A Mare Apart
“Hey, lemme go!” Spike shouted as he thrashed in his captor’s grip. “Lemme go!”
“Stop moving!” the unknown pony said. She flipped a cloth sack over his head. “You’re gonna make me drop you!”
“Wait a minute, I know you!” he said. “Rainbow Dash?” His claws pulled at the bag, but he couldn't tear through the heavy burlap.
“Yeah, sorry about this, Spike,” Rainbow said. She shifted him in her forelegs into a more comfortable position. “You’re a great guy, but orders are orders, you know?”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, trying to find a way to see through the sack. “Whose orders? Rainbow, what’s going on?”
“Like I’d tell you that!” she said with a snort. “Look, just keep quiet and I’ll make sure you stay safe.”
Spike opened his mouth to argue, but snapped it shut instead. I have to get back to Twilight, he thought. She’ll know what to do! He settled himself in for the long haul and started to plot his escape.
Reclining on a sofa, Discord and Luna watched Twilight’s fight, which a film projector cast onto the wall.
“Very nicely done!” Luna said when Twilight landed a wild kick in her attacker’s side. “Her form leaves plenty to be desired, but still…”
On the screen, Twilight pulled Spike out of harm’s way and ran into her bedroom. “I expected her to fold right away, to be honest,” Discord said. He stuffed a handful of popcorn into his mouth.
“You underestimate her,” Luna said with a laugh. “Without a doubt, Twilight Sparkle shall provide us with an entertain… ing…” Her eyes widened. Twilight had just leaped out of a window, the library exploding moments later. “Oh, my…”
“Whoa-hoho!” Discord shouted, nearly falling from his chair. “She could do this for a liv—”
“This is not real, correct?” Brow furrowed, Luna glanced at him.
“How many times do I need to tell you? No, none of this is real!” He sipped on his glass of juice.
“She shan’t experience any pain?” she asked, looking him in the eye. “Humor me, Discord. A prank is one thing, but I will not forgive you should she come to harm.” Meanwhile, Twilight had received a kick to the back of the head. The pony who had attacked her picked up Spike and flew off.
“We agreed, didn't we?” Discord snapped. He stood and stretched his arms. “It’s a dream. She’s not actually doing any of these things. No pain. Alright?”
Luna spent a long moment staring at him before finally nodding and returning her gaze to the screen. “Alright.”
The moment she looked away, a wide smile spread across Discord’s face. “You can trust me,” he said. “You could drop a building on her, and she wouldn't feel a thing.”
Twilight’s head throbbed.
She struggled for coherent thought, but the only thing she could focus on was the pain. She had the sense that somepony stood over her, but her mind quickly returned to the headache.
“Hey, look!” said a voice that sounded as though the speaker stood on the other side of a veil of water. “She’s moving!” Recognition stirred in Twilight’s brain.
“After Ah’m through with her, she’ll wish she hadn’t woken up,” said a second voice. Twilight strained to open her eyes, to no avail. She could see swirling colors, but nothing that made any sense.
“A—Applejack?” she croaked. Her words sounded like they been spoken from a distance.
“Heya, Twilight!” said the first voice. “Wakey, wakey! We’ve got things to do!”
With a monumental effort, Twilight finally managed to pry her eyelids open, and immediately regretted doing so. A bright light hung over her, and her headache flared as it stung her still-sensitive eyes.
“Well, good mornin’, sunshine.” She turned in the speaker’s direction and Applejack's face slowly came into focus. “‘Bout damn time ya woke up.”
Twilight found that opening her eyes was no longer an issue. They widened to their fullest extent. “Applejack?!”
“Don’t ya give me that ‘Applejack’ shit!” she said. “Ya blow up the town library, gettin’ three ponies killed while you’re at it, and then ya make me drag yer sorry ass all the way back to headquarters! Ah’m gettin’ too old for this…”
“Headquarters?” Twilight sat up and took in her surroundings. She lay on a couch in a small, grimy office. Files piled up everywhere, to the point where the only free space was the path between her makeshift bed and the windowless door. “Where are we?” She frowned as he noticed the Applejack’s odd attire.
“And now Ah’ve got a head-case to deal with…” Applejack muttered, rolling up the sleeves of her blue, button-down shirt. “Ah swear, ya’ll be the death of me.” She loosened her tie.
