//------------------------------// // Chapter Eighty-four: Turning Hearts // Story: A Rather Large Adventure // by BradyBunch //------------------------------// The sliver of green amid the mist of darkness was the only grip on direction that Noble had. The crystal wobbled in its aura as he and Rarity ran through the hallways of the massive temple. No other light could be trusted but the measly balls of white light from their horns. Noble’s horn had cooled down by now where he could use it without giving him a headache. His eyes were on the ground, looking for scuff marks, burns, or any sign of struggle. Where would prisoners be? “Rarity?” he asked, panting as they ran. “Where would one… look for a prisoner?” “Why do you need… to know?” Rarity asked without turning around. “We’ve got a guide… right here!” “I just want… to be prepared,” he clarified, breathing hard through his mouth. “No harm… forming a plan.” Rarity slowed down to a trot, then stopped, resting on the side of the slanted wall. “I suppose we’ll just have to find out then, right?” “One step at a time,” Noble reminded himself. “Nothing big for now. Just... find whoever the crystal’s pointing to.” After catching their breath for half a minute, they started their brisk trot again. Their hoofsteps made bangs on the metal ground, and when a particularly loud hooffall was made, Noble winced. “Who do you expect we’ll find?” Rarity asked. “Somepony that’s able to cause an eruption that big? Probably Firestorm. Rainbow Dash, too. Or Pinkie, if she got free. Tempest and Starlight are also likely options.” “What about Twilight?” Rarity suggested. Noble jiggled his head. “Sure. But something tells me that if it was her, the explosion would be stronger.” “Wielding an Element that can flatten a battlefield does lend some credibility,” Rarity admitted, and the end of her sentence was punctuated by, instead of a clang of her hoof on the walkway, a squish. Rarity stopped immediately. She lifted her hoof and looked down, and she let out a short scream. Noble looked down as well. His chest immediately squeezed in shock. It was a cauterized, uneven half of an alicorn. Casting their light around, the two unicorns saw more signs of carnage in the black hall. Right beside the burned alicorn half was his other side, and another blood-soaked alicorn mare slumped on the wall. A single hole was in her upper chest. Not all of her body was in the light, which Noble was grateful for. But upon examination... “Those look like sword wounds,” he noticed. “Firestorm,” Rarity put together. “But what… why would he…” “We’re getting close,” Noble cut off. “Let’s ask him face-to-face.” Rarity nodded in compliance and went forward once more. They didn’t go long before they saw more signs of battle. The walls were scorched black, and an open doorway they peeked through led to only crackling cinders of burning beds. Shrapnel was scattered all over the hallway. “What’s got him so riled up?” Rarity wondered under her breath as she walked closer beside Noble. The further they went, the worse it got; there were two more bodies all over the hall, singed and burned. Finally, a metal wall blocked their path completely, but there was a giant hole melted in the exact center, and the edges had been hardened like frozen water. Noble peeked through, afraid to touch anything. Even more shapeless lumps of charred flesh were in the hall further on, and there were melted hoofsteps in the metal ground. The walls had been torn up, exposing the black rock beneath. Rarity put her head next to Noble's to also peek through. "At least he's left a trail," she noted, though there was nothing in her tone to suggest it was a good thing. "Why do you think he went out of his way to kill them?" "Beats me," Noble admitted. "And why were the alicorns so defenseless?" "Yeah," Rarity agreed. "Even the alicorns at the Tree of Harmony were…" She broke off mid-sentence. "What?" Noble asked. "This could be about that," Rarity figured. "They hardly left a good first impression. And their cockiness could just be a part of the community. They’re alicorns, after all, and they haven’t left the mountain. What normal pony could stand up to them? Besides, they didn't even think Firestorm was a worthy threat until he killed one of them. Perhaps that was a blow to his morale." "So you think he took it personally?" Noble asked. “I’ve seen him angry before…” "Darling, anger is based off other things. Right now, it's a mix of a prejudice against alicorns, a doubting of his abilities, a desire to prove himself, and exasperation for those who keep getting in our way," Rarity declared. "I understand how he feels. But still, taking it to this extreme…" The banging of hoofsteps snapped them out of their words and made them focus ahead. They could barely see more than a few feet in front of them in the dark, but the hoofsteps felt like more than one pony. “That sounds like trouble,” Rarity warned. “But we can’t turn back!” Noble pointed out. “So we fight?” Noble’s horn charged up in a whine for a response. But as the hoofsteps and the flapping of wings grew louder, Noble could discern some yells and screams of fright. They weren’t coming for them. These alicorns were just running away from someone else! They rounded a corner about twenty meters ahead and entered their section. Noble could count up to at least eight, maybe ten, but they were so congested together that he couldn’t tell with any accuracy. The lead one, who had a red body and a black-and-red spiky mane, along with red eyes (it was a fairly common color palette among these alicorns, though, Noble noted) reached the wall, peeked through the hole, and panted between his screams and arm waves. “What are you… doing here? Don’t you know… there’s a psycho on the loose?” “W-we just came