“Y’all better wake up! Breakfast is ready and everypony else ain’t waitin’!” Cheerilee stirred, Applejack’s booming voice echoing throughout the castle halls. She slowly opened her eyes, shaking the sleep from her body.
As consciousness slowly started to return to her mind, Cheerilee became acutely aware of something soft and warm pressed against her chest. Her hooves were wrapped around it, not that she minded all that much. She looked down to see that it was Scootaloo cuddled against her chest, a little orange face buried in the midst of cerise fur.
There were moments where Cheerilee regretted never settling down and starting a family, moments like this. She had forgone soft and tender moments like this to serve, to raise entire groups of ponies and teach them. It lacked this warmth, this closeness, and at times it made her heart break.
With a longing sigh, Cheerilee shook the filly gently. In another world, another life maybe, she would have her own filly like this. This wasn’t that world or life, though. Large violet eyes opened and looked up at her sleepily.
“Scootaloo, it’s time to get up.” She spoke softly, running a hoof through the little pegasus’ mane. “I guess breakfast is ready.” In all of the excitement of last night and the joy of reuniting with old friends, eating had slipped their minds. Their stomachs growling in concert at the mention of food quickly reminded them.
“Oh.” That’s when Scootaloo realized where exactly she was. “O-oh I’m sorry Miss Cheerilee.” The filly scrambled away from the mare, nearly falling off of the bed in the act. Her face turned bright crimson as the little wings on her back fluttered. “I-I didn’t mean-”
“Scootaloo, it’s okay.” Cheerilee couldn’t help but giggle a bit at the frankly adorable display. “I didn’t mind, really.” That did nothing to abate the blush on the filly’s face though. “Anyway-” It was probably for the best to move on. “-let’s go see what’s for breakfast, hmm?”
“Oh yes please!” That did it. In an instant Scootaloo’s mood improved, an excited smile across her face. Her wings buzzed happily at the thought of food. “Oh I hope they have oatmeal! With butter and brown sugar!”
The mare wasted no time in getting up and stretching, just wishing she had a brush or comb to help straighten out her mane. She did the best she could with her hooves, but she didn’t want to keep Scootaloo waiting long.
The two exited their room and started towards the stairs. Cheerilee was the one following Scootaloo for once, as she had never really been inside of Twilight’s castle. She had been in the main hall once or twice, but the intricacies of it were lost on her. Scootaloo, however, seemed to know the most direct way to the dining area.
The dining room was past the main hall and through a room with a large round table, six crystal chairs situated around it with the cutie marks of Twilight and her friends. The dining area was dominated by a long table, easily twenty feet from end to end. It was then that Cheerilee truly got a good idea of the survivors from Ponyville, that was if everypony showed up for breakfast.
Applejack sat at the head of the table, and on her left the order of ponies went; Applebloom, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Pound Cake, Vinyl Scratch, and Bon Bon. On her right were Rarity, Thunderlane, Rumble, Diamond Tiara, and Spike. Then at the opposite end of the table sat Mayor Mare, her eyes focused on the earth pony across the way.
Cheerilee and Scootaloo sat in the empty seats between Spike and the mayor, two bowls of rather plain looking oatmeal sitting before them. The filly hopped in her chair and excitedly looked around for her toppings of choice, but found nothing but glasses of water in their place.
“No butter?” The sadness that crept into her voice was palpable.
“Yeah, sorry, Scootaloo.” Spike spoke, patting the filly on the back with a scaly claw. “We ran out of sweet stuff a couple of weeks ago.” The little dragon sighed and stirred the spoon in his bowl a bit sadly. “Trust me, it sucks.”
“But we can thank our lucky stars that Twilight bought all of her food in bulk!” Mayor Mare exclaimed, her usual politician tone coming out. “I don’t think I’ve seen more hay and oats in one place in my life!”
“Yeah, well Twilight hated going to the store, especially when she was binge researching stuff.” The mention of Twilight dropped the mood in the room significantly. Cheerilee could only nod as she began to eat her plain, but welcome, meal.
“I do miss the crowds…and going out.” Rarity spoke up, reminiscing wistfully about the life long gone. There were a few nods and murmurs of agreement among the group that quickly dissipated as they went back to eating.
“I have a question.” Cheerilee needed to get something off of her chest. She hadn’t quite registered it when they showed up last night, but now the question was ringing around her head and wouldn’t stop popping up. “Not to be...rude or anything, but…” There was no gentle way to broach this topic, and she was going to regret any wording of the question. “...why are they in here?” Her hoof motioned to both Vinyl and Rarity.
