//------------------------------// // Science Seven // Story: A Witch in Broad Daylight // by Epsilon-Delta //------------------------------// And for a second it looked like Rarity really was going to hold the castle. Having a witch, not even a master, on your side made that much of a difference. But sadly, there was one thing a witch in your corner would never top. Namely: Having two witches. An elderly pony with a small, pink filly in tow trotted past the cage. Both of them had spellbooks at their side. Batton Pass, that bat pony who was Screwball’s second in command led the two down to the dungeon where Rarity was kept as if giving them visitor rights. The elder, Auntie Eclipse was a figure Rarity had heard many whispers of growing up but was the most secluded of the witches overall. And she was only one of the two witches that suddenly appeared at the worst possible moment, just when the battle was turning in Rarity’s favor! Sunset was forced to retreat. Everypony on her side was either captured or scattered to the winds. The only consonance Rarity could give herself was that Sweetie Belle had escaped, fleeing to safety. At the last moment, she’d thrust Saccharine and her sister out of the castle. With Saccharine by her side, Sweetie Belle just might persist. But Rarity… She found herself a prisoner in her own dungeon. One that had suddenly gone from unused to overly crowded. Nopony important from Blueblood to Coco managed to escape. All of them were locked in this dank place. “Why do you even have a dungeon?” Coco asked. “It came with the castle,” said Rarity. Somewhere deep on the list of Rarity’s problems was that she never actually found the key to these cages, either. Making one had always been somewhere on her to-do list but never something she got around to. There was no opening the gate save blowing it off its hinges. “Well, don’t you have some secret… thing hidden under your castle?” Coco asked. “Like um! An emergency robot buried under the floorboards? Or a self-destruct switch?” Rarity flicked her eyes from Coco to the guard looking directly at them when the question was asked. She made eye contact with their jailor when she gave her nonplussed answer. “No.” Though actually yes. Just nothing relevant to the moment. Nothing that could help them against even one of the two witches. “Wasn’t there a central robot among them?” Eclipse asked. “I have ponies looking,” said Batton Pass, keeping an eye on Rarity and not wanting to say such things in front of her. Though it seemed immaterial to Eclipse. Instead, Eclipse smiled however slightly and turned to Rarity. “You have some manner of… networking technology bound up in that Filly, do you not?” She asked. “That would be very useful–” “You think I’m going to help you?!” Eclipse merely kept a hoof raised slightly until Rarity finished. “You may not like it, but I am the best bet at destroying the ghost of Crater Cemetery,” she continued. “The Bloodstorm Cartel has made the preparations to cast the azoth spell against her. That is why I’m here, working with them temporarily. I alone possess the magical skill to be the conduit. But if there’s anything you can do to help… well, the fate of the world does depend on this.” “Even in a cage, no, even facing death I will not be desperate enough to help the likes of you,” Rarity scoffed. “To even consider throwing my sister to the wolves like that for one second! Spare me. We hardly need you to save the world either way.” “I see you haven’t gotten the news yet. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be saying such hopeful things.” Her smile became sincere. “Twilight Sparkle is dead. I killed her myself. Any chances you had of overcoming me died with her.” Rarity’s heart stopped and she looked on at Eclipse frozen, unable to make a move. She was absolutely correct that this news left her without a move to make. Her body knew it. “Rarity.” Coco turned to her with trembling eyes. That couldn’t be true, could it? Without Twilight what hope did they have? There had to be something! Even if it wasn’t true some fleeting hope they could hold onto. Rarity looked down at Eclipse’s spellbook and it came to her. “You’re lying. If she’s dead,” said Rarity, “then why don’t you have her spellbook? It’s the most powerful of them all. Surely a pony like you wouldn’t have left that opportunity on the table.” “My methods destroyed both,” Eclipse didn’t miss a beat. “Sadly.” But it wasn’t enough. She wasn’t sad enough to have missed out on that enormous boon. That settled it in Rarity’s mind. Eclipse at the least wasn’t sure