//------------------------------// // Hero // Story: And Hell Followed // by BaeroRemedy //------------------------------// “Y’all better wake up! Breakfast is ready and everypony else ain’t waitin’!” Cheerilee stirred, Applejack’s booming voice echoing throughout the castle halls. She slowly opened her eyes, shaking the sleep from her body. As consciousness slowly started to return to her mind, Cheerilee became acutely aware of something soft and warm pressed against her chest. Her hooves were wrapped around it, not that she minded all that much. She looked down to see that it was Scootaloo cuddled against her chest, a little orange face buried in the midst of cerise fur. There were moments where Cheerilee regretted never settling down and starting a family, moments like this. She had forgone soft and tender moments like this to serve, to raise entire groups of ponies and teach them. It lacked this warmth, this closeness, and at times it made her heart break. With a longing sigh, Cheerilee shook the filly gently. In another world, another life maybe, she would have her own filly like this. This wasn’t that world or life, though. Large violet eyes opened and looked up at her sleepily. “Scootaloo, it’s time to get up.” She spoke softly, running a hoof through the little pegasus’ mane. “I guess breakfast is ready.” In all of the excitement of last night and the joy of reuniting with old friends, eating had slipped their minds. Their stomachs growling in concert at the mention of food quickly reminded them. “Oh.” That’s when Scootaloo realized where exactly she was. “O-oh I’m sorry Miss Cheerilee.” The filly scrambled away from the mare, nearly falling off of the bed in the act. Her face turned bright crimson as the little wings on her back fluttered. “I-I didn’t mean-” “Scootaloo, it’s okay.” Cheerilee couldn’t help but giggle a bit at the frankly adorable display. “I didn’t mind, really.” That did nothing to abate the blush on the filly’s face though. “Anyway-” It was probably for the best to move on. “-let’s go see what’s for breakfast, hmm?” “Oh yes please!” That did it. In an instant Scootaloo’s mood improved, an excited smile across her face. Her wings buzzed happily at the thought of food. “Oh I hope they have oatmeal! With butter and brown sugar!” The mare wasted no time in getting up and stretching, just wishing she had a brush or comb to help straighten out her mane. She did the best she could with her hooves, but she didn’t want to keep Scootaloo waiting long. The two exited their room and started towards the stairs. Cheerilee was the one following Scootaloo for once, as she had never really been inside of Twilight’s castle. She had been in the main hall once or twice, but the intricacies of it were lost on her. Scootaloo, however, seemed to know the most direct way to the dining area. The dining room was past the main hall and through a room with a large round table, six crystal chairs situated around it with the cutie marks of Twilight and her friends. The dining area was dominated by a long table, easily twenty feet from end to end. It was then that Cheerilee truly got a good idea of the survivors from Ponyville, that was if everypony showed up for breakfast. Applejack sat at the head of the table, and on her left the order of ponies went; Applebloom, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Pound Cake, Vinyl Scratch, and Bon Bon. On her right were Rarity, Thunderlane, Rumble, Diamond Tiara, and Spike. Then at the opposite end of the table sat Mayor Mare, her eyes focused on the earth pony across the way. Cheerilee and Scootaloo sat in the empty seats between Spike and the mayor, two bowls of rather plain looking oatmeal sitting before them. The filly hopped in her chair and excitedly looked around for her toppings of choice, but found nothing but glasses of water in their place. “No butter?” The sadness that crept into her voice was palpable. “Yeah, sorry, Scootaloo.” Spike spoke, patting the filly on the back with a scaly claw. “We ran out of sweet stuff a couple of weeks ago.” The little dragon sighed and stirred the spoon in his bowl a bit sadly. “Trust me, it sucks.” “But we can thank our lucky stars that Twilight bought all of her food in bulk!” Mayor Mare exclaimed, her usual politician tone coming out. “I don’t think I’ve seen more hay and oats in one place in my life!” “Yeah, well Twilight hated going to the store, especially when she was binge researching stuff.” The mention of Twilight dropped the mood in the room significantly. Cheerilee could only nod as she began to eat her plain, but welcome, meal. “I do miss the crowds…and going out.” Rarity spoke up, reminiscing wistfully about the life long