The room was eerily silent as Applejack sat in her seat, poking at the sludge the unicorns had cooked up. This time, she was completely and utterly positive that the thing was poisoned, and even if it wasn’t, it would probably still end up killing her by accident. But for once, she didn’t care. She simply ate it without a second thought, and within seconds, the entire bowl was empty, though she could not remember tasting any of it. So she just sat there, staring into the empty bowl, wondering if the small bits of uneaten grass at the bottom had some clue as to what her future held. One of the clumps did look like a timberwolf, but she doubted that meant anything except getting chewed out and gutted by one when Rarity got back.
That is, if she was lucky.
What had she been thinking? If she had just ponied up and gotten the damn thing done she would have been free, wandering the land above, enjoying that chilly fresh air as she exercised her freedom for the first time in years. And it had all been so close! It was right there, within her grasp, and she let it slip away? For what? What in the damned world had she been thinking about to make her do such a stupid thing! There was absolutely nothing more important than freedom, and she just tossed it aside as though a second chance would magically appear out of thin air.
And now? Now she was dead. There was no doubt about that. All day she had been alone, left to her own devices. The only thing she knew was the note on the table, saying they had gone out shopping, but that was such a blatant lie that even a pegasus could see through it . With a sigh, Applejack slipped off her seat and walked towards the workroom, hooves dragging along the ground with each step.
For a split second, she paused at the bag and crumpled outfit before picking it up and tossing it over her back as she continued her sluggish journey. Nudging the door open, Applejack slipped into the workroom and crawled past the many outfits that hung up on the wall. Some were crafted around her, some in the dead of night in a mad frenzy, but they all stared down at her, following her every move with a malice that not even Nine Tails possessed. With her eyes on the ground, she made it to the empty spot on the wall and hung up the outfit before making a quick escape.
The door closed with a soft click behind her, but no matter how quiet it was, it still managed to echo through the house. Yet another sigh escaped as she made her slow way up the stairs, her hoof knocking against each step. Eventually she made it to the bathroom, and after closing the door, she began filling the bathtub with the hottest water that could come out of the pipes. She was dead either way, so she might as well enjoy her last day.
Taking the time to slip out of her clothes, she threw them on the ground and quickly scrambled into the tub as the chill immediately reached her bones. Within minutes, the water was up to Applejack’s neck, and she leaned back, a happy sigh escaping as the heat seeped in. When was the last time she had been this warm? It felt as though her skin was going to be burnt right off, leaving behind nothing but the muscle underneath. So she just lounged there, the steam quickly filling up the room, making it impossible to see beyond her face, but she didn’t care. Never had she felt this relaxed in her life as muscles she didn’t know existed unknotted. Head dipping under the water, the scalding heat was like the most divine massage, but all too soon, she had to come back to the surface for air.
Brushing the wet mane from her eyes, Applejack flopped back, splashing water everywhere as she just soaked up all that heat. With her eyes closed, she could just imagine herself somewhere warm, where the fabled sun shone, and water could be found instead of ice. Where there were no clouds and ponies pranced under... under... under whatever it would be like in a world without clouds. Where snow did not exist, and she didn’t have to wear so many layers of clothing just to survive. Well, she’d end up there soon enough, all it really took was for Pearl to come back.
Ah well, death was better than being a slave anyways, so it wasn’t like she’d be missing out on much.
There came a soft knock on the door, and Applejack opened a bleary eye only to stare into a pair of orange ones. Whatever calmness she had was driven out of her as she sat bolt up, heart racing as she looked through the fog, trying to find the pony. All she could see, though, was nothing. After a calming breath, she settled back down, only to catch something flickering in the corner of her eye. Head snapping over, once more she found nothing as the steam obscured everything from sight. This time though, she eased herself out of the bathtub and began walking through the room, her eyes and ears on high alert. One walk around the room revealed nothing, and after a second round, Applejack was content to go back to her bath. Within seconds, any chill she might have felt was gone as her entire body relaxed again.
Once more the knocking came, but the earth pony simply ignored it. No doubt it was the dripping faucet or something making it sound as though it was knocking. There was absolutely no reason to open her eyes or even care about the sound, it wasn't important at all.
