Words felt extinct at this point.
Through the air, beyond the grey, pillow-like clouds, the armoured airship sailed through a silver a mist. It was hard to believe that it was still night after all that had happened. From the announcement to The Hunter's attack to the Fear Fog and now Tartarus' breakout. Cold, the air was harsh and everypony had kept to themselves, talking would have dampened their thoughts.
One by one, Twilight recollected her memories of the breakout and with each analysis of remembering the events, it only scared her. Even if she wanted to put a halt to recalling, they would only bombard her thoughts. Alone, away from her friends, Twilight had isolated herself. On the deck of the airship, watching the slender, swirly clouds pass by, her brain pumped with pain and fear as she remembered her sudden outburst during the prison.
Tainted by the foul spells of fear, Twilight felt diseased, poisoned even though the vile venom had long departed from her body. Momentarily, she began to drift off into the night sky, only to be accompanied by the familiar screams that haunted her during her trip into the cursed realm that revolved around her fears.
With widened eyes, Twilight gazed at the night sky beyond the clouds, near the edge of the airship, she sat, watching the stars play their beauty over a sealed blanket of mist. Her body slouched over, her wings dampening to the deck's floor as she constantly felt haunted by failure, fury and fear.
He was winning.
Fright was winning.
As long as she was afraid, then he was winning.
There was no denying the fear that crept into her heart, the dread that was lingering in her mind, it was too hard to avoid. Struggling to maintain her own serenity, the alicorn's head slumped as her eyes focused on the passing clouds, still looking dull and dim. Inhaling deeply, she crumbled a little, scared more than ever now that Tartarus' raging monsters have escaped and Spike was still in the hands of a deranged lunatic.
In the pilot's compartment, Holly was at ease, maintaining controls over the airship, piloting through the night sky. By her side, Shining Armour could only hold his tongue for so long. Looking disturbed in the eyes, he quickly blinked, erasing all signs of fear as he spoke, turning his head to Holly.
"So what happened?"
Her silence wasn't taken as an act of rudeness, at first, he had thought she misheard him, but the pilot was doing her best to form her story. Holly knew what Shining Armour was questioning and before she could speak, he spoke again, refreshing her memories.
"With the rest of our group. Why wasn't their reinforcements?" He questioned, arching a brow.
With a sigh that sounded like she was in pain, Holly could only look disappointed in herself and she refused to look at her captain, even if she wasn't flying, she still couldn't bring herself to look at him.
"They were scared," Holly declared, not a single emotion budging from her disappointed expression. "They were scared because of how easily that hunter wrecked through our defences and they were too frightened to assist us because of how far the changelings moved on with their plan."
For a moment, Shining Armour turned his gaze away from his second-in-command, his eyes slouching down to the floor as he comprehended the story.
"I tried to convince them..." Holly stated. "I tried to show everypony that together, united we could fight back the fears and The Hunter, but they refused. Fear blinded them." She took a slight pause and reinforced her vision. "When they left, there was only me. I chose to stay with the airship because that was our only chance of escape in case the breakout succeeded and it did. I'm sorry I failed."
"You didn't fail, Holly," Shining Armour was quick to respond, a little too quick, almost as if he was expecting Holly to say that. "We all followed our duty in protecting Equestria, and I can't blame our team for fearing The Hunter. The way he moved, the way he just... Attacked relentlessly. Behind that mask is someone damaged, cruel and evil."
Resuming, he took a moment to regain his thoughts and feelings about the situation Holly had placed herself in, "Again, you didn't fail me for not bringing back reinforcements. You chose to stay with the airship and that was the best move. Thanks for staying by my side, Holly."
Finally, the second-in-command tore her gaze from the clouds and towards her captain, presenting a small smile but it was quick to fade when worriment bombed her thoughts once more.
"Thanks, Captain," Holly appreciated. "But what do we do now? The breakout succeeded and how are we going to fight off and contain these foul demons?"
"We'll think of something." He assured. "We have magic, unity and harmony on our side." He reminded with a smile that didn't look too confident but somewhat assuring. "Our top priority is to establish safe havens, secure everypony and clear away any threats."
Without any warning, a crushing pain struck Shining armour's head as he was quick to release a groan in annoyance, his hoof quickly motioning to his head where he felt the scratch from The Hunter.
"Is everything alright?" Holly asked, looking at her captain with anxiety in the eyes.
"I'm fine." He assured while his teeth gritted together, clenching his eyes shut as he waited for the pain to fade. "That Hunter got the best of us, but the next time he attacks we'll be ready... We have to be... We will be."
Without any sign, Shining Armour headed to the exit of the compartment and onto the deck, leaving Holly to flying them back home.
Within the airship, spacious and vast, the third deck was considerably dark, the light was faint but enough to see the three ponies that remained motionless, like cold statues in a garden. Around them, there were organised weapons, shields and crates.
