Sword Mare

by ReifuTD

Liquid Earth Part 2: Curse the Choices We Make

“The inn was a bustle with ponies…”

Filly Nat watched the ponies enter and leave her family inn. She was a dark blue mare with a silver mane and voluminous red eyes. Her cutie mark was a bunch of nats flying around each other.

An odd group entered through the door. Two Dore, a Bat Pony and a Crystal Unicorn pony. They all took a seat together.

Soon after the first group took their seats, a second group came in. One was a silver grey Unicorn and the pony with her was vanilla cream colored with a rainbow colored mane and tail.

The Crystal Unicorn seemed to recognize the two new ponies that came in and invited them to sit down with their companions.

Then a third set of ponies came in. A scrawny purple mare, a green Cat Pony and a yellow green pony with an odd glow about her. Definitely not one of the normal races. These ponies too was recognized by the other groups and was invited to sit with them.

“Filly?” A large white stallion with silver locks spoke to Filly Nat. His cutie mark a set of moths.

“Yes father?” Filly Nat replied.

“Colt Moth…”

“Could you quickly take out the trash?” Colt Moth asked his daughter.

Filly Nat nods her head and grabs the bag of half eaten food and various other stuff. She takes it outside to the dumpster in the middle of the alley. It was there when the cloak figure approached.

“Filly Nat,” The figure said making the mare turn around. She sees the hooded pony remove her hood to reveal a green mare. Two small foals were standing next to her.

“Metalance?” Filly Nat replied.

“The herd home…”

Honey Mead’s head was pounding from the pain of the bolt that had been in her shoulder. She had put her hoof on her snout and tipped her head backward to deal with the pain.

A pair of mustangeteers had brought her into the house. One and female was treating her wound as the other a male stood nervously over Butterfree.

“Umm, something’s coming out!” He shouted nervously.

“Oh, don’t freak out,” The female soldier snaps.

The female was called Oubliette, A dirt brown Earth Pony with a two tone slate gray mane. Her cutie mark three holes in the ground. The male mustangeteer was named Mellow Pillow. He was a yellow coated pony with a yellow mane. His cutie mark a pillow pulled back to reveal a silver bit coin.

“Up stairs in Catfish’s room there are some smelling salts,” Honey Mead told Mellow.

Mellow nods his head and hurried up stairs.

“Her door is the one marked with the fish!” Honey Mead shouted. The pony then sighs and turns to the mare treating her. “What kind of living situation you have?”

“What do you mean?” The mare asks.

“Do you have a herd or do you live alone? Married to a single pony maybe?”

“I live in a herd house,” The mare smiles.

“Do you think I made the right choice?” Honey Mead asked, “I mean if I was a real mother and it was one of my foals. I mean yes you could call me a mother. Since it’s a herd home and everybody raises each other’s young. But I thought of myself more of an aunt then anything else.”

“Well, I have been in both positions,” Oubliette told Honey, “My herd mates had two foals before I did. Then I had one and we had two more since then.”

“Sounds like a big family,” Honey Mead giggles.

“It is or was,” Oubliette giggles back, “But what I was saying yes there is a difference. If I had strongly disapproved of my herd’s actions I would have left and taken my foal with. In fact some of my clan had left. But Luckily our herd was made up of either members working for the church or civilians. I could imagine how bad things would have turned out if we were mixed like yours.”

Mellow came back down stairs holding the smelling salts. He puts it up to Butterfree’s nose. The pony jumps awake.

“Celestia’s motherly embrace,” She shouted. Butterfree glares at the others “Being woke up to my loins being pulled apart is the last thing I expected.”

Oubliette walks over to Butterfree. “You should start pushing, This shouldn’t take much longer.”

“At the Inn…Time…not too far off…”

King Mars was the first to sit down. Claymari sat next to him. Ferngully sat across from King Mars. Winkz sat next to her placing the Crystal Pony across from Claymari.

“Hello I’m Pom Pom, May I take your order?” A yellow mare in a blue dress with a two tone curly mane asked.

“Strongest sprits you got,” Mars answers.

“Double that!” Claymari adds.

“And triple that,” Mars smiles.

