//------------------------------// // And I beheld Thunder and Lightning, and an Earthquake // Story: Kingdom Come // by Redback Spino //------------------------------// On a day as radiant and clear as this, one could be excused for thinking that the beautiful summer afternoon would reflect the general mood in the little town of Ponyville, as it typically seemed to on most days of the year. Such was not the case today. For while the sky far above Ponyville was indeed clear and sunny, it was obscured from view by low hanging clouds of black smoke that billowed out from the south end of town. Or rather, what was left of it. Pegasi flew back and forth across the sky, trying their best to disperse the smoke clouds, but to no avail. Every time they beat frantically at the smog, their collective wings would do little but threaten to fan the few lingering flames that licked feebly at what remained of the buildings below. “We got a fire up in this building! Get a raincloud over here!” “Be careful with that one, it’s our last cloud!” “Our division can’t muscle through this smog! A little help, anypony?!” “Don’t give up now! The fires are almost under control,” shouted Rainbow Dash, as she directed the teams of Pegasi to and fro. “Flitter! You and Cloudchaser take five of your fastest ponies and hurry to Cloudsdale. Grab as many rainclouds as you can and bring them down here. We might be able to punch a hole in this smog with some heavy downpours.” “And if that doesn’t work?” asked Flitter. Rainbow shrugged. “Well, we can still at least use ‘em to put out some of the fires that are left. The fire teams down on the ground could use some backup. Now hurry!” The seven pegasi saluted and Rainbow Dash watched as dozens, maybe even hundreds of Pegasi flew all across Ponyville, ripping through the smoke clouds and desperately trying to maintain some order in the chaos. Sure, there had been fires in Ponyville before, but she had never seen one as large or as fierce as this. It had all begun a few hours earlier. As was typical for her morning routine, Rainbow Dash had slept in until nine in the morning, headed out to clear the sky for the scheduled cloudless day, and then spent a few hours flying lazily about, occasionally pulling some fancy aerial manoeuvre. And then she saw it. A bright beam of mulberry-coloured light, shooting up somewhere in the southern district of town, like a shining purple beacon. It had pointed straight up in the sky for a few seconds, drawing many a curious onlooker from around Ponyville. But the beam of light then began to ripple and twist, until finally it collapsed down towards the ground and out of sight. But even as Rainbow Dash had tentatively flown for a closer look at the source of what had caused this strange purple light, there was a sudden flash and a shockwave that had sent the pegasus careening through the air, eyes clamped shut against the blinding explosion. When at last the flash had died down and she could open her eyes, all Rainbow could do was hover in place, dumbstruck by the aftermath of the explosion. At the epicentre of the blast, a smouldering heap of rubble lay where a house had once stood. Any buildings nearby were severely damaged, with gaping holes blasted in the walls, and lumps of red-hot debris embedded in rooftops, setting the thatch ablaze. All around, she could hear the screams of ponies as they fled towards the town centre for help, collapsed weeping in the street as their homes were consumed by flames, or lay trapped in the wreckage. In a flash, the pegasus had steeled herself against the shock of the cataclysm, and had personally flown to the town square, calling for anypony fit and available to help. And with all the town’s pegasi flying by her side, and Applejack leading the earth ponies and unicorns on the ground below, Rainbow Dash had led her volunteer rescue-force against the fires and the smoke-clouds, with all the strategic skill and finesse of a military captain. Rainbow made to fly down and check on the ground teams, when a familiar voice called out to her. “Rainbow Dash! Wait!” She turned and saw a grey-coloured Pegasus flying towards her, her blonde mane singed at the tips, her askew eyes a picture of anxiety and fear. “What is it, Derpy? I’m kind of in a hurry here, shouldn’t you be with your team?” Rainbow cried impatiently. Derpy Hooves nodded. “I know, I’m sorry. But I saw you heading into town. Are you off to talk to the other ponies?” she asked. Rainbow nodded. Ditzy continued, “Well, when you get there, could you find out if the children are okay?! I mean, this