• Published 31st Jul 2013
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The Advent of Applejack - Mister Friendly



Applejack has yet to truly know what it means to be a changeling...

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Chapter 19: Hunted

“Get some water on that fire, quick!”

The fire brigade sergeant’s orders were muffled by the roar of rising flames happily consuming a historic mansion, top to bottom. Even as the firefighters moved into position, a section of masonry cracked and collapsed. Ponies scattered as the wall came down and sent a burst of red-hot rubble across the lawn. Instantly the firefighters were back in position, serpentine hoses at the ready, and resumed their duel with the hearty inferno.

Twilight sat a few yards away from the action. She felt too numb to offer any sort of assistance; any spell that might possibly have helped save one of her fillyhood landmarks escaped her. She was deaf to the murmuring voices behind her; curious residents of neighboring estates come to see what all the fuss was about.

A line of Royal Guards stood in their way. While the aristocratic ponies were hardly difficult to contain, each and every one of them were keeping their eyes out for the real threat; the arrival of the paparazzi.

Twilight looked over her shoulder at them, and in the flickering orange glow of the fire, she could see their worried, even scared expressions. Mares in expensive fineries glanced between their closest partners. Husbands pulled their wives closer automatically. Foals hid behind their parents’ hooves. All of their eyes shined with the brilliant glare of the fire.

“Watch out! It’s coming down!”

Twilight spun around as an earsplitting crack rent the air. She looked up as the columns holding up the front of the house cracked and buckled. The whole entryway sagged with an audible groan, fire gushing from open windows like ports in a hellish furnace. Then, it toppled, mortar splintering and stone fracturing, towards all those looking on.

A flash of golden light momentarily drowned out even the glare of the fire. Everypony shielded their eyes, wincing back a step. When the light dimmed and Twilight’s eyes readjusted, the crumbling avalanche of debris was gone. Motes of angry red light were all that remained, and they soon winked out of existence, too.

Not one bit of soot made it passed the regal form standing just in front of Twilight. As the brilliant energies engulfing an elegant horn dimmed, Princess Celestia folded her wings gracefully. She surveyed the ponies desperately fighting the blaze, then turned her gaze around towards Twilight. “Are you alright?” she asked.

Twilight grimaced. “Y-yes, Princess.”

Something crossed Celestia’s eye. “Are you sure?”

Twilight paused, then turned away slightly. “I’m not hurt,” she qualified. Celestia didn’t pressure her further. Though she did not have the whole story, she had a very good idea about what had happened. Twilight disheartened, a house burning down, and Applejack nowhere in sight. Yes, she had a very good idea. And so she didn’t ask, not yet.

But of the two ponies she and her Sergeant Buck’s platoon had come across on this very lawn, it wasn’t her star pupil that concerned her.

Again, Celestia cast a glance over her other shoulder.

On the plus side, Rainbow Dash clearly was not injured. What she was, was very worked up. The pegasus was pacing round and round like a caged lion, wings brandished and at the ready. She stared hard at the ground, her mind clearly thinking even harder.

All at once she stopped and snapped her head up to look at Twilight. “Cadance?! You’re telling me Cadance knew something and didn’t tell us?”

Twilight winced again. “I don’t know that for sure,” Twilight admitted. “But… she might have been involved to some degree.”

In a flash, Rainbow was in the air and in her friend’s face. “But she didn’t tell us! She could’ve kept all this from happening and Applejack wouldn’t have to… wouldn’t have to…”

As fast as her rage surfaced, it diminished. She dropped to all fours again, her wings hanging limply from her sides, ears just as languid. The only thing Twilight could think to do was wrap a hoof around her and give her a hug. Rainbow didn’t return it, but she did bury her face against Twilight’s shoulder.

“I’m getting her back,” Rainbow swore.

“I know. We’ll put our heads together and come up with something.”

Rainbow nodded against her shoulder, then pulled away a scowl on her face again. “Well, obviously we know where to start. We’re gonna find Cadance and get her to spill the beans.”

“By asking her nicely,” Twilight said pointedly, giving Rainbow a look.

Rainbow just frowned right back. “If by ‘ask’ you mean pummel her for lying to us, then yes. I’m gonna ask the hay out of her.”

“Rainbow,” Twilight scolded. “I know you’re upset. I am, too. But you and I both know that it isn’t like Cadance to keep a secret unless she had a very good reason, and right now isn’t the time to be losing our heads and jumping to conclusions.”

“Then when is?” Rainbow shouted. “Because I just watched my best friend…! I just saw Applejack…! Cadance had better have something really convincing to say for herself, or so help me Celestia, I’ll—”

“Before you invoke my name in vain,” interjected Celestia herself, “perhaps I could interrupt?”

Rainbow turned to her, as if just realizing she was even there. Celestia approached with a heavy look on her face. For some reason that escaped her, Rainbow found most of that directed her way.

“Rainbow Dash, I must ask you to calm yourself. I know,” she interrupted, seeing her about to speak, “I know. But we cannot lose sight of what is important. That is to say, saving Applejack. In her present state, utilizing the Elements of Harmony would be… problematic, a fact I am sure our enemy is all too aware of and will not hesitate to capitalize on. And that is only one facet of the problem, if Queen Aconita’s warning is to be believed. I know you care very deeply for Applejack, but letting your emotions get the better of you will only cloud your judgment.”

Rainbow didn’t glare at Celestia. She just glared at one of her gilded horseshoes. Totally different. She mumbled something about not letting something get to her, then turned around, glowering.

Celestia stifled a sigh, then turned to Twilight, who straightened up. “Twilight, I hate to ask this of you, but you and your friends are possibly the only ones that can stop Applejack before she hurts anypony, herself included.”

Twilight wilted, doubt and worry plaguing her. A reassuring nuzzle did little to calm her, but she appreciated the gesture nonetheless. “But I have complete faith in you. Go to the Crystal Empire. Speak with Cadance. Whether she is involved or not, I know she will open up to you.”

Twilight smiled appreciatively, then stood up.

The millisecond she did, Rainbow let out a loud, impatient sound. “Ugh, finally!” And took off into the sky.

Two seconds later, she reappeared, looking thoroughly annoyed. “What’s keeping you? Come on, egghead, let’s go already!” And off she shot again.

Twilight sighed, and took a step after her.

“One more moment, Twilight.”

She paused, and glanced over her shoulder. Celestia was looking at her, a dark cloud in her eyes. “I did not want to mention this in front of Rainbow, given her present state of mind, but… Be exceptionally careful on your way to the Crystal Empire,” she told her quietly. “If what you told me about the state of this manor when you arrived is true, I believe there is yet something we are overlooking. Somepony has gone to great lengths to cover up their activities in this matter, but now that Applejack has started her transformation, I fear they may set their sights on you and your friends next.”

Twilight frowned thoughtfully. “I… I was beginning to suspect as much myself. Don’t you worry, Princess; I’ll be on guard for anything the Court might throw at us.”

Celestia glanced up and away, towards the setting sun. “Just in case, I have instructed Sergeant Buck and a platoon of his finest soldiers to escort you and Rainbow Dash to the Empire. I have sent word ahead to Ponyville and the Crystal Empire as well; your friends will be well protected. I know you are more than capable of looking after yourselves, but… allow an old mare some peace of mind.”

