//------------------------------// // Doubting Ditzy // Story: Darkness' Embrace // by Tricondon //------------------------------// Chapter 9 Doubting Ditzy ‘Ponyville. A rather recent town to have sprung up, though already a bustling community. It was probably best known for the sprawling apple fields, known to the locals as Sweet Apple Acres. The town had been built not long after the Apple family had planted their roots and began tiling the land at the request and generousity of Princess Celestia.’ Twilight scoffed as she tossed the pamphlet into a nearby trash bin then pulled her hood back over her face, covering her head and horn once more. “Generousity of Princess Celestia. As if.” She muttered to herself. Twilight glanced back up the mountain, back at Canterlot. Back at her family. With a dejected sigh, the young mare turned back down the street, already bustling with busy ponies, and continued walking. No one in town seemed to notice the young Unicorn as she trotted through town, though the cloak she wore did a good job at hiding both her gender and race. Twilight deftly weaved through the crowds as best she could without being stepped on or bumped into, a skill one learned easily in Canterlot, though here in Ponyville there were far fewer ponies, so it was easier to dodge them. “It isn’t fair!” A shrill voice cut through the idle chatter of ponies on their way to work, and Twilight paused, looking around for the source. She quickly found a pair of Unicorn mares walking through the middle of the road. One was bright pink and her purple mane resembled a beehive; the other was a pure white filly with a similarly purple mane, though this one was curlier. Twilight watched them as they walked; the filly looked about her age, but she walked rather strangely. Every step was hesitant, uncertain. She hovered her foot in the air back and forth a few times before finally placing it down. Twilight peered closer and spotted tiny white sticks on her hooves, held on by a bright orange bracer. Twilight gave a small gasp as she realized the filly was blind. “Rarity, sweetheart, you know much worse could have happened. You were very lucky.” The older mare said, walking a bit too fast for the smaller one. She stopped some distance away before realizing the filly wasn’t right beside her. She turned around and looked at the filly pityingly. “You call being made blind lucky?!” the filly whined. “I can’t see a thing! I have to wear these stupid canes just to walk!” her complaints were cut off as she started to cry, sobbing loudly. Passing ponies slowed to look, but none of them bothered to stop. Twilight frowned. Even the filly’s mother seemed uncertain of what she should do. Twilight huffed and marched across the roadway, not caring if she got in somepony’s way. However, once she was a few steps away from the blind Unicorn Twilight ran straight into a bright yellow Pegasus filly, lanky and tall with a bright pink mane. She cried out in surprise and shock, dropping all her belongings. “Oh my gosh, I am so so sorry!” Twilight said, forgetting about the blind filly for a moment and helping the Pegasus pick up her things. “Um, no…it was my fault. I shouldn’t have been walking there…” she said in a voice so quiet that Twilight had to strain her ears to hear her. “Who’s there?” The white filly spoke up, reminding Twilight of why she had stormed across the street without looking in the first place. Both Twilight and the Pegasus turned to look at the blind Unicorn, who had not yet moved. The Pegasus left her stuff on the ground and rushed to the filly’s side. “Oh, Rarity! I’m so happy to see you again!” the Pegasus sobbed. “I was so afraid for you!” “Fluttershy, is that you?” Rarity asked, her useless eyes darting around. “I can’t see a thing!” Twilight awkwardly stood nearby, pawing the ground with one of her hooves. The two fillies seemed to be friends, considering how they were talking and crying over the Unicorn’s blindness. Twilight just felt like she was intruding. She couldn’t even recall what had compelled her to walk over here in the first place. “Oh, I’m sorry.” The Pegasus said, walking back to Twilight and nervously grabbing her bags that Twilight was still holding on to. Twilight smiled at the Pegasus, but she hid her face behind her mane, avoiding Twilight’s gaze. “Fluttershy? Is somepony there with you?” Rarity asked. “Oh, uh, I’m Twilight. Twilight Sparkle.” Twilight said after a moment’s hesitation. Rarity managed a smile, though it was almost certainly forced, seeing as her face was still wet with tears. The older mare walked over, placing a hoof on Rarity’s back. She flinched from the sudden contact, and Twilight frowned; Rarity’s mother wasn’t dealing with her child’s blindness very well. “Well, I am