“Aw, give her some slack, Chief!” Twilight craned her head to peek around Applejack, where Pinkie Pie stood, bouncing in place. “Hi, Twilight!”
“Hi, Pinkie,” Twilight said with a little wave. “Would somepony tell me what’s going on and where we are?”
“You’re at Sweet Apple Headquarters, silly!” Pinkie said in a sing-song voice. “I found you taking a nap in the street, so I got the chief to help me bring you back!”
“And Ah’ll be damned if Ah agree to help you, again,” Applejack said to her. “Ya left me to do all the hard work!”
“Applejack! Why are you using all these curse-words?” Twilight asked. She slowly pushed herself off of the couch.
“Ya got a problem with the way Ah talk?” Applejack put her nose an inch from Twilight’s and glared. “Ain’t that just too bad? Ah won’t have a renegade cop like you telling me how to speak!”
“What?!” Twilight said, eyes widening. “A cop? Me?”
“Trust me, Ah use the word loosely,” Applejack said. “A mare like you, who does as she damn well pleases and plays by her own rules… ya know, ya’d—”
“Ya’d be offa the force iffen ya weren’t the best darned cop Ah had,” Pinkie said, waving her legs. “C’mon, Chief, she just woke up! Give her a chance to breath, at least!”
Applejack scowled and pushed her way past Pinkie. “The two of ya make me glad that tomorrow’s mah last day,” she said. “Retirement ain’t never looked so good.” The door slammed shut behind her.
For a few moments, neither Twilight nor Pinkie spoke. Twilight simply stared in the direction Applejack had gone. “Well, partner,” Pinkie said finally, “how’re you feeling?”
“Partner?” Twilight's gaze slowly shifted to Pinkie. “What do you mean?”
“Geez, you must’ve hit your head pretty hard,” Pinkie said. She nudged Twilight to the couch and pushed her onto it. “Don’t tell me you've forgotten the best partner in the whole wide world!”
“You’re… my partner,” Twilight said, and Pinkie nodded. “And I’m a cop.” Another nod. “I’m a cop, and you’re my partner.”
“Yep!” Pinkie smiled widely.
“This doesn't make any sense,” Twilight said as she rubbed her forehead. “How am I a police officer? Ponyville doesn't even have a police department! Pinkie, something is very wrong, here!”
“You mean besides the library exploding?” Pinkie said, throwing her forelegs into the air.
“Well, that too,”Twilight admitted, “but it’s more than that!” She opened and stretched her wings. “Applejack’s a police chief? And what happened to Sweet Apple Acres? And then Rainbow Dash kidnapped Spi—” Her eyes opened wide. “I completely forgot! Rainbow Dash kidnapped Spike! We have to save him!”
The moment Twilight mentioned Rainbow Dash, Pinkie had shushed loudly. “Don’t say her name here! What if Applejack—”
The door slammed open to reveal a scowling Applejack. “Did somepony say, ‘Rainbow Dash’?”
“Yes, I did!” Twilight said, stepping forward. “She’s the one who knocked me out, and then she took Spike!”
“Is that right?” Applejack rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “So, your turncoat partner’s back, eh? And ya say she took your little friend?”
“Er—turncoat partner?” Twilight asked with a frown.
“She took a bonk on her noggin, Chief,” Pinkie explained in a hushed tone to Applejack. “She’s a bit confused.” More loudly, she addressed Twilight. “Yeah, Rainbow was your partner before me, before she quit to join the Wonderbolts.”
“Right before they went crooked,” Applejack muttered. A stormy expression crossed her face.
“This is making less and less sense by the second,” Twilight said, sighing deeply. “Anyway, do you know where she is?”
“Can’t say Ah do,” Applejack said as she wrung her hooves. “But Ah can say that Ah ain’t lettin’ her get away this time. Ah’ll see what Ah can find out, then we’ll plan from there. Now go make yourself useful, in the meantime!” She stomped back out of the room.
Pinkie wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead. “You really lucked out!” she said. “Usually it doesn't end so well when anypony mentions Rainbow Dash around the chief.”
“We have to do something, too,” Twilight said, moving towards the door, “just in case Applejack can’t learn anything.”
“What did you have in mind?”
“First, we need to hunt down Spike. Then I’m going to find out what the hay is going on!” She paused with her hoof on the doorknob when she felt a hoof touch her on the back. “Is something wrong?”