“You know, Cheerilee-” Mayor Mare spoke up first, leveling her eyes right at Applejack. “-I’ve been asking the same question for about a month now.” The two unicorns in question both flattened their ears to their heads, Vinyl hiding behind her sunglasses and Rarity hanging her head in slight shame.
“Now Cheerilee, y’all are new here so Ah’m gonna let this slide for now.” Applejack stood from her chair, slamming a hoof on the table. “But you should know better, Mayor! They ain’t changed yet and if they were gonna turn into those monsters, they woulda by now!”
“Yes, well-” The Mayor stood as well, narrowing her eyes as she challenged the farm pony across the table. “-I still say we would all sleep better at night if the ticking time bombs with horns were outside with their own kind!” There were little murmurs of agreement from Thunderlane, Diamond Tiara and Bon Bon.
“Now just hang on!” Rainbow Dash stood up next, sky blue wings flared out in righteous anger. “We know those things don’t come into the castle, and last night just backed that up! They were right outside and didn’t even try to claw their way in! So one way or another, this place is protecting us and stopping them from changing!”
“Yes, but is that a chance we want to continue to take?” Thunderlane spoke up, a wing around his little brother. “For all we know it’s just a matter of time until it gets to them.”
“Tell ya what-” Applejack rose her voice to talk over the argumentative murmurs that came from seemingly everypony at the table. “-if’n this here castle fails and they start to turn into those monsters outside, we’re dead anyway! Right now the only thing standin’ between us and those unicorns outside is whatever magic this castle has got. So right now, stayin’ put is the best shot we got...because it’s either stay in here or go out there.” Applejack sat down, angrily stuffing another spoonful of oatmeal into her mouth. “Ah’ll let you decide where the better chances are.”
“Do we know how the castle is protecting us?” Cheerilee queried, drawing a variety of looks and little shrugs from most ponies. It wasn’t very reassuring that they were being protected by something they didn’t know would hold up forever.
“Nopony knows anything about the castle.” Spike, seemingly unfazed by all of the arguing, chimed in. “Twilight has a lot of notes on it, but I don’t even think she ever fully understood why the castle does what it does.” While Cheerilee was sure the research was fascinating and in-depth, she doubted there was any way she would understand half of what was written.
“And one more question.” Applejack looked at Cheerilee, perhaps expecting something else inflammatory to be asked. “Where’s Fluttershy? Is she-”
“We don’t know.” Rainbow Dash cut her off, magenta eyes filled with fire and rage. Applejack opened her mouth to speak, but she just shook her head and closed it again. “The Everfree is full of all kinds of things that could keep those monsters away, plus we haven’t seen Twilight go out that far yet! She’s probably okay!” It wasn’t just rage anymore, it was desperation in her voice. It sounded not that she believed Fluttershy had escaped all of this unharmed, but that she needed the Element of Kindness to be okay.
“I-” Scootaloo finally looked up from her now empty bowl, licking her lips before she continued. “-I know she’s okay, Rainbow Dash.” Cheerilee knew of the filly’s fanaticism of the Wonderbolt, but secretly she was hoping that this scenario had dampened it. But no, fillies like Scootaloo needed their heroes now more than ever.
“I know, squirt.” Rainbow turned her gaze to Applejack next. “I know you said no bugging you anymore about it, but you have to let me try.” Cheerilee cocked her head, now lost and without context.
“Alright.” Applejack let out a deep sigh, pushing her half empty bowl away. “Applebloom, take the others up to your room.”
There was a silence as Applebloom went around the table, collecting Diamond Tiara, Rumble, Pound Cake, and Scootaloo. There was some canned answer about the discussion not being for little fillies and colts, said with no amount of cynicism from the little earth pony. Once the sound of little hooves hitting crystal had left earshot, Applejack turned back to the rest of the adults.
“Rainbow has this...idea.” Applejack restrained from using a harsh word to describe the idea, but the implication was there. “She wants to go check up on Fluttershy. Ah’m against it a thousand times over; it’s just too dangerous.”
“I’m the fastest pony in all of Equestria!” Rainbow Dash defended herself. “There’s only one other thing that can fly out there, I’m the best bet to check up on anypony that still might be out there! And now that we know that those things won’t try to come in here, it’s our best chance yet to get Fluttershy back here-” Applejack looked away for a split second, a moment of weakness that Dash pounced on almost immediately. “-or make sure Big Mac and Granny Smith are okay.”
