A Canterlot Rebellion

by Minds Eye

Chapter 2: Gambit

Footsteps approached. Rainbow was lying on her side facing the back wall. She craned her neck over to look outside. Two changelings. One working the door, one ready to come inside. The doorman finished with the lock and looked in at her. His horn glowed green already. The second stepped towards her.

Show time.

She rolled onto her stomach and faced the guard, holding one front hoof to her body. The guard came closer. She rose to her knees. He stopped. Closer, you son of a sow. He studied her for a second. His eyes dropped to her hoof. Both changelings growled. The one inside her cell pointed wildly at her hoof. Rainbow didn't move. He fired a blast over her head and gestured again. She stretched her leg out to show him...nothing. He snorted and stepped closer.

Her tail whipped forward and threw a pile of gravel in his eyes. He raised his forelegs with a shout. In a flash she was up and pushing against him. A green bolt struck where she lay. One final shove sent the blinded guard falling backwards into the path of the shutting door, stopping it cold.

She leapt forward with everything she had, wings flapping for more acceleration. She collided with the blind one and drove him to the wall outside the cell. The metal bars were sent swinging back into the doorman's face. Rainbow jumped in the air to uppercut the changeling. She planted her hind legs on the wall and pushed off towards the dazed doorman. She angled to avoid a head on collision, but held out a leg to wrap around his neck. She dropped to the ground and drove his head into the floor. Both guards lay unconscious. She was free.

Rainbow looked around. She was in a long hallway of cells. There was an open doorway at one end. She called out once, heard no reply from other prisoners, and sprinted for the exit. She came into a small room with the same stone construction as her cell. All four walls held a door. Directly across from her sat another door of bars. Another hallway stretched out behind it. It was a mirror image of where she just came from. She remembered Fluttershy's words, "Pinkie and I were separated."

"Pinkie Pie!" Rainbow dashed to the door. It was locked. She pressed her muzzle between two bars and called out again. "Pinkie! Are you in there? Answer me!" The only answer was silence. Rather, silence after her echoes died down. Maybe shouting at the top of her lungs wasn't the best thing to do during a jailbreak...

She turned around and noticed a small stool sitting in a corner by the door she came from. A row of keys hung from the wall above it. A jailer's post. This part of the castle may not have seen this much activity for decades. Maybe centuries. Rainbow shook her head to clear her thoughts and focused on the remaining two doors in the room. One was a solid piece of cast iron, like something Big Macintosh would use to plow Sweet Apple Acres. The other was made of rotting wood. Rainbow didn't even bother with the keys. One good kick smashed through.

There was a stone ramp leading up a corridor. Rainbow galloped upwards. The air smelled fresher with every stride. An open doorway was waiting at the top and beyond that the white walls of the castle proper. And so much more. Rainbow gazed in disbelief at the treasure trove of weapons and armor lying before her. Spears and blades of all shapes and sizes lined the walls. Suits of armor stood in ranks throughout the room. From shining gold to dusky gray, both bulky and sleek, some with elaborate inscriptions and designs while others were simple and practical. She smiled at the thought of Twilight Sparkle and Spike dashing through this museum with quills and parchment, the dutiful dragon desperately trying to keep up with the unicorn's description of each item along with its place and purpose in Pony History.

Rainbow sighed as she realized there was no window to be found, no easy way out of the castle. Her only option was to risk sneaking through the halls. She looked up to the ceiling and saw enough room to fly over the sea of armor. She took flight and was halfway through the room when it caught her eye. There, on the wall to her left, was an upside down spear. She stopped in the air and looked around. There were no other spears like it. Curiosity got the better of her and she flew over to investigate.

The tip of the spear pointed to a brick that sat at eye level. Not only that, but two more spears, on the right and left, also had their tips pointed directly to that brick. Rainbow shook her head. It was too weird. No way was it coincidence. She raised a hoof and pushed it against the brick. A section of the wall fell away revealing a dark entrance that smelled staler than the dungeon. A tunnel?

Rainbow flew up to a torch mounted on the wall and took it in her mouth. She tossed it inside. The flame revealed a smooth stone wall. A path led to the right and to the left. It looked like the armory was a half-way point. Rainbow entered the tunnel and lifted the section of wall on the other side. There was a small handle on the back allowing easy access of the armory from the inside.