“Nope, nothing wrong,” Pinkie said. She grabbed a pile of clothing that laid on the desk and held it forth. “Just thought you’d want your work clothes, first!”
Twilight eyed the garments, a turtleneck sweater and a trench coat, before accepting them. “Do I have to wear these?”
“Yeppers! Well, unless you want the chief to call you a two-bit prostitute!” Pinkie said with a grin.
“I guess that’s as good a reason as any,” Twilight said. She pulled the navy-blue turtleneck over her head. “Is this what everypony wears, here?”
“Just you,” Pinkie replied. “Oh, here, lemme give you a hoof with that.” She helped Twilight get her legs through the sleeves.
After she threw on the coat, Twilight nodded her appreciation. “Thanks,” she said. “Wait, what are these?” She reached into a pocket and pulled out a pair of shaded glasses.
“So, what’s the plan, partner?” Pinkie asked as Twilight closely examined the shades.
“I have an idea for how we can find Spike,” Twilight said, sliding the glasses over her eyes. A grin slowly spread across her face, but she quashed it immediately. No! This is not fun! This is serious! “How would you feel about a scavenger hunt?”
“Oof!” The air shot out of Spike’s lungs as Rainbow dumped him unceremoniously to the cold, hard floor.
“Heh, uh, whoops,” she said. “Sorry about that.” She pulled the sack from his head.
“Where are we?” Spike asked, blinking in the light.
“Cut the chatter,” said a sharp voice. A yellow mare with an orange mane walked over.
“Y-you’re Spitfire!” Spike pointed at her with a shaking claw. “One of the Wonderbolts!”
“I said ‘shut it’!” she snapped, and he closed his mouth instantly. She turned to speak with Rainbow. “Good job, Dash. The boss’ll be pleased.”
“Y-yeah,” Rainbow said. A frown marred her face and she glanced away. “Thanks.”
“Is there a problem?” Spitfire asked. Her wings unfurled. “You don’t look too happy.”
“Well, I was just thinking…” Rainbow played with the end of her mane as she spoke. “Why are we doing things like this? I didn’t leave the force and join the Wonderbolts to kidnap helpless babies!”
“Hey!” Spike said with a scowl.
Spitfire ignored him. “You aren’t doubting your decision, are you?” she asked.
“N-no!” Rainbow said quickly. “I’ve wanted to be a Wonderbolt since I was a filly! It’s just, when Soarin’ was in charge—”
“Soarin’ isn’t in charge, anymore.” Spitfire stomped the ground so violently that a crack appeared in the wood. “I am, so you’ll do what I say, right?” Rainbow nodded slowly. “Good. Now, bring the kid. The boss wants to meet him.”
They led Spike through the building, which appeared to be slowly falling down around them. Floorboards creaked when subjected to the slightest pressure, and holes littered the ceiling, letting copious amounts of sunlight in that couldn't breach the dust-covered windows. He almost stepped on a rat that hadn't been paying enough attention. They rounded a corner and nearly collided with a light-blue unicorn.
“So, the prodigal flier returns,” she said to Rainbow. “Trixie didn’t expect you back here, unless it was in a body-bag.”
Rainbow glanced at Spitfire, who shrugged and stepped back. “A simple job like that won’t kill me,” she said. “Wish I could say the same about your guys, though.”
Trixie’s face paled. “What are you talking about? Trixie’s shadow stallions were trained by Trixie herself! They can never fail!”
“Apparently they skipped the lesson about outrunning bombs,” Rainbow said. Pushing past the dumbstruck Trixie, she nudged Spike down the hallway.
“Trixie will not let this stand!” Trixie said. She turned and darted in the opposite direction.
“They got blown up, eh?” Spitfire asked softly. “Who planted the bomb?”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Rainbow’s gait became more pronounced. “Must’ve been somepony pretty fast, I bet.”
Spitfire chuckled as they stopped in front of a set of double-doors. “Dash, it’s times like this I’m glad I found you.” She reached out and pushed the portal open.
“Rainbow,” Spike said, pausing in the doorway, “did you really blow up the library?”
Rainbow glanced away. “Well, I—”
“Get a move on!” Spitfire said as she shoved him forward.