Hitting that particular weak spot seemed to work, leaving Applejack to close her eyes. Even from nearly the opposite side of the table, Cheerilee could see Rainbow’s chest puffed out a little in victory. As it looked like the farm pony was going to cave, a voice to the right of where the teacher sat broke the tense silence.
“I oppose.” Mayor Mare stated flatly. “We’re already down two Elements and we cannot afford to lose another!” Cheerilee had to stop herself from rolling her eyes from the contrarian politician.
“We didn’t lose Twilight!” Came a chorus of voices back at her. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack, Applejack and Spike all speaking in unison and glaring at the mare. The Mayor cowered a little from the voices, but quickly bounced back and regained her composure.
“And Fluttershy is okay!” Rainbow Dash added on. “If you just let me go get her, we’ll have five outta six and be one step closer to solving this thing!” There was a small amount of logic in that statement, but everypony present knew that emotion was the primary motivator behind the pleas. “The only thing out there that can even reach me is Twilight. You have to trust me!”
“We know that they can’t come in here.” Pinkie stated, looking between her two friends. “We always thought so, but last night confirmed it.” Every eye was on the dour party pony now, which only made Cheerilee examine her a little more.
The poor dear was missing part of one of her ears, looking like it was bitten off by something. Knowing that only Pound Cake was here and the Cakes were nowhere to be seen, Cheerilee could assume a few things. None of them were good.
“I have faith that Dashie can make it there and back.” Pinkie continued, earning a beaming grin from her best friend. “Twilight can fly, but she’s a lot bigger and slower than Dashie. Just don’t leave from the front door, go to the highest balcony to take off.” The simple authoritative statement made by Pinkie seemed to hit all the right spots for Applejack.
“Ah-alright.” Applejack sighed and nodded. “Y’all can go.” Rainbow launched into the air and did a small loop as she cheered and pumped her hoof victoriously. “On a couple of conditions!” She raised her voice to get RD’s attention again. “Ya gotta promise to stop by the farm t’check on Mac and Granny. It ain’t too outta the way of Fluttershy’s house and...Ah just need to know.”
“Hey, of course Applejack.” Rainbow placed a hoof on her friend’s back. “And if he’s still kicking, which you know he is, I’ll drag his and Fluttershy’s butt back here!” The bravado was refreshing, even hopeful. So many ponies were full of such doom and gloom that even a hint of a can-do attitude seemed like a light in this darkness.
“Second, y’all gotta fly faster’n you’ve ever flown before. You get back here in one piece.” Applejack held out her hoof, which Rainbow took. “Ain’t no speed limits anymore, so break every law you can to get back here.”
“I can do that.” Rainbow smirked.
------
Rainbow Dash stood on the highest balcony of Twilight’s castle, a light breeze blowing through her multicolored mane. The ever-present sun made the crystal exterior hot to the touch. Some time ago Applejack had erected a small canopy overhead to keep it safe for her to venture out onto. Rainbow stretched out her wings, rotating them in their sockets and getting as limbered up as she could. She hadn’t gone outside since this all started, and she was itching to fly.
“Ah’ll keep an eye on you from up here, sugarcube.” Applejack stood beside her, Twilight’s telescope set up to get a good view of the entire town. “While you were gettin’ ready, Ah was scoutin’ things out for ya.” Rainbow was only half paying attention to her friend. It was way more important to get in the right mindset for what she was about to do than it was to listen. “The majority of those things are set up around town hall, dunno if Ah can rightly say what they’re doin’, but best to avoid that area altogether. Now Twilight, Ah ain’t seen hide nor hair of her...so just stay on your hooves.”
“Gotcha. Avoid the town hall, watchout for Twilight.” Rainbow repeated the important bits back to AJ, rolling her neck to work out a few of the kinks. “Get Fluttershy, check on Big Mac and Granny, get back. I got it, AJ.” She shot her best smile towards her competitive rival. “Trust me.”
“Just...stay safe Rainbow Dash.” There was a particular sadness to AJ’s voice, one that weighed a bit on Dash’s spirits. “If Ah gotta run out there and save your sorry butt, Ah will. Y’aint ever gonna live it down, though.”
“Keep dreaming, cowpony.” Dash rolled her eyes. She slowly crouched down, building tension and power in her legs as she prepared herself. Sky blue wings flared out, the wind catching them and letting the skilled flier know exactly what she would need to do to compensate. “I’ll be back in ten seconds flat or my name isn’t Rainbow Danger Dash!”
In a split second all of the tension in RD’s body released like the world’s most compressed spring. She launched herself into the air at speeds even she was surprised by, keeping her wings tucked to her sides as she let momentum carry her up and away from the castle.
