In a small, dilapidated park within the Empire controlled town of Trotzen, a white unicorn put the finishing touches on a glossy sheet of paper. “There!” Rarity exclaimed, her quill writing the final word on the identity form with a flourish. “All done.”
“Neat!” Derpy Hooves said as she bounced on the edges of her hooves. “Whadja do?”
Using her magic, Rarity held up a sheet of official-looking Imperial documents. “These, my good mare, are going to help us slip through the Empire. Now, I need you to remember this. Your name will now be Highwind.”
Derpy scrunched her face and tilted her head. “What happened to my old name? Did it get lost?”
Rarity heaved a deep sigh. “No Derpy, it’s still there. However, while we are in Empire lands, we need to use different names to protect ourselves. Think of it as… as… um… Ah! Think of it as a mask. When I don my cape and mask, I become Mare Do Well. So, while we’re here, you will be donning the identity of Highwind, a mild-mannered delivery mare. How’s that sound?”
Derpy looked away, her face scrunched up in thoughtfulness. Her hooves tapped the ground in place and her wings occasionally twitched. Finally, she looked at Rarity and gave a nod. “Sounds good. Just one thing, though.”
“And what’s that?”
“I don’t have a mask.”
With a smirk, Rarity lifted up a strip of dark blue cloth with two holes cut into it. Rarity levitated it over Derpy’s face, lining up the two holes with Derpy’s eyes, and tied it up behind her head. “There. How’s that, Derpy?”
The pegasus blinked. “Who?”
“... I mean, how’s that, Highwind?”
“It’s great!”
“Lovely!” Rarity said, clapping her forehooves together. “Now we just need to find the others and we’ll be all set.”
As if her voice had summoned them, Applejack, Shining Armor, and Spotter stepped out from behind a building and walked towards Rarity and Derpy. The trio all had frowns and downcast eyes. Rarity felt a pit forming within her stomach and forced herself to ask, “What happened?”
The new arrivals all shifted their glances to each other, their gazes lingering on Spotter. “We’re… we’re not sure,” Applejack said. “Something appeared on Spotter’s flank and I’m plum stumped on what it is.”
“Appeared?”
“Yeah. Maybe you know somethin’?”
Rarity made to speak but quickly shut her mouth. A cursory glance around revealed ponies and griffons giving the group curious looks. “Show me later. We’re a bit… exposed here.” She reached down and handed out the documents she had finished. “Take these and memorize your new names.”
“I’m Highwind!” Derpy chirped.
“Yes, dear.” Rarity pointed a hoof at Shining Armor. “Now, you will go by Excalibur.”
Shining Armor's eyebrows raised. “Hmm. Nice. I like it.”
“Wonderful! Spotter, you will be Excalipur.”
Spotter gagged. “That’s stupid. It sounds like a pet’s name.”
“But it’s so cute!” Rarity replied, patting his head. She gave him a wide-eyed, pouting look. “Do it for me, please?”
The colt looked away and up at his father, but Shining Armor merely shrugged. Finding no help there, Spotter sighed and nodded his head. “Fine.”
“Excellent! I’m sure you’ll grow to love it.”
The young colt didn’t look convinced. “Yeah, whatever.”
Rarity turned to Applejack next. “And you will be known as Gilgamesh.”
“Huh,” Applejack responded, scratching her head just below her hat. “That’s… okay I guess. Where’d ya come up with something like that?”
“Read it in an epic once. And last but not least, I’ll be Graedus.
“Do look over your sheets and try to remember as much as possible. Once we’re done, I need to give these to the officials to get them approved.”
The group followed Rarity’s advice and took their time reading about their new identities. Once they were done and Rarity had answered any questions to their satisfaction, they handed back the documents. Taking the lead, Rarity led them over to the stone building acting as the Empire’s headquarters for Trotzen. Inside, the drowsy and bored looking clerk took the papers and barely gave them a cursory once-over before stamping a seal of approval on them. Minutes later, the group walked away from Trotzen, now official citizens of the Empire.
.o.O.o.
“So you say you found a green crystal with a red core and it suddenly disappeared while you were holding it?” Rarity asked, walking beside Spotter. “And that it… spoke to you?”
Spotter nodded hesitantly. “I think that’s what it did.”
“And when you found the others that’s when… that appeared?” She pointed to the new mark on Spotter’s flank, standing out prominently against his white coat.
“Yeah. Do you know what it means?”
