//------------------------------// // Panic in the market // Story: Homecoming // by seeker9709 //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash stared out of her window looking out over Canterlot. At the same time she listened intently to the hushed words spoken outside of her room by Fluttershy and Scootaloo. “Scootaloo.” Fluttershy began quietly, though not quiet enough to escape the trained ears of Rainbow Dash. “Something is wrong with Rainbow Dash.” The cyan pegasus was stunned. 'Nothing is wrong with me. I had a bad dream and have trouble sleeping. There's nothing wrong.' Her attention was brought back to the pair outside by their hushed tones. “I’m going to get Princess Luna. I need you to stay here and watch her. If she does anything; tries to leave, gets too close to your, or acts odd in any way, I want you to run. Do you understand?” Rainbow slumped against the wall. 'Run? Why should Scoots run? I wouldn't hurt or scare her. Ever. Do they think I'm some sort of monster? I protect them. Not hurt them.' “But whats going on? What's wrong with Rainbow Dash?” Scootaloo asked, her voice quivering slightly. Fluttershy spoke, but her voice sounded distant. “I'll explain once I get back with the princess. Just try your best to keep her here, Scootaloo.” Something was different with Fluttershy. She was serious and... a little scared. But why? Rainbow was fine. Just a bad dream. And why was she getting the princess? If it was bad, surely they didn't need Luna? “That’s right.” A voice whispered. She looked around the room, but there was nopony there. “You haven't done anything wrong. They're not worried about you. They're not concerned or scared. They want to control you. They think you're dangerous and rash. Like a child throwing a temper tantrum.” The voice said, dripping with malevolence. It was chilling, and yet... it filled her with confidence. It sounded so familiar. “Wh-who are you?” She asked breathlessly. The voice chuckled. “I am you, Rainbow. I'm a part of your mind. I help you see through the lies.” The words the voice spoke worming their way into her mind. Something came into view in front of her. A pony stood there. It took a moment to register who was in front of her. It was herself, an exact copy of Rainbow Dash. The same rainbow mane and cyan coat. The same daredevil smirk and confident military stance. She even wore the same bandages wrapped around her side, covering her burns. But there was one feature which separated the pair. Instead of her normal dark pink, the pony's eyes were milky black. Rainbow was stunned. Seeing her surprise, her copy's smile grew wider. “Are you scared? Don't be. I am nothing to be scared of. I'm trying to help you.” Something was off about this pony, Rainbow could tell. But her words sank into Rainbow. They felt wrong , but she ignored her feelings, only wanting to listen more. “That's right. Listen to me. Your nightmares aren't nightmares. What you see in your sleep is what is to come if she wins.” “But, that would mean...” Rainbow trailed off. The copy sensed her thoughts. “The world is a dark place, full of hurt and torment. But you can prevent it. You can save them from dying, from being corrupted and tormented. You can save everypony. You can stop Twilight. You can do it all by yourself. Prove to them you are the strongest. Prove to the-” “Rainbow?” A timid voice spoke. Suddenly the copy vanished. In its place was none other than Scootaloo. The small filly stared at Rainbow Dash with a terrified expression. Her mouth hung open and her eyes were full of fear. Suddenly the voice was forgotten. “Scootaloo?” Rainbow sat up. “Scoots, whats wrong?” Scootaloo's fear didn't go away. Her breathing picked up. “Rainbow?” She asked, slowly stepping backwards. “What's wrong with your eyes?” There was a silence between the pair. Rainbow and Scootaloo stared at each other for an agonizing amount of time. Suddenly Rainbow shot up from her position and ran to the small bathroom. She stared at the mirror for what seemed like an eternity at her milky black eyes. “What have you done to me?” She asked to herself. Suddenly her reflection came to life, smirking at her. “I have shown you what is to come, told you how to save them and bring a criminal to justice. This is what we can be together. We can rise up and defeat her. We can be faster than anypony for the rest of eternity. I can even teach you to live forever. All you must do is let me in. Let me join with your mind, and let us become one. Think of what we could do together.” The thought was attractive. Eternal life, growing stronger, growing faster. She could see it. She would be remembered for all of eternity. The Hero of Canterlot. The thoughts were delicious. “Rainbow?” Scootaloo stood outside the door, her look of fear now one of concern. Rainbow stared at the one she had grown to call sister. The way Scoots looked at her. She knew the answer to the choice. “No.” Her reflection froze for a moment, staring at her, shocked. “You would reject my generous offer? Why? Think of-” “I have thought about it.” She