Upon our return to the manor, I took possession of one of its many unoccupied rooms and stripped my armor for cleaning. Blood could rust metal just like any other liquid, and in any case a warrior should take pride in their appearance and that of their equipment. Trotting about like a blood-soaked barbarian was hardly how a warrior of Pegasopolis should conduct themself.
Howe’er, despite my best efforts it seemed I could not succeed in the task. I had thrice been o’er mine armor and helmet with a scouring cloth, yet still I found small spots of dried blood in hidden corners and seams. Likewise, mine efforts at cleaning myself seemed unable to wholly cleanse Nimbus’ blood from my coat and mane. Worse, the sharp copper scent of it lingered o’er everything, e’en hours after the battle.
I tossed my helmet away with a frustrated snarl, not caring when it tore what was surely a very fine and expensive tapestry. While Mother would have disapproved of destroying our allies’ property, such concerns were far from my mind. I did not know what I had expected at the start of this mission, but it had certainly not involved murdering a pregnant mare and stealing away a terrified young child.
Some time later, I heard a hoof tentatively tapping at the door, followed by my sister’s voice. “Brother? Art thou well?”
I groaned, burying my face in my hooves. “Dawn? What dost thou want? Unless ‘tis urgent, I would prefer that it wait until later.”
Dawn strode in despite my words, looking me over with a slight frown before picking up my helmet and carrying it back to me. “Our hosta—Midnight is well, if restless and complaining endlessly of her captivity.” She set the helmet in my lap, then settled down next to me. “It seems thou art also troubled, though I am curious as to the cause of it. By all accounts, thou wert successful in thy mission.”
‘Twas plain she would not leave until I had answered her, and in truth a part of me wanted to speak of it. The weight of all that had happened at the Archmagus’ tower sat like a leaden weight within my chest, and if telling Dawn would remove that burden... “It has not been a fair night, and our mission had certain complications I did not anticipate. Some of mine own actions and the acts of those around me do not sit well with me.” I sighed and shook my head, averting mine eyes from her. “Let us speak no more of it. I do not wish to trouble thee when thou hast so many burdens of thine own already.”
“Thy wellbeing is among the matters that trouble me,” Dawn answered, gently gripping my chin and pulling my gaze back to her. “‘Tis clear that thou art pained, and that pains me in turn. Often, speaking of one’s problems lessens them.”
I sighed and nodded as the truth spilled out. “A pregnant mare was slain when we captured Midnight. She was one of the guards watching o’er the tower, and while I attempted to remove her from the battle area or subdue her nonlethally...” I grimaced as I remembered Flash’s spear piercing her once more. “And Midnight herself, as well. It is one thing to speak of taking a noble hostage, but ‘tis another to tear a frightened child out of her home.”
Dawn embraced me, wordlessly offering what comfort she could. I was too tired to even properly return it, accepting her affection like a limp corpse. It seemed churlish, but I simply could not find the energy or will to do anything more.
My sister slowly released me, pulling back slightly and regarding me with a chirurgeon’s eye. “Thou shouldst rest, brother. I will see to thine armor, and Flash can address any other matters that might arise.”
Rest ... it seemed a fine idea, though I suspect that whene’er I slept Nimbus would haunt my dreams. “Would that I could sleep forever, or at least long enough for the war to end and take all this madness with it.”
“I know that feeling all too well,” Dawn murmured. “When we began this war we spoke of glory, honor and freedom, but now ... now I just want an end to it.” She picked up my helmet once more, setting it aside. “What is the child’s purpose here? It seems strange that Mother would risk so much, coming here personally in order to kidnap a single child. Shadow did not surrender when we held her daughter, and I rather doubt Sunbeam Sparkle is more sentimental.”
Ah, another topic I would much prefer not to discuss. Though Mother had not said anything directly, I suspected more than enough to leave me troubled. “Mother says that Midnight will help her end the war—that the child will give her the power she needs to defeat Celestia, bring down the shield, and end the siege outright.”
