Some days Dash was proud to be in charge of this little outpost. Those days usually had everything go right. Days where no pegasi complained about Thunderlane hitting on them, the twins didn’t cause any accidents, and there were most certainly no kitchen disasters involving a certain cocky second in command thinking she could cook. At least Lightning Dust was caught before she could poison everypegasus like last time, so that was a plus. A quick glance at the report on Dash's desk also told her that none of the new recruits had any bones broken, yet, and that production was up. Not by much, but enough to keep the higher-ups off her back for a while longer.
Dash threw both hooves onto her desk and leaned back, a series of cracks echoing through the empty room as she stretched her limbs. A sigh escaped as the stiffness in her shoulders eased up, followed by a loud crack as Dash turned her head from side to side. With a deliberate slowness, she stood up and began pacing the room, stretching out her limbs and trying to work some warmth back into them. After a minute of pacing, there was a polite knock on the door and Dash immediately threw herself back into her seat and buried her face in her reports.
"Come in!" she called while trying to look busy. "Listen, if this is about Thunderlane, save it. I've already talked to him twice this morning, and he's promised to behave, alright?"
"Oh... um... tha-"
"Fluttershy!" With a flap of her wings, Dash shot across the room and slammed the door shut. "You're early, wasn't expecting you so soon." The cyan pegasus began brushing out her mane. "What are you doing here so soon? Aren't you meant to be helping out in the clinic right now?"
"Are you... are you alright? Something didn't go wrong I hope. Oh dear, please tell me Lightning didn't get into the kitchen again – not that she's bad at cooking or anything! It's just... um..." Whatever else Fluttershy was saying trailed off into soft squeaks.
"Don't worry, Dust didn't do anything too bad before we caught her," said Dash.
"You know she doesn't like being called that," replied Fluttershy in the soft, almost apologetic way of hers.
"Which is why I call her that." A cocky grin was thrown Shy's way, but it was clear they both knew it was strained. So the two sat there in complete silence, as Dash tried to work up the courage to confront her longtime friend. It wasn't that she was scared. After all, Rainbow Dash wasn't afraid of anything! But... this was emotions and stuff, and worst of all, it was Fluttershy. Though she'd never admit it out loud, Dash never pried into the folders of her friends and always let them make their own choices. Sure, maybe with a bit of input here and there just to make sure they didn't pick the wrong option, but this was totally different. This was – urgh – love.
A minute passed, then two, and as the third began ticking by, Fluttershy finally spoke up, "Um... Dash, you know you can talk to me about anything, right?"
Dash took one last deep breath before tossing a folder before Fluttershy. "Your birthday is coming up and you haven't taken a mate." With both forelegs under the table and her wings wrapped tightly around her body, Dash hid her sweaty limbs.
"Well, no..."
"Have you picked somepegasus yet?"
"No..." Cheeks bright red, the shy pegasus hid behind her mane.
"Do you even think of any pegasi in that manner?"
All that could be heard was a squeak, though whether that came from Fluttershy or the chair was another matter entirely. From her down turned gaze, crimson cheeks, and overall body language though, it was clear to Dash that Fluttershy did not have a single pegasus in mind, and that all added up to an impossibly massive headache. But now was not the time for Dash to feel sorry for herself. All it took was a quick slap to her own face for everything to snap back into perspective, allowing her to focus on what truly mattered.
There was no way Dash was letting Fluttershy marry some colt, that much was certain. With her personality, she would not be able to say no, and that meant some sick bastard rubbing himself all over Shy. The mere thought was enough to send shudders down Dash's spine and make her want to puke. As far as Dash was concerned, males could not be trusted at all, give them an inch and they'd drug the drink, rape the filly and leave her in a ditch somewhere.
That left one, and only one, option.
Run.
They needed to run, to get away and find somewhere safe to stay for the rest of their lives. Sure, such a place probably didn't exist, but it'd still be better than hanging around in this dump or getting it on with some slimy stallion. Plus, if that horned freak could survive in the wild, then Rainbow Dash could as well. There was no doubt about that! Plus, they'd be able to nab some supplies and food from storage,and the abandoned Diamond Dog caves were nearby so they'd have some shelter as well.Yes, that was their only option and that was exactly how they were going to do things.
Dash grabbed a quill and began scribbling on a scrap bit of paper. "Okay, I want you to go to storage and grab all these items and bring them back here. If anyone asks, tell them it's for some secret mission or something. Drop them off in my room – you still have the keys right? Good. Drop them off there and then come see me in my room once everypegasus goes to sleep."
"Um..." For a brief second it looked as though Fluttershy was about to ask what was going on, but under Dash's intense gaze, she nodded meekly. "O-Okay."
"Great!" Back on her hooves, Dash began pushing Fluttershy out the door. "I promise to explain everything then, okay?"
"It's nothing brash right?" There was no accusation in her tone of voice, only concern. "You've thought this through... right? Not that I'm implying anything about you, but... um... you do tend to rush in without thinking and, oh dear. I mea-"
"Don't worry, I've got everything under control." All it took was a confident grin and everything was back to normal.
"Al-Alright," said Fluttershy as she stared down at the list. Before she had a chance to say anything further, Dash was already racing down the hall. There was too much to do, too much to plan for everything to go off without a hitch, and perhaps most importantly, she needed to come up with something to tell Lightning Dust. That one single fact almost had her want to call the entire thing off, but she steeled herself. After all, this was for Fluttershy,and that made it more important than anything else.
