Avatar: The Last Alicorn. Book 3: Unicorn

by Jeweled Pen


Chapter 18: Toxic

Twilight couldn't believe their luck. They were on fire.

Literally. Their ship was on fire, the crew flying about as they tried to put the flames out before they could get to the balloons. Rainbow flapped around with them, trying her best to help blow the flames out while simultaneously sending puffs of air into their sails, allowing them to gain steady distance over the ship pursuing them. Twilight watched everything from the stairs, unable to go out on the deck. “I should be out there, helping...”

“No yah shouldn't,” Applejack said firmly. “If yah go out there, you're bound tah get noticed. Alicorn's ain't exactly common. Jus' keep hidin' an' let the others handle this.” She glanced over to her friend, before letting out a sigh. Her hoof slowly reached out and patted her on the back. “Listen, ah get it. Yah wanna be out there, pullin' your weight. But yah need tah hide. If they find out about yah, the entire nation'll be after us.”

“But--”

“No buts. We gotta hide. Do yah think me an' Pinkie like hidin' down here? But we can't fly an' got no experience on a ship, so we'd jus' get in the way. We all got things we gotta do, you included. So for now, we jus' watch. Okay?”

Twilight gritted her teeth, but nodded. She moved aside as a griffon came barging out, brandishing some rope.

Rainbow wove around the ship, giving their pursuers an annoyed glare. They were outrunning them, but only barely. Her air bending was the main reason. The ship chasing them was smaller, much smaller. Barely big enough to hold three ponies and the cannon that had so delicately blown a hole in the side of their ship and sent the ship alight. The only good news was they'd managed to stop it from catching onto the sails and balloons. The bad news was if they didn't keep the pace up, they'd be within firing range again. The ship wasn't strong enough to take any more shots like that. “That's it!” She snapped, giving the balloon an annoyed smack. “I'm going over.”

Captain Thunderlane's head shot up. “What?! Don't, you're--”

Rainbow ignored him and tore off towards the other ship, flapping her wings so hard their rigging trembled. She was half way to the smaller ship when they fired again. The metal ball flew straight at her, but she easily twirled around it, only glancing back for a second. To her surprise, Thunderlane and Goldenbeak were following her.

“What do you think you're doing?” she yelled at them.

“You're insane if you think I'm going to let some silly air bender steal all the glory!” Thunderlane yelled, before pulling his sword out.

Goldenbeak laughed as she drew her blade. “Aye aye, captain!”

Rainbow rolled her eyes before diving around another cannonball. With another burst of speed she dove down, knocking the ponies back before they could finish reloading the cannon. Fortunately, the tiny ship only had one. “Should have kept on flying,” She said before flapping her wings and sending a burst of air around the ship.

The three ponies, all pegasi, were sent hurtling back into the beams and ropes of the ship. Rainbow rose into the air--

“I surrender!”

“Me too!”

“I give up, don't hurt us!”

--and promptly landed again. “Wait, what? But I only just got here! Come on, don't you want to threaten us, shoot arrows, even try stabbing me with a spear?”

“I don't wanna fight with any bender,” one of the tangled ponies yelled. Rainbow sighed and face hoofed, shaking her head. A moment later she heard the captain and griffon landing behind her.

“Well, looks like I've captured the ship,” she muttered in annoyance. “Really, really fast. Barely even put up a fight. What's with this?”

Thunderlane laughed and gave her a pat on the back. “Oh, don't feel too bad. When yah got a military spread this thin, you're bound to get a bunch of cowards to fill the ranks. If yah wanna fight, can always just try picking one with some of the crew.”

“It's not the same,” Rainbow muttered, before spreading her wings and rising into the air. “I'm going back to the ship.” She paused. “They're prisoners. Don't kill them.”

Thunderlane rolled his eyes. “I didn't plan on it. But don't start thinking I take orders from you.” He gave a huff and turned back to the prisoners.

Rainbow soared back to the main ship, which had stopped to allow the smaller to join with it, and to repair. “Rainbow, that was really dangerous,” Twilight said before coming out from below decks. “You could have been hurt or worse.”

“I could get hurt doing just about anything,” the pegasus said with a roll of her eyes. “Besides, air bender. I can dodge cannon balls all day. They never even came close.”

“Still...”

“Relax. It's not like they have any benders any more. We're going away from the main cities,” Rainbow grumbled before looking to that smaller ship. “That little scouting vessel is the only thing we've seen since we got on this boat.”

“And it almost wrecked the ship,” Twilight reminded her. “A real vessel would tear this thing apart. It's in no fit state to be flying.”

“No, it's not.” Rainbow turned towards the scouting vessel. “We should take that tiny ship and--”

“No,” Twilight interrupted.

“But you didn't even--”

“That thing's tiny. According to Thunderlane, we're still days from this beach hide out of theirs. That's too tiny to hold more than four of us, and the supplies we'd need. This ship may be small and breaking apart, but it can get us all their, together.”