For a while, Applejack remained still, sitting on a bench attached to the ship's wall. Her emerald eyes darted to the floor and refused to examine any other parts of the ship's interior. A lot was on the mare's mind, her hat slowly tipped over her head and blocked half of her vision.
Worried, tired and sick, Rarity sat next to Applejack with a frightened look covered on her face, clear as day to see. She trembled with distress and anxiety would fill rattle her limbs. Even the unicorn had lowered her eyes to the floor, she simply sat much like Applejack, however, fear looked more present as it quivered all over her.
In disbelief, enraged and also afraid, Rainbow Dash was in the same state as her two friends, except she stood tall just next to the bench. Tangled like wires, her thoughts conflicting with one another, she didn't know how to feel about this disaster but disturbed.
Finally, motioning her head and being the first to move, breaking the silence, she widened her eyes a little and spoke in a tone that sounded confused, "Did... Did we really lose?" She asked, now looking worried to receive the answer. It was hard for Rainbow to grip what had happened during the prison, she hated losing but this wasn't a game, losing meant consequences. When peace and life were on the edge, it was pushed off. Now pain and panic were trembling through Equestria's bones.
Applejack and Rarity elevated their eyes from the floor and targeted Rainbow Dash as the silence shattered. Rarity didn't want to answer, she knew the answer, but hearing it out in the open would just sound amiss.
With a sigh, closing her eyes and lifting her hat back into its ordinary position, Applejack reopened her eyes and avoided her gaze from Rainbow, answering with a voice that sounded exhausted and frail, "Ah'm afraid so, Rainbow."
Hearing it confirmed, Rainbow could only hold her tongue for so long. "But... We're the Elements of Harmony. We're supposed to maintain peace and..."
"That doesn't mean anything," Rarity interjected with a miserable look. "We lost because we were outnumbered, scared and hurt."
"We lost because that hunter got the drop on us!" Rainbow Dash argued. "If he was out of the picture then we would have stopped those freaks!" She shouted, shaking her hooves as she leapt into the air and allowed her wings to hover.
"But he wasn't," Applejack countered.
Another moment of silence managed to linger by, and the three couldn't find the strength to speak again. Replaying their memories, looping back to the disaster, they were all pondering about the breakout, but also examining the moment they felt afraid.
"I'm..." For a moment, Rarity paused and wondered if speaking would be acceptable at this time. She looked up to see both Applejack and Rainbow Dash's eyes aiming at her, completely regaining her voice. "I'm sorry to be the one to address this, but we all saw what happened to Twilight, did we not?"
"Of course we did, she was in pain and freaked out because of that fear poison infecting her senses," Rainbow Dash told. "I hope she's okay."
"I don't think I've ever seen Twilight act like that before," Rarity confessed. "I know the poor dear has had her moments, but back there, that wasn't normal."
"The way she just screamed and blindly tried to disintegrate everything around her. Did you see how she attacked Shining Armour?" The pegasus recalled.
"Girls!" Applejack raised her voice, catching the attention of the two, glaring at them. "Maybe it's about time we talked to her rather than about her."
Rarity and Rainbow exchanged looks of shame.
"We weren't trying to demonize her, Applejack," Rarity disclosed, her eyes targetting Applejack as she displayed a concerned look towards the earth pony. "Twilight's our friend and we could never be afraid of her, it's just..."
"A lot has happened tonight," Rainbow Dash finished. "From that cruel announcement to The Hunter's attack and then the fog... There's a lot to take in."
The unicorn regained her voice the moment the pegasus paused, "We were just worried where this is going to lead, with the breakout becoming a success and what will happen to Equestria."
"Ah know," Applejack said with a sigh. "We all have a right to be afraid. But Twilight's isolated herself long enough."
"Do you think she'll talk?" Rainbow Dash questioned as she arched a brow.
"She doesn't have to," Applejack eased, hopping off the bench and landing perfectly on all four hooves. "Just as long as we're by her side, then that's all that matters, right?"
For a moment, Rainbow Dash pondered back and gloom was present on her face, however, both Applejack and Rarity dismissed this as worriment.
"Yeah... Yeah, you're right." She complied with, her eyes averting away from her two friends.
Leaving, Applejack and Rarity got a starting lead while Rainbow was left with her thoughts. It wasn't long before she snapped out of her state and followed her two friends. Too many panicking thoughts about the future was striking her down faster than her own speed. Needless to say, she couldn't help but blame herself for the state Fluttershy was in.
Drifting off into space, still filled with doubts, discomfort and despair, Twilight couldn't help but feel worthless. From her lifeless position, almost frozen in time, she had not moved an inch. Hitting her brain, she couldn't help but recollect all the screams, the whispers, the voices, it was hurting her to remember. What made everything worse was when she blindly attacked her own brother and nearly collapsing the pit over her friends and herself.