“Careful father are you sure you can handle that amount of liquid without your equipment?” Claymari teased.

“Oh, I’ll be fine,” Mars smirks, “You should be worried that you can’t hold it back with that hole of yours.”

“I think you’re confusing a cervix with a urethra,” Claymari mocked.

“I’ll have a bloody mary,” Ferngully tells the waitress pony.

“Some simple ale,” Winkz says with a smile.

Pom Pom writes down the orders and walks away. Meanwhile Ferngully gives a funny look at Mars and Claymari and taps Winkz on the shoulder.

“What are they doing?” She asks Winkz.

“Think they are dick measuring,” Winkz points out.

“Why would Claymari do that with her father?” Ferngully wondered.

“It’s her settle way of teasing him because he has no dick,” Winkz answers.

“What!” Ferngully looks under the table fora quick moment and pulls her head back up. “I’ll be damned, the king has no dick.”

“Nice that you took notice,” Claymari snickered, “You want to hear the story behind it?”

Ferngully flashed a nervous look at Mars who stood there gritting his teeth his face turning to the wall.

“This piece of shit, my father here,” Claymari smirked pointing at Mars. “Thought that I was the reincarnation of my mother, both mind and body and told me he was going to force me to marry him and have his children. When I told him no, he beat the shit out of me.”

“In my defense I never touched you,” Mars points out.

Claymari starts laughing. “I actually had him arrested for domestic violence.”

Ferngully snickers and Winkz starts laughing as well. “You have actually got a king arrested for domestic violence. That is ballsy.”

“I find it hard to imagine another pony beating the crap out of you,” Winkz remarks, “Were you a filly?”

“Nope, full grown mare in the military,” Claymari said proudly.

“You were a military pony?” Ferngully said disbelievingly.

“Well it was mandatory,” Claymari told her.

“And it’s amazing, even after all this crap and still manage to sit the next to your father,” Winkz points out.

“I guess us because the two of us has an odd temperament,” Claymari shrugged.

“That’s probably because the two of you are discordic neutral,” Ferngully points out.

“Discordic neutral?” Winkz questions.

“Oh, it’s a term from the game Ogres and Oubliettes that me and Pot Shell played well we were traveling,” The thought of Pot Shell made Ferngully ears flop back from sadness and she stares down at the table.

“And this discordic neutral business?” Mars spoke up putting the Bat Pony’s thoughts back in order.

“Oh yeah, in this game you play a character or characters and each character has something called an alignment,” Ferngully explains, “This alignment is a general code of life for a character. A discordic neutral character is someone who tends to live on the fringes of society. Self absorbed with self pleasure disregarding of laws and rules. They adapt to situations quickly often meaning them switching sides. Sounds familiar?”

“I get your point,” Claymari grumbled.

The door opens and a pair of ponies walk in. The new presence makes Winkz’s horn tingle and she turns around to see them. One of the ponies had a rainbow type mane that she recognized instantly.

“Generous Thread,” She called out.

The two ponies turned to look at the Crystal Pony. “Winkz right? I thought you disappeared with Claymari’s group?” Generous Thread points out.

“I’m Claymari, and she’s with me,” Claymari chirped raising her hoof.

“Winkz?” Velvet Rope questioned.

“Met her with Philia once,” Generous Thread explains.

“Oh, I remember Philia,” Velvet Rope remarks.

“You know what happened to Philia?” Claymari asked.

“No, she just disappeared after the uprising,” Velvet Rope answered, “Or so I heard, things like that should be common so I never put much thought into it.”

“Look on the bright side,” Mars mutters to Claymari, “At least you kept this one alive for twenty years.”

“Want to start fighting again?” Claymari gritted her teeth.

“Not a bad idea,” Mars grumbled, “But I want some alcohol in me first.”

“Why don’t you sit next to us?” Winkz suggests, “The more the merrier.”

As Generous Thread and Velvet Rope sat down at the table next to Claymari's table, the waitress Pom Pom came walking up with the drinks. Once she was done passing them out, she walks over to Generous Thread and Velvet Rope.

“Would you like to order?” Pom Pom asked.

“How about some sweet ale?” Generous Thread answered.

