//------------------------------// // Chapter II - Ten Years Changing // Story: Tamed II: As Time Went On // by PiercingZen //------------------------------// Act 1 - Disharmony Chapter II – Ten Years Changing Edited by Vertorm ***** Two nights before the mysterious rendezvous… A unicorn awoke to find herself in complete darkness. She felt her head pulsing in pain…as if she had just been struck. She tried to move her legs, but it was no use. She could feel the tight, rough grip of rope tied around her legs and her body was bound tightly to a wooden surface. With these sudden realizations, her heart began to race. Panic began to settle in. She made quiet struggling noises as she pulled on the ropes. Again, it was no use. She heard a voice right by her left ear, “You’re awake…” The unicorn gasped loudly as she turned her head to face it. Of course, she couldn’t see anything, but she could hear it breathing. “Who’s there?!” By now she could feel the trickle of cold sweat down her muzzle… The prickling of fear all across her body. “Who are you?!” The voice softly laughed. It was muffled by something as if masked. “What’s in a name… Your talent? Your destiny…? If that were the case…wouldn’t all of our cutie marks be gravestones?” “Look! I’ll give you whatever you want! Just please don’t hurt me! I have a family!” “A family, huh? All the better…” With that, the unicorn felt something swat at her face. She shrieked but quickly fell into a quiet sob, her cheek now burning and throbbing. “Please!! Somepony help me!” “Scream and call all you want…You’re not anywhere near home. You’re a day’s flight from anypony.” “W-Why are you doing this? What do you want from me?” “Oh… just to talk… at least for now. You see… there’s something I’m looking for… and with a little cooperation, you’ll help me find it.” The unicorn was too terrified to say anything. “Understand?!” the voice boomed. “Yes! Yes, I’ll tell you anything!” “Good.” The voice sounded pleased. With a spark a candle was lit on the ground in front of her, and what the unicorn saw next only terrified her more. She inhaled sharply… She could only barely see them… the soft outlines of other ponies, none of them moving. Then something emerged from the darkness… It’s head had the shape of a pony’s, masked and terrifyingly still with two purple eyes staring her down, unblinking. The mask appeared metallic and heavy, and it shimmered in the light. “What do you know…about Twilight Sparkle?” “T-Twilight Sparkle? Who’s that? I don’t know who that is!” The mask fell silent for a few moments and then retreated into the darkness. “I-I’m sorry, but I really don’t know!! If I knew, I would tell you!” The voice was still silent. The unicorn could no longer hear its deep breathing. Believing she was alone, she began struggling at her bindings again. Her breathing was erratic and strained as she pulled and tugged at the ropes, but she couldn’t make any progress. Then the candle blew out. She let out a gasp. Shortly after, a powerful force rammed into her throat and pinned her against the wooden surface behind her. Whatever it was began choking her. Something else started to stroke her cheek. “How disappointing…” The voice had returned. “Now, tell me… Do you feel scared? Alone? With no one to call to… With no one to run to?” There was a slight pause filled with the noises of the unicorn trying to breathe. “I want you to know how it feels to have your friends taken from you… Your family… Everyone you love unable to do a single thing to help you. Creeping and crawling in the dark with your heart racing… and your blood pumping. Can you feel it escaping? As you suck tirelessly for air… Can you feel your body drain of warmth? Losing control…as your whole being struggles to survive? The tingling in the tips of your hooves, and your hair standing on end? Battling endlessly instead of just giving in? Can you feel it…? ” There was a loud crack and then everything fell quiet. The voice sighed. “Time to go home… Your family is probably worried about you…” ***** The following morning, a pegasus guard was galloping through the halls of Canterlot Castle. His heavy panting echoed off of the marble walls. Guards ahead of him were opening the doors for him until he finally reached his destination. “Princess! It’s...” he wheezed out. “…Struck again! Our scouts from Vanhoover just found the body three hours ago!” Princess Celestia and her sister Luna showed no surprise at all as they glanced at each other, nodding. “Thank you… You are dismissed, Lieutenant,” Celestia calmly