//------------------------------// // Sacrifices // Story: Emperor Despair // by Comrade Bagel Muffin //------------------------------// Ditzy Doo hurried through the ruins of ponyville her two daughters keeping close behind her. Dinky tried not to think about her old home, and how it was desecrated. She was only four when it had happed. Her mother thought she was to young to remember when the sun was blocked out by the fog. She however remembered far better than she wished. The Wonder Bolts deploying to Canterlot. Mommy's friends the Elements of Harmony teleporting there via Twilight Sparkle. The screams when the sun became all hazy. She shook and tried not to remember what had happened next. Being here though wasn't making it easy. After Canterlot, Ponyville was the next place hit. Many of the residents where still here; their horrified expressions well preserved in stone. "Dinky, don't fall behind," Ditzy said in a hushed voice. Glad that she could keep one eye on her children and one on Canterlot at all times. "Don't dilly dally okay." "Sorry mom." "It's okay dear I just don't want you or Amethyst here any longer than you need to be. Once we get the book from Twilight's library we'll be one step closer to undoing all of this and making everything right." "Can we really undo all of this though, mother?" Amethyst looked out the shattered window. The street was full of destroyed vendor carts the patrons and merchants cowering in fear of the thing that had come for them. "Honey it can." Ditzy said as she plotted their course with one eye. "Spit Fire, Trixie, and your dad bet everything on the book, Screw Ball brought back form the Royal Library. If Twilight didn't have the other tome checked out we might have already fixed all of this. Now come on girls I want to get the two of you out of here as soon as possible." The three of them made their way through the market avoiding the open except when absolutely necessary. The last obstacle was a hundred hoofs of open ground between them and the library. They got as low to the ground as they could, and dashed for the hole that used to be the front door. "Twelve minutes girls," Ditzy whispered frantically. "After twelve minutes we are galloping back to the Everfree whether we have the book or not." Amethyst started through the shelves. Ditzy's eyes went through books that were on the floor in two separate corners. Dinky rushed up stairs. She almost screamed; Tender Taps stared at Twilight's bed. They thought that he had be petrified before he even got to the library, and his statue taken to Canterlot with many of the others. Apple Bloom shut herself in her room when she heard the laughing. Dinky's stomach started to knot he was left here to startle anypony that made it this far. He was a trap. It made her sick. She started to go through the room paying close attention to Twilight's bed. Her eyes went wide when she saw the dusty crimson cover with golden corner guards. She picked it up and flipped through the first few pages. "I found it," she said. She threw her hooves over her mouth. "Found what little filly?" The voice echoed in her head. "Amethyst get Dinky and get out now!" Ditzy yelled as the voice resounded through her mind. A second later there was a flash at the market Amethyst was gasping for breath. "Amethyst I told you to you to take Dinky. You two go now." A roar resounded through their minds. Ditzy's eyes grew wide as a wraith dragon flew toward Ponyville. "Go!" Dinky and Amethyst started galloping for Sweet Apple Archers and the Everfree beyond. Ditzy stayed right behind her two fillies. They were within sight of the old Apple family barn when the wraith overtook them. It vanished in a puff of black smoke. A creature appeared ahead of them. It had the head of a meerkat with four horns coming out of it, the torso of a pony, the claws of a dragon, from the waist down it had hooves like a goat; which it stood on like a minotaur. One of the claws held a cane which glowed a sickly green. Ditzy flew between it and her children. "Dinky, Amethyst, mommy love you with all her heart. Now get out of here to the Everfree and don't look back." Ditzy spread her wings and charged the creature. Dinky started crying as Amethyst grabbed her and the book in her magic and galloped away to the Everfree forest. There was a flash of green light Ditzy, dodged, and slammed into the creature throwing it into the old barn. The barn was turned to saw dust in blast of green light. Ditzy was slammed into a dying apple tree. "Now for the kitties." The creature turned to smoke, and soon caught up to fillies. Ditzy Doo's eyes had only focused on the same thing four times in the past: when the love of her life Doctor Whooves proposed, when her first foul Amethyst was born, when her second Dinky was born, and now when a beast from Tartarus was threatening her daughters. She shot at it throwing every ounce of strength she had to slamming the thing to the ground. "Mom," Amethyst said as she threw Dinky and the book in front of her. "Get out of here and protect your sister," Dinky shouted. She looked at her daughters, and was blasted back by a pulse of green light. Tears flowed down Amethyst checks and Dinky screamed and shouted for their mom. "Look at you so weak," the creature mocked. "Now Mrs. Doo I have a special place in my palace for you. You'd make a fine foot stool, so if you would be so kind as to bow to your emperor." "I will ne-" She screamed as green lashed her and ripped into her body. "Agony suits you Mrs. Doo. Just hold that pose for a moment." There was a flash of green light. The two fillies slowly trudged to the Cutie Mark Crusaders' Resistance Force base. It took the two of them thirty minutes to get there. During which time neither said a word. Scootaloo and Button Mash, were on watch when the two of them came up to the camp's secret entrance. Amethyst dropped the book at Scootaloo's hooves both watch ponies bowed their heads, as she and her sister went into the base. "I'm sorry," Dinky said weakly. "If I had kept my mouth shut then we'd still have a mommy." Amethyst hugged her little sister to keep her from seeing her bite her lip. "We still have a mommy Dinky, and a daddy too. Once Sweetie Bell and Screw Ball decipher the book from Canterlot with the one we just got, then we'll all be together again." There was a knock at the door. Amethyst opened the door with her magic. It was Rumble doubtless Scootaloo must have already told him what had happened. "I just heard what happened, I'm sorry. Also Sweetie Bell says that you don't need to go on shield duty for a while. She'll take your shift." He bowed his head. "And the stupid book?" Amethyst asked. "Screw Ball is already examining it. It's only a matter of time before we'll learn how to fix all of this." "Thanks Rumble," Dinky said. "I want to be alone with my sister." "Yeah ditto." "Alright, good night."