“Fine, I get it,” he grumbled. Rainbow gave him an apologetic shrug and gently pressed him into the room.
The space was dark, with a large desk sitting opposite from the door. A swivel chair sat behind it with its back turned. A half-dozen gryphons stood around the desk, including one that wore a suit-and-tie. The others were more casually clothed.
As the newcomers walked to the desk, the well dressed gryphon gave Rainbow a feral grin. “‘Sup, Dash?”
“Yo, Gilda,” Rainbow said, returning the smile.
The chair shifted and revealed that a shadowy form occupied it. “We brought the kid, Boss,” Spitfire said.
“Very good,” said the chair’s occupant in a feminine voice. “I appreciate your hard work.”
As soon as he heard the voice, Spike staggered backwards, wide-eyed. “Hoo, boy,” he said. “We’re in trouble.”
“Kid,” Gilda said, “you don’t know the half of it.
Encased in the purple glow of Twilight’s magic, a charred board floated out of the rubble. She grunted as she flicked her head, sending the refuse into a pile of similarly discarded trash.
She and Pinkie stood in the blackened remains of what had once been the Golden Oaks library. They had spent the better part of an hour sorting through the wreckage.
“Hey, look what I found!” Pinkie bounded over and proudly displayed her treasure—a pair of joke glasses with plastic eyeballs suspended on springs. She giggled as they bounced in front of her face.
“Mhmm,” Twilight said without even glancing away from her work. “That’s nice.” She threw aside another piece of rubble.
Pinkie dropped to her haunches and cocked her head. “So, what’re ya lookin’ for, anyway? Another sweet pair of glasses? Oo, oo! Maybe a fake mustache! No no—wait.” Behind the glasses, her eyes widened. “A bald cap!”
“Actually, I’m digging for the basement stairs,” Twilight said. “And I think I found them.” Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead as she strained to move a fallen bookcase. “There’s something—down there—” The shelf slowly slid to the side, pushed by Twilight’s magic “—that I need. Phew.” Where the bookcase had sat, a set of stairs descended into murky darkness.
“Oo, spooky,” Pinkie said, peeking over Twilight’s shoulder. The glass eyes bobbed on the ends of their springs.
“It’s just my laboratory,” Twilight said as she wiped the perspiration from her brow. “You've been down there before, haven't you?” She stood and started down.
“It’s still spooky,” Pinkie muttered, close on Twilight’s heels.
A glow appeared at the end of Twilight’s horn, illuminating the area around them in a dim, purple light. Although in better condition than the library above, the basement was still in a state of disarray caused by the explosion. Much of the equipment had fallen to the ground, and the ceiling didn't appear to be wholly stable.
“Let’s find this thing quickly,” Twilight said. The spark from her horn floated to the ceiling, where it hung in mid-air. She stared at it for a second before nodding and trotting over to a fallen cabinet. “This place could come down at any second.”
“What exactly are we looking for?” Pinkie asked. She dumped the soil out of a flower pot and looked inside.
“It’s a scanner that can lead us to Spike,” Twilight said as she rifled through a set of drawers. “I built it after he ran away into the Everfree Forest. I never thought we’d be using it to save him from kidnappers, though.”
“Wow, that’s an awfully convenient invention!” Pinkie flipped the flower pot over and examined the bottom.
Twilight moved to a pile of equipment that had fallen from her workbench. “I prefer to think of it as foresight. Have you found anything?”
“I don’t even know what it looks like,” Pinkie said, tossing the flower pot over her shoulder and reaching towards the soil she had poured out.
“It’s like a metal frisbee, with a green screen on it,” Twilight said. “I don’t think you’ll find it…there…” Her jaw dropped as Pinkie lifted a shiny disk, the size of a volley ball, out of the dirt.
“Is this it?” she asked. The purple light glinted dully off of her prize.
Twilight smacked a hoof against her forehead. “It’s Pinkie Pie,” she muttered. “I don’t know what I was expecting.” Louder, she said, “Yes, Pinkie, that’s it! Good job!”
“Woo hoo!” Pinkie started forward, but before she took even two steps, a blue glow encompassed the disk and yanked it from her grasp. “Hey! I was holding that!”
“Not anymore,” said a voice. Both mares turned towards the stairs, at the top of which stood an obscured figure. Neither Twilight nor Pinkie could tell its identity due to the sunlight that streamed around it.