Taking the vertical corridor straight up, Dash quickly found one of the many entrances that led to the surface. She didn't bother slowing down as she buttoned up her heavy duty jacket before bursting out the door, sending snow in all directions. A quick shake removed all the snow as she began her lazy spiral upwards. It took less than a second for Dash to locate Lightning Dust. All she had to do was follow the sounds of pain and agony. Sometimes she still wondered if she was drunk when she named Lightning second in command and in charge of training the new recruits.
High above the land, Dash had a perfect vision of the recruits as they weaved through the forest of frozen trees while Lightning tossed snowballs from above. From the look of things, about a quarter were down either from exhaustion or getting hit, another third were injured, and the remaining few were driven on by nothing but primal fear. One was close to the finish li- Nope, got taken down by a snowball.Huh, still did better than most though.
Within the minute, the rest of the recruits were down and out for good. Most were reduced to moaning for their mother or groaning unintelligible things that probably had something to do with praying to the sun and moon or equally nonsensical things. Wings snapping shut, Dash plummeted straight down, blasting past Lightning with enough force to toss her aside. At the last possible second, Dash threw her wings open causing gale force winds to expand in all directions. Snow was thrown in all directions, giving her a nice flat platform to land on.Not to mention it drew every single eye to her awesomeness, but that was an unnecessary and totally accidental consequence that was not at all intended.
It was a shame all the recruits were unconscious or verging on it.
"Lightning Dust, what did I tell you about drilling them to death?" sighed Dash as she nudged a red pegasus.
"Oooooh, last name ultimatum, you going to spank me too?" Lightning landed next to Dash with a snowball in hoof. "It's not my fault this batch was so bad. I mean, come on! Last time, somepegasus actually managed to make it to the end."
"And Fluttershy had to confine him to bed for a week.”
"At least I didn't use lightning this time, so cut me some slack." At Dash's flat look, Lightning growled, "Hey, you made me the head trainer, so trust me, I know what I'm doing. So back off will you?"
"Alright, alright." Dash glanced over at the recruits. "Get them out of here, we need to talk."
"Is this about the... er..." The next word was spoken in a hushed whisper, "horned freak?"
It took all of Dash's willpower to not slam her head against the ground. All day she felt as though she had forgotten about something important, something that she had to do, but with all the complaints and reports, and that one thing she had to write to try to get the slaves moved to better quarters, and argh! Hopefully that monster hadn't done anything other than read some dusty, moldy books.
"Yes," replied Dash, keeping her voice neutral, "the Wonderbolt's discovered her hiding hole to the north of here and they want me to check it out. I'll be taking Fluttershy and some others with me on an expedition to see if we can find anything, so you'll probably be in charge for a while."
"Alright. I take it you don't want me to do a better job of running the place while you're gone?" smirked Lightning. "After all, don't want to be showing everypegasus what a lazy and bad leader you are, now would we?"
"More like you'd be afraid of showing just how much of an airhead you really are," replied Dash. "Plus, we both know that if you took charge for more than a week, they would start rebelling in order to take down the evil dictator who drills them to death on a daily basis."
"What are you talking about? They love me!"
"Suuuuuuuuure." After a brief pause, Dash sighed and placed a hoof on Lightning's shoulder. "Listen, I know I don't say this a lot, but you're a good friend, and... well... don't get yourself killed alright? I'd rather not go into Tartarus to drag your sorry flank back out."
"Please, we both know the first one dropping dead will be you, you old geezer."
"Old geezer!? I'm barely a month older than you." An easy grin appeared. "Plus, you know what they say, respect your elders."
"What's that? I can't hear you over all the praise I'm getting from doing your job better than you." All it took was a cocked eyebrow and a glance down at the half dead pegasus at Dash's feet for Lightning to get the message.
"Oh shut up," growled Lightning as she threw the snowball at Dash's face. "Hey losers! On your feet, one last run, and if you're the last one standing, you get a prize."
Like a band of zombies, the group shuffled onto their feet, or at least tried to, and began the long walk back to the starting line. With the amount of groaning, they even sounded like they were dead.
"Faster!" yelled Lightning and they immediately leapt into action, trudging along at a pace that was barely faster than a slave faking an injury. "By the sun, this batch of recruits sucks."
"Yeah, yeah, I'll bring it up in my next report," said Dash. "Remember, you'll be acting commander tonight, so get back early and make sure everything's run-"
"Yes mom." Another eye roll. "Seriously, can I go now or do you want to tell me to eat my vegetables as well?"
"Dust, eat your vegetables." Tilting her head to the side, Dash just managed to avoid getting a face full of snow. With a mighty flap of her wings, Dash took the sky, easily avoiding all the projectiles being tossed in her direction.
Just as Dash was about to start heading back through, Dust yelled from below, "Hey Dash! You better come back in one piece, I've still got to totally kick your ass in that race you promised me."
"Ha! As if!" Dash yelled in reply before rushing back to base. There was no smoke that she could see and there was no crater. So far the ground lacked any dead bodies, though there were plenty of dirt ponies working the frozen fields. From the outside, none of the ground had collapsed in, but this was a uni-whore she was dealing with,and that made things infinitely trickier. For all Dash knew, this could be some sort of illusion designed to make everything look fine, and as soon as she landed, she'd be impaled on an icicle or something.
