//------------------------------//
// Chapter 3: Cellardoor 
// Story: Metro: Retribution 
// by RF and AG 
//------------------------------//

	A/N: My editor and I decided to change the formatting around. From here on out, all physical actions will be typed regularly while all inner musings and monologue will be in italics. [Edited on 31/10/13 - Removing the italics from all chapters from this point onward. I want a universal look to it.]




The night had not been kind to me. Sleeping fitfully through the night as I relived memories. Why? Why was I reliving these memories, what made them so important? Khan had told me many things, some more important than the events of that one night. So, what made these memories so important? Locking myself in the shelter should give me enough time to think. One thing I knew for certain, I wasn't leaving this place without a fresh set of filters.





Cellardoor





Perspective: Artyom




I found myself in a situation so bizarre, that only a dreamer with one hell of an imagination could create it. Here I was, holding a pastel yellow winged pony in a headlock while pointing my revolver at a purple one, though with the addition of a horn. To add the sheer ridiculousness of this situation, the ‘ponies’ could apparently talk. Maybe this was all just an odd dream or a hallucination. That would actually make sense in this entire situation. That, or I did die at D6 and this is just some sort of messed up afterlife. Either way, there was no way to avoid this confrontation, so maybe playing along would be for the best. Perhaps I could get something out of this. I started to refocus on the beings in the room now, from the sound of their voices earlier, they were also female. And it seemed that they could talk in English.

So there I was, sitting against the wall, with a crying yellow pony in a headlock and my revolver pointed at a purple pony.

The purple pony was visibly trembling. I was almost shaking myself. Never had I taken a hostage like this; this was only something the damnable Reds or the Nazis did. I had no choice but to continue, as I didn’t know what they might be capable of doing. My voice had been demanding towards the purple pony at first, a growl seemingly escaped my lips without me realizing it. Yet here I was in unknown territory, likely on a different planet, and maybe even universe. I had to get back in case those damn Reds hadn't been finished off at D6, and I had no intention of being wrapped up in a foreign country's bureaucratic red tape or treated as a POW. I had taken action and there was no turning back from the path I had chosen now.

“I said, how did you do that?!” I spoke in a slow and punctuated manner.

The purple pony spoke in response to my question, “t-that was m-magic.”

I scoffed at that statement, she didn’t react so it was obvious she couldn’t see my face well. It was hidden behind the gas mask. Only the protective glass let her see any trace of my face. My eyes kept a cold and unforgiving glare at her. There was no point in wearing the gas mask anymore, my helmet shielded my face as it was. Every filter I had was useless now. I kept up my stare at her as I kept my revolver leveled at her head. I had no time to trade pleasantries with this pony, nor tell her magic didn’t exist. I had to get out of here and the only way to do that would be to get new filters.

With my left arm still wrapped around the neck of the quivering yellow pony, I lowered my revolver to my side. I slowly holstered the revolver and instead reached into a pouch just above it. It was where I kept my used filters. Most of the inexperienced people who went out scavenging just threw them away, but I knew how valuable they could be, or even vital, for someone in my occupation. It was simple to make a filter from them, with the right material and the knowledge needed on the manufacturing and assembly of one, of course.

I started to pull out the filter, noticing that the purple pony had visibly shrunk away from me, as if to remove any consideration of her being threat, likely trying to not give me and reason to carry out my threats against her fellow pony. Her eyes were clenched closed as if she was straining to stop looking at me. It was obvious before that she was scared, but now it was apparent just how scared she was. There was no time to contemplate that though.

“Take this,” I said as I under hand tossed the filter in her direction. It bounced twice against the concrete flooring before landing next to her hooves. She tentatively looked at the filter at her hooves. A weird mystic glow encased it. The purple glow caught me off guard, forcing me to quickly whip out my revolver again. In a fraction of a second her eyes shrank to pinpricks followed by dropping herself on the floor at my mercy. Her body was shaking erratically while her front legs were moved to cover her eyes, not wanting to see her life end. Her fear of me was only hindering my chances at escaping.