sorry to have met you like this, Ms. Sparkle,” Rarity said, her voice retaining none of the sadness from moments earlier, “but I must be off. I have a…new life to get started on.” With that, Rarity began her awkward walk down the road, her mother again walking too fast for her. Fluttershy picked up the rest of her things and bade Twilight a curt farewell, heading the opposite direction from Rarity. Twilight frowned as she watched Rarity walk away. She was obviously new to being blind and was not taking it well. Twilight looked backwards, first noticing Fluttershy as she hugged the side of the road, trying to draw little attention to herself, then up the mountain where Canterlot stood. Twilight knew she had to get more distance, but still, something about Rarity was nagging at her. The purple Unicorn stood there for a few minutes before remembering something she’d read. “Hey, Rarity!” She called out. Ahead, the blind filly stopped, half-turning backwards to ‘look’ at Twilight. Twilight ran up to Rarity, her mind already racing. “Yes? What is it…Twilight, correct?” Rarity asked. Twilight huffed as she looked Rarity in the face, knowing she couldn’t look back. “How would you like to see again?” Twilight blinked slowly, giving a soft moan of pain as she woke. She strained to lift her head up, but decided keeping it on the pillow was best, laying her head back down and shutting her eyes once more. Wait. Pillow? With a snort Twilight snapped awake, her dream already quickly fading. Twilight ignored the pain in her head that was yelling at her to lie down and looked around. The head of the bed was pushed against the wall and a small table sat beside it. There was nothing on top of the table besides the amulet that once rested around Twilight’s neck. There was a dark green curtain surrounding the bed and table, blocking off any view beyond, though Twilight could hear a few hoofsteps from beyond, clacking against the wooden floor. The air had an odd metallic scent to it which Twilight eventually recognized as old blood. She frowned somewhat, dismayed at how easily she accepted the fact that she smelled blood, and yet felt nothing else. Another tentative sniff also brought with it the smell of iodine and fresh gauze. It took Twilight a few moments to register that the necklace was off, and her breathing quickened a bit as she brought a hoof to her chest, feeling for the cold metal. Unable to find the jewel, Twilight ceased looking around the room and tried casting a spell. There was the familiar build-up of magic deep within her, then a slight pushing sensation as she urged the magic to her horn, forming the spell. ‘Light’ ran through Twilight’s mind as she willed a ball of magelight to form. The bed and curtain were bathed in a purple glow as the ball of light floated out of Twilight’s horn and rested against the ceiling. She let out her breath, unaware she’d been holding it in, and a wide smile formed on her mouth. “My magic’s back,” Twilight whispered to herself, and unable to keep her happiness bottled up, broke out into giddy laughter. “My magic’s back!” Twilight repeated, a bit louder. The sound of the curtain being pulled back caught her attention and Twilight turned to look, still with an amicable grin on her face. Twilight’s grin grew even wider as Ditzy trotted next to the bed. Ditzy wore no armour, though she was heavily bandaged. Her right wing was wrapped entirely in white gauze, and her left front leg was up in a sling. The Pegasus sported an eye patch and she had more bandages covering her stomach. She was badly hurt, but alive. Ditzy glanced up at the ceiling where the magelight still burned and smirked. “I see you wasted no time in testing your magic,” she teased. Twilight blushed a little and, with a nod of her head, dispelled the glowing ball. Ditzy smiled as she sat down, wincing in pain. Twilight peered over the edge of the bed and noted that both of Ditzy’s hind legs were dressed as well, though not as bad as her front hoof. “What happened? Where are we? Why is my -” Twilight began, but Ditzy raised her one good hoof to silence her. “We’re back at camp, in the infirmary. Your magical dampener failed. We don’t know why. And…” Ditzy fell silent for a moment. “…you saved me, Twilight. Me and the few members of my team that weren’t killed.” Ditzy looked away from Twilight as she spoke, though she quickly turned back to look at the Unicorn. “Forgive me, Twilight. I’m not used to showing emotion these days.” Twilight’s gaze fell on Ditzy’s injuries, her face forming into a frown. Her thoughts were interrupted by Ditzy’s soft laughter. “I look bad, but I’ll heal soon enough.” Ditzy said, flapping her good wing lazily. “You should have died out there!” The new speaker startled both mares; Twilight