//------------------------------// // Chapter XIX: Crusade // Story: Azure Memories // by Silvak //------------------------------// "Don't you girls find this to be a bit excessive?" "Nope!" "But... why would anypony ne—" "There's this saying, the bigger, the better!" "I don't think size would matter in regards to getting a Cu—" "Apple Bloom, you finished with your job?" Sweetie Belle asked while Sapphire let out a sigh at being interrupted once more. "Almost done, just give me a minute," Apple Bloom replied. Turning her head towards Sapphire, Sweetie asked, "Hey, can you bring some more snow to the left tower?" to which Sapphire complied to as she formed another pile of snow before bringing it up. At first, the Crusaders were unable to come to a singular agreement on what they should try for their Cutie Marks that would require her help. That was until Scootaloo came up with the idea of making a snow fort. However, they wanted to go bigger than a regular snow fort, hence Sapphire was turned into lugging snow to their two story fort. However, Sapphire did spot Apple Bloom bringing in some construction supplies, making her wonder just what she was up to inside those walls. She was impressed by the Crusader's crafting of the fort though, since it looked like a miniature castle. "Umm... not to rain on your parade, but wouldn't you have gotten your Cutie Marks in snow fort building by now?" Sapphire asked, causing the two on the walls and presumably the one behind the walls to look at their flanks before letting out a sigh of disappointment. Groaning in disappointment, Scootaloo turned her head towards the inside of the fort as she said, "Well, that was a bust, time for plan B Apple Bloom." Frowning, Sapphire used her magic to make a temporary hole through the wall, stepping through it as she asked, "Plan B? What are you girls ta—what in the world is that‽" before receiving the sight of some kind of siege weapon in the middle of the fort. "It's a trebuchet," Sweetie Belle calmly answered as she and Scootaloo came down from the wall. "Why would you need a trebuchet for‽" Sapphire shrieked as she thought to herself, And how did I not notice it being built and how were they able to build this in the first place ‽ "Well, we tried gettin' our Cutie Marks in catapult building and operating but that didn't work out. But before we got started on the fort, Sweetie had an idea of goin' for our Cutie Marks for trebuchets," Apple Bloom replied while still working on the trebuchet in question. Gawking at the fillies for a moment, Sapphire shook her head of her shock as she said, "Girls, you are not going to build and use a tre—" "But it's already built," Apple Bloom responded, causing Sapphire's right eye to twitch. "Then you're not going to use it, even if it’s for getting your Cutie Marks. I can't even fathom why you would want a Cutie Mark related to this thing anyways!" Sapphire said as she tapped a hoof on the thing while trying to figure out how to dismantle it safely without having the Crusaders do it. "Cause it would be an awesome Cutie Mark to ha—" Scootaloo replied before the sound of some lever coming down interrupted her. "What was that noise?" Sapphire asked before noticing that the trebuchet was starting to move. "I think—" Sweetie started to say before she noticed that Sapphire was standing in the path of the trebuchet's sling, "—Sapphire watch out!" "Huh?" Sapphire said, before the trebuchet's throwing arm swung up, causing the sling to catch Sapphire before launching her into the sky. She screamed for her life while the Crusaders just watched in horror. As Sapphire slowly disappeared from sight, the trio just sat there in silence, too shocked to do anything. "...I reckon we're goin' to be grounded for life for this," Apple finally said, breaking the silence as Sweetie nodded in acknowledgement. "Or maybe she lands on her head and forgets about all this?" Scootaloo replied, causing the other two Crusaders to give her a flat stare. Rubbing the back of her head with a hoof, Scootaloo added, "Yeah... that might not be the right thing to hope for..." This was not how I expected my life to end! Sapphire thought to herself as she continued to scream while flailing her legs about in panic. As she spun about in the sky, Sapphire was finally able to see where she might be landing, which was the trees of the Everfree forest. I'm going to be impaled by a branch or become a blood stain on one of those trees! Sapphire thought to herself as she closed her eyes, unable to do a thing to stop her inevitable doom. However, instead of feeling a branch going through her body or her body exploding upon impact with a tree's trunk, she instead felt a sudden jerk on her body. Opening her eyes, she saw that she was still in the air, with a pair of cyan hooves holding onto her forelegs. "No need to thank me, I'm was just doing what I do best, being awesome," rang out Rainbow's voice, causing Sapphire to turn her head to see her smug grin. "Though, what were you doing flying through the sky like that? Unicorns aren't suppose to fly." Giving Rainbow a deadpanned stare, Sapphire answered, "I was subjected to the Cutie Mark Crusader's latest attempt on getting a Cutie Mark." Cocking an eyebrow, Rainbow replied, "But they already tried for a catapult related Cutie Mark." "They did, but they decided to go bigger this time with a trebuchet," Sapphire dryly responded, causing Rainbow to blink before shaking her head. "I have no idea what a trebuchet is, but it isn't cool to send ponies flying who don't have wings," Rainbow commented as she began to lower Sapphire to the ground. Sighing as she got her hooves on solid ground, Sapphire replied, "Well, they didn't send me on purpose, but they did build the thing. Though how they were able to build it is beyond me." "Well, I know that Apple Bloom is driven to get her Cutie Mark, but this is a bit too much," Rainbow said. "Well, I'm going back there to make sure they aren't using that... 