“Or get us all killed if the entire thing goes down because we run into something that can put up an actual fight,” Rainbow said bitterly. “If we split up we could--”

“We'll likely have to split up again soon enough. I don't want to do it until we know what we're going into...” Twilight said before reaching out to grip her friend's hooves. “We don't know what we'll face when we arrive, the ponies there may be nice and helpful. Or they might be like these ponies and try to capture us. If they are... we'll have to work together. All of us. We can't afford to be separated. Not yet.”

Rainbow slowly nodded, but ground her hoof into the floor again. “I... I know. It doesn't mean I have to like it though.” She threw back her mane and stormed off below deck, leaving the others behind. A few seconds later Applejack followed after her.

“I don't know why she's so antsy...” Twilight mumbled, though her friends only gave her a few shrugs.

Rainbow barely made it to the small 'mess hall' of the ship, which was really only the kitchen, and a few barrels with boards over them to make tables, before a hoof tapped on her plot. “What is it?” she snapped.

“Yah mind calmin' down an' not bitin' mah head off just cause you're in a foul mood?” Applejack asked snappily.

“I'm not in a... I'm just under a bit of stress, okay?”

“We're all under stress. None of us like havin' tah travel in this flyin' death trap. But yah can't keep flyin' off jus' cause you're afraid. Ah know. It sucks we have tah depend on this thing. If the Water Nation does find us, we're in deep trouble. But--”

“I'm not scared of the Water Nation...” Rainbow mumbled.

“Fine. Yah ain't scared of them. You're jus' worried they'll--”

“I'm not worried about them either! The Water Nation is fine, we've kicked their butts every time we've come across them. Sure, sometimes things go bad, but we always pull through in the end. Out numbered, out magicked, even out winged. We always win. It's... not them who has me worried and stressed.”

“Then what has yah so--” Applejack froze for a few moments. She then gulped. “That...”

“Yeah. Shadow... death pony. Whatever he... it was. We need a better name for it.”

“Boom gas pony?”

“Sure, why not. That... thing. If it found us here, I don't think it could--”

“We beat it once.”

“Barely,” Rainbow muttered. “It just... everything we threw at it, it just brushed off. It went around it and just... if we hadn't dropped all that on it, it would probably still be after us. It might still be after us. If it finds us here, where can we run? You saw how fast it was. We couldn't out run it.”

Applejack shuffled her hooves. “It... it probably can't fly. An'... ah'm sure if it was gonna find us, it woulda found us by now. Ah think we're safe...”

“And if we're not? What if that thing comes. How are we supposed to fight that off? It's like Twilight said. That thing is just like that spirit bear. We aren't equipped to fight something like that. Twilight's not capable. If she was, we'd be leading a whole army of spirit bears into the Water Nation and end this war. But we're not, we're just... spending all our time running.” Rainbow flew into the kitchen and took a mug, filling it with cider. “Running like we always do...”

“Like we always do?” Applejack asked with a cocked eye. “Are yah sure this isn't about the Water Nation?”

“Well... maybe a tiny, itty bitty, little bit,” Rainbow muttered, before taking a deep drink of her cider. “Why can't we just win one? I mean, really win one. None of this... 'we won, but' thing. It's always that way. We beat the Water Nation, but lose hundreds in the process. We beat gas boom pony, but we were nearly killed in the attempt and don't even know if we stopped it. We gather all these elements and... we lose Spike.”

Applejack frowned. “What does Spike have tah do with anything?”

“Nothing... everything. We're just... always losing. We win the battle, but we lose so much in the process.” Rainbow sighed and looked down into her drink. “We started out with so much less to lose. If we keep winning little victories like this... we'll lose due to attrition alone.”

Applejack frowned and moved besides the mare, smiling. “Ah know. It's... hard. There's a lot we've had tah do. Had tah keep doing. But, we're almost there. Jus' a lil more. In less than a month, we're done. We'll finally win. No more fightin', no more runnin'. We'll beat the Water Nation and save everypony. All we have tah do is hold out for a few more weeks.” She reached out to give her friend a hug. “Can yah do that?”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Of course I can. What kind of wuss do you take me for?” She snorted and pulled the mug up to her lips, taking a deep drink. She then sighed. “But... thanks. I didn't mean to get all... touchy feely and stuff with you. Didn't really wanna talk with--”

“Sometimes we jus' need tah talk things out. Ain't nopony gonna think less of yah for getting' overwhelmed. That's why we all gotta do this together.”

Rainbow chuckled and nodded her head. “Yeah, I guess. I wonder if any of the avatar's tried to do this stuff on their own. Now that would be a mistake.”

------

“I don't know about this...” Rarity mumbled softly as she stared at the buckets of water in front of them.

“All you gotta do is mix your magic with it and make it poison,” Sweetie said with a chuckle. “You've done it before, you just have to do it again. Feel all your anger and rage, make it solid. Let it seep into the water...”