interrupted. “You tried to turn me against my family. Do you think I would fear them or they would fear me?” “Rainbow? Who are you talking to?” Scootaloo asked. But her words went unheard. “You can't make me believe that. Not for a minute. I know those eyes and that smile.” As she spoke, her words gave her confidence. She knew and believed that they were true. “You're not a part of my mind, demon. I won't fall for your poisonous words. She PUT you in my mind, and tried to turn it against me. So I say, NO.” She yelled at the mirror. The room went silent as Rainbow and her reflection glared at one another. The Rainbow inside the mirror gave her a menacing sneer before her black eyes melted away into their regular pink hue, signaling the departure of the demon. Rainbow stared at her reflection, not believing she had actually gone. After about a minute, she pried her gaze away from the mirror and met the eyes of the orange pegasus staring at her in confusion. Suddenly Rainbow's legs shook weakly beneath her. Without warning, they gave out underneath her. She tried to grab onto the edge of the sink, but to no avail as she collapsed against the side of the tub. Scootaloo quickly ran to her side, throwing her hooves around Rainbow's neck. “Big sis?” She asked breathlessly. “What just happened? Why were you talking to yourself? Are you okay? What's goin-” She was silenced by a warm and tired smile from Rainbow, followed by a hoof wrapping around the smaller pegasus in a hug. “Don't worry. I'm fine.” The two stayed together for a few moments which seemed to last forever. Rainbow's eyes felt heavy. Her struggle with her copy didn't take much, but her night without sleep seemed to be taking its toll. Slowly and happily she felt herself being lulled to sleep. Suddenly the smile was gone. Her hooves dropped to her sides as she sat straight up, almost knocking Scootaloo out of her lap. Her mind raced back to her fight with Twilight. What happened after she went unconscious... “Scootaloo.” Rainbow called, her voice cracking. The young pegasus looked up at her sister. “Y-yeah?” She said, unsure at Rainbow's almost instantaneous mood change. Rainbow was silent for a moment. “Could you go downstairs and grab me a glass of water, please?” Scootaloo still looked unsure. Rainbow met her eyes again. They say that the eyes are the window to the soul. That you can tell everything about a pony through their eyes. Their joys, their fears, their fortunes, their misfortunes. The eyes tell all, and they told Scootaloo far to much. Slowly the filly shrunk away from Rainbow. The cyan pegasus gave her a small smile of reassurance as she slowly exited the room. As soon as the orange filly had ducked out of the room, the smile vanished off of Rainbow's face. It was instead replaced by one of fury as she mumbled to herself, “Nice try.” The room was silent this time. Instead the voice was inside of her head, this she was sure of. “You think that was it? Prepare yourself, Commander.” A piercing pain went through Rainbow's head, causing her to shudder and convulse. Against her will, her wings gave a mighty flap, sending her flying out of the small bathroom and into the adjacent wall of her bedroom. She fought against her sporadic wings, hugging them against her stomach with her hooves to keep them down. But it was to no avail, as her limbs also kicked and flailed against her will. The pain in her head only grew as the dark voice laughed on. “It's adorable watching you struggle. You boast of being so powerful, and yet you can't even control your own mind. She is stronger than you, Commander Dash. You aren't even close to matching her in strength, will, or power. Admit your defeat.” The pain was so intense, Rainbow couldn't contain a scream from escaping her lips. She could hear Scootaloo calling to her followed by the pounding of hooves. Through the pain and tears which leaked from her eyes she desperately scanned the room. Her eyes settled on the open window. It only took a moment for her to decide what to do. With great effort, she uncurled her wings from around her chest, kicked off of the floor, and launched herself out of the window and into the sky. The sound of furious flapping was heard as Fluttershy raced towards the palace. Her speed was nowhere near a match for Rainbow Dash's, but today she flew faster than she ever had, desperate to get her friend help. She was almost a yellow blur as she dove through the palace doors, all the while screaming like a madmare: “PRINCESS LUNA? WHERE IS PRINCESS LUNA.” At the sight of the panicked mare whom many of the guards were familiar with, as she was close friends of one of their military leaders, a few of them rushed forward trying to calm her whilst others sprinted through the castle searching for the princesses. A few minutes passed before Celestia and Luna came sprinting into the room, flanked by multiple guards. Once they arrived, Fluttershy immediately sprinted and tackled Luna into a strong hug, almost knocking the dark alicorn over. The startled alicorn was silent as the buttercup pegasus descended