whole fire was really sudden, and the kids would have been walking home from school around now and the way from the schoolhouse goes down that street and-” “You’re worried about Dinky, aren’t you?” She nodded again. “I just can’t stand it, not knowing if my little Muffin is hurt or in danger!” Rainbow patted the worried mother on the shoulder. “I’ll see what I can find out, but for now, concentrate on helping the others! This lousy smoke is gonna need every pegasus in town to thin it out!” Ditzy nodded, and with one last grateful smile at the rainbow-hued Pegasus, she flew back into the fray of smoke, fire and shouting. Rainbow Dash, meanwhile, took off with all speed, flying to the ground where teams of earth ponies and unicorns carried buckets of water from the wells and streams, hurling the water at the flames, or anywhere that could potentially catch alight. Several of the more proficient unicorns stood apart from the bucket-teams, instead summoning up streams of water to blast forth from their horns. She grinned slightly as she watched another small patch of burning thatched roof go out with a hiss of steam. Two streams of water splashed next to the burnt patch, dousing the entire roof and halting the progress of the flames. “Hey Applejack! How’s everything going down this end?” she called as she landed by the town well, where the farmpony was busy hoisting up another full bucket. Applejack nodded back as she passed the bucket to a waiting stallion, who galloped off to the burning buildings. “We’re still pullin’ ponies outta the rubble, but otherwise things are alright. We can stop the flames spreadin’ any further but those two houses next to the collapsed house ain’t gonna be easy! Nopony can get close enough to put ‘em out!” Rainbow frowned. “Well, the weather teams aren’t making much of a dent in the smoke, but we’re sticking to it! I got some rainclouds on their way from Cloudsdale, and once we punch a hole in the smoke clouds we can soak the street. Once the rooftops are out, I’ll get some pegasi to go in the windows with some water.” “Well, y’all might wanna pick it up a bit,” Applejack replied, casting an anxious eye over the rooftops. “If’n those fires pick up again, I reckon we could have a town-wide blaze on our hooves!” The Pegasus frowned too as she heard the grim news. “Right, well… keep going. We’re doing all we can to get the smog under control. What about the others? I got Fluttershy helping the smoke team, but what about Twilight, Pinkie and Rarity?” Applejack pointed a singed forehoof towards the centre of town. “They’ve got a whole relief effort set up in the town hall for anypony caught up in the fire.” Rainbow Dash threw a hasty salute and flapped off in the direction she pointed. The doors of the Ponyville Town Hall flew wide open as Rainbow Dash flew in, screeching to a halt as ponies hurried to push the doors closed behind her before the smoke could wreak havoc inside as well as out. “Always one for dramatic entrances, eh Rainbow Dash?” The Pegasus chuckled a bit and waved to her pink friend, who was busy watching over a gaggle of young fillies and colts. “You know it, Pinkie Pie! So Twilight, how are things going this end?” She looked over the dozens of ponies that had taken refuge in the hall. Families huddled together, old mares sat gossiping to eachother, the unicorns among them knitting to occupy themselves. In the centre of the pavilion, an impromptu hospital wing had been set up, with beds and gurneys ready for any injured ponies. A few of them were already occupied by ponies, though their injuries seemed mostly minor. A broken wing here, scorched fur there, bruises and cuts from debris, but thankfully nothing too serious. Any available nurses, doctors or any ponies with first-aid experience were hrurying from bed to bed, applying bandages and cleaning wounds and providing medical oxygen to anypony suffering from smoke inhalation. And in the thick of it all, ticking away at a checklist that hovered before her, was the pony Rainbow Dash had been seeking. Her normally prim pink and purple mane was ragged, and the stress of the situation was beginning to show itself in her haggard eyes. But she put on a brave smile as the Pegasus had entered, determined to be the face of calm and collected organisation. Twilight Sparkle beckoned Rainbow over to join her. “Hi Rainbow Dash. So how’s the firefighting effort going?” “Well we’ve stopped it from spreading any further for now, and the rainclouds from Cloudsdale should be arriving any minute now. Then we can get some water up through the higher window