Then both Generous Thread and the waitress turn to look at Velvet Rope. Velvet had zoned off playing with her paper napkin.

“Miss?” Pom Pom spoke up breaking Velvet Rope of her thoughts.

“What?” Velvet Rope replied.

“Your order?” The waitress asked.

“I’ll have what she’s having,” Velvet Rope points at Generous Thread.

Pom Pom writes down the orders and then walks off.

“You can at least act like you care,” Generous Thread leans over and says quietly to Velvet Rope.

“I just don’t see the point,” Velvet Rope snaps in the same hushed tone. “It’s not like we need food or drink.”

“It is called giving back to the community,” Generous Thread told her, “We don’t need stuff like food or drink, but to keep things balanced we must buy these things. It spreads the money to the people that need food and drink.”

Claymari felt Crimson Bond vibrate in its sheath. She turns toward Generous Thread and looks the mare up and down.

“What is it?” Generous Thread asks.

“Nothing,” Claymari answered turning away.

Velvet Rope glances at Claymari’s sword and whispers to Generous Thread. “She knows about Inspiration.”

“If she does, we will deal with it when it comes up,” Generous Thread points out.

Velvet Rope smiles, “I have something in mind that would help distract her.”

The door opens again, this time Catfish and Mousecakes walks into the inn.

“Oh shit,” Mousecakes starts to turn around. What stops her was a look from Winkz who glared at her from the corner of her eye.

“Is that Winkz” Catfish points out, “Has to be, there ain’t that many Crystal Pony around here.”

“With her has to be Ferngully and Claymari then,” Mousecakes answers.

“That's Claymari the Sword Mare?” Catfish points out, “I haven’t met her yet.”

“Well Winkz knows I’m here, and she knows you,” Mousecakes points out, “If we leave she’ll know I walked away.”

“Oh yeah, you’re the one that knocked them out,” Catfish remembered.

“With Winkz’s help,” Mousecakes adds.

“Well they seem to have forgiven her,” Catfish points out.

Mousecakes sighs and they walked up to the table.

“Ferngully, Claymari, I wasn’t expecting to see you here,” Mousecakes said nervously.

“Ah, the other trader,” Claymari raised her glass at Mousecakes. "You should know me by now when there is a bar I'll be there."

Mousecakes gave a look of her heart sinking. “You’re not mad?”

“Oh shit I’m furious,” Claymari smirked, “But your way got no one killed, surely that something be thankful for. Who’s your friend?”

“This is Catfish,” Mousecakes introduced.

“Ah, I thought that was who you were,” Claymari remarks, “Honey Mead and Metalance talked about you.”

“How are they by the way?” Ferngully asks.

“They were find the last I seen them,” Catfish answered, “Butterfree told us to stay clear for a while as they get use to the idea of what happened. She didn’t want them to get overwhelmed right away by having all of us there.”

“I guess that makes sense for the number of people you could have running around the house,” Ferngully replied.

“Why don’t you have a sit down?” Winkz asked.

The two ponies nodded their heads and sat at the table behind Ferngully and Winkz. The mares took out their orbs and summoned their Biollante. Violet Eyes and Strawberry Breeze appeared next to them.

“Violet?” Both Ferngully and Generous Thread said at the same time. Then they turned at each other and spoke. “You know her?”

“Jinx,” Winkz giggles.

Pom Pom walks up and gives Generous Thread and Velvet Rope there drinks. She then walks over to Mousecakes’s and Catfish’s group to take their order.

“Where do you know Violet fro-Ack!” Ferngully was interrupted by a shock up her spine.

“I was one of the last ponies to leave Burning Cage after the Gryphus attacked,” Generous Thread pauses for a moment. “Was I just attacked by a spell?”

“I know I was-Ess!” Ferngully clenched her teeth as she was shocked again.

“I think Winkz literally jinxed you,” Claymari points out.

“Then unjinx me! Ouch!” Ferngully shouts wincing.

“Ferngully,” Claymari answered, “Better?”

“Maybe,” Ferngully then paused, “Yep, I didn’t get shocked.”

“So we all have people in our groups that know each other in some way or another?” Strawberry Breeze points out, “It seems odd that we all happen to be here at the same time.”