Rarity nodded and stared at the water. She'd done it before, surely she could do it again. She closed her eyes and thought back to that day as she picked up a long strand of water. What had angered her so much to allow her to bend the poison? She'd felt the hatred boiling inside her, allowing her to twist it in with her magic to change the water. Was it the avatar?

No. It hadn't been her. It had been something else. Something... horrible. It came back to her so suddenly she recoiled, dropping the water.

“What's wrong? Are you okay?” Sweete asked, stepping forward.

“Yes. I just... I... I was thinking about... what had made me so angry. Why I had... had been able to... to do it.”

“What was it? It was the avatar, wasn't it? Because she separated us? Because all she had done?”

Rarity stared into her sister's eyes. Slowly, she nodded. “Yes... it was the avatar.” No. It had been the Earth Kingdom. What they had done... what those soldiers had done. They had killed Blueblood. Nearly killed her aunt. Would have killed her. It had all grown and festered inside her, creating a black core of hatred that lodged in her stomach.

The problem was, it had. but no longer. She hated what they had done, but in the end she could understand it. Not forgive, but accept. As far as they knew, she was an enemy. It was her actions that had caused everything, not theirs. If she had been smarter, faster, just better, Blueblood would still be alive. Littlewing would likely as well. There was no pony to blame but herself. “But she's dead now,” she said softly. “I can't... bring myself to hate her anymore.”

Sweetie frowned and rubbed her chin with a hoof. “Hmmmm... well, we have to find something you hate. Maybe mother?”

“I don't hate mother!” Rarity hissed, narrowing her eyes. “She's our mom. How could I possibly hate her?”

“She's evil, cruel, in our way and has no idea how to properly rule our kingdom?”

Rarity face hoofed and shook her head. “No. I don't... hate her. She's still our mother. It's not her that's... this isn't the real her. This is--” She froze and slowly lowered her hoof. The corruption that enveloped their mother also enveloped Sweetie. How would the younger princess react to such information? “She's under a lot of stress. The real her is--”

“She banished you for years. How is that just stress?” Sweetie asked, stomping her hoof down. “Fine. There has to be somepony you hate. Somepony you just want to break into a thousand pieces and drench them in poison so they die a slow, lingering, painful death?”

Rarity shook her head. “Errr... no pony comes to mind. Maybe... we can try something else, okay? Anything else?”

“Fine,” Sweetie said bitterly. “Maybe if not mad at... a pony. How about a situation?”

“A situation?”

“Yes, a situation. Maybe something mother did? Perhaps all that time we had to spend apart? I know whenever I think of that it makes me so mad I just want to... gahh!” She stomped her hoof down. “I could just tear mother apart!”

“That might work,” Rarity said quickly. She could think of plenty of situations she was angry at. She thought about the first one. Namely, Discord's control over her sister and mother. The fact his control lead to her getting this element. The way it now was driving her apart from her family and making her miserable. How she had to work so hard just to return home, and now she might lose it all because of the element. All those years she had lost because of that monster's taint. The fact her aunt was imprisoned. Her father gone. Killed off all of Spike's family...

“I was wrong,” Rarity mumbled softly as she ground her hoof into the ground. “I can think of someone I hate. Someone I hate a lot.” She bared her teeth and thought of Discord. She didn't know what he looked like or even what he truly was. She tried thinking of the most monstrous, wicked creatures she could.

The late General Trixie flashed into her mind. Except she imagined the general with a black horn and bloody wings. With glowing green eyes and fangs so long they were like daggers. Worst of all, that laugh. That evil, cruel laugh that delighted in the suffering of others. That was Discord. That's what he looked like.

“Sooo, who is it?”

“It's... hard to explain. But tell me, what's next?”

“Feed that hate. Let it grow in you. Imagine every wrong that pony has done to you and--” She gasped as the door to their large, mostly empty, work room opened. “Tea's here. We can continue after.”

“What?” Rarity asked, before turning towards the door. Sure enough, a small pony pushing a cart with two crystal glasses, a tray stacked with biscuits and a silver teapot was walking inside. The mare bowed and walked backwards out from the room.

“Tea time!” Sweetie said as she trotted to the cart and pulled out one of the crackers, giving it a gentle nibble before eating it in one gulp. “Come on, join me!” The princess grinned before opening the tea pot and stirring it with her magic. A grin formed on her lips before she poured it.

“Oh, right... tea time,” Rarity mumbled, though she didn't feel very hungry or thirsty. If anything, she felt dirty. As if Discord's taint was rubbing off on her, coursing through her body and trying to seep into her through the very act of thinking about him. For all she knew, he could. She reached up to rub her throat again. Would the element protect her a second time? Could it protect her a second time? Discord's corruption had affected Starlight and she had been one of the elements. What protections could it offer her? She wished she knew if Starlight had held the element when she was corrupted. Perhaps the avatar had it at the time?

“Sister? Are you feeling well?” Sweetie asked, eying the older mare.