if Twilight was dead. Either way, she couldn’t hesitate either. “You can say you killed Twilight all you want, but until you give me some proof, her spellbook, I won’t believe it!” Rarity stood firm, hoping the others, destitute as they were, wouldn’t believe it either. “And if not?” Eclipse asked. “Who is coming to save you? Sunset Shimmer has no reason to care about you any longer. Moondancer will side with them once the wind starts blowing the other way. Pinkie is dead. I’m hardly afraid of a lone specter…” “Rainbow Dash,” Rarity blurted it out without even thinking. “You haven’t said anything about her. “Rainbow Dash?” Batton Pass’s face contorted into an amused grin while Eclipse remained far more reserved. “Didn’t she already run away? You’re telling me she’s going to–” That annoying snake pony came up behind Batton Pass just then. Rarity's only comfort was he didn’t seem to be in a good mood. Even better, he whispered something quietly to Batton Pass who became nonplussed herself. She shot a deadly look at Rarity, and they left the room together, Eclipse soon following. Something bad just happened. “Rainbow Dash killed Flash Bang?” Batton all but gawked, incredulous as the small group stood at the top of the highest tower in Rarity’s castle. She looked down at the courtyard, full of her troops as if there were any chance of them overhearing. She looked over at the war table, a map of the unfolding civil war, to Flash Bang’s piece. “Was it not you who reported she was the weakest? And then that she was dead?” Hissteria merely turned a hoof up and smiled. “I only said she was in critical condition.” “Don’t!” “I don’t have specifics,” he said. “But maybe be a little worried.” “I’m growing very impatient with you!” Batton flared her wings. “You’ve never been this incompetent before. Keep failing like this and your reward will be reduced!” He wasn’t one to respond to chastisement, unfortunately. “They’re coming here,” he continued. “She has several strong but injured ponies. I’d say they don’t have a shot if these two are on our side. But I’d also say this wouldn’t have happened in the first place. I think we need to take this threat seriously.” “I still don’t understand how this happened.” Batton Pass covered half her face with one hoof and looked out towards the woods. “You’re saying she has been hiding her abilities this whole time?” “I don’t know anymore,” said Hissteria. “But she convinced Spitfire, Fleetfoot, even Lightning Dust to side with her over Flash. She’s very charismatic. In light of this, I’m changing my assessment of her. We should place Rainbow Dash on the higher tier of threats. What if she convinces Sunset and Moondancer to join her again?” “You’re giving her too much credit.” “I don’t think so. We should stop her from meeting with either of them.” Batton Pass bit her lip, considering her options. Everything was going perfectly and then suddenly this complete moron just pulls an ace out of nowhere. Was she just that lucky? No, Rainbow Dash had been involved in far too many mysterious dealings for it to be that easy. They needed to take this dead serious. Batton Pass wouldn’t let anything jeopardize her vision. Not even a single percentage point could be left on the table. Least of all some garbage pegasus from nowhere! Batton Pass sat at the war table and considered the current state of the board. Screwball, Flash Bang, Twilight. All of them gone. Nailbat or Starlight would be victorious. Nailbat had seen this coming and prepared his ponies to seize most of the major cities. He had plans to kill Starlight. Yes, even in the worst-case scenario Starlight would lose. They had the azoth spell and would destroy the winner of the fight between Starlight and Crater Cemetery. A Nailbat victory seemed likely at this point. That was the best outcome. He would have enough trouble keeping Equestria together afterwards, and was more open to allowing the breakaway region’s independence. The Everfree and Festering Scar could be claimed by Batton Pass. In light of the death of Screwball and the prospect of independence, Moondancer may very well side with her. Her own nation. A nation for her people, the other bat ponies, to have to themselves, free from the tyranny of Screwball and Equestria both. That dream was so close. Sunset seemed to have abandoned the castle on the news of Twilight’s death. She’s had enough trouble holding her own. One thing alone stood in her way. With much frustration, Batton Pass threw the orange block across the room and put a new piece on the board, where Hissteria reported Rainbow Dash