Violets are Blue Chapter 12
“One, two, three, four… five,” Sky said to herself. She stood atop a two story building overlooking the brothel, which had formerly been owned by Zumas. Since his capture, it fell into a state of disrepair from neglect and nosey foals looking for a little adventure in their life. The paint covering the establishment looked dull and was slowly peeling away, while the windows covering both floors were either broken or so dirty that it was hardly possible to see through. Even the front door was boarded up, but that had not stopped Zumas’ lackies.
“Could be worse,” Sky continued, crouching low behind ridge of the roof. “I’ve certainly seen worse. Looks like the front door isn’t going to be an option here.”
Through the broken windows of the brothel, Sky watched as guards carefully patrolled the upper and lower floors. They carried all manners of weapons and wore some padded armor, leaving Sky with her darts, mask, cloak, and thin leather armor woefully outmatched. What she did notice, however, were the paths the guards made, with at least two of them tracing the same path over and over again every few minutes.
“Okay, so, conehead and fidget the pegasus aren’t the brightest of the bunch it seems,” Sky said. “Looks like I have a path I can take. If Zumas is like any other villain, he probably has Carbon and Lilo locked up somewhere below ground.”
Sky pulled her hood over her head and slid down the backside of the roof, then hopped off of the edge and spread her wings so that she easily glided down into the back alley. She poked her head out from the alley and looked over at the brothel. Upon seeing none of the guards looking out of the windows, she darted across the street and down an alley on the right side of the building.
A slight chill filled the air as dark clouds swirled around the sky overhead. As a breeze picked up, Sky shivered as the chill cut right through her fur, and she pulled her cloak tightly around herself in an effort to curb any further shivers racking her body. Unfortunately her efforts were unsuccessful as the hairs on her skin all stood on end.
“Bugger, it’s cold out,” Sky whispered as she walked up to a drain pipe. She traced the pipe with her eyes all of the way up to the second roof. “Ten bits says that that skylight is still broken.”
Taking a few steps back, Sky made a dash at the wall and latched onto the drain pipe with her hooves. With a little help from her wings, she managed to run half way up the wall to the first level of the building before she lost her momentum. Still gripping onto the drain pipe, Sky dug her hooves in and shimmied the rest of her way up to the second level. The pipe creaked and groaned under her weight and Sky frowned slightly.
“Oh shush, I’m not fat, am I?” Sky said, pausing on the pipe and looking down warily. If it had been anypony else, they might have commented on her not eating enough. “Or maybe you’re too old.”
Sky climbed the rest of the way up the pipe and scampered onto the roof, taking a deep breath and looking back out over the edge. Slight indentations in the drain pipe marked where Sky dug her hooves in.
“What I would give for a pair of working wings,” she muttered.
She turned around and trotted over to the skylight she broke two years ago. The skylight was in fact, much to her delight, still broken. Sky peered through the broken glass and into the building below. The carpeting and furniture looked weathered and deteriorated, stinking mold and rot taking hold of the room and ruining the original grandeur that it once held. More importantly, however, the room looked as though nopony had tread through the place in over a year.
Tucking her wings tight against her body, Sky hopped through the window, carefully avoiding the jagged glass shards still embedded in the window frame. Once through, she opened her wings again and coasted down onto the floor, pointedly missing the broken glass that littered the center of the room. When she touched down, she winced as she pulled her damaged wing back against her side.
“Okay, getting inside was easy enough,” Sky whispered as she snapped her hoof crossbow out. “Now, where oh where did that dipsti-”
Sky was cut off as the door knob to one of the doors on the far side of the room twisted. She dashed over behind some broken tables and pulled her cloak tightly over herself, hiding herself from view.
The door opened and Sky’s ears perked as she heard a pair of hoofsteps approaching. They sounded quite heavy and crunched under the broken glass.
“You said you saw somepony snooping around this side of the building?” one of the ponies asked. They stopped underneath the skylight.
“Ah swear ah did,” the other pony said. “Ah tell ya, they was wearin’ a cloak an’ made all sorts ah noise climbin’ somethin’.”
“There is the drain pipe on this side of the building. The thing’s as old as Tartarus, though. I bet anypony other than a filly climbing that thing would have pulled it right out of its clamps.”
“Then maybe it was ah filly?”
“Or maybe you just saw a raccoon. Do you need glasses?”
