Rainbow... please... help me!”
Rainbow Dash’s eyes shot open at lightning speed as she heard the words in her head. She could have sworn that they were Scootaloo’s, and could only dread to think of what the poor filly was going through now. She felt her body being bound together by something, not by magic but rather by rope. She looked around the room and saw nopony around, thinking they were likely still asleep in their beds. She was fortunate to know how to break free from rope such as this, as this was not the first time that she was tied up.
After a few minutes of struggling, she was free from the rope and got off the bed silently. She looked out the window and saw the sun slowly creep up from the horizon and heard the rooster’s call, signalling the start of a new day. Rainbow just wanted to fly to her house first, get her saddle bag with food and survival gear, then fly off to find Scootaloo but she heard the door open and saw her orange earth pony friend entering with a blank expression.
“Mornin’, sugarcube. How ya feeling?” she asked Rainbow, knowing all too well what her friend’s answer was going to be
Rainbow merely snorted at this, “Let’s see, Scootaloo got abducted by some creeps, we don’t know where to go look for her, I’ve been forced to sleep tied down by a rope... I feel absolutely bucking great,” she answered sarcastically to Applejack, who just frowned at this.
Applejack just shook her head and walked over to her friend to hold onto her, “Rainbow, you gotta listen to me... it wasn’t yer fault.”
“It was, Applejack.”
“No, Rainbow.. it wasn’t yer fault.”
Rainbow sniffed slightly and pushed her away, “D-don’t do this to me!” she stammered to Applejack, who smiled weakly.
“It wasn’t yer fault.”
“Don’t bucking do this to me, Applejack! Not you, of all ponies!” she warned her friend, hot tears cascading from her eyes.
“Rainbow Dash, it wasn’t yer fault.”
Rainbow was soon swept from her rage as she felt her friend pull her in once more. Her stubborn courage broke soon enough and she simply returned the hug, pressing herself into her dependable friend’s shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably and apologizing. Not to Applejack, but rather to the filly she failed in the end. Applejack just stood there as a pillar of support for her broken friend. In reality, she was scared of those two ponies and what they were going to do to Scootaloo. Though she knew one thing; she needed to be there for Rainbow Dash, the once strong pony now reduced to a wounded mare.
“Come on, sugar, Twi’s waitin’ right downstairs with the others. We’re gonna find Scootaloo today, and she’ll be safe and sound with you by bedtime, Ah’m sure of it.”
Scootaloo dimly noted when Blue and Black returned. The cage was opened, and the cuffs around her legs were undone. The chain connected to the collar was unhooked from the cage, and Black tugged on it.
“Come on,” Blue ordered. “It’s testing time.”
When the filly didn’t move right away, Black yanked the chain harder. Scootaloo was pulled out of the cage, gagging and hoofing at her throat.
“Go.” Blue ordered coldly.
Scootaloo’s legs obeyed, though her mind was screaming to try and run but she neither had the strength or will to do so. Black led her, occasionally tugging at her leash in an attempt to get her to hurry up.
She was led into another room with what appeared to be a staircase that led to no particular location and a few large cubes. Bloodwing was there, smiling.
“Hello, my dear. It’s about time we began. First, we’re going to test those wings of yours.”
She was led to the foot of the stairs, where her collar was removed. “Climb up there.”
Scootaloo peered up the long flight, afraid to move. After a pause, Bloodwing nodded to Black.
Grinning sadistically, the earth pony picked up a switch laying on a nearby table and marched over to Scootaloo. With a mighty swing he brought it down on the child’s flank with an audible whip.
“Aaah!” Scootaloo shouted, crying again but her tears were not heeded.
“Up!”
Sobbing, Scootaloo obeyed, slowly climbing up the flight of stairs. When she reached the top, she nervously peered over the edge, and was surprised to see some safety cushions resting on the bottom.
“Recite the rules of flying I taught you before you left,” Bloodwing ordered.
