//------------------------------//
// 10: You Found Me 
// Story: The Rejects 
// by Argonaut44 
//------------------------------//

Dusk crept across the field of boiling blood, where the bloated black storm-clouds cast a faux nightfall. Over the faded hills, the sea grew restless, rivaling the booming thunder in its wrath. There, the soft-sand coast whispered warnings in the wind. 
Twilight Sparkle held her ground by the bugbear’s carcass. The beast’s wings had been severed at the stem, blood having seeped out during its descent, scattered across the field. The bell-towers at Seaward Sholes were still ringing into the storm, droning on for miles. Twilight could make out rows of soldiers in the distance, approaching in a mismatched step. The storm warnings demanded the hot air balloons return to the ground, though the airborne reporters could not pull themselves away from the sight, even when drenched head to hoof and swaying madly in the grey winds. 
Starlight Glimmer descended to the ground in a specter’s shroud, all but a few yards away from the princess. 
   “Luna be damned, what the hell is she doing?!” roared Alias from the Erased’s Canterlot headquarters, though the room of pencil-pushing agents was speechless. 
Trixie shook her head. For all of the horror scenarios she had envisioned after Starlight’s departure, this might have topped them all.  
“Erm, and I’m having difficulty believing what I’m seeing, folks, but a pony who appears to be Starlight Glimmer, has joined the fray. I can’t make sense of it,” came the static-stunted voice of Bravo on Equestria New Network. 
“How couldn’t we’ve seen her?” demanded Alias. 
“Glimmer was moving too fast for our sensors, sir…Orders?” said Slick, nervously glancing up from his clunky control panel. 
“There’s nothing we can do,” Alias said, stumbling back into his chair. Trixie glanced at Rarity beside her, who was a quivering mess. 
Miles and miles away in the Crystal Empire, Princess Cadance watched on helplessly from the top floor of her palace. Shining Armor was at her side, holding fast while she gripped his leg as tight as she could muster. 
Ponies near and far across Equestria flocked to their radios and televisions, stopping whatever they had been doing, tuning into the live coverage with shaky breath.
Starlight paid no mind to any of that, however. Her eyes were locked onto Twilight’s, the two frozen in place for what felt like an eternity. 
Those velvet eyes were colder than Starlight had remembered. 
“Where's Rarity? Pinkie? Fluttershy?” Twilight said, breaking the silence.
Starlight twitched.  
“...They're safe,” Starlight said, “Separated. Far from here.”
Twilight nodded. Starlight’s left hoof began to shake, and her lips were quivering ever so slightly. Twilight wiped some blood off of her face.  
“Always one for a spectacle,” Twilight said, glancing at the bugbear’s corpse. 
“You looked like you could use some help,” Starlight said.
Twilight’s half-smile faltered for a moment, and Starlight was made uneasy by the swirl of madness in the princess’ eyes. 
“I’m glad we could see each other again,” Twilight said.
Starlight glared at her, dispelling such hopes. Her breaths were heavy, as if it took everything she had to restrain herself from lashing out right then and there. She was on the verge of breaking down into tears, and even Twilight’s hardened demeanor fell apart for a moment at the sight.
“You saved my life,” Starlight said, her voice breaking, “...You did. And I’d go to sleep each night thanking you in my head, for lifting me out of the hole I spent all my life digging. I never wanted to believe in heroes, not before I met you. All I ever saw were ponies using their power to step on everyone they could. I remember when you first came prancing into Our Town, I thought you were no different . But you were. I never thought I was worthy of the chance you gave me, but you gave me it anyway. And I thought maybe you believed in me enough to raise me up to be like you. I wanted that, more than anything."
Starlight’s face changed then, her eyes narrowing, her brow tense and enraged. 
“And then you cast me aside,” Starlight said, “Everything you taught me, I don’t even know whether any of it was real anymore. You murdered our friends. You tossed me away like I meant nothing to you. Now tell me why,” Starlight said.
Twilight approached carefully, her voice softening more towards how it used to be before she donned the crown. 
“...Were you to make an impossible choice - your friends’ lives, or the fate of Equestria - which would you choose?”
Starlight's eyes wavered, as her skin began to crawl. 
"You were supposed to protect them," Starlight said, "You were supposed to be the best of us.  They looked up to you. Don't waste your breath trying to tell me they had it coming, or that you had no choice. If any of that were true, you wouldn't have banished me, and you wouldn't have fought tooth and nail to keep this all a secret. You're the smartest pony I know, Twilight, but you still underestimate everypony else. Cadance knows about you. Celestia probably did too, I take it. Or is it just a mystery she disappeared?"
Twilight was struck by disbelief, shaking her head, regretfully. 
"I know Cadance's mind. I know once we're finished here, she'll come for me next. And Celestia," Twilight laughed, "What do you know of Celestia?"
"What did you do to her?" Starlight demanded. 
Twilight's smiled slipped off her lips. 
"What did she do to me?"
Starlight took a step closer, fuming through her gritted teeth.
Twilight smiled again, tilted her head back. 
"It was Celestia who began this all," Twilight said, gravely. Her eyes fell to the ground. 
"Began what?” Starlight demanded. 
“...If Equestria was ever to survive what is coming, a sacrifice had to be made," Twilight said, gravely, "I never asked for this. I never wanted you to get hurt, either. But things got out of hoof. I tried to-....I did what I had to do."
"Twilight..." Starlight began, slowing down to refocus Twilight's spinning trail of thought, "Where is Celestia?"
Twilight winced, and glanced at the ground, fighting to put together the words. 
"Celestia was everything I wanted to be. Everypony was devoted to her, to what she represented. A light to ward off the darkness. They worshiped her. But she was never a god, no matter what ponies wanted to believe. She was not much different than you or I, once. She was still flesh and bone, still weak. Once upon a time, she murdered, lied, and bribed her way into power, no different than every other Canterlot crook,” Twilight said, “Her reign was built on a lie, Starlight. Kept buried for a thousand moons. My entire life, she was there. Looking after me. Keeping me on the right path. But every now and then, there were moments that it felt too perfect. And it was, Starlight. The past was catching up to her. Criminal syndicates taking over entire cities. Other kingdoms plotting to depose her and take her crown. Old enemies thought dead are rearing their heads at the edge of the world, gathering strength, with only one goal - destroy Celestia, destroy me, destroy Equestria. She couldn't bear the strain anymore, and when she found me, well....she finally had her chance to run away from it all. She raised me up to succeed her, made me believe I was family, hiding who she really was. Celestia meant to use me to save her from judgment, to steer Equestria on the right course, to right her wrongs. She showed me the future, what was coming for Equestria. I saw your eyes in a stack of the slain, right beside my brother, my father and mother, right beside me. Everything was gone, Starlight. Everyone was gone. I was only ever meant to be her scapegoat. And I hated her then for all the lies, but what choice did I have but to accept? She wasn't strong enough anymore, she said. It has to be me to protect Equestria. But as the transition of power drew closer, her secrets got out. Ember, Thorax, and the rest of them, they discovered the truth of who she really was. It was Posh Paramount who first contacted me, offered to tell Equestria what they had learned, to have revenge, to shatter the illusion of Celestia's legend. She put together her little league of revolutionaries, and they all agreed. They thought I would too."
Starlight shook her head, struggling to understand.
"You did it to protect Celestia? Why?" 
Twilight's glare hardened.
"Equestria needs to believe in heroes. Even if they don’t really exist. Ember and the others would have told the world. I had to stop them. They were traitors, Starlight. The truth about who Celestia was, it would’ve plunged Equestria into chaos. I can't protect Equestria if they've lost faith in the crown. But that's what Ember and the others wanted. They'd have come after me next, and everypony I care about, and taken what power they could. Taken advantage of the chaos and confusion. They wanted a new world order, one where they were the ones who held power. They didn't trust me any longer. How could they? They trusted Celestia, and look what she turned out to be. They turned against me because of what they thought I was, a second Celestia, and that's exactly what they made me become. They were going to destroy everything that Celestia and I worked so hard to build. Everything we've fought for, it'd all have been in vain.”
"You spared me, why not them?" Starlight demanded, "Even if you thought they were wrong, they didn't have to pay with their lives."
Twilight laughed.
"You speak of them as if they'd show me mercy if it was the other way around," Twilight said, "Celestia showed me the truth. There could be no other way, no half-measures or redemptions. If I let them live, the day would come when they would find a way to rise up again and rally their kingdoms against me. They could never again be allies. But confusion, distrust, uncertainty, those are allies I could depend upon."
Starlight took a step closer, aggressively. 
“If what you're saying about Celestia is true, then you’d know that you owe Equestria the truth,” Starlight retorted, “If your intentions were so noble, why all the lies? You think it’s worth it to sacrifice justice for a false peace? You’re just another perpetrator of the cycle of corruption you pretend to loathe. I used to think you were a pony bound by principle. Now you’ve let the pressure get the better of you,” Starlight spat.
Twilight scoffed, amused by Starlight’s defiance. 
“I have a greater responsibility than you could possibly understand. You curse me and mourn your dead, all while pretending that the world is more forgiving than it could ever hope to be. Equestria needs somepony to depend on when hope goes with the wind. Who’s gonna do it? You? Sunset Shimmer? Or maybe any one of the criminal elite who’d exploit Equestria to the bone. No, you need me. Equestria needs me. I'm going to fix Celestia's mistakes, but undoing everything in some bloody coup, like what Posh and Ember wanted, was not the right way to go about it. They wanted blood, and they got it. You grasp at phony ideals to make up for what we both know is naivety. I never wanted you to be a part of this. But duty comes first. I had to choose between Equestria and my friends. I’d make the same choice again,” Twilight said.
Starlight blinked away a single tear, softly shaking her head in disbelief. She could not do it, she told herself. She must not understand, still. Twilight always knew best. Who was Starlight Glimmer to think otherwise? To remain an obstacle, to remain an adversary, would mean death. It was mercy that brought Starlight to Hellhatch. But there was no more mercy left behind those violet eyes.  
"You've gone mad, just like Celestia. You must have. Twilight," Starlight pleaded, "You can tell yourself you had a duty to stop Ember and the others, you can tell yourself you were in the right. But I never betrayed you, Twilight. I would have followed you, to my dying day. But this crown has made you do things you'd never have done. The Twilight I knew wouldn't have met treachery with bloody vengeance, she would've forgiven them, given them a chance."
Twilight glanced up at the sky, where the clouds continued to gather. 	
"I was wrong to send you away," Twilight said, her voice cracking, "I knew it was wrong then, and I know it now."
Starlight's shoulders fell, and she let her guard down for the first time since arriving by the bugbear's carcass.
"The oaths I swore seemed cruel, once. That I would not love, not the same way that I had before. That I would do whatever is right, no matter what. No matter what. But I am no god, either. We were fashioned for happier things than to serve these rigid ideals. I had hoped to change it all, into what you and I had dreamt of. I never wanted the crown, you know that, but once I got it .... It was a chance for Equestria to have a clean start. To rid this land of all the corruption that Celestia allowed to take over. I wanted you by my side, I always have. I need you, Starlight. But to be responsible for millions of ponies' lives means living by hard truths. It means doing things you never thought you could. All for the greater good."
Starlight refused to budge, however, her face twisted in anger. 
"And who decides what the greater good is? Ember and the others would have said the same thing."
"They would have," Twilight agreed, "But they did not see what I have seen. They thought Celestia had gone mad. She had only resigned to despair, knowing what future awaits us. Ember's band of rebels would have divided Equestria, left it susceptible to the dark forces that wait to drag us to our deaths. They believed in an idea of friendship, yes, but one that could never have included me, or the other alicorns."
"And where are these dark forces?" Starlight stammered, "In your head? You speak of treachery, when it seems to come so easily to you."
"I won't ask for your forgiveness. I don't deserve it. I was weak," Twilight said, "I was afraid. What I did to Ember, Thorax, Posh...I had no choice, but it destroyed me. I thought they were my friends. Then I see they had tried to rope you into their little scheme....I assumed the worst. But I couldn't bring myself to sentence you to their fate. I thought sending you away would make the problem simpler, but I was wrong. Every waking hour I cursed myself for what I did. It tore me apart. I had lost almost everypony already. I didn't want to lose you too."
"You already have."
Twilight's face turned to a scowl.
"I've only ever seen the brighter side in ponies. I've hoped and prayed for my enemies to give up their hate and anger and envy, no matter their wicked pasts. But Celestia bestowed upon me a duty that demands I take action for the benefit of Equestria, not my own conscience. Terrible burdens still have to be carried. Perhaps the end will be no different. Perhaps Equestria is destined for the dust, and nothing may yet stop what’s coming. But I am charged to defy such a fate, no matter the costs. Duty is the death of friendship. I am the royal sovereign now. It’s best to go through life unencumbered.”
"I don't believe you," Starlight said, "I don't believe that you'd give up everything because of what Celestia made you think."