“What? Oh, I'm fine,” Rarity said with a chuckle, before bringing her tea to her mouth, gently blowing on it, and taking a sip. It tasted... she spit it out, dropping the glass. It shattered against the ground, spilling its contents on the floor. “There's poison in it!”

Sweetie gasped. “What? Who? Why?” She sniffed her own and frowned. “Curses, somepony tried to poison us! We must find a way to get them back. Can you believe this? Doesn't it just make you angry?”

Rarity ground her hoof into the floor. “Yes. It makes me furious, why woul--” She froze in mid sentence, staring at the tea pot in horror.

“We must grab that servant and flay her alive, I can think of no better target for your poison bending!” Sweetie galloped towards the door, but before she could open it, water flooded over and froze it closed.

“Sweetie. What poison is this?”

“What? Why would I--”

“Sweetie, I'm not an idiot,” Rarity said before turning to face her sister. “What is it? Why did you try to poison me?”

“W-what? Why would I--”

Rarity took a step forward, glaring down at her sister. “Don't lie to me.”

Sweetie lowered her eyes and softly sighed. “It wasn't much. Just strong tasting, but weak. It wouldn't have hurt you that much...”

“You tried to poison me!” Rarity screamed, her horn glowing before she lifted the tea pot up and shattered it on the ground, coating the ground in its fluid. “Your own sister, and you tried to poison me. Sweetie, what is wrong with you?”

“But I... I was just--”

“You were just what? Trying to make me angry? Trying to make me hurt some pony so I could master poison bending?” She advanced, making the younger princess back up. “There is no excuse for this sort of behavior. None! Do you even NOTICE what you are doing half the time? Do you even think before you act?”

“But I... I just...”

“You're my sister. We're supposed to love each other, care about each other. Not poison each other or hurt each other! What were you thinking?”

“I just... I wanted you to learn p-poison bending. I... I wanted to teach you. To make you proud. I--”

Rarity reached out and put a hoof on her sister's head. “Sweetie, I've always been proud of you. You're an amazing bender. A wonderful... no. You were once a wonderful child. Now... now I feel I don't know you any more. What happened to that sister I grew up with? The one who couldn't hurt a fly? The one who ran out with a pack of band aids if somepony skinned their knee? You never cared about anything aside from making ponies happy. Now... now you're killing guards, assassins, plotting to take over the kingdom, poisoning me. You even act as if our mother is some kind of... inconvenience you wish to remove.”

“But... I... I'm just doing this to make you happy. Aren't you happy? Don't you want to be with me forever? I can protect you, I can--”

“You're my sister!” Rarity snapped. “Of course I want to be with you. You're family. But... I want to be with the sister I knew. The sister I loved. But this... you're becoming worse than mother. You kill, destroy, maim, all in my name. Do you actually enjoy it, Sweetie? Does it bring you pleasure to kill somepony? Do you feel any regret?”

“Why would I feel regret? If a pony is in my way or trying to take from me, I relish in taking their--”

Rarity lost control there. She slapped her sister across the face, her eyes narrowed into thin lines. Sweetie stumbled back, her mouth falling open in shock. “That's just it!” the elder princess snapped. “You should feel sadness, regret, pain. You're still a pony, and so are they! Sometimes... sometimes you have to kill a pony. Sometimes it's the only way. Sometimes it's an accident, too. But it should never, ever bring you pleasure. It shouldn't be something you look forward to, envision doing.”

“But... but you looked forward to k-killing the avatar, didn't you?” Sweetie asked, her entire body shaking as her back stepping was stopped by the wall behind her.

“No. I never wanted to kill the avatar.” That made the younger princess gasp. “I only wanted to return home. That's all I EVER wanted. That's why I chased the avatar and tried to kill her. If it wasn't for mother forcing me to pursue her, I might have even been her friend!”

Rarity stared at her sister, enraged, though after a few seconds she realized the words she said. “Wait. Sweetie, don't. I... I didn't mean all--”

“You would be friends with the avatar?” Sweetie yelled, taking a step forward as rage filled her eyes. “That... that pony tried to destroy all we held dear! She wanted to break our nation!”

Rarity narrowed her eyes again. “Well maybe our nation should be broken. All it seems to be good for any more is destroying ponies lives. Killing, crushing. I never wanted to be a part of that. All I wanted for our nation was for it to be happy, for the ponies to be safe and well cared for. Instead our mother is so bent on destroying our enemies that she doesn't care how many of our ponies we lose. Maybe the avatar should have won!”

Sweetie's eyes went wide, her mouth falling open. “You... you wanted... you wanted the avatar to win? But... but she's...”

“No... I... I just... I don't...” Rarity pulled back, shaking her head. “I just want everypony to be happy. Like we used to be. Not this... horrible, evil killing that we do over and over. All mother seems to care about is who or what she can destroy.”

“But the avatar is our enemy! You can't... you can't side with her. I... I...” Sweetie shook, taking a step back. “Mother... mother would kill you.”