"Golden?" Applejack’s eyes widened at Rarity's voice. "Golden is that you in there? Don't use all the hot water please, I've had a very long day and a nice long soak sounds absolutely divine right now."
A dozen different thoughts flashed through Applejack's mind, and moving as though Nine Tails was out to get her, she dried off, got dressed, and was out of the bathroom in record time.
"Golden wha-" A yelp escaped as Applejack slipped behind the fussy unicorn and began shoving her towards the stairs. "What has gotten into you?"
Instead of replying, Applejack began pushing even harder and faster, forcing Rarity to pick up the pace or fall down the stairs.
"Alright, alright! What is wrong with you? Did something happen?" Panic crept into her voice, "Did something happen to Sweetie Belle!?"
A simple nod. After all, something did happen to Sweetie, even if Applejack was the one who technically did everything.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Taking off at a gallop, Rarity raced down towards the entrance. "Where have they gone?"
Crap. Um... Applejack dug through her mind, trying to figure out some kind of likely place they would go to, but the only places she could think of were the market place and the arena. When she continued to stare blankly at the unicorn though, Rarity facehoofed.
"The hospital!Of course! I am such an idiot." All of sudden, Applejack found she was the one being dragged along. "Now hang on darling, this is going to be a bumpy ride."
Before Applejack had a chance to respond, it felt as though her entire body was being pulled in opposite directions and then squished together into a ball. Then there was a pop, and she found herself on the ground, the world spinning around her like crazy. Both hooves clamped over her muzzle in an attempt to not throw up, beside her, Rarity wasn't faring much better, leaning against the wall and breathing shuddering breaths. A couple of unicorns looked at them weirdly, but otherwise they were left alone, though one did spit in their direction. If Rarity noticed, she didn’t show it and immediately raced off down the corridor, completely forgetting about the earth pony.
Applejack immediately raised her hood and fluffed up her collar so that it looked like she had a collar underneath before she glanced around, looking for some unicorn to attach herself to. Making sure to keep her head down low, she slipped out of the entrance hall and began trailing a random unicorn who looked drugged. With a bit of luck, the horned freaks would think she was with the stallion and leave her alone long enough for her to somehow find a way to slip out.
Somehow.
Maybe if she had a knife she could grab some sick and battered pony and make them teleport out, but there was no reason to believe they wouldn’t teleport her to some prison somewhere. Then again, it’s not like she had anything to lose. To play it safe was to be content with this non-existent life. There was always a risk, and there would always be a risk, but to someone who had nothing left to lose, it was the simplest choice she had ever made.
Slipping down a side corridor, Applejack grabbed a wheelchair and began pushing it along. Though a doctor paused mid-step and frowned at her, the unicorn made no move to actually stop her. For the first time in her life, Applejack grinned at being invisible. After all, who cares about some dirt pony slave? Nopony bothers to remember what they look like or what their names are, and it was this very mentality that put a bounce in her step. Perhaps things weren’t as hard as she thought and she could get out of this frozen lake she found herself in. Hopefully in one piece, but it was important to be realistic.
For a while, Applejack just wandered aimlessly. Always walking quickly to make it look as though she had been ordered to do something, but keeping her head down to avoid any and all eye contact. Eventually though, she came to an empty corridor and she immediately slipped into the first unlocked room, breathing out a sigh of relief before freezing where she stood. Rows and rows of makeshift beds greeted her. Every single one was filled with a unicorn, and more than one looked dead or was completely wrapped up in gauze.
It was so weird. She was used to seeing unicorns rushing around, but in this room, everything was completely still and silent. Nothing moved except the flow of air, and it almost felt as though making any sound would result in an execution or something.
“Water... please...” groaned a voice from her right. Glancing over, Applejack had to fight the urge to throw up. The unicorn’s horn had been broken in half, and the entire left side of his (her?) face been burnt so badly it looked as though it was melting.
“Here you go,” whispered a voice as a glass of water floated over. “Now drink it slowly, that’s it. Feel better?”
A weak nod from the patient.
“Trixie will ask the nurse to mix in some more painkillers in your next meal,” said Trixie as she put the cup away.