She remembered. She gave them both a glare as she stood on the top, with her wings ruffling slightly as she closed her eyes slowly and remembering the two facts on flying..
“Flap at rhythm, tilt to airflow.”
Bloodwing nodded as he hummed, “Good... now do so for me, my pretty~” Scootaloo looked down on him with absolute disgust but reluctantly agreed. She jumped off the platform with her wings flapping, but she fell to the ground with a yelp escaping her mouth. As she landed on the cushions, she felt more pain on her back as she was given another strike by Black. The pain stung and she was pulled back on her hooves.
“He said fly, not fall! Now get up there again!”
Scootaloo’s lips quivered as her eyes were locked onto the platform as she made her way up to it again. This time, she jumped off the platform but kept her wings in position, gliding slowly downwards to the ground. Once she felt her hooves reach the floor, she felt a slight moment of joy at her first successful glide but that feeling was soon replaced by depression as her first glide was perverted by these sick ponies’ motives.
Black marched towards her with the switch at ready, “He said fly and you just glide, you little-!”
“Enough!”
Black turned his head sharply and saw Bloodwing glare at him with murderous eyes, making Black freeze in position, fearing for his life. “She has made progress now, and thus she deserves a reward~,” he said as he walked past the confused earth pony, holding another syringe. Scootaloo tried to back away but she was soon pierced by the metal object, and felt the liquid entering her body. Instead of agony, she felt pain being soothed and her body began to relax with each passing second.
“A pain killer. You must have been through so much~,” he cooed to Scootaloo, as he reached his hoof to her chin to raise her head. “Don’t you worry none for once this project is done... You will be a pure goddess~.”
Scootaloo became petrified by his eyes, oddly red, like his fur. The eyes looked at her with a mixture of pleasure and murderous intent. She slowly closed her eyes and wished for Rainbow to come and save her.
Bloodwing sighed as he left her side, ruffling his feathers slightly. “Now, back up the ladder, my dear, and we’ll try again. Black, if you will?”
“Yessir,” Black answered his master as he grabbed the filly, pulling Scootaloo towards him. “You hear that? We’re gonna have so much fun~,” he sneered at her, as Scootaloo growled at the earth pony before her.
Twilight’s library had never been so crowded this early in the morning, but every Bearer of an Element of Harmony was present, as well as Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, wanting to know where their friend had gone. Each had saddlebags packed with the essentials, and in Rarity’s case, some not-so-essentials.
“It’s the middle of summer, I doubt you’re going to need a cashmere scarf,” Twilight complained.
“There’s no telling where those two brutes have taken the poor dear, and I want to be prepared.”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Fine, but if that load slows you down you better be ready to toss them on the side of the road.”
“Are you crazy! These are top of the line!”
“There’s a filly’s life at stake, you can afford to lose it.”
“Well, I suppose... oh, good morning, Rainbow Dash.”
Hearing this, Twilight immediately summoned a shield around herself, which was good, because seconds later a hoof bounced off of it.
“You put me to sleep?” Rainbow Dash yelled angrily. “We lost a full night!”
“A night we wouldn’t have been able to do anything on anyway. It was raining and dark, my spell can only work...”
“We still could have done something, anything!”
Most of the ponies immediately backed away, but Twilight held her ground. “Rainbow, please. I know you're anxious to get Scootaloo back, I’d feel the same if it were Spike being caught, but you need to think about this logically; if we had gone out last night, we would have been out in the rain and cold. My spell would have barely been effective, meaning we would have been running around accomplishing nothing. And on the off change that we caught up with Black and Blue, we wouldn’t have been in any shape to take them on, and we knew nothing about this Bloodwing... until now.”
The cyan pegasus actually calmed down. “What do you mean?”
Twilight lowered her shield. “I received a reply from the Princess.”