“I'm not... siding with her,” Rarity said softly. “I just... I just don't know if the Water Nation is the best for the world any more. I don't even know if the Water Nation is the best for the Water Nation. It's not... it's just... it's hard. It's hard to know what is right any more.”

“The... the Water Nation is right. I'm right. You're...” Sweetie's entire body shook as she ground a hoof into the ground. “You're... you're... you can't... you can't betray me. You're my sister. You can't side with the avatar! You have to be on my side! The avatar is the enemy! I'm not!”

Rarity sighed and reached out, gripping her sister's face in her hooves. “No. You're not my enemy. You never have been, and never will. But... you're not yourself. Not now. The Sweetie I know could never hurt a fly. Would never kill a pony. I'll...” She took a deep breath before staring into her eyes. “Discord has a hold on you. His magic. I know it does. And I'm going to save you no matter what it takes.”

Time seemed to stand still as the younger princess stared up at her sister. Rarity knew those words could never be taken back, but she had to at least try to make her see. To show her what she was becoming. The younger princess's eyes narrowed into slits. “You... you think I'm corrupted? That I'm so weak as to be controlled by Discord's pathetic magic? I control it, not him! It lets me do things, like--”

“Make poisonous water, kill ponies, control an army?” Rarity asked softly. “Slaughter assassins, ki--”

“Would you rather I was weak? Would you rather the assassins killed me? That I fell in battle? That I was unable to control my soldiers?”

“No, I just--”

“Discord's magic didn't change me. I changed me! I was weak, easily crushed. Now I'm strong. Strong enough to face mother. To face the Earth Kingdom. To face... to face you! There's nothing to do with any other pony but me inside me. Why... why can't you see this? I changed so I could protect you. But you... you throw it in my face.”

“Sister...” Rarity said gently.

Sweetie growled and stomped a hoof. “I... I have to be strong! I don't have a choice in the matter! No matter... no matter what happens I have to be strong.” She glared up at her sister. “And... and so do you!” She bared her teeth. “You... you can't leave until you can poison bend.”

“Sweetie...”

“I mean it! You have to!” Sweetie screamed, before kicking over one of the buckets and sending water across the floor. “You'll see! It has nothing to do with anypony but me! It's our magic, not... not Discord's! You'll see, you have to see!”

“Sweetie...”

“No!” the younger princess yelled, before turning and storming away. She opened the door roughly, before glaring back. “If... if you don't. I... I'll tell mother what you said! I'll tell her you...” She shook her head and slammed the door. Rarity could soon hear her galloping off.

“Oh sister...” However, even if she suspected the threat was an empty one, she knew she couldn't risk it. She turned to the buckets of water and chewed on her lip. Well, she'd done it once before. Surely she could do it again.

------

Angel rested contently, his eyes half closed as Fluttershy gently stroked his fur. He was held gently in her lap, occasionally being fed small chunks of cabbage. They were sitting on the deck, protected from the bulk of the wind by laying against one of the walls so just a soft breeze ruffled their hair. He was loving it.

Unfortunately, the alicorn a few yards away was not. She kept pacing anxiously, glancing up towards the distance on occasion. “Are we absolutely certain this is the right way?”

“We?” Thunderlane asked with a chuckle. “Don't you mean me? And don't you worry your little head, avatar. My crew and I are good as our words, we'll get you to the beach. Now, if you find allies or enemies, well, that's up to the rest of the captains. But I'll get you there.”

“But we're so open and exposed...” Twilight muttered.

“And there are only a few ships out in these skies. Once we get into the waters we'll have a few more troubles,” Thunderlane said with a snort. “But most of those ships are spread thin as well. That scouting ship we met was just a fluke. Bad luck. Sour turn of the wind. The parts we salvaged from it more than made up for the damage we took.”

“And the pegasi we captured,” Twilight said huffily.

“Yeah. Those, on the other hoof, are just a waste of resources. If you don't want them to give away your position, you should let me tie some rocks around their necks and toss them over board when we get out to...” His words trailed off when he realized both Twilight and Fluttershy were glaring at him. “Never mind, just a suggestion.”

“See that it stays just a suggest,” Twilight muttered. “Please. I have no desire to hurt any pony more than we have to.”

“Sure. It's thoughts like that that'll end up putting you in an early grave,” Thunderlane said with a snort. He then sighed. “But, if that's how you wanna do things, that's how you do them.” He trotted to the front of the ship and looked out over the horizon. “Ah, right on time.”

“What is it?” the alicorn asked, trotting up besides him.

“Right there, off in the distance.” He motioned with a hoof. Twilight squinted her eyes, though she couldn't see anything.

“There's nothing there,” she muttered.

“Look harder. The little sparkles?”

Twilight squinted even more, before gasping. “I see them! They're... kinda hard to make out. But they're there. What is it?”