Dawn met my words with a skeptical frown. “Mother said that? That does not sound—mayhaps thou misheard her? I do not understand how a single young child could hold such significance.”
Ere I could answer her, a dead stallion stepped through the door. Hidden Facts smirked at the both of us. “Perhaps I could clarify?”
I blinked in shock, staring at the revenant. “Hidden? But you are...”
His smile widened until it resembled that of a dried corpse. “Yes, yes, you saw me die. Have you forgotten that I am a master of illusions? I assure you, ‘twas not the first time I allowed the world to think me dead.” (1)
1: According to Magus Corps’ records, Hidden Facts was reported dead at least three times over the course of his career. Because of this, the Magus Corps did not remove him from the list of dangerous active warlocks for more than twenty years after his confirmed death.
I frowned, trying to make sense of the deception. “Mother could not have been fooled. If she truly is the avatar of Luna’s might as you so frequently claim she would see through that deception. Nor would you be here and showing yourself so openly if she were your enemy.” For that matter, Mother had mentioned using illusion magic in order to infiltrate the city, and there were few more qualified to the task than the pony before me. Which could only mean... “Mother was complicit in the deception, then. But to what end? What did she stand to gain by pretending to execute you?” E’en as I asked the question, several possible answers occurred.
Hidden seemed to guess my thoughts, for he chuckled. “Foremost, ‘twas a useful bit of theater to more firmly win Rightly to our cause. Staging mine execution allowed the Avatar to demonstrate her commitment to his ideas of justice in a suitably dramatic fashion. And we also hoped that if Celestia’s forces heard of my death, they might not guard quite so carefully against mine illusions.”
Dawn’s eyes narrowed. “And why are you here, warlock? Why reveal yourself and tell us all that you intend?”
Hidden shrugged uncaringly. “For one, Lady Dawn, I consider myself something of a friend to your brother and thought it proper to tell him the truth.” He turned to me a with a skeletal grin. “I would apologize for the deception, but I am sure you understand my reasons after your own recent experiences infiltrating Canterlot.”
I nodded grimly. I expect that if I had known ‘twas all a deception, I would not have been able to act quite as shocked and horrified as I did when thinking ‘twas real. Not to mention whether I would have agreed to go along with the farce in the first place. The idea of lying to Rightly to make him think we had abandoned all use of dark magic did not sit well with me. Howe’er, ‘twas o’er and done with now, and I could hardly leave the city to tell him the truth.
Hidden cleared his throat. “But as I said, we are being honest now. And in the spirit of honesty, perhaps your sister should know what your mother intends for young Midnight? E’en if she has not told you the truth, I am sure you at least suspect it. You are far too canny not to.”
Dawn’s scowled at the both of us, suspicion lacing her words. “What does he mean, Dusk? What is Midnight's purpose here? Why didst thou take her from her home, if not as a hostage?”
Mine eyes fell to the floor, and the words slowly and reluctantly exited my lips. “Mother is unwell. Her transformation into the Avatar is imperfect, and will eventually end her. She said that the ... that Midnight had some sort of connection to Luna, and that using the connection would both stabilize her own transformation and enhance her abilities to the extent that she could defeat Celestia and win the war. That is why we took the child.”
“I see.” Dawn took a deep breath, then spoke slowly and carefully, each word heavy with dread for the coming answer. “And how would she make such a connection? What effect would this have on Midnight?” Her eyes flicked to Hidden Facts, and I could see that she had already guessed at the same truth I feared. “Neigh, this is—I must seek Mother. This is madness. She would ne’er do such a thing.”
“She will die if she does not,” Hidden answered. “And the war will be lost. In the face of such horrors, it seems a rather small sacrifice to make. How many will die and how much will be lost if we do nothing and accept defeat? I am sure you realize the effect your mother’s death would have upon the morale of our armies, especially when we stand at such a critical juncture. He shrugged uncaringly. “If it seems cruel, then I would say that war is often a cruel thing. I do not see why ‘tis more monstrous to make a single sacrifice than to condemn thousands of soldiers to death in battle.”
