Rescued by a Rainbow

by Indeliblink

Cracks

tap tap tap tap

"Guh..." The first thing Ditzy felt when she opened her eyes was a sharp throbbing in her head, which was soon amplified by a whisper from somewhere nearby.

"Ditzy!"

The grey pegasus whined quietly, bringing her hooves up to cradle her head, before she glanced around for the source of the noise. There was nopony to be found. Please leave me alone.

"Psst, up here!"

Her head jerked in the direction of the call, and she caught a glimpse of a rose-colored iris focused on her, as well as a few tufts of light blue fur; barely visible through a few slats in the boarded-up window, Rainbow Dash peered down at her and her new bruises. "Are you okay?" Rainbow called quietly, tilting her head to press an ear against the gap in the window.

"I'll be fine," Ditzy grunted, climbing onto four wobbly legs. She looked herself over, blearily remembering the sickening crunches of the hammer that had caused these new injuries... a few hours ago? Yesterday? "How long has it been?"

"Well, your... dad picked you up yesterday evening." Rainbow glanced over her shoulder, and Ditzy noted the lack of light shining through the cracks in the window. "And it's evening again now." Ditzy nodded mutely, hanging her head. Rainbow sat down and rubbed her foreleg awkwardly; seeing her friends all droopy and beaten down--literally--was a new occurrence, and it was having a strange effect on her, though she couldn't identify exactly what she'd been feeling.

"Ditzy," she murmured uneasily, "something's very wrong here." Ditzy looked up at her, waiting for her to continue. "You're constantly getting hurt, yet you don't leave the basement. And the only pony you've talked about is your dad..." She frowned, not liking the puzzle that was being put together in her mind.

Ditzy nodded. "So?"

"Do you have any brothers or sisters?" Ditzy shook her head. "Any other family? Somepony else staying here, somepony who comes down here often?" Ditzy simply watched her fidget, and Rainbow swallowed hard as she reached her conclusion. "Listen, Ditzy, nopony should get beaten up by their parents... There's no excuse for it. That's not supposed to happen. Ever."

Ditzy inspected her hooves for awhile. Rainbow opened her mouth to continue, but a shaky mumble silenced her. "Not my parents. Just... him."

"Him? As in... your dad?" Ditzy gave an almost imperceptible nod, not looking up from the floor. "What about your mom?" The mare didn't respond, and Rainbow's ears folded back as tears began to leak from her yellow eyes.

"She's gone," came the sobbed reply. "He killed her."

"W-What?"

"He wanted a colt, and she gave birth to me. She loved me, I think... He didn't. Then they got in an argument one day and he stabbed her." Rainbow gasped, and Ditzy shook her head gently. "She lived, but she couldn't have foals anymore. When my dad told her, she told him off for... for..." She tilted her head down, burying her face in her hooves. "...for treating me so badly. So he... he killed her. He killed her, and he made me watch."

Ditzy choked down the cry building in her throat, violently spitting out her last few words. "To... to see what I had caused."

Rainbow gaped at her. What she had caused? How did that even work? She tried to imagine herself in her friend's horseshoes, but her brain refused to show her own father possessing such a twisted personality. And growing up without a mother? It was unthinkable; she relied on her mother for everything, from a sack lunch at school to advice on dealing with stress, even simple shows of affection. She finally cleared her throat and licked her lips, drawing Ditzy's attention back to her. "And... and now he...?"

Ditzy shrugged, looking down at her mangled wing with a sigh. "He just kinda does what he feels like doing, I guess."

Rainbow shook her head slowly. She glimpsed a tray of rotten lettuce and stale bread sitting in another corner of the room. "And he feeds you that--" she pointed to the scraps, "--once a day."

"Usually," Ditzy agreed. "Sometimes he forgets."

"And it's all just... because you're a filly?"

She blinked. "Yeah."

Rainbow shuddered. Ditzy... What am I going to do with you?

"That... That's really messed up," she breathed. Ditzy cocked her head at this, looking at her with that same curious confusion that came from years of isolation.

"You mean, normal ponies don't get hurt by their daddies?" The word 'normal' made Rainbow flinch. Ditzy may have been in a strange and overwhelming situation, but to her she seemed just as kindhearted and competent as any other pony.

Rainbow thought back to the last she could remember being 'hurt' by one of her parents; the most severe occurrence she could remember was probably when she'd been spanked after being caught cutting classes one too many times.

"No, not... not like this." She glanced around warily behind her, and seeing no one else around, she leaned forward once again to press her forehead against the wooden boards. "Ditzy, this isn't okay. You need help. You need to get out of here."

