//------------------------------// // Chapter 29 // Story: Only One Speck of Dust // by TheMareWhoSaysNi //------------------------------// Lighting Dust looked all around her. The fight was ceaseless, as if the Unavowed Army was inexhaustible. And she was a part of it. It was much more stimulating than anything else. She really belonged here, in the heart of action. The Militia had not want her. This bragging mare with her rainbow mane had told her she was too little caring about the others, and that the team was what mattered. She hoped she was regretting it now. Within the new organization she had joined, there was nothing of this all. The watchword was every pony for himself. What mattered was the result, victory, no matter how it was acquired. And of this, Lighting Dust was making the most of it to her heart’s content. She had barely liquidate some mare pegasus with a golden coat who had rushed toward her thinking she would have her by surprise, surely because she had not thought she had wings as well. To hear Rainbow Dash saying this moron’s name with despair had been the icing on the cake. In all honesty, she was the one the new recruit was aiming for. If she managed to kill the Head of the Militia, Prince Blueblood would probably grant her a prominence in his Army, once the throne conquered. Unfortunately, she kept on being attacked by other Servants, surely willing to get the place she longed for. So be it. If she could not get the pick of the bunch, she was going to fall back on the Second-in-Command. She could fight as well with a sword as bare-hooved, what made her a very exciting challenge. Lighting Dust rushed forward the earth mare, determined to be covered in glory once back at the headquarters. Along the way, though, she changed her mind. It was too good an opportunity and could not be passed up. Of course, he was not as important as the Head or the Second-in-Command, but he was a Member of the Council as well, after all, and much harder to eliminate than simple small framed mares. Another kind of challenge, of scope not prestigious but physiognomic. The small thrust back pegasus mare against the tall scary stallion, scary thanks to his reputation of harming without anyone to hear him or to feel him coming. Wonderful. He was the perfect target before she could envision something more glorious. Determined, she flew over other fighters, avoiding some who were falling from the strikes by a stallion she had not seen when she had passed her Warrior Test, and she darted her sword toward the red pony who had just get rid of a whole bunch of earth stallions whose doggedness had not been enough. They were not her. She would not fail. It was easy, almost too easy. So easy she was slightly disappointed when she managed to take him by surprise and to stick her sword straight into his chest, her blade thrusting with a limited resistance into the flesh, first tough and then more delicate. Big Macintosh had not expected that. Where did that mare pegasus come from? He had not even felt her coming, worried as he was for the others, and especially for his younger sisters he had tried to join, in vain, since long minutes. The assailant, in the air, looked at him with a mocking half-smile… She seemed to appreciate the miracle she had just achieved with an insane pleasure. One of her flaws was that she enjoyed her victory too much to get ready to respond, surely thinking he would collapse and not try to do anything else. With the little strength he still had, he reared up and managed to touch the mare pegasus, whom he cut a part of her right wing. She could not help a terrible cry of pain, and lost her balance. Her body bumped into one of the ceiling’s beams and she slowly fell back among the other wounded ponies. Big Macintosh, his eyesight blurred, clenched his teeth and tried to see where the members of his family were. Applejack… He had to see Applejack. And Pinkie Pie, why was not she there? Oh yes, she was in her guard tower. But if the Unavowed Army was here, that meant she could be in danger. He had to do something. His mother, where were she? And what about little Apple Bloom? And Rainbow Dash… Why could not he see anything? Where were all those he cared for? The haze. The crash fading. Nothing. -------------------------------------------- Sounds of hooves resounded all around them. From each of the doors, by waves, new ponies dressed with a red cloak arrived. Soon, there were more than the left soldiers of the enemy. Among them, sprung up Pinkie Pie’s pink figure, covered with blood, a sword between her teeth. Without further delay, she threw herself in the fight with the others. For all that, the struggle did not quiet down. It still was in full swing. There was no way one could say how many ponies had fallen, from which faction. No time for this. They had to keep on fighting, with the same energy than in the beginning, despite the bodies screaming for salvation. Rainbow Dash did not count how many times she had been touched, how many ponies she had wounded or killed. According to the number and the rush, she struck what she could reach first, forgetting about strategies and calculations. Time Stellar’s tactics were not made for this kind of confrontations, but for those, civilized, where one pony beat another one, by the book. Tonight, things were done her own way, and it should be noted that it was rather effective. Though she was not able to see how each developed, she knew they all were up and about, and that neither her mother or Melrose had been seriously injured. She had just buried her sword inside one unicorn’s heart who had tried to use her magic to get her by surprise. Of course, she had sensed the presence behind her back, but before she could turn around, the two