence.
Ruby shook her head. “No, I was born to a pegasus family like every other bat pony I have ever heard about. I’ve heard a lot of stories about where the other from my colony comes from. They range from ok to nightmarish.
“Me, my parents were very loving. It didn’t matter to them that I was a bat pony. The thing was, however, they kept me homeschooled and only let me go out to play when it was dark. They said it was for my safety.
“One day, I snuck out of the house to practice my flying. I flew for what seemed like hours and when I realized how late it was, I didn’t recognize where I was. I tried to ask some ponies for help, but the nicer ones just ignored me. Others were, well, not so nice.
“I wandered around for days trying to find my way back home. Finally, I collapsed on the street and passed out. I don’t know how long I was out, but when I woke up, I was on Lone Wolf’s back as he carried me to the colony. That was twelve years ago.”
“Did you ever find your family again?” asked Cadence out of concern.
Ruby sadly shook her head. “I…I tried to find them, but I’ve had no luck. I don’t know the name of my hometown, or anything like that.”
“I’m sorry,” said the Princess of Love. Cadence felt for the young mare walking next to her. But, despite how sad her story was, it did give Cadence some hope. This was the first time that she heard of parents who seemed to generally love their child, despite the bat wings. This made Cadence wonder if there were more ponies out there like that, who could see past the physical differences.
“It’s ok,” said Ruby with a smile. “Actually, they’re the reason I’m here right now. I’ve heard a lot of stories from other bat ponies about how they wound up at the colony. Most of them are pretty bad. But, there are those who have similar stories like mine. Bat ponies who had real friends and families that loved them.
“For the longest time, I wanted to do something to show that they were right to love us, despite what all the other ponies said. So, when I heard that an actual princess had adopted a bat filly, I realized that now was the time. I just hope that when I see my parents again, they’ll be proud of me.”
“I’m sure they will,” replied Cadence, as the two walked out onto a chariot platform. It was a small, circular space on top of one of the many towers of the castle. In the middle was her other two guards, who were hooked up to a chariot. Off to the side were the ponies from Ponyville.
As soon as Pinkie Pie saw them, she reached behind her and pulled out a cannon. Ruby moved quickly to step in front of the princess, only to have the cannon shot confetti in her face. A moment later, the platform was full of balloons and streamers that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Also, there was a large banner that read ‘We’ll Miss You, Princess Cadence’.
“Where did all of this come from?” asked Ruby, turning to look at her fellow bat ponies. This, however, proved to be pointless as the two of them looked as confused as she was.
“I set it up just now, silly,” giggled Pinkie Pie.
“Are you a unicorn or something,” asked Ruby, racing over to Pinkie and began to search her mane for a horn.
“Nah, she’s just being Pinkie Pie,” said Rainbow in a tone that said ‘just go with it’. It was at that moment that Rarity walked over to the princess.
“We thought it be best to see you off before we departed for home,” said the dressmaker of the group. “While we have, ah, enjoyed our stay here, we really must be getting back to Ponyville.”
When Cadence heard the word ‘Ponyville’, her eyes went wide. A moment later, she facehoofed herself. She had completely forgotten about Miss Foster and her worries about Scootaloo.
“Pony feathers,” swore Cadence as she used her magic to summon a quill and a scroll. Right then and there, she quickly wrote a letter telling Miss Foster that Scootaloo was alright, and was being looked after by a loving couple in the Republic. She noted that they just wanted what was best for her and that if she wanted to check up on her, then all she would have to do was write to Cadence to set up a trip.
“That should do it,” said Cadence as she signed the scroll. She then looked at the group. “I don’t suppose I could ask you girls for another favor? I need this letter delivered to the Ponyville orphanage.”
“I’ll do it,” said Rainbow Dash, quickly snatching up the letter.
“Thank you,” said Cadence as she and Ruby walked over to her chariot. After she got on, she turned to face them again. “And thank you all for everything you have done. I hope that we see each other again.”
“Don’t worry none, sugarcube,” said Applejack, earning a gasp from Rarity for talking to royalty in such a familiar fashion. “Ah’m sure we’ll see each other again.”
Smiling, Cadence nodded towards her guards and took off into the air.
-x-
Lone Wolf looked up at where the ceiling should have been as the sun’s light beamed down. Right now, a lack of a ceiling would be a problem in this section of the ruins, but overall, it shouldn’t pose too much trouble. There were still several areas that did still have a ceiling, so that the bat ponies under his care would be safe from the elements. And, right now, that was all that mattered.
After Ruby had left, along with two other bat ponies from their colony, to try and get work as Princess Cadence’s guards, Lone Wolf had packed up everypony. He knew there was no way the royal guard would ever accept a bat pony into their ranks. More likely, as soon as they had approached the castle, they were shot down by magic and spears. If they survived that, then they would be tortured into revealing the location of their home. He had seen and experienced too much of Equestria’s treatment of bat ponies to think any less.
So, they had flown under the cover of night, looking for a new place to call home. This proved to be difficult, since they didn’t want to settle in an area that already had another colony. Too many of their kind in one place might cause them to be spotted.
After passing over several towns, they began to fly over the Everfree Forest. It was there that Lone Wolf spotted an old abandoned castle sitting near its center. With caution, his group flew down to inspect it for a possible dwelling, even if for only a day. For what they could tell, no pony had been in it for hundreds of years. This pleased them greatly.