Twilight glared at her, becoming increasingly frustrated. Starlight could not know the whole of the truth. But there was no persuading her. She was too stubborn. Twilight almost wanted to laugh, they seemed to have stubbornness in common. She could not do it. She could not turn on another friend. But if her words proved unconvincing, there would be no other choice. 
"Nightmare Moon, Tirek, Chrysalis, Sombra....they were all just precursors for the storm that's coming. Things have been set in motion thousands of moons before you or I had anything to do with it. The real enemy, the great enemy, it's coming for us, Starlight. There was only one path to prolong what bitter peace we may hope to hold onto. The visions, the dreams, so real I hardly know whether or not I'm awake. The past, the present, and the future all collide, and the voices that speak to me - warnings of what's coming. Only I can lead Equestria against it all. Ember, Thorax, Paramount…they were too shortsighted to understand what they were doing. They thought of themselves as saviors. As heroes fighting for an end to the tyranny of Celestia, of Luna, of all the systems in place that have allowed atrocity after atrocity to threaten ponies' lives. They told me I was either with them or against them. But I knew their true intentions. They planned to depose me as well, if it meant taking power for themselves. To do out with the old, and in with the new. So I did what had to be done. I made an example of them, for every other duplicitous wretch in this kingdom who has their eyes on my throne to see. But the visions haven't changed. Every night I see the same thing. Blood-red shores, black skies and lakes of fire. I thought by killing them all I'd prevent it. The end of Equestria. Now I fear there is nothing I or anypony can do. War is coming, no matter how hard I try to stop it."
Starlight could feel her legs trembling.
"It’s all in your mind, Twilight,” Starlight said, "Whatever you saw, it isn't real."
Twilight scoffed.
"When the storm breaks, and the enemy washes onto our shores, I'm going to need you by my side. Equestria needs both of us. You chose to stick yourself in the middle of this. Now you have to make a choice, Starlight. You can join me, and you and your friends will be declared innocent of all wrongdoing. Or, you can continue standing in my way, and see how fate rewards you.”
“...Being a leader is earned through trust. You don’t deserve to wear that crown,” Starlight said, bitterly, “I still believe in heroes. Just not in you.”
Twilight’s face began to change, from frustration to panic, as if she were in a state of shock.
"I won't fight you," Twilight said, her voice sharp like ice. Her eyes had turned red, and her mouth was almost quivering, "You're one of the only friends I have left."
Starlight gritted her teeth, and her face hardened. Trixie had warned her not to do this. There was a better way, she thought. A better time to strike. Not out in the open. Not like this.
Her life would be forfeit, even if she somehow prevailed. And her friends, what of them? Trixie. Sunset. Wallflower, Lightning, Suri. Sunburst. They needed her to protect them. 
But it was too late to turn back now, too late to surrender her chance. Reunited, at last. 
Starlight's eyes narrowed in on Twilight, who took a step back, shaking her head slightly. 
She meant to do it, Twilight realized. 
"What's done is done," Twilight said, firmly, "Ember and the rest are dead, but the fight is not over. Your friends still have a chance to live, to help save Equestria from what's coming. So do you. Don't throw your life away for nothing."
Starlight shook her head, and held her ground.
She readied herself, throwing back her shoulders, raising her chest, sparking her horn.
Never the hero. That's all she ever understood. But even a lifetime of mistakes that could not hold her back now. For a fleeting moment, she might just live up to all those expectations. Fight the fight she had been craving since she was a child, since the day Sunburst left her, since everypony in the world seemed to turn their back on her. Twilight may have lost her way, but the words she had once spoken still remained in Starlight's heart. She did not expect to live, or die, or win or lose. She only knew what her heart told her was right, even if it meant challenging the pony who gave her the very courage to fight on, to overcome despair. 
That was the only truth. That she may never be the hero. But she might still try to do what is right, regardless. 
And there Twilight Sparkle stood, bathed in the shadow of the storm, trembling with each drop of the rain. 
A darker kind of treachery awaited her. She must do it. Celestia's voice was pounding in her head, begging her to end it now, end it quick. Twilight was repulsed by the truth of what she was, the truth of what she had done. But that was all she was, now, all of which she could never escape from. Why run from it any longer? Whose arms did she hope to reach, at the end of the tunnel? Since the cold touch of the crown graced her head, the road into oblivion became ever so clearer. There was no deliverance. There was no redemption. She would have to finish what she started, no matter what.
No matter what. 
Their eyes met once again, and for a moment the heat seemed to boil to its limit, holding now at a bubbling fit of rage, kept thinly restrained.
“You don’t want to do this,” Twilight said.
“Yes, I do,” Starlight said, a shade of blood red swirled in Twilight's eyes. 
Twilight sighed.
A flash of purple light sent Starlight tumbling backwards into the grass, landing on shaky hooves. Starlight was taken aback by the suddenness of the strike, her eyes wide with terror. 
She glanced up to see where Twilight had gone, only to find the princess was already behind her, her horn ignited, a blast of purple flame searing through the air towards her. 
Starlight disappeared in a flash of blue light.
Twilight’s eyes scanned her left and right, searching for where Starlight might reappear.
The shift in the air told her right, where she spun around just in time to deflect an attempted shot by Starlight, bursting through the air. 
Twilight’s horn cast an aura of magic around Starlight’s throat, dragging her down face first into the dirt. An aura appeared over Starlight’s leg, lifting her up and flinging her up into the air. Twilight swung her down into the dirt, leaving a sizable crater scattered with drops of fresh blood.
Starlight grunted in pain for a moment, before attempting to jump back to her hooves. 
Twilight had her again by the legs, flinging her with an exaggerated motion. Starlight flew off into the distance at a supersonic rate, darting between the reporters’ hot air balloons, miles and miles at an untraceable rate. 
Twilight watched Starlight disappear into a dot on the horizon, heading towards the mountains in the distance. 
Her hardened glare fell apart for a moment, before she shut her eyes to dispel such weaknesses. 
Twilight took off in a burning blaze of fire, darting through the air after Starlight.
Starlight was able to balance herself while overtop the summer forests by the Smoky Mountains, struggling to keep herself from throwing up from the intensity of the air pressure.
She could hear the ear piercing shriek of Twilight’s approach middair, and, without giving herself much time to think, she dove downwards, narrowly avoiding Twilight’s missile-esque arrival.
Twilight had made her turn in the air sooner than Starlight had anticipated, demolishing the clouds in her way as she barreled down towards her.
Starlight cast a shield of magic to halt the impact, though Twilight was able to shatter right through it, knocking Starlight backwards in a shockwave of heat.
Starlight shot four times in Twilight’s direction, though for each attempt Twilight was easily able to evade.
Twilight was upon her once more, holding her by the throat in an aura of magic, while her eyes seemed to turn blood red.
Starlight screamed in agony and blasted Twilight right in the face, sending Twilight spinning off balance. Starlight teleported through the air to Twilight’s blind spot, where she grabbed at Twilight’s ankle and spun her off circling through the air. Charging up her horn, the ensuing blast of magic was powerful enough to incinerate every living microscopic organism that had the misfortune of being in the way. Twilight cast a shield to defend herself, though the force was so monumental that even she felt its impact, spiraling through the air, a portion of her wing injured. 
"We were meant to fight the darkness together, Starlight," Twilight said, after collecting herself and wiping some blood from her snout, "The powers you have are no accident. You are a part of the prophecy. Together we will save Equestria, and rid it of all the ponies who want to do it harm. Join me, Starlight."
"Save Equestria?" Starlight repeated, aghast, "Look at everything you've done. How can't you see it? You're the one who's destroying Equestria! What do you think is gonna happen? That I'm going to help you murder and maim more ponies, all because of some doomsday visions that you saw? This is my life! These are my ponies!"
"We have a responsibility to be a part of something that's larger than ourselves," Twilight said, "I thought you of all ponies would be able to understand. Equestria doesn't know what's best for it. Only I do. There is a one in ten-thousand chance that Equestria prevails against what's coming, and to reach that end means doing things I once thought were unthinkable. Even brave ponies blind themselves, when they are afraid to see. But there's no time for fear, and I have even less patience for it. If ponies want to stand in my way, then they are not just my enemies, but enemies of Equestria, too. Don't die for them. You belong with me. I could make you just like me. An alicorn, blessed with eternal life, blessed with the powers of a god."
"No," Starlight said, "I don't care if I don't live forever, I don't care about the powers of a god. This is my home. And I won't let you destroy it!"
Starlight teleported again to attack Twilight from below, shooting a beam of magic straight for her eyes. She hit her target, evident when Twilight’s screams began echoing down below into the valley.
Twilight adjusted herself, weakly pawing at the blackened, crisped residue surrounding her left eye, which had taken the brunt of the damage. She could only see out of the right then, though the pain was what concerned her more. 
“If I’d known you’d be this much of a nuisance, I’d have made sure your friends had suffered more before I put them out of their misery.”
Starlight’s fiery glare broke apart in an instant.
“W-What?”
Twilight grinned, lapping up the blood spilling out from her nose. Starlight was not faring much better, her face reduced to bruised pulp.
“Your little accomplices. Sunset, the Wonderbolt, the seamstress, They were all in one place when we found them, they made it easy. My only regret is it was all over in an instant. Except for Sunburst. The whole time I was breaking him, he was only ever crying out for you.”
	Starlight shook her head, distraught, unwilling to give ground to Twilight’s bait. Tears had welled up in her eyes already, realizing that she had abandoned them all, when they needed her most.  
Starlight cried out a horrible sound of despair, when her horn reignited. Twilight had been waiting for that, darting through the air to catch Starlight just as she was overwhelmed by her own emotions. 
Twilight blasted Starlight right in the face, and again in the chest, before knocking her so hard that she came crashing down towards the mountain below.  
Twilight sighed, grunting as her right wing struggled to function. 
Twilight glided down below, wiping the blood from her face.
She found Starlight in a dirt crater in a short forested area on the mountainside, five trees having been cut to pieces during the explosive descent. The sky above had turned blood red while the setting sun broke through the storm. 
Starlight’s face was mangled, bruised and drenched in blood. She was wheezing for air, unable to move her legs. She hardly resembled a pony anymore, with the burned holes in her flesh from Twilight’s strikes, and the occasional piece of bones sticking out from her flesh.
"You're doing this for nothing," Twilight said, "I'm the only one who knows what how to save Equestria from complete annihilation."
Starlight drooled out a mouthful of blood and dragged herself up to her knees, turning around with a bloodied, sightless eye.
"And how many ponies have to die for you to save Equestria?" Starlight managed.
Twilight was twitching with rage.
"It's their choice to resist, not mine. Ember brought it on herself. Posh brought it on herself. They all did. Now Equestria can see how pointless it is to defy me, and know that they can be a part of something bigger."
Starlight grimaced and struggled to stand back up, her horn coughing out some sparks of magic.
"I won't let you," she said.
Twilight’s horn was alight once more, and the ensuing blast sent Starlight crashing back into the crater. 
"You want to die instead of trusting me? Fine. I can always find a new pupil.," Twilight roared, blasting Starlight again right in the face. She levied blast after blast, each one breaking another bone or ripping flesh from muscle. Teeth came flying out into the snow, which was stained a terrible shade of red. Twilight's wrath was so great that the whole mountain began to shake, and all the birds that had remained nearby had all flown off. 
Twilight readied her horn for another blast, only to hesitate, watching Starlight shake and tremble, as if each passing breeze was enough to send waves of excruciating pain through her body. Twilight shut her eyes and winced and dug her hooves into the snow, furious.
"Damn it," she spat, before collapsing to her knees in front of Starlight, exhausted. 
Her horn dimmed, and she gazed up at the falling snow with bloodshot eyes, gasping for breath. She glanced at Starlight, whose face was all bloody red pulp. Her eyes were bloody horrors, her coat was colored red from almost head to toe, and with each breath a bit more blood escaped down her lips. 
Twilight straightened herself up, but had to look away, unable to look at Starlight for too long. But her rage took the better of her, and she glanced down at that bloodied, beaten body, while loose strands of her mane dangled over her eyes. 
"Why did you make me do this?" Twilight demanded, "You're fighting so you can defeat me and leave Equestria vulnerable for its destruction! Millions will die if I'm not here to protect them. Ponies have to die for Equestria to survive. Maybe that's too hard for you to understand. Grow up. Why do you think you know better?"
Starlight continued gasping for breath, hardly able to move in the bloody crater. 
“....Because," Starlight gasped, "You taught me, Twilight. You ... taught me."
Twilight remained there, watching Starlight struggle for air, writhing while her bruises weeped blood and the wind held her in a cradle of agony. Twilight shut her eyes for a moment, and then glanced back at Starlight, her pupil, with pale eyes.  
Twilight sighed again. She spread her wings, and took flight, soaring up into the air. 
Starlight’s eyes were blinded by the tears, before the darkness overcame her, 
 