“Well I been sensing strange magic from this area ever since the first group walked in,” Pom Pom remarks.

“That maybe my fault,” Winkz spoke up, “My talent is fate and divining magic. It’s a very hard to control field of magic. My very presence can tug on the red strings making the unlikely happen.”

“Here I thought that feeling was normal,” Ferngully remarks absentmindedly rubbing her hoof across her antenna.

“How are you sensing magic?” Velvet Rope asks the waitress.

Pom Pom pulls up the front of her mane with her hoof. She revealed that she had a cut off horn stub.

“Well what do you know, the little lady is a Unicorn,” Mars remarks.

“I’m a refugee from the Unicorn Kingdoms when wars between Caledonia, Unicornia and Crystal Empire broke out,” Pom Pom explained, “Earth reluctantly took some of us in but ordered us to have our horns removed.”

“That sounds about as horrible as having a horn basically drilled into your head,” Ferngully remarks.

“Well it was either my horn or roughen it out in the deadly and poisonous Wildlands of Equestria.” Pom Pom sighs, “Good for me, the country’s policy has changed and horns grow back,” the waitress smiles, “Now excuse me I have to go.”

Pom Pom walks back over to the kitchen. As she enters the kitchen she sees Filly Nat come in with a cloaked mare and two foals.

“I’m taking these upstairs to a room,” Filly Nat told her.

As they walked to the stairs, Metalance took note of the three tables with the ponies talking.

“Claymari?” She spoke as she realized who she was seeing.

“Mommy Catfish!” Weedie starts to say.

“Suresh,” Metalance orders the filly.

“You know the orange mare?” Filly Nat asked as she led the ponies upstairs.

“Yes, I was travelig with her when I was captured,” Metalance points out, “I guess since she’s walking around she must of sided with the church.”

They reach the room, Metalance open the door and let the foals go in first. “Stay right there, I need to talk to Miss Filly in private real quick.” She closes the door.

“What is it?” Filly Nat asks.

“I’m still planning on trying to leave the city,” Metalance answered.

“If you need it, I can spare you some bits,” Filly Nat replied.

Metalance raised her hoof. “Thanks, I make take you up on that offer. But I need to get rid of Weedie, I should think about giving her directly to Catfish. Go downstairs and ask her to come up here so we can talk.”

Filly Nat nods her head as Metalance opens the door and walks into the room. Once the door closed, Filly Nat headed downstairs. She seeked out Catfish and tapped her on the shoulder. Catfish turned around and Filly Nat whispers into her ear.

Meanwhile, Claymari had just finished her third mug. “I’m going to go find the head,” she remarks.

“See what I told you,” Mars smirks, “Big hole can’t hold the floodgates.”

For a moment Claymari sits back down into her seat and starts a staring contest with Mars. She taps her hoof on the table a couple of times then suddenly turns and walks away. “I am not getting into a non pissing contest with you. Do you have any idea what birthing a foal does to a bladder?”

Velvet Rope sees Claymari leave and follows her. Claymari had noticed the mare following her and once alone in the hallway speaks.

“What do you want?” Claymari asked.

“I’m just curious, your father, that stallion, I don’t understand? How can you forgive him after what you did to the Oranges?” Velvet Rope asks.

“Our disagreement was a long time ago,” Claymari answered, “You could call it two lifetimes ago. My first life was a purgatory in the underground. I chose to end that life, Mars just made the passing worse. My second life was heaven on earth which was ripped from me in blood and screams. Any pony who has a hoof in destroying heaven needs punishment worthy of such a sin.”

“That’s just it,” Velvet Rope replied, “King Mars, at least from what I’ve heard is the one who gave the Oranges the idea of attacking you and your family. He’s the one who’s truly behind their deaths.”

“At the castle…Everyone was scrambling…”

Two more shadows sweep across the ground.

“There’s three there has to be,” Blaster remarks.

“What are they doing here?” Diamond Luck asks.

“I think they want revenge,” Blaster answered, “Maybe they are after Claymari herself or after us for sending Claymari after them. Either way they are here now.”

Sirens goes off indicating ponies to either go to their posts or take shelter. Soldiers and fighters start packing the walls and rooves.