Twilight couldn’t keep the troubled look off her face. A guard detail? Celestia had never felt the need to push such a thing onto them before, not when they were confronting Discord, or even when venturing across an embattled Canterlot, or the many other times protection might have come in handy.

“Princess…,” Twilight mumbled hesitantly, keeping her voice low. “Is… is there maybe something you’re not telling me?”

A proud half smile twitched at the corners of Celestia’s mouth. There really was no keeping anything from her prized student. But the smile was short-lived, and disappeared almost immediately.

“The trigger that initiated the attack on Ponyville yesterday,” she said, her voice barely a whisper, barely even audible over the rumble of fire and hiss of water jets. “It was not created by changeling magic. It was a unicorn spell.”

Twilight’s eyes grew as big as dinner plates. “What?”

Celestia gave a discrete nod. “Keep your wits about you, Twilight. The enemy may be far closer to us than we realized.”

Twilight nodded, frowned to herself, then looked back to Celestia, standing a little taller. “Don’t worry, Princess,” she promised. “We’ll get to the bottom of this.”

Celestia smiled warmly for the first time since her arrival. “I know you will. Now hurry; the last train for the Crystal Empire is due to leave shortly.”

Twilight nodded again, surer this time, then turned and galloped away without a backwards look. If she had turned around, she would have seen the very worried look that now plagued Celestia's features.

~~***~~

Twilight’s head was in turmoil. Before, it had been a maelstrom of white noise; shock derailed any productive train of thought and left a mind-numbing roar that drowned out all else. But Celestia had given it something to find traction on, and now it was working full speed, all cylinders firing. Even Rainbow’s very abrupt reappearance didn’t shake her.

“What’s taking so long?!” Rainbow shot, her patience absolutely gone now. “We have to go!”

“Give me a sec,” Twilight without looking at her, and continued towards the road at a terse clip.

Rainbow watched her go, Then dragged her hooves down her face in pure frustration. “Right now? Can’t it wait?”

Twilight didn’t respond immediately, much to Rainbow’s already considerable annoyance. She caught up to her oh-so annoying slowpoke of a friend and gave her a sidelong glare. “What’s the deal? Aren’t we in a hurry?” she said pointedly.

As if to contradict her as much as possible, Twilight came to a stop. Much more of this behavior and Rainbow was going to blow her top! She was just puffing up to really let Twilight have it when, all of a sudden, she asked her a question completely out of left field.

“Hey Rainbow, do you remember what Queen Aconita asked you yesterday?”

That threw Rainbow for a loop. She pulled a face, at a loss. “What’s it matter?”

Twilight frowned to herself, rubbing her chin. “What does the Court gain from a war…?”

Rainbow cocked her head at her. If she wasn’t in such a rush, she might have entertained the possibility that Twilight was, as usual, on to something. But she was in a rush, and wasn’t in the mood to humor her. She could be a super egghead on her own time, but right now she was burning daylight.

“I don’t know. Evil stuff? Can’t we talk about this on the way? We’d be halfway there already if you’d pick up your hooves!”

Twilight shook her head. “I… doubt that, but I see your point. Let’s go.”

Rainbow heaved an exaggerated sigh of relief. “Finally.” She turned – and about ran face-first into an armored pony.

No less than six Royal Guards stood in their way, and once Twilight gave them her attention, they snapped to attention and saluted. At their head was a navy blue stallion dressed in silver and matching blue armor.

“Princess,” Sergeant Buck greeted humbly. “A pleasure to see you again.”

Twilight cocked her head, a look of recognition crossing her features. “Spry Buck? Oh wow, it’s been a while!”

The old veteran chuckled good-naturedly. “Since your brother was in basic, if I remember. I still recall the little filly who used to give me a hard time about the treatment of her brother.”

“I did not,” Twilight countered with a hint of petulance. “I just thought your training methods could be adjusted to minimize unnecessary trauma, that’s all.”

“Well, it looks like we’ve all come a long way, haven’t we?” Buck said with an easy smile. “He’s married to royalty, you are royalty, and I’m a grumpy old geezer serving royalty.”

Twilight smiled – and was all-but butted out of the way when Rainbow bumped into her and stared Buck in the face. “I get you two are having some kind of moment, but can we do the whole reunion thing later? Places to be, ponies to see, curses to beat. You wouldn’t understand,” she added with a cool glance to the Guard Captain.

Buck’s features hardened, and he gave a curt nod. “Right then, down to business. Princess Celestia has asked that I escort the both of you to the Crystal Empire. I’ve already secured transportation, if it pleases you.” He gestured over one shoulder, towards a sleek gold and silver vehicle waiting in the wings on the curb.

Rainbow took one look at the awaiting carriage, then immediately gave Twilight a horrorstruck look. “That?”

Twilight raised a questioning eyebrow. “What’s wrong with it?”

“Twilight, we’d literally be a million times faster flying. This thing would just slow us down!”

Twilight frowned. “At this point, I’m pretty sure I’d slow you down, too.”

Rainbow gave her a confused look. “What? No – I mean, that’s not – what?”

Twilight shook her head. “Okay, one; we can’t fly all the way to the Crystal Empire. You might, but I can’t. The only way we’re making it to the Crystal Empire is by train, so I need you to please calm down.”

Rainbow gave her a look of desperation, mouth working a few times before she finally got words out. “I… I can’t, okay! Applejack—”

“I know, Rainbow, I know,” Twilight interrupting, putting a hoof on her shoulder. “But ask yourself what she’d tell you right now if she were here.”

Rainbow’s jaw flapped uselessly a number of times. Then, averting eye contact, she set herself on the ground. “She’d… say I was being stupid,” she mumbled. “That… me running around like this would get nothing done.”

Twilight smiled. “Exactly. I promise, Rainbow, we’ll get her back. Have I ever let you down?”

Rainbow glanced up at her, growled under her breath. “I guess not. Fine, let’s just… fine.”

She trotted away, and even though she’d calmed down, she looked somehow worse than ever before without pure agitation to mask it.

Twilight gave her grieving friend a worried look, then she made to follow. She was Applejack’s friend, just like Rainbow, and yet, somehow, she got the feeling that what Rainbow was going through was on a whole different level from her own turmoil.

~~***~~

Half a block from the commotion of onlookers, first-responders and hungry fire, a stage coach sat quietly in the shade of a willow tree. Even from that distance, the firelight cut a flickering red shadow across the richly upholstered interior, and danced on the glasses of a lone, disheveled mare.

Peony watched the entire scene unfold with a heavy heart and adjusted her glasses. “We almost made it.”

We should have made it.”

Peony nodded to the sound of the tinny voice filling the carriage. “We should have. I don’t understand it. At the rate she was progressing, we should have had more time. What could have caused her to molt prematurely?”

Perhaps it is better this way.

Peony shook her head. “How? Applejack is loose, and in her present state, there’s no telling what she will do. And we are still no closer to figuring out who is behind this, or how to undo the damage done already. As it stands, everything is at stake here, and we’re running out of options.”