“You lie.” Dawn’s words seemed weak, as though not e’en she truly believed them. “Mother would not condone such an act, not e’en if it meant her death.” She whirled upon me. “Tell me ‘tis not true!”
I wanted to deny it. Certainly Mother had ne’er confirmed it to me. And yet ... aye, I had known the truth. For all mine excuses when Mother asked why I had failed my first task in delivering the flower, the true reason was mine own hesitation at the thought of condemning a child to such a cruel fate. And yet, with Mother looking o’er my shoulder and her condemnation ringing in my ears, I had swallowed those doubts and gone through with it.
Dawn stared at me, her jaw slowly dropping in horror as my silence gave answer to her question. “Thou knewest.” I felt a sharp impact on my cheek, jerking my head to the side. I instinctively hunched my shoulders to lessen the impact of her second slap. My sister scowled at me, then struck the worst blow yet. “Lance would be ashamed of thee.”
“Mother said nothing of a sacrifice,” I protested feebly.
“Good.” Dawn turned her back on me, marching for the door. “Then let us seek her out, that we might end this matter.”
As my sister stormed out, I shifted my gaze to the warlock. “Why?” I demanded. “Why tell us this? What do you think to gain from it?”
Hidden leaned back against the wall. “For one, I think the both of you deserved to know the truth, and far better that you fear it from me than from another. We could hardly hide my presence during the ritual preparations. Better that ‘tis done now, discussed, and set to rest. Had it come out in the heat of the moment, one of you might have done something very noble and exceedingly foolish. Now ... there will be time for acceptance ere we begin.” He paused, tilting his head back. “And perhaps I wanted you to understand the why of it: it may be that once the war is done your Mother will decide that I and my dark reputation are more a liability than an asset, and truly put an end to me. ‘Twould be quite awkward to explain to Rightly how it is that I am not actually dead. Perhaps the history books will name me a monster who might have damned our cause. If that is so, then at least one pony should know the truth of who I am and why I acted as I did.”
Doubtless he expected some answer from me, but I saw no point to giving one. Especially not when my sister was marching to confront Mother, and there was nothing to be gained by speaking further with him. Nor did I see any point in explaining to the warlock that I was not the kindred spirit he seemed to see me as. “I see. Good day, then.” I followed in my sister’s wake without another word, walking as quickly as I could without running in order to close the lead she had gained with her earlier departure.
I caught up with her just as she entered the mansion’s grand dining room, which Mother had taken o’er to serve as her temporary headquarters. The table had been cleared of any food or serving trays, instead occupied by pages upon pages of diagrams and spell formulae. Mother stood at the head of the table alongside Moonwatch, the two of them clearly in the midst of preparing for the ritual.
Dawn’s eyes briefly flicked o’er the spellwork, but doubtless she found it all as incomprehensible as I did. After a moment’s hesitation she shook her head and moved past it, going to the Avatar’s side. “Mother, I must speak with you. It cannot wait.”
“I see.” Mother set aside the formulae she had been reviewing with Moonwatch. “I assume ‘tis not some news regarding Midnight’s status. A private matter, then?”
“Aye, a private matter.” Dawn grimaced, shaking her head. “Though ‘tis regarding Midnight and what you intend for her.” Her eyes flicked to Moonwatch, and her face shifted to something ‘tween a grimace and a scowl before she dismissively waved a hoof at him. “Leave us. I will speak with my children alone.”
Moonwatch bowed to both of us. “Prince Dusk, Princess Dawn,” I found the titles as distasteful as e’er, and I am sure my sister felt the same. “With all respect, your highnesses, I have been hard at work on the details for the Conduit ceremony for the last month. I am sure I could answer any questions you have regarding the particulars.”
I put a restraining hoof on my sister’s shoulder to prevent any outburst, though ‘twas a struggle to maintain at the least the appearance of civility myself as I answered him. “Very well, explain the ceremony to us.”