to investigate,” Rarity excused. “You’re in the way! Get out of the…” His red eyes widened, then squinted in their intense light. “Wait a sec! You’re not alicorns! How-” A mighty creak came from the hall behind them all, and the black-and-red alicorn slowly swiveled his head above the rest of the alicorns he was leading. The rest of them were also looking at the end of the hall and were crouching, getting into stances, spreading wings, and igniting horns. Even with the light all that provided, there still wasn’t enough to fully illuminate a barely-visible shadow that seemed to materialize at the turn of the bend. Every muscle quivered. There was no sound except the constant, quiet, underlying chime of horns. The shadow in the cloak of darkness did not move. Then the hiss and sinister undulating rumble of an ignition cut through the sparkles, and the upright shadow sprouted two fiery extensions, flickering orange and showing the outline of his dark figure. “Kill it!” came several cries, cracking with fear, and a chorus of horns sang in a rainbow of colors and sounds as multiple magic blasts soared at him. The flashes of light made this particular hallway the brightest Mount Nevermore had ever been. The dark figure evaded three-quarters of the shots, which whizzed right by him, and his twin fiery bars swished and sliced in every direction, catching the other quarter and deflecting them. Into the ceiling, into the walls and shattering rock, and back at the alicorns. Some quickly put up small shields, but one bolt deflected into an alicorn’s chest, and he went down with a cauterized hole. The figure was moving forward inexorably by flapping his wings, not even touching the ground, and once his fiery sword was within reach of the alicorns, it became a merciless massacre. With a hard sweep, he deprived three alicorns of their horns immediately, creating three separate cries of pain. A few up-and-down slashes later, they fell, unmoving. "Help us!" the black-and-red alicorn pleaded, sticking his hooves through the melted hole and trying to wiggle his way through. His face showed only fear. "Help! Please!" The next alicorn to die sprouted two long whips of red energy from his horn, which snaked right at the dark figure. But he crossed his arms, and the whips latched onto the tips of the fiery blades. Then he uncrossed his arms, throwing the alicorn forward like he was on a fishing line, and the dark figure’s rear legs came up to smack him in the face and subsequently smash him into the ground. With an indifferent backward circle of his right arm, the figure ended his life. His left arm extended forth and trembled as he focused. An unstable, dense sphere of flame concentrated amid the five remaining alicorns and started to grow. Once it reached the size of a baseball, it exploded, throwing flame all over the remaining alicorns. Their group fell apart at that point. But the figure didn’t stop. He raised both swords above his head and cleaved them into a white alicorn one at a time, then ripped the right sword out, flinging blood and worse, and chopped through a black alicorn’s throat in the same sweep. He was screaming furiously with every swing of his sword at this point. One black alicorn tried to scramble and crawl on the ground past the figure, but his rear left leg caught her and pinned her against the bare wall by the stomach. Without even looking at her, his left sword came out of the body, and a furious swing of his left arm beheaded her with such force, it left a sparking gash in the rock wall. “Please!” the second-to-last alicorn screamed, falling back onto her turquoise rear. “Ple-” His right sword fed itself to her and retracted, and she limply collapsed. The black-and-red alicorn, finding himself unable to fit through, pressed his back against the hole. “Please, I-I’ll give you anything! Anything you want! Power, gold-” "There is nothing you have I could want, devil!" came his roar, and the orange light on the other side of the wall intensified. "I am so sick of you!" The tip of a flaming sword ripped through his back and cleaved upward, creating a thin orange line in the wall. The alicorn's body dropped to the floor. The ends of the tear in the wall then curved outward with a squeak and squeal to meet Noble and Rarity, who by now had taken a few cautious steps back. The figure was now in plain sight, pushing the metal with all his strength. Then he dropped through, coming face to face with the two unicorns. The figure stuck his swords point-first into the metal hallway and settled down to all fours. His expression was one of residual disgust and disdain. Around his neck were two gold jeweled necklaces, one with a red lightning bolt and the other with an orange X. “...Firestorm?” Rarity gaped. Firestorm nodded, and the expression disappeared in a flash to be replaced with a hopeful smile. “Yeah. Glad to see you too.” Noble couldn’t move, couldn’t even breathe properly. Was this really the same Firestorm he knew? He didn't want to have to face him so soon, but he had to acknowledge it. There was something darker about him. Something more sinister and ill-intentioned. Firestorm, meanwhile, was holding his arm out for a hug. But Rarity wasn’t obliging. She instead took a step back, her eyes darting towards his victims. Initially confused, Firestorm noticed her nonverbal cue and rolled his eyes. “Right, like you weren’t about to do the same thing.” “Storm!” “What? What is it? Spit it out.” “You’re… different.” “Big surprise,” Firestorm noted. “What, is this the first time you’ve seen me actually pissed?” It wasn’t for Noble. This exceeded what Noble had previously seen displayed. “You killed… all these ponies,” Rarity was saying. Which surprised Noble; she had been determined to kill to rescue him. “Ponies?” Firestorm