The Pale Land

by OrphiusOlyandra


Chapter 16

Dash groaned and rolled over, clutching her head as it throbbed and burned. Rolling to the side, bile rose in her throat and she threw up all over the floor. With another groan, she slumped back into the bed, wincing at the harsh light hitting her eyes.

“About time you woke up!” yelled a voice, sending a spike of pain through her head. “Geez, you actually had us worried there for a sec, but don’t worry. I told them my awesomeness would keep you alive. After all, every hero needs a sidekick, and congratulations, you’re my side kick!”

“As if!” snapped Dash, ignoring the way the world spun around her. “I’m the hero here. If I died, the lack of awesomeness would probably cause an explosion or something! The world would destroy itself because my awesomeness was not holding everything together.”

“Lightning Dust, stand down,” said Spitfire, and Dash immediately sat up in bed, giving a smart salute. “Wonderbolt Dash, nice job back there.”

“W-W-W-Won-” A massive squee filled the air as Dash bounced in place.

“I take it our newest recruit is awake?” Soarin poked his head in and grinned. “Time for some food!”

“Boosting morale, right?” smirked Dash.

“Exactly! Watch out Cap’n, she’s gonna replace you soon if she keeps learning at this pace,” he called with a chuckle.

A sharp pain laced through Dash’s head and she pressed a hoof to her temple.

“You alright there?” asked Spitfire with a frown.

“Y-Yeah.” Dash frowned and shook her head. “What happened? I remember going into the temple and the first trial and then... nothing.”

“We were hoping you could tell us, actually,” said Spitfire. “When we arrived, you were lying outside the portal, completely unconscious.”

“And that horned freak?” asked Dash.

“In the breeding pits,” smirked Lightning Dust. “You should have heard her begging. Music to my ears. She was practically singing, telling us exactly where the Pink Bitch’s base is. Damn, you should have seen that fight. We crushed them, and now? Now they’re being tortured for information. And after that, they’ll be playthings for the guards.”

Dash threw up again and gratefully took the water from Lightning’s hooves, but found it impossible to look her in the eyes. What she had said... that was what she would expect from a freak, not from a pegasus. Sure, the other races were beneath them, but that didn’t mean you took pleasure from that. There were limits, after all, and to so gleefully wallow in... in...

Once more Dash felt bile rise in the back of her throat.

There was something wrong here. There had to be something wrong here. They were the pegasi, the most noble of races, the ones who would win because they weren’t absolute monsters, and yet here was Lightning Dust saying those things. Her friend had always been on the bloodthirsty side, but to this degree? No, that was impossible.

“This is a trial,” whispered Dash.

“What?” Spitfire frowned and stared at Dash like she was insane. “What are you talking about?”

“This is the second trial isn’t it? There’s no way pegasi can be so...” She gestured at Lightning Dust.

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’re bloodthirsty, you just want to show off, be cool, be the highest ranked officer. You don’t actually care about those under your command,” hissed Dash. “That mare? Twilight? She’s got guts. Enough guts to be a pegasi. She’s... a monster, but she’s got balls.”

“You’re sounding an awful lot like a sympathizer right now,” growled Lightning as she took an aggressive step forwards. “Captain, maybe we should interrogate Dash to make sure she’s not a unicorn in disguise, or under the influence of some sort of mind magic.”

“Oh yeah?” snarled Dash, her wings unfurling. “I’d say you’re the one acting like you’re under a spell!”

“Wonderbolt, stand down!” yelled Spitfire.

Dash immediately recoiled and sighed, "Yeah, sorry. I... I don't know what came over me. Maybe you should screen me after all. I'd rather not end up giving up secrets."

"Hey." A light hoof was placed on Dash's shoulder, and she found herself staring up at her friend and rival. "Don't talk like that. All you need is a couple days of R&R to shake off whatever that weird temple did to you."

"Y-Yeah." Dash pressed a hoof to her brow, ignoring the throbbing pain. "Wait, where's Fluttershy?"

They exchanged a look, but it was Spitfire who spoke up, "I'm sorry Dash, but she's de-"

"No. No!" The tray of food before her went flying, narrowly missing Spitfire before slamming into the wall. "Shut up! You're wrong. I-It's not real! It can't be real!"

Not after everything they had gone through. Everything she had done to get her to safety. It just wasn't fair! She had always played it so safe, so carefully, and she had always been so nice to everypony, even the slaves, and for her to die first... It just wasn't right!

A tender wing wrapped around her shoulders, but Dash immediately shoved it away, glaring at Lightning Dust.

"I'm fine."

"No you're not. Come on Dash, let me in," she pleaded, "I'm your friend too, you know. Talk to me for once! I may not have been that fond of Fluttershy, but she was my friend as well!"

"Look, Lightning, I'm sorry, but I just need some time alone."

"No! I know Fluttershy was your oldest friend, but I'm the one who gets you! She didn’t have the drive to push herself, to be the best she could be, to protect Pegasopolis. She didn’t get that, but I do!"

"But she does get me! She doesn't have to be all those things because she already understands me. She's been my friend since forever and-"

"Dash," said Spitfire calmly, completely cutting off the rant, "you're a Wonderbolt now and that means we're your family as well. If you need to talk, talk to us. It might surprise you, but we've all lost somepegasus close, and... well... we all have our ways to dealing with it." She laid a hoof on Dash's shoulder. "But in all honesty? Talking always helps, and every single last one of us is willing to lend an ear, no matter how busy we may be. Remember that."

Dash swallowed and nodded, "Th-Thanks. Could you just... you know, give me a minute? Alone?"

At first, it looked as though she was going to refuse, but then Spitfire nodded and jerked her head towards the door. With a sigh, Lightning trotted off, glancing back with a pleading, almost begging look, but Dash found it impossible to meet her eyes, to look at her the way she used to. Those words, that glee over Twilight's suffering, everything about it was just so... so wrong. That wasn't the Lightning Dust she knew, that wasn't her crazy—well, let’s face it: completely and utterly insane—second in command! She was never cruel or hateful and wouldn’t wish that sort of punishment on anypony. Had her time with the Wonderbolts already changed her? As much as Dash wanted to deny it, there simply wasn't any other explanation.