“Who are you?” Twilight asked as she stomped her hoof. “I’m really not in the mood for this right now.”
“Worry not, Twilight Sparkle,” the figure said, causing Twilight’s eyes to widen. "Trixie knows how to fix that.”
Now that Spike had been delivered, Rainbow wandered around the derelict base, looking for something to do. Spitfire had disappeared, and Trixie, whom Rainbow loved to torment, was nowhere to be found.
“Heeeey, Dash!” She turned to find Gilda approaching. “I thought I’d find you around here.”
“Yeah, bored out of my mind,” Rainbow said. She held out a hoof, which Gilda clapped with a talon. “What’s up?”
“Not much. Just got a little question for ya.” Gilda’s eyes darted around. “Is anyone else around here?”
“Just us,” Rainbow said with a frown. “Why? Is something wrong?”
“Naaw!” Gilda said. She snorted and brushed a feather out of her face. “Just wanna make sure this little conversation of ours isn’t overheard, is all.” She leaned against the wall nonchalantly. “So, I hear the boss has plans for this ‘Twilight Sparkle’ nerd.”
“Does she?” Rainbow asked as her frown deepened. “What makes you say that?”
Gilda snorted again. “Why else would she bother kidnapping her dragon buddy? I bet she’s trying to lure that dork here.”
“I guess that makes sense,” Rainbow said. “But why would she want to do that?”
“I dunno. I didn’t ask.” Gilda pushed off the wall and put a wing around her friend's shoulders. “I just wanna make sure you’re with me, on this. Soon, there’s gonna be a line drawn in the sand, and we’re all gonna have to choose sides.”
“What do you mean?” Rainbow asked with a quirked eyebrow. “Why would you not be on the boss’s side?”
Gilda lowered her voice further. “I don’t like the way this looks,” she said. “We’ve got a chance to make, like, a ton of money, and I don’t want some stupid cop to mess it up because we didn’t take care of her.” The wing tightened around Rainbow. “So, what do you say? Can I count on you?”
“Heh, o-of course, I’m on your side,” Rainbow said. She adopted her most convincing grin. “We’re buds, right?”
“Right,” Gilda said, returning the smile. “Well, if you’re with me, then it won’t hurt to let you in on a little secret. The boss wants Twilight to come here, right? Well, I think it’s a better idea to make sure that she doesn’t.”
“So, you want me to take Spike back home?” Rainbow asked. Her face fell when Gilda laughed loudly.
“Naw, I’m gonna take Sparkle out before she has a chance to get here.” The wing gave Rainbow a light squeeze.
“Wait,” she said, eyes widening. “I don’t think I can do that for—”
“You? Dash, you’ve got it all wrong!” Gilda said. She let her friend loose from the casual embrace. “I know you used to be buddies with the mare, so I sent Trixie instead! She wanted to do it, anyway, so it’s a win-win as far as I can tell.”
“Yeah, win-win,” Rainbow said weakly. Her legs wobbled. “I—I think I’m going to take it easy, for a bit.” She turned and trudged away. “See ya.”
“Just remember whose side you’re on,” Gilda said to to Rainbow's back just as she nodded and turned a corner. “Yeah, I have a good feeling about this. A real good feeling.”
“Trixie?!” Twilight exclaimed, reeling backwards. “What are you doing here?”
“Oh, not much,” Trixie said as she sashayed down the stairs. A pair of muscled thugs stomped after her. “You know, getting some milk. Visiting old friends. Taking vengeance for my stallions that you killed.”
“What are you talking about?” Twilight said. Trixie’s thugs reached the basement floor and flanked their boss. “I’ve never killed anypony!”
“Don’t play stupid, Twilight Sparkle—Trixie’s too smart for that. You killed them by destroying your own library.” Twilight’s device floated under Trixie’s nose, allowing her to examine it. “This looks expensive! What does it do?”
“Trixie, please, give that back,” Twilight said as she took a step forward. One of the thugs growled and moved between her and his boss, but she paid him no mind. “I need that to find Spike!”
“So, would it make you angry—” Trixie’s horn flared, and the disk folded in half. The sparking device fell from her grasp “—if Trixie did this?” She slammed her hoof down on the device and ground it into the floor.
“Hey! That was mean!” Pinkie said. She whipped off her joke glasses. “What’s Twilight ever done to you, huh?”