asked in response. “All I killed were devil-worshippers. Is this really the first thing you say to me?” “...How did you get here?” Noble asked. He was willing to push aside Firestorm’s unnatural aggression as a side effect of being in an evil place for too long. If he was around him again, maybe he’d lean back into his old self. “Long story short, on a dragon. I came here with Starlight, Tempest, and your girlfriend.” Noble’s heart jolted. He could see her sooner than he thought! But… “Hold on. If you came with those four, why do you have Rainbow’s Element?” Rarity inquired. “Tempest gave it to me,” Firestorm explained. He lifted the Elements up before letting them fall again. “I don’t know where Rainbow herself is, though.” “Oh, great!” Rarity exclaimed in exasperation. “Even more baloney to go through!” “What are you doing now?” Noble cut her off. “You mean, apart from killing everyone I see? Looking for some prisoners. I assume that’s what you’re doing too?” “Yes. Applejack and Pinkie Pie have been captured.” “Lucky for you, I know where they are. One of them’s in the northern mountain. I was just about to head over there myself, but I ran across these guys heading for the peak for a ceremony, where the other prisoner is, and I chased them down here again. Is there any news about Spike, or Twilight, or Freedom Fighter? Or, uh, Rainbow?” “None. I doubt they’re here. It’s enough of a miracle we’re together.” “Well… not anymore,” Firestorm admitted. Noble’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?” “Well,” Firestorm said, tugging his extinguished blades out of the ruined metal walkway and sheathing them across his back again. “Y’see, Tempest and Starlight are going to find the last Element together.” “And what about Fluttershy?” Rarity asked in concern. “I do hope she’s safe.” Firestorm bowed his head. Tension quickly made Noble shake in place. “Storm?” he dangerously asked, walking right up to him. Sensing his shift in tone, Firestorm lifted his head challengingly. “Where is she?” Noble demanded, pulling him close. “I wanted to rescue her,” Firestorm immediately defended, slapping his hoof away. “But we have other priorities, don’t we?” “Fluttershy is my highest priority,” Noble rebutted. “Where is she?” “She’s beyond our reach now,” Firestorm told him. “I understand how you feel, man. But if you want to save her, you might want to at least have your sword with you. And it’s likely with the prisoners. So let’s get our priorities straight.” Noble took a moment before giving him some space. He was right. This way he could help everypony. But still, the thought of not going to her aid right away stung. “Hey,” Firestorm called to him, already trotting back the way he came. “After we do this, we’re free to destroy the mountain! Doesn’t that sound like fun?” Not really. Noble didn’t want to do anything more than have it all be over. But he nodded. “We can’t leave this place standing,” he conceded. “I knew you’d see it that way!” He urged them by curling his hoof. “Follow me!” Noble and Rarity exchanged glances. Then Rarity shrugged and trotted after Firestorm, and Noble brought up the rear. Fluttershy felt the metal barrel she was in finally touch ground, and it was only then that she finally allowed her muscles to relax from holding herself upright. She heard hissing from the refinery station nearby, and heard grunts, squeaking wheels, and the clink of chains. "Stupid babysitters," the alicorn who had carried her was saying to himself. "I don't need this. We've got slaves, don't we? Why do I need to do this?" Fluttershy tried adjusting herself in the barrel so she could peek up and out. But she accidentally tilted the barrel too much to one side, and with a clatter, it tipped over, spilling Fluttershy onto the rocky ground. Fluttershy slowly lifted her head, parting her long pink mane with a hoof to get a good look. Everything was tinted orange if it wasn’t in dark shadow. The gargantuan steel Tree dominated her background, and there was a busy hustle and bustle in every corner of the cavern. Machines steamed and squeaked in the background, piercing her ear every so often. About twenty feet to her right lay the smoking refinery station, which was in the process of pouring molten metal into reinforced stone buckets. But Fluttershy’s focus was not on her surroundings. The alicorn prepubescent was frozen in place only three feet away, fixed on her eyes. He was thin, light grey, with a bowl-cut dark green mane, parted only by his horn. Fluttershy looked back into his own eyes, which were light-green, shrunken in shock, and quivering. Neither pony did anything. The alicorn, because he was probably too surprised, and Fluttershy because of fear. What would he do? "Wh…" he said, eyes darting to every part of her dirty, ragged body. "What happened to you?" "... I got lost," Fluttershy assured him, getting to all fours. The next words came instinctually. "What's your name?" The alicorn self-consciously brushed his bowl-cut mane. "Bedrock Bloodstain." "That's a very… unique name," Fluttershy told him truthfully. He likely couldn't help it, though, so she avoided it. "Mine is Fluttershy." He blinked. "Um, Miss Fluttershy? What happened to your horn?" Fluttershy's eyes flicked up in befuddlement before the thought came to her: he had likely not seen any outside ponies before. He was surrounded by alicorns night and day, and probably thought every pony was an alicorn! "I wasn't born with one," Fluttershy told him. "But… that's impossible. You should have one. Everyone else has one!" "I come from a land far away," Fluttershy divulged, sitting on her rear. "Everyone has either a pair of wings or a horn, but no one has both." "What?" he burst out. "And some don't even have either." Bedrock shook his head. "That's