Flicker

by Silicas

Chapter 4: Again

Twilight Sparkle looked up. The forest canopy was thinning quickly; she could see patches of gray sky above her. Small raindrops pattered noiselessly against her back, the sound of her galloping hooves and the branches brushing against her side drowning them out.

The mare turned her gaze back to the ground. Dozens of the red bugs were running past her hooves every minute, straight in the direction of Ponyville.

Twilight cleared the edge of the forest. Finally, she could see the small town that she and her friends called home.

Applejack, Fluttershy, and Flicker were far ahead of her. Behind her, the fire in the forest lagged behind, slowed by the outskirts of the pegasus storm that was protecting Ponyville.

But the storm was dying; the pegasi had done all that they could. And now, even more of the fire bugs would soon be swarming the vulnerable town.

Twilight flushed her horn with magical energy. Now that she was out of the forest, she could teleport.

In seconds, the mare had flashed across the distance between her and Applejack. A second later, she was inside the city. Another second and she appeared on the opposite side of the town’s river. One more burst of magic, and she stood in front of the circular town hall.

She pushed open the wooden door and cantered inside. Ponies were huddled together on the ground floor. Each one’s eyes were fixated on the soaked purple mare.

Questions assailed her. “Twilight!” “What did you find out?” “What should we do?” “Is it over?”

She pushed past the ponies and made for the stairs. She had to find the mayor, and organize a defensive plan.

Fluttershy would not like it, and Flicker would probably try to kill her, but she had a town to save. Those bugs were going to have to die.

---

Pinkie Pie extended a hoof. Something seemed wrong. She watched for a moment as the pink appendage floated in front of her field of vision.

Slowly, she lifted her other hoof and took off the umbrella hat that was shielding her head. She felt nothing.

The pink mare looked up. Above her, the warm sun was just beginning to poke through the clouds.

“Guys!” she shouted, “I think we’re going to need a lot more water.”

Beside her, Big Macintosh nodded his head slowly, his eyes still fixed on the sky.

“Eeeeyup.”

---

“Twilight! Twilight!” Spike burst in through the doors into the top level of the town hall.

The purple unicorn turned around. “Spike! I’m so glad you’re okay. What is it?”

The baby dragon held out a claw. In it was a scroll, still surrounded by small wisps of green fire.

“This just came,” the dragon said between ragged breaths. “It’s probably from Canterlot.”

Twilight pulled the roll of parchment over to her with her magic. Within moments, it was unfurled and she began reading. There were three words, scribbled in Celestia’s own hoofwriting.

USE SPECTRAL BLUE

The mare stared at the parchment blankly, blinking once.

The mayor tapped her on the shoulder. “So?”

“I – I – Find Rainbow Dash. She’ll know how to do this.”

---

Flicker watched as the bugs that she had raised rushed past her hooves and into the city. She was on the outskirts of it now, trailing just behind the yellow pony that had rescued her. She looked back, the purple one was nowhere to be seen.

The rain had stopped, and already she could see small patches of smoke floating up from the center of the city.

Not again. No. Not again. I’m not going to let this happen. I’m going to fix this. This ends now.

The red-maned mare stretched out her injured wing. It hurt, badly.

But she knew that she did not have a choice. She had to get to the town hall before everypony else did something violent.

She could find a way save both the town and her little fire bugs. She knew it.

---

Twilight pulled back on the tail of the rainbow-maned mare in front of her.

“Just one more thing, Rainbow.”

“Yah, Twi?” she answered, looking back.

“Don’t forget the forest. We can’t let this happen again.”

The pegasus nodded her head. “Piece of cake. I’ll be back in a flash.”

Rainbow jumped out of the window in front of her and took wing into the sky.

Twilight stood still, watching the blue mare until the top of the town hall blocked her vision.

I sure hope this–

She stopped mid-thought.

Oh no.

Turning, she galloped for the door.

“Where are you going?” shouted the mayor from behind her.

Twilight did not answer. She had to move quickly. There was not much time left.

---

“Stop!"

Flicker crashed in through the window, narrowly missing the mayor as she careened into the wall behind the tan earth pony.

“You’re too late,” the mayor deadpanned. “Rainbow Dash is already flying, and Twilight’s run off.”

Flicker blinked.

Her eyes started to water. She was going to lose them. All of them. So many years. The last of their kind. All gone.

She ran to the window. Outside, hundreds of the small red bugs that she knew so well scuttled aimlessly throughout the streets. Downstairs, she could hear the screams of dozens of ponies. The town hall was on fire now.

She was too late.

A blue flash tore through the open roads and alleys of the town. Flicker instinctively shielded her eyes from the bright light.

“Get down!” somepony shouted.

A rush of air filled her ears as a wave of force threw her back against the wall.