“Only everything she could to make Trixie look bad at the Academy!” Trixie shouted. She stomped repeatedly on the disk. “All I wanted was to be a good pony, but no! Miss Perfect Twilight Sparkle had to be better at everything!”
“Trixie, we already resolved our disagreement,” Twilight said with another step forward. The thug that blocked her way flared his wings. “And I don’t know what you’re saying about an academy, but I would never try to make you look bad!”
Trixie’s eyes narrowed. “Trixie already told you not to play dumb,” she snarled. “You two—” She gestured at her underlings “—take care of the stupid pink one.”
“I’m not stupid!” Pinkie said, scowling.
“Twilight Sparkle is Trixie’s,” she continued. A bright glow encompassed her horn.
Twilight slowly backed away from her. “You don’t have to do this,” she stammered as her eyes widened. “We can talk about it.”
“And pass up the chance to see you in the dirt?” Without warning, Trixie’s magic picked up a heavy wooden block and threw it directly at Twilight. “Trixie wouldn’t miss this for the world!”
The two grinning thugs approached Pinkie, who made no movement other than to glance back and forth between them.
“It’s not fair that the boss gets all the fun,” said the pegasus to his ally, a unicorn.
“Stop complaining, and let’s just get this over with,” the unicorn said as he cracked his neck.
“Heya, fellas!” Pinkie said with a wide grin. “How about you give yourselves up?” The thugs halted in their tracks.
“Are you serious?” the pegasus said. His eyes narrowed.
“Don’t let her rile you up,” the unicorn warned.
“If you want, I can take it easy on you,” Pinkie added, sliding the joke glasses back onto her face. “Ooo, googly googly!” She clutched her ribs and giggled.
With a growl, the pegasus spread his wings and shot forward. “No, wait!” his fellow thug shouted, but to no avail.
A moment before he collided with Pinkie, she leapt into the air, easily clearing him. “Whee!” she cheered. The pegasus’ eyes widened as he rammed face-first into the wall behind her.”
“Moron,” the unicorn muttered, rubbing his forehead wearily.
The still-giggling Pinkie glanced back at her prone opponent. “That looked ouchy,” she said. “You know, you two should really attack at the same time.”
“I don’t need his help for this.” The remaining thug inched forward.
“Okey dokey!” Pinkie said as she reached up to bounce the eyeballs. “If you say so!”
On the other side of the room, a veritable deluge of refuse soared through the air, all aimed directly at Twilight. Ducking and weaving, she managed to dodge nearly all of it. Unfortunately for her, a broken microscope caught her on the side of the head.
“Ow!” she grunted.
“Ha!” Trixie crowed. “Take that! Feel Trixie’s unbridled wrath!” Another wave of junk floated behind her, flying forward when she flicked her head.
“Alright, that’s enough,” Twilight said under her breath. Her own horn lit, and the glows surrounding Trixie’s projectiles disappeared. The rubble fell back to the ground, where it lay unmoving.
“What?” Trixie strained, but no matter how much magic she poured into the spell, nothing happened. A drop of sweat ran down her cheek. “What did you do?!”
“Counter—spell,” Twilight answered between pants. “Your magic—isn’t strong enough—to beat me. Give it up.”
“Trixie doesn’t need magic to beat you!” Trixie shrieked. With an ear-piercing scream, she leaped forward, eyes bulging and hooves leading the way.
“Not this again!” Twilight said as she narrowly sidestepped the attack. Trixie immediately followed up with a right hook which came so close to hitting, it ruffled Twilight's mane. “Pinkie, a little help, please?” She backpedalled away from a series of rapid kicks.
“Sorry, Twilight, I’m kind of busy!” Pinkie said. The pegasus had regained his senses and joined his fellow in attacking her. “Just fight back!”
One of Trixie’s legs caught Twilight in the chest, drawing a grunt of pain. “I don’t know how to fight!” she growled as she hopped over a low kick.
“What’re you talking about? You fight all the time!” Pinkie dropped and rolled, passing under the unicorn and knocking his legs out from under him. The air was blasted out of his lungs as he hit the ground. “Or did you forget that, too, when you hit your head?”
“Uh, yeah,” Twilight said. A flap of her wings had her soaring over Trixie’s head to land behind her. “Let’s go with that. Tell me what to do!”