crazy. There's no way!" "Then how else am I here?" Fluttershy told him. Bedrock rubbed the side of his head. "Y-you must be some kind of trick. A projection, or something. A spirit! That must be it." Fluttershy came closer to him and extended a hoof. “Do I feel like a spirit?” Bedrock hesitantly reached out and connected his hoof with hers. He took a sharp intake of breath, then reached for her head where a horn would be and rubbed it in fascination. “What in the world…” “I’m from a place called Equestria,” Fluttershy explained, bowing her head, and Bedrock stopped rubbing her. “The same place your parents came from.” “E… quest… ria,” Bedrock sounded out. He looked into her eyes. “Is that really true?” “Everypony here either came from Equestria or is a child of somepony who did,” Fluttershy confirmed. “Oh, my…” he started, looking around the cavern. “You mean… wait, wait. If nopony in Equestria has both wings and a horn, then why do we?” “I think… because this is what Solaris promised. Power, or an easy life. But you’re stuck here. You can’t leave the mountain. Your parents gave up their entire lives just to be shut away in this horrible place, and what can they do with all this power? Nothing!” Fluttershy’s thoughts had rambled on towards the end, resulting in an inadvertent explosion of frustration. But Bedrock looked hurt. “Is this… because of something my parents did?” “What?” “Why are you here? Is it because my parents left Equestria?” “Oh, no,” Flutteshy quickly assured him, silently cursing herself for letting herself loose around the kid. “No, it’s nothing personal. We just… there’s something that we need in here, that’s all.” “Is it to stop Solaris?” Bedrock asked. “Um…” Fluttershy couldn’t provide more than that. “You hate Solaris, don’t you?” Bedrock assumed quietly. “What? I… Well…” Fluttershy started, then sighed. “Yes.” “Why? Isn’t he the one that made me an alicorn? Why should I hate someone who gave me a gift?” “Because…” Fluttershy’s eyes drifted to his grey flank. There was no Cutie Mark there. And he certainly looked old enough to have one. Fluttershy craned her head to examine her own Cutie Mark, and she suddenly knew what she had to say. “Bedrock?” she asked, gesturing with her eyes. “Do you know what a Cutie Mark is?” “No,” he admitted. “I’ve never seen anypony with one. Is that what the tattoo is for?” “It’s not a tattoo,” Fluttershy clarified. “Good. I thought it was a Tramp Stamp or something. A few ponies here have that.” “It’s… not that either,” Fluttershy answered as well, blushing gently. “A Cutie Mark is the representation of who you are meant to be as a pony. It appears as you discover your identity.” “Really?” he asked. “That’s kinda cool.” “A Cutie Mark can remind you of who you are, and give direction for who you want to be. It gives you hope, and a will to continue in life to achieve that vision of who you can become.” “And… what does that have to do with Solaris?” “Take a look around you,” Fluttershy said, casting her eyes about. Cruel machines and working slaves were everywhere. “Is this a place where you can find your identity?” “I wasn’t so sure I needed one,” Bedrock admitted, scratching his green bowl cut. “I just assumed I’d be living here relaxing with some cute girls until Solaris’ coming. That’s why I was put here, right?” “But you don’t know,” Fluttershy said. “Everypony on Equus exists because somepony wanted them to. You were put here to become your own person and be free from fear and cages. This mountain is a cage! You’ve never left it.” “Why do I need to?” Bedrock challenged. “I have everything I need right here. What can the world offer me that I can’t get here?” Fluttershy considered it. Then she spoke. “Do you know what grass is?” “No,” Bedrock said. “Then you haven’t experienced how soft it is to lie down and smell the flowers.” “Flowers?” “They’re colorful drops of plants in the green grass. Do you know what water in a brook sounds like? Or what birds sound like, chirping and singing in chorus?” “No. Why do I need to?” “Aren’t you curious to know how sweet a donut can be? Or juicy strawberries, or pearl-white clouds in a blue sky? The feeling of swimming in a lake, or watching a play, or even Hearth’s Warming Eve?” “Hearth’s Warming?” “It’s a wonderful holiday. There’s cold snow that falls from the sky, and you get to feast on food with your family, and you exchange presents and tell your mother you love her!” Bedrock frowned. “My mom never said that to me. Why would I say it to her?” “That’s what ponies do back in Equestria,” Fluttershy divulged. “Everypony has a place where they belong. We all try to be each other’s friends. And we believe friendship is the greatest kind of magic there is.” “That sounds weird.” “But it’s true! There’s an entire world beyond this mountain, Bedrock. There are colors and sounds you’ve never seen or heard before, senses you’ve never explored, a destiny you haven’t fulfilled. You came into this life to do something. And the world is your birthright! So if you had the option, would you claim it?” Bedrock nodded, a spark in his light green eyes. “If I could…” He looked straight up in contemplation, then back to Fluttershy. “What’s a sea?” Initially taken aback by the abruptness of it, Fluttershy answered. “It’s a huge body of salty water that covers seventy percent of Equus’ surface. Millions and millions of creatures are in it. It’s miles deep and hundreds of miles wide.” Bedrock gulped. “Miles…” He lay flat on the ground, folded his front arms, and rested his head in them. “My parents once said they didn’t cross the sea to this place just to have me misbehave. And ever since, I’ve wondered about that. What was beyond here? Was this place really the Promised Land? How could it not be? Why else would they come here? But now… I