//------------------------------// // Betrayal // Story: The Disharmonizers // by ApplauseJunkie //------------------------------// When Princess Twilight poked her head out of her guest room door the next morning at Canterlot Castle, she was surprised to see the hallway patrolled by more than the usual number of guards. She blinked, but said nothing, greeting the other women as they emerged from their rooms, too. “I hope Twist is okay,” Pinkie murmured quietly. “They couldn’t possibly shoot her before her trial, could they?” Rarity asked. “I mean, they know that Celestia is waiting to try her; if she didn’t show up, it would look awfully suspicious.” “That’s true,” Twilight agreed. “Hopefully the guards know that, too.” Applejack shivered. “I hope Fluttershy’s okay. I feel just awful for leaving her alone there with Discord. Who knows what he could do to her by the time we get back.” Rainbow Dash growled and cracked her knuckles. “If he lays one hand on her, I swear I’m gonna—“ “You know he could turn you into gravel with a snap of his fingers, right?” Applejack interrupted. The rainbow-mowhawked woman glared at her. “I don’t care! Nobody touches Fluttershy and gets away with it! I don’t care if he’s the Lord of Chaos!” “You probably should,” Pinkie pointed out. “I mean, you probably wouldn’t be able to join the Wonderbolts if you’re a pile of gravel. How would you fly the jet?” “If I could get ahold of one of their jets, we could probably bomb their hideout!” Rainbow suggested. “A jet wouldn’t have the firepower,” Applejack corrected. “Besides, most of the base is underground, darling,” Rarity reminded her. Twilight looked up. “If the treaty with Maretonia goes through then we’ll have all the firepower we need to turn the entire Everfree Forest into one big crater.” “How soon until you know if that goes through?” “Not long. I already proofread the treaty; now all it needs is to be filed and they can start shipping the warheads to us.” “And then we can blow Discord to smithereens!” Rainbow cheered enthusiastically. Pinkie suddenly gasped in horror. “What if they blow up the base while Fluttershy is still there?! Or Vinyl? Or Octavia?” she screamed. The guards at the end of the hallway looked over at Pinkie’s outburst, causing the group to chuckle nervously. They stood as casually as they could, looking innocent, until the guards finally went back to their own conversation. Twilight glared at Pinkie. “We need to keep it down,” she whispered harshly. “We don’t know who might be listening to us. Now come on, it’s almost time for the trial.” Everyone nodded, and headed for the door. The guards fell into step with them as they left, escorting the little group back to the throne room. One of the guards briefly caught Twilight’s eye, and the two of them both looked away quickly. Celestia was waiting for them in the throne room, the sun shining beautifully through the multiple stained-glass windows decorating the walls. The princess looked equally beautiful and intimidating, her tall figure looming over the little group as they approached the steps. All of them breathed a silent sigh of relief when a guard escorted Twist into the room from another door. She looked terrified, but she was alive. It took all of Pinkie’s self-control not to run and embrace the child. The guard led the little girl to the center of the room, where she stood alone in front of Princess Celestia, visibly shivering. “Twist,” Celestia began solemnly. “You stand accused of the highest crime against Equestria. Have you anything to say in your defense?” Drawing a shaking breath, Twist began. “I’m not a Dithharmonizer. Yethderday, on the playground, Diamond Tiara wath making fun of my glatheth, and I thaid to her, ‘I hope the Disthharmonizerth get you firtht.’ I don’t really want them to take over Equethria or anything, I jutht wanted her to leave me alone.” Celestia listened gravely, pressing the tips of her fingers together. “Do the witnesses have anything to say?” The Cutie Mark Crusaders, who had been silent until now, came forward, with Applejack standing supportively behind them. Celestia looked down at them patiently. “We know Twist real well,” Apple Bloom started. “She’s not dangerous!” Sweetie Belle insisted. “Yeah! And she’s really bad at keeping secrets, so we would know if she was a Disharmonizer!” Scootaloo announced, causing Twist to look back at her questioningly. She shrugged apologetically. Everyone looked at the princess with pleading eyes, begging her to understand and release Twist. After several moments, Celestia sighed and rose from her throne, seeming even taller than she was. She descended the steps until she stood in front of Twist, looking down at her maternally. She looked up at the witnesses. “You really believe her to be innocent?” she asked somberly. Eight heads nodded vigorously. The Princess of the Sun looked from Twist to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, back to Twist. “And you are willing to swear your loyalty to me and to Equestria?” she asked. Twist nodded. “Yeth, Printheth.” “Hm.” She turned and looked at Flash Sentry, who stood guarding the little group. “I’ve ruled Equestria for over three thousand years,” she began, turning her back on them and pacing slowly. “For the last two thirds of that time, Discord has been a constant threat, lurking in the shadows where my sun cannot reach, turning my citizens against each other and causing chaos.” She looked back at them. “As the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, you have contributed to the peace and safety of the population of Equestria. Your efforts are immeasurably valuable to me and to the cause of protecting our homeland. “Sometimes, as a leader, I feel as though I do nothing but battle the Disharmonizers, fighting to keep them in the shadows, to keep them out of your homes and your lives. But that is my duty, and however unpleasant, I have sworn to keep my subjects safe from any threat.” Celestia turned to Flash again, then put her hand out to him. He drew his pistol and handed it to her. “Even when that threat comes in the most unassuming of forms.” Before anyone could move or think, Celestia had aimed the pistol at the side of Twist’s head and pulled the trigger. The little