to be. “Have Embermoon stay between Rainbow Dash’s group and Sunset Shimmer’s,” said Batton Pass. “If we place a contingency south, she won’t be able to move towards Moondancer without walking into a pincer. We could send Eclipse to attack their battalion directly.” “To not take orders is my highest ideal,” said Eclipse. “Nor do I have any interest in something so vulgar and political that benefits me nothing.” “If you want me to cooperate with you, then you will!” Batton stood. “My nation is assured, and you get access to the artifacts we’ve gathered! That is the deal, witch!” Eclipse calmly grabbed onto Batton Pass’s wither. Not with enough force to harm her and yet that grip bellied such strength that Batton had no choice but to grow silent, water poured over her temper. “You had best be thankful I don’t involve myself in politics,” Eclipse said, her voice stern and as unmoving as her grip. “If I did, I couldn’t possibly imagine why you’d still be alive.” It was true that in her long life, Auntie Eclipse had never once done a coup. Screwball was the odd one out in that regard, involving herself in society. Batton knew little of their culture, save through the lens of the black sheep. Part of her could hardly understand why such a pony wouldn’t choose to become a dictator through force. Though perhaps, seeing what happened to Screwball and now Flash Bang. Batton struggled to keep cool. She’d already dealt with one of her kind, however indirectly. Soon enough she’d be rid of all these witches. And sure enough, Eclipse did let go of Batton’s wither and turned. “I will make sure you aren’t destroyed but I will not follow orders or do anything to debase myself. The artifacts you’ve gathered for the azoth spell are the whole of my interest here,” said Eclipse. “I’d have already used it, but it is wiser to let Starlight and Crater Cemetery fight it out first. When one target remains, we can take our leave of one another.” She left without another word. She held too many cards. Her student had even taken Screwball’s journal. Perhaps Batton should be thankful after all. Eclipse had gotten rid of the mad tyrant who shackled her, Twilight, and soon Crater Cemetery. Perhaps in a less emotional world, she could be called a hero. That and some amount of protection would have to do. “See if Embermoon is more willing to cooperate,” Batton Pass told Hissteria, who did take orders. “No! No!” Sweetie Belle ran forward into the woods. Behind her stood three more robots, Saccharine and the last two of Sweetie’s spare bodies. All three of them were badly scuffed but mostly operational. Sweetie had damaged the only part of her that reasonably could be harmed. She normally had two tanks filled with ‘nutritional fluid’, a green slime, that kept her brain alive. The left tank had been shattered during the escape. Her right tank was still intact but only half full. Sweetie Belle knew it took a week to deplete two tanks. So half a tank meant maybe two days. But she didn’t know how long she could go without food. It wasn’t instant death as replacing them took a few minutes. Finally with her bearings straight, out of immediate danger, Sweetie Belle at last had a moment to let what just happened sink in. Rarity had left her behind! Or rather, forced Sweetie Belle to leave her behind. The castle was far off now. Sweetie Belle wasn’t even sure if… “Why did Rarity do that?!” “It was the only reasonable course of action,” Saccharine concluded without hesitation. “We need to leave this place.” “We have to go back for Rarity!” “Rarity is most likely dead,” said Saccharine. “If she was captured, she would prioritize your life regardless. Another course of action would be best.” Sweetie Belle couldn’t stand Saccharine just then. She was supposed to be the third sister in their family, but she didn’t feel bad about Rarity getting hurt at all, did she?! She could be afraid of it about to happen but never sad if it did. That was a distinction Sweetie hadn’t understood or cared about until just now. And right now it infuriated her. “You still don’t feel anything? You’re not upset that Rarity might be dead? You love her so much, but you can’t even–” “I am incapable of–” “Then shut up! You can’t understand so don’t talk!” “You are incapable of making a difference here,” said Saccharine. “Retreat is the only logical option. You would risk your life for nothing.” “I’m going to die without Rarity either way. She’s the only one who knows how to keep the life support system running.” “I possess some knowledge on this,” said Saccharine. “We may have just enough