After a deep breath, Dash snapped her wings shut, allowing herself to drop straight down through one of the many ventilation shafts that also acted as entrances. Once she reached the bottom most level, Dash can to a gentle stop before gliding along, her belly fur mere inches from the ground. Eyes narrowed, she focused on her job and why she was down there, rather than how close the walls were or how far underground she was. There was a reason her room and study had a small window where she could she see the sky, not that it had anything do with being afraid. After all, she was Rainbow Dash, and she most certainly wasn't afraid of anything.
Eventually she finally found herself staring into a dark and dusty room that smelt worse than Lightning's laundry. With her back to the door, hunched over a book was that purple mare, seemingly unconscious of the fact that her candle had burnt out a long time ago. Dash watched as the unicorn turned the page with a stiff hoof, her actions jerky and almost mechanical looking. As the unicorn continued, completely oblivious to Dash's presence, the cyan pegasusunsheathed the dagger she always kept on herself. It didn't matter if it was a horned freak or some piece of filth, a dagger between the shoulder blades would kill just fine. After all, that unicorn was a monster, a traitor, the worst sort of pony imaginable. That unicorn betrayed her own species, there was little doubt in that she'd betray the pegasi even faster.
Dash took a step forward, her grip on her dagger tightening as she eyed her target. The book suddenly slammed shut, causing Dash's wings to flare open as she instinctively dropped into a fighting pose. After a couple of seconds, her heartbeat began slowing down, but she could still feel the adrenaline pumping through her system as the unicorn continued her search through the moldy books.With one last deep breath to calm her nerves, Dash's eyes narrowed as she adjusted her grip on the knife. One shot was all it took and one shot was she had.
"Hey buster, layer a hoof and on her and I'll melt your face.”
The pegasus immediately skipped back, body tensed and eyes darting everywhere. She knew it! Dash fucking knew that slimy unicorn would sneak more unicorns in. How many where there already? Ten?Twenty? Fucking Tartarus! She was such a fucking idiot.
"Up here featherbrain." Dash began stepping backwards until her back touched the wall so she could keep the unicorn in her field of version as she glanced up. There, in a dark corner of the ceiling, a pair of green eyes staring down at her.
Fucking perfect.It wasn't another unicorn, of course not! That'd be far too easy for a mare like Rainbow Dash. No, up there was probably a demon from the pits of Tartarus, or maybe some mutant creature from nightmares, or maybe even some mechanical being fueled from the souls of dead foals. Despite everything, Dash couldn't help but smile at the new development. There were lots of ways to go out, but fighting some spawn of Tartarus in order to defend her base? Nothing could even come close to the awesomeness of that death.
"Oh yes, fight a dragon, what a brilliant plan," said the voice as Dash spread her wings. "Watch out folks, we're dealing with a real tactical genius here!"
"Spike! Spiiiiiiiiiiiike grab me that dark green book. The one with the faded titled and missing contents page," yelled Twilight.
There was a moment of silence before the creature sighed and drifted down from the ceiling. At first all that Dash could make out was that it had leather wings and four legs, but soon she could make out purple scales and green spikes. Finally entering the dim light, Dash could make out just how large the dragon was and laughter immediately burst forth. Hooves in the air, tears leaking down her cheek, Dash laughed harder than she had ever laughed before. Dragons were meant to be large and fierce, with the ability to destroy entire towns with a single blast of fire. But this dragon? Small enough to sit on her shoulder, and the best part was, it was being ordered around by a unicorn!
Wait.
If she could order around a dragon did that mean she was mind controlling it?
"Twilight," whined the miniature dragon.
"No but's mister. You said you'd he-" The unicorn finally turned around and blinked in surprise when she caught sight of Dash. "Oh, it's you. What do you want?"
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you," snarled Dash. "Who the fuck said you could bring a bloody dragon in here? What else haven't you told me? What else are you hiding?"
"A parasprite in my pocket," replied Twilight.
"And a cockatrice in mine," chuckled the dragon, a bit of flame escaping.
"No flames around books, you know that. Also, what have I said about using sarcasm?" asked Twilight.
For a brief second it looked as though Spike was about to reply with some snarky comment, but the look in Twilight's eye stopped him. With a grumble, he settled himself on Twilight's shoulder, his gaze never once leaving Dash's. When the unicorn turned around to face Dash once more, the dragon pulled a claw across his throat and pointed at the cyan pegasus.
"Now what do you want?" asked Twilight again, this time with an edge in her voice.
"I want you to leave." Dash shifted her grip on the dagger, wishing that she was wearing her gauntlets instead. "Tonight."
"That was not our agreement." On her shoulder, the dragon snarled, green flames licking at the edges of his snout. "A week. A week in exchange for the information I gave and I've only been here for three days."
"An agreement you made with Soarin, and an agreement that did not include a dragon." The two ponies began circling each other. "You broke your side of the agreement, so you leave."
"You agreed to no harm, and you were about to attack Twilight," hissed Spike.
"She broke the agreement first!" yelled Dash.
"You didn-"
"Spike? Shut up." Even in the middle of a yelling match, Twilight managed to keep her tone neutral. "Tomorrow night. We'll leave then."
"Fuck you. I say you leave tonight, so you'll leave tonight." Dash took a step forward, wings unfurling. "This is my outpost. This is my responsibility. You will fucking leave tonight, but whether that's alive or dead is up to you."
"Alive of course," smirked Spike. "The only dead thing will be you."
"Someone's cocky. Want to put your hooves where your mouth is?"
"Ain't got no hooves sor-"
"Spike!" snapped Twilight. "Apologize now."