Moonwatch cleared his throat and spoke to us as if he were lecturing a pair of students. “In essence, this ceremony will separate the essence of the Conduit—that is to say, the entity known as Midnight Sparkle—from her corporeal shell in order to merge it with your holy mother. In doing so, the link between the Conduit will transfer over, allowing the Avatar to fully become Divine Luna and unleash her full power.”
Dawn frowned at the warlock. “And in basic terms?”
Mother cleared her throat. “Midnight Sparkle is merely a shard of mine own being. That shard will be united with the whole once more.”
“‘Merely a shard’?” I repeated incredulously. “She is a pony, a little filly. I have spoken with her, and she seems as much a living, thinking being as any other.”
The Avatar shook her head. “I think perhaps thou dost not grasp the full details of the situation. Do not think of her as a child, for she is not one. Midnight Sparkle is an empty shell, born purely to serve as the conduit for my full strength. I arranged for her creation a decade ago to serve precisely that purpose. The sole reason for her existence is to allow me to escape my confinement and walk Equestria once more, and this ritual represents the fulfillment of her destiny. It is necessary to defeat my sister and reclaim my rightful throne.”
An empty shell? Midnight was many things, but not that. I doubt an empty shell would have such joyful fascination with her collection of pink skulls, be possessed of seemingly endless curiosity, enjoy the simple pleasures of good food, seek the approval of her elders, or any of the other things I had seen from the filly. Gale certainly would not have become so fond of her were she naught but a hollow void waiting to serve Luna’s purposes—to say nothing of Midnight’s terror when confronted by the Avatar. Neigh, the Avatar was wrong on that regard.
Or perhaps ‘twas worse than that. Perhaps the Avatar was not mistaken, but rather thought to lie to us. Hidden had once confessed that he did not know how much of my mother’s essence remained. If the Avatar would now lie to her own children to make them complicit in the murder of an innocent filly, the answer was plain. Mother would never condone such acts.
Dawn took a step back from the Avatar, her voice cooling and her posture guarded. “What would Lance say of this?”
The Avatar blinked and shook her head, then answered. “Lance would understand that we must sometimes make sacrifices for the good of all ponykind. My daughter laid down her life to free Equestria from my sister’s tyranny and help me gain my rightful throne. Now, we will finish what she began.”
Lance had done nothing of the sort. She fought because duty and honor demanded it, spent the last days of her life trying to bring an end to the war, and had died because of a simple accident. It had certainly been nothing to do with putting Mother on any sort of throne, nor would she care to be associated with the Avatar’s current plans. Mine ears slowly wilted. “Yes, sometimes we must make sacrifices. I see that now, more clearly than e’er.”
The Avatar nodded, seeming satisfied by mine answer. She turned her back on me, her attention shifting back to the formulae. “Once Equestria is free and united under my rule, there will be much work to do. We will reward those who have served us loyally, and punish those who dared defy their rightful queen. Once Equestria sees my sister’s head on a pike o’er Canterlot’s gates, with Shadow’s and Sunbeam’s flanking it, they will grasp what changes are in store. And of course, thou wilt have a valued place at my side.”
“Of course,” Dawn answered, her tone carefully neutral. “If you will excuse me, Avatar, I must attend to my duties.”
“Aye,” I agreed quickly. “I ... need to lie down for a bit. It has been a long day, and there is much that will need to be done. I should be rested and ready for it.” I hesitated for a moment, then added, “Do not worry, Mother. I understand the truth of the matter. You have my word that I will honor what you and Lance taught me.”
The Avatar smiled and nodded. “I would expect nothing less. I am glad I could put thy doubts at ease, my children.”
“Aye,” Dawn answered shortly. “I do not have any doubts now.” Without another word she turned about, leaving the room.
After my sister’s abrupt departure, I quickly worked to smooth any feathers she might have ruffled. “I think recent events have been too much for Dawn. There have been a great many surprises and too little time to absorb them all. Do not worry, Avatar, I will see to her.”