When she finally spread her wings, it was like everything made sense again. The wind rushing past her primaries, the roar in her ears, and the sweet sensation of being above it all. For the first time in forever, she felt like Rainbow Dash.
After the initial shot of adrenaline hit her system, she remembered her promises to Applejack. She couldn’t just glide to where she needed to be, she needed to fly. With that in mind, she closed her eyes and envisioned it. Wings beating, scenery passing like a blur, that feeling of magic encompassing her as she got closer and closer to that barrier before she broke it.
She was going to create a rainboom to get there and back.
Just like that, it all happened. Her wings propelled her forward at speeds any Wonderbolt would marvel at, leaving a rainbow trail in her wake. She cut her course slightly, making sure to avoid the nest of unicorns at town hall before getting a straight shot to Fluttershy’s cottage.
The straightaway was and always will be, the greatest gift to speedsters. Nothing turbocharged wings and hooves like a straight line. Rainbow kept her ears on a swivel, listening for Twilight’s enormous pair of wings, but her eyes kept locked on her destination. She let her speed build and build, her muscles working overtime as the resistance around her started to become tougher to push through.
She felt it, that barrier. The one that she had been told was unbreakable. Her greatest achievement and the one thing nopony else in the world could best. It was something she knew all too well.
And it felt wrong.
Usually the barrier was soft and silky, it embraced her and surrounded her. It resisted her, but it never stonewalled her. It was a lover playing hard to get. Now, however, it was a jilted ex that only rewarded Rainbow’s advances with a harsh slap.
She nearly tumbled out of the sky as she hit that barrier instead of breaking through, her jaw slack and eyes wide. That had never happened before, not in the half dozen times that she had attempted a sonic rainboom.
It stunned the mare, sent her head spinning and confidence plummeting into a pit deeper than any before. She caught herself though, the thought that for every second that she was out here she was in mortal danger saving her from sitting there dumbstruck for a little while longer. She shook her head, stuffing what just happened in the back of her mind to think about later.
The rest of her flight wasn’t as fast as she would’ve liked. She didn’t quite push herself, just keeping a pace where she wouldn’t even touch the rainboom barrier. It was still faster than ninety-nine percent of ponies, but it wasn’t enough. Not for Rainbow Dash.
She landed a short distance outside of the treeline that led to the cottage, not wanting to risk clipping herself on any branches.She galloped the rest of the way, eager to see her oldest friend again and bring her back to the castle.
When she got to the end of the trail, she dropped to all four of her knees.
Where Fluttershy’s cottage should’ve been, there was nothing. The trees weren’t scorched, there was no sign of destruction. It was just gone. Every animal, structure, and plant that had once been on the lot had disappeared. Instead, there was just dirt.
Had Twilight done this? Wiped Fluttershy out of existence, house and all? Could she do that in her current form? A million more questions shot through her mind like so many angry parasprites eating away at her hope.
“C’mon Fluttershy. I know you made it out alive...I know it.” Rainbow mumbled as tears fell from her eyes into the dirt. She clenched her teeth and slammed a hoof into the dirt, the weight of so many lives lost finally crushing her.
Rainbow Dash was a hero.
Heroes weren’t supposed to let ponies die like this.
“I can’t…” Sobs ravaged her body, keeling her over and making her face hit the dirt. Her wings hung at her side. Every moment she and Fluttershy ever shared flashed through her mind, so many memories now ash in her mouth. She choked on her sadness, the deluge almost threatening to drown her under its weight.
She sat there for Celestia knows how long, when her tears finally ran out. She stood up, eyes red and body aching. Something was still keeping her going, that sense of knowing what needed to be done, of having one more promise to fulfill.
She shot up through the trees, spinning on a dime and speeding off towards Sweet Apple Acres. Her eyes narrowed and a familiar fire burned in her eyes and heart.
Rainbow Dash was a hero, and she was going to save somepony today.
With renewed spirit and vigor, she made record time to the farmhouse. Over the wilted apple trees, hot fermented apples sent rancid fumes up into the air. Once close enough, she swooped down and landed on the porch.
Littering the front lawn and porch were a couple of bodies of the unicorn things. Dash wasn’t sure if they were dead, but they weren’t up and moving. A large visible hoofprint was visible on the chest of one of them, Lyra if the colors held true.
The most sobering part of the scene was that the front door to the house was gone, blown from its hinges. Rainbow’s blood ran cold as she barged into the house, rushing through every room until she came to the one shut and locked door in the house.
Granny Smith’s room.