There was a pause as the two gazed at each other. After a couple of seconds, the dragon turned back to Dash and muttered something under his breath. Though it was clear it wasn't any sort of apology, it seemed to satisfy the unicorn.
"We'll leave at midnight," said Twilight.
Dash opened her mouth to argue further, only to slow close it again. As much as she wanted the freak out as soon as possible, arguing further would be pointless. It'd not only be a waste of time, but a waste of energy as well. Plus, Dash didn't want to breathe the same air as that monster a second longer. Just being in Twilight's general vicinity made Dash want to smash something to pieces – preferably that unicorn's face.
"Whatever." With her gaze locked on the duo, Dash began backing out of the room. "As long as you're gone by the time I check tomorrow morning."
The unicorn immediately turned back to whatever it was she was doing, but the dragon continued watching with those unnaturally green eyes of his. As soon as she was out of the room, Dash kicked the broken door shut and immediately leapt into the air, tearing through the subterranean corridors at speeds few could ever hope to achieve. The pegasus ignored all the startled cries and oaths as she zipped between pegasi with expert precision before skidding to a halt before her room. A hoof ran through her sweaty mane as she shifted her wings nervously and brushed some imaginary dirt off her jacket. After a deep breath, she pushed it open and quickly shut it behind her, making sure to lock it.
There, lying before her on the ground, were the supplies she had asked for. Two saddlepacks full of hay, some shoddy, but workable equipment, a medical kit, and most importantly, the warmest clothes they had in stock. It'd be enough for a couple days of travel, maybe a week if they really rationed everything, and the clothes would be enough as long as they had shelter, but even then Dash had her doubts. It was one thing to be nice and safe within an outpost, but out there? No walls, no food waiting for her, no nothing. One misstep, one single fuck up and they'd both be dead.
As much as she hated admitting it to herself, that thought scared Dash.
Here, in the safety and comfort of her base, Dash knew she could make mistakes. By Tartarus, she had made them in the past! But each and every time, there was some pegasus there to catch it. Some pegasus to notice and to fix it, and in the rare occasions when that didn't happen, they always managed to recover. Sure, things could get difficult if a supply delivery was delayed or if they had a particularly bad haul, but they always had reserves. But out there?With enough food to last seven days at the absolute most?
Worst of all, a single wrong move ended with Fluttershy’s dead body. Maybe they accidentally wandered into a manticore den, or maybe the diamond dogs hadn't left the cave system. Maybe a blizzard suddenly came up, or there was an avalanche. Maybe they run into some gryphons out hunting. Maybe...
No!
Dash shook her head and slapped herself. This was the wrong time to start second guessing herself, after all, she was Rainbow Dash! Coolest, fastest, awesomest pony ever. If anything, the weather should be afraid of crossing The Dash because if it did, The Dash would kick that weather's flank so hard it would stop snowing. Yeah, that was it. There was nothing to fear, as long as Dash was on the job, everything would turn out perfectly.
After all, how couldn't it? She was Rainbow-fucking-Dash.
"Oh darling, do you think this persian blue is better or this palatinate blue?" Rarity held up two pieces of cloth that were the exact same color. "Persian or palatinate? Palatinate or persian? Hmmm...maybe if I changed the ivory to floral white? What do you think?"
Applejack merely rolled her eyes in response. It had been two days since she ended up being stuck with the fussy unicorn, and already, the orange pony wanted to kill herself. Talk, talk, talk. Every single second of every single minute was filled with useless chatter about the most inane things,ranging from what some stupid unicorn was doing to some shade of blue that Applejack had never heard of before in her life, and would probably never hear of again. Why couldn't she have been born deaf?
"Idea!" said Rarity in a sing song voice. "I'll switch the ivory to honeydew, and use persian with a hint of maya blue. I dare say, I will never get the hang of crafting these tacky camouflage suits. Why, just think how magnificent this could look if I were allowed to let my creativity run free! Embellish the collar a bit, remove the back sleeves entirely, give it a bit more flow and form, and it'd be beautiful. "
A groan escaped as Applejack resisted the urge to slam her face against the nearest available object. She sent a prayer to the moon, sun, and stars in the hopes that it would somehow stop the unicorn from going on for a couple hours about how her talents were being wasted. And the tears. Dear sun and moon, please no tears. Once was enough to scar her for life, a second time would end with Applejack doing something she’d regret, like submitting to a makeover or something just to shut that mare up. To think a mare could be so weak and frivolous.
One minute. That was how long that unicorn would survive in the freezing fields. One damned minute. Actually, she'd last less than ten seconds in a slave pen, let alone actually doing work! Just look at her, those slim legs, firm body, without a hint of muscle anywhere her. Not to mention that all-too-frail frame and those delicate hooves would break as soon as a fight broke out for food. A day and she'd be dead, there was no doubt about that.
"Ah yes, before I forget darling, Bulwark has moved your belongings into my room." How Rarity managed to sound embarrassed over something most owners never bothered with to begin with was mind boggling. "I hope you do not mind, but I fear your bedroom is the only one that can be spared."
Great.
Applejack wanted to scream in frustration at that little tidbit of information. She had been biding her time, waiting until she could scrounge together enough food and fabric to survive outside before leaving, but now? Now that was a pipe dream. Then again, she could always kill the unicorn in her sleep.
Before Applejack could follow that particular line of reasoning any further, there was a flash of light out the corner of her eye. She turned her head only for Rarity to yank it back into position as she began wrapping some gauze like fabric around her neck and chest.