Ditzy looked up at her with wide eyes. "You mean, like... escape?" Rainbow's vigorous nod set her hopes ablaze, but they were quickly extinguished by another sobering thought: "Where would I go?"

"Huh." The blue pegasus rubbed her jaw, staring off into space. "I... I dunno. But anyplace is better than here."

A click echoed through the room.

Ditzy's eyes shrank, her ears flickering wildly. "He's coming."

Rainbow pressed her face against the wood, breathing quickly. "Ditzy--"

"Get away!" She hissed. "I'll be fine; you need to get out of here now!"

After a moment's hesitation, Rainbow gave a reluctant nod. "I-I'll come back and see ya again real soon." She forced a smile, which Ditzy returned gratefully. Rainbow's stark blue fur disappeared from the window just in time, as Ditzy's father stomped down the stairs and rounded on her, nostrils flaring.

"You," he seethed. Ditzy gulped, scooting back a few inches. "You were talking to that brat again, weren't you?!"

"N-n-n-no, I-I swear--!"

"LIAR!" A hoof struck Ditzy in the face, sending her sprawling across the floor. "I heard you, you little twit!" He shook his head, chuckling madly. "I... I told you... and you..." He marched towards a wall, eyeing the chipped grey paint with interest. "You..."

"YAAARRGH!" He roared and sent a hoof clean through the wall, eliciting a gasp from the grey mare lying a few feet away. Wrapping it firmly around something solid, he wrenched his hoof free, along with a thick metal pipe. An odd clunk was followed by a blast of water from the new hole in the wall, and the stallion turned to his daughter, grinning at the fright etched into her features.

"You... shouldn't have disobeyed me," he whispered, drawing closer. Ditzy whimpered and wiggled, sliding a mere few inches away before he was already upon her, the pipe whistling through the air until it connected with her side.

CRACK!

Rainbow leaned against the wall adjacent to the window, her own eyes flooded with tears, listening to the anguished cries of Ditzy Doo and the intermittent crashes of metal on bone. She twitched at every gut-wrenching noise, and the rivers tracing her cheeks grew thicker in time with her friend's loudening screams. She cautiously peered into the room, feeling her stomach turn at the sight of the stallion mercilessly rapping a dense metal pipe across the helpless filly's broken body.

Ditzy squealed as she was lifted into the air and hurled across the room, colliding headfirst with the wall. She fell onto shaking legs, where she stumbled backwards and was roughly spun around by a strong hoof. Stay strong, she told herself, staring impassively into a pair of burning red eyes. It'll all be fine as long as you don't look weak.

With a sudden loud grunt, Ditzy's father brought the pole down hard on her forehead. At the crack of the strike, Ditzy's vision jolted and swam; she swayed on her hooves and toppled onto her side, the gash on her forehead bleeding profusely. She gazed blankly into her father's eyes, which appeared satisfied for the time being, and he looked her over for a few more seconds before dropping the pipe onto her and making a hasty exit upstairs.

A short silence ensued, during which Rainbow analyzed the aftermath of the scene below. The water spewing from the busted pipes in the wall had filled the room to a depth of nearly half an inch already; the water lapped at Ditzy's wounds, washing away blood that was quickly replaced by more. After shaking herself out of her petrified state, she called into the basement, quietly but urgently.

"D-Ditzy?" The mare weakly rolled her head to answer the anxious squeak, coughing out a spray of blood as her throat opened up.

"Da... Dsh..." She could barely make out the blur of color at the window now; she felt her strength waning, sapped by the blood flowing freely from her forehead.

"Ditzy?" Another call, louder this time... though her hearing was starting to go, too, she could tell. It was somewhat distorted, and she let her head fall back into the light red ocean creeping up on her. She heard her name fearfully called again, but she was too weak to respond. The cyan smudge near the window disappeared as Rainbow fled the scene, and Ditzy was left to stare at the grey walls and ceiling of the basement, which soon faded to black.

Author's Note:

We're almost at 10,000 words!
Thanks for sticking with me so far.

Comments

[DreadedCandiru2]

Well, there goes Rainbow going for backup. I wonder how many cigarettes they'll sell Daddy Dearest for in Cloudsdale State Pen?

[Pegasus-skip]

okay, I've never had a fic induce this much ponycidal rage in me before, whoever dash gets to help better deal with ditzy's father.

HARSHLY

[Changeling-Drone]

4253749 5 cigars for a kick in the groin!

[Billy Mays]

That guy is messed up... He needs to be dealt with, soon

[Lightoller]

Rage level: Increasing.

Must look at cover picture to feel better.