Sheets of rain flooded the polished streets of Canterlot, while patrols marched past at almost every turn, sirens wailing along the white ramparts. 
The afternoon air was hot and sticky, as nightfall drew closer like an animal stalking its prey. 
Sunset Shimmer tightened her hood over her head, hoping she could pass through the city without drawing much attention. 
Trotting past one storefront window, Sunset noticed a crowd of pedestrians eyeing the TV screens on display, piled tight underneath their umbrellas. The news was on at full volume on the other side of the glass, and Sunset had to shove past a few in the crowd to catch a good look. The glow of the televisions reflected across the rainfall, shining a dim light on Sunset’s dampened coat. 
“There’s no sign of Sparkle or Glimmer, folks, we’ve lost sight of them. No civilian casualties reported thus far, we’ll be updating you all soon,” came Bravo’s voice from the Equestria News Network broadcast.
Sunset shook her head in disbelief, having not expected Starlight to take action so soon. Sunset broke off from the crowd, hurrying along at a quicker pace. 
It took her half-an-hour to reach 21st Avenue, stumbling over pockets of drenched moss in the sidewalk cracks. She saw potential in Wallflower’s parents’ home, the group’s newly designated place of operations.  
She froze when she rounded the corner. Sunset’s eyes lingered only for a moment, before she continued on down the sidewalk. 
She could hear hoofsteps trickling against concrete just a few yards behind her, as she continued past the house. 
She kept on down the road, keeping her eyes front.
The hoofsteps drew closer in quicker beats. She wondered how many there were watching her. She sped up her pace, ever so slightly. She’d hate to make a mess out in the open like this. 
Darting around a corner, however, Sunset found herself drifting off to the side into an adjacent alleyway.
A pony had their hoof over her mouth, dragging her down to the ground behind a set of black dumpsters surrounded by nightstruck puddles.
The two royal guards that had been following her could be seen rushing past the alleyway, oblivious, while Sunset waited patiently so she could remove her rescuer’s hoof from her mouth. 
Sunset stood up and spun around, staring down the shaggy figure of Wallflower Blush, whose curly green mane was even more tangled than usual.
“Basket case, go figure. Got left behind?” Sunset said, wiping sweat from her brow.
“Some ponies pronounce it ‘thank you,’” Wallflower snapped, though her voice was too soft to convey much anger, “I thought you were caught.” 
“Just stopped by. Figured you’d all be goners.”
“How’d you know that?”
“Door’s repainted, the front porch is scrubbed clean, and there’s a black truck out by the curb, probably packed full of tinheads waiting to welcome me home. Mind filling me in?”   
“They knew where we were, somehow. Guards - forty or fifty, I don’t know. It happened too fast. They’re all gone. Lightning, Suri, all of them,” Wallflower said, “I tried to help them.”
Sunset glared at her. 
“If you really had, you wouldn’t be here.”
Wallflower’s eyes fell to the floor, subtly, before jumping back up.
“So what do we do? How do we get them back?”
Sunset shook her head, cutting Wallflower’s plea short. 
“We’re on our own now. We’ve got to get to Twilight, before we lose our window.”
“What?” Wallflower stammered, “Sunset, forget about Twilight, We can’t leave them all behind.”
“I’d wager we’ve got a few hours before the guards find us. This is the only chance we’re gonna get.”
“They’re our friends. And you’re abandoning them,” Wallflower said, picking herself up to meet Sunset at eye level. 
“They’d want us to finish the job,” Sunset snarled.
“Your job. Not theirs,” Wallflower rebuked. 
Sunset glared at her, practically steaming from the ears.
Wallflower shook her head in disbelief.
“I can’t believe you. You don’t care about any of us. You’re just using us all.”
“We didn’t break out of Hellhatch to hide in the shadows. We said we would stop Twilight, and that’s what we’re going to do. We just need to take one more step. Now come on.”
Sunset turned back towards the street, though Wallflower did not budge. 
“No. We have to save them.”
Sunset glanced back, irritated. 
“We don’t have time for this. Let’s go,” Sunset said, again turning to exit the alleyway. 
“And then what? We do it your way, and there’ll just be more and more ponies getting hurt.”
“That’s the game,” Sunset spat, storming back towards Wallflower, “That’s what we signed up for. Or maybe you haven’t gotten the message yet.”
“You’re not dragging me down with you. Not this time.”
“You’re pathetic.” Sunset said, storming back out into the street, “Goodbye, Wallflower.” 	
Wallflower waited until Sunset had disappeared around the corner, as dread began to tear her mind to shreds. 





In the pitch black, raindrops snaked along the metal wires, while nearby the sewers overflowed and the sounds of traffic were drowned out in the downpour. 
Inside the Canterlot western Marine compound, the prison cell was more akin to a livestock pen, stuck right out in the open of one training depot. Lightning Dust had made countless attempts at flying up towards the steel roof, colliding into it at colossal speeds. Nothing seemed to work. Kickstart had remained at Scootaloo’s side, when he wasn’t dozing off. He had received a deep gash to the head during his arrest, leaving him only capable of brief interludes of consciousness. 
The four of them lay there in the mud, while runoff soaked their soles, and the odd flash of the nearby tower searchlight interrupted attempts at rest. 
Lightning’s ear perked up first, when she overheard a rare bout of commotion from the main compound door entrance. 
Out came two royal guards, dragging another pony between them. 
Lightning rose to her hooves, when the three figures approached the cage, paying no notice to the pouring rain. 
One guard moved to open the door. He prodded Lightning away from the door with the tip of his spear, before allowing room for his companion to dump off the body they had been carrying. 
The guards departed and shut the door locked, marching off to escape the rain.
Lightning peered down at the pony, who sluggishly picked herself out of the mud. She was absolutely drenched, hardly recognizable any longer.   
“Bon Bon,” Lightning said, shocked. 
Kickstart awoke, suddenly, his eyes flashing red. 
The stallion stormed up to his hooves, rushing towards an unsuspecting Bon Bon.
He had her by the throat in no time, shoving her against the cage fence with little difficulty.
Spinning searchlights revealed the face of a pony lost to madness, as he crushed Bon Bon’s throat under his grip.
“Kickstart, hey! Kickstart,” Lightning said, slipping in the mud while rushing to intervene. 
She attempted to reel Kickstart back, though the stallion’s strength was formidable. She only managed to trip over herself, landing hard in the mud.
“Kickstart,” Scootaloo said, cautiously approaching him as though he was some rabid animal.
Kickstart glanced back at her once, then twice, and his eyes softened. 
He released his grip, sending Bon Bon crashing down the ground, her face soured purple, her throat streaked in red. She gasped for breath. Spikes lined her ribcage, and she could feel her muscles all having gone numb. Collapsing in the mud, Bon Bon’s mind was scrambled, all while Kickstart took to skulking back to his corner of the fence.
“The blackcoat rat sold us out!"
Bon Bon shook her head vigorously. 
“It was Callidus,” she choked, “He led me right to Snowfall. He gave her the address.”
Lightning glanced at Kickstart, and then at Suri, uncertain of the truth. 
“Where’s Wallflower? And Sunset?” Bon Bon wondered, spitting mud out of her mouth. 
“They had better luck, it looks,” Suri muttered. 
“I want to go home,” Scootaloo squeaked. 
“We’re gonna get out of here, I promise,” Lightning said, though she too was dwindling on hope. The rain came down in heavier sheets, while Lightning savored every moment she could, confident that their time was running out. 





Blondie twirled the knife in his hoof, while his eyes lingered over to the hotel room television.
Salt Shaker had made the room a miniature base of operations, where his fifteen most loyal Black Hoof subordinates were busy preparing their ammunition, grenades, and assortment of blades. 
“In and out. Find Trench, and kill him,” Salt Shaker reminded Blondie, "What's his will be mine. Then I'll consider your offer."
Blondie hoped it would be him to land the finishing blow on that smirking stallion, the architect of all the abuse poor Brandy Bow had endured for months on end. He recalled the stallion’s face, dark grey with a head of jet black hairs. 
“The lot of you, help me load the carriage,” Salt Shaker said. 
The room began to clear, and Blondie meant to follow, until something caught his eye. Tucked away near the hotel air conditioner, the silver tip of a briefcase handle. 





Drowned in the fluorescent fog, Trixie had her eyes cast down by the bayside window of the Erased’s sunken control room. Agents in stuffy black suits ran past her to and fro, carrying high stacks of paperwork and riding high on caffeine overdoses. Miles underground, there was a certain airtight anxiety that followed every step. 
The Erased’s field agents were still deployed in the Northern Woods, searching for Starlight Glimmer, or, potentially, her bloody remains. Trixie had faith in Starlight, more than anypony, though even she had to grapple with the plausibility that their last farewell would be permanent. 
Glancing back inside, she saw Alias had arrived, a cigarette spinning between his teeth. His face was worn like old leather, and his grizzly hunch was worse than ever before. But he seemed jovial for once, if only for the company of two faces Trixie did not recognize.
“I’d almost given up on you two,” Alias said, glancing between the belligerent Flamberge and the starry-eyed Amity Stiletto.
“We’d have stayed in Seaward longer, if we knew what would happen,” Flamberge insisted. The pair had left the city just days before the bugbear’s dreadful arrival.
“It’s good to have you back,” Alias said. Amity caught his gaze, as if she had been longing to hear him say it. 
“Chief,” she said, “Has Bandolier made it in yet?”
Alias’ disposition changed from reluctant, fatherly pride, to unmistakable discomfort.
Alias glanced at Slick, who was sitting nearby at his control panel. Slick straightened up in his chair.
“He never reported into Seaward,” Slick said.
Amity’s face fell in despair. 
“We left him,” she muttered to herself.
Flamberge’s cocky smile faded. He hadn’t expected the scruffy rat to go out so easily, despite his contempt. 
“Best not to dwell on it,” Alias croaked.
Amity glanced back up at him, distraught. Alias gave a cordial nod and turned to trot off.
Amity took a step forward, enraged. 
“He was the best of us, and you know it. He died following your orders, like he always did, and you’ve got nothing to say?” Amity stammered. 
Without exception, every agent within earshot came to an abrupt silence, glancing over to lend their attention to Amity’s outburst.
Alias turned around, coldly. Even Flamberge, who was nearly twice the size of the old stallion, felt as though he was in danger. Those cold grey eyes would peel back every lie a pony could muster. 
“He did his job,” Alias said, weakly. Amity would have continued lashing out, if she hadn’t noticed the pain in the old stallion’s eyes, the grief of youth and adventure, a father’s forlorn. 
"Sir," came Slick, approaching from the gallery of consoles, "We've located Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. They're now en route to Ponyville, they should be safe there."
Alias nodded in approval. Amity remained there, glancing up at him with a furious gaze.
"Bandolier would have wanted you to keep your head up," Alias offered, "Our war is far from over."
Alias again turned to leave, while Amity took a breath. 
Alias found Trixie in the outside corridor, sitting on a bench near the window. 
He would have walked past her, if not for his own grief for Bandolier, the same sort of grief he saw in poor Trixie’s eyes. 
“You should get rest,” Alias advised, though his gruff demeanor did little to comfort her. 
Trixie glanced up at him, her eyes heavy with an agonizing confusion.
“I never had a friend like her,” Trixie said, “Somepony who didn’t treat me like a joke. She fought for everypony but herself. That’s what I was there to do. Tell a joke. Lighten the mood. Keep her sane…I needed her. And she needed me. She was the pony I went to whenever I was at my lowest. She was somepony I felt like I could follow.”
“She made her own path. Maybe now it’s time to stop following,” Alias said, “And start leading.”
Trixie’s eyes darted up again from the floor. She sighed, unsure of her own ability to do such a thing. 
“Sir,” came a voice from down the corridor, catching both ponies’ attention.
It was Pink Mist, dragging a sleep-deprived Rarity alongside her. 
Alias glanced back down at Trixie, who was slowly rising to her hooves.
“This one’s yours to sort out, Lulamoon,” Alias said, nodding for Pink Mist to leave Rarity be.
Alias left Trixie with a nod of encouragement, before starting off down the corridor, agents flocking towards her to report their latest updates.
“I have work to do,” he said, before leaving Trixie alone with Rarity, whose makeup was smudged with tears, whose mane was hideously disheveled. 
“Have they found her?” Rarity asked, meekly.
Trixie shook her head. Both had only seen as far as the Erased’s recording equipment could obtain, which was enough to dampen much sense of hope.
“Sorry for…ponynapping you,” Trixie said.
“I suppose that’s all in the past now,” Rarity said, to Trixie’s surprise.
Trixie eyed her, still uncertain to what extent to trust her.
“I’m not telling her anything,” Rarity said, after a brief hesitation, “Not a thing.”
“Twilight may see otherwise,” Trixie said. 
“She would never hurt me.”
“Starlight once said the same thing,” Trixie replied.
Rarity had to keep reminding herself of that. 
“They’ll find Starlight, she’ll be alright. I’m sure of it, darling,” Rarity smiled. 
“Rarity,” Trixie said, keeping her shoulders firmly back and her eyes locked onto Rarity’s.
“She needs to be stopped,” Trixie said, subtly shaking her head back and forth, as if she was pleading for help. 
Rarity’s eyes flickered, and Trixie could see that her lip was quivering. But then Rarity straightened up again, after a short deep breath. 
“I know.”