“The sea. We'll arrive around nightfall. From there, it's only a short distance to Deathrattle beach. We're making excellent time.” He glanced up towards the sails, which were filled with wind from Rainbow's air bending. “I must say, your friend is quite impressive. Strong, lots of endurance and that air bending is amazing. If her personality was a tad less... rough, I'd invite her into my crew.”

“She'd say no,” Twilight said with a smile.

“Can't blame me for dreaming.”

“She'd demand to be captain, even if she was willing to become a pirate.”

The captain shivered. “She'd make an excellent captain, if she could find a crew willing to put up with her. With her talents, it might not be so hard.” He hummed for a moment. “Once this is all over, I might have to swing over to the Air Nomad lands. If I could convince a few air benders to join my crew--”

“If you went there flying your pirate flag, the Wonderbolts would tear you and your ship apart. You'd be lucky to get out with your life,” Twilight informed him as she watched her friend fill their sails.

“True enough. Always a shame, plundering the air nomads is one of the great dreams of us pirates everywhere. They say there's clouds made entirely of gold and rainbows of jewels.”

Twilight laughed, shaking her head. “They're dreaming little fancies. There's nothing like that there. Just a very strong air force to drive pirates like you away.”

The captain scowled and shook his head. “Are all the avatars as up tight as you?”

She snorted. “Indeed. That's why there's only one a generation, otherwise the world wouldn't be able to handle it.”

He chuckled, before glancing to her. “Tell me. All the rumors said you'd died when Fillydelphia fell. How was it you survived? Did you run away or--”

“I did die,” Twilight said softly before closing her eyes. She thought about that fight again, the piercing of the water through her. The pain, the fear. Not to mention when she'd awoken. “Or at least... a part of me did. It was... far too long ago,” she whispered.

“Too long ago? It's barely been--”

“How far has the news of my death spread?”

“To every corner of the world by now,” Thunderlane said with a chuckle. “The Water Nation spread the news as fast as they could. Some ponies chose not to believe, but with Fillydelphia gone, many didn't have anything to believe in. Didn't help that the sun and moon stopped rotating again for a while. Why?”

Twilight shook her head. “Nothing.”

“So, if you died, how did you--”

“It's something I'd really rather not talk about,” the alicorn said before turning away. “I'm going to get something to eat, I feel kind of... empty...”

The captain frowned, but nodded. “We should be arriving in a few days. Maybe tomorrow night, if your pegasus friend is able to keep giving us a push whenever the winds die down.”

“Good...” Twilight muttered before trotting under the deck.

------

Rarity stared at the buckets of water, a cold sweat coating her body. A small puddle of black toxins had gathered across the room, sizzling softly against the stone floor. She'd finally managed to succeed. She'd managed to give her hatred and contempt of Discord physical form and use it to change the water into something that gave death.

It was one of the worst experiences in her recent memory. Considering the things she could remember and had gone through all too recently, that was quite the accomplishment. The dark magic had spread out from her horn and entered the water, turning it into a dark, purple substance. Thick as syrup. Just the memory of it sent a chill down her spine. She felt unclean, as if the magic she used not only changed the water, but changed her as well. Like a sick, nasty oil that coated her on the inside, corrupting and spreading its taint through her body. She felt slimy and gross and all she wanted to do was take a long, scalding shower. She just wished there was a way to clean her magic as well.

The hatred she'd felt had filled her, in a way it even gave her strength. But once she'd used it to fuel the magic, it had left her feeling weak and drained. Almost empty aside from the sick, nasty oil-like feelings inside. She didn't know how her sister and mother could endure it. How her aunt had been able to do it. Would it become easier with time? Experience? She hoped she'd never have to know. She hoped she'd never have to use it again. Though, in the end she figured hope was all she seemed to have any more.

She stood up and moved to the door, tugging on it. Unsurprisingly, it didn't budge. Her sister hadn't returned, either. She was afraid the mare didn't plan to return at all. She shook her head and pounded on the door. “Hey! Let me out!”

To her surprise, the door opened. A guard stood outside, bowing his head. “Hello, your majesty. Have you... performed the task your sister set you?”

She could see the nervous tremble in the soldier's hooves. No wonder. He was to stand guard over her, but he was also supposed to take orders from her. Trapped between the orders of the two princesses, he likely had no idea what to do if she forced her way out. Today was his lucky day, however.

“Yes. You'll find the... after effects in the back of the room.” She then pushed by him, walking down the hall. She wondered why her sister hadn't returned. Had her words hurt her so much? Was Sweetie that upset with her? She hoped the younger princess wasn't crying.

Another chill went down her spine when she saw a guard standing outside her room. “What are you doing here? What is the meaning of this?”

“Your highness,” the pony said with a bow. “I'm afraid your sister asked me to wait for your return. She called me from--”

“Did she leave a message for me?” Rarity ground a hoof into the ground as worry gnawed at her.

“Yes. It's about your dragon. She--”

Rarity didn't wait for him to answer, shoving him aside and barging into her room. Her room was the same as she had left it, aside from one key difference. Spike's cage was empty. She whipped around and galloped back to the soldier, gripping his shoulders. “My sister, where did she take Spike?”