Rainbow slammed her body weight against the door, determined to open or break it with whatever strength she had left. The door wouldn’t splinter, it wouldn’t budge. There was nothing she could do to get into the room.
“A-ah said if y’all kept tryin’ that…” A deep voice boomed from behind the door, stopping only to cough and groan. “...Ah’d send more of ya to Tartarus.”
“Big Mac!” Rainbow pounded on the door, a smile erupting across her face as the realization hit her like a train. “Ohmigosh Big Mac! It’s Rainbow Dash, open the door!” Rainbow bounced up and down, unable to contain her excitement any longer.
“Dash?” Big Mac questioned, the sound of massive hooves hitting aged wood accompanying it. The door unlocked and swung open, revealing the massive red stallion...and only the red stallion. “Dash…” The relief in his voice was thick and punched the pegasus in the gut. She had been around other ponies since this started, but Big Mac?
The other thing that shocked her was his current state. His barrel was covered in bite marks and scratches, his coat pockmarked with magical burns. His left eye was also sloppily covered with a bandage with only the lack of skill an earth pony could achieve. The massive stallion nearly collapsed on top of her, but between them both he stayed upright.
“Jeez…” Rainbow looked him over a few more times, happy to see him but deeply worried about his health. Something else was bugging her, something she had to ask. “Granny Smith?”
“Nope.” Big Mac answered, his one good eye looking down. “Out back next to Ma and Pa…” Rainbow’s heart ached hearing that, knowing that they would need to tell Applejack about it. “Applejack?”
“We’re all up in Twilight’s castle. It’s keeping those things away...somehow, but it’s doing it.” Rainbow took one of Mac’s legs and draped it over her shoulder, providing support as they both started to move down the stairs at a snail’s pace. “That’s where we’re going.”
“A couple of ‘em came up here...bothered us. Flim, Hondo, Amethyst. Tossed ‘em all in the Everfree…” This was more words than Rainbow had ever heard Big Mac speak in her whole life, not that she was going to complain. Talking meant he was alive. “‘Bout a week ago Lyra and Ballad showed up. Couple days after Granny passed.” The stallion groaned as they reached the bottom of the stairs, holding his ribs. “They got me good...Ah got ‘em better though.”
“Yeah I saw.” Rainbow carried him out of the house and looked around, biting her lip and looking for something. Mac was big, but a couple of days obviously without food had left him more manageable than normal. He was still just too big to fly with on her back, though. “We can’t go through town...no way.”
“There.” Big Mac raised a hoof, pointing towards an apple cart a little ways off. “Can you pull me?”
“It’ll be a lot easier than carrying you.” Dash relented with a nod and started towards the cart. Rainbow’s heart was filled with pure determination as she loaded the hulking farmer into the wooden bucket and made sure he was comfortable. “I can’t exactly go full speed tugging you along, so if Twilight catches up to us I might have to get fancy.”
“Twilight?” Big Mac questioned after adjusting himself to better fit in the small space.
“Trust me, you’ll get it when you see it.” Rainbow hitched herself up to the cart, making sure the harness was secure enough to avoid slipping off in case she had to pull anything more than a slight turn or a straight line. “Just hold on, alright?”
“Eeyup.”
Rainbow took off, the extra weight making her sluggish and less nimble than she would like. The renewed purpose to get AJ’s brother back alive, to live up to that heroic ideal, pushed her forward. It pumped her wings and kept her heart racing as she lifted into the sky with Big Mac in tow.
Even with another pony’s weight and a cart behind her, Dash felt like she could beat anypony in a fair race. She kept a decent pace, flying high above the town and out of the reach of almost anything.
An earth shattering howl broke the silence of the flight.
Almost anything.
The sound of massive wings beating and displacing air made Rainbow’s head turn. The thing she had been dreading had drudged itself up from whatever pit it had been hiding in. Twilight raised into the sky from somewhere in town, seemingly from the direction of the old library.
“Oh no.” Rainbow’s eyes went wide as she pushed her body to its absolute limit, the muscles in her back and wings starting to burn. In any other state but tugging Big Mac, she would be faster than Twilight in every way. The turned alicorn’s increased size would be a boon and allow Dash to fly circles around her, but now? They were on even footing.
If Rainbow couldn’t lean on her natural talent, technique would have to suffice.
A bolt of bright purple magic surged right by her ear, the air turning burning hot and singing the mare’s mane. That technique needed to start up now, it seemed. Rainbow started to climb in a spiral, allowing her to keep what little speed she had and build up a tiny bit more. If she was smart, this Twilight would have to follow suit. Flying straight up would only lead to a stall, especially at her size.
