//------------------------------// // Chapter Seven: Breaking The Promise // Story: The Crusade For Love // by JPTrixie-Fan //------------------------------// Several hours had passed since the incident at the cave and the Crusaders were glad to have found their way out of it. Scootaloo was the first out being lucky enough to get lost nearer the opening of the cave; she waited for over an hour for her friends to navigate the labyrinthine darkness of the cave with her hooves fidgeting frantically in panic the entire time. It took quite a while for Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle to find the correct rout to the surface, but finally after what felt like eternity their eyes were stabbed by the harsh light of day; as soon as they’d emerged Sweetie Belle ran to the panicked orange filly and hugged her in relief. Of course Scootaloo didn’t know the real reason that Sweetie was so happy to see her, she was just happy to see her friends were alright. *** After they’d returned to their clubhouse the Crusaders sat talking about their next scheme to get their cutie marks, or rather Scootaloo was talking; the others were still dwelling on the events in the cave. Apple Bloom remained silent while the orange filly rambled on; in truth she was far too distracted by what she’d witnessed earlier, Sweetie Belle terrified and crying in the darkness while she begged for whatever twisted visions plagued her to cease. Sweetie Belle was also silent as the orange filly talked away unaware of the sombre atmosphere that hung over her friends. She hadn’t stopped shaking since she’d left the cave and her eyes were still sore from the tears that once filled them; almost as if to cut Apple Bloom deeper it seemed that Sweetie Belle had started to feel better around Scootaloo. Apple Bloom sighed and started to slowly inch her way out of the clubhouse door. “Why am Ah such a fool…” With that thought still stabbing at her heart she took one last look at the white filly and stepped outside. The wind blew through her red mane as she stood on the clubhouse’s balcony; her chest hurt and her eyes began to well with tears. Apple Bloom couldn’t stop thinking about Sweetie Belle or rather she couldn’t stop thinking about Sweetie’s feelings for Scootaloo and how much she was prepared to pay in her crusade for the orange filly’s affection; once again her chest tightened at the thought and she let out a soft sob. “Darnit, Sweetie… why couldn’t… why couldn’t it have been me…” *** The night was bitterly chilled as Sweetie Belle made her way home by the glow of the street lamps, the wind howled through the trees and cut her shaking body to the bone causing her to shudder and wrap her forelegs around herself in an attempt to warm her freezing flesh. As Sweetie stroked her fur for warmth she thought back to the incident at the cave and how thankful she was that Scootaloo wasn’t there to witness it. Suddenly, the wind stopped and the streets fell into a deafly silence that swallowed all sound so as not to be disturbed by a single crushed leaf or scuff of hoof. ‘…Just give up…’ Silver’s voice came flooding into Sweetie’s mind like a malevolent whisper stretching her already horribly strained psyche to near it’s breaking point. “Please….” Sweetie sobbed. “Just… let me be…” ‘…Just give up…Give her to me….’ The voice was unrelenting in its torment of the terrified filly. Sweetie didn’t cry out again, instead she ran to the nearest building she recognised: Rarity’s boutique… *** Sweetie knew no one was home, she knew that she had no key, but she also knew that this was where the spell book was. That cursed spell book that she’d stolen from Twilight’s library was how she’d started all this and she figured that it must also have an end to it as well. Sweetie’s hoof crashed against the front door again and again until it was sore from the pain, but she didn’t care, she needed to get inside even if it meant breaking in through Rarity’s expensive window. ‘Break in through the window?’ She thought as her hoof slammed against the door; it was dangerous and she’d get in so much trouble, but it would be worth the cuts and bruises to get rid of Silver for good, right? ‘I’m sure Rarity will forgive me…’ she convinced herself as her hoof yet again crashed down on the heavy wooden door. After several moments of bashing at the door fruitlessly it was decided and Sweetie ran to the side window. Taking a deep breath she lifted her already sore hoof and slammed it against the glass; amazingly it didn’t break, but that didn’t deter her and she slammed against it harder and harder until it finally shattered with a loud crash. The window was a specially made one piece glass pane for Rarity’s shop and so when it broke it splintered into thousands of tiny razor sharp shards that came down in a glittering rain that cut and scratched Sweetie Belle deeply, but her psyche was so frayed that she didn’t care anymore. As Sweetie climbed in through the shattered window she felt every shard of glass embedded in her body, but the most noticeable wounds were on her right leg where she punched through the window; they were deep and the glass pieces were big so big that they left long trails of blood as they entered her flesh. “Ugh….” She winced as her right hoof touched the floor. ‘Give up!!!’ Silver screamed as Sweetie limped to the staircase. ‘I’ll never allow you to reach that book…’ Suddenly, Sweetie collapsed to the ground, but it didn’t feel like she was tripped. No, it felt like she’d been pushed; again she scrambled to her hooves only to be pushed to the ground once more. Sweetie looked around as she struggled to get up and her eyes went wide in horror as she caught sight of Rarity’s largest mirror or rather what was dragging itself free of the mirror. Impossibly it was Silver… Silver had crawled free of the mirror and was now making his way towards the weakened Sweetie Belle as she limped desperately towards the stairs. “AHHHHHHHHHHH!!” She screamed in panic as he drew ever closer to her. *** The cold night wind blew through the orchards of the farm causing the trees to rustle loudly with each movement; under normal circumstances this noise would keep anyone awake, but not the Apple family they were more than used to this by now. Apple Bloom however couldn’t sleep, but for a very different reason; every time she closed her eyes she saw Sweetie’s crying face as she swatted at an invisible aggressor. “She was so distraught and helpless when she was in that cave, how could Ah let her go home alone after that?” Apple Bloom said with a sigh, she knew she had to make sure Sweetie Belle was alright and she couldn’t sleep until she was sure she was safe. Apple Bloom slipped out of her bed and headed downstairs, being careful to avoid every obstacle so as not to wake her family as she slipped out into the night. *** Long after the other two had left the clubhouse Scootaloo snuck back to think about a few things she had on her mind; most of the things on her mind were just ways to get cutie marks, but there were a couple of other, more important things too. Those last thoughts were mostly about Silver; she hadn’t heard from him in a few days and she was starting to get anxious as to how he felt about her. She sat at the table in the clubhouse and slumped down placing her head on the table. “….” She sighed and closed her eyes. “Maybe he’s just been busy?” Again Scootaloo sighed and sat up; she knew she had to get her mind off of Silver or she’d go crazy, but what to do? She thought about several games she could play, but they all needed an opponent; finally, she opened the drawer in front of her and started searching for something, anything to distract her. The drawer was filled with sweets, a few loose pens and a curiously crumpled piece of paper that looked like it had been torn from a journal; normally she would have just ignored it and looked in another drawer, but for some unknown reason she was fixated on it. ‘it won’t hurt if I take a look’ Scootaloo thought as she picked out the crumpled note and gently pulled it open being careful to avoid tearing it as she did; a lot of the words scrawled on the paper had been rubbed away and were poorly written, but the few sentences that were left looked like they were all in Sweetie Belle’s writing. ‘I can’t believe how well this is going…. Scootaloo… doesn’t know I’m Silver…. I feel bad that I can’t… love her…’ These were the only clear words; the others were so horribly rubbed out that they’d torn the page slightly as they were erased. “Wait…. What does she mean?!” Scootaloo couldn’t believe what she’d just read; Sweetie was Silver all along? She was in love with her? If that was true she’d have to let her down easy; she was her friend after all and it’s not like fillies can date other fillies. She took a deep breath and slumped to the table with her head resting on her front hooves. “She’s probably already asleep I’ll go visit her tomorrow and clear all this up…” she sighed and continued looking at the note as if trying to read the gaps for the missing words. *** Despite how late it was Apple Bloom still found her self knocking on Sweetie Belle’s front door in hopes of speaking with her friend; she knocked over and over in desperation until finally the door was answered by a large white stallion with a brown moustache. “Oh hey there, you’re