His mouth opened, but no sound came out. Then, his eyes slowly drifted closed and all breathing stopped. With a sigh, Trixie lifted the bed sheet so that it covered his face before turning away and washing the glass. Applejack's eyes flicked between the dead unicorn and the mare before her, slowly easing back towards the door, hoping to make it out before she was noticed.
"Take one more step and Trixie will remove your head," said the blue mare as she began wringing out a cloth. "Now, take this and put it on Dancer's forehead. Then come over here and help Trixie change Midnight's bandages."
Applejack blinked in surprise, considering just ignoring everything and leaving, but one look at Trixie and she knew that it was no idle threat. Last time Nine Tails had that look, a slave ended up beaten to death, and while she didn't know if Trixie would actually act, Applejack wasn't about to take that chance. From what little she had managed to gather from Rarity's ranting, Trixie was born from the very pits of Tartarus and should be killed in the most gruesome way imaginable. That was easy enough to pull off, all that needed to be done was to pass Trixie over to Nine Tails. Simple.
As much as she hated it, Applejack did as ordered and simply threw the cloth on the horned freak's head before going back and helping out with the bandages. Apparently, helping out meant standing around like a rack so bloody cloths could be draped over her. Still better than acting as a model for Rarity though. The best part was the quiet. Not a single word left Trixie's lips as she worked away, a pleasant change from the usual non-stop chatter that Applejack was usually subject to.
"No doubt your simple mind is trying to comprehend the complexity of Trixie's plan."
So much for silence.
"It's rather simple, the Great and Powerful Trixie is going to reveal the true nature of that scum known as Rarity. While Trixie does not need your help, any information you can provide will greatly speed up the process."
Applejack merely cocked an eyebrow.
"What do you gain out of this? Simple, help Trixie out and you may find yourself guarded by two inept guards who can't tell their horns from their flanks."
If Applejack thought Rarity was an idiot, this horned freak really took the cake. Saying something like that in front of who knows how many unicorns all listening in and she expected to not get charged with helping out an earth pony? Pure stupidity. That one mare who gave extra food to a slave got whipped a dozen times at least, and here this idiot was, actively plotting with an earth pony. With that horn sticking out of their heads, it was obvious they'd suffer some brain damage, but this much?
"All of these unicorns are going to die, so it doesn't matter if they hear," said Trixie. "A day, maybe two, but that's about it. We bring them here so they can at least rest in comfort, it's not much, but Trixie likes to think it's enough. Now enough about trivial matters, information on the earth pony sympathizer please."
Wait, what? Applejack just stared at Trixie, trying to understand what had just been said. She knew the words, understood what each one meant individually, but when it was put all together in that sentence, it turned into nonsense.
"Never noticed it? Think about how she treats you, lets you get away with not wearing a collar, and probably gave you your own room or something." Trixie flicked a hoof dismissively. "Tell Trixie where she can find some clues as to Rarity's misdeeds, and the Great and Powerful Trixie will help you."
Silence hung in the air, just waiting to be shattered by the softest of whispers, and yet it did not come. Breathing was optional, moving was not required, and talking was completely out of the question.Applejack raised a hoof, about to hold it out to shake on it, only to stop before she could complete the motion. There was no guarantee here that Trixie would follow through with her promise, there was absolutely no reason to trust her at all. She was a horned freak who made a living from killing earth ponies, there was little doubt this was another one of those traps.
But... what if it wasn't a trap? It could mean escape, or at least, a chance of escape. She was already a dead mare walking, so another chance, even if it might never come, was better than doing nothing. Even if she didn't escape, she would take down as many monsters as possible on her way out, and that would be worth her life any day. In fact, she'd trade her afterlife just to get a solid crack at Nine Tails, preferably with something that involved burning him alive.
Despite all that though, she just couldn't bring herself to shake on the deal. It was one thing to not kill a unicorn, but quite another to make a deal with one. And...well... if what Trixie said about Rarity was true, why would Applejack spill anything? Not that there was anything to spill, but even if there was, why would she help that arrogant mare anyways?If anything, she should be trying to screw over Trixie!