awkwardly shifted to look at the very angry pink Earth Pony standing at the foot of the bed. Captain Pie was glaring at the two; curiously, she wasn’t wearing much of her armour, giving Twilight a better look at her physique. Pinkamena was stockier than Twilight remembered, her legs and chest much more muscled. Her once-messy mane was straight and a much duller shade of pink, and it was cut far shorter, barely reaching past her ears. Twilight thought she saw a few old scars, but Pinkamena’s pink fur, coupled with the dim light, made it impossible to tell at this distance. “What was that, Captain?” Ditzy asked. “You should have died, Commander.” Pinkamena repeated. She inhaled deeply, closing her eyes. “Don’t get me wrong, Miss Do, I’m glad to see you’re back safe and sound. But this unicorn,” she hissed, opening her eyes again and glaring at Twilight, “may have jeopardized our entire operation with her little stunt! Or she could have run right to her fellow unicorns. I find it rather suspicious that your magical dampener failed when it did. That’s awfully convenient.” The Captain wasn’t even trying to keep her tone neutral. Ditzy stood up, unable to keep her anger out of her voice. “If she was working for the Queen, then why’d she come back? Why’d she save me and my command?” “Simple. The Queen needs a mole on the inside. And saving you is just her way of allaying our suspicions.” “Then why send a Unicorn? Why not an Earth Pony or a Pegasus? At least we’d be less suspicious of one of those.” “Exactly! We’d welcome a Unicorn more readily as a possibility they might have inside info we can use against her. Allow her to sit in on delicate meetings, find out where our troops are deployed, give us false information on the Queen’s army, and lead us all into a huge trap!” Pinkamena was nearly shouting by the end. “Captain! Commander!” The three mares all turned at the new voice, a timid-looking white Earth Pony wearing a nurse’s cap. She was pushing a cart laden with bandages, scalpels, and syringes, and was glaring at Pinkamena and Ditzy, though she was still clearly intimidated by the former. “Miss Pie, I’ll ask you not to raise your voice. Other ponies are trying to rest and recover. And you,” she continued, turning to Ditzy, “you should not be out of bed and walking around with a broken leg.” With a snort, Pinkamena nodded at the nurse and turned back to Twilight and Ditzy. “Commander Do, I wish you a speedy recovery. Celestia knows we need as many ponies to help us as we can. As for the unicorn, I want her gone.” Twilight was taken aback by how blunt she was. “I don’t trust her. She disobeyed my orders and is a constant threat to us.” The pink pony pointed a hoof at Twilight. “I want her out of my army.” “No,” Ditzy said simply, “you said it yourself. We need as many ponies on our side as we can get. She may not have inside information to help us fight the Queen, but a Unicorn fighting for us can still be a great boon.” Ditzy motioned to her injured wing. “Lady Rarity cannot continue supplying us with our healing charms on her own. She’s falling behind as it is. At the very least, Twilight can help us there.” Pinkamena turned to Twilight and narrowed her gaze, the Unicorn flattening her ears against her head. “Fine,” Pinkamena grumbled, “but she’s in your regiment, Commander. Anything she does is your responsibility,” the Captain paused for a moment, “and your fault.” “Bu-but Captain!” Ditzy protested, “with all due respect, she’s a Unicorn. I train Pegasi.” Pinkamena shook her head, though her twisted smile was still plainly visible. “Well, we’re somewhat lacking in Unicorn teachers, and you are the only pony in this entire camp who’d vouch for her. Unless she’d rather run back to the Queen?” she finished, turning to Twilight. “N-no.” Twilight managed to find her voice. “No, please. I don’t want to leave...” she broke off, uncertain of what to say next. Thoughts of Rarity and Pinkie back in the Ponyville she remembered so fondly raced through her mind; Twilight refused to believe that whatever was going on now was the truth, and something within her told her that staying was the only way to get to the bottom of this mystery. “I won’t leave my friends.” Twilight said softly. Pinkamena was silent for a while before stomping the ground. “Fine! But you’re not that injured. A fractured rib and a few cuts don’t grant you the right to slack off on your training. Get out of this bed and give it to somepony who needs it.” She glanced at Ditzy. “I suppose you’ll still want her in your cabin?” Ditzy nodded. “Then she can move there.” Pinkamena spun around and marched out quickly. Ditzy stood there shaking her head for a time before turning to Twilight. “Alright, you heard her. Painful though it must be, we