replied. “Princess!” he protested. “I don’t understand! Aren’t you going to do anything about this?! Are you just gonna do nothing while-” Luna cut him off. “You are dismissed, Lieutenant Rumble!” Celestia gave her sister a glare and then turned her attention to the Pegasus. “Do not mind my sister… We are doing everything in our power to stop this recent threat.” “Then why are the Royal Guard given no orders to pursue it?!” “These attacks…are like nothing we’ve ever seen in Equestria,” the white Princess answered while she slowly approached him. “Not only would we endanger even more lives by actively hunting it… but it may provoke it to cause even further damage by threatening it.” “So then what exactly are you doing to stop it?” The pony had to bend his head back to look up at her. Celestia closed her eyes and shook her head. “I cannot say I’m afraid, but do not let this trouble you. The situation…is in more capable hooves than you can possibly imagine.” “I just hope for the sake of everypony in its path…that you’re right, Princess.” He turned to walk away from the royal twins. The pegasus shook his head and sighed. “Lieutenant! Before you go.” Luna called to him. Rumble turned his whole body and bowed. “You are relieved…I want you to spend some time with your brother…I heard he isn’t doing so well.” “He can’t get over the Wonderbolt debacle … No pegasus in Equestria can.” “I understand,” Luna nodded to him. “But this is important… We will need every pony to help combat this threat. Your brother is incredibly capable.” “I understand. I will go to him. I haven’t seen Thunderlane in so long anyway.” “Good. You’re dismissed!” Luna stamped a hoof and Rumble was off. As soon as he was gone, the two sisters looked at each other in worry. Luna sighed. “This is the eighth victim, sister. Do you really think she can do anything?” “I put all my faith in Equestria in her. She will be the one who stops this madness.” “If that’s your final word…because I’m starting to share sentiment with the Lieutenant.” ***** “Canterlot?! Okay, this is just getting weird.” Rainbow Dash stood from the couch. Her brow was furrowed. “Who are you exactly?” Fyre’s ears perked. He was a bit surprised by the mare’s sudden change of tone. She sounded angry, almost threatening. “What do you mean?” “I know Twilight Sparkle! I’ve met her face to face! We…went through so much together and then…you appear and tell me you’re her brother? I know her brother and you are not him!” She approached him with furious steps. Fyre could only cower on his pillow. It appears he had struck a wrong chord with this pegasus. He held up his hooves. “Okay, hold on, Rainbow! I lied! All right?! I…lied.” Dash froze with his answer. She was still glaring at him angrily. “Her name wasn’t Twilight Sparkle…I made that part up.” The mare just raised a brow… He was obviously confusing her further. “…But everything else is true!” “How can you just…make up that name? It isn’t possible!” Dash’s anger was deterred as she stepped to the side to ponder. “Somepony must have told you her name. Isn’t that right?” Fyreburst lowered his hooves and sighed. “Yes…I heard it. I didn’t…use it to anger you. I don’t even know who Twilight Sparkle is!” The mare’s voice dropped a few decibels. “Then why not just tell me her real name then? Why lie? What’s so important about a name?” Fyre sighed heavily. “To be honest… I don’t trust you. You… spat in the face of everypony in Cloudsdale… You called yourself a ‘true Pegasus’. You ridiculed the Wonderbolts of all things! What kind of crazy pony does that?!” Dash stomped her hoof on the ground right in front of him. She towered over him. “Fyreburst… You are on extremely thin ice… It was to prove a point! The Wonderbolts are a bunch of pretentious, self-absorbed, unicorn-hating scum!” Fyre scoffed. “Pretentious… Self-absorbed… That’s rich…coming from you.” He muttered. That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. With no hesitation, Dash shoved Fyre off the pillow and growled at him. “Out!!” Fyre just looked up at her with an offended expression. “I said GET OUT!!” “Fine!! This wasn’t my idea anyway!” He struggled as he stood still feeling the pain from earlier. “You really are volatile… I’m surprised you ever made it anywhere…” “Don’t make me say it again, Fyre,” she cursed through clenched teeth. Fyre rolled his eyes as he limped towards the door. There were about five seconds of dead silence before he reached it. He didn’t even bother looking back as he opened the door and left it wide-open after leaving. The