Unless... unless this was another part of the trial.

Dash frowned. Was that even possible? She slapped herself, wincing in pain before grabbing an apple and taking a bite out of it. The crisp crunch sent shivers down her spine. It tasted real, that was for certain.

A sigh escaped as she looked down at her half eaten apple. Maybe... maybe being with that horned freak had finally done her mind in, maybe it had made her insane and warped all her thoughts and senses. But surely feeling that way towards the freaks, that unrestrained joy at seeing them suffer in such a gruesome manner, was wrong. It had to be wrong. They were pegasi! They were the most noble and regal race. They would never ever stoop to finding joy in such torture. It was just wrong. They only did it because they had no choice!

This was a trial. It had to be a trial. She knew her friends and she knew Lightning was not like that.

But... but what if she was wrong? What if this was reality? She'd be throwing everything away. She finally got into the Wonderbolts, finally found that piece of information that'd win them the war. If she acted now, if she rushed out there and if it turned out she was wrong, then...

Dash gulped and stared at the dirt wall

Then she'd be dead. Probably sent to the breeding pits or something.

And yet if this was reality, it only meant that the Wonderbolts really were monsters. Maybe not as bad as that horned freak, but monsters all the same. There are some things that you simply do not do, and employing a monster who took pleasure in these types of things? It was up there. Stooping to their level to win the war? Dash would have no part of it. Loyalty was one thing, but blind loyalty was another. They might need earth pony slaves to raise crops, but at least Dash always treated them well. They might need breeding pens to keep the population up, but Dash took no joy in condemning a traitor to them.

If this was the true face of the empire she served, then she wanted no part in it.

Slipping out of bed, Dash reached out for the Wonderbolt uniform Spitfire had left. Her Wonderbolt uniform.She could feel that silky smoothness under her hoof, and the longer she stared at it, the more it called out to her. This was what she had wanted all her life, this was what she had desired and dreamed of. Now it was within her grasp, and she was about to toss it all away. And then Lightning’s voice returned, that glee, that laughter, that vileness. This jacket was made from the finest fabrics ever devised, but under her hoof, it felt slimy and disgusting.

Turning away, she grabbed her own jacket. The one her mother wore, the one her father had given her as a gift when they were dating. It was worn, it was patched, and more than once Lightning had tried to throw it out, only for Dash to steal it back. A tender hoof slipped down the front, smoothing out the wrinkles. And then she saw the Wonderbolts badge that was still pinned to the inside of the collar. To think she had been happy when she first got that. She ripped it free and tossed it away.

Once she was dressed, she moved towards the door, ignoring the spikes of pain that accompanied each step. She peeked out left and right, noting the two guards that flanked her door. A quick glance over her shoulder told her that there was no other way out of the room.

How easy would it be to just step back into the room, lie down in bed, close her eyes, and forget about all of this? She could live out her dream life without a second thought. She had everything she wanted and now that they had the temple’s secrets, they were probably going to win the war as well. It was all she had ever dreamed of, so why was she about to throw it all away? Because something Lightning said didn’t sit well with Dash? It wasn’t like that was the first time Lightning had said something Dash disagreed with.

And yet...

Deep breaths, deep breaths. It was now or never. To go forward was to never return. All she had to go on was a hunch, and yet the first thing she had ever been taught about flying was to trust those hunches. When it told you to pull out, you pulled out. When it told you that it was too dangerous, it was too dangerous. More than once that feeling had saved her life, and she had never had a reason to doubt it.

“You should have her sing...”

“...they’ll be playthings for the guards...”

Gritting her teeth, Dash leapt forward, striking the right guard in the back of the head, sending him to the ground in an unconscious heap. As the other guard turned around, she was already in his face, grabbing a wing and dislocating it. As he screamed in pain, Dash swept his legs out from under him before going straight for the throat. He, too, slumped to the ground.

Without missing a beat, she raced down the hall, following the single corridor towards the light at the end. A guard leapt out of a room on the right, and Dash skidded right under his outstretched hooves. Coming back to her hooves, she lashed out with her hind legs, catching him just as he landed. Spinning around, she slammed him up against the wall and head-butted him. Just like the other two, he dropped to the ground.

Every so often, a guard would jump out in some lame attempt to tackle her, but they were no match. She was Rainbow-motherfuckin’-Dash! With the adrenaline pumping through her system, she all but forgot about her injures as she ducked and weaved through to the end of the hall.

And just as she reached the end of the tunnel, just as she burst into the light, Spitfire stood there completely calm and collected. There wasn’t even a frown on her face as she regarded Dash coolly.

“And what do you think you’re doing?” she asked.

“I’m leaving,” replied Dash. “I don’t know how you can live with yourself. How you can keep on calling yourself a pegasus when you revel in the sort of shit Lightning told me about. But if you really can, then you can all just go fuck yourselves.”

Spitfire’s wings flared open and she shifted into an aggressive stance. “Now you’re going to be a good girl and go back to your room, and we might just forget this ever happened.”

“No.” Dash mirrored Spitfire’s stance. “I’ve already come too far, seen too much. What they did to Scoots... it’s true, isn’t it? Every single last word of it is true. And you helped them cover it up, brush it under the snow so that nopegasus would ever know.”

“Lightning has always had her concerns about you. You and Fluttershy.” The two circled each other slowly, each movement perfectly mirrored. “Always too willing to help the dirt ponies, too willing to treat their wounds and make sure they were comfortable. Even going so far as to punish those who you thought were ‘misusing’ them. Oh yes, we knew about all that, and more.”

“They’re not toys! They may be lower than us, but nothing deserves that sort of treatment!”