Shifting sands and a masked void reeled him out of a dream, lost in some trickling velvety wood. He recalled a crack in the dead of night. And then he remembered who had been chasing him.
Styles. 
Opening his eyes, he recognized the room they were in, the lounge of Lady Lavender’s own woodland palace. He could make out the miniature fountain in the center of the sunken couch area, by the bar, bath, and open candlelit library.
He was drenched in sweat, and could feel the swelling sore of whatever knocked him unconscious, gnawing at a tender spot on the back of his head.
Glancing to his left, Clover was in a similar predicament, tied down to a splintery wooden chair mere inches from Bandolier. The ropes dug into their flesh. But Clover had the advantage of having her hooves bound in close proximity to each other, spurring her to toy around with the rope threads. 
“What happened?” Bandolier muttered. 
“They found us,” Clover muttered back.
Bandolier struggled against the ropes.
"It’s no use," Clover said.
Bandolier continued struggling, despite Clover’s hopelessness.
“Stop, somepony’s coming,” she warned.
Bandolier glanced over at the stairwell, where the candlelit shadows of three ponies revealed themselves.
But it was not Styles as he had feared, however, but rather the fair Lady Lavender herself, accompanied by two of her guards.
“I trust you’ve had enough beauty sleep,” the purple-maned mare said. 
“My lady, you won’t believe how happy I am to see you,” Bandolier grinned.
Lavender feigned a welcoming smirk. 
“You didn’t think I’d really let you slip into Twilight Sparkle’s hooves, did you?” Lavender cooed. 
“Right. Wonderful. Now, um, I don’t mean to overstep here, but you seem to have lost your famous sense of hospitality,” Bandolier said, again struggling against the ropes. 
Lavender’s smile faded, as if perpetuating her act exhausted her. 
“I suppose it would have been just a brief distraction, if you had stayed. I wouldn’t mind the handsome company,” she purred, “But you simply must understand how hurt I was, to see that my dear friend Twilight had sent one of her little pests to come and exterminate me in my own home. The quicker I could do without her, the better.”
Bandolier glanced at Clover.
“Twilight likes to think she’s the smartest pony in the room. I’d like to disagree. It's not difficult to pick up on her habit of cutting off accomplices once they've served their purpose. Mayor Mare played along, and what was Twilight’s reward? A dragon dungeon. Mine was apparently going to be more permanent.”
“You were working with her?” Bandolier said, glancing at Clover, who was equally confused. 
“My darling husband had little relevance to her petty little scheme. Blueblood never cared for our princess, it's true, but he would never have had the stomach to do what Ember and Posh desired from him. It was me who told Twilight about the coup that was coming for her. I agreed to keep quiet about everything, as long as she added one more name to her afterparty's guest list,” Lavender said, reveling in her own deception, “All that wealth was wasted on a spoiled brat like Blueblood.”
Bandolier lowered his head slightly, cursing himself for not having made Lavender a suspect prior. 
“Mayor Mare and I ensured everything went smoothly. Twilight may have succeeded in snuffing me out too, if it hadn’t been for you. I owe you a bit of thanks, for that. Your life, at least,” Lavender said, before her eyes turned to Clover, “You, on the other hoof…I’ve no idea what to do with you. Twilight must not have liked you failing the job, is that right? I suppose I could send you back to her…Whatever she has planned is bound to be far worse than anything I could contrive. But don't fret. Sooner than later things around here are going to change."
Clover, who was not busy being dumbstruck like Bandolier was at that moment, had carefully taken to sawing across her rope restraints with what little hoof room she had, using a pin kept hidden in her fur. 
“Here’s for the one loose end Twilight forgot about,” Lavender grinned, “The one thing that kept even the likes of Princess Celestia ever paranoid.”
Bandolier narrowed his eyes, unsure what Lavender meant. 
“Beyond the sea, there’s a pony who truly sees the bigger picture. A pony who saw the value of having somepony like me on their side. A pony who truly deserves to sit on that throne.”
Bandolier recalled what Clover had told him, the night before. There was a benefactor.
“Twilight’s ambitious, I’ll give her that. How far some ponies are willing to go for the love they crave…It’s a marvelous thing. But for all her careful considerations, she made a terrible mistake. She didn’t count on you,” Lavender said, burying her face in uncomfortable proximity to Bandolier.
Clover snapped across her ropes right then, slicing open the threads and ripping them apart in a sweeping motion. 
Lavender swiveled her head to Clover, who promptly smacked her across the face.
Lavender shrieked, while the surrounding guards quickly moved in to apprehend her. 
“Bandolier!” Clover cried, tossing him the pin. 
Her aim was misguided, however, throwing the pin closer to the marble tile floor.
Bandolier grunted and threw himself backwards, crushing his legs against the floor. 
He squirmed while wrestling for the pin, which, upon recovering, he took to quickly slicing through the bonds. 
Clover was preoccupied wrestling with the two nearest guards. One had her by the throat, while the other made repeated attempts to smash apart her ribs with a hard-iron punch.
Bandolier made it to his hooves in just a few seconds, springing up and throwing his hoof across the air into a guard’s mouth. Three teeth came loose as a result, and the guard came crashing down. 
Lavender was giggling the whole while, pawing at her sore cheek, where Clover had slapped her. 
“There’s nothing anypony can do to stop what’s coming,” Lavender grinned. Bandolier scowled and kicked hard across the legs of another guard, sweeping him off his hooves.
Bandolier reached for Clover and dragged her along by the hoof. 
“This way,” Bandolier said, rushing for the nearby staircase. 
Lavender’s cackle carried on while they made their escape.
The rushing of hoofsteps from further down the stairwell prompted Bandolier to lead them off to the side to another corridor, a short walk to a balcony two stories up from the adjacent river. 
“Shit,” Clover said, realizing that the guards were catching up to them. 
Bandolier pulled her closer to the edge of the balcony. 
“We can climb down,” Bandolier said, attempting to pull himself over the railing. 
“The fall,” Clover pointed out. 
“Just hold on to me,” Bandolier said.
He tugged on Clover to follow him, though she refused to budge.
“C'mon, we don’t have time to-”
“You were right about me," Clover said, "I wish I was strong enough to fight back, and make a difference. But I’m not.”
“Clover, now is not the time. We need to-”
“I know what I'm doing, OK? You want to tell the world the truth, then go do it.”
“What are you-”
Clover abruptly grabbed him by the shoulders, leaned in with pursed lips, and planted a neat peck on the cheek.
“I just hope you can swim.”
Bandolier’s eyes were lost in confusion, all until Clover pushed forward, sending him tumbling off the railing towards the river below. 
Clover turned around towards the guards, who had just arrived at the balcony door. 





No air. Couldn’t breathe, thrashing every muscle in every direction. Whimpering, clawing at the darkness, her lungs were crushed. Thoughts slipping away, no air, too hot, wet. Why was she wet?
Bubbling puddles of mud welcomed Lightning Dust back to the flooded cage at the compound. She awoke facedown in the muck, her entire body soaked in sweat and filth. She had only managed two hours of sleep, which was not much less than the others. 
Suri and Bon Bon were both asleep, as was Kickstart, who was lying propped up against the metal fence. 
“You OK?” Scootaloo asked, watching Lightning while she gasped for breath.
Lightning fell back against the pen, exhausted.
Her eyes wavered over Scootaloo, who was sitting in a puddle of mud. Scampers the Rat was nearby her, scratching at her hoof.
“You should never have come with us,” Lightning said, spitefully, “Your parents are probably worried sick.” 
Scootaloo scoffed.
“My parents couldn’t care less,” Scootaloo said, “They’re both half a world away, living out their adventures together, without me. I found him and I thought, maybe this could be my adventure. What about your parents? Aren't they worried sick?”
She glanced at Kickstart, affectionately, before her glare hardened once more.
“My mom and dad raised me to be somepony I never could have been. I was never going to be the fastest. I would only ever be second best. The second they understood that, they left me to fend for myself,” Lightning said, "We haven't spoken in years."
“At least they gave you some thought, once,” Scootaloo retorted.
Lightning’s vicious snarl softened. 
“You’re not like me, Scootaloo," Lightning said, "I deserve everything I got. You don’t.”
Scootaloo said nothing, digging herself deeper into her puddle.
“I wrote myself out of my own story, because of choices I made. It’s too late for me, but you, you’ve still got your entire life ahead of you. Don’t waste it following ponies like me,” Lightning said.
“Stop,” Scootaloo said, angrily, “Stop pretending like pitying yourself helps anypony at all! You’re just as selfish as you’ve ever been, only now you’ve got nothing to show off.”
“I got you into this mess.”
“I got myself into this mess. This is what I wanted! To make my own mistakes! To learn stuff the hard way! That’s how it’s supposed to be. You make mistakes, and you learn from them. You don’t just waste away beating yourself up.”
Lightning could not bring herself to reply, watching as Scootaloo turned away from her, lying back down in the mud to try and get some sleep.
Lightning’s head fell slightly, while the rain continued pouring down right outside the cage. 