pegasi rushing toward her would probably had reached some part of her. Usually, all it would have took would have been a few flaps of her wings so she could get rid of them, but she still was wounded and could not allow to take off, at the risk of falling back immediately and of becoming a prey. However, none of them were able to graze her. A sword had just been planted inside the two pegasi’s backs, who fell in their turn. Soarin was flying above her, a benevolent smile on his lips. During the fight, she had lost sight of him like many others, and had not stopped to hope nothing bad had happened to him. The pony he was so scared of, if she was not mistaking, was absent of the fight, probably because Prince Blueblood wanted to keep him for another battle. She knew he surely was terrified deep inside, yet he fought with all his might, as always. Undoubtedly, he was the perfect stallion for her. Without even actual communication, they understood each other. Their team was rather good, and Soarin had something that, for now, Rainbow Dash lacked. Alone, they were very strong, among the best. Together, they would be invincible. She climbed on his back, and hanging at his neck with her right hoof, she clenched her sword between her teeth. All the pegasi on their way could not escape their sharp weapons. In full speed all over the room, they even could harm a few earth ponies who, zealous in excess, thought they could touch them. It was perfect. So perfect she even wondered why she had not thought about it before. From up high, she was able to see that both Caramel and Applejack were up and about, that Pinkie Pie was here and unrelenting, and that members of her family had not lost anything of what were their talents. Twilight Sparkle saw them flying above her, and hoped they would come and help her. She had fought with as much rage as she could. The art of fighting with a sword or bare-hooved was still hard for her to master, yet until then, she had been able to defend herself, despite her wounds at the rear of her body. It was until one mare smarter than the others, who had been able to steel ropes backstage, had lashed out at her horn. She held her tight and firm, and was pulling her. It was hard for Twilight to resist such a pain, though it did not hurt as bad as when Rainbow Dash had bit it. She knew that thus controlled, she was at the complete mercy of her attackers. The best she could, with her hind legs, she thrusted back those who tried to strike her, but she knew, she would not be able to take it much longer. At the next sword strike, too debilitated, she would join the bunch of victims lying all around her. Although she was not really a fighter, she refused to let the others down. She had been given a chance here, and she was willing to show how grateful she was, and that she, Twilight Sparkle, was the most devoted of the potential adepts. There was a solution. She had already been able to use it once and knew that even when controlled at the least, it was of a redoubtable efficacy. The only trouble was the concentration it required. Fragile, the slightest thing could break it. Exhaustive, it drained her energy unlike any kind of magical spell. Once again, she had to push back an attacker coming from behind. It felt as if the wounded muscles of her flank had been skinned, without anesthetic. Another strike needing this part of her body, and she was done. She had to use her magic again, and for this, she had to get rid of this mare, who probably had something on her mind. Shaking her head, she managed to get rid of her eye-patch. First, she clenched her pupils as much as possible, fearing the scald worse than everything that always burned her retina. Twilight had to focus on her breathing. No more thinking about anything, and forget about the world. She felt some kind of energy, like a fluid circulating inside her blood toward her face. It was the right moment. She opened her eyes. The surroundings around her almost seemed unreal. The pictures were clearer than reality itself, the sounds purer. As if they all were stuck into honey, ponies were acting in slow-motion, each of their moves outlining in dazzle. The mare still holding her by the rope pulled it a little more, making a head sign to someone else in front of her. Twilight felt as if she was seeing the stallion rushing toward her with a sword, as if her eyes were behind her back. She shook her head with all the strength she could contain, and finally been able to do what she had failed at during all this time – to make her opponent lose her balance. Thanks to her Sacred Eye, she had panoramic vision of everything going on, and knew before the others what to do. Her horn freed, all she had to do was to turn around and, with a bit more of concentration, she did the first spell which came into her mind. Her assailant got transformed into a white heather bush, his sword falling back on the floor without reaching its target. Unfortunately, she did not master the Sacred Eye long enough to be able to use it until the end of the fights. Already, the dreadful scald at her retina was felt again, and she had to use her magic to put her eye-patch back, before it stopped her from defending herself. There probably was not a lot of fighters up and about if so many pounced on her at the same time. Twilight remembered perfectly the conversation she had with Rainbow Dash when she had agreed to return back to The Militia. The adversary would not believe her to be invincible if she was not able to convince herself that she was. The field in which she shone, it was not bare-hooved fighting nor sword fighting. It was magic. With it, she was untouchable. No other unicorns in this region had magic as their special talent, she was the only one. It