For the first time in what felt like ages, Peony looked away from the window and to the seat opposite her. Sitting across from her, looking for all the world like it belonged there, was a suit of burnished bronze armor. Green fire licked from its empty visor, and acidic light flickered from its many openings. It was an eerie sight, one that should have perturbed Peony had she not seen it so many times before.

The animated helmet squeaked as it turned a little towards the window, enchanted flames hissing quietly. “That is precisely why it is better. The enemy has the advantage now. They will press their luck.

Peony glanced out the window again. In the distance, she could see two figures – a purple alicorn and a blue, restless pegasus – standing in front of a troop of six Royal Guards. They threw a salute as Peony eyed them with misgivings.

“They’re bait,” Peony deduced.

Twilight Sparkle has a reputation for being very tenacious in these situations,” the suit of armor said. “Time and again she has come through when nopony else could. If anypony could thwart their plans at the very last minute, it’s her. She stands as the greatest threat to their success, even at this late a phase. ‘Bait’ is the wrong word.

“Then, ‘target’?”

The armored helmet stared at the carriage in the distance, and if it could squint, it would have. It was pulling away from the curb now.

Distraction would be more apt. Keep an eye on them, but nothing more,” he ordered.

Peony glanced at the suit of armor quickly. “Is that wise? The carriage—”

No. Let them go.

Peony raised a concerned eyebrow. “Sir?”

The suit of armor turned to look at her sightlessly. Only the helmet bore an engraved expression; a grim scowl made all the worse by the billowing flames gushing from the eyeholes and perforated faceguard.

There is something I need to see,” he said. “There is something about these circumstances… A suspicion I dare not overlook. And perhaps our adversaries will be kind enough to let overconfidence get the better of them.

It glanced out the window again, as the squeak and rattle of a royally requisitioned carriage rolled passed on its way to the train station.

If my suspicions are correct, Twilight very well could unmask our adversary for us,” the armor said, a casual air about it now. “But it is not her that I am concerned about.

Peony gave the suit of armor a nervous look. “And… what if they are attacked before that?”

The armor looked her dead in the face, and very casually, stated, “Oh, I have no doubt of that happening. And if I know Miss Sparkle half as well as I think I do, I suspect she does, too.

~~***~~

The carriage ride was unbearably slow. Rainbow stared out one window with a dour expression on her face and tapped her hoof impatiently. Every house they passed seemed to take an eternity to disappear behind them. She swore Tank moved faster – on a slow day!

All Rainbow could think about, as they slowly plodded along at a snail’s pace, was that she’d have already been at the station – and back! – by now.

But as much as she hated to admit it, Twilight had a point. A dumb, stupid, totally unfair point. Rainbow might be able to make the trip to the Crystal Empire in, oh, two hours – one if she really pushed herself. But Twilight… Twilight was a clumsy flyer. Considering she’d had her wings for less than six months, she was doing markedly better than foals of that same age, but there was no way she’d be up for a long distance flight, possibly through rough weather.

It did little to ease Rainbow’s mood, knowing that. Her body burned, demanding to do something. Just sitting there and waiting felt, in some way, like she was letting Applejack down by not giving her full measure. She was keyed, she was ready, but all she could do was hurry up… and sit. It was so frustrating!

Rainbow bit her lip. She wasn’t about to just leave Twilight behind, no way. But Applejack…

Come save me… ya hear…?

“Rainbow?”

She jumped and whipped her head around.

Twilight was sitting next to her in the carriage, a deeply worried look on her face. She’d put a hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder without her noticing right away. “Are you alright?”

Rainbow noticed Twilight glance down at her chest. She looked down as well, and to her surprise found her own hoof clutched tightly at her breast. Rainbow relaxed her grip, and then set her hoof down at her side.

“’M fine,” she lied, then looked away again.

Twilight might have said something else, but Rainbow tuned her out. She wasn’t in the mood. She closed her eyes and tried very hard not to think about anything.

It wasn’t easy. Glimpses of Applejack continually plagued her, and nothing she did was able to block them out.

A race, one of countless others, before and after. Rainbow didn’t even remember when or where it was anymore. All she recalled was the lithe orange shape sprinting ahead of her, leaning into corners and springing over any obstacle with deer-like grace. She was the only pony ahead of her, but only just; some vague recollection reminded her of the faceless others way, way behind them, huffing and puffing and trying in vain to keep up. Only Applejack surpassed her. Only Applejack ever did.

A furious Applejack far below, cheeks puffed out and face red with anger. She shouted at Rainbow again, shaking a hoof. Rainbow just stuck her tongue out playfully and zoomed away, her enraged friend’s hat in her gasp.

Applejack, shooting her a smirk over her shoulder. She was lounging under a tree, flush with sweat, breathing hard. Rainbow’s heart pounded in her chest and her body ached from a long day of exercise. She didn’t even remember what game they’d been playing, only that it was the most fun she’d had in a long time.

Applejack, lying in a bed in a run-down, all-but abandoned cottage, her alien black body wrapped in gauze, her voice weak. The smell of burnt chitin still clung to Rainbow’s sinuses as she stared, feeling like she was lost in a dream… The horrified look on Applejack’s face when her eyes cracked open and spotted her sitting next to her. For the first time ever – ever – Applejack looked as scared as a lost foal, and twice as vulnerable. And all of that terror was directed at her, of all ponies.

Applejack, sitting restlessly on a cloud for the first time in her life, eyes watching the setting sun, lost in thought. She caught Rainbow staring, and smirked at her, revealing a pointed canine.

Applejack, sound asleep and worry-free for the first time in what felt like forever, snuggled up to her for warmth.

Applejack surrounded by fire, pain and fear in her face, as her body split and tore itself apart…

What do you really know about being a changeling?

Rainbow cocked her head to herself as the memory emerged, unbidden. The memory of a towering black figure, illuminated by ghostly candlelight, looking over her shoulder back at Rainbow with a look of pure disdain.

And what do we stand to gain from a war?

Rainbow frowned to herself, then glanced to her side.

Twilight was leaning forward a little, mid-conversation with that stallion she’d called Spry Buck, who sat across from her. On either side of him, two guards sat like statues, tuning out everything else. On Twilight’s other side was another guard, who also stared blankly into space. They’d all somehow crammed into the carriage with some degree of room to spare, but it was a little too claustrophobic for Rainbow’s liking.

“Shining Armor will be happy to hear that,” Twilight was saying with a smile. “He always spoke very highly of you. After boot camp.”

Buck made a gruff noise and glanced away, embarrassed. “It’s kind of you to say that, Your Highness. Honestly, if the appointment hadn’t come from Princess Celestia herself, I might have turned down the position,” he grumbled. “I’m too old for the city life. There’s plenty of young blood more befitting the post than me. Fort Longtrotter was about all the excitement I could handle.”

Twilight pulled a face that might have been intended as a smile. “Well, it’s been kind of… busy… lately.”

“That it has,” Buck sighed. “That it has… But the lads here are hardworking, so… Suppose I don’t have reason to complain.”

The conversation temporarily dissipated as both drifted off, lost in thought. The pause may have lasted several minutes, had Twilight not felt a nudge on her hip.

She turned questioningly towards Rainbow, who was determinedly looking out the window and not at her. “So… what you were saying earlier…,” she grumbled, “About what Aconita said…”

She glanced over her shoulder only at that point, though begrudgingly. “Why’s that so important all of a sudden?”