and put out the fires inside the buildings.” She cast another look around the crowds of ponies in the halls, before turning back to Twilight. “Hey Twilight, I know Applejack and Fluttershy are out with their teams, but what about the rest of the girls?” “Well, Rarity’s over with some of the older ponies, I think,” Twilight replied, waving a hoof in the general direction of the seniors. “She’s trying to pick up some tips, I believe. Apparently knitwear is ‘very in, this season’. Still, she’s at least keeping herself occupied instead of fussing and worrying about the place… She’s pretty worried about her sister, though.” “Sweetie Belle? Yeah, actually, Derpy asked me to find out if the schoolponies were alright. Are they in here too?” “Yes. We thought it would be a good idea to keep them here until we can stop the fire, in case it starts up again and spreads. Don’t want any of them wandering off alone and getting trapped.” “Gotcha. So what’s Pinkie Pie up to?” As if on cue, there came a sudden loud pop from a far corner of the hall, and a spray of colourful confetti, followed by cheers and laughter of about a dozen young fillies and colts, as well as the loud giggling of somepony significantly older. Her bubblegum-pink mane was an instant giveaway. “She’s just keeping the children occupied,” Twilight said with a grin. They were interrupted as the doors of the town hall swung open, and a pair of slightly singed pegasi zoomed in. Skidding to a halt in front of Rainbow Dash and Twilight, they caught their breath a moment. “…Okay, I got good news and… well, pretty bad, too… Really, really bad, actually,” one of them panted. “Well Cloud Kicker, we could use some good news, so let’s hear that first,” Rainbow replied. Cloud Kicker nodded. “Well, the rainclouds arrived, and just in time too. We managed to clear the smoke enough to fit the clouds in, and we soaked the street. The fire’s out.” The entire town hall seemed to relax as everypony present breathed a collected sigh of relief. “So… what’s the bad news?” Twilight asked. The young pegasus hesitated a minute, her mouth opening and closing silently. The other one, an older stallion, looked around the hall. “Is there a young filly in here named Dinky Hooves?” Among the gaggle of little fillies and colts that were playing with Pinkie, the tiny, blond-maned unicorn raised her forehoof. “I’m over here.” Cloud Kicker fluttered over to the young filly and stood in front of her, silent for a few seconds. “You’d better come with me. Your… your mother’s asking after you…” Dinky’s curious smile slowly faded as she read Cloud Kicker’s grief-stricken face, and heard the slight sob in her voice. “Why? What’s happened?” “You… you have a sister, don’t you? By the name of Sparkler? “Well, her real name’s Amethyst Star, but yeah she’s my sister. But I thought you said mommy was…” Realisation and horror then gradually dawned on the little unicorn’s face, and on the faces of everypony listening. “…M-miss? What’s happened to Sparkley?” Cloud Kicker said nothing, but she crouched down and pulled Dinky into a tender hug, not even trying to hold back her tears anymore. The older stallion walked past her to Twilight and Rainbow, his face solemn and grim. “We were clearing away some of the debris at the epicentre of the explosion, and we found Amethyst buried under the rubble.” He scuffed his hoof against the floor hesitantly. “But by the time we got her out, we… we were too late.” Twilight and her friends stood near the front of the crowd that had gathered on the street of the fire. Two paramedics lifted a stretcher onto their backs, bearing a still form covered with a white cloth. The dozens of ponies stepped back to let them through the street. A melancholy silence hung over the crowd, except for a few muffled sobs here and there. But as the stretcher was borne through the street, several ponies were buffeted out of the way as Derpy fought her way through the crowd. “Let me through, let me through!” she cried hysterically. “That’s my daughter! My poor Sparkley, that’s my filly!” She walked alongside the paramedics, wailing and grabbing feebly at the blanket that covered Amethyst Star’s body. “No… no, my dear filly, please! Y-you can’t be… Oh Celestia, why…?” Dinky trotted along too, stumbling slightly as tears blurred her sight, until they came to the ambulance carriage. The stretcher was loaded in, and the medics clambered in with it. Rainbow Dash approached the sobbing pair. “Derpy… I’m so, so sorry. I-if I’d known Amethyst was in there, I wouldn’t have asked you to-” Before she could continue, Derpy