suppose you’re here. And if you’re here, you’re right. So… if you’re actually correct...” Fluttershy knelt in front of him and touched his arm softly, giving an encouraging smile. Bedrock sighed. “Why’d they leave? If Equestria is so great, why did they leave to come here? And… if they had a Cutie Mark… if they had a destiny, a purpose, then why’d they give it up?” “Because they thought that if they had enough power, they wouldn’t need a purpose holding them down,” Fluttershy told him. “They thought freedom meant having enough power to hold no responsibility. So they weren’t doing so good to begin with. This mountain seems to attract those with problems. And their goals are just erased, given a placebo to deal with it. They have no agency anymore, no life road. No freedom except the freedom to pick a vice. Everypony just wastes away with all their pleasure.” “...I don’t want to be problematic,” Bedrock admitted. “And there’s just… something about it…” “What is it?” “I’d… want to be free. If the world really has all that stuff I’ve never heard of, then what am I doing cooped up in here? Why does Solaris keep us all in here?” “You kinda run out of things to do soon enough,” Fluttershy remarked, brushing aside his bowl cut. “Is there something you’d like to do specifically?” Bedrock puffed. “I suppose the first order of business would be seeing the sea. And beyond that sea…” “Freedom,” Fluttershy whispered. “...I want it,” Bedrock said. He raised his voice. “I want it! The world is my birthright!” “Oh, shut up,” snapped a new voice, and both Fluttershy and Bedrock swiveled their heads. A green dragon was working the refinery with his bare claws, stirring in a bucket periodically. “The world’s not worth it. It’s a mess creatures like you and me can’t afford. Why bother hoping for the best? Won’t happen anyway.” Fluttershy approached him next. “Why do you say that, mister?” The green dragon shook off some molten metal from his arm. “Because look at you! You think everything’ll work out for you, but how often does it? You thought you were in control, and you weren’t! Malice threw you in here anyway!” Fluttershy leaned back in astonishment. “No, he didn’t,” she said. “Well, he did for me,” the green dragon muttered, waving his arm around the entire cavern. “As well as all the other dragons you see in here. We were part of his quote-unquote insurrection. We served him. We were inspired by him. He was going to do so much for us! He was the future! Then he... betrayed us on a dime and became Dragon Lord anyway. He used the Bloodstone Scepter to send us here as punishment for treason.” “That’s awful!” Fluttershy gaped, and her heart sank in her chest. All those poor creatures, tricked by him and punished! “Yeah.” He snorted. “Don’t need to tell me twice. But I learned a lesson from him. You can’t count on anypony. You gotta save yourselves.” “So can’t you save yourself here?” Bedrock contributed. “You’re one to talk, ponyboy. And no, not likely,” the green dragon said sourly. “Look at this place. Ain’t no getting out here. And besides, even if we did break out, where would we be welcome? We’d be fugitives for life. Might as well stay here and enjoy the smell of melting metal.” “What’s your name?” Fluttershy asked. The green dragon started to pull on a chain to tilt a bucket of smelted steel. “Cinder.” “Um, Cinder? What if I told you there’s a way you could get back at him?” Cinder let go of the chain for a split second before seizing it again, preventing the load from spilling. Cinder’s head turned around to regard her directly for the first time. “Go on.” The assembly was growing larger by the minute, filling up with dozens and dozens of dragons, but Twilight still grew anxious. Couldn’t they just grow the army as they flew towards Nevermore? Their time frame was running out. Twilight knew that realistically, they couldn’t all fly to the mountain in so short a time. If she wanted their growing volunteer army to strike quick and hard, she’d need to create a portal. But the problem was, she needed to know where Mount Nevermore was relative to her current position. The only pony that both knew where it was and could get there quick enough was Rainbow Dash. So Twilight was currently straining to think of a way to utilize her in the best way. While Twilight puzzled over the matter, Rainbow and Freedom Fighter were side by side, looking at all the dragons that were growing in their midst, both in the air and on the ground. The few that caught sight of them just curled their lips in disgust and turned away. “You think this’ll be enough?” Rainbow was asking. “It has to be,” was Freedom Fighter’s answer. “All I need is for them to get me close to Malice. I’ll take care of him.” He kicked the crumbly basalt rock. “This time.” “Why d’ya think it’s so hard?” Rainbow asked. “The rest of your destiny seems to be fulfilled. Why is this the hardest part?” “Because he’s a slippery fish,” Freedom simply said. “Back on Mount Aris, you and I found that out together. But I’ve grown since then. I feel complete now.” “This feels slightly more dangerous than Mount Aris,” Rainbow dryly said. “You sure you’re up to the task?” “I will kill him, Rainbow. I made a covenant. Malice can beg for forgiveness at Faust’s hooves. I’m not the one he has to grovel to. I’m simply the one to speed him to his just reward. For how much longer does the land have to groan under the weight of the bodies he’s created? How more nourished do the plants have to be from his victim’s blood? The blood cries out, Rainbow. For vengeance. This started as something personal, but it’s beyond personal now; how many more ponies like me has he created? No, I’m just the only one who can step up to him. I will speak for the voices of all those whom he has desecrated. I take up