“Who?”

“The dragon! Where did she take the dragon?” she shrieked, the panic evident in her voice. She could imagine a dozen different things the younger princess could, possibly would do. None of them boded well.

“I-I don't know. She said s-she'd keep him for now. She said you'd have to find her at the place she showed you...”

Rarity cursed and shoved the pony aside before galloping down the hall. She couldn't believe her misfortune. Had she saved him from her mother, only for her sister to shred him to pieces? If her sister wished him harm, she knew he'd lose far more than just a single scale.

She galloped through the halls, her eyes catching sight of the night sky. The moon hung high above, an ominous sign for such a young dragon. She gave a silent prayer that he would be safe.

Her first stop was her little sister's room. She pounded on the door, her hoof hitting as hard as she could. “Sister! Sweetie! Come out!” she ordered.

When no answer came, she turned the knob. Though it resisted, she was in no mood to be denied. She turned around and gave the door a buck, making it swing open as the lock snapped. The room was empty, with no sign of the younger princess. She slammed it shut and galloped through the halls again, trying desperately to think of where her sister would have taken the dragon.

Their mother. “Oh no...” she whispered before galloping through the halls again. She passed many guards on the way, but few tried to stop her. Those that did were flung aside. She soon stood in front of the throne room, two guards stationed on either side. She took a deep breath, the words struggling to force their way out her throat. “My... my sister. Is Sweetie in there?”

They shook their heads before the one on the left spoke up. “No. Your mother is discussing matters with her higher commanders. The younger princess hasn't come near here since my shift started.”

“Thank you,” Rarity said, the tension in her heart decreasing slightly. Well, at least that meant Spike wasn't already dead. However, he wasn't safe yet and she didn't want to imagine what her sister might do with him.

She wracked her brain and tried thinking of where she could have taken him. She trotted through the halls, questioning every guard and servant she came across, but none knew where she was. They'd seen her pass, of course, but none knew where she had ended up.

A chill ran down her spine as a horrifying realization dawned on her. Where her sister had shown her. “No no... please no. There couldn't... why there?” She shook her head. “Okay, no. There's no reason she'd take him there. I'm just being too... worried. No reason at all.” But, she couldn't shake the nagging feeling. The suspicion. She couldn't imagine a worse place for the mare to take him. Her hooves carried her, step by step until she found herself in front of it.

The doorway to her fath... to that creature's prison. She looked at the guards and instantly knew she was correct. They moved aside and pulled the door open for her, without a word. For a second she focused on the fact that they weren't the same guards she'd seen last time. Had her mother found out about their sleep? About the creature's disappearance? If she had, the two guards would have been lucky to keep their lives, let alone their positions.

Rarity took a deep breath and stepped through the doorway, starting down the steps. Torches now lit the stairs, leading down into the depths and making her shiver. “Oh sister...” she whispered. After a few steps, the door closed behind her. She almost ran up to force it open, before shaking her head. “You can do this... it's just your sister. She won't hurt you...” If only getting hurt was what scared her.

She starting walking down, with each step new visions and horrors flooded her mind. What if Spike was down there... in pieces? What if she'd stabbed him through the heart? Or made him drink poison? What if she'd ripped off all his scales to give them to their mother? Skinned him? Each step made her hooves shake more and her cheeks turn greener. She tried to steady herself and block out the horrid images, but they refused to leave her alone.

The bottom of the steps came within sight and she froze up. She couldn't see any blood, but she couldn't see very far into the room. She wanted to call out. To scream both their names, but she was too frightened. She opened her mouth to speak, but the words froze in her throat. Oh Spike. If her sister had hurt him, she could never forgive herself. She should have kept him with her at all times, but the poison bending had worried her. She'd thought it too dangerous for him to be near. She hadn't imagined it would take long for her to make an excuse to escape it, either.

Step by step she descended into the room, her hooves shaking against the tile and making each hoof fall echo through the staircase. But she pushed forward. She came closer and closer, drawing ever nearer to her fate.

“Hello sister,” Sweetie's voice traveled up the staircase when Rarity was near the bottom. The elder princess let out a shriek and lost her hoofing, before toppling forward and bouncing down the steps, crashing on the ground with a whimper.

“Rarity! Are you okay?” Spike called out.

Wait, Spike. Rarity looked up, her eyes widening. Sweetie was standing in front of the... prison that once held the evil creature. Spike was besides her, bound tightly in rope but he had no marks on him. She slowly got to her hooves, cringing. “Sister. What is the meaning of this? Why did you take Spike?”

“Did you learn poison bending?”

“That's not important, why did—”

“DID YOU LEARN POISON BENDING?!” Sweetie screamed, slamming both her front hooves into the ground aggressively.

Rarity cringed, but slowly nodded. “Yes. I... left a pool of poison on the ground in the training room. You can see it if you like...”