“No.”
Sky lifted her head and peered over at the two ponies standing under the skylight. One was a the pegasus that made the predictable patrol rounds from earlier, and he wore thick, padded armor everywhere aside from his wings. He also carried a sword strapped over his back. The other was a thick, muscular earth pony wearing the same padded armor as his pegasus compatriot, but he carried several throwing axes strapped to his back.
“Then if you’re done dilly dallying around,” the earth pony said, “lets get back to our patrol.”
“Do ya think that ol’ Zumas will come back for that changelin’ an’ pegasus?” the pegasus asked.
“Of course he will,” the earth pony snapped, turning around. “They’re the whole reason why we haven’t moved safehouses. Zumas wants to keep them here until he’s finished with them.”
“By those screams earlier, and tha way ol’ Zumas looked when he left tha basement with all that machinery, ah thought he was finished.”
“You’re new to this job, aren’t you?” the earth pony gave the pegasus a wry look. “Come on, let’s get back to work.”
The two ponies turned and walked back to the door that they came from, leaving it wide open as they departed. Sky climbed out from behind the tables and walked up to the door, poking her head around the door frame and peering down the hall. The two ponies had long since turned down the end of the hall and were out of sight. Sky retracted her head and sat on her flanks.
“Thanks for the info, fidget,” Sky whispered. “I need to get down there. If Zumas already got to them…”
Sky cycled in a green sleep dart into her crossbow and crept into the hallway, doing her best to mitigate the sound of her hoofsteps. She rounded the corner at the end of the hall and approached another door that led into the back halls of the brothel. The fogged glass that hung over the top of the door had been blasted out and remained shattered all over the floor. Carefully placing her steps around the pieces of glass, Sky slunk up to the door and peered through the broken window.
The earth pony she saw with the pegasus earlier passed by the door. Sky ducked her head down and listened to his hoofsteps, and when she suspected that he was far enough away, she very carefully pushed open the door and snuck into the hallway. Watching the earth pony trek down the hall, Sky followed after him at a distance and kept her body pressed against a wall. When he finally turned down another hall at the end of the hallway, she let out a sigh of relief and trotted the rest of the way, scanning over the plaques that were bolted next to the doors.
Sky came upon the door with a plaque that had the words “Machinery” inscribed on it. She tried the door, but when she found that it was locked, she sighed and pulled out two bobby pins. Putting one of the bobby pins in her mouth, she stuck it into the keyhole while she used the other bobby pin to push the keyhole in the right direction. When Sky felt a satisfying click of the door unlocking, she smiled and put the bobby pins away.
Sky put her hoof on the door, but just as she went to turn the handle, a much larger shadow crept over her own small shadow. Sky’s eyes widened, and she ducked her head just as the earth pony swung one of his throwing axes and embedded it into the door. She flipped onto her back and took aim with her crossbow at the stallion standing over her, and she shot one of her sleep darts into his neck.
The effects were almost instantaneous, and before the stallion let out a shout, he slumped forward and landed on top of Sky. The little pegasus let out a squeak.
“Well, this isn’t the first time this has happened,” she said with a huff. “And this time he didn’t even last for two seconds.”
With some effort, Sky pushed the earth pony off of her. Checking down both hallways and finding no other ponies charging at her, she pulled open the door to the machinery basement and dragged the earth pony in with her by the scruff of his neck. She grunted and let go of his scruff when he was sufficiently inside, then closed the door behind them.
The noise of water pumps and crystal power generators echoed through the basement, indicating that Zumas had managed to get the power working for the brothel. Sky cycled another sleep dart into her crossbow and carefully ventured further down into the basement, her ears swiveling around her head. She rounded a corner and passed by several water pumps and crystal power generators, then came to a stop at a door. Carefully opening the door, she came face to neck with a burly looking pegasus.
“Oopsie, I must have made a wrong turn,” Sky squeaked, taking a step back.
“Sure did,” the pegasus grunted. “In fact, I think you might be in the wrong building.” He drew his sword.
“You think so?” Sky asked in a small voice. “I was just scavenging, you know. Trying to find some food and a little bit of water for my sister and I.”
“Find what you were looking for?”
“Well, I…” Sky looked the pegasus up and down and bit her lower lip. “Well, it’s not exactly what I’m looking for, but I’m sure a handsome stallion such as yourself could help out a mare who’s in a bit of a predicament?”