Twilight blinked at her, then frowned to herself. “Well… I’ve been trying to figure out what she meant when she asked me that. There is any number of things somepony could gain from a war. Resources, territory, security… Just to name a few. There’s too many possibilities, so I thought maybe she was being rhetorical. But then I remembered she asked you the same question. That can’t be coincidence.”

She glanced across the way towards Buck, who returned the look with a puzzled look of his own. “Of course, there’s the obvious. Queen Chrysalis herself said it: Equestria has more love than any place else in the world. And since changelings need love to grow stronger, the attraction is pretty clear.”

“Indeed,” Buck agreed. “And by all accounts, they have not given up on those goals.”

“That’s the thing,” Twilight said, her frown deepening. “Ever since the Royal Wedding, the Court’s been rather quiet. I always assumed they were just biding their time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.”

“Which they did,” Buck said grimly.

But to this, Twilight shook her head. “But what if they weren’t?”

Everypony gave her a perplexed look. “Huh?” Rainbow said, completely uncomprehending. Even Buck raised a questioning eyebrow. “What do you mean by that?”

Twilight was rubbing her chin again, thinking critically all the while. “Humor me for a second. If you were going to go to war, and your strategy was going to be to employ stealth and subterfuge, how would blatantly leveraging a threat against the enemy in order to announce your intentions be a sound tactical move?”

“You lost me,” Rainbow deadpanned.

“Well, for starters, it was so out of character. If the Court’s goal was to wait for Applejack to… change, why bring it to our attention in the first place? I know Chrysalis can be…”

“A total egotistical maniac?” Rainbow offered.

“… Yeah. Something like that. She’s full of herself, but she’s not stupid. So why make a scene at the biggest event in Equestria just to put us on guard? That doesn’t make any sense.”

“What about the changeling apprehended at the scene?” Buck inquired. “By yourself, I might add.”

Twilight shook her head, troubled scowl returning. “That, I don’t know,” she admitted. “I just know that it was strange. Really strange. I had thought that there might be some kind of hidden agenda that the Court was so confident that would work that they didn’t need to be cautious.”

“And there was,” Buck put in. “Applejack’s molt.”

Rainbow’s expression soured, but she said nothing.

But again, Twilight shook her head. “I thought that, too. But then, Aconita put the same question to Rainbow and me. If Agave is to be believed, there has to be a reason. What if – and this is purely speculation – but what if Aconita was trying to tell us something?”

Rainbow frowned. “Tell us what, exactly? If she was, would it hurt her to be a little more direct?”

“Maybe,” Twilight said with a nod. “This is all just speculation, but… If Chrysalis is opposed to helping us, disobeying the Queen of Queens could be a death sentence, or at the very least political suicide. If what we know about the queens and their hives is true, they’d never jeopardize their standing in the Court for anything.”

Buck glanced between the two of them. “Are you implying that Queen Aconita might actually be opposed to the Queen of Queens?”

Twilight grimaced. “I don’t know,” she repeated, with a note of chagrin. “For all I know, she could be just as evil as everypony makes her out to be. She could just be taking advantage of the situation proactively. Maybe she is here just for her daughter. But that question…”

She frowned to herself, a hoof on her chin again, lost in thought. “Ever since she asked me that, I’ve been thinking it over. What can the Court gain from war? What is so important about that question that she’d repeat it to two different ponies? And… I think I’ve figured it out.”

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. Buck as well. On either side of him, two guards exchanged a mute look, silently pretending they weren’t listening. “So, what do you think it’s all about?” Rainbow questioned.

Twilight glanced over at her. “I think, what the Court stands to gain from a war with Equestria is… nothing.”

Rainbow cocked her head in confusion. “Uh… you lost me again.”

Twilight looked at her seriously. “There is nothing the Court would gain from instigating a war with Equestria. Think about it; all a war would do is spoil the prize; Equestria itself. And that’s assuming the Court wins. Considering we already know of their existence and are already developing countermeasures, the price of victory would be so high that I doubt any queen would ever commit to the campaign. And yet they would start saber-rattling in our faces? It’s counter-productive to their goals. What Aconita was trying to tell us is that the Court had no reason to attack us.”

Rainbow gave her a shocked look, taken aback. “Wait… so you’re saying the Changeling Court isn’t behind this? Because that sounds crazy! Applejack and I came across so many changelings just hanging out in the Everfree. And then there’s that one you caught at the Summer Sun Celebration. How can the Court not be involved?”

Twilight shook her head again. “I know. Some things still don’t add up, and really, this is all just speculation at this point. Well, most of it. But the more I think about it, the more it seems like somepony has gone to a lot of trouble to pin the blame on the obvious target; the changelings in the south.”

Rainbow snorted grumpily and folded her hooves across her chest. “So what? Are you saying there might be ponies involved? How do we know they're not just being controlled?"

"We don't," Twilight said. "It seems really unlikely that the Court would cooperate with anypony, and vice versa, no matter how much they hate Applejack. But even if we're talking about a bunch of enslaved ponies, some things still don't add up."

Rainbow glowered worse than ever and leaned back. "Psh… That totally sounds like something Steel Shod would do. I mean, he hates changelings enough, right?”

Twilight gave her a speculative look. “I doubt that. Outside of Ponyville, Steel Shod has virtually no influence. He’d never be able to orchestrate something of this magnitude on his own. And up to this point, he has tried to do things by the book. I don’t think his pride could stomach resorting to under-hooved methods like this. Not to mention the level of ingenuity is way beyond anything he could come up with.”

Rainbow frowned. “Then, who does that leave?”

To that, Twilight’s scowl only grew darker. “I don’t know that, either. But it would have to be a group who really, really despises Applejack, if not Equestria itself.”

Rainbow glanced at her, and her eyes narrowed. “Are you talking about…?”

Twilight gave her a level look. “I’m just speculating, Rainbow. Just speculating. And it doesn’t explain away the changelings involved at all…”

The carriage fell quiet for a long time. Sergeant Buck looked at the floor, a deeply troubled and deeply conflicted look on his face as he processed Twilight’s implications. Twilight did the same while looking like she’d bitten into the mother of all lemons.

Rainbow went back to looking out the window, a foreboding cloud in the back of her head. The things Twilight said sort of made sense, and given her track record, Twilight might really be on to something. Even if Twilight was right, that didn't change Rainbow's burning need to punch something in the face, if only to make herself feel better.

But those changelings in Murmuring Mire and the Everfree Forest… the one that attacked Ponyville… That last one had left no question about where his allegiances lay. Right?

Ugh… All this thinking is driving me crazy…

Rainbow turned her attention to the street outside, just for something to do. They were still moving just as painfully slow, trundling down the main boulevard at a stately pace. But at least now she had something new to think about.

And she would have continued to think about it, if she didn’t notice a particular sight drift across her field of vision at just another non-descript intersection. But when she saw it, it immediately pushed all of that out of the spotlight.

“Uh… Twilight?” she spoke up.

“Hmm?”

“We’re going to the train station, right?”

Twilight frowned at her. She glanced at Buck, who looked similarly confused. “Yes, that’s right. Why—”

“Because we just passed the turn.”