Dash lunged forward, but Spitfire was faster. Far faster. She shuffled to the right, landing two solid blows to Dash’s side. Blood filled her mouth. Stumbling back, Dash spat out to the side and dove back in. This time Spitfire met her head on, easily parrying each attack before slamming a hoof into Dash’s chest. Pain exploded through her body as a sickening crack echoed through the canyon.

She dropped to her knees. Each gasp caused a fresh wave of pain, making her eyes water. Spitfire loomed above her, wings completely spread wide as she gazed dispassionately at Dash. Breathing shakily, Dash tried to get back up on her hooves, only for the Wonderbolt to lash out with a hoof, catching Dash in the cheek and sending her sprawling like a rag doll.

“Last chance. Give up, and we’ll take you back. Keep fighting, and you’ll be condemned to the breeding pits. A mare like you will produce strong foals.”

It was hard to breathe. So very hard. Every time she tried to say something she only spat out blood. Still, she didn’t need words to convey her thoughts. All she needed was a single look of utter contempt.

“Very well then. Rainbow Dash, you stand accused of High Treason against the Empire of Pegasopolis. You are hereby stripped of the rank of Wonderbolt and any and all privileges therein. Your sentence is forced breeding, with a lifetime duration.”

“Screw.You.”

“And congratulations, my little pony.” Eyes snapping up once more, Dash found herself staring at a white… creature… instead of Spitfire. “For a while there you had me worried.”

Dash’s mouth worked uselessly. This... this thing before her had wings and a horn. Wings. And. A horn. None of this made sense! How could such a thing exist? Statues were one thing, but this... this was insanity!

In the end, insane laughter rang out as Dash clutched at her stomach. It was a trial. It was all a trial! She wasn’t going to be sent to the breeding pens, she still had her shot at becoming a Wonderbolt! Tears streamed down her cheeks as she continued to laugh.

“Go, my little pony, seek my niece at the center of the world, and may she have mercy on your soul.”

The world around her faded, along with the strange creature, leaving behind another swirling portal. Slowly, gingerly, Dash stood up. There was no pain, no blood, not even a bit of soreness. Wiping away the tears, she stepped forward on trembling limbs and touched the portal, filling the world around her with bright, white light.


"By the sun, that hurt," groaned Twilight as she cradled her head.

Everything hurt. From head to hoof, every last part of her felt like it was on fire, especially her eyes. Even now, they still burned from the brilliant flash of light that had engulfed her seconds ago. Or was it minutes? It was impossible to tell in this place.

Lifting her eyes, the world around her spun and Twilight was forced to clamp a hoof over her muzzle before she could throw up everywhere. Once it all settled down, she slowly stood up and blinked in surprise. That familiar tug-of-war was gone. A quick glance down at her reflection revealed that it was indeed her own, and not that of a certain racist pegasus.

"Despite how racist she is, she's still better than you." Twilight's head snapped up, eyes scanning the void around her for the voice. "You keep going on and on and on about how racist she is. How there's no hope. Blah, blah, blah. You bore me."

Twilightswiveled her ears around, trying to figure out just exactly where the voice was coming from, but there was only the same darkness as before. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, not even a hidden corner to curl up in. There was only nothingness.

"Come on, let's be honest here, even if she killed off every pony in Pinkie’s base, right down the very last foal, she'd still be better than you."

Biting back a response, Twilight focused on the task ahead of her. No doubt the voice was meant to sound like Rainbow Dash's thoughts, or perhaps it was a warped version of Rainbow’s real thoughts. In the last trial they had been forced to work together, to do what the other wished, perhaps to test their selflessness and willingness to put their lives in the hooves of the other. This test though, this was designed to sow distrust and make her doubt her companion. To drive a wedge between them so that they would fail.

"Oh please, as if I'd be that unoriginal."

Shock coursed through Twilight's system and she froze mid-step.

"That got your attention, didn't it? My, my, you are a clever one, aren’t you? But then again, that was to be expected."

Perhaps there was a second layer to the spell,one designed to read her own thoughtsand confuse her further.

Maybe.

Certainly a clever trap, for somepony that wasn’t Twilight Sparkle. But if Twilight could hear Dash’s thoughts, then that almost certainly meant that Dash could hear her thoughts, and Dash was probably stupid enough to-

"Ah, there we go, trotting out your own intelligence as though you're the smartest thing around. It's rather depressing, really. Maybe what all the earth ponies say is true: all that the unicorns value is their superiority."

This time Twilight actually had to put effort into stopping herself from saying anything. It probably was exactly what Dash thought, but that didn't mean she had to acknowledge it. Itwasn’t like they were friends, or even partners. They were merely two ponies using each other to get what they wanted, nothing more.

"Come now, Twily, don't b-"

A growl rumbled in the back of Twilight's throat.

"Oh dear, it looks like I’ve struck a nerve. What’chagonnado? Lose control and burn everything to a crisp again?"

"Shut. Up!" yelled Twilight, forcing back tears.

"There we go! Finally, a response! And here I thought you were going to give me the silent treatment all day long."

"Where are you, you son of a bitch?" screamed Twilight, spinning around, magic sparking in all directions. "Come out so I can-"

"So you can what? Kill me like you killed your parents?"

Twilight's mouth dropped open before a primal growl rumbled through her entire body. Her magic flared to new heights, sending electricity in all directions. It slammed up against the magical defenses holding her, but just as they began buckling, the magical feedback hit like a fireball to the face. Twilight stumbled back, clutching her head as her horn burned, searing straight through her skull. Despite all that pain, all that desire to just stab a blade through her heart and end her own suffering, she somehow found the willpower to stay standing on her trembling legs.

"Shut. The. Fuck. Up!" she yelled into the darkness. "You don't know anything! Shining killed them! He knew the attack was coming and he didn't do anything to stop it. No guards were ordered to reinforce the town! They didn’t even have a single sun-damned warning in advance! He left us to rot!"