Still, there was that little voice in the back of Applejack's mind, telling her to shake hooves with the monster. It was a little voice, but that voice was one she was intimately familiar with. It spoke to her at night, telling her how she could escape and be free. It comforted her after being whipped, painting pictures of perfect fields full of snow. It was hope, and not once had it ever led her wrong, but now... now Applejack was beginning to doubt. Rarity wasn't... bad, if the fact that she was a horned freak was ignored, but that wasn't to say Applejack was content with her life.
"So?" asked Trixie, contempt sneaking into her voice.
Do or die. Take the chance and ruin some mare's life, or keep going and hope for escape. If last night wasn't test enough, today forced Applejack to her limits and she found herself staring at the floor. If she did this, Rarity would probably be killed or worse and then... Against her will, the image of Sweetie came to Applejack's mind and she shook it away, only for it to replaced by an all-too-familiar filly with yellow coat and red mane.
With a sigh, Applejack simply stepped back and shook her head. If she couldn't even threaten a filly without even meaning to carry it through, there was little doubt she could go through with this. After all, to destroy Rarity was to destroy the entire family and all close friends all at the same time, and she just couldn't bring herself to do that. No matter how she justified it, no matter how she argued, if she died and met her mother again, she wouldn't be able to do so with her head held high.
She was an earth pony, and she would not stoop to unicorn levels to achieve her goal.
"You see, here's the fascinating thing about slaves, most would jump at the chance to do their masters in." Trixie examined a hoof. "So that makes Trixie wonder, what could possibly possess a slave to actually defend them? Trixie knows all about you, and you are not the broken slave, the lack of collar is indication enough. So tell Trixie, what could possess you to protect that bloody mare? Could it be that she's secretly an earth pony sympathiser?"
The unicorn took a predatory step forward, and Applejack took half a step back before holding her ground.
"Check and mate." She inclined her head to the side and the door opened, revealing two guards. "Tell your mistress that Trixie will be gloating from the front row of seats at her execution."
Eyes closing, Applejack's entire body went slack as the guards restrained her limbs, making it impossible for her to run, let alone escape. There wasn't even any point in struggling now, it's not like she'd actually be able to get away or do any damage, and if she did fight back, there was no telling what they'd do to her. She had her escape in her hooves, and she let it slip away from her. Twice!
No.
She would not give up, not now. It'd be difficult with the restraints, but if she could knock out the two guards, then the spell would drop. The hard part was getting out once that was done, but Applejack wasn't worried, planning was useless in a situation like this. A small smile tugged at her lips as she kept her body relaxed as though she had given up.
"Nothing to say? A shame. Take her to kennel while Trixie deals with Rarity," she said as she walked out the door.
"Come along now." Applejack suddenly found a collar around her neck and a leash extending out to the guard on the right. "Be a good girl and we'll be sure to give you a treat."
Nodding meekly, Applejack began walking forward before suddenly ramming the guard on the right with her shoulder, slamming him into the wall. A second later, her hind hooves shot out and she had the satisfaction of hearing ribs crack. Her bonds flickered and faded and her front hoof immediately lashed out, punching the unicorn before her for good measure before she kicked the one on the ground just to make sure they were both unconscious.
Typical.
Both were tossed in a bed and covered with a sheet before Applejack quickly slipped out. Making sure to walk just fast enough to look busy, but not fast enough to draw attention, she made her way back to the entrance. If her legs were shaking, she tried not to show it, and she had to resist the urge to look over her shoulder every single second. She had to walk around meekly, but also walk as though she was going somewhere important. Any second, a spell could slam into the back of her head, splattering her brains all over the floor and that thought made her gulp. An execution was fine, an execution had a set date, but this? This could come at any time and she had no way of knowing.
Taking a deep breath in order to calm herself down, she kept walking, but her legs would not stop shaking. They trembled uncontrollably, and she could feel a cold sweat breaking out, making her want to unzip her jacket. It was only a matter of time before the two guards were found, and then she was dead, if she was lucky. If not, she'd end up in the breeding pens and... A shudder ran down her spine.
As she turned the corner, Rarity came into view, and at the other end of the corridor was Trixie. Racing forward, Applejack grabbed the white mare by the shoulder and began dragging her towards the entrance. Out the corner of her eye, she could see Trixie shoving past a pair of nurses, screaming something at the top of her lungs, but the pounding of blood drowned everything out.