Luckily for Rainbow and Big Mac, Twilight was never a good flier and this version of her was no exception. The enlarged alicorn tried flying straight up, her wings not being enough to keep her upright for very long. The beast tumbled backwards, wings flailing as bolts of magic shot from her horn in every direction.
“Still got a thing or two to learn about flying, egghead!” Rainbow Dash cackled with delight as Twilight fell. She knew better than anypony that a stall never lasted for long and that recovering was easier than one would expect, so she turned and started back towards the castle.
She could feel Twilight gaining on them again, fully recovered and angry. The wind whipped up by the massive set of wings on the back of the beast becoming stronger and getting closer. Bolts of magic whizzed past her, one even hitting the cart and blasting a wheel clean off. Normal Twilight would’ve hit almost all of those shots.
Rainbow Dash thanked Celestia that for once Twilight wasn’t normal at the moment.
“Rainbow, hurry up!” Big Mac cried, drawing Rainbow’s eyes behind her for a moment.
Twilight was on their heels, maw open and dripping with thick black saliva, rows of sharp teeth glistening in the summer sun. Her jaws snapped, inches away from getting a hold of the cart and possibly Big Mac.
Rainbow couldn’t let that happen.
One final effort, that’s all she needed. With one push and the last of her energy, both physical and emotional, she surged forward. They hit the balcony, Rainbow’s hooves skidding on the slick crystal and the cart crashing after her. The two didn’t stop soon enough as they both slid past the open doors and right into the interior of the castle.
A bolt of white hot magic sizzled and crackled by them, impacting one of the walls and chipping the usually resilient material. Applejack wasn’t far behind the magic, taking cover and pushing the doors close as fast as she equinely could. They slammed shut, the sound of several bolts of Twilight’s magic hitting them not soon after.
Rainbow unhitched herself from the cart, throwing the harness away and staggering for a few feet before collapsing. Sweat made her mane cling to her face, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Every muscle inside of her body ached and burned from the herculean effort she put forth.
But she did it.
She saved at least one pony today.
With a slight smile on her face, Rainbow Dash passed out.
One more saved. When it all comes down, one more life is everything. Here's hoping he's not the last.
Ah yes. Tribalism at its finest. The real monsters aren't outside. Or even unicorns in this case. They're in the group of survivors. It's ponies willing to sacrifice others. On the small chance it'll save the group. And don't care.
Every horror story has them. And they're infinitly more dangerous than whatever's trying to kill them.
Plus, if they turn while in the castle. Then it doesn't matter. They can't get out. Rainbow barely did. And barely made it back. The others don't have her speed even if they escape the castle. They'd never escape Ponyville.
I'm assuming Discord moved Fluttershy's house to his dimension. Which begs the question of if he knows something about what's going on...
Fluttershy is gone, not dead gone, gone, as in gone gone. Can I blame Discord? or is it not then yet?
Someone want to mention to her Rarity is one of the elements?
I'm definitely guessing Discord noped Fluttershy out of there.
This has Discord written all over it, and now this leaves a few interesting questions.
First, we know these creatures are animalistic, only relying on brute strength or a blast of fiery spells. They don't have the capability to use teleportation, levitation, or anything aside from a blazing blast of arcane energy, so Discord's teleportation means he's well and, even if he turns, his only strengths will be his wings and natural claws. Celestia and Luna are clearly gone, but what about Cadence, Shining, and Flurry Heart?
Would the dome over the Empire act similarly to Twilight's castle? If so, do they even know what's going on?
Zecora is, as much as I hate to admit this, probably gone, unless these creatures only target ponies. Spike is fine and I have to assume he was either inside the castle, or outside next to Twilight when shit hit the fan.
Finally, Vinyl being there raises a few questions. Rarity and Pinkie were already house sitting, so unless the DJ was inside checking out a book, she must have been outside and gone in before she turned, or something prevented her from turning.
What season does this take place in. Considering that it's post Castle but no-one's mentioned Starlight, is this post-Our Town of After-Our Town?
Edit:
Crazy Conspiracy time cause why not? Probably not right in any way, shape, or form, but fuck it. What if that Vinyl isn't real? Like I said, Rarity was given an alibi already for why she was inside, but we have to assume Vinyl squeezed in just as the others were transforming. But what if this isn't Vinyl? Think about it, there's a magical creature that lives in Ponyville who came to a certain Donkey's wedding, one that could take a creature's shape and, as far as we know, might not be affected by this disease. Assuming that changelings are immune to it, anyway. We haven't seen or heard of them yet, so anything is possible, and my theory is probably wrong but it's fun to speculate.