Twilight froze in place. “…What?”

Rainbow glanced out the window, but already the street sign bearing the telltale train car and blue background had moved out of sight, in the wrong direction.

“That can’t be right,” Buck murmured, and leaned forward to look out the window.

At first, Twilight couldn’t figure out why he abruptly stopped. But she noticed the surprised look on his face. He turned his head, not towards the window, but to the guard pony sitting right next to him, and the razor sharp length of steel being pressed to his side.

Twilight saw it at the same moment Buck did. The old stallion looked at it with a confounded sort of realization, then towards the guard, who met his gaze without inflection. All he gave was a small, almost unnoticeable shake of the head. Then, Buck eased himself back into his seat.

Rainbow didn’t notice the drama unfolding, not until she whipped around and started to say “Okay, what the hay is going on?” She only got to “Oka—” before catching on and freezing. She glanced confusedly to Buck, then to Twilight, followed her gaze to the stoic stallion across from her, and then down to sparkle off of the discreet hoofblade pressed length-wise to Buck’s ribs.

“Well,” Twilight said quietly, “I suppose we’re passed the speculation phase now.”

“It would seem that way,” Buck answered in a forced casual tone. “My apologies, princess.” He then turned a sour look to the stallion sticking a dagger to his side. “I seem to have sang the praises of my men a little too hastily.”

For the first time, the guard broke his silence. “It’s nothing personal, Captain, really. We can all just sit here and enjoy the rest of the trip in peace. There is somepony who wants to have a word with the princess, that’s all.”

Twilight’s frown deepened to the point of a glare. “So, Princess Celestia was right. There really are ponies behind this.”

The guard didn’t show any inflection or reaction. But there was what could be taken as an impressed glint in his eye. “Everypony always talks about how clever you are, princess. I can see why he’d be concerned about you. Really, I am sorry to have to do this; my daughter thinks the world of you, and you have my respect, truly. But… sometimes things don’t work out the way we want.”

Twilight nodded. “I am sorry it had to work out like this.”

“As am I.”

Twilight eased herself back in her seat. Any other pony in a situation like this would panic, start screaming, running in circles, or any number of things. But Twilight had a perfect gasp of the situation. It wasn’t like she hadn’t been preparing for something like this, either.

She glanced slightly to her side, noting the guard seated there. He eyed her warily, but said and did nothing. She only noted that he didn’t have a weapon pointed at her, but there was an ominous shimmer around his horn. Then, she glanced towards Rainbow, who met her sidelong look coolly.

“So, can I start ‘asking’ some questions now?” Rainbow quipped casually.

“Depends,” Twilight responded.

“On?”

“Can you give me two seconds?”

“Easy.”

The guard holding the knife to Buck’s side narrowed his eyes at them, suspicious. Buck held Twilight’s gaze, immobile. Then, he glanced towards Rainbow. The pegasus met his look, and watched as he flicked his eyes to his other side – towards the other guard sitting next to him. Rainbow smirked slightly.

The guard with the knife opened his mouth and started to say something – when Buck’s head slammed into his, full force, followed a split second by the rest of him body-slamming the slighter stallion into the carriage wall.

At the exact same moment, Rainbow exploded from her seat, and in the blink of an eye, slammed her hooves into the face of the guard on Buck’s other side. His head bashed against the back of the carriage and he slumped, out cold. Then, using his face like a trampoline, she kicked backwards and gave the guard sitting beside Twilight the same bone-cracking treatment before he could even draw in a gasp of surprise.

As all of this happened, Twilight’s horn started to hum. As she’d predicted, within two seconds, it came to a brilliant blaze. She reached out with both hooves as her eyes glowed with power, touched Buck’s shoulder as he wrestled his adversary to the floor, as well as placing a hoof on Rainbow’s foreleg. And with a pop, all three vanished into thin air.

The trip was a short one. On such short notice, Twilight couldn’t triangulate her trajectory based on more than sight. So, she and her two companions appeared in the one safe place most immediately available - the side of the road.

Buck hit the pavement first after finding his seat no longer beneath him, followed by Twilight, who at least managed to get her hooves underneath her. Rainbow had a moment of disorientation as the fabric of the universe realigned itself around her, but her wings kept her aloft.

“Go!” Buck barked from the cobblestones. He was pressing a hoof to his side, his face snarled up in pain. “I’ll buy you two some time. Go!”

Not far away, the carriage was skidding to a halt. The team of drivers shouted in their direction, and by the sounds of it, it wasn’t a friendly call. Two guards jumped from the back of the carriage, each brandishing a spear.

Twilight glanced at them all, gave Buck one more worried look, then turned and ran for her life. She didn’t even slow down as she plucked a bristling Rainbow Dash out of the air in her telekinetic grip and hauled her off in the other direction.

Buck grinned through the pain, and worked himself up to his hooves. “Well… that retirement plan’s sure looking good about now,” he grunted to himself, as the first guard descended on him.

Buck heard him coming. He shifted to his left, and caught the falling spear between his body and foreleg. Then, he twisted for all he was worth, and to the guard’s surprise, wrenched his weapon clean out of his grip.

Before the assailant could recover, he felt the sharp smack of his former weapon slam into the back of his head with enough force to propel him face-first into the very hard stones at his hooves. After a ringing crunch, the guard stayed down and did not move again.

Buck slung his new weapon under his foreleg and rose to his hind legs. His remaining hoof clutched his side tightly as little lights popped before his eyes. He staggered a little, but with gritted teeth, forced himself to steady.

The remaining would-be foalnappers faltered at the sight of him and the withering glare he gave them.

“Bah… Never liked the idea of retirement, anyway. Come, then! Let's have a fight of it!” Buck laughed humorlessly as his adversaries got over their shock and charged. Buck met them head-on, and demonstrated what a thirty year combat training instructor could do with just one foreleg, a standard issue spear, and a gut full of stalwart fury.

~~***~~

Twilight chanced a glance over her shoulder as she ran, but by then they’d left the scene far behind. Worry clawed at her heart, but she didn’t dare stop. They had to make it to the train station – that was the only thought she focused on. Had to make it to the train station.

“Hold on a second, Rainbow,” she said abruptly.

The pegasus gave her an annoyed look, but slowed to a halt. They stood in the middle of an intersection – one of countless identical ones in downtown Canterlot. A single cart rattled on by, its occupant and driver eying them curiously as it passed. Beyond that, the street was empty. “Where are we?” Rainbow asked, looking around.

Twilight turned her attention towards the tall street signs squinted. “Alabaster Street, and… Platinum Way. Okay, got it.”

She reached out without looking, touched Rainbow’s flank – much to her surprise – and together they teleported again.

The trip lasted only a split second, but in that split second, the two traveled nearly three blocks, west, then south. Now that Twilight knew where she was, broader jumps weren’t as daunting a proposition. She’d long ago committed a map of the higher class districts of Canterlot to memory to ensure she always made it to lessons with Princess Celestia in the most time-effective ways possible. Right now, though, it wasn't tardiness that drove her to make erratic leaps through space and time.