“Very well then.” The Avatar nodded dismissively, turning attention back to spell formulae ere I had e’en left the room.
I had intended to immediately seek out Dawn and have words with her, yet it seemed that despite her leaving only moments earlier she had quite eluded me. Finding her would be no easy task, as I doubted she had taken quarters somewhere within the mansion in the short time since we had arrived. Though I had one suspicion where she might have gone, I did not want it to be true.
Howe’er, as had been the case e’er since the beginning of the war, anything that I wished would not be true inevitably was. After a short time two of the hetairoi sought me out. “Sir,” the senior of the two began. “Your brother requests your presence outside the prisoner’s cell.”
“I see. My thanks.” E’en then, I hoped ‘twas but a coincidence. That Dawn could not have been so driven as to...
I shook the thoughts from my head and made my way to the makeshift prison where we held Midnight. Or rather, the prisoner. The Conduit. We seemed to be using a great many terms for her, all intended to distance ourselves from the reality of what we intended. I suppose ‘twas far more palatable to call her ‘the prisoner’ than ‘the child we kidnapped’, and certainly far easier to speak of ‘utilizing the Conduit’ than ‘butchering a young filly in a blood magic ritual.’ I suppose ‘twas some small credit to him that Hidden at least openly admitted his foul intentions rather than hiding them behind innocuous-seeming words.
I made my way to Midnight’s cell, which in truth was less a dungeon cell and more a room Pure Line used to punish servants who incurred his displeasure. Howe’er, the room had a thick door and a sturdy lock, which made it more sufficient for our purposes.
Outside the room I found exactly what I had feared: Dawn on the floor, my brother looming o’er her and pinning her limbs down. I took at least some solace in the fact that no others were present—likely the guards Flash sent with that message had been assigned to watch o’er Midnight prior to ... this.
I cleared my throat and asked a question whose answer I could already guess. “Flash, Dawn, explain thyselves. What is happening here?”
Flash turned to me, though he kept one wary eye on Dawn. “I caught her trying to free the prisoner. Our own sister turned traitor!”
I scoffed and shook my head. “What madness art thou speaking of? In all likelihood she was just looking to the child’s wellbeing, as is her duty.”
“By ordering the guards away and then attempting to pick the locks?” Flash asked incredulously. “If ‘twas her duty, she would have the key and orders from Mother. Neigh, brother, there is no mistaking her intentions.”
I might have made an effort to concoct a plausible excuse for her actions, though ‘twould have been no easy task, but Dawn herself abandoned any pretense of innocence. “Midnight Sparkle is a child, Flash!” She turned her head to face me as best she could whilst pinned to the floor. “Tell him, Dusk—tell him that she is to be murdered by that Unicornian creature!”
Flash’s eyes narrowed, and his grip upon her tightened. “I know the Conduit’s purpose, sister. Do not forget that I served as Captain of the Hetairoi in Dusk’s absence. Without the Conduit the war will drag on far longer, and Mother will be consumed by Luna’s power. A growl entered his voice. “Wouldst thou murder our own mother for the sake of a unicorn brat? For the child of the mare who murdered our brother?”
Dawn did her best to glare defiantly at him. “Mother would ne’er murder a child to save her life, regardless of whose child ‘twas! That thing the warlocks created is not our mother!”
Flash snarled and smacked the back of her head. “Be silent! Were it not for the magi sworn to our cause, Mother would have died to Shadow’s treachery just as Lance did. They saved our Mother—neigh, raised her to new heights of majesty! She will o’erthrow Celestia herself.”
“She will damn us all,” Dawn hissed back. “Or art thou so blinded by the fact that ‘twas thee who delivered her into the warlock’s hooves that thou cannot see the truth?! Will thy pride not allow thee to see the abomination thou hast made of our mother?!”