“How do you suppose I do that?”
Sky took a step forward and traced one of her soft hooves along his chest. “You know, I used to work here when it was a brothel, and I’m feeling a little nostalgic come to think of it. Of course I’m trying to find some food for my sister and I, but, I, um… wouldn’t mind if I could relive some of those days. I’m sure a sweet stallion would understand.”
The pegasus looked around the room full of water pumps and crystal power generators, then dropped his sword and took Sky in his forelegs. The little pegasus mare squeaked again when he grabbed her, but she made no efforts to stop him as he kissed her.
Seeing her chance, Sky reached underneath her cloak and grabbed a sleep dart, then stuck the dart into the stallion’s neck. In seconds the stallions eyes rolled back into his head and he slumped to the floor, leaving Sky laying on top of him.
“Not today, buddy,” Sky said as she lifted herself off of him, “but maybe another day I’ll come find you.”
She winked at the sleeping pegasus before pushing open the door.
~~~
Carbon and Lilo remained cuddled together at the back of their respective holding cells, staring down the large pegasus who stood guard at the door. He didn’t so much as even send a glance their way, content with staring straight ahead. His armor was thick around his legs and his chest and he carried a heavy sword across his back.
Lilo rested her head against the metal bars and whimpered when Carbon’s hoof traced along her back and too close to her wing. Carbon immediately retracted his hoof and sighed.
“I’m sorry, Lilo,” he said.
The changeling squeaked and took one of Carbon’s hooves in her hooves, clutching it tightly.
“Please don’t be,” Lilo said quietly. “I’m fine… I’ll be fine.”
“Lilo, I… I want you to-” Carbon started, but he was cut off by the door to the room opening. The pegasus standing guard turned around and stepped halfway out of the door. Two voices shortly followed afterwards, one of the voices presumably his. The other was a sexy high Canterlot accent from a mare.
“Lilo, wait here,” Carbon said. He very carefully lifted himself from his spot next to Lilo, and after checking to see that he didn’t leave her to lie in any further agony, he crept over to the front of his holding cell. The pegasus guard stepped fully out of the room and closed the door behind him, which was promptly followed by a dull thud. Carbon’s ears widened and he swiveled his ears forward in order to strain to hear what is going on beyond the door.
Moments later, Sky Runner opened the door, then upon seeing Carbon, she hopped around the table and dashed over to him. She pulled the mask off over her face and tossed it away.
“I found you,” Sky said. She noticed Lilo in the corner of her cage. “Oh no. Carbon, are you two okay?”
“Lilo’s wing is terribly damaged, Sky,” Carbon said, rushing back over to Lilo. “The keys to the doors are on the far wall. We need to get out of here before Zumas comes back. I don’t know how much time has passed, but he said that he would be back in three hours last time we saw him, and that was a while ago.”
Sky hopped over the table and nabbed the keys off of the far wall, then darted back over to Carbon’s cage. She slammed the key into the keyhole and twisted, then upon hearing a click, she opened the cell door open.
“Carbon, I’m going to need you to carry Lilo while we get out of here,” Sky said, hopping over to Lilo’s cell door. “I’ll protect you two if we run into any trouble. You two will be fine if you stick with me, okay?”
“Thank you so much, Sky,” Carbon said, running out of his cell and standing next to Sky as she opened Lilo’s. “How did you find out that Lilo and I were in trouble?”
“You had to have known that I would be broken up over you two forgetting to invite me to the reception,” Sky said, pushing Lilo’s door open. “So naturally I decided to stop by your place to find out if you were having any pre-wedding vibes. It wasn’t… quite what I hoped for.”
“Why don’t we make you the best mare of the wedding, then?” Lilo said from inside of the cage. She was already on her hooves, albeit shakily. “I’m sure… that Carbon wouldn’t mind.”
Carbon ran into the cell and sidled up next to her, nuzzling her under her chin. Lilo carefully climbed onto his back, wincing when she felt her mangled wing brush up against his own wing. When she was securely on his back, she wrapped her forehooves around his neck and gave him a kiss on the back of his neck.
“I love you, Carbon,” Lilo whispered into Carbon’s ear.
“I love you, too, Lilo,” Carbon whispered back.
“Aw, that’s so sweet!” Sky said with a squee.
“How about we get ourselves moving?” Lilo asked with some urgency.