gone. There were a few nods and murmurs of agreement among the group that quickly dissipated as they went back to eating. “I have a question.” Cheerilee needed to get something off of her chest. She hadn’t quite registered it when they showed up last night, but now the question was ringing around her head and wouldn’t stop popping up. “Not to be...rude or anything, but…” There was no gentle way to broach this topic, and she was going to regret any wording of the question. “...why are they in here?” Her hoof motioned to both Vinyl and Rarity. “You know, Cheerilee-” Mayor Mare spoke up first, leveling her eyes right at Applejack. “-I’ve been asking the same question for about a month now.” The two unicorns in question both flattened their ears to their heads, Vinyl hiding behind her sunglasses and Rarity hanging her head in slight shame. “Now Cheerilee, y’all are new here so Ah’m gonna let this slide for now.” Applejack stood from her chair, slamming a hoof on the table. “But you should know better, Mayor! They ain’t changed yet and if they were gonna turn into those monsters, they woulda by now!” “Yes, well-” The Mayor stood as well, narrowing her eyes as she challenged the farm pony across the table. “-I still say we would all sleep better at night if the ticking time bombs with horns were outside with their own kind!” There were little murmurs of agreement from Thunderlane, Diamond Tiara and Bon Bon. “Now just hang on!” Rainbow Dash stood up next, sky blue wings flared out in righteous anger. “We know those things don’t come into the castle, and last night just backed that up! They were right outside and didn’t even try to claw their way in! So one way or another, this place is protecting us and stopping them from changing!” “Yes, but is that a chance we want to continue to take?” Thunderlane spoke up, a wing around his little brother. “For all we know it’s just a matter of time until it gets to them.” “Tell ya what-” Applejack rose her voice to talk over the argumentative murmurs that came from seemingly everypony at the table. “-if’n this here castle fails and they start to turn into those monsters outside, we’re dead anyway! Right now the only thing standin’ between us and those unicorns outside is whatever magic this castle has got. So right now, stayin’ put is the best shot we got...because it’s either stay in here or go out there.” Applejack sat down, angrily stuffing another spoonful of oatmeal into her mouth. “Ah’ll let you decide where the better chances are.” “Do we know how the castle is protecting us?” Cheerilee queried, drawing a variety of looks and little shrugs from most ponies. It wasn’t very reassuring that they were being protected by something they didn’t know would hold up forever. “Nopony knows anything about the castle.” Spike, seemingly unfazed by all of the arguing, chimed in. “Twilight has a lot of notes on it, but I don’t even think she ever fully understood why the castle does what it does.” While Cheerilee was sure the research was fascinating and in-depth, she doubted there was any way she would understand half of what was written. “And one more question.” Applejack looked at Cheerilee, perhaps expecting something else inflammatory to be asked. “Where’s Fluttershy? Is she-” “We don’t know.” Rainbow Dash cut her off, magenta eyes filled with fire and rage. Applejack opened her mouth to speak, but she just shook her head and closed it again. “The Everfree is full of all kinds of things that could keep those monsters away, plus we haven’t seen Twilight go out that far yet! She’s probably okay!” It wasn’t just rage anymore, it was desperation in her voice. It sounded not that she believed Fluttershy had escaped all of this unharmed, but that she needed the Element of Kindness to be okay. “I-” Scootaloo finally looked up from her now empty bowl, licking her lips before she continued. “-I know she’s okay, Rainbow Dash.” Cheerilee knew of the filly’s fanaticism of the Wonderbolt, but secretly she was hoping that this scenario had dampened it. But no, fillies like Scootaloo needed their heroes now more than ever. “I know, squirt.” Rainbow turned her gaze to Applejack next. “I know you said no bugging you anymore about it, but you have to let me try.” Cheerilee cocked her head, now lost and without context. “Alright.” Applejack let out a deep sigh, pushing her half empty bowl away. “Applebloom, take the others up to your room.” There was a silence as Applebloom went around the table, collecting Diamond Tiara, Rumble, Pound Cake, and Scootaloo. There was some canned answer about the discussion not being for little fillies and colts, said with no amount of cynicism from the little earth pony. Once the sound of