When next they reappeared, it was on a grassy island in the center of a turnabout. Traffic bustled by all around them – posh vehicles delivering well-to-do families to and from five star restaurants, last-minute delivery carts packed high with goods from across Equestria trundling towards their final destinations, and ponies of every color of the rainbow milling about the sidewalks.

As Twilight looked around, the street lamps burst to life, one by one. Their lights glimmered on Summer Sun Celebration banners and streamers that lined the boulevard and rustled in the breeze.

“Where are we now?” Rainbow inquired, looking around warily. Her diagnosis of the area was immediate; there were way too many ponies around for her liking. They’d never see a threat coming until it’d already snatched them up.

“Clover Lane,” Twilight said. “The busiest street in Canterlot. We should be safe here.”

“Are you kidding? There’s ponies everywhere! Any one of them could be after us!”

“Yes,” Twilight admitted, “But I seriously doubt whoever we’re up against would risk exposing themselves by trying to abduct a Princess of Equestria in front of half of downtown Canterlot.”

Rainbow still cast a dubious look around, unsure. But even as she did so, she noticed ponies stopping, and looking in their direction curiously. Some were even beginning to murmur excitedly as they identified the lavender alicorn sitting next to Rainbow. She continued to give them an uncertain once-over, but in the end she forced herself to relax. “Alright, fine. What now? Are we really just going to leave Buck back there?”

“We make for the train station, like we were,” Twilight said, though she winced. “We should be okay as long as we stay a step ahead of these guys, and the first step to that is getting out of Canterlot as soon as possible.”

“Okay,” said Rainbow slowly. “But what about Buck?”

Twilight’s expression became strained for a moment, then she took a deep breath. “Sergeant Buck knows how to protect himself. If we’d stayed to help, we’d just get in his way. I-it’s for the best.”

Rainbow could have pointed out how unconfident she sounded about that. Nothing sat worse with Rainbow than leaving a friend behind, and she’d give anything to zip back to the old stallion’s side and duke it out with those goons. That kind of stress relief was almost too irresistible.

But brawling in the streets wouldn’t bring Applejack back. And ultimately, that was what every action boiled down to in her mind; things that would and things that would not help save her friend.

“Okay, okay… and where is the station from here?”

“Oh, about a ten minute walk down the lane,” Twilight responded, still looking around and thus not fully paying attention.

Before Rainbow could open her mouth to say something else, in the distance, a loud bong chimed the hour. Again and again it sounded, and each time it did, Twilight’s face grew just a little paler.

“And… when is the train leaving?” Rainbow asked with dread.

“Oh… about now-ish,” Twilight answered, her voice an octave or two higher than normal.

“Thought so.”

~~***~~

It was a slow evening at the Canterlot Train Station, a definite first in a long time. There had only been one near-trampling all day, and the congestion of departing and arriving throngs was almost non-existent.

In all Bellmouth’s years, he hadn’t seen such a quiet time at the station. He knew of the travel restrictions imposed of late, but he hadn’t thought of the actual impact. And now they he had a taste of the easy life, he couldn’t fathom how he’d lived any other way. No helping mothers with strollers, no mad dash to stow luggage bins. Not once today had he needed to go to his happy place just to endure the hordes of ponies, namely the droves upon droves of screaming foals. Dear Celestia, the foals…

But today it had been quiet, and slow, and quiet, and peaceful! And quiet! Perhaps he’d hit himself on the head. Perhaps he was dreaming of a utopian world. Perhaps he’d completely snapped after ten long years of spotless service and was in reality sitting in a padded room, happily foaming at the mouth. Whatever the cause for his immense good fortune, Bellmouth was having perhaps the best day at work he’d had in years, and he wasn’t about to do something to change that.

He stood at the doorway to Car #8, his usual post, and looked up and down the platform. To his delight, he spotted no late arrivals. The train station was empty, and the only sound to be heard was the building hiss from the warming steam engine up front.

“All Aboard!” he shouted at the top of his lungs one more time. His voice echoed back at him, the only sound to hear, besides the hissing and rumbling coming from the front of the train.

He gave one final call, more out of procedure than any belief that he’d missed anypony, then leaned back into the entryway and slid the doors shut. All up and down the train, he could hear other doors being secured.

The train let out a deafening bugle from its horn, steam blasting from its stack like the eruption of a volcano. Then, with a laborious chug, the wheels started to turn, and the train started to shift.

Bellmouth hung on, like he always did on the countless, blended-together trips he’d made in this very train, and countless more to come. As the train picked up steam, his mind started to wander. With nothing to do, maybe he’d finally be able to crack open that book his sister got him for Hearth’s Warming. Maybe he’d just curl up and – dare he even consider it – take a nap on the job! Oh, what a daredevil he was becoming!

Bellmouth smiled like a mischievous foal—until eight hooves slammed onto the roof directly above him.

He shrieked and fell over. Hat askew, he straightened up, just as the doors to the next car cranked open, and in walked a blue pegasus and purple alicorn, both thoroughly out of breath and sweating profusely.

“Made it,” Rainbow panted. Her wings hung heavily from her sides, thoroughly exhausted.

“Just… in time,” Twilight breathed, walking stiffly. Her forelegs ached in the perfect shape of Rainbow’s tightly clutched hooves where she’d lifted her. Now, as Twilight walked, she tried very hard to keep the room from spinning; that had been way faster than she’d ever want to fly again.

The two walked straight passed a flabbergasted Bellmouth, who just stared, wide eyed, as they walked down the train car, and into the next. As the door clicked shut, blinked, mouth hanging open stupidly. Then, he mumbled, “Was that an alicorn?” as the train picked up speed, barreling towards the Frozen North.

~~***~~

It didn’t take the two of them long to find a private room on the sleeper car and sequester themselves inside. And once the door was closed behind them, Twilight set about locking it, then muffling it with a zap from her horn. Precautions never hurt anypony.

While she was busying herself with safety measures, however, Rainbow was fuming.

“I knew it! I knew it was them!” she raged, all the while pacing up and down between the seats.

Twilight cast a skeptical look over her shoulder. “Really? Because, up until ten minutes ago, you were all for the Changeling Court masterminding everything.”

Rainbow paused only to throw her a dirty look. “Yeah, well, those stupid nobles were a close second!”

“We’re not even sure it’s actually them, Rainbow,” Twilight pointed out. “All we know for sure is that somepony is after us, now that Applejack’s… uh…” Seeing the look on Rainbow’s face, she trailed off.

“Then who else would it be?” Rainbow shot. “My bits were on Steel Shod, but if he’s out apparently, so who else is there?”

“All we know for certain,” Twilight said calmly, “is that it must be somepony with enough influence to sway the Royal Guard. You heard that stallion on the carriage; he was genuinely sorry about trying to foalnap us. But that doesn’t prove who ordered him to do it.”

“Take your pick,” Rainbow growled darkly. “I don’t have enough pinions to count all the nobles AJ has against her.”

Twilight frowned back. “And I don’t have enough to count the ones on her side, either.”

“What’s your point?”

“My point is we can’t just cast blanket accusations against everypony. And until we know exactly who’s behind this, we can’t afford to let them distract us from helping Applejack.”

Rainbow continued to glower at anything and everything, but she finally stopped her pacing. She paused, privately fumed a little, then hopped up on the bench beside her and curled up like a grumpy cat on the cushion.