Flash slammed her hard against the floor, driving the wind from her lungs in a pained gasp, and I sprang into action. I would not allow anyone, not e’en mine own brother, to handle my sister so roughly. I shoved hard into his shoulders, forcing him away from Dawn ere he could harm her any further.
As Dawn hastily rolled away from the battle, I ducked my shoulder and slammed it into Flash’s chest, driving him back and pinning him against the wall. “Hast thou gone mad?! She is our sister!”
Flash grunted in pain as his back slammed into the wall. “She was our sister! Now she is naught but a traitor to Pegasopolis and her clan who would murder her own mother!” His eyes flicked to our sister, groaning on the ground as she massaged her abused joints. “I do not know thee, Dawn Cumulus!”
I pulled Flash back from the wall, intending to slam him hard against it once more as punishment for his words. Howe’er, he seized the brief opening and hammered a blow into my ribs, forcing the air from my lungs in a pained gasp. He quickly stepped to the side, buying himself space to maneuver. “Stand down, brother,” he cautioned, glaring at me. “I will forgive this, but if thou dost fight any further for a traitor’s sake, thou wilt join her in her crimes.”
Mine eyes narrowed as I closed in on him. “If I must serve the Avatar to remain part of this clan, then I shall wear the name Cumulus as a badge of honor.”
Flash jabbed to ward me off, but I easily sidestepped it. Perhaps enraged by his failure, he o’ercommitted to his next blow. I caught his o’erextended hoof, then pulled him forward while stepping in to plant a knee into his ribs. Flash let out a pained wheeze, and I followed up by slamming my helmet crest into his unprotected face, sending him staggering back as blood sprayed from his broken nose.
Flash nearly fell to the ground, and I continued advancing upon him. In hindsight, I should have contented myself with the harms I had already inflicted upon him. Howe’er, ‘tween his harsh words and the bruises he had left upon Dawn I was in no mood to show mercy. This was no mere brotherly scuffle; I wanted to hurt him. Both for his own actions, and simply to unleash some of mine own frustration at all I had suffered, and all I would lose for my choice to support my sister o’er the abomination my mother had become.
Rather than leave my brother down on the floor and flee for my life, I hauled him back to his hooves, only to strike him down again with a frustrated roar. I dragged him back up, intent upon repeating the process, and in my rage I was too slow to notice the fear in his eyes or the glint of steel in his hoof.
I only realized my mistake as a line of cold fire sliced across my cheek, missing mine eye by the narrowest of margins. I leapt back in shock at my brother’s bared steel, but an instant later mine own instincts and training demanded I answer his challenge in kind. I unlimbered my spear, leveling it at mine own brother’s chest.
Dawn stared between the two of us, her jaw dropping in horror. “Stay this madness! Thou art brothers!”
I would have done so, but an instant later Flash closed with me, trying to move within my weapon’s reach. I instinctively stepped back and warded him off with a jab of my spear, the tip scraping against his armored breastplate. E’en if I had wished to withdraw or lay down mine arms, ‘twas too dangerous to do so at this point. Flash’s blood was up, and he might well strike at any opening I presented ere he grasped mine intent.
Flash tried to close with me once more, turning to face me with the thickest part of his armor to deflect any strike I might make. Howe’er, there was a flaw in my brother’s tactics: he concerned himself so much with avoiding the tip of my spear that he forgot about the rest of the weapon. Rather than try to ward him off with another jab I let him close, then caught him alongside the helmet with the shaft. The blow was not especially hard, but it rattled him long enough for a better opening. I whirled my spear and struck him under the jaw with its weighted butt, catching him a blow that snapped his head back and sent him tumbling to the ground.
As mine opponent fell to the ground, I righted my spear and readied the next logical blow in the sequence: a thrust into his throat to finish the matter. Howe’er, despite the fury coursing through my veins, as I stared down at my beaten foe my spear froze in my grasp. Flash might be a fool who chose loyalty to a twisted mockery of our mother o’er his own sister, but he was still my brother. I could not more kill him than I could cut off mine own right leg.