“Up,” I said without the typical growl in my voice, trying to be comforting, despite my own precarious position as the aggressive negotiator. For a few moments, she continued to cower on the ground. Slowly though, her body’s shaking calmed down and she found enough strength to bring her up to all fours. It was obvious enough, by her shaky legs and shrunken eyes, that her fear was still prevalent. I motioned with my revolver to the filter, silently ordering her to take it again.

“W-what is it?” Her question came out only slightly louder than a whisper as her...aura encompassed the filter again.

“Gas mask filter. Can you remake it?!” I kept up my demanding tone of voice.

She manipulated the filter in her... aura. After a few revolutions in the air, she noticed that it was welded shut down the center. She looked it over a few times, not sure what to do exactly. It was if she never seen one before. Surely she must have seen something like it before.

“A- a filter?” She asked hesitantly all the while slowly turning the filter in her aura. She seemed to be on edge, as if she expected it blow up in her face.

“Yes. A gas mask filter. Used to filter air.”

She stopped turning the filter around, instead opting to stare at it with a curious look in her eyes. She had to have seen something like that before, how would someone work with dangerous stuff if they had no filters? Everyone from the Metro, even those who never went outside knew what a filter was. Maybe, these things didn’t have the need for them. If that was the case then I was done for.

“I- I know what a f- filter is...” her voice trailed off. That was one thing less to worry about.

Maybe we used the same type of filters, who knows? The filters that the gas mask used were a typical activated charcoal type of filter. This meant that the filter contained charcoal that was treated with oxygen, and many other types of organic material, in order to allow air to flow through millions of little pores in between the carbon atoms. There was one precursor filter and one following the charcoal. The precursor was an aerosol type of filter, where it collected the large particles. This was made up of a collection of woven glass fibres that worked as a primary screen. Then came a layer of activated charcoal and finally the charcoal dust filter. It was another rendition of the first part of the filter but instead it was just a screen that had miniscule enough openings to hold back the carbon particles. Made to pick up any dust that made it through. If they had the same type of filters than there was no problem. If they didn’t use the same type then I was, as some said, shit out of luck.

“Can you replace filters?” I repeated.

She shook her head quickly, “I don’t know w- what’s inside.”

I sighed under my mask before glaring at her, I would not sit here and explain how they worked to this pony. “Да плевать я хотел, not my problem. Open one up when gone. Don’t care how, but replace these.”

She nodded her head meekly at my instructions. If it wasn’t clear enough to her that she needed to succeed, than there was nothing more I could say.

I, once again, holstered my revolver. Instead of reaching into the pouch this time, I loosened the strap buckle beside it. I worked the strap out of the buckle all the while looking at the purple pony who was staring intently at me. Once the strap was completely off, I removed the bag from around my body and tossed it at the pony.

“Replace each filter. I keep your friend hostage till they are back. She will die if you are stupid to try something, I will kill her if you go to police.”

Her eyes bulged again, but this time there were tears welled up along the bottom eyelids. The yellow one was still quiet, almost like she was in a catatonic state. There were wet marks along my arm though, probably from where her tears hit. Nearly all her fur, under the eyes, was matted down. With my armor on, I had not been able to notice the tears streaming down her cheeks and onto my arm. Her eyes were completely closed, squeezed tight in an attempt to hide from this situation. The trembling being in my arms was a contrast to her friend. The purple pony was standing stock still, frozen in shock, while her friend was nearly openly weeping.

“Get going! Резче!” I yelled at her. This broke her out of her shock quick enough to scurry up the steps. With the bag carried in her...magic, she quickly opened the door, left, and then slammed it closed. Whatever she did to light up the room was still working. That was a blessing to the day. Otherwise, it had been complete hell.

Not as much for me, but more for the ponies.

My arm loosened its grip around the yellow pony. She slipped from leaning against my body and fell silently to the floor. Almost instantly she curled up into a fetal position in the corner of the room. Choked sobs wracking her body, making it seem as though she was shivering. I moved slightly from my position, to a kneeling position over top of her. Her sobs were becoming more apparent to me now, her body was shaking slightly.

“Ну слава Богу; do not worry little pony. If your friend does what I told her, then nothing will happen to you. This wasn’t something I wanted either.”