time to create more nutritional fluid if we go south.” “No! No! I can’t leave her behind!” Sweetie Belle shook her head. “Rarity spent so long trying to save me! She kept going even if it didn’t seem possible! I can’t abandon her after all that.” “What Rarity did never made sense to me.” Saccharine merely shook her head. “I will not allow you to needlessly injure yourself.” Saccharine stood in Sweetie Belle’s way. “I can – I can beat you!” Sweetie Belle stepped forward. “I know you’re out of ammo on the fusion cannon. And you don’t have anything that can get through my armor. But I can…” Sweetie Belle stumbled back, clumsily shifting through a few weapons. An unloaded gun, a buzz saw, and finally a drill. Without Saccharine’s Sweetiebot 9.1 body, she could easily be ripped apart by even this. Still, Saccharine wasn’t amused at the display. “Your heart is weak,” said Saccharine. “It doesn’t matter what body you have if you can’t attack.” “Yeah?! W-well!” Sweetie Belle turned the drill, ready to test how weak her heart really was. Just one blow from it could dislodge a leg from Saccharine. It was something Rarity could easily fix once Sweetie Bell rescued her. And Saccharine merely stood there, supremely confident in her assessment. She took two steps forward. But something stopped her from going that final step. She stood there indignant before shutting off the drill and shoving Saccharine to the ground instead. “I’ll still push you over if you try to stop me! And – and you won’t attack me either.” The claim she might hesitate to commit violence got through to Saccharine. The other robot got to her feet and grabbed onto Sweetie Belle to restrain her. Initially, Sweetie Belle was able to break out of the grip with ease. Saccharine escalated, tackling Sweetie Belle to the ground with a supplex the filly wouldn’t be able to match. She raised a hoof that became electrified, ready to land a blow that might stun Sweetie Belle’s nervous system or who knew what. Instead of her usual fluid motion devoid of any hesitation, Saccharine’s hoof stayed in the air. Sweetie saw her glance at the remaining life support tank and knew she wouldn’t do it. “Yield,” Saccharine threatened. “You wouldn’t say that if you were going to do it!” Sweetie Belle rolled back and forth until Saccharine was off her. Then she stood. “See? You can’t attack me, either. We’re the same.” Saccharine stood too still and too quiet, finally looking away almost surprised at the turn of events herself. “Then you can’t stop me!” Sweetie Belle concluded. With no reason to hesitate any longer, Sweetie Belle started back to the castle. “Wait.” Saccharine came to her side, stalling her only a second longer. “I can’t stop you.” Saccharine looked up at the castle in the far distance, and then the two of them trotted off together. Two ponies wearing gas masks, agents of the Mad Science Cartel, stood in the back of the castle, just outside a home carved into a tree. This was the dwelling of the legendary Twilight Sparkle. It was a fearful place to be treated with the utmost caution. Who knew what horrors lay within? Ever so slowly and carefully were they beginning to mine the inside of it. These were the objects in Twilight’s house that didn’t initially appear to be magical or dangerous. In exchange for who knows what, Batton Pass allowed the Mad Science Cartel to take whatever they wanted from the pile that had been slowly extracted and placed out on the lawn. The stallion of the pair scratched his head, seeing little worth taking. The mare was less willing to believe it was all garbage. “What do you think this does?” She knelt to inspect a primarily wooden construct of two pieces at ninety-degree angles supported by a matrix of vertical frames. The stallion tilted his head one way, then the other. “Looks like a chair,” he said. “Yeah, but it’s gotta be some overpowered magic chair, right?” Somehow his non-plussed expression leaked through the gas mask. “Look, she’s the most powerful witch! Is it that silly to expect her chair to be enchanted or cursed or something?” “Like what do you want the chair to do?” “I dunno. Destroy the world?” “I don’t think everything Twilight owned has to be overpowered. That’s why the pile,” he said. “Look for things that actually seem valuable.” She scanned the mound for anything else that looked important. “What about that?” She pointed at a creepy-looking doll. “Nah, that thing wasn’t tough at all.” He smacked the scarecrow. “We already beat the crap out of it. See how the straw’s all ripped out. From what intel we can gather, it’s never