their mantle, shoulder their burden, and fight for their freedom. I will bleach his corrupting stain from the planet with his own blood. He will pay the ultimate sacrifice. He’ll know it as intimately as I will; we both were bearers of that Element.” Rainbow blinked. “You seem… even more serious than usual.” “Would you like to guess why?” “On second thought, I understand.” “Glad to see that much,” Freedom said, although the corner of his lips twitched up. “And how are you the most eloquent one? You couldn’t even speak for most of your life, but you can give Noble Blade a run for his money.” “I’ve had a lot of time to practice,” Freedom Fighter dryly replied. Not too far off from them and Twilight, creating a triangle, Spike and Garble were talking as well. And Twilight realized that their conversation wasn’t spiteful or full of ridicules, but was actually pretty normal… as far as interactions went. The source material was still concerning. “I’m really proud of you!” Spike was congratulating. “You stood up to your jerk father and didn’t die!” “He’s not really that much of a jerk,” Garble quickly responded. “His daughter died. Give him a break.” “I mean, wasn’t he kinda jerky before?” “He was gruff, but that comes with being Dragon Lord, I guess. How else are you going to command all these guys’ attention?” “Can’t you be powerful without being mean?” “Rulers have to be like that, Spike. You’re ruler for a reason. You don’t wanna pull out that  angry card unless you really mean it, but you still gotta establish that you’re the biggest boss around.” “I agree,” Spike said, quieter. “If you have to say you’re the Dragon Lord in order to be respected, you probably don’t deserve to be the Dragon Lord to begin with.” Garble, after digesting that, nodded along. “Makes sense. I guess. But you still gotta command attention. And being everyone else’s servant isn’t going to make dragons respect you.” “So… establish a presence, but as someone who everypony likes?” “Eh. I’d say everydragon, but yeah. And there’s no way that’ll ever happen.” “It might happen sooner than you think.” Garble leaned back. “What, are you planning on being Dragon Lord? That’s why we’re talking about this!” “Uh, no. Um, I’d probably screw things up.” “Hey, you said it, not me.” “Now, wait, hold on a second!” “You’re the one that said you’d do a terrible job,” Garble pointed out. “As for me? I’d do a way better job.” “Assuming Torch sees you as his son again,” Spike brought up. “Yeah,” Garble admitted. “But whether Torch likes it or not, his time is almost up. He’s old, and he’s already been Dragon Lord. Someone has to fill his role. And who else can it be but one of us? If you’re not willing to, I’d be more than happy to relieve you of that burden.” “I think I can carry it a little bit more,” Spike resolutely denied. “Having said that, you’d better try,” Garble told him. “Because I’d hate to be Dragon Lord if no one challenged me. I’d feel unworthy.” “You sure that’s the only thing making you feel unworthy?” Spike asked. “You still feeling guilt?” Garble froze in place. He gave a puff through his nostrils, making a jet of smoke rise from them. “I keep on remembering the scene,” Garble said. “Watching Ember’s last moments... Maybe I had noticed something was off, and I could have acted sooner. If I had, then maybe Torch is right; maybe I am complicit in her death. I do know that if I knew what I know now, I would have saved her.” “That’s all that matters, though,” Spike said. “You love her.” Garble gave a tight nod. “Yeah. Sure.” He crossed his hands behind his back and rested. “Look at us. One thinks he deserves the throne, but knows he’d be bad at ruling, and the other knows he’d be good at ruling, but thinks he doesn’t deserve it.” “Sucks for them that we’re the only options,” Spike agreed. A gust of air and a shadow overhead made Twilight snap out of her thoughts (and eavesdropping) and look up. A massive red dragon that could fit Twilight whole in his mouth settled to the ground with an earthshaking rumble. Twilight gave him a stare of apprehension before realizing there was something familiar about this particular dragon. “Wait a minute!” Rainbow exclaimed, flying over and hovering above his tremendous head. “I know you!” “How?” Twilight asked, then the puzzle pieces clicked together. Rainbow said, “I kicked him in the face,” at the same time the dragon said, “She kicked me in the face.” Dragon and pony then shared a quizzical look. “You!” Twilight realized. “Wow, it… Oh, my goodness, has it really been…” “No time,” the dragon cut her off. “There are ponies at Mount Nevermore.” Twilight gaped. The basalt ground crumbled away beneath her hooves, leaving her dizzy and astounded. “What? Who?” “That one nice pony. She was there. A dark one, too. She told me to tell you. One more with a horn… She was your color, but lighter. And an orange one with wings. He gave me four stars for the flight because I didn’t have peanuts.” His eyes rolled up. “What’s a peanut? I can’t help these things!” “Firestorm!” Rainbow realized. She began to rise with defiant purpose. “I’m not waiting any longer, Twilight. I’m going now!” “Do you know where it is?” Freedom Fighter asked. “Yes!” Rainbow exasperatedly said. “I… triangulated Malice’s flight pattern on the path here. I can track him! “Once you get there,” Twilight called, “Shoot up a beacon with Stormkeeper, or a Rainboom. Once I get your approximate location, I can open a portal and send these guys through!” “Got it, Twi!” Rainbow promised. “They won’t know what hit ‘em!” With a sound like a roaring rocket, she erupted from that spot in the sky, staggering them all, and in the blink of an eye she was only a speck in the distance, trailing a rainbow. “Let the wind hurl you,” Freedom Fighter prayed as she disappeared. “And