“Ugh… you’re right, Twilight…”

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear you.”

“Don’t. Push it.”

Twilight smiled slightly, then took a seat opposite Rainbow. Her foul-tempered friend didn’t look at her, instead opting to watch the countryside streak by outside.

The sun was lowering. Both sat for a time in silence, neither one sure what to say or which thought to voice, and instead watched the sun go down, bit by bit, until they rounded a corner, and it vanished from sight. The next time the train banked in the other direction, it was gone.

“…Hey Twilight?”

She turned away from the window. Rainbow still sat in the same place, unmoving. Except, there was something oddly… diminished about the way she looked, like she hadn’t slept in an age.

“Yes?”

For a second, it looked like Rainbow reconsidered speaking. Then, very reluctantly, “… D’you… do you think she’s scared?”

Twilight pursed her lips. For the longest time, she didn’t know what to say. It was almost an entire minute before she opened her mouth again. “No.”

“Why not?” Rainbow asked quietly. “I would be.”

“Because she knows we’re coming to save her. All of us. Even if she’s a little afraid right now, she knows she can count on us. She knows she can count on you.”

Rainbow finally moved. She gave Twilight a confused look, which only compounded when she saw the teasing smile on her face. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Twilight laughed. “Oh come on, Rainbow. Do you have any idea how much you’ve helped her since everypony found out she was a changeling? I mean, the paparazzi started calling you her guard dog!”

Rainbow huffed. “Yeah, well, they wouldn’t leave her alone. Besides, they would’ve gotten off way worse if Big Mac got a hold of them first. Honestly, they should be thanking me.”

“And who was the one that always encouraged her whenever she started doubting herself?”

Rainbow huffed again. “Psh, yeah right. She did all that herself. It’s not my fault sometimes she needs a kick in the flank to get her rear in gear.”

Twilight frowned at that. “Do you really think you do nothing for her?”

Rainbow shrugged. “Not really. I mean, AJ’s got it all in her already. She’s brave and smart and cool… sometimes she just forgets that, you know? I mean, I see it all the time, but she just… doesn’t get it, I guess. Or maybe she just forgets and I have to remind her. Look, it’s nothing special; anypony could do it.”

Twilight was quiet for a very, very long time after that. She watched Rainbow without comment, the wheels and cogs in her brain silently working.

It took her a very long time – a very long time – but after mulling it over until the sun was but a purple stain across the starry night sky, something clicked in Twilight’s head.

By that point, an exhausted Rainbow had finally passed out against the window. She couldn’t have been comfortable; her body was bent like a boomerang against the seat and wall. One wing stuck out at an odd angle, and her hooves sat sort of jumbled together, her head resting pressed up against the glass.

Twilight just looked at her, and with a subtle bob of her horn, she turned off the lights. Rainbow didn’t even flinch.

Twilight smiled at her. “Now I get it,” she whispered to herself, if only to make her thoughts seem more real. “You really don’t notice how you hold her world together. Sure anypony could say the things you do. Most of us have. But you are the only one she really listens to.”

Rainbow breathed deeply in response and drooled on the window. She kicked a little in her sleep and smacked her lips and started to snore.

Twilight smiled a little bigger, then returned to watching the stars outside. “I get the feeling, if there’s anypony who can reach her now, it’s going to be you.”

~~***~~

The train rattled on across the land, picking its way through valleys and around hills as it ventured towards flatter, colder climates. As the sun went down, the few passengers on board retired to their private quarters, or just curled up on a seat and drifted off to sleep. Those still awake had a reason to be so, such as the conductors making their rounds, the driver monitoring the engine’s dials, and an inconspicuous mare out for a stroll.

Nopony paid her any mind. It was a long trip, so none would begrudge her the need to stretch her hooves. So, none kept an eye on her as she slipped away, unseen, until she found one car in particular. There, she quietly moved to the next car, and with a flick of her horn, pried apart the coupling holding them together.

~~***~~

Something hit Rainbow on the side of her face, rudely awaking her from a dead sleep. Right away she identified the culprit; a jolt in the train. She grumbled petulantly and righted herself in her seat. Now that she was awake, she could feel how sore she’d become.

As she stretched to work the kinks out of her spine, she looked across the small room to find Twilight, sound asleep on her seat, hooves hanging over the side.

Rainbow rubbed her face a little. Thoughts of rolling back over and going to sleep tempted her, but the longer she sat there, the more alert she became, and the less inclined to doze. Especially when the car lurched again.

~~***~~

She hadn’t counted on the safety chains. One to a side, they were there to prevent just such an event as she was trying to cause. What was rather impressive was the fact that those two simple steel links hadn’t snapped when they went taut.

But that simply wouldn’t do, now would it? They were getting dangerously close to the deadline, after all. So, with a slightly more annoyed gesture from her horn, she sliced the last things holding the two train cars together, then stepped onto the leading car. She watched mutely as the car behind her started to slow, and lag behind, foot by foot, then yard by yard.

~~***~~

Rainbow glanced out of the window. Maybe it was her imagination, but the trees outside didn’t seem to be whipping by as fast as before. She blinked and shook her head, then looked again. No, they were definitely taking longer to pass. Which meant the train was slowing down.

“Hey… Hey Twilight,” Rainbow spoke up, quietly at first.

Her friend snorted, and picked her head up off of the seat. “Wha-huh?”

“Something’s up,” Rainbow said as she started to scowl. “We’re slowing down.”

That woke Twilight up in a hurry. She sat up quickly and looked out the window. Even to somepony as unfamiliar with speed, she could easily see that they were definitely going slower, and getting slower all the time.

“That can’t be right,” she mumbled, rubbing sleep from her eyes. “Maybe… maybe there’s something on the tracks.”

“Or maybe,” Rainbow said shortly, “we’re about to be foalnapped for the second time today.”

Twilight looked at her. She blinked, then let her eyes open wide. “Ooooh. Uh oh.”

~~***~~

A stallion was waiting by the side of the tracks as the train came barreling by, full speed. His hoof rested on a lever, which was connected to a tall flag. And that flag was connected to a junction between two sets of tracks.

He waited impatiently, checking his watch. As the last car went whistling past, he put all his weight down on the lever. Metal rails ground and squealed in complaint as they shifted, just in time for a disconnected runaway section of train to arrive.

~~***~~

Twilight and Rainbow both felt when the car hit the junction and swerved left. Even after losing so much speed, it had more than enough momentum to upend both of them and toss them against the wall. The entire car groaned as it shifted, first left, then right once it hit the new set of tracks and settled.

“What the hay just happened?” Rainbow questioned angrily from against the wall.

“We’re being diverted,” Twilight said quickly. She pressed her cheek up against the window and strained her eyes for all they were worth. Sure enough, far in the distance, she could just make out the train they’d just been a part of speeding away around a bend, leaving them behind.

“To where?” Rainbow asked as she got up.

“If I had to guess?” Twilight said back. “Back to Canterlot.”

~~***~~

With a heavy thud, the runaway train cars ran full speed into a slow-moving coal car, which in turn was attached to a steam engine.

The coupling for both slammed together, and before it could pry itself apart, a sturdy steak was driven down into a slot, locking both halves together.