and Dinky collapsed against her, weeping uncontrollably. Rainbow flinched as the crying ponies clung onto her, but wrapped her forelegs around them and hugged back. “I’m sorry. There was nothing we could do,” said a voice behind the three. They turned around and saw a unicorn stallion in a white coat, with a stethoscope wrapped around his withers. “I’m not sure how this all happened ma’am, but it wasn’t the explosion or the collapse that… that killed her. I can’t make an exact diagnosis without a proper examination, but I’d guess that when the explosion occurred, she was already…” the doctor trailed off, unable to say the word. Walking past, he patted Dinky on the head. “I’m very sorry for your loss,” he said as he clambered into the ambulance carriage and closed the door. The carriage took off down the street, leaving the ponies behind. Twilight and Pinkie Pie joined Rainbow in comforting the two grieving ponies. “Come on Derpy,” she said quietly. “Let’s get you and Dinky home. The doctors will need some time to do a proper examination, and then you can go and see her. Okay?” Derpy sniffed and rubbed her red eyes. “’Kay… C’mon Dinky, we’re going home.” Dinky looked up through teary eyes at her mother. “C-can we go and see Sparkley soon, mommy?” Choking slightly, Derpy tried her best to put on a brave face for her daughter, but to no avail as she was overcome by a fresh flood of tears. “…Mommy?” The ponies then returned to Derpy’s house for a cup of tea and a rest, and that was when they had finally explained it to Dinky. The poor little filly took the reality of Amethyst’s death about as well as any young pony would, weeping and wailing, and eventually crying herself to sleep. Having finally calmed her rattled nerves a little with a soothing cup of tea, Derpy and the girls put Dinky to bed and headed to the hospital together, with Pinkie staying behind to watch Dinky. The four mares waited quietly in the corridor outside the mortuary. Derpy would sniffle and sob gently every now and then, but she had calmed down considerably and Rainbow Dash was offering a comforting shoulder to cry on. After what seemed like hours of waiting, the door opened and the coroner, a grey-furred old mare, stepped out. “You can come in and see her now.” Derpy stood up, but Rainbow put a forehoof on her shoulder. “You sure you want to?” The blond-haired pegasus took a deep breath. “It’s okay Rainbow. I’ll be fine… I just wanna see her. I wanna see what happened to my little girl.” The coroner nodded. “Alright, come on in.” The four mares followed her in. The mortuary was a small room lit only by a bright neon light, with large drawers all along one wall and a steel table in the centre of the room, where Amethyst’s body lay. Derpy gave a choked sob when she saw her lying still on the table, but she refused to back down, and slowly approached the table. “Sh-she almost looks like she’s just s-sleeping,” Derpy muttered, as she ran a hoof down Amethyst’s cheek. Indeed, the mare’s body was mostly covered by a white blanket, with only the head and forelegs poking over the top, and her closed eyes looked remarkably peaceful. In fact, apart from her pale complexion, the only thing unusual about the unicorn’s appearance was that the tip of her horn seemed scorched and blackened. Derpy reared up on the table and cradled Amethyst’s head in her forelegs. “My poor, poor Amethyst… How could this have happened?” “We’re still trying to figure that out, Miss Hooves,” the coroner replied. “Physically, your daughter seemed to be in perfect health, aside from a few minor scratches which were probably from the debris. Besides, she got those after she… ahem, passed away. But there weren’t any broken bones, internal bleeding, there weren’t any toxins in her bloodstream, nothing fatal. As best I can discern, her heart just gave out for some reason.” “B-but… but why? What caused it?” The coroner shrugged. “I can’t tell. I suppose it could have something to do with these burns on her horn.” “Yeah, I was about to say something about that,” Twilight added. “I’ve read accounts in old journals where a sudden intense surge of magic simply puts too much strain on a unicorn’s body, and their hearts can’t keep up. That would certainly explain the explosion too…” “Excuse me, but who’s the coroner here?” the pale coroner said in a snarky monotone. Twilight blushed and stammered, “Oh… heh, sorry. Leave it to the professionals, right?” The coroner nodded. “If you don’t mind. But I can’t deny that your analysis seems sound. A unicorn with no physical injuries except for a burnt horn, found