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Post Our Town. This is pre-School of Friendship too.
So consider this Season 7.
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Before time travel arc too, I'm guessing?
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Nope. Not touching time travel. Not even in the cards. Things just get messy.
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Smart move, time travel is terribly messy, but I'm just narrowing down when shit hit the fan to see if this is all Starlight's fault or not.
Well hello Discord.
I think the best bet for a cure is to break a feral unicorn's horn, tie it down, and lock it in a secure room in the castle with constant surveillance from at least the other side of said room, and a door sentry or two for good measure.
That said, the ferals attack in packs, so getting just one will be a dangerous proposition. Flying to the outskirts and picking off a single target might be an option, but a longer commute poses its own distinctly purple problems.
The horn might be where the affliction is focused. I'd say not quite 30% probability, given there's no Tragedy tag yet. Even if snapping the horn doesn't snap the feral back to sanity, even if the castle's effect can't restore their mind either, that's still disarming them, removing ranged attacks and goring from the equation if you can accomplish it in the field.
If unicorns can be cured either of these ways, that provides greater numbers to expand recovery operations. Plus, it's unlikely their bodies will be completely fixed, so they'll be stronger and more physically capable. From there, try to capture ferals without breaking their horns and see if quarantine still works. You'll need range and telekinesis on your side for the next step.
Because the next step is Twilight. Twilight is the only being in the area that could lower the sun, and is probably less formidable than a feral Celestia or Luna. Probably. Twilight absolutely must be captured and cured, without breaking her horn, otherwise you all fry to death anyway.
It also has to be considered that her inherent connection to the castle may provide just enough inoculation to at least slightly resist the curative aura. Keep her under observation for lingering mental effects. As long as she's able and willing to move the sun though, that's what really matters.
You can do this, everypony, but suffice to say: Good bucking luck, you're gonna need it.
10824940
I believe she's talking about Magic and Kindness.
Apple apple
I had a feeling Big Mac was still alive. A shame about Granny Smith however. Nice little action-packed chapter that answers a few questions and creates more.
Not only does this paint a pretty good picture of just how bad things are, it also helpfully addresses the "Why can't Discord snap his fingers and fix this problem?" question.
Why can't Discord help? Because he called it quits and left for his dimension with Fluttershy and all her things in tow behind him.
10825013
They mean that she's making this argument while saying they should throw Rarity to the wolves, which is impressively stupid on multiple levels.
10825026
Fixed, thanks. Bit of a relic from a small rewrite.
10824923
I doubt, this has 'enhanced disease' written all over it.
A specific magical infection that targets only unicorns and currupts ambient magic to the point where its upper limits become unusable to anything capable of reaching said limits.
It speaks of calculated construction, rather than anything remotely chaotic in nature.
Whatever this is, it's orderly, it has limits, a target population and likely was created to cull ponies. All things Discord doesn't deal in, especially the last bit.
10825013
I'm talking about her partially arguing earlier to toss Rarity outside.She didn't seem to question willingly sacrificing that element.
10825004
Interesting theory, but this experiment runs into one big problem that I'll call, "The Vampire dilemma."
The feral can't get into the castle, and I assume that it's either a barrier that keeps them out or a force that hurts them. If a pony, say Rainbow Dash, took a feral like Trixie and shoved her into the castle, I'm pretty sure she'd either burst like a balloon against a wall or disintegrate. I don't think they can "invite" them in like a Vampire, and as Buffy showed us, an uninvited vampire being forced to cross a threshold makes them go poof. I know these aren't vampires but it's the best comparison for this test.
Though, if the problem is the horn, then I wonder how a pony like Tempest fairs in this situation. As the author pointed out, this story takes place around season seven, so before the MLP Movie. Either Tempest is going on a killing spree in the Storm Kingdom, or she stands alone as one of the few ponies who can actually help them.
10825039
You misunderstood my comment. I wasn't implying that Discord was responsible, I was saying that he might know more about the source of what happened, and possibly a way to cure/reverse it.
10825071
True, true. Worth a shot though. I say test it on Snips and go from there.
10825004
If it's in the horn why not just slip an inhibitor ring on and find out?
10825119 Honestly I completely forgot inhibitor rings.
I wonder... Are Celestia and Luna okay?
This is veeeery good and I am looking forward for the next!
10825217
Same...
Considering that according to chapter 1 of the 4 weeks the event has being going, only the last one has being in eternal day, is posible that until recently they were OK.