Insane laughter filled the air. "Please, don't pull the whole 'I'm so innocent' act, we're smarter than that."

Biting her tongue, Twilight began walking forward. This thing was just trying to throw her off, make her question herself, break her down until she wasn't even sure who she was anymore. It was boring really, and rather depressing. After the ingenuity of the first trial, she had been expecting something... more.

"Back to the silent treatment, Twily?"

Twilight merely bit down harder until she drew blood, using the pain to keep her mind focused. She could kill the pony responsible for all this at a later date, but right now she needed to remember why she had come here to begin with. Getting angry and yelling at the voice, no matter how obnoxious it was, was not going to help anything. Taking a deep breath, she began scanning the area for the way out, but there was no use. There simply was nowhere for her to go to, and that meant one thing: the voice was part of the trial. "You're involved somehow, aren't you?"

"So you finally get it." The sound of slow clapping filled the air. "Took you long enough."

Ears flat against her skull, Twilight tried to ignore the mocking voice, but it continued on, "Well guess what? We're gonna spend a lot of quality time together, Twily. Doesn't that sound wonderful? No?"

Twilight frowned and stared straight up. "I need to do something with you to make the path open up."But what?

"What indeed," chuckled the voice. "Would you like a tiny-winy, itsy-bitsy little hint?"

Twilight grunted in response.

"Come on, say the magic word."

"The... magic word...?" Twilight's right eye began twitching. "You're not serious."

"A kiss would be even better. Preferably somewhere lower down,if you know what I mean."

Gritting her teeth, Twilight felt her anger and magic mix together, threatening to explode at the slightest touch.”How ‘bout I put a bolt through your brain? Or perhaps somewhere lower down, if you know what I mean?”

"Temper, temper!That's what got your family killed," tsked the voice.

Twilight loosed a wave of raw magic, warping the world around her.

"Oh dear. Hit a sore spot, did I?"

"Tell me," growled Twilight, her limbs trembling in anger.

"Say the magic word~!"

"Screw.You."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, need I wash out that dirty mouth of yours?"

"Fuck you with a rusty spear!"

"Oh dear, maybe I should just leave you trapped here for all eternity. Sure, you won’t freeze, but at least you'll still starve to death."

Clenching her jar until it hurt, she finally ground out a, "Please."

"Please, what?"

Instead of replying, Twilight glared into the darkness.

"Awwwwww, you're so cute when you're glaring like that." A wolf whistle ran out. "Hey babe, down here!Shake that flank of yours!"

"When I get my hooves on you..." A blast of magic fired into the empty sky as she stomped her hoof.

"Bow chika bow wow! I love 'em feisty, gives them that extra kick in the sack, you know? Like Spitfire, for example. Totally an eleven out of ten, would buck again, totally hot bod. I mean, have you seen her flank? Yeowch! Oh wait, of course you have, you've fucked h-"

"I have done no such thing!"

"Oh reeeeeaaaally? Have you already forgotten about last month? When you came across her in the frozen lake down south, just to the west of the last real earth pony base? You know, that place just off from the pegasus border? 'Cause I remember it, and damn, girl, you sure know how to treat a mare right!"

Twilight's mouth worked uselessly as she tried to come up with something, anything, to say, but all she could find was a blushing red stammer as her tongue worked uselessly in her mouth.

"Those things you did with your mouth, I wouldn't mind it if you did them to me. And that thing Spitfire did with her wings? Beyond delicious! Do you think she'd be up for a threeso-"

“Shut up!” screamed Twilight. “Get out here so I can rip your limbs off and fuck you with them!”

“Sounds kinky!”

The resulting sound that emerged from Twilight’s mouth was like a mix between the bodily functions of the vilest creature in Tartarus and a demonic summoning ritual involving sacrificial foals.

This time, the laughter that rang out was neither insane, nor evil, instead it was genuine. Laughter that wouldn’t sound out of place coming from Pinkie, or even Lyra. It felt familiar. If anything, it served to unnerve her even more.

“Just tell me,” growled Twilight.

“The magic woooooord~!”

Twilight looked around and felt hopelessness crash down around her. Gritting her teeth until it hurt, she spat on the ground and finally managed to growl out, “Give me a hint, please.”

“Shake your flank at me and we have a deal.” Twilight opened her mouth, but before she could make a single sound, the voice continued.“Just joking, geez, loosen up a bit, will ya? But seriously, look down, show me that cute face of yours.”

That got a facehoofout of Twilight. Of course. With a sigh, she looked down and stumbled back in surprise at the sight of her own face being pressed up against the floor from the other side.

“Heeeeey there, cutie!” called Mirror Twilight with a whistle. “Mind turning around again? And this time, raise your tail a bit higher. Come on, show me the goods, no need to be modest. It’s not like you’re modest when you’re alone with Spitfire, an- Whoa! Watch where you’re shooting those fireballs!”

“The. Clue.”

“This is the clue!” Her reflection turned around, raising her tail and looking backwards. “Dammit, how can I admire my fine flank if you won’t play along? Come on, this is the one chance I get to do the admiring, so shake that flank, baby!”

“You’re... the clue...” Twilight frowned, ignoring the groan that came from below. This was her reflection, a living reflection that snarked back at her and tha-

“Oh please, we’re smarter than that. Need I spell it out for you?” said her reflection. “I’m you and you’re me. Simple, really.”

“Not funny.” At the flat stare Twilight got in response, she blinked in surprise. “Wait, you’re being serious? You’re not me!”

“What are you talking about? I’m totally you. I look like you, I smell like you, I taste like you—seriously, feel free to give me a lick if you don’t believe me. Joking, joking! Please don’t blow me up. But come on, you’re totally a slut. Think about how many ponies you sleep with for information. You enjoy sex, you enjoy flaunting your body, and you’re a complete monster. If Shining killed your parents, then think about how many ponies you’ve killed. Heck, how many ponies did you kill today? Twenty?Thirty?More? I mean, that bridge trap was sick, but damn, girl, talk about heartless!”