into sobbing and tears in front of her. “Miss Fluttershy?” Celestia asked, equally surprised and bewildered at the panicked pegasus. “What in the name of Equestria is going on?” Through tears and sobs came scattered words from the hysteric pony. “Rainbow... sick...eyes...help.” She said through her sobs. The two alicorns shared a quick glance as Fluttershy released Luna from her grip and fell to the floor in tears. Though they didn't understand what was happening they both knew something was wrong. Celestia bent down to comfort her subject. She held her for a few moments, stroking her and whispering soothing words to comfort her. Luna turned to the guard nearest to her. “What's going on?” She demanded. The armored pony snapped to attention. “She came in here screaming like a banshee. We couldn't get much out of her. She kept saying something about Commander Dash and eyes.” “Tell me more.” Luna commanded. “We couldn't make much out, but it sounded bad. She said the commander needed help. That's all.” Luna turned to her sister, who was still holding Fluttershy. Before she could speak, however, Celestia spoke up. “Just go, sister. I'll take care of Fluttershy.” As soon as the words had left Celestia's mouth, a surge of light bathed the room for a moment and when the light died, Luna was gone. Shining Armor couldn't help but smile. Though he wasn't the alicorn of emotions and love, he could still feel the happiness from the crowd. The mood was infectious, and he gratefully accepted it. The last few days had been hard on him and he was glad to have some time to just him and Cadence. They had spent most of their time together, and today wasn't an exception. While not as much of a shopper as his spouse, he enjoyed spending time in the sun and fresh air. Cadence was in one of small shops around the marketplace while Shining Armor spent time with others outside. As he stood overlooking the crowd, something caught his eye in the sky. A speck in the distance flew erratically. Left, right, up, down, the speck flew in all directions as if it was fighting something. Shining began walking towards a clearing in the crowds, still trying to get a better view of the seemingly disturbed pegasus. As the speck approached he began to make out who it was. Slowly he made out the pegasus's cyan coat and unmistakable rainbow mane. “Rainbow Dash?” He said to himself. Something was wrong with the pegasus. Shining Armor watched as she seemed to be fighting against herself. She would pull, weave, dive, and even seemed to be trying to fly in two directions at once. He could just make out a pained expression on her face as she kicked and shakily flew through the air. Shining Armor's horn glowed a bright white, visible even in the sun. He was unsure at first if she had seen the signal to land, but slowly she began making her way towards his location. Suddenly she shot towards him like a rocket, barely slowing down enough to avoid crashing. Once she hit the ground she stumbled for few a moments before shakily coming to a rest. Shining Armor ran over to the cyan pegasus. Seeing him she turned towards the large stallion. “Dash.” He called, quietly enough for her to hear him, but not bring attention to the pair. “What's going on? You looked like you couldn't control your own wings. Are you okay?” Only once he had gotten face-to-face with her was his question answered. A quick look told him that she was exhausted. Her features were contorted, most likely from pain, and her eyes were so bloodshot they seemed to glow. Heavy breaths racked her body, causing her to slump forward with each breath. Upon closer inspection her eyes seemed to have... black dots inside. “Shining,” she gasped, “where... where is Cadence?” He moved closer, wrapping one hoof over her side to help stabilize her. “Dash, what's wrong? I've never seen you like this, and you've had some bad days.” Rainbow only glared at the unicorn. After taking another few moments to catch her breath, she spoke. “I'm serious Shining. Where is Cadence? I need some help and I need it right now. I don't have time to fool around.” Shining looked down at the commander. He wanted to crack some joke about how it was funny for her to go to him for help after what she had said to him only a few days ago, or even comment on the fact that she was asking for help at all. But after another look at the pegasus, it was clear that she needed and wanted help. Shining was speechless for a moment. He looked into Rainbow Dash's eyes. They were crying for help, and he couldn't refuse a fellow soldier. But there was something else. Something was in her eyes. Something dark. “Stay here, Dash. I'll go find her. Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone.” Rainbow didn't think to retort as the tall unicorn disappeared into the crowds, leaving the cyan pegasus alone. She gripped her head between her front hooves, the aching still present. The twitching and pulling on her legs and wings had suddenly disappeared, but she doubted that the demon had left. It was probably waiting to strike once again. She lifted her head, trying to keep her mind busy by watching the crowds. She watched the ponies who passed by, trying to identify them or study them or define them. Anything to keep her mind busy and keep the creature inside of her from creeping up yet again. She watched scholars from the local schools pass by. Other members of the guard who stood fulfilling their duties or were in their off time. Sales ponies sold their wares or talked with passing ponies. Groups of school-fillies and colts laughed and played as they ran through the crowds. Her body tried to relax, almost like it was forcing itself to rest, but still she fought. It would have been bad in her home, but now she was around citizens. The only reason she stayed was because of the possibility of help from Cadence. Years of pushing herself and training in the Royal Guard aided her now, as she fought down her drowsiness and exhaustion. The ponies in the crowd helped her focus. She listened to the sounds of chatter from the ponies, the hollers from the sales ponies, the ringing of magic, the flapping of wings, and the stomping of hooves. In her present state of mind it was practically a sensory overload, but it helped her stay awake and focused. As she gazed amongst the crowd a certain pony caught her eye. A shimmer brought her attention to a vibrant gold and yellow unicorn mare, who was far into the crowd, moving away from Rainbow. While others in the crowd were their own variant of colors, shapes, and sizes, Rainbow couldn't help but think the pony looked familiar. She had never seen this pony before. Her mind was practically photographic, and she would have remembered her by her beautiful coat and mane. No. It was something else. Something was... drawing her to that pony. She couldn't even bring herself to look away. She slowly moved from her sitting position and began walking towards the unicorn. It was like she was being pulled to her. The unicorn was silent as she walked. She wore a small, pleasant smile as she moved with the crowd and enjoyed the pleasant day. As she walked, Rainbow couldn't help but sense a familiarity in the unicorn. Her small body, her facial features, even her mane and tail were familiar. And yet she couldn't remember who the unicorn was. Still not satisfied, Rainbow tried to move in even closer. She wanted to get an up-close view of her mystery mare and didn't want to leave until she did. She began ducking and weaving through the crowd, completely forgetting her order from Shining Armor to stay put. As she got closer, a large stallion who hadn't been paying attention knocked into her. The pair stumbled back, each staring surprised at the other. “Hey,” Rainbow jeered, “watch where you're going.” The stallion simply nodded his head in apology before sauntering off . Rainbow turned back, scanning the crowd for her mystery mare again. It only took her a moment to find the vibrantly colored mare again, but this time something was different. The mare's posture had changed and her small smile was gone. She moved oddly through the crowd. She seemed to be looking around Rainbow, or trying to not look at her at all. 'Does she recognize me as well?' Rainbow thought to herself. She dismissed the thought, however. If the mare had done so, she would have at least met her eyes, or directly looked at her. But this mare seemed to be trying to watch her without watching her. This only piqued Rainbow's curiosity even more. She moved towards the mare again, still trying to get close to her. Maybe she could even speak with her. After another few moments, Rainbow was only yards behind the mare. She was about to speak up and call to the pony, when she was struck by another passerby, this time being shoved onto the ground. She quickly jumped back to her hooves, eyes flashing angrily. The pony that had rammed her kept running, but a quick glance told Rainbow exactly who she was. She was a small, purple unicorn with a pink stripe running down her mane and eyes of solid black. She flashed Rainbow a devious smile before turning back and running into the crowd. Rainbow snarled before charging after Twilight. She ducked and weaved through the crowd in chase of her prey, but after only a moment she had lost her target amongst the other ponies. Her head snapped from side to side. At first she found nothing, but after a few moments of searching the purple pony sprinted by, nearly knocking her to the ground once again. Before Rainbow could give chase, however, another Twilight ran to her right. Rainbow whirled around only to have another appear behind her. Everywhere she turned there was another Twilight. Each one was identical in every way. As Rainbow spun in circles, she noticed that none of the other ponies around her had noticed the dozens of Twilight Sparkles running about the market. “That's because they are under my control, silly little pegasus.” A familiar voice taunted. “They have been watching this whole time, and you never even knew it. How pathetic.” Rainbow gritted her teeth. The pounding, which she hadn't noticed had gone away, suddenly returned. “No.” She