dead in the centre of an explosion. I suppose a large enough magical surge could have caused it.” Derpy gently lay Amethyst’s head back down. “Um… I think I’ll go outside for a bit.” “You okay, Derpy?” “Yeah, I’m fine, thanks Rainbow,” she replied, wiping her eyes. “I just need some fresh air, y’know?” “Before you go, Miss Hooves,” the coroner called as Derpy made to leave. “There is one more thing that I thought you might want to see.” Derpy stopped and turned around. The old mare picked up one of Amethyst’s forelegs and held up her hoof to the light. “I noticed that on the back of her left forehoof, there was something written.” Derpy returned to the side of the table and squinted at the forehoof. “Oh yeah, I see it! Erm… I, uh, can’t really make it out though… wonky eyes and all…” The coroner pulled out a large magnifying glass, which was connected to a flexible arm that attached to the side of the table. Holding it over the hoof, she muttered, “Blue ink…probably a felt-tip or a gel-pen of some sort. It’s a little smudged, but I think I can make out…4, 2, 6, 6.” Rainbow scratched her head. “That’s it?” “As far as I can see. Do those numbers mean anything to you, Miss Hooves?” Derpy shook her head. “I dunno… b-but if I remember anything, I’ll come right to you guys!” The coroner smiled. “I appreciate the offer, but I’d suggest you give any information you have to the authorities. I’m no investigator, just a coroner.” “Don’t worry, Derpy,” Rainbow said, stepping forward. “Me and Twilight can look into this a bit more.” “Oh, you don’t need trouble yourselves with-” The rainbow-maned pegasus would hear none of it. “Really, it’s no trouble. We might not hang out much, but you’re still one of my friends.” “She’s right,” Twilight added. “It wouldn’t feel right to just leave this be. We’ll find out what happened to Amethyst, you’ll see.” Derpy smiled, though the first signs of tears began welling up in the corner of her eyes. “Thank you, girls, that means a lot. I guess I’d better get home… I just… I can’t believe that my little Amethyst Star is really… It really is t-too much to… to…” Any further words were drowned out as a fresh flood of tears streamed down her face, and she collapsed to the floor, her face buried in her forelegs. Rainbow Dash rushed forwards and draped a comforting wing over her shoulders. “Ssh… it’s okay. C’mon, I’ll walk you home. That’s it, up ya get…” Wiping the tears from her eyes, Rainbow helped her up, and the two pegasi headed out the door and out of sight. “Poor mare,” the coroner muttered. “No parent should have to outlive their children.” “Yes, it is sad. I didn't know Amethyst personally, but from what I've heard around town, she was a good mare. I wonder how little Dinky will manage… Oh, by the way, do you happen to have a pen and paper I can use for a moment?” Twilight asked. “Hmm? Oh, sure.” The coroner passed a pad of lined paper and a pencil, and the unicorn began fervently writing. “I’m just making some notes about all this. With all this information, it shouldn’t take me too long to figure out what happened. From the looks of it, it was just a simple magical surge gone out of control.” “There’s a bit more to it though, Miss Sparkle.” Twilight paused in her note-taking and glanced up at the coroner. The old mare had a small folder gripped in her teeth, which she deposited on the table and opened to a page. “Whatever did cause that explosion and kill this poor unicorn, it was strong enough to level an entire two-story building and cause considerable damage to the entire street. But going by these medical records, Amethyst’s magical power couldn’t have ever generated a surge this powerful. She could have easily damaged the building, maybe caused a partial collapse, but to destroy an entire building with an explosion of that scale? Even if she did have such a powerful surge that made her heart give out, this level of destruction is practically impossible with her magical ability.” Twilight tapped a hoof to her chin. “So what could the cause have been then?” “Well, despite that one issue, The rest of your theory seems to fit. All the other signs definitely point to a magical surge of some kind. If I were to guess, I’d think she was using some kind of magical enhancer or amplifier, and it went awry.” “Right. Well, first thing tomorrow, I’ll start investigating. I’m sure I’ll find something!” “Good luck, Miss Sparkle,” the coroner said as Twilight gathered her notes up. “I have a feeling you’ll need plenty of it.” Twilight nodded and headed back out into the corridor, shutting the door behind her.