rain hadn’t stopped. In fact, it was pouring down harder than ever. Fyre just ignored it as he limped pathetically away from Rainbow’s. He heard the front door slam. “Good riddance… What a fraud. I can’t waste time with her anyway… I need to get to Ponyville.” ***** “The nerve of that guy!” Rainbow pounded the wood on the doorway. “After all I did for him…he has the guts to tell ME off!” she muttered to herself. Her body was still pulsing with anger. She gritted her teeth and kicked one of the bookshelves, sending about a dozen books all over the floor. After a few moments and a few broken pieces of furniture later, she managed to quell her anger. She was breathing heavily from her venting. “Twilight… How could he know your name? His sister… It was a picture perfect description. Who else could it be…? Could you…” She squeezed her eyes and sighed. “No…I’m pretty sure he was lying. No… not pretty sure, absolutely positive!” Dash chuckled to herself. She glanced around at the damage she caused and a heavy sigh bellowed out of her. “Volatile… ha! Speak for yourself, you twit. Ugh! I just can’t get over that! Never have I met a pony who makes my blood boil like this.” She trotted back over to the fireplace. Briefly, she glanced at the pillow he was on not even ten minutes ago. “Except…” It was then her eyes caught something strange on the hardwood floor. “Oh no…” ***** Where… am I? Fyreburst squeezed his eyes. His side was giving him an unprecedented amount of pain for some reason. It’s so dark… I can’t see anything… and the rain isn’t really helping. Why did it have to be Rainbow Dash of all ponies? Fyre chuckled quietly to himself only for his left hoof to stumble into a mud hole. The sudden bend in his body wasn’t exactly the thing he needed at this moment he quickly realize as he felt his side tear open in pain. “Ahhh!! In the name of all that’s…” He growled and exhaled a sharp whine. He pulled his hoof out and clenched his teeth tightly. “That… isn’t good at all. Nope! Aheh…” The feeling was overwhelming to the point of making him chuckle at its harshness. He felt his vision getting blurry if it wasn’t already from the rain. “Nothing can stop me,” he said in between grunts. “…I’m in… fallible! I won’t stop… until I correct my mistake.” “Fyre…” he heard a sly whisper call in his ears. He continued to limp along without any sense of direction. He wasn’t even sure how far he was from Rainbow’s. “Glitter…is that you?” He coughed. He could taste something metallic in his mouth. He was confident in what it was. “Come… home. Mom’s… gonna kill us… Hahaha…” He shook his head and pushed his legs harder… slowly speeding up into a trot. “I’m coming… I’ll bring you back home, okay?” Fyre felt his legs give out and he kissed the mud hard. A weak yelp escaped his lips. He tried to flap his wings, but they didn’t help. It felt as if something was holding him down. “Nonono… I won’t let this stop me. I will find you…” He pushed as hard as he could on his forelegs, his whole body straining with the effort. Fyre’s legs collapsed for a final time. He coughed heavily and he felt his consciousness dimming. “Get off of him!” ***** Fyreburst could only hear a deafening ringing in his ears as he regained his vision once more. “Back here again…” Fyre muttered as he stood in front of the red doorway with a candle on it. His body was frozen… He couldn’t move to open the door. “What is this place? Why can’t I move?” “Are you afraid of what will be on the other side?” he heard a voice behind him say. It sounded soft and gentle. He felt as if he had heard that voice before but he couldn’t place it on anypony. “It’s not that I’m afraid… I simply can’t,” he replied. “Who are you?” “I will be the voice that guides you through this. You don’t know it yet…but you are lost. There’s a reason why you can’t move.” The voice drew closer to him. “Reason? What reason is that?” “If I tell you…you wouldn’t understand. You aren’t meant to understand. However, I can set you on the path to finding this reason. It’s very simple really.” “How simple?” “Rainbow Dash…” he heard her say. Immediately, he felt resentment. “She’s going to help you.” “How is she… capable of helping anypony?” “You are simply staring stolid at a false facet of her capabilities. You have to trust her.” “There’s no way I’m trusting her… no matter what you say.” “Well... I suppose if you are so set on avoiding her… there is an alternative.” Fyre wanted to roll his eyes, but couldn’t seem to manage it. “An alternative? You know, I’m getting very bored staring at