'weapon' of theirs before some other pony is sent flying as well," Sapphire declared as she trotted back to the snow fort. "Need me to help you out with them?" Rainbow asked as she hovered over Sapphire. "No, you done more than enough by just saving me from becoming a crimson stain on the ground. The Crusaders were in the middle of a snow fort, so if they try anything funny I can just use the snow to stop them," Sapphire answered as she continued on her way. "But just in case, keep an eye out for anything that shouldn't be in the skies today." Arriving back at the snow fort, Sapphire narrowed her eyes as she made a hole in the wall. She soon caught a sight of the Crusaders trying to disassemble the siege weapon as fast as they can. Letting out a sigh, she said, "I don't think taking that thing apart will save you three," causing the trio to freeze before turning their heads towards Sapphire. "...Sapphire! I'm so glad that you're alright!" Sweetie exclaimed while trying to put on a smile, only for it to fade when Sapphire glowered at her. "We were so worried about you!" Apple Bloom said, only to receive the same treatment as Sweetie. "Yeah, for a while there I thought you were going to go splat on a tree or something," Scootaloo added, only for everypony to give her a glare. "What? I can't be the only one to have thought that." After a moment of silence, Sapphire shook her head at the fillies before saying, "I wouldn't be in danger in the first place if you didn't had that thing built!" "But it was just a faulty le—" Apple Bloom tried to explain before Sapphire interrupted her. "It didn't matter if some part was faulty or not, something like that is still dangerous. You three are lucky that none of you got hurt just from building the thing," Sapphire scolded while eyeing the trebuchet. "I can't even imagine how you get all the things to build this in the first place without anypony... please don't tell me you stole from somepony?" "We didn't stole a thing! We Apples just have to build things from time to time," Apple Bloom answered, causing Sapphire to raise an eyebrow as she wondered why the other Apples didn't notice what their youngest member was doing. "Look, in the end, you still have something no filly or colt should be messing around with. Now, you three are going to be talking to your parents... and sister—" Sapphire said while eyeing Apple Bloom, "—about what you three were up to. Cutie Marks or not, this is going to far." Ignoring the groans of disappointment, Sapphire continued, "Now, just stay away from this thing as I figure o— what is that noise?" Turning her attention to the trebuchet, Sweetie explained, "Umm... we were dismantling the trebuchet when you came ba—" before the trebuchet started to fall apart. Gasping in terror, Sapphire yelled, "Girls, get away fro—" before the throwing arm of the siege weapon flew off the device. It then flew right into the side of Sapphire's head, sending her flying into one of the snow fort's walls. The Crusaders on the otherhoof, simply watched the mayhem unfold before them, mesmerized by the scene of what was occurring, where not a single piece of the wreckage came close to them. After the dust has settled, the Crusaders cautiously approached where Sapphire landed. They soon saw that she was just knocked unconscious instead of being grievously wounded, in which the trio let out a sigh of relief. After a moment of silence, Scootaloo said, "Is it me girls, or is all this bad stuff that is happening is just because Sapphire is here?" As the two nodded in response, Scootaloo continued, "Well, now I think she is go—" "Well you give it a rest already?" Sweetie interjected, as Apple Bloom shot a glare at Scootaloo. "I was just stating the obvious. She already lost her memories once, so maybe she lost them again and we won't get in any trouble," Scootaloo countered, waving a hoof at Sapphire's unconscious body before a gust of wind blew through the area as Rainbow Dash flew down from above. Instantly Scootaloo became elated at the sight of her, but soon noted the nervous looks her fellow Crusaders were bearing, until she realized the situation. "I just heard some kind of racket coming from here and I was wo—what the buck‽" Rainbow said before spotting Sapphire. As Rainbow rushed to Sapphire's aid, the three fillies just let out a depressed sigh in unison, as Sweetie Belle said what as all on their minds, "I think we're going to be grounded for two lifetimes now..." "Yeah... if only we cou—" Scootaloo said before Apple Bloom slapped the back of her head with a hoof. "Ow! What was that for?" "We're in plenty of trouble as is, we don't need to be throwin' fuel into the fire!" Apple Bloom exclaimed as Sweetie Belle let out a sigh of frustration. "Today is going to be a long day..."