There was a hint of emotion behind that statement. I had to admit, these ponies looked so innocent and here I was, taking away that innocence. My heart broke a little as she nodded, all the while continuing to cry. I didn’t want to have to kill this one, it would be like me trying to kill the Little One. I winced at the thought; just thinking about it was enough to hurt.

So there I knelt, my body over top of the yellow pony, my mind racing through outcomes to this day. All thoughts though came down to one. A small prayer that the purple one followed my instructions.




~~~~~


(Earlier that morning)



Perspective: Twilight Sparkle




“Twi! You got a letter from the Princess.” Spike called out from the kitchen. He knew that I was basically inept at cooking, even with all the magic I knew. In fact, I had somehow caused the dishes to catch fire... while cleaning them. So, Spike was put on kitchen duty for every meal just because of the possibility that I would burn the whole tree down. That kitchen fire I started back in the Castle still haunted me and if that happened in the library... I shuddered. He was still wearing his apron as he walked out of the kitchen with the scroll in claw.

I gave a small chuckle as he made his way over to my desk, “What would I do without you, Spike?”

“Probably starve,” he said as he placed the scroll on my desk. “So, what does it say? Is it about last night? ‘Cause that was a lot of noise coming from the Everfree.”

I unrolled the scroll with my magic. My magenta aura surrounding it and straightening it out in front of me, close enough so that the content of the letter becoming easily discernable. I gave a small instinctive cough to clear my throat before reading the letter.

“Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle,” I started with a roll of my eyes. She always loved teasing me about the whole Princess thing after I got coronated. “After reading your report about the commotion coming from the Everfree, I have decided to send a small guard squad to take a look into the matter. It should be of no issue and I would advise that you not let it bother you. After all, you have much bigger things to worry about, such as your new Princess duties.” I chuckled a bit at that; she knew that I had no duties aside from continuing to help around Ponyville and furthering my studies. “Remember that Luna and I are going to visit Ponyville next week, but, please, do not make a big deal about it. We just need some small time off from the nonsense that the nobles have been creating. We cannot wait to see you. Sincerely, Princess Celestia.”

I stared briefly at the scroll before rolling it up and setting it on the desk. “You see Spike, there is nothing to worry about. Everything will be fine.”

“Gee Twilight, you sure have been calm since you became a Princess.”

I smiled as I trotted towards a nearby bookshelf. “What Cadance taught me back when we had to greet the Equestria Games inspector really helped. If she hadn’t helped me calm down, then I would no doubt be panicking at all of this.”

“Yeah, we wouldn’t want another ‘smarty pants’ incident.” My ears flattened hard against my head, as my eyes shrank to near pinpricks. That whole incident was a horrible reminder of how badly I could react. I tried to take a shaky step forward, but nearly tripped over my own legs. I stumbled a few more steps before finding my balance. I quickly turned my head to see if Spike saw that, but he had slipped back to the kitchen. Finally, I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I had been holding.

“Yeah... wouldn’t want another one of those,” I mumbled under my breath as I grabbed the book I had been looking for, Philosophies of Practicing Elemental Magic. I had come to the realization a few days ago that I needed to learn more Elemental magic, because I in fact knew nearly nothing about that discipline of magic. If I was going to be a proper Princess of Equestria, then I needed to learn every type of magic possible. This meant more studying into the nights once again. Something I found enjoyable to an extent, but I did want to see my friends today.

I had to follow my list though, the list was key to making sure I do have time to spend with my friends. I mean, today was a rather open day, with little to do aside from study and practice the magic itself. What could possibly come up that would stop me from this?

As if on cue, I heard the front door to the library open up. My ears perked up and focused on the hoof steps behind me. They came to a stop somewhere behind me, which made me curious as to who it was. A normal patron would ask if the Librarian was in, and one of my friends would have spoken up, so trying to guess who it was would be impossible.