A couple minutes after the alarm sounded all three Gryphus took flight. The ponies on the ground soon noticed a trail of something falling behind the Gryphus. Paper with strange symbols on them starts falling around the ponies.

“Paper?” Blaster notes grabbing a paper from the air with the joints of her forelimb.

“Don’t touch that!” Diamond Luck nocks the strange paper out of Blaster’s hoof. The light comes out from behind a cloud and the papers explode in three foot wide fire balls.

For Blaster, the confusion daze only lasted a minute and there was some seconds of missing time. Through the ringing of her ears she could here screams of injured ponies. Then her pain hit her.

First Blaster found her right ear flap pulsing with intense pain fallowed by a wet feeling around it. Her right cheek arm and bit of her shoulder and chest. Those burns felt mild like a bad sunburn at the moment.

Blaster spots Diamond Luck laying on the ground her body twitching in agony. The left side of her face neck and forearm were charred and was already blistering.

“She shielded me from the blast,” Blaster said in shock. “Those bastards made sure that we all were out here!”

Blaster looks out at the screaming ponies around her. Some of witch was still on fire. “Is this what the Oranges felt when Claymari attacked them?” She found herself thinking.

“In the castle…Celestia and Luna…”

The sirens caused the two sisters to jump.

“Sister what’s going on?” Luna asked shivering.

“Stay in here Luna!” Celestia orders as she walks out of their chambers.

As she walked down the hall, Celestia could hear some kind of booming roar. A door opens up and a smoking chard pony can running in.

The sudden sight knocked the air from Celestia’s chest as she panics. Her memories goes back to a chard village.

“Hello?” A younger Celestia calls out as she walks through the smoking streets. Black and red corpses littered everywhere. But she assumed most of the bodies were inside the buildings witch were now a pile of black soot. This despite the them being dead she was thankful for.

Broken blacken chains hung off of Celestia’s neck and legs. She had broken them herself when she had escaped.

Emotionally exhausted Celestia brakes down crying collapsing in the ash covered ground.

As Celestia weeped, a white pony with a long navy blue beard with some gray walk up to her. He was in a blue cloak and hat that was covered with stars and bells.

Celestia notices him and backs away scared.

“Don’t be afraid little one there is a place in this world for you.” He told the Alicorn filly.

When Celestia got back to reality, her hooves were bloody. The chard pony lay dead at her feet his blood pooling on the floor.

After the shock passed, Celestia got and angry look on her face and charged out the door.

“Elsewhere in the castle…”

The sirens goes off causing the guards at the front of Pot Shell and Whirly Pop’s chambers to draw their weapons.

“What’s going on?” Pot Shell cracks the door open.

“Stay inside,” The guard orders pushing Pot Shell back as he walks into the room.

Whirly Pop who was standing nearby, shake her mane loosening out what looks to be a bobby pin. The pen instantly turns into a long wire that snaked and moved on its own. The wire wrapped itself around her forehooves and in an instant she had the wire around the guard pony’s neck.

Pot Shell sees red leaking out from around the guard’s neck and shouts. “Whirly Pop stop!”

“Please don’t kill me,” The guard beg.

“You don’t need to kill him,” Pot Shell tells Whirly Pop, “You’re not a killer, you’re not a bad pony.”

Whirly Pop could feel her heart beating and she composed herself by slowing her breathing. She removes the wire from the guard pony’s neck. When she did so, Pot Shell swiftly turned around and bucked him in the face knocking the stallion out.

Seeing the door open, another guard walks into the room. She sees the past out and bloody guard and the two ponies standing over him and reaches for her sword. Something then grabs her hoof and the mare quickly lost her balance as it yanks on her body. She hits the ground so hard that it knocks her out.

“At the herd home…”

Butterfree lay exhausted half past out from her labors. The newborn foal had his muzzle between her thighs suckling on her tit. Honey Mead watched the sight with a flushed but happy look on her face. Meanwhile Oubliette came walking in with a wash pan and some sponges.

“Let’s get her washed up,” Oubliette said to Honey Mead.

“I think that’s the first time I watched a mare give birth,” Honey Mead remarks in a half spacey tone.