“Right, on it,” Sky said. She turned tail and dashed over to the door, pushing it open. When she saw that nopony lie in wait for them among the water pumps and crystal power generators, she looked back at Carbon and Lilo and nodded her head. “Looks like Lord Conehead isn’t back from whatever it is that he is doing.”
With Lilo on his back, Carbon followed Sky out among the water pumps and generators. He felt Lilo’s hooves tighten around his neck, and while keeping one eye trained forward, he reared his head back and gave her a nuzzle.
“Sky’s going to get both of us out of here, Lilo,” Carbon said. “Don’t you worry. We’ll both get out just like last time.”
Sky’s walk slowed to a stop at the very edge of the water pump and generator room. Her wings were slightly unfurled, and after a moment she looked back at Carbon and Lilo and held a hoof to her lips.
“Stay here,” she said, then cautiously made her way forward towards the door. The axe was missing. “Damn it, I can’t believe I forgot to take the axe out of the door.” She stepped over the earth pony’s limp body and peered through the hole left by the axe. When she saw nopony standing outside of the door, she pushed the door open and stepped out.
“The coast is clear,” Sky said with a hint of nervousness creeping into her voice, “but I think we should get out of here as quickly as possible.”
Carbon trotted up behind her. “Sky, what’s wrong?”
“Carbon, I need you to keep you and Lilo safe,” Sky said, “Whatever happens, don’t separate and stay right next to me. I’m going to get you out of here, I promise.”
“Both of us trust you,” Carbon said. “We know that you won’t let either of us get hurt. Now come on, I suppose we need to pick up our pace.”
Sky fondled her crossbow for a moment, then walked down to the end of the hallway where a door lay with Carbon and Lilo in tow. She tried the door and found that it was unlocked, but when she went to push the door open, it refused to budge. She tried a few times, forcing her weight against the door, but it remained locked in place.
“Bollocks,” Sky breathed. “The door’s blocked from the outside. We’re going to have to go back through the other back rooms of the brothel.”
Carbon nodded his head, then fell in behind Sky as she made her way back down the hall. Her ears swiveled around her head anxiously, homing in to any little sound that kicked up within the hallway. To her dismay, not even the sounds of a guards pony patrolling on the floors above her reached her ears.
When Sky, Carbon, and Lilo were within several steps of reaching the door, a very faint outline of a shape came barreling towards them from beyond the doors leading to the main commons of the brothel. Carbon’s breath caught in his throat and he watched as Sky lifted her hoof with her miniature crossbow on it.
“Carbon, you’re going to want to get back,” Sky said.
As Sky tensed and readied her crossbow, the door leading to more backrooms of the brothel swung open and smacked her right in the face, knocking her onto her back. Carbon and Lilo both screamed just as Nero charged through and blew open the doors to the main commons of the brothel. In one of his talons was a long spear, and he was flanked on either side by a pegasus and an earth pony.
Sky rolled over onto her stomach and shouted, “Carbon, run! I’ll be right behind you!”
Carbon turned tail and galloped down the hallway, but before he made it ten steps he crashed headlong into another door that opened up in front of him. He flew back, sending Lilo flying and crashing onto the floor with a yelp as well. Carbon’s head throbbed and he rolled onto his back, looking over at Lilo, who looked passed him with wide eyes.
“A bit of deja vu,” Zumas said, stepping out from behind the door that was used to knock Carbon over. Swifthoof followed soon after. “I’ve learned my lesson, though, and you’re not escaping this time. Nero, kill them.”
Carbon scrambled to his hooves just in time to escape Swifthoof bringing his hoof down onto his back, then slid to a halt in front of Lilo. Swifthoof snarled at Carbon, slowing drawing his dagger from his side and holding it firmly in his mouth. Carbon’s ears flopped back, but he held his ground as Swifthoof made his advance, his wings unfurling while the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.
Behind him, Carbon heard several thumps and the sound of a crossbow being fired, but he refused to take his eyes off of the advancing earth pony. His muscles felt tense, his nostrils flared, and when he saw Swifthoof make his move, pivoting his forehoof, he launched himself forward as fast as he could muster with a flap of his wings. Swifthoof blinked, and he was too late to angle the dagger before Carbon slammed into him, both of them careening into the wall.