My most faithful student,
I do, in fact, recognize the name. Bloodwing used to work as an instructor in my School for Gifted Unicorns. You might have seen him a few times during your early days as my student. He was a brilliant pony, but he was quite unethical in his practices. When Spike hatched, he asked for a chance to examine him more intrusively, which I refused. Then, one day while you were in class, I caught him trying to take a few scales off of him. I fired him, but I never told you of the incident because I feared it would only worry you. That was the last I heard of him.
I’ve never known Bloodwing to be particularly dangerous, but before Spike he also asked for permission in other experiments. He wanted to try and make life. I rejected it on moral principles alone, but he is no longer distressed by that, so it’s possible he succeeded.
I will not try and stop you if you chase after him, though please keep a tracer spell on yourself at all times. I’ve also sent my permissions to the Royal Guard to give you free reign in your quest. Good luck, my most faithful student.
Princess Celestia
As Twilight looked up from the the scroll that she was reading, she saw Rainbow Dash’s face bearing the deepest fury she had ever seen her friend muster. Rainbow Dash snatched the scroll from Twilight, reading it herself before slamming it hard on the floor and stomping her hoof down with enough power to crack the wood.
“If that mother-bucker does anything to Scootaloo he’s gonna wish he was Tartarus!” she yelled as she stared down at the tarnished letter. The ponies in the room were startled to see Rainbow Dash become so angry in an instant, but Twilight could sympathise with her in this matter. Had it been Spike instead of Scootaloo, she too would have done anything to get him back and destroy those who harmed her son.
“Rainbow, he is not going to get away with this. I assure you,” she told her friend, who calmed down slightly as her frown was slowly disappearing from her face. Rarity decided to intervene.
“Darling, we will get Scootaloo back and those ruffians will see justice for harming the poor filly,” she assured Rainbow Dash who let out a sigh to calm herself further.
“Rarity’s right, sugarcube. Though ya musn’t jump the wagon and do somethin’ foalish now like what ya tried last night. We gonna do this together and we’re not gonna let those varmints get away with hurtin’ Scootaloo,” Applejack spoke as she joined Twilight and Rarity’s side.
“Please don’t be mad at yourself, Rainbow, I’m sure that as soon we find Scootaloo and return her home, everything will be back to normal,” Fluttershy whispered softly to her friend, though her mind was in a tangle of fear of what those ponies did to Scootaloo.
Pinkie popped up in front of Rainbow, causing her to jump backwards. “That’s right! Once Scootaloo is back, we’re gonna throw her the biggest party ever! ‘We’re sorry Scootaloo’... no wait! ‘Welcome Home Scootaloo!’ Or nonononono! How about...”
As Pinkie continued babbling on with potential party name ideas, Rainbow could not help but let loose a small smile on her muzzle. She was fortunate to have friends like these in her life, friends she who knew would always have her back. She also knew that she needed to stop wallowing in guilt at what had happened and she was now determined to find Scootaloo, bring her home and set things right. Rainbow lunged herself to her five friend, as she held them all in a group hug. The five ponies shocked expressions turned to one of care as they held onto to Rainbow Dash.
“You girls are the best.” Rainbow said. They were simple words but those words were all that were needed to express her gratitude.
Rainbow and the others let go of each other and Twilight faced her friends, “Now, before we go girls, we need to do an inventory check on our equipment before we go. Once everypony is ready, we make for the exit and beyond.”
“Ya got it, Twilight.”
“Eep! Y-yes.”
“Okie dokie lokie!”
“Of course, Darling.”
Twilight and the others turned their heads to Rainbow, “And you, Dash?” Twilight asked her innocently.
A look of pure determination crawled onto Rainbow Dash’s face as she looked up, “One hundred and twenty percent Twilight! We’re gonna make them pay and get Scoots back!” she held her hoof high, which the others tapped together.
Twilight walked back to her saddle bag and pulled out a check list, levitating each item she had in her saddlebag. As she was checking them, in the corner of her eye, she saw Spike packing his own bag. Her eyebrows arched in confusion and she lowered her quill and moved towards her son.