"G-Golden? What are you doing! Answer me at-" Applejack jerked her head back and Rarity followed her gaze, eyes narrowing at the sight of Trixie. "I should have known."
There was a flash of light and two guards in full combat gear appeared before them. Before either could say anything, Applejack rammed one and followed up with two quick blows to the stomach and head. Though he tried to block, she simply powered through his feeble defense, the muscle she had gained from years of working the fields finally paying off as he hit the ground unconscious. Rarity immediately scooped up the fallen sword, parrying the blow from the remaining guard before slipping in and smashing his face in with the pommel. As he stumbled back, Rarity bucked him into some bystanders before they ran off towards the exit. At the last second, a shimmering blue shield sealed it off, forcing them to come to a stop.
"And to think Trixie needed evidence for your filthy, dirt pony sympathizer ways." She walked down the corridor with a confident swagger. "So easy to manipulate, both of you. Did you really think what Trixie said was enough to convict your mistress? Please, you played right into my hooves. Now, Trixie suggest both of you come quietly, but truth be told, she wants you to struggle. Struggle and let Trixie show you why she's so great and powerful. Struggle like the worthless worms that you are. Struggle so that Trixie can finally beat you into a bloody pulp."
"Does your vindictiveness know no bounds? Must you go so far for revenge?"
"You destroyed Trixie's family, it's about time she returned the favor."
Typical horned freak melodrama . Why couldn't they ever just do something instead of spending five years talking about it before forgetting why they were talking about it to begin with? As they continued going on about whatever it was they were going on about, Applejack spread her legs to brace herself before taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. Muscles gained from years of working the fields bunched together, tensing, readying themselves for an explosive release.
Crack!
All talking stopped as the two unicorns stared at Applejack who simply smirked back. Hind hooves lashed out once more, and this time, the entire shield shattered like ice and Trixie visibly crumpled.
Rarity tackled Applejack through the door even as her horn lit up. Out the corner of her eye, a blue bolt raced towards them, and even though it was still ten pony-lengths away, Applejack could feel her hairs standing on end. Closer and closer it approached, the scent of burning fur filling the air as she felt the heat searing her to the bones. And just as escape seemed impossible, there was the distinctive pop and Applejack found herself staring up at the cloudy sky.
Freedom.
A huge grin split her face as she scrambled onto her hooves, a cry of pure joy escaping as she threw herself back down to wallow in the snow.
Freedom was finally hers.
They watched silently as the caravan approached. Before each trailer were four earth ponies in tattered clothes, forced to drag them along while the unicorns sat in the warmth and safety inside or walked alongside in proper warm clothing. It sickened Pinkamina to her core, and it was only the knowledge of what was to come that stopped her from jumping down there and slaughtering every single last one of them. Beside her, a pegasus trembled in barely contained rage, but a light touch on his shoulder was enough to hold him in place. While it was always great to get eager new recruits, it had cost them a mission more than once and Pinkie knew that they could not afford to mess this one up.
Each pony waited silently as their mark passed underneath, then, with a raise of her hoof, there was a deafening crack as rocks slid down the cliff and trapped the caravan. Without missing a beat, Pinkie leapt off the ledge, as did a dozen other ponies. A couple of unicorns were dumb enough to step out and immediately found themselves used as pincushions, and those that threw up shields found them blasted from all directions by magic. Hitting the ground, Pinkie rolled with the momentum and as she came onto her hind hooves, she flicked her forehooves and felt the blades slide out of her gauntlets.
She moved on two legs, rushing towards the first poor, brainwashed earth pony. A quick flick of her left hoof to parry the spear thrust and she was within his guard. Elbow connected with his throat, causing him to gasp for breath. Without breaking her stride, the flat of her blade struck his temple, knocking him unconscious as she ran past.
Ear flop, eye flutter, knee twitch.
As she ran past the first trailer, the door burst open, narrowly missing Pinkamina as she leapt out of the way. Dropping down low, she felt the air crackle as a spell narrowly missed, and as she scrambled onto her hooves, the unicorn dropped dead with an arrow through her head.
Itchy neck.
She immediately spun around, one hoof moving high to block while the second dropped low for a horizontal slice. The unicorn slipped past both and drew a shallow cut across Pinkie's chest, a second strike going for her throat. Skipping back, the two exchanged a rapid series of blows before a fireball from behind sealed the deal.