Oubliette smiles, “I kind of never tire of it.”

“So you have seen plenty of that?” Honey Mead asked.

“You can say that,” Oubliette answered.

“Is it okay to come in now?” Mellow called from outside.

Oubliette shook her head and laughed, “Typical stallion.”

“Well to be fair, most mares are encouraged to see something give birth at some point well there are growing up,” Honey Mead points out, “Be it pony or some other kind of creature. Stallions are not.”

“You can come in!” Oubliette shouted before picking up a wet sponge in her muzzle. She started to wipe down the foal.

Honey Mead had started to do the same as the stallion walks in. She looks up at him and smiles. “You want to help clean her?”

Mellow smiles back and picks up a sponge. A few moments later was when the sirens went off. The foal jolted at the sound and Honey Mead had to grab her to stop the young thing from hurting herself.

“What’s going on?” Butterfree weakly asks.

“That sounds like the Pegasus attack alarm,” Honey Mead points out looking at Oubliette to confirm.

“Yes, that’s still the aerial warning system,” Oubliette nods her head.

“Damned Pegasus always looking for a weakness,” Honey Mead snaps.

“What do you want to do?” Mellow asks Oubliette.

“Stay in here with the mares, I’m going to go outside and check to see how bad it is,” Oubliette answers.

“Oh, I’m coming out with you,” Honey Mead orders.

“No, you’re supposed to be basically are prisoner,” Oubliette told her, “I just can’t let you run around.”

“Are you going to stop me before I go outside?” Honey Mead raised an eyebrow.

Oubliette looks at the newborn foal and grits her teeth. “No,”

The two mares ran out the door. They look up at the sky to see a large Griffon like creature fly overhead. A trail of papers fell behind it.

“What the? That is no Pegasus?” Oubliette points out.

“No, It’s a Gryphus, I never thought the survivors would show up here,” Honey Mead notes.

“Survivors? You mean you fought this thing? You fought more than one of them?” Oubliette said forehead sweating at the thought.

“Yeah, a few times, “Honey Mead nods her head, “Do you not have any intel on the mission that I was on?”

“Apparently so,” Oubliette answered.

“We even took on a whole nest and only defeated them due to luck,” Honey Mead continued

“What do you mean by luck?” Oubliette asked.

“Dark magic made their young turn on the adults and eat them alive,” Honey Mead answered coldly.

“Celestria! That’s-,” Oubliette had no words.

“Strange and unbelievable?” Honey Mead smiles, “Don’t tell me that they didn’t even tell you that I was traveling with Claymari.”

Then they heard the explosions and saw the flames explode up around the castle and the surrounding buildings.

“Shit! Blaster is over there!” Honey Mead runs for the castle.

“Don’t take off!” Oubliette shouted chasing after the mare.

“Up stairs… The inn…”

Catfish knocks on the door. After a moment Metalance opens it up.

“Mommy Catfish!” Weedie shouted giving the Cat Pony thing a hug.

Caramel was hiding behind his mother.

“What are you doing here with the foals!” Catfish shouts, “You’re not even supposed to be out of the house!”

That last phrase rose Metalance’s anger and she grabs the Cat Pony, fling her across the room and slamming her down on the bed.

From downstairs, Strawberry Breeze could sense something was wrong and turns into a gaseous state that floats its way up the stairs.

Mousecakes sees this and turns to Violent Eyes. “What was that about?” She asked.

Violet Eyes replied with a shrug.

“Mars you bastard!”

Metalance pushes her hoof against Catfish’s throat. “I am leaving this city with my child,” She said gritting through her teeth. “Weedie accidentally tagged along with me. I’m trying to give her back to you. If you’re going to jeopardize me leaving the city with my colt I will kill you now, I don’t care if it’s in front of them.”

A misty red tentacle grabs Metalance from around the neck and forcibly pulls off the Cat Pony.

Catfish coughs as she takes in air. “Strawberry Breeze stop!” She gasped.

The mist let’s go and turns into the shape of a pony.

“Everyone stop fighting!” Weedie screams and runs out of the room bolting downstairs.

“Sonic Sword Boom!”