girl’s body toppled over, lifeless. The hall erupted in screaming. Guards rushed forward to hold back each of the women as well as the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who were all crying hysterically. All five of the adults struggled against their restraints, confused and horrified at the princess’s action. “Take them to the dungeon,” Celestia instructed her guards, turning coldly away from her subjects. “We will deal with them later. I want information from them before they are executed.” The guards dragged them away, all of them kicking and screaming, and locked them into the highest security prison cell in the Canterlot dungeons. “I can’t believe she shot her,” Scootaloo mumbled, her eyes still wide with shock and terror. “I can’t believe she would do that in front of the girls!” Applejack burst out. “They were scared enough as it is without seeing their friend get her brains blown out by Princess Celestia herself!” Rarity sat soberly, holding Sweetie Belle in her lap. “It wasn’t the guards we needed to worry about,” she said finally. “They’re perfectly loyal to her. It’s the Princess that has betrayed Equestria, not the guards.” Twilight was numb with shock. She couldn’t understand it. She had been Princess Celestia’s student for years and had never suspected that she wanted anything other than what was best for Equestria. This couldn’t possibly be what was best. This was the opposite of what was best. She and her friends were trying to help save an innocent life, and Celestia had taken that life without so much as batting an eye, and right in front of three young girls! Surely she didn’t think that was what Equestria needed. As soon as the guards left them alone, Rainbow Dash set to work kicking at the door, trying to force her way out. She stepped away quickly, however, when Flash Sentry approached their cell. Twilight recognized him as the one who had caught her eye earlier. She stood up and approached the bars. “Is that what happens to every special case that we send to Canterlot?” she asked, although she already knew the answer. He nodded. “There is no room for disloyalty, even among the very young or the very old. The princess does not personally execute each and every one of them, of course, but since you all were so insistent that she be given a trial…” All the women stared at their feet. So they had only delayed Twist’s fate. “Wait!” Pinkie cried. “That means Mr. Waddles?” “Executed.” The pink-haired woman wailed in grief. The old man had been her particular friend, but he had disappeared about two months ago, shipped to Canterlot for a trial, and to be shot. “What do you want with us?” Rainbow Dash demanded. Flash pulled his helmet off, running a hand through his blue hair. “Was Twist telling the truth?” “Of course she was!” Rainbow yelled. “No kid that young could lie about something that big!” “Twist couldn’t even keep a secret about a birthday party!” Apple Bloom piped up. “It’s true,” Scootaloo added. “She has a really big mouth. Well, she had a really big mouth…” Sweetie Belle started crying again. Flash frowned, as if he were working out difficult problems in his head. “Look, Celestia wants information out of you. She thinks you’re all Disharmonizers, and wants to know everything you know about the movement.” “But we’re not!” Apple Bloom insisted. Rainbow Dash glared at the wall. “Honestly, after seeing Celestia blow Twist away, I think I’d rather be a Disharmonizer.” “Rainbow Dash!” Twilight scolded. “Saying that is enough to get you killed!” “They’re gonna kill us anyway!” She retorted. “Not before they get that information,” Flash said grimly. “That information that we don’t have?” Rarity questioned. “And what if we just don’t feel like telling you?!” Rainbow asked defiantly. Flash looked at her, with something in his eyes that resembled fear and regret. “You’ll tell us.” Applejack tightened her grip on her sister. “What’re you gonna do to us?” she asked, afraid of the answer. “You get tonight to think about it, but tomorrow morning they’ll start pulling you out of here one by one for interrogation.” Pinkie Pie swallowed. “Are they gonna…” “Only if you don’t give them what they want.” “I’ll never talk!” Rainbow insisted. Flash just looked at them. “Yes, you will.” Twilight frowned. “If the interrogations don’t start until tomorrow, why are you down here now?” He looked at her, took a deep breath, and said, “Look, I’m gonna be the one escorting each of you to the interrogation room tomorrow. There’s a chance I can help you, if you let me.” “And why should we trust you?” Rainbow Dash asked suspiciously. Flash never took his eyes off Twilight. “Because you’ll never make it without my help.” The prisoners exchanged glances, wondering if it was safe to trust him. Eventually, Applejack shrugged. “It’s not like we got anything to lose at this point, y’all. We might as well take whatever chance we can get to try and make it out of here.” “What do you propose?” Twilight asked. Flash looked around at all of them. “I’ll take each of you out of the cell one by one, as your sole escort to the chamber. At one section of the dungeons, there is a weak point in security. When we reach that point, all you have to do is overpower me and escape. It’s risky; the guards will be after you in seconds, but I think it’ll give you enough of a headstart to get away.” “And why are you helping us?” Rainbow asked suspiciously. Flash sighed. “Because I don’t like seeing my ruler gun down young children any more than you do.” Twilight looked at him seriously. “You know what you’re risking by doing this for us?” she asked soberly. He nodded. “I do. I hope you can make my sacrifice mean something.” “Sacrifice?” Rarity echoed. “When Celestia finds out who helped us,” Twilight said. “The punishment is extremely severe,” Flash admitted. “You have to be the ones who make this worth it.” Twilight stared at him for a long moment. He stared back. “We won’t let you down,” she whispered. Flash Sentry put his helmet back on, snapped a salute, and turned away, leaving the prisoners alone again. After a while, Rarity spoke. “But even if he gets us out of here, where can we go? We can’t simply return to Ponyville.” Twilight frowned. “I think I know where we have to go.”