However, considering how magic seems to be “weird” at the moment maybe they are both right and just stoped using their magic to avoid transforming.
I have 2 theories:
Either one of them transformed (probably Celestia, although I doubt Lina will be willing to let her sister experience a similar hell of that of becoming a monster, so maybe Luna is the one who transformed) and the other is OK and not using her magic.
The other is that both are transforming, or well, are resisting the transformation, but soon they will transform too as they can’t fight it forever.
I really do hope the 2 are ok, but well have to wait and see
Money is that Discord took Fluttershy and her stuff and moved them all someplace safe. Like deep in the Everfree. I doubt she would be in his Dimension. For one she would be worrying about her friends too much.
As for Mayor Mare. What a pain! Cant believe she would even say those things. Also this answers a question on supplies. Twilight bought in bulk. Good for her.
That does not sound good.
Well, I'm hooked. Got me on the edge of my seat!
10825272
I actually think Cadance is okay too in the Crystal Empire, due to the heart which I suppose serves a similar non corruptive purpose as the tree of harmony and the castle tree do.
10825119
Because it's not restrainment until there's grave, excruciating bodily harm being perpetrated on someone.
Great work Rainbow! Next, see if you can grab a unicorn by their lonesome, preferably a little foal, and drag them into the castle. Maybe it'll cure them?
Perhaps this is what the corrupted unicorns are working on.
Nice chapter, waiting continue)
This is so cute!
Nice to see Big Mac in safe, probably - considering his injuries.
And I hope they find other survivors.
That ended better than I expected.
10824923
That's what I assumed.
10824976
The Empire, assuming that either the dome protects it (probably does since it seems to run on the same thing the castle does) or that whatever this is hasn't reached it, probably knows something's up on account of the unmoving sun. As for Zecora, she has all kinds of literal voodoo up her metaphorical sleeves on top of the natural cover provided by the deep forest. She's probably fine, actually. Assuming she was smart enough to stay in the forest when she noticed that it wasn't getting dark like it should. And that she wasn't unlucky enough to be in town when it started.
10824987
Not to mention the last thing they need is Monster Queen Twilight spreading across time.
I thank you for giving this chapter a better ending than expected; so many zombie/monster stories love laying on the misery and failure, so it's refreshing when something goes right for once.
Kinda curious as to what happened to Cloudsdale. Not a lot of unicorns there.
10825551
but there are several Alicorns, and I doubt the Pegasuses could stand against one of them for long
The fact Fluttershy's cottage has magically disapeared has Discord written all over it.
10825551
Nope. Incredibly open, though. Walls are made of clouds so it's not like you can really hide indoors.
10825001
More like, "Goodbye Discord". Heh-ha... What have I become?
10825551
I always imagined that there were a few unicorns with cloud walking spells working in the factories. Author might not think the same but that's just my personal head cannon. Though, I have to wonder if self-care spells, like cloud walking, would continue to work after the mutation. It's clear than none of them are able to teleport or do anything more than shoot fire, if they eve can since most of them want to stab and bite.
Hmmm, strange and concerning. Rainbow could not do the rainboom. Could the environment itself be altered to better suit these creatures? Also, the Castile was grown from the tree of harmony hence why it keeps those things at bay. And they don't seem to like the Everfree for the same reason I'm guessing that the tree keeps the forest safe. Ironically the Forest might be even safer than the castle. These things must be some kind of spirits or a curse whose mission is to spread disharmony and suffering by creating twisted mockeries of life. However, if I'm right and the tree keeps them away then it could be possible to save Twilight still. As for Fluttershy hard to say if she is okay. Some have been saying Discord would have saved her. Indeed he would but I need to ask why the hell has he not done anything about this? Fluttershy would have asked him to help and he would do it for her. So I don't think she is safe with Discord but somewhere else. Where I can not say.
10825474
Only issue with that is the fact it took a couple of weeks for the sun to stop moving. This means Zecora might have moved toward town before realizing something was wrong. But the screams and dead bodies probably scared her back into the forest.
You and me both rarity.
King kong virus!
It's so annoying that when people -or ponies- get protective of their loved ones, they don't give a buck about anyone else and how their short-sighted selfishness may harm someone who's (relatively) innocent.
Yes, the unicorns have been corrupting, but it's not like it's their fault, so why make Vinyl and Rarity feel bad about what they are? That's the equivalent of being mad at a certain race for a certain virus even if not all of them were even born where it originated.... I have to wonder was that moment a parallel to the real world situation or am I over-analyzing it?