//------------------------------// // Chapter XXXV: Shine Like Her // Story: As I'm Falling to Pieces // by Pinkamena Diane Pie //------------------------------// Chapter XXXV: Shine Like Her Ponies screamed, running every direction. They fell over one another tripping, and crashing to the floor. Sirens blared, and bright, red lights split the darkness. Lightning looked around in panic. He grabbed Applejack and stood up, wrapping his leg around her to shield her from anypony that could trip onto her, careful to not move her to much or to fast. Phoenix yelled above the cacophony. “What the fuck is going on?!” Lightning was wondering the same thing. All he saw was panicked civilians screaming and galloping towards the nearest exit-way. A voice came over the intercom system, and Lightning pricked his ears in the direction of the transmission to hear it better. Remain calm. All civilians report to the lowest levels and await further instructions. Repeat, all civilians report to the lowest levels, IMMEDIATELY!! The panicked ponies began to re-form some sort of order as guards along the sides screamed at them to merge into a single file. They started to file down the stairs or pile into elevators. Within a few minutes, the only people left were Lightning, Applejack, Phoenix, Fluttershy, and Rainbow. “What should we do?” Lightning asked, fear still in his eyes. “The last time something like this happened, it was a Death Hunter attack.” Phoenix assumed, he then turned to one of the guards watching them. “Lets just hope our guardspony grew a pair in the past seven months.” Phoenix muffled at one of the guards, in disgust. “Come on. Lets get going.” Lightning said, leading Applejack towards the exit. They were halfway down the first flight of stairs, when another explosion rocked the Bunker. The lights flickered and ponies screamed. Applejack screamed and fell against the wall, holding her belly. Lightning rushed over, eyes panicked. “Applejack! Applejack, are you alright?!” He pulled her to her hooves, very carefully. “It’s..it’s nothing. The baby just kicked again.” she smiled at him, ashamed. Lightning sighed relieved. “It’s OK, I’ve got you.” he pulled her into a hug, kissed her, then put his fore-leg around her shoulder. “Everything is going to be OK.” They started to walk down the stairs again. Lightning turned back and saw Phoenix smiling mischievously. He walked up next to Rainbow, then suddenly threw his legs around her shoulders. “I’ve got you, Rainbow Dash.” he said, laughing. “I will protect you.” Rainbow pushed him away and rolled her eyes. However, even in the dim lights, Lightning could see that she was blushing. Eventually, they reached a pair of doors. Two security ponies stood by the doors, a check list in their hooves. A cloudy eyed, light green unicorn walked up to the guards. “Name?” one of them asked gruffly. “Ummm...Lyra.” she responded after a short pause. The guard checked his list, then pulled a small plastic bracelet out of his pack. He slipped it around her left front hoof. Lightning could see a couple words written on it. ‘Heavily Medicated, Special Quarters.’ “Nurse!” he called. After a moment, a white suited nurse walked up and led Lyra away. Lightning heard her as she past. “Look at the lights, they’re so pretty!” she said wistfully, her head tilted up at the ceiling. Applejack’s head dropped when she saw that. “Ah didn’t know that she had gotten that bad. No wonder Ah haven’t seen her in a while.” The line moved painfully slow, inch by inch. Finally, Applejack and Lightning were at the front. “Name?” the guard asked in a bored voice. Applejack stared at him, confused. Then she looked at Lightning. “You know, Ah haven’t really thought about it since we got married. Should it be Applejack Storm, or Apple Storm?” “Ma’am, just give me your first name and your husbands name.” The guard pony said in a deep, serious tone of voice. “Applejack, and this is-” Applejack was cut off by Lightning. “Lightning, Storm.” Lightning said loudly and clearly. He didn’t how the guard was treating Applejack. “Just tell us where to go.” The guard checked his list. “Section S, Area 4, got that, Hot Shot?” the guard asked, staring at Lightning with contempt. “Yeah, I think so.” Lightning spat, then carefully walked Applejack over to their assigned section. When they reached it, Applejack reclined against the wall, letting out a sigh of relief. Her hooves instantly went straight to her belly, which was more prominent now that she was sitting. Lightning sat on the ground next to her. “How long do you think we will have to wait?” he asked, worried for her safety. “Well, the last time something like this happened, it lasted all day. But they didn’t get in. Now that the Bunker is weakened.....Ah don’t know.” She wrapped her hooves around her stomach, caressing the bulge. Time seemed to slow, but eventually, all the ponies were sitting in their assigned slots. When they were finished, an announcement came over the P.A. system. All able bodied Stallions are to report to the Armory to help defend. Repeat, all able bodied Stallions to the Armory. When the announcement was finished, shouts of anger and outrage rose from the crowd. These shouts were instantly stopped by the guards. Applejack looked up at Lightning as he stood up. “Your not going are you!?” she asked, fear in her eyes. “I have to go, you heard the announcement. And last time I checked..” he twirled his neck around to look at himself. “..I was able bodied.” Applejack’s eyes fell. Lightning reached and took off his wedding bracelet. It matched Applejack’s in every way, down to the last diamond. He grabbed her left hoof