“Spike?” she called out to him as he turned towards her. “What are you doing?”
Spike looked at her with a smile, “Packing my bags... I’m gonna come with you, Mom.” he answered her, though she was a bit shocked to hear this.
“Absolutely not!” she snapped at him. He recoiled slightly with a look of fear in his eyes. She regretted yelling at him and held him in her embrace. “Spike, you are my son. I don’t know what’s going to happen once we find Scootaloo, I don’t even know if we are going to be alright. I need you to stay here at the library until this is all over, here where you’re safe... understand?” she told Spike, who looked down at the ground sadly.
“Yes, mom,” he answered Twilight, who proceeded to lay a gentle kiss on his forehead as she held onto him.
“I love you, Spike.”
Spike could not help but hug his mother in return as she nuzzled him affectionately, “I love you too, mom.”
“What’s this?” Rarity said, levitating up a piece of parchment sitting on the top of Spike’s bag. Looking at the writing, she read out loud. “The brave knight charged forward at the vicious manticore, his sword raised high...”
Spike snatched the paper away. “It’s...it’s just a little something I’m working on!” He was blushing.
Twilight smiled. “You should really let others read what you’ve written, Spike, they’re very good.”
Spike just wrung his tail awkwardly.
“What about us?” Sweetie protested. “Scootaloo’s our friend!”
Rarity shot the little fillies a look of pure anger. “No, I’m not letting that brute get another foal, especially my sister!”
“That’s right,” Applejack nodded. “Ya two best stay right here.”
“But-” both foals protested, but their older sister’s glares silenced them.
Twilight nodded. “Good. Now then, I got a carriage to carry our things in. Applejack, you need to lead us back to the area where Blue and Black were last seen...”
Spike watches as the older mares walked out the door before returning to his packing.
“What’re you doing?” Apple Bloom asked.
“Finishing packing.”
“But Twilight just said you couldn’t come,” Sweetie reminded.
Spike just gave a sly smile. “My mom worries too much sometimes, and she does stupid things when she does. So, whenever she worries, I just do the best thing. I don’t listen to her.”
The two foals looked at each other. They looked back at the dragon with their own grins. “That’s a good idea.”
Scootaloo was beginning to wonder if she died and went straight to some realm of agony and torture. For what seemed to be an eternity, she was learning how to fly. Every time she failed to perform to Bloodwing’s standards, she was whipped by Black, then injected with pain relievers by the mad scientist.
When Bloodwing decided that she had learned enough, her collar was replaced and she was led to another room. Here, she was forced to buck several objects, starting with wooden boards that split in half and ending with metal that dented to their liking. Her legs felt like breaking with each buck she was forced to do, and even though she was able to leave a few dents her legs were swollen and showed signs of bruises. Still she never slowed, every hesitation meant another lash. By now red gashes were forming on her flank and back. And since it didn’t require her to maneuver as much as it did when flying, the collar wasn’t removed.
“It seems that progress is ahead of schedule; her flight has improved by seventy percent at best, though of course since it is her first day having such marvelous wings there will be some bumps along the way, yes~,” Bloodwing muttered to himself as he was holding a notepad with his wings and walked towards the next room with Black and Scootaloo behind him. “Also her strength seems to have increased as the formula has introduced muscle growth to her legs, though not on par with an earth pony’s. Further testing is required, yes~.”
Scootaloo was glaring at him with even more hatred than before. Though her glaring ceased when they entered the next room and she saw a podium which held a single glass of water. She was wondering what this was for, but she felt her throat becoming parched from not having anything to eat or drink in the time she was there. Bloodwing walked over to the glass.
“Now, my precious... move this little glass towards you.” he instructed her, the order confused her. “With your magic ,silly. And if you get it right... you can have a drink of water~.”
