//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Crusaders Underground // by Violet Runner //------------------------------// Scootaloo slept soundly on an old couch when sudenly there was a loud noise. "What? Who?" She said sitting up to see a cloaked zebra standing beside her. "The time has come, Scootaloo." The zebra said looking down at her. "Yeah, yeah, whatever." The orange filly said rolling over, still half a sleep. "Scootaloo, your destiny awaits." Zecora said a little anoyed at being ignored. "Yeah, well, tell it to wait outside. I'm too tired to care." She said still trying to get back to sleep. "Easily remedied." The zebra said reaching into her cloak, pulling out a green powder before blowing it over the sleepy filly. "Gooooood mornin' Lunarstar City! Oh yeah, I'm up!" Scootaloo declared, jumping into the air before landing back on the couch. "Oof! I'm wide awake? How'd you do that? And who are you?" She asked. "I am the Oracle of the Everfree." Zecora explained. "The what of who?" The young pegasus asked confused as zecora throw some red powder on the ground creating a table and chairs. "Oh, i get it, I'm dreamin', right?" She said not believing what she was seeing as the zebra throw yellow powder over the table causing an entire spread of food to appear. "Whoaaa, this dream is way past cool!" "Now that I have your attention." Zecora said as Scootaloo sat at the table and began to eat some of the food. "It is time you found out who you are... Princess Scootaloo!" "Mmm? Princess?!" Scootaloo said between mouthfulls. "Yes, Princess Scootaloo. And you are not alone in your quest." "Yeah, I know, I got Rainbow Dash and the Freedom Fighters. Ranbow said I could join them when I'm old enough." Scootaloo said taking a drink. "You also have two sisters." Zecora said causing the orange filly to spit out her drink.. "WHAT?!" She said in suprise. Nightmare Moon sat in her thrown room as the door opened to reveal a white and brown griffin and a diamond dog. "Enter, bounty hunters!" The dark alicorn ordered. "Thank you for seeing us, your highness! How may we serve your royal greatness? Your wish is our commandr. You have only to ask, your amazingness!" The griffin said as she and the diamond dog bowed. "What I want is for you to swear to my service." Nightmare said staring down at them. "Oh yes, your most powerfulness! We are deeply flattered, but you see, we are independent contractors." The griffin stated not making eye contact. "Yeah, we're in, erm... in... eh... we work, er, by ourselves." The diamond dog agreed. "SILENCE!" Nightmare Moon shouted. "From now on, you work for me." "Oh, but we have other-" The griffin began but was intorupted when nightmare fired a bolt of magic at them. "Then again, perhaps it is time we made a change." she said swetting a bit. "Excellent. I knew you'd see it my way." The Alicorn said switching on a monitor that desplayed an image of an orange blurr. "This is the Freedom Fighters' secret weapon. It has plagued me for over a year, and I want it found and destroyed! Do you understand?" "Yes. Leave it to us. Whatever it is, consider it destroyed!" The griffin said as she and the diamond dog left. "Sorry about spittin' on you." Scootaloo appologized. "Wow, sisters! But where are they?" She asked. "They are close. But to find them, you must play the song that is in your heart, young one." Zecora said before disapearing in a flash of blue smoke. "Hey, whoa, whoa, wait! What song?" Scootaloo asked but it was to late. "How come nopony ever says what they mean? Song in my heart? What does that mean?!" She said disheartedly. Suddenly there was a bright light as the basket that Rainbow Dash found her in appeard before her before morfing into a guitar. "Wow!" She said grabing it and playing the first thing that came to her head. Apple Bloom wondered through her cousins house looking for something to take her mind off things when she came a cross an old drum set. She examend it before sitting down and desiding to play it a little Sweetie Belle had finished her piano lessions and was about to leave when she found that she had a toon stuck in her head and desided to play it Look, here, are three little ponies, Ready to sing for this crowd, Listen up, 'cause here's our story I'm gonna sing it Very loud! When you're a younger pony And your flank is very bare Feels like the sun will never come When your cutie mark's not there So the three of us will fight the fight There is nothing that we fear We'll have to figure out what we'll do next 'Til our cutie marks are here! We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders On a quest to find out who we are And we will never stop the journey Not until we have our cutie marks They all say that you'll get your mark When the time is really right And you know just what you're supposed to do And your talent comes to light But it's not as easy as it sounds And that waiting's hard to do So we test our talents everywhere Until our face is blue We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders On a quest to find out who we are And we will never stop the journey Not until we have our cutie marks We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders On a quest to find out who we are And we will never stop the journey Not until we have our cutie marks! "What was that?" Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom said in unision when they finished. "They're out there!" Scootaloo said able to feel her siblings presence in her heart. "Freeze frame and enlarge." The griffin bounty hunter said watching the security footage. "How can anything go that fast?" "It, er, slows down right before it reaches the door just off frame, Gilda." The diamond dog noted. "Well, well, well, once in a while you do come up with something, don't you Rex?" Gilda said happily. "Advance to that point, extract image and enlarge." she ordered, as the image was pulled up to reveil a orange pegasus on a scooter. "Aha! It's not a machine." "A pegasus?!" Nightmare moon said entering the room. "IT'S A BLASTED PEGASUS?!" "Yes, ma'am. Would you like us to-?" Gilda began before being intorupted. "No! Dismissed." Nightmare said dismissively. "But your greatness..." Gilda said but was once again intorupted. "I SAID DISMISSED!" The alicorn shouted as Gilda and Rex walked away. "Hmm... could it be them? If it is... the prophecy!" She said remembering the the Oracle visited her. Nightmare Moon layed in bed when she was suddenly awaken by a bright light. "Aahh!" The Alicorn said sitting up. "Nightmare Moon, your days of tyranny are numbered!" Zecora said standing beside her bed. "Guards!" Nightmare called only to be paralyzed by a brown powder zecora through over her. "You will listen." The Zebra contiued "One day, Celestia and her three children will form the Council of Four. On that day, your reign of tyranny will end!" She said before disapearing. "They're still out there!" Nightmare Moon said to herself coming out of her thoughts. "Then I'm declaring war on the Resistance and making there capture my number one priority." She declared.