"Now, is that too tight? Too restricting? You can still move correct?"
Applejack merely glared at the fashionista.
"Right, can't talk." Next thing Applejack knew, her head was forced to turn this way and that as Rarity grabbed it in her magic. Out the corner of her eye, she noticed Bulwark standing there with his usual stoic expression.
"I suppose it will have to do for now," sighed Rarity. "Such a shame we do not have better fabrics. How much I would pay to get my hooves on some wool!"
"Miss Rarity, I fear your finances would not be able to handle another frivolous 'artistic binge' as you put it so aptly," said Bulwark.
"Ah, Bulwark darling, just the stallion I was looking for." All of a sudden, the stallion stood on the platform next to Applejack as Rarity forced him into an outfit she had created earlier that morning. "Hm... A bit tight across the chest, the back looks as though it could do with some loosening as well, though all the mares will have my flank if they heard me say that. What do you think..." Rarity paused, staring at Applejack, "...um... Orange? No, no, that will not do. It just won't do at all! 'Orange'! By the stars, what was I thinking? Come now, Rarity, you can do better than that. Of course, how silly of me.Golden. I shall refer to you as Golden."
All the response she got from that was a death glare.
"Right." Rarity gave a dainty little cough before turning to Bulwark, "How's your mobility, darling?"
After a couple of stretches and trots, Bulwark happily announced, "Worse than what the pegasi wear, but definitely warmer."
"Have they managed to identify the fabric yet? It looks smoother than silk and far softer than anything we have." Applejack slowly backed away as Rarity levitated needles and other sharp things around Bulwark. For their part, Bulwark looked as he always did and Rarity continued talking in that absentminded way of hers, "It's a shame they won't let us artists look at the thread, but I have heard such wonderful things about it. If we can figure out how they made it so light and flexible, it could revolutionize my garments! Just think of all the wondrous creations I could divine with such tools."
"Lady Rarity, if I may interrupt," said Bulwark though the mass of fabrics wrapped around his head, "but you told me to remind you that you've got a meeting with your mother today. Something about dinner I believe."
"Oh yes, of course darling, thank you for reminding me."
The two sane ponies exchanged a glance before looking back at Rarity who continued humming her tune while working away. After a second Bulwark cleared his throat and said, "You will need to leave now to arrive on time."
"Mmhm."
"Lady Rarity, are you even listening to a word I am saying?"
"Of course," she said without even blinking or pausing in her sewing.
"I think an olive green woul-"
"How dare you!" Fast as a snake, Rarity was on Bulwark, a murderous glint in her eyes. "No shade of green, especially not such a ghastly shade, shall ever touch this fa-" A second. Then three. Ten seconds passed before she finally figured out what happened. Great, not only was she weak, she was also an airhead.
"Well played Bulwark," remarked Rarity. With a sigh, she moved the fabrics back to their rightful place letting Applejack stretched out her limbs. "Very well, let us leave."
"Um..." Bulwark eyes flickered over to Applejack. "All three of us?"
"Of course, darling, surely you didn't think I'd leave her here all alone, did you?" asked Rarity as she checked her appearance in the pony length mirror. "I assure you, she will not pose a threat to mother or Sweetie Belle."
"Well at least I will be earning my pay.”
"Darling, you always earn your pay." Rarity touched the young stallion on the cheek before brushing past and walking out the door.
For a brief second, Bulwark stood there, mouth slightly open with a bright red tinge on his cheeks, but then he caught Applejack's look and quickly looked away. As long as they weren't loud, Applejack didn't give a damn what they did in private, but she needed her peace and quiet to plan. Actually, more noise would allow her to get around more easily.
Applejack eyed Bulwark curiously. Sure, he was a tad on the young side, but he was definitely attractive if Rarity was into that sort of thing. Muscular, polite, a tad distant, but with a bit of nudging here and there… And Applejack was certain she could help push the two together. Very risky, but the rewards would be beyond imagination.
For now though, Applejack would watch and wait. There was no reason to make a move and tip her hoof just yet, despite staying in the same room as Rarity. With luck, it would just be temporary, and the thought of being in the room while they did that sent shudders down the earth pony's spine. That was the stuff of nightmares.
"I'm sorry darling, but I fear you need to wear this." A collar was suddenly shoved in Applejack's face by Rarity, interrupting her thoughts. "I apologize for the tacky fuchsia red as well as how worn it is, but I fear it was all I had lying around, and it is regulation."
Eyes narrowed, Applejack took a deliberate step back.
"Darling, please." Rarity took a step forward and held out the collar pleadingly.
Another step back.
"Lady Rarity, we do not have time for this. Might I suggest we bind her and force the collar on her?"
At that comment a growl escaped Applejack's throat. And to think she had a plan that involved him getting laid! If anything, she was going to deliberately get in their way now. She was not going to be collared like some filthy animal. Nine Tails had to whip her till she was bloody and half dead before he could get the collar on her, and there was no way in Tartarus that anything less than that was going to work.Especially not when it was some prissy, airhead, stuck up unicorn bitch.
"No Bulwark, it is clear she does not wish to be collared and a fight would only dirty your fabulous coat. I take it you washed recently? And brushed it out too! My, my, who's the lucky mare?"