Flashing neon and streetside runoff dimly soared down the mossy ruin of Halifax Way. 
Blondie had his hoof firmly tucked around his belt, dancing around with the hilt of his knife. 
But Blondie led the way down the cracked asphalt, where the rats and roaches crept in the shadowy junctions. Blondie pretended not to notice the odd pair of eyes peering down at them from the half-boarded windows of the nearby apartments. His backpack bounced with each step, while his knife clanged against the zipper of his jacket. 
Fifteen yards from the doors to the office complex front gate at the end of the street, Blondie came to a sudden stop. The earth was moving, somehow. 
He could not tell from which direction the blast came from, only that its impact was strong enough to send him, the ten others tumbling off further down the street. As for the rest of their companions, when the fires had settled there was little left but charred bone and ashy tissue. 
“C'mon,” Blondie said, hardly taking a moment to grieve the others. 
They broke into a sprint for the gate, with one of the Black Hoof ponies having already dislodged a grenade from his belt. He only had three to spare, so he would have to choose his opportunities carefully. 
Cracks of thunder came sounding off in every direction, while magical-bullets came bombarding the street. One of the Black Hoof ponies fell behind, and was soon torn to shreds by the firestorm.
“Toss it!” Blondie yelled. 
The pony complied, releasing the pin and throwing the grenade straight for the front gate of the building. Blondie recognized the nearby warehouse as the one he had been dragged to before, and the alley where he had caught those royal guards. Both times Brandy had been just within reach, and still managed to escape his grasp. He grimaced while maintaining a ferocious sprint; he would not fail this time.
The front gate disappeared in a cloud of fire when the grenade made contact. Blondie kept on his pace through the fire inside the building lobby, where the others followed after.
Undergrounders came pouring in from the surrounding hallways, though Blondie did not give them much time to prepare. The Black Hoof pony had thrown his second grenade towards the largest group of them, while Blondie and the others ran straight for the next largest group, brandishing axes, swords, pistols and knives. Two of the earth ponies moved to meet him head on. Blondie shoved two out of the way, and threw his hoof right into another’s face, dampening his own hoof in the pony’s nosebleed. 
Blondie noticed another’s hoof swinging right towards his face, catching the poor stallion’s leg on his own, before snapping the bone backwards. Blood sprayed over a good of the surrounding Undergrounders, who were distraught to see the pony’s bone was sticking out from the skin. But the pony himself was more distraught, shrieking in shock and agony, collapsing to the ground. 
Blondie grabbed the next closest pony’s legs and pushed forward, running him backwards and off to the side. They crashed into a cement column near the center of the lobby, where ponies scurried out of the way, terrified. Blondie, gritting his teeth, held the pony down with one leg and moved the other to throttle him by the neck. But the pony was slightly larger than him, and was able to break free of his grasp. As soon as his grip came loose, Blondie fell backwards, toppling to the ground in a heap. The pony charged towards him, prompting Blondie to tumble to the side to avoid a stomping hoof to the neck. Blondie swung his leg back around, tripping the pony and bringing him to the ground as well. Blondie rushed upon him, grabbing him by the throat and slamming his hoof once, twice, three times in the pony’s face, dislocating his jaw and bloodying his nose into pulp. Blood poured out from the pony’s nose and mouth, and he could not help but try to cough it up before he would choke. Blondie grabbed the pony’s head and raised it back up in the air, swinging it back towards the cement column. He slammed the back of the pony’s head into the pole, and it took four attempts until he heard the crack of the skull and saw the bloody dent. 
Blondie dumped the pony to the ground, just in time to receive a crack to the head by another Undergrounder, who drew his knife not long after. 
Blondie fell to his knees and reached for his head, turning around immediately to catch his attackers’ hooves. He squeezed tight, until the pony dropped the knife. Blondie, grunting in pain while blood leaked into his hair from the back, slammed his head into the pony’s, bludgeoning both of their faces into a red mess of disfigurement. Blondie brought his head down against the pony’s two more times, until the pony had stopped squirming entirely. 
Wiping blood from his face, he was absolutely drenched, and out of breath. Blondie glanced around at the lobby, where the others were busy with the remaining Undergrounders. 
One, a younger stallion who could barely pick up the ax given to him, was nervously approaching Blondie while his back was turned.
Blondie turned around, his emerald eyes twisted with a bloody red fury.
“Where’s Trench?” Blondie snarled.
The Undergrounder dropped his ax in fright, the bloody, mangled Blondie rising to his hooves with a few aching motions.
“F-Fifth floor,” the pony replied.
Blondie’s eyes moved past the young stallion towards the elevator at the end of a hallway proceeding from the lobby.
He skulked past the Undergrounder, who scampered off to safety.
While his companions distracted the other Undergrounder goons, down that hallway Blondie spat out the lakes of the blood forming in his mouth.
He had not noticed the Undergrounder with the knife until the blade was dug in deep in his shoulder.
Blondie grunted and swung his hoof wildly to his right, where his attacker had leaped out from another corridor.
Blondie made contact with the pony’s head, though the pony was quick enough to levy another blow to his side. Blondie dodged a third punch and slammed his hoof down against the top of the pony’s head, sending him barreling to the ground.
Blondie dragged the knife out from his shoulder, while a river of blood began to wash over his coat. Blondie stuck the knife back down in the pony’s head, growling in agony the whole while.
Glancing at his wound, he reminded himself time was running out.
Blondie dragged himself over to the elevator, and stumbled inside. 
Fifth Floor.
Blondie ignored the grizzly sight of himself in the elevator mirror, while the accompanying corny music tape made him even more aggravated on the way up. 
Arriving on the top floor of the building, Blondie found Trench’s office directly ahead of him, identifiable by its grand towering windows, fern green carpets, and imported mahogany furniture. 
Blondie sauntered over towards the office door, blood dripping over the carpet as he went. 
He threw open the door, finding Trench himself waiting patiently in his shiny leather armchair, by the miniature library.
“Just you?” Trench scoffed.
“Just me,” Blondie said.
Trench rose from his chair, amused. 
“So you're Mr. emerald eyes, the blonde bastard I've heard so much about. You’ve come for the girl. I do hate to disappoint you, but-”
“I know you don’t have her,” Blondie interrupted.
“Ah. Then you want to make a deal.”
“No deals.”
Blondie drew his knife, its blade already soiled in blood.
Trench snickered.
“They’re all using you, my friend. That’s their game. Crozer, Salt Shaker, your beloved little brat Brandy Bow. To them you’re just a means to an end.”
Trench expected Blondie to make some sort of reply, though he only found disappointment.
“My investments reach deeper than a petty rivalry with the Black Hoof. You’re in over your head.”
Blondie stepped closer, sending Trench a step back.
“It’s futile, Blondie! The game is about to change. Sooner than you think. You need me if you want to survive. Crozer can’t protect you any longer, and you’d be a fool to trust the giant. Let’s not spoil what could be the start of a wonderful friendship.”
Trench could tell his efforts were wasted on Blondie, and slid out of off his suit jacket.
"I don't know who you are," he said, "But you're not leaving here alive."
"Then you're right, you don't know who I am."
Blondie lunged for Trench with the knife held firmly in his hoof. 
Trench scowled and dodged the attack, tripping Blondie over. Blondie ran straight into the window pane wall, leaving a sizable crack that spanned from top to bottom.
Trench reached for Blondie’s throat and threw him hard against the ground. 
“We all start out the same way. Ambitious, ruthless. You, Blondie, you’ll be like me in no time.”
Trench stomped on Blondie’s hoof, forcing open his grip on the knife. 
Trench planted a hard kick right at Blondie’s face, bludgeoning his already-crooked nose.
Blondie reached for Trench’s legs, and swept him off his hooves. Blondie sprang up and dragged Trench by his mane, tossing him straight into the window. The crack grew larger this time, with numerous other smaller cracks sprouting up from the stem.
Trench picked himself up and dodged another swing by Blondie. He reached for the knife, and kicked back hard into Blondie’s gut. Swinging the blade with precise swipes, Blondie endured two cuts across the face, one right below his eye and the other on his chest. 
Blondie grabbed Trench by the leg, prompting Trench to bring the knife down straight through the flesh of Blondie’s own leg, poking through to the other side.Blondie grunted in pain and tightened his grip around Trench’s leg. He decked Trench hard in the face, spinning him off balance. Blondie ran straight for him, tackling him right into the pane of glass.
The glass splintered in a thousand or more shards, and Trench fell with them, managing to grab onto the ledge before plummeting five stories below.
Blondie pulled the knife out from his leg, and stuck it back in his sheath. He stumbled over to the window, leaning against one of the thin beams supporting the now-broken glass.
Trench, bloodied and beaten, hung by his front legs, stretching his bruised jaw in its place.
Blondie could hear the distant sound of police sirens echoing closer and closer to Halifax Way. He glanced down at Trench.
“There it is,” Trench grinned, “We're the same underneath. All it takes to let it loose is a little motivation.”
Blondie’s scowl was unwavering. 
“That girl will be the death of you, Blondie,” Trench continued, struggling to maintain his grip on the ledge, “You’ve no idea what kind of power you’re meddling with. The power to change the game for good. The power to kill a god. But I think, maybe, the ambitious should consider how much better they’d like the good old days. Some ponies you don’t want as enemies,” Trench said, and for a moment he could make out a pair of velvet eyes overtop of Blondie. “Some things frighten me more than death.”
Trench released his grip on the ledge, and Blondie turned away, deciding to spare himself the sight of such bloodshed, after a day like today.


The Undergrounders had already fled into the nearest hovels and hideaways, when the first police carriage arrived on the scene. In the lobby, Blondie recognized the corpses of two of his Black Hoof companions, alongside nearly thirty Undergrounders. Blondie stepped through the smoking rubble of the front gate, where, ahead in the street, he could make out a pony who he recognized.
Copper Top, the same policepony who had paid him a visit in the hospital, was standing idly by her carriage while her squadmates were surveying the damage.
“Rough day?” Copper Top asked.
Blondie spat some blood onto a nearby fire. 
He would have responded, if he hadn’t noticed another carriage arriving down the street. 
The carriage made its stop right beside Copper Top. The door swung open, and there was Rainbow Dash, seated alongside Salt Shaker.
“I found her! Come on!” Rainbow bellowed.
Blondie glanced at Copper Top, who had her hoof resting on her holster-bound pistol.
“Better get going,” she said, hiding her smirk. 
Blondie nodded, appreciatively. 
He stumbled along towards Rainbow’s carriage, taking his seat facing the both of them.
The carriage took off, while Salt Shaker and Rainbow sat in stunned silence.
“Uh, you alright?” Rainbow asked.
Blondie sniffed, and glanced out the window of the carriage.
“The Underground will be needing new management.”
Salt Shaker grinned.
"Well done, lad. Your friend here is a charmer, I don't know why she sticks with you," he laughed.
“Brandy, where is she?” Blondie asked.
“That royal guard and her goons are taking her to the station, the the 3:30 to Canterlot. We’ll make it if we hurry,” Rainbow explained. 
Blondie nodded. This time, he would not fail her.     





Candlelight held the nightstruck hall of the Crystal Palace, while sparks of snow fell into a faint veil draped over the end balcony. Princess Cadance had dismissed her guards from duty that night, even Eight Ball and the Erased agents, who had otherwise not left her side for days. 
But despite her efforts, her desire for lonesomeness was cursed to be fruitless.
“Canterlot’s told me nopony has been able to find a body,” Shining Armor said, scratching at his stubbly chin, struggling to keep from teetering over in his inebriated state. 
“I told you to stop,” Cadance scolded. 
Shining Armor scoffed, balancing himself against the velvet and gold adornments of the palace hall. 
“Don’t you hate being helpless to it all?” Cadance snapped, glaring at her husband, “Our friends, our family, they’re turning against each other. They’re resorting to means I never could have imagined.”
Shining Armor sauntered over to her. She reeled back in disgust; his breath reeked of liquor. 
“We have our own ponies to protect,” he murmured, “Here, in the North. Twilight can handle things down there.”
She’s handled things well enough, Cadance wished she could say. She cursed herself, she was not even sure she could trust him anymore.
 Cadance made no reply, standing up beside him and gently helping him along towards the west-leading corridor. 
“You should head to bed, dear. I’ll check in on Flurry.”
Shining Armor smiled and nodded, before taking his time to stumble out away from the hall.
She could not quite blame him, she supposed. She was tempted to turn a blind eye, whether by purposeful intoxication or silent complacency. 
She wondered how Starlight Glimmer had figured it out, and what drove her to challenge Twilight so recklessly. For whatever it was worth, ponies would at least be asking questions. 
Cadance was inclined to side with Shining Armor, if not for any reason than to avoid a prolonged argument. But she felt ill, as she had for weeks, considering that she might be standing idly by while her dear friend Twilight deceives the whole of the world. 
But how soon could it be until Twilight shifted her gaze to the north, and considered her a threat, Cadance wondered. 
She craved safety more than anything. She craved the easy distractions that might provide an escape from the dreadful reality she had taken it upon herself to discover. 
But she was still a princess, she reminded herself. For whatever that meant any longer, her duty was to protect the common good. She was Princess Cadance, the First of Her Name, the Lady Protector of the Crystal Empire, and that still meant something. 
Her eyes danced over past the balcony, to the swirling green aurora borealis twirling through the night sky. Trotting between candle flames and weathered portraits of heroes past, Cadance could make out a face in the blues of winter and the greens of summer, her own face staring back at her. She left faint hoofsteps in the snow sheets of the balcony, while thin crystals fell into her mane and past her eyes. She could make out her carriage on the road to Canterlot, and a barren throne beyond a ghost-guarded hall. 
She would be the final answer to Twilight’s treachery, Cadance told herself.
She would be Equestria’s justice.  





Nightfall welcomed a strange peace, where the grass waved in calm rhythms to the tune of the breeze, where Sunset Shimmer left her prints in the dirt. 
The sky was made clearer with each step closer to Ponyville. She could still hear the dull rumblings of thunder overhead Canterlot, miles behind her now.
She had boarded a carriage as far as the nearest trading post, before opting to make the rest of her journey on hoof.
Eyes of cyan twinkled beneath the starbright night, locked on tight to the one celestial vessel that had fallen all the way to the earth. Miles and miles ahead, it was not a star at all, but the glistening crystalline tip of a castle, a castle that had remained unoccupied for months on end. 
 Twilight’s old residence, the Castle of Friendship, in all its glossy marble might, was waiting patiently in the dark distance. There she would find what she had come for, Sunset reminded herself. 
But there remained one last obstacle lying in wait. 
Ponyville. 