An angry buzz from the armory grabbed her attention. She recognized it immediately: changeling wings. The tunnel was her best chance to move unnoticed now. She replaced the wall, grabbed the torch, and headed left. She thought left would lead back down to the dungeon, and maybe to Fluttershy, but to her surprise the left path soon had a steep incline that snaked its way around itself like a stairwell. The tight quarters kept her grounded. The climb was frustratingly slow. Still, Rainbow Dash pressed on.

---

Twilight Sparkle yelped in pain. She threw down her chain in frustration. Her collar was becoming unbearable. She recognized it from her history books the instant Queen Chrysalis showed it to her, a collar enchanted to control unicorn criminals. Or, she realized, a unicorn slave. Her effort to squeeze chain links between the collar and her neck to create a degree of separation wasn't the first time she had felt its punishing shock. Nor, she resolved, would it be the last.

The length of chain anchored her collar to a wall in Princess Celestia's chambers. An luxurious bedroll with golden pillows lay in the center, a taunting comfort that was just beyond her reach. Chrysalis slept there though, oh yes she did. Chrysalis with her cheerful question of how Twilight slept, then pulling out the chain-with magic, another slap in the face-and leading her to the throne room. And there she stayed while Chrysalis played court with her soldiers. There she stayed while Celestia hung from the ceiling like a trophy. There she stayed lying at the foot of the throne like a pet, like a useless-

"Stop it," Twilight told herself. "The queen is gone. You don't know how long she'll be gone. You don't know when she'll leave you alone again. You can't waste time. Focus." There was a fire place next to her. Maybe she could heat the chain enough the break it. The chain pulled taught before she could put any part of it in the flame. She instinctively turned and started pulling in a different angle, trying to create just a few more inches of length. The enchanted collar sent another spark through her body. Her eyes moved to an elaborate tapestry of the night sky on the other side of her anchor point. If she could reach that and set it on fire...

It moved. Twilight blinked, not registering what she had just seen. It moved again like it was being pushed from the other side. A hoof stretched out underneath it and pulled up to reveal Rainbow Dash standing in front of a hole in the wall with a lit torch lying behind her. Their eyes met. "What are you doing here?!" sounded in unison. Rainbow started flying circles around Twilight as the unicorn reared back into the air.

"You're alive!"

"You're alive!"

"You're free!"

"You're not! Let me get that for you."

"No! Chrysalis will know you were here."

"Chrissy who?"

"Chrysalis. The changeling queen."

"You're coming with me! She won't know a thing."

“No! She hates me. She'll tear Canterlot apart until she finds me again."

"I'll get the Elements of Harmony! Then we find the others-"

"No! They moved the Elements. She rubbed them in my face and hid them in the castle."

"Did you see where? This tunnel might lead-"

"No! Rainbow, you need to leave me behind. Find Princess Luna. I think she's organizing a resistance in Equestria."

"I'm not lea-"

"No! She made Shining Armor erect his force field again. You'll never get out. OK, first you need to find my brother. No! The queen is with him. She's casting her spell to keep him strong. Well then, first you need to wait until he's alone. No! He'll be watched. They can't afford to let him collapse. In that case, first you need to take out his guards. No! You need to get out of the castle immediately. They'll be looking for you. Break the force field. A sonic rainboom should do it. No! That would-"

"Will you stop that?! You're driving me nuts!"

"What do you expect with zero prep time?!" Twilight jumped up to stare Rainbow eye-to-eye. "You should have told me you were going to escape!" She landed back on the ground and glared up, nostrils flaring with each breath. There was a pause. Rainbow's [i[snrk finally made her realize what she just said. She fell over with laughter, Rainbow landing on top of her, pounding the floor with her hoof. Twilight wiped a tear from her eye as they stood back up.

”Hey, what was that for?" Rainbow asked in surprise.

"For you! I thought we were finished. It's been two days since they took over. I've sat in the throne room with nothing to do but think about how I failed and listen about their free reign over Canterlot. Maybe now we can start fighting back."

Rainbow blinked. "These things talk?"

"To each other. And when they report to the queen, of course. That's how I know Luna escaped the trap set for her. She must have gone to Ponyville immediately. When the changeling scouts got there it was a ghost town. Oh, they also reported being attacked by streaks of blue and gold. It sounds like the Wonderbolts got out too."

Twilight smiled as Rainbow's face lit up. "And they'll warn Cloudsdale! The pegasi can turn the weather on these fly freaks! Equestria isn't finished yet!"