"Well... er... that is-"
Applejack very rudely shoved past the two unicorns, snatched the collar out of the air and then proceeded to stomp it into the ground before urinating on it. The look of absolute horror on Rarity's face almost caused the earth pony to burst out laughing, but she just managed to hold it in. As the seconds ticked by and the twitch in Rarity's eye grew worse, the collar suddenly burst in flames as did the surrounding ground.
Bulwark was the first to get over his shock, lunging forward with hooves outstretched, but Applejack simply skipped back out of reach. Just before her hooves touched the ground, a burst of magic slammed into her chest, throwing her back. Hitting the dirt floor, the earth pony rolled with the momentum, and was back on her hooves in seconds. Though her chest stung, she lunged forward only to have a blue barrier shove the two apart.
"You will both stop this brutish behavior at once or I shall be forced to take drastic measures." Rarity glared at Bulwark, "Do not think I won't, I do know your parents." Her gaze shifted to Applejack, " As for you, I have pink dye and I am not afraid to use it."
Out of all the possible threats should have made, that was the one she went with?
Applejack proceeded to slam her head against the wall.
"Well now, I don't know about you, but I think that settles the matter. Though if you truly hated the color so badly, you could have just said so." Rarity paused before turning to Bulwark. "Remind me to have the top ten inches of the floor removed when we get back... And to set it on fire."
"But the law says all slaves must be collared and leashed in public!"Applejack's eyes immediately narrowed, as she took an aggressive step towards Bulwark. For his part, Bulwark simply rolled his eyes and proceeded to ignore Applejack as he continued, "You should not be risking your career in such a manner."
"Please dear, I know you mean well, but who is going to inform the authorities about such a minor breach? My mother?" Even her snort was somehow delicate. "Don't be ridiculous, we will be perfectly safe. There's no need to worry."
"I'm taking you to your mother's house, where your sister is staying. I have every reason to be nervous.”
"How dare you speak about Sweetie Belle like that!" Rarity stomped her hoof and Applejack was forced to bite back a sad chuckle at how weak the unicorn was. "She is an absolute darling."
"You're not the one teaching her magic," he replied flatly.
"She is also my little sister." The glare from Rarity would have been impressive if she wasn't so weak. Wondering how Bulwark managed to get scared by that unicorn threatened to break Applejack's mind. "Now, shall we leave? I believe you were talking about how we were late."
"R-Right!" Bulwark scrambled forward to stand at the dead end next to Rarity.
For a brief moment Applejack hesitated before inching forward and standing next to Rarity, with Bulwark on the far side. This would be the first time she'd actually been outside of the house and not in the fields and Applejack intended to make the most out of it. Sure, slipping away would be hard, but Rarity seemed to trust her a bit, and Applejack fully intended to make the most out of her time outside.
The question was, how did they actually get out of this stink hole? No doubt it involved some sort of filthy magic and maybe a virgin sacrifice or two. After all, how else could Bulwark's fear of Rarity be explained? It'd also explain why she kept such a weak stallion around.
"Ready?" asked Bulwark.
"Ready," replied Rarity while Applejack snorted in frustration.
Was it some stairs? Would the roof open up and the platform rise up? Whatever it was, the sinking feeling in Applejack's stomach began growing as Bulwark powered up his horn. It definitely involved magic and if it involved magic, that meant she was stuck here. She knew all slave pens were kept isolated, but she figured the houses would be different! That there'd be stairs like normal ponies, but apparently that was too much to ask for from fucking unicorns. Bloody Tartarus, why couldn't things ever be easy?
The glow intensified until it was blinding them, almost as though she was standing in the middle of a snowstorm. Then, like a taut string being cut, the world snapped back and Applejack stumbled to the side before collapsing, her stomach threatening to rebel.
"Oh please, that was a mere teleport." A hoof connected with Applejack's side, forcing the air out of her lungs and onto her back. "Toughen up."
"Bulwark!"
"Yes Lady Rarity?" asked the stallion sweetly.
"Did you just kick Golden?" she snapped.
Applejack cracked an eye open and watched as Rarity stumbled slightly, her face green. With a hoof against the wall, the unicorn took a couple of deep breaths before straightening up and saying, "Bulwark, I am disappointed in you. I expect such brutish behavior from ruffians such as Nine Tails, but not from a colt from such a distinguished family."
"My apologies." Despite the bow he gave, Applejack could clearly see the glare he shot her from the corner of his eyes. "It was a mere slip of the hoof and it will not happen again."
"Make sure it doesn't happen again." The edge in Rarity's voice was like nothing Applejack had ever heard before. "Now please be a dear and leave."
"But-"
"We will be fine. Leave," said Rarity, and like a worthless dog, Bulwark slinked away with his tail between his legs. "I'm terribly sorry about that dear."
The earth pony shrugged off the helping hoof, opting instead to examine the room she was in. If she thought the slave pens were a horrible, this place definitely gave them a run for their misery. The ground was uneven, the roof was crumbling, and the walls looked as though a strong sneeze would blow them apart. Were her parents slaves? It did happen, but...
Rarity walked on with all the grace and poise in the world, totally at ease with the rundown location. In fact, one hoof constantly trailed along the wall, and every so often she'd stop as though staring at something. But in the end, she'd always sigh and shake her head sadly before continuing on.
If this was a slave pen, where were the guards? And it wasn't set out like any slave pen Applejack had seen either. There were tables along the wall, a mirror, some paintings, and more importantly, no cells, moans of despair, or general feeling of hopelessness. Oh, and the blood stains, can't forget those now.
"Come now, we're already late, and it is so rude to arrive late," Rarity said as she picked up the pace.