Sweetie’s friend right? What brings you out here so late?” he said as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “Ah’m sorry to bug ya’ll at this time o’ night but can I talk to Sweetie Belle?” Apple Bloom asked politely as she looked at the stallion. “Sure I guess…” he said before turning to face the staircase. “Sweetie! Sweetie!!” There was no answer… He turned to face the yellow filly again. “Sorry, I’ll go get her…” and with that he ascended the stairs to Sweetie Belle’s room. A few seconds passed in silence, but then Apple Bloom heard Sweetie’s father yell in panic. “She’s not in her bed!!” Suddenly, Apple Bloom felt a twinge of fear flash through her and before Sweetie’s father could run back down to tell her, she was gone. “Where could she be?” Apple Bloom thought aloud as she galloped to the only other place she could think of: Rarity’s boutique. *** “Stop! Go away!!” Sweetie screamed as she limped up the stairs towards her room with Silver in close pursuit. She could feel his hoof scratching her hind leg with each step until suddenly, she tripped or rather she was pulled down on the stairs as Silver tried to stop her from getting to her room. The glass in her right leg dug into the carpeted steps causing her wounds to worsen and cover the carpet in large trails of blood as she desperately struggled to free herself from Silver’s grip. ‘I’m not going to let you have her!!’ Silver yelled and dragged her further down the stairs as the glass shards in her fur continued to dig into her skin. Sweetie cried as Silver struck her with several hard punches, but despite the pain she was in she still managed to summon enough strength to push him away. Sweetie struggled back to her hooves and inched her way up the steps again; her right leg burned in agony as her weight shifted with each step, she knew she had to endure the pain for if she didn’t she would die at Silver’s hoof. Her victory was short lived however as Silver once again caught up with her and tore her back down the stairs causing her to fall awkwardly; luckily she landed on the soft carpet that lined the floor that led from the hallway to the living room. *** Apple Bloom was tired; her chest hurt with every breath she drew, her legs were sore and felt like lead weights as she galloped through the pitch black streets that led to the Carousal Boutique, but no matter how fatigued she was she pressed on because she knew that Sweetie needed help. She slowed to a walk as she drew closer to the fashion shop; the outside was shrouded in the pitch darkness of Luna’s night, it looked peaceful as if no one was in. Apple Bloom sighed and turned around to walk away. “Ah guess she ain’t here after all…” Just then, a loud smash echoed from inside the darkened boutique and Apple Bloom began running back towards the noise without a moment’s hesitation. As she stepped closer she felt the shards of glass on the floor crunch beneath her hooves; the sounds of a desperate struggle grew louder with each step she took until finally, Apple Bloom found herself staring into the boutique as a lone white figure slammed against a nearby bookcase. “Arrrgh…” Sweetie cried in pain as Silver slammed her against the surrounding bookcases and ornaments in an attempt to slow her assent to her bedroom. Silver had gotten a lot more aggressive in his desperation to stop his counterpart, going so far as pulling Sweetie’s hair out in large tangled clumps before throwing her into Rarity’s tall mirror; the mirror shattered into hundreds of sharp pieces and the frame collapsed as Sweetie was hurled through it. Apple Bloom had climbed through the shattered window as quickly as she could to help her friend up off the glass covered ground before she could hurt herself again; in truth she knew why Sweetie threw herself into the mirror, it was because of him. Apple Bloom had seen it before in the cave mere hours ago; Sweetie’s expression, her pain and self harm all caused by her alternate persona and now he was attacking her again. The worst part of all was that she didn’t know how to help her friend, how could she save her from herself? Sweetie cried as Apple Bloom approached; no longer seeing her as her friend, but rather as a tangible avatar of Silver slowly stalking forward menacingly. She struggled to draw breath as she recoiled from Silver’s terrifying silhouette; her body ached and stung from the many wounds that were now staining her formerly white coat. “Pl…Please…. Stop…” Her body shuddered with each painful gasp as she dragged herself closer to the stair case once more. “Sweetie… it’s… me Apple Bloom…” The yellow filly began, her voice quivering with sadness as she watched the