“You’re sure you’ve packed everything?” Deputy Holster called out, rubbing his eyes with one hoof, and balancing a pony-sized box full of old keepsakes in the other against the stairs.  
“Dad, I can’t find Shorty,” replied Juno, whose bouncing brown curls marked her arrival at the top of the staircase. The filly was close to tears already, though Holster was in little position to come to her aid. 
“Right. Shorty. Right,” Holster said, ignoring the sweat dripping off his chin, trying to recall where he had placed Juno’s old stuffed teddy bear. 
“Need some help with that?” came Marjorine, rounding a corner beside him, her bright red mane littered with dust and cobwebs.
“Yeah, thanks…you got it?” Holster said, allowing her to help pick up the other end of the box, together setting it down on the hardwood.
“I still don’t know why we had to do this so late,” Marjorine said, taking a deep exhale, exhausted. 
“Movers come tomorrow at eight sharp. Better to finish up at the last minute than to pay a fee and put them on hold,” Holster growled under his breath, “This was your idea, don’t you forget that.”
Marjorine smirked.
“I’m glad you came around,” she said, reaching over to wrap her front legs around the back of his neck, “She needs this. And you could use a change of scenery.”
Holster snickered, leaning in to embrace her back.
“Father. I can’t find Shorty!” Juno cried from up the stairs.
“I’ve got this one, take a break,” Marjorine said, leaving Holster at the bottom of the stairs. 
Right as he decided he could allow himself a two minute rest on the bubble-wrapped armchair. Holster was caught by surprise by a knock on the door. 
His steely blue eyes narrowed. Nothing good could come from a knock at 12:31 at night.
He hesitantly approached the door, unsure whether to outright give the visitor a peace of his mind, or spare the effort. But then came a second knock, stronger than the first. 
“What in the…” Holster muttered, storming towards the door. 
He swung it open, ready to sock whoever awaited him on the other side.
He froze in an instant, however, recognizing the pony as his own direct subordinate, Waxer. The stallion’s blue uniform was all disheveled, and he seemed to be scared right out of his wits. 
“Sir,” Waxer said, hardly wasting time. 
“If I’m not mistaken,” Holster said, flatly, all while poor Waxer could hardly stand still, “You ought to be making the rounds by Haverhill. You’ve better got a good excuse.”
“Sir, it’s the schoolhouse, a fire’s started, we need you,”
“Have you lost your mind?” Holster said, shaking his head in disbelief, “Find Deputy Bluebell. Or Clipper. Tomorrow morning my family and I are-”
“Sir, I know, sir, Bluebell’s at the market, Clipper’s at south side. Fires have started there too. Sir, please, we can’t waste time.”
Holster did not have time to process what the wide-eyed lieutenant was demanding, when the air suddenly turned furnace-hot, and an ear-piercing shriek tore up into the sky, as thin as a razor. 
Holster watched a pair of houses across the street suddenly burst into flames, debris flying through the night sky, colliding to the ground like a meteor shower. 
The impact of the explosion sent both stallions tumbling over into the door frame of Holster’s home. Screws were rattled loose from their sockets, and dust was shaken off the high-up creases and crevices. 
“You alright old timer?” Waxer asked, leaning against the doorpost, reaching down towards Holster, whose face was caked in smoke. 
Holster could make out Juno’s crying from upstairs, and immediately picked himself up to rush back inside. 
Marjorine was holding Juno by the hoof, leading her down the stairs in panicked confusion.
“What was that? What the hell was that?”
“Don’t move. Stay put. Do you hear me? Stay put.”
Marjorine was too stunned to speak, holding on tightly to Juno while Holster turned back to head out into the street. 
“Waxer, tell me something,” Holster said, frantically shutting the front door closed behind him.
Ponies across the neighborhood were exiting their houses, wandering into the street to see what exactly it was that had shaken them out of their beds.
“Calls coming in from downtown. I can’t get a signal through with the guys at Mireforge,” Waxer replied, shuffling with his radio, stumbling along after Holster, who was marching off towards the burning wreckage of his neighbors’ homes.
Ash and rubble was all that remained, though hope prevailed that perhaps ponies had made it out intact. 
That hope was crushed in an instant, when Holster made out what could only be the burnt bones of Mr. Davenport, scrambled along in the ashy mass of agony. 
Holster’s attention swiveled back towards his own house, right as the blow came to lift him off his hooves.
The house, along with two others beside it, came bursting apart into thin grains of wood and cement. A swollen swirl of red torment went on to engulf a third of the whole block, Holster would have winced at the sounds of ponies screaming, if their cries had lasted any longer than an instant.     
Holster stumbled backwards, and his knees felt weak, watching as his home collapsed into black ruin. 
“Shit,” Waxer said under his breath, at a loss for words. 
The smoke began to clear, and Holster immediately took off towards the carnage of what was once his home. 
Waxer took to rounding up the streetbound civilians, who had broken into panicked sprints in every which way.
Holster barreled through the smoke, dodging splintery beams and charred framework. 
“Marge!” he barked, his face pale with fright, the unthinkable slowly becoming the unavoidable. 
He spun around back and forth, twice over, distraught as he struggled to decipher where in the wreckage he was even standing. 
“Dad!” cried out the voice of Juno, sprinting towards him from the street. Marjorine was right behind, her face soiled with dread.
Holster could hardly breathe, kneeling down and reaching out to embrace Juno as she ran right to him. Marjorine joined in the embrace, drenched in sweat and smelling of a campfire.
“We’re alright, we’re alright,” she said, relieved that they hadn’t been caught in the blast. 
“She ran off, she was worried about you,” Marjorine explained, backing away to allow Holster to look into her eyes. 
Holster glanced down at Juno, who was a red mess herself. 
“Worried about me!” Holster repeated, grinning. He squeezed her again, bringing a smile to the girl’s face for the first time all night. 
“Holster!” Waxer yelled from the street, waving for them to follow him.
“Stay close to me,” Holster instructed, rising to his hooves and leading them along towards Waxer. 
“What’ve you got now?” Holster asked, joining Waxer in a fast trot towards the group of civilians forming a group by the ruins of Mr. Davenport’s house. 
“We lost Bluebell’s unit. East Riding is up in flames.”
“Is the station drained?” Holster demanded.
“Bone dry.”
Holster made his best effort not to appear flustered, despite how overwhelmed he was. Distant cracks of explosions sent everypony jumping, now and then, while Holster worked out a plan.
“Waxer, lead all of these ponies out to Folly Lick Field, we’ll regroup there.”
“What about you?” Waxer asked.
“There’ll be more ponies lost out in the open. I’ll send them your way.”
Waxer nodded, turning towards the group of trembling ponies. 
He opened his mouth to speak, but never got the chance. 
Organs congealed in burnt residue came spilling out his gut in a flash of brilliant opal. Blood and chips of bone shot out towards the crowd of ponies like a spray of confetti, though most landed on a single side of Holster’s face. 
Holster backed away from Waxer’s gurgling corpse, which collapsed to the ground in a puddle of steaming blood. 
Holster’s eyes shot over towards a new face approaching the group, her horn still smoking from the tip.
Holster did not recognize the pony at first, until he recalled one watchlist notice from Canterlot, describing a yellow-coated unicorn with a crimson mane and golden streaks. 
"Sunset Shimmer," he whispered.
Holster, though he would have wanted to charge right up towards her and spin her head around backwards, was only an earth pony, a defenseless earth pony, at the moment. His weapons had all been incinerated during the explosion, and he didn’t figure there would be enough time to wrestle out Waxer’s belt-bound pistol.
Holster was helpless when the crowd of ponies took off in a screaming panic, rushing deeper into the heart of the town, where the fires had grown so fierce that they lit up the sky in a dull orange glow. 
“Come on!” Holster grunted, ushering Juno and Marjorine to follow alongside him, as they dashed around a picket fence to head uptown. 
Sunset glanced down at Waxer, hardly phased while the stallion coughed up blood and squirmed on the ground. Her eyes were on the lookout for a particular individual, one she thought would be hard to miss. She was not bothered with the tedious search, however. She had all the time in the world.
Holster, with Juno and Marjorine at either side, ran straight into the uptown market, bearing witness to the red inferno that had infected every shop in sight. 
“Who was that?” Marjorine stuttered. 
Holster had no time to answer, stumbling over the odd dead body or two in their wake. Juno wanted to puke at the smell of burnt dead innards, and Marjorine could hardly keep her eyes open against the vicious wafts of smoke.
“That’s Mrs. Cake!” Marjorine cried, horrified at the sight of the baker’s body lying motionless in front of her own shop. Marjorine would have noticed Mr. Cake too, if there was anything more than a short pile of ash left of him.
 “Keep your eyes straight ahead,” Holster advised.
“Dad. Why are we going this way? You said we were going to Folly Lick Field.”
“If we’re lucky there’ll be a carriage for the mares and foals to evacuate. Probably at town square.”
“Why not take the train?” Juno asked.
“She’d have gone after the train first,” Holster said, shoving a burning wooden beam out of their path. 
“There, a crowd!” Marjorine exclaimed, pointing farther ahead.
Holster, gasping for breath, led Marjorine and Juno towards the center of the town square, while the surrounding streets began to grow full of ponies with similar ideas.
“Ladies, gentlecolts, please remain calm,” came the megaphone-drawn voice, echoing out from loudspeakers adorning the lampposts around the square. 
Holster glanced at Marjorine, who understood to stay where she was with Juno.
Holster stormed off through the crowd, shoving through without much of a care. 
He found Sergeant Hickey at the line of policeponies struggling to keep the crowd of civilians from breaking out into mass panic.
“Sergeant!” Holster roared. 
Hickey’s helmet nearly fell off his head, the pencil-thin stallion was caught so by alarm.
“Sir! You’re here!” he said, incredulously.
“There should be transports here. We need to evacuate these ponies.”
Hickey shook his head.
“Train’s derailed. No carriages left."
Holster was left speechless for a short while, struggling to think straight while the crowd of civilians behind him were busy shifting in uneasy terror, or else groaning in pain.
“We need to get the children out of here,” came Cheerilee, stumbling to the front of the crowd, "We might have to go on hoof."
Holster struggled to come up with a plan of his own. Every route he could conceive, led to the same result. 
“You round up all of the foals, any injured folk or anypony who can’t defend themselves,” Holster said, speaking directly to Cheerilee, who nodded in acknowledgment. 
“Sergeant,” Holster said, turning to Hickey, “Your ponies, and anypony who thinks they can put up a fight, come with me.”
“Sir,” Hickey said, disrupting Holster’s newfound momentum, “Deputy Bluebell is our commanding officer on duty. His orders were to hold this position.”
“Deputy Bluebell is dead. All of these ponies will be too, unless we buy them time to make it over the hills.”
Hickey glanced at his fellow officers, all equally uneasy about the proposal.
“That’s suicide.”
“That’s our job,” Holster snarled.
“This goes beyond training, sir,” Hickey said, glancing at the other officers for support, “Hell’s been let loose. There’s no certainty of anypony making it out. Why should we have to die so they might have a chance?”
Holster was bewildered. Take off that uniform, he wanted to say, but he held his tongue.
“Go then,” Holster said, turning back to make his way through the crowd.
“Everypony hurt! Everypony with foals! Send them our way!” Cheerilee cried out to the crowd. 
Both caught a glimpse of Holster making his way to the edge of the crowd, a small number of officers and some able-bodied ponies joining him at the edge. 
He glanced to his left and right, his face hardened with the grit of facing down unconquerable odds. 
“Know if you go here with me, you won’t be coming back,” Holster said, though none in the new smaller crowd budged more than an inch. Holster nodded. 
“Dad!” Juno yelled from the crowd. Holster noticed her pointing over towards one desolate street, where those sinister fluorescent eyes were staring back his way. 
“Go!” Holster barked, waving for Cheerilee to take off with the foals and the wounded. 
Sunset’s horn ignited, this time to block the fiery beams of magic shot out by three unicorns in the crowd, each struggling to manage such a spell. 
Sunset cared little for the attempt, repelling them all. 
Her horn glowed brighter then, and out came a more familiar sight, the hellstorm of fire that had already acquainted itself with the rest of the town.
Holster dashed to the ground to avoid the blast, though some of his companions were not as lucky. Black skeletons fell apart into heaps of ash, while the larger crowd of ponies began scrambling wildly, breaking off into odd avenues and tight alleyways. 
Sunset took to picking off the townspeople one at a time, her eyes alive with the thrill of such visceral bloodshed. Ponies came bursting apart in red puffs of blood and tissue, or melting into waxy molds, or tumbling to the ground in slices or cubes. 
Holster hadn’t noticed that a good portion of his hip had been flayed during the initial firestorm. He could hardly walk any longer, crawling across the square to where he had seen Marjorine and Juno run to hide.
By one streetside safe, it was Marjorine who noticed the small alley squeeze, not spacious enough for a full pony to fit through. Marjorine’s eyes flickered with realization, however, that Juno was in fact, not a full pony. 
“Honey,” Marjorine said, attempting to soothe the snot-drooling, eyes-bright-red filly through a shaky voice, “You see over there? Take off for it.”
Juno saw what her mother had meant, and glanced back, confused. 
“You won’t fit,” Juno said.
“There’s a way around, but you have to go now," Marjorine said, "Go on.”
“B-but, dad-”
“Juno. Now.”
Juno gulped, and had no sense to argue any longer. She scurried off towards the alley, and struggled to fit in herself. 
She squeezed through, crossing the three-yard length until she could pop out the other side. 
She eagerly spun back to catch a glimpse of her mother at the other side. 
But her mother was gone already, vanished in a bloody spray of silenced screams. 
Holster had watched on, while Marjorine collapsed to the ground, her body limp, severed at the torso.
Holster crawled towards her, grunting while his burned hip scraped along the stone ground. 
“Dad!” Juno cried from the other side of the alley.  
Holster couldn’t hear Juno crying out from the other side of the alley. His eyes were lost in the cold void that had swallowed up poor Marjorine, as the last bit of life slipped out through her lips. 
He held her close, his mouth half-ajar. He should have listened to her, he thought, they should have left half months ago.
But Juno was safe, he thought. She was safe, despite it all.
Holster could hear Sunset Shimmer’s steps echoing across the square. 
He had not the chance to even turn around, when his chest caved in on itself, his heart bursting into bloody pulp from the inside.
Holster gasped in brief despair, and collapsed alongside the halved-remains of his wife, dead.
Juno forced her hoof over her mouth, desperately trying not to scream. She was staring right at the unicorn, whose face was covered in blood. Her parents were dead, she told herself, they were dead, and she had done nothing to save them. 
But Sunset’s horn did not reignite. The unicorn trotted off into the hell that had become Ponyville, her bloodlust not quite quenched. 
There remained only one pony on her mind then, the royal subject of her spectacle. Sunset could only laugh to herself, thinking of the look on Twilight’s face.  