and slid it on. It stood outwith her own. “I will be coming back for that.” he said with a smile. He bent down and kissed Applejack’s freckles, then on her lips. He reached down and patted her belly. “I will be back for that as well.” he stood up, looking Applejack up and down. His eyes noticed the odd yellow patch on her left hind leg. The patch where Braeburn gave up his skin to help her heal. That seemed like forever ago. He walked away, falling into the line of Stallions. He saw Phoenix and called him over. “What do you think we are going to have to do?” Lightning asked. Phoenix shook his head. “I have no idea. But this is like old times, isn’t it?” he said with a smile. Lightning couldn’t help but smile back. The line moved slowly as the Stallions made their way up to the armory. When Lightning and phoenix finally reached the stand, they ordered their own guns. Phoenix decided to pick up the M4 and Lightning got the SMG. The guards, recognizing them from their expeditions, decided to send them to the front line, AKA, the top of the Bunker. They took the elevator up. When they reached the lobby, they saw that a sort of blockade had been made over the door. Phoenix and Lightning set up behind an upturned table. Sounds of growls and screeches were coming through cracks in the outer hull of the Bunker. Light streamed in through the cracks, illuminating the room. “That door wont hold much longer, Stallions.” the Bunker General said, as he paced between the ponies. “And when it does fall, short, rapid bursts of fire. Try to block the entrance with their bodies.” he settled behind one of the blockades, holding his pistol. Sure enough, with in three minutes, the door caved in. The room exploded into fire and sound. Death Hunters poured in, but were immediately shot down by the assembled Stallions. Blood started to pool as more and more Hunters were shot down. However, the Generals plan did not work. As soon as one was killed, another would pull its body out of the way. Blood started to trickle towards where Lightning and Phoenix were hiding. Lightning had fired two clips into the door way, but they kept coming. The Stallion next to them was hit by a thrown blade, its edge sinking deep into his shoulder. He fell to the ground, screaming, blood flowing down his shoulder. Lightning saw him being dragged away by two Mares. One was yellow, the other was a white tint. “Cora! Fluttershy!” Lightning yelled. They looked up to see Phoenix and Lightning standing there, their eyes widened. Cora didn’t have time to talk, she pulled the blade out and pressed her horn to the Stallions wound, instantly closing it. They gave him back his gun and sent him out. Slowly, ever so slowly, their numbers thinned. Finally, the last of the Hunters was killed. carefully, the Stallions stood up. Lightning walked a few steps away, shaking blood off his hooves. Tentatively, he edged towards the broken door. He poked his head out, not seeing any Hunters. He walked out a little farther, and was instantly knocked over. His gun flew away from him. A Death Hunter landed on him. Its hood fell back from its face. All Lightning saw was white fur and purple mane, covered in blood and grease. Teeth and blade bared down on him. He kicked the Hunter off of him, reaching for his gun. He took aim just as it was standing up again. From behind him heard the sound of pounding hooves. Fluttershy’s voice hit his ears. “Lightning!! DON’T!!” His gun was knocked from his grasp as Fluttershy rushed passed him, a syringe in her hoof. She rushed up to the Death Hunter, flew over it, and jabbed the syringe into its side. She pushed the plunger down and emptied the entire vial. The Hunter screeched, then fell to the side; unconscious. Lightning was furious. “Fluttershy!? What the hell was that!?” he yelled, spinning her around to face him. “It could have killed you!” Her face was determined, and she didn’t back down like she normally would have. “SHE is not and ‘it’, Lightning. And this broken mound of a pony, is my friend.” Lightning just stared at her. “Wha....what.....WHAT?!” he finally managed to get out. “You heard me.” she walked up and knelt down next to the Hunter. “This is my friend. Her name is Rarity.” She looked in the broken door of the Bunker. “Cora! I need some help with this!” Phoenix and Cora carried the unconscious body of Rarity down the stairs, while Lightning and Fluttershy walked behind them. “What do you mean? How can, that, be your friend.” Lightning asked, still bewildered. Fluttershy gave him a dark look. “Stop calling her that. Do you remember that picture you found back in the ruins of Ponyville.” she responded. Lightning had to think back. “Um..yeah. Yeah I do.” “Well, do you remember the white unicorn in the photo. This is the same pony.” Fluttershy finished, remorse filling her eyes as she stared at the Hunter. Lightning brought up a mental picture of the white unicorn and compared it with the one in front of him. Besides the colors, there was almost no comparison between the two. The Mare in the picture had a perfect, flowing mane. The Hunter had a grease and blood filled mane, hanging limply to the side. The unicorn in the picture had a flawless coat. The Hunter’s coat looked terrible. Three bright, red scars ran the length of her left eye. On her chest was what looked to be a heart. But it was not a tattoo. It appeared to be burned into her skin and fur. More scars adorned her arm and her ears were tagged with what appeared to be bones. That was all he could see without removing her cloak. He didn’t want to know what was underneath. This was going against all the lessons he had learned from living in