“It had to be done,” replied Twilight a shrug.“I couldn’t let the information fall into the wrong hooves, and time was of the essence.”

“And yet Dash’s plan didn’t involve killing so many. Distract them, get in, get out. You were the one who decided to kill them all. Look at your hooves, little filly, they’re so steeped in blood that they might as well as be red.”

“You know nothing,” hissed Twilight.

“I know everything!” Her reflection’s head shoved through the ground, pressing up against Twilight and forcing her back. “I know your secrets, I know your desires, I know everything about you because Iamyou.”

“You’re not me!” yelled Twilight. “I am not a slut. I am not a monster, I don’t like murder and arson and slaughter an-”

“I never said you delighted in any of those things,” chuckled the mare as she pulled herself out of the ground. “But you are all that, and more. You hate Shining with such a passion, with such fire, only because you see yourself reflected in his eyes. You see yourself standing there, selling out your ‘partners’ one by one. Oh, who am I kidding? You’ve already sold out most of those ‘lesser’ ones anyway.”

“I am not racist,” ground Twilight as she took an aggressive step forward.

“Oh, I never said that.” Her reflection looked almost... bored. “Lesser doesn’t mean earth pony or pegasus. They’re all stupid to you, aren’t they? They were going to die one way or another and they’re inconsequential to the overall plan, so who cares? Toss them to the manticores, get some extra info from their noble sacrifice and all that. Or, you know, get rid of those pesky ones who are a bit too powerful and would interfere.”

“I see nothing wrong with that.”

“You see- You- I- That- Argh!” Twilight was treated to the amusing sight of her mirror self stomping around, muttering obscenities and acting like a foal. “Surely we’re not that stupid!”

“It’s simple, you’re trying to guilt trip me into believing I’m somehow equal to Shining Armor. In the same way he’s killed my parents, I’m killing other ponies, but seriously? There’s a difference between murder and patricide.” Twilight shrugged and began looking around once more, trying to see if anything had changed. “An important one, might I add, so please, keep your warped thoughts to yourself.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that...” Her mirror image began picking at her ear before flicking it to the side. “You’d totally sell out your parents for your ideals…”

“Shut up! I would never do that! Don’t talk to me as though you know what I’d do!”

“Please, you’ve sold out mares that you said you loved. You’ve sold out as many peaceful settlements as you havemilitary garrisons. You’ve even sold out some of the earth ponies’ last safe havens! They trusted you and you betrayed them. If you could do that, you can do anything!”

“You’re delusional,” said Twilight with a shrug.

“I’m delusional?” Laughter rang out and the image followed, whispering seductively in her ear. “Let’s try some hypotheticals, shall we? Say somepony is offering you game-changing information, something that would let you destroy the Pegasi. All you have to do is give them the location of Fort Nightingale. Now, if you tell them, they’re gonna go kill every last pony in the base… including your parents. You get to walk away with that war-winning information, but they die. Would you do it?”

Twilight opened her mouth, but no sounds came out. This... was a trick, a trap specifically designed to catch her out. The very premise meant that there was no right action. It was specifically designed to trap her, force her to-

“To sell out your parents?” The grin was sadistic. “Of course. You’d sell them out in the blink of an eye,even.”

“Y-You’re wrong, I would never sell them out. Never!”

“So you’d let the pegasi stomp over everything? Show no mercy, slaughter all the males and turn all the females into breeding slaves?”

“Of course not! This is a trick question! There is no right choice.”

“No, you’re wrong. You’d sell out your parents, just like Shiny did. Don’t you get it? You act so high and mighty, as though you’re so much better than him, but really, you’d sell them out just as easily.”

“He didn’t sell them out at all. He just let them die!”

“Oh yes, he’d just let an entire town get ransacked just to kill his entire family. Whom he loved, and asked forgiveness from in his prayers to Celestia and Luna. So obviously it was some evil master plan,” said the image with an eye roll.

“S-Shut up!”

“Face it. You’re a whore and a monster willing to sell out anything and anypony just to get ahead! Yo-”

“Shut up! You’re wrong! You don’t know me, you don’t kn-”

“-u’re a monster of the worst kind. You tell yourself that you’re good, you believe you’re good with your entire being, because if you don’t, you’d never be able sleep ever again!”

“-ow me! You're not me!

A burst of black wind blasted out in all directions, throwing Twilight back, slamming her into the floor and knocking the wind out of her. Rolling with the hit, she came up onto her elbows, ignoring the pain as she tried desperatelyto get air into her lungs. As the black smoke settled and drifted away, Twilight found herself staring down at a perfectly polished marble floor.

A dark purple hoof slammed on the ground next to her head, cracking the stone. Chips flew through the air, drawing blood as they sliced through her fur.

“I am your Nightmare, your true self. Let me show what a monster truly is, my delicious pet!”

Insane laughter echoed through the room. The only warning Twilight got was a sudden pressure on her head, and she immediately rolled away from the wall. Before she even had a chance to blink, a beam of raw magic blasted down the hall, scorching the ground. She could feel the crackle of electricity in the air, the smell of ozone and the magical flux in its wake almost sending her into a feedback loop on its own. Stumbling to her hooves, Twilight dived behind a pillar, only for the entire thing to disintegrate into dust.

“You can’t win. There’s nowhere to run and nowhere to hide, my little pet.” A mad little giggle filled the air. “But please, keep running! I find this so... exhilarating.”

“Shut. U-” Twilight was forced to dive to the side again as multiple bolts slammed into the wall behind her. The scent of burning mane filled the air as debris showered her from behind. Stumbling from the aftershock, she hit the ground and rolled, just managing to dodge a black lance that parted her mane. Again she was forced to scramble as more rained down from the ceiling, slicing her flanks and sides open, but never getting close enough to pin her down or kill her.