Snowfall Glitter stood at attention when the great marble doors were thrown open, thin strands of her wavy blonde mane dangling over her icy blue eyes.
Twilight Sparkle had returned.
She could still make out the sound of the cheering crowd from outside, even while the rain continued pouring down. 
Wedge Ward was also in the throne room, his helmet tucked underneath his front leg, his stubbly face wound tight. Featherglass stood near the throne, careful not to step too close. 
“Your highness,” Snowfall said, kneeling before Twilight as she passed by. Snowfall knew better than to ask about the blood soiling Twilight’s coat, nor the burn mark blinding her in one eye, nor the disfigured wing.
“All has been settled, your grace," came Featherglass, bowing slightly, "Our changeling friend has been compensated."
"With more than what we promised him," Snowfall snapped, "The changeling stole the cash evidence we confiscated from the house."
Snowfall's protests came forcefully; she expected something to be done. 
"We'll deal with Callidus' insatiable greed in due time," Twilight said, "Have all the targets been accounted for?"
“Er, yes. All but Sunset Shimmer,” Snowfall said.
Twilight glared at her. 
“The one that poses the greatest threat,” Twilight said. 
Snowfall was not sure how to respond.
"With Starlight Glimmer defeated," Featherglass interjected, "Shimmer may be deterred from rearing her head from the shadows."
"Or she'll want vengeance," Wedge countered.
"Sunset will return," Twilight expected, "Alone or with an army, she'll return. All we can now do is prepare."
“Your highness, about the prisoners waiting on adjudication - Lyra Heartstrings and Sunburst, if I may-” Snowfall began. 
“You may not,” Twilight interrupted, “It was your foolish compassion that ceded Bon Bon over to the enemy. If we release them, the same thing will happen.”
Snowfall cursed herself for having said anything. 
“Forgive me, your highness. I only-...I'm sorry."
Twilight sighed, exhausted. 
“Do not think your loyalty has not gone unnoticed, Lieutenant. I do not wish to discourage you, but these are perilous times. I need your best effort going forward," Twilight said, meaning to spare Snowfall some menial praise.
“Yes, your highness. I understand,” Snowfall said, bowing. But she had watched the footage, as clear as anypony had. She had seen Twilight toss Starlight through the air. It didn’t seem unreasonable then to think Twilight was responsible for what happened in Ponyville. Regardless of the truth, she knew it was her duty to keep Twilight in check, to avoid any such outbursts of grotesque catastrophe. 
“Your grace!” bellowed Marius Moonshine, storming through the marble doors at a thundering pace. Twilight turned her attention to him, although she was too exhausted for whatever news he had for her.
“It’s Ponyville!” 





Lightning Dust’s ears perked up at the muffled sound of hoofsteps in the mud.
She glanced out from the cage, though the heavy downpour made visibility a challenge. 
The others were all still asleep, though Lightning could hardly sit still. 
She knew she had to do something, to save the others, to save Scootaloo.
She stood up in the mud, careful not to slip or stumble.
The silhouette in the rain materialized. Lightning narrowed her eyes, unsure if her eyes were deceiving her. 
“Hey, everypony, wake up,” she said, startling the others all awake.
The figure reached the door, right as Lightning pressed closer against the front-facing metal fence. Bon Bon lifted her head, and saw what Lightning had alerted them to. She, alongside Kickstart, Scootaloo, and Suri, sprang up to their hooves, preparing for whoever was paying them a visit. 
“Wallflower?” came Lightning, while the others excitedly began crowding around the earth pony, whose green curls were straightened out in the downpour. 
“Keep your voice down,” Wallflower whispered, picking herself up from the mud. She smiled at the sight of the others all present and alive, with the exception of Callidus. 
“How'd you get in here?' Suri asked, "Where’s Sunset?” 
Wallflower’s smile broke apart.
“Uh, er, we were separated.”
“Where’d she go?” Suri continued.
“She went after Twilight.”
Suri caught her breath, glancing at Lightning, perturbed. 
“But you came back for us,” Lightning said, eagerly, smiling with glee.
“Without Sunset?” Suri added, sourly. 
Wallflower nodded, not unlike a child seeking their parents’ approval.
“Never before has anypony made such a heroically futile gesture,” Suri said, amazed. 
"Suri" Lightning snapped.
“I’m getting you out of here,” Wallflower said, raising a ring of keys up for the others to see. Suri’s smirk fell to the ground. 
“Turns out I’m good at going unnoticed,” Wallflower said, reaching towards the door to unlock it. “There’s a sewer tunnel, that’s how I came in. We can make it out that way,” Wallflower said.
"Better make it quick," Kickstart advised, stepping away from the door. 
When the door came open, Wallflower began ushering the others to follow her off towards the shadowy edges of the depot. 
“Hey!” came the voice of a guard stumbling towards them in the rain. He had his rifle aimed right for the pack of them, unable to make out who was who in the rain. 
The shots came pouring out towards them. Five missed, hitting the metal of the cage or the compound walls. But the sixth would have burned a hole straight through Scootaloo’s head, if Lightning Dust had not darted in front of her. Scootaloo shrieked. 
Lightning froze for a moment before stumbling down into the mud. 
“Over here!” Wallflower said, dragging Suri and Bon Bon along behind her towards a smaller building, providing a limited source of cover. 
Scootaloo had fallen at Lightning’s side, though Kickstart made an effort to force her along with Suri back behind the building. 
Lightning was halfway to her knees, before she endured a second bullet shot that sent her spiraling backwards into the mud.
“Lightning!” Scootaloo screamed, fighting to break free from Suri’s grasp. Suri held Scootaloo tight, glancing behind her with wide eyes at where Lightning had fallen. Suri gritted her teeth, and could not allow herself to look any longer. 
“How do we get out?” Bon Bon demanded.
“He’s in our way,” Wallflower said, her plan having fallen apart in an instant.
Kickstart had not moved much from beside the cage, where Lightning was lying, her blood mixing in with the mud.
Lightning was fighting the urge to black out, while noticing Kickstart staring down the soldier with burning bright eyes. 
His breath was quick and heavy, as his teeth ground against each other.
“What are you-” Lightning meant to say, before noticing the smoke rising from the corners of his eyelids. Kickstart began to scream in agony, rising in severity as the smoke began to intensity around his eyes. 
Two beams of red hot magic came shooting out from the pupils of Kickstart’s eyes, while he screamed the whole while. The soldier ahead cried out in pain, blood spraying along into the rain, when the beams slid through his chest, tearing through his flesh like a knife to butter.
Kickstart gasped for breath as his eyes simmered down. He blinked somewhere close to twelve times, before glancing at Lightning.
“Uh, what the hell was that?” Lightning stammered.
Kickstart shook his head, unsure himself. 
“Hey! Let’s go!” Wallflower called out, waving for them to follow, before anymore guards could make it to the scene.
Kickstart helped Lightning to her hooves. She stumbled along at his side after the others, while the prowling searchlights trickled through the rain. 



	 

Redshift checked her watch for the tenth time, impatiently waiting for the train to arrive. They were meant to leave days ago, however the trains had mysteriously been stalled by order of Canterlot. She figured it was the work of Wedge Ward, that blundering oaf, or perhaps even Snowfall Glitter, in all her self-righteous arrogance. 
Brandy Bow was held in simple hoofcuffs at her side, guarded by the other two guards, Twinkle and Toothpick. 
At last, she could hear the whistle of the train in the distance, and hope rejuvenated itself. She would have hated to disappoint Twilight, especially with such an important task.
“Blondie!” Brandy exclaimed, catching Redshift off guard. 
Redshift turned to see what Brandy was on about; and there were Rainbow Dash, Salt Shaker, and Blondie, gently shoving through the crowd to get closer to Redshift. 
“Lieutenant, should we get her on board?” Twinkle asked.
“Just - stay as you are. Don’t speak,” Redshift snapped.
Rainbow, Salt Shaker, and Blondie arrived a few yards before Redshift, while the surrounding crowd of ponies remained relatively oblivious to what was happening.
“Let her go,” Rainbow said.
Redshift’s attention was more so on Blondie, who was a bloody, bruised mess. He could only breathe out through his mouth, as his nose was too clogged with blood.
Redshift’s horn ignited, and an aura of red magic wrapped itself around Brandy’s throat.
“Stop!” Rainbow exclaimed, “You don’t think I’ll tell Twilight about what you’re doing? Think again!"
“Then what’s to stop me?” Redshift laughed, rolling her eyes. The pegasus was even dumber than she had first thought.
Blondie reached into his backpack, catching Rainbow and Salt Shaker’s attention.
“This will,” he said, revealing the black briefcase, sticking it in the air for her to see.
Salt Shaker’s face fell, while Blondie began to put distance between him and the others.
“Blondie,” he said, horrified with having left the case unguarded, “When did you-”
“This is what you really want,” Blondie said, “The lock's worth more than the key.”
Redshift’s eyes were narrowed in on the briefcase. A grin found its way to her face.
"Blondie, wait," Rainbow said, panicking.
“Blondie, you don’t know what you’re doing,” Salt Shaker said.
Blondie glanced at Rainbow, who seemed to respect his decision.
“Let her go, and it’s yours,” Blondie said.
Redshift hesitated. Brandy was sputtering for breath, as if desperate to speak, though Redshift’s grip on her throat was overwhelming.
“You’ve got yourself a deal, Blondie.”
Redshift released her grip on Brandy, and waited for Blondie to fly over and dump the briefcase at her hooves. 
“Blondie, don’t-” Brandy sputtered. Blondie glanced down at her, confused. Redshift had already taken the case, however, in a flash of red magic. 
“She knows,” Brandy choked, “I-I couldn’t take it. I told her everything. She knows how to open it,” Brandy said, before collapsing in his front legs. 
Blondie glanced back up at Redshift, who was smirking the whole while. 
Blondie spread his swings, as did Rainbow, and both took off straight for her. 
Salt Shaker had already drawn his pistol, blasting a burning hole straight through poor Twinkle’s face. Toothpick would have suffered a similar fate, if he hadn’t raised his shield in time.
Rainbow was quicker than Redshift had accounted for; by the time her horn was charged Rainbow had already planted a kick across her face. Blondie followed after with a punch to the gut, sending her tumbling off balance. Redshift’s horn ignited once more, a searing beam of magic wildly lightning up the sky. The surrounding crowd had broken out into panic, stampeding in every which way, trampling each other in a mad rush to escape the chaos. 
Blondie had his knife out, and slashed left, and then right, though each time Redshift was quick enough to dodge. Rainbow made another airborne kick, sending Redshift crashing facefirst to the ground. She had let go of her grip on the briefcase, which slid across the tile down towards the train tracks. 
The 3:30 to Canterlot had just arrived, steam blasting to intervene in the squabble.
Redshift attempted to incinerate Blondie with a heated beam of red fire, though Blondie could outpace her long enough for Rainbow to smash her hoof down on the serpent-eyed unicorn’s head.
Nearby, Salt Shaker had Toothpick by the throat in one hoof, squeezing with all his might until the pony’s throat collapsed and snapped apart, loosely sinking in his grip. Salt Shaker tossed the corpse to the side as if it was little more than old discard. 
Redshift grabbed at Rainbow by her wing and flung her threw the air, spiraling in a trail of loose feathers until she landed hard against a brick pillar. 
Redshift moved for Blondie next, though Salt Shaker arrived first, swinging his hoof so hard into her face that she spun around twice, before toppling into a heap, out cold.
“The case,” Blondie said, sporadically scanning the area.
Both of them caught sight of Brandy Bow at the same time, dangling the briefcase in her hoof, standing delicately in the doorway of the stationary nearby train car.
“That’s twice I owe you,” Brandy smirked. She blew Blondie a kiss, and held the briefcase closer to her chest.
Blondie would have moved to pursue, if he had not been so stunned and exhausted. 
They watched the train take off down the tracks, Brandy slipping away inside the car, once again out of sight. 
Rainbow sauntered over, her lip bloodied and her face all bruised from the pillar crash.
“At least she’s safe,” Rainbow said, glancing at Blondie.
Blondie shook his head in disbelief.
The three of them stood there while the crowd of ponies slowly began to wonder if it was safe to continue milling about now.
“I warned you not to trust her,” Salt Shaker said, his voice hollow and faint, “There’s no heroes among us.”
“Maybe not,” Blondie said, “But don't look so glum. We’re not out of this yet.”
Blondie turned to the others, who were slumped over in defeat.
“We can't go back to Crozer with empty-hooves," Blondie said, "And that case can't end up with the wrong pony."
"It already has, lad," Salt Shaker laughed.
"I didn't take you as one to give up so easily," Blondie said.
"And what's in it for you?" Salt bellowed, "The girl?"
"A third of the prize," Blondie said, glancing at Rainbow, "And a third for her, too." 
Rainbow slowly perked up, and even Salt Shaker seemed to be considering the proposition.
“Are you with me?” Blondie asked. 
Rainbow glanced at the ground. Part of her knew she should go find Twilight, tell her of everything she's learned. But something told her that Twilight already knew. Her glare hardened, and she glanced back up to Rainbow.  
“We're going to find out what's in that case, and why Twilight wants it,” Rainbow said, "And the bits don't hurt, either. I'll do it."
Blondie smiled, perhaps the first time Rainbow had ever seen. 
They glanced at Salt Shaker, who took his time to put together an answer.
“You'll be working for me, this time," Salt said.
"Done," Blondie replied.
Salt nodded, and a grin grew across his face.
"My friend, it has always been a pleasure doing business."
Their eyes all wandered back to the train, now lost down the steamy tracks beside the smog-smothered factories.  
 