Rarity fell silent, tilting her head from side to side and forming a far away look. “Nope. Haven’t the foggiest.”
“You don’t feel sick or anything, do you Spot?” Shining Armor said, walking on Spotter’s other side.
“Nah, I feel pretty good,” Spotter replied. “I feel like I could run all day and not get tired!”
Shining Armor ruffled his son’s mane affectionately. “How’s that any different than you normally act?”
“Hey!”
“Still,” Shining Armor said, his voice growing serious. “We really need to figure out what this means. Have any ideas? Anypony?”
Silence was his only answer. Derpy, flying nearby, scrunched up her features and rubbed her chin. At last she shrugged and shook her head. Marching ahead, Applejack mirrored Derpy’s actions.
“I wish Twilight were here,” she said, looking into the distance. “She might know.”
“Then what do we do?” Shining Armor persisted. “Come on, there has to be something!”
“I know, I know. Well, we know that whatever it was Spotter got his hooves on came from the Empire. The best I can come up with is to go to Vectorlot and see if we can find anything there.”
“Vectorlot?” Rarity said, quirking an eyebrow. “Isn’t that like walking into the belly of the beast?”
“Maybe, but do you have any ideas?”
Rarity sighed. “No. Not really.” She felt a rush of wind and then a hoof around her shoulder.
“Don’t worry, Graedus!” Derpy said, wrapping her hooves around Rarity from above and pulling her close. “With our new identities, there’s no way we’ll get caught!”
“Yes, there is that.” Rarity gently extracted herself from Derpy’s grip and gave the grabby pegasus a smile. “But a little more decorum will be needed from you to make it work.”
“What does me having corn have to do with anything?”
Up ahead, Applejack stopped and held up a hoof. “Wait. Do y’all see that?” She pointed a hoof towards the horizon. Peeking above a set of low hills, a dark cloud hovered in place. The cloud didn't move, even though a moderate wind blew past. “Think it means anything? A storm?”
Rarity walked up next to her, frowning. “No, that’s not a storm. That is smog. We’re getting close to Vectorlot.”
“You been there before?”
“Yes, once. And once was enough. It took forever to get the soot out of my coat.” She sighed, a note of resignation entering her voice. “This is going to ruin my complexion.”
Applejack gave a hearty pat to Rarity’s back. “I’ll make it up to ya. I swear.”
“You have no idea how much you owe me.”
The group continued on, heading towards the cloud in the distance. As they pressed on, the cloud grew larger and larger until it seemed to completely cover the sky. Hazy sunlight filtered through, giving a dirty glint to everything it touched. The open plains the ponies traveled on began to thin out, slowly giving way to dirt and rocks. Soon, they reached a wide passage between two hills. A metal gate set within the passage barred their path, Imperial soldiers and magitek armor stationed around it. A line of ponies stood waiting to be let through, hoofing over their papers one by one.
“Oh, Excalipur, I just had a thought,” Rarity said as they walked nearer to the checkpoint. “We should cover up that mark. No sense drawing attention to ourselves.” She levitated a purple scarf from her saddlebag and quickly tied it around his flank and rear.
Spotter gave the scarf a distasteful glare. “Ew, now it looks like I have a diaper on. I grew out of those!”
“Shush!” Applejack called over her shoulder. “No more talkin’ till we get through.”
For the next hour, the group waited in line for their turn. The line was only five ponies long, but the officials diligently went over each paper given to them. Some ponies went through without a fuss, while others were taken to the side to be asked additional questions. Applejack did her best not to look worried, forcing herself to relax and stare ahead as she moved closer to the front. At last her turn came and she hoofed over her document when asked by the official. The pony carefully read through her sheet, humming and hawing as he went.
Minutes later, the official looked up with narrowed eyes and said, “It says here you lived in the western region, growing beets.”
“Uh, yeah.” To Applejack’s credit, only three beads of sweat ran down her head.
“You wouldn’t happen to know if the crop there has gone bad, would you? We haven’t received a shipment in months.”
She swallowed, feeling her mouth going dry. “Oh, yeah, sorry about that. Bad weather did a number on our fields. It’s why I’m here, lookin’ for some work.”
“You’re not the only one,” the official grumbled. He thrust the paper into Applejack’s face, causing her to whinny in surprise. “Looks good. Move along.”
“Ah, heh heh heh.” Applejack smiled brightly, took the paper in her teeth, and walked towards the gate. “Thank ya, kindly.” The official missed Applejack wiping her forehead as she moved away.