My hesitation undid me, for Flash could not know what thoughts passed through my mind in the heat of battle. All he saw was an enemy poised to deliver the killing blow, and he reacted as any would. He desperately lashed out with his blade, and I was ill-prepared to block it. Despite my best effort to dodge or at least mitigate it, his steel bit deep into my neck.
I staggered back, a hoof instinctively moving to assess my wound. Flash wasted no time swatting the spear out of my weakened grasp, and as he closed in on me I saw no hesitation in his eyes. Mine own brother intended to strike me down, and I could not hope he would hesitate as I did.
Ere he could strike, I saw movement out the corner of mine eyes as Dawn closed in behind him with a dagger of her own. She struck with a chirurgeon’s precision, slashing his foreleg and sending Flash’s weapon tumbling to the floor as his limb suddenly refused to respond to his commands. She followed by kicking his ankle, breaking one of the sensitive bones within and leaving him down and helpless on the floor.
Flash lay on the floor, groaning in pain and vainly struggling to right himself. Dawn kicked away his weapon and quickly searched him for anything else, then took his uninjured hoof and placed it against his knife wound. “Hold pressure here and do not move, else thou wilt aggravate the wound or worsen the injury to thy leg. I will see to thee once I ensure that Dusk is well.” She paused a moment, then grabbed several of his feathers and roughly pulled them from his wing. “Lest thou wouldst think to take flight ere I see to thy wounds, brother.”
Flash groaned and glared at her, but did as she demanded.
Once she was satisfied he would continue to obey, Dawn shifted her attention to me. “Be still and remove thy hoof, so that I might see to thy wound.” I shifted my grip, hissing in pain as air washed over my wound. Dawn scowled at it, scrutinizing it and gently touching around it several times. “For once, luck is with us. The zealous idiot nearly sent thee to Lance’s side, but it seems he managed to miss anything vital by the barest of margins.”
I winced as she rummaged through her saddlebags for whate’er medical supplies she had on hoof. “Dawn, we must leave at once. When—”
“We will do nothing until I have bound thy wound, and our brother’s,” Dawn interrupted me. “Didst thou not hear me say how perilous thine injury is? I will not have thee gallivanting about Canterlot with an open wound that could kill thee with a single ill-chosen movement. Now be still and let me finish, for the sooner I am done...”
I knew there was no hope of dissuading her, and in any case I saw no reason to go against a chirurgeon’s advice. While there was precious little in this life I truly loved, I had no wish to die, especially in such an easily preventable manner. Howe’er... “Dawn, once the Avatar learns that thou hast tried to free Midnight...” Mine eyes nervously flicked down the hallways. ‘Twas fortunate Flash had sent the hetairoi guarding Midnight away to resolve the family matter in private, but ‘twas likely they would soon return. Let alone what might happen if the Avatar herself learned of the disturbance.
Dawn sighed and reluctantly nodded. “Aye, we must flee. I do not think Flash lied when he said the Avatar holds the only key to Midnight’s prison, and e’en if I could break down the door, ‘twould be too loud to go unnoticed. Not to mention the warlocks might have...” She trailed off, scowling and shaking her head. “‘Twas foolish to think I could free her so easily when she is central to the Avatar’s plans. We must depart the city as soon as thou art mended enough to fly. Ephors Rightly and Steel must hear the truth of the matter, they will believe us.”
I winced as she applied a particularly unpleasant ointment to my neck, though I presumed the sharp, warm tingling sensation it produced was a sign of its effectiveness. “Dawn, the Ephors are outside the city and past the walls. E’en if we manage to make it past Celestia’s forces and reach them, they would have to breach the city ere they could do anything to stop the Avatar.”
“We must,” Dawn insisted as she began wrapping a bandage about my neck to hold the poultice in place. “There is no other choice if we are to stop this atrocity.”
At her prompting I took a breath to ensure the bandage was not too tight, then slowly met her eyes. “Dawn, surely thou knowest that if we would stop the Avatar, our best hope for success is to go to the forces already within the city.”