should get you to my barracks.” Ditzy winced as she raised herself up on the bed, nudging Twilight. “Oh, Dit-Commander Do, please don’t strain yourself. I can get there myself.” Twilight said quickly, climbing out of bed and shakily standing. Her shoulder ached where the sword had cut into her, and the abrupt standing motion gave her a slight headache, but Twilight shook her head slightly, willing herself to ignore these minor problems. Ditzy gave a soft chuckle as she slowly walked beside Twilight, leaning on the Unicorn for support. “Oh, Twilight? What’re you going to do with that?” Ditzy asked as Twilight levitated the magical dampener over. “I’m not sure. Maybe I can find a way to replicate its effects without binding them to a jewel that a Unicorn has to wear. Fashion some sort of portable jammer your troops can carry around with them.” Twilight frowned even as she spoke; a month ago the very thought of robbing another Unicorn of their magic would have sent her into a deep depression, and yet she found herself at war. All the same, there was a nagging feeling at the back of her mind, but it left as quickly as it came as the two left the infirmary. The two walked in silence, with Twilight taking the brunt of Ditzy’s weight as the Pegasus faltered in her steps. “You know,” Twilight said, if only to break the uncomfortable silence, “you didn’t have to come with me. I know my way around camp well enough to find my way back.” Ditzy laughed, a tinkling sort of laughter that reminded Twilight of Pinkie after she played one of her harmless pranks. “And leave my friend to wander through a Unicorn-free zone with her magic back? I’ve got to protect you from some overzealous warrior from jumping to conclusions.” Her tone was light, despite the gravity of the situation. Regardless of this, Twilight still managed a smile. “Thanks for keeping an eye on me.” “Isn’t that what friends do?” “What am I going to do now?” “I don’t know. But whatever you choose, I’ll be there to help you through it.” His ear flicked, and he turned to look at the door. “Mom’s calling. Dinner’s ready.” Shining climbed off the bed and started to walk out. He paused in the doorway, turning to look back. “You sure you’re okay, Twilie? I’m always here if you need it.” Twilight merely nodded, only half-listening anyways. Satisfied with this, Shining left. Twilight listened to the clopping of his hooves as he walked downstairs. She gripped Smarty Pants again, resting her head against the dolls’ and looked out the window. “Always here...” She murmured softly. “Pity,” Twilight sighed, “he would have made an excellent guard, so willing to fight.” A scream startled her, and the unicorn scanned the surrounding area, no easy task considering the amount of smoke. Through the haze, she could see a number of other ponies running around, blinded by the constant smog. A flash of light penetrated the smoke, and with it, a gust of wind blew the smoke clear. As the mare looked up, she glared at the pony walking towards her… Twilight woke up suddenly, drenched in sweat. Twilight was dimly aware of somepony’s horrified screaming; it was only after she took a deep breath and the shrieks stopped that Twilight realized she was the one yelling. She panted for breath for a few moments, forcing herself to calm down. Twilight waited for her eyes to adjust to the ambient light, though it was hardly much different than having her eyes closed, before glancing around the room. Ditzy’s bedroll was rolled up and laid against the back wall; that wasn’t surprising, considering the Pegasus was still recovering in the infirmary. With luck, she’d be well enough to come back to the hut by tomorrow. Twilight sighed, laying back in the bed and tried not to think about how hard the mattress was. A rock would be softer than this thing, she thought sarcastically. The Unicorn closed her eyes and tried going back to sleep, but the damp blanket, mixed with the cool air, made her shiver and she sighed as she kicked off her blanket and rolled out of bed. She groaned as she cast a magelight spell, illuminating the dark room with an unnatural glow. Ditzy’s injuries were severe enough that a doctor might be needed to tend to her, but Twilight was healing quite quickly. Her shoulder was already nearly healed, though the cut was still visible; she frowned, knowing that a scar was likely to form, considering how deep the wound was. Though she still felt physically fatigued, her frazzled nerves told her that she wouldn’t be getting back to sleep any time soon. With a heavy sigh Twilight left the bedroom, the ball of light following her, and examined the other room. It was still in disarray from her unfortunate outburst; if anypony had looked around after Twilight left, they hadn’t bothered to