bestowed her a power upon the others. Without hesitation, she used her horn to defend herself, and no sooner said than done, all those around her who wanted to fight to the finish were transformed into white heather bushes. Twilight saw Spitfire flying above her, and understood that she had unconsciously approached the back of the room. The mare pegasus, while knocking down a grey stallion, claimed at her attention: “Great! If there was something we needed, it was flowers!” Uncloudy Shelter had just knocked down an adversary as well, just like his wife Firefly. Rainbow Dash had wanted to protect them, but in the end, they had not need anyone’s backup. Even Melrose had quickly found back her bounty hunter instincts, used to fight against danger. The ‘adults’ could be proud of themselves. They were the ones who first noticed there was more Members of the Militia left than soldiers from the Unavowed Army. There was no way to tell how many were dead or wounded, but the cabaret’s floor was strewn by bodies bleeding and crying. Applejack frowned when she looked at the stage. The “Princess” had been there, she knew it. They both had a revenge to take, and she had tried all night long to reach her so they could settle the score. Knight Shelter was the only one still on the stage, Rarity’s fashion magazine between his hooves. He lowered it and his eyes met Applejack’s. He shook his head, with an odd half-smile. “HEY!”, she screamed on top of her lungs. They all stopped what they were doing, and took the time to look around them. The sound of banging together swords had been replaced by moans of pain, tears and pleases. After this assessment, soldiers of the Unavowed Army still here took an advantage from it to scoot briskly. And they all were too confused by this crushing victory to find the strength to hold them back. They gathered next to the stage, even Apple Bloom, and Pinkie Pie whose curls were back on her head and who displayed a wide smile which offered a disturbing contrast with the blood almost entirely covering her coat. Their parents soon joined them as well. “Is everypony alright?”, Rainbow Dash asked, her voice huskier than before. “I… guess”, Caramel claimed. “We have to examine the bodies, to see who’s injured and who’s dead.” It almost was a miracle that they suffered from no serious injuries. Yet, the battle had not always been a walk in the park, nor even at their advantage. They had to keep going, many times, themselves had passed close to death, and the effects, debilitating, they felt them all over their breathless bodies. That was when Melrose noticed that one of them was not here. Her son, Big Macintosh. She turned around, and did not see him standing. “Big Mac… Where’s Big Mac?” They all straightened up their heads, and looked next to them, like an amputee suddenly realizing one of his limbs was no longer here. Once the assessment of his absence certified, they all rushed to the bodies piled up on the floor, looking for the tall stallion. Pinkie Pie found him first. She waved to everypony to come closer. However, feeling this was no sight for a little filly, and although she had taken part in the fights, Spitfire decided to keep Apple Bloom with her in the background, near the stage, while they all gathered around the spot showed by the pink mare. Big Macintosh was lying between two mares’ corpses with dilated eyes and slit throats. Two very recent Members of the Militia they all recognized but chose to ignore in order not to add more pain. He displayed a very ugly wound at his chest, and bathed in a pool of blood. Applejack stepped closer and sat in front of him, not really attentive about the hemoglobin soon blanketing her own coat. “I’mma goin’ to heal ya, Ah promise. Keep goin’.” She had no first-aid kit within her reach, but knew there was one in the room they were at. It was mandatory. Each place of entertainment had to have at least one of these kits, just in case. Caramel was about to go and get it, when he saw Big Macintosh nodding his head. “Nope. Useless.” He coughed loudly, and blood spurted from his mouth on the already crimson floor. Tears in her eyes, Applejack took his head and put it on her laps. The rest of his body had not moved, not reacted. “Don’t talk nonsense. Ah will save ya. Ah will save ya.” “Dis too late, AJ.” “No, tis not too late. Don’t tell dis!” He took a glimpse at his mother, a bit in the background. She was staring at him, her eyes such as a lake under the rain. Big Macintosh knew they all knew, but that only Melrose was being lucid. His mother already had lost the love of her life, and was also going to lose a son. Yet, faithful to herself, she did not utter a word. Her whole existence was made of renunciations, and she had prepared herself long ago to lose one of her children one day, as if she had always known. Spitfire knew it since months. He had been in her visions, among all the dead that had passed before her eyes. It did not stop the pain. But unlike her friends and his sister, she also had already prepared herself to this loss. Big Macintosh gathered little strength he still had and rose a shaking hoof to Applejack’s face. The tip of his hoof struck her cheek but it did not last. Almost immediately, his numb limb fell back, and the rest of his body started to tremble from cold. “Sorry. Am sorry I disappointed you. And Pinkie Pie. Sorry too.” The pink mare did not say a word, and lowered her head. Silent tears fell on the floor under her hooves, forming some kind of furrow in the middle of the blood tasks on her face, which had dried. He coughed again, and one second later, everything stopped. Then, took over Applejack’s screams filled with sobs, the most harrowing screams they had heard since Time Stellar’s death, a few years ago.