little hooves hitting crystal had left earshot, Applejack turned back to the rest of the adults. “Rainbow has this...idea.” Applejack restrained from using a harsh word to describe the idea, but the implication was there. “She wants to go check up on Fluttershy. Ah’m against it a thousand times over; it’s just too dangerous.” “I’m the fastest pony in all of Equestria!” Rainbow Dash defended herself. “There’s only one other thing that can fly out there, I’m the best bet to check up on anypony that still might be out there! And now that we know that those things won’t try to come in here, it’s our best chance yet to get Fluttershy back here-” Applejack looked away for a split second, a moment of weakness that Dash pounced on almost immediately. “-or make sure Big Mac and Granny Smith are okay.” Hitting that particular weak spot seemed to work, leaving Applejack to close her eyes. Even from nearly the opposite side of the table, Cheerilee could see Rainbow’s chest puffed out a little in victory. As it looked like the farm pony was going to cave, a voice to the right of where the teacher sat broke the tense silence. “I oppose.” Mayor Mare stated flatly. “We’re already down two Elements and we cannot afford to lose another!” Cheerilee had to stop herself from rolling her eyes from the contrarian politician. “We didn’t lose Twilight!” Came a chorus of voices back at her. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack, Applejack and Spike all speaking in unison and glaring at the mare. The Mayor cowered a little from the voices, but quickly bounced back and regained her composure. “And Fluttershy is okay!” Rainbow Dash added on. “If you just let me go get her, we’ll have five outta six and be one step closer to solving this thing!” There was a small amount of logic in that statement, but everypony present knew that emotion was the primary motivator behind the pleas. “The only thing out there that can even reach me is Twilight. You have to trust me!” “We know that they can’t come in here.” Pinkie stated, looking between her two friends. “We always thought so, but last night confirmed it.” Every eye was on the dour party pony now, which only made Cheerilee examine her a little more. The poor dear was missing part of one of her ears, looking like it was bitten off by something. Knowing that only Pound Cake was here and the Cakes were nowhere to be seen, Cheerilee could assume a few things. None of them were good. “I have faith that Dashie can make it there and back.” Pinkie continued, earning a beaming grin from her best friend. “Twilight can fly, but she’s a lot bigger and slower than Dashie. Just don’t leave from the front door, go to the highest balcony to take off.” The simple authoritative statement made by Pinkie seemed to hit all the right spots for Applejack. “Ah-alright.” Applejack sighed and nodded. “Y’all can go.” Rainbow launched into the air and did a small loop as she cheered and pumped her hoof victoriously. “On a couple of conditions!” She raised her voice to get RD’s attention again. “Ya gotta promise to stop by the farm t’check on Mac and Granny. It ain’t too outta the way of Fluttershy’s house and...Ah just need to know.” “Hey, of course Applejack.” Rainbow placed a hoof on her friend’s back. “And if he’s still kicking, which you know he is, I’ll drag his and Fluttershy’s butt back here!” The bravado was refreshing, even hopeful. So many ponies were full of such doom and gloom that even a hint of a can-do attitude seemed like a light in this darkness. “Second, y’all gotta fly faster’n you’ve ever flown before. You get back here in one piece.” Applejack held out her hoof, which Rainbow took. “Ain’t no speed limits anymore, so break every law you can to get back here.” “I can do that.” Rainbow smirked. ------ Rainbow Dash stood on the highest balcony of Twilight’s castle, a light breeze blowing through her multicolored mane. The ever-present sun made the crystal exterior hot to the touch. Some time ago Applejack had erected a small canopy overhead to keep it safe for her to venture out onto. Rainbow stretched out her wings, rotating them in their sockets and getting as limbered up as she could. She hadn’t gone outside since this all started, and she was itching to fly. “Ah’ll keep an eye on you from up here, sugarcube.” Applejack stood beside her, Twilight’s telescope set up to get a good view of the entire town. “While you were gettin’ ready, Ah was scoutin’ things out for ya.” Rainbow was only half paying attention to her friend. It was way more important to get in the right mindset for what she was about to do than it was to listen. “The majority of those things are set up around town hall, dunno if Ah can rightly