may the mountain’s fires never touch you.” Twilight wasn’t as eloquent as he was in the moment. She settled for a simple, “Good luck.” The green crystal tagged along them like an obedient bird. But it was squashing and stretching in Rarity's glow. It glittered into a shining, sleek cross; an ornate dagger of pristine quality. "How often have you used that kind of thing before?" Noble asked, eyeing it strangely. Rarity rotated the dagger to examine it from another angle. “Well, darling, I hope you’ve noticed I’m really rather inexperienced. My first time was… about three hours ago. This isn’t exactly the ideal condition to just take up swordfighting.” “But hey--this isn’t your first time,” Noble pointed out, laughing. “That will be such an encouraging thought to me. Perhaps you can use it as an epitaph, darling.” “You won’t have to! You’ll do smashing!” “Smashing? That doesn’t seem like what one would do with a sword, does it?” “You’ll do…” he stopped talking for a moment before resuming. “You’ll be on the cutting edge!” He quickly shook his head. “Wait, no, that’s not what I-” “Darling,” Rarity warned before descending into a giggle. “What is up with you two?” Firestorm demanded from up front. “What do you mean?” Rarity inquired. “Well, darling, not only is this situation actually serious, but don’t think acting so chummy with him will make him forget his highest priority.” Noble’s face grew stony. “Is that what you think this is about?” “Did you just call me darling?” Rarity asked in disbelief. “In that tone!” “Oh, so when you do it, it’s fine, but not me?” “Hey, hey, calm down,” Noble quickly urged. “This isn’t the time.” Firestorm groaned and stomped a bit harder on the floor, picking up the pace. “If you really find it so offensive, stop saying it!” “It’s more about how you treat her,” Noble clarified impatiently. “Not about what you say.” “She calls me darling, she calls you darling, she calls herself darling, darling this, darling that. Darling, puh-leez. Darling, please fetch me that. Darling, help me set up my tent. Darling, be more considerate of others. Darling, give me some space! I cracked a hoof! I barely even notice it any more.” “Firestorm,” Noble warned. “Darling, might I borrow some chocolate? What the Tartarus are you going to do, give it back?” “Storm!” Noble ordered, and the pegasus stopped talking. He was impatient, however, and definitely not about to take it back. “What is up with you?” Noble asked, coming close to him. “Do you have no emotional control anymore?” “Oh, my apologies if I’m a little high-strung right now.” “And you think I’m not? Do you see me yelling at Rarity?” “Of course not,” Firestorm said. “You’re close chums.” “And we aren’t?” “We are. You’re the one-” “Don’t you start that with me!” Noble cut him off. “I don’t want to hear you talking like this until we’re back home, do you hear me?” “I hear you,” Firestorm said. “Hearing and understanding are two different things, Storm.” “I understand!” Firestorm said louder, unable to look him in the eye. Noble thinned his lips, but didn’t press the subject, and Firestorm sighed deeply and indicated further down their hallway. “We should be reaching the Son soon. Get ready.” He took a step, then craned his head around to look at Rarity. “Sorry. About that.” “It’s fine,” Rarity said, clearly not sounding fine. Firestorm, unconvinced, blew air from his nostrils and trotted further down their hallway. In just a few steps, he had disappeared into the darkness, leaving Rarity and Noble to follow his path. “He’s not fine at all,” Rarity told him, and there was a hint of fear in it. “I don’t remember him being so… cold.” Irony was the first word that came to Noble’s forefront. After another few long stretches of the same dark red hallways--it felt like Rarity was inside a chocolate-covered cherry--the hall finally began to widen out and up. Rarity had no idea how long or how far she had traveled, nor where in the mountain she was. All she knew was that it was almost over. They would be waiting for them. But Rarity was okay with that. They’d need that edge to even stand on their same level. Especially that whore Warcane. Rarity was taken aback. Never before would she have thought of using that word in her internal vernacular to describe somepony else. She never thought she would need to. And she was above thinking of them like that, wasn’t she? But at the same time, wasn’t that the truth? Warcane was exactly that. It wasn’t an indictment upon her. She just was one, and she was proud of it. What was wrong with calling her that? “I’ll hang back,” Firestorm said, stopping. “They’re expecting you, but not me. Give a signal when you need me, won’t you?” Rarity and Noble continued, side by side. There was a light just ahead, but not light enough to blind her. It was grey, which was bright enough. The hall opened up, finally, into a massive cave, but it was nowhere near as big as Rarity was expecting. Oh, sure, there were seven levels of hollowed-out holes on the curving, circular walls. But it also wasn’t an entirely hollow mountain. It certainly wasn’t the biggest underground cave she had ever seen. The Rolk’s cave and Seaquestria were examples. It was grey and bare, and Rarity couldn’t see into the holes. It looked like a honeycomb. There were a few spare candles embedded into the walls and into some small stalagmites, flickering in the presence of the newcomers. But a voice, intimately familiar to her, cried out her name, and Rarity looked up. Her heart jolted. There she was, hanging in a crudely-constructed cage suspended from the solid metal rafters supporting the ceiling. Rarity could recognize that tone of voice, that accent, and her colors. “Applejack!” Rarity cried in response, galloping further into the grey cave, Noble