clean up. With another sigh Twilight levitated the splintered remains of the table and stacked them neatly against the wall. She moved on to the scattered papers, though there was some hesitation. Twilight knew that these likely contained sensitive information and that she shouldn’t read them, but on the other hoof… “How can I sort them properly if I don’t know what’s written?” she asked the empty room. Twilight fidgeted uncomfortably, staring at the stack of papers that rested in the middle of the floor. If the army was anything like Celestia’s guard the papers would need to be sorted and filed away properly, but that also meant they probably wouldn’t look kindly on somepony like her looking at what is possibly top-secret information. “Alright, I’ll just read enough of them to sort them appropriately.” Twilight reasoned. “I just won’t read anything in great detail.” Her mind thusly made up, Twilight began sorting through the files, separating them as best she could. Personnel Listings, Death Notices, 'Twilight Sparkle’ Evaluation, Patrol Routes and Plannings... Wait, what? Twilight’s thoughts paused, the various papers and files falling to the floor as she lost focus on the levitation spell. She swallowed nervously as she stood over one of the files and carefully read the tag on it again. ‘Twilight Sparkle’ Evaluation. She hadn’t misread it. Curiousity burned within her; she had to know what was written, but it was almost certainly never intended for her eyes. Her hoof trembled as she held the document up, forgetting about her magic for the moment. The paper was surprisingly dull, being more of a catalogue of Twilight’s actions and movements since her arrival, all written in Ditzy’s steady script. She had been keeping track of Twilight’s fighting progress, how well she seemed to be adapting to life in the army, even how many other ponies she was talking to (a section that was sadly empty save for Ditzy, Pinkamena, Rarity, and Rock Solid). The last section of the evaluation, however, made Twilight raise her eyebrows in shock. ‘Twilight Sparkle,’ if that is indeed her name, seems driven to make friends, though very few in camp seem ready to approach her or sustain a conversation if they can help it. I suspect this may be in part related to her name; rumours are hard to quell, and the name ‘Twilight’ is bound to associate a few unwanted stigmas on her. I find it highly unlikely, therefore, that any sensible Unicorn would willingly take on such a name, considering the bad air surrounding it. It is my belief that ‘Twilight Sparkle’ is suffering from a form of amnesia. She heard the name and mistakenly took it as her own, lacking any other roots. Her lack of fighting prowess is further evidence that her mind is damaged. Her amnesia may well be magical in nature, since I have been unable to locate any old wounds, nor has she exhibited any other physical signs of previous head trauma that often accompany brain damaged ponies. I shall continue to monitor her to see if I can figure out who she used to be, and hopefully restore her memory. I believe it to be best if I continue to act as her confidant, at least until such time that she either remembers her old life or begins reaching out to others… Twilight let the paper fall to the floor, not wanting to read any more. She slumped on the ground, covering her head with her forehooves and clenched her eyes shut. “No, no…it’s not true…Ditzy is my friend…She would never…” A lump formed in Twilight’s throat and she stopped speaking. She twitched slightly, trying not to cry. Her efforts seemed to be in vain, for when she lifted her head up tears were already streaming down her face. “No…please, Celestia, don’t let it be true…” she mumbled, as much to hear somepony speak as to center her thoughts. “It isn’t true!” she shouted, half mad. “Ditzy isn’t…Fluttershy can’t be…” Her horn began to spark as her emotions grew fiercer. “I’m not a murderer! I haven’t lost my memory!” Twilight’s body began to glow a soft purple. “This can’t be real! Rarity isn’t blind! My whole life cannot have been some lie!” Had her eyes been open, Twilight would have seen a large bubble pop into existence around her. “I refuse to believe any of this! It’s not possible!” Twilight’s eyes flew open as she stomped the ground in frustration. It was only then that she noticed the bubble around her, felt the familiar surge of magic flowing to her horn, and sensed the imminent release of magic. With a gasp Twilight tried to reign in her emotions, gain control of her magic, but it was too late. The spell, having lost its focus, blasted out of her horn, floated to the roof of the room, and promptly shattered upon contact with the solid surface. Twilight and the house were consumed by a purple explosion.