Dawn stared at me incredulously. “And tell them what, brother? When they learn of thy perfidy they will surely put thee to death, and likely me as well. And why should they believe thy warning mere moments after thy confession of lying to them for the past several weeks?”
She was not wrong on either count, but... “If that is the way it ends, then so be it. But I think I would rather die doing all within my power to save the child than live knowing that she perished through my inaction.”
Dawn put the final touches on my bandage, then sighed. “I am afraid thou art right on the matter, much as I dislike it. So be it, then; we shall warn Gale, Shadow, Celestia, or whome’er we must as soon as our business here is concluded. Thou wilt live, so all that remains is to see to Flash.” She turned to treat him.
Howe’er, our brother was no longer there. All that remained of him was a trail of rapidly drying blood, leading down the hallway. Clearly, he had used Dawn’s focus upon my injuries to flee and warn the Avatar.
Mine eyes widened as the implications of his absence struck home, and I desperately clung to Dawn’s leg. “We must leave at once.”
Dawn shook me off with an annoyed growl. “That idiot...” She began stalking down the hallway, shaking her head. “I said to hold pressure and not move!”
“Dawn!” I tried to restrain her once more. “He runs to the Avatar. Once she learns what has happened, she will kill the both of us and any hope of saving Midnight will be gone. We must be far from this place ere she learns what we did.”
“He is injured!” Dawn protested.
“But still our enemy,” I countered. “As soon as thou art done aiding him, he will work to bring about our doom. And in any case, the Avatar can likely heal his wounds far better than thee.”
“And let her warlocks work the same foul alchemy upon him that they used to warp our mother?!” Dawn shook me off once more, storming down the hallway. “Neigh, I will not have it.”
As I would be hard-pressed to drag her forcefully from the manor e’en without any wounds, I had little choice but to follow behind her. And despite all my protests and the violence that had passed ‘tween us, I could not deny that a part of me worried after our brother’s wellbeing. E’en after we had nearly slain one another, we were still family.
Flash had not made it to the Avatar, or e’en near her. We found him but a short distance away, lying in a shallow pool of his own blood.
“No,” Dawn gasped, shaking her head. She rushed to his side, rolling him onto his back and clamping her hooves down upon his wound as soon as ‘twas visible. “Flash thou idiot, I told thee to remain until I had seen to thee!”
Our brother offered no response. His blank eyes staring sightlessly up at the ceiling as his pale, limp body remained motionless, save for Dawn’s efforts.
Dawn blinked in shock, then shook her head and redoubled her efforts, frantically bandaging his wound despite the fact that only the barest trickle of blood was still leaving it. I slowly placed a hoof on her shoulder and tried to gently pull her away. “Dawn, he’s...”
Dawn ignored both my hoof and my words, continuing to work upon him. “I need more supplies, my potion bag, sutures—Dusk, stop standing about and help me save him!”
I grabbed her shoulder and shook her. “He is beyond thine aid, Dawn!”
“No!” She struggled against my grip, her eyes shifting back to our brother. “No, he is ... if I can just ... I just need to...” Her shoulders slowly slumped down as she could no longer deny the truth. “Neigh, that is not ... he cannot be...”
I began to pull her away, struggling against the tears I so dearly wished to shed, but knew I had no time for it. We could hardly stop to mourn our brother when the Avatar might be upon us at any moment. Mine eyes lingered upon Flash one last time, then turned away as I started for the entrance. Ere I was halfway, I realized I was alone. Dawn remained beside our brother’s body.
“Sister.” I whispered. “We must go.”
Dawn did not answer. She stared at Flash in silence, and did not respond when I shook her shoulder. I struggled for the words to reach her—to say something to her, if only so that she would look away. Finally, I took Dawn’s hoof in mine own and guided her away. For the briefest moment she resisted, but she had no will to do more than that.
She followed in silence as I led her into the night.