Lone Wolf himself had to admit that this would be a very good location for his colony. There was a cliff that surrounded the castle, and the only way across was an only rope bridge that he had personally cut. The forest it was located in was dark, making it easier for ponies who entered it to get lost.
Not to mention there were all sorts of creatures that dwelled in there, like the timber wolves. Last, but most important, there was plenty of food. Lone Wolf was certain that they could forage for plenty of wild fruit to keep they all well feed. And, in case they couldn’t, in Ponyville, there was one of the largest apple orchards he had ever seen.
Right now, he needed to decide what to do with the large stone sculpture at the front of the building. It looked like it was holding five stone orbs with different symbols on each. Whatever they meant, he didn’t care. All he knew was that it was taking up a lot of space. But, then again, this room would most likely not be used all that much, since there was no ceiling.
“Lone Wolf,” came a cry that shook the stallion from his thought. He turned to see a young, bat pony colt running towards him. “You have to come quick. I think I know whose castle this is.”
Slightly worried, Lone Wolf followed the colt down a hallway, up a flight of stairs, and then down two more hallways, until finally they reached their destination. In the room were several other bat ponies, who were gathered around a wall painting. As soon as Wolf saw what it was, he began to grind his teeth.
It was Celestia! It showed her, larger than life, with her wings spread over all of Equestria. The only thing that seemed to be above her was the sun. Below her were ponies who seemed to be praising her.
‘So, this castle once belonged to the oh-so-great Sun Princess,’ thought Lone Wolf as he felt his anger rise. There were few bat ponies who didn’t hate Celestia for one reason or another.
For Lone Wolf, it was because he had once heard her speak out against the poor treatment of bat ponies. He had listened, hoping that she would announce some law or something. Some sort of shelter program for bat ponies who needed some place to go. Open up jobs that were best suited for bat ponies perhaps. But, she didn’t do any of that. She was basically waving a hoof in front of all the ponies who were there, saying to behave and then walked back into her sheltered, pampered life!
It infuriated Lone Wolf. Were they not also citizens of Equestria? If so, then why were they treated as such? Why didn’t Celestia do something more to help them? Where was her great love and compassion for all creatures, when it came to them?
Feeling his rage get the better of him, Wolf lunged at the painting and bucked it. On impact, the wall began to crumble away, leaving a mound of rubble behind him. All of the bat ponies let out a gasp of surprise and Wolf turned to look behind him. What he saw caused his jaw to drop.
For some reason, there was another wall behind the one he had knocked down. And, on this wall was another painting. Celestia was on this one as well, but there was a line down the middle, and on the other side of that line was a blue alicorn. On Celestia’s side, it looked like it was daytime and she was flanked by a dozen or so pegasi guards. On the side of the blue alicorn, it was nighttime and she was flanked by only two ponies. Two bat ponies.
Lone Wolf could not believe his eye. Slowly, he approached the painting to touch it, just to make sure it was real. However, once he got close, some kind of magical barrier appeared and repealed his hoof. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that there was a magical protection spell placed on this painting to keep it safe. For whatever reason, some pony had tried to hide this wall painting, but in order to do that had to make another wall in front of it due to the protection magic.
“Who is that?” asked one bat pony.
“I think its Nightmare Moon,” said another. “But, why is she standing next to Princess Celestia?”
Lone Wolf didn’t have an answer. But, as he looked up at the two bat ponies, he saw something in them. Something that he hadn’t seen in a bat pony in a long, long time. Pride.
-x-
“This is unbearable,” muttered Sunset, lifting her pickaxe above her head. She had been working with this primitive tool for over an hour now. Other workers in the TOM were given state-of-the-art laser drilling tools that made the work much easier. Apparently, they believed that she might use one of them as a weapon. Not like she could really do anything with two armed members of the Royal Guard watching her every move.
As she struck the rock in front of her, she imagined she was striking Twilight’s head. In her mind, she still blamed Twilight for her current situation. She had lost her home, her job, and everything else, all because of her. It was because of Twilight, she was forced to live in a tiny, two room cabin while being monitored like a common criminal. The only luxury item was a small radio she could listen to.
After a few more minutes of chipping away at the rock, the music stopped and was replaced by the voice of Vinyl Scratch.
“Well, I hope you all enjoyed all those wicked jams tonight,” said the DJ pony with a laugh. “But, sadly it’s time for me to hit the road and turn you over to Tune In.”
‘Good,’ thought Sunset as she hit the rock once more. ‘At least now I won’t have to hear your annoying voice anymore.’
“But, before I leave for the night, I got some killer news for all you rocking ponies out there,” continued Vinyl. “Earlier yesterday morning, Captain Shadow Blade of the Royal Guard proposed to Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle. Naturally, she said yes! In a few months the two of them will be wed in the castle, making them the first to ever receive this honor. Twilight’s newly adopted daughter, Scootaloo, was overjoyed when she heard the news.”
Vinyl continued to go into a bit more detail, but Sunset was no longer listening. Her pupils shrank until they were the size of pin needles. Her jaw tightened, while her teeth began to grind against each other.
‘No FAIR!’ she screamed in her mind. ‘Now Twilight is getting married, and her wedding is being held at the castle?! That should be me!
‘Wait a second; she has a daughter named Scootaloo? That’s the stupid looking filly that Lightning Dust was talking to at the dinner. She was the one who defeated my Troopers! I’ll make them BOTH pay!’
With that, Sunset swung her pickaxe once more, causing the rock to be cut in half.