“Okey dokey!” The two thugs charged Pinkie from either side. “Just stop running away, and try to kick back!” She jumped straight up, and the thugs collided beneath her. A hollow crack echoed in the air. “Ouch, that sounded like it hurt!”
“Try to kick back,” Twilight muttered, rolling her eyes. “Why didn’t I think of that?” Her lapse of concentration nearly cost her, as Trixie threw a powerful uppercut that clipped her chin.
“You shouldn’t try to have a conversation while fighting!” Trixie shouted. She raised both of her forelegs and brought them crashing down towards Twilight’s head.
Okay, Pinkie said not to run away. Steeling herself, she crossed her own forelegs above her. They shook painfully when they caught Trixie’s attack, but the block held. A grin slowly spread across Twilight’s face as her opponent’s eyes widened.
“W-what?” Trixie said, frozen in place.
Twilight lashed out with her hind leg before Trixie could recover, catching her in the stomach. She staggered backwards, but Twilight didn't plan to give her a chance to breath. She pressed forward with her own hooves lashing out, each strike only barely blocked by Trixie.
“I’m doing it,” Twilight said as she continued her assault. “Pinkie, I’m actually fighting!” Suddenly, she swept a leg out and knocked Trixie’s out from under her. Trixie hit the floor heavily, where she lay groaning.
“Twilight, do it!” Pinkie shouted. She smacked her opponents’ heads together once more, and they, too, fell.
“Do what?” Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow.
“The one-liner!” Pinkie trotted over to stand beside her. “You gotta use the one-liner! It’s the most important part!”
“Er, alright,” Twilight said. Her face scrunched up as she racked her mind. “Um… Oh, I got one!” Trixie had regained her footing and lunged forwards, murder in her eyes. “Why don’t you shove this up your uni-corn hole?” Twilight slugged Trixie, dropping her like a sack of bricks. “Get it?” she said to Pinkie, who stood immobile, mouth gaping. “Because she’s a unicorn?”
Pinkie smacked a hoof against her face, and both she and Trixie groaned simultaneously.
“What?” Twilight protested. “That was pretty good!”
Just as Pinkie started to reply, a low rumble resounded through the room. Both she and Twilight glanced up to see cracks rapidly spreading across the ceiling.
“It’s coming down!” Twilight looked around frantically. “Where’s the scanner? It might still work!” She dashed to and fro with her face nearly touching the ground.
“Twilight, forget it!” Pinkie said. “Trixie wrecked it pretty bad!” She tried to pull her partner towards the stairs, but Twilight shrugged her off.
“This—isn’t over,” wheezed Trixie. She stood panting on the stairs. Her magic grabbed hold of the two unconscious thugs and pulled them to her. “Next time, Trixie will be victorious!” She shambled out of the basement, dragging the thugs behind.
“C’mon, we need to go!” Pinkie said. She managed to get a hold of Twilight’s foreleg. “Leave it behind! I’m sure the chief’ll know where to find Spike!”
Twilight’s eyes wavered. “But—” A chunk of plaster fell from the ceiling, narrowly missing her head. “Fine, let’s get out of here.” She let Pinkie pull her up the stairs.
They stepped into the sunlight and dashed out of the library’s remains a moment before the building finally collapsed once and for all. The tree that Twilight had lived in for the past year and a half fell into the basement, burying her laboratory, as well as her chance to track down Spike. She sat on her haunches and stared at the hole that was once her home.
“Don’t worry,” Pinkie said as she patted Twilight on the back. “Like I said, I’m sure the chief can help!”
“I hope so,” Twilight said with a sigh. “And Trixie got away, too.” She rubbed her side gingerly. “I guess we should get back to Sweet Apple Acr—Headquarters.”
“Okey dokey!” Pinkie giggled at the eyeballs dangling from her glasses. “You know, these never get old!”
Twilight sighed once more. “Wish I could say that about other things.”
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My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
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Oh, no...I have a feeling Applejack isn't long for this world.
4254135
Wh—whaaaa? Naw, friend, naw! No waaay!
Last day on the job?
RIP AJ.
Hope it lives up to your expectations. I can't speak for how it is to read, but it sure was fun as hell to write.
To be fair, "real life" Twilight has been punched through a mountain and all she felt was her increasing anger^^