say what they’re doin’, but best to avoid that area altogether. Now Twilight, Ah ain’t seen hide nor hair of her...so just stay on your hooves.” “Gotcha. Avoid the town hall, watchout for Twilight.” Rainbow repeated the important bits back to AJ, rolling her neck to work out a few of the kinks. “Get Fluttershy, check on Big Mac and Granny, get back. I got it, AJ.” She shot her best smile towards her competitive rival. “Trust me.” “Just...stay safe Rainbow Dash.” There was a particular sadness to AJ’s voice, one that weighed a bit on Dash’s spirits. “If Ah gotta run out there and save your sorry butt, Ah will. Y’aint ever gonna live it down, though.” “Keep dreaming, cowpony.” Dash rolled her eyes. She slowly crouched down, building tension and power in her legs as she prepared herself. Sky blue wings flared out, the wind catching them and letting the skilled flier know exactly what she would need to do to compensate. “I’ll be back in ten seconds flat or my name isn’t Rainbow Danger Dash!” In a split second all of the tension in RD’s body released like the world’s most compressed spring. She launched herself into the air at speeds even she was surprised by, keeping her wings tucked to her sides as she let momentum carry her up and away from the castle. When she finally spread her wings, it was like everything made sense again. The wind rushing past her primaries, the roar in her ears, and the sweet sensation of being above it all. For the first time in forever, she felt like Rainbow Dash. After the initial shot of adrenaline hit her system, she remembered her promises to Applejack. She couldn’t just glide to where she needed to be, she needed to fly. With that in mind, she closed her eyes and envisioned it. Wings beating, scenery passing like a blur, that feeling of magic encompassing her as she got closer and closer to that barrier before she broke it. She was going to create a rainboom to get there and back. Just like that, it all happened. Her wings propelled her forward at speeds any Wonderbolt would marvel at, leaving a rainbow trail in her wake. She cut her course slightly, making sure to avoid the nest of unicorns at town hall before getting a straight shot to Fluttershy’s cottage. The straightaway was and always will be, the greatest gift to speedsters. Nothing turbocharged wings and hooves like a straight line. Rainbow kept her ears on a swivel, listening for Twilight’s enormous pair of wings, but her eyes kept locked on her destination. She let her speed build and build, her muscles working overtime as the resistance around her started to become tougher to push through. She felt it, that barrier. The one that she had been told was unbreakable. Her greatest achievement and the one thing nopony else in the world could best. It was something she knew all too well. And it felt wrong. Usually the barrier was soft and silky, it embraced her and surrounded her. It resisted her, but it never stonewalled her. It was a lover playing hard to get. Now, however, it was a jilted ex that only rewarded Rainbow’s advances with a harsh slap. She nearly tumbled out of the sky as she hit that barrier instead of breaking through, her jaw slack and eyes wide. That had never happened before, not in the half dozen times that she had attempted a sonic rainboom. It stunned the mare, sent her head spinning and confidence plummeting into a pit deeper than any before. She caught herself though, the thought that for every second that she was out here she was in mortal danger saving her from sitting there dumbstruck for a little while longer. She shook her head, stuffing what just happened in the back of her mind to think about later. The rest of her flight wasn’t as fast as she would’ve liked. She didn’t quite push herself, just keeping a pace where she wouldn’t even touch the rainboom barrier. It was still faster than ninety-nine percent of ponies, but it wasn’t enough. Not for Rainbow Dash. She landed a short distance outside of the treeline that led to the cottage, not wanting to risk clipping herself on any branches.She galloped the rest of the way, eager to see her oldest friend again and bring her back to the castle. When she got to the end of the trail, she dropped to all four of her knees. Where Fluttershy’s cottage should’ve been, there was nothing. The trees weren’t scorched, there was no sign of destruction. It was just gone. Every animal, structure, and plant that had once been on the lot had disappeared. Instead, there was just dirt. Had Twilight done this? Wiped Fluttershy out of existence, house and all? Could she do that in her current form? A million more questions shot through her mind like so many angry parasprites eating away at