The process repeated for the others, each receiving approval to move on. Derpy came in last, a large grin over her muzzle. “Such a nice guy! That was easy!”
Applejack grinned herself, nodding in approval. “I got to hand it to ya, Graedus, that worked better than I could have imagined.”
“Oh, stop,” Rarity said, her cheeks reddening. “It was nothing, really.”
They wasted no time in leaving, putting the checkpoint behind them. Other ponies now joined them, forming into small groups of their own. The rocky path through the hills soon became a paved road and the clip-clop of pony hooves echoed through the passage. Finally, the hills receded and the path opened to reveal a vast valley. The moment the group looked down into the valley, they gave a collective gasp.
Vectorlot lay before them. The city stretched from one end of the valley to the other. Buildings of every size took up most of the space, all of them seeming to be made of a dull grey metal. Walkways of brick snaked around the buildings, creating a maze of paths that a pony could get lost in forever. On the far east of the valley, an enormous stretch of factories lay, each belching smoke into the air from tall smokestacks. The smoke rose into the air, adding to the ever present cloud of smog above the city.
In the very center, rising above all other buildings by dozens of stories, lay a massive iron zigorat. By Applejack’s estimate, Fillygaro could easily fit inside it with room to spare. Roving spotlights dotted the structure, casting light into the sky and highlighting small flying machines that circled the city like bees over a hive.
Next to Applejack, Shining Armor glared at the city through narrowed eyes. “Somewhere down there are the ones responsible for poisoning Domare.” A low growl emanated from his clenched teeth. “If I ever get my hooves on them…”
“I hear ya, sugarcube,” Applejack said, laying a hoof on his shoulder. “I hear ya…”
.o.O.o.
Ponies packed the roads leading into Vectorlot. No matter how the group bunched itself together, traffic smothered them on all sides. Carts, wagons, and even magitek armor crowded the well worn streets. Applejack frowned at all the moving bodies, especially the few times chocobos passed them, their beaks restrained and being forced by Imperials to pull heavy equipment. She shook her head, memories of Stardust and his descriptions of the treatment of his clan coming back to her.
There was nothing to do about that now, as a more pressing matter needed to be dealt with. “Okay, Graedus, any idea who we can talk to about, uh, Excalipur’s condition?” Applejack asked.
“Well,” Rarity began, tapping her chin, “... not really. I wasn’t here long last time. I didn’t find much work here, not unless I wanted to work in a filthy factory.”
“Well gosh darnit. Guess we’ll have to ask around without giving ourselves away.”
For the rest of the day, the group traveled through the city, looking for someplace or someone that might help them. From the affluent to the poor parts of town, they asked vague questions to those that looked trustworthy. The responses they got back failed to produce any leads. By the end of their search, the only thing they had gained were frustrated spirits and sore hooves.
“Can we rest?” Derpy asked, the shadows from the lowering sun sinking under her eyelids. “I’m soooooo tired.”
“I’m inclined to agree,” Rarity said, wincing each time her sore hooves touched the concrete. “We’ll just have to try again tomorrow.”
“I hear ya,” Applejack replied. “Next inn we find will be our last stop.”
“Good,” Shining Armor said. He motioned his head towards his back where Spotter lay, sound asleep. “I got to get this little guy to bed.”
It wasn’t long before they found an inn that appeared well kept within the middle class section of Vectorlot. As Applejack checked them in she asked the mare behind the counter if she knew of any strange reactions that a foal might have to magic.
The response she got left her mouth ajar.
“Oh! Did your son get enhancements, too?” the pink unicorn asked.
Once she shut her mouth, Applejack said, “Uh, he’s not my son. Whaddya mean, enhancements?”
“Hold on. I’ll show you.” The mare turned, calling out, “Dinky! Would you come down here for a moment?”
Seconds later, a pale purple unicorn filly came running down a set of stairs, blinking at all the new arrivals. “What is it, Amethyst?”
Amethyst waved her hoof towards the inn’s new arrivals. “Could you show these nice ponies the trick Uncle gave you?”
“Oh. Sure!” Dinky shut her eyes tightly, grunting with exertion. To the surprise of all but Amethyst, Dinky’s horn cast out a string of white pearls that looped back into her horn. The next moment, the group was covered in a soft green light.
“Whoa.” Applejack blinked once the glow receded from her coat. “I feel… refreshed. Just like one of Twilight’s spells.”