Between two glossy marble pillars, perched by the window with a breath full of hot summer air, Sunset Shimmer watched the stars as they blinked down at her, witnesses to the red havoc she had unleashed on Ponyville. The burning aura was still visible over the hills, a hellish beacon in the dead of night. 
Her eyes then turned to one star in particular, which seemed to be glowing brighter than the others. It continued to glow, and grew in size the same, and a smirk found its way to Sunset’s face.
She had waited long enough.
A thunderous landing marked the arrival of Twilight Sparkle just moments later, crashing down onto her old castle’s balcony. Ahead in the second story foyer, moonlight revealed Sunset Shimmer in direct sight. She knew Twilight would come. 
“What have you done?” Twilight said, mortified.
Twilight had just noticed Spike, who was wrapped in tight chains, a strip of cloth stuck over his mouth. Sunset’s smirk grew.
“Let him go. Now,” Twilight said, igniting her horn.
“Not another step,” Sunset said, igniting her own horn, casting an opal aura of magic around Spike’s throat. Spike groaned into the gag, as she throttled him about in the air.
The moonlight may have been dim against the darkness of the castle, though Sunset was sure of what she saw.
“Looks like Starlight put up quite a fight,” Sunset said. 
Twilight was fuming, helpless as Spike continued fighting for air. 
“She didn’t deserve what she got,” Twilight said, “But you do.”
Sunset snickered.
"Killing you wouldn't solve much, would it? But you've still got a lot else to lose besides your life," Sunset purred, dangling Spike in the air. 
“You've made your point, haven't you?” Twilight said, glancing at the smoking ruin of Ponyville past the balcony perch.
Sunset's eye twitched.
"All of this, all for her," Sunset muttered, glancing up at the ceiling, "Celestia would never run the same kind of risks if she was in your shoes."
"Maybe not. But I'm not her."
"Yeah, keep telling yourself that."
Twilight narrowed her eyes.
"Does Starlight know what you've done? Do any of them?" Twilight asked.
Sunset shook her head.
"You know Starlight. She has trouble seeing the nuance," Sunset said.
Twilight scoffed.
"I gave you a choice to earn you freedom. You refused me," Twilight said, "If you didn't like the consequences, you should've done as I said."
"Everypony always has to do as you say. You used me up, destroyed everything and everyone I loved, and stowed me away, like an animal, or a toy you didn’t want anymore,” Sunset snapped, “You’re no different than the rest of us, it turns out. You just like to be coy about it.”
“You’re right. Maybe I should stop holding back,” Twilight said, igniting her horn again. 
"What if I had gone through with it? Killed Ember and her little band of freedom-fighters, like you wanted? Would you be able to live with yourself anymore than you having done it yourself?"	
"I guess we'll never get to know," Twilight said, dryly.
Spike’s face was bright red, while Sunset continued pressing her grip. 
"It's cute you're still putting up the act, that this has anything to do with justice. If Ember and Thorax and the others had their way, you'd lose your crown. That's all you care about." 
"Posh got Thorax and Ember afraid, and convinced them that betraying me was the only way to protect their kingdoms. This was never about me."
"I don't buy it," Sunset laughed, while Spike hacked and begged for breath.
"You and I both know what evil they were toying with, what's coming for Equestria," Twilight said, reaching out with her hoof, cautiously, "We were running out of time. If we did nothing, they'd have joined the enemy. All so they could gain what power they could. Their mistake was thinking I'd sit by and let that happen. I needed your help, and instead you turned against me."
Sunset snickered, amused. Twilight's eyes were locked onto Spike, whose cheeks were blood red, whose eyes were bulging at the sockets.  
"I didn't turn you down because of any love for them. I turned you down because I knew even if I killed them all, I'd always be a loose end that you'd need to put down. You should have killed me right then and there, instead of sticking me in Hellhatch. It takes longer than you think to freeze to death. Now I'm the one with nothing left to lose, and you're going to regret it. You and I are the same, Twilight. Maybe it’s time the world knew it.”
Twilight froze in place, the instant she heard the crack, the sound of Spike’s spine twisting inside his neck. Sunset’s grip loosened, and the dragon fell to the ground, his eyes having rolled back, leaking foam from his mouth. 
“Spike!” Twilight roared, igniting her horn. Breaking down into a horrified cry, Twilight overwhelmed the room in a magic surge of despair, blinding Sunset. 
They disappeared in a flash of billowing white light. 





Sunset could feel the grass on her back, and the breeze blew through her mane.
She opened one eye, then two, and found herself in a field somewhere; the castle was nowhere in sight. 
There was a beach in the distance, over the cliffs, its waves crashing against the rocks below. 
She was lying down, disoriented with how she had come to this strange place. The sky was grey, closer to white, and the wind was following the storm out towards the sea. 
Sunset saw Twilight overlooking the coast from the edge of the ridge, silently. 
Sunset rose to her hooves, weakly. 
"There," Sunset laughed, "I burned your town to the ground. I killed your friend."
Sunset hardly had the strength to stand on her own legs, waiting for Twilight to turn around.
"So kill me," Sunset taunted, "Kill me, like you do everypony who doesn't follow along with your masterplan."
But Twilight did not turn. Sunset's smile began to crumble away.
"Do I have to beg?" Sunset said, "My entire world is destroyed, I have nothing to go back to. You killed Ember, killed Posh, killed Starlight. Why not me, too? Do it. Please. Let me die."
Twilight turned around. Her eyes were still leaking tears. Spike’s body lay near her in the grass, motionless.  
"Death is too kind for either of us," Twilight said.
"Funny. It was kind enough for Ember and Posh," Sunset countered.
"Everything I've done is for Equestria. You think I'm happy that it has to be me? You think I wanted this? Celestia raised me to take her place, and if I had any idea what that really meant, I'd have dropped out of her academy before I ever started."
"Equestria," Sunset said, "Crooks, killers, and lunatics are who rule Equestria. What's worth saving?" 
"Celestia let things get out of control," Twilight said, "That's why I had to step up. Equestria is still full of innocent ponies who need my help. And the rest of them ... even the worst of the worst can find a way to make a difference for the better."
"Not all of them," Sunset said, grimly.
Twilight glanced at the ground.
"I have a duty," Twilight said, "And I know how that duty ends. I've seen my own death, Sunset. I know how and when and where. But unlike you, I'm not trying to run from it. We're not the same, Sunset."
Twilight’s horn ignited once more, and Sunset braced herself. 
But Twilight disappeared once again, taking Spike along with her in a flash of light.
Sunset was left alone there, kept company only by the raging waters below, that crashed and drew back out into the sea. 





Blood slipped into the sewers in crooked currents.
The rain had finally given out, though the sun was still hidden behind a string of feathery grey clouds. They had taken up in a damp alley on the far side of the city, temporarily safe from prowling eyes. 
Scootaloo was at Lightning’s side deeper down the alley. Lightning coughed, showing the first sign of life was paler than usual from blood loss.
“Dust," Suri said, "You don’t look so good."
Lightning managed a weak grin.
“Never better," Lightning said.
Suri wished she could have embraced her, but was too terrified of making the pain worse. Lightning seemed to understand her intent, smiling up at her. 
“You saved me,” Scootaloo said, “...I’m sorry that-” she continued, before Lightning weakly grabbed her by the jaw.
“Don't be sorry for nothing,” Lightning said. 
She glanced over at Kickstart, who had not said much to anypony since arriving there.
“That was some stunt you pulled,” Lightning said, “How’d you do that?”
Kickstart shook his head, and Lightning noticed his hoof was shaking slightly. 
“Blackcoat experiments…Guess they weren't all for nothing,” Kickstart said.
"Next time you go crazy, warn me next time," Lightning smiled, struggling up to her hooves.
"Next time?" Kickstart asked, "I'm supposed to stick around?"
Lightning glanced at Scootaloo.
"We're gonna have to stick together if we want to survive," Lightning said, "That means we're gonna have to learn to like each other."
Lightning glanced at Suri, who smirked and shook her head.
"Good luck with that."
Kickstart glanced over at Bon Bon, who caught his eye.
"I guess you're alright after all," Kickstart said, hesitantly. 
"Yeah, you too," Bon Bon admitted. 
They all came alert, when Wallflower returned from around the corner, having left to make sure there were not any lurking patrols nearby.
"Hey!" Lightning exclaimed, staggering over to hug Wallflower, who nearly fell over from the force of impact.
"You saved us!" Lightning said, "I owe you one. Big time."
Wallflower smiled, easing Lightning back down.
"I'm uh...Sorry if I was a jerk to you before," Lightning said, "I just...It's hard to-"
"It's OK," Wallflower said, grinning.
"Look," said Suri, "Starlight’s dead. Sunset probably is too. Where the hell does that leave us now?” Suri said, flatly.
Wallflower glanced around them. 
"The violence is only going to get worse," Wallflower expected, "Ponies will get hurt. It can be our job to help them. It can be our job to do something good for a change."
Suri scoffed.
"'Kay, I don't know if you noticed, but we've lost all our money, our new home, and our weapons."
Wallflower turned to face her, and for the first time, seemed to stand up without a hunch, or a whimper, or a bent-down head.
“We broke out of Hellhatch to have a second chance. Now we’ve got it. Maybe none of us are supposed to make it far, but we can try, at least. Let’s do it right this time. Equestria's in trouble,” Wallflower continued, "So help me do something about it."
Bon Bon nodded, as did Suri, and Kickstart, and even Scootaloo. All eyes turned to Lightning, who was adjusting herself against the grimey alley wall. She smirked.
“When do we start?”  





Starlight Glimmer awoke in a cold sweat.
She blinked twice, then three times. She had suffered the most dreadful dream.
She was still lying in that bloody crater, facing up at the starlit night sky. 
Starlight groaned, adjusting herself to sit up. Her horn shot off some stray sparks, and, with a few agonizing snaps and stretches, she had magically restored the broken bones in her legs and chest,
She was far too weak to move much, though she found herself compelled to stay regardless. 
Her old world was far behind her now. 
Those stars laced in the sky remained the shimmering vestiges of memories past, perpetually out of reach.
She found herself less inclined to keep on living in that dreamt fantasy, the one where she had ended up exactly where she had wished too. 
For all the blood, and the terror endured, there the stars were still perched in their heavenly portrait. It may have not been the living legends that made her believe in heroes, she thought, but rather the ordinary things, the unsung acts of kindness here and there. Equestria did need a hero, Starlight assured herself, a real hero. 
She slipped in and out of a sore sleep, to the lullaby of the crickets’ chirps and frogs’ croaks. She thought of Twilight, and Sunset, and Redshift and Snowfall, and knew in her heart that they would not escape the debts coming back to haunt them.  
And the stars in the sky may have been shining brighter then, or at least she thought they were. 
Set on a silver sun, in her own mad mind she could see it all quite clearly. She was smiling to herself then, holding onto the one promise she needed to keep her heart beating. 
Her fight was not finished.