With a small sniffle, her eyes began to water. Doleful was her eyes, they shifted to the side as they were beginning to glaze as tears began to break through the layers of her emotions.
Unexpectedly, Twilight's body was pulled by something strong, but gentle at the same time. Wrapping around her shoulder, Shining Armour was quick to pull his sister close to him. Although her heart ached and her stomach fluttered with anxiety, she couldn't deny that she felt secure.
Shining Armour closed his eyes the moment he pulled his little sister close, wanting so badly to erase the irritation she felt.
Coming to life, snapping out of her traumatized state, she looked up at her brother, lifting herself from the deck floor and onto all four hooves, keeping her eye contact focused on Shining Armour. Her lip trembled and she pushed herself towards him, accepting the embrace as she began to weep, sobbing into her brother's chest.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry," Twilight frantically cried into her brother's chest.
"Twilight..." Shining Armour eased, bringing a hoof over her head and gently patting her back. "It's okay."
"No!" She cried. "It's not!" One by one, her tears streamed from her eyes and escaped down her face. "Back in the pit, I could have hurt you... Or worse... And that scares me."
"But you didn't," Shining Armour comforted with a smile. "I'm here, I'm fine. You didn't hurt me and we all know what happened. Fright's the one to blame for your outburst, you were witnessing your fears come to life. It's okay, this will all be okay."
Not wanting to argue or even fight back the worriment, she refused to talk and let her bother's comfort calm her.
"I just..." Twilight sniffled, choking on her tears. "I just want Spike back."
"And we'll find him," Shining Armour cooed, still by her sister's side. "We will find him."
Their words had faded into nothingness; silence among the night as they travelled in the air, escaping from terror. At first, the lack of words bothered Shining Armour, but it's what Twilight needed. True, silence comforted her, but also the company eased her. Her brother didn't need to say anything else, just being there, by her side is all that mattered.
Although the alicorn feared herself for losing control and nearly attacking her brother, Twilight couldn't push away Shining Armour.
Intruding on the silence, Princess Celestia forged her way to Shining Armour and Twilight. The two took notice of their princess and broke from their embrace, turning to the ruler of Equestria. This moment of serenity had no last long.
As Celestia approached the two, they couldn't help but notice how exhausted and stressed the princess looked, that and the corruption that swarmed her horn like a horde of wasps. How The Hunter's cure lasted this long was unknown to them. With a face that looked smothered by sombre, reckoned by melancholy, the princess put her focus on Twilight, her head slowly levelling with her.
"How are you feeling?" She asked, her voice paired with a mixture of sadness and concern.
Eyes on her mentor, Twilight averted her gaze and looked away, ashamed to confess, "Scared."
Sadness remained on Celestia's expression as she raised herself from Twilight's level, closing her eyes and trying to grip the new world she was about to face. Reopening them, she faced Twilight once more.
"I'm sorry you had to endure such a twisted and sick reality." She apologised. "I will assure, Fright and those who have assisted him will pay for their actions."
"If I may, Princess," Shining Armour interjected as he took a step closer to the alicorn. "But what's our next move?" He asked with a spark of apprehension in his eyes. "We couldn't stop the breakout and Tartarus' prisoners are now running rampant."
"The situation is frightening and dire, I understand," Celestia acknowledged. "I want to pursue our enemies so this madness can end, but right now, we need to alert and secure the whole of Equestria. Safety is Equestria's number one priority."
"Wait... What about Ponyville?" Twilight raised. "If there isn't an improvement in mine or Shining Armour's magic, then we may not be able to raise a barrier over the town." Slowly, the alicorn began to lose herself in panic's grip. "Our town is on the edge of the Everfree Forest and with the monsters now free from Tartarus, then... Then..."
"Ponyville needs to be evacuated," Shining Armour resolved, settling the issue with little discussion.
Before Twilight could even get a word out, wanting to respond to her brother in disbelief at the suggestion, she was beaten. All that she could do was look stunned at Shining Armour's solution.
"What?!" Three voices called out in shock from behind Celestia.
Twilight along with her brother snapped their heads to the three shocked voices. Standing there, all looking aghast as if a ghost had just become present.
"Leave Ponyville?" Rarity's aghast look faded into an expression of heartbreak. "But that's our home."
"Ah can't just abandon the farm, that's my home and so is Ponyville," Applejack tried to reason.
"The girls are right, Shining," Twilight interjected. "We can't just leave our home to those filthy creatures."
"Twilight, please," Shining Armour said. "I know this is hard, but we're both weak right now when it comes to using magic and The Hunter's magic is still interfering with Princess Celestia's. We need to get everyone out of the town and into Canterlot."