Dinky opened her eyes, a bright smile on her muzzle. “Yeah! It’s a cure spell. My uncle gave it to me. And look! This appeared when he did it.” She twisted her rear, showing her flank to the group. Displaying prominently against her coat were three small green starbursts.
“That’s… that’s just like Spotter’s,” Shining Armor said. He lifted his son off his back and nudged him back awake.
Spotter yawned, rubbing at his eyes. “Uh, wha?”
“Hey, bud. Would you show these two that mark of yours?”
“Huh? Uh, sure.” With a flourish, he took off the cloth covering his flank. “Glad that’s off.”
“Oh, cool!” Dinky ran up to the colt, her smile growing into a large grin. “You got a cutie mark. Just like me!”
“Cutie mark?” everypony in the room echoed.
“Yeah, that’s what my uncle calls them.”
“She’s talking about Doctor Whooves, our uncle,” Amethyst said, walking next to Dinky. “He’s in charge of magic research for the Empire. He’s the one that gave my sis here such a wonderful gift!”
“Yeah, I heal guests when they stay here. They love it!” The excited filly pranced in front of Spotter, her face bursting with glee. “What magic can you use?”
“Oh… Um, ah….”
“Can we meet this Doctor Whooves?” Shining Armor said. Beside him, Spotter gave a sigh of relief for the save.
Amethyst frowned, tapping her chin. “I’m not sure. He’s awfully busy. We don’t see him much these days. Oh! Maybe you’ll see him in tomorrow’s announcement.”
“Announcement?”
“Yeah, it’s short notice, but the emperor himself is going to make some sort of speech in front of the palace. Everypony’s welcome to join.”
The group looked to each other. As one, they nodded.
“We’ll be there then,” Shining Armor said. “Thank you for all of your help.”
Amethyst beamed a smile. “Oh, don’t mention it! I’ll get your rooms ready right now and we’ll go together.”
.o.O.o.
The next day, Amethyst and Dinky treated their new guest to a scrumptious breakfast, then led them to the meeting place. Even at this early hour, the plaza in front of the palace was filled with ponies, all waiting for the emperor to make his appearance. Vendors and hustlers walked through the crowds, hawking their wares to anypony with more gil than common sense.
With time to spare, Applejack brushed up against Amethyst, gaining her attention. “So, you’ve lived here for a while, I take it?”
“Oh yes,” Amethyst replied with a smile. “Most of my life, actually. There are plenty of opportunities here for just about anypony. It’s a little crowded, sure, and the smog is a bit of a downer, but the military goes to great lengths to keep the cloud from getting any lower.”
“I see. Do you… ever leave the city? Like, go to the other towns on the continent?”
“Hmm, not really,” Amethyst said, shaking her head. “The inn keeps me really busy and Dinky has school to go to all year round. I suppose I’m due for a vacation, but everything I need is here, so I don’t see the point. Why do you ask?”
“Oh, just wondering how much you know about the goings on outside the city, is all.”
“Oh, I know plenty! The paper comes every day telling us all about how the Empire is working with other countries to help them adopt all the technology we are making. And they’re keeping us safe from those Returner terrorists. Can you believe that there’s a group like that just going around, trying to kill everyone just because they can’t get with the times? Jeez, it makes me sick.”
Applejack bit her lip hard, nearly drawing blood. She worked her mouth, trying to find the words to respond, but nothing came to mind. Her dilemma came to an end when the speaker systems surrounding the plaza switched on, gaining the crowd’s attention.
“Citizens of Vectorlot! Welcome one and all on this glorious morning to witness your liege, Emperor Blueblood!”
The crowd enthusiastically stomped their hooves, the reverberations being felt throughout the city. Cheers and whistles rang through the air and some mares fainted from the excitement.
“Now, please direct your attention to our sovereign, the stallion who protects and loves us all, Emperor Blueblood!”
If anything, the noise from the attendees grew louder. From a balcony on the highest point of the palace stepped out a lone figure. Even for those far in the back of the crowd, the stallion was an imposing figure. He stood taller than anypony around him, wearing a blue and purple robe with a raised cowl that flowed behind him like a cape. His long, blond mane was perfectly groomed and gleamed in the morning light. Laying atop his head was a golden crown, molded to cover his large horn, covered in sparkling jewels, and topped with a silver cross. Blueblood swept his foreleg back, flaring out his robes and exposing a pristine coat of white.