Without closing the book, I hoped off the seat and turned to find a very familiar pastel yellow pegasus waiting behind me. My brows lifted in surprise to find my friend standing behind me patiently, “Fluttershy! I didn’t expect you to come in today. How are you doing?”

I smiled warmly at my friend, it was a pleasant surprise to see her in the library at this time. Usually they knew I stuck to a schedule pretty strictly. Though, admittedly, I was getting better at being flexible, especially when it came to fitting in my friends. Still, it was odd for Fluttershy to come by; there must be something she needed help with.

“Oh, hi Twilight. I was just... um... wondering if you could help me with something, I mean if you’re not busy that is...” Fluttershy slightly hid behind her bangs and seemed to cower away. Even around her friends Fluttershy was sometimes too timid for her own good. I gave a small giggle at the thought.

“Oh, I’m not busy at all Fluttershy. I can finish my reading anytime really.” I quickly grabbed a bookmark out of a drawer in the desk and marked my place in the book. My magic slowly closed the book so not to wrinkle any of the pages and pushed it to the corner of the desk. “What can I help you with?”

“Well... um... Barry, the bear, needed some fish for lunch, so I went to the cellar where I kept the food. I don’t keep the doors locked, but when I tried to open them, they wouldn’t move.” Fluttershy sounded a little worried, as if she was sure that something was in there.

“Did you get Barry to try and open them?” I inquired, since I bet that bear was strong enough to open the doors to the cellar.

“Actually... no. I just... um... scrounged some leftovers for him and a- apologized. He was fine with it and left after but... I still need to get into the cellar. So I was wondering if you could help me open it... If it’s alright with you, that is.” Fluttershy trailed off quickly.

I gave a quick smile at her, “Of course I’ll help, Fluttershy, but why not Rainbow or AJ?”

“I umm... didn’t want to disturb Rainbow Dash from her nap, and AJ just looked so busy!” She quickly fired off her answer, as if she was under interrogation.

“Don’t worry Fluttershy, I’m not mad or anything. Though what about Rarity? I doubt she could refuse to help you.”

“Oh I w- would have but I couldn’t f- find her at her home. There was... um... just a sign that said closed.”

That’s right, Rarity said she had to go to Canterlot for the next few days. Something about a shipment she needed to check on. That didn’t matter though.

“How come she couldn’t open the door?” I wondered aloud. Something was off about this whole situation. Well, at least it felt off, for all I knew it could just be some damaged hinges. If that was the case then I couldn’t really help Fluttershy. If it was something else though, then maybe I could.

“Um... Twilight?” Fluttershy’s meek voice broke me out of my inner musings.

“Oh! Sorry, Fluttershy,” I said with a small embarrassed blush forming upon my cheeks. “Let’s head over there.”

A small smile formed on her face as she gave me a nod. We trotted back to the door, Fluttershy leading the way. I turned my head back to the library and called out for Spike. “Spike! I’m going to help Fluttershy. Don’t forget your chores!”

A small grumble was all I got, which elicited a slight giggle from me. My magic flared again as I closed the door, turning to find that Fluttershy was waiting a few meters from the library. I moved towards her, before extending my new wings. I could hear a small pop come from the right one. This forced a small moan to escape my lips.

I snapped my wings to my sides. I smiled sheepishly at Fluttershy, who had a hoof over her mouth covering a small giggle. “Sorry Fluttershy, I needed to stretch them out. I keep forgetting that I have to move them more than my legs.”

“Oh, it’s no problem Twilight. I understand.”

Fluttershy was always so kind. That, of course, was made even more obvious when she got the Element of Kindness. There was not a single muscle in her body that was capable of hate or disdain; a true friend for everyone.

Our walk through Ponyville was rather routine for us, thus I paid little attention to it, but maybe that was because my mind couldn’t stop thinking about who or what had sealed Fluttershy’s door. I was so focused on that topic, that I didn’t even realize I was having a conversation with Fluttershy. My own subconscious was doing the talking for me. She was talking about Rarity... or was it Rainbow Dash? I honestly couldn’t remember as my mind was elsewhere.