Before Swifthoof had a chance to collect himself, Carbon shakily dashed away from the earth pony and slumped against the far wall, panting. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Zumas’ horn charge, red sparks flying from the tip. Adrenaline rushing through his veins, Carbon rocketed off of the wall back towards Swifthoof just as Zumas fired a volley of his magic, leaving a heavy scorch mark where the magic impacted.
Still recovering from Carbon’s initial assault, Swifthoof had hardly enough time to dodge his second charge. Carbon rammed straight into the earth pony a second time, successfully knocking the dagger from his mouth. However, having braced himself before hand, Swifthoof managed to recover from the charge much more quickly than Carbon and drove his hoof into Carbon’s gut. The initial impact sent Carbon hobbling backwards and flopping onto his back.
Swifthoof wiped the trickle of blood trailing for his mouth, then reached down for his dagger. To his misfortune, Lilo took the opportunity to charge Swifthoof and sink her teeth into his shoulder, driving him back up against the wall. The earth pony let out a yelp, then began to repeated sock Lilo in the stomach and on the side of the head with his free foreleg until she finally pulled free, taking a chunk of his flesh with her. She spit the flesh out and snarled at him, blood dripping from her fangs.
“Lilo, watch out!” Carbon shouted, eyes trained on Zumas.
Zumas fired another bolt of his magic at her, but Lilo ducked low underneath the blast, letting the magic impact the door that was used to smack Sky in the face. With Lilo distracted, Swifthoof charged and plowed her right up to the wall, smashing her damaged wing. Lilo screamed out in agony, but she was quickly relieved as Carbon bowled himself into Swifthoof, knocking him over onto his side.
Taking only a moment to survey how Sky was fairing, Carbon noticed two of the guards were dispatched on the ground, sleep darts sticking out from their limp bodies. Sky herself looked pretty beaten up, her hair an even more tangled mess, the bandages on her wings hardly staying in their place, and several bruises coated her body. She went up against Nero and another guard, to which she dodged a nasty jab from the griffon’s spear.
“Carbon, Zumas is charging his horn again!” Lilo shouted, scrambling to her hooves.
Spreading his wings, Carbon lept out of the way of Zumas’ magic and landed with a thud next to Swifthoof’s dagger. He picked it up in his mouth and locked his eyes with Zumas’ icey, blue ones. He spread his wings, then took off down the hallway straight at the unicorn. Zumas tried to charge his horn again, but he was too late as Carbon slammed right into him, smashing them both into a wall and leaving a sizable depression.
Zumas snarled and punched Carbon across the face with a hoof, but the pegasus quickly recovered and slashed at his face. Zumas screamed, and with all of his might he powered his horn and released a powerful blast of wind in every direction around him. Carbon was sent flying back into the wall on the other side of the hall, then flopped onto the ground with a groan. When he looked up again, he couldn’t help but feel a little satisfaction.
Zumas glared at Carbon with blood dripping down his face, the flesh around his left cheek and jaw completely torn away and leaving the muscle and teeth visible and open for everypony to see. Pure fire raged in his eyes, and sparks flew freely from his horn.
“I will kill you, you bug sympathizing fuck!” Zumas shouted. “You and your fucking fiance will have your filthy heads given to that former bug queen stuffed with your smoking entrails!”
Further down the hall, Nero picked up the shouts coming from Zumas and looked over. Only for a moment did his eyes widen before he took off down the hall, his wings propelling him towards Carbon. He flew away from Sky, who remained tangled up with the remaining guard. He flew past Lilo, who managed to dodge a punch from Swifthoof. He flew straight into Carbon, plowing the pegasus across the floor and tearing up some of the floor boards.
“You made your last mistake, pegasus,” Nero snarled, lifting his spear and aiming it down at Carbon’s chest. “You and your changeling are going to die here, as well as any hope that changelings will be able to integrate into Equestria.”
Seeing Carbon pinned against the floor underneath Nero, Lilo felt all of her blood rushing through veins run cold. Her wings damaged, her chitin cracked, blood dripping from her wounds and her mouth, she broke from her fight with Swifthoof and made a dash for the griffon, her fangs bared and her lips curled into a snarl. Closing in on the two, Lilo lept into the air, primed to locked her teeth into Nero’s neck.