"They have an iron grip on Canterlot though. My brother is still under her control."

"And so are the others. Where are they?"

"The queen isn't concerned about them. I think she just wanted you separated from each other. She doesn't care what the soldiers do to you beyond that. I heard that Pinkie escaped though."

"What? How?"

"I don't know. They don't know. They left her alone in the dungeons and then found her dragging her party cannon through the castle halls later on. They're not letting her out of sight now."

"What about Fluttershy? They took her away a long time ago."

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "You saw Fluttershy? That doesn't make any sense. The queen ordered you separated."

"They put us in the same cell down in the dungeon. Twilight, I have to find her."

Twilight looked hard at Rainbow. The pegasus started shifting uncomfortably under her scrutiny. "Rainbow...are you sure it was her?" She cut off the reply by raising a hoof. "Just hear me out. We're in this mess because every pony assumed Cadance was real." Rainbow grimaced at that. "This is a war. Even with Luna and the Wonderbolts Equestria will need help. The Royal Guard was defeated and Celestia was captured. We don't have another standing army anywhere. The only ace up our sleeve right now is you. If you get caught because they were just playing with your head-"

"And how do I know you're you? How do you know I'm me?" Rainbow was airborne again, inches away from Twilight's face, glaring down. "She was real. I need to help her. I'm going to find her if I have to tear down this whole castle!" Twilight was speechless. Where did [i[that come from? She knew Rainbow and Fluttershy were close, but there was nothing approaching that reaction about the rest of the others. Loyalty, she reminded herself.

"Well, I know you're you because you just flippantly walked through a wall in enemy territory. Like sneaking into a hospital to steal a book without covering your rainbow tail color." Rainbow laughed and landed as the tension broke. "I'm sorry Rainbow Dash, but I don't know where Fluttershy is. The only reason I knew about Pinkie is because the soldiers reported she escaped. Like I said, the queen doesn't care what they do with you. She took me for her own and the others...Rainbow, we're just playthings to them."

That put some fire in Rainbow's eyes. That was what she wanted to see. "Alright Twilight, you want to start fighting back? I'm game. What do you want me to do?"

"We have to buy Luna time to organize an attack. Plus, we need to warn her if they invade anywhere else. Finally, we need to coordinate with her when she's ready to make her move. If we can bring down the force field on our end, like with a sonic rainboom, her job will be easier. In short, we need to communicate. Find Spike. Maybe he can redirect his letters. He's somewhere in the city."

Rainbow Dash gawked at her, jaw open. "You came up with all that off the top of your head?"

"I haven't had anything to do but think for two days. I thought I mentioned that."

Rainbow rubbed her head. "OK, but wasn't Spike caught? I saw him standing next to Cadance."

"Yes, but he wasn't there after our scuffle with Chrysalis. He wouldn't stick around the castle with all the changelings either. He must have slipped out and gone into the city."

"Where would I find him?"

"He's a baby dragon. He'll need his food. Now you need to leave. I don't know when Chrysalis will be back. Oh! Loosen up this collar before you go."

Rainbow looked confused, but started to work with the collar. "What is this thing anyway?"

"Anti-magical containment equipment. It drains the magic energy from the wearer and can shock them if they try to remove it. Stop! That's perfect." The collar was still attached, but she felt stronger than she had for two days. "I'll be able to cast a spell or two now. Remember what I said about you being our only ace? Well, now we have another."

"What good would one or two spells do?"

"Nothing. But a little bit of nothing can change everything." Rainbow Dash face hoofed. "Daring Do and the Mummy's Mask. She says it right before the fight in-"

"Gah! Don't tell me! I haven't read that one yet." Twilight giggled, her body's movement rattling the chain. Rainbow sighed. "Look, that thing shocks you. It's still on too tight. You're chained. Come with me."

"I can't. Chrysalis will hunt me down. She hates me. My staying here will keep her complacent. Plus, I can hear their plans. We need that advantage." Rainbow started shifting uncomfortably again. "Go. I'll be fine." Twilight's brow furrowed in confusion as Rainbow froze in place. "It's not like you to hesitate. Are you OK?"

"I hate this Twilight."

"I hate it too. Just stay safe." Twilight Sparkle lay down by the wall to wait for the queen's return. "You're our only hope right now."

Rainbow Dash flew to the wall. With one last look over her shoulder she flipped up the tapestry and was gone.