actually won a single fight.” “We don’t know if it’s destroyed! Twilight wouldn’t have created something so easily beaten. What if it’s just waiting for somepony to say, ‘activate combat mode’ before it really starts to fight.” He opened his mouth to complain but then the doll moved. The trees behind them shifted. Roots and vines began rising, upturning the ground beneath them. They came to wrap around its body, thickening its form. “Damn it! Why did you have to say that?!” The stallion backed up. The two ponies tried to get their guns out, but it was already too late. The vines ensnared them leaving only darkness. How much strength did freedom cost? Looking down at the spellbook she’d just looted from the corpse of Screwball, the answer seemed to be ever-inflating. At first, Luster Dawn thought once she was as powerful as Auntie Eclipse, once she had a spellbook of her own, she would finally be free. But that was long ago. After witnessing that terrible fight… not even a master witch, not even Twilight Spark herself was truly safe. So how far did she have to go? Part of her hoped Twilight survived that. Because if not, what hope was there for Luster Dawn? The pink filly sighed and shifted to one side as she watched some peasants rummage through Twilight’s old things. At any rate, more power meant more freedom. Staying with Auntie Eclipse for now, learning more of her secrets, was the fastest way to get stronger. Already this spellbook brought Luster to the height of her strength. If only there was something to test it out on. As if reading her mind, the golem Luster Dawn herself had put down not long ago began to stir. It grew quickly in size, overwhelming the fools from MSC. It seemed Twilight did have at least one more trick left! She rushed in, wanting to test herself against this threat before any other ponies got involved. Already it was a completely different entity than when she had faced it first. Its head had become solid wood and taken on a roughness like it had been carved by a maniac with an axe. Its now more imposing fangs dug into itself, nailing its own mouth shut. And from the hollow holes for its eyes shone the light of a purple fire. What once were legs could no longer rightly be defined as such. They were such a fraid mess of knots and twisting roots that it looked more to be crawling about on tentacles. Indeed, its whole body had become a writhing mess of sharp branches and thorns. And in the center, through something like a ribcage where the heart should be, was the source of that light. Purple flames danced inside it, but never touched the wood. Magic oozed from that core, enough to make Luster Dawn reconsider her boldness. Even with a spellbook, this was just too much raw strength. Its mouth shook and with the sound of splintering wood, it broke open. “You will do,” a voice like crackling fire came from somewhere within the construct. “You, filly, possess the potential I require. I will only accept a witch and of the three you alone have the potential to become a master of the craft.” Telling her exactly what she wanted to hear. Most fillies her age was stupid but Luster knew better. Eclipse had taught her to beware of such flattery. She took another step back, considering the best way to call those other two witches to her. Vines had already grown up all around her, making escape or even a signal flare difficult. Though she couldn’t see far there were so many other ponies around. One had to notice this. She just had to play cool and wait. “I will not harm you,” it continued. “All I want is for you to become my vessel, to take on the last of my strength.” “I’m not some idiot,” said Luster. “I know better than to make deals with creatures like you.” “Have you? Can you not tell what I am? I am the very thing you seek… a fragment of magic itself.” Luster Dawn looked into the core of the monster again. She had no doubt what it said was true. Those flames exuded pure, absolute magic… pure power. Was there anything else in the world she wouldn’t trade for this? “At what cost?” “My purpose is already fulfilled,” said Magic. “My will fades, and you will feel little of my presence once you have accepted me. All that remains is this final order from my master: to kill Rainbow Dash. You will inherit nothing else from me but this directive. And once it is fulfilled you will have what you desire: freedom. To do whatever you will with the last of my strength.” Freedom. Was it really that close? Would it really only cost one life? “I’ll do it!” Luster Dawn reached her hoof out. “Fill me with the power of magic!"