Nero heard the sound of hoofsteps rapidly approaching, and to everypony time seemed to stop. He shifted his weight from both of his hind legs onto only one of his hind legs and he started to twist his body around. His spear lowered from its position above Carbon’s heart and turned as Nero spun, and when his eyes met Lilo’s his lips curled into a smile, and before anypony knew it, he ran his spear straight through Lilo’s chest. Her blood splattered all over him and Carbon, who could only look on in horror as the other end of the spear stuck out of Lilo’s back between her wings.
“No!” Carbon shouted, his wings beating furiously as he rocketed upwards and bit into Nero’s wing. The griffon screeched and dropped his spear and Lilo with it, and he spun around to grab Carbon with his talons. Carbon, however, moved too quickly and propelled himself in another direction, yanking Nero off of his hind legs and twisting him onto the ground.
From further down the hall, Sky Runner fired a sleep dart into the remaining guard’s neck, then turned and looked down the hall. She saw Zumas and Swifthoof making their departure further down the hall, but then she saw Lilo hunched up with a spear impaled through her chest. Her heart dropped.
“Oh no,” she breathed, and took off running down the corridor. She cycled in another sleep dart and aimed it at Nero, then fired, hitting him in the leg. The effects acted almost instantly, and he was knocked out before Carbon managed to crawl on top of him and start beating him with his hooves. “Carbon! Get off of him!”
“I’m going to fucking kill you!” Carbon shouted, beating his hooves into Nero’s face. “You’re a fucking dead griffon, you hear me?”
Sky tackled Carbon off of Nero, holding him in her hooves as tightly as she could.
“Carbon, stop!” Sky shouted. “He’s already knocked out.”
“Let go of me!” Carbon shouted back, and he jabbed his foreleg back into Sky’s stomach. She promptly grunted and let him go, but when he was back onto his forelegs again, seeing Nero lying there unconscious and Lilo lying not too far away from, the look on his face resembled that of somepony’s world shattering before them. He galloped over to her and collapsed by her side.
“No…” Carbon pleaded, his eyes tracing over Lilo’s wound. “No, no, no. Lilo! Lilo, sweetie, are you there?”
“Carbon, it… it hurts… so much,” Lilo panted, looked up at him.
“I’m going to get this out of you, okay?” Carbon said, placing his hooves on the spear. “I’m going to get this out of you, and then I’m going to get you over to Canterlot Hospital and fix you right up, alright?”
Carbon took the spear in his hooves and pulled, but all he got in return was an agonizing shriek from Lilo. He immediately retracted his hooves and stared horrified at all of the blood that oozed out onto the floor.
“I’m so sorry!” he shouted, stroking Lilo’s mane. “Okay, um, Sky? Can I borrow your cloak?”
Sky pulled her cloak off without a moments hesitation and hoofed it over to him. The expression etched into her face looked like a cross between sorrow and vague reminiscence. Taking her cloak, Carbon wrapped it around the point where the spear impaled Lilo’s chest.
Off in the distance, the sound of the front door of the brothel slamming open echoed through the building and Sky’s ears perked. Several shouts rang out, the shouts of the Canterlot Guard, and she leaned over Carbon’s shoulder.
“I’m sorry, Carbon,” she whispered, although it was likely he didn’t hear her. “I’m truly sorry…”
Sky took off down the hallway and took the door into the backrooms, narrowly dodging the guards as they stormed into the hall.
“Lilo, you’ve got to stay with me,” Carbon pleaded, rubbing his hoof on her cheek with tears streaming down his face. “Come on, keep focused on my voice.”
“Carbon, I’m… it’s so cold,” Lilo whispered. “Everything’s so cold. Please… I…”
“No, come on, you’re going to be fine,” Carbon said. “Just stay with me. All you need to do is stay with me.”
“I… I love y-” Lilo slumped to the floor, her entire body going limp. Whatever convulsions that racked her body, whatever breathes she struggled with, all ceased.
“Lilo? L-lilo?” Carbon’s face dropped. “No, Lilo, please. Stay here. Come on, Lilo, don’t leave like this.” He leaned in closer to her face, their muzzles bumping each other. “Don’t do this, not now. Please, Lilo! Wake up!”
Two pegasi guard remained standing behind Carbon and Lilo, their helmets tucked underneath their wings. All of the ponies who acted as Zumas’ henchmen were being hauled away by the rest of the guards.
“Lilo!” Carbon shouted throwing his forelegs around her. “Come back!”