Skidding around a corner, she finally got far enough out of the wake to use her own magic. Without a second thought, she gathered up all the magic she had and simply tossed it backwardsthrough the narrow corridors. It slammed into the wall, exploding in a shower of shards and tossing Twilight backwards.

Screams filled the air, and Twilight found herself smiling despite everything. She knew that scream. That was the sound of a pony on fire, and the sound of that stupid Nightmare dying. To think all it took was-

A burning filly stumbled around the corner, thrashing about before finally collapsing.

“She was called Sunset Rose, a sweet little filly who dreamed of protecting her family.”

Twilight spun around, drawing her crossbow and firing it in one smooth motion. Instead of hitting the Nightmare, though, the bolt embedded itself in a pegasus,who crumpled to the ground.

“And he was Freefall, about to be married to his sweetheart once he got back from his mission, but you decided to kill him. Just ‘cause.”

As much as Twilight wanted to look away, she couldn’t. All she could do was stare into those eyes as the life drained out of them.

She slid another bolt into place and fired it off, aiming straight for the Nightmare’s head, but that too,embedded itself into another pony, a mare this time. Her mane had long since turned white and her skin sagged. Another bolt was loaded and fired, this time killing a soldier. Another bolt, another death. Foals, babies, teenagers, elderly,slaves, whores, everypony. With every single shot another would die.

“Mommy, mommy, please wake up mommy!” Twilight’s eyes widened as she watched a foal covered in her mother’s blood nudge the dead body. “Mommy, I promise not to play in the kitchen. Mommy...?”

Without a second thought, Twilight turned and ran away. She threw herself through the door and slammed it shut behind her. Letting out the breath she had been holding, she slumped to the ground and slid her last bolt into her crossbow. Or at least, she tried to. With how badly her hooves were shaking, it was impossible to load properly. The bolt clattered to the ground. Those images were nothing more than a trick, something pulled out of thin air, a lie. Sh-She wasn’t like that. She wasn’t the monster, she wasn’t even close. Her brother, Dash… they were the monsters. They... they... they were the ones who were monsters!

Twilight screamed as a fire suddenly burst into life, engulfing the room. Turning around, she raced for the door, only to slam snout first into a brick wall. With a groan, she stumbled back and gulped, trying her hardest not to turn around, which left her staring at the shadows on the wall. All those ponies strung up with hooks in their eye sockets, intestines hanging out, piles of dead being set alight, hooves splashing in blood. Even though she could not see any of it, she knew it was there.

“This is just a fraction of those you’ve killed. Isn’t it delicious?” whispered the Nightmare before levitating a severed head over. “I’m particularly fond of this one. Remember her? Blue Moon was her name. Had that delicious flank and could do that thing with her tongue that’d make us melt. Shame we had to kill her, though, would have loved to keep her around as a pet.”

Calling her magic to her, Twilight discharged a spell, not caring where it went, and managed to blast a hole in the wall behind her. Launching head first into the blood, Twilight stumbled up and blindly ran out, trying her hardest to ignore that metallic taste that overwhelmed her senses and washed away everything else. Wiping the blood from her eyes, she found herself in yet another room, this time painfully empty. No furniture, no bodies, not even a sound.

The stillness did not relieve Twilight in any way, shape, or form.

Something was coming, there was no doubt about that. That sadistic Nightmare would not let her off that easily. If things weren’t so dire, Twilight would have smiled. Instead, she found herself slumped in the corner, staring at her hooves and willing them to stop shaking. Even her breathing was out of control. She just… she just needed to focus on what was going on. She needed to concentrate and calm down. She needed those lies to stop echoing in her mind!

A scream of frustration escaped as she bucked the wall behind her, only for a bolt of pain to run all the way up her sides. Groaning, she limped away and began pacing. There had to be a way to kill the Nightmare, there just had to be. Once she had killed it, the path would open and she’d be able to get out. But how? Every single time she’d tried, some pony would just appear and block the shot. It didn’t help that she only had one... bolt... le...

Oh fuck her.

Twilight’s eyes widened as she stared at her empty crossbow and quiver. The bolt was gone. Where had it gone? It was there a second ago! She was sure she had it when she entered this sun-forsaken room. Okay, alright, calm down, just... just relax and think things through. These trials are about duality and mirroring. First with Dash and now with this thing. Last time they got through by working together, but this time the image was aggressive. Killing it had to be the solution, right? It seemed like the only option, but wh-

The wall beside her exploded into a million pieces and Twilight found herself scrambling away once more, only to freeze mid step and gulp. All those stone shards just hung in the air, completely motionless, and slowly rotated around until they were all pointing at her. As soon as she began readying her magic to deflect at least some of them, the shards flew inwards. Scream after scream was torn from Twilight’s lips as they sliced into her skin, cutting to the bone and sending her to her knees.

Forcing herself back up, she tried to ignore the pain, but that was impossible. Each step was like another bolt to the body, another whip to the back, and she stumbled along in a half-drunken haze. Even with the wall for support, she slipped and stumbled, leaving a trail of blood behind her as she went. Before she even managed to get five steps, she collapsed on the ground, eyes closed and breathing heavily.

“Oh come on, I hope you’re not done already.” Twilight felt a hoof nudge her side, sending a wave of pain through her system. “Come on, get up, we haven’t even gotten to the really good part yet.”

“Why?” croaked Twilight as she cracked open an eye.

“Why? More like why not? You act so high and mighty, as though you’re the only ethical being in this forsaken land, when in actuality you’re the biggest monster around. You get information here, information there, and then you sell it off, getting ponies killed. Getting good ponies killed. How far have you extended this war? How much bloodier have you made it?”

That’s it, keep talking, you bitch.

“You’re the monster. You keep trying to deny it, keep trying to run away from it, but there is no escape.” Her reflection stood above her, a blade of purple flames raised and poised to strike. “I am your judge, your jury, and your executioner, and I can say with full confidence that the world will be a better place without you.”