The attack hits the table turning it into splinters. Mars dodged out of the way. Winkz puts up a shield and Ferngully was knocked on her back.

“Claymari what the hell?” Ferngully shouted.

“Tell me it isn’t true,” Claymari shouted at Mars ignoring Ferngully.

“Now what the heck are you talking about girl?” Mars asked indifferently.

“The Oranges, they went after my family to gain favor with you,” Claymari spat her eyes full of tears.

Mars closed his eyes. “Yes my greatest sin.”

Claymari went at Mars swinging her blade. The stallions wounds pop open and blocks the attack with his blood scythe.

“You see I knew the Oranges and the Apples had a rivalry,” Mars explains, “And the Oranges knew that if they gained favor with me they could gain enough power to become the new leading family of the Earth Nation. So, I asked them to show you how truly dangerous see outside world is and take your family at least your child back home. I never expected you to be so weak to allow my granddaughter to die.”

Claymari unhooks the blades so she could spin around to Mars's is other side and bucks him in the ribs with her back legs. The large stallion grunted as he stumbled back a couple of feet, but shook off the attack and went after his daughter. This time Claymari blocked his blade.

“But the thing that really made me realize my folly was what you did to the Oranges,” King Mars said before he knocks Claymari back with a heavy push. “You killed them, you killed them with mines!” He shouted, “It was then I realized the path of my lust and anger had led to. Forty nine souls ripped apart in heat and shrapnel. Stallions, mares, some colts and fillies. I created a monster. I knew then you were not Claymaria. My angel would have never done anything so evil and if that’s the case I turned my daughter into a monster for nothing.”

“And so you cut your pecker off,” Claymari snapped, “Cut off the root of the problem?”

“You looked so much like your mother,” Mars said gently, “I knew I couldn’t help but to feel attracted to you.”

The two Dore charged at each other again. As they fought Velvet Rope walks up to Generous Thread.

“Time for us to make our leave,” She told the rainbow mane pony.

Just then two mares walks into the inn. They saw the two ponies fighting and instantly turn the other way. That was when the air sirens went off.

“Dammit,” One of the mares snapped as they stopped themselves from going outside.

Weedie was standing there in shock as she watched the two ponies fight.

“Got you!” Metalance snaps as she puts her hooves around the filly.

“I’ll help you leave the city,” Catfish said as she walks up, “But things seem to have gotten more dangerous.”

“Okay everyone down to the cellar!” Colt Moth shouted.

“This way!” Filly Nats adds opening up a door that led down to the basement.

“What about those two?” Ferngully points at Mars and Claymari still fighting.

“I’m not getting between that are you?” Colt Moth remarks.

“Suppose you’re right,” Ferngully sighs.

Then there were explosions and the smell of smoke. Soon smoke bellowed out from the top floor.

“Caramel!” Metalance shouts as she rushed up stairs bumping into a few ponies running downstairs.

The flames were quickly spreading. Their origin point seemed to be an open window at the end of the hallway. Flames had shot up the wall and was now spreading across the ceiling.

Metalance opens the door to her room and coughs as smoke pours out.

“Caramel,” She shouts again.

“Mommy!” A voice weekly replied.

Metalance sees a small figure laying on the ground. She swiftly scoops the colt up over her head and runs downstairs.

“Okay change of plans,” Filly Nats shouted, “Every pony out!”

Metalance rushed past with her colt on her back. Once out of the street she puts them down only to her dismay to find that he wasn’t breathing.

“Caramel!” Metalance sobbed pushing the unconscious colt with her hoof.

“Let me try something,” Ferngully suggests.

“Just please help him,” Metalance cried.

Ferngully zaps a spell over the colt from her antenna. He shimmered with green energy and then coughed. Caramel opens his eyes weekly and speaks. “Mommy Metalance.”

“It’s okay sweetie,” Metalance said gently as she stroked the colt’s head.

Velvet Rope looks around the crowd. “Where’s Generous Thread?”

“Perhaps she took off to find shelter?” Mousecakes answers looking around, “We are under attack aren’t we?”

None of the other buildings on the block seem to be on fire. Although she noted a few more columns of smoke here and there. But the biggest column came from the castle. Some of the ponies that had ran out of the inn started hurrying away.