this door… Are you going to tell me who you are yet?” The voice just laughed. “In time, dear.” “Who’s the alternative?” “You know who it is. Just be warned… The choices you make are very important…but the ending is all the same. It’s just a matter of how much grief you are willing to put yourself through.” “You speak as if you know everything. So are you saying you know how it will all end?” “Shhh… quiet… Do you hear that?” “Huh? Hear what?” ***** “Red… Hey, Red. Wake up.” Fyre heard the familiar abrasive voice from the last awakening he went through. “Uhh… huh? Awake…I’m awake... What’s going on?” He was convinced at this point that his eyes were defective. Blurry and unreliable, his eyes fluttered in an attempt to regain vision. He could feel something cradling his head and a slight stinging on the side of his body he had felt so much pain from earlier. “Thank, Celestia. You can be a pain in the neck, you know? I’ve been trying to get you to wake up for hours.” “Rainbow… is that you?” He was slightly hoping for an answer other than “Yes”. “You betcha, Red.” Her answer made him groan. “Hey, you’re lucky you didn’t bleed out back there.” “You should have just left me. It’s better than being…” He felt something prod his side and he hissed. “Ow… What’s the big idea?” “You keep being a jerk and I’ll make this the most painful recovery ever.” “Fine! Fine… It’s not like I have much choice anyway. Just to let you know this is completely unwelcome. I’m not thanking you for this.” “Have it your way. Like I said… I’m not going to ignore an injured pony.” “Ha… Then why did you take so long to get me, huh? Why did you tell me to ‘get out’?” Rainbow Dash took a while to answer, obviously fazed. “I was just a tad upset, I guess.” “A tad? Does it get worse than that?” The mare chuckled. “Trust me…some ponies have seen me very upset…and it doesn’t end well. I once shattered a pegasus’s wings with a single hoof.” Uneasiness settled in right into his chest upon hearing that. Fyre fell silent. His vision finally returned as he got a real close look at Rainbow’s face. He realized then his head was cradled in her forelegs. “What are you… doing?” “Keep still or you’ll tear it open again… Oh, and eat this.” Dash shoved an apple directly into his muzzle. Fyre blinked, narrowing his eyes as he muffled some words. “You’re actually a lot more tolerable when you can’t speak.” Fyre lifted a hoof and pulled the apple out after a small bite. “Nothing short of a miracle would make you tolerable, Rainbow Dash.” Rainbow sighed heavily and shook her head. “You are a piece of work. You know that?” Fyre rolled his eyes and then closed them. He didn’t want to look at her anymore. There was about half a minute of silence between them. His side throbbed while he occasionally bit into the apple. It was pure torture for him. Any inch of pride he had in him was gone. Being nursed back to health by “the one and only” was a true testament to how bad his luck had become. “I want to help you,” she spoke out of the blue. Fyre took a couple seconds to register what she said. “Red?” “Help me? With what? It looks like you’re already ‘helping’ me. I’m not sure if I want more of it.” “I’m talking about your sister…I want to help you find her.” She didn’t give him time to respond, “You see… I too once lost somepony many… many years ago.” Fyre’s eyes opened. She had snagged his interest. “Really…” Rainbow nodded and turned her head. “Yeah… It wasn’t your typical runaway either...nor a sibling. It was someone I used to love…” Her voice cracked. “I guess…” She chuckled. “Battered and broken… our relationship grew… one that only got stronger as things got worse.” Fyre could see her gritting her teeth. “When it was far too late, we realized it was our love that was destroying us… so in the end that bond was broken. An entire ordeal forgotten in time… and that pony vanished right before my eyes… leaving me alone.” Fyre was listening, but her story was cryptic at best. He drew breath to say something, but the mare put a hoof on his lips. “That was ten years ago and I’ve never been the same since.” Her eyes shifted back to him. “Fyre, we’re going to find her. Maybe in doing that I can find some solace.” Fyre wasn’t sure what to say now. This couldn’t have been the same pegasus that had just yelled at her before. Clearly there is something far more to her than he knew. “A false facet…” he whispered to himself. He remembered the words of that voice in that dream. Rainbow’s ears perked up. “What was that?” “Yes. Let’s look for her, Rainbow Dash.”