All around her, ponies fought each other, but Pinkie simply ran past them. Occasionally, she'd hamstring an earth pony or help take down a unicorn, but otherwise she kept moving. Mentally, she kept count of the trailers as she ran past until she got to the eighth one. Leaping forward, she kicked off the wall and flipped herself onto the roof. As she landed, she slammed one bladed hoof through the roof before forcing the second through. Ripping both free, she retracted the blades and stomped the roof in.
"Alrighty everypony, time to get outta there!" Pinkie yelled down as she began pulling the ceiling apart. "The foals first, and if there's any injured ponies in there, just hang on for a bit longer and we'll get you all out. Okay?"
More faces than there were numbers stared up at her in complete and utter confusion.
Double twitch, ear flop.
"Oopsie, gimme a sec." Rolling to the left, she bought both hooves up just in time to block a thrust at her head. "You know, it's bad manners to interrupt somepony who's talking, right? I'm going to have to punish you for that."
He smirked down at her, "Sounds kinky."
Pinkie's hind hoof snapped out, but the unicorn had already disengaged and stood at the rear of the carriage. Never taking his eyes off her, he gave her a polite bow before brandishing his two short swords. Slowly rising onto her hooves, Pinkie snapped her blades into place and returned the bow before settling into a defensive stance.
The two began circling even as the wood creaked and threatened to buckle. A quick slash followed by a second more powerful one was tossed at Pinkie, but she easily deflected both before leaping forward. One blade came crashing down on his head while she effortlessly flipped over the unicorn and landed on the other side. The low sweep was blocked and Pinkie suddenly found herself on the receiving end of a flurry of strikes. Two blocks, a sidestep, parry, counter, thrust, and skip back later, Pinkie found her hooves trembling as the blood began soaking through her clothes.
The unicorn charged in, but instead of blocking or evading, Pinkie let herself drop back. His sword slipped past, leaving a nasty gash across her shoulder while she reached out and grabbed him. Off the edge they went. Hoof snaking out, she pulled the unicorn's face in for a sloppy kiss, and the stunned reaction was all she needed to twist them around so he hit the ground first. A sickening crack cut through the fighting as he landed on the rocks below. Rolling off, Pinkie rolled off with a groan before the shallow breathing of her opponent caught her attention.
"Sorry kiddo, but that's got to be one heck of a way to die." Pinkie leaned down and planted a soft kiss on his lips even as she slid a blade through his chest.
She stumbled back, limping back towards the caravan even as her wounds left a trail of red behind her. Already she could feel the cold seeping through the holes in her clothes, numbing the pain even as the high of combat drained out of her system. She climbed onto the seat at the front before scrambling up onto the roof, grunting in pain as she was forced to use her injured limb. The burn was barely noticeable as she limped towards the hole.
"General, want me to take care of that for you?"
With weary eyes, Pinkie looked to her left at the white pegasus who hovered there. "Sure, Blossom, anything I need to check up on before I get fixed up?"
"Eh, nothing that I saw. Maybe check in with Lyra? Last I saw she was busy taking down caravans nine and ten." Blossomforth looked behind her and yelled, "Move it slow pokes! We've got a massive load of ponies in here that need rescuing!"
The two exchanged a nod before Pinkie leapt off the roof, landing without any issues. A couple of the ponies gave her a salute as she walked past while others waved, but no matter what they did, Pinkie returned the gesture with a smile. As she passed a dead unicorn, she ripped off some cloth, not bothering to slow down as she tied it around her injured leg. Eventually a green mare came into view, and Pinkie ignored the pain and she bounced over, tackling Lyra with a glomp of doom.
"Pinkie! How many times have I told you to not surprise me like that? I almost shot you through the head." She rubbed her temples, and for once, did not try to pry Pinkie off. "And you're getting blood all over me."
"Oh come on, you used to be fun! What happened to the funny, cutesy, hyper little filly I used to know?"
"Not only am I older than you, but we only met two months ago. Can we please focus on the subject at hand?"
"At hoo f," supplied a random soldier, only to be instantly shushed and hidden away by everypony else.