“Perhaps we should go to my place then,” Velvet Rope suggests.

“That may be a good idea,” Mousecakes replied.

“I’ll do a quick look around and tell some other waiters and waitresses that work at the inn that if they see her tell her where I went,” Velvet Rope tells the mare.

“Inside the burning building…”

Generous Thread slowly sips down her mug of ale. The smoke like the contents of the mug had no effect on her. Generous Thread then sighs. “Why can’t Velvet just enjoy things.”

Claymari and Mars are still fighting. Their bodies dripping with sweat from their exertion and heat from the flames. Suit covered there sticky bodies. The ponies’s lungs burned from the smoke but their battle persisted.

The fight was interrupted by a loud crack as one of the buildings support beams split and fell between them. The two ponies glared at each other. Claymari with pure hatred, Mars with aggression. This was all they could do now unable to continue the battle with the flaming beam between them.

“Claymari? Do you want to see Philia again?” Generous Thread asked finishing her drink.

“Augh! What did you say? Augh!” Claymari coughed as she turned around noticing the lone filly sitting at the table with the building burning around her.

“I know where Philia is,” Generous Thread answered. She looks around the burning building. “But this,” The mare motions, “Is not an appropriate place to have such a conversation don’t you agree?”

Claymari glares at Mars one more time and grits her teeth. She turns her head away back to Generous Thread.

“Then follow me then,” Generous Thread says as she gets up and walks behind the bar table.

Mars watches Claymari follow the mare to the back room. Once out of sight he turns and walks out the front door.

“Ponyville was awakened by a roar of explosions…”

“Come on you lazy Familiar!”

Ponyville feels a hoof hit her rump. She sits up in the bed propping up on her hunches. Flies buzzed around her head and she had a strong stink comming from her body. Her body felt very dirty. All of this was odd to her because she doesn’t normally get body order and filth, at least not this bad.

Ponyville felt funny, it wasn't her normal funny. Normally her mind raced with anxieties and scattered thoughts. But now her mind was foggy and slow. She had felt like this for days at least. But the Pegasus can't really tell for how long.

“Ponyville get your butt moving! It is time to go!” La Dawn shouted.

Ponyville with foggy vision turns to look at La Dawn to see that he was dragging a pony in chains. What was odd about this other than the mask, was that this pony with the mask was the same size with the same colored coat as La Dawn. This confused the mare, it was as if La Dawn had a twin in cosplay.

She steps off the bed and stretches her stiff body. The pony felt like as if she hadn't left that bed for days. Then Ponyville’s heart sinks as her memories came flooding back.

“Eclipso!” Ponyville shouts.

La Dawn had the strange pony over by the window when Ponyville attacked him. The two of them struggled for a minute before La Dawn managed to get Ponyville off of him.

“Frinken pony you keep burning through your brain slugs!” La Dawn shouts as he puts his hoof down on Ponyville’s wing pinning her down.

“Ouch! You’re hurting me,” Ponyville cried.

“An amusing side effect,” La Dawn remarks. He turns to the pony in the iron mask. “I suppose I’ll have to use his for the time being.”

La Dawn whispers into the iron mask's ear hole. The pony in the iron mask struggles a bit then passes out as yellow mist almost like slime leaks out of the hole taking the shape of some kind of worm. La Dawn picks it up and places it into Ponyville’s ear.

Ponyville screams and thrashes violently. So violent that La Dawn had to let go of his grip. Ponyville leaps up into the air and one of her flailing limbs smacks La Dawn in the nose. He stumbles back and lets go of the pony in the iron mask.

The pony in the iron mask falls out the window. The feeling of the air pushing against his body awakens the Pegasus into a half conscious state. His body automatically rights itself in the air and the masked pony glides himself to a crash.

The crash was enough to awaken the masked pony into full consciousness. He turns around to get his bearings then looks up at the tower to see La Dawn pushing Ponyville out of the window both of them flying out. The masked pony could see La Dawn flying at him and he made a run for it.

Ponyville was the first to the ground landing as the masked pony went through some doors leading into the castle. La Dawn lands next to her and starts stomping his feet.

“Shit!”