following after a moment. Applejack was hanging from a chain fifteen meters long, making every adjustment swing and tilt the cage she was in. It was spinning slightly. Her characteristic Stetson hat was missing, and her braided blonde mane was undone and messy, hanging in strands across her face. “Don’t try it!” Applejack called down. “They’re-” “Just as we predicted,” a deep voice cut off. Rarity swiveled in place, trying to find it, but the pony in question was already coming out of a dark hole on the ground floor. It was Brimstone, ebony black and dead-eyed. “That was predictable. Too predictable. So tell me, little ponies. What is your secret plan?” “I’m glad you asked that,” Noble remarked, rolling his eyes. “I was about to take this time to explain my elaborate counterattack.” Brimstone gave an empty chuckle. “Believe me when I say this isn’t about Solaris, or duty, or any of that garbage. This is just personal. You are the most intriguing thing to happen in my entire life. Including my herd mates.” “Give me my sword and I’ll show you how intriguing I can be,” Noble replied. “I think not.” There arose a glow from behind him in the darkened room, and the sword in question, shining blue from the Element embedded in the crosspiece, slowly floated out of the darkness and levitated beside Brimstone. “This is very intriguing all by itself. I gave the rest of the Elements to High Priest Ajax, but this particular toy… I decided to keep. Don’t you know you’re supposed to share during playtime, boy?” “I’m not playing. Not anymore. You took my friends.” “And you killed Spindlestick,” Brimstone pointed out. “He was a herd mate.” “You didn’t care,” Rarity replied, her emerald dagger floating above her head, the point following Brimstone’s chest. “There’s a difference between us.” “A difference which can’t be reconciled,” Brimstone declared without emotion. “Warcane!” A wicked, high cackle sounded throughout the empty cave, and the red alicorn swooped in a circle around the chain in the center before landing on it like a predatory vulture and jolting the captive inside. Her sharpened teeth were exposed in a mocking grin. “You,” Rarity whisper-growled. “I’m glad you remember me, darling,” Warcane jubilantly crowed. “I was getting so lonely with only her for company. You do remember the promise I made you?” she asked, addressing Applejack at the end. “Ya never shut up ‘bout it!” Applejack yelled. “It’s bull, ya hear me?” “Doesn’t it sound like a good deal?” Warcane pressured, crawling all over the cage, reaching in, and holding Applejack’s head against the bars of the cage. She inhaled through her nose right beside her. “I get to have her if you die!” “I’ll kill her,” Rarity whispered. Warcane then hopped from the cage to the ground twenty feet below like a cat and started to prowl around them in a circle. “I’m sorry, what was that? Could you speak up a little? I’d love to hear your screams… taste your blood...” “We knew that you knew... we knew... you knew... we were setting a trap,” Brimstone said, pausing to make sure it was correct. The blue blade swirled by his side, creating fans of solid color in the air. “But the bait was irresistible. There was no way you wouldn’t come, and not without a plan. So please, give us something to work with here. Otherwise, Warcane will just have to kill you both.” Out of a third hole, on the second floor, a small golden alicorn poked his head out, his horn already charging. His eyes roamed fearfully on the scene unfolding below. “Goldie,” Noble said. “Get out. You don’t have to die today.” “No,” Goldie said, which was more courageous than Rarity expected of him. Goldie’s horn pulsed a bit brighter. “I’m in the herd. I’ll stay.” “If you insist.” “You are the one that does not have to die this day, Noble Blade,” Brimstone intoned. “Applejack’s life is in my grip. Stand down, or I will squeeze… until this cave brims over with her blood.” “It’s not her blood that it’s about to fill up with,” Noble disagreed. “The weather today seems a bit murky, don’t you think?” “Weather?” Rarity incredulously exclaimed. “Look up,” Noble encouraged, pointing. “It’s about to start raining fire.” Warcane lifted her head and squinted into the dark rafters. “But it’s-” She stopped and gasped. A meteor streaked from the cave entrance in a tight diagonal path, slicing cleanly through the chain holding Applejack up. The fiery smear of light then looped and plowed straight for Goldie, who could not possibly evade it. The ledge he was on exploded, flinging rocks and dust into the air in clouds. Brimstone and Warcane cringed and covered their heads as dust obscured their vision. Meanwhile, the cage was enveloped in a dark blue aura just before it hit the ground, and with a grating squeak, the bars bent open. The fiery streak impacted the ground as well and defused itself, revealing Firestorm. Applejack clambered out, took a few deep breaths, and immediately took Rarity’s hoof, tugging for the exit. “Let’s git outta here!” “Not yet,” Rarity said, releasing herself from Applejack’s hoof. “Not until we’ve dealt with these two.” She indicated the alicorns with a jolt of her head. Brimstone and Warcane exchanged quick, worried glances through the dust clouds as they stood back up again. “I’m sorry,” Firestorm unapologetically said. “You were saying something? About how you were gonna win? Please, continue.” Warcane snarled and spread her wings, beginning to circle them once more. “Oh, you were finished?” Firestorm asked dryly. “Well then, allow me to retort.” He flapped into the air and drew the swords from his back. “This place might be your home,” Firestorm conceded. With an indiscernible movement, the swords caught flame. He lifted them to either side of his head, setting his face aglow. “But this is our battlefield.”