Scootaloo was dumbfounded, as she had never been able to perform magic. Though now she had a horn, which was forced upon her by these ponies. She looked at Bloodwing with a frightened gaze, “I... I don’t know how to use magic,” she pleaded, though she was whipped again by Black.
“Now, now, Black... she just needs to learn that’s all,” he told him plainly as Black chuckled at the pony’s pain. “Now, my pretty, with magic, all you need to do is imagine you reaching out for the glass and dragging it towards you. Magic is just an extension of your limbs, but also the ability to perform great feats, yes~” he laughed with his mouth closed as he closed his eyes. “Now come along dear, we haven’t got all day now~”.
As she looked at the glass before her, she remembered how Twilight would concentrate at a book and move it towards her. Concentration, that’s the one thing she needed most right now, so she looked at the glass intently. To her surprise it glowed in an orange aura, which made her happy for the moment. Though as soon as she smiled, the glass ricocheted across the room and smashed into tiny pieces.
Black started moving toward her with the switch, but Bloodwing stopped him. The mad scientist produced another glass of water. Much to everypony’s surprise, he brought it to Scootaloo’s lips and let her drink.
“There there, you did manage to lift it after all,” he said with a surprising amount of gentleness. Was it real or fake? She didn’t even know anymore.
The water hurt her raw throat, but she gulped it down greedily. It was plain tap water, but it tasted so heavenly.
Once the glass was empty, Bloodwing poured another and sat it on the podium. She wanted to beg for more, but fear of the switch kept her silent. “Now then, levitate again.”
Sighing, Scootaloo focused with all her might. Her horn flickered a bit, sending out sparks. The cup started to shake, wobbling where it stood. Scootaloo was becoming rather tired from excessive use of magic, which she only used for the first time today. When the sparks ceased, she started sweat profoundly and breathing became slightly difficult for her. She could not explain it, but the feeling of using magic drained her stamina faster than running or flying would ever do. She closed her eyes slightly to relax and try again, but shot them open when she heard the stomping of hooves coming towards her.
When she looked up, she felt a searing pain coming from her chest as Black decided to buck her right there. She flew across the room and collided with the wall with a thud, collapsing to the ground and coughing out blood spatters.
“This filly is starting to piss me off!” Black growled at the helpless Scootaloo, though Bloodwing’s calm exterior turned to one of panic.
“Oh no!” he yelled out to his subordinate, “You idiot! What did you do that for?!”
Black turned towards Bloodwing, smiling smugly. “Teaching this foal a lesson, what else?”
Scootaloo felt a sudden force of rage flowing throughout her whole body, as she shot opened her eyes and stood up from the ground glaring daggers at the startled earth pony. Bloodwing became frightened by her stance and turned towards Blue.
“Blue! Restrain her before-”
Before he could finish his words, there was a loud bang as the room was filled with an orange light. All three of the ponies were sent flying to the other side of the room where they were immediately unconscious as their bodies slammed against certain objects in the room they were standing. Scootaloo was burning with rage quite literally, recalling a time where Twilight burst into flames out of pure anger and frustration. The moment she calmed down, she blinked her eyes and looked across the room, confusion overriding her senses as she tried to understand what just happened. She saw the three ponies and carefully walked towards them, fearing they may jump at her any moment. She saw a key attached to Black and proceeded to rip it off his neck with great force and used it to remove her collar around her neck. When she got it off, she held it in her hoof and started to tear up slightly. She looked down on the fallen Black and clenched her teeth in disgust of this pony, and threw the collar against his head with all her might.
Scootaloo saw the door and immediately ran, where she entered another room with a window. She used her wings to gain momentum and jumped out of the window, though before she reached it she was covered in a coat of magic energy. Smashing it and gaining a few cuts from the shards, she tumbled on the ground and immediately got up to view her surroundings. She could not see Ponyville anywhere, but she did see Canterlot in the distance. Scootaloo immediately galloped towards the city, hoping against all odds that Princess Celestia would help her out. Maybe even Rainbow Dash would be there, looking for her...