her hope. “C’mon Fluttershy. I know you made it out alive...I know it.” Rainbow mumbled as tears fell from her eyes into the dirt. She clenched her teeth and slammed a hoof into the dirt, the weight of so many lives lost finally crushing her. Rainbow Dash was a hero. Heroes weren’t supposed to let ponies die like this. “I can’t…” Sobs ravaged her body, keeling her over and making her face hit the dirt. Her wings hung at her side. Every moment she and Fluttershy ever shared flashed through her mind, so many memories now ash in her mouth. She choked on her sadness, the deluge almost threatening to drown her under its weight. She sat there for Celestia knows how long, when her tears finally ran out. She stood up, eyes red and body aching. Something was still keeping her going, that sense of knowing what needed to be done, of having one more promise to fulfill. She shot up through the trees, spinning on a dime and speeding off towards Sweet Apple Acres. Her eyes narrowed and a familiar fire burned in her eyes and heart. Rainbow Dash was a hero, and she was going to save somepony today. With renewed spirit and vigor, she made record time to the farmhouse. Over the wilted apple trees, hot fermented apples sent rancid fumes up into the air. Once close enough, she swooped down and landed on the porch. Littering the front lawn and porch were a couple of bodies of the unicorn things. Dash wasn’t sure if they were dead, but they weren’t up and moving. A large visible hoofprint was visible on the chest of one of them, Lyra if the colors held true. The most sobering part of the scene was that the front door to the house was gone, blown from its hinges. Rainbow’s blood ran cold as she barged into the house, rushing through every room until she came to the one shut and locked door in the house. Granny Smith’s room. Rainbow slammed her body weight against the door, determined to open or break it with whatever strength she had left. The door wouldn’t splinter, it wouldn’t budge. There was nothing she could do to get into the room. “A-ah said if y’all kept tryin’ that…” A deep voice boomed from behind the door, stopping only to cough and groan. “...Ah’d send more of ya to Tartarus.” “Big Mac!” Rainbow pounded on the door, a smile erupting across her face as the realization hit her like a train. “Ohmigosh Big Mac! It’s Rainbow Dash, open the door!” Rainbow bounced up and down, unable to contain her excitement any longer. “Dash?” Big Mac questioned, the sound of massive hooves hitting aged wood accompanying it. The door unlocked and swung open, revealing the massive red stallion...and only the red stallion. “Dash…” The relief in his voice was thick and punched the pegasus in the gut. She had been around other ponies since this started, but Big Mac? The other thing that shocked her was his current state. His barrel was covered in bite marks and scratches, his coat pockmarked with magical burns. His left eye was also sloppily covered with a bandage with only the lack of skill an earth pony could achieve. The massive stallion nearly collapsed on top of her, but between them both he stayed upright. “Jeez…” Rainbow looked him over a few more times, happy to see him but deeply worried about his health. Something else was bugging her, something she had to ask. “Granny Smith?” “Nope.” Big Mac answered, his one good eye looking down. “Out back next to Ma and Pa…” Rainbow’s heart ached hearing that, knowing that they would need to tell Applejack about it. “Applejack?” “We’re all up in Twilight’s castle. It’s keeping those things away...somehow, but it’s doing it.” Rainbow took one of Mac’s legs and draped it over her shoulder, providing support as they both started to move down the stairs at a snail’s pace. “That’s where we’re going.” “A couple of ‘em came up here...bothered us. Flim, Hondo, Amethyst. Tossed ‘em all in the Everfree…” This was more words than Rainbow had ever heard Big Mac speak in her whole life, not that she was going to complain. Talking meant he was alive. “‘Bout a week ago Lyra and Ballad showed up. Couple days after Granny passed.” The stallion groaned as they reached the bottom of the stairs, holding his ribs. “They got me good...Ah got ‘em better though.” “Yeah I saw.” Rainbow carried him out of the house and looked around, biting her lip and looking for something. Mac was big, but a couple of days obviously without food had left him more manageable than normal. He was still just too big to fly with on her back, though. “We can’t go through town...no way.” “There.” Big Mac raised a hoof, pointing towards an apple cart a little ways off. “Can you pull me?” “It’ll be a lot easier than carrying you.” Dash relented with a nod and started towards