“Twilight? We’re here.” I felt a hoof nudge my side, snapping me out of my thoughts. We were indeed in front of Fluttershy’s house. The animals outside were scurrying around; it was obvious by how they looked that Fluttershy took good care of them. Their fur was groomed neatly to perfection while their care free attitude could be spotted from a distance as they ran around, chasing each other in their forms of playing. As for the trees and plants around the house, the gleam of their leaves spoke volumes of how much attentive care Fluttershy showed them. And the house itself actually looked like it had been redone. The paint looked fresh, as well as the roof shingles. Windows glistened with the reflection of the sun. Wait, I remember her saying that AJ and Big Mac had helped to overhaul the house after that thunderstorm two weeks ago. Was I truly this scatter brained today?

“I’m sorry Fluttershy,” I said with an embarrassed blush, while shying away from her slightly, “I got so lost in my thoughts.”

I felt a hoof on my withers. I looked up to see Fluttershy was closer than before.“It’s okay, Twilight. Everypony does that now and then.”

I gave a small smile as my response. My confidence was coming back, as well as my focus on the task at hand. I gazed towards the path around the back of the house, motioning for Fluttershy to lead. She slowly lead us around the back of her house on a well kept stone path.

It wasn’t often that ponies got the chance to fully explore where she lived. Being the shyest pony in all of Ponyville gave her minor reclusive tendencies. I had been back here once, but I never had I seen this cellar that she had. So it came as a surprise to see a rather large angled doorway, surrounded by a brick base, up against the back of her house. Maybe I had been oblivious to it in the past, just like that shed over there! I wonder what was inside...

My mind though was instantly brought back to the cellar as we stopped in front of it. I have never had a good history of dealing with cellar doors. Not that I hate them, I just don’t trust them. I could probably start calling myself the Trixie of cellars. Maybe the wheels and the cellar were working against us. That caused a small giggle to escape my lips. If I ever see her again, I am definitely bringing that up.

She came to a quick halt right in front of the cellar door. Fluttershy hid behind her mane, as her hoof gently tapped the door and even tried to open it herself, wind whipping about as she beat her beautiful pastel yellow wings, as she gave one more attempt at opening it. "I make sure to keep the hinges well oiled, since sometimes I take care of nocturnal critters, and I'd just feel ever so awful if the my other critter friends were to wake up because of creaky hinges, so I'm positive that the hinges aren't what's preventing me from opening the door to my cellar." She explained, between gasps, having exerted herself mightily in one last effort of sparing me any perceived inconveniences on my part.

I responded with a quick nod towards her, before analyzing the door itself. The metal was slightly worn away. A gunmetal grey colour had once furnished it but now had small chips all over the door. It had two panels that comprised the actual door. One on each side with two corresponding hinges. If opened, the door would swing outwards, revealing its own little treasure cove. There wasn’t a lock holding the handles on the front shut, so maybe it was just stuck; Applejack often complained of rusted hinges at the barn.

So I figured that a little bit of magic might be able to pull the door open. My horn flared up with my magenta aura as I grasped the exterior handles with my magic. A quick pull of my magic was all I thought I needed. Yet, there stood the door, still closed. I pulled with my magic again, but it hardly budged. My eyes narrowed as I stalked closer to the door. I was determined to open this door, even if I had to destroy it. That, of course, would be a last option.

I, once again, started to analyze the door itself, making a mental note that the hinges were not rusty. One option was down the drain already, so my next plan of action was to test another theory on this door. My magic started up again as it gripped the door. My eyes were carefully paying attention to the crack down the middle of the door. As I pulled with my magic, I noticed that something was indeed wedge between the inside handles. Odd to say the least.

“It would seem that something on the inside is holding the doors back. A bar of some sort. Any idea Fluttershy?”

Her ears perked up before flattening in a defensive posture. It was almost as if she was ashamed of something, “Well, I do have... um... a crowbar... in there.”

This forced me to raise an eyebrow. “A crowbar? May I ask why?”

A pink blush started to show itself on her cheeks, “Well, I was um having some minor... um... troubles opening some of my... um... shipments for the animals.”

As to why she would be embarrassed because of that, I had no clue. Sure, it was odd to try and picture our timid ‘Shy wielding a crowbar, but I did see her basically wrestle a bear. A small smile and shake of my head was all I could give in response to her. She was definitely something else.