“What... what are you?”

“Me? Like I said, I am you. I am your Nightmare, a shadow of your true self.”

“Shadow... of the truth self... a Nightmare,” whispered Twilight, trying to open her eyes. Those words… they sounded familiar, but it was so hard to focus, to concentrate to... to...

A sickly groan escaped.

“It’s a shame really, you could have been something great, something truly worthy of the title of ‘Hero’, but you di-”

“Acceptance.”

It was so soft, so quiet that it might as well had been the wind, but the Nightmare heard it and blinked.

“Duality. Two from one. The abject, the repressed that comes back. I forced her to see, see the truth, see reality, see...” Twilight trailed off. “I forced her to see, and now I see.”

“What?”

From somewhere deep within her, somewhere that she never knew existed,some way, somehow, she struggled on to her hooves. For all of one full second, Twilight managed to stay on her hooves before collapsing once more to the ground.

“Yo- You... You’re me... What I threw away, what I... what I’m afraid to face. You’re not just any nightmare.” Her breath wheezed out, eyes half closed. “You’re my nightmare.”

They stared at each other silently.

“You’re...” Twilight hesitated before whispering, “me...”

The Nightmare blinked, the blade slowly fizzing out of existence.

“I’m... a monster… but I’m not sorry.” Twilight raised her head and stared the Nightmare straight in the eyes. “I did what I had to and if that makes me a monster, then so be it.”

There was a moment of silence before laughter rang out once more.

“Well said! Well said indeed.” The Nightmare leaned down and before Twilight could react, it pressed its lips against her. She struggled against it at first, but the blood loss made it impossible for Twilight to get away. Her lips were pried apart and a tongue slipped in, exploring her mouth with abandon. It was just aggressive, so dominant, so... Spitfire, that Twilight found herself submitting and kissing back hungrily. With her eyes closed, it might as well have been Spitfire above her with that playful smirk, those flared wings, the light that just filtered through those perfectly preened feathers. That toned, delicious flank perfect for sinking her teeth into an-

The lips pulled away, and Twilight’s eyes fluttered open, and she found herself staring up at a blue unicorn, with stars in her mane that swirled and moved despite the lack of wind. She stood taller, more regal than any pony Twilight had ever seen.

“Congratulations, my little pony. Embrace thy fears, thy darkness, thyself. Do this and thou wilt have no need to fear the shadows or the nightmares.” The mare turned away and Twilight’s eyes widened at the sight of her wings. “Go forth, Warrior of Harmony. Find our niece in the center of the world.”

“Wait!” yelled Twilight as the mare began fading, but it was already too late. The alicorn was gone, leaving behind another shimmering portal. Leaping to her hooves, she raced across to where the alicornhadstood, but found nothing except residual magic. “A memory projection. Typical, no doubt triggered by passing the test.”

Swearing under her breath, Twilight breathed out and rubbed her temple. “Let’s just hope that stupid pegasus passed the test. Otherwise I’m probably screwed. I knew I should have brought Spike along instead.”

Sighing, she pressed her hoof against the portal, and once more she was swallowed whole.


"Really, darling, get that ridiculous thing off your head and behave!" said Rarity, desperately trying to hide her smile behind a hoof. "Such uncouth antics! Why, you're giving your fellow earth ponies such a bad reputation."

For her part, Applejack merely rolled her eyes before flicking her snout up, sending the apple that was balanced there into the air. Head snapping forward, she caught it in her mouth and bit down.

"So barbaric," sighed Rarity as she reached out with a napkin, attempting to wipe Applejack's chin, only for her to dance away. "Golden, get back here this instant!"

Grinning, Applejack shook her head and darted to the other side of Rarity's workbench before repeating the act.

"Golden!" yelled the prissy mare as she held up a hoof to block the spray of juices. "Stop it this instant. You're going to ruin all my hard work!"

For a brief second, Applejack considered riling her up a bit more, but at the glare she decided to stop. As much fun as it was, they still had their horns, and while it was relatively easy to snap, it could still inflict some serious wounds. Rolling her eyes yet again, Applejack stepped away from the fabric-laden table and resumed eating the apple like a normal pony. Well, almost like a normal pony. She just had to chew with her mouth wide open to show it all to Rarity.

Rarity's eye twitched and she opened her mouth to say something, only to close it after a second. She ran a hoof through her mane and glared at Applejack. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take a bath and wash all this off of me."

Taking a step forward, Applejack made to follow, but Rarity held up a hoof and tsk'ed at her. "And where do you think you're going? A lady bathes in private."

That got a cocked eyebrow at out Applejack.

"S-Shut up," said Rarity as she slammed the bathroom door shut. Before she vanished from view,Applejack caught sight of the blush on her cheeks, and she smirked at the horned freak’s discomfort.

Chuckling under her breath, Applejack went back to her dinner, only for the door slam open without so much as a knock.

"We need to talk," growled MacIntosh from the door way.

Instead of replying, Applejack continued munching away, not even sparing a glance toward the towering earth pony.

"Now!" He slammed his hoof onto the table, causing all the plates to jump, spilling some the food onto the clothes Rarity had been working on.

Gritting her teeth, Applejack glared up at MacIntosh. "What do you want?"

He followed her gaze to the soiled clothes, and when his eyes met hers once more, there was an all-consuming anger in them. "And here Ah thought ya were meant to get information out of her."

"And here Ah thought ya were smart," replied Applejack. "If ya torture them, they just say whatever it takes for the pain to end. Ya get them to trust ya and they'll tell ya the truth."

"Obviously," he said flatly as he kicked the door shut behind him. "And how do yaexplain the coup?"

"What coup?"

For a pony that size, he moved surprisingly quick, slamming into Applejack and pinning her against the wall with a single hoof. "Don't play stupid with me. Ya think you're so smart, ya think ya've tricked everyone with ya 'poor slave' act. But you’rewrong."