whispered softly through clenched teeth. “You doubt my power, pegasus? Let me show just what I mean.'” For a few moments the world went silent for Rainbow, the sound of her breathing the only audible thing. The cyan pegasus, cradling her head, scanned the crowd. Nothing had changed. Nothing was wrong. Suddenly, the market froze. Everypony stood still, as if they too awaited something. Suddenly they all turned to the pegasus. Devious grins dominated their faces as they stared her down with solid black eyes. Rainbow drew a sharp breath before going silent. The dozens of ponies stared her down as she sat helplessly between them all. At first there was nothing. Only air escaped her. But slowly it fought it's way from her mind to her body and her piercing scream emerged. Shining Armor finished searching through yet another store. His wife was still nowhere to be found. “Thank you.” He said to the clerk before running out of the door. It had been several minutes since he was with Rainbow, and he was getting worried. He didn't know what was wrong, but it was serious if she was scared of it. He ran into the adjacent building, his luck the same as it was with the last. He ran back and forth between the buildings from store to store. He was beginning to worry about Cadence now. Though there were no more threats from the changelings as of the siege on Canterlot, the possibility was still alive and well that some force would wish her harm, especially with events as they currently were. As he approached the far end of the street, his thoughts were put to ease when he nearly trampled his wife as she exited a small building. The two collided, and Cadence's bags, held in her magic, dropped to the ground, causing the contents to spill into the street. “Shining, watch where you're going.” She said angrily while picking herself up. She looked at the spilled contents of her bags. “You made me drop my things.” But before she could retrieve the items, Shining grabbed her by the hoof. “We don't have time, Cadence. We need to go. Now.” Cadence glared as her husband dragged her through the street. “Shining, what's going on? And I can walk, by the way.” Shining didn't let go, however. “I don't have time to explain, but there is something wrong with Rainbow Dash and she needs your help.” Cadence wanted to laugh. Rainbow, ask for help? Ha. She was nice, but she was also one of the most stubborn ponies Cadence had ever met.“Are you joking? Why would Rainbow ask for help? And really, Shining, may I have my hoof back?” Shining released her, but didn't stop moving. “We don't have time, Cadence. Just trust me. It's not a laughing matter right now and I really think she needs help.” Cadence ran to catch up with her husband, who was far more fit than she was, as he turned a corner. “Shining Armor, what could be so serious that Rainbow would 'need' my help? Don't you think that you're being a little paranoid or something?” Suddenly a piercing scream came from behind them. The couple shared a look before sprinting towards the scream. After a moment it was silenced, only causing them to run faster. It was less than a minute before they arrived, to see Rainbow passed out in the street. The ponies crowding the street rushed back and forth, unsure of where the scream had come from. The two fought through the wave of frantic ponies to get to their friend. As Shining pushed through he turned to say something to Cadence, but found nopony there. “Cadence?” He called out. He found her a ways behind him, standing still. Her horn glowed and a look of shock dominated her features. “CADENCE?” He yelled again, but she still didn't respond. He looked back and forth between the two before running through the crowd to Rainbow Dash. He gripped her body in his magical grasp and effortlessly slung her across his back. After making sure she was safe, he pushed through the ponies back to his wife. She still stood in the same spot, but now her eyes were closed in concentration. “Cadence? What's wrong? Why didn't you answer me?” “Shining.” Her horn glowed brighter. “Shining, it's her. She's here, in the market. Twilight is here.” Shining stared at his wife, jaw hanging open in shock. He turned back, scanning the ponies still running. He noticed however that one pony wasn’t running with the others. A golden unicorn glared at the pair. Shining could almost feel the hate emanating off of the pony. His voice caught in his throat. It couldn't be. “Twilight.” He whispered. A scream caused his attention to snap back to his wife. “SHINING,” Cadence screeched, “MY HORN. IT BURNS.” She screamed as she fell to the ground, clutching her horn between her hooves. “CADENCE!” Shining lunged forward to catch her but before he could, a dark alicorn dove out of the sky, striking the ground the ground so hard she left cracks in the stone. Wordlessly she picked up her niece resting her on her back. “Princess, thank goodness you're here. Princess, she was-” Shining Armor was cut off by a flash of light. After a moment the light faded and Luna, Shining, Cadence, and Rainbow were gone.