“I’m just going to simply remove the crowbar once I can see it.” I didn’t even bother to see if Fluttershy nodded or not, my entire focus being on the door. This door was going to open. So, once again, I started my magic up, my horn as well as the door being encased in that all too familiar magenta glow. I gave a strong tug on the door, which was just enough to spot the crowbar there. Quickly, I reached out with another sect of my magic and grabbed the crowbar. With it under my hold, I maneuvered it out of the door handles as best as I could, before letting it fall from my magical grip.

I turned my head to look at Fluttershy, “There we are! I just wonder who could have put it there. Probably just a few young colts looking to play a trick.”

Fluttershy gently trotted over to me and wrapped me in a quick hug, “Thanks, Twilight! I knew you could do it.”

I smiled sheepishly as she walked past me and opened the door. The curiosity of what was inside got the better of me as I moved to the edge of the door. If it wasn’t for the door being open, there would have been no light whatsoever. How Fluttershy could even see what she was grabbing was a mystery upon me. I was snapped back from my speculation when I heard Fluttershy’s hoof clop down the staircase. She turned her head to look back at me.

“You can come down if you want, Twilight.”

I gave a nervous grin, that incident with the cellar at the Apple Orchard had given me a bad impression of the things. “Umm, you know what. Sure.”

My shaky voice didn’t slip past Fluttershy though. She was still turned to face me and looked a little bit timid at being so bold beforehand. Her eyes were downcast as mumbled out,  “You um don’t have to, if... if you don’t want t - eekk!”

She was cut off though as something massive and black wrapped itself around her neck and dragged her towards the back of the cellar. I had no time to react before a loud and booming voice bellowed out.

"Закрывай дверь и бегом сюда!"

A spike of fear was sent down my spine. I had no clue what those words meant but the sheer ferocity and hostility behind them scared me to no ends. I stood stock still at the entrance way.

“Я сказал сюда вали!" Boomed out from the darkness, followed by a quick couple of coughs. I had no time to reply or even think before the voice continued. “Ебучие мутанты-англичане, мать их растак! Close door now and try nothing! If you try something, I’ll kill her! Бегом!”

Fear encased my entire body. All I could do was listen to this thing, out of safety for Fluttershy. I listened to the monster and closed the doors, as I stepped inside the cellar. Once the door closed, there was no light. Just sheer blackness, yet somehow I knew that this thing could see in it. That just scared me even more. I was breathing in short and quick gasps, nearly hyperventilating at that point. My ears laid flat against my skull, as I was both terrified of, and hated, this monster who had taken my one of my best friends hostage. A cold sweat trickled down my pelt and forehead as my heart thudded in my chest like the rapping of a woodpecker pecking at a tree. It sounded so loud in my ears, I was certain that this monster was surely hearing it too. I trembled and shivered, as my mind whirled with a maelstrom of thoughts, as I froze, wanting to save Fluttershy, and not wanting to antagonize the monster in any way.

My mind went entirely blank. No plans to help her. No analyzing of what this could be. I just stood in the darkness, waiting for the next order so it wouldn’t hurt Fluttershy. I could hear her small sobs escaping from a corner at the back of cellar. I had no idea which one. I wanted to illuminate the area, but the risk of angering the creature was too high.

“Can you light the room? Answer me!” The voice was demanding, but there was a small tinge of something in its voice. Fear maybe? I couldn’t dwell on it. I had to give it an answer.

“Y-yes.” It was all I could manage to squeak out at that moment.

“Do it now!”

I nodded with an audible gulp. Sweat was starting to pour down from my forehead, legs shaking so hard I was barely able to stand. I couldn’t give into this fear. I swallowed again, this time with a little renewed vigor. If the only way to help Fluttershy was to cooperate, then I must. I closed my eyes hard. A shaky aura encased my horn as I cast a light spell into the room.

“Что за хуета?! How did you do that?! How did you do that?!” The beast screamed at me with a powerful voice.

I opened my right eye only a crack. What I saw, though, was beyond terrifying. A beast of the likes I have never read of. Even Sombra didn’t have the same aura of horror surrounding him. And whatever this thing was, it had something pointed directly at me. Whatever it was, I didn’t intend to find out what it did.