the cart. Rainbow’s heart was filled with pure determination as she loaded the hulking farmer into the wooden bucket and made sure he was comfortable. “I can’t exactly go full speed tugging you along, so if Twilight catches up to us I might have to get fancy.” “Twilight?” Big Mac questioned after adjusting himself to better fit in the small space. “Trust me, you’ll get it when you see it.” Rainbow hitched herself up to the cart, making sure the harness was secure enough to avoid slipping off in case she had to pull anything more than a slight turn or a straight line. “Just hold on, alright?” “Eeyup.” Rainbow took off, the extra weight making her sluggish and less nimble than she would like. The renewed purpose to get AJ’s brother back alive, to live up to that heroic ideal, pushed her forward. It pumped her wings and kept her heart racing as she lifted into the sky with Big Mac in tow. Even with another pony’s weight and a cart behind her, Dash felt like she could beat anypony in a fair race. She kept a decent pace, flying high above the town and out of the reach of almost anything. An earth shattering howl broke the silence of the flight. Almost anything. The sound of massive wings beating and displacing air made Rainbow’s head turn. The thing she had been dreading had drudged itself up from whatever pit it had been hiding in. Twilight raised into the sky from somewhere in town, seemingly from the direction of the old library. “Oh no.” Rainbow’s eyes went wide as she pushed her body to its absolute limit, the muscles in her back and wings starting to burn. In any other state but tugging Big Mac, she would be faster than Twilight in every way. The turned alicorn’s increased size would be a boon and allow Dash to fly circles around her, but now? They were on even footing. If Rainbow couldn’t lean on her natural talent, technique would have to suffice. A bolt of bright purple magic surged right by her ear, the air turning burning hot and singing the mare’s mane. That technique needed to start up now, it seemed. Rainbow started to climb in a spiral, allowing her to keep what little speed she had and build up a tiny bit more. If she was smart, this Twilight would have to follow suit. Flying straight up would only lead to a stall, especially at her size. Luckily for Rainbow and Big Mac, Twilight was never a good flier and this version of her was no exception. The enlarged alicorn tried flying straight up, her wings not being enough to keep her upright for very long. The beast tumbled backwards, wings flailing as bolts of magic shot from her horn in every direction. “Still got a thing or two to learn about flying, egghead!” Rainbow Dash cackled with delight as Twilight fell. She knew better than anypony that a stall never lasted for long and that recovering was easier than one would expect, so she turned and started back towards the castle. She could feel Twilight gaining on them again, fully recovered and angry. The wind whipped up by the massive set of wings on the back of the beast becoming stronger and getting closer. Bolts of magic whizzed past her, one even hitting the cart and blasting a wheel clean off. Normal Twilight would’ve hit almost all of those shots. Rainbow Dash thanked Celestia that for once Twilight wasn’t normal at the moment. “Rainbow, hurry up!” Big Mac cried, drawing Rainbow’s eyes behind her for a moment. Twilight was on their heels, maw open and dripping with thick black saliva, rows of sharp teeth glistening in the summer sun. Her jaws snapped, inches away from getting a hold of the cart and possibly Big Mac. Rainbow couldn’t let that happen. One final effort, that’s all she needed. With one push and the last of her energy, both physical and emotional, she surged forward. They hit the balcony, Rainbow’s hooves skidding on the slick crystal and the cart crashing after her. The two didn’t stop soon enough as they both slid past the open doors and right into the interior of the castle. A bolt of white hot magic sizzled and crackled by them, impacting one of the walls and chipping the usually resilient material. Applejack wasn’t far behind the magic, taking cover and pushing the doors close as fast as she equinely could. They slammed shut, the sound of several bolts of Twilight’s magic hitting them not soon after. Rainbow unhitched herself from the cart, throwing the harness away and staggering for a few feet before collapsing. Sweat made her mane cling to her face, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Every muscle inside of her body ached and burned from the herculean effort she put forth. But she did it. She saved at least one pony today. With a slight smile on her face, Rainbow Dash passed out.