the Wastes. You never take prisoners, most importantly, never a Death Hunter. They should have shot her back on the surface. But now, they were carting her through the empty halls of the Bunker, towards.. “Where are we going?” Lightning asked Cora. “We are taking her to the Psychiatric ward. They have a solitary confinement cell there. We can hold her there until we find a way to fix her.” Cora said, straining under Rarity’s weight. “Or at least until she kills us.” she said under her breath. “What will Applejack say when--” he stopped, his eyes widening. “DAMMIT! Applejack!” He brought his W.I.C. to his mouth and called Applejack. “I’m alright Applejack. We made it.” Her voice came through the device, high-pitched, but relieved. “Oh thank Celestia! Where are you now?” she asked. “Well...we are heading down to the hospital. Phoenix got hurt.” he lied. But don’t worry, he is fine. I will be back as soon as possible. I love you.” “I love you to. Hurry back.” The call was shut off. Fluttershy was looking at Lightning. “Why did you lie?” she asked. “Because I don’t want to tell her that one of her best friends is a murdering cannibal.” Lightning said, harshly. Fluttershy shrank back slightly. Lightning felt terrible about that, but what was he supposed to say? He didn’t wan to tell Applejack until it was absolutely necessary. After what seemed like a hundred flight of stairs, they reached the hospital. Doctors and nurses were running around, tending to the patients who were to sick or weak to transport. When they walked in the hospital, holding Rarity in their fore-legs, a couple nurses screamed. Lightning walked up to one of the doctors. “Where is Dr. Sparkle. We need her, now.” he said, not caring about being polite. The doctor tore his eyes away from the scene and pointed down the hall to one of the rooms. Twilight was just walking out, holding a clipboard in the air in front of her. Lightning ran over to her. “Twilight, we need you.” ***** Twenty minutes later, Rarity was enclosed in a solitary confinement cell. Her legs were held to the bed by straps. The doctors said it was for her protection, but Lightning felt that it was for their own. Twilight was taking some vitals, then walked out of the room. She sighed when she shut the door behind her. “Well, for a diet of pony flesh and blood, she is surprisingly healthy. Her vitals are almost normal. I even think she weighs the same as she did back in Ponyville.” she dumped the clipboard in a box next to the door. “I don’t know how we are going to fix this though. No pony has ever tried to rehabilitate an Death Hunter before.” “You are going to try, right?” asked Cora. She felt the same about bringing Rarity in as Lightning did. “Your not just going to tie her up.” “No we are going to try.” Twilight responded, hurt by the question. “We just don’t know where to start. However, the best thing you can do is go back to your daily life. We don’t know how long this will take or if it will work, so don’t worry yourselves with it.” She walked over and held the door to the hospital open. “Check back in a week.” and with that, they were ushered out of the hospital. Cora and Fluttershy stayed behind, as they were now employed by the hospital. So Lightning and Phoenix walked back to the lowest floor alone. They didn’t have anything to say, so the walk was silent. When they reached the room, Lightning was tackled by Applejack. “What happened? What’s going on? He doesn’t look hurt.” she pointed at Phoenix. Lightning sighed. “I have something to tell you.” ***** She didn’t take the news well. Neither did Rainbow Dash. At first they refused to believe it. But then Twilight showed them that indeed Rarity. Afterwards, they did all they could to help Twilight, but nothing seemed to be working. If anything, she seemed to be getting worse. One day, twilight called them all in. Her expression was one filled with pain and grief. Lightning looked in the window that showed Rarity’s room. She was still struggling, her wrists and ankles bleeding from the leather straps. “I only have one more idea, and if it doesn’t work, we have to make a choice. We can keep her like this, or...” she reached into a cabinet standing next to her. “..We can give her this.” It was a dark green bottle. The label on the outside said, ‘Warning: Lethal Substance’. “You guys will have to make that choice. Think about it while I am in there.” She opened the door and walked in. As soon as Rarity saw her, she started spitting and growling, struggling against her bonds. Twilight walked up as close as she dared. “Hello Rarity.” she said. Rarity gave no indication about weather or not she understood her. “Rarity, I would like to talk to you about somepony.” She pulled something out of her lab coat. It was a picture with the old Rarity and someone else on it. A young filly with white fur and a pink and white striped mane. Twilight held it in front of the white unicorn. “Rarity, do you know who this is.” Rarity continued to fight and growl. “Rarity, this is your sister.” she pushed the picture closer to Rarity’s face. “Rarity, where is your sister.” The fighting stopped when she said this. Rarity stared at the picture, not comprehending. “Rarity, where is Sweetie Belle.” Twilight asked, pushing further. A spark filled Rarity’s eyes. She opened her mouth, however, no growls came out. This time it was real words. Words filled with pain and fear. But something else, something Lightning knew well: Regret. Tears rolled down her muzzle, landing in the middle of the heart on her chest. “Help me. Please, just help me.” Her eyes rolled back inside her head, and she collapsed back onto the bed.