"What. Coup," growled Applejack.

The hoof slid up over her throat, cutting off her air. Instead of thrashing or clawing at the limb, Applejack just kept her eyes focused on MacIntosh, daring him to keep going. The corners of her vision began blurring and her lungs burned, but neither of them stopped staring at each other, still as statues. In the end, it was MacIntosh who gave in first, stepping back and letting Applejack drop to the ground, gasping for air.

"It doesn't matter, not really. We have Lemon Drops, and she'll talk. Eventually."

Eyes narrowed, Applejack got back toher hooves and took an aggressive step towards MacIntosh. "You’re willing to torture ya own kind?"

"Ah'm willing to do everything necessary to keep our dream alive."

"Your dream?" snapped Applejack. “Your dream!?A dream of what?A place where we torture innocent ponies?"

"A world where we're free," he hissed back.

"Ya mean a world where ya can live out your power fantasy."

Applejack's hoof lashed out, only for MacIntosh to block it. With a deft twist, he forced it behind her back, and she found herself against the wall again, a sharp pain running down her foreleg.

"Ah want us to survive," replied MacIntosh evenly, "and Ah'm willing to do whatever’s necessary to make sure of that."

"You’re willing to become a monster?"

"If that's what it takes."

Shifting her weight, Applejack tried to slip out of his hold, only for a knee to slam into her back. Gasping out in pain, she found herself pinned down, unable to move. She felt his hot breath on the back of her neck. For a brief second, panic rose up in her chest. Surely he wouldn't do that to his own sister, would he?

The mere thought threatened to make her scream right there and then.

"Ah refuse to become a monster to defeat a monster. We're meant to be above that!"

"If we don't fight like 'em, we'll never get anywhere." He almost sounded sad. Almost. "There's no point playing nice if we ain't around at the end."

"You're wrong," replied Applejack, "we can win without becoming monsters."

"We can't. Ah've been fighting this war ever since mother an' father were taken from us, and Ah know for a fact that we cannot win, not by playing nice. Ah tried, AJ. Ah tried so hard. For the first few years I tried to be somepony they could be proud of, but Ah couldn't do it. Ah did what Ah had to do to win."

"You're not my brother." It wasn't spoken in anger, it wasn't spoken in sadness. It wasn't a question, it was a declaration. It was fact. The truth.And so, she spoke in perfectly even tones, much like how one would comment that there was an apple on the table, or that the sky was blue.

"Appleja-"

"No. Leave."

"App-"

"Leave."

Silence.

A sigh escaped and MacIntosh let go. Hollow footsteps echoed through the room before the door creaked open and slammed shut.

Breathing out slowly, Applejack limped over to her rack of clothes and slipped on the gauntlets, strapping them on and giving a couple quick jabs before nodding in satisfaction. Raising her hood, she walked out the door, making sure to lock it behind her before trotting down the hall. It took all her willpower to not race through the hall yelling for the others, but somehow, someway, she managed to keep her head on straight and focus on what needed to be done.

Keeping to the shadows, she slipped through the great hall and down the corridor at the end. Taking a sharp right, she broke into a run as she took the steps two at a time. Once she was at the top, she took a couple of deep breaths to calm herself before brushing a lock of mane out of her eyes. Now came the tricky part.

Walking with slow,casual movements, she stepped around the corner and made her way down the wall, smiling at the guard McIntosh had appointed. At the sight of her, the guard regarded her with a flat look, muscles tensed and ready for action.

“Howdy, partner,” said Applejack.

“Sorry, but MacIntosh left orders that you’re not to be allowed down here. Please leave at once,” he said stiffly.

“Now, now, don’t be like that,hon.” She gave him a sultry little smile as she stepped in nice and close. “Actually, Ah’mreallyhere for you.”

His eyes hardened and he leaned back slightly. “Ma’am, please leave.”

“What’s the matter, don’t like what y-” Applejack’s hoof lashed out, catching him square on the jaw, and he stumbled back. Before he could react, a second hoof slammed into his face and he went down with a thud.

Stepping over his body, she raced down the hall, checking each room as she went, looking for Lemon Drops. At first she could just hear a muffled sound, no louder than Rarity’s soft snores, but it sounded wrong. It sent shudders down her spine, and just like that, she was back in the slave pens with Nine Tails.

Shaking the image from her mind, she began running down the hall once more, moving at a slower pace this time. Now that she was closer, she could hear heavy breathing and the sound of voices. Gritting her teeth, she eased forward and peeked into what felt like the hundredth room and blinked in surprise. There was Lemon Drops, chained down to the table. Over her stood another guard, mocking her and taunting her while he pissed all over her face.

A deep rolling anger filled Applejack, and without a second thought, she charged into the room. By the time the door slammed open and the guard realizedthat something wrong, it was already too late. She was in his face, both hindhooves snapping up and catching him straight in the chest. Bones cracked underhoof, but she didn’t care. She dropped down, turned around, and punched him in the face, sending him to the ground.

“Come on, let’s get you out of here,” said Applejack as she began undoing the bonds.

“Th-thanks.” Standing on shaky hooves, Lemon Drops shook the piss from her mane before kicking the downed guard between the hind legs. “But you shouldn’t have come for me. Once they find out I’m gone, they’ll-”

“Then we better get moving,” replied Applejack as she took off her jacket. “Here, get into this and try to sneak out, Ah saw a half-filled water bow one room over. Clean yourself off and get to my room, the key’s in the right pocket. Ah’ll gather everypony and we’ll strike out.”

“W-What? You’re not thinking of-”

“Ah am. It’s clear to me that this place is just as bad as the slave pens Ah left behind. We leave, immediately. Y’all should have some sort of map with safe havens marked out, right?”

“Y-Yeah. I think Autumn Night may have that.”

“An’ a way to get into the armory?”

She nodded, looking dazed.

“Alright. We do that and then we get out,” said Applejack as she trotted out the room. “This place disgusts me.”