Lyra's eye twitched and a forced smile appeared on her face. "So, Pinkamina, what can I do for you? And seriously, stop bleeding all over me."
"Bah! Blood is all natural and anything natural is gooooooood ," sung Pinkie as she gathered some blood on her hoof and drew streaks over her own cheeks.
"What. Do. You. Want."
"You're no fun anymore." Pinkie rolled her eyes and brushed a lock of mane out of her eyes. "Just dropping by to see if there was anything I needed to sort out."
"Not really. A couple decided to join, but the rest hightailed it out of hereand are heading to the nearest settlement with enough food and clothing to last them the trip." Lyra sighed and flopped down. "I can't wait to get back to base."
"So you can talk with Bon-Bon?"
"W-What? No! Of course not, I mean-" The bright blush on her cheek was enough to make Pinkie chuckle. "Oh shut up."
"I didn't say anything," Pinkie replied sweetly. "It's nice to see you smiling again though."
"Yeah..." A sigh escaped as Lyra stared off into the distance. "Does... does it ever get easier?"
"Ask me again next year," whispered Pinkie as she the unicorn. "It hurts less, but I don't think it'll ever stop hurting."
"Good, I don't want it to," came the quiet reply.
"You disgusting piece of filth!" yelled a voice causing them to break apart and glance over at the brown earth pony stomping towards them. "She's a fucking horned freak ! You should be ripping out her spine and beating her to death with it . Do you know what they've done? What they continue to do to us?"
Pinkie merely gazed at the slave without a shred of compassion. "Say something like that again about anypony under my command, and you'll be the one missing a spine. Got that?"
"Y-You're actually defending it? You're defending this fre-"
The blow sent him onto the ground, and when he tried to stand back up, he stumbled.
"Look around you. Earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi, and every single last one of them worked their flanks off to save your useless hide. Either join us or get lost," snarled Pinkie.
"You're wrong! They're monsters, they're all monsters, and they should be wiped off the face of the world. Pegasi and unicorns and gryphons! Every single last one of-"
The rest of his words were lost as he choked on his own blood.
"What we don't need are ponies like you who are trapped in their own delusions. What we don't need are ponies who are blinded by hate and anguish. This is a group founded on harmony, and ponies like you do not deserve to live." With a deliberate slowness, Pinkie drew her blade out of the body. "Ponies like you disgust me, and it doesn't matter if you're a pegasus or a unicorn or an earth pony. Ponies like you deserve to die."
She looked away from the dead body, but none of the others made a move to argue. Instead they watched on in silence, most nodding in agreement, while others simply didn't care. There was one pony who threw up, but he was new to the job. Given enough time, he'd get used to it, and if he didn't, he could be left at base.
As Pinkie walked away, Lyra jumped onto the nearby caravan and yelled, "Alright everypony, time to move out! I want Teams One through Four on salvage duty, Five and Six to help to the slaves who've joined us, and for Seven to scout out the area and make sure we're secure. I do not want to be ambushed while we're cleaning up. We did a good job everypony!"
Their cheers were subdued, but full of pride as they all split off to do their tasks. For her part, Pinkie made her way towards those who had wished to stick around. Though most thanked her and tried to make small talk, Pinkie brushed them all off. Instead, she moved through the crowd, eyes constantly scanning for that one long face that was always present. Maybe it was because their parents died during the trip, or their lover didn't want to stick around, or some close friend died in the rescue mission. It didn't matter what the excuse was, there was always one, and this time was no different.
There, off in the distance was a single little filly by herself. All the others actively sat away from her, looked away from her, and none of them approached either. With a barely contained growl, Pinkie trotted up to the filly and sat down. No words were said, they simply gazed off into the distance together. Sometimes, words didn't have to be spoken. Sometimes, all anypony ever wanted was some company on some lonely night. Sometimes, talking was simply too awkward.
Whatever the case, they sat together, just enjoying the view and relaxing while Pinkie washed out and bandaged her wounds. Though the filly looked at her curiously, they soon returned to gazing at the snow covered hills. It was only when a new recruit ran to get her that Pinkie finally stood up and began limping away. As she did so, the tiniest of voices reached her ears, one that was scratchy from misuse, but still strong.
"Thank you..."