Though Applejack considered staying back to explore where the stairs on the right went, without Bulwark around to distract Rarity it was far too risky. A single drop of water splashed on her head, causing her to look up at the leaky roof before sighing. Another quick survey, and a shudder ran through her body as unwanted memories rose to the surface. Images of kind, blue eyes, a foal's cries, and a whispered promise never kept. They pressed against Applejack's mind, demanding they be remembered, but she pushed them away like she always did.
"Rarity, Rarity!" A yellow and red blur shot around the corner, slamming into Rarity with enough force to send them both to the ground. "You're here! Mom, she's here!"
Wait, red and yellow blur? Applejack frowned as she stared at the white filly before her with the purple and pink mane. There was no trace of yellow or red, so where in the word had that come from?
"Oh Sweetie Belle, just look at you!" The squeal that came from Rarity only made the unicorn seem even less threatening, if that were possible. "Why, look at how much you've grown. Last I saw you, you were no taller than my knee and still in diapers."
"Rariiiiiiiiiity," whined Sweetie before breaking off into a hacking cough.
"A-Are you alright?" For once, the refined tone was lost, leaving behind a distinct lower class tinge.
"I'm fine, I'm not a filly anym-" Once more, the hacking coughs came, and this time, they shook her entire body.
"Sweetie!" Rarity immediately wrapped her sister up in a tight hug, laying a hoof on the filly's forehead. "You're burning up."
For her part, Applejack looked away, feeling uncomfortable at such blatant displays of love. It just felt... wrong. As though this was some private matter that she had no place in, let alone to view. A stain, a blot, a blizzard on an otherwise perfect landscape.
"Rarity, it's fine. Mom took me to the doctors last week and I've been taking medicine for the cough. It's nothing serious. Honest."
"Golden, please take care of Sweetie for me while I talk to mother."
"Rarity, please, it's fine," whined the filly, but to no avail.
And so, Applejack stared down at the filly, with absolutely no idea of what to do. After a second, she simply shrugged and began looking around again, figuring out just where she was and if she could get out. From the coldness and dripping roof, it seemed to be close the surface, but how close?
"Um... hi there," said the filly, looking down at the ground.
As much as Applejack wanted to ignore Sweetie, the way she looked up with those big round eyes was too hard to resist. Ruffling Sweetie's hair, Applejack walked past one of the tables, only for a picture to catch her eye. It was of an old mare with pink coat and purple mane, cradling a little Sweetie with Rarity looking over her shoulder. A hoof traced along the edge of the picture, and for a second, Applejack indulged herself in a bit of a fantasy, imaging her family there instead. Her and her mother and little Ap-
No. She wouldn't think of that, she promised herself she'd never think of that. As far as Applejack was concerned, that filly didn't have a name and didn't deserve a name. That foal took everything from her. So as far as Applejack cared, she didn't deserve a name, or to be remembered.
But...
A sudden weight on her back made Applejack look, blinking in surprise. There, with her forehooves draped over her back was Sweetie Belle, looking as innocent as can be. Applejack rolled her eyes and with a bump of her hips, tossed Sweetie up into the air, causing her to squeal in delight. The little filly landed on her back safe as can be, and without a backward look, the earth pony began walking down the hall, making sure to step over the rubble lying in the middle of the corridor.
"-lling you, everything is fine, you need to stop worrying." Applejack assumed the voice belonged to their mother.
"Please, mother, this environment is not conductive to you or Sweetie's well being."
"Rarity, I know you mean well, but-"
"No buts. Surely you're not willing to sacrifice Sweetie for whatever il-"
Despite being muffled by the door, the slap still sounded painful enough to make Applejack wince.
After a beat of silence, their mother hissed, "How dare you imply that!"
"Then why?"
"This place... it's special to me Rares. Please, don't take this away from me."
"Then I won't. My business is picking up and I've made enough money to last me for a long time. Come stay with me while I have the place renovated, nothing major mind you, but some heating spells, some color, and general cleaning."
"Rarity I co-"
"No. No arguments. Just take it. Please, for my sake and Sweetie’s, if you were to..."
It was only when the sniffling began that Applejack realized Sweetie was still on her back. Eyes wide, the earth pony quickly backed away from the door and nuzzled the filly lightly on the cheek. The dam broke and Sweetie Belle wrapped her hooves around Applejack's neck, saturating her fur within seconds. A hesitant hoof slowly stroked the filly's back, but soon Applejack did what came naturally to her and simply held the foal close, humming a soft tune under her breath.
Some part of her was disgusted. Disgusted at how she was helping the enemy, comforting those who made her life miserable, but another part, the dominant part, could only see a little foal. A foal who'd be about Sweetie's size if she had lived. A foal who had a red mane and brilliant yellow fur. A foal with clear orange eyes that could see into Applejack's very soul.
She hated those eyes with a passion. She loved those eyes with all her soul. Those eyes haunted every moment of her life, and no matter how hard Applejack tried to hide, those eyes saw everything. They judged every action despite already having passed judgment, and she knew that when she died, those eyes would greet her. Though whether it was as executioner or savior, she was afraid to find out.
"Darling! There you are." The irritating voice of that prissy mare drew Applejack back into the present. "Come in, come in, dinner is ready."
"Wheee!" The filly scrambled over Applejack's head and leapt onto the ground, dashing away faster than a pony could teleport.