"We can't just turn and run, not again! We need to fight!" Rainbow Dash suggested. "Can't one of you send a message to Canterlot so they can give us allies or something?!"
"Rainbow," Princess Celestia gently spoke. "These monsters, the ones that were locked up in Tartarus. You haven't seen them, what they can do."
"But we've faced the God of Chaos... We even managed to reform him!" The pegasus grew frustrated. "I mean, this is our home! We can't just run like we did back in Tartarus. We're supposed to stop evil, not run from it!"
"I know!" Shining Armour countered. "But look at us, we're weak, hurt and tired. Our options are low and so are our numbers. Are you really going to consider asking the residents of Ponyville to fight those monsters?"
"Well-"
"What if someone gets hurt, what if they're taken or worse!" Shining Armour told.
"Okay, I get it!" Rainbow Dash barked. "I get it." She stated with a sigh. "But... There has to be another way. We can't just let Ponyville be destroyed."
"Ponies will lose their homes, their lives," Applejack sadly added. "Are ya sure this is the only way?"
"I'm sorry, Applejack... All of you," Princess Celestia apologised, feeling hit with disappointment. "But Canterlot's guards will be outnumbered against those vicious, blood-thirsty creatures. I won't allow anypony to get hurt."
"So we evacuate Ponyville, but what happens then?" Rainbow Dash questioned, a little agitated about the predicament they were in.
"We evacuate everypony to Canterlot," Princess Celestia stated. "With my sister's magic still strong and stable, the shield will provide our safety, that and the walls of Canterlot will too. Once everypony is secure behind Canterlot's walls, we need to alert the whole of Equestria about Tartarus' breakout."
"Then it's settled," Shining Armour spoke. "The moment we're in Ponyville's perimeter, we evacuate everypony to the train station and the airship. No one left behind."
Having their plan confirmed, Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash all showed the same face. Disappointed and stricken with sadness, they simply glowered that it came to running once more.
"This isn't easy for any of you," Celestia condoled. "I know a lot has happened, but this terror will not last. I will make sure of it." Turning her focus to Shining Armour, she continued, "We must inform Holly and tell her to make a stop at Ponyville."
"Right away," Shining Armour acknowledged, accompanied with a nod. Before leaving, he was quick to give Twilight a smile, the kind that reassured her faith.
"We will be at Ponyville shortly," Celestia announced. "Until then, try and rest up." She advised, turning away from the four ponies. "And by the way..." She announced, turning around again, the four ponies' eyes on her. "Thank you. All of you. You've done a lot to be here and I am grateful for your bravery."
With Celestia leaving, Twilight was left alone with her three friends. With stars watching them, Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Applejack found it rather hard to talk while the alicorn remained a little depressed.
"So, Twi," Applejack spoke up. "How are ya holding up?"
With a sigh, Twilight responded, her voice decorated with sadness, "I'm sorry you girls had to see that... Back in Tartarus. I lost control and I-"
"Twilight, darling," Rarity interjected. "There's no need to explain yourself, we all went through that vile fog of fears." The unicorn stated while looking a little sick just by remembering the fears that played around. "We all saw something terrible and we know you lost control because you were seeing what you feared most."
"Yeah, Twilight," Rainbow Dash agreed. "We get it, it wasn't your fault."
"Thanks." The alicorn weakly smiled. "I lost control, but even then, before I was infected with Fright's fear venom, I still let my anger get the best of me. I jeopardised our position because I couldn't bottle up my anger."
"Twilight, ah know you're havin' a hard time, believe me, we all are, but don't keep blamin' yourself for this. Chrysalis and Fright may have won tonight, they may have bested us, but we managed to escape that prison safely."
"Yeah, and besides," Rainbow Dash interjected. "After all they've caused, I think they deserved a little thrashing."
"Calm yourself, Rainbow," Applejack eased. "Right now, the residents of Ponyville are gonna need us."
"I'm sorry but are we sure evacuation is the best approach to this situation," Rarity inquired as she arched a brow. "I don't want anypony to get hurt, but isn't there another way to keep our home safe?"
"I'm sorry everypony," Twilight apologised. "But with my magic along with Shining Armour's low, we can't do much to protect the town. Even Celestia's horn along with your horn, Rarity is still blocked by The Hunter."
Rarity's eyes darted up to the dark crystals swarming around her horn, frowning, "Whatever that brute did to me, I hope it fades away soon."
"I'm sure one of the eggheads back at Canterlot can assist you, Rares," Rainbow Dash said.
"Ah hope Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy are okay," Applejack brought up.
"I hope so too, Applejack," Twilight responded. "And girls, thanks for helping me tonight. I just hope this will end sooner than expected."
Sailing through the night, their voices died down as they would soon approach Ponyville. Even though Twilight was comforted, she still couldn't but feel afraid, everypony was afraid.