“I will.” the younger princess said with an angry growl. She then glanced back to the prison that once held the monster. “Our father is gone. Do you know where he has left to?”

Rarity cringed, trying to ignore the question. “Have you hurt Spike? Why did you take him?”

Sweetie stomped her hooves again, letting out a shriek of rage. “Why do you care? What's so important about him? I'm your sister! ME! And yet you treat me as if you think I'm some kind of monster!”

“Sweetie, I don't think you're a monster...” Rarity said softly as she slowly stepped forward, inching closer.

“Then... then why did you say those things to me?” Sweetie pulled the bound dragon against her chest. “What's so important about this dragon? He's just a pet, right? But you and mother... treat him as if he's more.”

“Mother does? What do you mean?” A small pit of dread formed in the princess's stomach.

“She didn't care about Celestia's guards,” Sweetie said with another growl. “She said they didn't matter now that she has a dragon. He's not important!” She glared down at the dragon. “He's not... I'm important. Why... why don't you care more about me?” The mare let out a soft sniffle. “I... I'm the one who went searching for you. Tried to find you. Not this dragon. Me.”

“I know,” Rarity said softly as she moved closer. “I know. You're my sister. My only sister. I love you more than anything, I swear. But... Spike is not a pet. He's a friend. Like Scootaloo and Flowerbloom. Your friends, remember?”

Sweetie blinked and her grip on the dragon slackened slightly. “I... yes... but I still love you more than them.”

“And I do you.”

“But you don't!” she screamed, tightening her grip. “You... you love what I was! You don't love me any more! You think I'm some kind of monster! I'm not, I control Discord's power, it doesn't control me!”

“Oh Sweetie...” Rarity stepped a little closer and shook her head. “You're my sister. I could never not love you. No matter what you did. But it doesn't mean I don't dislike what you're doing. What you're becoming. You were a good, kind, sweet mare once. All I want is for that mare to return.” Her eyes wavered to the prison behind her little sister. The thing that once held the... remains of their father. The creature. Was that the same fate that awaited Sweetie? Becoming a monster nothing like the sweet, caring girl she'd once been? Dread flowed through her hooves.

“I'm still that mare!” Sweetie shrieked. “I... I'm still the mare you love. You're just... just confused.” She looked down at Spike. “I can... I can remove him. He's been distracting you. Ever since we saved him, he's just been distracting you. You should love me. Not him.”

“Sweetie, I do love you,” Rarity said softly as she took another step forward. “I always have and I always will. You're my sister. Please... let Spike go.”

The little princess screamed and yanked the dragon up by his throat with her hooves. “You do care more about him! You do, don't you? All you want is him! And your precious avatar!” She squeezed, making Spike gasp for air.

Rarity took a step back, her eyes widening. “Sweetie, let him go. He's just a baby, there's--”

“You love him more! I won't let you! It's just... just like that stallion, all over again!”

Rarity blinked, but slowly her eyes narrowed. “Stallion?”

“Yes. That stupid fire bender! You love him more than you love me! I should--”

Rarity's eyes narrowed. “Blueblood? What did you do? Sweetie...”

“He didn't deserve you. I did! Only me!”

“Sweetie, what did you do?!”

Sweetie growled. “I punished him. He tried to steal you from me! I had them rip out his horn from the base! No draining, no protections! He's dead! He's DEAD! I won't share you, I won't let anypony else have you! You're mine and mine only! I--”

Rarity didn't let her finish the sentence. She charged her sister, hoof flying out and slamming into the younger princess's face. Spike flew from Sweetie's hooves, but Rarity didn't stop. Tears blinded her as she charged into her sister, screaming angrily as she struck the younger mare over and over.

Sweetie struggled to defend herself, her hooves held in defense, but they were helpless to fend off the assault. Rarity didn't hold back, driving her anger, rage and hatred into every blow she struck into her sister. No, not her sister. Not any more. The thing that inhabited and was destroying her sister. Just like it was their mother. Like it had their father. Tears flowed down her face as she struck.

Then, just as fast as it started, the anger evaporated. Rarity's chest heaved as she struggled to breath, her forelegs aching and sore from the attack. She wiped the tears from her face, before her eyes went wide with horror.

Her sister was a bloody mess, bruises wracking the mare's body. One hoof was bent at a slightly awkward angle. The mare was breathing, but blood streaked across her face. Sweetie stared up at her, whimpering through broken lips. “R-rarity... s-sister... I just... I...” Her eyes closed as her words trailed off, leaving the elder to stare with wide eyed horror.

“Oh... oh by the stars. S-sweetie... oh what have I done?” Rarity stared at the mare, shaking her head. She glanced to Spike who just stood, staring. With a quick jump she moved to his side, untying the ropes and then motioning to her sister. “H-help me. We have to get her upstairs. We have to get her to our healers!” With a nervous nod, the the dragon slowly helped her lift the mare up, before the started the ascent up the stairs.