With a bemused shake of her head, Applejack followed. The kitchen was as rundown as she expected, with a table with a missing leg and a chair made out of books greeting her. Her eyes immediately drifted down, looking for the bowl that'd no doubt be there for her to eat out of like some dog, but to her surprise none had was found. Instead, there was an empty seat with a bowl and cutlery set out for her to use.
Or was this a trick? Sure, Rarity never made her eat from a pet bowl, but that was definitely a trick to make Applejack open up. There was never a shred of doubt about that, it just never occurred to her that the horned freak would go so far in an attempt to sell it. With the fake rundown house and the fake sick sister and now this 'oh you're an equal' crap. Yeah right, as if that was going to work. She couldn't believe she fell for the whole sick sister thing to begin with!
Still, if this was the game they wanted to play, then she might as well play along with them. Applejack quickly took her seat like the polite earth pony that she was, and as soon as she had done so, wished she was eating out of a bowl on the ground. At least that would have been edible rather than this grey goop. If they were going to poison her, they could at least be subtle about it, but a glance over at Rarity told her that they all had the exact same food.
"Um... mother, did you cook this?" asked Rarity.
"Oh, of course not darling. Sweetie Belle was just so excited you were coming over for dinner that she just begged me to let her cook a little something special and here we are." The older mare ruffled Sweetie's mane. "It's the best thing I've had in such a long time. Why, she's practicallya prodigy when it comes to cooking! Try some, try some, you won't regret it."
The smile Rarity gave was so fake only the blind would miss it. Then, she picked up the spoon and bought it shakily to her lips, and after a moment of hesitation as well as a final pleading look at Applejack, the white mare swallowed the vile concoction. When she didn't immediately die, throw up, or lose consciousness, all eyes bore down on Applejack. As much as she wanted to ignore it and accidentally knock it off the table, those innocent green eyes caught her in a trap.
A futile look was cast to Rarity, but the unicorn merely smiled all too sweetly. Eyes darting back to the food, Applejack gulped and took a small sip of the mush, ready to spew it out at a second’s notice. But it wasn't disgusting. It just... was. There was no taste, no flavor, and as weird as it sounded, no texture. It just was. It existed, but it was like slurping down thick water without the coolness. It did have a bit of an ash-like aftertaste, but it wasn’t nearly as disgusting as it looked.
"Well?" With both hooves on the table, Sweetie gave the most sickeninglysweet smile Applejack had ever seen. It was so sweet that it left an ash-like aftertaste in her mouth.
Applejack bit her bottom lip and gave a weak smile, which made Sweetie squee in delight. With that disaster averted, both mares breathed a sigh of relief and poked at their dinner. Sure, she didn't feel sick and Rarity hadn't died yet, but that didn't reassure her.
"So Rarity, met any nice stallions yet?"
The spit take was truly glorious to behold. "M-Mother!"
"What? Is it wrong to ask for grandfoals?"
"I'm thirteen and a businessmare, an-"
"What happened to your Prince Charming."
"My... my what now?" Rarity gulped nervously and glanced over at the others. "You must have me confused with some other unicorn."
"I don't know about that. I seem to recall a little filly telling me all these stories about how her Prince Charming would sweep her off her hooves."
"Mother, this is neither the time nor place to talk about such things," there was a pause as Rarity looked down at her meal, "It is putting me off my appetite."
"Of course darling, of course."
"What about Mister Bulwark?" asked Sweetie, and this time both unicorn mares choked on their dinner. "He's so nice!"
"Um... yes Sweetie, that is an... interesting idea..." Rarity exchanged a nervous smile with her mother. "But, um, there are..."
"There are other stallions... aren't there," said Rarity's mother.
"Yes! There is another stallion that I, er, have my eyes on is all." An awkward silence descended. "So how was dinner? It was great! Wasn't it great? I thought it was great! Let me just grab these plates and I can wash up, don't worry mother, I can do it myself. No, I insist on it!Golden? Golden darling give me a hoofwill you?"
All too eagerly, Applejack scrambled after the horned freak, tossing her meal down the drain as soon as the door closed behind her. For a second, she considered washing her mouth out with the water, but when it turned out it was a murky brown, she decided against it. Water was water, and a rare thing for slaves, but she still knew better than to drink water that dirty. It was probably the first rule her mother had drilled into Applejack's brain, and she never forgot. She never forgot anything her mother taught her.
Laughter drifted in from the other room and a sigh escaped Applejack's lips. She could feel the tugs on her heartstrings, the way they were expertly plucked by the laughter and joy of this place.
Under the shadow cast by her long hair, tears pricked at the corners of her eyes, but she never let them spill. To cry was to be weak, and the weak died. That was the law that governed all. It was the single law, the only law, and the one edict that Applejack never broke. Not while being whipped, not while being beaten, not while her hooves bled as she toiled in the frozen fields, leaving a trail of bloody hoofprints behind her. She didn't even cry when her mother died or when that filly starved to death and frozen solid.
Blinking away the tears, Applejack followed Rarity out the door and back into the dining room table where a card game had been set up. It was clear they expected her to join in, and as much as she hated it, Applejack did need to stay in their good graces until she could get an entire plan ready. With one last deep breath, Applejack held her head high and sat down at the table.
They could beat her bloody. They could rape her daily. They could make her happy then tear everything away in the blink of an eye. They could do all that and more, but no matter what they did, what vile plans they had in those minds of theirs, Applejack would not cry, no matter how much she wished to.
After all, a slave has nothing except their dignity.