And with that, the newly created train began picking up speed as it went into a banking set of tracks, gradually leading the train back into the south.

~~***~~

“Are you kidding me?!” Rainbow cried out, after picking herself up again. That last impact had been the biggest one yet, but now she could see they were beginning to pick up speed again. And they were turning. “They totally ripped this plan off from Daring Do!”

“If only plagiarism was all we had to deal with,” Twilight said. As she said it, her eyes went to the door to their private room, like she expected it to be kicked down at any moment. Because she did fully expected that to happen.

But while the door stayed firmly in its runners, Twilight thought quick. Whoever was behind this was a lot more determined than she’d given them credit for.

She snapped out of it when she heard hooves stomping down the corridor outside. She didn’t have time for a better plan.

“Rainbow,” she said quickly, rounding on her friend.

“Yeah?”

“Do you trust me?”

Rainbow blinked. “Uh, yeah, why do you even have to—”

“Good,” Twilight said, as fervent knocking started on the door.

Rainbow got one look at the door, started to brace herself for a fight… and vanished in a lavender nova of light.

It happened as fast as a blink. One moment she was inside, sitting on her seat. The next, a wall of biting wind struck her. The support beneath her vanished, replaced instead with a hundred foot drop straight down into a gorge. Towering pines stood all around her, but she only got a split second look at them before turbulence and velocity took hold and sent her tumbling through the air. For a fraction of a second, she saw the train she’d just been inside speeding away through the trees. Then she was falling.

Rainbow just managed to whip open her wings and catch herself mere inches before dashing herself against the rocks at the bottom of the ravine. Then, she swooped up into the sky, high above the tallest tree, and came to a hover.

“Twilight…” she panted. Her heart was racing now. Off in the distance, she could see the billowing column expelled by the train. It was halfway through its roundabout turn, and would soon be headed back the way it’d come, her friend in tow.

She started to give chase, but halted.

Do you trust me?

Rainbow ground her teeth. “Stupid egghead!” she hissed, kicked at the air in frustration, then twisted around, and piled on the speed towards the distant north.

~~***~~

Twilight sat motionless in her seat. She was waiting, making sure her friend had gotten the message after all and wasn't coming back. All the while, hooves pounded on the door, more and more insistently. “Open up in there!” somepony gruff shouted.

She waited several long seconds. And when there was no sign of her feathery friend, she took a moment to catch her breath, steel her nerve, and calmly slide the latch open.

“It’s open,” she said politely, forcing herself to stay calm.

There was a long, suspicious pause. Then, carefully, the door slid open.

In came two burly unicorns, neither of which were dressed in any sort of official attire. It made them look all the more like thugs and brutes each.

Both looked like they’d been expecting a fight. What they got, instead, was a single frowning mare sitting casually in her seat.

“Where’s the other one,” the lead stallion demanded.

“Gone,” Twilight responded easily. “And I don’t think you’ll catch her. But you guys don’t care about her, do you? You’re only after me. Well? Here I am.”

The stallions both turned to give each other a suspicious look, which after a moment they turned on Twilight.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “So? I was under the impression somepony wanted a word with me.”

The stallions still looked on guard, but one of them nodded. “That’s right. You going to come peacefully?”

In response, Twilight held out her hooves with a look of regal disdain.

The two exchanged a look again. Then one of them grinned, reached behind him, and pulled out a single, horn-shaped cuff. Twilight deflated a little at the sight of it.

“Don’t want you making a scene, Your Highness,” the stallion said. “You understand. Now, put it on; you’ve kept the boss waiting long enough.”

~~***~~

As the last dull colors of the day faded from the starry night sky, deep in a secluded wood far away, a raccoon cracked open his eyes and slunk out from his tree hollow den.

It was a gorgeous night. To the raccoon’s keen eyes, the starlight and full moon were better than the sun. All throughout his little grove, critters were either tucking themselves into their dens or rising with the moon, eager to forage under the cover of night, as he was.

The raccoon stretched, working out the kinks of a day-long nap. As he did so, something out of the ordinary caught his attention. Nose twitching and ears swiveling forward, the critter glanced around, taking stock of his environment.

There was a smell on the air. A burning smell. Burning smells were bad, because where the burning smell was, so was fire. And fire was very bad. But there was no sign of fire, just the smell.

A slight rustle caught his attention, and he looked up. A squirrel darted through the tree branches overhead, quickly vacating the area. Right behind him was his mate and two very anxious-looking babies, both clinging to their mother’s back.

An owl swooped overhead, but it seemed totally oblivious to the easy meal scampering recklessly just beneath it. It hooted once, calling out, then was gone.

Down below, a branch cracked. The raccoon looked down, just in time to spot an elk and his herd bound passed, creating an ungodly racket through the dry underbrush. They weren’t fleeing, per se, but there was a definite urgency to their pace.

Now the raccoon was curious. Was there indeed fire? His relocating neighbors seemed to hint as much. But where was it coming from?

All of a sudden, one of the elks below let out a startled bleat. Now they bolted, scattering in every direction with reckless abandon. The size of the animals meant they could crush their own paths through the thick brush below, and they did so. The raccoon could still hear their crashing hooves and snapping branches long after they’d departed.

Now the raccoon was very curious. Cautious, but very curious all the same.

Carefully, he lugged himself from his hole and worked his way down the side of his tree. Always his ears were listening, his nose sniffing, his eyes searching. But by then, the grove had become rather peaceful.

Eventually, he reached the lowest branch he dared venture to, and peered down.

Something lay in the shadows beneath his tree. Something large and sprawled. It gave off that burning smell, a dangerous smell. Lights flickered all across its body – green lights. Unfamiliar. Dangerous.

Cautiously he lingered while trying to identify the creature below. He bobbed his head, sniffing. He saw the amber eye flash open. He saw the constricted pupil zero in on him. And he heard the rustle as the creature began to rise.

The moon struck its pearlescent white form wherever the beams could make it through the trees. It struggled to rise with a groan, then toppled over again. Then, its body made the strangest sound the raccoon had ever heard. It creaked and popped, and as he watched, he could have sworn it was slightly bigger than before.

Again it tried to rise, but its limbs seemed unable to support its weight. It fell again, breathing in short, pained breaths.

And not once did those eerie, hungry eyes deviate from the raccoon.

He knew he was in danger now. Not wasting another second, he turned and bolted for his life, leaving the struggling creature as far behind as he possibly could.

Author's Note:

So, apparently the new season started or something. Which is nice. I especially liked the part where Sunset Shimmer dyed herself pinkish and joined the cast, finally!

Anyway, this chapter was fun. A little abrupt, but eh, I've strung you guys on long enough. I still have plenty of surprises up my sleeve, don't you worry.
That train scene was something I'd had planned for a long time... but originally it was supposed to be VERY different. As in, the good guys were supposed to do the kidnapping(rescuing) and it would've involved a full on good guy changeling assault. Very different. But well, it had to change.
And there were two versions of the carriage ride that I threw around. The first one had Buck be the bad guy, but I thought that was too obvious, so I changed it.

Aaand that about wraps things up. Things are getting down to the wire now, so I'll try to keep up a nice pace as we hopefully start to wind this beast down. So, onward!