Amethyst levitated up an ornate fan and rapidly began fanning herself.
Applejack rolled her eyes.
“My wonderful and loyal subjects,” Blueblood began, his voice booming over the populace through the speaker system. “I come before you today with great news. Our forces have liberated Domare, saving that beleaguered country from the tyrannical hold of the Returners. As I speak, we are in the process of rebuilding their country, making it stronger to those that would undermine its glorious history with rebellion and strife.”
Applejack had to bite her tongue, struggling to keep from charging the palace. She glanced to her side, finding Shining Armor standing ramrod straight. His posture looked so stony that birds could have mistaken him for a statue. His eyes, however, remained animated. They bore nothing but hate and contempt for the speaker, silently cursing him and his Empire. Applejack reached over and gently took hold of his forehoof, giving what little support she could. Shining Armor did not return the gesture, but he didn’t pull away either.
“Furthermore,” Blueblood continued, “I just received word that a weapon that the Returners hid away within the noble town of Neighshe has been recovered. They will not be able to prey upon the ponies there any longer.”
A dark pit formed within Applejack’s stomach. “No… they couldn’t have…”
“Soon, my little ponies, the world will be free for all who live upon it. It will be safe for ponies and griffons alike. No more fear of each other, no more strife. I only ask that you continue to support our loved ones fighting in distant lands, for they are the true heroes in all of this. Soon, the need for fighting will be over and the world will know peace once again.”
The crowd cheered again, the loudest yet. Pegasi and griffons flew up and threw confetti, flags, and banners into the air, the multicolored paraphernalia falling amongst the populace who raced to get the best ones. Upon his balcony, Blueblood gave one last flourish of his robe, granting a final glimpse of his magnificence, before turning and heading back into the palace.
None of this registered with Applejack. She stood, her mouth open and her eyes watery. “That… that can’t be true. It just can’t.”
.o.O.o.
Applejack didn’t realize she was back in the inn until Derpy offered her a cup of juice. “Here. It looks like you could use it,” Derpy said, frowning at Applejack’s disheveled appearance.
Looking up, Applejack blinked away the tears threatening to fall down her cheeks. She accepted the cup from Derpy, mumbling a distracted thanks.
“Um, you going to be okay?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Oh.” Unsure of what else to do, Derpy swallowed and walked back to the others, leaving Applejack to her thoughts.
“How is she?” Rarity asked as Derpy sat down next to them at a table.
“I’m not sure.”
“Oh.”
The group lapsed into silence, the only sounds coming from Amethyst and Dinky cleaning up around the inn. At last, Shining Armor, who had been silent since the emperor’s speech, said, “Well, we can’t just sit around here. We need to do something.”
“And what do you propose?” Rarity responded, nursing a glass of wine. “Bust into the palace, killing anyone in our way, find the emperor, and lop off his head?”
“I’d like to.”
“Hmph. Typical bullheadedness.”
“Oh, you could do it, Ra-uh, Graedus!” Spotter said, spitting crumbs from a half-finished cookie. “You’re all sneaky and stuff.”
Rarity shook her head. “It’s a nice compliment, but even I wouldn’t dare try my luck. It’s a suicide mission, either way.”
They fell silent again, each pondering on the situation. The sound of horseshoed hooves on the wooden floor drew their attention as Applejack sat down with them. “Hey.”
Rarity reached over, placing a hoof over one of Applejack’s. “Are you going to be okay?”
“It’s the not knowing that’s killing me. I wish I had never fallen off that stupid raft.” She gulped down the drink Derpy had offered and when next she spoke, her voice sounded less troubled. “What are y’all talkin’ about?”
“Our next course of action. Any ideas?”
Applejack tapped the table with a hoof, mirroring the frustrated looks the others wore.
“Um, the ponies here in the city all seem happy,” Derpy said, her face scrunched up in thought. “Well, maybe not the chocobos. But… that town we were in before all had ponies who were… sad, I guess. Does… does that mean anything to you?”
The tapping stopped. Applejack stared at Derpy as though she were seeing her for the first time. “That’s… that’s the most brilliant thing anypony’s said all day long.”
“Yay! Uh, what did I just say?”
“Yes, Miss Applejack,” Shining Armor said. “What do the other towns have to do with anything?”
Applejack motioned for them to move closer, bringing them into a small huddle. “Okay, this may sound crazy, but this is what we’re gonna do.
“We’re gonna recruit us some new Returners.”