filly she loved put herself through agony in an attempt to flee upstairs. Apple Bloom didn’t understand, she couldn’t understand; she watched impotently as Sweetie struggled to stand once again. Sweetie struggled with every step, but she wasn’t going to let Silver stop her from reaching that book; her leg was raw with agony and her vision had become blurred by the tears that now flooded from her eyes. She was almost at the top, every step making her wince in pain as she shifted her weight; finally she reached the last step, her heart raced with adrenaline as she picked up the pace and drew closer to her room. It was almost over, dear Celestia it was almost over… Just then, her eyes went wide and she froze in terror. There, in the doorway to her room she could see it; Silver was dragging himself free of the large fashion mirror in desperation just as he’d done before. Silver snarled with bestial aggression as he scrambled towards the terrified filly; whatever threats he was yelling were lost beneath the primal growls as he lunged towards Sweetie like a rabid beast about to tear its helpless prey asunder. Apple Bloom raced up the stairs after her friend only to find her yet again being thrown into nearby ornaments by an unseen aggressor; she rushed to Sweetie’s aide, but she was kicked away as Sweetie struggled to free herself from the imaginary grip of her persona. Again Sweetie flailed in desperation in an attempt to swat away Silver; she felt the blow hit something. Her blow did hit something, but it wasn’t Silver; no, in realty it was Apple Bloom who’d yet again tried to help Sweetie despite the way she recoiled from her. As Sweetie’s hoof connected with Apple Bloom’s muzzle the glass embedded in her leg slashed through the yellow filly’s cheek and she fell backwards crying in pain. “Sweet… Sweetie… Snap outta it please…” Apple Bloom begged and rose to her hooves once more. Sweetie stumbled a few steps further towards her bedroom before collapsing just short; she was hyperventilating and bleeding from scores of wounds all over her small, shaking body, but for now at least she wasn’t causing herself anymore harm. Apple Bloom rushed to her friend’s side and pulled her close; she was trembling as Apple Bloom cradled her, her normally well groomed pink and purple mane was now a tangled, sullied mess of blood and glass shards. A few tears fell from Apple Bloom’s sore green eyes that were now bloodshot from tiredness; she heaved a sigh and ran her hoof gently along Sweetie’s fur being careful not to disturb any of the glass that was embedded in her skin. It was almost too unreal; how could this happen to somepony? Again Apple Bloom sighed and rubbed her tired eyes; now the adrenaline had started to fade she could feel the deep cut on her cheek again. The cut stung, but not as badly as the pain in her heart; the pain of knowing that no matter what she did she couldn’t save her friend from the monster inside her mind. Apple Bloom knew Sweetie couldn’t hear her, but she felt that she had to tell her that she was going to break her promise. “Sweetie… Ah know ya made me promise not to tell anypony, but… but… Ah gotta tell somepony, Ah can’t watch ya kill yaself…” she took a deep breath and leant down to place a kiss on Sweetie’s forehead. “So… Ah’ll trade ya a secret for a secret; Sweetie Belle… Ah… Ah love ya…” Just as the confession fell from her lips Apple Bloom heard a scream from outside and the lights of the boutique flickered to life; the sudden brightness stung Apple Bloom’s already sore eyes and she winced in pain as the voices from outside drew closer. “What in Equestria happened here!?” Rarity yelled in surprise as she stepped into her beloved boutique that looked as if it had been struck by a tornado. Fluttershy trailed meekly behind her trying to avoid the glass that was scattered throughout the ransacked boutique; then, among the sounds of crunching glass and Rarity’s melodramatics she noticed blood stains heading up the staircase and a faint sob coming from the floor above. “Who… Who’s there?” She quizzed trying to sound as brave as she could; she was met with another soft sob as she drew closer to the steps. Rarity rushed past Fluttershy holding her frying pan aloft with her magic as a primitive weapon; she galloped up the stairs ready to deliver punishment on whatever ruffian had decided to vandalise her beautiful shop, but instead of a vandal she was met with a scene of horror. Apple bloom looked up at the white mare with tears streaming down from her eyes as she cradled her badly injured friend. “Please… Help her…” with that Apple Bloom finally leant back against the wall and drifted into a deep sleep…